I'm about 2 or so years behind the pack on this HBO special, partly because

- I don't get HBO (missed first run in US),
- Missed it on Showcase (Can't ever remember to watch TV shows @ the same time every week), and
- Couldn't get the courage to get through them w/o SBF with me.

My buddy downloaded high quality versions of the series and burned in on a DVD-R for me. I watch the first episode on my Mac late at night and called SBF squeezing a moshi in pillow in shock. I thought it was some regular drama w/some typical Will&Grace queer character character in it - Not an AIDS drama about pain, lonliness, self-deprecation and heartbreak between gay men! BAH!!!

After leaving pathetic messages/hang ups to SBF's cell phone answering machine (he was out w/friends that night-how DARE him!) I realized I couldn't watch this alone anymore. Thankfully SBF also wanted to see the series as well and we ended up watching the rest together.

This was a great series. Angels is actually theatre adaptation, and they remained true to theatre in their treatment in this series. In short, Angels shows both the tragic reality of AIDS and spiritual fantasy as a prophet, lawyer and morman interact with Angels.

Angels showcases the power and brutal relentlessness of the AIDS virus, equating it to the great plagues of centuries past. The play explores the sexual, racial, spiritual, political, psychological and social issues confronting the country during the Reagan years as the AIDS epidemic spreads. It showed me how AIDS affects and gives no regard every pillar of our social framework, infecting anything living in its path to keep moving forward. The insuppressible activity AIDS virus is shadowed in the Angels world by man's need for growth and movement. The advancement of man over the past century has plagued the Angels and caused torment and destrution in their world. As man fights the growth of AIDS, Angels fight the growth of Man. We come to the conclusion that either will never willfully stop moving, and we must deal with what we've got and make the best of what's around (yes, Dave, your timeless and prophetic words relate here as well!)

As with all good plays, Angels had rich and in-depth characters. The only problem I had was using Al Pachino, who played what else other than Al Pachino: A loud mouth, hotshot and power-wielding asshole...But this time he was a hotshot lawyer w/AIDS. But I know this was the character, so who better to play it than Mr. Pachino. There were a ton of religious and spiritual references, partiularily Jewish references in the play (Sorry, no mention of Jesus Christ in this production my Christian friends!) . I'm sure i would have caught more nuances and references if i were Jewish myself!

The themes of escape, love, spiritual retribution and reconcile were common amoung the characters, which i think everyone feels at one point in there life. Each character was very convincing, enough for any viewer to appreciate what their going through. It was also interesting to see the relationship amoung them, and how messed up things can get when you throw on person into the mix.

I hope that one day they plays will come back to the theatre. It would be incredible to see something like this performed on stage... and this time, Mr. Pachino can stay home in hollywood for this one.

Take care

RE

"eat drink and be merry"

I just bought Fender Telecaster Guitar! I got it used off someone who is moving out East and going back to school and doesn't need it anymore. it's in MINT condition and hardly ever used. I'm going to get the electronics checked out by a professional though, just incase. But so far it's a sweet guitar. it's a bit heavy, but i'm ranking this compared to my hollow acoustic! heh. It has 3 electronic and 1 acoustic pick up, which will give it a more mellow and rounder sound.. Perfect for me.

Here's the the newest addition to the family!

Take care

RE

"eat drink and be merry"

I was at a pub w/some old friends last night and we got talking about travelling experiences: where you've gone, what you liked/disliked, where are planning on going to. I realized that I had almost nothing to contribute to the conversation. Unlike tedious beer coversations, this is one which i wanted to be able to participate and share with my friends.

I have travelled before, but as more like a tourist. I either went when i was super young or there for a day and couldn't really get a grasp of the culture and history of the place I was visiting. The only place which I feel that I feel i've "travelled" is NYC (manhattan) and may be montreal. I hate being a tourist. It sucks. I don't like the bling of the city for long - I just want to feel it's everyday energy, history, arts, culture, and everyday people.

It got me wondering whether I should have travelled right after university was done. I don't regret that decision because it just didn't feel right back then. I didn't get the coveted "travel bug". Fast forward 2 years and now i hear from so many friends w/the bug who have travelled to so many places for extended periods of time (>2 weeks). I wish I had similar experiences. That's not to say i need to go to the same places as all my friends, but just other travelling experiences.

So do i quit my job and go travelling for a year? Not exactly. Let's get back to reality here. I have a new job that i like a good Canadian non-profit org. I have all my roots are based here. SBF is here! This is my home and I couldn't imagine living anywhere else. But I do need to start being more worldy. The best place to start would be immersing myself books/movies/history outside of Canada - may be read some novels about the WW, or about the Incredible (and unsustainable) growth of China, or IRAQ.. I don't know. One thing is for sure: I need to branch out of the urban bubble! And that doesn't mean to the burbs like Richmond Hill or Pickering :).
I've got to grow and get a better grasp of the World other than daily topline newspaper articles.

May be they have interest courses you can take; i'm all about seminar classroom discussions - I miss those from school, espeically in 4th year. Too bad most of them were talks about Leveraging and Sustaining Bright Ideas in a Hi-Tech World or Marketing Strategy!

Take care,

RE

"eat drink and be merry"

Apparnetly according to blogger this is my 100th post! Happy 100 to me. Yay!

So this is a quickie, but I just wanted to do a bit of writing to get something off my mind. I have my first solo gig tonight downtown, which is a big step for me since my band took it's "break" (for an undetermined amount of time). I've been asking my friends and those on my old band's mailing list to come out, which is always a lot work.

So far the response has be amazing, since those who can't go are being supportive and those you can are excited to see me on stage. What i'm ticked off about is how one friend told me how he was really busy with some house stuff and strapped for cash. No problem there.. but then i just saw on his MSN a question about going out to a club tonight. Geeze. Just tell me that you can't make it, or at least don't tell me about no $ and no time, since going to a club requires both... So i think i get the picture, but it just sucks to get it this way. Who knows, may be he's just thinking about it and isn't actually going, but the thought is there. But I really can't make any guesses about what's going on in his head.

Oh well, what can you do eh?

Anyway, i am still excited about my show, since a friend who i haven't seen in over 2 years is coming (he's been away to the East teaching English). Also my brother and his finance are coming, which is a first as well. We'll see how it all pan out!

Take care

RE

'eat drink and be merry'

So I was busy doing last minute preparing (scrambling) for my solo gig this Friday, and when I returned home on Sunday, I left my amp and guitar on the front porch ALL NIGHT.

Apparently I checked my head at the door, leaving my baby at on the porch... What's worse, I didn't even know I left it on the porch. My dad found it the next day and put it inside. Yep, this is why I don't have any kids! I can just imagine the conversation: "Oh, FYI, you left baby jim on the porch all night. He was OK except for a few leaves that fell in his chair and a few tears on his bib from the racoons."

My only "defence" was that I was super tired and got home from my 2nd band practice that same day at around midnight Sunday. Ok, that's all I got. Man, the gods were smiling on me since my guitar/amp was there the next morning.

OI! Let's hope the gig Friday is as good as my luck these days!

RE

"Eat drink and be merry"

So i was online at ticketmaster the other day, ordering some Bloc Party tickets and I found that above the ridiculous surcharge ($2.50 - $6.00 per ticket) + facility charge ($1.00 - $2.00 per ticket) + taxes, you can have the option to print out your ticket which will be valid at the door.

Funny thing is, this self serve option is an ADDITIONAL SURCHARGE. Let me get this straight: Using your own paper, pricey ink (because you know there is going to be a tonne of added branding and graphics on there you don't actually need on your ticket) and printer to download your own crappy 8.5"x 11" version which won't fit easily in your wallet/purse costs more? What's wrong with this picture!

You can have your own ticket via snail mail at no additional cost*. It's getting really crazy these days, and basically my recommendation is to go to a place like Rotate This! to get your ticket. Althogh they only take cash, the max they will charge is $2.50 for each ticket.

Soon we're going to have to pay to do my own banking, rather than with tellers. Oh wait, I think that's already happening.

Take care,

RE

"eat drink and be merry"


*don't forget you're paying crazy surcharges, so the postage cost is embedded in there anyway

2 weeks ago I was the best man for the first time at a wedding. I have to say it was more work than I thought it would be, seeing that it wasn't my wedding! I have no regrets about it though, and i would do it again in a second - especially when I saw it all come to fruition on the wedding day. The day went very smoothly, and I gave my "best man" speech w/o any tomatoes thrown at me, so i think it went well (Note: i may got a few 's from ppl when describing someo of the "events" from university, but I guess you can't make everyone happy!)

Let's get something straight, I didn't do THAT much, and i noticed that on the wedding day when there were so many little details covered, which must have taken days/months to prepare.

I've always been the guy who just gets an invitation from those whom i barely even know. I'd be part of the family who was invited, and not really important as to whether i'd be there, given that my parents would provide sufficient representation regardless. I've really taken the whole wedding thing for granted. I just thought of it was some event that i'd pop into, celebrating the new stage in their lives..

.. but i never REALLY put serious thought into the work that needs to get put into one big day. After working at a promotions/event marketing company, I've related one of those events to a full-out wedding. Now I better understand the work that goes into it! And some weddings are probably close to the same budgets that i've worked with, which is insane. The difference is, i'm getting paid and have a team of ppl working with me on the event. In this case, the bride/groom are pretty much on their own, except for some help with family/friends when they have time. Luckily for this wedding the parents were a major help (e.g. made the wedding cake by hand!), which was great.

Who knows, may be one day i'll get married, now that the laws are beginning to change. It could be fun, since the reception is really a mega party - may be make it a theme party, where someone gets chosen for a 1-hour makeover! Cmon ppl, i know there's at least one uncle Bill or cousin John who's acidwash tapered jeans, frazzled and thinning hair and oil stained classic rock t-shirt collection in your family who'll need it!

As you can see, the wedding thing is something that i've never thought seriously about, and i'm not about to anytime soon - there's too much on the go right now!

Take care,

RE

"eat drink and be merry"