Still Struggling

So internet is still not 100% (or even 50%). It pretty much sucks. Yesterday after I finished my blog it cut off for about 6 hours. Sigh. Other junk:
Looks like I may finish up the Cobain notebooks in a day or two. Finally stopped feeling guilty when I looked ahead at last page which reads, "Don't read my diary when I'm gone." But directly below that it says, "Ok, I'm going to work now, when you wake up this morning, please read my diary. Look through my things and figure me out." While I still had reservations, I will admit that most of the material is just drivel. It is impossible to judge though, because if people go through my notebooks when I die they will find all sorts of embarrassing vitriol and crap that I wouldn't want people to see. On the other hand if (for some bizarre reason) I'm famous and Emily wants to make a quick buck by selling it, then I suppose I would forgive her. It wouldn't embarrass me too badly since I would be dead. I am also reading a book about Alan Lomax that is really intriguing. It sparked many conversations between EM's and I about how China seems to be not so much building their own modern musical culture (esp. compared to countries like Jamaica or Kenya). Speaking of Kenya, I have been on the BIGGEST benga kick ever, but it is really hard to find many of the artists since I can't seem to get itunes to work and the internet is still very sporadic. Thank goodness for all the Rough Guides and Putumayo cds that I got from the library before I came. Two books that I read recently which I would highly recommend are A Visit From the Goon Squad by Jennifer Egan, which just goes to show that near future speculative fiction (influenced by Sterling, Gibson, Stephenson) is now mainstream, just under a different heading. I loved the book, and found the ending just superb. The kid's devices and the people's credibility as value reminded my of the Sterling short story Maneki Neko (I think that was its name anyway...) The other book is Just Kids by Patti Smith. I really enjoyed it and it even inspired a few vivid dreams. Nice. That's it for now, still ready to come home and be amazingly active. It is really surprising all the crap you just take for granted (I know I REALLY did). I start school in the fall and until then will be all full up time-wise playing music with friends, reconnecting with all my old friends (esp. Jed and Danny), eating fresh salads (drooollll...), shopping without buying (just to enjoy it!), junk stores, and especially hanging out with my family (and my new nephew, who is still on pre-order). I have put up a bunch of new photos on facebook of some of my students, so check those out.
Bye!