Why yes, I have been quiet for a while now that you mention it.Â
We spent almost a month on the road, starting with Sacramento for a privacy coalition meeting, and SF for Olli Wisdom at Space 550. We had juggled our plans to be at IllumiNation, and it was totally the right call.  550 Barneveld is a great venue, and we ran into plenty of familiar faces from back in 2003/2004 when we used to hang out there all the time. Musically, DJ Dragn’fly was great, and Olli was Olli — not as good as his legendary 2004 (((thump)) set, but still. One of our friends was at her first psytrance party. How cool is that?
The rest of the weekend was sunny in SF. We took it easy on Saturday, and I spent Sunday hanging out in Dolores park with a friend. Life is good.
Monday morning, it was on the train to DC. Well, more accurately, the train to Chicago, which got there eight hours late. So we missed our connection. So we wound up on an overnight thirteen-hour bus ride to DC. Fun! Well no, not actually. But still, we made it; and BORDC’s board retreat (the main reason we were there) was excellent. From there it was on to Charleston to see my Mom; very weird not celebrating Halloween, but it was great to see her. And then back to SF again, and finally home to Seattle. After sleeping at four different hotels, three residences, the train, and the bus (or at least trying to, on a 14-hour overnight trip from Chicago to DC) … can I just say how good it is to be home?
Wednesday evening, when we finally got back here, I dropped by the Atrium. They had been closed for a few days after their Halloween weekend blow-out, and it was fairly low-key, but it was great to be back.   Friday night was a stompy darkwave set by DJ Anomaly, and then last night was Transition II.
Of course The Atrium’s nowhere as big as Barneveld, but even with a small crowd the vibe is amazing. It was looking partcularly trippy Friday night, with some new UV-active Cyberdog artifacts and gorgeous flowers. And the light makes everybody look good!
no! its not a secret forbidden world that only a few fortunate transgressive people can/must participate in. it’s all of that but it is also a world anybody can enter…. and so its all about how you want the fantasies to be.
Over a lunch at Samover in SF earlier in the week, I was talking with a friend about how the magic that happens when a psytrance party goes well — and how to get more of that magic in our day-to-day lives.  Saturday night I was thinking about her and all the wonderful times we’ve had together, and looking forward to the next time we go out. After I while I let my mind turn off, enjoyed the music and the vibe, and danced with D.  It was another great night.  Plenty of magic.
jon | 20-Nov-11 at 2:36 pm | Permalink
It had been a tough week, but fortunately it was another great weekend at The Atrium: stompy darkwave on Friday, and then psytrance last night at Crescent.
DJ Anomaly was in the zone, and just as I was really getting into the flow, the really cute woman with the blue hair who I met at Anomalous showed up. Oooh!
The music and vibe were good enough that I drifted off into a mental space of my own. As usual, specific songs triggered memories: Astral Projection’s The Nexus and the times we saw them at Barneveld and in Seattle, 1200 Mics’ “Hashish” and the first time I heard it at DNA Lounge (Shiva! Shiva! Shiva!), Cortex’ “Heading to the promised land” and New Years Night 2010 in Oakland … so many wonderful times with friends old and new.
Let’s hope so!
jon | 27-Nov-11 at 3:58 am | Permalink
It was an abbreviated week, with great progress in the first few days and then Thanksgiving weekend. We had cleverly done our shopping on Tuesday, so didn’t have to brave the stores on Wednesday. Instead, it was meetings and phone calls — and then a great stomping darkwave set by DJ Anomaly.
D was heads-down working most of the weekend and I relaxed, taking walks and taking naps and hanging out online. On Thursday we continued our tradition of “Thanksgiving paella”, and I made sangria. We stayed home and avoided Black Friday, but that night was “Giving” at the Atrium. D was working so I was dancing with myself. I got there early and was kind of tired, and the first DJ wasn’t really to my tastes and on top of that there were technical problems so I just couldn’t get into a vibe. So I left around 12:45. Silly me. Not long after, DJ Anomaly came on and the place went wild — it wound up going until 7 a.m.! But, I really was pretty tired; so it probably was for the best that I left.
Saturday night after tapas and more sangria with friends it was ‘Thanks’, with DJ Anomaly opening. It wasn’t real crowded, everybody recovering from the late night; and only went till 2. The music was fantastic, though, and everybody was happy, so it was a wonderful night. The lighting was great, very warm, and from time to time we could hear the rain on The Atrium’s roof. As usual I got lost in the music…. We were both in a mood to dance. And we did!
New moon. Rainy night.
Fantasy. Reality.
Transporting our souls