oi tofu

cleaner

2008-09-06T22:49:00.002-04:00

i'm trying to clean everything. here's an ex-sidebar, now given to eternity as a post:
heroes and anti-heroes , in no particular order

* bill mills
* alexander rodchenko
* rocky
* ben
* malcolm and vlad
* carl lewis
* the punisher
* buffalo bill
* megan
* colin smith
* nelson vallis
* jack kerouac
* john yossarian
* victor
* piet mondrian
* me mum
* mario cipollini
* stevie gerrard
* lance armstrong
* nigel
* kieran
* jakob
* candide
* the clash
* silkworm
* graeme obree

the decline of quality

2008-09-05T14:46:00.007-04:00

sort of looks like this:

last night i locked myself out of my apartment (left my keys in the shop, innit?) it was too late to bother anyone with my troubles, so i ended up on a beach at 4 in the morning. i slept on that rank beach for two hours, only to be woken up by passing rowers. i am so tired.

somethings

2008-08-30T23:07:00.016-04:00

it was all so simple
want simple? the best.

my red bike
it's a schwinn. all original (except for maybe the saddle/seatpost). i love it. it is magic that these times could never begin to imagine to create. this bike lives and stays with my girlfriend; whom i love and miss a lot. (ed. note: was given a great sticker by a barista today; "fixed gears are the new rollerblades." cha-ha! p.s. the sticker was from portland! ha!)

twitter: the shit

it's like facebook for awesome. check this out. if you don't understand the scope and greatness of this, we can't be friends. sorry (for you).

the buzzcocks

silkworm of their era? nope. fucking great? yup.

back to new york

and a big "doy" on my part, violence of the highest (or mid-browiest) order:

new oitofu.com colour scheme spoils stolen stock images from previous posts

i wish the standard for backgrounds was black. sometimes.

unemployed

as of tomorrow, 1330 EST.

whatevs.

i love/hate toronto

2008-08-25T03:22:00.001-04:00

toronto. i love it as much as i hate it.

moral of the story: it could always be worse. always.

canada wins big at the olympics!

2008-08-15T12:48:00.004-04:00

picnic chit-chat

2008-08-12T09:55:00.001-04:00

vulgarity

2008-08-04T17:04:00.004-04:00

i hate toronto. i'd rather be shot and robbed in kansas city than have brunch on a patio at a vegetarian restaurant in the company of spineless torontonian douche bags. don't get me started on east toronto. the people over there are fucked.

this gray world

2008-07-29T08:09:00.003-04:00

not really sure who to cheer for in this one:

this just in (from www.nj.com):

Meanwhile, Long was arrested because he was obstructing traffic in the heart of Times Square, the complaint said. He was charged with attempted assault, resisting arrest and disorderly conduct.

The complaint said Long, 29, deliberately steered his bicycle into the officer, causing both of them to fall to the ground.

During his arrest, Long squirmed and kicked, saying to the officers, "You are pawns in the game. I'm gonna have your job," the complaint said.

it seems that this Long man went to the same school of protest as this guy:

and this is really funny.

cowtown!

2008-07-09T13:00:00.006-04:00

calgary is a weird place. one could walk down the street in full cowboy gear (lasso, chaps, etc.), and no one would bat an eye. the army (or whoever has the submarines) even mounted a saddle on a torpedo so one could ride it like a true champion. how thoughtful.

this is my brother putting out his barbecue that he set on fire. there was no food involved. he's a lawyer now, and our family is very proud.

laughter!

2008-06-28T00:21:00.003-04:00

it might not be a joke, but it's still fucking funny:

on a related (but totally different) note, expressed as a percentage, how many gun owners will unwittingly injure themselves, or others, by trying to "curve the bullet"?

and finally, to cap it off, i'm going to start updating again the way i began, nokia style. my nice digital camera broke, and while i decide on a replacement, i'm going to use the ol' stalwart, the nokia camera phone. i hate the fucking phone, but am locked into the contract, so i'll make the best of times, yeah? yeah.

oh, and really finally, i think the CMWC's are coming up sometime this summer. let me know when you're going to be in town. maybe we'll get a beer.

blood and steel

2008-06-09T03:20:00.002-04:00

not in your usual format, mind.

here we see a picture of my blood on a columbus max os mtb downtube. i cut my thumb on the miter, moved on with my work, and then it started gushing blood. fuck tube decals!

toss

2008-05-26T06:13:00.004-04:00

so here i am, in an apartment that's relatively cheap that i still can't afford, doing some shit on my computer that i'm not qualified to do, and basically wallowing in late 20's poverty. but i'm not down. i thought of getting on a bus to new york to see my better half, but i have to work on wednesday, and the 36 hours i'd be able to spend there isn't worth the 24 hour bus ride. (i find much of my life is decided on ratios).

silkworm is on my stereo. they are the best band ever.

a lot of me (maybe 4:1.233) is saying i should fuck it all and semi-retire to a park and drink cheep booze and enjoy the sun (like yesterday). the smarter part of me knows the sun isn't always shining, and winter is really cold and miserable.

disregard everything above. i'm going to new york.

moral of the story: it could always be worse. always.

mazda

2008-05-25T02:29:00.003-04:00

aspirational bollocks. fuck off.
p.s. worst drivers ever.

anyone got some glue?

2008-05-25T02:23:00.002-04:00

glue that shit up!

hardcore!

2008-05-16T14:26:00.004-04:00

i've never really understood, or liked, hardcore punk. my friend ben likes it and understands it. that's why he's doing this:

http://condensedfresh.blogspot.com/

ben does good things because he's good people. he lived in japan for a bit, too.

on a related note: right now, my blogging abilities are a little shunted, because someone in new york stepped on my laptop. with the help of my girlfriend, i'm getting it sorted and will be back up to full speed blogging soon.

apologies: ben's blog isn't just 'hardcore', rather it encompasses ben's whole gamut of show set lists; approx 4.234 per week.

ex-courier

2008-05-03T09:06:00.003-04:00

i am tofu, ex-courier. i quit my job yesterday and i don't plan on returning. i think i've been a courier for six years. or six winters, anyway. during that time, i've broken three ribs, two fingers, a collar bone and a toe. not to mention all the blood i've lost or the times i've smashed my head off the ground. i've met, worked with, and raced with the best people in the world. i'm certain i've done enough Kms to have circumnavigated the earth at least twice.

i, like most couriers (i think), have thought of quiting for a long time now. it was yesterday, sitting in jet fuel for an hour or two, that i made the choice to quit. i don't regret becoming a courier, but it would be nice if i could go back to 21 again.

in lieu of road work, i will be in the shop full-time; machining, fabricating, chopping, cutting, welding, cranking, wrenching, fixing, etc.

right now, i am equal parts happy, nervous, poor, and optimistic.

interesting times.

and i still can't be beaten.

i love jews!

2008-04-30T08:53:00.002-04:00

i saw an ad for the toronto jewish film festival which really made me laugh. it's called "b-ball" but i can't find it online. however, there is no shortage of funny jewish ads:

2008-04-27T08:10:00.001-04:00

bike gang!

2008-04-17T12:09:00.004-04:00

i'm in a horrifying bike gang. the most horrifying thing about the bike gang are the actual bikes. if you were to ride one, you'd realize how hard we really are. plus we hang out in front of karate schools and nathan's hot dog's of coney island. i'm the leader, nigel is my lieutenant, kieran the "attack dog", megan the getaway driver.

spring time!

2008-04-08T14:25:00.005-04:00

it is officially spring. the misery of winter is almost forgotten; at least all the snow has melted. i will be in new york city soon, with the woman i love. my friends from london will be there, too. i have my own business on the go, building bicycle frames. my mp3 player (which i use to alleviate the boredom of despatch riding) has a finely tuned playlist; everything from snap's "i got the power" to the business' "mortgage mentality". people are looking less ugly. and less fat. except for all the pregnant ones, but they, for the most part, look fairly radiant. i ride a pinarello for work. and the tom otterness behind my bike? one day...

couldn't you wait?

2008-04-04T16:51:00.003-04:00

silkworm is the best band ever. it is my dream of america, captured in music. i just want more people to know about them, and then maybe more people will know about me.

taiwanese aluminium

2008-04-01T01:54:00.007-04:00

here's the reason i don't ride factory produced bikes from asia anymore:
this happened in london on piccadilly at approx. 2345. i was in the pub with me mates, and no more than a kilometer and a half from the pub, my bicyle broke apart at the bottom bracket shell. there was no warning, it just snapped. lucky for me piccadilly, a major london thoroughfare, was empty. i got to the pub at around 1900 or 2000, but had i done one more call that night, i would have been swerving through london rush hour. i would have been dead. the sticker on the seatstay is still one of my all time favourites (bike messengers of the world unite; you have nothing to lose but your chains). dents on the top tube courtesy of josh and a baseball bat. photo courtesy of selimski.

p.s. how is it that i miss London so much... even after all this time?

saying things, doing things.

2008-03-30T11:07:00.004-04:00

if you say you are going to do something, do it. simple. don't be a douche bag.

and my mill:

holy shit!

2008-03-16T01:40:00.004-04:00

first: enough of this fucking winter. really. fuck off. i'm sick of it.
now on with business:

everything in my life is exciting. and it is a great feeling. finally.

emm... ok, so i am picking up my mill today. it's fucking huge and i'm a bit apprehensive about the move. imagine moving a piano on the salary of a bike messenger and there you have it.

but having said that, the mill is my ticket. it's mine. and it's a tonne of mine. and with it, i can make anything i want. it's primary function will be the mitering of bicycle tubing. the secondary functions of the mill will be; shaping metal (i.e. dropouts), lightweight reduction cuts, and of course, making a gun.

i am renting approximately 200SF of space from Malcolm Munro, owner and genius behind "Biseagal", the most under appreciated bicycle shop ever. i have been at Biseagal for about a year now, and i am certain there is no place like it on the planet. Malcolm is perhaps the best person in the world.
i already have six frames to make, and i have yet to make my first. soon i will be "tofu, 27, framebuilder", and finally i will have created something.
and! almost all of my best friends will be in NYC for the week starting april 9th. i'm pretty sure you have no idea what this means to me; to see all these faces. nothing will keep me from NY that week.

and! check out this stupid "kubrick" toy i bought. it's called "ARTO-FU", and it represents two of my favourite things in life: Piet Mondrian and tofu. and robots. so three things, really.

getting hit in the head and one tonne of cold loving

2008-03-05T20:43:00.004-05:00

so, some guy hit me in the head after work today for no apparent reason. get out of toronto, son. the people here are crazy!

in other news: i have purchased a new (used) mill! here it is:
moving it promises to be a bitch, but my friend, dr. ghivago, has offered to lend me a kind hand and his SUV to move it from the north part of the city to the east end. sweet. first project: make my own gun.