Day One

Hi-

My name is Matt, though most people call me Mateo these days.

I left my mother's house in August 2001 and moved to Berkeley, California because I had to study philosophy there. Since then, I haven't lived in the same dwelling for more than a year and a half. I lived at the Casa de Angelopes with a constantly changing cast of freaks for one year and three months, and yesterday we all bid our final farewell in a fittingly chaotic ceremony that brought tears to a number of eyes.

Even before word came down that we were no longer welcome at 1161 1/2 E. Hyde Park Blvd. Inglewood, Ca. 90302, I had been feeling the Itch. I may have loved that scummy warehouse, but I needed to get out. Part of the inspiration for that feeling, maybe, was my newly purchased 1984 Chevrolet C20 conversion van. (The "Swagon" - a name I am not crazy about but it is the best one I can remember. One night I was wasted and came up with another name that I loved, but forgot it.) The Swagon fell in my lap in perfect running condition, and for only 1000 dollars I could keep it there, so I sold my Jeep and the heap of metal is mine. I used it to go on tour up to Seattle and back with Gibbons and the Sluts. The tour ended and we were safe at home when I first felt the Itch. My friend's band, Manhattan Murder Mystery, was going on tour and I asked if they had room for me to come along. As it happened, the Swagon ended up being the tour vehicle, and I ended up MMM's piano player. I found out on the road that the Casa was to be no more. The reality of the situation was numbed by the Itch.

When I got home work began on establishing a new space. Very quickly, with the kind of ease that suggests a divine guiding hand, the Church of FUN was founded near the intersection of Vermont and Melrose in Los Angeles. I let it be known that I was on the fence as far as my future residence, and I was leaning quite heavily to the side of the fence called Nowhere. The Itch pushed me off, and after dangling there for a couple of weeks I have landed. The vast majority of my personal possessions are in storage. At the moment I have a bicycle, a Wurlitzer 200a, a Fender Bassman, a duffel bag filled with clothes, an acoustic guitar, some books, papers, and tools, and the Swagon. I am not yet sure how I will fill my days. All I know so far is that last night, after bidding farewell to the Casa and celebrating with the congregation at the Church, when I wanted to be away from all these people to curl up and go to sleep, I had a place to do just that. It is not glorious, but it is where my heart has brought me. I am curious what my family and my old married-with-babies friends will think when they find out. I am also curious how long this experiment will last. I'm guessing it wont be very long, but it seems ripe for blog-style documentation, so here it is. Enjoy it while it lasts.