Archive by Author

A Hipster’s Guide to Online Dating or Why Online Dating Blows

24 Oct

I am writing this because a friend expressed to me that he wished there was a Consumer Report for dating websites.  I’ll do the best that I can since I’ve had some experience with a few sites and know others that have traded notes with me.

Online dating is becoming more and more popular in modern day culture for those people that are emotionally available, but don’t really have a venue for meeting people outside of friends, friends of friends, or the bars.  I finally relented and started a match.com profile about two years ago when I recognized that I am awful with meeting/talking to women.  This is three years after my friend Slippy created an eHarmony account for me one day when I was at class in college after whining too much; I was listed as an alcoholic hang-glider that was obsessed with “The Jungle Book”….and I deserved it. Continue reading →

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“Go” by John Clellon Holmes

23 Oct

This morning I attended the 37th Annual Antiquarian Book & Ephemera Fair at the Armory in Albany.  I have been going to this fair for the past six years with my father.  To my dismay, there seemed to be fewer vendors than last year, and last year there were far fewer vendors than in years past.  I sincerely hope that they are able to keep it going.

I am a collector of modern fiction and poetry.  Unfortunately for me, Albany is a city steeped in history and so most of the vendors you find there cater to the local history buffs and ephemera geeks (as if I’m cooler). Continue reading →

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too hip harry #1

23 Oct

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Mortal Kombat

23 Oct

The latest iteration of the iconic fighting series, “Mortal Kombat,” was released earlier this year and aptly titled: “Mortal Kombat.”  MK fans have been referring to the game as Mortal Kombat 9; a more appropriate title might be The Real Mortal Kombat 4 as this game channels the energy and player roster of MK3, and has returned after over a decade to 2D.  The series began pioneering a 3D fight system with Mortal Kombat 4 in the arcade in 1997.  It is likely that creator, Ed Boon, didn’t want his series to look outdated among Continue reading →

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O’Hara – Appointment in Samarra

21 Oct

Appointment in Samarra by John O’Hara (1934)

The decline and fall of Julian English.  Merry Christmas!

This was my first experience with John O’Hara and it was a good one.  This book came highly recommended to me by my father who read it some years ago.  I admittedly did not know what to expect based on the title.  I figured somebody made a dinner date in Iraq; sort of like when I picked up Catcher in the Rye as a teenager thinking it was going to be like Field of Dreams.  The cover of my edition (as seen above) shows the silhouette of a wasted looking dude slumped in the passenger seat of a Cadillac.  That is what I should have been expecting.

The story surrounds Continue reading →

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prosthetic knowledge

19 Oct

Almost four years to the day of the release of Radiohead’s In Rainbows and approximately three years since the discovery of the cryptic code for engineering the easter egg soundtrack, prosthetic knowledge, I learned about it thanks to my buddy, Marc.  Apparently, In Rainbows, originally titled 10 is supposed to act as a companion album to OK Computer which was originally titled 01 playing off of binary code. Continue reading →

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Shia Labeouf Gets Pummeled

18 Oct

I’ve been waiting for this since he was cast as the lead in Transformers (my favorite childhood cartoon and a movie franchise that I have avoided like the plague).  Finally, Shia Labeouf gets his ass kicked Continue reading →

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The Indie Canon

16 Oct

I’ve been meaning to do something similar to this for years now.  Essentially, I want to induct bands and/or specific albums into what I will call the Indie Canon:  those artists and albums that have already exhibited staying power and/or independent scene importance as well as the indie zeitgeist that will hang around if all goes well.  After all, a canon is Continue reading →

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Lil’ Buddha Cafe

16 Oct

274 Lark St
Albany, NY 12210

During a Bills game halftime a few weeks back, Joeboy (I’m sick of referring to him as joeb87) and I decided to take a stroll down to Lark Street.  We had both consumed more than two bowls of chili and thought we could use a drink.  Water would have been the best choice of course, but we decided on smoothies; cold milk and fruit on hot chili (guh).

The café itself is pretty tiny with Continue reading →

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Lagunitas IPA

16 Oct

American IPA

Rating: B+

On tap at City Beer Hall in Albany, NY.

Very clear dark amber in color with a ½ inch bubbly, off-white head.  Nose has piney hops, citrus and a bready malt back.  Initially, the taste is aggressive and bitter with the hops, though that is quickly balanced by caramel malt sweetness.  Light-medium body with mid-hi carbonation.  Creamy on the tongue with a clean, satisfying finish.  It has a great drinkability and although it really should not be a session beer with a 6.2% ABV, I have made it one on a number of occasions.  Not my favorite IPA (Smuttynose IPA), but I will definitely order this beer out again or bring a 6’er home to slam with a pizza.

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