A gray sky...A bitter sting...

Some before and afters of my new room! hooray!

I've had all my big stuff moved in for about two weeks now, still got tons of little stuff and a few pieces of furniture at the old house, but mostly i'm done.

here's before





and the after!!





yeah, so i haven't really unpacked the boxes...but i did fold my laundry and put it away...and get the wii setup...stuff like that. i'm diggin' it.

thanks for reading, that's what's new in loren's world.

bye,

loren

Nerve Wracking to Say the Least

Last night was my second outing to Mongo's Bar in Grover Beach.

Last week when I got there twenty minutes early there was no one signed up to play on the list. I put myself fourth on the list because I didn't want to be the first one to go up. Last night when I got there fifteen minutes early, there were eight people signed up to play before me.


I was a bit distressed.

This week a lot of people heard about and decided to come to the open mic night...which was really really great and encouraging, but it also made me feel really responsible, especially when I realized they'd have to wait almost two hours if they wanted to see me play...

Surprisingly, everyone stayed. It was really amazing, everyone seemed to have a good time, no one was upset at how long it took (well, no one except me). I was so very grateful at how everyone just enjoyed themselves and was there to support me.

this is the group. sans brian, he wasn't there yet. and sans ruth, she was holding the camera.

i did something to aggravate brian, and he did something to make me laugh

this is ruth, see, i took this one!

i took this one too, pretty good i think :)

lindsay's getting drunkers! but not really :)

hank is a very silly person.

hank's getting lindsay drunkers! but not really :)

i moped a little bit, and ruth took a stealthy picture of me

i moped a little more next to brian.

look, we're both moping.

just me and hank gettin' our mope on.

ruth took pictures of people heading towards the bathroom :) hehe.

then hank went mad with power and tried to kill lindsay

we're amused at something

hank and ryan are close. very close.

the green man hit on lindsay while....

...his friend tried to strangle me with my scarf! (this is a re-enactment shot, but it's a true story)

look how cute, they're all pretending to be happy to be there! :)

oh look! and now they're pretending not to fall asleep! :)

pretending to mingle

jeff either hates me, or wants me....i'm not sure i want to know which.

jeff also drinks very fast, look how blurry his hand is!

i'm drinking beer, and that guy next to me is being creepy....

ruth took some pictures of herself too, yay!

well, that's all the pics i've got for now...there's ones of me actually onstage and there's actually a few more of the group too that are darn good, i just didn't have time to upload them all today, so later tonight or tomorrow you should be seein those, keep your eyes peeled!

thanks for reading :)

loren

The State of Sound : A commentary on recent musical efforts by the great Paul McCartney

Paul McCartney.

Few are the people who don't recognize that name. FYI, if you're one of the people who don't know that name, just stop reading and go buy "Flaming Pie" at your local record store. Seriously, I'm not wasting my time on you until you're a little more educated.

He is arguably one of the greatest, most innovative, and most influential musicians of our time, and more. Lennon and McCartney were the songrwriting legends that singlehandedly started a musical revolution spanning the entire globe. In his solo career, McCartney constantly explored new avenues, redefining his style and defying expectations at every turn. It would be impossible for anyone to escape from the shadow of the Beatles, but he came the closest by far, making a more than respectable name for himself as a solo artist.

So, the question begs to be asked..."what happened?"

Now before the true believers stone me for my sacrilegious words, let me clarify. This will in fact be a commentary on the declining quality of Sir McCartney's musical offerings, but that is not to say that these recent cd's are "bad", per se. The only reason they seem lacking is because the man who wrote these songs didn't just set the bar higher than anyone before him, he invented the freaking bar and placed it in the heaves to glisten down upon us mortals like a shimmering star. Just because he fails to reach such great heights with his latest efforts doesn't mean that they're not still far better than most music out there. So there, all I'm saying is that, compared to his earlier music, Paul's work has gone downhill.

I'm speaking primarily of "Chaos and Creation in the Backyard" (the album he was promoting on his "Back in the US" tour) and "Memory Almost Full" (his recent release exclusively available at starbuck's coffee). The songs are enjoyable, fun, and still very obviously "Paul". He has a quality that it's easy to pick out in music. I've personally purchased both and don't regret either choice. However, there aren't really any gems on either album. Some songs stand out from the pack as more catchy, and some fall short in the "Sing-Along-Ability" category.

I think (and I hate to say this) that the real reason this cd leaves me wanting for some more of the old Paul is that...well, he's trying too hard to be Paul. I don't wanna say he's trying to relive the glory days, or he's trying to channel the Beatles, but well...sometimes it seems that way. Allow me a few specific examples. If you've heard the albums at all, you're probably familiar with a track called "Jenny Wren". It's a simple piece with minimalistic acoustic guitar and vocals. It's astonishingly similar to another piece he's written as an analogy comparing women to birds, "Blackbird". The picking style is similar, rhythmic strum/picking between the low and high strings, with some interesting switches from major to minor in mid-song. Very Very similar to blackbird. Oh well, blackbird was a good song right? So what's wrong with that? Well, it just seems evident in all the tracks an these new cd's that, even if he's not trying to emulate his earlier style, he's not really trying anymore to innovate.

Another example is "English Tea". And incredibly cute, fun, enjoyable listen. The more you hear it though, the more it starts to seem like maybe Paul is trying a little too hard to be Paul. The nonsensical lyrics, the bouncy/poppy rhythm and melody, it's all just dripping Paul, almost a little too much. "Nod Your Head", a track on "Memory Almost Full" goes back to the more rock and roll style tracks evident on albums like The White Album. It's especially reminiscent of Helter Skelter.

While I hate to speak poorly of such a great man and artist, I feel like Paul has realized that he doesn't have to try anymore. We'll still buy his cd's, and I definitely will still enjoy his music. But he's not revolutionizing anything anymore. He's done more than his part, but I still feel like he could have more to offer if he wanted to.

Thank you for your music, Paul, please don't stop caring!

Thanks for reading,

loren

Well, that was new.

So,

Tonight i played and sang at the open mic night at Mongo's bar in Grover Beach. I've been looking for somewhere small and simple to play in front of people for about a week or so now, and this seemed like a good idea, so i signed up. I had a lot of fun, and they let me stay up for five songs, which is two more than normal. So i feel pretty good about that. It was really short notice (i just decided this afternoon that i was even going) but i still had a few friends decide to show up and support me, which was super awesome.

Just fyi, i ended up playin "cannonball", "i will follow you into the dark", "the first day of my life", "butterlifes" (an original), and "the rat within the grain".

It really honestly was a lot of fun, and i was less nervous than i thought i'd be (though i'm sure the beers helped with that) and i feel like i did fairly well. Though, i did play four covers and only one original song...so it's pretty easy to sound good when you're playing incredible songs someone else wrote....

Anyway, here's some pics.

my support crew/cheering section (dad, lindsay, ruth, serena) the sibs came too, but they had to wait outside since it's a bar (which i felt horrible about!)

here's the guy's who host the thing and a random shot of the "venue"

and some of me, yay!

singing...

waiting...

playing...

singing again....

and playing but too cool for the camera.

thanks for reading everybody, hope you liked the blog, i had a ton of fun playing there tonight. who knows, it may even happen again sometime!

thanks,

loren

Your Bad Hair Day

You're going to have a bad hair day today.

You'll wake up in the morning to a phone call from your sister back east.

"Mom and died are dead. Their cruise ship sank and...there were no survivors." She'll tell you, her words broken by the heart-wrenching sobs. You'll take a moment while the news sets in, and as you do you'll catch a glimpse of yourself in the mirror on your dresser. Your hair is going to be horribly misformed because last night you slept on your stomach instead of your back.

You'll get in the bathroom, and just before you turn on the shower you'll hear your front door get kicked in. "Looks like no one's home, let's just take what we can and get out of here!" You hear someone shout. You'll wait quietly in your bathroom and hope the robbers don't think to look there for valuables. You'll idly (but still quietly) look through your things to pass the time and you'll notice that you're out of your hair product of choice.

And your hair hasn't calmed down at all.

After the robbers leave your apartment, you'll shower (you're out of conditioner too) and called the police. When they show up you'll do your best to help with the investigation but you'll notice them casting sidelong glances at your hair and snickering behind your back. "Looks like the damage is going to be pretty expensive, and they took the safe hidden behind your mirror as well. You say the family jewels were in there? Bummer...", Generic officer 1 will say as he's trying not to laugh at the unkempt and stringy mop of hair on your head.

As you're driving to work, almost two hours late after all the nonsense that's been delaying you and distracting you from fixing your hair, you'll naturally be attempting to fix your hair using your rear view mirror. Unfortunately, on this particular morning, your primping will result in a head on collision when you accidentally try to use the southbound offramp as a northbound onramp.

You'll wake up in the hospital later that night, the doctor and nurse standing over you with sympathetic looks on their faces.

"You're lucky, you ought to be dead. Someone up there must like you. I'm sorry to have to give you this news, but although we were able to save your legs, they'll never be fully functional again. And we had to remove your right arm just below the elbow."

You take a moment to absorb the news and reply "Well, I'm sure you did what you could doc, thanks."

The doctor nods, your incredible resolve in the face of such hardship bringing a small sad smile to his lips. As he turns to leave he mentions almost as an afterthought, "Oh, you also damaged a part of your skull in the crash, we had to put a plate in your head to supplement your brain's natural protection. Don't worry though, there was no internal damage whatsoever."

"Doc, Wait!" You shout just before the door slams shut behind him. He slowly comes back to your bedside...knowing what's coming next....

"What are you tellin' me doc... What are you sayin'? Don't do this to me, I gotta know everything's gonna be alright, give me some hope!"

He just listens...waiting for the inevitable question...

"Doc...my hair...." your words are forced and slow, as they seem to be choking you on the way out. You need to know, but you're terrified to ask.

"Will I...will I ever have a good hair day again doc? Or did the plate....did it mess up my part? Just give it to me straight, I can take it, I just gotta know, I just gotta know! I just gotta know...." your voice trails off weakly as you wait to hear the words that will either save or ruin your life...

The doctor stares at you for what seems like an eternity. Twice he opens his mouth as if to speak, but even for him, it's too much. He raises his lowered eyes to meet your gave, and he slowly shakes his head, left to right....left to right....You sink back in your gurney, the shock almost too much to handle. The doctor once more opens the door to leave.

"I'm sorry....I really am....We did everything we could..."

He leaves and quietly shuts the door behind him. The sound of the latch clicking into place sounds to you like the lock of your coffin snapping shut before your bones are laid to rest in the cold ground.

This is your bad hair day. Enjoy.

Kolgy love you.

Kolgy was a small green leafy creature. Indu was a poo. Kolgy and Indu were best of friends. Kolgy would frolick through the leaves with Indu always oozing along behind him, speading cheer and stink wherever they'd go.

One day Kolgy and Indu were froloozing through the forest bringing joy to all it's many denizens, when a non-descript brown bird swooped down through the boughs and gobbled Kolgy right up!

Indu never liked Kolgy anyway, so he just lay there and let the flies collect on his face as he baked to a warm gray-brown in the bright sun.

The End.

It's the one thing I promised I'd never do.

But I did it anyway.

I don't think you can blame me, it's not like I went out of my way to hurt you.

We weren't right anyway, we were fighting...unhappy. If it didn't work out, well it's not my fault or yours, it just wasn't right.

I mean, just think back. We'd been having...well, you can't really call them fights, but awkward discussions, I guess, for weeks now, neither of us felt completely right about it...then that night at my house, well we finally sat down and talked it out.

I told you that maybe it'd been a mistake from the beginning, that neither of us had been ready. You agreed. You agreed, remember? We both cried, we hugged, you got up to leave and said you'd see me around.

Now, I did call you when you got back to your car and we talked for another little bit...I think I may have said something about ...well, about not wanting this to be the end, and that we should not call it a break up yet, just say we're taking a step back? Like to work on things? I think I said I didn't want it to be so final so suddenly, and you agreed with that too...I don't really remember, I think I was just emotional.

Anyway, one thing I do remember about that phone call is that you told me you didn't care if anything happened that night, that you'd understand, and that I didn't owe you anything. In response, I promised again that I'd never do that to you.

But like I said, I was emotional.

You went home, I went to my party. I was hurt and vulnerable...I was surrounded by friends, and I was drinking. There was one friend in particular there who I'd been looking at as more than a friend for a little while now...and that night was the night that everything just kind of happened.

I don't even remember, much... of how it started or why it happened. I never meant to hurt you. You know that. But it was late, I was lonely, we were drunk... and suddenly we went from friends to two people finding comfort in each other's embrace. I'll spare you the details...I don't imagine that's something you'd want to hear...but I will tell you that we kissed.

The next morning, I felt terrible at first. You remember how broken up I was about it when I told you later that day...I did the right thing by telling you...I hoped you'd be angry, and that it might help you get over me...it would have been easier.

But it's been a while now, and I know you are mad at me, you're just keeping it inside, doing your passive aggressive crap rather than just confronting me or getting over it. Honestly, get over it. I did. Move on. It'll be easier that way. I can understand you being upset at what happened, but really, how can you call this my fault? It just happened, you know all about that...don't you?

I promised I'd never do what I did. But I never told you I loved you. I don't think that I lied. Y'see, if I'd told you I'd loved you, then that would obviously be a lie, since you wouldn't do that to someone you loved. But the promise not to do what I did was nullified when you let me go. You said it was ok, so you cannot blame me.

I'm sorry that you're hurt by this, but you need to get over it.

You need to get over it.