Walter,

Morgan Cahn is one of the coolest people in the world. At AIR's birthday party she was all like you should go to my opening next Friday at the Brew House but when grilled she wouldn't tell me what she was showing. She's pretty sly that one. So, Friday rolls around and I'm practically bursting with anticipation. After helping put the finishing touches on the memorial for Don Gould at AIR (and then hiding in the office the whole time it was going on because it was a very adult gathering and, you know, I'm not very adult, but I did eat the food because, you know...) I headed over to the South Side, right ahead of the rain. The show is amazing. You should find a way to check it out. The opening was great fun. There were salt sticks, a DJ playing some truly classic tunes, and a bunch of hip people including my cousin Sonja.

I took some pictures.

The show is up until April 29.
The Brew House Space 101 is at 2100 Mary St. on the South Side.
Gallery hours are:
Wednesday and Thursday 6 - 9 pm
Saturday noon - 9 pm.

Go see it.
I mean it.

I went to the driving range for the second time this year with my dad today. The new driver we got is one of the ones where you can make adjustments to it to compensate for your flaws. My dad changed it from whatever the default was and whatever he did made it so that I was bombing just about every shot dead where I was aiming it. It was pretty sweet. I also had the new metal 5-wood (metal 5-wood?) working. I've just got to get my hands on a set of Ping irons and I'll be all set to go.

Jamie Dixon's sister died.

This. And this. And this.

Bryan O'Malley has some good news for you (the second part).

The University of Pittsburgh Studio Arts Student Exhibition opened today. The show is up until the end of the month. There's some good stuff in there. Check it out if you can. Were college students that young when I was in school? I mean, I wasn't, but was everyone else? It's always good to see the old studio arts crowd and I talked to some people that I hadn't talked to in a good long while including the only person to ever give me a Christmas card. I'm actually becoming social in my old age. It's a weird feeling for me. And, of course, any day I get to talk to Edward Powell and Delanie Jenkins is a good day even if I didn't end up getting any free food.

For some reason FSN Pittsburgh is showing the Cleveland Cavalier's basketball game instead of the Pirates tonight, but I'm enjoying 'watching' the game on ESPN.com's new MLB gamecast. Jim Tracy made all the right changes for tonight's game--McLouth in CF, Craig Wilson in for Burnitz, and Doumit behind the plate. Now he just has to get the lineup right and we'll be ready to go.
I'm back on the bandwagon!

It's always in the back of my mind when I'm reading Eureka Street. No matter how much I'm laughing at the GIANT DILDO REFUND, or Jake Jackson trying to catch his cat so he can piss on it, it's always in the back of my mind--when am I going to get to that chapter? If you've read the book you know which one I mean. Chapter eleven.

Chapter fucking eleven.

Every time I finish chapter ten, turn the page, and see Rosemary Daye's name I have to stop reading. I have to give myself a little time to get ready for what's to come. I remember the first time I read it. It was back when I was at Pitt. I was sitting in Posvar between classes. I usually do a good job of not being the guy sitting over there by himself crying (you know us homeschoolers are prone to crying jags) but what are you going to do? It's heartbreaking. Every time I read it it hits me just as hard as the first time and I curse Robert McLiam Wilson for a bastard.

Well, that was sadly predictable.
Consider me off the Pirate bandwagon.

It's opening day. Up until maybe five years ago baseball was my favorite sport. It's the organized sport my brothers and I played when we were kids. It's the sport I know the most about. It's the sport where I'm least forgiving of professionals who forget the fundamentals (tag the base!). It's the sport my dad played in college (where he pitched batting practice to Roberto Clemente). It's the sport that had an instructional clinic named after my grandfather.

In the early nineties when the Pirates were good and the Penguins were better I only really had eyes for the Pirates. The last few years, the Pirates have made it really hard for me to get into baseball the way I used to. I still follow them pretty religiously but there's no joy in it anymore. The Steelers have surpassed the Pirates as my favorite local team, and the Penguins have become my favorite team to watch in person, but it's opening day, and, at least this morning, baseball is the greatest game in the world.

Ben Folds played the Bigelow Bash yesterday???
Why the hell didn't I know about that?

I'm just now fully recovered from Friday's AIR10 birthday party and its 2:1 beer to cupcake ratio. Those were some mighty fine cupcakes. It was raining as I set off for Pittsburgh's historic North Side but it stopped soon after I arrived, and, through powers no mortal can understand, we were graced by a stunning rainbow. Then I started drinking, and I was pretty tired, so everything after that is a blur. I think I saw Mike Budai play a game of pin the tail on the donkey that was so engrossing I forgot to take any pictures. Around this point I was given the nickname 'Scott' by Bill 'Buffalo Bill' Rodgers, but this is a family blog so I can't go into all the details.

Someone made the very wise decision to get, instead of a clown, a balloon artist who made some crazy good balloon creations including a balloon chicken hat.

The musical highlight of the night was when Smells Like Gina played a sweet set while the Matrix played on the wall behind them. Their set featured a broken string and a drum pedal malfunction that were covered up by an improvised song about changing a broken string and some human beatboxing. I bought one of their patches after the show.

Then things got really wild. The streamers came crashing down, all those years of Little League came through as I destroyed a pinata, helium was inhaled, fingers were magically inserted up noses, and can after can of Pabst Blue Ribbon was consumed. All in all an awesome night and I'm probably forgetting a ton of stuff. In the end I went home with a tiny cake. Good times.

Happy birthday, Artists Image Resource.

I don't know why I always get my hopes up.
Comic book movies = bad.
V For Vendetta = comic book movie.
V For Vendetta = bad.

This blog is 100% April Fool's Day hoax free.
At least this year.