Vacation, had to get away....

Hey y'all. Took the past week off from work, hung out with the old girlfriend, ended up camping for a few days out on western Washington's Olympic Peninsula, next to the Dosewallips River. Nice little campsite, quiet, not too many people. Mostly just laid around a lot & enjoyed the quiet, tried not to think too much. Just sat on a big log at the edge of the river & let the sun bake me for awhile, happy with not having to worry about BEING anywhere anytime soon.
Also got to eat some fresh crab & fresh clams like I haven't had since I was around 6 years old. Also went out in the boat onto Hood Canal when they pulled the crab pots. That was ... intresting. I hadn't been in a boat since I was 12 years old. They tell me that when the boat picked up speed & started bouncing across the waves, I yelled & my eyes got huge & I tried to stand up and jump out of the boat. I don't actually remember that part, I must've blocked it out. But once I got settled I was OK, & it was beautiful out on the water with the mountains all around....
Work hadn't been that terrible, not like last year, I hadn't started yelling at people yet -- but it had been a year since I had any time off & I was due. Glad I did it. Wish I didn't havta go back 2 work 2morrow, I'd love 2 have another week. But....

When I came home, the roommate was shitfaced & the 1st thing out of his mouth was "So, what are YOU cooking for dinner?" I swear, I think he was jealous that I took a week off & went somewhere WITHOUT him.
So then he pushed my buttons 4 a coupla more hours & then stumbled off 2 the bar 4 6 hours with a friend of his. I didn't care: I did my laundry & mowed the lawn & settled back in -- it felt kinda good 2 sleep in my own bed after a week away. & on Monday my roommate spent the whole day lying on the couch moaning, holding his head in his hands & wondering why his stomach wasn't working right. This is becoming an every-weekend thing 4 him: Get shitfaced every Sunday & spend Monday moaning & puking. 1 of the reasons I left was 2 get AWAY from this shit.
I swear I could write a horror novel based on this, call it ROOMMATES! -- He drinks until the inner monster BREAKS LOOSE, & then he can't be held accountable 4 ANYTHING he sez or does....
Look, I'm sure I ain't that EZ 2 live with either, I got my moods -- but I always pay my rent on time, I split the utilities, I buy 1/2 the food, I do dishes & mow the lawn & take out the trash, I'm quiet -- I'm a good roommate. So if you need a good roommate, drop me a line. I'll go anywhere where there's JOBS.... (You can all start laffing now....)

...Not much new 4 me musically, tho I did learn during my vacation that the soaring, haunting R&B ballad I heard awhile back is actually sung by Kelly Clarkson ("I'm Already Gone"), making 2 great songs she's done as far as I'm concerned (the other 1 was "Walk Away"). But some of you out there R probly already throwing up, so enuf of that....

I have been reading a bit now & then, of course. Still absorbing Stephen Jones & Kim Newman's HORROR: 100 BEST BOOKS and ANOTHER 100 BEST BOOKS, but if you're a fan of spooky stuff I recommend them, & if nothing else they'll give you lots of ideas 4 more great spooky stuff 2 track down. Each book includes essays by 100 horror writers (from King, Straub & Barker on down) on their favorite horror books ever. There's great stuff like John Clute on Tim Powers' THE ANUBIS GATES, Caitlin Kiernan on Kathe Koja's SKIN, write-ups on lotsa Stephen King novels, coverage of lotsa olde classics in the field -- stuff I've never read or always wondered about -- & plenty more.
Read 2 books by rock critic Greil Marcus: WHEN THAT ROUGH GOD GOES RIDING (2010) is all about Van Morrison & continues Marcus's Xploration of "the yaaargh" at the center of Morrison's best work. The book's a fast read -- just over 100 pgs -- & it's obvious Marcus hadda lotta fun with it: 1 "chapter" is only 3 lines long, some of the music reviewed is only available on bootlegs or thru live performances or radio-station sessions, & Marcus dismisses some 20 years of Morrison's career as "aimless." But if you're a fan of Van (or Marcus) you'll probly like it. I did. But I woulda bn happier if it was 2wice as long....
Marcus's IN THE FASCIST BATHROOM is a fat collection of columns from ROLLING STONE, THE VILLAGE VOICE & other places, focusing on Punk Rock & the Punk Attitude in rock&roll. It's pretty solid, tho summa the same artists keep popping up thruout: Sex Pistols, Elvis Costello, The Clash, X, The Mekons, Kleenex/Lilliput, X-Ray Spex, Buzzcocks, Wire, Lora Logic, etc. Worth tracking down, tho I woulda bn happier if Marcus had ranged a little wider....
Have started re-reading Marcus's STRANDED, a classic collection of rock critics' picks 4 which album they'd want if stranded on a desert island. Lester Bangs' writeup on Van Morrison's ASTRAL WEEKS is amazing, but 4 me the best part of the book has always been Marcus's lengthy LIBRARY of desert-island albums listed at the end of the book....
Charles Schaar Murray's SHOTS FROM THE HIP is a big collection of pieces he wrote 4 the British music papers from the '70s thru the '90s: Some of these can get a little silly, but it's addictive: I think I read the whole tiny-print book in about 2 days. I'll havta go back & pick out the really good bits....
John Clute's STROKES, SCORES and LOOK AT THE EVIDENCE are collections of science-fiction book reviews & critical pieces from the '70s through the early '00s -- I loved them, but I've become addicted 2 his work. Some folks say he's kinda snooty or doesn't always communicate clearly (he often seems 2 MAKE UP words, especially in his more-recent Net-published reviews), but he has lotsa good insights & he's funny -- especially when he really hates something. I learned a lot.
Lester Bangs' BLONDIE bio (about the only thing by Lester I hadn't read yet) wasn't overly nice 2 the band, but the best part of the book is available in Bangs' collection MAINLINES, BLOOD FEASTS AND BAD TASTE ... along with a lot of other Good Stuff....
Am trying 2 get in2 Ellen Willis's OUT OF THE VINYL DEEPS, but it seems kinda thin 2 me. Likewise Carl Belz's THE STORY OF ROCK, which I LOVED as a 10th-grader (I was especially thrilled 2 read back then that he thot The Beatles' WHITE ALBUM was rock's Ultimate Statement Ever) -- but which now also seems Xtremely thin....
Also got a copy of The Beatles' ANTHOLOGY, which I've just barely sniffed at -- it's freaking HUGE. Would B a nice suprise if there's something NEW in this story, this time told by the Fab 4 themselves....

I'll be back soon ... with more....