The 'Wii'-Diculous Morning

Ah, Black Friday. How bittersweet you are: a plethora of cheap shit blended with the inevitable slap of disappointment.

I awoke at 5:40 am and marched my cold, tired, handsome ass downtown to EB Games where I'd hoped to procure the latest interactive innovation from Nintendo. I had been told by EB employees that six or seven would be available, so I knew my chances were slim, but worth a few frigid hours. I had even accepted the indelible nerd-shaped brand that was to remain ever seared on my soul.

I met my friend John in front of the mall and he proceeded to describe our fantastic luck: the security guard was a cool guy and had decided, as a favor, to open our door before any other. This meant that the small group surrounding our entrance was to have first crack at the Wii. I was fourth from the front. Awesome.

Hour one passed and everything went according to plan; our door was thrust open and we hurried to the EB Games storefront. Here, we would have another hour to wait, but hey, what's another hour? After a short time, the clerk came out and informed us of the current inventory: only three PS3s and two Wiis. My heart sank. I was two spots away from the Wii and would have no other chance on a day like this. I hung my head, but resolved to buy the new Zelda game: I figured leaving with something would keep my spirits from drowning in their own rejected tears.

I know I'll have one soon, but damnit! EB Games, why must you torment me?!

And did John get one? Yes. Yes, he did. John, you're a bastard.

The Super Diamond

They may be a bit tongue-in-cheek, but Super Diamond truly channel the amazing Neil. I imagine it was nothing like the real deal, but, for an evening of drinking and friends, it was more than enough; they put on a fantastic show and gave fans the most important thing: his music.

On top: Forever In Blue Jeans.

On bottom: Sweet Caroline.

The Triple Door (Todd Barry)

What better way to spend Halloween night? In this clip, Todd does a bit of self-promotion and makes fun of a guy dressed as a pirate. We had so much fun.

The Show

Well, FilmCrunch is finally up and running. I can't tell you how happy that makes me, as Veronica and I have just completed episode 5. Consequently, things may seem a bit behind right now, but we should be caught up soon. Please check out the site and the show and leave comments - go easy, it is only the first episode. We will be updating once a week with reviews of new films, old films, DVD releases, top fives, and a whole lot more. Drop us a line and don't forget to tell your friends!

FilmCrunch

The Official Snack Of Hip-Hop

Oh, snap! What better way to capture the true essence of hip-hop than with a bag of greasy potato chips?

Why haven't I seen these in the 10+ years they've been on the market?

Does anyone else think it's funny that white people are sometimes referred to as "crackers"? There's irony there somewhere, right?

I have so many questions. Most notably, "Why?"

RapSnacks.com

The Open Letter: Bus #43

Dear Ms. 43,

My name is Neil Estep. You may not know me, but we’ve met on several occasions, informally. In fact, I’ve been inside you - deep, deep inside you - but perhaps that still doesn’t register. This comes as no surprise, however, since the number of people having similar encounters grows exponentially even I as write. I have heard rumors of skateboards, duffel bags, and even dogs sharing this experience. I do not wish to upset you, only to state a fact: you are a dirty, dirty whore.

Now, as we all know, a whore is a whore and anything less is not. There is no such thing as a part-time whore or an occasional whore. A whore with scruples practically defines contradiction. You see, in allowing a person to be inside you - often multiple times per day - a relationship is built, one that is understood by both parties. An unwritten contract is formed that, when applied appropriately, lays out one simple rule: when we agree to meet, you will show up, open your doors, and take me for a ride. I’m offering to pay, so what’s going on?

It is understood that from time to time things may arise that prevent your timely arrival. In such cases, I’ve given you plenty of slack. I know you have many appointments to keep. Alas, you've now continually stood me up, frequently making me quite late, and I don’t know what to do. Today alone, I waited almost an hour. I could’ve picked up a different bus, but I stayed because we have history.

In all seriousness, stop making me late for school. It’s my second week and I have enough on my mind. Also, in all seriousness, you’re still a whore.

Sincerely,
Neil Estep

The Dance (So You Think You Can) (update)

For any fans out there, here's an exciting morsel: I served Nigel Lythgoe breakfast yesterday morning. "Idol" auditions were recently held in Seattle and the producers and judges were staying in the hotel. He had the Continental Breakfast with wheat toast and coffee, no juice.

He is very, very British - polite, respectful, and organized in his eating.

The Television

Take a good look, people, for this television is your worst nightmare. The Niko OTP-3211W 32-Inch Widescreen LCD TV boasts top-of-the-line features, HD capabilities, and best of all, low price. Well, I got hooked and reeled in, my friends, because without thinking I purchased one, citing great reviews on Amazon and, again, that ridiculously low price ($749.99). When it arrived, we opened the box and plugged it in. You can imagine my excitement at this point, I'm sure.

First, we tried basic cable - no HD tuners, no digital cable boxes, just a coaxial cable, an RF connector, and a dream. The picture wasn't too bad, but I did notice some ghosting. For those who don't know, "ghosting" is a term used when things on screen are moving and blur slightly. This happens because the screen's pixels aren't refreshing fast enough to keep up with the movement. Now, the better models are tackling this problem and have it down to about eight milliseconds, but Niko must not have heard about this feature's importance.

Next, we tried a few DVDs, and they looked good except for the still-present ghosting. For three days I tried to ignore it (I've got too much pride), but in the end admitted defeat. I realize that using coaxial cable and RCA hookups won't get the best picture nowadays, but shouldn't it be good enough to bear, at least?

We returned the Niko and got a full refund, not including the near $200 dollars we spent in shipping. I don't even want to try and explain the difficulty we had in sending it back.

The bottom line: if you're thinking about purchasing a LCD or plasma screen television, start with online reviews, but don't end there - go to Best Buy or Circuit City and LOOK at them, play with the picture (contrast, brightness,etc.), talk to an expert. Don't be a Naive Neil.

The Deerhoof Show

The highlight of my Bumbershoot 2006 experience. I heart this band.

The Project

For a long time now, Sheri and I have been planning a few personal touches for the apartment, unique supplements to the IKEA ordinary. We found a good first project a few months ago - an idea for wall art in a book called Readymade - and decided to spend a weekend tackling it, along with buying and assembling some furniture. For those unfamiliar with Readymade magazine, or the aforementioned book, it offers do-it-yourself, often earth-conscious project instructions for everyone from beginner to expert.

Materials included twenty-four CD jewel cases (preferably used, however new packs of ten were easy to find), a digital image of high resolution, and some tape, a pencil, scissors, and a ruler. We found a picture I took this spring of a blossoming tree, uploaded it to a website that will pixelate and blow up an image (www.homokaasu.org/rasterbator/), printed it at a local Kinko's-style shop on sixteen 8 1/2" by 11" sheets, and brought it home. Surprisingly, that was the easy part. What followed were hours of measuring, cutting, and taping - enough to rival even the most tedious grade school art project. In the end, we were pleased, and interchanging shouldn't be difficult if we ever decide to use a new image. Hopefully, this will mark the first of many DIY ventures around the apartment.

The Cats

Just some good pictures I took recently of Jesus and Chaos.

The Summer Olympics

Tennis!


Guns!


Risk!

The Naked Person

Wow. I may live in Capitol Hill, but things like this don't happen everyday. In fact, I can't think of one time - apart from the occasional parade hippy or drunken flasher - that I have ever seen someone naked on the street. And I mean completely, one-hundred percent, inarguably naked. This girl was just that, barring a pair of brown cowboy boots and a trendy pink purse. Even more surprising was the nonchalant way she strolled around as if she had stepped out to pick up a gallon of milk or mail a letter. A proud grin covered her face and her stride was quick and confident. I'll admit it's been hot lately (around ninety degrees), but I've somehow found a way to keep MY clothing on. Maybe I'm crazy. Maybe she's crazy. You decide.

A moment later she was detained by five police officers and assumedly "taken downtown".

The 50th State (pictures)

Click a picture.

The 50th State (con't)

It's day four.
We're in Kaanapali (on the northwest side of the island) at a beautiful resort on the beach. We've toured Maui in a helicopter, snorkeled, taken dive lessons, been to a Luau, and laid in the sand. Somehow, amid all that, Sheri and I have managed to find plenty of time to relax - something we both needed. We plan to snorkel more in the morning and drive to an area called Wailea where we'll be having dinner at the Fairmont Kea Lani Hotel (we get a good discount). Wednesday night we head for home. History tells me it will feel too soon, but it's so far been a most fulfilling trip.

The 50th State

Tomorrow I leave for Hawaii. Excited? You bet. I don't know much about the place, but I intend to learn. By learn, I mean sit on a beach and drink for seven days straight. Of course, no trip to anywhere would be worth anything without the obligatory touristic bits. Sheri and I will take a helicopter tour of Maui, snorkel, maybe parasail, definitely get sunburned - a well-rounded vacation.
Have fun on the mainland, suckers!

The Shield

Well, it's official: Executive Producer/Creator Shawn Ryan has announced a seventh and final season of The Shield. Apparently, he thought of a great ending for the series and needed one more season to put it all together. For those who know about this fantastic show, I need not explain what makes it the greatest action serial on television. If you haven't seen The Shield, I suggest you get with it. It has everything you could want - an intense storyline, shaky camera work, gut-wrenching plot twists.

Like many TV shows, however, it doesn't find it's feet right away. After episode four or five the dialogue becomes better and plots and sub-plots more tightly wound.

To adequately describe the show in these few words would be impossible. If you trust me (and my judgement) you'll look into it.

Season six begins in January on, as always, FX.

The Acceptance

So, this is what I recieved about a week and a half ago. It's part of my University of Washington acceptance packet. That's right, I'm headed back to school. I'll start in late September. Put plainly, I have only a few more months to be completely lazy before being completely stressed out. I plan to attend full time and will major in English. I'm not sure what I want to do, but I can't let that forever keep me from returning.

The Trip

Where's the best place to be if you love onions and wine? That's right, Walla Walla. Oddly enough, no one has invented an onion wine. If they had, even fewer people would inhabit this small city. Lucky for me, there were two and a half people I really wanted to spend time with in "the town so nice they named it twice": Jamie, Wes, and Dylan. Dylan's the little guy pictured above. He's damn near the cutest kid I ever laid eyes on. I had a great, but short time and had to head back to rain central. These guys are soon moving to Michigan and I may not see them for a while, but it's good to know that despite time and distance apart we are still as good of friends as ever.

The Ratings (Second Edition)

Music:
The Warning - Hot Chip*****
Fox Confessor Brings the Flood - Neko Case****
Cole's Corner - Richard Hawley****
Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not - Arctic Monkeys**
Sun Q - IQU***
Falling Off The Bone (Comedy) - Todd Barry****
Apologies to the Queen Mary - Wolf Parade***
TV:
The New Adventures of Old Christine**
So You Think You Can Dance*****
The War At Home*

The Dance (So You Think You Can)

As television goes, I'm picky. It better be damn good if I'm going to watch it. Maybe I've become a Tivo snob, but I only watch shows that I like. I'll try a new one occasionally, based on reviews or recommendation, and if it's bad, that's it - deleted! On the plus side, I sometimes find one that renews my faith in new television, makes me believe there are still people out there who want to make good TV. Reality shows are even deeper in the pile of television trash; many I've seen do nothing more than re-enforce my belief that the human race is in serious trouble. Some reality shows, however, are a bit more impressive - I'm not a big "Idol" fan, but I do appreciate it's originality. It seems only logical that the "Idol" producers would improve upon this idea, bringing the Idol-esque concept to people looking for something more.
Tonight is the season two premiere of So You Think You Can Dance - a show where people from all backgrounds compete for number one (a familiar concept, I know). But the thing that sets this show apart from the others is the actual level of difficulty. In "Idol", you need but a good singing voice and can perform relatively well. I think most would agree that every performer does a good job and that the line separating the "good" from the "bad" is often thread-thin. Not so in SYTYCD. Season one presented wonderful variety: break dancers, ballet dancers, hip-hop dancers. Every person excelled in his/her individual styles, from classical to contemporary, in some cases knowing only that particular style and no other. The fun starts when these people reach into a hat and are assigned a style. Sometimes they are paired together or on their own, but they must work with a choreographer and perfect a style with which they may not be familiar.
Of course, like any of these shows, the performances are the best part. Set aside the fact that you get to watch b-boys doing a waltz; you get to see ballet dancers breakdance! Just watching good breakdancing is enough to keep me glued.
Whether or not you like "Idol", this is a fantastic show. Check it out.
On Fox, Wednesdays from 8-10 (performance and voting) and Thursdays from 9-10 (the cuts).

The Apology

I realize that I'm not good at keeping this thing going. I only wish my life was interesting enough to post about daily. I've been painting lately. When it's finished (in the next couple of days) I'll get a picture and put it up.

Things I've been listening to: (on a scale of * to *****)
It's Never Been Like That - Phoenix***
The Garden - Zero 7****
They Think They Are The Robocop Kraus! - The Robocop Kraus***
The Runners Four - Deerhoof*****
Bang Bang Rock And Roll - Art Brut****

Things I've been watching:
The Colbert Report (TV)*****
King Kong (Film)*****
The Terminal (Film)***
Snatch (Film)****
Gorillaz: Demon Days Live (Film)*****

Things I've been playing:
New Super Mario Bros. (Nintendo DS)*****
Brain Age: Train Your Brain In Minutes A Day (DS)*****
Kingdom Hearts: Chain Of Memories (Game Boy Advance)**
Bleach (DS)***
Ouendon (DS)****

More in a bit.

The Smart Car

Well, it's here. The much anticipated (by me) US release has finally come. A dealership in Kirkland has a rather prolific inventory, so Sheri and I went to test-drive one last week. Can I tell you something? It was sweet. I mean, wicked sweet. These are fun cars to drive.
This little guy was a 2005 Smart Fortwo Passion with about 10 miles on it and a three cylinder, six speed transmission, meaning great acceleration, but little overall speed (about 80 mph). The driver can also opt for manual or automatic transmission - something I really enjoyed on paper, but found troublesome on the road. I love a stick shift, but this one was tricky. The 45 to 50 miles per gallon wouldn't have hurt either, what with ever-rising gas prices.
So, why don't I own one? Unfortunately, this car has a big pile of shortcomings. First of all, it costs about $26,000, which wouldn't be that bad if I wasn't soon starting school or if the dealership offered financing. It turns out I'd have to ask for a loan from my bank (which I was told by the salesman probably wouldn't be approved for this car), or go through some online lender (which sounded sketchy). Then, I'm told insurance companies won't insure Smart Cars because they're too new and don't yet have a Blue Book value. Add to that a tiny engine that can only be serviced in Kirkland and has an oil change that would set me back about $100 and we are through. Could it be any more difficult to own one? I know, huh?
They sure are awesome though.

The Hottest New Bag!

The bags of today are boring. From messengers to backpacks, clutches to duffels, rolling luggage to Ziploc, bag designers have become lazy dogs on corporate leashes and it's time for consumers to stop feeding them. Enter: new bag from Parcel. I spotted this little number while shopping at Nordstrom the other day and my jaw just dropped. The genious in the design is obvious, quite frankly. I don't need to describe why this bag spits in the face of all modern and classical comparison: the deep green, the splash of orange, the unique "backpack" style. But take a look at the bobbles adorning this already perfect bag, like a god and his talisman (in this case, talismen or taliswomen). These four "icons of cool" say, "you don't need a personality, you need only this bag."
For anyone confused, let me break it down. The Green Indian: an honorable man - ready to fight for what he believes in. The Sea Shell: from the ocean - a calm, yet unpredictable place; a surfer's paradise, yet home to many a watery pirate grave. The Arrowhead: Sharp and pointy, able to cut deep and pierce the soul. The Bullet: screams, "don't fuck with me or you'll get shot!" In short, this bag is the new you. It's the "you" before you even knew what "you" was. Get it. Wear it. Live it. Visit your local Nordstrom today. It's your duty as an American.

The Cherry

Well, this is my first blog entry...ever. "Welcome to the club," you say? To that I say, "Why you condescending prick. You don't think I hear that sarcasm? I'm not stupid. I'm a trendsetter! This is a blog. I invented it." Check back for more.