Thursday, December 29, 2005
I am your angel of stinky cheese.
Warning: This was a short post originally, but it has now become incredibly long, full of rage, and possibly boring for the reader. But enjoy!
Victor decided to take an overnight trip to Boston, so I'm home alone. At 8pm, I noticed that The Phantom of the Opera was just about to start on HBO. Even though I was obsessed with the musical in junior high, and to a lesser degree, high school, I never did go see the movie. I saw the play in London several years ago. I had heard the movie was pretty bad.
So far, it is.
Honestly, I didn't think they could make the this musical any cheesier (and let's face it, it was pretty cheesy to begin with), but they did. Boy howdy. I'm only about a half hour into it (the boat ride into the dungeons), and I already detest the dude playing the Phantom. Why didn't they get someone who could sing? And what's up with all of the ridiculous shots of candles blowing out in slow motion? GOD! This Gerard Butler dude is making me want to turn it off! This coming from the girl who has read the book a bazillion times, seen 8 or 9 different movie versions of the story, and who freaking lip synched, in costume and with props, the title track with Ryan at a church talent show!
You know, Michael Crawford's voice can be kind of annoying too, but I'd take him any day over Butler. As an interesting sidenote, I wrote to him once, after Ryan and I had performed at the church talent show, and I told him how much I loved him and how we had performed the song. He sent back a nice letter and two signed and personalized photographs, one for me and one for Ryan. The letter was funny and I think even encouraged me to continue to study drama. Who knows, it was probably written by a secretary, but it really my day, no, my year, when I got it in the mail.
OK, the unmasking just took place, and ummm... what's wrong with his face? I don't even see anything. At least the Phantom on stage was pretty grotesque looking. The book's Phantom is pretty nasty too. So why is this guy even bothering to wear a mask? Maybe he's wearing makeup under the mask, just in case someone takes it off.
I knew I hated Joel Schumacher when he ruined the Batman series, but apparently there was an entire well of hatred that I hadn't tapped into yet.
Edited to add:
Ok, Butler just ruined it again for me. I thought "All I Ask of You" was pretty good, even his part wasn't too bad. The crushed rose leaves falling in the snow was gut-wrenchingly bad, but I still had a pretty nice feeling left over from the song... until Butler did the final part ("You will curse the day you did not do all that the Phantom asked of you"). My asscheeks could do a better job singing that. Yes, my asscheeks.
I'm also missing the chandelier falling at the end of the 2nd act, but at least I knew to expect that. Hmmm... maybe I'll keep this post open, just in case Butler, Schumacher, or anyone else ruins this film again.
And I didn't have to wait long!!! What happened to the amazing costume for the Phantom as the Red Death? That was one of my favorite parts! Did they think a film audience wouldn't know who it was? I mean, it's pretty obvious that the musical has been dumbed down for the film version. Arrgh! Now I'm just getting whiney... but I guess that's just the 15-year-old girl in me.
Back again. Did her costume completely change for the cemetary scene? If I wasn't so lazy, I'd rewind and check (we have a DVR). But I wouldn't want to put myself through the agony of slow-motion Raoul chasing after her on a white horse... bareback. Honestly, this has gone past Velveeta and is now in the realm of Cheez Whiz. Maybe even E-Z Cheese.
If they ruin "Wandering Child," my favorite song, I'm going to throw something at the TV. The three voices together are usually so beautiful... let's see how they do. YES! Totally ruined!!! The totally left out my favorite part! Why? I'm guessing that Butler couldn't sing it. Thanks, Schumacher.
The little parts between Christine and Raoul that are usually sung are really starting to bug me when they're spoken. What, did Schumacher think he'd lose the audience if there wasn't enough talking? But it's OK to have your characters speak in verse instead, since none of the rhyming words were changed? Oh Joel, you lost us long, long ago.
Hmm. The Don Juan Triumphant rehearsal scene was cut. Oh well, I guess it means that this ordeal will be over that much quicker!
Ah, at this juncture, I will say it's refreshing to not have Sarah Brightman singing. I really like Emily Rossum's voice. She's doing a fantastic job with "The Point of No Return." The Christine I saw in London was good too, but the guy playing the Phantom totally camped it up. Why do they keep letting guys ruin this character? He's supposed to be a sympathetic character. At least that's the way I always read it. I hate Butler's Phantom.
*yawn* This film is getting boring, just when it's supposed to be suspenseful. At this time, I will reveal that Ryan and I used to write letters to each other as Erik (the Phantom) and Christine in 9th grade. We wrote them in a weird code that was pretty hard to read, until you got the hang of it. It was like having an imaginary disfigured boyfriend.
Sweet!! Finally a gross face! Yep, I'm at the second unmasking. Should have been much worse, but at least he's disgusting enough looking. Umm, what gigantic chandelier takes 30 seconds to fall? Terrible.
By the way, I love that Joe from Angels in America is playing Raoul. I love him.
Butler was doing a pretty good job at the end, until he sang his final words as if his character was mentally challenged, not deformed. If they do another flash-forward at the end I'm gonna scream. Yes, they did. WHY???? Did they have to spell out the reason Raoul buys the music box in the beginning? Again, stop thinking that your audience is full of morons.
Wow. Two hours of my life that I will never get back.
Warning: This was a short post originally, but it has now become incredibly long, full of rage, and possibly boring for the reader. But enjoy!
Victor decided to take an overnight trip to Boston, so I'm home alone. At 8pm, I noticed that The Phantom of the Opera was just about to start on HBO. Even though I was obsessed with the musical in junior high, and to a lesser degree, high school, I never did go see the movie. I saw the play in London several years ago. I had heard the movie was pretty bad.
So far, it is.
Honestly, I didn't think they could make the this musical any cheesier (and let's face it, it was pretty cheesy to begin with), but they did. Boy howdy. I'm only about a half hour into it (the boat ride into the dungeons), and I already detest the dude playing the Phantom. Why didn't they get someone who could sing? And what's up with all of the ridiculous shots of candles blowing out in slow motion? GOD! This Gerard Butler dude is making me want to turn it off! This coming from the girl who has read the book a bazillion times, seen 8 or 9 different movie versions of the story, and who freaking lip synched, in costume and with props, the title track with Ryan at a church talent show!
You know, Michael Crawford's voice can be kind of annoying too, but I'd take him any day over Butler. As an interesting sidenote, I wrote to him once, after Ryan and I had performed at the church talent show, and I told him how much I loved him and how we had performed the song. He sent back a nice letter and two signed and personalized photographs, one for me and one for Ryan. The letter was funny and I think even encouraged me to continue to study drama. Who knows, it was probably written by a secretary, but it really my day, no, my year, when I got it in the mail.
OK, the unmasking just took place, and ummm... what's wrong with his face? I don't even see anything. At least the Phantom on stage was pretty grotesque looking. The book's Phantom is pretty nasty too. So why is this guy even bothering to wear a mask? Maybe he's wearing makeup under the mask, just in case someone takes it off.
I knew I hated Joel Schumacher when he ruined the Batman series, but apparently there was an entire well of hatred that I hadn't tapped into yet.
Edited to add:
Ok, Butler just ruined it again for me. I thought "All I Ask of You" was pretty good, even his part wasn't too bad. The crushed rose leaves falling in the snow was gut-wrenchingly bad, but I still had a pretty nice feeling left over from the song... until Butler did the final part ("You will curse the day you did not do all that the Phantom asked of you"). My asscheeks could do a better job singing that. Yes, my asscheeks.
I'm also missing the chandelier falling at the end of the 2nd act, but at least I knew to expect that. Hmmm... maybe I'll keep this post open, just in case Butler, Schumacher, or anyone else ruins this film again.
And I didn't have to wait long!!! What happened to the amazing costume for the Phantom as the Red Death? That was one of my favorite parts! Did they think a film audience wouldn't know who it was? I mean, it's pretty obvious that the musical has been dumbed down for the film version. Arrgh! Now I'm just getting whiney... but I guess that's just the 15-year-old girl in me.
Back again. Did her costume completely change for the cemetary scene? If I wasn't so lazy, I'd rewind and check (we have a DVR). But I wouldn't want to put myself through the agony of slow-motion Raoul chasing after her on a white horse... bareback. Honestly, this has gone past Velveeta and is now in the realm of Cheez Whiz. Maybe even E-Z Cheese.
If they ruin "Wandering Child," my favorite song, I'm going to throw something at the TV. The three voices together are usually so beautiful... let's see how they do. YES! Totally ruined!!! The totally left out my favorite part! Why? I'm guessing that Butler couldn't sing it. Thanks, Schumacher.
The little parts between Christine and Raoul that are usually sung are really starting to bug me when they're spoken. What, did Schumacher think he'd lose the audience if there wasn't enough talking? But it's OK to have your characters speak in verse instead, since none of the rhyming words were changed? Oh Joel, you lost us long, long ago.
Hmm. The Don Juan Triumphant rehearsal scene was cut. Oh well, I guess it means that this ordeal will be over that much quicker!
Ah, at this juncture, I will say it's refreshing to not have Sarah Brightman singing. I really like Emily Rossum's voice. She's doing a fantastic job with "The Point of No Return." The Christine I saw in London was good too, but the guy playing the Phantom totally camped it up. Why do they keep letting guys ruin this character? He's supposed to be a sympathetic character. At least that's the way I always read it. I hate Butler's Phantom.
*yawn* This film is getting boring, just when it's supposed to be suspenseful. At this time, I will reveal that Ryan and I used to write letters to each other as Erik (the Phantom) and Christine in 9th grade. We wrote them in a weird code that was pretty hard to read, until you got the hang of it. It was like having an imaginary disfigured boyfriend.
Sweet!! Finally a gross face! Yep, I'm at the second unmasking. Should have been much worse, but at least he's disgusting enough looking. Umm, what gigantic chandelier takes 30 seconds to fall? Terrible.
By the way, I love that Joe from Angels in America is playing Raoul. I love him.
Butler was doing a pretty good job at the end, until he sang his final words as if his character was mentally challenged, not deformed. If they do another flash-forward at the end I'm gonna scream. Yes, they did. WHY???? Did they have to spell out the reason Raoul buys the music box in the beginning? Again, stop thinking that your audience is full of morons.
Wow. Two hours of my life that I will never get back.
In which there is a killer, a strange device, and a change of plans
Victor and I are master procrastinators. The two of us probably shouldn’t be allowed in a relationship together, because two procrastinators are definitely less productive than one procrastinator alone. Last night, we were packing for our New Year’s trip to London, but both of us decided we needed to take a break from packing, even though it was getting late.
So I was doing the Washington Post Crossword online, while Victor was happily playing our new obsession, Katamari Damacy when the power went out. It flickered for a second and then went pitch black. Me being the person I am, I immediately started listening for the killer who had cut our power off so that he could steal into our apartment and knife us to death. Apparently, this thought never occurred to Victor, which just goes to show you that we are different people indeed.
The living room still had a little light thanks to the battery in Victor’s laptop, so he was able to find the flashlight. We located some matches and lit some candles, and then Victor started investigating. The rest of our neighborhood had power. The house next to us had power. But all of the apartments in our fourplex were completely dark. We could hear our neighbors in the apartment below us. The other two couples didn’t appear to be home. While Victor was checking things out, I heard a weird alarm going off. I figured this was a device that alerted you when the power went out. My parents have one at their house, because they had turkey houses and needed to know if the power went off at night so that they could go turn the generator on for the turkeys. I wondered if the device I heard was going to somehow alert our landlady, who lives in Garland, that our fourplex was out of power. Do such things exist for the part-time landlord? Anyway, it later turned out to be Victor’s new phone that was making the noise; I had never heard his ringtone before.
We sat around for a while in the dark, waiting for the power to come back on. We decided to wait a few minutes more to call our landlady. We started discussing what to pack for our trip (including what to wear to the club night we wanted to go to). Eventually, we started doubting our decision to go to London at all… since it would be a considerable expense, and we are trying to stick to a tighter budget. We did London for New Year’s last year anyway. We eventually came around to the decision to spend that money on a trip later on, maybe to Dublin or something, and go to Austin for New Year’s instead. Yes, we talked ourselves out of a cheap (comparatively) trip to London. We are silly.
The lights eventually came back on. I reset my alarm clock and went to sleep. When I woke this morning, it was 8:30am, also known as when I am supposed to be at work! I called my supervisor, jumped in the shower, and was out of the house in 25 minutes. Note to self: when setting the clock at 11:45pm, make sure you’re not actually setting it for 11:45am.
So now we’re going to our friend Nevie’s party on Saturday night. I’m really looking forward to a quieter weekend, especially in case I have a relapse of the Terrible Kidney Pain of 2005. It will also be great to see some of our long-lost friends.
So yeah, never a dull moment around our house.
Victor and I are master procrastinators. The two of us probably shouldn’t be allowed in a relationship together, because two procrastinators are definitely less productive than one procrastinator alone. Last night, we were packing for our New Year’s trip to London, but both of us decided we needed to take a break from packing, even though it was getting late.
So I was doing the Washington Post Crossword online, while Victor was happily playing our new obsession, Katamari Damacy when the power went out. It flickered for a second and then went pitch black. Me being the person I am, I immediately started listening for the killer who had cut our power off so that he could steal into our apartment and knife us to death. Apparently, this thought never occurred to Victor, which just goes to show you that we are different people indeed.
The living room still had a little light thanks to the battery in Victor’s laptop, so he was able to find the flashlight. We located some matches and lit some candles, and then Victor started investigating. The rest of our neighborhood had power. The house next to us had power. But all of the apartments in our fourplex were completely dark. We could hear our neighbors in the apartment below us. The other two couples didn’t appear to be home. While Victor was checking things out, I heard a weird alarm going off. I figured this was a device that alerted you when the power went out. My parents have one at their house, because they had turkey houses and needed to know if the power went off at night so that they could go turn the generator on for the turkeys. I wondered if the device I heard was going to somehow alert our landlady, who lives in Garland, that our fourplex was out of power. Do such things exist for the part-time landlord? Anyway, it later turned out to be Victor’s new phone that was making the noise; I had never heard his ringtone before.
We sat around for a while in the dark, waiting for the power to come back on. We decided to wait a few minutes more to call our landlady. We started discussing what to pack for our trip (including what to wear to the club night we wanted to go to). Eventually, we started doubting our decision to go to London at all… since it would be a considerable expense, and we are trying to stick to a tighter budget. We did London for New Year’s last year anyway. We eventually came around to the decision to spend that money on a trip later on, maybe to Dublin or something, and go to Austin for New Year’s instead. Yes, we talked ourselves out of a cheap (comparatively) trip to London. We are silly.
The lights eventually came back on. I reset my alarm clock and went to sleep. When I woke this morning, it was 8:30am, also known as when I am supposed to be at work! I called my supervisor, jumped in the shower, and was out of the house in 25 minutes. Note to self: when setting the clock at 11:45pm, make sure you’re not actually setting it for 11:45am.
So now we’re going to our friend Nevie’s party on Saturday night. I’m really looking forward to a quieter weekend, especially in case I have a relapse of the Terrible Kidney Pain of 2005. It will also be great to see some of our long-lost friends.
So yeah, never a dull moment around our house.
Wednesday, December 28, 2005
Not like a rolling stone!
Well, the clinic just called. The nurse told me that my second round of bloodwork came back fine (i.e. the infection was going away). She was about to hang up when I asked whether the doctor ever figured out what was wrong with me. So she told me to hang on while she asked. Stupid ghetto clinic! Why wouldn’t they call me to tell me what my diagnosis was? Anyway, she came back on the phone and told me that it was a kidney infection.
I don’t really trust this place, so if it’s still bothering me next week I’m going to go to a new doctor. As of Sunday, I’ll be on Victor’s insurance, which is not an HMO like mine, so picking a good doctor should be easy for me.
At least it probably isn’t a kidney stone. I really wasn’t looking forward to that kind of pain.
Well, the clinic just called. The nurse told me that my second round of bloodwork came back fine (i.e. the infection was going away). She was about to hang up when I asked whether the doctor ever figured out what was wrong with me. So she told me to hang on while she asked. Stupid ghetto clinic! Why wouldn’t they call me to tell me what my diagnosis was? Anyway, she came back on the phone and told me that it was a kidney infection.
I don’t really trust this place, so if it’s still bothering me next week I’m going to go to a new doctor. As of Sunday, I’ll be on Victor’s insurance, which is not an HMO like mine, so picking a good doctor should be easy for me.
At least it probably isn’t a kidney stone. I really wasn’t looking forward to that kind of pain.
Tuesday, December 27, 2005
Merry after-Christmas
We got back last night after a long weekend in Arkansas visiting my family. I had a really great time playing with my nine-month-old nephew, who has become a real handful. He’s fun to play with now. He really loves Aunt Mandy and Uncle Victor now, and even gives me kisses (he won’t even kiss his grandma yet!). This Christmas was really all about him, and he got tons of new toys. Victor and I got a lot of good stuff too. It was mainly stuff for our house, and a lot of it came from leftover items on our wedding registry.
I haven’t been feeling well lately. Last Monday night my stomach started hurting really bad. Tuesday morning I went to the doctor, and she told me that it might be kidney problems, either a kidney stone or a kidney infection. I was relieved it wasn’t appendicitis, but kidney stuff is pretty scary too. They did a urine test and blood test, and I nearly fainted when she tried taking my blood (she couldn’t find a vein for a long time). They scheduled me for a sonogram on Wednesday, and she gave me some antibiotics and Vicodin. Tuesday morning came, and I got a call from the clinic rescheduling me for Thursday. So Wednesday morning came. I got the sonogram, and the sonographer told me that she didn’t see anything on my right kidney, but my left kidney may have something in it (like a stone). Most of the pain was on my right side, so that was weird. They took my blood again to see if the blood count was lower, since Monday’s test came back high, signifying that I was probably fighting off an infection. They sent my sonograms to a radiologist to look over, and I am still waiting on the results and the results from my second blood test. In the meantime, I’ve been taking my drugs and trying not to focus on the issue. I didn’t go to work last week after my stomach/kidney/whatever problems began, so now I fear I’m in the doghouse at work too.
So Christmas for me was a pretty low-key affair. I didn’t exert myself too much, especially since the drugs make me sleepy. I wish I had been able to see more of my friends that live back home or who were visiting for the holidays, but I just didn’t feel up to it. I’m back at work today, and I really hope the clinic calls soon. All of this waiting around is hell.
We got back last night after a long weekend in Arkansas visiting my family. I had a really great time playing with my nine-month-old nephew, who has become a real handful. He’s fun to play with now. He really loves Aunt Mandy and Uncle Victor now, and even gives me kisses (he won’t even kiss his grandma yet!). This Christmas was really all about him, and he got tons of new toys. Victor and I got a lot of good stuff too. It was mainly stuff for our house, and a lot of it came from leftover items on our wedding registry.
I haven’t been feeling well lately. Last Monday night my stomach started hurting really bad. Tuesday morning I went to the doctor, and she told me that it might be kidney problems, either a kidney stone or a kidney infection. I was relieved it wasn’t appendicitis, but kidney stuff is pretty scary too. They did a urine test and blood test, and I nearly fainted when she tried taking my blood (she couldn’t find a vein for a long time). They scheduled me for a sonogram on Wednesday, and she gave me some antibiotics and Vicodin. Tuesday morning came, and I got a call from the clinic rescheduling me for Thursday. So Wednesday morning came. I got the sonogram, and the sonographer told me that she didn’t see anything on my right kidney, but my left kidney may have something in it (like a stone). Most of the pain was on my right side, so that was weird. They took my blood again to see if the blood count was lower, since Monday’s test came back high, signifying that I was probably fighting off an infection. They sent my sonograms to a radiologist to look over, and I am still waiting on the results and the results from my second blood test. In the meantime, I’ve been taking my drugs and trying not to focus on the issue. I didn’t go to work last week after my stomach/kidney/whatever problems began, so now I fear I’m in the doghouse at work too.
So Christmas for me was a pretty low-key affair. I didn’t exert myself too much, especially since the drugs make me sleepy. I wish I had been able to see more of my friends that live back home or who were visiting for the holidays, but I just didn’t feel up to it. I’m back at work today, and I really hope the clinic calls soon. All of this waiting around is hell.
Wednesday, December 21, 2005
Well, that's that.
Johnny Damon, you dead to me.
Johnny Damon, you dead to me.
Monday, December 19, 2005
New fun!
So, have y'all seen Frappr? It's a system of keeping track of who reads a website and where they are located. What's fun is that you can put a picture and comment when you join a particular site's Frappr map. I think it's fun, anyway. So I signed up for one.
If you like my site, please add yourself to my Frappr map! I'd like to see where all of you folks are. Of course, I probably know most of you, but I'd still like to see you on there.
By the way, if you start getting emails whenever more people join the map, just unsubscribe from the list.
(via Uffish Thoughts)
So, have y'all seen Frappr? It's a system of keeping track of who reads a website and where they are located. What's fun is that you can put a picture and comment when you join a particular site's Frappr map. I think it's fun, anyway. So I signed up for one.
If you like my site, please add yourself to my Frappr map! I'd like to see where all of you folks are. Of course, I probably know most of you, but I'd still like to see you on there.
By the way, if you start getting emails whenever more people join the map, just unsubscribe from the list.
(via Uffish Thoughts)
If you like this title, we also recommend...Manuel (1979)
If you ever feel like eating a lot of food, just head over to my in-laws' house (or any of their extended family's houses). I swear I gained 5 or 10 pounds this weekend, between the prime rib dinner, the desserts, and the copious amounts of breakfast.
Also, I discovered that I don't like menudo. Not the band, but the Mexican tripe soup. I definitely gave it a good college try, but to me, it tastes kind of the way a slaughterhouse/processing plant smells. And I can't get past that.
If you ever feel like eating a lot of food, just head over to my in-laws' house (or any of their extended family's houses). I swear I gained 5 or 10 pounds this weekend, between the prime rib dinner, the desserts, and the copious amounts of breakfast.
Also, I discovered that I don't like menudo. Not the band, but the Mexican tripe soup. I definitely gave it a good college try, but to me, it tastes kind of the way a slaughterhouse/processing plant smells. And I can't get past that.
Friday, December 16, 2005
Christmas, Christmas time is here
Christmas shopping is almost done. We did a ton of shopping last night. We found presents for Victor's parents and sister at Best Buy. I put together a huge order for my dad and brother-in-law from Cabelas, which is a megastore for folks who like to hunt, fish, or live on a farm (all three of those apply to my dad and brother-in-law). Even though the shipping is pretty high, I'm having it sent to my sister's house so that I don't have to lug it up there in my suitcase. And Victor and I got gifts for each other at Flight 001, which is the perfect store for the jetsetter in your life. So Victor got me a Lomo Oktomat, which is a camera that takes 8 pictures in succession with one click of the shutter. Apparently it started out as a spy camera, or so Victor tells me. I got him a book about airlines and a new shaving kit (or dopp kit, as they are also called). We also picked up some cool luggage tags for my mom to use as stocking stuffers. Don't worry, we also have various surprise presents for each other. I also baked a couple of breads (banana, zucchini) for Victor's family last night, and they are nestled all snug in my suitcase right now, waiting for the flight to Victor's hometown.
In other news, Ryan got accepted to St. Edwards! Yay!!! I think he'll be happy there, since it's a pretty small school, which means plenty of access to professors and stuff. I envy his going back to college right now... I would love to get back into the academic world. I had a good time in college and learned a lot, but I think I would learn even more now that I'm a bit more mature. Ah well, it's the grindstone for me for the forseeable future.
Christmas shopping is almost done. We did a ton of shopping last night. We found presents for Victor's parents and sister at Best Buy. I put together a huge order for my dad and brother-in-law from Cabelas, which is a megastore for folks who like to hunt, fish, or live on a farm (all three of those apply to my dad and brother-in-law). Even though the shipping is pretty high, I'm having it sent to my sister's house so that I don't have to lug it up there in my suitcase. And Victor and I got gifts for each other at Flight 001, which is the perfect store for the jetsetter in your life. So Victor got me a Lomo Oktomat, which is a camera that takes 8 pictures in succession with one click of the shutter. Apparently it started out as a spy camera, or so Victor tells me. I got him a book about airlines and a new shaving kit (or dopp kit, as they are also called). We also picked up some cool luggage tags for my mom to use as stocking stuffers. Don't worry, we also have various surprise presents for each other. I also baked a couple of breads (banana, zucchini) for Victor's family last night, and they are nestled all snug in my suitcase right now, waiting for the flight to Victor's hometown.
In other news, Ryan got accepted to St. Edwards! Yay!!! I think he'll be happy there, since it's a pretty small school, which means plenty of access to professors and stuff. I envy his going back to college right now... I would love to get back into the academic world. I had a good time in college and learned a lot, but I think I would learn even more now that I'm a bit more mature. Ah well, it's the grindstone for me for the forseeable future.
Monday, December 12, 2005
The Military Two-Step
At work, Victor, Gabi, Ryan, Mark and I were emailing back and forth about recent air travel incidents (the Miami air marshall shooting, the Southwest plane that went off the runway at Midway, a flight that had engine trouble that Victor and I would have been on if we went to see Grandma this past weekend). The talk turned to fear of flying, and I mentioned how my mother, an ex-stewardess, and my dad, an ex-USAF Vietnam vet, had logged thousands of hours in the air with no major incidents (unless you count your plane being shot by the enemy during a war as a major incident). Anyway, that discussion morphed into a discussion of our relatives and their military service. I mentioned my dad, of course, who was in Vietnam (as well as many of my uncles), and my grandpa, who was in the navy during WWII. Also, my brother-in-law was in Desert Storm.
Anyway, I found out some really interesting stories from Ryan and Mark about their grandpas' military service. So I thought I'd solicit some more stories and encourage Mark and Ryan to post more here. I don't want this to be a political discussion or turn into a debate about the war going on today... I just want to hear more stories about WWII, Vietnam, and other wars we've had. Or if your ancestor did cool stuff in the military without being in a war, I'd like to hear that too. I find it interesting.
So, as far as my stories go...
My grandpa was in WWII, in the Navy, but I’m not sure what he did. My mom was little while he was gone and didn’t remember what he looked like, so she would ask all guys in uniform “Are you my daddy?” which embarrassed my grandma quite a bit. Eventually my grandpa came back and she got reacquainted with him. He died before I was born, so I didn't get to hear any of his stories firsthand.
My dad, on the other hand, has plenty of stories from Vietnam. Some of his duties there included hauling dead bodies (in cargo planes), spraying Agent Orange, and dropping jungle-clearing bombs. His mess tent was blown up on Christmas day, killing a bunch of his friends. He had decided to eat at a different time that day, so he wasn't in the tent when it blew up. But he lost good friends there. On his last mission before leaving Vietnam, he accidentally landed at a VC airstrip in the jungle (they thought it was a US airstrip). They got out of the plane and instantly got a weird feeling. My dad yelled to get back in the plane, and as they did, the VC started shooting. I am pretty sure he told me the plane was on fire as he left the ground, but he was determined to get out alive.
As far as my brother-in-law's service goes, I think he managed to have a good time during Desert Storm. I have seen some pretty drunken pictures from his time there.
Edited to add: I remember now that my cousin was in Desert Storm too, and I hadn't seen him since I was a toddler. So my 8th grade self wrote him a letter, talking about bands I liked and whatnot. He wrote back and turned out to be really cool, and we totally reconnected. Yay.
So, what about your dads? Grandpas? Uncles? Any women in your family with neat stories?
At work, Victor, Gabi, Ryan, Mark and I were emailing back and forth about recent air travel incidents (the Miami air marshall shooting, the Southwest plane that went off the runway at Midway, a flight that had engine trouble that Victor and I would have been on if we went to see Grandma this past weekend). The talk turned to fear of flying, and I mentioned how my mother, an ex-stewardess, and my dad, an ex-USAF Vietnam vet, had logged thousands of hours in the air with no major incidents (unless you count your plane being shot by the enemy during a war as a major incident). Anyway, that discussion morphed into a discussion of our relatives and their military service. I mentioned my dad, of course, who was in Vietnam (as well as many of my uncles), and my grandpa, who was in the navy during WWII. Also, my brother-in-law was in Desert Storm.
Anyway, I found out some really interesting stories from Ryan and Mark about their grandpas' military service. So I thought I'd solicit some more stories and encourage Mark and Ryan to post more here. I don't want this to be a political discussion or turn into a debate about the war going on today... I just want to hear more stories about WWII, Vietnam, and other wars we've had. Or if your ancestor did cool stuff in the military without being in a war, I'd like to hear that too. I find it interesting.
So, as far as my stories go...
My grandpa was in WWII, in the Navy, but I’m not sure what he did. My mom was little while he was gone and didn’t remember what he looked like, so she would ask all guys in uniform “Are you my daddy?” which embarrassed my grandma quite a bit. Eventually my grandpa came back and she got reacquainted with him. He died before I was born, so I didn't get to hear any of his stories firsthand.
My dad, on the other hand, has plenty of stories from Vietnam. Some of his duties there included hauling dead bodies (in cargo planes), spraying Agent Orange, and dropping jungle-clearing bombs. His mess tent was blown up on Christmas day, killing a bunch of his friends. He had decided to eat at a different time that day, so he wasn't in the tent when it blew up. But he lost good friends there. On his last mission before leaving Vietnam, he accidentally landed at a VC airstrip in the jungle (they thought it was a US airstrip). They got out of the plane and instantly got a weird feeling. My dad yelled to get back in the plane, and as they did, the VC started shooting. I am pretty sure he told me the plane was on fire as he left the ground, but he was determined to get out alive.
As far as my brother-in-law's service goes, I think he managed to have a good time during Desert Storm. I have seen some pretty drunken pictures from his time there.
Edited to add: I remember now that my cousin was in Desert Storm too, and I hadn't seen him since I was a toddler. So my 8th grade self wrote him a letter, talking about bands I liked and whatnot. He wrote back and turned out to be really cool, and we totally reconnected. Yay.
So, what about your dads? Grandpas? Uncles? Any women in your family with neat stories?
Friday, December 09, 2005
End of an era (finally)
You may remember back in July I was having some serious problems with my trusty old Dodge, and I ended up getting a spanking new Mazda3. Well, in the midst of getting the new car, moving to a new apartment, and getting married, I neglected to do anything with my old car. I parked it on my new street and left it sitting there. I would see it every day to and from work, and I would always think "I have got to get rid of that thing."
I didn't feel right selling it to someone for $800 or $1000 or whatever, since I knew it wouldn't run. I didn't want them to sue me for non-disclosure or whatever people do these days. So I avoided the problem, like I do so well. Until yesterday. I was driving to work when I noticed an orange sticker on the driver's side window. I circled back, got out of my new car, and walked over to my old car. It was a notice of impending impoundment. If my car wasn't moved in 24 hours, it could be impounded. And it was dated 12/6, so I was already over the 24 hours! I figured that the ice storm had kept the evil impounders away. I spent yesterday surreptitiously calling the police station and auto pound trying to stall. No luck. I left a little early and raced home. The car was still there. I frantically called Victor to have him get jumper cables (the car hadn't been started in six months), wrote a note to put on the car, and drove back to it. I had a few things left in there, so I grabbed them and put them in the car. Then I tried starting it. The old thing chugged to life! It took a couple of tries, but I got it running long enough to move it half a block or so up the street.
I went home and explored my options for getting rid of it. I called a few auto salvage places, and finally found someone who would give me $200 for it. I desperately searched the apartment for the auto title, which I found after about 20 minutes of digging (and I found an extra pair of contacts, too!). The tow truck came to pick it up. I signed it over, collected my $200 in cold hard cash, and waved goodbye to the car I had for ten years.
That car saw me through college, the first few years living on my own in Arkansas, my two and a half years in Austin, and my first year in Dallas. It took me to work at War Eagle Mill, War Eagle Cavern, Cargill, Dell, and my current job. It had been on road trips all over Arkansas, Texas, Missouri, Iowa, Wisconsin, Illinios, Louisiana, Oklahoma, South Dakota... and probably a few places I've forgotten. It went on family vacations, trips to the beach, road trips to weddings, and many trips to concerts. It saw me through a couple boyfriends, dates, and numerous crushes. Its back seat was the location of hot makeout sessions (I was in college, after all). It was never puked in, and no one ever had sex in it (that I know of - though it was borrowed a few times, so maybe). It became the butt of jokes after the make and model was immortalized in an SNL skit. Ahhh, Dodge Stratus, Satellite of Love, you will be missed.
You may remember back in July I was having some serious problems with my trusty old Dodge, and I ended up getting a spanking new Mazda3. Well, in the midst of getting the new car, moving to a new apartment, and getting married, I neglected to do anything with my old car. I parked it on my new street and left it sitting there. I would see it every day to and from work, and I would always think "I have got to get rid of that thing."
I didn't feel right selling it to someone for $800 or $1000 or whatever, since I knew it wouldn't run. I didn't want them to sue me for non-disclosure or whatever people do these days. So I avoided the problem, like I do so well. Until yesterday. I was driving to work when I noticed an orange sticker on the driver's side window. I circled back, got out of my new car, and walked over to my old car. It was a notice of impending impoundment. If my car wasn't moved in 24 hours, it could be impounded. And it was dated 12/6, so I was already over the 24 hours! I figured that the ice storm had kept the evil impounders away. I spent yesterday surreptitiously calling the police station and auto pound trying to stall. No luck. I left a little early and raced home. The car was still there. I frantically called Victor to have him get jumper cables (the car hadn't been started in six months), wrote a note to put on the car, and drove back to it. I had a few things left in there, so I grabbed them and put them in the car. Then I tried starting it. The old thing chugged to life! It took a couple of tries, but I got it running long enough to move it half a block or so up the street.
I went home and explored my options for getting rid of it. I called a few auto salvage places, and finally found someone who would give me $200 for it. I desperately searched the apartment for the auto title, which I found after about 20 minutes of digging (and I found an extra pair of contacts, too!). The tow truck came to pick it up. I signed it over, collected my $200 in cold hard cash, and waved goodbye to the car I had for ten years.
That car saw me through college, the first few years living on my own in Arkansas, my two and a half years in Austin, and my first year in Dallas. It took me to work at War Eagle Mill, War Eagle Cavern, Cargill, Dell, and my current job. It had been on road trips all over Arkansas, Texas, Missouri, Iowa, Wisconsin, Illinios, Louisiana, Oklahoma, South Dakota... and probably a few places I've forgotten. It went on family vacations, trips to the beach, road trips to weddings, and many trips to concerts. It saw me through a couple boyfriends, dates, and numerous crushes. Its back seat was the location of hot makeout sessions (I was in college, after all). It was never puked in, and no one ever had sex in it (that I know of - though it was borrowed a few times, so maybe). It became the butt of jokes after the make and model was immortalized in an SNL skit. Ahhh, Dodge Stratus, Satellite of Love, you will be missed.
Knee-deep in the hooplah
Well, the trip to Grandma's is off. They got a ton of snow up there, and I guess neither my grandma nor my aunt and uncle are feeling that well, so we're postponing until January. Victor and I will do some Christmas shopping this weekend instead.
I bet he will also watch some episodes of The Shield. He has lately become obsessed with it. Over the last week, he has watched almost three seasons. He likes to watch it loud, which is slightly annoying, especially if I'm trying to sleep. I'm trying not to get into it, because I watch too much TV as it is, but I'm following the story a little bit. Victor says if he was a cop, he'd be a dirty cop.
Our washing machine exploded last night. Water cascaded down the stairs and out the door. That was lovely. I hope the landlady gets it fixed soon.
I made cookies last night too. Right now I'm eating pretty badly, but it's cold and I don't care. So I made chocolate chip cookies with my new KitchenAid stand mixer, which was a wedding present from my parents. It's my first stand mixer, and I really like it. I love to bake, so I'm probably going to get good use out of it. In the recipe, I used real granulated sugar, but for brown sugar I used a Splenda blend, and it worked really well. So at least the cookies weren't as bad for us as they could have been.
Well, the trip to Grandma's is off. They got a ton of snow up there, and I guess neither my grandma nor my aunt and uncle are feeling that well, so we're postponing until January. Victor and I will do some Christmas shopping this weekend instead.
I bet he will also watch some episodes of The Shield. He has lately become obsessed with it. Over the last week, he has watched almost three seasons. He likes to watch it loud, which is slightly annoying, especially if I'm trying to sleep. I'm trying not to get into it, because I watch too much TV as it is, but I'm following the story a little bit. Victor says if he was a cop, he'd be a dirty cop.
Our washing machine exploded last night. Water cascaded down the stairs and out the door. That was lovely. I hope the landlady gets it fixed soon.
I made cookies last night too. Right now I'm eating pretty badly, but it's cold and I don't care. So I made chocolate chip cookies with my new KitchenAid stand mixer, which was a wedding present from my parents. It's my first stand mixer, and I really like it. I love to bake, so I'm probably going to get good use out of it. In the recipe, I used real granulated sugar, but for brown sugar I used a Splenda blend, and it worked really well. So at least the cookies weren't as bad for us as they could have been.
Thursday, December 08, 2005
Brrrr!!!
It's icy and cold in Dallas today. We had a bit of an ice storm yesterday, but I managed to make it to work this morning (I work north of Dallas in a suburb, but I live in Dallas proper). I had planned on staying home today, but my work stayed open so I didn't want to lose a day of vacation or sick time. We went to the grocery store last night to get milk, yogurt, and winshield wiper fluid, and they were completely out of my type of yogurt and the fluid. And most bread and chips. It looked like it had been raided! People here really get crazy when a little ice or snow moves in. There were apparently over 2000 cars involved in accidents yesterday in the DFW area. I don't understand why people drive like idiots in the snow.
If weather permits, we are going to visit my grandma in southern Illinios this weekend. I wonder if Grandma is a Sufjan Stevens fan now?
It's icy and cold in Dallas today. We had a bit of an ice storm yesterday, but I managed to make it to work this morning (I work north of Dallas in a suburb, but I live in Dallas proper). I had planned on staying home today, but my work stayed open so I didn't want to lose a day of vacation or sick time. We went to the grocery store last night to get milk, yogurt, and winshield wiper fluid, and they were completely out of my type of yogurt and the fluid. And most bread and chips. It looked like it had been raided! People here really get crazy when a little ice or snow moves in. There were apparently over 2000 cars involved in accidents yesterday in the DFW area. I don't understand why people drive like idiots in the snow.
If weather permits, we are going to visit my grandma in southern Illinios this weekend. I wonder if Grandma is a Sufjan Stevens fan now?
Tuesday, December 06, 2005
Top Ten 2005
Victor and I purchased nearly 80 albums this year. I think that is a record for us. He bought stuff that I never even listened to properly (or even heard, in some cases). This year was so hectic that I didn't get a chance to hear everything I wanted to hear. There are albums that I heard three or four times and liked, but for some reason I just didn't listen to them again. So I'm worried that three or four months down the road, I'll pick up one of those albums and be totally blown away by it, and I will kick myself for not including it on my top ten. I feel almost guilty, like I'm doing those albums a disservice by not fitting them into my listening schedule and therefore denying them a possible place on my top ten. The albums that I did allow into its vaunted environs... well, I've managed to write only the most cliched and trite words about them. Oh, the stress this has caused me when I lie awake thinking about it. Then, reality sets in, and I remember that beyond a couple dozen people (and here I may be a bit too generous), my top ten really doesn't make that big a difference in the music world.
Anyway, with that being said, here it is!
10. The White Stripes - Get Behind Me Satan This album sees Jack White getting in touch with his folk side. The folksy and country songs are fantastic, which makes the bluesy stuff (never my favorite) sound even more grating in contrast. Here's hoping that Jack and Meg keep steering in a more melodic direction!
Standout Tracks: "My Doorbell," "Little Ghost," "As Ugly As I Seem"
9. Gruff Rhys - Yr Atal Genhedlaeth Clocking in under 30 minutes, this short but sweet album combines some of my favorite things: cheesy keyboards, drum machines, harmonies, and an obscure languages. The melodies are so catchy that you will want to learn Welsh just to be able to sing along.
Standout Tracks: "Rhagluniaeth Ysgafn," "Y Gwybodusion," "Ni Yw Y Byd"
8. Sigur Rós - Takk... I thought that Sigur Rós's last album, (), was a bit of a stumble after the near perfection of Ágætis Byrjun, so it is nice to see them returning to form. Takk... sees Sigur Rós combining their usual epic, ethereal sound with tinkling piano and xylophone. They also bring the rock a bit more on this album, and it's nice to hear them let loose. The song "Mílanó" reminds me of "Music Box Dancer," with the piano slowed down, and that is definitely not a bad thing. It will truly be interesting to see where Sigur Rós head next.
Standout Tracks: "Mílanó," "Glósóli," "Hoppípolla"
7. Clap Your Hands Say Yeah - Clap Your Hands Say Yeah I'm not really sure what it is about this record. The singer, Alec Ounsworth, yelps and slurs his vocals until words are almost unrecognizable, and the music is fuzzy and reminiscent of some of my favorite 80s and 90s indie bands. It sounds a bit shambolic, like some of the songs are hanging by a thread, but somehow it works. It's catchy, fun, and there is plenty of tambourine. Yeah!
Standout Tracks: "The Skin of My Yellow Country Teeth," "In This Home on Ice," "Upon This Tidal Wave of Young Blood"
6. Kaiser Chiefs - Employment One of several strong British debuts on this list. Catchy songs, clever lyrics, and danceable, too. Sure, it's pretty derivative at times, but it still sounds fresh and new. There's nothing too deep or thought-provoking about this album, but there are plenty of "la la las" and "na na nas" to keep you singing along. It's ok to just have fun sometimes.
Standout Tracks: "Modern Way," "You Can Have It All," "Every Day I Love You Less and Less"
5. The Decemberists - Picaresque I loved, and I do mean loved, the Decemberists' last album. It managed to top my list back in 2003. I suppose there was no way that their latest album could have not been a disappointment to me. But what a glorious disappointment! Colin Meloy's trademark lyrics would do any English teacher proud, and the band seems to be channeling Morrissey on several songs (a sure way to my heart any day). There are a couple of missteps on this album, which is a shame, but I guess you can't be perfect all the time.
Standout Tracks: "On the Bus Mall," "The Infanta," "The Sporting Life"
4. Bloc Party - Silent Alarm The first full-length from Bloc Party delivers. It delivers with a capital D, and maybe it should even be in italics or bolded. There is never a dull moment here. Time signatures change, songs start and stop, and the music switches from sparse to full at the drop of a hat. It sounds alive and desperate and bursting with emotion, all at the same time. Not many albums get you dancing and thinking at the same time. Something glorious definitely happened here.
Standout Tracks: "Like Eating Glass," "This Modern Love,"
3. New Pornographers - Twin Cinema I'm late to the New Pornographers party. This is the first of their albums I've given a close listen to (though I have listened to various members' solo albums quite a lot), and it totally sucked me in. This album didn't leave my car's CD player for weeks. The songs are almost too catchy. There are beautiful harmonies all over the album, especially on "The Bleeding Heart Show," and band members get to shine on different songs. AC Newman's lyrics are puzzling, but using your head is fun sometimes.
Standout Tracks: "The Bleeding Heart Show," "Use It," "Sing Me Spanish Techno," "Stacked Crooked"
2. Maximo Park - A Certain Trigger Raw and unbelieveably catchy, this debut album worms its way into your ear and refuses to leave. There is a good mix of 60s garage rock, 80s indie, and even a bit of sunny harmony in here, but Maximo Park make the sound their own. Frontman Paul Smith sounds at first like any other British post punk singer, but songs like "Graffiti" show that his talent goes well beyond shouting the lyrics. The band's songs often change in the middle, and some have what seems to be two choruses, so these are not your average 3 minute guitar tracks. Interesting and melodic, Maximo Park's music sounds old and new at the same time. A fantastic debut effort.
Standout Tracks: "Graffiti," "Signal and Sign," "The Coast is Always Changing," "Apply Some Pressure"
1. Sufjan Stevens - Illinois In the second installment of his 50 states project, Stevens produces an absolute gem of an album, a love song to the state of Illinois. There are harmonies that will make your spirit soar and near-whispered lines that will break your heart. Stevens hones his skills as a storyteller by mixing local folklore (UFO sightings, mobile fast food wagons, etc.) with national headlines (John Wayne Gacy, the Lincoln-Douglas debates), and he produces rich stories that make you smile, chuckle, or cry. Maybe I love this album because it has the best song titles ever ("They Are Night Zombies!! They Are Neighbors!! They Have Come Back From The Dead!! Ahhhh!" anyone?) Maybe I love this album because the opening song, "Concerning the UFO Sighting Near Highland, IL" takes place some 25 miles from my grandma's house. Maybe I love it because it is damn near perfect. As Sufjan Stevens knows so well, only history will tell.
Standout Tracks: "Chicago," "John Wayne Gacy, Jr.," "The Predatory Wasp Of The Palisades Is Out To Get Us!," "Come On! Feel The Illinoise!: Part I: The World's Columbian Exposition/Part II: Carl Sandburg Visits Me In A Dream"
On the cusp:
Death Cab for Cutie - Plans
Super Furry Animals - Love Kraft
Franz Ferdinand - You Could Have It So Much Better
Coldplay - X&Y
Bonus Categories!
Single of the Year:
Kelly Clarkson - "Since U Been Gone" - Well, this was an obvious choice. Pure pop bliss. I love her.
Runners Up:
Fall Out Boy - "Sugar, We're Going Down"
Coldplay - "Fix You"
Gwen Stefani - "Hollaback Girl"
Slow Jam of the Year:
Mario - "Let Me Love You" - I'm not sure what it is that I love about this song. Maybe it's the cheesy 70s music in the background... yeah, that's it.
Best Concert:
The Arcade Fire, Emo's (January)
Best Surprise:
Kelly Osbourne - "One Word" - The song is fantastic, and the video is hot.
Worst Song (ever?)
Black Eyed Peas - "My Humps" - This song completely and utterly destroys any faith I had in humanity.
So there it is, folks. Thrown together at the last minute, and I'll probably end up wanting to change something, but there it is.
Victor and I purchased nearly 80 albums this year. I think that is a record for us. He bought stuff that I never even listened to properly (or even heard, in some cases). This year was so hectic that I didn't get a chance to hear everything I wanted to hear. There are albums that I heard three or four times and liked, but for some reason I just didn't listen to them again. So I'm worried that three or four months down the road, I'll pick up one of those albums and be totally blown away by it, and I will kick myself for not including it on my top ten. I feel almost guilty, like I'm doing those albums a disservice by not fitting them into my listening schedule and therefore denying them a possible place on my top ten. The albums that I did allow into its vaunted environs... well, I've managed to write only the most cliched and trite words about them. Oh, the stress this has caused me when I lie awake thinking about it. Then, reality sets in, and I remember that beyond a couple dozen people (and here I may be a bit too generous), my top ten really doesn't make that big a difference in the music world.
Anyway, with that being said, here it is!
10. The White Stripes - Get Behind Me Satan This album sees Jack White getting in touch with his folk side. The folksy and country songs are fantastic, which makes the bluesy stuff (never my favorite) sound even more grating in contrast. Here's hoping that Jack and Meg keep steering in a more melodic direction!
Standout Tracks: "My Doorbell," "Little Ghost," "As Ugly As I Seem"
9. Gruff Rhys - Yr Atal Genhedlaeth Clocking in under 30 minutes, this short but sweet album combines some of my favorite things: cheesy keyboards, drum machines, harmonies, and an obscure languages. The melodies are so catchy that you will want to learn Welsh just to be able to sing along.
Standout Tracks: "Rhagluniaeth Ysgafn," "Y Gwybodusion," "Ni Yw Y Byd"
8. Sigur Rós - Takk... I thought that Sigur Rós's last album, (), was a bit of a stumble after the near perfection of Ágætis Byrjun, so it is nice to see them returning to form. Takk... sees Sigur Rós combining their usual epic, ethereal sound with tinkling piano and xylophone. They also bring the rock a bit more on this album, and it's nice to hear them let loose. The song "Mílanó" reminds me of "Music Box Dancer," with the piano slowed down, and that is definitely not a bad thing. It will truly be interesting to see where Sigur Rós head next.
Standout Tracks: "Mílanó," "Glósóli," "Hoppípolla"
7. Clap Your Hands Say Yeah - Clap Your Hands Say Yeah I'm not really sure what it is about this record. The singer, Alec Ounsworth, yelps and slurs his vocals until words are almost unrecognizable, and the music is fuzzy and reminiscent of some of my favorite 80s and 90s indie bands. It sounds a bit shambolic, like some of the songs are hanging by a thread, but somehow it works. It's catchy, fun, and there is plenty of tambourine. Yeah!
Standout Tracks: "The Skin of My Yellow Country Teeth," "In This Home on Ice," "Upon This Tidal Wave of Young Blood"
6. Kaiser Chiefs - Employment One of several strong British debuts on this list. Catchy songs, clever lyrics, and danceable, too. Sure, it's pretty derivative at times, but it still sounds fresh and new. There's nothing too deep or thought-provoking about this album, but there are plenty of "la la las" and "na na nas" to keep you singing along. It's ok to just have fun sometimes.
Standout Tracks: "Modern Way," "You Can Have It All," "Every Day I Love You Less and Less"
5. The Decemberists - Picaresque I loved, and I do mean loved, the Decemberists' last album. It managed to top my list back in 2003. I suppose there was no way that their latest album could have not been a disappointment to me. But what a glorious disappointment! Colin Meloy's trademark lyrics would do any English teacher proud, and the band seems to be channeling Morrissey on several songs (a sure way to my heart any day). There are a couple of missteps on this album, which is a shame, but I guess you can't be perfect all the time.
Standout Tracks: "On the Bus Mall," "The Infanta," "The Sporting Life"
4. Bloc Party - Silent Alarm The first full-length from Bloc Party delivers. It delivers with a capital D, and maybe it should even be in italics or bolded. There is never a dull moment here. Time signatures change, songs start and stop, and the music switches from sparse to full at the drop of a hat. It sounds alive and desperate and bursting with emotion, all at the same time. Not many albums get you dancing and thinking at the same time. Something glorious definitely happened here.
Standout Tracks: "Like Eating Glass," "This Modern Love,"
3. New Pornographers - Twin Cinema I'm late to the New Pornographers party. This is the first of their albums I've given a close listen to (though I have listened to various members' solo albums quite a lot), and it totally sucked me in. This album didn't leave my car's CD player for weeks. The songs are almost too catchy. There are beautiful harmonies all over the album, especially on "The Bleeding Heart Show," and band members get to shine on different songs. AC Newman's lyrics are puzzling, but using your head is fun sometimes.
Standout Tracks: "The Bleeding Heart Show," "Use It," "Sing Me Spanish Techno," "Stacked Crooked"
2. Maximo Park - A Certain Trigger Raw and unbelieveably catchy, this debut album worms its way into your ear and refuses to leave. There is a good mix of 60s garage rock, 80s indie, and even a bit of sunny harmony in here, but Maximo Park make the sound their own. Frontman Paul Smith sounds at first like any other British post punk singer, but songs like "Graffiti" show that his talent goes well beyond shouting the lyrics. The band's songs often change in the middle, and some have what seems to be two choruses, so these are not your average 3 minute guitar tracks. Interesting and melodic, Maximo Park's music sounds old and new at the same time. A fantastic debut effort.
Standout Tracks: "Graffiti," "Signal and Sign," "The Coast is Always Changing," "Apply Some Pressure"
1. Sufjan Stevens - Illinois In the second installment of his 50 states project, Stevens produces an absolute gem of an album, a love song to the state of Illinois. There are harmonies that will make your spirit soar and near-whispered lines that will break your heart. Stevens hones his skills as a storyteller by mixing local folklore (UFO sightings, mobile fast food wagons, etc.) with national headlines (John Wayne Gacy, the Lincoln-Douglas debates), and he produces rich stories that make you smile, chuckle, or cry. Maybe I love this album because it has the best song titles ever ("They Are Night Zombies!! They Are Neighbors!! They Have Come Back From The Dead!! Ahhhh!" anyone?) Maybe I love this album because the opening song, "Concerning the UFO Sighting Near Highland, IL" takes place some 25 miles from my grandma's house. Maybe I love it because it is damn near perfect. As Sufjan Stevens knows so well, only history will tell.
Standout Tracks: "Chicago," "John Wayne Gacy, Jr.," "The Predatory Wasp Of The Palisades Is Out To Get Us!," "Come On! Feel The Illinoise!: Part I: The World's Columbian Exposition/Part II: Carl Sandburg Visits Me In A Dream"
On the cusp:
Death Cab for Cutie - Plans
Super Furry Animals - Love Kraft
Franz Ferdinand - You Could Have It So Much Better
Coldplay - X&Y
Bonus Categories!
Single of the Year:
Kelly Clarkson - "Since U Been Gone" - Well, this was an obvious choice. Pure pop bliss. I love her.
Runners Up:
Fall Out Boy - "Sugar, We're Going Down"
Coldplay - "Fix You"
Gwen Stefani - "Hollaback Girl"
Slow Jam of the Year:
Mario - "Let Me Love You" - I'm not sure what it is that I love about this song. Maybe it's the cheesy 70s music in the background... yeah, that's it.
Best Concert:
The Arcade Fire, Emo's (January)
Best Surprise:
Kelly Osbourne - "One Word" - The song is fantastic, and the video is hot.
Worst Song (ever?)
Black Eyed Peas - "My Humps" - This song completely and utterly destroys any faith I had in humanity.
So there it is, folks. Thrown together at the last minute, and I'll probably end up wanting to change something, but there it is.
Monday, December 05, 2005
The honeymoon is over
But only in the literal sense. So yes, I'm finally getting around to chronicling our honeymoon adventure in Europe.
We left Saturday 11/19. We got to the airport really early to try to get first class seats (we fly standby, remember), then headed over to the outlet mall to kill some time. When we returned, Victor checked the standby list, and we were slated for business class seats. However, a group of five people missed their connecting flight, so we were bumped up the list and got on first class. Yay! I didn't get much sleep on the way over, despite having a fully reclining seat and drinking plenty of booze. Victor slept more than I did. We did have a bit of turbulence going over the North Atlantic, but it wasn't too bad. We arrived in Frankfurt early Sunday morning and checked with the Lufthansa transfer desk. They had our standby reservation and told us there would be no problem getting on our flight to Barcelona.
Phase 1: Barcelona
We waited around the airport for an hour or so and then boarded our flight to Spain. I had never flown Lufthansa, and I was pleasantly surprised with the service onboard. Even though it was a short flight (2 hours or less), we got lunch and drinks. Even alcoholic drinks were free! We got to the Barcelona airport, figured out how to get on the train to town, and lugged our bags through a couple of metro stations before arriving at our final destination. Our hotel, Boria BCN, was just around the corner from the metro station.
We had reserved a junior suite, but for some reason they upgraded us to the loft, which had two bedrooms, two flatscreen TV's, a fantastic kitchen, and a really nice bathroom. I think the ceilings must have been 20 feet high. We loved the room. The sheets and blankets were super snuggly too. We took a long nap Sunday afternoon and woke in time to find dinner at a nearby Italian restaurant called La Locanda. It was very tasty and hearty. Surprisingly, we were able to go right back to sleep when we got home.
On Monday, we wandered around the city, checking out the Barri Gotic (gothic quarter), La Rambla (the famous pedestrianized street), and ducking in the enormous Boqueria (market). On La Rambla, there are flower stalls, tourist shops, and tons of pet stalls (mostly birds and small cage animals like hampsters and bunnies). I was in heaven. We also wandered down to Barceloneta and walked along the shore of the Mediterranean. We got bread, cheese, and meat for our dinner at La Boqueria.
Tuesday was spent traipsing around the city looking at the modernist buildings, including a lot of Gaudí's work. We climbed the Sagrada Familia, which was terrifing for me but thrilling for Victor, who is not afraid of heights. The climb (and the descent) just about killed our out-of-shape legs. We walked all over town trying to find a lunch restaurant befor finally settling on one. We also had some hot chocolate with churros because I was cold and tired. The chocolate there is almost like hot chocolate syrup, and it is so amazing. Tuesday night we had an amazing dinner at Cinc Sentits, where the atmosphere was sophisticated and the food was to die for!
On Wednesday, we did a lot of shopping and messing about the city. We had one of the most incredible lunches at Cal Pep, where they brought us an assortment of seafood tapas. Definitely worth the 30 or 40 minute wait. We ate another dinner from our Boqueria haul and shared some cava (Spanish version of champagne).
Phase 2: Bruges
Thursday morning, we got up at 5am and made our way to the Barcelona airport. Iberia (a Spanish airline) had lost our reservation, but the agent put us back in the system, and we were able to get on the first flight out to Brussels. The flight was pretty scary for me: turbulence, all sorts of strange noises, hard banks over the city of Barcelona, just all around yuckiness. I learned later that Airbuses tend to have weird noises, and everything was fine on the plane. Anyway, we touched down in Brussels and boarded a train bound for Bruges.
After mildly cold weather in Spain, Belgium was freezing. We wandered around Bruges (it's pretty tiny, so I'm using the word "wander" liberally here) on Thursday. It rained on us, so we bought an umbrella and later borrowed a second one from the hotel. We had some hearty Belgian food to warm us up, and later that night we had apple beignets and frites with mayo. Bruges is quaint and pretty. It reminded me of a small Amsterdam, without the pot and hookers. Our hotel was all out of standard rooms, so they bumped us up to a superior room, which had a whirlpool tub. Whirlpool tubs are fantastic for cold, aching bodies. The hotel itself was really cute and old-fashioned. We finished looking around Bruges and taking pictures on Friday morning, and then we hopped on a train to Brussels.
Phase 3: Brussels
It was bitterly cold in Brussels too. We had a tough time finding our hotel at first, because the center of Brussels is really confusing. We finally found it and checked in. The hotel was really nice and the service there was fantastic. We walked around the center of Brussels, taking in the Grand' Place (the beautiful old square), the Sablon, and walking through the Beaux-Arts museum. We had a waffle of course. In the Sablon district, we had some fantastic chocolates from Pierre Marcolini (that is their US website.. I couldn't get their Belgian site to do much). Belgian chocolate is hands-down the best I've ever had. Finally, we ate dinner at Chez Léon, which our TimeOut guide said was touristy but fantastic. And it was. Mmmmmm, mussels!
Friday night it started snowing. The snowfall was beautiful, but it made for super slushy sidewalks on Saturday. Victor's shoes were not the best for snow, and I was thanking God for the ugly boots I bought for the trip. We did some shopping on Saturday, though the snow slowed us down. We had a waffle for breakfast and Vietnamese food for a late lunch. Saturday night, we wandered back to the Sablon to get more chocolates. We tried the other chocolate house, Wittamer, because Pierre Marcolini was closed for a couple of hours. We killed time by eating street food (frites and bratwurst), drinking some gluhwein (mulled wine with cognac), and window shopping. By the time we made it back to Pierre Marcolini, there was a line formed around the building. Turns out they were debuting their winter chocolate collection, and they were giving away free chocolates, champagne, and strawberry wine. So of course we went in and had tons of samples and free drinks. Afterwards, we were stuffed, so we went back to the hotel to figure out how to get home.
Flights looked bad, so instead of hitching a ride on the Brussels-JFK flight, we decided to go to London and catch the London-Miami flight. The next morning we hopped on a British Airways flight to London, got on the Miami flight, and then languished in Miami most of the afternoon before getting on a DFW flight by the grace of God. I never, ever, ever want to see the Miami airport again. The flight back to DFW was so bumpy that some passengers got hysterical, but we made it to the ground safely.
So that's the honeymoon. I left out the parts where Victor lost his glove, I lost my driver's license, and our digital camera finally stopped working (and the part about how Victor forgot to tell me it was broken in the first place), but pretty much everything else is in there. Oh, we also saw some fantastic documentaries on British TV, including one on being childless by choice and one on European death metal. And Victor became hooked on Italian game shows and German call-in quiz shows. Hmmm... anything else? I can't think of much. I'll get pictures up soon (some of the digital pics are pretty blurry, and we haven't gotten the disposable camera developed yet).
Tomorrow - it's top ten time!!!!!!!
But only in the literal sense. So yes, I'm finally getting around to chronicling our honeymoon adventure in Europe.
We left Saturday 11/19. We got to the airport really early to try to get first class seats (we fly standby, remember), then headed over to the outlet mall to kill some time. When we returned, Victor checked the standby list, and we were slated for business class seats. However, a group of five people missed their connecting flight, so we were bumped up the list and got on first class. Yay! I didn't get much sleep on the way over, despite having a fully reclining seat and drinking plenty of booze. Victor slept more than I did. We did have a bit of turbulence going over the North Atlantic, but it wasn't too bad. We arrived in Frankfurt early Sunday morning and checked with the Lufthansa transfer desk. They had our standby reservation and told us there would be no problem getting on our flight to Barcelona.
Phase 1: Barcelona
We waited around the airport for an hour or so and then boarded our flight to Spain. I had never flown Lufthansa, and I was pleasantly surprised with the service onboard. Even though it was a short flight (2 hours or less), we got lunch and drinks. Even alcoholic drinks were free! We got to the Barcelona airport, figured out how to get on the train to town, and lugged our bags through a couple of metro stations before arriving at our final destination. Our hotel, Boria BCN, was just around the corner from the metro station.
We had reserved a junior suite, but for some reason they upgraded us to the loft, which had two bedrooms, two flatscreen TV's, a fantastic kitchen, and a really nice bathroom. I think the ceilings must have been 20 feet high. We loved the room. The sheets and blankets were super snuggly too. We took a long nap Sunday afternoon and woke in time to find dinner at a nearby Italian restaurant called La Locanda. It was very tasty and hearty. Surprisingly, we were able to go right back to sleep when we got home.
On Monday, we wandered around the city, checking out the Barri Gotic (gothic quarter), La Rambla (the famous pedestrianized street), and ducking in the enormous Boqueria (market). On La Rambla, there are flower stalls, tourist shops, and tons of pet stalls (mostly birds and small cage animals like hampsters and bunnies). I was in heaven. We also wandered down to Barceloneta and walked along the shore of the Mediterranean. We got bread, cheese, and meat for our dinner at La Boqueria.
Tuesday was spent traipsing around the city looking at the modernist buildings, including a lot of Gaudí's work. We climbed the Sagrada Familia, which was terrifing for me but thrilling for Victor, who is not afraid of heights. The climb (and the descent) just about killed our out-of-shape legs. We walked all over town trying to find a lunch restaurant befor finally settling on one. We also had some hot chocolate with churros because I was cold and tired. The chocolate there is almost like hot chocolate syrup, and it is so amazing. Tuesday night we had an amazing dinner at Cinc Sentits, where the atmosphere was sophisticated and the food was to die for!
On Wednesday, we did a lot of shopping and messing about the city. We had one of the most incredible lunches at Cal Pep, where they brought us an assortment of seafood tapas. Definitely worth the 30 or 40 minute wait. We ate another dinner from our Boqueria haul and shared some cava (Spanish version of champagne).
Phase 2: Bruges
Thursday morning, we got up at 5am and made our way to the Barcelona airport. Iberia (a Spanish airline) had lost our reservation, but the agent put us back in the system, and we were able to get on the first flight out to Brussels. The flight was pretty scary for me: turbulence, all sorts of strange noises, hard banks over the city of Barcelona, just all around yuckiness. I learned later that Airbuses tend to have weird noises, and everything was fine on the plane. Anyway, we touched down in Brussels and boarded a train bound for Bruges.
After mildly cold weather in Spain, Belgium was freezing. We wandered around Bruges (it's pretty tiny, so I'm using the word "wander" liberally here) on Thursday. It rained on us, so we bought an umbrella and later borrowed a second one from the hotel. We had some hearty Belgian food to warm us up, and later that night we had apple beignets and frites with mayo. Bruges is quaint and pretty. It reminded me of a small Amsterdam, without the pot and hookers. Our hotel was all out of standard rooms, so they bumped us up to a superior room, which had a whirlpool tub. Whirlpool tubs are fantastic for cold, aching bodies. The hotel itself was really cute and old-fashioned. We finished looking around Bruges and taking pictures on Friday morning, and then we hopped on a train to Brussels.
Phase 3: Brussels
It was bitterly cold in Brussels too. We had a tough time finding our hotel at first, because the center of Brussels is really confusing. We finally found it and checked in. The hotel was really nice and the service there was fantastic. We walked around the center of Brussels, taking in the Grand' Place (the beautiful old square), the Sablon, and walking through the Beaux-Arts museum. We had a waffle of course. In the Sablon district, we had some fantastic chocolates from Pierre Marcolini (that is their US website.. I couldn't get their Belgian site to do much). Belgian chocolate is hands-down the best I've ever had. Finally, we ate dinner at Chez Léon, which our TimeOut guide said was touristy but fantastic. And it was. Mmmmmm, mussels!
Friday night it started snowing. The snowfall was beautiful, but it made for super slushy sidewalks on Saturday. Victor's shoes were not the best for snow, and I was thanking God for the ugly boots I bought for the trip. We did some shopping on Saturday, though the snow slowed us down. We had a waffle for breakfast and Vietnamese food for a late lunch. Saturday night, we wandered back to the Sablon to get more chocolates. We tried the other chocolate house, Wittamer, because Pierre Marcolini was closed for a couple of hours. We killed time by eating street food (frites and bratwurst), drinking some gluhwein (mulled wine with cognac), and window shopping. By the time we made it back to Pierre Marcolini, there was a line formed around the building. Turns out they were debuting their winter chocolate collection, and they were giving away free chocolates, champagne, and strawberry wine. So of course we went in and had tons of samples and free drinks. Afterwards, we were stuffed, so we went back to the hotel to figure out how to get home.
Flights looked bad, so instead of hitching a ride on the Brussels-JFK flight, we decided to go to London and catch the London-Miami flight. The next morning we hopped on a British Airways flight to London, got on the Miami flight, and then languished in Miami most of the afternoon before getting on a DFW flight by the grace of God. I never, ever, ever want to see the Miami airport again. The flight back to DFW was so bumpy that some passengers got hysterical, but we made it to the ground safely.
So that's the honeymoon. I left out the parts where Victor lost his glove, I lost my driver's license, and our digital camera finally stopped working (and the part about how Victor forgot to tell me it was broken in the first place), but pretty much everything else is in there. Oh, we also saw some fantastic documentaries on British TV, including one on being childless by choice and one on European death metal. And Victor became hooked on Italian game shows and German call-in quiz shows. Hmmm... anything else? I can't think of much. I'll get pictures up soon (some of the digital pics are pretty blurry, and we haven't gotten the disposable camera developed yet).
Tomorrow - it's top ten time!!!!!!!
Friday, December 02, 2005
Quickie
We didn't die on the honeymoon! I came back to a mega crapload of work, including working tomorrow on my precious Saturday. So please forgive the lack of honeymoon recap. I promise, it is coming!
We didn't die on the honeymoon! I came back to a mega crapload of work, including working tomorrow on my precious Saturday. So please forgive the lack of honeymoon recap. I promise, it is coming!
