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Overdue blogging

For a variety of reasons, I haven't been blogging much recently, and I haven't shared anything from my life other than what I've been listening to in weeks.

The bad news is that Poo has lymphoma. He doesn't seem to be suffering at the moment other than throwing up here and there. As I mentioned previously, Michael decided to give Poo a couple of weeks of comfort at home before it's time for him to "graduate" (we aren't using the 'd' word right now - except maybe "denial"). When the time comes, the veterinarian will come to Michael's apartment. This way, Poo can live his last moments at home, rather than at the vet's office. Though these were Michael's decisions, I'm sure I would do the same in his situation and I support him completely.

I am almost ready to send off my application to U of A. I received my official GRE results and transcripts last week and I have both letters of recommendation. I just need to finish my C.V. and letter of intent (hopefully tonight). I would have completed them by now but I have been laid up with a stomach bug since Monday. If all goes right, I will mail it tomorrow and hopefully receive a response by the end of March.

I am anxiously awaiting my copy of Ink, the sequel to Hal Duncan's Vellum. I pre-ordered to through Amazon and it shipped a few days ago. I'm hoping it arrives this week.

That's all for now. I have a lot more to post but my digestive system has other plans for me right now.

paleunderweight podcast 33

Coming soon.

1. Kevin Hewick & New Order: "Haystack"
2. Beirut: "Elephant Gun"
3. Pere Ubu: "Chinese Radiation"
4. Kristin Hersh: "The Thin Man"
5. Of Montreal: "She's a Rejecter"
6. The Paper Chase: "At the Other End of the Leash"
7. Nine Inch Nails: "Closer (Precursor)"
8. DJ Drama & Lil Wayne: "Ridin With the A.K."
9. Soft Circle: "Sundazed"
10. Thomas Dolby: "Airwaves"
11. Shining: "Stalemate Longan Runner"
12. Alexis Gideon: "Playground"
13. Trans Am: "First Words"
14. Vietnam: "Step On Inside"
15. Deerhoof: "Believe E.S.P."
16. Papercuts: "Found Bird"
17. Okkervil River: "Another Radio Song"

Trans Am: Sex Change

Field Music: Tones of Town

Soft Circle: Full Bloom

Deerhunter: Cryptograms

Arbouretum: Rites of Uncovering

Of Montreal: Hissing Fauna, Are You the Destroyer?

Alexis Gideon: Welcome Song

Beirut: Lon Gisland EP

Deerhoof: Friend Opportunity

Kristin Hersh: Learn to Sing Like a Star

V/A: From Brussels With Love

Pere Ubu: The Modern Dance

The Paper Chase: Now You Are One of Us

Nine Inch Nails: Closer to God EP

Dj Drama & Lil Wayne: Dedication 2: Gangta Grillz

Okkervil River: Black Sheep Boy Appendix

Papercuts: Can't Go Back

Pop Levi: The Return to Form Black Magick Party

Shining: Grindstone

Vietnam: Vietnam

Rhys Chatham: A Crimson Grail (For 400 Electric Guitars)

paleunderweight podcast 32

Now available.

1. The Postmarks: "Know Which Way the Wind Blows"
2. The Slits: "Slits Tradition"
3. Dengue Fever: "Made of Steam"
4. Boards of Canada: "Alpha and Omega"
5. Vieux Farka Touré: "Courage"
6. Jesse Sykes & The Sweet Hereafter: "Spectral Beings"
7. Klaxons: "Gravity's Rainbow"
8. Lucinda Willams: "Wrap My Head Around That"
9. Black Mountain: "Modern Music"
10. Caetano Veloso: "Deusa Urbana"
11. Menomena: "Ghostship"
12. Frida Hyvönen: "Come Another Night"
13. Will Oldham: "Disorder"
14. David Daniell: "Sunfish"
15. Scritti Politti: "Petrococadollar"
16. The Thermals: "Test Pattern"
17. Martha Wainwright: "Far Away"

Vieux Farka Touré: Vieux Farka Touré

Caetano Veloso: Cê

Xavier Rudd: Food in the Belly

The Streets: A Grand Don't Come for Free

Black Devil Disco Club: 28 After

Aesop Rock: All Day: Nike+ Original Run

Frida Hyvönen: Until Death Comes

Martha Wainwright: Martha Wainwright

Boards of Canada: Geogaddi

The Slits: Revenge of the Killer Slits EP

Klaxons: Myths of the Near Future

David Daniell: Coastal

The Thermals: The Body, the Blood, the Machine

Lou Reed: Metal Machine Music

Black Mountain: Black Mountain

Tense day

Today should have been a happy, carefree day for Michael and I to celebrate. Instead, we both have knots in our stomachs, waiting for what could very well be devastating news.

I don't want to go into too much detail just yet, but the long and the short of it is that Michael's cat, Poo, is very sick. His condition has deteriorated over the past couple of weeks. He has now been in the animal hospital since yesterday morning undergoing successively invasive tests which culminated in exploratory surgery and a biopsy. We may have to wait up to a week to find out Poo's fate.

Understandably, we are both sick with worry, especially Michael. Right now I'm just trying to stay in the present and not focus too much on worst case scenarios, while trying to prepare myself for providing emotional support to Michael through challenging times.

In spite of facing some disheartening possibilities, I have some good news to report. I found people willing to write my letters of recommendation for my application to graduate school. I also have a meeting with a former coworker tomorrow to go over my curriculum vitae and letter of intent. I am ordering transcripts from ASU and Phoenix College tonight after my direct deposit goes in. I should get my official GRE results any day now. All this means I will probably be able to submit my application by the 28th.

That's all for now. More later.

Yesterday and today's listening

Dengue Fever: Escape From Dragon House

Will Oldham: Arise, Therefore

Scritti Politti: White Bread Black Beer

Jesse Sykes & The Sweet Hereafter: Like, Love, Lust and the Open Halls of the Soul

Lucinda Williams: West

The Postmarks: The Postmarks

Menomena: Friend and Foe

paleunderweight podcast 31

Now available.

1. Yoko Ono feat. Antony and Hahn Rowe: "Toy Boat"
2. Lily Allen: "Littlest Things"
3. Arab Strap: "Dream Sequence"
4. The Shins: "Sea Legs"
5. Talk Talk: "Desire"
6. Bloc Party: "Kreuzberg"
7. Kate & Anna McGarrigle: "Talk to Me of Mendocino"
8. Edan: "Torture Chamber"
9. Chris and Cosey: "Exotika"
10. David Bowie: "Moss Garden"
11. Magazine: "Burst"
12. Lou Reed: "The Kids"
13. COIL: "Amethyst Deceivers"
14. Björk: "5 Years"

Today's listening

The Shins: Wincing the Night Away

Dosh: The Lost Take

Lily Allen: Alright, Still

Arab Strap: The Last Romance

Ladytron: 604

Kate & Anna McGarrigle: Kate & Anna McGarrigle

Talk Talk: Spirit of Eden

Today's listening

Chris and Cosey: Exotika

COIL: Moon's Milk (In Four Phases)

Edan: Beauty and the Beat

Björk: Homogenic

Today's listening

Rickie Lee Jones: The Sermon on Exposition Boulevard

Bloc Party: A Weekend in the City

Loney, Dear: Loney, Noir

Yoko Ono: Yes, I'm a Witch

Today's listening

Lou Reed: Berlin

Spoon: Telephono/Soft Effects

Magazine: Real Life

David Bowie: "Heroes"

Some good news

Friday morning I finally took my GRE. Long story short, I kicked ass. 680 verbal, 780 quantitative. The analytical writing section isn't graded at the time of the exam; I have to wait two or three weeks for the results. I think I did pretty well on the first essay, but I nailed the second one. Without revealing too much about the contents of the exam, I'll just say that I've taken classes that pertained directly to the subject matter of the essay, which gave me a great deal of confidence.

I checked my e-mail when I got home and I was notified that I had been selected to serve on a search committee for a vacant job in the ASU libraries. I've been eager for an opportunity like this, not just because it's the kind of experience that will help me get a supervisory position in the future, but also because I want to participate in the hiring process.

Strangely, the news I am most excited about is the joint Costco membership that Michael and I bought. If you are unfamiliar with Costco, it's a lot like Sam's Club, except Costco won't use the money you spend there to eradicate tolerance and clone Hitler. I've already shopped there three times in the last week. I purchased season seven of Buffy the Vampire Slayer for $17, a 300GB external hard drive for $140 and two pairs of lounging pants for $8 each, along with about $90 in grocieries. Considering that I bought about three weeks of food, it's a fantastic deal. The fridge is bursting at the seams and I am eating raisins by the handful. I'm not really into shopping per se, but I find myself daydreaming about shopping there nonetheless.

That's all for now. I will post more soon about applying to grad school.

paleunderweight podcast 30, part 2

Now available.

1. Yo La Tengo: "I Feel Like Going Home"
2. Clogs: "Voisins"
3. Tom Waits: "First Kiss"
4. Man Man: "Banana Ghost"
5. Peter Bjorn and John: "Paris 2004"
6. Sally Shapiro: "Anorak Christmas"
7. Ellen Allien & Apparat: "Rotary"
8. Girl Talk: "Too Deep"
9. Thom Yorke: "Harrowdown Hill"
10. Final Fantasy: "This Lamb Sells Condos"
11. Bonnie "Prince" Billy: "Wai"
12. The Handsome Family: "Famous Blue Raincoat"
13. The Decemberists: "Shankhill Butchers"
14. Sunset Rubdown: "Us Ones in Between"
15. The Blow: "Pardon Me"
16. Arctic Monkeys: "From the Ritz to the Rubble"
17. The Hold Steady: "Arms and Hearts"