Union Drool

I had tons o' fun at Union Pool Friday night at the DC Snipers record release shindig. The fire pit was roarin', the drinks were flowin' and my legs were wobblin'....

Crimson Sweet sounded, uh, shweet. Some Action were cool, too. Honestly, I was pretty tipsy, so I don't remember every detail, but it was a good time just the same. I also got to see my buddies Mike and Jon, the Brothers Live Ones. They's my faves.

Crimson Sweet are playing again this Friday at Trash Bar. We might just make that. Oh, and we're checkin' out Mission of Burma at Bowery February 10 (day before Dominican Republic!). They're always great (although the sound sucked so bad when they opened for the Pixies, that show was disappointing). Anyway, Bowery Ballroom is a good venue, so it should be cool.

Now I need to go change the damn radio station because I'm hearing the same pretentious NPR news stories I heard an hour ago.

Boycott Google, and Maybe Blogger, Too

Ever since Google announced it would be kowtowing to China's despicable Internet censorship laws, I've ceased my use of their search engine. Thing is, Blogger, the system I use to implement this here blog, is owned by the hypocritical "do no evil" Googlers. So, I might have to start using another tool, 'cause, damn it, this shit makes me sick. Here's an illuminating example (via Feld Thoughts) of just how squelched the rights of the Chinese Google user are compared to ours here in the land o' the free:

US Google Search for Tiananmen Square

Chinese Google Search for Tiananmen Square

Disney Deprogramming

So, I went to a conference last week at the Disney Coronado Springs Resort. I figured I'd make the most of going down there by meeting up with my mom (my parents and Grandma live in Longboat Key, Florida) to do the Disney thang that weekend -- cheesy, but fun. We had a really great time. As usual, the highlight of the trip for me was visiting the Rose and Crown pub in the phony England part of Epcot. I know it's lame, but it's tough for me to get my fave drink of all time, a snake bite black, anywhere in the states but there (and this place in NYC, the Telephone Bar). It's a snake bite (half hard cider/half lager) with a bit of black currant juice. Sure, I could just buy the damn black currant, but I like the whole bar thing.

Actually, the highlight this time was Animal Kingdom. Hey, I got to see a gibbon piss and shit during a rope-climbing escapade (definitely aiming for the people below), a gorgeous male lion, some beautiful Asian tigers, these cool endangered zebra-like creatures called Okapis, and these awesome li'l primates called Tamarins. There were six of 'em, two to a cage, and they had names like Houdini and Medusa. Medusa was hilarious. She insisted on obsessively grooming her mate, Houdini (I think), even though he was bug-free. And he, as any well-trained male eventually does, succumbed willingly to her psychotic whims. She also had a wicked jealous streak; when she noticed her caretaker, she became threatened, worrying he'd steal her man (er...monkey). So, she stuck out her tongue at her. It was pretty damn cute.

Anyway, I forgot to bring a good camera, so I captured a few moments on one of those crappy recyclable things. No doubt it was a Kodak since Disney kisses Kodak ass throughout the park, including any other sponsor of its rides and spectacles. I'll put a pic or two up if any turn out.

It was fun. Plus, I was heartened to see at least two Ramones shirts on other Disney denizens. I wore my Angry Youth Comix shirt to ward off any Disney magic I might have unwittingly soaked up along the way....

Beach+Soon=Me

In just about two weeks we're hittin' the Dominican Republic for a week of sunnin' and boozin'. This has been such a weird, mild winter here in Jersey, that I'm not especially dying to get out of the cold, but the beach is always better than, well, just about anything. I've been reading all these reviews of Puerto Plata resorts - that's where we'll be - and it looks like there's a chance of getting sick. We'll take all the precautions, but I'm still a bit worried.

I've been antsy lately 'cause I'm really tired of freelancing and want a full time gig. I have a couple irons in the fire, so-to-speak, so hopefully something will come to fruition soon. If not, maybe I'll just stay in Puerto Plata....

David Lee in Beta

The David Lee radio show beta test has finally begun. I've been listenin' in. As a used-ta-be Howard addict and talk radio junkie, I've gotta say, I'm not blown away. Still, today's show has been much better than yesterday's. Hey, what it comes down to is it's easy to write somebody off right away in a cut-throat competition like morning radio. But the thing is, all the talk radio greats had years to hone their skills before they got syndicated. DLR's gotta do it in the spotlight. I think he's got tons of potential to be a great radio host, though, considering his proclivity towards ramblin' like no other man. Also, anybody who's read his autobio, Crazy from the Heat, knows he's a really eclectic guy. So, I figure he'll have bunches of stories to tell about just about anything.

Here's somethin' interesting: According to a Billboard report, "Reuniting the original Van Halen lineup is just a matter of time, according to former vocalist David Lee Roth." Apparently he told the Pittsburgh Tribune Review, "I talked to the drummer (Alex Van Halen) about a week ago....And I think, eventually, the inevitable will happen." He added, "It definitely won't be rockers with walkers....Getting onstage and singing 'Dance the Night Away' -- let me tell you how difficult that isn't going to be."

This is probably just Dave spoutin' off again, but it'd be cool....