Including me.

Zine blog, Duplex Planet: Way back in the 1990s, some of my favorite days were those when a package of zines arrived in the mail, sometimes with hand-written notes or personal ephemera from the publishers and editors. One of favorites of that era, Duplex Planet, arrived at my house in just such a way once, with some jotted words from David Greenberger, who was on my list of zine heroes. He is still, I suppose, as his zine’s allowed him access to something very rare: a real career, born purely from the zine. This essay on his Duplex Planet blog does a fine job of introducing you to his work, which is funny, poignant, even important.

YouTube video(s), “Star Trek“: Did you realize that the entire run of original “Star Trek” episodes is now available on YouTube. With, may I add?, limited commercial interruptions. I’m tempted, truly, to watch a show, or two, this weekend. In the mood for a laugh.

Bootlegs, Pavlov’s Dog: Went to the Record Show on Sunday, no particular piece of news, but I only bought one item. Namely, a bootleg DVD of three 1983 shows by Carver, Scorfina and Friends, or, a version of the splintered Pavlov’s Dog. Now, for many, this may not seem like a huge find, but as I’ve met and talked to many of the band members over the past two years, it was like finding a needle in a haystack; had never even heard them talk about this boot. If nothing else, it’s also got a wicked time capsule feel to it. Think about rock’n’roll fans in St. Louis in 1983. Picture them? Yeah, they look just like that!

Trend I, Facebook fatigue vs. Faceook need: For my mass comm class, there’s been no shortage of material to discuss on social networking, with almost every media outlet chiming in on Facebook fatigue, Facebook need or variants thereof. It’s a veritable cottage industry right now.

Trend II, voter apathy: Every time there’s an election that fires up the various bases, there’s certain to be another election just down the pike that reminds you that people really just can’t be bothered to spend 10-minutes in the encouragement of democracy. This past Tuesday, a whopping 14.3 of eligible City voters cast a ballot. One-in-seven eligible voters? Really? How ’bout that Obama Effect, eh? As a naturalized Amurrican, who came to this country on a boat, this really grates. (Admittedly, it was a really nice boat. But, still.)

Readings I, digital overloading: Have you caught yourself recently/simultaneously: watching a film from Netflix, texting on a recharging phone, ripping CDs into your laptop, all of them done somewhat absent-mindedly? Yeah, me too.

Readings II, graffiti: Thanks to a pal, for sending along a reading on sociologists studying urban graf. It’s an entertaining read, via the New York Times.

Foodstuff, Builder’s Bars: I’m a handy guy, as anyone who knows me could confirm. Why, just recently, I hung a small painting, using a hammer and nail! Upon completion of this task, I enjoyed a delicious Builder’s Bar. With this power-packed snack and some lengthy rest, I recovered from my chore, feeling even better than before.

Venue, City Art Supply: I’m really jazzed by the fact that another music venue I can walk to has come into existence. The feisty City Art Supply, run by pal Dana Smith, is booking an eclectic array of musicians now, including .e this Saturday, March 7 and Gringo Star on Sunday, March 22. Even if there’s not a live event, may I recommend a trip by this fine example of independent retail in the City of St. Louis?

Baseball player, Brian Barton: Truth be told, I lost interest in baseball at exactly the same time that the St. Louis Cardinals magazine stopped using me as a freelancer. By that point, my childhood love of the American pastime had really been all-but-sapped already, but meeting Major League players is the last thing you ever want to do if you enjoy the game. What a group of jackasses; no lie. Have to say I’ve found Brian Barton, the fringe Cardinals outfielder, to be cut from a different cloth. He’s studied rocket science, he’s got a great head of dreads and he just seems to march to the beat of a slightly different drummer. He might drive a Corvette, but he seems an otherwise cool cat, as evidenced by an interview in today’s STLtoday.com.

Christian radio, KXEN 1010: Why would anyone set their alarm clock to a station they enjoy listening to? It’s a recipe for keeping that eight-hour nap going, man. For me, there’s not better way to get hopping in the a.m. hours that to set the alarm to KXEN. The station’s got a mix of different voices in the morning, but all of them are looking for something: a little bit of cash for their church, a prayer from you (the listener) against abortion, homosexuals or the liberal media. Sometimes, there’s some financial planning mixed into the recipe, or some tongues being spoken. But the effect’s always the same. After a minute, or two, of some honey-voiced hypocrite quoting Corinthians and trying to get me to tithe, I am hitting that clock and on the way to a better day.

Freelancing, the Beacon: Ah, I’m back in the good graces of the Beacon and I couldn’t be happier. One piece up now and another coming this week. Thaaaaank goodness.

Video, “Hitten,” Those Dancing Days: Went into diabetic shock for the duration of the video, but it was worth it. I think.

As it’s already deep into the new month, there are certainly dozens of readers breathlessly anticipating the appearance of March’s 13, America’s first choice for Thomas Crone-endorsed things and thangs. Those folks will have to wait until Wednesday, or so, when spring break officially kicks in, save for the showing of a film on Thursday. ‘Til then, this elf slaves away in the toy factory with no (okay, little) chance to blog.

Since this blog is about pimping other blogging, let’s get to the meta…

Set up a blog for Mangia Italiano. That’s a bar and restaurant. On Grand. Maybe you know it.

Set up a blog for Natural Life Therapy Clinic, where I get pins stuck in me. Some of the content goes a bit above my head, even, but I’m happy to provide the service.

There’s some new stuff over at 52nd City.

Oh, yeah, soccer season is on.

This blog and 52nd City have also been added to the blogroll of a new blog, St. Louis Design Community Connections. We appreciate the links and wish that endeavor well, while encouraging folks in the design field to peek at that one presently.

My close associate Franklin Jennings, St. Louis’ favorite cyber imp, is also blogging now, on the topic of urban exploration in St. Louis. He’s already posted a half-dozen times.

This elf needs a class in monetizing all those fabulous, synergistic project ideas. Or, at least, one or two of them. Back to the workshop…

Cat walks into Mangia a few minutes back. Looks down the bar, with a certain glint in his eye. I attempt to hide behind my monitor. No luck.

“Hey, it’s the future Governer of Missouri!”

“Heh. Uh. Yeah, boy, that could be.”

“The future Governor.”

“Um. Not sure that…”

“You’re in a law school.”

“Oh, no. No, no.”

“I’ve talked to you before.”

“Well, I don’t know if that’s true. There’s this guy named Joe who sometimes get confused for me. Maybe it was him.”

“His dad a State Senator?”

“Hmm. No idea.”

“Maybe not a State Senator. But someone in the Statehouse. A State Rep? A State Representative!”

“Huh.”

“Wouldn’t you like to have one of those?”

“Well, yeah, I suppose I would.”

Possibly to-be-continued…

Get to DJ this Friday at the Royale.

Get to DJ this Sunday at the Halo Bar.

Get to DJ on Wednesday, April 8, at the same Halo Bar, post-Morrissey.

Life is good.

It’s always been true.

And now it’s been proven.

Sat about a dozen feet from this collegiate mascot last night and, let me tell you, it’s possibly the weirdest, most annoying thing I’ve ever come across. What “it” does in this video is what it does for the entire… freaking… game. Oh. Man.

Valentine’s Day, to my mind, brings three distinct reactions among Americans. To my reckoning, a small minority really do accept it as a legitimate day of loving expression towards their special someone. A much larger group simply maintains, allowing for the existence of the day, reacting to it with a half-hearted rose purchase from an online flower site, perhaps paired with a greeting card found at Walgreen’s that morning; even the most-cynical can appreciate that type of self-preservation/antipathy. And then there’s that vocal minority, shrieking about capitalism and insincerity and the like; boy, what an annoying group!

As (ahem) a committed member of the latter, I mused about doing a special “Love Songs” edition of the program Silver Tray this week. Admittedly, the show’s coming a day before Valentine’s Day, but it’s definitely within “holiday”-themed striking distance. And, sure, it’s a cliche, so shoot me.

Glancing quickly at the CD stacks in the house, I began grabbing discs at random. The first selection was “Braille” by the Detroit bliss-pop band Calliope. What a boon! Track two: “Love=Energy.” Score. And track nine?: “Love is Gonna Get You.” Bonus. After two CDs coming up love-free, New Order’s “Substance” (disc one) yielded the alt-rock classic “Bizarre Love Triangle.” Four discs, three songs.

Even before walking to the stacks, I could summon obvious contenders, such as The Cure’s “Lovesong.” Or, their “Friday, I’m In Love.” There’s Peter Murphy, with a “Strange Kind of Love.” Is the Silver Tray audience secretly wanting to hear a vinyl-version of “Love is a Battlefield”?

In a world full of Facebook games dedicated to matching songs to your life, there might even be an already-dated thread going around about this very topic. Even if not, programming this show is going to take about 10-minutes, tops.

Gag yourself on perfect pop confections this Friday at noon. They won’t break the show’s usual format, but they may give you cavities.

Late programming announcement: I’ll be filling in for Annie Z. on tonight’s edition of “International Pop Overthrow,” from 8-10 p.m. on KDHX 88.1 fm (kdhx.org). So, playing all the stuff I’m playing on Fridays, minus a bit of the classic rock. Done.

There was this period of time when I had a job, one of those jobs that required me to get up at a certain time and be somewhere. Early, no less. It’s weird to think back on those days, when the clock was such a part of my morning life. Alas. With freedom comes a cost. Let’s say the cost is tension. Instead of a check every-other-week, they come into my checking account in less-certain intervals. Makes me tense.

For conversation, let’s say I happen to catch a little bit of something jarring, like Suze Orman ranting on our local PBS station. It’s pledge drive and she’s raving – in that particular Suze Orman way of hers – that if I’m not banking some serious money TODAY, that my aged years are going to be sent in gutter, where I’ll be picking up pennies and cigarettes. A human buzzkill, that Suze Orman.

Well, I was watching Suze Orman at some point in December and decided that all my DJ monies for 2009 would be put in a savings account. So every every time I drop a needle on The Police, or slip in a Silversun Pickups disc, I’m not just playing music for an inattentive audience of half-drunk monkeys. Instead, I’m studiously constructing a personal, financial savings net. That is thinking, people.

Please support my efforts to be a less-broke elderly person TODAY, by visiting The Wedge, anytime after 9:30 p.m.. I’ll be in the DJ booth this evening, mixing up an appropriately-aggro set for the club’s interesting mix of punks, bikers, bicyclists, gadabouts and louts. It’ll be fun, I imagine. Including at pay time, when I pocket my lucre, with an eye towards the future and a lung-fulla nic. Join me.