Hi, I'm Johann, and this is my vanity page.
I've struggled to keep track of my own life, over the years -- web hosting and social media companies disappear, or their search functionality is terrible, or they bombard me with ads for rifles and lingerie (sometimes both at once) -- so I've settled down here, in this cozy little cottage on the interweb.
I'll set the kettle to boil. If you're still here when it's ready, would you like coffee or tea?
The Dutch Village Runners is a free community running group in Halifax (Fairview), Nova Scotia. I founded the group on April 11, 2024. If you're local, come run and socialize with us! https://dutchvillagerunners.ca/
My takes on various writing genres:
Biography:
Anesidora (2021)
Experimental:
Catching Up (2020)
Horror:
Ashurbanipal's Pool (2019)
Literary review:
Ulysses (2017)
Music review:
Mink Valley (2019)
Newspaper:
The Nihilist Weekly (6 issues 2020-04-12 - 2020-05-17)
Play:
The Most Heartbreaking Love Story Ever Told (2019)
Romance:
Yaromir and Oksana (2022)
Satire:
Heaven Fell (2024)
Science fiction:
Hope Trawler (2022)
Tragedy:
Apotheosis (2023)
I played in a string of low budget rock'n'roll bands, many years ago. The highlights of those years were playing in the two bands that one of my lifelong best friends and I fired up. Jeff Melland sang, I played guitar. Neither of us was particularly interested in making normal rock'n'roll.
The most thrilling experience of my life, so far, was improvising with a bassist and drummer I'd never played with before, in front of a packed Railway Club. I still get a buzz every time I think about that night. The staff weren't quite as excited as I was, though; they booted us off stage after we'd gone past closing time. If you have normal tastes in music, or delicate ears, you won't enjoy this, either. But if you have very strange tastes in music and lyrics, and can forgive cheap recording gear and awful recording techniques, then here are a few of my favourites:
Jeff and I first launched a loud, fast and hard band with friends.
The Grand Unified Theory
(2000 - 2002):
Then Jeff and I moved to Dublin, Ireland, and started a new band
that would follow us back to Vancouver again. We were the only
permanent members. With the lineup rotating so often, we became
an improv band. We were gradually working toward being able to
improvise a tight 4-minute rock'n'roll song off the cuff...
We never got there, but I still dream of what another 5 years
would've proved possible.
Cherished moments:
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Harmless videos, fond memories:
