I am ready to do different things with music

book

Just read Donald Miller's To Own a Draggon. I want to read his book Searching For God Knows What next. I've never been much of a reader, but I plan on developing. Slowly. Developing.

Brother's wedding

makeover

LouisGunman needs a makeover

found some pictures on my computer

Hung out with my brothers in So Long Forgotten, and LOVED every moment of it. I missed those guys. Be sure to check out their music if you haven't already.

Church at 3rd and Vine - Saturday, October 10th

Nirvana cover band

David and I are starting a Nirvana cover band here in the Cincinnati area. If you would like to be in Nevermind, let either of us know. Thank you.

time

Went through a box of old memories today. Notes, pictures, receipts, drawings. Right now I am tired of growing up. I miss my neices and nephews being young, me being a freshman in highschool. Everything so new and exciting. No debt. I miss that sense of excitement in things to come. I feel like nothing can phase me now. There is no grade ahead, no relationship I haven't had, nothing I haven't experienced to at least a slight degree. I wish time would stop for just a second. Let me catch my breath, and get a sense of what the hell is going on.

Feeling a little better.

home sweet home

I am homeeee! Also, I am sick. I hate the flu.

District 9

Going to see District 9 tonight for our day off. It actually looks pretty good. I normally don't get "excited" to see a movie, and that is still true for this movie, but it DOES look good. I actually can't remember the last movie that I was absolutely stoked to see.

teef

Went to the dentist today. I am ashamed to admit it, but...I need to have a root canal done on my first molar. Before you start crying though, let me share with you that the dentist had a flatscreen television on the ceiling. I luckily was able to watch Saved By the Bell while the bad news was delivered.

animals

Went to the zoo today with Adrienne and my mom. It was fun, but very much tiring.

dreams

I had a whole lot of dreams last night/this morning. In one of my dreams I was riding a big motorcycle that had a roof and air conditioning. It also had the ability to be pedaled. I remember that the seat wasn't very comfortable. Also I remember it was bright red. Does this dream mean I am going to die, or get hit by a motorcycle? Maybe it means I will win the lottery. Not sure why it would mean that, but I am optimistic. Oh yeahhh! And it had XM Radio!

I made this today/yesterday

would love to see my Cincinnati friends

I forget what my bed looks like

somewhere

In Connecticut somewhere. The venue is pretty cool.

I have a lot to think about. Dan has challenged me to disconnect myself from my phone. I think I am going to do it. I want to first pursue the kingdom.

check out ALL THE DAY HOLIDAY on Blogger.com by clicking HERE

reason

Lord I am in a band for a reason, and I pray that you would continue opening and closing doors for me. For this band. Use me. Give me a heart for others, and eyes that see the path you have me on. I love you.

twitter

Dear World,
I tweet. Just giving it a try, but I tweet....for now
http://www.twitter.com/itsMarkVentura

Your band isn't cool. My band isn't cool. You aren't cool, and neither am I. Treat someone well.

So, I would really like to start reading more. I really want to read some of the bibles from religions. I would like to start with the Qur'an.

I am rude

Encouraged

I don't tell those in my life how much they mean to me very often, or even that I appreciate them very much. I want to start telling at least 1 person a day how much they mean to me, or how I appreciate what they do. I am very fortunate to get to meet tons of great people through friends, work, the band. I repent of being unappreciative.

mewsak veedio

All the Day Holiday's music video coming soon.....

Better life

I want to live a better life. I want to be a better person. I want to quit being selfish. I want to clean up my actions. I want to eat healthier. This is not me attempting to make a poetic blog post. This is me tired of living a half ass life.

It's official

I am in the Blackberry club

I have gotten myself extremely addicted to Craig's List. I found myself putting my phone up for trade. I have gotten several offers, and it is amazing. I think tomorrow I am trading my phone for some guy's Sidekick 2008 and a PSP.
Today was an awesome day. Woke up to people emailing and texting me things they'd give me for my phone, watched an awesome documentary on house building, went out to eat for my "birthday bash" at a Chinese Buffet (my favorite food: Chinese), then hung out at Nathan's with the gang. It was nice to see Emily H. after not seeing her for like 85 years....I'm not a teenager anymore.

I am not worthy. Not worthy at all.

Things I am strongly against

Smoking!

Deastro

at work

just watched Snakes on a Plane

outburst

life

Man! Have you ever been to somebody's myspace page, and it is so decked out with motion glitter pictures, apps, pictures, and other pointless stuff, that it almost brings your computer to a complete hault? URG!

I want to do something useful with my life. I want to avoid just living each day. I haven't blogged much this past month because I don't really know what to say. I don't really even know what to think lately. I am trying to put others first, and think about myself less. I want to actually start tithing. I don't want to be a cheesy Christian, but maybe that is the only way. I don't plan on wearing Jesus shirts or anything, but wouldn't someone who found the meaning to life be amazingly ecstatic and want to share it with everyone? I have a lot of thinking to do. For the longest time I have called myself a Christian without thinking twice about it. These past few months I have been asking myself "what do I believe, and WHY do I believe it?". It has been an AWESOME experience thus far. To sum up where I am currently at now: nothing makes nothing, and something makes something. There HAD to be a creator. No one can really deny that. In order for the big bang to occur, something had to make it. In order for Adam and Eve to occur, something had to make it. In order for the creature to crawl from that heated pool, something had to make it. It is common sense. Right now I am still pressing into the question of "what do I believe, and WHY do I believe it?", but with all my questioning, Christ makes the most sense. There are so many holes for me in other religions that rule out truth, but "Christianity" makes sense to me. I am still asking and searching, and I am super thankful for all the people who have gotten in the way of my questioning to help me out so far, I love you.

"There ain't nothin' in Pecos"

So on our way to El Paso, TX for a show, we broke down in Pecos, TX. Here is the story of that event, and the journey that followed:

In one of the worst parts between Dallas, TX and Los Angeles, CA, our van's transmission threw a $1,500 hissy fit.

A stranger saw us in need, and pulled over to help us assess the situation. His name was Mason.

After some time tinkering with the van on the side of the road. He proceeded to push our van from behind with his truck, further off the road, and further away from traffic (which was 2 trucks per hour). There we hung tight, while him and Daniel went off to the nearest gas station to buy transmission fluid. It didn't do the trick, so he pulled our van with his truck and a chain to the nearest mechanic. We left the van overnight since everything in Pecos closes around 430pm, and by that point it was 6pm. I wish I had pictures of the next point in the story, but I don't. We stayed at this guy's (Mason) house haha. I literally could go on for hours and hours about what his house looked like, and it's location, but to save time; imagine The Hills Have Eyes. When we entered his house in the middle of the desert, which was dusty and miles and miles away from anything, we realized how scared we should be. Mason is a fully trained black belt in Karate. He was on his way to being a contender for the Olympics, but was in an auto accident which prohibited it, and his massive display of trophies showed us he could easily kill us. Also the large amount of buck knives, switch blades, and throwing knives was a good indicator that we should turn around and run, but we didn't. I mean he wore a cross around his neck, we should trust him right? haha. Either way, we ended up being safe, but he had to wake up very early for work, which sucked since it was already after midnight by the time he was done making us TV dinners and telling us about himself. Around 530AM, I kid you not, I awake to Mason standing in the corner of the room while the stereo is BLARING Nickelback's "Gotta Be Somebody". The absolute worst way I have ever woken up. Tired, and listening to Nickelback. He took us to the mechanic, and left for work. We hung out around the van until the shop opened up 2 hours later. He couldn't fix it, so we paid to have us and the van towed 70 miles to the nearest city with a public school system. Odessa, Texas.

There we met Carl.

We left the van at Carl's shop, but had to keep moving. We had a fairly big show to play in Los Angeles, CA and we wanted to make it, so what to do? Rent a box truck! Here is that truck.

We then proceeded to travel to California, all while living out of the back of it. Below if you look closely you will see our equipment against the back wall, and sleeping bags on the floor. Whenever we all 4 slept at the same time, there was plenty of room. Usually only two would sleep in the back though, while two drove up front. No equipment ever rolled, and it was a totally awesome experience being able to run around while in a vehicle traveling 75MPH.

We got to Los Angeles the day before the festival and met up with our lawyer for lunch. He took us to this awesome outdoor restaurant/hotel. It looked extremely expensive. Good thing HE paid haha. We got a hotel, and rested up for the festival we were playing the next day (Bamboozle). It was a lot of fun playing Bamboozle. We played both Saturday and Sunday of the festival, so we got to meet a lot of people both days. I am sure we will probably post photos from the festival on our page sometime soon, so if you are interested in what it looked like there, be sure to check out our page. Here is a photo of one of the walkways at the festival.

Someone sent me a picture of our set that they took with their phone.

After Bamboozle, we drove 15 hours with the box truck, back to Odessa,TX to pick up our newly fixed van from Carl the wonder mechanic. From there we drove 22 hours home. We are home until the CD release, then back out on the road with Lydia. Sleeping in your own bed is a very nice thing.

It was definitely a good time, and the whole journey was one that we will talk about for many years. Definitely set us back a good chunk of change though. Transmission rebuild, box truck rental for 2300 miles, hotels, etc. Oh well! Hopefully the CD release will help put us back on our feet.

DON'T MISS THIS! IT'S COMING UP REALLY FAST!

April 18

The Notwist - Gloomy Planets

I can't believe how much of the Spirit I feel in this video. It is a struggle to fight back tears each and every time I see this.

Lydia & All the Day Holiday tour

Had a good time! Met some cool people, and made some new best friends. Looking forward to seeing what the future has in store. Choctau!.

Good vibrations

Leaving on Saturday for tour with Lydia. Don't know what to expect. Either way, going out always gives me a chance to stretch myself. To see new things, and meet new people. I wonder what I would be like if I never had agreed to form a band for the highschool talent show. That was half a decade ago!

mobile photos

for ears

in the office

A couch in the corner, a line of desks, a large poster of Jimmy Eat World live on the dark red wall. This is the office of Linc Star Records.
We are touring the offices, meeting the awesome staff and people who make Linc Star Records run. In just a few moments we will be heading out, and going downtown New York City to shoot some video, and set up for our show at Blender Theatre. Just one more day, and then we will be home. Sleeeeeep! Fooooood! Familyyyy! Adrienneeeee!

the longest drive ever

Right now I am laying on a bench seat in the van, watching trees sprint past the van. I have been in this van for 14 hours now, and there are still 2 more to go. Once we get to New Jersey, we will freshen up at the hotel, and then we are scheduled to shoot some video to promote the upcoming CD. Anything is better than this van.

Hope the show goes well tonight.

continued

As mentioned in last post, we (All the Day Holiday) played on the local news in Topeka, Kansas for a "live music" segment. It was a memorable experience. Hopefully we will have the footage sometime soon. Right now I am catching up on LOST.

Kansas City

Currently writing you from Kansas City. Tomorrow we are playing on a local news station in Topeka, Kansas. I wonder what that'll be like. Hmmmm......

Dallas, TX

Writing you from Dallas, Texas. Yesterday we were in New Orleans, and if you've never been there, you really should consider checking it out sometime. What a cool place...in my opinion at least.

I haven't really seen much of Dallas yet, but I did experience a local Mexican music radio station. I LOVE IT! I really do. It was traditional, but had this modern twist on it. Very interesting sound.

We have 11 more days until we come home, and then have a few weeks before we are back out again. It is a little weird to think about coming home from one tour to leave for another one shortly after, but kinda cool at the same time. We are excited to do the dates with Lydia when we get back, but we wish the dates with So Long Forgotten never had to end.

Off to see the Grassy Knoll.

Gainesville, FL

Currently we are in Gainesville, FL. Nathan and I are sitting at Atlanta Bread Company (Panera) hacking away at laptops. Not much to say, but thought it would be nice to post something for me to look back at in a year....Mark, you rock! By now you are a probably a world famous surgeon/rock star/world's greatest dad/racecar driver. Congratulations!

from the road...

Hello Internet,
I am writing you from my phone, at a mall in Atlanta, GA. Today is an off day for the tour, but we are keeping busy. We are currently getting ready to leave, and head to the studio where we finished our "upcoming album". We are going to get some of the tracks we recorded (organs, bells, violins, horns), and set them up so we can play with them live. Should be a productive night. So Long Forgotten has been great these past nights, and a total blast to spend time with. We have made teams on this tour (NOT according to band), and are performing various Survivor type tasks. Losers have to do funny things. I will post pictures every now and then of some of the funny punishments.

leaving Ohio

Tonight is the "tour kickoff" show for the band. We are doing 23 dates with So Long Forgotten, and then 3 or 4 on our own. Our longest haul will be from Champaigne, IL to New York City where we leave the tour and play a showcase for some music industry fellas. Should be an exciting time.
Back to the show tonight. Tonight's show was put together by me, so if no one shows up, it all falls on my shoulders. Hopefully it's a good show. I tend to be a worry-wort the day of "my" shows. What if it's too cold, and people don't want to leave their warm houses? What if one of the bands are late? What if people leave? What if we play terribly? Gosh even looking back at what I've typed, I am worried that someone will misinterpret it as me being cocky, so to clarify, I don't think I am awesome for putting together the show, I just realize someone has to do it (put the show together) for the band, and I like doing it for the most part. I sound like a little kid now haha. Well that's what you get when you come to my blog where everything is TOTALLY WILD AND UNCENSORED! YEAH BABYYYY!

All the Day Holiday
So Long Forgotten
We Became the Sun
The Beneath

colors

Rain Man

Not only is it fascinating to observe Kim Peek in this series of video segments, it is absolutely beautiful to see the care and love his father has for him. A good, modern day example of how the Lord feels for us.

Kim Peek: the Real Rain Man

Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5

On repeat...

My good friends will vouch for this: when I get into a song, it goes on repeat for hours on end (for days). The past three songs that have been on repeat for me....
1. Margot and the Nuclear So and Sos - As Tall as Cliffs
2. Mates of State - The Re-Arranger
3. TV on the Radio - Dancing Choose

1980's

Something about the 80's culture has always seemed fascinating to me. It is so powerful to me to think about how life was done as a teen/young adult in the 80's. Hairspray, makeup, shoulder pads, etc. It'll be weird to look back on the years of 2000 when I am 35. My mullet rat-tail will be four times as hideous by then.




*Please pay attention to the beauty of her voice at 1:55