- w i l c o -

jeff tweedy of wilco 4.25.5/okc [photo by jenn, stolen & sepia'd by joe]
*full review to follow*

iron & wine

sam beam of iron & wine [photo not by joe]
*full review to follow*

horses

band of horses [photo not by joe]
*more to come*

*more sweet bands*

these are new bands (to me) that i must thank my friend matthew key for introducing me to. he gave me to them around christmas time, but i have just now gotten round to listening to many of them. i will not link them presently, but you should definitely check them out.

múm

neutral milk hotel

faultline.

valley of the giants

modest mouse

explosions in the sky

pretty please

i thought i had made it clear to everyone that free-ipods can be had by all. i have one, i can even prove it!

the implications of this are paramount. this is not only an incredible opportunity, but i would argue that it's a responsibility. do you realize that you can get an ipod for less that five (5) dollars?!? and in the process you can be helping your friends get one too? if you pass on this, i don't really know what else to say...

you are making bunnies cry!

the point is, you could get a free-ipod and i'm in serious need of help with getting a free mini-mac...i'd hate to think what might happen if you don't assist me...

i'll be watching...

ever-expanding musical horizons

stony larue & cody canada [photo edited but not taken by joe]

i went with my friend andy to a show last night at the wormy dog saloon in bricktown. the musicians were cody canada of cross canadian ragweed, and stoney larue (both originally from yukon). the genre of music is what some call red dirt country, which i would define as a blend of classic country and southern rock. these guys played an acoustic show, just the two of them on guitars, for almost five (5) hours! i haven't really ever listened to either one of them before, but i definitely got into it. it was obvious that these guys just love playing music and love to do it their way. obvious also, was their undying love for beer-drinking and chain-smoking. i can now honestly say i am a red dirt country fan. very different from my usual cup of musical tea. different, as it turns out, is usually a really good thing.

how about the cool blended picture thing? pretty sweet, huh? just one of the many powers afforded those who blog.

the devil went down to denton...

[photo by joe] matthew resovich hard at work on the electric violin at a recent the album leaf show. i know it's old news, but i came across this photo again and thought it deserved to be seen by others. this guy made sounds come out of his violin that were nothing short of otherworldly. [and i mean that in a good way].

updated links

so when i first set this all up, i got a little ahead of myself and listed every cool link i could think of. the result was a cacophony of links that was overstimulating even to me. i have toned it back a bit, and with my new understanding of html technology i've organized things a bit better. i will give a couple of brief introductions:

colors magazine- an incredibly creative "magazine about the rest of the world". each issue has a different theme, and the stories and photos are from all over the place. it's based in italy. view each issue online, or pick it up at borders/ barnes and noble. look for it about every 2-3 months.

cockrecordings- while the title may sound like something you could get into trouble for looking at, this is the audio bootleg trading website of my friend john (recently pictured in the post- holy matrimony). he hasn't updated it in awhile, but cut him some slack, he just got married...geez!

bands- this one doesn't need much explanation. this is the music i like, and you should too.

other blogs- these are the blogs of my friends and my dog. yeah, that's right my dog has a blog. you wanna fight about it? we have all these great pictures of sofia, but it would be ridiculous to post every one on my blog. so she has her own. deal with it.

sierra club- the environment seriously needs your attention. join up.

more to come- i reserve the right to add new links any time i want, and there's nothing you can do about it. that's because this is my blog and not yours.

i also moved the 'about me' stuff off of the front because i went a little crazy and wrote too much. mainly, [since this blog is selfishly more for me than anyone else] having everything organized makes it a more convenient one stop shop for everything i need on the internets. this is the new and improved, ultra-streamlined sjölin.

bumper sticker

blind faith in bad leadership is NOT patriotism.

life lessons from the hot water tank

why are things like this so funny to me?

did you know that if you set an open can of gasoline (or other flammable vapors) near your hot water tank, the pilot light could ignite the fumes and start a fire. apparently that's what happened to this guy. apparently we live in constant danger of combustion within our own homes. anyway, i love these kinds of pictures, so dramatic.

the other day at work, i was co-leading a group of/for people who have been diagnosed with severe mental illnesses and have substance abuse problems. sometimes we begin group by going around and telling something about the previous week, good things, bad things, etc. i got the bright idea this time to have everyone tell about the funniest thing that either happened to them, or they saw happen over the last week. as each person went around the table unfolding their various stories, each one was more tragic than the first. dark humor is common with this group, but there weren't even any punchlines. these stories included a dead puppy, an arrest for sexual battery, a victim of sexual abuse caretaking for her former abuser, and a domestic dispute. my story about sneaking up and scaring a fellow intern talking on her cell phone in her car was the one that seemed out of place. bizarre.

as the other group facilitator and i discussed after group, we agreed that this would need to be addressed during next week's group. it was amazing to see how this group seemed to have such backward notions about what is considered funny in social settings. mental illness and substance abuse take a great deal away from people, and this is a very blatant example of why it is so difficult for those in recovery to re-enter the population at large. humor is an important coping mechanism, and a common ground for people to interact in. dead puppy stories tend to scare folks away when they are expecting a good laugh.

there is a fine line sometimes between comedy and tragedy, but it is important be able to distinguish the two. perhaps this all will lead to fruitful discussion next week. perhaps not. perhaps i need to turn the spotlight upon myself and stop laughing at cartoon guys on fire. perhaps not.

how to get an ipod 101- a testimonial

joe gleefully showing off his free 20gb ipod

for those who have not heard the good news, i have an important testimony to share.

several weeks ago, someone turned me onto a deal that sounded too good to be true, but it's real. you can get a free 20gb ipod, and all you have to do is sign up, participate in one of several online offers (most of which are pretty good deals themselves), and then get five (5) friends to do the same. the whole process took me about 7-8 weeks, but i now have an ipod IN MY HAND that i paid nothing for. i want others to experience the joy that is mine.

many have been skeptics, understandably, and for those thomases who still are doubting, here is an online article discussing the legitimacy of this, and similar offers from the same organization.

-if you have any questions about the process or details, feel free to contact me-

holy matrimony

mr. and mrs. john winner

yes, john and johanna did tie the knot this weekend. it was a good time for all. there were many familiar faces, some new, and some unexpected. as for me, it was good to be there, good to see it happen, good to infiltrate the balcones springs camp photo (because i never worked there), and good to get back home sunday morning at 4:00 am (thank you katie).

church tongue

the bridegroom

jared rhodes came all the way from guatemala

the 'pre-wedding bbq' official prom photo

a textbook example of what the oldtimers call 'bocce rage'