The next few weeks are gonna be crazy (there’s a zine that needs finishing up, plus other business), so I figured that this might be a good time, my only time, to share some random pics from the past couple of months that have all fallen through the cracks for whatever reason. Like Old Snake taking a smoke break…
Hey, remember Hideo Kojima’s return to NYC, and how he brought with him UNIQLO’s Metal Gear 25th Anniversary line? Well here it is (or was)…
Shockingly, the design I really wanted, which I figured was a Japanese exclusive, was available! So of course I had to pick one up in my size…
Plus this one as well…
Also got another cardboard box design, this time in red (I still have the blue one, from Kojima’s first visit, but it’s either too big or too small to wear, I forget)…
Here’s a snapshot I took as I was going either to or fro a New York Asian Film Fest screening, near Japan Society, where there’s Japanese convenience stores that also rent movies. Hopefully Dog X Police will be shown next year…
Speaking of Japan, I always love hearing from my homie Hide, whom I became aquatinted with when gallivanting in his part of the world oh so many years ago…
Though let’s not forget my homie Adam. Who also has impeccable taste in music…
Speaking of best buds, here’s a pic of Raina with her dog Merlin at the dog friendly bar in Williamsburg we’d all hang out with, when she was here this summer…
And this is Murray, the latest edition to Rob & Michele’s household, whom I finally got to meet not too long ago…
Here we have the George Washington Bridge, all lit up and looking mighty pretty. I forget what the occasion was…
But I definitely remember when this other pic was taken, and why; was to commemorate five whole years of living in Washington Heights, the longest I’ve ever been anywhere in NYC. Can’t believe how I used to move literally once a year. There’s a reason why I’ve stuck around for so long; it’s simply awesome up here…
One primary reason why I love my neighborhood is all the wonderful cuisine that can be found…
Okay, the chicken party, whatever the hell that might be, I’ve never had. But I can definitely vouch for the burrito truck that can be found by the 1 train station, especially around 3am…
Sticking with food, here’s a favorite of mine: Menkui Tei’s curry ramen…
And here we have Takejiro Sendai miso ramen, a very limited engagement dish that was being serving at Mitsuwa, when they had a food fair happening the other weekend…
I always love stopping by the Japanese bookstore next door, to check out the magazine rack. They don’t stock as many game rags as they used to, which is fine, since I’m now more into Japanese men’s’ magazines…
Back to UNIQLO; I understand that there are now locations across the country. Hope they all have awesome displays, at least comparable to the ones we have here…
This was like the brightest subway train ever (it was one of those maintenance trains, but in the afternoon for some reason, which was super odd; super noisy too)…
A few weekend backs, I hung out with Colleen in Brooklyn, and we eventually found ourselves in Sunset Park, near where I used to live. There are a lot more cats living on my block now then back in the day…
The tattoo shop around the corner accepts Walkens…
A regular part of my job is attending press events, which often takes place in ritzy hotels. And most have the most garish, asinine, and flat out decor imaginable. Check out the crap that was hanging on the walls of this penthouse suite; the room easily costs $2,500-3,000 a single night, so it’s clear what takes place here normally…
Though the past few press junkets have been on a much grander scale, like Microsoft’s Windows 8 launch, in which they built an entire city that was dubbed Microtropolis, which you could walk around. Because nothing makes the experience of handling wannabe iPads better than pretending that you’re Godzilla…
That same week was the big unveil of Samsung’s Galaxy Note 2. And, I must admit, its drawing tools are pretty damn awesome…
Though the main event was the performance from Kanye West. Which I almost blew off; was way later in the evening, and I’m not the biggest fan of the guy. But Raina insisted that I stay, and I’m glad I did. He played his greatest hits, and some of them are undeniably catchy, plus the dude knows how to perform live…
This is what Halloween in my building looks like…
You know what makes Halloween extra special, here in NYC? Cable access of course…
I only got the chance to go to one party this year; my pal Dustin‘s Heavenly Halloween…
Unfortunately, I missed out on the punch (which I heard was to die for, literally), but at least I got to hear from the big guy himself…
I forget her name, but this girl’s Master Shake outfit was pretty fab…
The highlight of the evening was watching Dustin deal with this drunken douchenozzle who claimed to be God and who was hardly apologetic for all the PBR he spilled on the kitchen floor, practically on purpose…
This is from a Friday night, which was spent celebrating the long-awaited arrival of the Dr. Steve Brule DVD (which I had pre-ordered over a year ago, no joke) and Retro City Rampage…
And I took under the guise of Hurricane Sandy preparedness, though it was mostly a cheap way to show the word that I had in my possession advance press copies of Assassin’s Creed 3 and Halo 4…
Once I began to realize that the storm was actually serious business, I began forming an actual preparedness kit, mostly in anticipation of losing power…
Thankfully I was spared the worst, but as previously noted, ended up crashing at Joe and June‘s, due to lack of internet, plus we had actual Halloween plans coming up anyway and figured we may as well pre-party. Unfortunately, this year’s festivities were muted, and not just because of Sandy; all of us had been too busy to properly prepare. October was a huge sale month for Wax Eye, which looked mighty successful from my end. Though June was able to whip something up at the last minute, with the help of a mask she picked up when we were in Japan…
And here we all are dancing to Phil Collins, believe it or not…
Since downtown was flooded, the parade was cancelled, so there went our yearly tradition. Instead we bar hopped in the Columbia University area. Here we are at the best seat you’ll find at the Ding Dong Lounge, the Ms. Pac-Man cocktail table…
… Time for a quick story: there was this girl who showed up at the bar who was incredibly cute, and who I absolute HAD to talk to, or at least try. But the place was super crowded and I couldn’t find her, even though the Ding Dong Lounge is fairly modest sized. I eventually decided to go to the bathroom, and as luck would have it, cute girl’s friend was waiting in line (she too pretty damn hot, yet lacked the super sexy glasses of the first girl). Tried striking up a conversation with the friend, for sh*ts and giggles, but as soon as I opened my mouth, the rest room immediately became available. Oh well.
So not even a minute passes by when this guy gets in line behind me. He asks how long I’ve been waiting, and I say not long at all. Then, cuz he’s a total sh*thead, the f*cker starts pounding on the door and screames “Come on, f*cking hurry up!!!” And of course, girl comes out thinking I was the one giving her sh*t, and chews me out by stating: “Hey a**hole, I had a f*cking corset on.” Swear to God, when it comes to women, my life is like an episode of Curb Your Enthusiasm or Louie, take your pic (I’m told what happened is literally from the latter). Immediately afterward, said cute girl left the bar, mostly due to her pal being pissed…
Anyway, here’s Joe and June’s dog Lumi, later that evening, offering her condolences…
As well as their cat Blanche, just staring at me, cuz she’s a dumb fattie (but I still love her)…
The next morning, on our way to breakfast, we went through Morningside Park, which is near where they live. Even though days had passed, there were still signs of Sandy everywhere…
Much fun was had with Joe and June, though the absolute highlight was getting the original Clogged Arteries portrait that Joe did of me, oh so many years ago, and well before he became an official Garbage Pail Kids artist!
Yet another, purely petty thing to bitch about, as it pertains to Sandy, is how last weekend’s midnight screening of Miami Connection was cancelled. Been pimping that flick to all my friends like crazy. At least Eric finally checked out a way earlier recommendation of mine…
Once again, I love my friends on Twitter…
I also love NMA, aka the Taiwanese CGI news crew. Here they are, reporting on some form of female viagra that’s been developed down under…
Oh, and because they weren’t giving out stickers where I voted, this is all I have to show for performing my civic duty yesterday…
I don’t know why, but because I went at length the first time Obama was elected, I feel the need to say something here. But instead, I’m just going to quote what my pal Bit Shifter said on Facebook:
“All right Obama — good job and all that. Now it’s time to get serious and regrow a spine. Fuck drone strikes, fuck treating whistleblowing as a capital offense, fuck indefinite detention and the suspension of due process, fuck warrantless surveillance — the list goes on. You’ve got nothing to lose in a 2nd and final term, so let’s set this stuff right.”
Also, hopefully he can finally get the gears in motion to help the poor souls in Staten Island and other parts that were devastated by Sandy, and who still haven’t gotten an ounce of help, even nine days later (and who are now suffering again, thanks to the nor ‘eastern that’s hitting this city right now).
Anyhow, time for one last pic…
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