"An Adult Living Space"

"An Adult Living Space", originally uploaded by RumAli.

Mary With Refrigerator Full of Beer

Mary With Refrigerator Full of Beer, originally uploaded by RumAli.

I closed today. Mary was my second guest in the house. Mike, the seller, left me a ton a beer.

Women Holding Cups

Women Holding Cups, originally uploaded by RumAli.

Jes moved back to Minneapolis. Damn.

Messy Workspace

Messy Workspace, originally uploaded by RumAli.

I'm cleaning, slowly, this whole week leading up to my move next door.

Screening of Madden Mondays: Season 3

Screening of Madden Mondays: Season 3, originally uploaded by RumAli.

John and Joe are hosting monthly, informal film and video screenings at their gallery space, the Green Gallery. It's a really good micro-cinema, and last Tuesday, I screened my latest movie, "Madden Mondays: Season 3." I was a bit apprehensive because I felt I kind of edited the documentary for a specific audience, namely the people associated with Madden Mondays. The Green Gallery featured a decidedly art crowd.

But it was appreciated. Carl even said the video featured an "authentic milieu." No doubt!

Graffiti at Kilbourne Park

Graffiti at Kilbourne Park, originally uploaded by RumAli.

Two days after officially breaking off our "relationship", Mary and I went for a long midday bike ride that found us stopping at two different places in Milwaukee. Our first was by the lake, and our last was at Kilbourne Park where we ended up taking off our shirts and sunbathing by the public art. Nobody was around. It was here that I found this really great piece of graffiti.

Lalo

Lalo, originally uploaded by RumAli.

This is Nathaniel's dog. Nathaniel is somebody that my friend Eilis met on the Internet. Nathaniel seems really amazing! And his dog is the most mellow big-pawed dog I know, the exact same kind of dog that I would love to adopt.

The Batten Revue

The Batten Revue, originally uploaded by RumAli.

Steve and I performed yesterday as the Batten Revue. It was our third live performance, and our first with our new Alesis Micron. It's a good synth but I've really yet to explore its possibilities.

We played for about 30 minutes. People enjoyed it. I was buoyed by it. Happy Easter.

Gathering for Bill

Gathering for Bill, originally uploaded by RumAli.

Performance Night (4/8/06)

Performance Night (4/8/06), originally uploaded by RumAli.

I performed a non-musical piece for Performance Night for the first time. The performance was simple: I had to hold my breath for at least 99 seconds while The Police's "So Lonely" played over the speakers. I was nervous as I hadn't held my breath in front of an audience before. But, with the crowd egging me on, I DID IT!

"Death Of a Spanish Cloister"

"Death Of a Spanish Cloister", originally uploaded by RumAli.

So Mary and I patched things up this afternoon in a remarkable way which coincided with a real summer-like day. We sat outside in her backyard, on a bench, talked, among other things, of Box Elder Beetles, her palm, and my new house.

Lemon Power

Lemon Power, originally uploaded by RumAli.

Well yesterday was Madden Bowl IV at the Riverhorse. At half-time, I premiered the movie "Madden Mondays: Season 3" to a partisan audience. They were like high-school students, yelling and squealing with delight whenever one of their friends would be on screen. NUTS!

So yeah, the screening went really well, and Jeremy, the guy who runs Madden Mondays, said it exceeded all his expectations. As the filmmaker, there's plenty that I know I missed and wish I could've done differently, but ... it is what it is. I'm happy to complete something.

Next.

Shane's Recording Studio

Shane's Recording Studio, originally uploaded by RumAli.

At the Polish Falcon Bowl

At the Polish Falcon Bowl, originally uploaded by RumAli.

Lake Michigan

Lake Michigan, originally uploaded by RumAli.

Birthday Celebration @ At Random

Birthday Celebration @ At Random, originally uploaded by RumAli.

I went to At Random for maybe the second or third time in my life. This time, it was to celebrate Seth's birthday. Armed with lactaid ("milk is in your future"), I felt confident in indulging in a peanut butter flavored, alcoholic, ice cream drink.

I felt slightly bad that I didn't get Seth any birthday presents - although as I write this now - I realize there's something that I did buy a while ago that I thought he might like THAT I NEVER GAVE TO HIM!

I'm going to consider wrapping it up right now.

Bill In Front of the Tool Shed

Bill In Front of the Tool Shed, originally uploaded by RumAli.

And so the visit with Bill ended last night at a restaurant/bar up the street. In a table populated by a bunch of friends and colleagues from the University, I sat furthest away from my old pal, content to talk with others, content to see every him interacting with Sarah and Polina.

It's been such a long time since we had that conversation in some random party in Chicago about the nature of success. He was on one of his film tours, and I was still in school. Have things changed? I made the proclamation soon after that the nature of success didn't depend on being free from debt, or from being in relationship, or from renting.

Confederation Park

Confederation Park, originally uploaded by RumAli.

I went to see Bill Brown's latest film, The Other Side. After the question and answer session, we got to watch his film about Canada, Confederation Park.

The last time I viewed this movie was at home, with my - and here I'll say it on cyberspace to make it virtually real - "ex-girlfriend" Mary. I'm still stinging from the way the relationship is "transitioning." I put that stuff in quotes because things like break-ups, and maybe especially the way she likes to break-up, is never permanent. And I'm old enough to know that yes, sigh, relations change all the time.

Anyway, I was happy and relieved that they made time to screen Confederation Park. I wanted to replace my last viewing of this film with Mary with this viewing, sitting in front of two friends, Polina and Thidalpa. You see, it was a thing - not a big thing - to share this film, and by extension, my friendship with the filmmaker, with Mary. We watched it on my computer and she commented on the silly scene where Bill is skipping in front of beautifully slanted shack in the middle of nowhere. When that scene came on, it was difficult not to think of Mary and to not think of how much she would've enjoyed the activism on display in The Other Side, how much she would've enjoyed meeting a traveler like Bill Brown, the advice she would've given to him about his proposed bike ride across the states, and, it does not go without saying, how much we would've enjoyed making out in a theater.

But, alas. And alas, too, when I see this film again. Some associations just stick. Teenagers know this when they make mix tapes. And so, whenever I see Confederation Park, will I always think of Mary saying "There's that place again!" and more importantly, whenever I see The Other Side, will I always think of my desire for Mary, and her implicit rejection?