Get to know your fellow board members....

[buddy]

tom,

what do you know now that you wish you'd known when you were younger?

[buddy]

and, if you believe man/woman cannot possess all knowledge, not to say you believe that, but what is the most important aspect to take away from life if that is in fact true? if you haven't answered that in some way already.

and a lighthearted one, who's your favorite beatle, and consequently favorite solo album of theirs?

[Mugwog]

Is there any food that you love to eat, but due to consequences of consuming it (upset stomach, heartburn, etc) you must always avoid it?


Which of the "Critters" movies was your favorite installment?

[koryp]

Please rank the Dr Suess books for us.

[Cheddar's Cousin]

Tom, why won't you let me fight cyborgs?

[ivankay]

Desert Island Stuff

You know the deal. You are going to be stuck on a desert island and you can only have a limited amount of stuff. Feel free to chime in with why.

What are your?:

5 cd/lps/box sets/whatever is the collected form of music

5 films

5 tv shows

5 books

3 live bands

3 restaurants

3 beverages

1 sport season

i'll not be greedy and leave it at that.

[TomAz]

What would your last meal be?

well, it's not so much what it would be but how it was prepared. I mean I like meat and chicken and fish all about equally. But what makes a meal great is that it be made by skilled hands working with the freshest possible ingredients. Something like described in this article: http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/htm...6_taste30.html

[TomAz]

tom,

what do you know now that you wish you'd known when you were younger?

Everything. I sure wasted a lot of time and energy worrying about shit I really didn't need to worry about.

and, if you believe man/woman cannot possess all knowledge, not to say you believe that, but what is the most important aspect to take away from life if that is in fact true? if you haven't answered that in some way already.

and a lighthearted one, who's your favorite beatle, and consequently favorite solo album of theirs?

I don't understand the premise in the first question. I mean, of course, no one woman or man can possess all knowledge. How does that bear on what we take away from life?

and:



It's not even close, really, is it?

[TomAz]

Is there any food that you love to eat, but due to consequences of consuming it (upset stomach, heartburn, etc) you must always avoid it?


Which of the "Critters" movies was your favorite installment?

I love pepperoncini but they almost always make me regret it later.

I have never seen a Critters movie.

[TomAz]

Please rank the Dr Suess books for us.

1. The Cat in the Hat
2. Green Eggs and Ham
3. The Cat in the Hat Comes Back
4. One Fish Two Fish Red Fish Blue Fish
5. Dr Seuss' ABC
6. Horton Hears a Who
7. How the Grinch Stole Christmas
8. Oh the Places You'll Go
9. Hop on Pop
10. The Lorax


Now, purists may decry my choice of 'Places' over 'Yertle the Turtle', but, you know, they can just stuff it. Yertle the Turtle was a fine story but a bit derivative of his earlier work; it lacked the same creativity. It was treading water. Plus that video of Seuss dancing around by himself wearing that bowler was just about unwatchable to me.

[TomAz]

Tom, why won't you let me fight cyborgs?

Many are called, but few are chosen.

[koryp]

You are bestowed one "superhuman power". What do you chose? Will you use it for
A) the good of all
B) diabolical plans
C) these outmoded moralities no longer apply to me. I'm superTom bitchez!

[J~$$$$]

What was life like before the internet?

[TomAz]

Desert Island Stuff

You know the deal. You are going to be stuck on a desert island and you can only have a limited amount of stuff. Feel free to chime in with why.

What are your?:

5 cd/lps/box sets/whatever is the collected form of music

5 films

5 tv shows

5 books

3 live bands

3 restaurants

3 beverages

1 sport season

i'll not be greedy and leave it at that.

jesus Mike. A desert island with 3 restaurants, 3 live bands, TV and movies? That doesn't sound all that deserted to me.

So there's this whole theory that I've read that says in selecting your desert island albums you should not pick your favorites, but rather pick something complex and unusual and clever that you you will grow to understand over time. That that's a better way of occupying your time, and your mind, since, you know, you're stuck on the desert island. Pick Trout Mask Replica over Abbey Road, for example. I'm not going to strictly adhere to that approach, but I will let it inform my choices. so: 5 desert island albums, all of which I know I already like or love, but which I expect might reveal new things to me over time. And that represent a diversity in musical styles. In no particular order:

Daydream Nation
Rain Dogs
Another Green World
Amnesiac
John Wesley Harding

Films: Again I think I'd wanna go with a more challenging approach than 'my all time faves' but I don't know how to do that here. So fuck it.

The Godfather
The Godfather Part 2
Apocalypse Now
No Country for Old Men
I'm Not There

Clearly I didn't put a lot of thought into that.

TV Shows: do you mean reruns on DVD or current live shows? (how would that work?).

The NFL on CBS
The NFL on Fox
Monday Night Football
The NBA on TBS
ESPN MLB


Books: ugh Mike. Here I guess I'll just go with tough shit I have wanted to tackle but haven't.

Infinite Jest
Ulysses
Crime and Punishment
The Autobiography of Mark Twain (all volumes)
Being and Nothingness (wouldn't that make for great reading in isolation from all of humanity?)

Live Bands: can I time-transport?

The Who from about 1970
Talking Heads from about 1983
Radiohead from about 2003

Restaurants:

The French Laundry
Chez Panisse
Zarela

Beverages: does this include water? do I need to list water? or is there a supply of fresh water on the island? I'm going to assume that.

Diet Coke
Guinness Draught
some nice red wine that I wouldnt' normally drink. Chateau Petrus, say


Sports: do you mean I can time-transport one year from any sport and relive it over and over, or I choose one league? The latter is obvious (NFL) and I'd have to of course pick the 2008 season.

[J~$$$$]

What was the most disturbing thing that you have ever witnessed?

[TomAz]

You are bestowed one "superhuman power". What do you chose? Will you use it for
A) the good of all
B) diabolical plans
C) these outmoded moralities no longer apply to me. I'm superTom bitchez!

Mind control. you know, like jedi mind tricks, but even better. Seems like that would be a pretty powerful tool to use for some combination of Good and also selfish reasons.

[TomAz]

What was life like before the internet?

Music and porn were a lot more expensive.

[TomAz]

What was the most disturbing thing that you have ever witnessed?

rollover accident right out the window of my office. BAM BAM BOOM. saw the guy get thrown from his car, go flying up in the air and then come down and hit the pavement. Freeway speeds, I think they said he was over 70. He was also drunk. at 11 am.

I really don't deal well with blood and gore.

[ivankay]

Maybe i should have referred to it as Fantasy Desert Island. You did good Tom. For the tv shows you get all past, current and future ways of watching.

The Sports question was for one season. Live and/or tv viewing would be your choice, but you'd be watching ALONE.

[koryp]

You have chosen to make a career change. It's a chance to go after your life long dream in the entertainment industry and you know you will be a success. Just so all us insiders feel privileged when we talk to you and know something about you the general populous doesn't, what is your stripper stage name?

[TomAz]

Sierra Spankdream

[canexplain]

Tom, when did you first hear of Coachella and did you find this board via the Coachella site? cr****

[TomAz]

I read about Coachella in 2004 when I saw that Radiohead, Wilco, and the Flaming Lips were all playing. I'd never heard of it before that. Since those were probably my 3 favorite bands at the time, it was a no-brainer for me to go.. especially since it's relatively close.

And yes I found the message board via the Coachella website. (how else would I have found it?)

[canexplain]

I read about Coachella in 2004 when I saw that Radiohead, Wilco, and the Flaming Lips were all playing. I'd never heard of it before that. Since those were probably my 3 favorite bands at the time, it was a no-brainer for me to go.. especially since it's relatively close.

And yes I found the message board via the Coachella website. (how else would I have found it?)

Friends could have told you or google. Just asking .... cr****

[buddy]

I don't understand the premise in the first question. I mean, of course, no one woman or man can possess all knowledge. How does that bear on what we take away from life?

and:



It's not even close, really, is it?

i suppose i meant with the understanding that no man/woman can possess all knowledge, how should that person in turn adjust their lifestyle/thought process after this knowledge, if at all. but, you may have answered that in some form already, with stating a quality everyone should have. feel free to bypass this if you'd like.

and, yes it's not even close with that album. love All Things Must Pass, some McCartney albums, but the way Lennon lays himself bare on that album is honest, brilliant, and above all beautiful.

[TomAz]

i suppose i meant with the understanding that no man/woman can possess all knowledge, how should that person in turn adjust their lifestyle/thought process after this knowledge, if at all. but, you may have answered that in some form already, with stating a quality everyone should have. feel free to bypass this if you'd like.

Oh right yeah, got it now. This is an excellent question and gets at something pretty important I think. Mainstream media (and as a result society as a whole) loves to play the judgment game. Have a take and do not suck. Voted off the island. Simon Cowell. Not to mention anyone talking about politics, celebrity personal lives, sports, etc. Judging has replaced thinking in our society. (Or maybe it is just an illusion that thinking was ever an important part of mainstream life? I dunno). And I don't mean judging in terms of "I don't like this". I mean it in terms of "he shouldn't do this" or "she should just do that" or "these people need to be penalized/punished". Lots of should, shouldn't, and authority of the state.

As you point out such judgment is necessarily based on a limited data set -- usually, a very limited data set. We don't know all the facts, and we don't care, we're going to make our minds up anyway. Because having a take is what matters. Right? So why bother even making an effort to learn more of the facts? Why bother trying to see the alternative perspective, or even testing your own view?

In politics, this is neither a right wing nor a left wing phenomenon. It's not just Republicans and not just Democrats. It's equally Sarah Palin and Nancy Pelosi. Because a leader does not want to be perceived as indecisive or 'weak'. And in a democratic society that values snap judgments so highly, the politicians are just playing along. If we valued deep and careful thought, they'd play that game instead, but we don't so they don't.

I guess this is just a longwinded way to say: I think people would make better decisions if they recognized their limitations, if they recognized that they might be wrong, that there might be another perspective.

Unless they're talking about some shit band. Then they're just fucking wrong.

[buddy]

well put

[Hannahrain]

Do you think things should be pronounced the way they're technically supposed to be pronounced even when doing so makes you sound pretentious (croissant, Seuss, Van Gogh), or do you prefer to pronounce them in keeping with the dialects of those around you?

[Mr. Dylanja]

"Rack him!"

[TomAz]

You're trying to trap me with that 'should' aren't you.

I say: kwaw-SAWN (nasal n). but I have a hard time knowing how French words are supposed to be pronounced in English generally. I don't even think I know any other pronunciation of this word. "crescent"? no. EDIT: oh I guess it's cruh-SAHNT in american, where the 'uh' means a schwa.

I rhyme Seuss with goose, and I say Van Go.

I love this album, by the way: