My tattoo artist finished touching up the art on my back. It's an interpretation of The Churning of the Milky Ocean, a bas relief on one of the walls of Angkor Wat, Cambodia. Here's the final product:

The story behind the art goes something like this...

Without evil, good could not exist. The ancient population of Cambodia illustrated the concept as a giant tug of war. The rope in this case is a huge serpent (Vasuki) wrapped around a mountain. As each side pulls and gains momentum the mountain spins, churning the oceans of the universe. This churning creates the essence of life and immortality. Meanwhile, Vishnu orchestrates the whole thing as a sort of mediator.

The Devas (the guys on the right) are widely accepted as the good guys - and the Asuras (the guys on the left) are thought of as the bad guys. Gods vs. demons. But in this instance, neither is truly good or evil. They are in constant conflict yet they are working together. In the Churning, the two sides team up to achieve everlasting life.

Cool?

Your pal,
Jason

I chopped those images up in Photoshop and gave the file to my tattoo artist:

Then she created an outline and got to work. Here's the finished product (you can see it in color here if you like):

Click on the images to see larger versions. And if you're wondering, I do have one other tattoo.

Some of them are self-concious about their nipples, others want to know why their boyfriends look at so much porn, and some just want to know if their back dimples look funny. If only I could think of a way to use this to my advantage...

In other news - The Codes are regrouping. Our bass player is moving away, so we need to stop playing shows for a while and get a new guy (or gal) up to speed. During that break, we're hoping to get a shitload of work done, including our first CD, a website redesign, new t-shirts and stickers, etc. Also, keep an eye out for updates on a super secret punk rock side project. I'll let you know when the shit is about to hit the proverbial fan.

For now, you've got one last chance to witness the debauchery that is The Codes before Jay takes off. Friday night at The Fire in Philly. Do it.

I sent this information in an email newsletter. If you want to be added to the email list, send an email to thecodesmusic[at]gmail{dot}com with "Subscribe" in the subject line. Don't worry, we'll only send them every month or so. And remember - If you're on the distribution list, it's because we think you're sexy and we want to see you at more of our shows (and by "shows" I mean "make-out parties"). Okay, let's get on with it.

Studio Time - Drexel University
Students from Drexel's Music Production class have invited The Codes to record at MAD Dragon Studios as part of their Music Industry Program. The sessions are scheduled throughout May, and we're hoping to walk away with at least three finished tracks. After a short break for recording, we'll be back on the stage May 22 for one of our biggest shows ever:

Philadelphia, PA - Tuesday, May 22 - The Manhattan Room
This one is going to be insane. We're headlining an incredible lineup that includes three bands from Florida's Post Records. Mumpsy, Dodger, and Sean Moore are stopping in Philly on their East Coast tour. We want to fill the M Room with Codiacs to show these Florida boys what Philly's all about. Check out their magic on MySpace (linked above). These guys really are amazing.

New York, NY - Thursday, May 24 - The Knitting Factory (Old Office)
Next up, we're hitting the road with the Post Records gang. We're joining them at the legendary Knitting Factory with Brooklyn's Unicornicopia. This will be our third time taking the stage at the Knit and for some reason I get the feeling this will be another night of drunken debauchery. Plus, there's a rumor that Natalie Unicornicopia is planning a few surprises.

Philadelphia, PA - Wednesday, May 30 - Grape Street
We're closing out May at Grape Street in Manayunk with Spoons for Adam, Crashbox, and The Arrangements. We're expecting a good turnout for this one - seems like Grape Street always draws a crowd. And the sound system rocks here, so we're planning to cut a live recording at this show. Come out and cheer us on. You might hear your voice on one of the final tracks.

And we already have two weekend shows booked in June, so keep an eye out for the next update.

Later, skaters!
JJ
The Codes

I always worry about what people think of me. Always. I am completely incapable of being an unapologetic asshole. Herein lies the problem...

I am an asshole. I just can't be honest about it. If people only knew what I really thought of them. Sure, I have a lot of true friends whom I think very highly of. But then there are the rest of you fuckers. The people who could die and I would smile quietly. There are people in my life who I acknowledge - maybe I smile and wave - but inside I'm silently judging them.

If you're reading this and you're wondering where you fit in my silly little brain, here's an easy way to figure it out: If I hang out with you on a regular basis, I respect you and count you as a friend. If I ignore your emails and only see you when we happen to bump into each other, I probably hate you.

Sorry I can't just be open and honest about it. You'll have to figure it out for yourself.

_____________________________

Let's get this started.

Here's the thing....Often, I think about a significant return to blogging.  I think of creating a new site, pimping it out, gaining a small readership and showing them cartoons and hi-fucking-larious posts(No shame.).  Often, I think of inviting some of the quality funny guys I know to blog with me.  I think of the good times we had and wish I could have them again.

Then, I slap myself for being a woman, and then roughly feel myself up. This makes me, myself, feel degraded and violated.  But don't get all "Call a rape center!" on me.  Because I was asking for it, in fact, I deserved it. 

Why?  Because Characters from TV shows have blogs.  Retail Corporations have "news blogs".  For Fuck's Sake, JJ's goddamned DOG had a blog.  Sure, it's cute and novel for a few days, but then when you look at it...it's like they've taken away something that was a tool for people to maybe express themselves in a way that was previously non-existant. 

Now, sure.  There are definitely people that should not have access to any kind of audience, lest they shatter that precarious self-image they have deluded into seeing.  But thanks to Reality TV, lots and lots (and I mean LOTS) of those people are being smashed into tiny pieces on camera and then slow-churned into nice little bits of voyeurism for all of use to gorge ourselves on.  We can taste their failure, self-hate, misery, and complete breakdown of mind. 

But it wasn't all "The misunderstood ramblings of a girl on the world" or "Edges of Darkness layered in Dark Corners of Dark Crybaby emotions and endless hours of The Cure.", was it?

There were some badass bloggers back in the day.  Like this chick Goldie from Austrailia? And This crazy kid, G-fry who went off to college.  or Tubbs from Lousianna.  Or Maine, from you know, well Ladytown, VA.  Shit, what about Mikey? And the entirety of QW's and The Churning link lists?

And while I was thinking about how great these blogs were, I realized in that moment, that we, ourselves, killed blogging.  Not corporations, not television show producers.  We did it.

We did it by allowing ads.  We did it by subconciously (however remotely) expecting that we were all clever, intelligent and talented people who "just hadn't been discovered, yet."  We did it by allowing things like BlogExplosion to breed.  We took something that could have legimately been a resource for better understanding of our fellow humans, and tried to squeeze a few bucks out of it.

I always said, when I started the QW! with J (not JJ mind you, he was last on the cast), we would write things that make us or our friends laugh and nothing else.  We would never censor ourselves, or be fake.  And we didn't.  And while not everyone liked the QW!, we did have a pretty large readerbase.  I think in a lot of ways, we were inspirational. 

And we killed it.  Because apparently, liking guns, making dick jokes, and running a joke campaign for the presidency is considered "being a dirty terrorist".  Yes, folks.  One of our own was insulted, threatened and otherwise abused for having an internet blog and just sharing thoughts, fiction, for entertainment purposes.  And we gave up.  We all quit and headed for the hills.  Out of fear for our friend, and maybe REALLY because we were afraid for ourselves.

 I looked at blogging in that moment, and I saw a dream, a chance and a hope shredded, splayed wide open, viscera and sinew stretched.  Blogging was dead.  As it lay there, clawed at, and fed upon by carrion vultures of our society, I could have wept.  Had I any part of me that was not cynical or bitter or just malcontent, I would have wept.

Sure, maybe I was an idealist, maybe I was an idiot for buying into an idea and believe that people at their core were not just rotten and self-centered. 

Maybe next time, we'll get it right.

Most of you know that in addition to The Churning, I also run a website for my band, The Codes. The trouble is - that site isn't really a blog (even though we do add new content on a regular basis). And since it's not a blog, it doesn't have a blogroll. And since it doesn't have a blogroll, it's not easy to trade links with people like I do here.

No links for The Codes = zero Google page rank = low search engine rankings. Basically, I'm fucked. That's where Tricia's solution comes into play.

I want you to include a link to The Codes website (http://thecodes.net/main) in one of your upcoming blog posts. In exchange, I will include your site in a blog review here at The Churning. And I promise the review will be positive. I don't necessarily need you to tell people to visit http://thecodes.net/main, or add the site to your blogroll, or even post the link prominently. This is all about page rank, not exposure.

The easiest way to participate would be to make a passing reference to my band in one of your blog entries. Like "So I was masturbating this weekend and suddenly I started thinking about JJ's band The Codes. I came immediately." You know, something like that. After you publish your post, email thechurning[at]gmail[dot]com to let me know (or just leave a comment here on this post).

And while you're at it, be our friend on MySpace. All the cool kids are doing it.

Here are some more ways you can incorporate my band's name into a blog post:

...And then the guy cut me off in traffic! I rolled down my window and yelled "The Codes will fuck your shit up motherfucker!" He had no idea what I was talking about.

I can't believe this horrible diarrhea I've had. This morning I squirted poo out of my ass and it was so nasty, it reminded me of The Codes.

I kept drinking whiskey shots, one after another. After six or seven, my girlfriend called me an alcoholic. I was so insulted. I yelled, "Fuck that! At least I'm not The Codes!"

You ever suck cock for cash? I bet The Codes have!

I was in Wal-Mart buying a large bag of Purina for Levi and was in line to check out. A woman behind me asked if I had a dog... Duh!

I was feeling a bit crabby so on impulse, I told her no, I was starting the Purina Diet again, although, I probably shouldn't because I'd ended up in the hospital last time, but that I'd lost 50 pounds before I awakened in an intensive care unit with tubes coming out of most of my orifices and had IV's in both arms. Her eyes about bugged out of her head.

I went on and on with the bogus diet story and she was totally buying it. I told her that it was an easy, inexpensive diet and that the way it works is to load your pockets or purse with Purina nuggets and simply eat one or two every time you feel hungry. The package said the food is nutritionally complete so I was going to try it again.

I have to mention here that practically everyone in the line was by now enthralled with my story, particularly a tall guy behind her.

Horrified, she asked if something in the dog food had poisoned me and was that why I ended up in the hospital.

I said no... I'd been sitting in the street licking my butt when a car hit me.

I thought the tall guy was going to have to be carried out the door, he laughed so hard.