Due to the recent inundation of band adds, I think I need to make some changes.  Not a day goes by where I receive approximately five band adds and I am sick of it.  I realize that MySpace allows users to block bands adds, which sounds enticing.  However, I worry that I will miss out on a good band if I completely block out that option.  I learned about some great garage and surf acts thanks to MySpace.

I just don't understand why metal, goth, country, industrial, electronica, etc. bands even try to solicit me.  What about my profile makes you believe that I would even consider adding bands whose main influences include Slipknot and Tool?

If this situation does not alleviate, I will have no choice but to just turn off the band feature, which frustrates me because I may miss out on some good bands. 

On that note, I will probably remove several bands from my friend's list that I do not really care for.  I already axed several bands.  Sorry but that's the breaks!

So, I will now be a lot more strict about addings bands.  I don't want this to deter bands and I encourage 60's/garage/surf bands to continue adding me. 

METAL, COUNTRY, EMO, INDIE ROCK, GOTHIC, ELECTRONICA, ETC. NEED NOT APPLY!

On Sunday, I woke up early and jumped on the 9:05 AM Amtrak train to Sacramento. When I arrived at 11:00 AM, Lindsay graciously picked me up. We first stopped at her very lovely brick house complete with built-in tiki bar and huge backyard. Did I mention Alex's amazing collection of rare guitars? I am still drooling over the Harvey Thomas triple-neck guitar! Afterward, we went thrift shopping and I bought a Gig cat painting for $2.99 and two 50's-60's gold knick knack frames.

After our moderately successful venture, we then picked up Michelle and ate a delicious lunch at the Hukalai, my new favorite restaurant in Sacramento (move over Zelda's!). This place totally reminds me of Island's, a Hawaiian/surf/tiki-inspired chain restaurant in Southern California. I ordered a veggie burger with barbeque sauce, fried Maui onions, and cheddar cheese. For dessert, I splurged on a huge mud pie!

After lunch, we spent several hours at the Ikon Story compilation release party at the Press Room. Most of the people in attendance were actual band members from the 60's! They all looked so proud as they perused the liner notes and checked the 60's photographs. For example, the bassist of the Marauders pointed out his picture on the cover of the album.  Another guy brought a 60's scrapbook containing articles and photos from his band. I wish I had the courage to talk to these people but alas, I am too shy. Later in the afternoon, Th' Losin' Streaks performed Ikon tracks and sounded good. I also got the chance to meet Jason, a friend from the BLR list and MySpace. What a swell guy! He let me borrow money for the comp, which is amazing!  It is a double disc package and contains 60 tracks.  The double LP version is available via Crypt.  At 5:00 PM, I had to leave in order to catch my 5:40 PM train ride back to Emeryville. I want to offer a wholehearted thanks to Lindsay and Alex who transported me throughout town. I had a great time! I also enjoyed riding the train because it offered me a chance to relax. Plus, I had the chance to catch up on reading my "Entertainment Weekly" magazines. Unfortunately, it costs $34.00 for a roundtrip ticket, which includes the AAA discount; however, it was worth it to see my friends and partake in the festivities.

I don't mind adding unfamilar people and meeting new friends.  However, if you are a racist, please do not even bother trying to add me as a friend.  I have discovered that a few people on my friend's list wrote derogatory comments about Hispanic people.  Moreover, they seem to glorify the the Nazi era of Germany. 

I did not know about their prejudiced attidudes when these people befriended me.  So, if you are reading this and wondering why you have been kicked off my list, it is because I am Jewish and will not support your racist ideology.  I realize that everyone is entitled to freedom of speech and what you post on your own profile is your own business.  However, I do not want to be associated with people who harbor such vile and negative view points.  My father survived the Auschwitz death camp and was released 60 years ago.  His parents were killed in the gas chamber.   I live in the Bay Area, where most of my friends come from diverse backgrounds, which runs the gamut from Native American to Chinese American. 

I am a generally silly person and love to trade pictures of cool 60's images.  It simply disgusts me to discover that people post pictures of the Nazi flag.  I don't want to have anything to do with this.  WHAT THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH YOU?

On Saturday night at 3:35 AM, a loud rumble and vigorous shaking jolted me out of my twilight state. Buster and I jumped upright and attempted to comprehend the situation. Did a tree fall? Did we hear thunder? No, we definitely experienced an earthquake. I stared at my lava lamps and toy shelf but fortunately no objects fell. Brett and I soon discovered that a 3.4 earthquake situated in Piedmont, one block from my home, struck the Bay Area. I have sneaking suspicion that our apartment building sits directly on the Hayward fault. The earthquake felt more like a 4.0 due to the loud noise and excessive movement. That freaked me out and I could not fall asleep for another hour. Buster fled under the bed and continues to remain in hiding except during meal times.

In hindsight, Buster exhibited unusual behavior two hours prior to the quake. I always hear theories about animals' capacity for predicting earthquakes and now I think I believe it! While trying to watch "Ordinary Miracles", a knock-off Lifetime movie on the Hallmark Channel, Buster ran around my room and refused to calm down. He sometimes behaves in an unruly fashion at midnight, so I disregarded his manic episode. However, he bolted under the bed and refused to resurface. His reticence struck me as very odd since Buster never sleeps under the bed. At 3:00 AM, I bribed him with wet food and he reemerged from his hiding spot. He obviously sensed some vibrations in the ground and prepared himself. Interestingly, I later discovered that another earthquake struck Fairfield (45 minutes east) two hours earlier at 1:40 AM. Perhaps he felt that earthquake due to his heightened sensitivity.

Despite all my recent stressors, I still managed to sneak in some fun this weekend. On Friday night, I met Michelle at the Hemlock for a Dollar Records showcase/SLA record release party. Nagg, the Flakes, and SLA performed and all sounded good. The Flakes covered "Love" by the Live Wires, which knocked my socks off!

On Saturday, I met Ami and Eric for breakfast at Merritt's. After eating pancakes and cake, we walked around the entire perimeter of Lake Merritt. The weather was beautiful! In all the years that I lived in the Bay Area, I never visited the lake. I never knew about about the bird and duck reserve! After burning a lot of calories, I went home, napped, and read my book. We agreed to cancel our "Riot On Sunset Strip" movie plans due to exhaustion.

is a very good day! I picked Gumby and Felix the Cat DVDs at WALGREEN'S for $1.99 each. Plus, tonight I'm going to see SLA and The Flakes. Hurray for Friday!

Tonight at the Ivy Room with the Del Lames!

You guys like me! You guys really really like me! Thanks for making my first week on MySpace so great. I ♥ you all! xoxo The Blast-Off-Girl