I survived my second week of work. I have to admit I was more relaxed this week than I think I've ever been in a corporate office. It helps that my co-worker, Casstina, knows how to tickle my funny bone and make my world wackier than it would be without her.

It's been funny, really, that I haven't been talking about Eric Pollard over the past years as much as I've been talking about him just this past week. He was someone I've always admired for his lust for life. He was smart, intelligent, funny, but he was also wicked, stupid and angry. Not such a contradiction if you ever met him. He was a man of extremes and as complex as that suggests, a man of strong opinions and even stronger moods. He could seem as sane as apple pie or crazy as a loon, depending on what he was doing.

I remember him bragging about interviewing Jeffrey Dahmer as a part of his studies for a degree in psychology. I suppose this may have warned me off of Eric, but it only managed to deepen my belief that he understood limitations around unreasonable behavior, so was safe. Soon I was to learn that this was a relative quality in his life.

For the most part, Eric showed considerable restraint and wisdom. His weakness was demon drink. He liked to drink red wine while he wrote. He was editing a herbal for a friend when I met him. I don't know if it ever was published. Several evenings I'd come home to our little efficiency apartment to find that he'd been cooking up a storm, drinking his red wine and editing. One time I'd asked him to record a program on the television for me because I was working late.

He had recorded it but also watched it and determined that the program was not to his liking. As soon as I arrived home I began watching it, and he began complaining loudly regarding its content. I agreed to watch it at some other time. But he wouldn't leave the subject be. Every half hour he seemed to bring it up again. I tolerated this behavior until much later in the evening, once we'd already gone to bed. In the middle of the night he woke me with a complaint about it. For me, this was the final straw. Nothing is so important that my sleep must be interrupted. I jumped out of bed, tore the VHS tape from the machine and began jumping up and down on it.

I believe I surprised him with my outburst because he immediately retired to the restroom for several minutes. When he returned to bed, he stated rather gravely that he thought it was time for me to leave. I agreed with him and immediately started gathering up my things. "You don't have to leave this minute," he pleaded. I stated I didn't have to, but I wanted to leave.

I called my friend Baxter and asked if he had room on his floor for me to sleep. He'd been out drinking with friends who were visiting over the holiday's and said, "sure, the more's the merrier." So, that's how Eric and I connected or disconnected, as the case may be.

We remained friends after that. He ran into my dad at social gatherings and expressed some understanding regarding things I'd expressed to him before, but that he'd not understood at that time. I think I always loved him for that. Eric could understand things about emotions and familial relations. He wasn't numb, but he let his anger blind him from time to time. Still, his own machinations eventually tamed him. I'm not surprised he died in a foreign country. He always said that once his exile to Seattle was up, he was leaving the country. I don't know how he died, but I wonder if it wasn't by his own hand. I may never know.

myPOWERMIX

I've listened to Randy Schlager mix at Neighbors for years. Now I can keep tabs on him.

I just found out this weekend that Eric Pollard has passed away. There was an obituary in the Seattle Gay News. I am very sad. He just had to do it on my birthday.

Friday my friend Frank took me to eat at a wonderful Thai restaurant in his neighborhood, Thai Siam Restaurant at 15th Ave NW and NW 80th St. We ordered two basic dishes, Phud Thai and a vegetable curry. The flavors were pure and we found that the two dishes complimented each other amazingly well. It was a delicious meal.

Treasure Planet -- The Official Homepage

Work has been tough, but I'm liking the challenge. It is very familiar and seems like I wasn't really gone for one and a half years. There are definitely benefits to having worked in the trenches first. I think I'm gonna like it here, to quote Little Orphan Annie.

I was checking out what Disney has online for their new summer movie "Lilo & Stitch" and came across the above site containing an online trailer for this movie due out this fall. The concept is simple and follows the formula of last year's summer movie, "Atlantis," which was simply Jules Vern's "Journey to the Center of the Earth" redux. In other words, Treasure Planet is R.L. Stevenson's Treasure Island updated for 21st century audiences with sky surfing and air ships equipped with solar sails. The artwork looks like it will be very much worth seeing, perhaps a mix of "Atlantis" and "Tarzan". The new crop of animators at Disney are really honing their craft. I'd like to see something more original. Dreamworks, Don Bluth and others are doing more original stuff.

This past week has been both productive and busy. A week ago Friday I had an interview at Community Psychiatric Clinic for an administrative assistant position. They offered me the position this Friday. Yeah! My dependence on unemployment will end soon.

Tuesday I met with Nancy, Carolyn and Maxxwell to see "The Importance of Being Earnest". A costume drama with anachronisms, as Carolyn pointed out. But I found it a fun romp through Wilde's naughty parlor room comedy. I was reminded of "The Great Race" and other films from the early seventies that took liberties with history in favor of laughs.

Friday was the next installment of Babel-17, the reading group that I've been attending. This month's reading was "The Golden Compass", a juvenile fantasy novel by Philip Pullman. Over all, I found it an exciting read, although I have to agree with most everyone that it deals with several adult themes and may not be understood by every teenager who reads it.

Saturday, my friend Frank Young, whom I've recently recontacted after being out of contact for several years, took me to see "Y Tu Mama Tambien!" It was very revealing on a second veiwing. The director has packed a lot of symbolism and background into this little sex drama. As my friend Carolyn has been pointing out, this film would just be another "Porky's" in the hands of an american film director. I'm going to watch for more from Alfonso Cuar�n.

Maxxwell took me to see Spiderman last week. What a fun movie. I noticed several things in the background including the very subtle blue "web" wall paper in Peter Parker's room at Aunt Mae's. The story stayed close to the emotional context of the original comic book story.

Tonight I took Carolyn, Nancy and Maxxwell to see The Importance of Being Earnest. The operative point, taken from the online trailer [The Importance of Being Earnest], is "this isn't Jane Austin's England" and the movie delivers this premise well. I feel the anachronisms are charming and worth overlooking in favor of the excellent performances of a wonderful cast. Rupert Everett and Colin Firth, ultimately engaging as Wilde's world weary "Bunbury-ists", work as a convincing pair of would-be wooers to Reese Witherspoon's and Frances O'Connor's affections, while Judi Dench smolders in the background as Lady Bracknell, tossing the bon mots as easily as sparks pop from a fire. Very light, yet very fun. Totally worth the bother, as you would expect of any production of Earnest.

I've been a very bad boy, spending my tax return almost exclusively on petty selfish things rather than doing proactive things like investing the money or paying off late bills. Well, I take back that last bit, as a gift to myself I did pay part of a loan and I started paying off one noisy creditor.

The week of my birthday was mostly uneventful, besides looking for work. That Monday, Carolyn and I made a special trip, after going to the food bank, to pick up Ramen style Thai "wheat noodles" packages from Uwajimaya. The one thing I didn't count on, MSG in nearly every one.

I didn't do much this week but plan for Friday, May third, my birthday. That Thursday I joined some of my friends out at the Jade Pagoda on Broadway for drinks. Generally pleasent.

Friday was bright and sunny, a perfect day for a birthday. I was up fairly early but found myself rushing to get to the tattoo parlor. Once I was out the door I realized that I had still sometime to get a bite to eat and stopped at QFC to pick up a scone and an Odwalla drink for breakfast. I was a few minutes early, when I arrived at Superstar tattoo and piercing. Mark Mitchell, my tattoo artist, was actually still collecting himself but ushered me back to his chair after introducing me to his co-workers, a very talented artist named George and the piercer whom I don't remember his name.

The process took about two hours and several cigarette breaks later I was the proud owner of a set of Egyptian wings around a turgid "rooster", mounted on my upper left shoulder. Ask me for a picture if you need edification.

Carolyn had suggested a potluck brunch for me and our friend Ray, so our friends Judy and her husband Billy hosted us Sunday afternoon at their house with the intention of us watching Judy's recording of "Montreal Sextet" or "Motreal vu par...", which unfortunately was incomplete. Judy made a souffle (my first ever), Billy made pancakes, I brought bacon and made a key lime pie, Ray brought champange and orange juice, Carolyn brought a delicious German's Chocolate cake, Nancy brought equally delicious banana-nut bread. We had a great time. In addition Nancy gave me a short stack of eight pack of Vampire:The Eternal Struggle cards, a game I've collected cards for some years.

Sunday night at the Vogue was fun because I was able to show off my new tattoo by wearing my black sheer night club shirt. Purple gave me a blue vinyl bustier for my birthday. I stayed on to close the club and walked my friend Alex home.

The following week was pretty fun with decidedly Mexican fare. On Monday my friend Jason took me out to dinner at La Puerta and gave me a copy of Phillip Pullman's The Golden Compass. On Wednesday, Purple took me out to dinner at Gallerias' in their new space where Minnie's used to be. I had the Remedios Varo, which is a delicious garlicky dish of chicken legs stuffed with feta cheese and spinich covered with an avacado sauce. Yum! Thursday, my friend Maxxwell invited me to see the new Spiderman movie. We first met for lunch at Azteca with a friend of his, Stan. Maxxwell gave me five tapes he'd mixed from his personal collection of music and all of the porno he'd written for me to edit. The movie was fun and afterward I visited with Nancy and her mother for dinner. Later that evening the brunch group got together to watch a pre-recording of last weeks "Queer As Folk" episode.

Last night Purple invited several people over for a "European" party. He served chocolate from several countries he'd visited and showed many of the photographs he'd taken there as well. In Barcelona he'd picked up a couple bottles of absinthe, so that was imbibed as well. Wonderful fun. I met some new people, friends of Purple: Eric, Brand, Lindsey and Chris. Carolyn also attended.

China Mieville, Perdido Street Station

China Mi�ville interview by Paula Guran

So, anyway, I've been meaning to say something recently about Perdido Street Station, because it is yet another book I've completed this year. I read it in conjuntion with Babble17, a local reading group that reads science fiction and fantasy. The discussion last month was very intriguing because here are new people that I've never discussed books with, people with their own ideas about what a novel should be. I haven't sat down to write a review of the book, which is my plan...and I'd better get to it because I will most definately forget some of my impressions. But I will say here that the book, despite having flaws, is definately worth the effort to pursue. Dark, urban gothic with plenty of wonder and adventure, it is a wonderful read.

DJ Eternal Darkness

Official Beborn Beton Homepage

Within the past two weeks I've got myself organized enough to track down some of the music I've been hearing at the Vogue on Sunday nights. Mostly German electronica which I've not really paid much attention, but because my friend Jason is a big Alphaville fan, I've become more aware of it. So, I've been hearing this one song that I've enjoyed which has a chorus lyric talking about "the day the earth stood still". Not exactly a direct reference to the movie of the same name, the song seems to be referring to nuclear holocaust, but a very cool track nonetheless. The movie seems to be a reference point for gothics, perhaps because it was a very negative yet aesthetic look at post-WWII nineteen-fifties society in America and human frailty. Several years ago I was impressed when Bryan Ferry quoted the alien's psuedo-latin message of peace on his solo album for the song "Save Me". I can't think of the phrase, right now, exactly. Will McGuckin, a grade school friend who'd introduced me to Star Wars, way back when, had raved about this black and white story of Cold War politics.

I've not been playing much of anything lately...playing music CDs, I guess. One little note, last weekend, my friend Nancy gave me eight packs of the original Vampire:The Eternal Struggle cards for my birthday. There were a couple of things I don't remember having, so I was very happy to be the recipient of her gift. We haven't played a game in over a year though. I still want to play with the new edition from White Wolf...don't have that much interest to organize my cards. Too much work!

Boy, it's been some time since I posted here last. Lots more movies and television to post about that I've seen. Here's a short list:

Ice Age
Changing Lanes
Hollywood Ending
About a Boy
Y Tu Mama Tambien

And of course, I've been watching Queer as Folk, although my interest wanes...

Investigating Bellini's Feast of the Gods

Oh, you know...when it rains...it pours.

Hellraiser: The Hellbound Web

Oh, yeah! Another peccadillo, as I believe Jason Styles would say...

Pompeii Interactive

Although I have been surfing the web, I haven't thought to blog anything...so much out there, so little worthwhile. I think this also shows what sort of mindset I've been in. Now with May here, I'm in a better mood...even at thirty-six...I mentioned I had a birthday again, didn't I? Yes, I did. I don't know why it should matter, but I'm happy to know I've gotten over that hurdle...now if I can just handle the next half-century. C'est la vie!

Lady Blue Redux

My Birthday! Thirty-six years ago I was born somewhere in California. Yeah, it's the truth, I'm a California boy. But that's not a bad thing, really. I was raised in the wilds of Northern Idaho in a trailer, so I'm not one to put on airs...at least not too much.

I've been a bad boy, these past two days going out and getting drunk at night. Wednesday, my friend Trent invited me to join him at R Place, which was rather pleasant, really. I stuck to beer the whole night and we had a very interesting evening.

Ran into my friend Tony, who I know from Idaho and introduced him to Trent. Tony's been very much involved with Arena, the PNW independent fashion show. He also has his own photography studio. I have to say, I am very proud of him since I met him right as he was graduating from college and he has done very well for himself. Later at the bar, after Tony left, there was a little skirmish between two people that Trent and I witnessed, which only goes to remind me why I don't cruise the bars like I did in my twenties; you are very likely to encounter very small minded people. I won't bore you with the details.

Tonight, well, earlier this evening, I went over to the Jade Pagoda, where Laurie, Brett, et al. were convening for Thursday's ritual sousing. Had one martini and enjoyed the whole evening, picking out tunes with Brett, catching up with Laurie, her brother Tom and friends. Trent and his roommate Lewis came later, but the party wound down soon after and we all went home relatively sober. Even so, a good time was had by all.

Jason has been calling my answering machine wanting to know if I would attend his initial screening of the new Star Wars movie. I said yes, mostly because I am interested in finding out if Lucas can pull off the romance between Anakin and the princess and make his inevitable turn to the "dark side of the force" reasonable. I have my doubts.