Monday, February 26, 2007

Things To Do:


Ask the mall security guard to drive you around because you can't remember where you parked due to a head injury that causes short-term memory loss. See how long he drives you around.

Labels:

Thursday, February 22, 2007

Recent Purchase:



Young Widows - Settle Down City
(Jade Tree)
Young Widows is members of Breather Resist (all but the singer) gone rock.


Boards of Canada - Music Has The Right To Children (Warp)
An older BOC CD, but it's BOC, so I gotta get it.

Labels: ,

Wednesday, February 21, 2007

Marijuana and driving


everyone should have to watch this...this is so real.

Labels:

Saturday, February 17, 2007

'I Heart (Insert Country here)' Shirts from Adidas


Found some sweet shirts by Adidas in Finish Line the other day.





Update: I can't actually find these shirts anywhere online. If someone finds somewhere these are available and posts a link, it would be much appreciated.

Labels:

Marijuana Myths:Marijuana Facts - A Review of Scientific Evidence (Chapters)


Got my "Marijuana Myths:Marijuana Facts" book a few days ago. It's pretty good so far but I'm not enough into it to give a review yet.

But per a friends request (Kasi) here are the books chapters. 20 myths, 20 chapters.

--------------------------

"For each of these claims, we searched the scientific literature for relevant studies. Over and over, we discovered that government officials, journalists, and even many 'drug experts' had misinterpreted, misrepresented, or distorted the scientific evidence. Indeed, there was so little scientific support for the twenty claims analyzed in this book that we have called them 'myths.' Like all myths, these may contain a kernel of truth, but never more than that."

20 Myths About Marijuana
Marijuana Harms Have Been Proved Scientifically
Marijuana Has No Medicinal Value
Marijuana Is Highly Addictive
Marijuana Is a Gateway Drug
Marijuana Offenses Are Not Severely Punished
Marijuana Policy in the Netherlands Is a Failure
Marijuana Kills Brain Cells
Marijuana Causes an Amotivational Syndrome
Marijuana Impairs Memory and Cognition
Marijuana Causes Psychological Impairment
Marijuana Causes Crime
Marijuana Interferes with Male and Female Sex Hormones
Marijuana Use During Pregnancy Damages the Fetus
Marijuana Impairs the Immune System
Marijuana Is More Damaging to the Lungs than Tobacco
Marijuana Gets Trapped in Body Fat
Marijuana Use Is a Major Cause of Highway Accidents
Marijuana-Related Hospital Emergencies Are Increasing
Marijuana Is More Potent Today than in the Past
Marijuana Use Can Be Prevented

Labels:

Friday, February 16, 2007

Poison The Well tour dates w/ The End




So Poison The Well is now back to an indie label (Ferret) and they're new stuff is supposed to be off the hook. I'm assuming they went back to an indie because the majors wouldn't give them enough "creative control".

Ok, cool, whatever, good for both of them. Ferret will make a killing. BUT here's what I do know. Thanks to my good friend/fellow DFW resident Kasi who burned me the unreleased tracks, PTW is awesome again and even better then before if I might say. The unreleased tracks are phenomenal. Take Deftones and give it a hardcore version of Neurosis build-ups. Great stuff. I hope their upcoming release doesn't hold back or compromise the quality of their music to "appeal to a bigger audience".

The End is also a great tech-metal band. They kind of came our pretty soon after Dillinger Escape Plan's "Calculating Infinity" album and were branded as a grind version of DEP from what I heard, and I'd agree to an extent.

Either way, they'd be worth seeing. They just released "Elementary" (Relapse) which also sounds good from the few tracks I've heard.

------------------------------

Poison The Well / The End tour dates
February 22 Tallahassee, FL @ Beta Bar
February 23 West Columbia, SC @ New Brookland Tavern
February 24 Wilmington, NC @ Soapbox Laundrolounge
February 25 Richmond, VA @ Alley Katz
February 27 Greensboro, NC @ Greene St.
February 28 Charleston, SC @ The Music Farm
March 1 Jacksonville, FL @ Fuel Coffeehouse
April 3 Ft. Lauderdale, FL @ Culture Room
April 4 Gainesville, FL @ Common Grounds
April 5 Winston-Salem, NC @ Ziggy's
April 6 Washington, DC @ Rock N Roll Hotel
April 7 Baltimore, MD @ Ottobar
April 9 Winooski, VT @ Higher Ground
April 10 Portland, ME @ The Station
April 11 New Haven, CT @ Toad's Place
April 12 Providence, RI @ Living Room
April 13 Randolph, NJ @ Confetti's (Obsessions)
April 14 Troy, NY @ Revolution Hall
April 15 Rochester, NY @ Montage Music
April 16 Toledo, OH @ Headliners
April 18 Grand Rapids, MI @ The Intersection
April 19 Indianapolis, IN @ Emerson Theater
April 20 Menomonee Falls, WI @ Orchard Inn

Poison The Well - myspace.com/poisonthewell
The End - myspace.com/theend

Labels:

Jíxiánghùa! (or Happy Chinese New Year)



When I asked a work friend what she was doing for the weekend, she told me she is getting together with her parents and family to celebrate the Chinese New Year. I had no idea! So we looked into it, found our Chinese astrology signs (me a Rooster or Cock, ha! her a Monkey). I'd have to say they are pretty accurate. At least mine is...observant, brave, self-absorbed (me?! no...).

Anyways, I looked a little deeper so here is some interesting stuff I learned about the widely-celebrated-holiday happening on the other side of the world this weekend.

----------------

February 18, 2007 is the first day of the Chinese new year.



Chinese calendar has been in continuous use for centuries, which predates the International Calendar (based on the Gregorian Calendar) we use at the present day which goes back only some 425 years. The calendar measures time, from short durations of minutes and hours, to intervals of time measured in months, years and centuries, entirely based on the astronomical observations of the movement of the Sun, Moon and stars.

-2007 is known as the Year of the Pig (DingHai)
-Current year is Year 4704 by the Chinese calendar.
-Chinese New Year's Eve is known as Chúxì. Chu literally means "change" and xi means "eve".
-15 days are celebrated into the new year

GREETINGS
The Chinese New Year is often accompanied by loud, enthusiastic greetings, often referred to as "Jíxiánghùa".

FESTIVITIES
The Chinese Year celebrations are marked by visits to kin, relatives and friends, and the liberal use of the color red. Red packets are given to juniors and children by the married and elders.

MYTHS
According to legend, in ancient China, the nián, a man-eating beast from the mountains, could silently infiltrate houses to prey on humans. The people later learned that the nian was sensitive to loud noises and the color red, so they scared it away with explosions, fireworks and the liberal use of the color red. These customs led to the first New Year celebrations. Guò nián, which means to celebrate the new year, literally means the passing of the nian beast.

SUPERSTITIONS: GOOD LUCK
-Opening windows and/or doors is considered to 'bring in' the good luck of the new year.

SUPERSTITIONS: BAD LUCK
-Buying shoes, pants, books and getting a hair-cut is all considered bad luck for different reasons.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_New_Year

Labels:

Wednesday, February 14, 2007

Wiki: Unschooling


Unschooling is a form of education in which learning is based on the student's interests, needs, and goals. It may be alternatively referred to as natural learning, child-led learning, discovery learning, autodidactic learning, delight-led learning, or child-directed learning.



Unschoolers often believe that learning any specific subject is less important than learning 'how' to learn. They believe, in the words of Alec Bourne, "It is possible to store the mind with a million facts and still be entirely uneducated,"...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unschooling

Labels:

Tuesday, February 13, 2007

12 Music Videos for Valentines Day



BRIGHT EYES - FIRST DAY OF MY LIFE






AIR - ALL I NEED






ZERO 7 - DESTINY





THE POSTAL SERVICE - SUCH GREAT HEIGHTS






THE FLAMING LIPS - DO YOU REALIZE





THE BLACK HEART PROCESSION - NOT JUST WORDS





SIGUR ROS - GLOSOLI





PORTISHEAD - ONLY YOU





MINUS THE BEAR - PACHUCA SUNRISE





M83 - AMERICA





DEATH FROM ABOVE 1979 - ROMANTIC RIGHTS





CYANN AND BEN - WORDS


Labels: ,

Monday, February 12, 2007

Wiki: Dimethyltryptamine (DMT)

- A powerful psychoactive substance

Dimethyltryptamine (DMT), also known as N,N-dimethyltryptamine, not to be confused with 5-MeO-DMT, is a psychedelic tryptamine, similar in structure to the neurotransmitter serotonin. DMT is created in small amounts by the human body during normal metabolism[1] by the enzyme Tryptamine-N-methyltransferase.

It also occurs naturally in many species of plants. DMT-containing plants are used in several South American shamanic practices.

Hallucinogenic properties


DMT is a powerful psychoactive substance. If DMT is smoked, injected, or orally ingested with an MAOI, it can produce powerful entheogenic experiences including true hallucinations (perceived extensions of reality). A trip sitter is often employed to assist the drug user in staying physically and mentally healthy, and, in the case of smoked DMT, to catch the pipe when the user loses awareness of it.


Several speculative and as yet untested hypotheses suggest that endogenous DMT, produced in the human brain, is involved in certain psychological and neurological states. As DMT is naturally produced in small amounts in the brains and other tissues of humans, and other mammals[1], some believe it plays a role in promoting the visual effects of natural dreaming, near-death experiences and other mystical states. A biochemical mechanism for this was proposed by the medical researcher JC Callaway, who suggested in 1988 that DMT might be connected with visual dream phenomena, where brain DMT levels are periodically elevated to induce visual dreaming and possibly other natural states of mind.[7]

Several subjects also reported contact with 'other beings', alien like, insectoid and reptillian in nature, in technological environments[5] where the subjects were 'probed', 'tested' and sometimes even 'manipulated' by these 'beings'.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dimethyltryptamine

Labels:

Smootie King




The Gladiator
Calories: 187
Fat: 0g
Saturated Fat: 0g
Calories from Fat: 0g
Cholestorol: 0.9mg
Carbs: 1g
Protein: 45g
Sodium: 150mg
Dietary Fiber: 0.9g

I had The Gladiator for lunch today as a meal-relpacement. My friend Ramiro said he had one everyday for lunch and really bulked up.

I know 187 calories is low, and i know 45 grams of protein is a shitload!, but does anyone know about the other info?

Labels: ,

Thursday, February 08, 2007

Mare calls it quits



myspace.com/maremaremare

Mare (HydraHead) has officially called it quits. Many saw this coming after a long wait to their follow up after their self-titled CD released in 2004 without any updates along the way, but are still quite disappointed.

Here is the official announcement taken from Lambgoat.com

Toronto's Mare has officially disbanded. The group released an EP with Hydra Head Records in 2004. Singer Tyler Semrick-Palmateer has released the following statement:

"We are officially done like dinner. We have been scheduled to write an album for a while now but nothing ever came of it. We (and I think that I speak for Caleb as well) have not been moved or inspired to write anything or put forth any real effort to maintain the Mare legacy. I'm sure that Caleb and I will be collaborating a bunch in the future as I feel that I have found a valuable peer, collaborator and source of inspiration in that tall drink of water. So look out for that.

So anyway, thanks for listening to our music. I'm pleased that some of you have derived a considerable amount of enjoyment from it. That's all we could have asked for. Occasionally we asked for beer tickets and we derived a considerable amount of enjoyment out of those.

Many thanks to everyone that has been in the band and to everyone that has supported us financially, TD Canada Trust, Hydra Head Industries, Dad and the rest of you."


Fans of Mare are recommended to check out The Autumn Project and Back When.

Labels:

Wednesday, February 07, 2007

The Avalanches




This video and song are tight as hell! Thanks to my friend Trav for sharing this video. I gotta go get their CD.

Labels: ,

Just Ordered: Marijuana Myths Marijuana Facts: A Review Of The Scientific Evidence


This should be a very interesting read. From the comments I read on Amazon's review page, it seems to be very open and honest and very non-biased. Exactly what I'm looking for...for now.

Here are some quotes from the reviews I read:

"99.9% of people killed in traffic accidents...eat potatoes. So, if we ban the sale of this dangerous vegetable, think of the lives that would be saved."

"Has marijuana "addiction" ruined people's lives by de-motivating them? Possibly."

"in new zealand where ther is a pretty high use of marijuana but is still illegal , but lately we have a had a law changed , making prostitution legal . why is this?"

"tobacco smoke is much more harmful than marijuana smoke, but not for the reasons most people realize....Marijuana "joints" deliver much more active ingredient per unit of smoke than tobacco by FAR."

Labels:

Monday, February 05, 2007

Sweet...chair?


Compact and adjustable. Zang!


Labels: