I wear my sunglasses at night

k, so i don't even have sunglasses to wear at night.  i'm kinda bummed, cuz i just broke my favorite pair of sunglasses, which were my last remaining pair.  at the beginning of this year, i had three.  i lent one pair to a friend, who moved to arkansas.  i had bought those a couple years ago on a whim, i think they actually might be girl's.  another pair was squished at some point during my ragnar relay race, which is what happens when you pack 7 people in a van for 48 hours.

taken just the day before their demise

  that pair was a gift from my sister, she picked them up in vegas for cheap.  then, yesterday i sat on my vonzipper hitch hikers.

waa waa

  they were my oldest, and most expensive pair.  i bought them about 5 years ago, for about 80 bones.  80 bones!  now, as far as designer shades go, that may not be terribly expensive.  for me, i almost never pay full price for anything.  so i had been taking care of these babies very well, and they were still awesome.  my dear von zippers, may you rest in peace.

also, this means that sunglasses are on my christmas list :)

Kid History

last night, my friends and i watched a couple of awesome youtube videos.  the first was one that was already beloved to us, but they just came out with a second episode to it.  the first one caused many laughs, but the second one made us laugh so hard we had to play it again because we missed half of it the first time.  i was drooled on because someone was laughing so hard.  six grown people were rolling around on couches, love sacs, and the floor.  so i thought i'd do my part to spread the word.  without further ado, here is kid history, episodes one and two:

Kid History: Episode One

Kid History: Episode Two

i only linked these instead of embedding them, because you should really watch these full screen.

Album!(s) of the Year 2010, The Omissions

my bad, i left off some of the earlier releases that had me going this year.  forgive me, my brain is old and mushy, and a year is a long time to remember all the music i liked.

free energy - stuck on nothing

this was the perfect summer jam album.  light hearted, friendly, bouncy, catchy, and all around good times.  kinda like summer.

vampire weekend - contra

exactly what you would expect from vampire weekend.  a more versatile, yet still brilliant, sophomore album. rounding out their sound, while still maintaining most of that frenetic energy that makes them vampire weekend.

jonsi - go

i was nervous about this album.  jonsi fronts one of my favorite bands of all time, and i wasn't sure if this would be great or a disappointment.  it is far more mainstream, pop centric than sigur ros' en devours, but  not  unwelcomely so.  i hope that sigur ros produces more in the future, but i still like what jonsi is doing on his own.

foxy shazam - self titled

with a ridiculous abandon that was previously the domain of bands like the darkness or queen, foxy shazam puts out their third album filled with all that rock can be.  hard and catchy as all get out, this album features one of the best singles of the year, oh lord.
in fact, here is that single:



honorable mention:
band of horses - infinite arms
not as awesome as their first two releases(which are benchmark indie alt country albums), infinite arms is still pleasurable and stimulating.

Album!(s) of the Year 2010

ben folds and nick hornby - lonely avenue 

not really ben folds' best work, but it is really fun to see what nick hornby adds to ben folds' infectiously poppy songs.  plenty of electro-pop vibe, which i am a sucker for.

brandon flowers - flamingo

this is the result of brandon flowers not going on vacation when everyone else in the killers did.  a very honest album, with surprising versatility.  several songs channel his inner johnny cash, both in lyrical content and in style.

hellogoodbye - would it kill you 

once again, electro-pop rock is a soft spot of mine.  however, the electro-pop darlings hellogoodbye seem to have focused simply on the pop rock, with delightful results.  this album seems to have been relatively quietly released, although i don't really listen to the radio.  i just haven't heard their stuff all over the place like i did their last album.  in my opinion, a much more mature sound, excellent production value.  all around, a very good sophomore album, even if it hasn't had the splash their first release had, yet.

kanye west - my beautiful dark twisted fantasy 

much has been made in the media about this album.  while sometimes i feel like kanye oversteps his skill lyrically or conceptually, it is by far the most ambitious album to come out in recent memory.  his production skills are at a whole new level here(which is saying something, since that was always my favorite kanye attribute).  his word play is both subtle and provocative, even though i feel like sometimes the subject matter is beyond relate able.  the best way for me to appreciate this album is if i don't think of it as hip hop or rap, but just as music.


matt and kim - sidewalks 

these guys should be producing for hip hop.  they did more with their sound on this album than ever before, where previous albums seemed to have been a translation of their live sound.  catchy, bouncy, fun, and at the same time, intellectually stimulating.

gorillaz - plastic beach 

damon albarn can do no wrong.  the end.

she and him - volume two

i saw them live this summer, one of the highlights of the year for me.  zooey sounds even better live, which is remarkable because she sounds so good on this album.  the duo of m. ward and zooey continue to flesh out their sound.


jimmy eat world - invented

a little bit more angry than the average jimmy eat world album, this is still a pretty average jimmy eat world album.  which is good enough to be among my top albums of the year.  hooray jimmy eat world!


kid cudi - the man on the moon II: the legend of mr. rager

i think that kid cudi is the best thing to happen to hip hop in a long time.  his music pushes the boundaries of production and song structure.  like kanye's newest album, the legend of mr. rager is best appreciated as more than just a hip hop album.  it doesn't have as much pop sensibility as the first man on the moon, but it is a thoroughly enjoyable listen.  way beyond where most rap is these days.


honorable mentions:
broken bells - self titled
the full album doesn't live up to the first single "the high road", but it is danger mouse and the singer from the shins.  what's not to love?
sleigh bells - treats
good year for bands with bells.  too raucous to be able to listen to all the way through, the subtlety in their sound is surprising, once you get over how much raw noise rock it is.
kele - the boxer
solid electronic music.  pretty much what you would expect from the frontman of bloc party.

Since I already have my two front teeth...

dear santa,
i want this stuff:

jeans (these)
camera
wide bass strap (like this)
awesome wall decoration for my room
bass strings
guitar strings
soccer cleats
indoor soccer shoes
2001: a space odyssey
all the star wars movies
cookie sheets
hanging wall mount for my ukulele (her name is cookie)
standing laundry basket( maybe one with a removable bag or something)
it may seem to many like a cop out, but i really do like just getting money/gift cards to places i actually shop

love,
pilmer

ONLY ONE IN UTAH!

i am up late with my wonderful insmnia, and i happened to check out espn.com's wonderland for the latest sporting buzz.  i voted on a sportsnation (my fav show on espn) poll about greg oden.  thousands of people vote on this poll, and utah always has a few hundred suckers like myself voting.  well i must have happened upon it at just the right time, well see for yourself

that's right, i was the only voter in utah.  hooray for me!

Michelle, my belle

this post is devoted to the one and only, michelle beadle.  i may occasionally get distracted by the photos in this, because, well, she is hot.  the show sportsnation is one of my favorite shows on tv, and easily my favorite live show.  even more than sportscenter, which holds a storied and dear place in my heart.  michelle beadle plays co host to collin cowherd, who could be one of the most hated people on tv if it weren't for his perfect foil in michelle beadle.  he is super opinionated, logically or not, which some shows don't pull off as well (see espn's first take with skip bayless and watch him bully the co hosts with ease. they can't quite pull it off like michelle beadle).  beads (her nickname) makes sure that the show maintains it's lighthearted atmosphere with a witty sense of humor most often reserved for the boys on tv.  there is a reason why most stand up comedians are guys, why more sitcoms are centered around guys, etc.  guys usually have a corner on humor.  michelle beadle doesn't put up with that crap, and consistently makes me laugh.

let's take a break and think about christmas michelle beadle for a sec: 

the next big win for michelle beadle is that she intelligently discusses sports, also a very male dominated world.  she isn't like that horrible rachel nichols, nfl sideline reporter for espn.  good grief, i could devote a blog about how much i dislike that woman.  michelle really knows sports, and not because people are forming her arguments for her.  she improves next to collin cowherd, and holds her own.  she even cares about sports that i don't traditionally care about (hockey anyone?).  michelle beadle has that sports nerd enthusiasm that can't be faked.  

i mean, look at this enthusiasm:

now for why your girlfriend can appreciate her as well.  she has a very classic, sophisticated sense of style.  just today, i was once again smitten by her wardrobe as she wore a short, black dress that showcased her hot legs.  yes, she does have hot legs.  it is a huge breath fresh air on a network dominated by loud ties (have you seen what chris berman puts around his neck?  it is practically assault) and colorful scarves (again, i'm looking at you rachel nichols), she can dress up or dress down with ease.

i have no words:

for being hot, funny, smart, sports nerdy, and fashionable, michelle beadle, i love you.

here's some of her best spoof commercials:

on brett favre



on tiger woods



on lebron james

Banded

check it out, my band played its very first show last week.  that's me in the red, playing bass behind garret williams, our illustrious leader.  the guy is legit.  i love his style, apparently other people do too, cuz he won a songwriter contest recently.  the show was great, even if the band had only been a full band for a week (we don't even have a name, i've just been calling us the garret williams band).  we added another guitarist the tuesday before the show, which was on friday.  preston performed like a star.  we had only practiced with the drummer twice before last week too, although, technically, i'm the newer member to the band.  so i guess i should say that i had only played with the drummer twice before last week, garret has played with him tons.  we played 5 songs, one of which was a blusey cover of the hocus pocus version of i put a spell on you.  we played that one for the first time an hour before the show.  haha, for all of our lack of real experience together, we played pretty tight.  i credit that to personal practice, and garret's clear vision of what his songs should sound like, even if sometimes the clear vision isn't described as clearly.  he often makes up words.  thanks to everyone i knew that showed up: amanda, alora, brady, nick, ryan, trent, and even my mom and dad.  it meant the world to have familiar faces in the audience.  seriously, you guys rock.  we are playing again on the 4th of december at muse music in provo.  stay tuned for more info!

this is a video that predates my involvement with the band, it is garret and our drummer chris(on guitar).  just a little taste.

The Painfully Cute List

this is the list of the painfully cute. not the smokin' hot, or drop dead gorgeous.  these are the girls that light up the room with their smiles and dimples, who's doe eyes you could swim in.

first up is audrey hepburn.  if you've been following my blog, you've probably noticed a trend here.

but i mean, come on, look at that smile

these are the girls of the band eisley.  the most painfully cute is the one on the right, but they are all pretty too darn cute, especially live.

elizabeth banks plays jack donaghy's girlfriend on 30 rock, what more do you need?

kate bosworth.  cutest lois lane.  for reals.

lenka also makes painfully cute music.  and she's about 5 foot nothing, maybe shorter.

i wasn't sure about including her, it kinda depends on my mood.  but zooey deschanel puts on a great live show, and was in (500) days of summer.

lisa mitchell is another australian musical waife, like lenka.  i think there must be something in the water down there.  no picture would do the justice that this video does.

I've found the source of the zombie infection

this is in my marketing class, feeling like a zombie.  the peeps behind me were pretty amused that i would take pics of myself in class.
 i'm pretty sure that cold medicine is going to create actual zombies.  i'm pretty zombie-fied today, between insomnia and a cold, it is brutal.  in an attempt to stay alive even though i am actually dead, i've ingested large amounts of cold medicine.  i think i am craving brains right now.

Just how dangerous is your zombie?

Vamps v Wolves

 since this is now october, my mind naturally turns to how awesome halloween  is.  the whole month, i get myself more stoked for it by watching horror films.  i love really scary ones, campy ones, funny ones, everything horror.  two of the stalwarts of the horror movie genre are vampires and werewolves.  i'm not going to document their individual histories, but rather their intertwined relationship.  i became rather intrigued with how vampires and werewolves are pitted against each other as historically antagonistic parties.  i did some serious research into how vampires and werewolves have been shown together, i probably should have been paying attention in my marketing class instead.
  in traditional dracula lore, he usually either has control over wolves/dogs or they howl when he is around, because they recognize his evil since they share a kinship as children of the night.  so there is some basis for a relationship between canines and vampires.
  the very first movie that i could find that had both werewolves and vampires was from 1944, called the return of the vampire.  in this one, the werewolf was being controlled by the vampire, so a little bit like the new underworld series.  it was not a very oppositional relationship though, the werewolf didn't try to rise up against its vampire overlord or anything like that.
  there were several other vampire/werewolf co op movies, including fright night 2, from 1989.  that one is a classic, high camp halloween movie.  there were several foreign films that pitted vamps against wolves, but non that were popular here in the states, and we are really the only ones that matter.  am i right, or am i right?
  the first real antagonistic approach to what had historically been a loving, healthy relationship between vampires and werewolves was in 2003's underworld, starring kate beckinsale.  now, i could watch this movie with the sound off, just appreciating kate in the tight latex and leather.  i mean, look at her:

  how could i not love this movie (and yes, i know that the picture is actually from the sequel)?  in this one, an age old conflict of vampires enslaving werewolves, and the ensuing fight for freedom by the wolfies, is the first conflict portrayed.  now, i have no idea if other fictional mediums have pitted the two against each other, this is about movies.  from that point, van helsing (i actually suggest watching this movie with the sound off so you can watch kate beckinsale, or better yet, don't watch it, watch underworld again) in 2004, a couple of underworld sequel/prequels, and even a blacksploitation flick called bloodz vs wolvez in 2006.  of course, the most popular(unfortunately) brand of vampires fighting werewolves is found in the twilight series movies.  now the vampire vs werewolf is so ingrained in our culture that new vampire tv shows true blood and the vampire diaries seem to naturally bring in werewolves in an antagonistic role.  i'm not sure why vampire lore has so easily been changed from the traditional draculaesque roles, but it seems to have started with a film i like, and ended up with films i don't like.  we'll see where it goes from here.  i need to watch some of these movies now, cuz it is the best time of year for horror flicks.  hooray!

Muzac Marathon

last weekend i ran a marathon.  it was awesome.  it is always amazing to me that something so difficult can be so fun.  26.2 miles is a long way, but i would say the fun outweighed the pain.  this was marathon number 2 for me, both of them the logan top of utah marathon.  this was also the first race that i have run with my ipod playing tunes.  i kind of did for part of a half marathon once, but it was too cold, and my ipod didn't work all that great.  i don't think that the music really enhanced the marathon much.  some people can't handle quiet for that long, but i like being alone with my thoughts.  also, races are rather social events.  i talk to a lot of people on the course.  but what does someone listen to for four and a half hours?  i had a half marathon mix already, and i was going to make my marathon mix the night before, but i forgot my ipod chord in orem.  so i cam up with one rather impromptu.  the half marathon mix was chosen based on pump up value/awesomeness and beats per minute to help me stay on pace(the bpm songs are also awesome, but their main purpose on this mix is pacing).  since part of my marathon mix includes the half mix, i'll indicate which songs were for awesomeness alone, and which were also bpm.

i started listening to some music on the way up.  i had b.o.b.'s magic stuck in my head, so i listened to him on the bus ride to the starting line.  i had wanted to talk to someone on the way up, but the guy i sat next to curled up into a ball around his backpack and was oblivious to the world.

when the race started, i started my for real tunes.
1. john williams - star wars theme
2. richard wagner - ride of the valkyries
3. andrew lloyd webber - pie jesu (amanda, i thought of you when i listened to this)
4. john williams - imperial march
5. john williams - raiders of the lost ark theme
6. the star wars theme again(so sue me, i'm a nerd)

this is where i switched to my half marathon mix.  it's two and a half hours in total song length

7. the beatles - across the universe (bpm)
8. journey - don't stop believing
9. fall out boy - of all the gin joints in all the world (bpm)
10. the ting tings - fruit machine (bpm)
11. fleetwood mac - go your own way
12. bloc party - helicopter (bpm)
13. jack johnson - hope (bpm)
14. the proclaimers - i'm gonna be 500 miles
15. r. kelly - i believe i can fly (you know you like it too)
16. feist - i feel it all (bpm)
17. jack johnson - if i could (bpm)
18. coldplay - lost (bpm)
19. foo fighters - miracle
20. paramore - misery business (bpm)
21. gorillaz - november has come (bpm)
22. reo speedwagon - take it on the run
23. collective soul - run
24. tom petty and the heartbreakers - runnin' down a dream (seeing a pattern here?)
25. coheed and cambria - the running free
26. head automatica - scandalous (bpm)
27. death cab for cutie - sounds of settling (bpm)
28. the raconteurs - steady as she goes
29. muse - stockholm syndrome
30. coldplay - strawberry swing (bpm)
31. the postal service - such great heights (bpm)
32. gwen stefani - sweet escape
33. the ting tings - that's not my name (bpm)
34. coheed and cambria - the velorium camper III: al the killer
35. ben folds - you don't know me (bpm)
36. copeland - you love to sing (bpm)

at this point, my half marathon mix was over.  this was about 3 hours into the race, so i was kinda too tired to really think about what i wanted to listen to.  i picked the first band that came up that i like running to, which was thrice. so i listened to all of their alchemy index albums, part of artist in the ambulance, and part of beggars.  then i got tired of thrice.  i finished off my run with these awesome songs.

the hours - ali in the jungle
peter tchaikovski - 1812 overture
ludvig van beethoven - ode to joy

the watch says 4:30, which was exactly my goal time

quite the excellent mix, if i do say so myself.

Creative Fulfillment: The Quest

this is one of my senior pics, 6 years ago.

i've never really considered myself a creative person.  it mostly stemmed from the fact that i wasn't creative in the ways that are regarded as creative when we are young.  children who are labeled as "creative" are generally artistically so, whether it is in painting, sculpture, or music, etc.  my sisters, especially my little sister, were both more inclined towards the arts than i was.  i participated in art, i'm talented enough, especially musically. participation isn't the same as creation though.  creation is making or organizing something in a new, original, or innovative way.  participation is the proliferation or performance of something previously created.  

now, all of this isn't to get down on myself because i wasn't gifted similarly as others.  in fact, i feel like i am growing to know my creative side.  this blog, for example, is an expression of my creativity.  i am creative with words, ideas, abstract thought.  i am witty, and situationally funny.  i create skilfully in many different ways, and i recognize that now.  in fact, all of us are creating our own lives, whether consciously or not.  i strive to live on purpose, so the my life is the creation i want it to be.

my photographically creative lil sis took this one, about 2 years ago

but post isn't about that stuff either.  i love music.  like i said before, i've been performing musically my whole life.  i've done choir, musicals, solo performance, bands, etc.  these days, i choose not to perform in choir(except in church), or in musicals.  the time required for those things is prohibitive.  i would play in a band, but i haven't been able to put one of those together.  instead, i play my guitar to myself in my room.    i like learning new songs.  i like playing stuff other people made.  i also like writing music.  it isn't something that i feel confident in.  i like playing in bands because i can write a part, and contribute one single thing to the whole, one of the reasons i choose to play bass.  trying to write a song on my own is frustrating.  i have written a myriad of intros and single verses.  i've written several songs all the way through, but just the guitar part.  i've only written one song with guitar and vocal parts.  i thought it was horrible.  playing the guitar part, i liked that.  for some reason, my verbal creativity abandons me when i try to couple it with melody.  for some reason, my most experienced performance instrument, my voice, is unwieldy and weak when i try to come up with something new.  i am not sure why, but it makes me want the comfort of a band, so that i can contribute to something i respect as a whole, without having to bear the whole burden of creation.

15 Albums

The rules: Don't take too long to think about it. Fifteen albums you've heard that will always stick with you. List the first fifteen you can recall in no more than fifteen minutes.

1. Led Zepplin: Physical Graffiti

2. Paul McCartney: Paul Is Live

3. MxPx: The Ever Passing Moment

4. Moneen: The Red Tree

5. Assorted Composers(especially Samuel Barber and Tomaso Albinoni): Favourite Adagios

6. Thrice: The Artist in the Ambulance

7. Radiohead: Pablo Honey

8. Johnny Cash: American IV- The Man Comes Around

9. At The Drive In: One Armed Scissor

10. Sugarland Run: Nothing to Offer August

these guys were local, and they broke up while i was in high school. even google doesn't know much about them.

and google knows everything

i teared up at their last show.

11. Norah Jones: Come Away With Me

12. The Beatles: White Album

13. Taking Back Sunday: Tell All Your Friends

14. Sigur Ros: Takk

15. Foo Fighters: The Colour and The Shape

honorable mentions:

Brand New: Deja Entendu

Jimmy Eat World: Bleed American

Straylight Run: Self Titled

Blink 182: Enema of the State

Jay-Z: Black Album

Green Day: Dookie