In the Ministry of Silly Pedros

Oh snap! Pedro lives - and draws!

Thu, 05 Apr 2007 00:07:32 GMT

Bet none of you were expecting that, huh? Booya!

So. I'm fairly sure that there was a faster way to draw this than the way I used. No matter. I guess I like drawing millions of tiny little lines.

Sat, 26 Aug 2006 00:12:01 GMT

It's slightly disconcerting that the most I can say about my drawing speed is "at least I'm still faster than Mark Schultz".

Partly because I'm lazy, and at least partially because I'm out of my mind.

BATMAN!

Fri, 03 Mar 2006 03:11:42 GMT

Pedro draws too.

Tue, 24 Jan 2006 19:17:34 GMT

Not too confident with my coloring skills right now. Sadly, I'm not allowed to look at Kyle's livejournal to see if this GL thang is still going, or if the Aquaman one started, but here's a drawing, at least.

Buccaneers...Yargh!

Wed, 07 Dec 2005 20:07:14 GMT

Yesterday morning Brian left for Virginia. Having now settled into my new place, it seems all the remaining scraps of the life I had these last few years are kinda gone. If I were the type of person prone to getting really really sad, I probably would be.

Yet, I have moved into Buccaneer Trace, which, though not as pirate-inspired as I hoped, still works rather nicely. Moving is a pain, but having my room, and the Internet in particular, is good stuff.

Drawings to be finished. Last thing I drew was a narwhal, but as exciting as that was, there's much more awaiting me.

It's taking forever, but I'm still trying to finish my own 150 Greatest Songs Ever list, since, however Official, the last list irks me. Somehow having "Theme From Shaft" as the greatest song ever seems odd. Strange world we live in.

On The Edge of The World

Tue, 15 Nov 2005 18:12:56 GMT

Road Trip Report: all is going swimmingly. The Kershner was picked up in Ohio, many dogs were seen (Where My Dogs At??), mustaches were spotted in Iowa, and Utah smelled like shit.

Washington State is quite pleasant, and I got to see my beloved Brianmann and Mike Brill once again. There was also Sean Legg, but he's a bastard. Bad news.

Went shopping for Kyle's new computer yesterday, which was fun, then came back and watched The Devil's Rejects. Good stuff, I really wasn't sure what to expect, but it was way better than House of 1000 Corpses (though it doesn't really mean much coming from me, sorry). Wish there had been more DDP, though.

On that note, we've been watching quite a few movies during this trip, in general. Twister, House of Wax, Unleashed, In The Cut, Zathura, Devil's Rejects, and Harry Potter in a couple days. Hopefully Walk The Line too, that looks hella good.

Miss my peeps in Savannah like crazy though, and kinda want to get back soon, 'cause I'm itching to get some drawing done for the first time in I don't know how long.

Feels good, like the Tony! Toni! Tone! song.

This one's for Kyle

Thu, 03 Nov 2005 07:16:00 GMT

"Let's Go Crazy", on Halloween:

Saying Goodbye Is Such Sweet Sorrow

Mon, 31 Oct 2005 16:18:07 GMT

Probably my last post for a while. Things have been packed/organized. My room is decently clean (as in "I can walk through without stumbling on strewn clothes") for the first time in months, and it feels kinda good.

Went to Carraba's last night and had a very tasty (expensive) time celebrating my friend's birthday. Meanwhile, the rest of the road trip posse said goodbye to other peeps, who I will hopefully meet today, since I'm not sure how often I'll see them, even when I'm back in Savannah. Business today includes going to B&D's, saying goodbye to G-Sleeve, closing apartment stuff, and general packing & clearing of things. It shall all work out.

There's a huge purple coat waiting to be worn. We'll see what happens.

One other thing...

Fri, 28 Oct 2005 18:58:17 GMT

Van Morrison rocks. Virtually the entire time I've been on the computer the last couple days, I was listening to him sing "The Way Young Lovers Do" on repeat. Really amazing stuff. Hypnotizing.

Parting Shots

Fri, 28 Oct 2005 18:55:41 GMT

Counting down the days now. A couple pictures from the last week or so in Savannah:

Singing "It's A Shame" last week:

Yesterday was '80s Night, so the CB Posse was out in full force, proving they were more rad than everyone else:

I think Bonnie just realized I'm not really Don Johnson:

Like, duh, it's Jess and Bonnie!

Superfly Brittany channeling Corey Hart and his Sunglasses At Night:

Here We Go Again, On Our Own

Sun, 23 Oct 2005 05:33:16 GMT

A little over a week left 'til our road trip launches off, and damned if I've prepared myself properly. Gonna need a fair bit of money, which I don't have. Gotta find a cheap place to live when the other dudes have left, and I haven't found one yet either. There's trouble afoot concerning girls too, but when isn't there?

Listened to a most circuitous Road Trip mix put together by Andrew, myself and the shuffle button on iTunes. The tale weaved by the one hundred songs on the mix was pretty fuckin' awesome. Our so-called hero was a cowboy who found the ways of Metal after killing three ex-girlfriends, became a rock superstar and battled gangs of Devo-powered, fun lovin' alien criminals...to the death. There was much warfare, a couple bombs, unrequited love and epiphanies along the way.

Godzilla showed up too.

Sang the Spinners' "It's A Shame" at karaoke on Thursday, and missed Kyle. Don't worry, dude, we're comin' for ya. Sang "I Want You Back" too, but I think the gin & tonics kinda wreaked havoc on my voice by then.

The "It's A Long Way To The Top" Farewell Tour '05 has just a few more stops to go. Florida has been visited. Now we'll roll through the old Broughton hangouts for a last time, a hopefully throw a bodacious party. Might have some Halloween fun too, if I get a proper costume together.

The Winter of Your Mind

Fri, 14 Oct 2005 19:46:26 GMT

Yeah, it's been a while. Simultaneously, it seems nothing has changed, and nothing is the same. Usually works out that way.

The Road Trip is still happening, it seems. Beginning of November, we set out on our quest. Will pick up prodigal son K-Kersh on the way, visit a myriad of people who request our presence, and find our way to the West Side. The Best Side, I've been told. Dunno how long I'll stay in Sea-town, but eventually I'm gonna have to make like Big Kev and fly the shit out of a plane back to Savannah. My presence is required by people back here as well, I'm afraid.

Apparently I'm supposed to be some kind of ladies' man, and wasn't aware of it. It was brought to my attention that I'm a big flirt when I'm around girls, and I guess I didn't realize it until last weekend, when my friends (who are getting married tomorrow) had their respective bachelor and bachelorette parties, and I ended up in the bachelorette one. Token guy with seven girls (my wives now, guess I'm a mormon). Fuckin' awesome time, though.

So we'll all be in Savannah for Halloween, and I'm not really sure what I'm gonna be. Don't really wanna have Zorro make a return, that would be kinda boring, though people are eager to see him again. I'm taking suggestions. Best suggestion I've gotten so far is Prince. If you think you can beat that, lemme know.

Also, three CDs I bought this week: the new Franz Ferdinand's good, the new Broken Social Scene's REALLY good, and the reissue of T.Rex's "Electric Warrior" rocks my world.

Letting a better writer than myself do the work

Sat, 06 Aug 2005 06:10:39 GMT

Time Has Told Me
(Nick Drake)

Time has told me
You're a rare rare find
A troubled cure
For a troubled mind

And time has told me
Not to ask for more
Someday our Ocean
Will find its shore

So I'll leave the ways that are making me be
What I really don't want to be
Leave the ways that are making me love
What I really don't want to love

Time has told me
You came with the dawn
A soul with no footprint
A rose with no thorn
Your tears they tell me
There's really no way
Of ending your troubles
With things you can say

And time will tell you
To stay by my side
To keep on trying
'Til there's no more to hide
So leave the ways that are making you be
What you really don't want to be
Leave the ways that are making you love
What you really don't want to love

Time has told me
You're a rare rare find
A troubled cure
For a troubled mind

And time has told me
Not to ask for more
For someday our ocean
Will find its shore

Lazy When I'm Talking

Sun, 24 Jul 2005 17:01:38 GMT

Last week's been pretty crazy with the work thing. Today's the first day this week I don't have to work at night, so I'm looking forward to doing nothing, and doing it tremendously well.

It's weird though, I thought work Friday night was gonna suck balls, but it wasn't all that bad. There was a point, probably about 10 at night or something, where "Layla" started playing, and everything just seemed to slow down and sway to its rhythm. The restaurant was still busy like a motherfucker, but for the duration of that closing piano solo, everything was alright with the world, and I was just soothed, with a big grin on my face. It's crazy how music works, like that. It's not even like it's my favorite song, or anything, but it's just what I needed to hear, after a couple of really stressful nights. Go Derek & The Dominoes.

Had fun going downtown for karaoke with my peeps. Made a couple of new friends, and sang "Fat Bottomed Girls," can't ask for much more than that.

Also, I'm very upset that I just entered my 'mood' as lazy, and there's this stupid looking smiley by it. What the fuck is that, are they trying to tell me being lazy is bad? Shoulda been a really dazed-looking smiley with a huge smile. Lazy Sundays rock my world. Good Small Faces song too (Lazy Sunday, that is).

Oh yeah, also, our crew figured out, through an elaborate selection process, the ultimate crew for the Enterprise, from Star Trek. Each of us came up with a list, then voted on the best ones for each post. Here we go:

Captain: Jason Statham
First Officer: Christian Bale
Science Officer: Jeff Goldblum
Security Officer: The Rock
Doctor: Alan Rickman
Engineer: Seth Green
Pilot: John Turturro
Counselor: David Bowie
Communications Officer: Stephen Hawking
Bartender: Jason Lee
Operations Officer: Vince Vaughn
Navigations Officer: Kermit (voiced by Jason Mewes)
Botanist: Steve Buscemi
Nurse: Pauly Shore

Beautiful stuff.

Out like a gladiator.

Don't Call It A Comeback!

Thu, 07 Jul 2005 05:00:13 GMT

I've been away, it's true, but through the nurturing powers of a Wendy's Frosty, my return has been made possible.

Work has been making things pass by rather briskly. The work itself isn't exactly rocket science, but it gets bills paid. A brother needs money for his corn dogs, y'know?

Said "goodbye forever" to Nick a week ago, and didn't really think too much about it afterwards. The house has been running quite smoothly, all things considered.

Fourth of July has come and gone, and all I have left to show for it is my mosquito-bitten foot, which I've wanted to scratch all day. Seriously, the fuckers must've had an entire operation planned for the brief period of time I'd be around them, and made the most of their opportunity. I got blindsided and taken for a fool by tiny little bastards.

It's really sad how bad you can start slacking once there's nobody else around you doing any work. Not only have I not gotten enough drawing/inking/writing done, but there's a pile of books and comics I've yet to read. The only thing I can still do with any regularity is go to the movies, but even then I'm behind. Haven't even seen Batman, dude. BATMAN. War of the Worlds was quite enjoyable, however. So was Mr. & Mrs. Smith.

Pretty much all I've been doing is catching up. I'm behind on my work, my music, my books, my wrestling shows, movies, you name it. Who knows, I'll catch up sometime, I suppose. In the meantime, gotta come up with good songs for a road trip mix CD. Suggestions are welcome, for the most part.

Also, ADP makes some potent Kool-Aid, and you best believe it.

Speaking of catching up, I'll never finish translating these damn songs. I already had one in mind for this update, but realized it was gonna be just way too long. Seriously, the damn song's almost nine minutes of straight talking, it's just not fit for casual reading. So here's a different, easier one.

Peace out, my peeps.

"Almost Without Knowing"

"Been walking around stargazing,
Indecisive and impatient
I'm still confused
But something else has changed;
I've been so calm,
And so ecstatic.

How many chances did I waste
When what I wanted most
Was to prove to the world
That I had nothing left
To prove to anyone?

Broke myself in a thousand pieces
For you to put back together
And kept trying to find
Reasons for what I felt.

Like a fallen angel,
Made sure I forgot
That lying to yourself
Always ends up the worst lie.

But my childhood's been lost forever.
I can't go back to knowing
everything.

Don't worry myself anymore
If I don't know the reasons why.
Sometimes what I can see,
almost no one else does.

And I know you know,
Almost without wanting to
That you see exactly as I do.

So perfect and so pretty;
Infinity really is
The most beautiful of gods;
I know sometimes
I repeat my words
But are the words
That always remain unsaid?

They told me you were weeping,
And it was then I realized
How much I wanted you.

Don't worry myself anymore
If I don't know the reasons why
Sometimes what I can see,
Almost no one else does.

And I know you know
Almost without wanting to,
That you want exactly what I want."

Last question: which one's more smarmy in this picture? Take your pick.

Real World: Savannah

Sat, 11 Jun 2005 23:41:58 GMT

Graduation has come and passed with nary a word from me. A new posse has been assembled and moved in at the curiously named Whitemarsh Island, where work has been found at the Applebee's with a rowdy group of co-workers. I'll save some more stories for later. People have ordered the Fajitas con Sizzle, making me laugh audibly, and in return making them laugh as well. CON SIZZLE!

Apart from a few roommate problems, and a lack of transportation, everything's going swimmingly. The Chandra and I are having a jolly good time with our pool and waterfall, our friendly neighborhood wasps, watching The Aviator late at night, rocking the LimeWire, and making super tasty food.

Sadly, I probably won't gather enough people to watch this Sunday's ECW PPV, since I can't rightly afford to pay the $30-40 (however much it is, I forget) by myself. Further, it's quite likely I won't be able to get work off for next weekend's Slammiversary event, sadly. I think my manager already announced I'll be working Friday, Saturday and Sunday, which means I'll have to find another way to satisfy my monthly Hoyt fix. Bogus.

Here's this entry's song translation, like I mentioned a couple entries ago. Expect a couple more of these. Read them or not, at least they look impressive. It's kinda hard to really explain how vicious this song really is without singer Renato Russo's voice, so just trust me. By the time it sweeps into its final verse at the end, completely switching gears, you're left emotionally spent and left for dead.

At least it ends in a happy note.

"Perfection"

"Let's celebrate human stupidity
The stupidity of our nations
My country and its hordes of murderers,
Cowards, rapists and thieves

Let's celebrate the stupidity of our people
Our police and television
Let's celebrate our government
And a state that will never be a nation
Celebrate the youth out of schools, the dead children
Celebrate our lack of unity

Let's celebrate Eros, Thanatos, Persephone and Hades
Let's celebrate our sadness- celebrate our vanity

Let's party like mindless imbeciles
Every carnival and every holiday;
The dead littering the streets
The dead from a lack of hospitals

Let's celebrate our justice,
Our greed and forked tongues
Celebrate our prejudices,
The vote of the uneducated
Celebrate our poisoned water
The taxes, pillages, lies and kidnappings
Our house of marked cards
The slave labor
Our cramped little universe
All hypocrisy and affectation,
All theft and indifference
Let's celebrate epidemics
And party for our home team's victory

Celebrate our hunger,
Not having who to listen to
Nor someone to love
Let's feed on all our monstrosity
And wound our failing hearts

Let us celebrate our flag
And our past of glorious absurdities
All that's gratuitous and ugly
All that is normal
Let's sing our National Anthem in one voice
(My tears are real)
Celebrate our aching and longing
And toast to our loneliness

We'll slow dance with our jealousy,
Intolerance and lack of understanding
Tango with our violence
And forget our very own people
Who worked honestly all their lives
And have lost the rights to all they had

Celebrate the madness of our complete lack of common sense
Our apathy towards education
Let us celebrate the horror of all this
With party, coffin and wake
It's all dead and buried now
Since we can also celebrate
The stupidity of whoever sang this song

Come! My heart urges me on faster!
When all hope has been given away,
Only truth can set me free!
Enough of pain and veiled illusions!
Come! Love always keeps an open door!
And spring draws ever nearer,
As our future begins anew!
Whatever shall come will be perfect!"

The Three R's

Wed, 25 May 2005 07:18:47 GMT

I really shouldn't even be writing this, considering the veritable assload of homework I still have due before the quarter's done, but I'm a good mood, so my peeps get this update.

At the moment, I'm in the midst of some inking work, and it's going about as fast as I was expecting, but the results are way cool. Just finished inking these clouds on an explosion, trying to make it look like a Franklin Booth piece. Yes, I'm insane, and obviously the results weren't Booth level, but it still turned out pretty darn cool. Good stuff.

The damn episode of House today ended with "You Can't Always Get What You Want" and made me dig out my Stones CD. Damn, it's good stuff. "Jumpin' Jack Flash" still makes me get up and dance every time (I have a specific jig reserved for the song, it's beautiful), and the aforementioned "You Can't Always Get What You Want" might just be my favorite Stones song. It's gotten me through some hard times.

On another musical note, I'm gonna have a bit of a recurring feature here for the next few entries. I rediscovered my only Brazilian music CD a few days ago, and remembered how much I loved it. It's a greatest hits CD for the Brazilian group Legiao Urbana, and five or six out of the sixteen songs on there would be in contention for my favorite song ever, depending on my mood.

It really makes me sad, on one level, because I wish more people could understand Portuguese just so they could understand even just these six songs. This in turn, leads me to wonder how much beautiful writing and music I'm really never going to fully appreciate, just because I don't understand the language it was written in. It's rather distressing.

Therefore, since I can't easily teach everyone Portuguese, I'm just gonna try my damnedest to translate these few songs, one at a time. Some of the poetry and flow will be lost in translation, and I'm doing this more for myself than anyone else, but hell, it's my damn journal.

"An Eternity Ago"

"Looks like cocaine
But it's only sadness

Many fears are born from weariness
And loneliness
Now our madness and waste
Are crowned heirs to the virtue
We once lost

Had a dream, an eternity ago
Can't remember
Can't remember

Your sadness is so precise
And the day is so wonderful outside
We've grown so used to not having even that
Dreams come and dreams go
And the rest is impure

You said that if your voice
Had strength equal
To the crippling pain you carry
Your cry would wake not only your house
But the entire neighborhood

And it's been an eternity since even saints
Had the measure of wickedness
And for an eternity now
The young are the first to be struck down
For an eternity all magic has disappeared
Theres' been rust in our smiles for so long
And only chance opens its arms
To those looking for shelter or protection
My love

Discipline is freedom
Compassion is a fortress
To be kind is to be brave."

Pedro at his drawing table:

Dizamn!

Wed, 18 May 2005 05:09:13 GMT

I swear, my Mach 3 must have Hattori Hanzo steel. Cut myself shaving right now, and the damn thing left three perfect little incisions. I looked at it, and thought "Man, I wish my feathering could be this good." That's how fucking sharp the cut is. It takes SKILL to fuck up this spectacularly. I rock.

LL's got mad ninja moves

Sat, 14 May 2005 05:02:02 GMT

Road trippin' is always a lot of fun, especially when you've got kickin' tunes and friendly company. On our trip to the Land Down Under, Andrew and I had the pleasure of speaking to a certain Gobbles which will be making its way down to Savannah this Wednesday. I see the call was more of a warning than a friendly conversation. More like "Danger! Incoming Chandra!" than "'Sup dudes, I'll see you soon!" but isn't that always the case? Regardless, excitement and chickens on the way.

Speaking of which, it's amazing the power a tiny little guitar riff can have on you. Last week, ADP was undecided on which CD to buy: Marcy's Playground, Seven Mary Three, Electric Six, or The Toadies. I told him to buy the Electric Six CD, being by far the most dangerous and entertaining choics, with song titles like "Dance Commander", "Naked Pictures (of Your Mother)", "I Invented The Night" and "Nuclear War (On The Dance Floor)." So the CD was bought, and all it took was listening to "Danger! High Voltage" to get that guitar stuck in my head for a week. Damn that song. Little to do with AC/DC's "High Voltage", other than the high quotient of funkiness, not to mention ROCK.

While we're on the subject of awesome songs, the other day Julie (tiny Fashion major, not tiny Sequential teacher) mentioned to me that she had heard Journey's "Don't Stop Believin'" and thought of me. Now, though I hadn't realized that the song had been attached to me in her mind, it's no lie that it's an awesome song. The piano intro, the heartfelt lyrics, the guitar loop near the beginning (which I can only assume represents the "midnight train" the small town girl and city boy are taking), Steve Perry's wailing, it all comes together beautifully. Only other Journey song that's as good is "Any Way You Want It", in my book.

I guess this exposes my lies earlier this year when I proclaimed "FUCK Steve Perry." I didn't mean it, I swear.

Got back from watching "Mindhunters", the latest opus in the sagas of Christian Slater, Val Kilmer, and LL Cool J. These esteemed thespians, as well as a surprise appearance by Trainspotting's very own Sick Boy (AKA Jonny Lee Miller), highlighted this fine film. There were hilarious death scenes, great lines and muscles provided by LL, and a starring role for Crash Override. Can't ask for much more (other than a cohesive, believable plot, I suppose).

Watching this movie "Sand" with Denis Leary where he and his friends just toasted "To pussy", and he launched on a ten-minute rant on the subject. You rock, Denis.

Finally, I gotta give further props to my boy American Dragon, who just won his five-match feud with Homicide using a 100-rotation Airplane Spin. You're my hero, dude.

The End of The Tour

Thu, 05 May 2005 07:52:06 GMT

Whoa.

Back from Chicago at last, with a successful mission accomplished. Hard to describe the entire journey, except to say that it was a far-out, groovy ride. Emotional at times, wacky in others, and cold all the way through. Let's see here.

Lowest point (starting this way so it ends properly, on a high note): Kyle explaining to me exactly why we can't head up to meet Chandra, Kali, Scott, and the rest of the Illinois peeps, as Kyle eats a gyro and I have a polish sausage. It was quite the conversation, and got entirely too dramatic, 'cause I was disappointed beyond words that we'd come that far and were just unable to take that last final step. Not that I didn't understand Kyle's point of view, but the whole situation, as I told, just made me really really sad. Returning home, Andrew and Brian agreed that they really didn't think we'd have time to see them either, so I guess I'm just plain dumb, but the whole situation bothered me to no end. Felt like an asshole then, and still kinda do now. Fuck. Whatever.

(Oh, and by the way, while we had that lunch, I had this Green Berry Splash Hawaiian Punch or something, which was thoroughly awesome.)

Middle-of-the-road notes: Chicago is just an awesome place to walk around, really. Cool architecture of various sorts, and really funny/interesting people. Was super entertained by helping Kyle buy his '80s-esque patterned suit jacket, including the haggling session with the store owner, and walking a long ass distance to get the sleeves adjusted (since it was free). Glad to see that "Windy City" isn't just an idle nickname either, as we were constantly buffeted by cold gusts of wind the entire time. Also, Kyle and I must've walked by, seriously, at least 50 Vietnamese and Thai restaurants in our walks around uptown Chicago. Also, flipping through a magazine in the hotel, saw advertisements for various different Brazilian Steakhouses, which made me miss home in a bad way. I know up here they'd probably cost like at least $40, even for lunch, but one day I just have to take the whole Savannah gang to one of them, they're just too damn good. In short, Chicago fuckin' rocks, I'll leave it at that.

Also, thanks to misread directions, we found ourselves going straight down the middle of Kentucky on our trip back, going through a number of tiny, extremely beautiful little towns. Really really awesome to look at, and really peaceful, even if it slowed our trip down considerably.

Further, I was also really confused that Kyle, knowing our trip was gonna take forever, chose to only bring like 5 of his CDs with him, so the bulk of the trip was spent listening to my stuff. Just really confusing, since usually people try to AVOID letting me have control of the music. We pretty much just rocked out to the Manic Street Preachers a lot, and let New Order, The Unicorns, Prince, Billy Joel, INXS, and the Stone Roses have their turns in the spotlight.

Highest point: The show. Ah yes, the show. I'm tempted to just take Kyle's advice and say, "If you weren't there, I can't explain it," but I'm too long-winded to leave it at that. For all the troubles we went through for this trip, all the driving time, the hotels, the cold weather, the impaired sleep, the drama, the missed classes; all those troubles became less than a footnote once the show actually started. I'm sure people will just think I'm exaggerating, but I think it was just the right show for me, at the right time, and it might've been the best show I've ever seen. It was just this beautiful, sublime little experience, and I could've heard them play for way longer, but it was just perfect the way it was. Started off with fuckin' "Love Vigilantes", and I was already on the verge of tears. A couple songs later, "Transmission" rolled around, and I thought "FUCKINGAWESOMEJUSTFUCKINGAWESOME", and by the time it was over, I could see I was not alone, 'cause it's what everybody around me was saying too! Whooo!!
Barny was bustin' out all the awesome cheesy dance moves, and Hooky had an amazing presence on stage. Even Stephen, who's usually playing the Entwhistle-style silent guy, could be seen grinning from ear to ear, it was awesome. By the time the encore came around, Bernard asked the crowd if we wanted to hear "Atmosphere" or "Your Silent Face", which just about killed me, 'cause I wanted to hear both, and "Atmosphere" (maybe my favorite song ever) was ludicrously outvoted. Thankfully, they played both songs, so I didn't have a heart attack. "Atmosphere" was gorgeous, and I just about cried again near the end of "Your Silent Face", it was just too damn perfect. Even hours later, during the car ride, if I started humming "Your Silent Face" to myself, I just couldn't stop smiling. Fuckin' A, dude, fuckin' A.
The crowd was just on fire, and we were like 20 feet from the band, ahhhhh! It was way too cool, and one of Kyle's missions in life has now been completed. All is good.

I suppose I should be worrying about classes now, or going to bed or something stupid like that, but I just started humming to myself again. It feels good.

All other comments/stories will be postponed.

Waiting For The Pedro's Call

Thu, 28 Apr 2005 09:03:05 GMT

(Excerpt from Dave McKean's "Cages")

Artist: "Of course, it's impossible."

Model: "What is?"

Artist: "Trying to make concrete what I can see in my head. It's impossible."

Model: "Well, you have to do one or two impossible things now and again. Otherwise, you get complacent."

Artist: "...Absolutely right."

In about four or five days, Kyle and I will be embarking on a rather grueling drive down to Chi-town in order to see New Order live, as previously reported on this very journal. Well, since I last spoke of it, we've done very little to organize this trip, other than figure we'd just work it out later. Therefore, it seems quite an adventure, heading into an almost 20 hour drive, to a large city I'm hardly familiar with, in search for a place to sleep in to recharge our batteries. Impossible? Not really, just absurd enough for me to post that "Cages" quote.

Regardless, I'm sure the trip will be a smashing good time, 'cuz it's New f'n Order, and the road trip itself is sure to be entertaining and musical. With a little luck and organization we might run into a Gobbles along the way, who knows. The Second City Saints are making their way down. If you see us on the road, beware.

It's a gazillion miles to Chicago, we've got a half tank of gas, (probably) half a pack of cigarettes, it's fuckin' bright outside, and we're not wearing sunglasses.

On a different note, the latest batch of homework has been quite fun. For J.Lo's class, we were supposed to figure out two illustrations we wanted to work on, which could be anything we wanted. I really had no clue what I was doing, but started drawing anyway. So I was gonna do this severed head on a shelf in a supermarket aisle, and was figuring out what the head would look like on a separate sketch. J.Lo walks by and sees this sketch of a bloodied up, smashed face, and says, "Yeah, that one looks good, Pedro, you gonna do anything with it?" I explain myself, and he tells me to just use that one sketch, that it would look good in color. "You're easy, Pedro." Things work out nicely when you don't expect anything.

Further, working gets a whole lot easier when you got sweet music to listen like New Order's new CD, "Waiting For The Sirens' Call," which is fuckin' great. Really, really awesome, and just a pleasure to listen to. There's a stretch from song 2 to song 6 that is just untouchable, absolutely perfect. Not that big on tracks 1 or 7, which interrupt the awesomeness a bit, sadly, and keeping "Jetstream", track 8, from that chunk of sweetness in the middle. Still, damn good stuff, I'm just listening to it over and over as I work, marveling at silly stuff like the tiny little keyboard noises in the background of track 3 ("Waiting For The Sirens' Call) which totally sound like they came straight from Joy Division's "Atmosphere."

Crazy, two days ago I was all about the Decemberists' "The Mariner's Revenge", and could swear I'd never get that damn accordion-powered finale out of my head, but New Order came in for the rescue.

The coming weekend shall include Editors' Day (with Chris Staros reviewing my portfolio), The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (with a two-headed Sam Rockwell, baby!), lotsa parents arriving for the Sidewalk Arts Festival (with the possible return of Team On Fire!), and numerous shenanigans.

Lastly, RIP Karaoke at Mellow Mushroom. The Spoonman has left.

Peace out, little homies.

Confessions of a Ludicrous Mind

Sat, 23 Apr 2005 04:54:31 GMT

In the wee hours of the morn, mild-mannered Pedro Coelho disappears in a Ninja-Vanish cloud, and an eight-armed, ten-foot tall, funk-powered drawing robot takes his place, producing work at a feverish pace to justify his brief existence, since he's fated to disappear at the break of day.

That's the hidden truth most people hadn't figured out yet, though plenty of clues should have been evident. It's really the only way I've had to keep up with all my studio classes this quarter, and it's been working pretty well, so far. Kyle innocently believes that I do all this work myself, but it's all a crude sham. It's OK though, I understand he was blinded by Jordan Knight and his funky-fresh dance moves, and couldn't see the truth.

Been having good times as usual. Been keeping the streak of watching movies on Fridays alive, through much duress. Amityville Horror really wasn't that great (apart from Ryan Reynolds and his That '70s Beard), but I suppose not all weeks can have awesome movies like Sin City or Sahara. Hung out with Megan for a while before she left Savannah, watching Return of the King while making constant smartass comments (such as the need for a jive-talkin' black dude in Middle-Earth, who I dubbed Shaftamir). One day a comic will be made about Shaftamir's exploits, you'll see.

Kyle's birthday also passed us by, and he's now an old man of 23, but an old man in posession of Days of Thunder, The Last Samurai, and New Kids On The Block's Greatest Hits.

For the weekend, however, routine's slightly altered as Andrew and I have left Savannah to experience the Lockdown in Florida. The road trip was quite entertaining, though outside interference prevented Kyle from coming with us, and Chandra couldn't be contacted at the International Golf Parkway. No problem, but this means the responsibility of eating a shitload of German chocolate cake falls squarely upon Andrew's shoulders and mine. Already watched a number of fantastic movies, featuring a loudly-dressed Lou Diamond Phillips channeling the spirit of Pablo Zalles, That Guy From That Thing You Do! being a werewolf, Nick Nolte wishing he was Gary Busey yelling at Eric Bana, and Ed Norton curb stomping a dude.

Apart from these, also saw Kung Fu Hustle today, which was more fun than TWO barrels full of monkeys. Little else to add to that, other than saying that the Frog Style is the awesomest fighting style of them all. Fuck the Buddhist Palm.

Also, the first picture of Superman in costume for the next Supes movies is out, and I think it looks pretty damn cool. A bit more somber than I expected, but still cheesy enough to be Superman.

Looking forward to this Sunday's steel-enhanced wrestling spectacle. Who shall be crowned master of the Prince of Darkness Deathmatch? Will "Primetime" Elix Skipper attempt to kill himself once again? How silly will DDP and X-Pac's "mystery partner" be (and will he manage to be sillier than DDP and X-Pac themselves?)? Who shall Xscape the hexagonal metal hell known as Six Sides of Steel in their quest for the X Division championship? Finally, and most importantly, how loud will the "HOYT!" chants be in the epic clash between the two Olympians, El Gran Apolo and my boy Lance Hoyt? I'll be cheering extra hard in the name of Chandra, Brian, and all of Hoyt's peepulation that sadly won't be there live to represent him.

Party on!

"In a silent way, Miles Davis, in his infinite cool, quietly whispered to himself: 'Hoyt.'"

In the Middle of the Night

Tue, 12 Apr 2005 12:04:04 GMT

Groovy peeps, how do you do? Lemme dedicate this post to you.

Things have been moving along at a brisk pace here in Savannah. Classes are pretty intense, and it feels like each weekend has been earned through toil, battle and fire. Makes me appreciate the weekend a whole lot more, certainly, but the sleep I lose over homework really outweighs that joy of appreciation. Still, I'm doing a lot of good work, so I'm not too upset. Got to do ink drawings of a puffin, an arara, Jonathan Pryce, Jushin "Thunder" Liger and Ian Curtis, can't ask for much more than that. Still kinda upset that someone else did Toshiro Mifune, and did it awesomely. Dammit.

Anyways, I'm drawing away in the wee hours of the morn, and enjoying the methodical processes of perspective and getting a face to look right once in a while. If I get stuck, I just try to figure out in my head "What would Kyle draw?" and the solution becomes clear. Rockin' away to the funky sounds of Sly & The Family Stone. Damn, the groove in "Thank You" is just disgustingly awesome. It's like "Superstition" multiplied by "Jungle Boogie", raised to the power of "Sex Machine." That's some heavy funk right there.

Speaking of which, I'm freakin' out 'cause apparently in this one meeting I missed, it was announced that the musical guest for this year's graduation celebration would be Mr. Dynamite himself: The Godfather of Soul! Soul Brother Number One! Mr. Please Please Please!! THE MAN WITH THE CROWN, JAMES BROWN!!

F'n A! By the way, Jorge, if you're reading this, it's time to do a little jig.

Other than that, things have been going rather well. Places are being looked at in order for the post-graduation move out of the dorms. Bureocratic paperwork's being filled out.

Still confused as to when/if Chandra's coming back down to Savannah.

"Sahara" was quite a lot of fun, and had great Steve Zahn power, which even Matthew McConaughey could not destroy. It also had a rather unusual classic rock soundtrack, considering most of the songs didn't really fit what was happening on the screen. Of course, this might have just seemed weird because if Andrew and I were making movies, all our soundtracks would narrate exactly what was going on in the story. Like, say, "The Locomotion" starts playing when the characters get on a train, "Eat It" is blasting in the background as the characters enjoy their breakfast, and "Sweet Home Alabama" would only ever play if the characters were physically going to Alabama.

In honor of the unholy Gorilla Grodd/Riddler alliance I created in my homework pages, here's a picture of the affable simian himself, King Grodd!

Heroic Feats of Daring, Adventure & Laziness

Sat, 02 Apr 2005 20:23:03 GMT

Watched Sin City last night, which contrary to my expectations, was a lot of fun. Lots of stylized, high contrast fun, which was all I expected from it. It seemed lots of people expected too much out of it, I think. Or maybe they just weren't planning on seeing such a literal adaptation of the comics. Or maybe they're Kyle.

Excessive narration and Clive Owen aside, I enjoyed the hell out of the movie. Cool special effects (except for a couple scenes), great style and good acting, for the most part. A one-line review would probably be something like: "Coulda used some Jessica Alba boobs." Jess just looked gorgeous and pretty and shimmering, which is all I expected out of her, really. But boobs woulda been good too, considering everyone else's boobs were there.

Mickey Rourke was almost as ugly as he is in real life, the makeup artists did a real good job.

Also, there's no way I'd live in Sin City if my crotchal region was in that much danger of being destroyed, as it seemed everyone's penis suffered some sort of damage.

In other news, Mario Tennis is glorious fun. It suffers a bit from a lack of Birdo, but that can be excused by the joy to be had just by watching Petey Piranha running around, or hearing the retarded Fly Guy noises.

Also, was betrayed by a box of Armageddon, where several foily shiny cards were found, but all of which Andrew and I already had. Yet another RKO, a T-Bone Steak Exploder Suplex and a Eugene card. Son of a bitch.

Wrestlemania will happen tomorrow, though I fear our old pal Hooters will not be providing us with food 'n boobs, as usual. A damn shame. We shall head to the fabled Coach's Corner in order to watch JBL win again, I suppose.

Taking us out this time is the greatest Supervillain With a Massively Oversized Head of all time, the Hulk's archnemesis: The LEADER!

To Absent Peeps & Cookies 'n Cream Popsicles

Tue, 29 Mar 2005 00:02:42 GMT

As Pedro's holiday passes us by, and many chocolate-stuffed bellies can be found, everything remains, as always, peachy-keen. Pictures were developed, Mario Tennis was played, and homework was done.

On the subject of Tennis exploits, I'll add that I don't play with monkeys.

On Peter Rabbit Sunday, Kyle stood up and proclaimed to the world, in a booming bass tone: "I hate you, Brian!!", and proceeded to rearrange the entire house so that he'd be as far as possible from Brian's insidious tricks. Then, he grabbed a can of white paint and drew a white line down the middle of the apartment, dividing it in two, in classic sitcom fashion (including all the usual comedic elements like dividing the TV screen in half, the stove, the shower and the doorways). It's a riotous good time, once you add in the laugh tracks.

Bob's class was also fun today, but it reminded me that Easter wasn't complete, because we didn't eat any Peeps. Totally bogus. I'll attempt to fix this problem in the very near future.