skulls.

My mom and I have been seeing each other on a weekly basis lately, partly because I'm leaving for Italy in a week and a half, partly because she's more willing to come into the city -- probably influenced by the former. On our way back from the High we somehow got into a conversation about Il Purgatorio (because Dante is not usually very far from mind). About three sentences in my mom laughed, shook her head and said, "You and death."

What does that mean? Do I seem death-obsessed? I don't even think I'm morbidly-inclined. Although about 25% of my t-shirt collection does sport some kind death/skull/angel imagery (and I keep buyinig more). And I have three story ideas involvinig pre- and post-apocolyptic conditions. Do I talk about death a lot? I really hope not.

Off topic: Made a new mix CD of loud stuff. Some old, some new, hopefully nothing I repeat too often (I've been accused of being a "repeat offender" when it comes to CDs). There are 18 tracks with 5 rocks song sets separated by "breathers," all of which are hip-hop. This is the kind of CD Joey might like but Erica would hate.

loud. (v042807)

1. "March of the Pigs" by Nine Inch Nails (iTunes)
2. "Slaughterd" by Pantera (Last.fm)
3. "More Human than Human (Meet Bambi in the King's Harem Mix)" by White Zombie (iTunes)
4. "Shame" by Stabbing Westward (iTunes)
5. "Rapture" by Deftones (iTunes)
6. "Aliens (Hearing Aid Remix)" by Cassettes Won't Listen (IGN)
7. "Reckoning" by Unloco (Amazon)
8. "Assassin" by Muse (iTunes)
9. "Compagna Teresa" by Il teatro degli orrori (MySpace)
10. "Cold Sweat" by New End Original (iTunes)
11. "Bodies" by Smashing Pumpkins (iTunes)
12. "Hello New World" by Clipse (iTunes)
13. "Introduce the Metric System in Time" by The Hives (iTunes)
14. "The Shape of Punk to Come" by Refused (iTunes)
15. "1997 (Tonight We're Gonna Party Like It's ...)" by Sleepytime Gorilla Museum (iTunes)
16. "The Other Side of the Crash/Over and Out (of Control)" by Thursday (iTunes)
17. "Throw It On Me" by Timbaland featuring The Hives (iTunes)
18. "Tasmanian Pain Coaster" by El-P with Cedric (of The Mars Volta) (iTunes)