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About Me

Some of my photography of the world around me:


And for those who do not know me very well, here are some little-known factoids, if you're interested:

~I am a MUSIC SNOB. I like all (or nearly all) genres of music. I go to as much live music as is humanly possible. My tangible CD collection is vast and eclectic. I have no patience for those who think their taste in music is obscure and superior, when in actual fact it is pedestrian and evocative of a misanthropic tenth-grader.

~No, I do not like Journey. I posted that song for obvious reasons.
~I rule at Sopranos pinball. I do not know if this applies to all pinball machines. I am also virtually unbeatable at Tetris. Just sayin'.

~I used to live in a place called "Monkey Town." While I lived in Monkey Town, I went to a convent-run school in a neighboring place called "Sodom." I posted a photo of a map in my pics section for proof.

~This same place, located a bit upstate from the city, was built on a large abandoned mine. It is said to be haunted and it is also a very well-documented UFO hotspot. Unfortunately, I did not see any UFOs. At least not there.

~Even though I had the highest grade-point average at that above-mentioned school in Sodom, I almost got expelled for skipping handbell practice.

~Later, I moved down to a rural community in Buncombe County (where we get the words "bunk," and "debunk" from), North Carolina. I lived in a double-wide on top of a mountain just outside the Pisgah National Forest on Poverty Branch Road.

~During this time, I went to college to study Ancient Greek and Botany, and my Mom, a writer/editor, sewed heirloom Appalachian brooms.

~I once shared a beer with the guy who played Norm in Cheers.

~I like to drive stick. Sorry to disappoint, but I do not mean anything dirty by this. I also have a thing for muscle cars. I like the growl.

~I have an herbarium of over 100 wildflowers I have identified, pressed, and mounted onto paper myself. For some reason, I do not think many of my close friends know this.
~I once saved an old-growth stand in the Nantahala National Forest (one of the last remaining old-growth stands in the eastern US) by sending in a comment to the US Forest Service. Because of this, the environmental group I volunteered for was able to legally challenge and stop the sale under the National Environmental Protection Act. I knew there was a reason I became obsessed with annoying and tormenting the Forest Service with all those comment letters.

~I was devastated when the First American-Roumanian Congregation Synagogue on Rivington Street collapsed.

~I am not just a music snob. I am also a coffee snob. I have very particular taste in coffee. My pink espresso machine perhaps reflects this.

~A certain indie film actress once threw stuff at me at a concert. I do not know why. But this must lend me cred of some sort.

~My favorite place on the Blue Ridge Parkway is the stunning Devil's Courthouse.

~Right after I got a job waiting tables at a pizzeria on the strip in Virginia Beach, a shark attack scared all the customers away from the area. Perhaps not the best career luck.

~An ancestor of mine helped lead the 1916 Easter Rising in Ireland. She was English.

~She was also the first woman elected to a European parliament. Take that Nancy Pelosi!

~My Mom was born in Coney Island, Brooklyn, but lived (for much of her young childhood) in a tenement on Henry Street down on the Lower East Side. For all of you hipsters, this was before Max Fish.

~Nanotechnology freaks me out.

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My Blog

Alvy Alvarez

I know I've been downright inconsistent with this blog. Bad even. I hardly ever write. I am but a speck in the blogosphere. An inconsequential virtual nothing buffeted by the mighty bloggers. Or somet...
Posted by on Tue, 03 Jul 2007 01:21:00 GMT

Rosie Rosencrantz

I always admire people who write about the upsetting things that happen in their lives. That's never been me. Sure, I confide my feelings to my good friends (sometimes), but never publicly. Maybe it's...
Posted by on Mon, 28 Aug 2006 21:39:00 GMT

Fahrenheit Open Mic: First read the last night

I did it. I finally read at Fahrenheit--the open mic at Black & White. I have been going on and off for a couple of years, but my stage fright had prevented me from participating.Last Sunday was the v...
Posted by on Sat, 08 Apr 2006 16:16:00 GMT

The Daily Show & MySpace: How emo!

Love this report from Demetri Martin of the Daily Show. 9000 friends, MySpace Top 8's, and emo rock, baby. Trendspotting: Social Networking
Posted by on Fri, 24 Feb 2006 00:55:00 GMT

Castles & Double-Wides

I recently discovered that the Irish castle belonging to my Anglo-Irish relatives has been sold. What to do? :p Granted, this is old news from a couple years ago. But, because I wasn't consulted, and ...
Posted by on Tue, 22 Nov 2005 22:48:00 GMT

Cellar Door

Not just a tribute to Donnie Darko. Though it is that time of year. Tolkien once said, in his essay "English & Welsh:" "Most English-speaking people...will admit that cellar door is 'beautiful', es...
Posted by on Sun, 30 Oct 2005 14:43:00 GMT

Iraq

The 2000th American soldier was killed in Iraq yesterday. The Bush Administration has not given them the proper armor to keep them safe. And now, it seems that al-Zarqawi's terror network rivals...
Posted by on Wed, 26 Oct 2005 22:13:00 GMT

"Smurfageddon"

Are we only moved to action by smurfs? Unicef is running late-night ads on Belgian TV picturing the lovable three-apple-high people getting nuked. The idea is to raise money for ex-child soldiers i...
Posted by on Sun, 23 Oct 2005 02:30:00 GMT

The Pinnacle of Music Video Achievement & Tofu Tetris

Ok, Go. I know I haven't posted a blog in a long time. And I promise I'll post a serious one before long. But here are a couple of lil gems for y'all. To begin: OK Go's "A Million Ways." In the bac...
Posted by on Thu, 13 Oct 2005 23:08:00 GMT

Cities as friends & Poverty Branch Road

An old friend of mine, Matthew, has the City of Asheville listed as one of his friends on MySpace. I remarked to him how odd that struck me. He just simply replied, "Yes, Kim, cities can be your frien...
Posted by on Fri, 10 Jun 2005 02:27:00 GMT