These items were found in my wallet:

• TriMet bus transfer (from Portland, Oregon)
• DC Metrorail receipt for $4.00 purchased on 11/19/09 at 22:47:13 at 7th & S St, NW (Shaw/Howard University stop)
• Wetzel’s Pretzels Frequent Buyer Card, punched six times therefore receiving a free pretzel (free spot also punched)
• Handwritten banking routing numbers and account numbers, which after a quick search, point to Bank of America routing numbers.

How did these items get into my wallet you ask? I’m not really sure, as I’ve never been to Portland, don’t get receipts for Metro tickets (much less buy one for only $4.00) and don’t even know what a Wetzel’s Pretzels shop is. Another search reveals there are no shops in DC. Then I remembered the other night at the movies,making my way through the concession line when someone said I had dropped something out of the my wallet and I gathered up the pieces of paper on the floor and shoved them into my wallet. It turns out, they weren’t really mine. Maybe I had dropped a receipt of sorts and it fell upon these already lost pieces of information and I hastily scooped everything up without even looking at what it was.

Watching a certain 80s drama, with it’s men-brooches and moussed hair, has got me thinking back to my 80s drama, with its men-brooches and moussed hair.

Living back in the town where all my (early-mid) 80s drama happened is always a reminder: driving down 50 in Rosslyn—that’s where Jason lived; walking Connecticut Ave on a blustery fall Sunday—that’s where me and Michael would duck into Timberlake’s to drink and watch the Redskins.

It’s odd familiarity.

This show didn’t let go off its babyboomer roots so there’s no 80s beats playing in the background, its always gotta be some cheesy Procol Harem or some shit playing. I’m throwing some Scritti Politti into my background.

And it’s more than the fashions that are throwing me back too. It distinctly reminds me of driving these (now familiar) streets of DC, going to places I’d never been, so that Jason can pick up shit from his old boyfriend’s apartment. It reminds me of dinners and cigarettes with Michael before we laughed ourselves down the street, knowing onlookers were jealous.

Now these streets are so familiar that sometimes I don’t recognize them anymore. That’s not true—they’ve become all to familiar. Which is a good thing; there are new memories now, built upon the foundations of the old. Sometimes I will point these memories out to friends but most of the times I won’t. At times I want to keep them to my own 80s self.

Freebies? Not exactly but I guess kinda on some levels.

One freebie is the credit balance on my Zipcar account, thanks to neighbor Sherif who houses the cars in his backyard lot. They give him monthly credit and every so often he’ll dole some out to me and other friends of his. Unfortunately the credit has an expiration date and I still had some that expire tomorrow. So I reserved one this afternoon (as well as a Mini convertible last Saturday) to do some grocery shopping.

Which brings me to the second freebie. While this is technically free, it’s that whole I’ve-been-paying-into-the-system kind of payback, and that’s my EBT card. Or as they used to be called pre-technology days: food stamps. Just like last time, I didn’t really need to stock up on anything other than perishables but since I had a car it was time to get more of things I usually can’t carry like bottled water. Plus I noticed that instead of having Club Card specials many of the hanging tags were advertising “new lower pricing” instead of Club Card-only savings. Subsequently, my Club Card savings wasn’t that much.

Pushed on by the drizzly weather I found myself buying comfort foods: tomato soup, deli turkey, stuffing mix, flavored mashed potato mixes. Oh, and Healthy Choice dinners $1.99 if I buy five or more? Sure, I’ll take six.

Purchase: $208.63
EBT Card Balance: $97.01
Club Card Savings: $21.90 (9% of purchase)

Yesterday EMI released a two-CD (also available on LP, but with limited content) Limited Edition of Duran Duran’s seminal 1982 album, Rio. Of course, I already have my copy that I purchased pre-release during last weekend’s trip to New York.

This release contains the original UK album version, the US album mixes, Manchester Square demos (recorded 28th August 1981), non-album singles and B-sides, and Night Version & Carnival remixes and a 56-page booklet.

This is the first time the US album mixes have been published in different formats other than vinyl and cassette from back in the day. There is also an unconfirmed rumor of an actual reel-to-reel release. When Rio was released on CD the UK version was pressed so while it was nice to have the UK version, this meant saying goodbye to the US version once those cassettes went kaput.

Why the different album versions between the UK and the US? While DD was trying to break into America, EMI felt the album needed to be released to appeal more to the American market at the time. From the booklet, written by Daryl Easlea:

“Guitarist Andy Taylor, writing in his autobiography, ‘Wild Boy’ knew the and should listen to their American record company Capitol and remix the album if they were to make it there. “It gave the album a smoother, cleaner sound that went down better with US audiences. We understood that we needed to change our sound for the States, where the music industry spends far more time and money on mixing material” before cutting to the bottom line. “Not that we had much choice: ‘Remix it and we’ll support you, don’t do it and we won’t,’ said Capitol.” It was remixed under established producer David Kershenbaum’s expert ear. The US market’s appetite had been whetted by the Carnival EP in September 1982 (the mini-album including ‘Hungry Like The Wolf’), before the full Kershenbaum version of the album came out, propelling them into the US Top 10 in early 1983.”

So is the difference in these mixes audible? Yes and no. You can tell the difference listening on headphones; maybe at a party over speakers you wouldn’t be able to distinguish which mix it actually is. Still worth the price though, particularly for the demos and the US version of Lonely In Your Nightmare, which contains extra chorus which has never been available anywhere in the post-vinyl era.

If you want to learn everything you’d ever want to know about the many versions of the nine tracks on Rio, check this out. It even makes my head swim.

So while DD is getting 27-year-old albums re-released, two of the Duran offspring are going to take their turn on the stage. Sons of Taylor’s Andy and Roger have formed their own band, “Nite Visions”, in a clever wordplay of their dad’s moniker for their 12″ single recordings, “Night Versions”. Naturally, they have an 80s electronic dance feel to it. You can find out more about them, including a track sampling, here.

11:52 // I’m trying to stay in bed until the last possible moment before our 1:00 checkout.

1:04 // We’ve all checked out our hotel, checked our bags for the day and are cabbing down to Chelsea to have some brunching gnoshes at Viceroy, 18th & 8.

4:38 // Waiting outside Madison Square Garden for the bus.

5:00 // No electrical outlets on the megabus.

5:23 // Goodbye, New York!

8:24 // Passing thru Balmer, hon, now. Or rather around. We are not on the two-level Megabus like we had hoped. This is just a regular ole bus like the Chinatown buses, and that means little or no legroom. Eddy, sitting next to me, is 6′-6″ so it’s a little cramped. For reference, the Bolt Bu on the way up had about three inches of room in front of my knees; they have removed a row or two to space them out and it’s really nice. Definitely would recommend the Bolt with two thumbs up. Plus Bolt has electrical outlets to charge your electinics while you’re using them.

This bus has made a stop at a mall above Balmer to drop some people off and now I’m sitting in the two front seats directly behind the driver so at least I can stretch out for an hour or so.

10:30-ish // Eddy’s awake before I am, something that never happened at the beach. Now is groggy-sleep time, the TV is on am I’ve opened the curtains to reveal the brightness outside. The city looks bright but a little hazy and looks warm enough to wear shorts outside.

12:11 // Time to leave the hotel. The bits are at Astro having diner food and after a nice long shower, it’s time to join them. Maybe we’ll check out the High Line today?

12:16 // Ah, the sidewalks.

1:16 // After a brief walk thru the park, we’re now at Tavern On The Green, having bloodys/screwdrivers. Feels good.

3:49 // We’ve walked and walked. Now we’re thru The Bowery, thru Chinatown and down near (what I believe is) City Hall and to the Brooklyn Bridge. We’re going to walk halfway across the bridge and then back. Then back to Canal and then I need to drop by and see John at Record Runner. He’s got the new a-ha and a video bootleg of DD’s Songbook sessions they did last year (?). Also on order for (unfortunately) next week of the Rio release that contains all original 1982 mixes and demos, an the 1981 Hammerstein concert DVD. I wish they would have cone out this week so they’d be waiting but oh well.

10:30 // Record Runner purchases secured! I’ve put two more upcoming DD purchases: the Rio Masters DVD which came out in the spring and the Hammerstein DVD. John was able to give me the advance copy of the Rio re-release which isn’t officially available until Tuesday.

We reconvened at Gym Bar with Scott & Mikey who drove up from DC today. Dinner reservations were secured at Landmarc in Tribeca. Back to the hotel for another street gyro (nothing to eat all day) and then a nap and showers.

12:33 // Grilled skirt steak salad on watercress with roasted peppers, gorgonzola cheese and chimichuri vinaigrette.

4:27 // Back at the hotel room now. After dinner we went to Rawhide which was boring. Between us all there was a battle to where we’re going to go next. Half of us wanted to The Eagle and half wanted to go to double-headed Disco at Nowhere. It was raining and cans were sparse so once we made a commitment we needed to stick to it. Instead, we looked in a guide and found that Barracuda was only a couple of blocks away so we walked there and spent the remainder of the evening there. Logan Hardcore was performing in the back and we had a fun time having cocktails and hanging there, meeting people and watching the show. No street-vendor gyros tonight, time for sleep!

5:09 // Goodnight.

This morning I woke up an extra hour early to prepare six brownbag lunches. I’m going to NYC with Jeff (his bday weekend), Chris, Eddy, Shawn & Doug. Since my frig was stoked this week I’ve volunteered to make lunches for everyone for our bus ride. Orders have come in and there are sandwiches to make! I’m adding surprises to everyone’s bags: Twinkies and chocolate candies.

Chris is needing to go downtown and file some paperwork so I go with him to drive around in the car so it doesn’t need to be parked. I cruise around downtown/N Cap/Rhode Island Ave and listen to MTV VJ Mark Goodman on 80s on 8 on the satellite radio. Apparently Martha Quinn starts the morning show and Nina Blackwood is up next. They referenced Alan what’s-his-name so I’m hoping JJ Jackson also had a job there. Funny how they’re all working together again.

Back to the trip: we all make it to the bus ontime and get seats together. They have electrical outlets in each seat so we can all arrive with our phones and laptops fully charged. Nice.

Once the bus is moving we break out our picnic-sized amount of food. We also have countless bags of chips and Slim Jims. We’ve take over the aisle as our open-bag picnic storage space. Doritos? We got ‘em. Sun chips? Got those too. Kit Kat? Why sure!

1:53 // Three of us are asleep. The other three are clicktapping away on a laptop, an iPhone and an iPod touch.

2:44 // Eddy’s playing SimCity on his iPod touch. And cranking on it, as a matter of fact. He knows the interface wells and narrates his city’s history as he plays. He has 37,304 residents and $478,887 in his bank.

3:25 // After a bus break at the Woodrow Wilson Recreation Center and Stop we have reached the split in I-95 North. Those that have traveled this will know what I’m talking about.

3:49 // We’re getting to the point where, over 20 years ago, the World Trade Center first appeared on the horizon for my first trip to New York. On that trip I remember driving down West Side Highway and taking a picture straight up out of the sunroof of the twin towers. I wish I knew where that photograph was today. It’s probably in the basement of my Dad’s house, packed away in the box it’s been in since 1986 when my parents moved. I still have the picture in head though; that will have to be enough.

This is Eddy’s first time to the city so it will be fun to play semi-host and watch someone else be starry-eyed like I was all those years ago.

5:16 // In Manha’an! We walked the 20 short blocks north of where the bus dropped us to make it to our hotel. A great, short walk that took us right thru Times Square. Good thing for Eddy to witness. We’re staying at the 4-star Hilton a block away from the MOMA. This is world’s away from the cheap hostel I usually stay at on W83rd.

5:23 // Our rooms are on 32nd floor!

9:39 // At Stonewall, where the Pride movement began.

10:54 // These things that go through my head seem to not matter in personal conversations, and this is why I share them here.

12:37 // After Ty’s, Hanger, now a limo ride to The Eagle.

4:20 // Bedtime. After yet another trip to the corner gyro merchant. I think we’re going to be seeing a lot of him in the next few days.

4:40 // In bed. Talking with Eddy about the Towers and about old Manhattan and new Manhattan and what that all means. Can you relate?

4:42 // Eddy’s game stats: Population 113,336 and his bank is $653,689.

4:43 // We’ve opened the windows to sleep to. There is a pleasant rumble from the city coming up, and sirens and honks seem distant because they are so far below us. I love this city.

The Real World DC cast was at JRs today, accompanied by an obtrusive camera crew. Do they really think they’re going to capture good footage in a crowded bar when they can’t secure any audio?

I love the “where are they?” from the director at 1:16 and also when he tries to block my recording by moving his hand up and down at 1:30, like they have private domain in a public place. Douchebags.

While enjoying the H St Festival today I spotted two members of the Real World DC cast shopping and being pretty boring. Even the crew seemed bored with it all. When the two girls went inside the shop, they all plopped down and started texting and calling people, not even bothering to follow them inside to film them.

Let’s see…

I still can’t hear about of my left ear after Eddy’s drunken/birthday/hello greeting. I’ve been hydrogen peroxiding it all weekend long, and while it’s tickly and bubbly it still hasn’t solved the problem. I’m afraid I’m going to have to put my no insurance/Medicaid to the test soon and actually go and see a doctor. Is it ironic that a cancelled beach trip with a deaf friend this weekend is the same time that I can’t hear?

This week I’m starting M–F half-days at my “volunteer” job. Best thing about it is that it’s only five blocks away. I haven’t even ridden the bike there, it’s quite enjoyable just to walk through the neighborhood. It takes about two iPod songs. Things I’ve noticed while walking that I never saw before on the bike or in a car: There is a house on 14th that has an entire porch covering made out of a wisteria tree. I’ll take a pic this week and add it here. Also, there is a grate/manhole cover on C that still has the ladder in it leading down to the catacombs. Whether the workers left it there or it’s non-removable is unknown.

After my last round of the blandest marinara sauce ever, I’ve redeemed myself with yesterday’s batch. While I didn’t have some of my fave/regular ingredients, I pulled it out with an eye-measured mix of ground cayenne red pepper, epazote, ground red chipotle, ground mustard, oregano and adobo seasoning. And the cans of diced tomatoes also had some jalapeños in them. And S&P, of course.

I’m going to see if I can barrel through a re-watch of Season 1 and 2 of Mad Men before the 3rd Season premiere on August 16. Since I don’t have AMC, luckily iTunes has S3 available for next-day downloads. That is something I’ll spend $20 on.

Useless trivia: Kristy McNichol’s name was spelled “Kristie” during the pilot credits of Family. When I was a kid in the 70s, I had a box full of notecards that listed the 555-xxxx phone numbers of television characters that I had collected over the years. I had the numbers of the Brady’s and Jaime Sommers, those that I can remember. Now you can just find them here.