2004-04-04 - 6:32 p.m. Ah, Springtime. Beautiful wildflowers blooming in all the front yards in my neighborhood... and wearing open-toed slides and cropped jeans all day, causing you to get goosebumps and have teeth that chatter oh-so-slightly as you wait for the bus home at 2 in the morning (or was it 3, thanks to daylight savings time?) Yes, last night was very fun, and in keeping with the Springtime renewal/blossoming theme, I was at the record release party at Thee Parkside for the new EP from indie power pop trio Fojimoto. Their new EP is amazing, with the beautiful harmonies of The Posies mixed in with some rockin guitar, with more than alittle touch of Wilco. I listened to the EP non-stop for an entire day when it first came home with me. Live, they've gotten even more polished, without losing the fun and intimacy with the crowd that's made their shows seem like some sort of indie rock family picnic. I got there moderately early, and for some reason, as is usual with me for the past 2 years now, no one checked to see if I was on the list, tried to get me to pay, checked my ID or anything. I just walked in and went over to say hello to the boys. Turns out they were going to take turns running the merch table during the show. Since I hadn't convinced anyone to come on out to the show with me (OK, I didn't try very hard/proactively) I offered to work the merch table for them so they could go circulate, and I could have a cushy place to sit for the next 5 hours. If there was a way to sell merch at shows all the time, I would sign up for it. I like having something to keep me occupied that puts me within proximity to the stage, allows for good people watching, and gives me a good reason to chat up a whole slew of strangers without seeming like a pest. Must figure out a way to be on call for such gigs. We did a brisk business in the new EP, which I managed to bundle (upsell/supersize) with a t-shirt 9 out of 10 times. That should give the boys some gas money for their next tour. Bill-mates The Foxgloves Family had the cutest DIY sleeves: each astrobright yellow sleeve had a different (presumably found) 60s/70s family album type photograph affixed to it with photo corners. I made sure to tell one of those boys how adorable I thought it was. I had only one run in with a drunk boy who saw me from across the crowded floor and had to stagger over to introduce himself... the other memorable interaction was with a boy who, as he perused the t-shirt selection, said "What smells so good? Is that you?" before grabbing my wrist and inhaling. We determined that yes, apparently, I was what smelled so good. A few minutes later, he sent his girlfriend over to ratify our choice for what shirt she wanted, and she confessed to having been sent back by her boyfriend so she too could smell me. I credited my Coco parfume; turns out she used to wear Coco but had migrated to Chanel No. 5. Judging by her boyfriend's enthusiasm, she may want to revert. The lost hour today, on top of getting home at 3:00/4:00 has caused me to be slow-moving, but that's OK. I've got all the time in the world, sort of. Friends are all asking me if I'm going to take some time off to relax (which I am reading as meaning all my friends think I need to take a chill out breather, which I can understand). My answer thus far is "sort of". I'm meeting with a former boss on the phone and in person discuss elements of a marketing consulting proposal I put together for launching their new non profit education foundation, am meeting w/an interior designer friend to discuss some of his design projects since I want to pitch them to a few design mags, and attending a slew of film screenings. Plus, spending a day at the library w/Sharon, followed by a seder in Berkeley. Must remember to take lots of B vitamin and drink lots of water on Tuesday so I make it to my early morning screenings on Wednesday without incident. Quite honestly, just knowing I don't have to go back to my former workplace is as much of a break or respite as I need really. Since everything is so shiny, happy and pleasant here these days, I have created a new mix, to commemorate the soundtrack of my Springtime renewal. Enjoy! 4by4 Spring 2004 SIDE 1 Love is Gold -- Fojimoto Dusted -- Fojimoto Code: Orange -- Fojimoto Tap the Satellite -- Fojimoto Overdriver -- Singapore Sling Nuthin' Ain't Bad -- Singapore Sling Roadkill -- Singapore Sling Listen -- Singapore Sling SIDE 2 Changes are No Good -- The Stills Love and Death -- The Stills Allison Krausse -- The Stills Still in Love Song -- The Stills That Great Love Sound -- The Raveonettes Noisy Summer -- The Raveonettes Let's Rave On -- The Raveonettes New York Was Great -- The Raveonettes any comments? (0 so far) previous - next recently on almostgoldsf... in defense of an email box I came to do battle with SPAM - 2008-05-17 hello 2006 - 2005-12-31 Happy Thanksgiving - 2005-11-14 bon voyage - 2005-11-05 October already? - 2005-10-09