Aparently I've been working alot. Today, for example, I went in and worked a from 10-5, which I then voluntarily extended to 7, which I again extended to 9. I then returned to the store from midnight to 2 for a meeting, which I think could have best been communicated via email or memo like any other sensible business.

But, sad to say, I found the meeting oddly inspiring. The new store manager is strict, has a vision, and a real desire to be have our store be the best, so it's pleasing to have that sort of any sort of leadership there for a change. And there are a variety of things coming down from "The Powers To Be" that sound almost like versions of ideas I've actually had for trying something different and not having such a complacient business model at the corporate level, so I'm mildly pleased to see those things going well also. And, I realized, I like petty much all the people I work with and basically have fun working with them, all things considered.

Don't get me wrong, this still sucks donkey dick, but I am going in at 9:00 AM to lend a hand if that is any indication of my newfound B-busta pride-- that or the phat overtime that I'm getting this week.

One thing that is not a good thing is that there seems to be seeming strife amongst the core members of my beloved Evanescence. First, reports of Amy appearing "tired" on the German tour. (Despite the location, the band was not opening for David Hasselhoff.) Some fans speculated that she was in poor health and the band was off. Ben Moody (in the form of his alter ego The Preist) materialized with this comment:

okay, this is something that is hard for those of us who aren't the lead singer.
unfortunately, when you see amy, you say evanescence. when she doesn't always represent evanescence. though SHE may seem tired, or ungrateful to be there. You have NEVER seen a show that I wasn't stoked to be at. So next time, don't let amy represent how the entire band feels. as for the rest of us, we love touring, love playing live, and LOVE ALL OF YOU

Then, mysteriously, Ben disappeared entirely from the German tour. Some fans reported back to the collective that Amy announced ignored a "Where's Ben" chant until finally saying, simply, that "Ben flew back to the US, but the show's going on anyway."

Fevered speculation amongst my ilk has been, as you can imagine, rampant. Jasmine, the 16-year old uber fan who has been intimately plugged into the Evanescence phenomenon since before it was a phenomenon, promised us that she would report to us as soon as she had something to report. When she did, it was a cryptic message: "ben's alive."

Eventually, Ben rematerialized with more news for us:

okay.... i haven't read this whole thred yet, but i have to say a few things...
1. Ben WAS NOT backstage at any of the shows that he did not play. he wasn't even in the country.

2. Amy doesn't take "medicine" and go to bed. She's not torn down from touring or anything like that. Her life on the road is many levels more pampered than you could imagine. The only "medicine" she takes before going to bed is smoking a fucking joint instead of signin for fans.

that's all i know for now

but ben says he loves all of you

This set off quite a bit more speculation from Evanescence fans aghast that Amy was a "drug user." Not a big deal, of course, but so many fans expressed disbelief at this information that Ben had to set the record straight one more time before disappearing back into the pit.

you know, i'm not mad or anything, but i just think it's kind of funny that 3 pages AFTER i said that i was serious you're still debating wether or not i'm being serious. does it really surprise you all that much? what did you think she was doing when EVERYONE in the band signs every night a week for as long as it takes and she signs maybe 2 or 3 nights for x amount of mintues. do you really think she's off resting or meditating or drinking jasmine root tea? come on. get serious. she doesn't sign that much because she would rather be smoking a bowl on her bus. STOP DEBATING ABOUT THIS!!!!! just move on. the funny thing is, THAT'S NOT EVEN WHAT THIS THREAD IS ABOUT

So, to me, this sounds like a case of "Don't Speak" -- The Video. But what do I know? We've got semi-official assurances that everything will be okay, but it's not like someone hasn't left Evanescence before. If it does end up that someone leaves the band, at least it will give me a good way to end that unauthorized biography that I keep threatening to write.