Salut, mes amis.

After a fifteen hour flight we made it to Paris. We are very, very tired. We already checked in before noon, and we spent the day wandering around, taking pictures and hanging out at a café. Unfortunately, I have no idea how to upload photos from this computer. Hell, I have trouble using this bloody keyboard with its fancy French configurations. The rest of the evening will consist of eating in our room and catching up on much needed sleep. Some observations so for:

1. The French are not really that rude.
2. Paris is huge, and old.
3. The Metro is confusing. Somehow, we landed in the middle of a massive mall and got lost. I was half expecting a minotaur lying in wait for us. The building was made up of sweeping, concrete arches and coloured glass.
4. Cafés in France kick royal ass. Canada has much to learn. One can sit at a bar and sip brandy and read the daily. I worked on a poem.
5. You cqn go into a supermarket and buy bandaids, cheese and wine.
6. The city hall here is made up of at least six Vancouver city halls. Seriously.

The streets are crowded and congested. Sirens wail every twenty minutes, often from little police cars shuttling plain clothes police officers. Soldiers with archaic machine guns patrol the airport. Dogs hang out in bars. On the train from the airport a man sat down and belted out a few tunes from his accordian. I spoke a little French. More to come after I sleep.

More painting rags for me

Tomorrow morning L and I will be on a plane to France. I'm finishing up the laundry and brushing up on my French (particularly ordering food) and I will be eventually heading out to hang with Mr. E. My week was a little stressful: I was deregistered from my courses because I missed the payment deadline. I had to rush to get my classes back and pay for them on Thursday, all within a ten minute window! Registration opened again at 4 PM, but the registrar's office (where I pay for all of this) also closes at 4 PM. How bloody convenient. I will miss the first day of classes anyway, due to being in France and all. I had to contact my profs to get permission to be absent, or else I lose my seat again. This chore is done. Sort of. At least my interior life isn't boring.

When I'm in France I will update as I go and upload photos from Flickr.

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Last night I burned my thumb while I was draining pasta in the kitchen sink. Ouch. Nonetheless, nothing is better than pasta with cheese (two kinds even), olive oil and black pepper at midnight.

Last week was ca-ra-zee. I am a free man as of last Friday. My two exams are finished (they both went swimmingly) and my English paper is finished. On Saturday I had to get up a 5 AM to catch my ride to Bothell, Washington for the Pacific Northwest Writing Center Association conference. My co-workers and I were the only Canadians present. The seminars were interesting: the one on generating ideas using play was insightful, and the other on acknowledging accents in writing as well as speech got my attention. I also attended two seminars on critical thinking, and writing an exploratory paper (one with no thesis) to examine all perspectives of an issue or idea. The food was decent. There was, you guessed it, lasagna for the veggies in the crowd. I was up for a little over 17 hours. I was tired all through Sunday too.

L and are going to Paris on Sunday. I'm still a little ambivilant about the trip, as the whole "I don't speak French very well and nothing will go smoothly" scenario plays in my head. I understand that not every travel experience will be perfect, but it is intimidating to enter a country where you are the alien. Although, lately, I've found it hard to be excited about anything.

Ah, I played the Lord of the Rings board game with C last night. The presentation is incredible, and there were moments when the game got very exciting. I tend to yell and cheer when I play games, much to C's dismay.

I was never a Nine Inch Nails fan, but that Trent Reznor has garnered some respect from yours truly. He released a song online through Garageband, and users can dowload it and tinker with the song. You can get it here.

Things to do this week:

1. Get my school fees taken care of.
2. Send in student loan form.
3. Do my taxes.
4. Contact my profs, since I won't make the first day of classes.
5. Get play ready for feedback.
6. Finish article.

Yeeeeeeeeee-haw!

I am finishing up the last of my schoolwork: studying for my exam tomorrow at eight in the morning(!) and my English final. L and I decided to fly to Paris on the 24th for a ten-day jaunt. We bought the tickets this afternoon (as I watched the Travel Cuts agent crop our photos to fit the International Studnet cards. They way her hands moved as she circumscribed each photographs' edge was odd, the slim, firm paper seemed to rotate on its own as the white background around our heads and our shoulders were peeled off like an apple skin. Her desk was littered with little rectangles. The whole scene had me thinking) and we also picked up the Lonely Planet guide. I know, it's so touristy! But, it's not like we know anything about the city and where to stay and eat. Lonely Planet is good for that; it includes the really cheap places, unlike Frommers where, like, the super-expensive places are given a one dollar sign (like so: $) to denote "affordable." Bite me.

My last day of work is on Friday, not Thursday like I was led to believe. Yes, I know, I led myself. No need to get so bitchy.

What I want:

1. iPod Shuffle
2. Digital camera (the H family camera is here again, so L and I playing with it and may bring the bad boy to Paris with us)
3. Complete works of H.P. Lovecraft, for a future project
4. Books detailing the history of Palestine and Israel
5. More money for comics

And, I'm heading down to Seattle again to attend a conference for writing tutors. Myself, plus four other co-workers, are being driven to the University of Washington to attend the seminars and, you guessed it, eat tons of free food! And spend American dollars! Duty-free! I'm putting on a ten-gallon hat and shooting red wine out of turkey basters!

If I were a storTrooper

storTrooper
Originally uploaded by Decepticons Attack!.

My hair colour isn't quite that brown, but the site has a sad selection for hairstyles. The good people (person?) who have brought back the beloved storTroopers have neglected to represent the diverse hairstyles within contemporary society. The storTrooper site is filled with prejudice, and hate.

Okay, maybe not.

the titles come when they can

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Originally uploaded by Decepticons Attack!.

Our neigbourhood is beginning to warm up. The trees' pinkish blossoms are pulling themselves out their buds when no one is looking. Our wet streets look as though they've been splashed with golden paint at dusk, then soften to cool, dark tones as the sun shrinks. At dusk and dawn, the colours and textures of the world become complex. Shadow and light dance together, and everything just looks richer, or they have more substance then they normally would, like a face in candlelight. Now, I got some of the house cleaned up. Yay.

The six hours will be spent on review for the exam tonight, and my semester officially finishes on Thursday. My prediction was pretty accurate: this semester ended with a whimper as opposed to a bang. I need to finish the article (the bastard is one hundred words over the limit) and the English paper by Thursday, so the blog entries will be rather sparse until then. I will start fencing again next Tuesday, and I'm giving my play over to a dramaturgist for feedback inbetween the semesters. I'm also going to hunt out more possiblities to write about comics and to submit poetry.

Yeah, L took the above picture.

Okay!

I'm currently in Chilliwack! We arrived yesterday to celebrate L's dad's birthday, which is today, but I spent all of yesterday in the farmhouse working on my English paper and getting my next article ready. The Other Press slows down during the summer and only releases a few issues over the three months. Really monsterous issues, of course. So, I'm going to write a couple of articles rather than just the one. I did get a lot of work done, and L and I met Nicky and scratched her belly. We also visited the cows (L fed them oat grass and petted their huge, wet noses) and wandered around the farm. Dinner last night was great: lasagna (again, this dish makes an appearance) and garlic bread, and M and I finished off the pig keg on the kitchen counter. Rude jokes ensued.

I'm coming home tonight to work and tidy up the house.

Let Spring Burn a Hole

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Originally uploaded by Decepticons Attack!.

I will be crawling into bed, although I had enough coffee in the last 12 hours to stun an elephant. I'm very excited. I wonder what work will be like for the last week, will anyone come in to ask for help? I'm happy either way. Some folks I helped out this semester have moved on, and I'm really happy about that. It's always nice to meet for the last time though, and get a sense of the individual's progress and witness the improvements they made over the few months coming into the Centre. I'm also glad it's April; more photos can be uploaded and plugged into the blog.

Even other people's projects are exciting: magazines, websites, books, comics, motorcycles, houses, relationships - the list is endless.

I do want school to finish so I can relax and get some writing done. I finished the fencing classes this week, so we're moving onto the "intermediate" levels. Meaning, more bouts and one-on-one coaching. The community centre around the corner offers Shaolin kung-fu (or wu-shu) for $25 a month, or something like that. It's dirt cheap, anyway. There's another style offered too. L and I are going to check it out, while I take aikido on Saturdays. The plan is to take the class in the morning, then help out L at the Farmer's Market.

Just for clarity, L's folks work on a collectively owned organic farm, and they sell their produce in the summer. L works there whenever she gets a chance. I've been out there a few times, I'll take some photos and share them. Next door to their farm lives the sweetest dog in the world, named Nicky. She is very affectionate and loves living in the country, and everytime she sees L Nicky runs across the field, which is pretty remarkable beacuse (a) she is not a young dog anymore and (b) she was hit by a car recently. Nicky is awesome. The farm is very peaceful and I always enjoying spending time there.

Good morning.

The Clean-Up

L constantly reminds me how much she detests how all my user names begin with a "j" then a "_" followed by some silly moniker like "bot" or "x-ray." I think it softens her heart to know someone so utterly out of touch with digital culture.

So, some news. I'm writing semi-regularly about comics for the student paper. I wrote my first article, an enormous 300 word beast, on Paul Chadwick's merits and the gimmick-laden marketing schemes in the industry. I don't mind if writers dream up a strange, labyrinthine story to draw in new readers, it just needs to be a decent one. Sometimes it seems publishers forget that comics are a story-telling medium. I also want to cover some resturants (those within a student's budget) for the paper. Maybe some book reviews too. Ah, books.

Today I hung with C: picking up comics, playing games at Drexoll, then eating pasta and watching Clone Wars at C and Ca's house. Thank you for making the pasta Ca, because the pasta was awesome. Tomorrow will see me working on my English final and gearing up for my article, as well as putting together my presentation for work on Friday.

The Pope passed away yesterday. I'm still processing the event.

Also, Robert Creeley died on April 1st. I think he would have wanted it that way. I just started to familiarize myself with his work.

Today, at 7:30 AM, I registered for three courses. English literature from the 14th to the 18th century, philosophy (reality and existence) and introduction to fiction writing. I'm still waiting for a reply from scholarship foundations and UBC. That means I'm still a nervous mess.

I'm enjoying Pirates of the Spanish Main, Warren Ellis's feeds (who does feed that man anyway?) or just generally cruising the net for news. I'm looking for a site for English nerds who want to discuss literature and writing, mostly poetry. I know there must be message boards for enterprising writers. I want to check out Poetry Critical, or other related sites.

It is late but the city is early.

I just got a short paper back, and I didn't do as well as I thought. Them's the breaks.

There's still some work-related stuff that needs to get done, and the deadline for my prospectus is looming overhead.

Got to go.

The weekend went well. I want to post the pictures soon, or when Flickr gives me more space to upload photos. R and G came over, and we hooked up with Ry, K and T for Indian food at this buffet place. The quality was, well, adequate. And, just at the moment when the restaurant became quiet, I blurted out "herpes" really loud when I was trying to remember what STD could be transmitted in a hot tub. My first guess: syphilis. Then R and G stayed with us for the night, and we ended up playing Kill Dr. Lucky and drinking booze. The whole night was really fun, and it kind of felt like a family reunion with everyone sitting down and catching up.

Then, after a breakfast of L's spectacular blueberry muffins, they took off for a show downtown. L and I picked up wine, vegetables, pate, cheese and crackers for L's folks. Her mom and dad came in around five and we made cabbage rolls, borsht, garlic-kale mashed potatoes and L's mom made an apple crisp for dessert. Je came over to join us for dinner, and a good time was had. We chatted about Canadian literature, and I found I could actually present a reasonable contribution.

Sunday saw us taking the ferry over to my folk's place. We had a really great time, hanging out and eating chocolate. My mom made this incredible three-cheese and spinach lagasna, which I totally inhaled. We talked about our future plans (studying in Slovenia, pursuing a doctorate at Yale) and making sure my dad is feeling well. I'm beginning to wind down here, so to top off this anectode some good news. As L and I waited to to depart the ferry, a woman announced she had room for two in her car. We saw an opportunity begin to dance, then we reached out and grasped its hand in our sore, reddened digits. We danced all the way home.

Good night.

*''''''''''''''''''''''''*

Grumble. I pulled an all-nighter to finish the paper, and miraculously, I'm still going strong. Not like tractor strong, more like determined cyclist strong. I work until four, have class for three hours (and hand in this bad boy of a paper)then it's home for me. Chocolate and booze awaits.

I'm a little embarrassed though: I started to drift off while the instructor was talking. And, um, I kind of drifted off a bit during the discussion group. Man oh man.

Okay, listen up: procrastination is like a credit card. Sure, you can charge all you want, buying some time to download music and eat corn chips, but when the bill comes in the mail you will pay, mister. You will pay.

DSCN0365
Originally uploaded by Decepticons Attack!.

essay my way

Trapped at school, writing this stupid essay. I thought this would be the last one, but I just remembered I have an English essay to finish, but it's not due for two weeks, so who cares? I don't! The sociology (stupid) essay is coming along nicely, although I keep floating away from it whenever my eyes start to glaze over. I people-watch in the library (I'm actually doing this at work, which has windows that look directly into the library computer labs) and cruise the internets. I'm listening to old punk rock and checking out comic book related stuff. That doesn't sound like work to me, young man.

It looks like we're heading for the Island for Easter Sunday dinner, and to deliver concert tickets we got for my parents. The Easter weekend will be a W-H family tour, playing both hosts and guests. Why does getting older become harder at times, then slowly grows so banal I can navigate my life with no effort? Like how everyone shakes hands and says hello with a smile without thinking, they simply act the part. Every holiday should be celebrated differently every year, whether you're an atheist or not, just to keep everyone from drifting off to sleep. On my 30th birthday I'll probably sleep in.

That's it. Finished. I just have the conclusion to write.

Creationists in the U.S. demanded that high school biology textbooks have warning labels on them. So, someone out there came up with warning stickers for Bibles.

"This book contains material on Judeo-Christian theology. Judeo-Christian theology offers insight into the origin and meaning of life and is the basis for several of the world's great religions. But it does not encompass the full range of religious beliefs held sacred by members of our diverse American society. Moreover, this material is based on ancient texts, and significant errors may have been introduced through subsequent translations and omissions. This material should be approached with an open mind, studied carefully and critically considered."

How does ethnographic and enthnohistoric data contribute to preserving First Nation traditions?

Just finished one assignment, two to go. I also have weekly English assignments but I can just bang those out at my convenience. Gentlemen, tighten your saddles.

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Originally uploaded by Decepticons Attack!.

I found this, ah, matchbook last weekend outside the art show, propped up on a cement planter. I guess it's a matchbbook.

Still working here. Got some stuff done yesterday, then went out with C to see Steamboy. It's really pretty to look out, but by God it never ends! I understand Akira is great and all, but somehow I think the story could have been told under the one hour and forty-five minute mark. And a little dog gets repeatedly beaten. Not cool. Luckily, I ordered a mango bubble tea and bought The Man Without Fear by Frank Miller to appease my burning anger. I like how Miller revamped Daredevil's backstory into one with a backbone that's much more relevent to the character's motivations. I find Miller's writing to be a tad overwrought at times; he often relies on repetition and flimsy metaphors to create mood, and then he kind of beats the reader over the head with it. It's like Miller doesn't trust his audience to absorb the tone: "This comic is gritty, it's so real! I need to remind you every other page!"

So, yeah, getting stuff done. I have to finish these two short essays today then I'm ready to tackle the ten-page monster due this Thursday. Now that I think about it, all my assignments are due on Thursday. Weird.

This is the last week of assignments. I will eat chocolate rabbits and drink cheap wine next weekend.

(.) <--------------------> (*)

Who's that whistlin' outside my window? Who's that walking on their toes across my wooden floor? What are those creaks and snaps at the foot of our bed? Who just whispered my name?

I've reevaluated my critique of Copenhagen. Like the whole "good" part at the beginning there. The rest is fine, but I should tip my wrinkled hat to R and change "good" to "underdirected."

I'm getting more sleep.

L and I met at school to see Sympathetic Magic, but the bloody thing was sold out. I got us reservations for tomorrow night, but that means my review won't get done until Friday. I'm taking it easy this St. Patty's Day (who, by the way, ran over his sister two or three times with a chariot. And he burned quite a lot of people. All the more reason to drink green-tinted beer in a crowded bar with neckless college goons breathing through their mouths) drinking at home and watching movie trailers.

Lots of "ing" suffixes today. Easy there, cowboy. Don't you be gaining any momentum on us.

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Originally uploaded by Decepticons Attack!.

Oh, hey.

I just talked to L's dad and our conversation reminded me to update. Thanks M!

My house is cold at the moment. It rained all morning and the house soaked up all the moisture. I need to put on a sweater and drink tea.

I'm slowly getting back to work. The operative word being slowly.

Picked up Concrete: The Human Dilemma #3, Grant Morrison's Seven Soldiers of Victory (could be good), Doc Frankenstein #2 and Street Angel #5. All quality comics. I really want to make comic books. If not for a living, then at least a side project or two.

Lately I've been really tired. for like two weeks it's been like this. Sometimes I don't get enough sleep, and I pay the price the following day. At fencing last night, my reflexes didn't want to cooperate, so everyone just dove in and pressed bruises onto my torso. I just gotta get more sleep. I just gotta.