I was going to reprise the Wolverine role from last year in order to finally get my claws to retract (which didn’t quite work last year). I was also toying around with the idea of going as one of the Knights of Lil John with Joe and crew. The joke yesterday was about getting some action by virtue of being Wolverine. I joked that I was trying it again this year. However, my boss Trey, suggested that I would make a better Sabretooth. Bam.

So I pondered it a bit yesterday and think I might do some variation of the Origins movie Sabretooth since I don’t want to go blond for it nor am I shaped like a giant muscled icecream cone in spandex. I might bust out some faux fur or perhaps do some commando style Team X costume. Eitherway, I am going to start growing my side burns again. Rocktacular. Hopefully, I don’t have anything I need to look “nice” for any time soon. haha.

Stay tuned.

I worked out a bit in college, but didn’t do much for a few years until last summer when I joined Anytime Fitness to get back in shape like I was before college (it wasn’t that long ago – it IS doable). Since joining the gym, I have consistently weighed 230lbs. Before joining the gym, I was consistently 215lbs for years starting in mid college. Now, I am trying to do more reps versus just lift a ton of weight so I can get lean and not huge. To some extent it seems to be working since I am getting definition and I definitely don’t feel huge.

So what is up with weighing so much? I always think of those UFC fighters who are my height and ripped but only weigh 180lbs. Granted, I am somewhat big framed and weighed 180lbs in middle school and was pretty lean.

Anywho,  I came home and found this post that suggested that Arnold was 240 lbs at his prime and we are supposedly (read the article) the same height. So yeah, that just seems weird. For all that muscle, he was only 10lbs heavier than I am now.  Lame. Anyone got a good explaination? Should I be concerned with my weight (fat or otherwise) in regard to my heart? I don’t really want a triple bypass at 50 years old. At least that is the goal. I suppose not eating complete crap would help too. der….

I found this today and thought it was pretty awesome. 500 years ago people across Europe buried cats in their walls to ward off spirts and one was recently found while renovating a cottage. I find this interesting because I sometimes like to think about the history of things and the people that have interacted with them over their lifetime.

I was apparently interested in this as a child, even if unconsciously, as I would write little notes and slip them behind the base boards thinking that someday some other kid such as myself might look behind them and get the note.

I guess I still do this to some extent. I have doodled on the back side of sheetrock in the unfinished portion of the basement. I wonder if the next person to own my home will renovate and think doodles are funny or just stupid. Eitherway, I have no plans on burrying Josh’s cat in the wall.

ha.

However, over the weekend, some kids around my age stopped by the house and asked if they could tap the tree in yard. I didn’t even know it was a maple.  They were part of a group in Minnepolis that started to tap trees in the Seward/Powderhorn neighborhood. I often wondered what the skinny was. I guess they are having a pancake supper after sap season is over. That sounds like a really cool way to get the neighborhood together, especially the “Minnesota Nice” type neighbors who you hardly ever talk to.

On the way to the coffeeshop today, I snapped some pictures, including the one in my front yard. Sweet.

From the post on  BBC:

The discovery, by the University of Minnesota, raises hopes of a similar microbicidal treatment to block HIV transmission in humans.  … GML is a naturally occurring compound widely used as an antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory agent in food and cosmetics. Crucially, it is also cheap, and is likely to protect against other sexually transmitted infections too.

The next step is human testing, and hopefully after that, a dramatic drop in immune system related diseases. Way to go Gophers!

A few bits of media have sent me into near anxiety attacks without really having me make the connection. The basement scene in the end of the original “Amityville Horror” is one. Another was discovered tonight. I watched, for the first time, “There Will Be Blood”. The scenes of workers emerging from pools of black ooze got my heart racing and made me nearly have a panic attack. I always used to think the substance of my nightmares was ink, lacquer, or even liquid obsidian.. but now I think it is actually oil.

I am a firm believer that something from our ancestors is passed down which may help explain our dreams. I have often tried to explain the connection between dreams of teeth and worries over money is that our ancestors used teeth as currency. I am now starting to think that perhaps being drowned in tar pits was a major concern of my distant ancestors. Curiouser and curiouser.

For the past few years, I have not done much planning for my Halloween costumes. When I was a kid I used to plan for months and make some really cool costumes (well for a little kid anyway). The last few years, I have just slapped on some makeup at the last minute before heading out for the evening. However, this year, Halloween was on Friday and DIMMedia had a live painting gig at Shelter downtown Minneapolis again. So well in advance, I knew I wanted to do something special. My friend Anya often teased me that I looked like Wolverine from the Xmen, so I decided that I might as well go as him this year.

 

Anywho, the night of Halloween, Joe (who went as Andrew W.K.) and I made our way to Shelter and set up. We decided to pin a 9 foot piece of canvas to the rig I made from the previous shelter gig. We also had a small stretched canvas going off to the side. Since it was Halloween, we decided to do an amalgamation of monsters in our respective styles. We started off with quick charcoal drawings. Joe then switched to making the lines stronger with ink and I started filling in with the fluorescent. It was a really awesome dynamic working with Joe since we have never collaborated on the same piece before – something I always envied with Charles and Joe working together normally.

As the night progressed, the music and booze and general atmosphere kicked in and made working a blast. Unlike the last shelter gig, I had energy the entire evening and was actually a bit sad when 2am bar close rolled around. The Shelter had both rooms going with DJs and the place was packed. Also unlike last time, people were coming up to us telling us how much they dug our work. The whole thing was very surreal with everyone in costume and getting painty. There may have been a bit of body painting going on, but luckily I didn’t end up killing anyone with my claws, even though I did slash Captain America’s cardboard shield. haha.

 

Anywho, aftwarwards I went to an after party at Jobot‘s studio and chilled to some more techno djs. I finally made my way home at 5am or so and pretty much slept the next day until the Beastie Boy’s concert.. However, that is another story altogether. All in all, best Halloween ever!

A special thanks to Zak, Shelter, and Barfly for letting DIMMedia do their thing. Word.
Some related links:

• Krapp’s Last Cast Episode 25 – We talk a bit about Halloween Adventures
• DIMMedia’s Myspace
• Shelter Myspace

However, last night, I read quite a few of the articles related to the Documentary Hypothesis and it was pretty interesting. So, if you have ever been interested in the context of the bible, give the below a read:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Documentary_Hypothesis

I also went to savers and bought a belt for my X logo buckle. I hope tonite to get my claws finished… but that is going to require another trip to menards. weee.

Wikipedia says:

Variegation is the appearance of differently coloured zones in the leaves, and sometimes the stems, of plants. This may be due to a number of causes. Some variegation is attractive and ornamental, and gardeners tend to preserve these.

One cause for this are “chimeras”

Chimeras (or “chimaeras”) in botany are usually single organisms composed of two genetically different types of tissue. They occur in plants, on the same general basis as with animal chimeras. However, unlike animal chimeras, both types of tissues may have originated from the same zygote, and the difference is often due to mutation during ordinary cell division.

I just found this interesting. Especially, considering invasive species. If you look at the Liger (yes a real animal of lion/tiger mix), the male of one species and the female of the other has genetic size limits imposed. However, when you breed the others the limits do not get passed on and the resulting offspring can grow larger than either of the parents. I’m sure this practice has been in use for a long time, but it is hard to imagine the new invasive creations that exist. I suppose this is just part of evolution too. Think of all the new bacteria and viruses that are discovered all the time. Strain 121

is pretty interesting as well, even though it isn’t a chimera.