congrats to my friends pete & amy for bringing little elliot into the world this morning, all 6lbs and 1oz of him...i can't wait to meet him!

HEY! the debut cd from watchers is coming out TOMORROW!!!! run out to reckless records if you live in chicago and get your copy!!! or order from insound.com!!! or come out to the cd release party on friday may 2 @ the metro with watchers, the eternals & the apes and many many more.

here are a couple reviews of the album:

delusions of adequacy
live4now.com

and check out their page on their label gern blandsten's website...that's rt in the middle of the photo...

p.s. rt told me to add that rt was the original drummer and a founding member of watchers and drummed on the recording for which he helped to write the music. for those of you paying attention, i first saw rt @ the duvall show back on august 24th for which watchers opened up.

happy easter y'all...

doin' laundry, cleaning house, all that good stuff...

it's hot right now, but it's gonna get cold again...so far it's been a lovely weekend...thursday night rt made stirfry and then we went to see chicago @ the amc theatre downtown...i can't believe all those actors (catherine zeta-jones, renee zellweger, richard gere) sang and danced all their own parts...like queen latifah i can see, but i was pretty impressed by the others...it was a pretty spectacular movie.

friday i didn't work! woo hoo!!! i met my cousin kris @ filter after she got off of work, and we went over to my apartment and i pulled out my bottle of cabernet sauvignon that i've had since the lost dogs show back in sept. which i forgot to give to one of the dogs...rt happened to buzz right when we were trying to figure out how to open the darn thing...just in time...he was supposed to be working, so it was a surprise...we went out to dinner @ penny's & then met up w/ connie later @ cy's up in glenview where we drank some pretty weak drinks...rt had a vodka martini, and he said that was weak...like how do you dilute a vodka martini? it's VODKA...

ok...saturday was pretty lazy...and now i gotta do a million things before i go meet my mom & bro for dinner & then it's chinupchinup @ the fireside...q & not u were supposed to headline tonight, but the drummer broke his foot!! i'm bummed cuz i really wanted to see them...

and not the joneses who are on wildwood's roster are opening up for zapruder point wednesday nite @ the beat kitchen!! i didn't even know those guys were playing out any more...

alright...back to the madness...

oh, i've been reading the tao te ching...it's been really interesting...

ok, i don't know who turned the heat off, but we're back down to the 40's here in the windy city...i mean, c'mon...we were in the frickin' 80's a couple days ago!

tuesday night was just absolutely gorgeous...we opened the windows in my apartment, even though the one in the living room doesn't have a screen on it, and the breeze was just scrumptious...one of the nice things about being in the attic...you get quite a bit of wind up there...

rt & i went to this bar & grill called the handlebar on north ave & oakley...it's a biker bar, but not the motorcycle kind, the old fashioned muscle powered kind...i really like it...we didn't eat cuz we weren't hungry, but the menu looked pretty good...and they have drink specials every day, including buck fifty PBRs on mondays...our bartender was not really a bartender...he was just a waiter trying to learn how to mix drinks...so i tried to get him to make me a vodka lemonade like johnny's at the flower lounge in seattle, but i must be forgetting some of the ingredients cuz it didn't taste anything like johnny's...while we were sitting at the bar, a crew from cozy's cyclery came by, including ryan, who sold me my bike, and this other dude who built rt's racing bike...i like cyclists...i wanna be one too...john always said he'd make a city biker out of me...

so last night i went to a spirituality discussion group @ the aion teahouse...it was interesting...everybody there came from interesting backgrounds...quite a few musicians too, including the guitar player from life at sea...i realized last night as i listened to everyone else how lazy i've been in questioning things like faith and organized religion etc...i was raised with such a narrow view on all that...well, we'll see where all this leads, if anywhere...

tonight rt & i start brewing beer...it's something to do...and tomorrow i don't work but rt does...

been listening to--
bootlegs galaore
nemesisters--babes in toyland
demo--ticklepenny corner
my year in review--bill mallonee
blood on the tracks--bob dylan
very emergency--the promise ring
the bends--radiohead

happy tax day everybody...

well, it's been a busy several days for me...

friday i made my 2nd big transportational purchase in two months...i bought me a bike...rt & i went to cozy cyclery before dinner & movie cuz they're having their big spring sale...rt helped me pick out a lovely specialized hard something or another mountain bike in shiny blue...we also got road tires for it so i don't have to ride around w/ unneccessarily knobby tires...it's a good bike for the price i paid...someday i am going back to that trail in kettle morraine that kicked my ass two years ago and i'm gonna whup some ass myself...

we got pizza subs & and milk shakes and pickles (great combo, eh?) @ potbellys across the street and then saw old school w/ the beautiful and talented luke wilson and the one and only will farrell...i love luke wilson...

saturday, we went & picked up my bike from cozy's downtown...rt switched out the tires for me right on the sidewalk in front of cozy's...i have to say that bike felt really good when i rode around a little in front of the store...now i just have to get used to carrying it up and down 3 flights of stairs...and i need to find a way to hang it up somewhere in my tiny apartment because it's taken over my entire living room...

so rt & i watched bottlerocket saturday night cuz he'd never seen it...and he didn't like it...i can't believe it! like how could you not like bottlerocket??? granted, i'm a bit biased since this movie has luke wilson in it, but still...sometimes i wonder about that rt...

caleb called me after the movie, and he was all excited after the bill mallonee show he'd put on that night...he told me he & kathy & audrey got to hang w/ bill for a couple hours, and it sounded like a really good time...i just wish i could've been there...someday, caleb will play with bill...i know this for a fact...i was just really happy for caleb...

we went to see ethan spin @ get me high after the movie...it was pretty late...like 1 am i think...but it was really good seeing ethan again...and i love the records that ethan plays...he KNOWS his music...rt really misses playing w/ him...

sunday, my friend brandon from bloomington, indy came into town cuz he was gonna go see tom petty & the heartbreakers @ the vic on monday...brandon has the distinction of having opened up for bill mallonee once, and when i told rt this, he was really impressed cuz he calls bill a superstar who hasn't sold out...i suppose rt's disdain for bottlerocket is excused by his admiration for bill's music...anyways, this was brandon's first time ever in chicago, so rt & i played host...we took him around wicker park a bit, including reckless records, which he loved, and then we went to rt's apartment and jammed for a while...i love playing w/ rt...he gets this mischievous look on his face whenever he plays his drums...then we went downtown to pizzeria due (across the street from uno's)...

while we were waiting to be seated, we were outdoors and noticed that the door to the upstairs of the building (which is like this old mansion) was open, and so we went in and explored...the upper floors were totally empty rooms...really dirty...but really cool...there was an unusable bathroom w/ all the old plumbing, including my dream clawfoot tub...and it looked like there was someone squatting in one of the rooms...it was kind of creepy but really neat to poke around in the dark into all the old rooms...

sunday night, i showed brandon the wilco documentary (i am trying to break your heart)...he doesn't know wilco's music too well, so it was a good intro...rt is not very fond of jeff tweedy and made comments throughout the movie, but he had to admit that glenn kotche is a tight drummer...i have to say that i could probably watch this dvd over and over and over again...i just won't do it when rt's around...

i took monday off from work to show brandon around town...it was perfect...like 80 degrees and sunny...rt & i ran out to the red hen bakery in the morning and bought bagels and muffins and pastries and this awesome multi-grain bread...we cut up some fresh grapefruit & oranges, and rt made this scrambled egg & veggies dish...it was like a bed & breakfast meal, which is what rt & i wanted to do for brandon, since he was our guest, and it was his first time in chicago and all...after breakfast, we went downtown to the adler planeterium...there's a scene in the wilco movie that was shot there, and we took brandon to see it...then we went into the planeterium, and when rt asked the guard if our friend erin was working, he got us 3 free passes so we could go find her...we did see erin, and she was so happy we visited...we goofed around a bit looking at the exhibits, and then we headed over to strange cargo to see if they had this pair of pumas i'm looking for...then we went to schubas for dinner where i had my favorite waitress shama who served us when i was w/ jesse & ryan & greg glover & tim & derek...we dropped off brandon @ the vic for his show, and we were exhausted...

i'm still exhausted...

brandon gave me a bunch of bootlegs that i can't wait to hear...one of them is the outta print outtasite one for wilco...i was listening to it on the way to work, and there are some doozies on it...jeff does a cover of my favorite big star song thirteen, which denison witmer does a cover of on his live album...i so love that song...there's also a version of james alley blues and brian wilson's love & mercy...brandon also gave me some emmylou, lucinda williams & VoL...lots and lots of great live music...

something i read this morning.

it's sunny...it's above freezing...the snow is melting...dare i say spring has come to chicago?

'forget him not, still he loves you
life is short, but love's eternal...'
--from ghost of david by damien jurado

music:
ghost of david--damien jurado
a rush of blood to the head--coldplay
XO--elliott smith
quiet is the new loud--kings of convenience

i feel much better now...not the same...but still, better than i have been the past few days...we've changed keys, but now that i know what key we're in, i feel more in tune...

time will tell...

one of my alltime favorite local bands zapruder point now has its own website. about time! they're playing the beat kitchen on 4/23. i'll probably be there. this is the outfit with 2-string guitar dan the man. highly recommended...

i wonder if i stare at the guitar tabs for sunken treasure for my entire lunch hour whether i'll be able to play it when i get home...i am so out of tune with you...yes...that's how i feel...

i think this new work schedule might actually work out after all...i made it before 7am no problemo two days in a row...that's totally amazing to me...

so last night i had a discussion w/ my friend tony about whether or not it's a good idea to wear one's heart on one's sleeve. some of you may *gasp* at the thought that maybe i don't think i should wear my heart on my sleeve any more...now rt would tell me, 'sarah, your heart's in your chest...not on your sleeve...' but that's besides the point...you guys know what i'm talking about here...

...how much of your heart do you reveal and to whom? my line of defense to tony was that you should save those parts of yourself, the deep parts of your heart, for the ones who won't squander what you share with them...he still disagrees with me...i admit that the main motivation for this tactic would be self-defense...now i used to think that i was the type that didn't care how hurt i got...i was gonna wear my whole heart on my sleeve, damn it!...in fact, i was gonna walk around with my heart permanently sewn onto my sleeve...yeah, well, now i'm reconsidering my whole philosophy on that...

i'm not so pissed off today as i was the past couple days...but it's not over yet...

ok. i have to say that i really like my new color scheme around here...and caleb agrees...and i really like it that my links don't have those annoying lines beneath them...it's much cleaner this way...and i dig that crimson...and i figured out how to do all this by stealing source code...i'm so proud of myself! oh, and this is my new home page...my cousin casey told me i should make this my home page cuz it gets updated more than my other page. which is true, i suppose...

well, i was gonna go see damien jurado & dave fischoff tonight*, but...i got a phone call as i was getting out of the shower, and that phone call ended up taking up the next two hours of my time...like i could run over to schubas right now in my jammies and i'm sure i'd still catch damien, but i'd rather not...but the phone call was important so i'll get over it...damien will be back soon...although i did wanna hear adam voith read from his new novel. check that out here if ya wants.

i have a new work schedule...let's see how long this lasts...7am to 3:30pm or somewhere around there...so i am going to bed now because i have to be up at around 5:30am which is still more like 4:30am pre-daylight savings time era...

today i listened to seven head division's ep which was put together just for this tour they're doing...it was awesome...those boys RAWK!!!

*like how many times have i started a sentence 'i was gonna go see _____________ tonight, but...' like too many times i'd say...

this is going on in our country...

this is going on in their country...

and this is some fiction inspired by what's going on written by a friend from high school...

oh...i changed my blogger template because that black background w/ bright yellow font was bringing out violent tendencies in me...so i decided to go with a calmer look...sorry if you like the old look better...but there are gonna be changes around here, damn it, and it's starting with this blogger!

daylight savings time has turned my world upside down...that which made me happy now only annoys me to no end...and when i should still be in bed, here i am at the office after having been on the clock already for 50 minutes and it's not even 8am yet, and technically, according to my body, it's not even 7am, which means that i actually woke up at 4:30am this morning...i am convinced that i am inherently rebellious, and because i know that with the time change, i should want to get up an hour later than normal since that would be what i'm used to, instead, i'm getting up THREE HOURS earlier than normal...all because i'm not supposed to by any logical standard...go figure...

i am still in the pissiest mood i have been in a long LONG LOOOOOOOOOONG time...when this cloud will lift, there's no telling...beware the thundercloud that is SJR...and don't ask...i'm too pissed off to talk about it...

why the hell am i still in chicago? i should be in seattle by now...that was the plan...i am resuming the plan...even if i have to substitute teach and temp or what not...it'll serve me right...

this weather sux...

music: a brief history of the 20th century--gang of four

i don't know what's wrong with me...i was fine when i went to sleep last night and then i woke up an emotional train wreck...

i made a promise back in january that i would not let fear hold back my heart...and today i was gripped with fear...doubts...insecurities...

i broke my promise to myself, but i'm getting back on that horse...i will not go easy into the night alone, not this time...

this is a passage from The Prophet by kahlil gibran

"love has no other desire but to fulfill itself.
but if you love and must needs have desires, let these be your desires:
to melt and be like a running brook that sings its melody to the night.
to know the pain of too much tenderness.
to be wounded by your own understanding of love;
and to bleed willingly and joyfully.
to wake at dawn with a winged heart and give thanks for another day of loving;
to rest at the noon hour and meditate love's ecstatsy;
to return home at eventide with gratitude;
and then to sleep with a prayer for the beloved in your heart and a song of praise upon your lips."

p.s. saw annie quick & seven head division at the lead way friday night...they RAWKED! VIIHD are so frickin' awesome...they're a great backup band for annie. they're playing again @ gunther murphy's w/ the detholz & other bands on april 24th as a part of the international pop overthrow festival.

p.p.s. went to a poetry for peace thing at the aion teahouse on division & leavitt friday night. it was really cool. there will be another one the 1st saturday of may at the same locale.

wow. entire books online. some doozies too...click here for great books online.

ok. can someone explain to me why some folks equate liberalism with communism? I'M NOT A COMMUNIST!!! but yeah, i would identify myself as a liberal. i was reading this article linked to on the drudge report about a little town in new jersey banning ribbons, and the editor of a jersey newspaper said they received more than 2000 letters regarding the story they ran about the situation, and the typical letter said something like "i see liberalism (a.k.a. Communism) is alive and well there..." like, ok, that a.k.a. communism shit is just not necessary...i mean, i'm not going around calling all conservatives fascists cuz not all of them are.

so tuesday was a beutiful day here in these parts...my friend @ work hares & i went to get some sushi and then went for a walk in that same forest preserve that andrei & allison & i did a photoshoot at last week...i found out that there's a path that goes underneath route 60 (town line road) that leads to a trail in the woods across the street...anyways, it was gorgeous...so yesterday, i made a delivery to barrington hills on my way to work, and it was even warmer...like 80 almost...and i get to work in lake forest, and hares comes by around lunch time and asks if i wanna go for a walk...i'm like yeah, it's really nice out...he asks if it's warm, and i'm like oh yeah, and he's like, really cuz my computer says it's 47 degrees outside, and i'm like 47? maybe 47 celsius...and then we get on weather.com and sure enough lake forest at that time was 45 degrees cold...i couldn't believe it...so i looked up barrington hills, and it was a whoppin 77 degrees out there still!!! like that is so weird....so we didn't go for a walk cuz i wasn't even wearing socks yesterday and i had on my sports sandals.

so rt & i watched this really funny movie...rt's been wanting me to see it for months...it's the bruce lee biography movie that was part of a special chinese connection VHS set...the star of that movie is none other than bruce li. he looks a lot like bruce lee. the acting was soooooooo bad, but the fight scenes were awesome...rt had that entire movie memorized...there were some scenes from both seattle & san francisco in that movie...i never knew that bruce lee graduated from UW in seattle. and the chinese character for bruce lee's family name is the same as for my family name. when i told that to rt, he said not to get any ideas, such as thinking my martial arts is gonna be better cuz i might be related to bruce lee...i think he's just jealous...

tomorrow night there is a poetry slam for peace at the aion tea shop (2135 w. division) 7-9pm. after that, annie quick & others are playing @ the lead way (damen & farragut just north of foster). i think that's a free show. actually, it starts @ 8:30, so i'll be there late. in time for annie though.

recent listenings:
13--blur
fetal position--bill mallonee
ancient melodies of the future--built to spill
your favorite music--clem snide
universal truths and cycles--guided by voices
a.m.--wilco
in between ep--rosie thomas
being there 1&2--wilco
calculated--heavens to betsy

about a week ago, i was doing a photoshoot on the north ave bridge from where i spied a duck couple having dinner in the river below...they were so cute swinging their asses in the air as they bobbed for their dinners...they seemed so content with their simple provisions...i watched them for a long time, getting all nostalgic...

anyways...so it sounds like my friend caleb is doing a house concert for bill mallonee this month...i really wish i could be there...you know, you think you've heard summershine a million times you won't wanna hear it again, until you pop it in the cd player, and there's nothing better for your ride up to work...yeah...i never get sick of bill's music...

i went to visit rt @ his parents' house in the far NW burbs last night...poor thing looked like death warmed over still...being sick sucks...

been listening to:
summershine--vigilantes of love
to the roof of the sky--VoL
murmur--r.e.m.
s/t--le tigre
start here--the gloria record
s/t ep--the gloria record
reading writing and arithmetic--the sundays
loveless--my bloody valentine
substance disc 1--new order
s/t--the pixies
keep it like a secret--built to spill
XO--elliott smith
i break chairs--damien jurado & gathered in song
the photo album--death cab for cutie
murray street--sonic youth