final part for now...

two more photos from tarpon springs. at this "museum" you got 10% of your purchase if you watched the free sponge diving movie. from what my father told me, it wasn't worth it.


















one of the many religious souvenir bins. what a deal!

tampa photos part the third

one more shot of the local wildlife. he was pretty cool when he showed off his wingspan...




















this is a little greek town called tarpon springs that we visited. so gorgeous, and so touristy. tonnes of yummy greek food!

















how cute are they?

















me looking very summery on clearwater beach.

















clearwater beach has been voted the most beautiful beach in the world, and it is pretty spectacular.

tampa photos part the second

here's an old tree. actually, this was a really beautiful area:


















here's a pretty picture of a palm tree. i was trying to get artistic, but there's a big RV parked in the background.


















i was actually having lemonade. i swear my parents drove me to drink their beer.

















i became obsessed with trying to get a picture of the dolphins here. this was the best shot. i zoom in below:

















yeah, here's the zoom. i swear they're dolphins.

the photos are building up

it's been a long time a-comin', but here's some pictures!

here's a gecko:

i forget what this place is called, but it's pretty neato. rich people stay here:















me and my mama at fort desoto beach:

















me and mine papa:

















yes, an actual sign from the "55+ community":

the strokes live at the jlc

chris and i went to see the strokes last night, and it was an amazing show. they are rock 'n roll no question. it was a straight up rock show, with great lighting and sound, and a very tight performance. i realised last night how much it sucks being digitally challenged. no digital camera, not even a camera phone. i've been surfing around to see if anyone uploaded their pictures or picked up the setlist, but no luck so far.

the boys were sexy in their lazy, dirty geek chic, don't give a shit way. i wanted julian to have babies with me, fab was a cutie and nick really needs to eat lunch. what i loved was that each song stopped on a dime and in the dark. so when the lights flared up at the start of a new song, you got the feeling of anticipation you had before the band first stepped on the stage.

i was going to try to record the setlist but decided i'd be better off getting sucked into the rock. so, i relied on my memory to present the following 99% complete list: they opened with juicebox and closed the encore with take it or leave it. in between, they played, in no particular order:

is this it
the modern age
soma (julian said this one was "for the ladies")
barely legal
someday
alone, together (encore)
last night
new york city cops (the first song of the encore)
reptilia
the way it is
hard to explain
the end has no end
i can't win
you only live once
heart in a cage
vision of division (kicked ass with the strobes and the growl growing in julian's voice by that time in the show)
ask me anything (just julian accompanied by nick on the mellotron)
ize of the world
red light
hawaii (encore)
walk on the wild side (very cool cover of the lou reed classic)

there were about 5 songs during the encore, but i can only recall 4 of them. my only disappointment is that they didn't play with the songs more. basically what we got was a more raw version of the albums. when i went to see the fiery furnaces at the mod club in toronto the summer of 2004, they were great because they did all of their songs at twice the speed without breaking for air or chit chat. it was a short show, but it blew me away.

the crowd was into it, and julian was obviously responding to it. i've looked at some of the other setlists from their canadian tour dates, and from what i can tell, they played a longer set in london. here's the review from the london free press. poorly written as everything else in the freeps, but still gives you a sense of the show.

i'm still beat, i've got my sexy post-"whoooo-oo-oo" voice, and my eyes are burning from the strobe. and i've got the t-shirt to show for it.

just because he's pretty...

just finished watching prime, which was funnier than i thought it would be. the ending blows, but the rest of it is worth a watch. in any case, enjoy this lovely for a while.

current music: islands, return to the sea. this is a great album from two of the guys who used to be the unicorns. remember how excited i was about wolf parade's apologies to the queen mary? probably not. i'm almost that excited about this album. it opens with "swans (life after death)" -- sounds like a fitting farewell to the unicorns -- and though all the tracks are great, my favourites right now are "don't call me whitney, bobby," "rough gem" and "where there's a will (there's a whalebone)" with it's primus-like, twanging rap in the middle. i love good music, and even better, i like good music with good lyrics. islands picks up where the unicorns left off. there are distinct differences, but they carried the good stuff with them.

tampalampadingdong

i arrived in clearwater thursday evening after a decent if not boring flight. i really do prefer flying on westjet rather than air canada. the entertainment factor is so much higher. as soon as i got in, my parents drove me to target to pick up a bathing suit before heading to the "55+ community" where they are staying. it's a very cute little park with lots of wildlife: geckos, parrots, ibises (sp?). i'm going to try to get pictures of everything to post.

the first day, my dad played in a golf tournament, so my mum and i just hung around the park and went swimming -- i forgot how nice it is to swim on a hot day. and it's great that i don't have to feel self-conscious just swimming around the little old people. it doesn't hurt that i'm at least 25 years younger than everyone. i am just so like cameron diaz in in her shoes. or so i've been told, because i haven't seen it yet. when my father got home he drove us to the westfield countryside mall to do some shopping. we hit jc penney (better than i remember), forever 21 (cute and cheap), papaya (tres hoochie), and breezed through macy's.

today, my dad went to see a bluegrass band play at "country in the park" and he dropped mum and i off at largo mall where we went to beall's (pronounced bell's), marshall's (like winner's) and target. we then ate at a tex-mex restaurant called tijuana flats. if you answer the trivia question you get free chips and salsa. today the question was "who snapped the picture of tenzing norgay at the top of mt. everest?" after lunch, we went to clearwater mall where mum and i hit ross (again, like winner's) and supertarget (as though regular wasn't enough). i know it sounds like i've done nothing but shop, but mum is loving having someone here to shop with. tomorrow i believe we are going to fort de soto for a picnic and walk on the #1 beach in north america according to "dr. beach" -- whoever that is. good times.

nurses are rock stars

at least, that's what i'm told i said. this scope was so much better! i don't remember a thing. my roommate chris was with me, and he said i was very grateful, very insistent on thanking everyone. i guess one of the nurses was joking with me about leaving my iv in if i had a habit at home, and i said "yeah, i love heroin." darcy took advantage of my weakened state when we got home and pulled my cereal bowl down so he could drink the milk out of it. good times. at the end of the day, i crashed out and had the craziest dreams. i wish i could remember all of it, but i know that my nipples were pierced with big green studs, i was dating a 19 year old, and i had 8 bathrooms. that sums it up i guess.

negatory good buddy

something that i noticed in the pre-blog days of the "dear diary": i only write negative things. the times i write the most are the times when things just suck. this is a habit i've been trying to kick for probably the last 15 years. and maybe when i get my own computer up and running i can make a decent attempt. but for now...

i have to go for another scope. this time from the top down. i don't know why they don't just stick a pipe cleaner straight through me. get it over with. i'm not looking forward to this one, because i've heard it's even worse. and given the recent strength of my gag reflex, it promises to be a real wingding.

also, i broke up with the guy i was dating for 3 months. he's a great guy, but things weren't clicking. i don't know why. i've never chosen to be single, and this is a monumental first: me. breaking up. with a guy. i'm never the breaker upper. i'm the broken up. i excel at being broken up -- i have it down to a fine science. and i stand corrected; neil sedaka was right -- breaking up IS hard to do. being the breaker upper is hard.

have i mentioned that i love the song "calendar girl"? it's one of my karaoke standards. doesn't neil look like a hepcat here?

music to avoid: i know i usually talk about the music i love, but i have to put out a warning just this once. i recently bought an album based on a 30 second radio ad. yes, i'm an impulse buyer on occasion, and i got sucked in by the sexy sounding ads, but don't do it. don't buy she wants revenge. the album cover is sexy, the name is sexy and the music is so trite and self indulgent it's embarassing. they're trying to do an early depeche mode (think music for the masses), moody, synth, aren't i just so tragically cool, i need groupies to suck me off sound. the music for this album is catchy and dancy and kinda fun, but then...then there are the lyrics.

And they talked and looked away a lot, doing the dance
Her hand brushed up against his, she left it there
Told him how she felt and then they locked in a stare

They took a step back, thought about it, what should they do
Cause there's always repercussions when you're dating in school
But their lips met, and reservations started to pass
Whether this was just an evening or a thing that would last...

at least we know that they know how to rhyme. and what a relief, huh? sometimes, i can get past the lyrics, and sometimes i can't. this is a glowing example of lyrics that stop you dead and remind you of all the bad poetry you wrote in high school.

current music: on the other hand, we have the third album from the strokes, first impressions of earth. this is a great album, with superhero basslines, awesome guitars and some cool lyrics. the first two singles have been great, and the rest of the album doesn't disappoint. one song, "razor blade," sounds like a couple fighting with the taunting lyrics "oh no, my feelings are more important than yours" followed by "sweetheart, your feelings are more important of course". it's sung kind of like a "na na na na na". good stuff. pick it up.

torture for your own good

well, at least it's over. kristen pointed out how a propos my tag line is currently: "you know it's time that we grow old and do some shit." or, as my friend doc loc would say "a poo poo". which is also a propos come to think of it.

when kristen and i arrived at patient registration, they asked if i had my "medical wishes written down", and i just sort of gawped at her. "umm, no?" i guess it's a standard question, but it wasn't the first thing i wanted to be asked. and i don't know if "gawped" is a real word, but it's the right word.

the time in the waiting room wasn't too long before they called my name. they got me all prepped with the intravenous in my hand which stung like a bitch, and i thought i was going to be sick. the guy ahead of me i guess took some time, so i had to wait longer than usual. when i got in there, the doctor was of course, drop dead gorgeous. i thought, "i'm about to expose my ass and my intestines to an attractive doctor. well, of course. why wouldn't i?" i wasn't really all that nervous to begin with. i cracked a couple of jokes and they laughed, and then they loaded me up with the drugs. the doctor actually said "give her the works."

and then 45 minutes of the worst pain ever started. it was the weakest sedation i've ever experienced. i don't really remember anything other than crying and saying ow repeatedly and then getting more drugs and then the nurse pushing on my stomach. i eventually apologised to the nurse and told her to apologise to the doctors for me. i can't have been conscious for the entire time, but i really don't know. i guess it doesn't usually take so long (the guy who went in after me was only gone for about 15 minutes), so i don't know what the problem was. but don't ever let anyone tell you it doesn't hurt.

on the bright side, they didn't find anything unusual, but they took 7 or 8 biopsies, and i have a follow-up appointment in february. the nurse told me that the most difficult part was getting way up into my upper intestinal tract. i swear i could feel it right up under my sternum almost. i hope i never have to do that again.

the rest of the weekend was much better. me and my beau had our pre-christmas celebration, called "hannukis" and exchanged presents. he buys good presents! it's a whole new tradition involving g.i. joe, christmas crackers, chocolate, presents and hannukissing.

current music: the stars, set yourself on fire. very cool album from another great canadian band. searching for them also led me to arts and crafts which is the stars label, but also the label for broken social scene and feist. bss doesn't seem to have a decent website unfortunately. but the album i'm most addicted to right now is ANOTHER canadian band: wolf parade, apologies to the queen mary. if you go to their website, you can listen to two of their songs right there. it's not a great website either, but you can't argue with free music. and i think i can say right now that this will be my favourite album of the year. i'll have to work on a top 10 list or something for the new year...

phew, that was a long one...