http://bygonebureau.com Just another WordPress weblog Wed, 14 May 2008 23:27:21 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en I met up with the Handsome Furs in mid-April before their show at Seattle venue Neumos. The Montreal-based couple, made up of Dan Boeckner (vocals, guitar, tambourine) and Alexei Perry (keyboard and drum machine), writes dark, minimalist indie pop. You can listen to the entire interview at KUPS 90.1FM The ... http://bygonebureau.com/2008/05/14/everybody-has-a-fucking-xylophone-an-interview-with-the-handsome-furs/ Economic depression, reliance on petroleum, climate change. Given the state of the world today, it seems like we’re finally reaching a point where the human race may reap what it sowed. Don’t worry. Technology will save us all from ever having to suffer the consequences. Yes, ... http://bygonebureau.com/2008/05/12/how-to-survive-the-21st-century/ Traveling through Switzerland by train is absurd. I was raised in Colorado, home to 53 peaks higher than 14,000 feet, so I thought that I was over mountains. But I hadn’t seen the Alps. Alaska notwithstanding, I’m confident nothing in America can prepare you for them. A gradient fading from ... http://bygonebureau.com/2008/05/09/switzerland-interlaken-usa/ Sometimes, people get married. It’s a thing that is both good and bad. Good, because friends are reunited, drinks are had, and everyone is smiling; bad, because every wedding is pretty much the damn same. There’s something to be said for tradition. In days that are devoid of chivalry, weddings ... http://bygonebureau.com/2008/05/07/wedding-advice-from-a-professional-caterer-or-how-i-came-to-hate-hey-ya-and-billie-jean/ A couple weeks ago, James Howard Kunstler gave a talk here in Tacoma, Washington. Kunstler is a social critic best known for his semi-apocalyptic views on the decline of oil production and how it will completely reshape our lives. He's faced some criticism because he doesn’t have any professional or ... http://bygonebureau.com/2008/05/05/james-howard-kunstler-talks-about-tacoma-and-other-unpleasant-places/ When I am not chained to the metaphorical typewriters at The Bygone Bureau headquarters, I am a fledgling musician. And by fledgling, I mean that I have made around $100 in the last year playing music. I attribute my lack of success primarily to the fact that I have no ... http://bygonebureau.com/2008/05/02/hitting-the-big-time/ There's one question that I’m asked more often than I should be: "Do you think you want to have children?" I understand that the inquirer is most likely making an attempt at conversation, but it never turns out well. My stock answer is "I don’t know," but the person who ... http://bygonebureau.com/2008/04/30/the-question-of-child-rearing/ It’s a tragedy that Charlie and I only just started using Google Docs. This spring semester, we had been searching for a better way to study for our International Theory class, and only recently did we realize the power of collaborative note-taking. Now, for every chapter of textbook ... http://bygonebureau.com/2008/04/28/the-new-generation-of-organization/ Muxtape lets you create an online mix tape for anyone to stream. It's clever design has everything to do with its simplicity. All you need to do is sign up and start uploading mp3s. As twentysomethings with iTunes and self-imposed mix tape laws, we've decided to share ... http://bygonebureau.com/2008/04/25/staff-list-muxtapes/ We need to publish fewer books. More specifically, we need fewer books to choose from--in libraries, in bookstores, everywhere. There should be a limit. This could perhaps extend to other cultural mediums (like music or film), but I’m just going to concentrate on books today, because this ire-filled idea originally ... http://bygonebureau.com/2008/04/23/when-it-comes-to-books-less-is-more/