sEe tHiS ?
Monday, August 23 2004
Posted by brockito

Today I was robbed at the point of a knife.

I was walking up E. Hastings St. with H & C after a visit to the ATM and the money mart. We went in to Frenchie's Restaurant, a transplanted Montréal smoked meat joint and checked the menu for vegetarian items (they had poutine with non-veg gravy only) and left without ordering or sitting down. I was telling H about the $ I'd just transfered via Western Union to the States as we passed Weblog Computer and I guess this guy overheard me because a few steps up the sidewalk, he came up and kind of turned me around with his left hand on my shoulder, pushing me.

I was wondering what the hell this guy was up to and no words came to me to say. In my mind I was thinking, "unhand me !" but I couldn't click into gear with anything intelligible. As I was pondering this and backing up to his pushing forward I saw his right hand covered with his sweatshirt sleeve in a bunch. Then in a slight French Canadian accent he said, "Ya see this ? Ya see this ?" while poking the point of a single blade knife out of the sleeve.

"Yeah, I see it, I see it," I said.

"Give me the money !" he said.

I unzipped my waist pack and fished out my wallet containing a five dollar bill and a bunch of bank receipts and cards, handing it over. At this point he must have taken his hand off my shoulder to rifle the wallet as I told him I only had the five bucks. He said, "You have a hundred american ! Give me the cash !"

I then tried to explain to him that I'd just transferred that amount, and fished out my change purse. I handed that over and he dumped a bit on the sidewalk and said again, "Give me the cash !"

H, who had backed away holding C's hand, started yelling, "Help ! Help!" at this point because I'd given him all my money and he still looked like he was going to stab me. It was a very odd, tense moment and I felt kind of at his mercy. I looked into his eyes and said, "C'est tous ce que j'ai, mon vieux..." and then that moment passed, something clicked in him and he turned and bolted up Hastings.

Ironically, by now I was standing pretty much right in front of the HSBC bank and there was a turbaned security guard standing in the vestibule. Heather kept shouting for help and following the running guy up the street as I opened the door to the bank and said to the security guard, "Call 9-1-1 !"

He kind of looked at me and did nothing and I said again, "I just got robbed at knife point, call 9-1-1!" He said he didn't have a phone and half-gestured to a teller. I repeated myself to the teller person behind the counter. She said, "The police are accross the street" and indicated two City of Vancouver vehicles parked in front of London Drug.

I went back outside and waited for the traffic to slow a bit, then J-walked in a jog accross the street. H was nowhere in sight. There was a police squad car and a paddy wagon type deal parked with no one inside so I went into London Drug. Seeing no police, I tried to get the customer service person's attention but she was talking on the phone (I later learned they'd had a shoplifting incident). I said I needed to call 9-1-1 and she gestured to a customer service phone. While I tried unsuccessfully to get an outside line, a customer passed me and remarked with displeasure that I was blocking the doorway (how inconsiderate of me !)

After two tries I figured I had to dial 9 then9-1-1 and then waited on hold for a minute until someone in police dispatch picked up. After giving my information I listened to conversation between her and officers in the field. Evidently, someone had finally responded to H's pleas.

After another couple minutes, a plainclothesman showed up to meet me in the store. He took some notes before escorting me to another plain clothes officer who took some notes and escorted me to his partner, who took some notes then asked me to write my statement.

I eventually met up with H and C who hung around while I wrote, and then I went with officer #2 (constable tim) to get my wallet, receipts, $5 and change back.

As I subsequently learned, the guy had bolted up to the corner at Penticton and tried to carjack somebody who had just come from the bank. Somehow, alerted citizens managed to trap him in the car alone and kept him in there until the cops arrived.

Pipe & Drape
Monday, August 16 2004
Posted by brockito

Well I had this job the other night covering for a friend of mine who had a gig, and found myself at the Westin Bayshore hotel at midnight. Buddy told me to be there at the loading bay at midnight so I am there and the first thing I find is that the loading bay is behind a big security fence and I cannot get in. I walk around and see no one to let me in. I could climb over but this strikes me as a bad way to make an impression or possibly a good way to get busted by hotel security so I find the next best option which is to slide my slender arm through the truck gate and around to open the door from the other side. Ha !

Of course once I get in, there is nobody in the loading bay. Inside, there are waitresses and busboys rattling around carts with dishes and half drunk bottles of Sumac Ridge and the half touched remains of some super-deluxe chocolate cake. There is live music coming from the ballroom inside and as I nondescriptly walk in and peer around the hung drape the band is rocking out to "Dancing Queen" by Abba.

I go outside to sit and waiton a metal dolly cart and enjoy the most painfully sad rendition of Purple Haze I have ever heard, complete with cowbell on every beat, four on the floor, and a barely recognisable signature guitar riff (you know the one ? now imagine it being played by someone who usually plays ABBA !).

Eventually, my employer for the evening arrives and confirms that, yes, the band has decided to play another half hour. Oh, did I mention this was a special banquet/dance event for hair restoration professionals ? More classic dance numbers pass by. The band hits their stride again with Stayin' Alive and That's the Way (uh huh uh huh) I Like It. Unfortunatley I am still not being paid at this point.

Finally the band ends and begins to tear down. They obviously make lots of money and have quality gear, but I am glad to be a plomo tonight, as I think I would not like myself very much after playing a few of those gigs. Honestly, my very first grade seven garage and basement band did a better version of Purple Haze, and could at least be forgiven for wanting to play it.

To each his own, I guess. The excitement being over, I was now left with the room to break down and load out, minus the stage and PA, so all in all we were out of there in an hour and a half, and no fingers pinched in the crazy pipes-that-hold-up-the-drapes thingys. Hurray !

Express Bumper Jam 2004
Wednesday, August 11 2004
Posted by brockito

Well, I'm just back from a few days in Whistler pretending to be a tourist and lounging in chi-chi surroundings with family. Highlights include munching wild blueberries and just one salmon berry while hiking to Cheakamus Lake, learning a yearling black bear was somewhere about then hearing a big crash in the brush off to my right and behind and seeing only dust motes rising up from some big hunk of fallen log; mashing my already sore probably chipped elbow at the skatepark and surviving the ensuing nausea; staying on my liver flush diet despite trips to restaurants with parents-in-law; sitting on a curb with H after a night at the cinema gazing at stars like it was the first time I'd seen a constellation (maybe it was); and watching Sesame Street with C, for his first time...

Earlier this evening I got together with Danny to catch up and jam at the Sanctuary. At least twice I thought someone was entering while we were playing— first by the back door, then after a light mysteriously went on of its own accord, by the front door. I'm wondering about the Sanctuary...Is it haunted now ? Then someone did show up—we heard the shouting through the mail slot but it was H as somewhat expected. It was a bit brief but we did get to slog through Say What You Mean (download) and jam a bit on some loopy things, including a suggestion of One of A Thousand Regrets, a Guitar Craft piece my friend Curt came up with. This prompted Danny to comment that it sounds as if I've been smoking dope, so perhaps the sufi drone thing was a bit much...

Therafter we hopped into the van, dropped off Danny, and drove over to the Fifth Avenue theatre to see Festival Express, but not before rear-ending someone at the corner of Main St. and Kingsway in H's now hood-crinkled Honda civic. Ouch.

Festival Express is a film about a tour of the same name which featured The Band, Janis Joplin, The Dead, etc. traveling accross Canada on a Via Rail train in 1970, and is worth seeing just for Joplin's performances alone. Holy Cow, could that woman sing !

Now before you all go off calling me a hippy, I gotta say that to me, Janis Joplin was a lot more punk than most of today's lot. I mean she was ug-ly. Not ugly like not attractive to look at, but in a warts and all, not-afraid-to-look-like-hell-cause-I've-been-drinking-tequila-all-night-with-Rick-Danko-and-Jerry-Garcia kinda way. I found myself thinking about the Jessica Simpson and Britney Spears type divas of today's "biz" and wondering...Now is the guy with the perfect blond mohawk afraid to get his hair wet in the pool of the Whistler Marriott more punk than Janis Joplin with some red frilly thing hanging from her unwashed and smelling like booze and cigarettes hair ? Is it more punk to have a studded leather belt you bought at the mall and the latest shoes from Vans, or to sing out from your heart despite the blemishes on your face and the polyps on your vocal chords ?

Its such an understatement to say a lot of things have changed since 1970, but oh my god ! The barricades in front of the stages were made of snowfence ! Not of the plastic orange variety like today either, but those old annoying things made of red coloured wooden slats and held together with wire...Oh, and it was ok to clap your hands at a show on 1 and 3 ...

High Dials and Wawa
Friday, August 6 2004
Posted by brockito
H and I went to see the High Dials last night at the Media Club and I must say they turned in a fine performance, particularly considering they'd driven straight through from Sault Ste Marie !

I was talking with Rishi afterwards and he explained that they broke down in Wawa, Ontario ("the coldest place on earth" - complete with giant thermometer reading -72 degrees) not once but twice and subsequently missed 5 shows. I don't know if any of you have an idea how far it is from the Sault to Vancouver, but it is really really really really far. That doesn't describe it. Winnipeg to the Sault is a long way...

It reminded me of touring with the Doughboys in the 2nd white van Bond Head called "the fridge" in February. The van had no heater in it and our exhaled breath formed ice on the inside roof. Eventually after driving for a couple hours the body heat would build up and the ice would start to melt, drip drip drip onto me and Bond Head huddled under sleeping bags, parked in the lot of a dunkin donuts with the Diesel engine running in...Wawa, Ontario.

Definitely go see the High Dials if they are coming to your town on this trip - Victoria, BC tonight and then south to Seattle, Eugene, Portland, SF, LA, etc. If you are a fan of the Byrds, jangly Rickenbacker guitars, good vocal harmonies and...um...sitars (!) then you will prolly love these guys.

Absolution
Tuesday, August 3 2004
Posted by brockito

Is out of the question. It makes no sense to apologise, the words I thought I brought I left behind...so...

OK OK sorry, I just had that Replacements song in my head (Never Mind from Pleased to Meet Me for those of you who didn't recognise). Yeah, so blogging has been kind of few and far between lately and I blame it partly on being miserably depressed for a couple days here and there, and partly on writing in my spiral notebook instead. That is a good thing because it means I've actually written some new lyrics.

Actually, things are going kind of good at the moment in the music department (today that is). I've been tracking drums in the basement to Say What You Mean and enjoying the heck out of it, if only four takes at a time (download here). I'm enforcing the four take limit now, which means I get like two takes to loosen up a bit and hope I nail the third or the fourth. I cheated a bit today in that I did another four takes going for a couple of things that sounded good in the first two yesterday. I know I could just edit them together since its protools and all but I kind of avoid that most of the time. Its more fun to get the whole thing in a take.

So what else has happenned lately ? Well I worked the Jessica Simpson show - the thing was so undersold they were giving away comps to the local crew in bunches. I think like only 2600 seats in GM place were sold as of the load-in. Something that I found particularly annoying about this show was that they actually had commercials on the big video screen ! I mean I was amazed that they are doing this in Cinemas when I went to see Farenheit 9/11 - 10 minutes of commercials and 10 minutes of previews before the film. But imagine paying like $60 to see a show (ok I know its Jessica Simpson but still...) and having commercials for some cosmetics product force fed to you on the big video...Hmmm. On top of that, they used the screen to run little sketches and stuff, clips from her tv show I guess, while she was doing a costume change. I feel embarrassed just writing about it.

What else ? Well, the John Graham benefit at the Railway went well and we managed to raise some $ for the man while having a fun time playing - thanks to those of you who attended and contributed.

Its been baking hot for every day that I can remember before today. We've got over 300 forest fires raging all over the province at the moment and not a spot of rain until last night. I saw a headline today in a streetside newspaper box about Vancouver being in danger from the fires so I don't know what that means but it sounds pretty crazy. This is the second year in a row that its been really bad and I don't know what to make of it. Nothing obvious on the CBC website so I suppose I am not expected to evacuate just yet but that would not be a cool thing. Just thinking of it makes me wonder about other areas closer...

Anyways, that's it for the weather. Tune in some other time for the sports and other local news. C Ya...