But In A Strange Way, I Know Somehow We're Doomed

Most people are well-aware of my love for all things Chino Moreno. Ever since the mid-nineties, I've had a borderline (and sometimes not-so-borderline) obsession with the Deftones frontman. In recent years I've calmed down a bit with the Chino-craziness, but I'm still fairly biased and tend to fangirl for whatever he does, even before I've heard it.

While Deftones has always been his main gig, there have been a few other projects over the years. Team Sleep, Palms, etc. They never outshone the Deftones for me, I've mostly been a relatively peripheral fan.

But of them all, Crosses has quickly become my favourite.

Crosses - also known as ††† - has Chino partnering up with Far guitarist Shaun Lopez and Chuck Doom. While it's easy to compare any project Chino does vocals on to Deftones, Crosses are more chilled out and melodic, with ambient and electronic touches. (Or,  to put it simply - they're not the Deftones, and they're still frickin' amazing.)

They first released one song, The Epilogue, back in 2013. That was enough to get me hooked, and the full-length self-titled album does not disappoint. For me, the stand out songs are The Epilogue, Bitches Brew, Telepathy, & This is a Trick, respectively. But the entire album is fantastic, and will have you awkwardly chair-dancing and grooving like an idiot. That, to me, is often the mark of a good band - they pass the chair-dance test.

Even if you're not a Deftones/Chino Moreno fan in general, I still highly recommend giving this album a listen.

It's been an addictive one.

Are You Experienced?

Father's Day is coming up, and usually around this time I'm racking my brain trying to think of something for my dad. For someone I'm so similar to, you'd think I'd have no trouble. He's one of the reasons for my musical tastes, my strange humour, and some of my quirky behaviours that don't always make sense to anyone else. We tend to have the same train of thought which, if you know us, is kinda scary.

Ok, it's very scary. But it's a good thing.

You may now kiss the fish. (But you probably shouldn't.)

And yet, even with all that, I tend to have a hard time figuring out gifts for my dad. Whether for Christmas, his birthday, or Father's Day, it always seems impossible to find the right thing. This year my sister and I maybe kinda sorta cheated by giving our parents a joint Mother's Day/Father's Day gift a month back. Hey, it made sense! Parents are always hard to shop for. You know I'm right.

But for you guys? If you're having a tough time, here's something that just might fit the bill for your pops. I'm giving away a $100 LifeExperiences gift card that can be used toward dining, adventure-y trips, pampering, and many other types of experiences - they offer over 500 experiences across Canada.

Studies have shown that experiential gifts bring more happiness than material ones, so this would be perfect for dads. And the best part is that they get to choose which experience they'd like, so you can't go wrong.

 (Although if you choose to keep it for yourself, I won't judge. Really.)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

If you don't win but still dig the idea, LifeExperiences certificates and gift cards can be purchased through their website, with some offers at Shoppers Drug Mart locations. But still - I hope you win. I like the cut of your jib.

G'luck! And Happy (upcoming) Father's Day to my dad, and all of yours!

The Wallflower Waltzin', The Locomotive Crawlin'

I used to go overboard with photos.

I took them constantly - of anywhere I went,  anyone I was with. There were always photos.
 

No caption does this photo justice - NYE '08

We all did this. But I don't anymore. At some point I stopped keeping track of everything for posterity's sake, and I thought that was a good thing. Hey, I'm a grown up - I don't have to take photos of everything anymore! Progress! 

What, you don't hug like that? - Fall 2007

But... I dunno if that's true. Because of things like Timehop and now the daily Facebook Memories, I see all those damn photos I constantly took years ago and I remember some great times with kickass people. And THAT'S  the point.

Remembering, even the most mundane things. 
 

We mustache you a question. No really, where'd you get that jacket? - 2010

Sometimes it's bittersweet, because so much can change (ok, so everything changes. All of it). But without some of these photos, I just might forget.

I'd forget people who I've lost touch with, specific events that were pretty important at the time, and even just the same ol' people doing the same ol' thing - when you look back at it, it doesn't seem so run-of-the-mill. It's a memory of what we used to do, or who we used to be.

And that's kinda awesome.

Impromptu pine photoshoot at the Powerball - 2009

So I'm going to start making an effort to take more photos, keep more memories.

Be warned. You just might be a part of it.

We dunno, man. We just don't. - Summer 2007

Because years from now, I don't want to look back at 2015 and have no recollection of anything that happened other than my dog being a friggin' weirdo.

I wanna remember that the rest of us were friggin' weirdos, too.

Pizza, naps & peni - Fall 2014