live danceable ideas against work

the past week has been the story of live music and inspiring ideas and the ongoing dilemma of working in a capitalist society.

despite the commercial venue and uber-masculine crowd, seeing jello biafra with the melvins was a pretty awesome experience. they played a bunch of old dead kennedys songs and seeing him sing those songs that have been so important to me for the past ten years just made my life make more sense on some level. oh, and they did a wesley willis cover. i kid you not. it ruled.

the following night we had a lovely gathering at my house with food and live music and lots of great people. billed as the "gentle jamboree" it was a fun time for all including some friends that came from out of town for the occassion. that night i returned to pearl street with liz and pooja to see broken social scene play. they rocked the lion's ass. such a good day. and now i have an amazing new mix to listen to non-stop. things are good. :)

on tuesday i went with a couple co-workers to see author and activist jonathan kozol's devasting critque of the apartheid of the the american educational system. he is so passionate about this stuff. it inspired me more than chomsky or zinn the week before. his call for taking serious risks, shaking things up and truly acting out your convictions really struck a chord with me. after taking with kate and vina about how fucked up our work environment is these sentiments made me want to change things there. it was so important and refreshing to commiserate with my fellow workers about the cafe. i have just felt so isolated there and it's good to know that everyone else hates our boss and is dealing with similar stuff too.

last night i saw the glorious mountain goats rock northampton's iron horse hall. another powerful experience. that guy is just such an amazing songwriter. afterwards we biked around the dormant night city singing his songs before crashing the basement dance party. these are the times.

this weekend: salem, then new york. happy halloween!

but it's alright

things are closing in and i feel like there's more drama brewing right now than i have ever experienced before. i am becoming tangled up in the webs that i am weaving myself. but things are still pretty good. there's a lot of cool stuff happening here and it's keeping me going. just this month has seen: noam chomsky, howard zinn, jello biafra, the mountain goats, broken social scene, and others pass through this area.

and fun people visiting and walks through flooded pumpkin patches and farms and vineyards right in my back yard. and i'm excited about the potential for a radio show that i might do interview people from this community about following their passions in a capitalist society. and my bike is finally getting fixed. and halloween is soon. this is good.

7 weeks after the interview...

"Matt: thanks for taking the time to talk with us about the Online Organizer position at Free Press. After careful review of all of the applications for our Online Organizer position we have decided to re-advertise the position. We are seeking candidates with more directly relevant online community organizing work experience and, in particular, candidates who will help diversify our staff.

We wish you the best of luck in your search..."

---
so that's that.

it's more than money could ever buy

we write new birthdays songs to sing to our friends. this is the only present there is: the present.

browsing in a bookstore i learn that all that places i end up living in are considered "latte towns." coffeeshop class struggle every fucking morning. i am not new here, take your bread and leave. my grandmother asks when i will get a job, well, one that's not in a cafe. as if this is really what i want to be doing or that i am content with the wage/rent system that prevents so many of us from doing what we love to do. as if the reason that i don't like working at a cafe is because how it defines my status and how that reflects my family.

so & so he has a job
gets up at a certain time goes to a certain place
takes a lot of pride in his work
it's not what he would choose
just does it for the money...

would if we were all truly in control of our lives? would if we stopped following orders and started following our passions? let's fire our bosses and stop being spectators.

steal a pumpkin from a pumpkin patch.
make someone a mixtape.

may all the old ways die

another month has begun and i find myself, once again, in a new apartment for the fourth time since i moved here in june. this should be more long-term though seeing that the lease runs through may and i have my own room with a door and everything!

so that's good.

a new month presents new possibilites. this is desperately important for me since things have not going so well lately. i need a spark, a new inspiration to get me going again. i just started playing music with some friends so that will be really good. it's amazing how many times music has saved my life. from mixtapes to shows it has the ability to help me transcend the bullshit of everyday life.

as i'm washing dishes at work i have a song in my head that makes me think of you...