With Steve Moore, NAMM 2013. You know him from this:

With Meytal Cohen, NAMM 2013. Mad skills. She’s known for running drum clinics on her YouTube channel. Is now nailing down Eulogy by Tool. Calls Danny Carey one of her favorites.

Just posted, Avenged Sevenfold’s Nightmare:

With drum witch Gary Ponder, NAMM 2013. We met twenty years ago. Back then he turned me on to Gary Chester’s The New Breed, and gave me a cool three-bar exercise I’ve carried with me through the years. Play eighth-note triplets, with displaced accents. Accent the first triplet in the first bar, then the second triplet in the second bar, then the third triplet in the third bar. Repeat many times:

RLR LRL RLR LRL |
RLR LRL RLR LRL |
RLR LRL RLR LRL ||

This week he turned me on to paradiddles with displaced accents. Also check out his sticking idea for Hot for Teacher.

With my old pal Dan, NAMM 2013.

This is the best visual explanation of spacetime I’ve ever seen. Cue it up to about 20:31, where — using the analogy of a faraway alien on a bicycle — he illustrates how Einstein redefined the concept of “now”.

Via the Internet, an animated version of Plato’s Allegory of the Cave. Also known as the Analogy of the Cave, Plato’s Cave, or the Parable of the Cave, the work has been described as an illustration of “our nature in its education and want of education”.

Narrated by Orson Welles.

A list of ten hidden Taco Bell menu items including the Superman, the Hulk, and my all-time favorite, the classic Enchirito (sans the tin foil tray). Available at the cashier on the downlow, or you can make them at home with Taco Bell ingredients.

Enchirito
Easily prepared using regular Taco Bell foods, the Enchirito is similar to a dressed up enchilada. Take a regular enchilada, stuff it with beef, beans, and cheese*, then finish with diced onions and red sauce.

=see full menu=

*For the full old-school effect, grate the cheese super fine. Like hair. If you’re old enough, you know what I mean.

Wow. This is insanity!

And now for the most random moment of the year so far.

This morning I was sitting at the computer doing some work when M yells out from the other room, “Oh my god! Aaron’s across the street! Right now!”

“Erin?” I looked out the window. “Erin who?”

“Aaron! From Ghost Adventures! He’s at the BLVD! Right this second!”

The BLVD Hotel is down around the corner on Highland, just yards away from our house here in Hollywood. A quick look at Aaron Goodwin’s Facebook fan page indicated it was true. As one of the world’s biggest fans of the Travel Channel’s Ghost Adventures show, M had caught Aaron’s photo on her live FB feed.

“I’m walking over there,” I said. “I wanna talk to him.” (How could I resist? I’m a fan.)

“Hurry!” she yelled. “Hurry! Hurry! Right now! He’s waiting for a ride! Hurry!”

I threw on some shoes, grabbed my keys and an Under Angels wifebeater in Aaron’s size, and headed out the door.

Three minutes later:

Supercool dude. Everything you’d expect. We rapped out for about 15 minutes, talking about Ghost Adventures, Under Angels, and other paranormal topics. He pointed out that he loves coming to Hollywood to hang out during his downtime, calling it the most haunted place in the world. Spends hours walking the boulevard alone, soaking it all in.

I fired off a few questions about the show. Here are a few of them, along with his (not-word-for-word) answers:

Q: On the show, you guys do lots of EVPs, and also sometimes claim to hear the voices with your naked ears. As we watch the show, we’re hearing it through the television speaker. When you’re actually there in the room, what do the acoustics sound like to you? Do the voices sound like they’re inches from your ear? Do they sound like they’re in the other room? Are they localized? Whispers? Loud?

AG: They sound like they’re in the other room at first, then it’s like they zoom right at your head and disappear out the other side. Hard to explain.

Q: What was the scariest moment you’ve had on the show?

AG: The voodoo one we did where I was holding a human skull on my chest. Did you see it? Crazy shit, bro. Something came out of me. I felt all my energy drain. Thought I was gonna die.

Q: Where’s the most haunted place you’ve been?

AG: (pointing to our surroundings there on Highland) This place, Hollywood, is the most haunted place in the world. I walk Hollywood Boulevard for hours with my phone, just tripping out. This city has something about it, like Vegas, where so many people have flocked to over the years out of desperation and pain. It’s been the end of the road for so many people, and you can feel it. Potent energy. I also like going to Disneyland. Not the rides. Just walking around. Tons of history and energy.

Q: Have there been any lockdowns that turn out to be uneventful, or is there always something?

AG: There was the lighthouse one, which was pretty chill. Nothing much happened. But for the most part, when we walk into a place, we bring it with us. It’s like we’re followed by dogs. I’ve got three spirits that are with me everywhere, no matter where I go. When we get to a location, it’s as if there’s a spiritual jealousy that goes on, and the stuff starts happening around us. The spirits start fighting it out amongst each other.

Q: So you take the stuff home with you?

AG: Oh yeah. It’s the worst at my house. I’ve been pulled out of bed. I’ve got stuff coming out of the ceiling. I have recurring nightmares.

When his ride pulled up, I was stoked to see fellow paranormal investigator Nick Groff in the passenger seat. Just off the plane from Boston. Aaron introduced us.

Keep up the good work, boys.

PS: Zak’s home in Vegas today.