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I miss my old commute. I never thought I'd say those words, as my recent move to Silver Spring has shaved an hour a day off my once-long commute. In a way, I miss it because I got used to the idea of curling up with a book and being able to polish off a considerable portion of it before having to exit the train. Now, chapters or magazines which once took one day are now spread over the better part of a week. When I find myself two or three stops from my destination, I have actually caught myself thinking Oh good, I have a few more minutes to read. Eventually, I'll get over it.

Recently, a visitor on my site asked:

do you still have the doctor martens music sampler cd?

Unfortunately, he/she forgot to leave an e-mail address or contact info. Yes, the CD is still available. The original post contains all the info.

I went to see the Undertow Orchestra last night at the Iota Club and Cafe in Arlington VA. The "Orchestra" is an amalgamation of David Bazan of Pedro the Lion, Will Johnson of Centro-matic, Mark Eitzel of American Music Club, and the ever-enigmatic Vic Chesnutt. You could call them a mope-rock supergroup of sorts.

Iota is a small venue — I'd say not room for more than 100 to 150 in the main room. I saw Bazan before the show — he was mulling about, setting up, procuring drinks, etc. I smiled at him and got his attention. We ended up talking for a few minutes — mostly about his music (what else?). He was very forthcoming in his answers and sounded natural —very grounded. He confirmed my suspicions about the demise of Pedro the Lion but assured me that it was a death in name only. While Bazan will not be recording under that name, I wouldn't consider the band's breakup a great loss. The heart and soul of Pedro has always been Bazan — in fact his revolving cast of touring and session musicians can rightly be deemed Bazan's band. Meaning no disrespect to said members, Bazan is Pedro the Lion. The others are simply his messengers. He may in fact employ a drummer and/or basist when he records his first proper solo album and tours. Nothing — save for the name — will have changed.

Singer/songwriter Jesse Harris opened for the band, and did a short seven or eight song set which consisted entirely of down-tempo ballads. During the set, I thought that his sound/intonation/lyrics were similar to Norah Jones' debut album. I guess I didn't put two and two together, because it turns out that he did indeed co-write Jones' signature song "Don't Know Why", as well as a few others on the album. He even played guitar on about half the album. Bowl me over, why don't you?!? Not only did he not perform any of the songs he wrote for Jones, but he didn't even mention anything remotely pertaining to her during the set! The nerve of some people, I swear.

The Undertow Orchestra's sound was more or less cohesive, considering that their first rehearsal was February 3, a mere eight days prior to the show. Will, David, Mark, and Vic took turns on lead vocals; all told, they did about six songs a piece.

Bazan's sets consisted of "Bands With Managers", "Priests and Paramedics", and "Slow Car Crash"; then "Criticism as Inspiration", "The Devil is Beating His Wife", and "I Do". "The Devil..." was a song from Pedro the Lion's abandoned 2006 album sessions, originally recorded in demo form in fall 2005. I asked David about the song before the show; he said he liked it and would be incorporating it into his solo project. Hearing it live proved his was serious. It was also refreshing to hear "Slow Car Crash", a standout synthesizer-infused song from Bazan's side project, Headphones. It's one of Bazan's more "romantic" songs, albeit within the context of impending death.

However, the show ended on a high note of sorts, with Vic Chesnutt and the band singing his "In My Way, Yes", a strong show closer. One would hope that this song exemplifies Chesnutt. But that's just the optimist in me.

Everybody's more upset with this cartoon than they are about the suicide/homicide bombers that [Muslim extremists] make of their little kids.
—Rush Limbaugh

See also: The Cowardly American Media

I joined a gym with Annie a few weeks ago with the hopes of losing a bit of weight. But I've seen my weight creep up lately and I can't explain why. 193 · 196 · 200 · 202... What's going on? Could it possibly be that I'm gaining muscle mass without losing fat? I heard that Brad Pitt actually gained 20lbs while preparing for his role in Troy, and Hilary Swank gained 19lbs while training for her role in Million Dollar Baby — so even if I do make it to 210lbs, I can still rationalize it.

The gym is a sad place — at least the one I frequent. My county has a series of rec centers with weight lifting and other gym equipment. The gyms aren't well known, and aren't used by many. I'm in virtual seclusion half the time, and thus I'm missing one element of working out — competition. I'm one to believe that collective participation definitely raises intensity levels. When I go home, I pass a well-lit Bally Total Fitness and can see scores of people running like hamsters on their treadmills. They're probably trying a bit harder than I am, if only because they're concerned that they're not going as fast as the people beside them.