9-5ers Anthem

Hello to everyone out there in Blogland, sorry I haven't posted for a while but I've been doing this whole "real life" thing and I'm obviously not allotting enough time in my day to blog. But that's all going to change. . . I bought a new computer with money that doesn't exist, so from now on the hours of 6 pm to 11 pm everday will be T-bone's Blog Time. That does mean, however, that I'll be spending 16 hours a day in front of computer screen, but I'm sure that's perfectly healthy. Anyways, since I know how much all of you (or should I say both of you) enjoyed my piece that chronicled a day in a life of leisure, I thought it would be a good contrast to write about a day in the life of a working slob.

7:00 am I wake up to an easy listening radio station for some reason. I don't like easy listening and do not listen to it. I usually turn the radio off once I've heard the news and weather. The reason for this was because I used to wake up to the generic rock radio station with "Gunner and the Duke in the Morning" or something terrible like that and I couldn't take it anymore. I woke up two mornings in a row to that fucking Finger Eleven song that sounds like shitty rip-off of Franz Ferdinands 'Take Me Out" and after that I lost it and changed the station, never to return. Easy Listening it is.

7:30 am I turn on the CTV Morning News and get all the information I could possible need to start my day. Usual news topics include the latest tractor-trailer crash on the 401 (basically every two days a tractor-trailer rolls over on the 401 during the morning rush hour closing off an entire direction of traffic) Other topics include: How to avoid identity theft, the new Harry Potter book or movie, and Lindsay Lohans latest drug fueled escapade. So basically really important stuff. I guess this is what I get for being too cheap to pay for cable.

8:00 am Get on the subway and thank the good lord that I'm not stuck in traffic on the 401. Pick up a copy of the Metro and read about all the inane news that I just heard about on the CTV morning show. Fuck.

8:30 am Stroll into the office and get to work. Make small talk with co-workers. Topics of conversation include: Latest tractor-trailer accident on the 401 or how amazing (or terrible, depending on who you're talking to) the new Transformers movie is.

12 pm Lunch is always a treat, even if you're not in the kitchen at 491 Broadview ave. Sure, you can't watch Conan O'brian on PVR while you eat, but it's still good.

5pm - 6 pm Debate in your mind if you should leave or keep working. One of the hardest parts of the day. On one hand, you can work late and everyone at the office thinks you're a hard worker ; you get respect and maybe get a raise one day. On the other hand, you leave early and get to go home and blog for five hours. . .very difficult decision indeed.

6pm - midnight. Get right back into leisure like its May 2007. Activities include: ultimate frisbee, playing guitar or drinking beers and going to concerts. All good things. Things that I have realized that one can enjoy while still holding down a job during the day. Imagine that. . .working during the day so you can relax and do things that you enjoy during the evening. . .What a novel concept. I wonder who thought of that? Oh yeah, every other human in history.

Anyway, thats my day. Obviously for a weekend day there's more sleeping and boozing and such, but I think you get the gist of it. Oh yeah and sometimes I make pasta.

Tarana

Here are ten things that I learned my first week here in Toronto, or as it is colloquially known, the Big Smoke.

1. Do not drive through residential streets at midnight on a Monday night if your exhaust pipe has fallen apart and it is dragging on the asphalt. Apparently, people in Toronto find this obnoxious.

2. If you are on the subway, it is mandatory to appear disinterested in life. Expressions of happiness are strictly forbidden.

3. If you live in the Annex, there is a good chance you are:
- a rich U of T student
- an old hippy who feeds your newborn organic pablum
- a crazy who feels you can best serve society by shouting obscenities at passersby
- a lame yuppie desperately trying to remain hip

4. The work world is not hard

5. The real money is in day-trading.

6. The metropass is a good investment.

7. The Bed-in-a-Bag (a portable inflatable bed), although a good idea in principle, is not the most comfortable long term sleeping option.

8. People in big cities dont give a shit.

9. Always carry your apartment keys everywhere you go (all 6 of them). Being locked out is not fun.

10. Driving cars is for suckers.

Capital Idea Festival Day 3: The Walkmen @ Bronson Centre

When we walked into the Bronson Centre I think it's safe to say we were all thinking the same thing:"Where the fuck are we?" The Bronson Centre, a.k.a the former Immaculata High School, was literally a high school auditorium. It was a really strange place to be seeing a rock and roll show (especially one that cost $30). Everyone was sitting in their seats listening to the opening bands, and it had the feel of third period assembly, except there were less people. I was waiting for the vice-principal to stand up and tell everyone to quiet down. We all sat in our seats trying to understand how something like this had happened, and vowing that when the Walkmen came on we were going to stand up and go to the front of the stage. Before they came on the stage, we started cheering for them, and everyone in the auditorium was really thrown off. It was like, because we were in an auditorium, people couldn't act like they normally would at a rock concert. Very, very strange atmosphere. Despite this and a shitty sound guy, the Walkmen managed to put on a good show. They played a bit more new stuff than I would have liked, but the old stuff they played was spot on. When they broke in to The Rat everyone lost it. All across the front row people were banging their fists on the stage in rhythm. I was screaming/singing along, loving every minute. Too bad the vocal mic was only going through the PA system (which we were behind) so the vocals we heard were the echoes of the auditorium behind us. . .fucking Bronson centre. But I'm not bitter, they played a good set and everyone had a good time. We were rocking out so hard we even got invited to the after party of the opening band Relief Maps, where, we were told, The Walkmen might show up. So we decided to go drink some beers before heading to the after-party. When we did eventually make it there, the 'party' had dispersed. The guitarist of Relief Maps was making out with his girlfriend on the front porch and it appeared we had missed the boat. I was somewhat miffed, so one of my friends asked me: "What did you expect, a huge 8 Aberdeen-style bash with people dancing on tables and a raging bonfire in the backyard?" And to be honest, that is what I was expecting. . .I guess when you live on Aberdeen St. for four years your expectations of what a typical after-party should consist of are tragically skewed.

Moral of the story: Walkmen = sick. Bronson Centre = a joke. Also, if you're ever invited to an after-party, don't show up two hours later and expect it to still be rocking.

Capital Idea Festival Day 2: Sunset Rubdown @ Babylon

As I mentioned yesterday, Sunset Rubdown is the new band of Spencer Krug, who we all know from Montreal's Wolf Parade. Spencer Krug shares lead vocals with Dan Boeckner in Wolf Parade, however this year both guys have branched off and done their own thing with their own bands. Boeckner's band is called Handsome Furs in case you want to check them out.

I don't know about you guys, but I never really liked the two lead singer concept of Wolf Parade. I always preferred the songs that Boeckner wrote and discarded the Krug tracks. At one point I burned a CD of Apologies to the Queen Mary with all the Krug tracks deleted and renamed the seven song album Apologies to Spencer Krug. I really wasn't a fan of the guys extravagant vocals and elaborate keyboard parts.

But last night changed all that.

Krug, now with own band Sunset Rubdown, showcased his musical stylings amazingly and made me realize that I never gave him a chance when he was with Wolf Parade. With only four people in the band (no bass player?) Sunset Rubdown filled up the club with a wall a sound, which was complemented by Krug's distinctive wail. Despite the urgent and clamouring nature of the music, the band was incredibly tight. At one point, Krug, the guitarist, and the second keyboardist were doing a three part harmonized solo that looked as impressive as it sounded. I knew the show was a success when I inadvertantly started fist-pumping to the ever-infectious beat. That's always the way you can tell you're seeing a good show.

As well as enjoying a great set, I also learned about some cool new indie trends that the members of the bands nicely showcased.

1. Slipons - Now I know slip-ons have sort of been considered cool for a while, but I was finally convinced last night. Chuck taylor's are one thing, but slip-ons exude an air of 'casualness' that is hard to duplicate. The last time I had a pair of slip-ons was grade 1, I think the time has come to get a new pair.

2. Vibrators as musical instruments - For the last song of the set, the female keyboardist took out a vibrator and began playing her xylophone with it. If that's not indie, I don't know what the hell is.

3. Starter brand shoes - Remember Starter hats back in Grade 4? Well, apparently they made shoes as well, and the lead guitarist for Sunset Rubdown had a pair. The question is, do you think he bought them on Ebay, or were they his older brother's and he found them in a box in his parents basement?. . . I wonder. . .

4. Not doing encores - Now in this case, Sunset Rubdown didn't do an encore because of time-constraints, but I feel sometimes not doing encores is almost cooler than doing them. It would have been even cooler if the show was cheaper that $20 too, but I guess that's asking too much.

And that's the review. Good times had by all. Indie week in the Capital continues tonight with The Walkmen at the Bronson Centre. The Walkmen are one of my favourite bands and I'm quite pumped to finally see them live. Seeing as the show is in Ottawa, I have no doubt in my mind that I will be able to get myself a front row spot with no trouble at all.

Capital Idea Festival: The Besnard Lakes @ Zaphod's

The Capital Idea indie music festival kicked off last night with a strong show from the Besnard Lakes. The Besnard Lakes are a 6 piece slow-core group from Montreal and they did not disappoint. (I'm actually not sure if they could be defined as 'slow-core,' I just always wanted to use that word so I could sound like a pretentious indie-snob douchebag)

Anyway, they put on a good show, despite the inherent lameness of the lead singer. I've never been a fan of awkward crowd banter (who is?) and I was not amused by her various quips. Sometimes I feel like talking to the crowd takes away from the rockers mystique. But that's just me. Diego feels that an indie rocker should let their music speak for them, and I would have to agree. Look at the two coolest dudes in music right now: Julian Casablancas and Paul Banks. They don't tell drawn out anecdotes about getting drunk on absinthe at a video shoot; they just step up to the mike and throw down You Only Live Once and PDA (respectively) and everyone is happy.

I'm being too hard on Besnard Lakes, because, despite unnecessary crowd banter, they did put on a good show. Their three-part harmonies were air-tight and they created great atmosphere with each song. I was also very impressed with their drummer, who, as well being a great drummer, sang a mean Fleetwood Mac cover for their last song.

Capital Idea fest continues tonight with Sunset Rubdown, which is the band of Spencer Krug (one of the lead singers of Wolf Parade). I have big expectations thanks to the accolades of Stereogum and my hipster friend Diego.

Blackout

Well, I did it again. I got blackout drunk on Friday.

I didn't really see it coming. It all started so innocently. Me and my friends were watching the baseball game on my back porch casually drinking beers. A few hours later we were getting pretty toasty and our conversation was getting much louder. My sister told me we should probably move the "party" inside, as our neighbours have small children who are probably trying to fall asleep. So we decide to play Foosball in the basement and listen to NOFX's The Decline, which we all know is a sure-fire way to accelerate one's alcohol intake.

So now its around 11:30 and we are all sufficiently "dumbed-down." We decide to go to the bar. We don't really know why we're going to the bar, probably just so we can say we "did something"on Friday night, rather than having to admit that we spent the night sitting around my house drinking ourselves into oblivion.

So we take the bus down to the bar despite Corky's protests. (you see he believes that he's too good to take the bus. He once said, "I'm not taking the bus, it's for the peons" I wish I was joking but he actually said that) So anyway we take the bus and get in some stupid conversations with some idiots that we all instantly forgot. Sweet.

In good time, we make it to the bar. We stand in the VIP line because we're good friends with one of the bartenders which instantly makes us very important. We get in without much hassle and buy some booze. And the night disintegrates from there into a drunken mess.

Later that night, I shook hands with a homeless guy for some reason and promptly rub my hand into Corky's face, to his disgust. I order poutine from the York St. poutine shack and load on the sauerkraut because that's what's done now. Me, Cork, and Diego share a cab back to Westboro, where we probably had an in-depth and insightful conversation about third-world debt and the responsibilities of the G8 to alleviate global poverty. Or maybe we just talked how good Peter Bjorn and John is. I can't quite recall.

I wake up the next morning minus $60 and my memory. I'm still drunk and my burps taste like sauerkraut and gravy. I put 2 and 2 together and go get a big glass of water.

Thanks for the Memories

Well, it's over, the Sens lost the Stanley Cup final after coming into the series ever so confident. I can't say that I'm shocked that we lost last night's game and consequently the series. You knew something was up after we got manhandled in the first two games of the series. We managed to squeeze out a win in Game 3 even though the team (Emery especially) really didn't play all that well. Game 4 was even worse. The Sens played their best period of the series in the first, scored a late goal to gain all the momentum going into the second, only to fizzle out in the remainder of the game. So that's why I say I wasn't shocked at last nights outcome. If we had fought hard all series and then lost in game seven by one goal scored late in the third (see New Jersey vs. Ottawa Eastern Conference Final 2003) then I would be shocked. I would be so devastated that I would probably have to go lie down.

But last night was not shocking. It was simply the end of a series that was never going the Sens' way. So now we have to go through the excruciating motions of deciding "what went wrong" "who was to blame" and "What we need to change" but I'm not going to get into that because it makes me sick to think about it. Instead, I'm going to tell myself that the 9-day break between the Conference final and the Cup final was what did it, and maybe if that excuse falters I'll remember that the Ducks had more experience in the finals and a few more Canadians. Yeah, that'll do.

We could always just blame the drug habits of several key players on the Senators for the collapse. You see over the years, many of the top Sens have taken a liking to "riding the white dragon"as the kids say, and, as you can imagine, it has never helped their on-ice performance. I'm no weatherman or anything, but I'm sure there was a snowstorm in Anaheim last night in the Sens hotel. . .

But enough "jokes". Let's get serious.

I know alot of people say that making it to the Finals is nothing unless you win it all, but I think that's a load of hooey. Making it to the Cup finals was always the one thing we couldn't achieve in years past, but this year we did it. And it was almost a feeling of relief in Ottawa when we did. (recall two Saturdays ago?) With their huge break between series and the Canadian media tooting the Sens horn all week, maybe the Sens got a bit too over-confident going into the Finals. We forgot what needed to be done to win.

But we did have an amazing run. The past three months have been the most exciting time this city has ever seen . I've said it once and I'll say it again: There is nothing that unites a city like a championship team. Everyone has something to talk about with one another, everyone has something to cheer about and hope for. Whether you're a jock or a goth, a business man or a hobo, an indie kid or a construction worker, we all had something to cheer about these last few months. We all had something that brought us together. . .And I think was what the best thing about the Cup run.

That and being able to casually drink 10 beers each and every game night and not be called a lush. That was also good.

But anyway, thats my two cents. Thanks for the memories, Sens. You gave this sleepy town something to cheer about. . .And though you may not have earned a place on the Stanley Cup, you've definately earned a place in all of our hearts.