Below are the 20 most recent journal entries recorded in Alex's LiveJournal:

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Saturday, September 3rd, 2005
3:43 pm	local NOLA news broadcast - better source of info If you turn on channel 76, the big local news station from New Orleans WWL is broadcasting over here, and they are dispelling A LOT of the rumors & exagerations, and putting out important info that is getting overlooked. They have been running out of Baton Rouge without commercial breaks, and are amazingly down to earth and un-sensationalistic right now. it is 76 on regular cable here in Clear Lake area, don't know if it might be different in other parts of the city. anyways, just wanted to throw that out there. (Comment on this)
Wednesday, August 31st, 2005
6:11 pm	hurricane all of my family in new orleans are out of the city, and my grandparents are staying with us. they still don't really know if their house is ok, but my cousin's house and my aunt's house (both in St. Bernard parish in Chalmette)are lost - flooded to the roof. still don't really know about my other aunt's house. as far as i know, everyone we know in the city is (physically) ok. the phone & emails for my mom/grandparents have been crazy non-stop today. if you've been living in a bubble, the city is flooded (the levees broke) & basically in ruins. ok, fuckin' DUH: DONATE: http://www.networkforgood.org/topics/animal_environ/hurricanes/?source=yahoo&cmpgn=hmpg (2 Comments |Comment on this)
Saturday, June 18th, 2005
11:48 am	contact senators,representatives,major media outlets, & sign Conyers petition for an investigation: http://www.usalone.com/downingstreet_np.htm (Comment on this)
Thursday, March 24th, 2005
1:52 pm	i got about 3 hours sleep last night, writing a paper for the morning class. and there's really not enough time left now before my afternoon class to take a nap. my grandparents are coming into town today. i have an exam on tuesday and then no tests or papers for pretty much a whole month. nice. I like learning when i'm relaxed, without a deadline. so why the hell do i want to be a journalist? suicide. I don't think i learn more or work better when i'm forced to or have a deadline. yet i always take a long time to do things that have no deadline (i'd like to think that's because i want to do a good and thorough job, and pay attention to detail..but there is some element of procrastination or arbortion of projects when something else gets in the way & demands my attention). this ties in to everything..making music, finishing books, you name it. speaking of music, now there is a drummer in galveston who i'm emailing back & forth. wow..i think i post about the same old shit all the time. over and over, more or less. Current Mood: tired Current Music: johnny cash - hurt (nin cover) (1 Comment |Comment on this)
Monday, March 21st, 2005
6:54 pm	well, friday night went to numbers and just sort of hung around since i don't like to dance. i'm a square - a cubano-sin-sabrosura. can't wait for Renee Ben April tawnya & John to all move in together, i'll be staying over at my fairy's for days on end. been reading a good book: Iraq, Inc. - A Profitable Occupation by Pratap Chatterjee..i'd really recommend it, and i would be glad to let people borrow it after i'm done. it's by an investigative journalist who details the war profiteering and fraud perpetrated by companies such as Halliburton & Bechtel. i am going to email back some guy inquiring about my drummer wanted ad..usually doesn't result in any hookup but you never know. this spring break was a well-needed break, though it was cramped for time/things i need/want to get done just like any other week. really trying to work on using my time wisely now. the 2 songs & the video i have from the new nin cd kinda suck. i like the lyrics, but the music is getting poppy, formulaic & unimaginative. oh well, he's getting old. not thinkin about the show, because i've already seen them live, it's expensive, and most important, it sold out right after the tickets went on sale, so fuck that. might go to pigface which is coming up, though. Current Mood: productive Current Music: nin - the hand that feeds (1 Comment |Comment on this)
Wednesday, March 16th, 2005
7:44 pm	went to chill at megan's apartment for her 21st birthday last night..heh over the phone she made it sound like a party so we brought some apple pucker, but it was just me, april, her, her bf and brother, but that's cool. we played a drinkin game to the Princess Bride and played an amusing game of uno, then megan fell asleep on the couch..heh. i don't see people from school very often anymore, since i have a weird schedule. why is it so time consuming to do anything on the internet..i mean, hours get sucked away like passengers on a ruptured airplane. one minute you're reading something and the next, it's 3 hours later. my side & back teeth are really sensitive right now so i'm forced to eat like a squirrel or just eat soft food. i've been neglecting so many things it's not even funny...teeth, shoes, laundry, project for school, sleep, music, practicing instruments, even ozzy! and cashing last week's paycheck! jesus. Current Music: doors - riders on the storm (3 Comments |Comment on this)
Friday, March 11th, 2005
12:25 pm	spring break is here. today i'm getting started on that pamphlet, and for school, thinking about going to the show at mecca w/ some guy from class..hopefully he will be a good partner for this project, because he always, always seems stoned in class, but then again some people do well in school like that (no...seriously). but i need to get in touch w/ him to see if we'll do anything like talk to any of the bands to see if we will interview them at a later date. that's what i'm thinking. charlie's house makes the weirdest noises all night..mostly due to the rats that live under the oven. don't know what time i finally fell asleep, but i'm here at April's for most of the day. Current Mood: groggy (1 Comment |Comment on this)
Wednesday, March 9th, 2005
2:38 pm	stayed the night at ozzy's sunday, went to Denny's and he drew me as an octopus..that particular pic wasn't much like me, but he has some real talent in general. some stupid drunk psych major lady was invading his personal space and our conversation and insisted on seeing his drawings. of course, if you have a problem with drunk dumbasses, then you shouldn't go to denny's after 2am - that's what it's there for. then we goofed around & played video games (of course..it's ozzy). next day we came over here, we played more video games and ate with my parents who for the most part ignored him (but then again, we don't talk that much at dinner anyway). then i went to study w/ april. last night the above mentioned fairy cow woman and I had a picnic in a park w/ milano cookies a tangerine, orange, fruit salad, and a few little bags of chips. she played on the maze (of course..it's April) and we had a grand old time. hope she gets better soon! I'm gonna be doing the research project with someone in that class about Mexican American punk bands in Houston (and other types of music) that have a message that is related to or influenced by the "Chicano movement" or deeper cultural attitudes/historical background. should be cool..interviewing bands around houston. I should consider Ed's dad for one interview, i'm thinking..if he's still in vatos locos. today i'm trying to study for an exam tomorrow..the teacher insisted that it would be really easy, so that's probably why it's almost 3pm & i haven't gotten around to starting yet. i should go do that. Current Mood: good Current Music: meat puppets - never to be found (4 Comments |Comment on this)
Monday, February 21st, 2005
5:22 pm	finally made it out to super happy fun land friday night, saw The Invincible Czars (from Austin)..I'd really recommend them whenever they come back to town..got their older cd. the 2-star symphony was cool, and the Voodoo Organist was a hoot. I like the place! also talked to some random chick Lina (Leena?), who ended up giving April some good encouragement/advice, and her former UH Anth. major husband. i had made change with her on the street at school a few days before, just happened to be walking by & she needed some for the meter..wierd. sunday was a suprisingly BUSY ASS day at work, i slept over at grandmas today i've been at home, thinking about how i should manage my fucking time & write things for world internet news at UH/daily cougar/go through the news reporting training at KPFT. well, an amazing, hilarious, drug-takin, experience-riding, insightful & intelligent journalist has left our midsts, as indicated in my last post. i have to call my grandma to get info on her family for a geneology project in "Mexican-American Culture" class, in which i've learned next to nothing about mexican american culture. i've learned 100x more chatting with co-workers (especially about their times before coming to the states) or friends than i ever could in some stupid class. The teacher is annoying..but i had no choice..hehe. (Comment on this)
1:59 pm	R.I.P Hunter S. Thompson Current Mood: sad (Comment on this)
Friday, February 18th, 2005
3:22 am	i'd have to give Dahr Jamail serious props. this is a journalist with some serious BALLS out there doing what needs to be done - getting the truth out from the front lines out to the rest of the world. he has been in Iraq risking his life for many months getting some independent reporting done, interviewing hundreds of people and taking shocking and undeniable photographs. of the war crimes reported to have taken place, the worst of which i think have been perpetrated on the residents of Falluja (which was once a city with intact buildings, running water & electricity, people, you know - things like that). Wednesday at his presentation here in the belly of the beast, i took some notes: flechettes - small nails shot out of various guns/weapons, or dropped out of planes by the U.S. military used to kill and injure countless men women & children cluster bombs used on civilians! Iraqi doctors & others interviewed insisted that cluster bombs have been used against the population..hard to deny when you see the patients. military cover-ups of what could only be chemical weapons (i'm thinking it may be cover-ups of the continued use of uranium munitions, if not chem. weapons) in Falluja - the military shot out water towers (a good way to test for use of chemical weapons is by examining the water supply), used bulldozers to remove soil, and many hospitals were instructed by the military to refuse patients from falluja, etc. heavy sustained machine gun fire on demonstrations, and on a celebration with families present!!! majority of Mosques in Falluja damaged (most buildings were) *the video of falluja is NOT pretty! and it had to go through a burglary, theft, & return with a "we're watching you" threat just to get here! it was taken by Marc Manning at conceptionmedia.net..he was in California & the video & cameras were stolen and returned by a guy who threatened him & told him he was being watched. (BTW i don't think that video's on the website). there are about 325,000 refugees from falluja living in military-controlled camps. anyone who seeks to return to the city has to have their retina scanned, fingerprints, and ID card. although, few have much left to come home to. *Dahr pointed out the outrageous inconsistencies with the media's portrayal of so many things about Iraq & this war, but especially with the hyping up of this notion that falluja was a "hotbed" of insurgency, crime and lawlessness. actually, tribal councils(?) set up local government in the city, with a mayor and everything, and succeeded in stopping the crime and looting - falluja was in fact the opposite of what the corporate media here portrayed it as - they had managed to have the city peaceful & law-abiding, before the attacks on the residents and the major destruction of the city. Also, the people killed riding in a military vehicle in falluja were not civilians, NGO workers, whatever as the U.S. media screamed bloody murder about..they were contractors hired to work with the military on military bases). our press is out of fucking control - so many distortions and just flat out lies. Bectel has been paid an enormous sum of taxpayers' money to do "next to nothing" in Iraq. some water treatment facilities visited by Jamail had no reconstruction done, he said that often the answer was "bectel who?" -showed a picture of the water source for an Iraqi village - literally a hole in the ground. the pipe just shoots the water into the hole, & of course people are getting diseases from unsanitary water. gas shortage - 5 or 6 mile long lines of cars, wrapping around streets and back again, just to pump some gas. the gas shortage of course has effected the economy-in-shambles at large, raising prices all around - there's even a black market of gas exploding. electricity - in Baghdad, there is electricity 5 or 6 hours a day only. in the rest of the country, more like 3 hours a day. HOSPITALS - this is a nightmare. because of the security situation, many of the highly trained doctors & specialists have left, leaving unqualified doctors to try to take their place. hospitals are trying to operate without vital medicines, adequate equipment, adequate facilities for the number of wounded & dead, and qualified doctors. *the U.S. military has shot ambulance drivers and opened fire on ambulances carrying patients, and in other cases, not allowed doctors/ambulances to transport patients to the hospitals they needed. the elections - as you probably know, none of the candidates' names were listed..people were expected to vote for people they didn't even know. people were expected to vote while under illegal occupation by a foreign government. people were expected to go out on foot (since roadblocks and lockdowns were set up everywhere) and risk getting blown up by resistance fighters (or U.S. returning fire) just to vote for candidates whose identity they had no idea about. think the U.S. is going to simply withdraw its forces and end the occupation when the elected body meets? hah. i don't think so. every government ministry in Iraq has a U.S. advisor with a mandatory 5-year term. the installed interim prime minister Allawi (sp?) is hated throughout Iraq, for being a handpicked puppet of Washington whose qualifications include working with the CIA, etc. etc. an organization (look it up on the web, i didn't catch the name) recently came out with a good, very conservative estimate of dead civilians killed in Iraq as part of this war & occupation -> 98,000 -and that is way below what many there in the country and who have gone there estimate. anyway, there are some serious holes in my notes, so if you're interested visit his web log (the address was in my last post). ************************ as a journalism major, this guy is inspiring..i don't think i'll ever have the guts to do something as risky as this. that is what REAL journalism is. he and the other independent, unembedded reporters in Iraq are doing amazing work. Current Music: meat puppets (1 Comment |Comment on this)
Tuesday, February 15th, 2005
11:16 am	INDEPENDENT REPORT FROM IRAQ Dahr Jamail 7pm Wednesday February 16, 2005 @ The Station Museum - 1502 Alabama Houston native, Dahr Jamail, has spent 8 of the last 13 months reporting from Baghdad Iraq. He is one of the few independent, unembedded, US journalists to do so. He will speak on the “elections” and his observations over the last year in occupied Iraq; the American resentment there and the ongoing human rights crisis. Free, but donations appreciated to continue his work in Iraq. For more info: stationmuseum.com or 832-788-7596 Special Thanks to The Station Museum and KPFT www.DAHRJAMAILIRAQ.com (1 Comment |Comment on this)
Tuesday, January 25th, 2005
4:27 pm	hmm.. ozzy turned 19, we sang songs outside at hollywood, etc. i spent an hour and a half this morning trying to find parking at school, missed the whole class. as luck would have it, i checked classes after someone dropped, so i managed to enroll in a live class instead of one of the taped ones. only thing is, now i have a 6 HOUR BREAK in between classes..what to do, what to do. i slept, read, ate lunch, went on the internet, made this boring LJ post, talked to my teacher's TA, bought books, and i still have an hour to kill..lyric revision time! April: don't return Pi (sp? 3.14...) cause i want to sample a part of it at home w/ music equipment before you return it. can probably do that tomorrow at some point. i'm gonna have to buy a new guitar at some point, nothin fancy, just a smooth-playin nice soundin guitar with a GOOD WARRANTY. Current Mood: groggy Current Music: "we don't mind, see we've been doin it all the time.." (1 Comment |Comment on this)
Sunday, January 9th, 2005
7:23 pm	ah..a weekend in Galveston :) 1 year w/ my fairy mistress, celebrated quite nicely. April's mom brought us up to the motel (now that's trust). i had a big argument with my mom the day before about it, but at least we were actually talking about April and relationships, etc. at least we have some kind of minimal understanding even though we don't agree with each other and she's really pissed off. we went anyways, and had a great time :) we took the bus to the seawall, & walked all around,went on a rock peir, caught a bus to the strand & wondered around like 2 fools in love. filled our stomachs to the brim at fudruckers (i pile on as many toppings as i can), & just had a romantic night walkin' around, made up some hop-scotch-like game to play on the chessboard in that plaza, went to the candy shop, took a bus back to the motel, cuddled, and watched planet of the apes until we fell asleep. today we woke up, took showers and everything, and charlie showed up, had some breakfast, we spent a few hours building a sand pyramid/mound then burying each other in it. then went to the strand and had coffee & chilled, then came home. Current Music: lost highway soundtrack (2 Comments |Comment on this)
Thursday, January 6th, 2005
2:15 am	seems like in the back of my mind i've always held the times in 9th & 10th grade (falling in love with patty, acid and friends and magic in the air and feeling alive, hanging with danny & danielle) and also all those times spent earlier in my life in New Orleans with Breton, or times when i was 13 w/ DJ & Angela (but especialy 9th & 10th grade) as a point of reference for, well, the good old days, or more accurately, chapters in my life where i felt alive and could truly feel, you know..but tonight i realized that this is my new magic and alive time..i'm so deeply in love with april and there's basically just as much magic in these times in my life, i just didn't see it the same way. now is the moment, another future point of reference that i'll remember years or decades from now.."remember those times in college going out with april, being so in love and having good times w/ ozzy and steph and other friends"..it is another chapter in my life that is alive, in my perception, state of mind, experiences and feelings. it's not as drastic as it sounds, i haven't been stuck in the past at all or anything, but in terms of truly feeling alive it has seemed to burst out in parts here and there, but i dunno..everything just seems more mechanistic as you get older..my self and my conciousness felt a lot more dry and robot-like ("i'm here but i'm not really here") when i was 16-19, but changed last year i suppose, and has gotten better throughout the time up to now. to clarify, i guess i would put conciousness on a continuum of (how you feel as a child)-------------------------------------------(completely empty and numb, going through the motions but not being there) my soul lives inside of adventure and emotion, i sleepwalk all other times. Current Mood: contemplative Current Music: rem - new orleans instrumental no.1 (3 Comments |Comment on this)
Monday, January 3rd, 2005
11:55 pm	new year's at stephanie's was a blast, and the last few days have been fun except i've been working. got a 25 cent raise..woo hoo :| ? looking forward to this weekend, not sure where we're going, but April & I will have been dating for a year on saturday. incredible. this is actually the longest i've ever been with anyone (if we're talkin 12 consecutive months as boyfriend/girlfriend) :) the longest i've been with any friend is Breton, and i need to write her! it's been too long without talking..eek. she emailed me new years day..that made me smile. i think of her & then say, "i wanna write .." but it's always tomorrow or when i get home or the day after or after i get done with this paper, exams, work or whatever. i think half a year has gone by since she left for Paris. i'm gonna write that woman a letter, damnit! anyways, i'm fallin asleep at my computer...i want a cigarette too. Current Mood: tired Current Music: bjork - cry (2 Comments |Comment on this)
Friday, December 31st, 2004
3:25 am	spread this around, & give what you can spare: (Comment on this)
Thursday, December 30th, 2004
3:42 am	well, just chilling here at ozzy's, working on lyrics and life and everything. tomorrow morning we jam..i actually have 2 weeks after this weekend before school starts..that some good time to work on songs and make progress with this cd..it's important to me, it's like an audio journal. and no matter what my life turns out like being a journalist, traveling around, spending time in Latin America, i will keep making music. the time has to be found for art. period. ozzy just graced me with his farts. I hope he finds employment soon. been thinking a lot about mortality and what existence and time is lately..life? it seems weird sometimes to be this primate creature, to be in a body, to be living here, in time & space, etc. when you find time out of schedules and obligations and everyday pointless run-arounds, you can see these things. i wonder about meaning or purpose of this existence..but not interested in theories, beliefs, or possibilities. i see infinite possibilities, 0 answers. what i'm interested in is what really is. it's not like i would always search for proof of everything. that's a misconception about me..i look for evidence. evidence is not the same thing as proof. damn..11 countries so fucked up..it's incredible. as a child i never used to get tears in my eyes when i saw suffering and death and hardship through T.V. screens and movie screens..don't know whether kids are desensitized to these sort of things, or just don't have the experience and understanding to realize. i guess as you get older you come to understand the human reality behind pain and people's emotions. so many people dead, and injured, and homeless, and getting sick. and more money is going to be spent on bush's inauguration or many many times more on conquering Iraq and murdering thousands or hell..just think about it..$35 million gets thrown around like chump change in the dealings of multinationals. who gives a fuck, right? since when does the ruling class of a rich country cancel debt for starving countries or show any shred of decency or humanity. well, Ozzy's rambling about the pope fucking Fidel Castro and someone asking them "where's the beef?" so i guess i should see what he's talking about. Current Music: velvet underground - venus in furs (3 Comments |Comment on this)
Saturday, December 25th, 2004
9:35 pm	yes, christmas is a pain in the ass, and both the original religious meaning and the new commercial meaning are empty and i don't give a shit about them, but that doesn't mean i don't enjoy the time w/ my family and friends. I love that. and I love giving people gifts and just hanging out with loved ones without any obligations or worries. My dad was happy today with the plancha grill my mom gave him (to flatten things..like for Cuban sandwiches). He was dancing around the kitchen making us sandwiches, dancing to the Celia Cruz cd i gave my mom. i got a kick out of that. seems like it's been so long since we all had a lazy hang-out day like today. I do appreciate it..i can't stand living with them, but i love my parents. I gave my dad a disk with 303 computer games on it (i always see him "comiendo mierda" with solitare, so i figured i'd give him other shit to eat..hehe), and i burned 3 Doors cd's for my bro. I'm glad it snowed. My Aunt might come into town tomorrow, hope she does. I'm gonna miss April, but she will have fun in Conroe this week. I'm gonna be working on music and thinking and sleeping-in and having/attending sleep-overs if i can help it. :) happy holidays. a smelly wino kiss on the cheek to everyone. Current Mood: drunk (Comment on this)
12:43 am	April & I ended up giving each other basically the same gift :) she made a CD of her singing songs for me, and I made her 2 songs (and also a copy of a REM cd). awwww how sweet. and it's snowing!!! in houston!!! Current Mood: jubilant Current Music: April singing for ME! (Comment on this)