Happy Halloween!

Carving pumpkins for the first time in a few years made me feel nostalgic. I miss pumpkin carving and trick-or-treating and all the stuff that made Halloween so great as a kid. These days, I can hardly muster up the energy to throw together a costume. Tonight I'll be seeing Torche and Coliseum (two bands appropriate for Halloween, I think) at El Corazon and then either hitting up some bars or a house party with some friends. Either way, should be a good time, although I won't be gorging on any candy and scaring little kids like years past.

Oh, and in the photo above, my pumpkin is on the right (Chris on the left, Lauren center). I intended it to be a Mario pumpkin but the top of it caved in. So I spun it around and let my arm guide the knife, resulting in what you see above.

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Guitar Hero: World Tour

I spent much of my evening at my Nate and Molly's place playing the new Guitar Hero game on the Wii. The drums feel so much more solid than the Rock Band ones. It takes a little while to get used to having six drums on the screen to follow, but soon it starts working out better once you get used to it and the game provides a much more realistic drumming experience than Rock Band. The bass drum pedal isn't nearly as tiring as it is in Rock Band (just like real-life cheap pedals) and the kit feels much more sturdy all around. In fact, the whole experience is much more comfortable.

My only problem so far is the new way to execute star power on the guitar. Instead of tilting the guitar, there is a button near where you strum that activates it. It was pretty awkward and I kept trying to tilt it. We didn't get to try bass or sing (you need a wiimote for every player - BOO!) so I can't speak about those, but it's probably safe to say it's better than Rock Band. Plus, and this is a major plus for me, I got to play "One Armed Scissor" by at the drive-in. They are one of my all-time favorites, so that was rad.
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Larrabee State Park

I love a beautiful fall day like today. Kayser and I decided to go for a drive on Chuckanut and visit Larrabee State Park. We decided to abandon the trail on our way back and ended up on the railroad tracks on the wrong side of the fence from the park. Kayser ended up cutting himself up pretty bad jumping the fence. Hopefully he won't get lockjaw.
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Björk's Homogenic LP

I am currently immensely enjoying Björk's Homogenic on 200 gram vinyl. The volume is set just about as loud as my ears can comfortably take it with my headphones, and I don't really give a shit. It's pressed with Direct Metal Mastering, meaning the groove is cut directly in copper metal and results in a better detail resolution and a lower noise ratio. It was also pressed using the original master tapes. All that shit aside; it sounds INCREDIBLE. The album easily fits in my top 5 of all time. $35 for this on vinyl was a steal.

Watch these; the videos of Homogenic:

Bachelorette:


Alarm Call:


All is Full of Love:


Jóga:


Hunter:


Pluto (live):


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Gettin' Crunk

Getting crunk in Bellingham at The Grand. The Pavement songs I have coming up on the digital jukebox behind us are taking WAY too long to start playing.
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A Hugo Awakening

As requested by former colleague Mr. Al Castle, here are some more shots of Hugo. He woke me up twice this morning running on his wheel. Of course as soon as I turn the light on and try to snap a pic of him in action, he stops completely. I can't believe how fast and long that little guy can run on that thing. Maybe he's training for the Hamster Olympics or something.

I'm still working on getting some video of Hugo being all cute while he's running or eating, but in the meantime, watch this one:

Pyromania

No, I didn't take this, but a friend showed it to me and it was too good not to post here. Think she looks guilty much?

Unfortunately, this image brings to mind childhood memories of when I accidentally caught the clubhouse on fire in my parent's backyard when I tried smoking a cigarette out there. I most definitely did not have the look of the girl above though. When I finally confessed, I was balling my eyes out because I felt so guilty. My little brother ended up taking the blame until I told my parents what I had done a few days later. I was supposed to be grounded for quite awhile, but lasted less than a week because I was a good kid and certainly learned my lesson. Thankfully our house didn't burn down; the clubhouse was only a few feet away!

Whatcom Democrats Literature Drop

This is Matt. He proudly displays a "Republicans for Obama" sticker on his bedroom door. He and I used to get into some pretty heavy debates a few years back, but because of the religious right and the fact that Sarah Palin is the VP nominee, he promptly reconsidered.

I have been wanting to volunteer and do something for Obama's campaign for awhile now, and finally got off my ass and did it thanks to Matt's Facebook status update asking if anyone wanting to join him this morning. Sure, it was only passing out flyers for the Whatcom Democrats to (mostly) registered Democrats around WWU reminded them to vote Democrat, but it still felt good. We were surprised to find on our route an adorable Corgi! Anyone who knows me, knows I am in love with these dogs. I can't wait to get one someday. Just look at it! I wanted to pick it up and run back to my apartment.



During the brisk walk on the hills around the Sehome neighborhood, I worked up quite an appetite. My wonderful boyfriend suggested a meal after I told him about the veggies and supplies I possessed. You are seeing a yellow curry dish with carrots, potatoes, spinach and shallots with green tea. Scrumptious!

Mega Man 9 Press Kit!

Look what came in the mail at work today! Only 200 of these awesome press kits exist. They were given out to the press and select members of the Capcom Forum Community (myself included). The remaining press kits went up for sale to the general public and sold out very quickly. They are going on ebay right now for a few hundred dollars each, but I think I am going to hold on to it for awhile without opening it. I already know what the box contains; a gutted NES cartridge with a press cd inside that contains high-res artwork, fact sheets and some video. The contents can be downloaded here.

Now I just need to beat the damn game this weekend. Wiley's castle is tough!
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Here's the inside of the box:

The Final Presidential Debate

Could this man be any more creepy / evil? I think we saw a very angry and aggressive side of McCain last night that is quite frankly, a little scary. If he can't keep his cool in a civil presidential debate, how is he supposed to run this country with the confidence that is necessary?

Speaking of being evil, am I the only person bothered by how much McCain wants things to be the "states rights" when those issues are things that should clearly apply to every American?

From CNN about McCain:
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Believes the institution of marriage is a union between one man and one woman. Voted for the Defense of Marriage Act but voted against the Federal Marriage Amendment. Says states and local governments should set their own marriage policies.

Voted against the Employment Non-Discrimination Act of 1996. During an interview in 2000, McCain said: "I think that the present laws that clearly prevent a discrimination of any kind certainly [apply] to gays and homosexuals as well. That's why I voted the way that I did. I think that enforcement of existing law could work rather than passing special laws for special categories of people."

When asked about the military's "Don't ask, don't tell" policy, McCain said: "...I don't think there's any doubt that there are evolving attitudes in America about many issues, including this one, but every military leader that I talk to, I say 'Should we change it?' They say, 'It's working.' And right now we've got the best military we've ever had -- the most professional, best trained, equipped and the bravest. And so I think it's logical to leave this issue alone. I really do."

The McCain campaign states that gay adoption is a state issue and does not endorse any federal legislation.
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If the current laws apply to "gays and homosexuals" (wait, isn't that the same thing?), then how come I could get fired just for being myself in 19 of our states? Look at this map from Wikipedia:



Obama says the Employment Non-Discrimination Act should be expanded to include sexual orientation and gender identity. He also advocated legislation that sought to expand federal hate crimes law to include sexual orientation and gender identity. As stated on his campaign Web site, he supports full civil unions that "give same-sex couples equal legal rights and privileges as married couples, including the right to assist their loved ones in times of emergency as well as equal health insurance, employment benefits, and property and adoption rights."

He also says military's "Don't ask, don't tell" policy needs to be repealed.

Now sure, I'd love for Obama to be support of same-sex marriages as well, but I know that would screw him out of the election. This is a big step in the right direction, though.

To some people, this election is about more than money.

Dandelion Organic Delivery Service

Dandelion Organic is a local business that delivers fresh, locally-grown, organic produce straight to your doorstop. I admit, I've only eaten one carrot so far (I took my friend Melissa out for her birthday dinner tonight), but I already love the service. Now that I have my own kitchen, I'm much more motivated to start cooking. I even bought some vegetarian cookbooks this weekend in preparation of the delivery.

Similar businesses have been popping up all over the place, so see if something similar exists in your town.
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The Price of Gas

Holy crap! Only $34.89 to fill up almost 12 gallons. I didn't think I'd ever see gas under $3.00 again.
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Ben's Visit to Bellingham / Polar Bear Club

Ben, one of my best friends who lives in Seattle, was in town for the day so we got to hang out. I don't get to see him enough, but when we do, we have awesome times. We decided to go for a walk to the Farmer's Market downtown. I found out the hard way that it's no longer the season for only a shorts and t-shirt, which bummed me out. That just means I need a new hoodie!

So after the farmers market, where I picked up some feta cheese and honeycrisp apples, we decided to walk over to the Whatcom Museum of History and Art. As soon as I walked in the door (admission was free!) I felt like a fool for not going in there years ago. They had quite a bit of art, and not all of it was folksy or landscape crap that you'd expect in Bellingham. I'll be checking out the The American Museum of Radio and Electricity and Mindport soon for sure.







After the museum, we hit up Dos Padres (the habanero black bean enchiladas are incredible) and hurried to see a band I've been waiting to play the northwest for a long time, Polar Bear Club. They played in Burlington, of all places, at the Common Ground Coffeehouse. The show was sick; they were super loud and intense, played a great setlist and we got in free. Ben hadn't heard them before and was way into it, too. I wish I had brought the camcorder.

Gamespeek @ the Penny Arcade Expo / Mirror's Edge Footage

Gamespeek @ the Penny Arcade Expo from Gamespeek on Vimeo.

For those of you who don't know me, I am part of a 3-person video game podcast called Gamespeek. Lately, we've been doing videos, like the one above, but we started as a weekly audio podcast. It's casual and fun, and we try to appeal to the everyday gamer, although sometimes we get a little too dorky. Our latest video shows some footage we captured at this year's Penny Arcade Expo in Seattle, WA. We saw some great games that got me really excited for this upcoming holiday season. On my growing must-have list for the 360 is Left 4 Dead, Fallout 3, Fable 2 and Mirror's Edge. Especially Mirror's Edge... every time I see something new about this game I get more and more stoked for it. Check out some new in-game footage:

Good Luck

This is a video of Good Luck, a band from Indiana that my friend Duncan in Louisville introduced me to. I filmed a big portion of the band's set last night at the Underground Coffeehouse at WWU, just blocks from my place. They sound a bit pop-punk, a bit indie, and a whole lot of awesome. They had to turn down the volume a bit because of the venue, even though they are a self-proclaimed "loud band." Maybe next time I'll get to see them at a house show or something.

I was worried that the show wouldn't have a great turnout because the band hadn't been here before, but the place was pretty full. Check 'em out. Their new full-length Into Lake Griffy is now available on iTunes here.

Scrabble Tourney

I got my butt kicked by a coworker today during the first round of our office Scrabble tournament. Oh well, there's always the loser's bracket. At least I made it to the second round of the ping-pong tourney yesterday before getting bumped. At least I win the beard contest :)
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Meat Baby Food?

Really? Ew. I dare someone to taste it. Fred Meyer also has turkey and gravy, if that sounds better.
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Solace at Boundary Bay

Seattle graffiti artist Solace almost finished with a painting at Boundary Bay. He makes some pretty wonderful stuff that I'd love to hang in my apartment. I spent a good portion of today in the Boundary Bay Garden coloring pages that he designed. If you want to see more of his stuff in person, visit Bounday Bay soon. It's hanging up in the dining area.
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Monotonix @ Cap Hansen's - MUST SEE

Click below for the raddest live show Bellingham has had since the last time they were here in February.


(and after that we took our shirts off and chased the band outside down the street where the show continued)

When the guitar player and singer are on the bar really close, that was basically my view. The cameraman was behind me with the camera over the top (and sometimes hitting) my head.

Beer Foam Monster

A few friends and I hung out at the Green Frog Acoustic Tavern last night, which is just down the street from my place, and look what Nate noticed after I finished my first beer. I wonder if I could have sold it on ebay? We then talked with the bartender about how awesome the Monotonix show was last night. I have a feeling that performance is going to be talked about for a long time to come.
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The VP Debate

I also watched the debate last night. I didn't mention it in the post I made after the Monotonix show, and don't really have time now, but this pretty much sums it up:



Thanks for sending it to me Chris.

Monotonix Live @ Cap Hansens

First of all, like the My Morning Jacket show, I want to say up front that this blog post won't do the show and experience justice.

That being said, I just got home from seeing Monotonix for the second time at Cap Hansens, and this show was way crazier than the last. For one, Nate and I were in the front of the bar, where the band eventually migrates during its performance. Tons of beer was spilled and thrown everywhere (I counted a pitcher, a full can of sparks, and at least 5 other beers), a trash can of dirty napkins and paper towels was crowd surfed, I had my hands all over a sweaty Israeli on several occasions (the band is from Tel Aviv), and I ran shirtless down the street with lots of other sweaty shirtless dudes and dudettes after the band as they brought the show, and drums, to the street corner. And somehow the cops didn't show up to ruin our fun.

Chris Fuller was there with a camcorder for an eventual youtube upload. I also saw Paul Israel taking pics and a ton of others with cameras, so expect to see better photos and video here soon.

My hat goes off to Cap Hanses for having the balls to put on a show like this a second time and not charging a cover. The tiny place was packed out with a huge crowd watching from outside and there was a huge mess to clean. I'm sure they made a ton of money though.

If you live in Bellingham and you like to have a good time, please see them next time they come to town. It was honestly the most fun, memorable night I have ever had downtown in this city.
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Religulous

Bill Maher's documentary on religion is coming out this weekend and I'll definitely be seeing it. I love watching movies that make me feel smart!

Last Saturday

Last Saturday, originally uploaded by thegetupkid.

So I was too drunk by the end of the night to post any photos from Saturday, since I always pass out early, but it was a pretty awesome day. It was special because it was my good pal Aaron Kayser's birthday.

The day started by hitting up Bellcon where I scored some cheap Marvel and X-Men Series 1 cards. There were lots of nerds and geeks, and the con was much larger than I expected. If I still collected comics, I'm sure I'd have spent a ton of money. I also saw a bunch of Storm Troopers and my first real-life furry, so that was awesome. Then a bunch of us headed East toward Mount Baker to start the celebration and visit the legendary North Fork Brewery, where much delicious pizza and brew was consumed. The stout was amazing (and potent - 7.6%!) and we brought back a few growlers full. Then we watched some football (err, I played Mega Man 9 in the other room) until heading over to a few more bars.

I ended up at an art show downtown at the Jinx Art Space for Andrea's show. A lot of people were there that I hadn't seen in awhile and the Dandelion Junk Queens were playing downstairs. After hanging out at the nearby Grand Ave. Alehouse for awhile with Aaron and everyone else, we went back to Nate's where we watched some SNL and I passed out on the floor; a sign of a goodnight.






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