Welcome Back to Real Life
Hello friends. It's been a while. It feels like it's been even longer. And no, I'm not referring to the last time I posted to the old LJ. I'm referring to the fact that starting last week I've been switched to day shift at work, and now I get to catch up on all the socializing I've been missing since, oh, January 2nd.
So let me break down my first week returning as a real person:
Monday
On Monday I laid low, running a couple errands and generally recuperating from all the "graduation" madness from Sunday. I finally got to catch Heroes at its regular time (thankfully the Sci Fi Channel regularly runs marathons of this show, so I was able to keep up). Though I got into this show a bit late in the game, I have to say that the season finale was pretty satisfying. Few and far between are the shows where the characters can throw around so many pyrotechnics without looking silly. Add in the fact that all the characters are well fleshed-out and genuinely likable (even the villians. Likable villians are very important to any superhero story) and you've got a damn solid show. I look forward to season 2.
Tuesday
Easing myself back into the world of the social, I decided Tuesday to join my good friend and loyal drinking buddy Matt for a second viewing of Hot Fuzz. This was prompted by the fact that my roommate was watching the finale of American Idol, and I was going to be damned if I was going to hear that coming from downstairs on my second day of relative freedom. Hot Fuzz, by the way, is absolutely hilarious. Even the second time, watching Simon Pegg run up and drop kick an old lady in the face is priceless. Just priceless.
Wednesday
This is gonna be a pretty long one. Wednesday was the long-awaited Brand New show at Lupo's. I showed up a little late after waiting for my partner-in-crime Meghan to show up, so I missed opening band the Colour Revolt, but I did catch Anathallo and was duly impressed by their brass-meets-art-rock sound (Meg, if you're reading this, you still owe me a copy of that cd). Then Brand New took the stage and, well, if you're sick of me having nothing but praise to say about this band, you're sadly shit out of luck.
It's safe to say at this point that Brand New is not a singles band. Their set at Lupo's avoided both "Jude Law" and "Quiet Things" despite including just about every other track from Deja Entendu. The Devil and God Are Raging Inside Me was obviously well-represented and the songs off that album absolutely shred live. "Archers" was everything I hoped it would be live, and "You Won't Know" nearly knocked me on my ass despite the fact that I was standing near the back of the room. "Sic Transit Gloria" was just as awesome as it was the first time I saw them, and "The No Seatbelt Song" (the only song off of Your Favorite Weapon to make it onto the set list) was given a boost by some extra guitar fireworks thrown in at the end. The finale of the night was the instrumental "Welcome to Bangkok" during which members of the other bands, crew members, and just plain random people jumped onstage with the band to thrash away at whatever instrument they could get their hands on. There was no encore, but there really didn't need to be after that display.
See this band live.
Thursday
Thursday was the big premiere night for Pirates 3. The roomate rounded up a solid posse that included a couple of the old guard from URI and this summer's crop of EPA interns (who seem like good kids. I look forward to hanging out more with them this summer and pining over how badly I wish I had their job). The movie was intense, to say the least. At all times, there was either something stange going on or an enormous fight scene (and more often than not, botha t the same time). It definitely sustained my interest for the full 3 hours it ran, and though I've heard mixed reviews on the ending, I personally liked the fact that the writers took a darker path rather than let everyone escape unscathed (actually, just about everyone ends up decidedly scathed by the end). The climactic battle in the middle of a gigantic whirlpool is still awesome despite being overplayed in the trailers.
Friday
I started out Memorial Day weekend by heading up to Boston as soon as I got out of work to celebrate my fellow Irish poseur Flan's birthday. Calling it a mere "crazy party" would be like calling a leaping, bloodthirsty shortfin mako "some fish." The stories are better left said in person, but suffice to say the phrase "you should have let me die" was uttered by someone the following morning. Also, I've found another drink to combine with Guinness. Joining the powers of Guinness draught with Long Trail Blackberry Wheat produces what I have dubbed a "Black and Black." Not only is it delicious, it allows you to wander around the party saying "How much more black could this be? None. None more black." to everyone. I intend to do this every single time I get a chance to make one.
Saturday
After a nice hangover breakfast with Kate and Wayne (easily the MVP of the night. Again, the stories are best told in person) I headed a few miles south to visit Neil. I ended up being pretty seriously delayed when I found that all the T stops in Brookline were closed for maintainence and I'd have to take a bus to the station three stops down in order to get back to my car. By the time I made it to Neil's, it was only a couple hours before the aquarium, science museum, and even the fine arts museum would be closing (for some reason all the cool stuff in Boston closes at 5. Even on weekends. And this is our New England metropolis). So we went and saw Spiderman 3. It was still pretty good the second time, though I feel like it moves way too quickly and doesn't do enough with Venom. Still, seeing Venom on the big screen at all was still pretty cool for this former comic geek.
After leaving Boston, I forgot that to get back to 95 south you have to take 3 north. Why? Because as soon as you get within 20 miles of Boston, any normal sense of direction is just going to get you lost. Suffice to say, I figured out something was wrong when I started seeing exit signs for Plymouth. I ended up taking 44 all the way back into Rhode Island, which I do not reccomend unless you're trying to find the ghost hitchiker that supposedly hangs out in Rehobeth (I didn't see it, but that section of 44 definitely looks like the type of place a ghost would chill). It was an adventure to say the least.
Sunday
Sunday was all about recuperation. I mostly lazed around the house, but I did manage to get over to Jon's to watch Babel. Overall, it was an interesting, well-acted movie. It also contained a masturbating 12-year-old and a crotch shot of a Japanese schoolgirl. Now which of the previous two sentences is more likely to get you to watch it?
Monday
I celebrate Memorial Day itself by going and seeing Pirates again, this time with some of my former housemates from Narragansett. This time we saw it at the Showcase with the nice stadium seating and surround sound. Definitely a movie worth seeing in a nice theater.
And that's basically it. I've seen and hung out with more people in the past week than I have in the past five months. I feel like I've been released from a cave to once again roam the wild. And roam I shall. I don't have as much crazy stuff set up for this week, but stay tuned, it could turn crazy at any moment. Also, that summer fiction I keep talking about writing is coming together nicely in my twisted dome, so by next entry I should some of that ready for you.
So let me break down my first week returning as a real person:
Monday
On Monday I laid low, running a couple errands and generally recuperating from all the "graduation" madness from Sunday. I finally got to catch Heroes at its regular time (thankfully the Sci Fi Channel regularly runs marathons of this show, so I was able to keep up). Though I got into this show a bit late in the game, I have to say that the season finale was pretty satisfying. Few and far between are the shows where the characters can throw around so many pyrotechnics without looking silly. Add in the fact that all the characters are well fleshed-out and genuinely likable (even the villians. Likable villians are very important to any superhero story) and you've got a damn solid show. I look forward to season 2.
Tuesday
Easing myself back into the world of the social, I decided Tuesday to join my good friend and loyal drinking buddy Matt for a second viewing of Hot Fuzz. This was prompted by the fact that my roommate was watching the finale of American Idol, and I was going to be damned if I was going to hear that coming from downstairs on my second day of relative freedom. Hot Fuzz, by the way, is absolutely hilarious. Even the second time, watching Simon Pegg run up and drop kick an old lady in the face is priceless. Just priceless.
Wednesday
This is gonna be a pretty long one. Wednesday was the long-awaited Brand New show at Lupo's. I showed up a little late after waiting for my partner-in-crime Meghan to show up, so I missed opening band the Colour Revolt, but I did catch Anathallo and was duly impressed by their brass-meets-art-rock sound (Meg, if you're reading this, you still owe me a copy of that cd). Then Brand New took the stage and, well, if you're sick of me having nothing but praise to say about this band, you're sadly shit out of luck.
It's safe to say at this point that Brand New is not a singles band. Their set at Lupo's avoided both "Jude Law" and "Quiet Things" despite including just about every other track from Deja Entendu. The Devil and God Are Raging Inside Me was obviously well-represented and the songs off that album absolutely shred live. "Archers" was everything I hoped it would be live, and "You Won't Know" nearly knocked me on my ass despite the fact that I was standing near the back of the room. "Sic Transit Gloria" was just as awesome as it was the first time I saw them, and "The No Seatbelt Song" (the only song off of Your Favorite Weapon to make it onto the set list) was given a boost by some extra guitar fireworks thrown in at the end. The finale of the night was the instrumental "Welcome to Bangkok" during which members of the other bands, crew members, and just plain random people jumped onstage with the band to thrash away at whatever instrument they could get their hands on. There was no encore, but there really didn't need to be after that display.
See this band live.
Thursday
Thursday was the big premiere night for Pirates 3. The roomate rounded up a solid posse that included a couple of the old guard from URI and this summer's crop of EPA interns (who seem like good kids. I look forward to hanging out more with them this summer and pining over how badly I wish I had their job). The movie was intense, to say the least. At all times, there was either something stange going on or an enormous fight scene (and more often than not, botha t the same time). It definitely sustained my interest for the full 3 hours it ran, and though I've heard mixed reviews on the ending, I personally liked the fact that the writers took a darker path rather than let everyone escape unscathed (actually, just about everyone ends up decidedly scathed by the end). The climactic battle in the middle of a gigantic whirlpool is still awesome despite being overplayed in the trailers.
Friday
I started out Memorial Day weekend by heading up to Boston as soon as I got out of work to celebrate my fellow Irish poseur Flan's birthday. Calling it a mere "crazy party" would be like calling a leaping, bloodthirsty shortfin mako "some fish." The stories are better left said in person, but suffice to say the phrase "you should have let me die" was uttered by someone the following morning. Also, I've found another drink to combine with Guinness. Joining the powers of Guinness draught with Long Trail Blackberry Wheat produces what I have dubbed a "Black and Black." Not only is it delicious, it allows you to wander around the party saying "How much more black could this be? None. None more black." to everyone. I intend to do this every single time I get a chance to make one.
Saturday
After a nice hangover breakfast with Kate and Wayne (easily the MVP of the night. Again, the stories are best told in person) I headed a few miles south to visit Neil. I ended up being pretty seriously delayed when I found that all the T stops in Brookline were closed for maintainence and I'd have to take a bus to the station three stops down in order to get back to my car. By the time I made it to Neil's, it was only a couple hours before the aquarium, science museum, and even the fine arts museum would be closing (for some reason all the cool stuff in Boston closes at 5. Even on weekends. And this is our New England metropolis). So we went and saw Spiderman 3. It was still pretty good the second time, though I feel like it moves way too quickly and doesn't do enough with Venom. Still, seeing Venom on the big screen at all was still pretty cool for this former comic geek.
After leaving Boston, I forgot that to get back to 95 south you have to take 3 north. Why? Because as soon as you get within 20 miles of Boston, any normal sense of direction is just going to get you lost. Suffice to say, I figured out something was wrong when I started seeing exit signs for Plymouth. I ended up taking 44 all the way back into Rhode Island, which I do not reccomend unless you're trying to find the ghost hitchiker that supposedly hangs out in Rehobeth (I didn't see it, but that section of 44 definitely looks like the type of place a ghost would chill). It was an adventure to say the least.
Sunday
Sunday was all about recuperation. I mostly lazed around the house, but I did manage to get over to Jon's to watch Babel. Overall, it was an interesting, well-acted movie. It also contained a masturbating 12-year-old and a crotch shot of a Japanese schoolgirl. Now which of the previous two sentences is more likely to get you to watch it?
Monday
I celebrate Memorial Day itself by going and seeing Pirates again, this time with some of my former housemates from Narragansett. This time we saw it at the Showcase with the nice stadium seating and surround sound. Definitely a movie worth seeing in a nice theater.
And that's basically it. I've seen and hung out with more people in the past week than I have in the past five months. I feel like I've been released from a cave to once again roam the wild. And roam I shall. I don't have as much crazy stuff set up for this week, but stay tuned, it could turn crazy at any moment. Also, that summer fiction I keep talking about writing is coming together nicely in my twisted dome, so by next entry I should some of that ready for you.