What Am I Doing With My Life?

After watching this video, I can only feel like I'm wasting it:

The Absurdity of Airport Security

The timing of my picture was a little delayed, so you can't see it explicitly, BUT this photo captures maybe the most absurd thing I've ever seen in an airport:

What you can't see in the TSA guy's hand is the SNOWGLOBE THAT HE FORCED THIS WOMAN TO EMPTY OUT. I don't blame the people at TSA for this, they are only doing what they are told to do. In fact, I sympathize, because I'm sure they get yelled at all day long by people who don't want to follow regulations they feel are "stupid" or "pointless" and lay the blame at the feet of the federal employees; I don't.

That said, the emptying of liquids at the gate is a total charade. If they were truly concerned about the mix of liquids being carried-onto airplanes being dangerous, would they have passengers empty them all into one large trash can (ie a big fucking mix vat)? I get that there was a terrorist plot to blow up airplanes out of Heathrow using liquids a few years ago, but is making people put their liquids in a separate plastic bag going to somehow prevent that from happening? Was it really necessary to make this lady empty her souvenir snow globe? Why is it that the Europeans can travel between countries (granted it's one "economic zone") without making fools of themselves at the airport, but we have to hop through pointless hoops?

Infiniti Q45 Toilet

While out and about in Chicago this past weekend, I came across this toilet at a house party:

It immediately reminded me of those old SNL Mike Myers/Jonathan Pryce faux-Infiniti Car ads from the 90's. The SNL regular lineup was really stacked with Film Box Office Talent back then (Sandler, Schneider, Spade, Farley, Myers). It also had one eventual US Senator (Franken). I tried to find a video of it online, but alas, no luck.

I Am A Song Assassin

I thought I might get back to posting some tunes around here when trying to procrastinate from doing work, and 120am on a Sunday seems like a great time to do such a thing. And considering how often I put off doing my work (and the sheer unbridled joy that I get from doing so), maybe I can start being a productive blog contributor once again. Yes, they're called aspirations, people.

So what is a song assassin? Well, it's someone - like myself - who will hear a new song that he (or she) REALLY really likes and then proceed to listen to that song about 283 times over the following few weeks. Surely you've done this before: you find a great new song and then that tune gets stuck in your head, and rather than being content with your own glorious, internal rendition, you HAVE to hear it again. And again. And 23 more times for that one chord progression that - and I'm pretty sure about this - no band has ever figured out before ever. (Only problem being that, like, all of them have).

In the vast majority of cases, this leads to becoming quite sick of the song or worse, actively hating it. I've been doing this to songs I like since I was a fetus, and it's both annoying and reassuring, at least in the sense that I can continue to bang my head against a wall and expect a different outcome each time. I'm not certain why that's a reassuring thing, but it is. Bear with me.

Which brings me to today's 2 songs, which I'm doing my darndest to assassinate the hell out of right now. Again, I don't WANT to find myself sick of these songs in a week or two, but it's going to happen to at least one of them, probably both. Take my word for it. So while I'm at it, won't you join me in liking these songs so much that you assassinate them to? You know you want to.

Song #1 comes from a band called Drummer, which is the side project of The Black Keys' drummer, Patrick Carney, and four other drummers from Ohio-based bands. Carney actually plays bass in the band, and I'm not sure who does the singing, but judging by this song, I'm pretty sure he likes early Aerosmith A LOT. Their debut album is called "Feel Good Together" and from what I have heard of it, it's very good.

Drummer - Mature Fantasy

Song numero dos comes from my current album obsession, "Up From Below," by Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeros. They're a little esoteric, but that's why I like them: so I can say that I like them and it shows that I'm cooler than those of you who "don't get it" like I do. Yeah, that's it. (Perhaps not coincidentally, this is also why I use the word "esoteric"). Either way, get the album (then listen to it). It's muy bueno. Special thanks to Jake for this recommendation.

Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros - 40 Day Dream

Assassinate away!