who wants to live on the lower east side? we need a roommate. i'm not saying that living with me and kurt is always as exciting as it looks here, but we do enjoy playing with grocery-store pricing guns. that should say it all. if not, click here. and forward to interested parties.

we are so planning tampon art night at my house. see the fun you will have?!

well that was a waste of a weekend. i hate to be so negative, but the craft fair kind of sucked. i was happy that so many of my friends came out and bought stuff, but i only scored two stranger sales, and ended up making negative dollars, not even counting all the purchases i made. a lot of people thought my stuff was "cute" or "funny" (my favorite) but apparently not worth paying for. very depressing considering all the time i put into preparing for this fair. it was also hot as balls out there; i almost turned into catherinespuddle.com, and now have predictably crazy burnlines despite the sunscreen i regularly slathered on (which often slid into my eyes, making them sting and water like mad). and my bracelets got totally sun-bleached, turning the hot pinks and oranges into sad, pale versions of their former selves. oh, and did i mention the dirt? with the wind blowing dirt from the ballfields, we were covered in grit just from sitting there. i looked like a homeless person on the L train home with my soiled pants and grime-caked feet. lessons learned: 1) people are cheap. 2) don't do expensive outdoor craft fairs. 3) there are really nice people who do craft fairs and who 4) make really cool stuff. yes! something positive! the shopping was great. i got an awesome top made of bathing-suit material in hot yellow from edge of urge, a cool makeup bag, a porcupine pincushion, a secret present, and a secret card. and i restrained myself. i'd also like to thank my tablemates, holly, jen, and elisabeth, for keeping me company and being so generous with their time (and portable speakers). without them i probably would have used one of elisabeth's snap ties as a noose. also thanks (again) to all my peeps who stopped by and brought me fruit and water and good cheer (especially those who bought stuff!). insert smiley face here. (photo above by jen, btw.)

what are the odds that the voice of tigger and the voice of piglet would die within two days of each other?

saw my first show at the newly opened cake shop tonight. cool place, nicely decorated, yay cakes. but who is responsible for the physical layout of the downstairs space? i swear to god it's a HIGHDEA gone wrong. you know how usually the band is on a stage that is elevated, so people can see them? some genius decided that this space should slope downward, so that the band is actually playing below audience level. fucking brilliant, huh? at first you're like, oh, that might work -- everyone looks down on the band. uh, no. that is not how it works. this ain't radio city, y'all. this is a small basement rock club. no one except those directly in front of the band can see. insanely dumb.

anyway, the long blondes were pretty fun. and english. that's almost redundant of course. such cute accents! and enthusiasm! nothing earth-shatteringly brilliant but fun tunes and a roomful of people bouncing up and down and actually full-body dancing. several of whom were sporting body odor, but i digress. when will the bloggers come running?!

this is an old but interesting story about the rise and fall of urban outfitters. did you know the CEO is a big ol' conservative who betrayed his hippie roots? kinda explains that "voting is for old people" tee.

so, not to sound like a broken record, but have you guys heard about the renegade craft fair? it's going to be huge. flavorpill, daily candy, and cityrag are into it; are you? this weekend, more than 150 crafty types (myself included) will be descending upon mccarren park in williamsburg to hawk their cute, quirky creations. clicking through the vendors' websites is a real treat: do you want crochet earrings? a plush tampon doll? cool indie fashion? ipod couture? it's all gonna be there, plus shit you can't even imagine. please come out this weekend; i'll be on the bedford side of the park, table 56. bring me cherries!

last night i introduced myself to kurt's new scanner, and then we made sweet, sweet love. our beautiful scanner babies now populate my shop's press page, where i've added new pita press from thats beijing and permission magazines.

oh! and i forgot to mention that i finally got my camera back (yay!), and on it were the lovely pictures of the big bacon-eating contest in delaware. pete won, stomaching two pounds of bacon. and cormi lost quite spectacularly.

i may have linked to it before, but it's still amusing: extreme ironing.

finally, i have a special treat for you today. it's a hilarious song. i'll say no more. just download it.

::: DVDA, "Now You're A Man" :::

::: The Let Go, "Rubik's Cube" :::

oooh, and the big ticket has posted a live acoustic version of the hold steady's "modesto is not that sweet." it's very different from your typical hold steady track. it's got an accordion, for one thing. check it.

this weekend was all about weddings. friday night: eat penis cake and dance at cheesy, overpriced club we never attend in real life for holly's bachelorette party. saturday afternoon: watch eileen put on frilly white dresses as she shops for a wedding gown. saturday night: hoist giant beers in honor of eileen and jesse's engagement. sunday afternoon: oooh and ahhh at holly's new barware while attired in pretty skirts and dresses in amy's cutely decorated backyard. more pics on flickr.

next weekend: craft fair! craft fair! craft fair! hope to see you there.

old 97s have some new old songs available for download. amazingly, rhett was singing about marriage (argh!) way back in the day, too.

tonight everyone should go to the knitting factory for the movable hype rock show. i think it's gonna be the best one yet.

anyway, this wondrous spectacle got me thinking: if gothic bellydancing, why not INDIE-ROCK BELLYDANCING?? come on girls, you don't even have to have a flat stomach to do it. we can wear stripey socks on our arms instead of fishnet gloves, stickers on our foreheads instead of jewels, american apparel ringer t's cut into bra tops...the possibilities are endless. and we can dance to fuckin' ted leo. who is with me?!

i have been utterly consumed the last couple days with creating my submission to salon's summer soundtrack contest. you have to create a mix composed only of free, legal downloads. it's been pretty fun. i would post my tracklist but i will wait to see if i'm picked as a finalist. you know how good i am at contests.

some more upcoming shows that look good: secret scissor sisters (probably), dungen (b/c everybody says they're soooo good), and dirty on purpose this saturday at the mercury (b/c i say they're good). thanks to central village for the secret scoop.

9:29 pm. Britt Daniel makes my vagina blossom!
9:55 pm. My vag has taken flight.

now, reader, i love me some spoon. i saw them night two and they were fucking great. but somehow britt himself, separate from the music, is not hot. i'm going on record with this. you want him to be hot, but alas, his appeal is more of the short-bus variety. especially when he smiles. it's like, awww, yes, corky! you play that rock music! uhhh, no offense of course. he looks good in that fitted shirt, all right, though.

::: Spoon, "Anything You Want" ::: the new album's hot hot hot. i don't get the people who aren't loving it through and through (stream it here). but this is my favorite track off "girls can tell," which britt must have known i wanted him to play. and the crowd went wild....

in this long interview with the hold steady we learn that craig finn is writing a novel.

james frey has a new book coming out next week. jami raved about it. having been blown away by a million little pieces, i can't wait to read it.

psycho little fat white kid rapping.

sheer brilliance: stuffonmycat.com. i'm totally putting xena to the test. watch this space for updates!

onelouder wrote a fun bit on the hierarchy of concert attendees, dubbed the gigocracy. it's pretty cute. i have been a member of all of the categories except for "tall" and of course "hipster."

and via onelouder, minnesota's fifty greatest hits.

i was disappointed in this article by times fashion writer cathy horyn about some sorta transformation she's had since losing a bunch of weight. specifically, the idea that women who are just outside the fashion norm cannot experience the thrill of feeling good in clothes. i don't know how big she was, but i can rarely fit into designer jeans and yet i know how it feels when my ass looks hot in pants. skirts do swing on my hips. in confirming the idea that good clothes should only be worn by those size eight and smaller, horyn does a sad disservice to larger women. and she really should know better. lame.

pitchfork reports on the two upcoming releases, a four-song EP and a full-length, from one of my favorite discoveries of the past year or so: wolf parade. i saw them last saturday, down a member, in tiny pianos, and they were straight up awesome. loud and full and pretty much as they told the montreal mirror: "inevitably the songs get louder and louder and louder until they achieve what I like to call totalosity. Usually near the end of the song, it's at maximum volume." i would say they are like the arcade fire, BUT BETTER. those of us who sought out the two EP's they self-released before getting signed to subpop will find a bunch of songs repeated, but enough new shit to keep me happy. something that might keep you happy: live cbc radio session.

upcoming shows, acquaintance edition (let the record show i believe all of these dudes rock):

- man in gray, northsix, wednesday. bryan is really excited to be playing northsix. i would totally go if i weren't contractually obligated to see them at movable hype 3.0. i've been hearing great things about them (and, uh, meaning to see them play) for years. mp3s on their site, duh.

- todd deatherage, luna lounge (last show ever!), saturday. todd writes a damn catchy tune, and has a really expressive, soulful voice (reminds me a bit of his texas buddy rhett miller, who he's opened for). also he has his last name tattooed on the inside of his lip. i'm going to try to see his show because it's free and he's just so nice, too. i heart todd.

- the octagon, tuesday, 6/21, sin-e. zack was the only person who was able to appreciate not only my ipod halloween costume but also the song displayed thereon. group sounds, one of the few local bands i've mp3-blogged here (and who weirdly got mentioned on page six), play too.

- VCR, 169 bar, monday, 7/11. this is tamar's sister's band. poor tamar. it must be hard when your little sister has usurped your level of coolness. these kids are from richmond, virginia, and play good, fun, noisy dance-punk. you can stream their EP here. it's pita-approved. book them for your next williamsburg parking-lot show! (i'm serious.) detachment kit plays 169 bar this night, too.

Tapeworm eggs hatch in the intestine and develop in cysticerci (cysts) in the muscles, brain, other organs or eyes.

Tapeworm eggs are passed in the stools of a person who is infected and spread through water or surfaces contaminated with feces.

[Tapeworms are a] good way to gain and then LOSE a bunch of weight, b/c you're eating for two. You're super hungry b/c that ho needs to be fed. [this fact courtesy of roommate tamar]

Infection is generally recognized when the infected person passes segments of proglottids in the stool, especially if the segment is moving.

You should call for an appointment with your health care provider if you pass something in your stool that looks like a white worm.

man, good thing i decided to spring for that travel insurance! dear god, help me....