As part of a recent group (or sorts) that I joined, I just created a new mixtape with the site Muxtape. This particular challenge was to use only tracks that end an album. I present to you, ...how it ends.



jspicer.muxtape.com

A bit of an explanation for those who may care: Consider this a three-parter. Tracks 1-3 set the atmosphere, tracks 4-7 build to and include the climax, and tracks 8-10 re-establish the atmosphere. Of course, it's meant to be listened to however you please.

I will be doing more shit like this, so there will be some more mixes in the works as more challenges are given. This particular mix isn't friendly to those looking for something poppy but it isn't some noize/sludgy/trashy mess (minus a song or two). It may very well be one of the most cohesive mixes I've made.

It's oh so quiet...

It's obvious comedians are just recycling Bob Dole is old jokes for John McCain. When the 'John McCain has an autographed copy of the bible' one-liner is made by Leno, then I will have all the proof I need.

I like to steal--not items, just surveys. Perhaps thoughts. Sometimes ideas. Never babies.
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What is the first thing you do when you wake up in the morning?
- Feed the cat and open the curtains

What was the first pop concert you went to?
- The Toadies/The Nixons. My first and last time moshing.

What was the worst thing that you did as a child?
- Steal a pack of baseball cards. I felt so guilty I took it back immediately.

What is your favourite song?
- I don't know if I have one favorite song. At the moment I love "JLH" by Richard Swift.

What is your most treasured material possession?
- My grandfather's wedding band which will be resized and turned into my wedding band. Yeah, I'm a softie--don't tell.

What is the best advice that you've ever received?
- The best advice is from Three Kings when Clooney tells Spike Jonze's character that you have to do something first, THEN you get courage.

What do you think of Bob Dylan?
- I think he's a bit full of himself but not in a pollutant way. He understands his place in musical history and accepts it for better or worse.

When did you last cry, and why?
- I don't cry. I did get teary-eyed at the end of reading Everything is Illuminated a few years back.

What characteristics do you think you've inherited from your parents?
- My mom's loudness and my dad's enjoyment of Big Red. Hopefully that's the only thing I inherited from my dad.

Are you afraid of failure?
- Who isn't, but I think I'm finally ready to fail to succeed.

What are you like when you're drunk?
- It's been years since I've been drunk but anyone close to me can tell you all about Tipsy Spicer, Incognito Spicer, and Ultra Drunk Spicer: the Destroyer of Relationships

Which actor/actress would you have play yourself in a film?
- Ron Livingston or Peter Sellers were he still alive

Pick five words that describe yourself....
- Loyal, jaded, sarcastic, loving, growing

Is there one piece of criticism that sticks in your mind?
- Being loud. I've grown quieter since high school but I do tend to get a bit loud if I have a bit of alcohol in me, but I usually catch it.

Do you believe in God?
- I have too much to say to sum it up in a nifty sentence. Let's just say my beliefs are akin to the Native American system of belief.

What is your most unpleasant characteristic?
- LOUD

What is your greatest fear?
- Cancer and poverty

What ambitions do you still have to fulfil?
- Beginning a label, getting a Masters, owning a farm

What do you never leave home without?
- Wallet

Who would you most like to meet?
- A sugar daddy

What music would you like to have played at your funeral?
- As everyone blissfully stares at my urn (or coffee can), I want "Dress Sexy At My Funeral" by Smog to blast from the speakers

When you look in the mirror, do you like what you see
- Sure. I'm not knock out handsome and everyone has days of self-doubt but I don't see a hideous monster or a terrible person staring back.

What is your favourite film.
- Drama: Good Night and Good Luck
Satirical: The Royal Tenenbaums
Comedy: The 40 Year Old Virgin
Western: The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada

If you had a million pounds (£1,000,000), what would you do with it?
- Buy a farm

What first attracts you to a person of the opposite sex?
- Eyes

What was your favourite subject at school?
- English

If you could spend the night with anyone in the world, who would you choose and why?
- Audrey Tautou

What is the most embarassing thing you've ever done?
- Too many things to speak of

Do you have anything to declare?
- "I am a golden god!"

Last weekend, we were treated to a 70 degree (F) day that couldn't have been more pleasant. Of course, my allergies were acting up so I couldn't enjoy it fully. In the midst of blind Spring optimism, I figured Seattle was due for more Spring-like weather in the coming weeks as much of the nation was blanketed in nice weather.

It turns out that last Saturday was a mirage. All last week the temperatures continued to nosedive leading into Friday afternoon where we were treated to thundersnow. You heard correctly--thundersnow in April in the Pacific NW. If I was still in Indiana, that wouldn't be such an overwhelming site; winter and spring trade places every other day during Indiana springs. But this is Seattle, and when you get a 70 degree day it has usually been a sign that more 70 degree days were just around the bend. Instead, we're having a winter renaissance.

The thundersnow didn't last that long Friday. However, Saturday afternoon as I walked to the local independent record store to partake in Record Store Day and lavish myself in a few 7" releases made especially for the day, it began to snow for the second straight day.

This is getting ridiculous. I understand the rain--it's April and Seattle, of course there's going to be rain and plenty of it. I don't understand 40 degree highs and 30 degree lows.

So how did I spend my cold weekend? Working on the family tree.

I suppose I've had a slight curiosity about my family tree since freshman year of high school, but that was 14 years ago and needless to say I wasn't prepared to rifle through stacks and stacks of books in the Genealogy room at the local library. Now, with the advent of easy-to-access internet, my interest has began to rise once more. I toyed around a bit a few weeks ago and found a bit of info but nothing that really gave me the needed jolt to go full tilt. That was until Saturday afternoon when I checked my e-mail and a friend of my mom's who worked on our family tree (well, on her side of the family) sent me what he found. He had traced one branch to Wales in the early 1500s. It was great to see and it gave me the juice to fill in as many blanks as possible. I spent nearly 8 hours working on it Saturday and a few hours yesterday.

My only complaint is on my father's side, I have nothing but his father. My mom can't remember my dad's mother's name because she had passed before they were wed) and even searches for his step-mother are coming up empty. I've gone through many, many channels without much help. I figure it's time to call up some relatives and see what I can find out.

I don't know why I'm so interested in this. I have no need to know my roots (the only thing I've discovered that I didn't know is the name of my clan so I can find my clan's tartan). If anything, I think I'm interested in it just as a record of my and my family's existence--something to pass on to future generations.

Yeah, I said it--and here's why:

In this image released by the Mexican advertising firm of Teran/TBWA on Monday April 7, 2008, an advertisement created for Swedish Absolut Vodka which ran in Mexico, shows a map of the border of Mexico and the United States where it stood before the Mexican-American War of 1848. The Absolut vodka company apologized for the ad campaign amid angry calls for a boycott by U.S. consumers.

My view: those states are still a part of Mexico due to the sheer amount of illegal and legal Mexican immigrants living in those Cali, NM, AZ, and Texas (NOTE: I have nothing against illegal immigration though Lou Dobbs tells me I should. I suppose my thoughts are more complicated, but this is not the forum).

Oh no, Sweden made fun of us in Mexico! The horror...the horror!

Have we really become that pathetic? Wait, don't answer that--of course we have. I have to laugh every time says America is still a super power. Compared to who? Djibouti?

I stole this from shrixer78 who stole it from someone else who stole it from someone else who...

1.How old were you in 1980?
1

2. How old were you in 1989?
10

3. Were you a Toys R' US Kid?
They don't have Toys R' Us' in small Indiana towns

4. Did you watch Transformers?
Hell yeah--not as awesome as Voltron. However, the Transformer movie (the animated 80s version, not the modern live action crap) was awesome

5. Did you see E.T. on the big screen?
No--we were too poor

6. Did you own a Lite Bright?
No but I played with many-a-friends'

7. Who is your Favorite Golden Girl?
Bea Arthur of course

8. When someone says "Who you gonna call?"
I answer: "Where's the Beef?"

9.What was your favorite toy(s)?
Legos (still are)

10. Did you have a Pogo Ball?
No

11. Did you listen to New Kids on the Block?
No--I never fell for musical fads. Hated NKOTB, Vanilla Ice, EMF and all that crap. I was jammin' to Hall & Oates.

12. What New Kid did you have a crush on?
Who's your favorite New Kid? Call me Donnie.

13. Did you play M.A.S.H?
Who didn't? NOTE: I did not end up with any of those girls...ever. Still waiting on the mansion.

14. Did you watch The Care Bears?
Not really though I did have a Lionheart plush so I knew of 'em

15. Did you have Jelly bracelets?
No

16. Did you have a charm necklace and/or bracelet?
No

17. Did you have a Glo Worm?
No

18. Did you ever own a slap bracelet?
Everyone had those--even those of us growing up in trailer parks could afford those.

19. The Breakfast Club or Sixteen Candles?
The Breakfast Club easily.

20. Did you have a crazy hair style?
I had crazy hairstyles right on through college. My hair likes to grow in every direction.

21. What was your first bike?
I can't remember my first bike but I do remember my favorite, which was a Mongoose that was stolen my frosh year of high school. I was pissed. I couldn't do tricks anymore.

22. Name one thing you still own from your childhood...
Baseball/Football cards (the valuable ones)

23. Did you have a Cabbage Patch Kid?
My grandmother bought a few thinking they'd be worth some money in the future. How'd that turn out?

24. Did you dress like Madonna?
Yeah--maybe that's why everyone made fun of me. Note to self: Boys shouldn't dress as Madonna.

25. Rainbow Brite or Strawberry Shortcake?
Neither

26. Did you watch Miami Vice?
No

27. Did you own a pair of Jelly Shoes?
No. What was the obsession with jelly in the 80s?

28. Did you own a Trapper Keeper?
No--poor, remember?

29. Atari or Nintendo?
...okay, not so poor that I didn't own a Nintendo and a shit ton of games.

30. Did you play Pac-Man?
Yes--it was everywhere. I miss arcades.

31. Which was better: Jem and the Holograms or Barbie and the Rockers?
Jem. It says so in the song: She was truly, truly, truly outrageous. I wonder if that's where Grant Lee Buffalo got the influence for "Truly, Truly"?

32. He-Man or She-Ra?
By the powers of Gray Skull, I am He-Man! A friend of mine still has the nickname Skeletor and she doesn't hate me for calling her it.

33. What movie scared you the most?
I can't recall its name but it was a film where this airplane begins to rip apart midair and they can't land it. Scariest shit ever.

34. Did you try to dance like Michael Jackson?
Everyone moonwalked.

35. What Is The First Thing That Comes To Mind When You Hear "Flux Capacitor"?
"McFly!"

36. What other colors did Pepsi come in?
Contrary to Mandy's belief, Crystal Pepsi was awesome. No one will admit it but it tasted just like regular Pepsi except it was clear! It should be noted that for those of you new to me, my favorite color is clear.

37. Roger Rabbit Or Howard The Duck?
As a kid I would have said Howard the Duck just because you can't tell how awful a movie is as a kid. Knowing what I know now, Roger Rabbit in a cakewalk.

38. Did you ever beg your parents to have your school picture taken with the 'Laser" background?
No--hell, that may have been the ONLY background in Indiana.

39. Do you know what the Ninja Rap is?
T-U-R-T-L-E POWER!

40. Do you know why people cringe when they hear the word BUCKNER?
If you've ever watch a minute of SportsCenter you know about Bill Buckner. I wish it'd go away now that the Sox have won 2 World Series in 4 years.

41. Can you name the family members from the National Lampoons Vacation movies?
I'm sure I could but I don't want to waste the time.

42. Wally-World or Europe?
Wally World

43. Did you have pump sneakers?
Hell yeah--they sucked

44. Did you own hyper color shirts?
No. It's ironic because I was talking about hypercolor over the weekend when I went shopping for a tie.

45. Did you watch Smurfs?
Yes--religiously. I do the best Grouchy Smurf impersonation.

46. What was your favorite movie from the 80s?
Major League

Are Democrats really stupid? At least in Cali, NY, and NJ they seem to be. Why vote for Hillary? Your party has been stale since Bill's second term, so you fight for change in '06 and push fresh candidates and it pays off! You win the House and Senate.

So now, you're going to play it safe and fight for Hillary to be the Democratic Presidential Nominee? Let me tell you something: that isn't playing it safe. You might as well inaugurate John McCain post-DNC if Hillary gets the nomination.

But I figured it out: Democrats are scared of change just as much as they accuse Republicans of being scared of change. Republicans worked so hard to keep the 1950s alive and then Reagan broke all the rules, so now they want to be Reagan. Democrats are living in the past, thinking a well-known last name will deliver a Presidency. It won't. Hillary is so polarizing, even more in her own party. She won't attract the Independent vote. She won't attract the young vote. She won't attract the minority vote. Those are the three sects the party needs to take the White House.

Now, I'm not saying Obama is the answer to everyone's (or the party's) prayers but right now the Republicans fear Obama because he appeals to minorities, youth, and independents. Not to mention, if the Presidential race happened to be Obama vs. McCain, you can bet those guys would have to continue to cater to the growing number of independent and undecided voters in America, thus keeping them from racing each other to the middle and making them work hard to keep some of the promises they make in their bid to the White House.

Nothing against Hillary--I'm sure she's got a personality and some savvy in her life away from politics, but if I have to decide between McCain and Hillary--the Democrats already made my decision for me and I know many, many people that will feel the same way. They will have driven me (once more) to a third party candidate. So when they try to scapegoat third parties for ruining the election, perhaps they should look at candidates such as Gore, Kerry, and Hillary that don't appeal to anyone but the over-50 set and don't invoke civic pride into the younger set. The baby boomers have had their say and it's time the Democrats realized it before they begin to cripple their base for good.

I think anyone who has read this journal knows that I despise the Church of Scientology. It's secretive, it's a cult, and it has gone to great lengths to keep a high profile in the public eye while being dastardly and devious under the covers and protections afforded to religious organizations.

I knew I wasn't alone with sites/groups such as Xenu.tv and Operation Clambake out and about, but now it seems that a group of infamous hackers known as Anonymous are beginning to launch their own assault against the Church of Scientology due to the the CoS' nature of censoring as much material as they can that is out and about on the internet.

Here's the message from Anonymous (and it's creepy but in a cool, Armageddon-like way):



Here's a news piece about it all:



Here's a few Tom Cruise-centric videos links and articles that are far scarier than any Anonymous video:

http://gawker.com/5002269/the-cruise-indoctrination-video-scientology-tried-to-suppress

http://gawker.com/5002216/we-are-the-way-to-happiness

A post!

The Super Bowl was much better than it had any right to be, though to be fair you have to enjoy watching Tom Brady eat turf over and over. As a Colts fan, I do.

I didn't care too much about the teams or the outcome--at first. When the Giants took the 10-7 lead, I began to believe that despite many 'pundits' stating that the Giants would win (which, according to Universal Law, usually means the underdog is screwed) that they might actually defeat the Dark Lord Patriots. When Eli channeled his Manning roots to drive the Giants down the field for the game-winning score, I jumped off the love seat, clapped until it echoed in our apartment, and tried to keep my heart from pounding out of my chest. When the game was over, I was happy not to endure talk about 19-0. Instead, we go from 'pundits' crowning the Pats as the best team of all time to them being not a great 18-1 team.

Which I agree with. I think if we sized up the best teams by dynasty, no one could convince me that the 88-90 Niners wouldn't beat the living tar out of the Patriots 7 out of 10 meetings. Those Niners teams (back-to-back champions) had explosive offensive players and explosive defensive players. Hell, as much as it hurts to say it, I think the back-to-back Cowboys SB champs from the 90s would also put a hurting on Tom Terrific and the Pats. They went 18-0 because shit broke their way for 18 games and they are veteran enough to win when that happens.

Okay, enough football chatter. The season was salvaged by the Giants win. The Pats (and ESPN for felatting them) were zapping my energy to enjoy the football season this year but last night was sweet redemption.

What else is new? Writing--lots and lots of writing. EVP is suffering a bit because I have articles to finish up for other outlets. I've been watching the debates as often as I can and following Primary/Caucus results. This is the first Presidential election (since I've been old enough to vote) that is invigorating. I made the mistake of thinking Gore and Bush were on in the same in '00 (which is why I voted for Nader just because Harry Browne wasn't running for Pres.)--not that I think my, or the other myriad of votes that went to Nader cost Gore the election; apathy from his base cost Gore and the Dems. the election. I voted Kerry in '04 because I tricked myself into believing that my Dem. vote in a state that was going to go Dem. anyway would make a difference. Not this year.

Right now my Presidential vote is up for grabs. As a 'liberal' I like McCain though I can't stand his war policies at all but I don't think I'd vote for him. I like Obama even if I don't like his health care policy. I like Hillary's health care policy but it's the only thing I like about her so she'd never get my vote.

So it's up to a third party candidate to grab my attention--and one has: Cynthia McKinney, who is a former Dem. now running as the Green Party's Presidential candidate. For those who vote on race and gender, she's Clinton and Obama put together: an African-American woman! Let's completely fuck with everyone and put her in office (since Maxine Waters will never run for President, though I guess we had Mossely-Braun in '04). Not only that, but McKinney is running on a platform that is closest to my ideals and therefore she makes the most sense for me. Of course, she probably matches a lot of Obama and Clinton supporters but since she's not a Dem. or Repub. no one knows who she is. And that's the major flaw of American politics. We're supposed to be an advanced country and yet we have only two people that can potentially become President. That's a load of shit.