Nattering Nabom of Narcissism

First and foremost, you should know that for the whole month of June, the really awesome chicago-suburban band Sleeping At Last will be giving their album "Keep No Score" away for free on the interwebs. Here is the info from the studio-journal blog:
In celebration of our upcoming new album, we’re thrilled to announce that for the entire month of JUNE our previous album “Keep No Score” will be available as a FREE download!

Here’s how it works: Through a company called NoiseTrade we’ve set up a widget that allows you to choose between two ways to receive an immediate download of the album:

The first way is to enter your name, email address and zip code along with the emails of five of your friends. You can then immediately start downloading the album for FREE. You’re friends will receive just one email inviting them to sample the music and download it themselves. Neither you or your friends will receive any spam from NoiseTrade and only those that choose to sign up will receive any emails from us as well.

The second way is to pay any amount you wish, from $1 and up and start downloading.

Also, if you would like to help spread the word, the widget can be embedded anywhere that accepts html! So you can add it to your own facebook, myspace etc.. by click the “embed this widget” button or use the “twitter this” button.

Check it all out now, here: www.noisetrade.com/sleepingatlast

We’re really excited about all of this, thanks so much for reading! We’ll be updating you all soon on lots of exciting news about the upcoming New Album!

Love,
Dan & Ryan – Sleeping At Last

And, here's a clip of their string players recording from their studio journal, which you can follow HERE:


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Now, let’s interrupt the micro-fiction for a bit with some good ‘ole fashioned what’s-up-with-Jon bloggery, whadduya say?

I just spent two weeks in California, which is where I did the last couple entries here. Among other things, I went to Santa Cruz and hung out w/ my family, both biological and ecclesial at Missions Springs. I’ve been going on this all-church retreat every year since I was a kid and I try to make sure I get back in time to attend it after my spring semesters end. It was sunny and warm and delightful. I sat on the grass and read with my sister. And went and explored Santa Cruz with my sister and her BFF. And goofed off and rough housed with my sister. And got roped into running lights and sound for the worship services…with my sister.

Look, I’m gonna warn you right now, my sister is appearing prominently in this post. She’s totally awesome, so that shouldn’t be a problem. But if it is, you can suck it.

ANYWAYS, after we all got back, I went and saw Ben Folds play in Oakland. My mom loves herself some Ben, so she bought tickets for herself, one of her friends, my sister, me and JD, my BFF. We all went, the oldies sat in the balcony and the youths stood on the floor. We bathed in pot smoke and Folds’ awesomeness for a couple of hours. It was pretty damn cool. Plus, any time you hear a whole concert audience burst into three part harmony, you know its gonna be a good night.

Didn’t do much the rest of the week xcept hang w/ JD and read and drink coffee and shop and write for this blog. I read The Metaphysical Club by Louis Menand. If you like history, academics in general and/or America, go pick this book up. Excellent popular history of the influence of a handful of post-civil war new-england-style nerds on the 20th century. Friday night me and the sister drove to the Shoreline Amphitheater and saw the NIN/JA (Nine Inch Nails / Jane’s Addiction) Tour. We got there late cuz she had to work, but we saw all of NIN set. If you can catch them on this tour, get off your ass. Worth every penny. They are dialed in musically and their lighting design might be the best concert design of the decade. Just impeccable. Also, I argued with some fundamentalists who were picketing the concert, fueling further Christian-bashing amongst America’s youth. (My sister might still hate me for that.)

On Saturday, I went to a rawkin’ nineties-themed house party, where my sister rescued me from a it’s-3am-and-I’ve-lost-good-judgment make-out-session with the party-host’s ex GF by demanding we go home. I woke up the next morning and thanked her. After thanking her and sleeping through church, I played roller hockey w/ the guys, which was just fantastic and pain-inducing, and then church and a heffenade party at the same venue as the previous night, sans-almost-make-out girl. Then Monday night I got my owl finished and once its healed, I’ll post pictures. Some more JD/Sister/Coffee/Writing and one last jaunt to Santa Cruz, and then I hopped a plane back to Boston, where I promptly went to Common Ground for 80’s night.

So, anyways, I’m back on the East Coast and trying to get my summer legs about me. A brief run-down of what the heck that means? The briefest:

- Lattes and reading/writing at Café Fixe in Wash Sq.
- Hipster girls with bad attitudes, 2 at a time.
- 20 hours of soul sucking IT job a week
- Cooking/Baking/Crafting/Artsy-ing
- Lonergan/Blondel paper-proposal cluster-fuck