TURKEY LUNCHMEAT, AT LEAST

Happy Thanksgiving to anyone checking in.

I almost hopped a plane to Reno, and then rented a rig to get me to Mammoth to see Rose, Bridges, Chief and Kass, but, folded at the last second. Too far, too quick, too much loot.

I spent the day cleaning the house, getting caught up on bills and tuning up freelance projects. Big fun, eh? Quite honestly, another shitty Thanksgiving for the books. Wish I was home at the parents. That would be the best.

Lots to be thankful for, every day.

Health, family, a good day gig, loot in the bank, a home on the horizon, freelance sweat, a big couch, cool weather, rain, a tuned guitar, warm bed, soft comforter, hot showers, cold drinking water, stocked fridge, good net connection, stack of discs, clean laundry, paid bills, clean thinking….

Highlight of the day was talking to mom and dad. Always uplifting. Always.

I plan on flying home in January or so, for a little vay-cay back at the ranch. Also, a NYC adventure is in the planning stages, with hopes of a big ol’ JetBlue flight outta Seattle to get me there. So cheap, so nice. So I hear.

CINCO is at “Defcon Apeshit.” Busy, with a final push toward the Christmas Holidaze. Busy motherfuckers. Always busy. Always apeshit. Good times.

LONG, LONG WEEK

Long week behind me. Almost. CINCO is busy as fuck, all the time. Never ends.

Saw an amazing house this morning. Fingers are crossed.

Might cruise down to Reno and on to Mammoth for Thanksgiving. 700 miles is a long way to reflect on how much I've got to be thankful for. Each way. Rose, Chief, Bridges, Michaylira and Kass will be there...maybe do some riding, do some chowing, knock around in the snow, etc. We'll see if Big S is up for the journey.

SUNDAY AFTERNOON

It's raining out...the sound of car tires sizzling up and down Hawthorne are in the distance. Love that rain.

Where does the time go? Seems like it was just a week ago, with jitters concerning flying down to SoCal in our head, worrying about the upcoming week.

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The trip to see the Nixon people was good. Hectic, but good. Flying down for "business" is an odd concept. Lots of miles and lots of talking. It was good to see the Nixon Art Dept. crew. Good fuckers. Hilton is a king, and that's the goddamn truth. A brother. Matt “Brass Balls” Capozzi is settling in just fine. That East Coaster son-of-a-bitch is gonna slay that beach. He's a man of details, and that's perfect for what's going down with Nixon product. Much luck to him and Leigh.

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Been helping the Grenerds out with their clothing line. A new way of thinking for the DDC. Pretty fun stuff. Cuts, pockets, designs. t's been hard to focus, with house hunting duties, girl drama and the like.

Things happen for so many reasons, and sometimes the shit is just out of yer hands. Melissa threw in the towel. Sad stuff, but, we can't really do much about it, or devote too much time to any sort of contingency plan. Oh well. One hurting heart.

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Tommie Tucker and I did a little home tour yesterday. Saw a good five houses in a couple hours of cruising around. Did a couple impromptu walk thrus, that, well, were pretty intense. One joint owned by a little old lady was one part sad, one part scary. Amazing how people's little lives factor out. What they hold onto, what is important to them...and where they will go once they sell the place. Reminded me of my Gramma Josie's old house. All that stuff...her life in a million boxes. The smell…the history. Your are buying this empty house, but it’s filled with so much. You can feel it.

I’ve got a good idea of what I’m looking for, price wise and layout wise. It’s gotta have a little bit of character and it’s gotta look like a “Portland house.”

Stay tuned. Shit is getting focused.

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2002 DDC O-A-M card sets are for sale. Mass solitations will follow.

FRIDAY UPDATE

Moving right along in the house process. A step away from getting “approved” which will mean we’ll be a lethal force to be reckoned with, that is, if that “perfect house” comes into our sights. We'll be waving the loot papers high in the air. This weekend will be very busy with house hunting and freelance endeavors.

Very excited with all this house gettin' hub-bub. Big steps. Big loot. Big loans. Big sweat. But, how's a motherfucker supposed to get ahead, and, get a REAL roof over their head? By my estimates–and we pencil it in high and big in our calculations–we've funded many a ruthless landlord over the years since we left the nest. We've done our part, and now, it's time to invest into oursleves and into something that (hopefully) will appreciate a bit. Fingers are crossed. Pedals will be pushed down to the metal as we cruise across town checking out joints.

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I’m heading down to Oceanside, California on Monday morning. Big Nixon meetings are taking place for all the associated teams. I’ll be teaming up with CINCO Kirk to go over CINCO’s existing and future projects. Back to the beach. Yikes. Surf’s up, bro. Uh, right.

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Also, the 2002 DDC Once-A-Month card sets are ready to ship. Going fast. 12 reasons to keep on living. Thick ink on durable paper. Hand cut. Really. Solicitation will follow.

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Suddenly, it is all clear. Years and years of wondering. Link graciously provided by Nakamoto.

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Wow. Too much too look at. The Watthour Meter page. Great type. Via Coudal.

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FALL 2003 DISCLIST:

01. PW Long –Remembered
02. Bottle Rockets – Blue Sky
03. Paul Westerberg - Come Feel Me Tremble
04. Twilight Singers – Blackberry Belle
05. Grandpaboy – Dead Man Shake
06. Shins – Chutes Too Narrow
07. Band of Blacky Ranchette
08. Josh Rouse – 1972
09. Guided By Voices – Earthquake Glue
10. Further – Golden Grimes
11. Belle & Sebastian Discography (It’s Fall…)
12. Bo Diddley – Diddley’s Greatesr Hits
13. Cobra Verde – Easy Listening
14. Jay Farrar – Terroir Blues
15. My Morning Jacket – It Still Moves
16. Drive By Truckers – Decoration Day
17. Richmond Fontaine – Post to Wire (****)
18. Magnolia Electric Company
19. Decemberists – Castaways and Cutouts
20. Grand Champeen – The One That Brought You
21. Sun Kil Moon – Ghosts of the Great Highway
22. Wrath of the Oh-Kye – Various Squawking Pterodactyls

HOUSE HUNTERS

Spent Saturday tooling around town. Gonna buy myself a house. Just me. No help from tycoon grandparents or a sugar mama or the state lotto. Nope. Just me. Hard-earned shit. All from graphic design! Anyhoo, much pride is felt as these feet step out in search of a plot of land of our own. Scary, but exciting.

Lots to choose from. Fixer-uppers, shitholes, prefabs, townhomes, condos, cutsie little single family joints, etc. My price range should allow for soemthing good. My hope is to have an office to set up my desk, keeping design/art separate from where one might eat a meal or watch some tube. I'd like that office to have a door too. A yard sounds okay, but isn't high on the list. No shrubs. Portland is a breeding ground for mass foliage. Not for me. I'd keep things clean and tidy. Just grass.

Much hope is felt on the DDC Factory Floor.