Bloggers often retreat to their computers after their day to recount the goings-on to potential readers. Now that I think about it people in generel love telling the various events of their day to people, usually me. This retelling of the day's events is always something I mock, on blogs or otherwise. That's because I don't care about most people, and even for the people I do care about the minutia of their existence does not interest me. Anyways, I have never just done a simple list of events in my life, because I don't want to inflict the same sense of 'who gives a fuck' onto the world at large as every other person alive seem determined to do. This will change.

The volume of interesting events over the past few days has forced me to actually list the events on my blog. To avoid discomfort and bordem that you're already drowning in I'll try and write it with only the most notable points.

My ridiculously boring life came to abrupt halt last friday. After studying up and taking my french midterm in the morning Sadaf and the various characters that seem to follow her around picked me up (it was really only her sister, but others joined later). So on we went to Street Scene, heretofore the parkinglotscene. They pained their way through hours of traffic, but we still managed to get their relatively early. I didn't see any of Autolux, but worse things have happened.

After meandering around for at least an hour, and that is about how long it would take to get from one side of the venue to other and back again, we settled down to watch Hot Hot Heat. We didn't get to close to the stage, which I didn't mind at all because I didn't want to have to compete for oxygen with 13 year old girls while listening to music I didn't like. But listening to music from the back has its upsides. I would continuously peak around looking for people who were singing along. At one point I was way too immersed in my search for weird people in the crowd when three guys rudely bump me in the back trying to get past us. My indignation was quickly erased as I looked at the big mexican guy trying to get past me. He was wearing a black wife beater and looking like the kind of guy who would beat his wife, but he was also passionately singing along to some super-poppy Hot Hot Heat song that only he's listened too. It was a great moment. Definitely the best people watching moment.

After that set ended we get pretty close to the stage as Hot Hot Heat fans retreated. Louis XIV played a good set. They seem very ACDC now that I've seen them live. But they only have one decent song. Oh yeaaah, they're not attractive. Especially the front man. He's a young Ozzy. After Louis XIV we tried to watch Black Eyed Peas, but, to the dismay of everyone, they didn't show up on time. Supposedly traffic held them up for 40 minutes. Not like I care. I'd prefer their set to be as short as possible, and it meant less time having to look at Fergi's wet crotch. I'll let you make your own guesses while keeping my guesses to myself.

After another SUPER-LOOONG set change the White Stripes came on. I pretty sure they were stuck in traffic too. Anyway, their set started off fast and I'm positive Jack White was very drunk early on. But all their songs were great. Towards the end of the Jack played the xylophone during one of their songs. It was amazing. A great song to see their range. After one of those PDA-like pauses the pair came back on stage and actually stopped the world with "Seven Nation Army." An unbelievable show but clearly second place.

Saturday was a lot more fun and exciting. Sadaf's fun bus was now filled with little co-workers and sal. We got to the stadium in time to see almost all of the Spoon set. Despite shitty reviews from everyone else alive I thought they played well. They were followed by Death Cab who played a equally good and equally ill-received set. I think they are great bands, particularly Spoon, but the crowd was not getting it. Probably because it was still so hot and there was so much great stuff later in the night. No point to get sweaty this early, right.

There was a 2 hour gap when no one at all interesting played, so, in between wandering randomly and people watching Sal and I took one of those cheap Carnival rides. This little flying coffin spun us up and up and over and over again. It was sorta fun while on the ride, but after the ride I greatly regretted the decision because I couldn't walk that well afterwards. Finally having recovered Sal, Medina and I (what a group) surged towards the stage as teh Dashboard fans were clearing out. We got decent places to see Flaming Lips. After 30 minutes of trying not to die they finally came on. The next 2.5 hours were definitely the greatest of my life.

The Flaming Lips absolutely owned Street Scene. He got in the ball after a fervent warning not to drop him, unfortunately we didn't get to carry him. The whole introduction that followed was visually nuts. So many things going on so many different places that I didn't know what to do with myself. I thought they had busted out too many tricks too early, but I was wrong. They followed it up with a cover of Bohemian Rhapsody (one of the greats). It was fantastic. The energy during that song was higher than I've ever felt. After tons of great, crowd-raising songs and a great appeal for political intelligence and passion (a critique on the War and its administration). They finally finished. I was pretty sure my life was over, because I was about as happy as I'd ever been. But they Pixies were still left. They too rocked beyond all possible conception. I didn't have nearly enough energy to really bounce with the music, but I enjoyed it immensely anyway.

It was a great experience. It did cost me a lot of money, way more than I expected, but it was definitely worth it. Flaming Lips followed by the Pixies: those two alone were worth the two day pass and parking passes. The best non-musical part was my fellow music listener. The weird shapes and sizes, the weirder styles and personalities they posess made having to hear their voices worth it. It was a funny thing standing a 6 sq inches of space next to thousands of people trying to figure who smells like alcohol and what kind, who smells like weed and what kind, who smells like drugs and what kind and who just smells. Even better than that is looking at the totally apathetic punk kid who can't stand the number of adults that he's forced to tolerate. There are also the fasionable post-punk kids that haven't decided which is cooler, them or their clothes. Then there were the people who had no business being there. The guy that wears the pink, metro shirt. The dad with uggs. But maybe they enjoyed it as much as I did, and if so they definitely deserved to be there. I love people.

***

Saturday night's concert was followed by an early morning Sunday trying to make it to Los Angeles for orientation on Monday. I made it to Monica's place, two hours late but whatever, and spend a fun afternoon talking to Monica and Kristie. Orientation the next day went fairly smoothly if you consider how things turned out in the end, but by the time I got home at 12am today I was exhausted. At least I've got my classes, and at least I'm done typing.