7" of Separation

I’m sick.

A head cold of sorts… though, chills are here, as well.

I should have an exciting announcement in the next few days, though. I’m working on a new blog that is going to focus on music, especially rare 7″. I have a few kinks to work out… but it’s on the way soon.

Meanwhile — TURKEYS!

I would totally be striking.

Finally, I have some more pictures from my recent trip to NYC. This round is from an afternoon trip I took the the Natural History Museum with Kate, Ellyn’s roommate. The museum was pretty great for the most part. Looking at all the dead, stuffed, rare animals was a little sad. Kate and I imagined the 1920’s big game hunter who spent millions to fly around the world and shoot things.

While seeing the taxidermy was a little sad, the Undersea Oasis “exhibit” was just a bunch of up-close pictures of starfish and such. We gave it a thumbs down.
There is a scene in one of my favorite dysfunctional family movie “The Squid and the Whale” when the main character runs to the Natural History Museum to the giant whale room. Even though the movie is set in the 1980s, the scene was shot on location in the current exhibit. Seeing the room was cool… pretending to be in the scene was neat. That’s right… I’m what you would call a movie tourist… I like to see locations in real life.
I’m rather proud of these shots of Kate anticipating a butterfly landing in the Butterfly room, which had 500 free butterflies and 88 degree temperatures.

Some nectar is always good when you are a butterfly.

After an hour in the room with no luck, we finally cheated and grabbed a little guy from a plant.

Turns out, even then we got the most common butterfly in the room.

Seeing the mammoth was pretty great.
Through the skull of a Triceratops. I took Dinosaur Biology in college — and I was a 12-year-old boy — so seeing the Dinos in full glory was pretty neat. A dream come true.
Kate… look out! They can open doors.

One more round of pictures to come.

Sorry, no big update. I had a really full day of wordsmithing, so I don’t feel particularly chatty at the moment.

I promise to have something in the next couple of days.

In the meantime… everyone should listen to the Mountain Goats.

I have returned to Oregon. It looked very green from the airplane window. This was not surprising. From the same window, New York looked gray. But, that isn’t a bad thing… just a thing.

Many ramblings about New York to come. Also, more pictures. For now, I sleep.

One thing though:

I am very much in love with a girl, the future and life in general.

Pretty simple, really.

Now… some freaking sleep.

What time is it even?

On Monday, after three years of anticipation, I finally made it to the Museum of Modern Art, or MOMA.

Context:

In 2004, I traveled to Berlin as part of an international group of journalists. While there, I had one or two free days to do whatever I pleased. What I pleased was museums. I searched a local guide and was at first excited, then destroyed, as the MOMA was on tour in Berlin… was… I missed it by two days. The MOMA had packed up and shipped out, set for home in New York. What luck… I was bound for NYC only a week after returning from Berlin.

I hadn’t even recovered from the jet lag when I jumped on a plane to New York for CMJ 2004. Again, I had one or two free days… I walked over to the MOMA… closed. Apparently, they were still unpacking.

So, in 2004, I missed the MOMA twice.

Now, why is the MOMA so important? Mostly, it contains the art I care about. I was moved by Rembrandt, sure… the classics are classics. But Picasso, Duchamp, Warhol, Calder, Lichtenstein and the rest of the modern art gang is what I love… especially Duchamp and his Dada absurdest friends.

Finally, on Monday… it happened. Take a look at a few things we saw. Mostly, the pictures feature a beautiful, young model that I fixated on more than the art. Really, here are some pictures of ellyn. You want art? Go to the MOMA.

We liked the sculptures, but I don’t think the medium is either of our favorites.

Nothing special, just a big green thing.
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“Oof” was one of the many paintings in a great room that featured Warhol’s Campbell soup cans, elvis and monroe. Also in the room, a great Lichtenstein. Oh, and one of those terrible stuffed statues by Claus Oldenburg… I cant stand his stuff. How he fits in with Warhol and Lichtenstein is beyond me. Not a fan… even though the soft stature was, in fact, a giant balck fan.

Wow, Pollock! In the Pollock room, I was warned for being too close to the paintings. I wasn’t going to touch it, but the security guy was obviously high on himself, as he seemed in charge of all the other gaurds on the floor. Also, he was guarding the Pollock room, after all. He must be a big deal, right?

Some Calder. Top, ellyn takes in a more traditional Calder. Below, a human form. I had never seen a Calder quite like it.

And finally, the greatest, most amazing artwork I have ever been able to see in person: the two most important works by Dada’s daddy, Marcel Duchamp. That’s right, one of my favorite pieces of art is a bike wheel in a stool and a shovel — albeit a really old shovel…

The importance? These are the first “readymades,” or found art pieces… ever.

Duchamp said f-you to the world and made a bunch or art snobs pay thousands for a $14 shovel.

I love it.

So, pictures to come. ellyn and I have been bad about bringing a camera with us, as we both have big, clonky things. I’m finding a place for my battery charger as soon as I’m done posting. So, the camera has got to start coming along.

On to finer things…

So, on Friday, we took the L-train out to Williamsburg, Brooklyn, a hip little area with shops and apartments right out of a tiny Portland neighborhood. I didn’t see a single person in a hurry the entire afternoon. It was great. I got a haircut, a new jacket and good Mexican food. If I was to move here — something that is becoming less of an “if” every second — I would want to live in a place like Williamsburg.

Later that evening, we meet up with a group of ellyn’s grad school friends. They were nice people, mostly. Intelligent, from different parts of the country. It was a nice evening. We meet at a bar for happy hour — in NYC happy hour is two relatively-micro-compared-to-Anhizer-Bush brews for six bucks. After the happy hour, a little Ukrainian/Jewish restaurant. I had latkas, my favorite Jewish dish.

The evening was topped of with a viewing of Wes Anderson’s “The Darjeeling Limited.” More thoughts on this in the weeks to come.

A fast recap of yesterday, then I swear I will find something else to do rather than travel blog.

The day started with the Chelsea Flea Market. A mix of crap for any taste.

Then, we braved the asshole of consumerism — Times Square — to get 50 percent off tickets to “The Farnsworth Invention,” a new play by Aaron Sorkin, writer of “The West Wing” and “A Few Good Men.” Tickets snagged, we walked around Central Park, where the NY marathon is setting up for today’s race. Runners from around the world were making laps through the park, breathlessly jabbering back and forth in their native tongues. A quick slice of pizza, and off to the show.

“The Farnsworth Invention” was spectacular. There was not a second that I wasn’t drawn into the story. More on this to come, as well.

Also, pictures.

New York never looked so good. You see, because the American airline industry is a total loss, I spent about nine hours in the San Fransisco International Airport on Wednesday. My flight out of Eugene was late, causing me to miss my connection to New York. The only solution was the red eye.

I arrived sleep deprived. My body is still mad at me.

ellyn looks beautiful.

After a day of sleep yesterday, I went with ellyn to an event for the political action group she interns with. We attended a private party on the 64th floor of 30 Rock. Yep, we wined and dined in the Rainbow Room, NBC Studios restaurant and bar, which was open and free!

The most amazing part of the night was the view. Now, a tourist to NYC often sees the city from the top of the Empire State Building, the Chrysler Building, the stature, or even 30 Rock’s observation deck. But none of those opportunities come without a slow, hour-plus wait in line followed by a rushed glimpse of the city. I got to stand and take in the entire 360-view of the island without a single person pressing to get past me. It was amazing.

After the dinner, we were scheduled to take in the first night of the Decemberists’ “Long and Short of It” tour. We walked across the city. Closer to the venue people started to identify us as Decemberist fans. Apparently, the show was canceled, they told us. More than that, the entire tour, including a three-night stint in Oregon later in December. One of the band members is sick. Lame.

However, because we came home and found a rebate for the tickets in ellyn’s email, we decided to look for something else to see. We found something way better: The “I’m Not There” concert event. That’s right, Cat Power, Calexico, My Morning Jacket, Yo La Tengo, and a bunch of other people all covering Bob Dylan. Excuse me while I orgasm.

Today, I’m off to Brooklyn with ellyn. I’m getting my haircut in a hip New York style. Tonight, for lack of a Decemberists’ show, perhaps a movie.

I’m so glad to not be on a plane.