Dinner!

I should probably stop posting pictures of my dinner...haha. I just needed to share with you all how good the Maudite beer is by Unibroue. Give it a shot if you ever get a chance!

Woody's Wings

This restaurant owned my stomach last night, but it was worth it. I am pretty sure they put hallucinogenics in their food because I had some wild/vivid dreams last night.

For Me This is Heaven

That's right folks, my Clarity LP came in! I must admit that I totally had a rock out session in my room last night as I spun this. I am wondering if I got a special print, because it is the grey marble, but there is a bunch of blues and purples in the swirl as well. I am wondering if the press was a bit dirty when they made this one. Stoked!

Also, to continue my Ours fetish, here is a URL that has some bootlegged songs off the upcoming album:

http://www.665.org/leaked

Analog Afternoons

I have spent the past two days setting up my new record shelf that I got from my buddy, Jon. I must say, organizing your records is the most relaxing thing ever. Yesterday, I threw some “Explosions in the Sky” on my Denon turntable, and worked on my records in bliss! I went through and moved all of my records to the new shelf and put everything in thick plastic sleeves for protection. I still need to alphabetize my collection, but that will take a little time. Anyway, here are some pics of my set up:

I was just thinking this morning as I drove into work, I really miss the rain. I can’t remember the last time I was out and about on a rainy day. There is something to refreshing and lively about rain. I realize it’s still the winter, but I know that spring is just around the corner. I can’t wait to smell the freshness of the outdoors and see the new life popping up everywhere. We really are surrounded by miracles on a daily basis.

As soon as I can, I really want to commit more time to nature and spending my days outdoors. I certainly feel like God speaks to us through art and nature. I know all of this sounds overly artsy, but it’s true. There is peace in the silence of the mountain trails. There is love in the sounds of chirping birds. There is an absolute truth in the smell after a hard rain. All of these things really bring me back to that intimate relationship with my God.

So in conclusion, anyone want to go on some hiking trips with me this spring/summer?

Today, I started reading Walden by Henry David Thoreau. So far it is really interesting. I find 19^th century literature to be really beautiful. It’s funny, because Thoreau is pretty much speaking in scientific terms about the psychology of man, and why we go through our everyday life. Yet the way in which he writes is very poetic rather than prose driven. Anyway, I will let you know my thoughts on it once I finish it. Here is a little sentence from it that stuck out for me:

“See how he cowers and sneaks, how vaguely all the day he fears, not being immortal or divine, but the slave and prisoner of his own opinion of himself, a fame won by his own deeds.”

To Feel Again...

This past weekend, I had the pleasure of attending a retreat with my church’s “College and Career Age Group”. It was such a blast. Here is a recap of the weekend:

On Friday night we arrived, unloaded the cars and claimed beds/floor space. The house was freezing cold as it was heated by the wood burning fireplace (more to come on the coldness later). All 26 of us sat down in the living room and sang some worship songs and had a quick talk.

That evening, we all went to bed around midnight. We soon discovered that the house was not heating up fast enough, so we slept in about 15 degree weather! It was honestly the coldest I have ever been in my life. Most of us ended up not sleeping and just huddled around the fireplace. It was humorous after the fact.

Saturday morning, we had breakfast around 8:30 and just chilled for the next few hours. In the mid morning we had another meeting. We had a group discussion on our biggest satisfactions in the Church today, and our biggest disappointments. It was really interesting to hear everyone’s point of view. The general ending of the discussion seemed to conclude that we, as believers, need to get back to our first love and start really developing our personal relationships with God instead of just going through the motions.

That afternoon, we all hung out playing board games and acting overtly gay (haha). It was so stellar to just have nothing important to do. For the record, I completely wiped Hoshi out in poker!..haha. I would say this afternoon was the best time of bonding for the group as a whole. It seemed like everyone was really enjoying themselves.

That evening, we had our final service, which consisted mainly of just worship. Delmar spoke for about 30 minutes, but the other hour and half was simply time with God. It was a powerful evening, and I will recap what happened to me spiritually a little bit later.

The cabin was much warmer that evening, and the three Josh`s (Me, Hosh and Josh Brown) all slept in a twin bed. I must say that despite being spooned by Hosh all evening, I slept like a log.

On Sunday morning, the triple J (the 3 Josh`s!) slept in. When we got up, everyone was pretty much ready to hit the road, so we packed our stuff, threw the football around a bit, and left.

Like I said earlier, this was a really refreshing weekend for me. I have been dealing with a ton of conflict in my life lately. I really feel like God was beckoning me to come back to my first love in him. I would say the thing I am most excited about, is the fact that I am starting to feel again spiritually. I feel like I have been ignoring that side of my life for so long. I would love to say that I started balling my eyes out, and God knocked me on my face, but that is not how it happened. I feel like my road back to wholeness won’t be an instant one, however, after feeling that glimpse of him this past weekend, I am ready for the work. I am ready for a lifestyle change. I want to start looking through God’s eyes. Everything seems so much more beautiful when seen through holiness.

Anyway, I am glad you are all around me to witness the change in my life, and hold me accountable to it. I am ready for the next step, and I think God has a plan for me (and you!).

Here are some photos from the weekend:

About to play monopoly!

Me, Tracy, and Jami

The celebratory dogpile after our board game victory.

Hosh looking like an 8 year old:

Wood burning stoves!

Rach and Wendy just chillin!

Story I wrote about a year ago:

A Harvest Day

I still remember the smell of his lamb-fur jacket. I was five, he was seventy-three. An odd duet some would say; however I would say that our song was the most beautiful of all. At such a ripe age, I can say that he inspired me. His kindness, his compassion, and his understanding were truly Christ-like. I remember running through the corridor just to embrace him. He would pat me on the head and give loving words of encouragement. I can still remember soaking my pillow with tears. Sobbing into the down and cotton. My mother tried to comfort me in my grief, a feeling she was quite familiar with. Her words rang through my ears like a melody. The score she was writing me could not take image out of my conscious. It was an image of my beloved old friend, giving his last breaths to the leaves and his last words to a Lord that loved him so. I came to a crossroads on that evening. The trail that I chose was full of snarls and snags, but my feet were always firmly planted. Now at the age of 23, the idea of my friend still lingers with me. He is with every movement I make, reminding me to walk in love like he did.

Pictures from the Ours Tour:

credit - Uzi @ www.uzishots.com

For all of the pics he took, check out:
http://uzishots.com/photo/shows/2007/20070223-oaklandmetro/index.html

These are from the Oakland show. I am really impressed by these shots.

This week in music vol. 1

So I decided that I am going to start blogging every Friday about the music I have been enjoying that week. So here goes nothing:

In lieu of my excitement to receive my Clarity LP, I have been listening to a lot of Jimmy Eat World. If I keep up on this aspect of my blog, you are going to be seeing this band’s name pop up quite a bit. Jimmy Eat World is my favorite band of all time and there really isn’t any time when I am not in the mood to listen to them. As for what exactly I have been listening to in preparation to receive my LP, I have been really enjoying Static Prevails. It is the first full length they released after signing to Capitol Records in the mid-nineties. It definitely has a different feel from their work after this, but I still love it. It is extremely gritty, raw and emotional. Tom Linton sings on approximately half of the songs, with Jim Adkins singing the others. I would encourage you to check out this CD. I will warn you, you need to listen with an open mind, if you are expecting the same sound that is on Bleed American or Futures, you will be disappointed.

Secondly, I have really been enjoying Piers Faccini. He is a singer songwriter from England. His music is extremely delicate and well thought. I have been listening to the album Tearing Sky, which is his latest album. I think my favorite aspect of this disc is how he leaves so much room in the production. The drums, guitars and everything are very sparse and simple. This does not make the recording boring, however, it really gives it room to breathe, and let his stellar song writing really shine through.

Finally, I think I am officially obsessed with Black Flag. I know it’s an odd obsession to have, but there is something about 80’s hardcore that really draws me. I am sure some people would consider this music to be completely horrible. To me, it’s not about the recording quality or the song writing. It is about conveying a big middle finger whatever frustrations you may have. The energy that this band is able to convey is simply stunning. Greg Ginn’s guitar tone is insane. It sounds like he has everything at ten and is playing as hard as he possibly can without breaking strings. Anyway, if you ever want to know your roots in hardcore, do yourself a favor and listen to Damaged

Ours show 2/28/07 Review

My eyes were heavy all day yesterday with tiredness as a result of the evening before. I was quite weary all day, and ready to just go home and watch television and take some tums. At about 4:45pm, fifteen minutes before the end of my work day, my friend Dan gave me a call and said that Ours is playing a last minute show that evening. This band is and has been one of my favorite bands for the last four years. My body told me not to cave in and go to the show. Fortunately, I denied that urge.

We arrived at the Walnut Room at 7:45pm and grabbed a drink and a sandwich. I must commend this venue on its impeccable service (my sandwich wasn’t half bad either!). After chilling there for a bit with the boys, we made our way into the actual concert room and secured our seats. We were literally sitting on a table right next to the stage.

The first band got started at around 9 o’clock. I am struggling to remember their name, but they were truly professional. My only complaint was that they did a cover of Led Zeppelin’s Good Times, Bad Times. They pulled it off just fine, I just think that seems a little sac religious. I talked with their guitar player after the show, and he said they were all on 3 hours of sleep because they had to drive through a horrible snow storm to make it in. I definitely could not tell they were tired based on their stage show!

After what seemed like a very brief set change, Ours finally took the stage. I cannot express how in control they are of their show. From the moment the first note was struck on the guitar, Jimmy had hypnotized the audience. He was wearing all leather, which could seem extremely cheesy, but he pulled it off. They started the set with four new songs to be on the upcoming album that does not have a release date quite yet. I won’t go into the exact set list since I can’t remember it exactly. I would say that the hour and a half performance consisted of about 70% new songs and 30% old. Normally, I would be a little disappointed in that breakdown, but this is not the case here. The new songs sounded immaculate. It’s hard for me to express how intensely excited I am for the new album. In case you are wondering, Jimmy hit every note perfectly live. I would even go as far to say that he was better live. The intensity of his voice never ceases to amaze me. For me, the highlight of the performance was when the band stripped everything down musically, and Jimmy sang the standard “Ave Maria” which he tied in with a new song called “God Only Wants”. I felt as I watched this show, that I was watching an opera or a delicate story line put into song. There was not one moment in the hour and a half that I felt bored or lost interest. After the set had concluded, the band spent time with the fans. I spoke with all of the members, and every one of them treated me like I had known them their whole life. They were very personal and fan-oriented. Jimmy told us that his voice was weak that night because of the previous evening and a bottle of Makers Mark. If that is the case, I don’t know if I could handle him at 100%.

To sum up this entry, you need to see Ours play. If you know me, you know that I have been to many shows in my lifetime. I can say with confidence and clarity that this was the best one. I know that is a hefty claim, but I truly believe it. The whole time, I felt like I was watching a piece of rock and roll history unfold right before my eyes. I am tired again today from going to bed late, but I can’t wipe this smile off my face as a result of the performance last night.

Links:

Official Ours Website:
http://www.ours2.net/

Great fan site with a ton of bootlegs and album info:
http://www.killtheband.com/

Dead Format.

My obsession with vinyl seems to never cease. There is just something about opening an LP for the first time and looking at the oversized twelve by twelve artwork that is satisfying. From the first crackle of the needle touching the grooves, to the sound of the tone arm moving back into its return position, the process of listening to a record is unlike any other format. There is something about vinyl that commands your attention. When I put a record on, I feel the need to focus on what I am listening to. Collecting records makes me feel like a little boy again. It makes me feel like I am vesting stock into rock and roll history and truly supporting the art. To put it simply, records are just timeless and classy.

Today, I ordered the one record I have been wanting for the past 3 years: Jimmy Eat World’s Clarity 2x12LP. This is my all time favorite recording and not I finally own it in analog format. This particular record has never been repressed. It came in several different color combinations, the one I got is grey marble. Even cooler, the packaging is still sealed, so it’s like I am back in 1999 buying it from my local store. Anyways, tickle me pink.

I need to update my recordnerd account, but if you want to check out my collection, here is the link:
http://www.recordnerd.com/lists/joshmickelson

Baldey Spears photoshops! lol

Another insane article:

By JUAN CARLOS LLORCA, Associated Press Writer

GUATEMALA CITY, Guatemala - A 330-foot-deep sinkhole killed at least two teenagers as it swallowed about a dozen homes early Friday and forced the evacuation of nearly 1,000 people in a crowded Guatemala City neighborhood. Officials blamed the sinkhole on recent rains and an underground sewage flow from a ruptured main.

The pit emitted foul odors, loud noises and tremors, shaking the surrounding ground. A rush of water could be heard from its depths, and authorities feared it could widen or others could open up.

Rescue operations were on hold until a firefighter, suspended from a cable, could take video and photos above the hole and officials could use the documentation to decide how to proceed.

The dead were identified as Irma and David Soyos, emergency spokesman Juan Carlos Bolanos said. Their bodies were found near the sinkhole, floating in a river of sewage.

Their father, Domingo, was still missing, according to disaster coordinator Hugo Hernandez.

4am at the Grocery Store

World's Tallest Bridge

This is seriously mind blowing:

Construction of the Millau Bridge in France

The Millau bridge over the River Tarn in the Massif Central mountains is more than 300m (984ft) high - taller even than the Eiffel Tower. With its concrete and steel pillars soaring high above the morning fog in the Tarn Valley, the construction makes a spectacular sight.



Construction began in October 2001 and was intended to take three years, but dragged even longer because of weather conditions. The bridge was built by Eiffage, the same company that built the Eiffel Tower.













A complicated system of hydraulic rams was used to slide the vast bridge deck into place. It was provided by Enerpac Hydraulic Systems - the company which also "lifted" Golden Gate Bridge off its foundation for better cushioning against earthquakes. Here is a diagram of pushing the bridge's deck:




The deck was pushed in two sections from both sides of the valley. Each push cycle lasted 4 minutes and moved the deck section 600mm a time.








From both sides of the valley the metal sections of the bridge are assembled, lifted slightly and then in an elaborate manoeuvre pushed into place on each of the seven supporting pillars. The architect, Norman Foster, said the bridge was designed to have the "delicacy of a butterfly"