Adrian Belew's Life In A Nutshell



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it is a long story that i have posted tons about at my STRINGIER THAN THE TRUTH blog over at Blogger, but this weekend's events (getting a photo gig at the Adrian Belew concert in Santa Cruz may be the jump start to a whole new direction in my life.  the photo gallery below is some of the work that i shot Saturday night at The Catalyst.  to see all of the pics go to FLICKR and look at the DARYLDARKO sets.

well, there was no question about whether i would vote or not as i've voted in every election i've been present in the U.S.A. for since i was 18 when i voted to elect Jimmy Carter for president.  and today, no secret, i voted straight democrat across the board.

it's been a good week.  i've adjusted the meds back some and am feeling some slight manic energy.  didn't go to sleep till 3:30 am this morning, then was up at 10:30.  thought about maybe taking a nap this afternoon but now thinking not.  there should be some rain tonight, i hope, to quell the energy of this last full moon.

check out my pics page.  there are some new images that were modified using a morph program that blends painting styles of El Greco, Mongliani, and Botticelli.  a little frightening, but very austere i feel.  somewhat reveals an inner character i've not really known that i've had before.  something to use to help trigger my fiction maybe.

oh, and i've been dreaming the past 2 nights, pretty ferociously.  two nights ago an old high school friend, Mark Oliver appeared.  came back from travels (as he has done many time in my life) and picked me up in his car.  we were driving around looking for something to do.  i've lost touch with Mark in my real life.  he lives in Australia with his wife and two children, but i t has been over a year since i've last heard from him.

the dream i had this morning though, a little more poignant.  one of the best male friends i've had in my life, Don Eike, who died from AIDS nearly 10 years ago appeared.  just the other night when i was in the cemetery it struck me that HE is someone that i should try to make spiritual contact with, ala the work i do in the cemetery with talking to the dead.  and it doubly struck me as weird that i had never thought of doing that before.  then voila!  he comes to my dream this morning.

the dream also had my Santa Cruz friend, Kim in it.  the three of us were in an apartment building trying to get ready to go out for the evening - we were going to attend a concert or play (or something).  Kim was very mellow and orderly, taking her time, but suddenly Don started to freak out and told me that we had to hurry, that time was running out and he started to chase me.

somehow ended up in a car and drove to a place in the country where it doubly looked like either a small city had been devastated by war, or, a brand new community was being built up.  overlaying images?  i'm not sure.  the scenery was brown, or sepia-like... which just made me think it was California in the summertime with our brown hillsides.  and it also made me think of the Dougherty Valley subdivision here near San Ramon where there is so much new construction going on where once there were only rolling hills...

then the dream faded out...

otherwise, Nanowrimo is going well.  i've written approximately 1,500 words a day since the first.  gosh, didn't mean to say so much...

Just a very quick blog entry for you all.  After library class last night I by chance started to talk to one of my classmates and somehow the keyword "cherry trees" led us to discover that we grew up in the same city, went to the same elementary and junior high schools and knew a ton of the same people.  And as soon as she said what her first name was I knew exactly who she was, Elena Sotello. Anyway, she is still in contact with many old classmates, or knows how to find them.  I asked her about Corky Flores and I told her about the people that I had found.  We are talking about making a coffee date with everyone.  Found out too, that sadly, a person that I remember being quite friendly with since at least fourth grade, Jimmy Freeman died last year from complications related to gout.  His blood got poisoned and died within eleven hours of being admitted to the hospital.  Small, small world.  I've been sitting about four seats away from Elena in class since September and never knew that it was her. 

Beyond that magic has happened in my coffee shop.  I've earned the notoriety of being an interesting enough face, and regular enough customer that ~almost~ anytime I come in they give me free coffee.  Plus refills through the night!  See, I have my way.  I'm an interesting looking character, I always sit in the same seat, they know I am writing a novel, and well, the hours I come during no one just comes here and sits for hours on end.  There are nights I'm here when there is no one else here at all.  And it being a Starbuttz they have to stay open corporate hours.

I'm doing Nanowrimo, yes it's true.  Today is day three and I haven't started on today's word count yet.  To make the 50,000 words by November 30^th one has to write 1,666 words a day.  I'm up to 2,051 as of last night.  Didn't have enough time to make the mark yesterday because of school.  But today I'm shooting for 2500 words and will try to make so many again both Saturday and Sunday.  I am an anti-social Nano.  There have been several Nano get togethers here in the Bay Area so far and I have not gone to any.  I've never gone to any during any of the other years I participated in either.  This is a deeply philosophical dilemma for me.  Writing is a sole process, not a group process.  I'm not so much a Nano, as a writing using the gimmick of Nano as a tool for inspiration to just get me to sit down and write.  Really, that is all that it comes down to for me.  I mean, god knows I could use some socialization and (new) friends… speaking of which, I made an effort to make a new friend last weekend…  And I've also set up a MySpace page.  Check it out if you want.  

The only other thing worth mentioning is meds related (possibly).  I got a clean bill of health report from my liver tests.  The Cymbalta is not affecting it in any ill manner, TG.  But I am having this terrible, terrible problem with muscle cramps.  Doc checked my potassium and magnesium levels, all is well there.  But I wake up in the middle of the night with cramps in my legs, and now they are spreading to other areas.  Right now I have a cramp forming in my mid back below my left shoulder.  My diet is NOT good right now.  Many days I only eat one thing.  I don't think I drink enough water (or anything else…) I just don't carry an awareness of my self that warrants doing anything different/better.  I am never hungry in the morning.  I usually don't get hungry till dinner time and then I'll just get a big burrito at Chipotle.  Doc said to start eating bananas, which I'm doing more of.  It all comes down to that I just can't afford to buy more food to eat, and so I have adapted to not eating so much.  I hope the cramps will stop cause they are effed up.

Oh, and tomorrow is my son Billy's 24^th birthday.  Well, it is already tomorrow in Ireland, but he was born in California on November 4^th.  He is more or less exactly half my age now.  24/48.  I was 24 when he was born.  Sounds auspicious, doesn't it?

read my blogs at STRINGIER THAN THE TRUTH & DARK, DARKER, DARYL DARKO.  thank you!