Making: Quilting friendship star blocks. Knitting socks.
Reading: Reading a multiple-movie-references book “Don’t Make a Scene” by Valerie Block. Looks like chick lit from the outside, but rises above it. Enjoying it!
Watching: Heroes season 1 on DVD (wow I like it so much better than I liked it when I tried to watch it in real-time last year. what’s up with that). And the only show that’s premiered so far (on my list anyway): K-Ville.
Listening: New stuff I bought yesterday and stuff I bought last week and stuff I bought in Belgium and Common who I’m going to see tomorrow night and The National who I’m going to see Saturday night…I’ve got a crazy mix of things going on right now.
Monthly Archives: September 2007
“1973” you say?
And though time goes by, / I will always be / in a club with you / in 1973.
I’d be willing to bet significant dollars that I’m older than James Blunt. And if I’m right (I’m pretty sure I’m right), then the only “clubs” he would have gone to in 1973 would have had names like “Gymboree” or “Mommy and Me.”
Pretty enjoyable song, nonetheless.
And song #2 “One of the Brightest Stars” = soooo BeeGees, particularly the vocals during the chorus. Love it!
Last Night on iTunes.
Purchased:
- James Blunt “All the Lost Souls”
- Hard Fi “Once Upon a Time in the World”
- Eddie Vedder “Into the Wild” (soundtrack)
Considered, Sampled, But Ultimately Not Purchased:
- KT Tunstall “Drastic Fantastic”
- Aline Simone “Placelessness”
- Jesca Hoop “Kismet”
I was (clearly) all about the boys last night.
Big Screen: In the Valley of Elah
Intense and sad, and yet a very quiet movie. Things happening beneath the surface for many of these characters. A couple things about the mystery that I felt weren’t explained quite right / didn’t sit quite right. But makes its point quite well: the war isn’t just happening “over there.” The soldiers bring it home with them.
And if you were paying attention at the beginning, the message at the end is very clear: We are a country in distress. No doubt about it.
Really great performances by Tommy Lee Jones, Charlize Theron, Susan Sarandon. And a couple of the “unknowns” playing the soldiers really did well in their parts. Very impressive filmmaking.
Memoir: “A Three Dog Life” by Abigail Thomas
This would be a tear-jerker on a good day so maybe not the best choice when you’re super tired and feeling lonely anyway.
Author’s husband suffered traumatic brain injury; basically becomes a different person. This is her story of coming to live with that. It’s very sad in some places. But it’s also hopeful. She always chooses the route of hope. Quite touching.
Loved her writing style. Conversational, easy tone, concise yet not lacking in details (something I used to get compliments on in grad school — although you don’t see much evidence of it, here do you?!?! — so I tend to like that in others as well).
Fantasy/Mystery: “Storm Front” (Bk 1 Dresden Files) by Jim Butcher
Harry Dresden = the only wizard in the Chicago phone book. Thought it dragged a bit in the middle, but the last third of the book really picked up. Intriguing mystery, very tricky how it all came together. I’m interested enough to read the next one in the series.
Fall!
I’m wearing fall clothes, eating fall foods (pumpkin!), and all I can think about is Fall TV. So there you go.
Protected: Use Your Words, Girl.
À la Super Eggplant, currently, I am…
Making: Focusing on Friendship Star blocks this week. With the hope of maybe possibly finishing those before I die…
Reading: I’m sorta lazily reading a magical mystery “Storm Front” by Jim Butcher while I am also devouring the trade paperbacks of the Runaways comics (just in time to read the new ones being written by Joss Whedon!)… I’ve read a lot of great books recently, I wanted a little breather while I am still running over them in my mind…
Watching: Summer season finales (The Closer, yay; Rescue Me, starting to bore me; Saving Grace, so much better than people realize; Damages, I don’t love it that much) and obsessing over Season 1 of Friday Night Lights (yeah NOW I’m obsessing. Before? That was nothing!) before the season 2 premiere on October 5. Now I actually have a happy reason to be home on Friday nights. Yay!
Listening: Lots of new stuff on my plate, but also really on a “The Historical Conquests of Josh Ritter” kick today. He’s bringing all sorts of other folk to mind (first song Bob Dylan, “Right Moves” makes me think of Bob Seger [especially the chorus!], some songs Bruce Springsteen, some Leonard Cohen)… Rollicking, good humored, meandering… I’m enjoying it.
Album: Kanye West “Graduation”
I really like this, I think there are some quality songs I will be listening to for a while… BUT. But.
Ou est the joy, Kanye? The thing I really, really loved about his previous albums was the FUN. The sense that he was smiling the entire time he was rapping. When I saw him in concert, I thought “damn this kid is HAPPY.” I mean, maybe not as crazily silly-ily happy as, say, Lupe Fiasco, but still. There was a real joie de vivre about the whole thing.
On this record, even on the songs with positive, peppy lyrics, I feel like he’s got this “I am very purposeful” look on his face. A “hey, this is serious, I’m not joking around” tone. Like he’s just not having as much fun. 🙁 I know he feels like he’s got something to prove; there’s the “who will sell more” battle with 50, and the reviews that all say “he gives his best stuff away! his albums aren’t as good as the stuff he does for other people!” … but maybe he needs to not care about that, you know.
I still like it, I’m still listening. But I don’t LOVE it the way I did the previous two.