brindleblog'n

This photo needs no words.....simply awesome...special thanks to my sister for the image

Call me Brin-Fender now........
My new $1,000.00 bass guitar I got for 1/2 off new!!!!......once I saw it in person, held it and heard it......I knew I need not look any further.........here is some information on it........

Our Geddy Lee Jazz Bass is a replica of the instrument Geddy has used extensively for both recording and performing in front of thousands of Rush fans worldwide. Featuring an alder body and neck and maple fingerboard (34” scale length; 20 medium jumbo frets with black fingerboard binding), this J Bass® is custom-fit with two U.S. Jazz Bass single coil pickups (neck and bridge) and a BadAss II Bridge.

The Dead Cell Zones are in recording studio sessions and should have a full fledged CD of 7 songs by mid march...............
We are very very pleased the way the CD is coming out and we got an opportunity to have a kickass saxophone player "cadillac dan" stand in on a song

Our Line up in the order they are being recorded.............

1) Adams Apple - aerosmith
2) Seasons of Wither - aerosmith
3) Endless Summer - the sandals
4) Ain't Wastin Time No More - allman brothers
5) I Found Somebody - glenn frey
6) Jelly, Jelly - allman brothers
7) Stormy Monday - t-bone walker

It has been a real treat and a brand new experience recording in the studio
tedious and meticulous but very rewarding in the long run

I am honored to be playing with such talents.............
I was told that I have graduated to a better bass guitar and now I must hunt a good down before we go back into the studio March 6th..............radically fun stuff

Water Tower (cont.)
Here is an image of a home in Sunset Beach with an elevator............
This home is extraordinary similar to the water tower I speak of and I believe was modeled after it..........
The Water Tower was taller and the barrell was thinner in diameter
The barrell wasn't as tall and there was a chain link fence all around the base of it..........
the tower had a plywood sign cut out called ZOT......which lasted for years until one day it remained no more.............I looked at the tower as a really big piece of canvas now

I am at home it is 11:30pm, a late october or early november evening with triple dense fog

I get into my red oxidized fiat, bleach blonde hair, like a warrior, dressed in black pants, black shoes, black turtleneck shirt, and a black ski mask I have in the backpack full of spray cans

The drive was excruciately slow as I had to open the car door sometimes and see the lines on the blacktop to see where I was going, the fog was thick but intermittent........

I arrive to the neighborhood of the water tower and park several blocks away, pack up my backpack and begin a little brisk walk toward the tower.............I am soooooooooo close now, my heart races, my breathing accelerates.

The Climb
I reach the tower and scale the fence with relative ease

I assess my acension of the tower and slow my beathing down...........I am in absolutely no hurry
I adopt a zero tolerance for failure as I am very intimidated looking up to the bottom of the tower from it's base...........It is an ominous feeling.........a very quite nervous laugh involuntarily utters
I enjoy the moment for awhile, I have plenty of time and I'm ready now to do or die

I don't need my skimask as the fog is so dense and the wind is still.......
I pack my backpack tight and zip it up, ease it onto my shoulders so that all the balls in the paint cans don't make too much noise, I click the stomach belt to hold the backpack to my body if I have to hang upside down...........

I feel the ball in the paint cans in my backpack react to my movements so I slow myself down again

Like a sloth I lay a hand on the first wooden beam of the tower........and begin to climb
I start my climb with a kind of body wedge my with my feet extended and I would isometric lift to a point where I could then reach up with an arm pull up to next level and do it again..........about halfway up the tower the fog lifted a little and I panicked..........
I saw someone in the window of the home right nextdoor to the tower look out toward me but not right at me....I froze
thinking that I blew it not wearing my mask at this moment.............I just became apart of the tower like a military man inside of a bush...........
I became, a black human growth on that towers leg!!!! I never flinched, I just remained motionless..........after what seemed a very long time the drapes were pulled and the fog began to increase in density, I climbed to the top, slowly, up to the underside of the walkway around the tower...........

Exilirated at a substantial victory of at least climbing the damn tower to the top.....
I rested up for awhile and saw it.........
I had to literally hang by my own two hands on a 4 x 6 plank suspended
80 feet in the air and go hand over hand about 6 times..........then while suspended hanging by my hands only, swing my feet into the opening of the walkway....hanging perilously by my feet and hands upsidedown then contort up through the hole in the walkway to ultimate victory or failure

This is where calling it quits came most upon my soul and entire essence

After some soul searching and a very very quite time with myself I squatted my next step toward the edge instead of downward to home..........

I got into position and let all my weight rest on one hand for a test run..........this is when I found out the birds like to perch here............the plank was full of bird droppings ..........slippery
at this point a hushed "fuck" came out of my mouth and a pissed off look of determination came upon my face, my lips clinching tight, my brow furred....as I knew this was the critical moment of do or die...........go forward or give up

I reached with the other hand and now I hang by my hands 80 feet in the air,
I snapped into a hand over hand rythym 6 times, each hand making a new hand imprint through the bird droppings....I feel like throwing up, but am too frightened to do anything but go forward

No time was wasted to get my feet in the opening as I was getting heavy and my hands and fingers were fatiguing...........

my feet already through the hole, I grab with one hand the inside of the opening and then committ with the other hand on the other side, I am fully vulnerable to a fall to my death here, I am like a spider in a hole......feet spread on one side hands spread out on the other.........I contort my legs upward to raise my torso through the topside of the hole my head almost pointing straight toward the ground as I position to pull my arms and torso through the opening...........

My right hand begins to slip and slide from all the bird crap on it and with uneartly adrenaline I pull myself up and roll over on to the top on the platform where I roll once more to get some distance from the all mighty hole

Freak Out
I lay where I finished rolling for about 10 minutes (no smiles).............catching up on my breath
facing toward the sky....my eyes are very wide open as I look blankly into the fog passing me by
as my breathing becomes less forced
(then a small smile comes over me)
I did it...holy shit..... I did it.........of course the first thing I thought of is, holy shit I have to go back down that way again

I get as relaxed as a child on x-mas eve and then I pop up and I start to get to work

I break out all of my cans out of the back pack color seperated in such a manner that I won't step on them or they roll off the edge and I can assess how much paint I am using so I can guarantee finsihing the project

I don't have to shake the cans of paint because my brother helped me shake them before my journey
I begin to sketch out a wave...........

One thing I didn't take into account was that once up on the platform..........I only have a foot of space to back up before I fall off the edge and that my canvas is round...........there is a metal strap around the tower....
I hang on it as I walk around the walkway hugged closely to the round tower and test the wood all around to make sure I won't plummet earthward because of a terminite board....all checks out well....the railing was wabbly so I won't ever lean on it at all....ever.......

As I hold onto the metal strap I arch my body backwards and begin to sketch the wave by memory as I can't see much of the layout only an estimation of where I should be....I sketch it all out and I am begining to fill in the colors of my sketch when I hear a commotion on the ground..............

I hear a car pull up and I freeze in mid paint swing........the fog lifts just enough that I can make out it's a cop car.......maybe someone in the window on the way up did see me?...............the cop car shines its big lights on the tower....I drop to my knees exactly at the same time the light hits the tower, pure reflex................you can really see the beam of light in the fog
I crawl slowly over to the opposite side of the round tower and sit there...........
freaking out to the max...............
a cop came over the loudspeaker if anyone is on that tower show yourself.........

!!!!!FREAKING OUT TIME!!!!!

I planned this in the fog because a helicopter wouldn't risk flying in it........I am paralized however and have no idea what to do
The loudspeaker comes on a few more times but I just stay put and keep my mouth shut..........
knowing if I don't say something soon I am even more trouble
What do I do now as I generous ooze with freak out?
My strategy..........I have the most time out of anyone.........I'll just layed down and took a nap
if they wanted me so baldy they can come up and get me, in the meantime I will remain motionless so that everyone goes away

Felt like an hours nap with eyes mostly open...........
let everyone settle down from the noise....including myself....I began to get cold from my sweat
this is when I popped back up and started painting again

I finished my painting and added the words on top of my artwork "save bolsa chica"

A tremondous sense of accomplishment came over me as I shimmied back down the tower....
getting back through the hole was much less exciting as getting up through it for the first time
minus all the weight of the paint in my back pack....I kept focused to get down safe so I could see the mural in the morning.............I kind of skipped/ran back to my car trying not to letthe paint cans make noise
it was about 4:00 in the morning

Drive By
Got up first light to do a drive by to see how the mural came out

The moring was foggy so I went to school & work and drove by the following morning to a perfect crisp clear california day to see the mural in all of its glory........................
the first time I glimpsed it I just started laughing...it wasn't perfect but it was most definitely up there for all to see.............

I pulled a U-turn and made three or four passes to see it without stopping

I told just the people I trusted to view it as I was still worried that I could be arrested for some kind of weird defacing law

Over time my paranoia relaxed and told anyone whom would listen
I still get people who come up to me that knew me back then and shake their heads knowing that I pulled it off

Somewhere I still have the photo of the mural I will share with you when I find it

This event gave me the confidence to continue with my art and not take a failing grade or a burned out grumpy old art teacher seriously.........
it taught me that the world was full of adults that could make or break me as I climbed the mountain of life in quest of my own place in it

Art is subjective in nature,
don't give up on yourself.......if you want something bad enough
you'll find a way to get it in time

The Water Tower
Winter of 1980

I am in this kind of shape when I graduated High School June 1980
I could handstand, parallel bar and other impressive gymnastic body moves...wink wink
I drove a faded red Fiat sports coupe with ugly ass surf racks
je parle un peu de francais, (I speak a little french)
I am trying to plan my future into the big world and find my pot of gold

I have registered full-time as a student of Golden West College, general education courses to prepare for my medical career, anatomy, biology, chemistry, trigonometry, calculus, all the toughies..........

The pressure was on to perform.....
any 18 year old can tell you at this age......I'm not afraid!
but we realize as we get older that we were hanging on by the tips of our fingernails

I am characterized as a very even keeled soul, an old soul, I have been called the "big yellow dog" and I am honored by some as "the bear" nicknamed from those whom have seen my uncharacteristic rage and speed of conflict dissolution
I am joyful 360 days of the year....every year...........pretty much all my life so far

With that in mind.........

I was informed of some very bad news..........bad news to my soul
My high school art teacher had failed me...........my junior year I got an A
I went through the summer trying to shake it off......
but it loomed as obvious and embarrasing as a zit on your nose during photo day

I sunk into a very deep depression.............deeper than I have ever been before or after.............
It is amazing how easily a deeply depressed soul can hide away from the world going on all around you.......hell...I didn't even know what I was going through other than I always felt like I was on a rollercoaster ride that wouldn't stop...........
private time reflections were tender and pride swallowing

I learned you can be sad and stay sad, or you can get off your ass and do something about it

I knew I had to change my head or I would dissappear...........I felt in my heart I could be an artist when I grew up and that I wasn't bad enough to be failed...........I couldn't that bad of an artist, could I?
I didn't know for sure now as my confidence was shaken, but I wasn't going to die without trying

I came up with a cocka-maimy scheme.........I suppose a scheme that I could feel victory from

I was going to paint a mural on the Huntington Beach Water Tower (warner ave.)
80 feet tall or so it feeled at the time
If I wasn't killed in climbing the tower then I would feel like I had accomplished something I could be proud of and begin to rebuild my world and my mind........
and feel better as an artist.........even if it was just once
If I succeeded I couldn't really tell anyone for fear I would go to jail for defacing the tower
I would just know that it was me and that would give me a victory in my soul

I began planning for it...........it felt like Mission Impossible....I told no one in case I got hurt or arrested so that no one else could be blamed....

I purchased as many paint cans would fit into my college book backpack

and waited...........waited for the fog.............
triple dense fog well known in the Huntingon Harbor area

In the meantime....
I investigated the target during daylight and night time to establish points of entry and exit,
possible interferences of neighboring homes and how to get around the barrier fencing.

One night the fog hit hard but because of something like work or school I couldn't do it

I remembering looking out a window staring at the fog as my last opportunity
as I know the fog arrives and leaves like a thief.............
a brief sense of relief in my face that I would not have to risk my life tonight
but a renewed vigor came upon me knowing that I was ready to risk it all and that the very next fog would produce a mural, incarceration or death

I felt like I did my homework and that I was as prepared as I could be to accomplish the mural
and not set off any alarms or phone calls to the police to prevent me from finishing the mural
and I was in very good shape gymnastically to make the "hanging upside down 80 feet, split leg through the hole in the floor manuever" to get to the place to paint..............

Fog didn't come back for a month...............

The Fog
The fog came one day thick and full...fuller than I had ever seen it roll in
you would have to open your car door to see the lines on the road, a trick my Dad showed me when we almost got stranded one night.....I was so impressed with how he could remember the way home from just the lines on the street going 5 miles an hour...........
I would doing the same thing now, I wonder if my Dad would be proud in a wierd way?

I took a nap till nightime and hoped the fog would stay through the night........
free and pure I feel now....an artist to display against all odds

A hushed focus comes upon your soul when you feel you are going on to preform a life or death feat....hard to describe the intensity........you know within hours that it is literally do or die
no one but you, your mind and your hands........wide eyed, intense, feeling very mortal
a life weight you strap on your back ready to be carried out

I connected very deeply with the spirits of the warrior preparing myself physically in all black shoes, black pants and shirt and a black ski mask with a black backpack except for the small little rainbow logo on the back.......slightly shaded my face to reduce glare or reflection

It is 11:30pm now

I believe I told my brother whom I could trust with my life and told him in one half hour where I would be and that if he didn't see me early in the morning to come looking for me. A broh pact was handshaked out between us, a hug, a goodluck.........I'm not sure he entirely believed me....but he knew me well enough to know something was up, and let me be

I started my car and began my ride to ultimate failure or ultimate triumph

(stay tuned for tommorrows conclusion)

This week of february has been a wild ride, of milestones, funerals, family, siblings, sadness and joy, overall an interesting viewport for me into human behavior on many levels.......
some of my observations are:

Some people have learning disabilities, but still manage to learn
Some people are brilliant, and never learn
Some people need to control all things all the time, but are never in control
Some people just want to have fun, and make themselves smile
Some people just want to listen, to hear what others have to say
Some people just want to talk, and could care less what anyone else has to say
Some people are always serious, and never find time to loosen up
Some people are never serious, so they are never taken seriously
Some people have been abused and neglected, but manage to somehow get over it
Some people never get over anything, at all, ever
Some people hold a grudge forever, but eventually are forced to see things from all sides
Some people forgive and forget, as they hope someone would do for them
Some people are judgemental on appearances, which makes them slaves to fashion
Some people could care less what they look like, and could use a little fashion sense
Some people plan everything, but fall apart if the schedule changes
Some people plan nothing, and fit into someone else's plans
Some people are respected, but don't feel self respect
Some people don't like to be around people, and eventually find themselves lonely
Some people need other people around them all the time, but feel claustraphobic

All people die

If we were all the same.....life wouldn't be interesting

So enjoy people for whom they are, and not what you want them to be

"take your time but do your best possible artwork in your spare time"
there might even be an article in this for me........

is it done yet......is it done yet........is it done yet........is it done yet

I'm sorry your Mothers husband is dying a painful and horrible cancer
and that all of your spare time is spent with her and she is relying on you to make a memorial video in your spare time

is it done yet......is it done yet........is it done yet........is it done yet

I'm sorry your sick and that you need spare time to get well

is it done yet......is it done yet........is it done yet........is it done yet

I'm sorry you lost another childhood friend and that your spare time is spent at a funeral

is it done yet......is it done yet........is it done yet........is it done yet

"Okay-Okay, Yes, I have begun work on it...is that wwhat you want to hear?

is it done yet......is it done yet........is it done yet........is it done yet

I'm sorry you have to move with last minute notice, and it is something you didn't anticipate

you know what, I don't want you to paint for me anymore, and you lied to me, and you stole from me thousands of potential dollars.............because you didn't get the artwork done in time

what?

whatever happened to...........
"take your time but do your best possible artwork in your spare time"
What about compassion?
..........sorry I fibbed about starting your artwork but you have been pressuring me ever since you said take your time and do your best work, you never told me at anytime there was a deadline........

sorry that wasn't really the deal, I must have lied to you by telling you to take your time............
I really don't give a shit about anyone except myself
I don't give a shit about what is happening in your life, or the unexpected life changing events that are happening to you that have unusually affected your spare time
I just want to make myself thousands of dollars so that I can live alone with no friends and no soul mates

See the movie Amadeus?...............
The guy pressures the musical artist to perform his best work, so much,
that it pushes him into his grave

I am only human and I am not perfect.......
but I do try my hardest and typically succeed at all I endeavor

If you know NeoN at all, then you may know that he is going through a rather tough time right now.........
This is my Ode to NeoN.............(whatever an "ode" is)
NeoN can always make you smile with his quick wit and perspective at looking at things
I met NeoN over the internet when it was a super brand new technology at his NeoN bending shop
NeoN made me a few scupltures with NeoN lighting behind it
NeoN let me paint a big ass mural in his NeoN shop
NeoN always makes you feel like a rock & surf star
NeoN is the only guy I know who can paddle out with me, and catch two waves before I make the line up
NeoN always keeps me high..........on life
NeoN taught me the words.......kewl, L8TR, which I use frequently
NeoN makes my web designing alot easier with preferred customer service
NeoN knows more legendary surfers than I do, but introduces me to all of them
NeoN had a legendary VW bus that could have been in a cheech and chong episode
NeoN taught me to quake
NeoN taught me to IM
NeoN still bugs me to loose the leash
NeoN trys to save the environment at every chance
NeoN taught me to blog

Thanks for being a good friend NeoN,
hold your head high through the low tide in your life right now