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Let's bring some happy back up in here. I'm in hardcore school mode for the next 48 hours, with a 20-page paper due and a final both going down on Wednesday. Thankfully, though, I've found some new music that's helping me along with the studying and it's fantastic:

The Sushi Club - Sakura
This group is the Japanese answer to Thievery Corporation, and it's just as good. Their newest, Sakura, finally hits the nail on the head after two late-90s albums that came really close but were tainted by this awful 80s-experimental-electronic-music sort of sound. This album really is as good as The Mirror Conspiracy and it makes me happy that there's great new chillout music happening.

Junkie XL - Radio JXL - 3PM/3AM and 7PM/7AM
For people who enjoy all tastes in techno, JXL satisfies. I first fell in love with this dude's work after hearing his epic 7-minute remix of BT's Somnambulist and I've been looking for his own stuff ever since. Recently, he's cut two albums, each of which contain two full sets. The PM sets are just plain good techno that's somewhere between Oakenfold and BT. On the other hand, the AM sets are closer to ambient sounding and are really good for chillout purposes. All four are great, but if you only find one, make sure it's the 7PM "Dance" set - the first track of it is one of the greatest house tracks I've ever heard.
Update: The track is called "Tennis" and it's by Tom Holkenborg, but iTunes credits it as by him and Junkie XL together, so I don't know if it's a track that's ever been released.

Mark Farina - Mushroom Jazz 5
Mark Farina's been spinning his own brand of chilled-out house music for ages, and No. 5 doesn't disappoint. Whereas volumes 1-3 tended to wear thin after a while and I've never found 4, this one sounds like it could be a classic, except for the first two tracks (which are too repetitive).

All of the above get the blakerson Seal of Approval™. Grab, spin, and enjoy.

Way to kill the celebratory mood. Pepper, my dog, got put down this morning because in mom's and the vet's expert opinions she had just had enough.

Thanks for being around, dog. 12 years well lived.

So last night was the *official* party to celebrate my 21st birthday. It was a fantastic time, complaints were few and guests were many. I got some very amusing presents, including:

-A CD full of orchestrated video game music (thanks soph!)
-A Starbucks gift card to fuel my A-town social life (thanks thomas!)
-The creepiest Christmas ornament ever (thanks jacky!)
-A flask and some booze, thanks to Travis
-Some more booze, thanks to Kate and everyone in Japanese
-Yet still more booze (including a couple high-ball glasses) from Taylor.

It made for a hell of a way to celebrate a birthday. Thanks to everyone who came!

Before I forget - if anyone has pictures from the party, please do send them my way.

I've always wanted to put a "Listening to" feature on this little website. Now, thanks to last.fm, I've got that. That little toy on the sidebar should update every week with my top artists of the week - that is, the ones I've listened to the most. I've got some pretty study-friendly music going on right now, so if you need some finals-week noise that's not too distracting, check out that list.

So the 21st birthday turned out way better than expected. I even went out two nights to hit up bars! If you're curious about what I did, here's a rundown:

Friday night: Went out with Roberto and a mass of various Latino boys and girls who I didn't know before that night. All in all, it was myself, Berto, a French exchange student, and 7 Mexican girls. Fine times were had by all, and between midnight and 2:00AM we managed to find 3 or 4 bars where I was given birthday shots. Everyone was nice, the parties were great, and the pictures are even good - if I ever get any sent to me. For Austinites, here's where I went: Copa, Barcelona, and one more place I can't remember.

Saturday: Spent all day with Joshvar, and Ruthie, and various amigos of theirs/ours. The ladies were even nice enough to serve the best dessert ever: Ghirardelli brownies with Birthday Cake ice cream on top. That, and a day full of football and Nintendo DS goofiness, made for an awesome day while my roomies were off judging debate. They also took me out barhopping, which was a little bit more chill of a night than the night out with the Mexis, but it was just as well spent with some true amigos. I went to: Aquarium, Library, Apple Bar, and Saba. Apple Bar and Saba were away from 6th, over in the warehouse district, which I liked quite a lot. The bars over there seem to be much more chill while still being loud and fun. Basically, there's none of the shady characters that you see all the time on 6th. It's my kind of place far.

Today: Woke up tired of drinking, still drunk, dizzy, and hungover all at once. But I didn't throw up this weekend (a sign that I did it just right, imo) and once I was over the hangover, I was off to meet my law professor. That meeting was pretty forgettable, but shaking off a hangover to go meet a professor on a Sunday perfectly characterizes my weekend in 10 words or less.

This week I get to spend working my ass off to finish the papers I've gotta get worked up, but on the coming weekend there are plenty of parties to be had, including mine on Saturday. See you guys here! And for everyone who helped me celebrate the birthday proper, thank you! You made it a time to remember.