Combatwoundedveteran - Lead poisoning and distortion

Thanks for the concern, guys. I have things pretty much back to normal after the malware incident (the cdpuvbhfzz hack), I just have to redesign my gallery. Coppermine was the cause of the problem, although I’m not sure exactly what it was. Anyone using the Coppermine Gallery script should check out the support forums as soon as possible, because even those with up-to-date scripts are being hit with this thing and you need to get the fix (if they even have one yet).

There was a straight edge documentary on National Geographic two nights ago and it was hilarious. Apparently, straight edge kids are classified as “gang members” in certain cities, and are monitored by the Gang Unit of the police force. This is only in lame places like Salt Lake City and Reno, but still – it is unacceptable the way the cops treat them. Instead of singling out the hardline guys who kick the shit out of drunks and frat boys, the cops just grouped all straight edge people together… as if straight edge, by itself, is a violent idea – and then to actually classify anyone with an X on their hand as a potential terrorist!? It’s just absurd.

The documentary was especially funny because of the way they narrated it, referring to straight edge kids in odd ways that I’ve personally never heard, even though I’ve been drug free since I was 15 years old. I am embarrassed to think that others will watch this doc and base their opinion on straight edge on what they saw.

Anyway, it wasn’t just a bunch of “bad press” like I made it sound (though there were a lot of morons interviewed). They remained pretty objective, and it had some interesting parts like when they were filming in Boston, which has an awesome hardcore scene, of course.

and he can dance! Actually, the dancing is questionable since it’s more or less fellatio, masturbation and pelvic thrusts set to a beat, hence his title:

GayTourettesIntergalacticHipsterMan!

This is a cop out, because I’m out of blogging material. I dragged this video from the depths of my hard-drive: never before seen footage of Justin in a retard trance, moving to Lightning Bolt in my mom’s short-shorts circa 1975 and a few other donated items that make up GTIHM’s costume. Brandy is holding the camera (and laughing) and Chris says something in the beginning and my only contribution can be heard at the very end when I tell him to “like do more kicks and shit”. Originally this started as a mockery of scenesters at hardcore shows, but I rebranded it because I’m so funny like that.

Joshua Fit For Battle - Dreams

Last night’s show was awesome. Converge played a lot of songs they haven’t played in years. I got some cool videos, but very few photos, due to the fact that I was not in a prime location and the lighting sucked worse than usual. This was the first show I attended at this particular venue, so I got to feel it out and see how Buffalo does hardcore (pretty well, I must add!), and I scouted a few spots along the front where I can get some better photos next time around.

Anyway, this venue is basically a tiny old theater that was gutted, and they still have a tiny strip of elevated seats in the back, and I managed to snag one of them. It was really odd, because I’ve never sat down at a show before… and while it was cool to have a seat, I will definitely be standing along with everyone else next time. I felt too disconnected.

Justin and I have been talking about buying a house within the next year (Buffalo has the cheapest houses I’ve ever seen!). A house below market value that needs cosmetic work or maintenance would be perfect to fix up and live in until we finish college. For instance, buying a $20,000 house and putting $15,000 worth of renovations into it is about the same as renting this apartment for 4 years straight. The money we spend renting will never come back to us, but by buying a house, we have a great chance of getting every dollar back, or possibly even make a profit when we need to sell it. It’s an exciting idea, but we have a lot more to think about.

I’m really looking forward to the Converge show on Wednesday. They’re playing with The Red Chord (who are grindcore-ish) and Genghis Tron, which is an awesome experimental band from Philly. There’s another band, too, but I’ve never heard them. For the past month and a half, Justin and I have had a red-sharpied note on our fridge so that we wouldn’t forget to go, like we did with this one show a few months back. Actually, I think we’ve forgotten twice. We don’t have a damn calendar.

Yesterday, we went downtown to the library and checked out some Jack Kerouac novels and a few movies. If you’re introverted or just really hate people, the library is the place to go. We got some pizza at this little mall that is below an office building, and the food court was packed full of “young professionals”. I overheard this guy talking about how his worst grade in high school was in History, and I was thinking “…what a dumbass”. How can you not love history? I know I’m biased, because I want to teach Social Studies, but damn. It’s almost a cliche… students just “hate” history, they find it boring. I wonder why that is. It was always my favorite subject in school, and my father said it was also his favorite. It’s story-time, but the tales are more truthful, more violent, and you get to argue about them. I don’t understand anyone anymore.

I got the ink cartridges I ordered online, and they didn’t work. Fucking ebay.