Get your full-size Curious George/Altoids wallpaper by clicking on the image. You know you want to.

It was just four days ago I was kvetching about the snow and wind and cold. Today it’s beautiful and sunny and I need to go shopping for a new Spring coat. I love how my moods are at the mercy of barometric pressures. I really do.

While the major labels bitch and moan about their dwindling sales and blame it all on file sharing, indie labels are prospering. Guess they didn’t figure that when they dropped their modest but consistent selling artists, they would go elsewhere and take their loyal fanbase with them. Chumps.

Mark has gone to see his immigration consultant to hand over all the paperwork he needed to complete for importing Lynette from Texas. I got to be a signatory witness to both his power of attorney AND his will. I get his PlayStation 2 if anything tragic should happen. I’m unclear if I get the games as well.

np – Luna / Close Cover Before Striking

I have been given a sizable ceramic Buddha for my workspace. He now sits on top my monitor, grinning beatifically. It’s quite jolly looking right now, but I give it good odds for becoming creepy in time and eventually, downright nightmarish. His belly-button is an innie. I don’t have my camera with me today, but I will take some pictures on Monday.

Mr Mailman brought me boxed musical happiness last night, in the form of my Columbia House order (yeah, I swore I quit the club after they botched my last order, but hey – buy 1 get 2 free. You can’t beat that with a stick). Welcome to the family Pavement’s Terror Twilight and Steve Earle’s Jerusalem and Sidetracks.

np – Pavement / Terror Twilight

On the walk to work this morning, I found myself a few paces behind a woman in 2-1/2″ stilettos trying to navigate the still icy and slushy sidewalks. She seemed to have only a casual relationship with her equilibrium and appeared ready to take a header at any moment. The sidewalks were narrowed to about only about 1-1/2 persons wide because of construction, and I didn’t want to try and pass her lest my tailwind upset her delicate sense of balance and tip her over. Lady, you’re carrying a tennis racquet – I’m sure you have some sneakers somewhere, you should use em. Those things just don’t look comfortable.

Pitchfork’s review of Summer Sun is, sadly, pretty accurate. A pleasant and pretty record, but ultimately a disappointment coming from a band that’s set such high standards in the past. That said, I am still sure that Yo La Tengo will still bring the noise live, as I will find out Monday.

The Pernice Brothers will be coming to Lee’s Palace on July 22. Or rather, Pernice Brother – singular. Bob Pernice doesn’t tour.

np – Broken Social Scene / You Forgot It In People

Chris Bachalo is, I think, my all-time favorite comic book artist. Since his first work on the Death: The High Cost Of Living miniseries, I’ve loved this guy’s stuff. Not quite enough to get into Shade The Changing Man way back when, but enough to be very happy whenever he was attached to a title or project I was interested in. His work graces the Ultimate War paperback I picked up tonight, and it just makes me happy. That’s all.

I also won the Hitsville USA : The Motown Singles 1959-71 box set off eBay. I’m very excited about this, not least of all because I got it cheap! I’m going through the tracklist on Amazon right now… Man, there’s so much good stuff on here. Can’t wait.

Check out the picture posted over at lonetreepoint, taken during the ‘liberation’ of Baghdad. I’d been waiting for a pic like this to surface for a while – it was really inevitable. Honestly, defeating Sadaam was the easy part. What America does next will be the real challenge.

ADDENDUM – The pic in question is now the full-size cover of today’s Star. So much for keeping it under wraps (pun intended). Have a look here. Funnily, it was yesterday morning I was thinking to myself, “when they take Baghdad, they couldn’t possibly be so dumb as to raise the American flag in the centre of the city. That’s what conquorers do”. Shows what I know.

np – Luna / Live

I have spent the last five hours trying to debug a page of code, the eventual solution to which warranted a good solid monkey head slapping. The one lesson that can be learned from this little experience? Computers don’t make mistakes. Stupid programmers do.

np – Love / The Best Of Love