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Back The Underminer Save as PDF
Chapters (21)
  1. Cover Page
  2. Title Page
  3. Copyright
  4. Table of Contents
  5. Bright Young Things campus of Clarkwell College, graduation in the town of Clarksville, somewhere upstate, 1990
  6. Cool Days open mike night at Kafka-fe, after band "2 Much" plays, 1991
  7. New on the Scene utside in front of Club Hush, for a film screening party of Kill Fee, 1993 o
  8. Single in the City at a French bistro, 1995
  9. Hangover brunch, the morning after, 1995
  10. Natural Health a chance meeting at Jasper’s Yoga Studio, 1996
  11. The Fat Flush ’90s in the foyer of a friend’s renovated brownstone, 1997
  12. Art Stars at Bonwyck Gallery, 1998
  13. Inner Odyssey the Burning Man festival in Nevada’s Black Rock Desert, 1999
  14. Life After Death facedown in the dirt of the desert, next morning, 1999
  15. Loyal Companions catching up at the dog run, 2000 catching up at the dog run, 2000
  16. In the Real World a run-in at the ShopShape magazine launch party sponsored by Senor Strawberry Liqueur, early 2001
  17. Wartime spotted at Kinko's, late 2001
  18. Office Job in the cafeteria of the Conde Nast building, 2003
  19. Settling a yard sale on an obscure block in the outer borough, 2003
  20. Starting Over in a remote village tavern on the farmlands of New Zealand, 2004
  21. Epilogue a gathering of friends

So, were you hired by a catering company or directly by ShopShape magazine? Uh huh. Uh huh. It's amazing the success of that magazine! How it's utterly transformed the industry. I'm so proud of Karen, the Editor in Chief, who is weirdly a close friend of mine from Collage class at Parsons. She helped me with my business plan for my handbag line that I had, which I loved but sold the rights to just because I wanted to do more creative work. But I still have a consulting position in the company.

Me, me, me. What am I saying. What about you. I mean it's so weird I was just thinking about you because I was listening to No Doubt. Wow their new album reminds me so much of your '90s coffeehouse band. It's weird how similar you sound! Did you ever copyright any of that stuff? No? Too bad. I was going to tell you to do that at the time but I didn't know if you'd really motivate to do it.

Holy crap, I didn't know you were still playing music! That's amazing that you have stuck with it so long, through all the changes and trends and styles and aging. I mean, the general audience for that kind of stuff is preteens—and you're a thirty-four-year-old! You're you! It's just very cool that you're taking that commercial and financial risk, and trying to bridge generations.

Me? I'm fine I'm fine . . . you know, working with Robert Wilson and Tom Waits on their next world-touring experimental staged opera . . .

You didn't know? Oh. I guess I've been sort of mellow and unpromotional about it. I more let people ask me. They just liked my compositions and we have been working on a four-part retelling of Cherokee legends. You know those guys, always trying to do something that will be timeless and sustaining, yadda yadda. They are so funny. They have worked together for so long now that they finish each other's sentences.

I don't know how I hooked up with them really. I just thought to myself: "I am in my thirties now and I need to sort of evolve and do grown-up work." You know? And it was one of those things where you think it and then you ARE it? Because that next week my boyfriend Viggo introduced me to Bobby and Tommy and the next thing I knew I was in rehearsals five nights a week. So there you go! We've both been so busy!

Oh, pardon me for one second.

Hi Michelle! I know I'm so tired today too!

Wow doesn't she look haggard and tired. She's working here at ManMade, the men's version of ShopShape. Wow, she really looks like she's been through something! Offices are so toxic!