A real AIM conversation with my girlfriend…

Heather: Your pictures are stupid and you’re stupid for liking them.
Me: …
Heather: I love you.

Oh Thieves & Villains, you wild and crazy guys. Recently, John (drummer) gave me a ring, saying that their show in New Jersey was canceled, and asked if they could crash here in Philly before their trip down to Virginia Beach. Of course I said yes, and we took a handful of new press images while they kicked back.

The last time they were here, back in April, was again, for a last minute photo shoot. I didn’t have anything planned, so we just shot around my house and went outside with my bright studio lighting.

But, who am I to say no to close friends? We had a good time, even if the pictures weren’t as great as they could have been.

I’m really excited for these guys. They recently signed to Victory Records, one of the biggest indie labels in the country. Their roster boasts stars like The Audition, Hawthorne Heights, Taking Back Sunday, Thursday, and my buddies, Silverstein, whose video I starred in last summer. They have some insane tour plans in the works, and chances are, they’ll be taking a certain photographer with them in the Fall. *hint hint*

Give them a listen!

Thieves & Villains
www.myspace.com/thievesandvillains

So I guess I’m pretty spoiled. I’ve never been to a laundromat. Ever. When I was an undergrad, living on campus at Ramapo, I did all my laundry inside our lobby, where I’d often forget about it and come back DAYS later. Seriously. Days.

All the places I’ve lived in have all had a washer and dryer, but unfortunately, my house in Queen Village, lacks just that. So this weekend (during a delicious lunch with Lex), I went on a little adventure, once I realized I could no longer get away with Febreezing my t-shirts.

Strike one. I was deeply concerned with the lack of watter. Perhaps, this was not the laundromat for me…

Dammit! This is outrageous. I won’t clean my clothes here again, no sir. You mean to tell me I can’t use this washer as an amusement ride AND I can’t put my cat inside? Preposterous!

It amazes me that people really need this sort of warning. Is it seriously that tempting to go inside? *sigh* I suppose people still end up doing these things, which is why we need painfully obvious warning labels.

All in all, I’ll be back to the laundromat down the street from my house. The people there didn’t laugh at me when I asked how long I should put my clothes in the dryer for. I did hear several chuckles from patrons who watched my quarters spill all over the floor at the change machine, scattering across the floor. Those coins just fly out man.

Where’s the warning label on THAT?

I’m the big squirrel. She’s the little squirrel.

I love the way you grumble when I wake you up at 11:00am. I love how we talk like Cuteoverload writers in public. I love how our respective nicknames for each other are based on the pets we own. I love that I don’t care about spending $200 on a train ticket, just as long as I can get a $3 slice of pizza with you. I love how you tell people I’m taking you to the prom in public, making me look like a creepy old guy, when it’s really your sorority’s formal. I love that you’re painfully out of my league, but still give me the time of day anyway. I love how we look as cartoons.

Most of all, I love that you’re probably going to make fun of me for writing this.

Thanks to Sara for helping me pick this cute Valentine’s Day gift out, and to Marnie for making it!

Oh Ashlee, you were so cute when you were just a little baby bun. Back when I thought you were a boy. And your name was Ash. Now you’re so chubby that you get stuck inside soup pots.

The bun turned one today. She was six weeks old that fateful weekend when I got her at the end of March, and by that logic, her birthday is sometime this weekend. I’ve decided to make it on Valentine’s Day, because well, it’s easier to remember.

Heading up to Albany this weekend to celebrate Valentine’s Day with Heather. Can’t wait.

And to everyone who hates on Valentine’s Day, just shush. Sure, we should show the people we love how much we care about them everyday of the year, but your reasoning just doesn’t work. That’s like saying we should celebrate Christmas everyday, because we all should show our love for Jebus through our the year. Or Easter. Or St Patrick’s Day. Or Thanksgiving. Or Boxing Day, whatever the hell that is.

If we celebrated each of those holidays every single day of the year, we’d be broke from buying too many presents, stepping on eggs all over the damn place, drunk off our asses, extremely obsese, and then depressed because we’ve been  giving away all the presents we recieved. Society would crumble, the world would be in shambles.

So do your part, and celebrate Valentine’s Day, damn it.

I had a bit of a freak out last night. While doing homework, I let Mittens run around my room. If he isn’t let out for at least an hour a day, he starts to cry inside his cage (it sounds like a puppy), and will do so most of the night. So, with his door open, he scampered up my arm and jumped onto the floor, running about like crazy.

I typed away furiously on my Powerbook while Family Guy played in the background. I like to laugh while writing and studying, it keeps my spirits up. Suddenly, I realized that nearly two hours had gone by, due to the fact that disc one of the season I was watching was over. I started to look around my room. Where was Mittens?

I looked all around the house. Mittens had once before climbed the steps from my downstairs bedroom, and spent his playtime causing havoc in the living room / kitchen, but he was nowhere to be found.

Finally, I discovered him in my bathroom, sitting on top of the towel rack, fast asleep against the wall. How he got up there in the first place, I’m not quite sure. Maybe he climbed up the towels, or jumped off the toilet. Whatever the case was, he woke up when I walked in, climbed onto my shoulder, and went back to sleep inside his cage.

Silly Mittens. You are so adorables.

The guys in Return To Arms and I have been trying to work out a press shoot for a long time. I met a few of them while on the Farewell / Forever The Sickest Kids / Upper Class Trash tour when the tour hit Philadelphia, and at various other shows through out the past year. They’re an incredible talented group of guys and write some very catchy tunes.

In fact, you should check out their new demo over on their myspace, entitled “Retrospect”. Sounds fantastic.

My blog’s been quiet lately, I know, but I’ve been pretty busy settling into my new place. Queen Village is a fun neighborhood, and luckily for me, I’m friends with people who know the area (sup lex!).

These new press images were taken in the empty room of my house, which I’ve dubbed “the studio”. Those globes? Ikea lights.

Return To Arms
www.myspace.com/returntoarms