Jews for Obama

The Great Schlep from The Great Schlep on Vimeo.

Monthly Itinerary

This proves to be a rather relaxed month as I have no shows or trips I have my heart set on. It's good as it allows me to focus on work and paying off bills and IOU's (I'm looking at you Leah!). In two months I'll be enjoying my time with my two (un-biological) sisters in Las Vegas celebrating the final Nine Inch Nails performance of the amazing Lights in the Sky Tour, exploring surrounding ghost towns and being pampered by the the über luxurious Ritz Carlton and having an all around party with drinks, good food and of course dancing.

I also now have the chance to devote more of my time to getting out of my creative writers block and pulling more weight at Big Shiny Robot!. It's a strange autumn this year as I'm not feeling particularly excited for Halloween and have no idea what the hell I'll even dress up as. Please, leave suggestions in the comments box if you have any.

Here are some highlights I'm looking forward to this month:

Ultimate Origins #5 - the conclusion to the beginning of the Ultimate Universe!

Secret Invasion #7 - The conclusion to the Skrull War on Humanity!

Ultimate Spider-Man #175 - the return of Gwen Stacy's clone. The question is: is she Carnage?

Ultimate Spider-Man Annual #3 - Peter and MJ might do "it!"

Quarantine - a zombie movie in the style of Blair Witch Project and Cloverfield? As Palin would say: YOU BETCHA!

Zack and Miri Make a Porno - Kevin Smith's new comedy to not feature his dynamic duo, Jay & Silent Bob. And yet unlike Jersey Girl, this will be funny.

Kaki King at In The Venue on the 17th

Halloween

Demonbaby Store

I know I'm behind on my Coast to Coast conclusion and promise I will have it up by the end of the week, but I have to pimp out Rob Sheridan's (Demonbaby) webstore as he has designed some fucking hilarious shirts that are not only somewhat stylish but snarky at the same time. What more could you ask for?

I personally like these two:

Buy his crap here.

Coast to Coast (Part Two)

Because I'm somewhat lazy, I will share a segment of my e-mail to Leah detailing my time in the Bay Area rather than rehashing it again for this blog:

I got into San Francisco midday on Friday and was greeted by my aunt and uncle. I pretty much crashed that day due to jet lag and uncomfortable seats, with no blanket or pillow. It was a miserable flight but I managed to sleep through the brunt of it. That night I had dinner with my family who made it out to greet me (which was very nice and flattering) and ended up falling asleep whilst watching Ghost Whisperer (a terrible show my aunt loves). The next day my older cousin and I wandered around San Francisco where I stumbled upon a Lush. I went in and there was some sort of foam celebration that resulted in me getting covered in suds to which an extremely gay employee fixed my hair and complimented me on it. It was a very fun experience. We went to a new shopping mall, and walked down to what seemed like the worlds longest corridor to get to the bathroom; left, got milkshakes, went to the Metreon, where I picked up a copy of James Jean's XOXO and my cousin got a cupcake cookbook. We made it all the way to the Embarcadero and then headed back home. We made some pretty good peanut butter cupcakes with homemade chocolate frosting and then called it a night after dinner. Sunday was pretty relaxed, I spent most of the day watching movies (The Fly, Waitress, Die Hard 4) and then going to my Uncle's (he's my mom's Italian brother-in-law) sunday dinner which was fantastic. Enchiladas, and they were nice enough to make cheese ones for me that were extremely spicy. Monday I met up with my old friend Angie who I hadn't seen since I was 16. She used to be Poe' (the singer) PR person and we hit it off back in the day. She's doing well for herself and over a gin and tonic and cheese and crackers we caught each other back to speed on what had gone on in the past few years. The next day was the show. I met up with Aimee and the rest of the gang around 5:30 for drinks and chill out time backstage and got to watch Chris tweak around with his projectors and do soundcheck which was fucking astonishing. The venue people however were nazi's and requested all guests leave and get in line. So, me and the head of Metropolis Records were actually escorted out around 6:45. theSTART and I ended up on their bus hanging out until they had to do their soundcheck at 7:00. I got in line and met up with my friend Phil and ran into Sammi and her boyfriend and danced to the songs the crackheads (they were really crackheads - The venue was in a terrible part of town where I was privy to around 15 narcotic transactions) were singing to us for money. They let us all in, snagged a spot up in front, got picked up on by this girl who looks like the girl from that new Nick and Nora's Infinite Playlist flick but with bleached hair. It was rather scary as she was groping me during theSTART's set and I just politely ignored her and danced my ass off. I'm pretty sure she was rolling on X. IAMX went on, Chris hit our end of the stage, I pulled my buck out during the first song to which he grinned at me and said "Later." The show went on and at one point in the middle of the set he came up and teased me and wagged his finger "no" at me. Then during Spit It Out he curled his fingers at me and I put the dollar in. The crazy girl screamed "OH MY GOD!" and started groping me even more. I shook her off and then Chris collapsed in the crowd and I had to prop his leg up. He seemed a log angrier at this show as at one point during Bring Me Back a Dog he screamed "I'M SO FUCKING ANNOYED WITH YOU!!!" at the soundboard tech. It was fantastic. Afterwards I met up with theSTART and talked to Chelsea about Venture Bros. and Mighty Boosh while Aimee hung out at the merch table to greet fans and sign stuff. I bumped into Dean and chatted it up with him more to which he said they are planning on coming back in May. Wednesday I met up with Angie again to help her prepare for a shindig at the Red Devil Lounge for this local musician, went to the show, had a few drinks, met these two really cool guys from England, handed out cake and had a beer. Thursday was a lazy day as it was my last day before heading back, so I hung out with my family and what not. Friday I returned and en route that evening to say hi to Stew and have a drink I almost hit a kitten that skittered into the middle of the road from beneath a car. I pulled over, coaxed the guy out, put him in my car, picked up a bag of kitten chow and introduced him to my dog (who adored him) and my cat (who wasn't the most enthused). That was my trip in a nutshell.

Coast to Coast (Part One)

I have returned home safe and sound after a 10 day pilgrimage that spanned over 6,000 miles (roundtrip).

I met up with Leah and Larissa, who I can't ever stop raving about, as they are the coolest girls on the planet on September 10th after a clusterfuck of transit thanks to the wonder that is United Airlines. So, this was the official travel itinerary as of September 9th:

Salt Lake City to San Francisco to JFK airport, leaving at 6:00 AM Mountain Standard Time and arriving at 7:00 PM Eastern Standard Time (not including the connection)

En route to San Francisco two flights to the New York area were cancelled resulting in me getting bumped off of my flight and having to spend 8 hours in San Francisco. All stress aside it worked out in the positive in the long run as, my family in San Francisco took me to a fantastic Japanese lunch, let me nap on their couch and then took me back to the airport for my red eye flight. I arrived at 6:00 AM in Newark, New Jersey with several hours to wander and explore until my companions arrived. I trekked over to White Castle for a greasy (and cheap) breakfast and to get my head screwed on before getting out and fucking around. I can tell you that changing in the bathroom of a White Castle in Manhattan is certainly a good time, as clerks tend to forget they've buzzed you in the lavatory. It's fun because some dude walked in on me with one leg in my pants balancing on a shoe as to not put my sock down on the floor. That kind of shock is a better eye opener than a cup of joe. So, blah, blah, I hit the road and made it to the Theater District, Times Square, the Empire State and the NYC Public Library in a span of 4 hours making brief pit stops at the Marriott Marquis for a breather,  and at the world famous Midtown Comics (which really is amazing in every way, two floors of comics, toys and collectibles that would fry any geek's brain if they were a lesser person than I). Jetlag and citywalk exhaustion began to dig its roots into me and I decided to retire for an hour at the Port Authority where I was to meet up with Leah and Larissa.

Well, that was an adventure of it's own, as within 10 minutes of plopping my scrawny ass on the floor I'm approached by this rather ratty women in her mid twenties who asks me if I'm familiar with the building. Travel tips 101: If you are asked if you know where you are always say yes, even if it's a blatant lie.

"Yeah, for sure." I respond.

"Oh! Cool! So, do... uh... Do you think I can get in trouble for panhandling here?" She asks.

"Well, um, I dunno, I mean, bums do it, and the cops don't really hassle them, so, I think you might be okay." I tell her.

"Ah... Okay... I just don't want to get arrested."

"Of course."

"Well, um, do you have any tips on how to pan handle?"

"I would just wing it." I tell her informatively. "There's no right way to do it."

"Yeah... Yeah," she nods "Just wing it. Okay! Got it! Cool! Thanks!"

She walks away; I stand up to get the fuck out of dodge. I move upstairs and am approached a half hour later by another person, this one significantly older and creepier.

"Hi, how are you?" He asks me.

"I'm well, how are you?"

" I'm just fine. Do you live around here?"

"Oh, no, I live in Newark, I'm just here overnight. I'm meeting up with some friends here."

"What part of Newark do you live in?"

"Um..." Fuck I'm thinking, think quick, think quick "The Highland Park area. Around Miller Avenue and Portola."

"Oh, yeah, I know where that is." he retorts.

"Yeah, it's a nice area isn't it?"

"Yeah, I liked it."

Then he got up and walked away. Soon after Leah and Larissa arrived... I would give my take on the story but Leah has already posted the most lovely of entries describing our time together in great and wonderful detail (also making me out to sound a lot cooler than I really am). So, I highly recommend reading the unofficial part two of my trip over at her Live Journal. Once we went our separate ways I did get a little misty eyed as I always do enjoy my time with the Deyneka Sisters more than words can express.

Also, this woman has taken some amazing photos from the IAMX performance in NYC and you can view them via her Flickr.

Well, I made it back to Newark to crash the a hotel near my airport as I had to leave early the next morning. Luckily upon arriving I was welcomed with a complimentary upgrade to a one bedroom suite and there was a marathon of The Office which helped keep me from feeling utterly depressed as I was already missing Leah and Larissa. After sleeping for a mere 5 hours I woke up and headed back to the airport for a week in San Francisco.

That's a whole other story.

View images here...

To be continued...

Return

I will be back within 24 hours.

Tick tock.

Still Gone

I apologize, I decided to forgo my small return to Salt Lake City before embarking to San Francisco and just stayed in the Bay Area.

Details will be forthcoming.