I LOVE

Sunday April 18 2010

[i]

3:08 p.m. I’m out of bed.

DREAM: I’m at my old house where my parents used to live. I run outside and pull out one of the mattresses that I had kept in my van for a few days. I notice a few flying bugs swarm out of it. More and more seem to keep flying out from inside. I decide to throw it to the curb. I see that a few of the neighbors have thrown out some mattresses and other junk as well. I go to check out their mattresses and one of them has a giant hole in the middle of it. It’s a windy evening so when I set the mattress upright, the wind somehow shoots it up high in the sky. It’s the coolest thing I’ve ever seen. I retrieve Phil and this girl from the house. “Come outside! You have to see this.” I take my mattress, which has a hole in it as well and the wind takes it shooting it across the neighborhood and into oblivion. The girl seems to be impressed. However, I notice Phil wasn’t paying attention. He was distracted with something in the driveway. I try to get him to look up and catch the last bit of it. He’s non-responsive and looks up too late.

Breakfast: Egg and Cheese Burrito from Sonic. Orange Juice. Fresh Mango.

Trips to Trader Joe’s and Big Lots.

Lunch: Peanut Butter and Strawberry Jelly Sandwich. Baked Lay’s. Banana. Jasmine Green Tea.

Work at China Wok.

I deliver an order to a medical rehabilitation center off First Colonial. As I walk in, I hear a chorus of elderly people singing “Amazing Grace” in the cafeteria. An old man is leading everybody in a microphone while a lady plays the upright piano. It’s a beautiful-sad sound and sight to walk into.

I look down randomly at the mileage I’ve driven and it’s 111.1 mi.

Dinner: Some Potato and Vegetable Indian Rice Dish Phil Made. Garlic Naan Bread. Natural Cranberry and Grapefruit Soda.

The house becomes a sitcom as people stroll in through the door unannounced.

The two Kelly’s come over and we chat about the building of communities in Norfolk and Virginia Beach.

The Sound of Music [1965].

Josiah suggests we put on The Flaming Lip’s album Zaireeka which contains 4 CDs you’re supposed to put on 4 different players creating a super stereo sonic effect. We are only able to do 3 at a time.

I dumpster dive at Trader Joe’s. I’ve found that Sundays are best and have the most rewards. Some of my finds include Milk, Eggs, Clementines, Heirloom and Vine Tomatoes, Peppers, Shelled Edamame, String Beans, Strawberries, Blackberries, Bananas, Whole Wheat Tortillas, Basmati Rice, and miscellaneous Cereal. A total of about $50 worth of groceries. The only reason most of this stuff was trashed by the employees at Trader Joe’s was because of a bad dud in the mix, deformed packaging, or dents. The cereal was thrown out because of a few rips and tears on the boxes. I find it interesting that if I was shopping for cereal at the store, I would never buy a box with the slightest rip but I would pull it out of a dumpster for free. [see above photo]

I eat a bowl of Mango Passion Granola and Corn Flakes Cereal.

I spend a few hours at the storage unit playing music.

I clean my teeth and sleep around 6:30 a.m.

[i] Dumpster dive. Image by me.

Saturday April 17 2010

[i]

3:23 p.m. I open my eyes.

DREAM: Walking the halls of my old high school. Few people are there and the classrooms are dark. I keep picking up quarters and nickels off the ground. I don’t want anyone to notice me doing this. I step through a door where the staircase is and Hershel walks in. We try to figure out why so many people haven’t arrived to school yet. Apparently, he sent out a mass text or tweet to all students - “Let’s make our point! Everybody come to school 15 minutes late.” I start walking back through the hallway continuing to collect quarters and nickels. I see really big coins placed in the doorway of the classrooms. I decide not to take those because they look purposeful. A teacher for my spelling class approaches me with two graded papers or tests. She hands me them and makes cryptic comments about how I may or may not have gotten a good grade. I walk into the classroom. Students are sitting down at their desks. I find a seat way in the back and off to the side. I see an unusually large book lying at the teacher’s desk called The Drawing Book. It’s made of dry erase board and there are pictures of black and white tigers and other wild cats colored in with markers similar to those posters made of felt fabric that you can get from department stores. I open it up on both sides while a friend and I marvel at the cool drawings. Vinnie from Mas Y Mas runs into the room telling me I need to join him in some activist school prank. “Let me get my bags first.” I walk back to my seat with no intention of leaving. When I arrive to my desk, a really cute black girl has moved her seat next to mine. She makes a few playful jokes about my personality.

Breakfast: Hot Cream of Wheat Cereal with Vanilla, Brown Sugar, and Milk. Fresh Mango. Orange Juice.

Glasses are becoming scarce in the house.

Lunch: Tuna Salad Sandwich with Phil’s Homemade Bread. Salt N Vinegar Chips. Jasmine Green Tea. Phil says it taste like Honeysuckle in a glass.

Work at China Wok. I deliver an order to apartment #1111.

I stretch and exercise doing ab-rolls while watching a Tony Robbins appearance on TED.

Dinner: Cumin and Ginger Chicken with Onions and Green Onions. Rice. Green Beans and Squash.

House Warming Party at Nikki and Kelly’s apartment above The Painted Lady in Norfolk. I meet some incredible people and see old friends. Music fires up in the den. I grab the guitar and play familiar tunes. Kelly’s soulful voice. Phil’s bluesy antics. Josiah’s water jug percussion. Tambourines. Drums. Spoons. Everybody singing. Free spirits.

I snack on two pieces of Toast and a Banana.

I shower then sleep around 7 a.m.

[i] Kelly and Phil. Image by me.

Friday April 16 2010

[i]

Around 2:30 p.m. I get up.

DREAM: I’m holding a newborn baby talking to somebody about how life completely changes when you have a child. For some reason, it’s understood between JoAnna and I that it is our baby.

Breakfast: Some of Phil’s homemade Ginger Banana Walnut Bread. Orange Mango Juice. Zinc and Biotin.

I start to feel a little queasy. Maybe it’s from the combination of things I ate earlier. After a quick relief on the toilet I feel better.

I go to Alpha and stop by the Asian Market on Great Neck Road – I buy Instant Thai Tea, Tapioca Pearls, and Sinigang Soup Packet.

The sun is shining. The kids are playing.

Mattress and box spring sold.

Lunch: Grilled Cheese with Tomato. Salt N Vinegar Chips. Thai Iced Tea.

Work at China Wok. I deliver an order to The Double Tree hotel again. The line is big to get onto the elevators just like yesterday so I climb the 11 flights of stairs once more.

Dinner: Spinach Ravioli, Salad, Garlic Toast, Dunkelweizen.

Tyler puts on The Animatrix [2003] after asking a few people to put it in and being denied. He uses the big kitchen knife to slice cucumber. On the floor, Phil creates his traditional paper art using colored markers.

Wall ball with Elliott and Margot.

Wesley and Emmanuel trash talking on the porch. I am told it’s a joke but it sounds serious and threatening. Boys will be boys.

I do some writing and practicing at the storage unit. I snack on Dried Soybeans.

I go to Kmart for milk and also pick up some mangos, zucchini, a big bag of dried soybeans, and yogurt.

A bowl of Cinnamon Toast Crunch Cereal.

I watch some videos on www.ted.com.

I clean my teeth, talk to Verity for a bit then sleep around 6:30 a.m.

[i] Shirley Shor.

Thursday April 15 2010

[i]

3:15 p.m. I get out of bed. I woke up earlier eavesdropping on the girl talk coming from the attic.

DREAM: On a mysterious island with other people. Escaping from the natives who want to kill us, a similar scenario to the second Pirates of the Caribbean movie. We swim around in the ocean quietly and climb onto our pirate ship. I hang on to the back. I see my purple backpack strapped in. The ship is unusually small. The Kraken slowly emerges sticking its tentacles underneath the ship. I am the only one aware of this. The ship gets lifted out of the water and The Kraken tips it over causing all of us to fall into the depths of the ocean. A small waterspout forms and we paddle furiously away from the center. It gets bigger and bigger. I can feel its strength overpower my legs as I am tossed and turned. A few of us reach the edge of the wall of water created from the spout. One of the girls that was with me earlier on the ship sees me struggling. She closely resembles a lady Phil and I saw at Big Lots the other day. “Come to me.” She grabs my hand and pulls me away from the madness. Holding my hands the entire time – I have complete trust in her. We fall together down the side of a colossal wave. I feel my stomach churn as we plummet down into the sand.

I can still feel the many chocolate chip cookies I ate from last night, which I forgot to mention yesterday.

Breakfast: Strawberry Yogurt. Orange Mango Juice.

A nightstand and two mattresses sold.

Lunch: Grilled Cheese with Tomato. Salt N Vinegar Chips. Green Tea.

Work at China Wok.

I deliver an order to Lisa Square and discover a beautiful green moth that has attached itself to the wall (see above photo). The next order I deliver to is The Double Tree hotel. I walk inside and there’s a big line of high school kids and families waiting to ride the elevators up to their rooms. I don’t really have time to wait, so I decide to trek the stairs all the way up to the 11^th floor. I finally make it to Room #1101 where 5 high school girls start collecting all their money. They seem flustered trying to figure it all out. Apparently, there is some kind of FCCLA conference at the convention center. I’m a little out of breath. I tell them how I was kind of forced to climb the stairs instead of the elevator. I am still left with a measly 17-cent tip.

Dinner: Vegetable Lo Mein. Dunkelweizen. Two Chocolate Chip Cookies.

A spontaneous trip to Rick’s with Elliott. We talk about setting up a show together at the house and how so many friends of ours have music projects. Vince from MasY Mas walks in and we exchange numbers in order to build some shows in the near future.

I play the electric guitar for hours at the storage unit patching out new ideas and trying to write lyrics.

I eat an Egg Sandwich with a glass of Milk and more Chocolate Chip Cookies.

I can’t get this song out of my head:

I Don’t Want to Set the World on Fire by The Ink Spots

I clean my teeth, read a little, then sleep around 7 a.m.

[i] Green moth. Image by me.

Wednesday April 14 2010

[i]

3:05 p.m. I wake up.

DREAM: In a classroom full of adult students. Earlier, everybody drew their interpretations of penises on thin pink construction paper. The teacher hands me the stack and tells me to pass them all out. I have to mix them up so everyone gets somebody else’s. At first, each paper has two drawings. I have to fold and tear the stack down the middle that way a person gets only one penis drawing. I start passing them out. For some reason there isn’t enough for all, so I go back to the teacher to retrieve more.

Breakfast: Hot Oat Bran Cereal with Cinnamon, Brown Sugar, and Milk. Orange Mango Juice. Zinc and Vitamin E.

Stretching and exercising.

Listening to new Snowden and other music.

Talking with Phil about his idea to write a novel about a modern commune that fails in the end.

Dancing and entertaining strangers and myself on www.chatroulette.com.

Idea to have a small “Silly Walkers Parade” at the beach with trumpets, drums, and other parade-like instruments while each performer conducts individual silly walks.

Lunch: Grilled Cheese with Tomato, Salt N Vinegar Chips (I notice I’m eating way more than a serving), Banana, Green Tea.

Practice with Chad and Chris at the storage unit. We kink out a new song.

1623 House Meeting in the kitchen. We discuss how to make the share of bills fairer for everyone.

Dinner: Red Beans and Rice with Indian Spices, Onions, Peppers, Ginger, Garlic, Tomatoes, and Mushrooms. Natural Cranberry and Grapefruit Soda.

I put together the footage from last month’s Show N Tell.

I discover www.ted.com containing “riveting talks by remarkable people…ideas worth spreading”.

Foosball with Art.

Wii with Margot.

Where is your logic?

I see where you’re coming from.

I see that you don’t know how to express yourself properly.

You use guilt to get what you want.

But I’m not going to be a commodity to you.

You project your feelings of inadequacy on me in the form of hate

I really do try to be the best human being I can possibly be.

I love. I love. I love.

I genuinely try to love.

I sit out in my van listening to Hljómalind by Sigur Rós.

A perfect mixture of sonic bliss and fresh environment.

The morning time is a special part of the day.

It’s not something I get to experience often.

I entertain the idea of watching the sunrise before I go to sleep tonight.

What if I did this daily before I end my day?

I clean my teeth and sleep around 7 a.m.

[i] Laurent Champoussin.

Tuesday April 13 2010

[i]

2:40 p.m. I wake up.

DREAM: I’m attending a show in a giant sanctuary. Wesley’s debut of his new hardcore project. I see him standing on stage with his new white electric guitar and babbling to his band mates. Apparently the guitar inspired him to do these new music projects. Everybody’s sitting down during Wesley’s set. All of a sudden, Rocky, Elliott, and Josiah get up and form at both ends of the room. They charge into the pit slam dancing. I join from the sidelines but then immediately sit down. Later, Day’s Difference starts performing. There’s a piano sitting at the far left end of the room away from the crowd and Micah, the drummer, is playing some really beautiful music on it. I have my Washburn electric guitar strapped on my shoulder. For some reason, I walk over to him and jam with him. He starts playing around with harmonics and semi-tones and we create a nice combination of sounds. I notice we’re outside now and over to the far left behind the bushes are different types of acoustic pianos lined in an oval shape. There’s sand on the ground and I’m barefoot. I dig my feet into the warmness. After Micah finishes his performance, I shake hands with him and chat with the other members of the band telling them how good of a job they did and how my band, Tokyo, misses playing shows with them. A piece of paper lies on the ground with information of some kind of record label or publishing company on it. Jeremy claims the label to be the best thing that ever happened to them. ☼☼☼☼☼ A concert in a gymnasium with Mae I think. My bunk bed is on stage and I’m hanging out on the bottom bed. Megan is there along with some other people. I notice a giant plastic bin is being held by the crowd. People are hopping on stage and jumping into it while people continue to hold it up and crowd surf. I take my turn. I notice the plastic bin becomes smaller and I see two girls still sitting in it. The bin gets passed further towards the back until a muscular guy just drops it. The two girls fall flat on their faces. One of them is in pain. I run over to her and grab her head looking for blood. “Where does it hurt?” She mumbles an answer but I can’t understand for some reason. “What did you say? Where?” She says something but I still can’t comprehend anything. “Well, I don’t see any blood.” I continue to feel my hand around her delicate head and then hold her trying to make her feel better.

Breakfast: Hot Cream of Wheat Cereal with Vanilla, Brown Sugar, and Milk. Orange Mango Juice. Zinc and Biotin.

Mattress and box spring sold.

Phil and I go to Big Lots and Kroger.

Phil: “Why is there so much air in this bag,” referring to a bag of chips he just bought.

Me: “I’m not a chip scientist.”

We come across some interesting people. A lady in the produce section at Kroger explains how to prepare and cook an artichoke. There are some complications when Phil uses the self-checkout line.

Lunch: Tuna Salad Sandwich with Lettuce, Tomato, and Pickle. Salt N Vinegar Chips. Green Tea.

I go to the storage unit to practice. A cover band called The Natives are recording and playing three doors down (not the band) from my unit. They’re rehearsing Everybody Wants To Rule The World by Tears For Fears. It’s kind of loud and distracts me from my practice. So, I sit out in my van to have two back-to-back phone calls:

A very constructive conversation with JoAnna.

“There’s a thing that women do where they don’t listen to you.”

“Women use their sexuality to get what they want.”

It starts to rain a little bit.

To the left of me is a wooded area and a lake.

I notice a fox roam by just as I happen to look out the window.

Then, I speak with Emily about some mother bird conflicts.

I notice a raccoon roam by just as I happen to look out the window.

I head back inside the unit and finally finish learning Beethoven’s Sonata in G Minor Opus 49 No. 1. I continue writing on some other new songs.

▀Fox: Intelligence, Feminine Magic, Feminine Courage.

▄Raccoon: Cleverness, Mental Skill, Curiosity, Inquisitiveness.

Dinner: Green Onion and Ginger Thai Noodle Soup with Onions, Corn, Red Peppers, and an Egg. Garlic Cheese Toast. Dunkelweizen.

Good dinner conversation in the attic.

I go through some footage from the last Show N Tell.

Skype chat with my friend Verity from Australia.

I clean my teeth then sleep around 7 a.m.

[i] Fox-Racoon Layered Wood Animals.

Monday April 12 2010

[i]

Around 3 p.m. I wake up.

DREAM: There’s big show happening at a concert hall. I’m next door in a food court with a group of people ordering meals at this breakfast place. One of the employees makes this thin potato pancake that he kneads out like dough. He puts it on a plate with one strip of bacon. It looked almost like toy bacon. A crowd of people from my old church, Freedom Fellowship, line up along the walls. I see Pastor Rick and Diana. I walk through the door to the entrance room of the concert hall. A tall husky black man rams into me pushing me all the way back into the food court. He apologizes nonchalantly and laughs a little bit.

Breakfast: Hot Cream of Wheat Cereal with Vanilla, Brown Sugar, and Milk. Orange Mango Juice. Zinc and Vitamin E.

I become a middleman.

Phil and I clean and organize mattresses.

Lunch: Tuna Salad Sandwich with Lettuce. Salt N Vinegar Chips. Green Tea.

Tennis with Art and Phil.

Practice with Chad and Chris at the storage unit. We work on a new song.

Dinner: Chicken with Onions and Mushrooms, Cheesy Tomato Pasta, Green Beans, Garlic Toast. Natural Cranberry and Grapefruit Soda.

I watch M. Night Shyamalan’s Unbreakable [2000] over dinner. I read there could be a possible sequel.

I listen to the new Snowden EP.

While conducting a search for video clips from A Mighty Wind, I fall upon another “11” phenomena:

Notice how there are 11 letters in A Mighty Wind [2003] as well as Unbreakable [2000].

“11 is considered to be a master number in numerology. It represents spirituality, insight and a direct channel to the subconscious. It is the most psychic of all numbers and can also be considered the doorway to your inner self.”

Social Psychology becomes a popular subject to study at 1623. We all need love and understanding.

I play more music at the storage unit.

A bowl of Cinnamon Toast Crunch Cereal with a Banana.

I clean myteeth.

Sleep around 6:30 a.m.

[i] Earth Fetus. Image source unknown.

Sunday April 11 2010

http://starchildglobal.com/starchild/eleven.html

Around 3 p.m. I wake up. There are a bunch of texts and calls I missed while sleeping.

From: Becca Joy

“Bah”

CB: 540-239-6850

Apr 11, 11:11 am

DREAM: I’m observing myself from afar driving a car. I’m being chased by a police car on a busy city street. I finally escape from the cop’s sight behind a Bojangles. My car is an RV now. I’m walking around inside looking in different rooms. An accident happened and supposedly everybody is dead that was in the RV. Detectives are investigating everything. I look in one room and find 4 or 5 people underneath a dome-like glass structure sitting in a hot tub playing cards. Steam everywhere. In another room is John Travolta. He’s lying dead in a coffin made of that same glass structure with steam rising everywhere. I see him with his arms crossed like a vampire. ☼☼☼☼☼ I’m living in a big house with a high church-like ceiling. I wake up from a dream where I just discovered how to capture images on my cell phone while dreaming. I try explaining this to Angel Berrios. He’s skeptical. I show him this photo I took of a dog sitting in the dirt. I describe the process to him: Before you go to sleep, hold your phone in your hand. While you’re dreaming, you will recognize the phone being held. It only works if you’re lucid dreaming though. When you come across a strong image, take a picture. You will also be taking a picture in your bed of whatever the mind is seeing.

Breakfast: Hot Oat Bran Cereal with Cinnamon, Brown Sugar, Blueberries, and Milk. Orange Mango Juice. Zinc and Biotin.

A mother bird is concerned about the change in dynamics at the house.

Lunch: Toasted Peanut Butter and Strawberry Jelly Sandwich. Baked Lay’s. Banana. Green Tea.

Work at China Wok. I make a delivery to a guy whose order is exactly $11.11.

Me: “That’s funny your order is $11.11”

Guy: “Oh yeah? Is that a bad thing?”

Me: “No…just coincidence I guess. I see that number a lot.”

Guy: “Hmm.”

Me: “Alright, thanks man.”

Guy: “Yeah thanks.”

Me: “Have a nice night.”

Guy: “You too.”

I finish my shift at work and walk out with $111.41.

Reading the new Adbusters March/April 2010 issue.

“1886: The US Supreme Court gives corporations the same rights and protections as citizens.” Right there is the first black spot, the cause to all our problems in America.

Some other thoughts: Nature is indifferent. As the human race, we get lost in this manipulative mindset where we are in control. We think we’re kings. But we have been deceived by our own human nature into thinking we have complete power over God’s nature.

Art, Phil, and I get deep into a conversation in my room about globalization and our responsibility as consumers and human beings. We take the discussion into the living room. We cover politics and history. It’s a beautiful thing when two or three people can come to an understanding together on concepts like this. It almost empowers you with hope for change. I want to see a mental revolution in society. When will this happen?

Dinner: Chicken with Cumin Powder and Onions, Cheesy Tomato Pasta, Broccoli and Green Beans. Natural Cranberry and Grapefruit Soda.

Phil and I dumpster dive at Trader Joe’s. We are able to salvage some goodies including Sunflower Seeds, Peanuts, Bananas, Coffee Beans, Bread, Brown Sugar, Black Licorice, and even a few Plants.

Phil, Josiah, and I discuss erections. I mention the guy in the movie Kinsey [2004] that has the ability to ejaculate in 10 seconds. Then Phil attempts to sleep on the couch while Josiah persists to sit at the foot of the couch. Phil gets mildly upset as Josiah sits on his feet.

“That was a good 35 minute conversation,” Rocky says after she finishes getting off the phone with Emily.

“The birds are tweeting upstairs,” Phil says, lying on the couch listening to the murmuring between Margot and Brianna in the attic.

Sex.

I practice the Beethoven piece at the storage unit.

I clean my teeth. Sleep 7 a.m.

Saturday April 10 2010

[i]

My alarm wakes me up at 1:45 p.m.

DREAM: We’re having Show N Tell at the house but it looks different and more spacious. There’s a small closet-like room used for puppets set up in the living room. Elliott and I come up with a plan for him to describe this mummy character and then I pop out of the puppet room dressed as a mummy scaring everybody. The costume consists of this jump suit that Elliott owns and red streams of light that encircle around the body. I throw everything in the puppet room for later. Then I head outside on the balcony. Elliott and a few other people are hanging out. Phil comes running toward us dressed in this funny donkey suit. For some reason I think this is the same suit I’m supposed to wear for the mummy act. I yell at Phil, “You ruined it! Now everybody’s seen the suit and it won’t be a surprise anymore.” We all laugh because he looks so funny. I’m still upset though.

Breakfast: One Hard-Boiled Egg, Two Slices of Toast with Butter and Apple Butter Spread. Orange Juice. Zinc, Biotin, and Loratadine (24 Hour Allergy Medicine).

Phil and I sell and deliver 4 mattresses to The Flagship Inn at the beach. Then we stop at the Heritage store. Phil searches for the darkest dark chocolate he can find and settles for an 88% bar. I purchase a box of American Ginseng with Royal Jelly & Bee Pollen.

Lunch: Tuna Salad Sandwich. Creamy Tomato Soup with Gouda Cheese and Garlic Croutons. Green Tea.

Work at China Wok. As I drive around, I listen to The Middle East EP, Color, and Sixpence None The Richer. After work I go to Trader Joe’s to get Milk and a few other things.

Dinner: Vegetable Lo Mein. Natural Cranberry Grapefruit Soda.

Phil and I attempt to dumpster dive at Trader Joe’s but decide to wait until later.

I play the electric guitar at the storage unit.

I go to the house and eat a bowl Cinnamon Toast Crunch Cereal. People are watching Twilight: New Moon [2009].

I go back to the storage unit and play more guitar and practice the Beethoven piece.

Salt N Vinegar Chips and half an Orange. Dunkelweizen.

Skype Chat with my friend Verity from Australia.

I shower and clean my teeth.

Sleep around 6:30a.m.

[i] Image by me.

Friday April 9 2010

[i]

Around 3:20 p.m. I wake up.

DREAM: Mae is playing a concert. It’s been a long time since we’ve played a show. It’s an outside event and it’s windy. We start playing. In the middle of the song, a small explosion happens causing a billow of flames near the drums. I look over and Zach’s guitar is on fire. He leaps toward my side of the stage doing one of his signature moves throwing his guitar around his shoulders. He looks at me with a face that says, “Oh well” and continues playing the song despite the flames still on his back. Apparently the pick-ups on the guitar couldn’t handle the electric current it was plugged into. TJ is there and tries to look for a new pick-up.

Breakfast: Egg and Cheese Burrito from Sonic. Orange Juice. Zinc and Vitamin E.

Work at China Wok.

Lunch: One Hard-Boiled Egg, Salt n Vinegar Chips, Strawberry Yogurt, Green Tea.

Yoga and ab-rolls to Sixpence None The Richer’s Divine Discontent.

Dinner: Vegetarian Sloppy Joes with a Salad. Coke.

I work on music at the storage unit.

I eat French Toast with Milk and watch a documentary about truck drivers called Big Rig [2007].

Sleep around 6 a.m.

[i] Akemi of Kawaguchi, 2006. Yoshinori Kon.

Thursday April 8 2010

[i]

I finally get out of bed around 4:30 p.m.

DREAM: I’m about to perform in a short play with a few friends in a big parking lot. It’s supposed to involve a fight with lots of flesh wounds and blood. I suggest that Phil narrate the whole thing in a microphone so the crowd will know what’s going on. I pretend to swipe at one of the characters. Pretending to narrate, Phil says, “And things take a turn for the worst for our character!” The guy with me doesn’t think it’s a good idea and that we should get the bank to help us. So we all walk over to the bank. I have to carry a big kitchen knife and hide it behind my back placing it inside the waistline of my pants and sticking straight up along my backside. It’s quite uncomfortable. Inside the bank, I have to walk a certain way as not to expose my knife. The guy with me starts making a copy of the narration sheet. All the ladies working in the bank seem to be impatient and busy. We never get to perform.

Breakfast: Hot Oat Bran Cereal with Cinnamon, Brown Sugar, Blueberries, and Milk. Orange Juice. Zinc and Biotin.

Phil and I go to Alpha to pick up my guitars and then we stop at Big Lots for toilet paper.

Lunch: Tuna Salad Sandwich with Lettuce and Tomato. Creamy Tomato Soup with Garlic Croutons.

Tennis with Elliott and Phil. Pollen everywhere!

I practice the piano and work on the Beethoven piece at the storage unit.

Dinner: Garlic Spinach Ravioli. Salad with an Egg and Garlic Naan Bread.

I visit JoAnna at her Mom’s house. I get inspired and we write a song together. On the porch sipping Coffee and smoking a Sampoerna, it starts to rain, just lightly tapping on the concrete. My hopes of the pollen being washed away come true. The night sky is cloudy and glowing from the lights of the city. The Hoagy Carmichael station playing on Pandora. All of this making it a beautiful moment. We share music: The Middle East, Youth Group, Sixpence None The Richer, “The Java Jive”. I eat two slices of her Homemade Mixed Berry Pie with Whipped Cream.

I A M Y O U R R O B O T.

Sleep around 7:30 a.m.

[i] JayDz.

Wednesday April 7 2010

[i]

I get out of bed around 3:30 p.m.

DREAM: I’m in Indonesia. It’s raining. I’m walking around with who I think is Yunda. We stop at a fruit stand with such a low canopy I have to crawl underneath to see all the fruit. All sorts of grapes are bundled in different bowls as well as pineapple. A lady working the stand smiles and I point at the darkest purple grapes. She starts to gather them on a plate for me and then begins to cry. I see the grapes have this orange fuzziness to them making them bad to eat. So I think maybe she’s upset because the grapes are bad. Suddenly she vanishes into thin air and I am left alone at the fruit stand. I decide to eat as many grapes as I can get as well as pineapple. Everything tastes wonderful. ☼☼☼☼☼ I’m talking to someone about these islands that exist off the map just below the southern tip of South Africa. Scientists have yet to discover all the tribes of people that live on these islands. As if I just travelled there, I’m looking at the shores of South Africa. I’m out on the ocean. I can see a defined cornered tip on the beach representing the actual tip and border of South Africa. An African man is dipping himself in the water and looking up at me as if I am filming him.

Breakfast: Quaker Breakfast Bar. Immune Defense.

I take a trip to Alpha to check on my guitars.

Lunch: Toasted Peanut Butter and Strawberry Jelly Sandwich, Baked Lay’s, Green Tea.

Work at China Wok.

Dinner: Vegetarian Sloppy Joe’s, Thyme French Fries, Salad, Coke.

I practice Beethoven’s Sonata in G Minor Opus 49 No. 1 at the storage unit.

I fix the sliding door on my van with some weather strip adhesive. I also notice no ants since I put the boric acid solution in.

Becca, Brianna, Ryan, and I chill on the porch. Becca brings some records, a Peter and the Wolf Orchestra from 1977. We take a walk around the neighborhood as I drink a Dunkelweizen and smoke a Sampoerna. The night is breezy and quiet.

Cadbury Egg and some Dove Chocolate.

I shower and clean my teeth.

I learn some Russian.

Sleep around 6 a.m.

[i] Tim Simmons.

Tuesday April 6 2010

[i]

Around 3:45 p.m. I wake up.

DREAM: I’m sitting in the living room but it’s shaped differently. Phil and some other people are on the couch watching a movie similar to Willie Wonka. The character’s name is “Reepi” I think. I see bubbles coming out of a trashcan as he walks down the street. There’s a flying device emitting bubbles next to him. I stretch out on the couch and all of sudden Ambrotious runs up next to me and starts nuzzling on my face. He makes this weird meow or groan because he hasn’t seen me in a long time. I squeeze him. I start to notice other cats in the room. I get a little irritated and ask Phil where all these cats are coming from. He tells me he brought them from his house in Northern Virginia. I start eating an apple. After eating most of it, I look and it’s just a cat’s face, as if I ate all of his body. I place the head on the coffee table. He’s still alive because his eyes are moving and he gives out a big yawn.

Breakfast: Hot Cream of Wheat Cereal with Brown Sugar and Milk. Orange Juice. Zinc and Biotin.

Phil and I go to The Castle hotel to retrieve the mattresses they don’t want to keep anymore. I notice my arms and legs getting really itchy and red while moving all of them around. A bleach solution was used on the mattresses, so maybe it’s a chemical reaction. And the layers of pollen everywhere does not help. My allergies kick in. Later we go to Bike Beat to repair Phil’s bike, then to Rite Aid, Auto Zone, Big Lots, and Trader Joe’s.

Lunch: Grilled Cheese with Tomato. Green Tea.

I make a boric acid solution mixed with water and syrup. I dip cotton balls in it and place them strategically inside the van in hopes it will kill off the ant colony infestation. Then I drizzle Coca Cola over the terminals on my car battery to eliminate the green foam that developed around them and brush off the rest of it with an old toothbrush.

Dinner: Leftover Salmon Cakes with Salad Greens, Tomatoes, and Garlic Sautéed Spinach. Coke.

Rocky asks, “Are these a collection of cups from around the house?” referring to a box Phil and I put together containing all the glasses her and Josiah have used and left everywhere.

Foosball with Phil, Rocky, and Art. I’m accused of being a fun stopper by mentioning that spinning is against the rules. Art and I invent a new multi-ball way of playing where you use two balls during one play. The only way to score a point is by getting both balls in the goal. We play one game that lasts longer than normal. I win.

Yoga and exercise. Strawberries and Yogurt with Honey. 8mm [1999].

I go to the storage unit to practice. Before I head inside, the automatic lock system in my van starts continuously locking and unlocking the doors as if it was possessed or something. I get angry trying to figure it out. Eventually, I play the piano and learn the first half of Beethoven’s Sonata in G Minor Opus 49 No. 1.

Popcorn and a Dove Chocolate Bunny. Sniper 2 [2002].

I clean my teeth and sleep around 7 a.m.

[i] Pollen and mold spores.

Monday April 5 2010

[i]

2:40 p.m. I wake up.

Breakfast: Hot Oat Bran Cereal with Cinnamon, Peaches, Brown Sugar, and Milk. Orange Juice. Zinc and Biotin.

I clean out the shed. Phil and I clean and sanitize the mattresses and chairs we picked up yesterday and from the week before.

I go to Alpha and leave two of my guitars to get set up and fixed. Then I stop by Lowe’s for a light bulb adapter.

I eat a can of Cambell’s Chunky Salisbury Steak and Vegetables with some of Phil’s Amish Style Sweet Bread he baked earlier.

I shower.

I meet up with Becca and her friend Carolyn at Waffle House. Alex shows up a little later. He tells us how he and his friends transplanted a stray cat. Homosexuality seems to be a hot topic at the table. At some point, I get lost amongst the conversation and start reading some articles in Adbusters Magazine{{{A North American, or western mind-set is self-interested or individualistic, whereas an Asian, or eastern mind-set is focused on the context of things and what’s most beneficial for society as a whole}}}Our booth this time is closer to the kitchen making us closer to the clashing and clamoring of dishes and other jostling noises. I eat a Waffle. Later on, Becca and I do yoga at her house with Sigur Rós in the background. We share a Dark Chocolate Wonka Bar and start enjoying the wonder of the digital camera.