I think if I will move somewhere in the near future for an extended period of time it will be to Georgia (country).

while abroad I read a book by John Steinbeck called ‘Russian Journal’. I found two things particularly striking about it:
I. That Russians really haven’t changed since the 50s (not really a bad thing)
II. That Georgia sounded really awesome

The culture seemed super rich and inviting. I liked the idea of being able to visit ancient cities, sitting on stones that were still standing and over 1000 years old. That sort of thing is the type of thing I think is cool.

They also have a really bizarre looking language that looks foreign and new and beautiful and amazing. I haven’t really listened to it yet. This is what it looks like:

i love how it is so round.

Played music; toured with a band.

Played my last show with a different band.

Recorded live basics and overdubs with that band.

Said goodbye to an inspired artist.

Did some mixing.

Left a corporate coffee job for a job in childcare.

Received a health care id days after my official resignation.

Fought to suppress urge to vomit, stuck in traffic to new job while listening to news on the BP disaster in the Gulf.

This is too bad considering how incredible the new job is.

Requested a transfer.

Helped screen t-shirts.

Almost quit smoking.

Split two pairs of expensive pants.

Bought more records.

Sent a guitar to repair only to find that the amp’s reverb no longer works.

Started drinking iced coffee.

Shortly wore earplugs to rehearsal.

Met and interacted with many incredible and fascinating people.

Deepened relationships with incredible and fascinating people that I already had met.

At some point came to accept the rain and even worse, Seattle as home.

Rub Paw Press, in hindsight, may have been a more of a thing to do while I didn’t have a job or any kind of musical life in the city.

I still feel like this is a good idea, and I’m happy that Keith is still contributing more or less on the regular.

I hear Keith is back from Tomsk.

I miss and love Philadelphia but at the same time understand that I cannot go back, not now.

Cleaned my room.

Allowed the cleanliness of my room to degrade to its current state.

Renewed my registration for Rub Paw Press.

За год в России он научился хорошо говорить по-русски, и перед каждой композицией на концерте озвучивает небольшие комментарии к ней. Большинство сыгранных в тот вечер вещей написаны в Сибири – на одну вдохновил страшный мороз, другая возникла из сострадания к бездомным собакам, поводом к третьей стал закрытый для иностранцев город Северск. Но главное – Брендан не просто сочинил здесь новые композиции, а нашел принципиально новое для себя звучание. На мандолине он играет совершенно не классически – вместо спокойной, плавной мелодии создает жесткий «барабанный» ритм. Манера петь у него тоже своеобразная: хрипловатый голос, монотонные интонации…Пожалуй, психоделизм фрик-фолка достигается благодаря пению.

Then I google translated it for friends. It looked like this:

Last year in Russia, he learned to speak in Russian, and before each song at a concert voiced little comments to her. Most games played in the evening things were written in Siberia – one inspired by a terrible cold, and the other came out of compassion for stray dogs, the reason the third was closed to foreigners the city of Seversk. But the main thing – Brendan is not just composed new songs here, but found a completely new sound for themselves. On the mandolin, he plays a totally classic – instead of a calm, smooth melodies creates a hard “drum” rhythm. The manner of singing he also has a kind: a hoarse voice, monotonous intonation … Perhaps psihodelizm freak-folk is achieved through singing.

Then I translated it back. It looked like this:

В прошлом году в России, он научился говорить на русском языке, и перед каждой песни на концерте, выразили мало комментарии к ней. Большинство игр в вечер вещи были написаны в Сибири – один вдохновлен страшный холод, и другие пришли из сострадания к бродячих собак, причина, по которой третий был закрыт для иностранцев в городе Северске. Но главное – Брендан это не только новые песни состоит здесь, но нашли совершенно новый звук для себя. На мандолине, он играет совершенно классический – вместо спокойной, плавных мелодий создает жесткие “барабан” ритм. Манерой пения он также имеет вид: хриплый голос, однообразной интонацией … Может быть, psihodelizm фрик-народных достигается за счет пения.

Even if you don’t speak Russian, you can see the significant difference. Then I did it one more time:

In the past year in Russia, he learned to speak in Russian, and before each song at a concert, have expressed little comment to her. Most games in the evening, things were written in Siberia – one inspired by a terrible cold, and others came out of compassion for stray dogs, the reason why the third was closed to foreigners in the city of Seversk. But the main thing – Brendan is not only new song is here, but found a completely new sound for themselves. On the mandolin, he plays an absolutely classic – instead of a calm, smooth melodies creates a rigid “drum” rhythm. Manner of singing, he also has the form: a hoarse voice, monotonous tone of … Maybe, psihodelizm freak-folk is achieved through singing.

LOVE LOVE LOVE LOLOLOLOLOL.

Actually, I’m pretty surprised how good it is.

Full article in Russian here

It’s a pretty lame excuse and all, but at some point I sorta forgot this blog existed.

And then I remembered but I was busy and I didn’t post anything.

And then I had a good idea and started writing a post but then I had to leave on this current month long trip I’m taking through Russia with some other Americans. We have a banjo, a guitar, a mandolin, and a celtic harp. We are taking trains and buses for long distances in order to visit children and teach them about American folk music. So far it’s been super fun. It’s also nice to see more of Russia besides Moscow/St. Petersburg/various Siberian cities. This picture is of a time when we were standing outside the train at a stop but it looked more like a field and there were some cows there. I chose this picture because I think it represents Russian men really we re: clothes/squatting/trains. The train was very hot inside and I sweated there for 50 hours. That is why many men aren’t wearing shirts. Russian men also don’t wear deodorant. Imagine the smell.

It is paid for by the State Dept so thank you for paying your taxes and allowing us to to do this.

Of course we have a blog about it and that can be found here.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

brian eno:
here come the warm jets @ 26

another green world @ 27

john lennon:
please please me @ 23 (wtf fml)

revolver @ 26


the white album @ 28

george harrison:
“something” @ 26

julian casablancas:
is this it @ 23 (fml wtf)

And also this:

arthur russell:
“is it all over my face” & “go bang” @ 29/30
calling out of context material @ 34 (approx.)

Moby:
Play @ 34

mick jagger:
the rolling stones UK (#1 in the UK) @ 21 (FML)
“satisfaction” @ 22 (fml)

“she’s a rainbow” @ 24

exile on main street @ 29

“beast of burden” @ 35

hajime tachibana:
bambi @ 40 (approx.)

robert smith:
“friday i’m in love” @ 33

A better video with embedding disabled.
charles mingus:
“goodbye pork pie hat” @ 37

r. kelly:
“real talk” @ 40

david byrne:
speaking in tongues @ 31

david bowie:
hunky dory @ 24

young americans @ 28

michael jackson:
“wanna be startin’ something” @ 24 (?!)

giorgio moroder:
“push it to the limit” @ 43

iggy pop:
the idiot @ 30

beck:
odelay @ 26

midnite vultures @ 29

publicly acknowledged as a scientologist @ 35
dieter moebius (of cluster):
zuckerzeit @ 30

damo suzuki (of can):
future days @ 23 (fml)…but:

michael karoli (of can) & holger czukay (of can) & irmin schmidt (of can) & jaki liebzeit:
future days @ 26 / 36 / 37 / 35 —- (Considerably Less FML)
graham massey (of 808 state):
90 @ 29

prince:
“raspberry beret” @ 27

bob dylan:
the times they are a-changin’ @ 23 (WTF)


blonde on blonde @ 25 (fml)


ariel pink:
the doldrums @ 21 (wtf)

bob marley:
“waiting in vain” @ 32

lenny kravitz:
“it ain’t over til it’s over” @ 27

Alex Chilton:
“The Letter” (w/ The Box Tops) @ 16 (WTF)

In part two of the interview, I get around to asking Tyler questions about writing in general as well as his writing

Ok. Tell me about your writing process.

Well, I try to think back to a moment that felt significant or “important” at the time, and I try to feel as self-aware as I can, while sticking to practices and theories that I have been taught are “significant” and “effective”

plz-gro.tumblr.com

The words come first at all times, the way it sounds read aloud by someone who doesn’t read well and works to the next period.

What are you writing now?

I’m working on two series. One involves a teenage girl right-post-confirmation’s love letters to Satan. The other is a series called “postcards from a k-hole” that starts out hyper-masculine, confident and clever, ending with a totally sentimental, confusing, rant-like voice that sees the good times as nostalgic and the present state as something to pity, something “less than”. The latter is a therapeutic process.

Therapeutic in what sense?

It helps me conceptualize where I am right now through Freud’s idea of intellectualization, making “art” out of the “empty spaces” that occur on the day to day. I keep faith that the “average Joe” feels these things from small disappointments, like missing the train or getting your food back different from the way you ordered it and eating it anyway. I hold strong to the truth that people experience these timeless, awful emotions on a day-to-day basis but express it in different ways. Like the mailman who doesn’t give you your favorite magazine the day it comes out because his girlfriend just broke up with him. That fault, in itself, is an artistic expression, it’s just never realized.

So you are trying to express that fault? And it is timeless?

I guess I’m trying to express that, but it’s only when I step away from what I’m trying to express that I realize that’s what I’m doing. In that moment, in the creation, I just work off a vibe and do what feels like “the right thing to say.” I’m calling it timeless because I apply both meaning to it and an optimism that everyone I encounter feels the same way I do. That stems from an idea that no one is superior, no one feels more—people just focus on different things. People express the same feelings through different mediums, i.e., people have different jobs. I feel like the career people take on is more than a career—it is a persona of different expectations, different modes of thinking that are expected by cultural perceptions of that career.

So is there a unitary interpretation to your work? If it comes from a feeling that you say everyone shares?

Poetry is sticky. It depends on the subjective baggage the reader brings to it, it depends on the polysemic. The reader that takes a poem’s quality for granted usually forms a context entirely outside of the poem in an attempt to generate a “relevancy” that depends solely on themselves. In this way, a poem’s meaning is entirely subjective and temporal. It depends on such small things like as if the reader has had a good day or not.

Does the impulse from which the poem emerges matter then?

Yes. It does. It frames the context that the poem is structured around, which dictates what words are used and what emotion is transferred, which dictates the final product. I read on HTML Giant that good advice is noticing when a poem becomes dark and avoiding that. I think that is sound advice.

Essentially, I’m saying the impulse dictates the entire poem. And of course that matters because it dictates the final product. Retrospective on that impulse, however, dictates the revision of the poem, which is another factor in the final product. But I stand by the idea that a poem is never finished, the same way one’s thoughts and feelings about a certain event never really finish changing.

How is a poem never finished? Are you talking about interpretation?

Okay good. I’m talking about the fact that no one should ever consider what they create—after deciding that whatever they’re writing is “poetry”—as perfection. If it’s placed in such a context, it deserves the respect such a label as “poetry” dictates. It deserves constant re-thinking, re-imagining. Nothing should be taken for granted in the construction of poetry, but everything should be taken for granted in its interpretation and reading. That’s just the way good theory works.

OK, but in the practical sense, isn’t there a moment where pen is put to paper, as it were? Where it’s printed in a book. I feel like like economic reality of publishing tends towards finalizing, towards an authoritative text.

That authoritative text is an economic expectation.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

After the jump, selections from something Tyler sent me. It’s called Dear S8n.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Dear Satan

I was looking for you and it took me all morning just to find you under my fingernails. Why do you always smell like Diet Coke??

Yours,

Carly XOX

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Satan

The distance between you and I is not in my mind but on my mind and yes I can treat it like a break up pup its eyes are closed its drooling and throwing up a squeaky ball in the front yard. The distance the pending nightmare between you and I is not in my wind is not at home but as of the hips its on my mind yes I can treat it like a break up pup itll be thin felt affection for and into the dawn whos eyes are closed and drooling and throwing up a squeaky ball in the front yard. Itll be thin felt affection for and into the dawn as of the hips at home and the pending nightmare. The pup its eyes are closed its drooling and throwing up a squeaky ball from the front yard and itll be thin felt affection for and into the dawn as of the hips at home and the pending nightmare.

Love Carly

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Dear Satan,
I love your cock. I think your cock is magick. The only difference between exceptional and amazing is your red, fiery cock. I want to brush my teeth with your cock. I want to write in this notebook with your cock. Whenever I have an extra fifty cents after lunch, I buy a red rocket popsicle from the ice cream cart in the cafeteria, and I slowly suck on it, pretending it is your cock. I take so long to eat it that it bleeds all over my fingers, and I pretend it is your cock bleeding onto my hands. I try to hex people I can see from my seat by the mural while I slowly suck what I wish was your cock. I hexed Becky, she doesn’t even know and I’m not telling.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Pictured above is Tyler. I took poetry classes with Tyler, along with Drew and Jackee, and enjoyed a general awareness of his existence. I believe he was also friends with some girls that were his age and thus younger than I and also mad cute. He runs a Tumblr called Boy mountain and writes poetry. The poetry that he writes, in my mind, is frank and inventive—if my memory serves me, it’s quite like his blog. It’s centered on sex and death, or living with bodies as experienced by his/’our’ generation. Where the poems are come off like pornographic love odes written after a binge, the blog is littered with photo-shopped internet trash—a picture of Jeffrey Dahmer’s living room open in MSPaint, Pokemon Hentai, Google Image Search results. It’s current, it’s fresh, it’s the poetry I could never write.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Tyler: I was thinking of drinking mtn dew all night and liveblogging it but the mtn dew has begun turning on my body.

RPP: Hahahahahahahhaha. Please do that. I’ll post it.

i cant i keep having to poop or lie in my bed for a song’s length of time.

Poor Tyler

breaking the mtn dew cycle with a can of natty bo i just found downstairs.

NI?Ce

idk cant DecIdE

hm]

i might be going to a party girl talk is at in a little. isn’t that disgusting.

That’s funny

i wanna do something really weird to him. so if i get popular, it’s a legend.

Interview him for my blog or something. Or take a picture of yourself teabagging him.

i will take a picture of him, and then take a webcam shot of me tagging him and say ME WITH GIRL TALK as the caption.

HAH.

jose you should interview me now—i think i’m on a roll.

I can’t i have to go to a party. We need to schedule this.

ooo what kind of party?

A birthday party.

with condoms???

OK wait. ok. TEN MINUTE INTERVIEW INCLUDING ALL OF WHAT YOU JUST SAID. Yes, with condoms. How are you doing tonight?

I’m okay. My stomach hurts a bit. But I just went to the bathroom, it’s already feeling a little better. I’m smoking a cigarette to move things along. It’s a Marlboro Blend No. 54.

Too much Mtn Dew? Sick. I’m trying to quit

Yeah, two and a half cans and I can’t go on. I also ate a lot of weird stuff before it.

I used to drink those liter bottles in high school. Thought I’d get ‘all jacked up’ on them.

Yeah, quitting smoking is weird. Mark Twain apparently quit twice but I don’t believe that shit at all.

What did you eat?

He also said it was the easiest thing he ever did, whatever.

Fuck him.

I ate a cheese sandwich on potato bread, a green apple, a cup of Jell-O Low Fat Chocolate Mousse, some bite size Tostitos with salsa, and I drank some milk and mountain dew with it. I live on mostly filth. Or try to.

Milk and Mountain Dew? Really?

Yeah, a bad idea in retrospect. I didn’t mix them or anything; I think there was food between my enjoyment of them. I used to put mountain dew in my morning coffee though. It felt very brisk.

Fuck. That sounds terrible.

Yeah, I figured it was probably bad for my heart so I stopped. It wasn’t terrible at all for the first few times if the coffee was black, which mine usually is. The first time it was actually exhilarating, like a coffee high but seven years old. Jackee did it with me the first time, we called it ‘going columbian’ I think. Or ‘doing it columbian’.

Wait so you did some lines with it? O wait.

No, no lines. Jackee’s much more responsible than that.

Maybe she should be less responsible

You said lines. I’ve also heard of slopes. Do they have any fancy Seattle names for snorting cocaine, José?

[Did you like the accented e? It's ALT+0233. But you probably already know that]

[José / Pokémon]

I lové it.

mm-hmm.

I don’t think they have fancy names here for that stuff.

“too real”.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~SOME TIME LATER~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Living without a cell phone has made the Internet my only source of projection.

O damn. You don’t have a cell phone? How’s that working out?

I like it a lot. Not being approachable lets you sort of do your own thing. I feel like technology thrusts people into interactions they’d otherwise avoid. We’re all more connected lately, sure, but the scope of what’s “flaking out” keeps growing, and we’re all looking like jerks.

Damn that’s very true. Speaking of flaking out. I just got yelled at via my cell phone.

A text message can’t get lost in the mail.

“Hi this is A_____ why are you not at my party?”

For what!

But it can be lost in transmission.

Yeah, but who believes that. There’s no room for human error, which is a lot more understandable than Verizon just fucking up.

No one! Which sucks cos I’ve definitely had shit like that happen to me. Or I’ve texted the wrong person cos they had a similar name.

Oh, that’s always the worst. Once I accidentally called a friend (2) who had the same name as the friend I meant to call (1). Luckily, I remembered it was 2′s birthday, so I could say I was calling just to wish her a good one.

Hahahaha. Yo. I have to go. Do you have a closing statement?

“José, you asked me nothing about writing.”

I’m sorry Tyler. We’ll make this a two-parter.

Hah okay. ENJOY YR PARTY

TO BE CONTINUED. TELL ME MORE ABOUT YR POKEMON HENTAI in the next interview.