year of the ox

so apparently, it’s 2009 now.  hrm.  strange.  i was just settling into 2008.  i know i haven’t posted in awhile and i’m sure you haven’t lost sleep over the next hungryghost offering.   no biggy (smalls).  i was reading a book called how proust can change your life about a month ago and the author, alain de botton, described perfectly about what i’ve been experiencing the last few months.  de botton related how the author virginia woolf became utterly depressed when she read proust’s in search of lost time.   she could not fathom writing anything that could compare to what in her mind was the epitome of perfection.  now, to clarify, i did not nearly suffer as much as woolf seemed to.  i guess i just had a bit of the blogger’s blues.  i think i just coined that phrase.  but, the point is, its difficult to pursue creative expression when you feel as though your thoughts are insignificant, perhaps unoriginal, especially in light of all the fantastic examples of art that surround us. 

the solution comes in the form of compromise: proust, like our contemporaries, like our friends, can have their genius.  but, proust, like our contemporaries, like our friends, cannot express, feel, or create as i do, precisely because we are all different.  and i might, just might, have something to say.  so i forge ahead, on unsteady legs toward a light, dim as it may be. 

it’s the year of the ox, which means it’s my year, bitches!  here are some things to look forward to:

quiting my job (oh. yeah.)  a collection of songs recorded under the name phantom bear and titled the jalopy sessions.  another collection of songs prominently featuring a digital delay pedal.  playing some live shows.  writing some short stories (can you pronounce zine? neither can i ) starting a non-profit organization.  photography.  cross-country road trips.  learning to ride a motorcycle.  figuring out how to have a financially stable life without working a normal 9 to 5 (attractive, i know).  running fast.  camping (i swear it will happen).

here’s to 2009!

::raising imaginary glass of (drink of your choice)::

just for fun

the return of sid

nearly twenty months ago, i was visiting berkeley when i came across a squirrel i subsequently named sid.  he vanished from my life as quickly as he had scurried into it.  while minding my business, i noticed a bushy-tail zooming across a fence.  i believe it to be none other than sid the squirrel.  on espionage duty.  mission: spy on me.  for what reason?  i hope to never find out.