syn1c.com – More Noise

While I’m writing this blog post, I am waiting for my fiancé’ to get done with work. I am on my Inspiron 11z, no cords, grabbing WiFi and using a battery. Next to me, my BB blinks red for new email. It’s amazing how I can be in such a foreign place such as her office and yet be totally comfortable, the Internet there, Twitter and Facebook blinking at me occasionally from TweetDeck. Google Chrome is there as well, along with Outlook. I have a bunch of people I could talk to on Pidgin across 4 or 5 different chat protocols. It’s pretty scary if you think about it.

Years ago I  would back up my data to disk. First it was floppies, then 100 Mb Zip Disks and then CDs. I still have so many old backups of documents, applications, conversations on a binder of cds I never look at. I have had the same spindle of CD-Rs and one of DVD+RWs for over 2 years. They are pretty low, but I hardly ever use them. Why is this? Why this change over the last year plus? Is it the Cloud?

Cloud computing has lots of different definitions. To me, it basically means that I can access anywhere. I can read, write, listen to all my favorite things right here, or at work, or on a train, or anywhere. I can make a Twitter post in an airport, while listening to my Pandora account, and be chatting to someone at the same time. I know some people are paranoid about their privacy and all that, which I respect, but I honestly don’t think my stuff is all that special, so privacy isn’t that important in certain aspects to me. At the same time though, I still use Outlook at home. While all my email accounts are IMAP, (gotta be synced everywhere), I just haven’t found a great alternative to having a centralized app for email. I also haven’t converted to Google Docs yet, and still use Word, Excel, and the like. Why is that? Why is it in certain aspects I’m so willing to put everything out there, while email and my documents are not?

I think a lot of it is habit. Documents are supposed to be on your C drive, right there next to Spreadsheets and various other crap. That’s where I’ve always put them, and I just haven’t given enough of a try to put it all on the Cloud. Don’t know if I should or not (the idea of needing a doc and not having b/c of lack of Internet terrifies me), but who knows. I am however beginning to use DropBox, and so far I like it as a nicer way to shovel around files between home, work, etc.

Maybe in a year I’ll be able to have a computer with an OS, a web browser, and nothing else. I don’t think I’m there yet though.

Here I am. On a US Airways A321 plane. Okay. The last 3 months, I’ve flown to or from Denver, Idaho, and now Philly. Every plane I’ve been on has been a crapass prop that makes me feel like a contortionist. Hell, even the one from Durango to Phoenix was like that. When i got to my seat on here, I originally thought I was going to be screwed on a middle seat. They said it was an exit row. Not exactly. It’s right behind the huge leg room exit row seats. In the middle. Fuck. I prepared to have no feeling in my legs for the next 4 or 5 hours.

Fortunately, by the time we had all boarded, there was an aisle seat on the exit row, sorta of a diagonal. The guy next to me told me to go take it, since it was empty. So now here I sit, with enough legroom that makes 1st class look jealous, no one sitting directly to the left of me. All I need is a Stella and I’m pretty much perfect.

In case you were curious, I’m going back east. Jersey and Philly to be exact. I haven’t been back in about 2 years. Buying houses, job, lack of money, make trips back east tough. Also, the last time I was back east it was my brother’s wedding, and my family was in a clusterfuck. At least now they are talking. I’ve started smoking about 2 years ago as well. Meh. I’ll be quitting once I get back to Colorado. Need to call that hypnotist.

This month has been insane. From my wife’s family being around to my father-in-law’s wedding, to going to fucking Idaho to bring my mother-in-laws car to her. Don’t get me wrong, it’s been a great experience, but I am fucking exhausted. Through all this, I’ve still had work, and while it’s been great to see a bunch of people I haven’t seen in way too long, it’d be nice to have a week without anything. 2 weeks from now, that’s where I’ll be at.

This is the last leg of my September insanity. Going out to Philly. Seeing my family. Seeing one of the closest people in my entire world. Part of me wants to cry I am so excited. I think people might freak out though so I’ll keep it inside. I don’t know if it’s in preparation of going back, or because of it, but my playlist lately has been pretty old.

Indian Summer

Portrait of Past

Portrait

You and I

Bound

Most people will have no idea who these bands are. To me, these are some of the most influential bands I have ever had the privilege of listening to. You and I and Bound were old “screamo” hardcore bands from New Jersey (I think that term is funny on so many levels).Members of each went on to form things like Neil Perry, Kid Dynamite, None More Black, etc. It’s unfortunate that I only got to see Bound’s last show. It’s funny because that was where I found out a kid from one of my college classes was the singer of Bound and was going to be the singer of Kid Dynamite. I fell in love with that CD. Melodic, heavy, with out there almost occultish lyrics at times. Fucking amazing.

You and I I saw in Marlton at a show with blue.skies.fade. I think that was during the time of shows happening almost every weekend, and hanging out with Refuse 2 Fall from North Jersey. These were some of the best times I had ever had in my life. Seeing a shit ton of bands, both bad and good, hanging out with friends, going to the Medport Diner till all hours, then going to school in Philly. Pretty amazing if you ask me.

I remember talking to Justin(?), the singer of You and I after they played. He said that show gave him the worst headache. I can see why. Playing live,they would destroy and torture themselves. Crying,. screaming out. It sounds pretty lame I know, but at that time it was one of the most intense things I would ever experience. I think that the only thing I could ever compare it to was an amazing orgasm. An intense, amazing orgasm. One that obliterated your mind and body. Too rad.

Indian Summer and Portrait of Past are bands I heard of randomly (thanks Internet). Similar vein as the previously mentioned, but maybe 3-4 years earlier time wise. I also doubt they ever played in Jersey or Philly, but who knows.

It’s sad that music like that doesn’t really exist anymore. I’m not talking about generic modern day “screamo” where the kids dress a certain way (though we all did the same damn thing. Somehow I could justify wearing huge jeans, visors or headbands, and tons of chain and beads.Obviously this was so much better than wearing tight jeans, white belts and eyeliner. Amazing how jaded we become.) The music just all sounds alike. Whereas I think bands at the time were just trying to be spoken word poets who happened to have music as their backdrop, these modern bands have a blueprint. I try to listen to some of it, and while not terrible, it doesn’t make me lose my shit like the bands when I was growing up. Experimentation makes all the difference in the world in my opinion.

So that’s been pretty much my playlist for almost 2 weeks. Makes me feel like I’m 20 again. Makes me feel like when the only important things in life were seeing as many bands as possible, and hanging out with friends, and making fun of show hoes. School, my job(s), they weren’t nearly as important. Maybe they should have been. Fuckit. I wouldn’t trade those memories for the world. So many shows. So many people. It was an amazing time. A time where all that mattered was that day, nothing else. Tomorrow, yesterday, didn’t matter. Only the here and now.

Next stop. Philly. Jersey. Mom’s house. I’m excited. I’ll post this once I get to a connection. But hey, greetings from some 20,000+ ft above you.

Wordpress took a shit on me trying to make changes. Lost it all. So we’re starting clean. Stay tuned.