I am not a receptionist. It's something that I do, but not something that I am. I hate the sound of it. It sounds like a football position--quarterback, lineman, tackle, receptionist. Or, like a surgeon's assistant, some white-masked apprentice who takes and cleans the used and bloody scalpels. "Receptionist?" Yes sir? "Please take this number ( Read more... )

If anyone is interested, two of our older songs are posted at www.purevolume.com/mysteryandmanners. You can stream them or download them, whatever suits yer boots. They are "Greens and Browns," a poppier number than normal for us, and "The Triad," an instrumental that we recorded, almost live, onto 8-track. This song would be a lot better if we ( Read more... )

Well, yes, I'm bored at work. So here are a few anagrams I've scrambled from the names of a few friends. I only know clinton's middle name, so he fared best (more letters=better results). Here goes ( Read more... )

It's finally getting cold here, as evidenced by the layer of ice that somehow accrues on my windshield overnight. Juli has me well supplied with blankets, and the heater in our apartment performs with zeal, but sometimes I like standing on the porch in a t-shirt, breath ghosting, clutching a mug of tea. I'm a sucker for the hot/cold combo. I ( Read more... )

I've been on a serious dvd binge lately. Last night I finally became a member of Scarecrow video, and I bought "Cure," a Silence of the Lambs-ish film by Kiyoshi Kurosawa, and Ju-On. Then today, I won Fukasaku's notorious "Battle Royale" on e-bay. Now, in front of all the world, I'm going to make a pledge to stop buying movies for at least a month ( Read more... )

For anyone interested, I've started an alternate journal at Rotten Tomatoes, an excellent film site you should all frequent. Here's the link: http://rottentomatoes.com/vine/j/hidingmywings

Bird is the Word.

Recently, I've been having trouble defining what "home" means to me. I waver. Sometimes I think that memory is more of a home than any place can be, but lately I've felt this sub-gravital tug towards western Maryland. I think everyone has a psychic/spiritual tie with the region of their birth. It's not just the people there, but the landscape, the ( Read more... )

I've been having strange dreams about the Potomac river. Sometimes I'm floating down it on a log, other times I see a man fall into a pit of teeming water mocassins. Then, when I wake up, I think of that day Clint and I took pictures along the river. We thought it would be a good idea to throw sticks at a snake curled up in the limbs of an ( Read more... )

Juli and I went to a 1930's themed party on Friday--I came as a newsie. Some guy, obviously confused, came as a British parliament member circa 1781, white wig, ruffles and all. We had hot buttered rum and applecider, and I ate lots of cupcakes. On saturday we had a party for Juli's brother Joe, and I quizzed trick-or-treaters about the motivations ( Read more... )

The tootsie roll tosser stuck again today, and this time I tested the faux-chocolate for softness. An easy squeeze, I tell you, an easy squeeze. I don't think he realizes that there's an enormous candy bowl right next to me filled with goodies of the highest quality--Laughy Taffy, Milky Way Midnight, Smarties--and that no one wants to eat his ( Read more... )