Though the streets are swollen, rawhide.

Big news:

• Brian came and took my apartment for a virgin Brian cruise. I don't think my residence knows quite what to think of itself after that look.
  
• I am teaching in Region 5, which is located approximately meah, and will be attending Brooklyn College (Yeah, the site is kind of plastic, but so are a lot of good things) for my master's degree with the NYC Teaching Fellows!
• I am now the proud owner of a banjo. I know six chords, and played "Oh Susanna" for my parents this weekend! I need to work on switching from D7 to C chords. And playing the banjo. I'm not so good at that part of the banjo, yet. But I did give my banjo a name. It's Joanna. I'm not the type to really call a musical instrument a name...I think Guido is really the only inanimate object that has a real name...but it's a great instrument, and I'm happy to be self-learning it!
  
• I got Madame Butterfly on frickin RECORD. In original ITALIAN.
• I went to Boulder with my parents! I went rock climbing in Eldorado Canyon (no top roping or lead climbing or nothing, just bouldering, but MAN that place is beautiful. Check out some pictures!
  
• The sunset, as I got off the plane when I arrived.
• The area outside our hotel.
• Me climbing! My parents (One, two) were nice enough to exempt the ground from being seen, so I look a little more like Stallone. I think there's probably a negative space industry of upskirt porn in rock climbing photography. Eh?
• Me ma.
• On the way home. I like taking this picture, out the plane window at the wing.
• The road trip of the century will be taking place. I'm leaving from home on the 25th or 26th, leaving NYC with Mary and Gabe on the 27th, arriving in Florida on the 2nd or 1st for my grandma meemee's batmitzvah, picking up Jen M. in Georgia on the 3rd, and hitting NYC on the 5th or 6th. WHEW. Then I'm driving Jen to Boston the next day. Rock.
  

ELLIE, YOUR TOON IS COMING SOON I PROMISE.
I haven't written anything that feels new lately, you know? Maybe it's the focus on the banjo.

Questions from Orlum are on mah livejournal, but I didn't want to put them here, as they'd take up so much durn space. My user name is Catlard.

Courage based on previous expeditions.

I want to thank everyone in my family and varying social circles for a marvellous week! It has truly been an amazing few days...let me tell you about it:





ANNOUNCEMENTS:

• So I went to a mixer for NYC teaching fellows (Thanks, everybody, for your support thus far! I'm really excited). I met a lot of really impressive people that I'm glad to be working with. One woman just graduated from college after 28 years of taking a break and having a kid, and has been reading ever since. When I say she has read everything, I mean SHE HAS READ EVERYTHING. I named every little short story I had read in creative writing class and every obscure sci-fi novel I could think of, and she'd read it. Only problem is, she's married and about 40 years old. Truly, a sad day for post-graduate Simon.
  
• I have graduated! When they called my name, I did a cartwheel on stage before giving John Sexton a big bear hug. It was terriffic, although the speakers were not that impressive. My parents were proud of me, and I'm proud of me now. (Pictures below).
  
• I am melting down all my email addresses to form a new, monolithic email brand, one which shall be known as sgbraunstein@gmail.com. You can still email me at sgb220@nyu.edu and catlard@gmail.com, but it will just get forwarded and you'll get a hilarious vacation message. So don't even try it :) .
• Today Mary came over! We went running, baked cookies, and watched Time Bandits. She is a true blue friend, that gal.
  

VISUAL MEDIA:

• I have pictures from graduation! My whole family and I hung out (One, two, goofy three, four, Narcissius) in my grandparents' hotel room the morning of until it was time to journey down into the subway (I demanded that I take the subway to graduation, as I like to finish things the way I start them). Everyone was seated in an orderly fashion at Madison Garden(s?). Then, it was off to the races.
  
• I got a BEAUTIFUL watercolor painting from my grandma of me rock climbing, crash pad, cufflinks, 2 french shirts WITH fancy jammie bottoms, and a shopping spree at Target for my graduation day!
• Pantea and I had a crazy photo-shoot at Dojo just after I finished my last assignment for college. I think they express how I was feeling at the time too, but you be the judge. Since she wanted these pictures anyway, and they're a salad-bowl of fun for anyone who enjoys the galaxy of all things Pantea-related, here are the goods: One, two, three, four.
• Going further back in time, two nights before I finished all my work I attended a Corinne-concert! It was the awesome. Some other people played, but she was the best, as usual. She's definitely gotten a lot more funky since the old days. I have two videos of her there too, if she or anyone else wants them.
  

TEXT:

• Road design psychology: a world without traffic signals? I am aghast...finally, a reductionist view of modern transport.
  

FAMOUS PEOPLE:

• Turns out my room-mate is on IMDB. Yes, he is the man. Here's a nice picture of him. He said he was sad that they didn't put his appearance in Law and Order up on there, though. I could see that being annoying.
  
• Remember that diving I did the other day? Well the guy who taught me, George, is the man. But you didn't know that, did you?

Want what you
I got, Baby

What
do you know I?
askin'
little you come home
Hey when you get home
just a little bit mister

Do you wrong while you're gone
do you wrong cause
All I'm askin'
Is for a little
Yeah

I'm about to
give you
I'm askin' return
give me my
get home baby
When you get home

your kisses
Sweeter than
guess

All you do
give it to
me

Find out
it means me
R-E-S-P-E-C-T.

MUSIC: Waste (Smash Mouth).
MOOD: A new place.

T-minus 6 hours.

Call me a graduate at high noon today. I'll be comin' round the mountain when I come. Longer update with pictars about it all soon...here's a poem.

PINS AND NEEDLES

I scratch the head
and think, city streets:

A complex matrix
of bowling alleys.

I'm ashamed but
I'd roll right up to your door if you





I walked by a NYPD squad car today on the way home (at 3 AM), and looked at what they were doing on their official NYPD laptop crime database that all squad cars are equipped with. They were playing Spider Solitaire! I smiled and walked on.

George took me diving yesterday! I did a 15 foot back-flop and screamed curses under water, but came up laughing and feeling like I'd had the wind knocked out of me. It was a great moment to be human. I did do some preeeetty sweet dives, though.

Rowdy, wordy, dowry. Dating the up.

Howdy.

Guess WHAT.
Guess WHAT ELSE.

How I FEEL about all of it.

Oh, I'm graduating on the ninth. I have my LAST CLASS OF COLLEGE tomorrow.

The sequel to my favorite flash adventure game came out today. Yes, it's true. JOHNNY ROCKETFINGERS 2 is in the house. Yes, there are exploding pidgeons, drug dealers, and gigantic piles of pirate treasure. And crappy city apartments.

How I feel about homework: a poem I read at the Bowery Poetry Club yesterday. You should have been there! It was lots of fun. It's pretty happy with itself, this one.

DULLLLLLLCE DOZEN

I have been living twelve hour days!
In an emergency, I
sleep.
When things are good, I
click.

I bet you didn't know this, but
on an analog clock
the hands point to one number twice
twice one number in a day, it's a warning
from father time, that
It's a motherfuckin school night.
If it's 11 PM, you automatically have to think
Am I ready for 11 AM? It's quite ingenious. The army
must be confused. Heck,

in my world
if you've got something due at 3 PM
you sure as shit betta
be thinking about what you have due in twelve
little hours, or you should at least
be surfing the internet frantically, spasmodically
hoping for something all-consuming.

People tell me, look out
this bus ride takes six hours,
look out, you'll have to be in class
for four more today
I just look that shit in the eyes and say
HAH. I have
on bad days
sat in a chair and stared at the same, 18" screen
watching little figures in red overalls hit
head bricks and follow
strange fungi
across the map
That's called emulation, mother
fucker, that's called patience, that's called
staring at colored numbers
variables behind backdrops
and I have done it
at 12 AM, thinking about noon
until noon, and all I've got to show
is a save state.

In the last twelve hours
I have been dodging myself
to get this shit done
And see behind all these applications
to the unfinished essays
that will graduate me.

BSN Digs.

Hey hey hey my hip hop pocrates,

I've found me an apartment in Brooklyn, and I'm moving in on the 9th until the end of August, looks like. It's $750 a month for a 2 room deal (seperated by a wall, not a door) with a bay window overlooking a garden, a closet, and a shared bathroom/kitchen. My area is about 10 x 20 ft or so. The walls will be white, because I think I'm going to do some painting. It's the 2nd floor of a brownstone on 232 Midwood St, just west of Prospect Park, 5 minutes from the Q and 4 stops from 14th St. Union Square. Here are two pictures! I'm probably going to put my bed in the back area, near that mirror in the second picture...and turn the window area into a zen/tea area with a table, if I can find one. What do you think?









I'll be rooming with Ian, a man of distinguished taste in baking and elephant jokes. He's an actor, works in a restaurant called Peasant on the Lower East Side, and is attending the Harvard School of Ed in September. Quite the nice dude, if I do say so myself.

That's the flash of news! I'm off now to do my final graduation things. My homework, I mean.