Scream at the sky.

Baltimore concert

It was a big night on Saturday so forgive me if I come un-glued, or ramble on a bit.

One of the final recollections of my night was wandering though Amoeba Records on Haight Street, late in the evening, with two hundred dollars worth of vinyl tucked safely under my arm, and now we’re here;
drunk
Hey, so as we stand at the head of Monday, the world now has reigning king and queen of the one-speeded cyclocrossingness, neither of which I’m pretty sure is this guy;
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Photo series credit, Debbie Baker.
Naturally, as soon as I received these in the mail from SPUN Cycles, I did my due diligence;
spunnobike
Because my OCD has absolutely taken over;
russcampbell
Spooky Cross 2009
peternewlands copy
I need help.

Certainly among the number of photos that I’ve seen taken over the course of the weekend, this has to be among my favorites;
recruiting
Anyway, when the dust finally settled, the king is Adam Craig, (again) and the queen, Homie Meaux Brüno Roy;
adamandmo copy
Obviously. As if there were any other contenders.

Not only did I miss out on loving in Louisville, but due to life things, I also missed out on chaos in Chico and the Paul Component Engineering twenty-fifth anniversary ride/party/human sacrifice;
crewbySteve O'Bryan
Photo by Steve O’Bryan.
SHunt
robert
stace
Photos by Mar Gnar.
Twenty five years…. If I’d had a kid the day Paul launched his empire, they’d finally be old enough to take care of me.

For my part, besides getting drunk and buying records and getting bullied around by assorted cosmic forces, I was at least able to make it into San Francisco and bid a proper happy birthday to a couple of my homies. One being the namesake of the Swobo knicker, Mr. JMac, Or ‘Smack’, or ‘Mexican Jay’, or ‘Jay Metallikabagal, and the other being the enigma simply known the world over as Babus;
jandbabs
Two sixteen year olds have never looked so haggard.

Moving on to other stuff having to do with feeling good despite the years, last week I got an email from John regarding just that very thing;

Stevil-

Just wanted to say thanks for writing this inter web thing you do. I’m entertained and informed with every update and in some ways you’re probably responsible for my attempted return to trying to go fast on a bikecycle. Hadn’t raced in 18, maybe 20 years? But I decided to give that CX thing a whirl.

It ain’t commuting. It kinda hurts. And after completely blowing up in the first lap (while going slow) there was a piece of me that was saying “Fuck this, you can’t breathe, your legs are screaming. Just pull out of this bullshit.” Then I said to myself, “You’re wearing a jersey with the phrase ‘I’d Rather be Forgotten than Remembered for Giving In’ printed across the back. Dig deep and fuckin’ GO!”
9/28/14 – Caldwell Woods (xXx Racing-Athletico)
Photo by Jay Loo.
And so I did. Thanks for the inspiration man. Got my wind under control, and kept going. Almost puked in the last lap. Had a blast. Gonna do it again for sure.
Charging my way to 80th place (out of 95).

Smooches,
John D.

80th out of 95…. Like I always say, we’re the upper echelon of mediocrity.

But seriously, I’m proud of John, and likewise I’m proud of all of us for persevering in the face of the desire to quit.

It’s what separates us from the beasts.

Or rather, the beasts who quit, I guess…

Now then- As anyone who has spent any time here at all knows, I’m a big fan of art that doesn’t suck, but unfortunately in closing, from Ben at Swobo we got a heads up about art that most certainly does;

Stevil-

Not sure if you’ve heard the story going around about this woman that thinks it’s ok to go into all the national parks and vandalize rock features because she’s an “artist”.

Her name is Casey Nocket, and there is a petition online now to prosecute her with Federal charges. Something that she is obviously deserving of.

I know you’re up for at least signing it, and if you wanted to share the story on AHTBM in the hopes of drumming up some more support I’d really appreciate it.

This is pure BS. I love the parks system and have been to something like 40 or so national parks over the years. They are set aside for all of us to enjoy in their purity and the last thing I need to see in them is someone’s vandalism;
creepytings_canyonlands
As if they are somehow improving the natural beauty that is already there. If Casey were truly an artist she would know that this is completely inappropriate. Either get into photography as a medium and take a picture, or go the landscape supply place and buy yourself a damn rock to paint.

Grateful for any help spreading the word and let’s try and make this a serious charge and not just a slap on the wrist.

Thanks man. Love you.

I certainly realize self expression is personal, the quality of which is purely subjective, but her ‘work’ and the motivation behind it makes me want to beat my head on the wall.

Or at the very least, scream at the sky.
newlittleskull

Spread this like it's sick

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9 Responses to “Scream at the sky.”

  1. MM October 27, 2014 at 5:24 am #

    Why beat YOUR head on the wall. It only hurts you. Now, beating someone else’s head on the wall? That’s cathartic…

  2. Crank October 27, 2014 at 5:48 am #

    Compares to Banksy? Let’s see, political content with deep satire? No. Timely relevance? No. Unusual medium requiring forethought? Again no. I submit anyone with a sharpie and an overblown ego may now proceed willie nillie to clog the visual landscape with crap. Also, owning 2 JMac knickers, both becoming threadbare, it was a real cock tease to post them as available once again.

  3. Largo October 27, 2014 at 5:53 am #

    Proving absolutely that there is indeed art that sucks.

  4. Ben October 27, 2014 at 8:02 am #

    Thanks Stevil. Been stewing over that story all weekend. “Sic balls Chopper.”

  5. somedudeinFLA October 27, 2014 at 9:37 am #

    Petition signed. Maybe im a hippy at heart or maybe its something leftover from my (very slight) native american lineage, but i have a tendancy to view these national parks and forests sorta like national treasures. So to me, this is like breaking into the national archives, busting the glass, and doodling stick figures all over the Declaration of Independance. As an east-coaster, i may never get to see some of these places in real life, but if i ever do, im gonna be pissed if its got someones shitty scribbles (youre too kind by refering to it as art, in any capacity) all over it. So i think they should sentence her to 1 year plus an art appreciation class and then hand her a jug of paint thinner and a brush. Thank you for informing me so that i can learn about and take part in this petition. Now lets keep the graffiti on the bathroom walls where it belongs… (this concludes my bitching)

    • mashthestate October 28, 2014 at 7:45 pm #

      I doubt very much that your (very slight) Native American ancestors would approve of a world in which only a select few million acres of an entire subcontinent are exempt from total and barbaric land-rape, nor of their status as a ‘national treasure’ owned by a governing body thousands of miles away 😉 In whatever case, the small percentage of North America which haven’t been ravaged certainly don’t deserve to be made into this weirdo’s canvases.

      • somedudeinFLA October 30, 2014 at 8:57 am #

        Well, the Cherokee nation might view the wilderness as a treasure of sorts, as might other nations. Just maybe not as a ‘national’ treasure, as in something thats ‘owned’ by anyone. But as people, regardless of heritage or associations, we can all take a certain ownership of the environment around us, and try to take care of it. Save graffiti for replacable/repairable things like painted building walls, fences, bathroom stalls, not irreplaceable things like millennia old geographic features, or centuries old historic structures. Take ownership is all im saying. Keep the mess to a minimum and clean up after yourself just like ya live there.

  6. Boise Dingo October 27, 2014 at 10:54 am #

    I wish I could sign that petition about a hundred more times…

  7. Curtis October 28, 2014 at 9:16 am #

    Speaking of ruination in public parks, I was camping in Nisene last weekend and started a conversation with a ranger who was emptying the trash can at the campground. We were shooting the shit about how nice the park was, when all of the sudden he asked, “hey, are you the guys that play wizard sticks up here?” I am not a dishonest person, so I was prepared for derision when I said, “yah, we are the ones who play wizard staffs up here.”

    His eyes lit up and he happily said that the game is rad and he likes to play it with his friends. I told him we had stopped because it’s such a pain to clean up, but he scoffed and just said “use a razorblade, man.. makes the whole process a piece of cake.”

    So… I guess that means that Wizard Staffs Across The Universe is now sanctioned by the State Parks and Rec Department.