NOTE: All timestamps are in the future because WE are in the future. The care takers of Midnight Ridazz.com reserves the right to remove, edit, move or delete anything for any reason. None of the opinions expressed on these boards represent the Midnight Ridazz nor can anyone purport to speak on behalf of Midnight Ridazz.
I'm thinking about making this an all day and night ride. So if you want to join up at the evening portion of the event, I will have it posted up. It's kind of like a bar crawl / bike ride / ride arc style of thing... I hope. We'll see. I haven't read all of his stuff, but I think he is a pretty cool LA figure. Too bad most of the buildings he was associated with don't exist anymore. Doing some research. Thanks for helping make it become what it will.
basically I need to research places he lived, drank, worked, etc.
An all day and night ride would be tiring so I was thinking we could all have a mid-day nap near his grave in Palos Verdes. Then possibly head to Long beach where he drank. Working on it. Whatever you find or think of, let me know.
Joe Borfo responding to a comment by Thegirlinglass
07.24.09 - 3:24 pm
An all day and night ride would be great- that way when people show up on the evening end of the ride we will all be Bukoskied by then- I would love to have a slurred reading of his work.
I dontr know if I wanna hear that all night ... but it would seem imperative that it come in once in a while... it would be great to see what set list gets created if Buk is used as a spiritual guide to pick the songs.
trickmilla responding to a comment by tortuga_veloce
07.24.09 - 8:07 pm
I do have plans for a music trailer, Poodles. We could have some Buk recordings play. But I'd much rather have drunken readings throughout the day by various Ridazz.
Thanks for the info, Patrick!
I recommend Women, Rev. Dak. I'm currently reading Post Office.
Bukowski lived his last years in my home town of San Pedro, and could sometimes be seen eating at the Mexican restaurant on 9th Street between Cabrillo and Meyler. So I'll see you guys when you roll through here, yes? Eh? Hmm?
I did my own Unofficial Bukowski Tour with some friends earlier this year. We started at his childhood home, which happened to be behind where on the participants lived (over by La Brea and the 10 FWY). But I can have the addresses and info we had compiled for it and then map them out. It shouldnt be to hard of a ride. Only thing is, it would at least need to start around 200 or so. And we were Bukowski about it (drinking Whiskey from place to place); womanizing would of occurred if there were women involved :(...JK ladies
Next year they are having an exhibtion of his work and original drawings at Huntington but for now there is one page of the original draft of "Ham on Rye" and reproduction of one his drawings. Woot
the freeways are a psychological
entanglement of
warped souls,
dying flowers in the dying hours
of the dying day,
old cars, young drivers,
new models driven by
aged men, driven by
drivers without licenses, by drunk
drivers, by drugged drivers,
by suicidal drivers, by super-cautious
drivers (the worst).
drivers with minds like camels,
drivers who piss in their seats,
drivers who love to kill,
drivers who love to gamble,
drivers who blame everybody else,
drivers who hate everybody,
drivers who carry guns.
drivers who don't know what
rearview
mirrors are for,
what the turn signals are for,
drivers who drive without brakes,
drivers who drive on bald tires.
drivers who drive slowly in the fast lane,
drivers who hate their wives or their husbands,
and want to make you pay for that.
unemployed drivers, pissed.
all these represent
humanity in general, totally enraged, demented,
vengeful, spiteful, cheap denizens of our culture, vultures,
jackals, sharks, suckerfish, stingrays, lice ...
all on the freeway along with you
tailgating,
cutting in and out,
cheating themselves,
leering,
their radios blaring the worst music ever written,
their gas tanks nearly empty,
engines overheating,
minds over the next hill,
they don't know how to drive
or live,
they know less than a snail crawling home.
they are what you see every day
going from nowhere to nowhere,
they elect presidents, procreate, decorate their
Christmas trees.
what you see on the freeway is just what there is,
a funeral procession of the dead,
the greatest horror of our time in motion.
A ride playlist of the music that Bukowski actually listened to would be pretty interesting. Daring, even, seeing as how it would be mostly classical.
I can remember starving in a
small room in a strange city
shades pulled down, listening to
classical music
I was young I was so young it hurt like a knife
inside
because there was no alternative except to hide as long
as possible--
not in self-pity but with dismay at my limited chance:
trying to connect.
the old composers -- Mozart, Bach, Beethoven,
Brahms were the only ones who spoke to me and
they were dead.
finally, starved and beaten, I had to go into
the streets to be interviewed for low-paying and
monotonous
jobs
by strange men behind desks
men without eyes men without faces
who would take away my hours
break them
piss on them.
now I work for the editors the readers the
critics
but still hang around and drink with
Mozart, Bach, Brahms and the
Bee
some buddies
some men
sometimes all we need to be able to continue alone
are the dead
rattling the walls
that close us in.
The most amazing coincidence happened yesterday. I went to Vromans bookstore in Pasadena and a book signing was going on about a book called Bukowski's LA - (Where He Lived, Drank, Wote, and Partied) by Matt Dukes Jordan.
www.myspace.com/bukowskislabook
I bought the book and I had a chance to talk to the author. I told him about our upcoming ride. He was very excited about it. He might join us and may provide great historical and personal insight about Buk. He also has given me some great pointers about where I should go on our tour.
friends are those who you accept for their differences. sometimes those differences are too great to accept, and that person's name is Borfo. - spiraldemon
Starting to get this underway. I will try to contact those interested with what i need help with. it should be pretty cool event. I'm debating on the all day and night aspect and probably just condensing things to a East Ho. focus and more.
Joe Borfo responding to a comment by machinesaysno
08.3.09 - 7:13 pm
Don't cancel this!! I'm really excited about this & I know a whole bunch of other folks who are too! Even if its small & just for a few hours around a few places THAT would be TOTALLY great....Please?
sinaphile responding to a comment by Joe Borfo
08.10.09 - 1:38 pm
Yeah, that sounds like it would be pretty good. Seriously, no pressure. Just a fun ride! It was a great idea & few other friends of mine got really excited about it too so- hey- why not? I can't stay out super late or anything, but I'm down for a good time!! :D
sinaphile responding to a comment by Joe Borfo
08.10.09 - 2:36 pm
Im there for shure- and bringing a few peeps, Ive been looking forward to this ride ,seems like a fun slow paced afternoon ride is how buk would of wanted it- alot of whiskey and hard riding across L.A. you might blow a liver out or something
I'll explain this, User1 likes it when I do the talking.
The 16th happens to fall on a Wednesday, which is beyond anyone's control. When the ride was postponed a month, for the 16th of Sept, it just happens to be a Wednesday, not a Saturday. The point is for it to be on the 16th, not a Saturday. It just happens that LAST MONTH, it was a Saturday. That is not the case this month. You don't have to take my word for it, just pull up a calender. All computers have some sort of built in calendar, and you will see that September 16th is a Wednesday. So I hope that explains why it's a Wednesday, not a Saturday.
Actually the real reason why it got postponed is because the ride was going to be on his birfday, August 16th. When I made the spoke cards, I got drunk and printed September 16th. I never noticed until I was finishing cutting those stupid cards and realized it said September.
I felt as if Bukowski was telling me to give up and postpone the ride. I was not in a good mood that week anyways and was too busy because of Burning Man. So i said fuck it and due it on Weds like the goddamn spoke card says.
Are you happy now, Allan? Can life resume on planet earth now that it has all been explained to you?
P.S. This ride is going to suck. (fortunately we will catch up with A passage of a million bicycles riding through a donut ride for the rest of the evening)
Joe Borfo responding to a comment by the reverend dak
09.14.09 - 1:49 pm
Lets get donations together and redue the cards? Everyone will come together just like the last MR ride. That dood might even be able to make a weekend ride. So what his birthday is over.
User1 responding to a comment by Joe Borfo
09.14.09 - 1:56 pm
Hey I like donuts just as much as the next guy. I'm just saying we should do this proper and devote a whole day to the dude. Not 3 hours. There's lots of material out there.
User1 responding to a comment by Roadblock
09.14.09 - 2:07 pm
Alan is just sad because he can’t drink as much on a Wednesday night (rookie) as he could on a Saturday night… he is really said because he loves beer shits on Sunday mornings and can’t handle it on a Thursday morning.
“There was nothing really as glorious as a good beer shit—I mean after drinking twenty or twenty-five beers the night before. The odor of a beer shit like that spread all around and stayed for a good hour-and-a-half. It made you realize that you were really alive.”
Buk
“There was nothing really as glorious as a good beer shit—I mean after drinking twenty or twenty-five beers the night before. The odor of a beer shit like that spread all around and stayed for a good hour-and-a-half. It made you realize that you were really alive.”
Buk
I agree with Bukowski
Roadblock responding to a comment by Kakihara
09.14.09 - 2:12 pm
Don't worry, gaise. It's nothing to jump up and down about. I've just been meaning to do this. I'm creating a booklet for people who want to take the tour on their own. And, if I run out of booklets, I'll post a PDF later.
This is pretty much a pre "Passage of..." ride. Should be no longer than 2 hrs. I'm hoping to meet up with Nathan and Sean afterward.
Joe Borfo responding to a comment by Kakihara
09.15.09 - 2:50 pm
Come on out Tarsis... I want to read some of your shamless writings... I've grown bored with your shameless postings on here and need a new angle. DUE ET.
Ah darn, well I failed on finishing the booklet in time... Lazy.
I'll try to post it later on, ok?
And like loser1 said, there's so much about Bukowski that I won't be able to even touch upon in a short evening ride. I'll try my best to introduce the main parts of his life in LA. I am ready to disappoint. It's been a learning experience for me though.
To me, Buk is the quintessential literary figure of LA.
Joe Borfo responding to a comment by alicestrong
09.16.09 - 6:22 pm
I am incredibly sad because I have to work late tonight and have to miss this. Please drink one for me and have a blast...!!!! I was REALLY REALLY looking forward to this too.
:( Maybe post the route later so sometime I can do it on my own? I even rewatched the doc a few weeks ago in preparation to see if we would ride through any of those areas...Grrr....
Thanks to those who came. I've been dying to do this ride. Pick up some of Buk's books. Also, rent his documentary, Born Into This.
For those who couldn't make it, there are some ideas of doing this again in a more organized fashion, possibly with the Ride Arc people's involvement. Also, I promise to finish a personalized mini Buk Tour Route info booklet and post the PDF up here soon for printing.
Thank You, Nathan, for incorporating the ride with your own. And thanks a bunch to Neverclever for helping make the Forever part work out!