2000-12-04 - 0:43

A mission, I tell ya

Okay, I promised an update on the whole Toronto trip. Actually, though, there's not too much too tell. It was essentially another hit-it-and-quit-it deal; because we only made the trip for the concert and we came home immediately afterwards.

I felt really good on the drive down. It was great to be skipping work on a Friday for a PJ Harvey concert. I really enjoyed being in motion, with some tunes going, getting psyched for the show. I can think of worse ways to spend a Friday afternoon than listening to some Jurassic 5 and talking with Aaron on the ride to Toronto. Of course, without the kids (heheh) in the backseat, it was a quieter ride than we had in July; but it was still a cool chat.

As usual, we arrived early, so we had a little time to kick around Toronto. Since winter seems to have unofficially arrived, we weren't as keen as usual on walking around outside; so we trotted over to the mall and got something to eat there. I found a Fat Albert t-shirt that I had to buy for Maneesh (he loved it); and I also picked up a collection of Hubert Selby Jr. short stories (which I'm starting to tear through).

As a side note, I must say that there are way, way, way too many nice looking Chinese girls in Toronto, clearly on a mission to make me miss Jian.

As for the concert itself, I captured most of the details in my real review. I missed a few things, like how impressed I was by the stripped-down version of "Angelene"; but I covered most of the show.

I should also say that there was a very good vibe in the Phoenix. It felt like a very cool, friendly crowd. It was funny how strongly this experience matched the last time that I saw PJ. Once again, I was about five people from the front of the floor, and again I ended up moving around to let a few short girls have a chance to see. For whatever reason, PJ Harvey audiences have put out a good vibe.

My only real disappointment was that my hair dye had faded. The lights at the Phoenix were the kind that make things glow; and three weeks ago, my hair would've glowed purple. I coulda been a star (heheh). Ah well . . . I think that I have one more Manic Panic blast in the works before the end of 2000, anyway. We'll see.

I felt good after the show, too. Despite the fact that the set was somewhat short, I felt very content. It was a cool ride home. No post-concert let-down this time.

So, last night was Maneesh's latest party, and again the guests were mostly the swim team. The party was okay, I guess; but not as fun as the other ones. Scott was away for the weekend and Aaron mostly stayed out of the party, so when Maneesh and Parag took off a few times, it left me pretty bored. (None of the guests particularly like me.)

The bright spot early on came when I met one girl and she went through my CD collection, picking out music that she had to hear. That was interesting, especially when she picked up the Violent Femmes disc and wanted to hear not "Blister in the Sun" (the obvious song), but "American Music." Is that the ideal beginning or what? Unfortunately, that was the end of it, since she took off really early.

So, it wasn't the best time; but it wasn't too bad either. At the very least, it compounded my odd sleep schedule, by keeping me up until a little past 5:00 AM. (Yeah, waking up tomorrow morning should be fun.)

All in all, not a bad weekend.

P.S. Squeezing a huge couch through a small door is an interesting challenge, even with four able-bodied men. (Well, if I can call The Limper able-bodied.)

J.