Coming soon...Year in Review

I'm starting to listen to the albums I own that were put out in 2007 with the hopes of putting together a "Top 10 Albums of 2007" list.

I'll try to get my thoughts up as I listen to them, but I do think that 2007 was a killer year music-wise.

The Cure (album) by The Cure (group)

In 2004, The Cure (group) put out The Cure (album). It's a fun little album. It's heavy, both sonically and lyrically. It's crunchy sounding and not as "slick" as some of their earlier stuff. Put it next to Wild Mood Swings, for example, and you'd think it was two separate bands that you were listening to.

The guy who produced it also produced stuff by Korn, Limp Bizkit, and Slipknot, so you can see some of what they were driving at. And it's arguably the least accessible of their recent albums.

According to this Wikipedia article, it got reasonable critical acclaim, though it was generally considered a "fans only" kind of recording.

It's a shame, though, because it's fun to listen to. It's heavy and murky and a lot more atmospheric than I generally like from the music I listen to.

Bands, after a while, start to experiment with their sound and sometimes the results are hits and sometimes they're misses. I think this one was generally considered a "miss," which is unfortunate.

Books and lists about books

I was this list by a Library Land blog.

It's a list of lists. How meta, right?

It's 8 "best of 2007" lists covering a variety of topics and a variety of outlets.

So...if you're looking for something to read: start here.

Modest Mouse! Tonight!

The Dude is taking me to see Modest Mouse tonight.

I have been listening to their albums all week in anticipation of the show. He has too, I think.

I am constantly amazed at their lyrical dexterity. Nearly every time I hear one of their songs, I think 'wow...if I could write music, this is what I'd write.'

I've seen a few set lists from this past week and I've been pleasantly surprised at the mix of newer and older stuff they've been playing. The Dude will enjoy it because I know he likes their older, more bizarre stuff.

I'll report back tomorrow.

Wow. Really?

I had always thought of Oasis when I heard The Bravery. I have no idea why, but I did. Someone suggested to me, though, that The Bravery was closer to The Killers than Oasis. This morning on the way to work, Ethel (the XM channel I listen to most often), played a song by The Killers song back-to-back with "An Honest Mistake" by The Bravery.

It's really amazing how much more The Bravery sounds like The Killers than Oasis.

It's funny, even, considering how "meh" I am about The Killers.

I love it when my personal and professional lives collide

In my "day job," I'm a librarian. It's glamorous, I assure you. I don't talk about it much in this blog because it doesn't really fit with the topic at hand. But as I was reading through some Library Land blogs, I saw my two worlds collide.

I read this post by Annoyed Librarian that referred to this column by Boston sports columnist Bob Ryan.

In the column, Ryan writes about Patriots QB Tom Brady and how the offensive support he has this year outweighs the support he had last year. Ryan argues that Brady is as good of a QB this year as he was last year, but this year the stats match the performance. Ryan also says that you won't actually hear Brady toot his horn all that much. I assume this is because Brady is a gentleman (as evidenced by being a hands-on Dad to his bastard son whose mama he dumped to date a Brazilian supermodel).

In the article, Ryan writes "And you can be sure Brady will be seen in public with a homely librarian before he engages in any discussion about the difference between the receivers he was forced to work with last season and the ones he has now."

Librarians all over this great land of ours got their noses out of joint because Ryan insinuated that librarians are homely. Copious letters to the editor were written about stereotypes and "cool" librarians. It seems, almost a month later, that the seas are less choppy and that librarians have gone back to being the lame, fuddy duddy, "shush"ers we all know and love. It's hard work, my friends, but somebody's got to do it.

I was just amused that Ryan insinuated that Brady was a gentleman...

--Mrs. Dude, Colts fan

Might as well join the mob...the benefits are okay

Something I saw online jogged my memory about the band Soul Asylum, so I checked my handy dandy iPod, Black Frances, and saw that I do have a Soul Asylum album.

Well, it's The Dude's, but during the Great Music Combining of Aught Whatever his music became mine and mine became his (for better and worse. As an aside...for two music junkies, combining music collections is the biggest test of a relationship).

I was listening to Grave Dancer's Union and I was reminded that Soul Asylum used to be good. I say "used to" because last year they came out of oblivion to put out this craptastic single before returning back to irrelevancy (holy cow! irrelevancy is a word! who knew?).

Grave Dancer's Union is a fabulous little gem, full of great songs. And it has my favorite Soul Asylum ever, "Without a trace." Yeah, it has "Runaway Train" on it which ended up getting overplayed until it was a lifeless shell of a decent song. But overall, it's a great disc.

Mrs. Dude's random musings, or, why do I always seem to write about music?

Why didn't more people like The Bravery's newest album, The Sun and the Moon?

It was like Oasis, only without the dysfunction and brothers getting into fist fights.

You should go listen to it. It is good.

The only baseball-related post Mrs. Dude will ever write

You might think that since The Dude covers baseball for a living, I would write prolifically about baseball. You would be wrong, though. I stay out of it, since there's already one of us in the family doing that job and doing it well.

Still, though, as the first game of the World Series of Aught Seven is now in the record books, I am taking a break from writing about things I like to share 5 thoughts about this year's post-season:

1. Josh Beckett's facial hair is awful. Seriously. The Red Sox deserve to lose based solely on the ridiculousness of Beckett's facial hair.

2.Alyssa Milano never dated Josh Beckett. She's taking time away from her busy schedule of providing insightful game coverage for mlb.com to tell us that. Wow, sports media, she sure told you. Don't you feel stupid? You know...it occurs to me that if Beckett didn't have the ridiculous facial hair that Alyssa Milano wouldn't be so quick to issue that stinging rebuke.

3. I am tired of hearing about Daisuke Matsuzaka and his supposed "gyroball." It's not a gyroball at all, if you believe Wikipedia (and who doesn't?). It's a just a changeup that breaks like a screwball.

4. It is inevitable that MLB and Fox will collaborate to showcase artists with records to sell during the World Series. The national anthem and God Bless America are both prime opportunities to pimp one's new project. When Ashanti sang "God Bless America," I kept hearing Ja Rule in my head going "unh unh."

5. Since the World Series is on Fox, at least we don't have to see any more promos for that show Frank TV. Of course, it means we'll get more Joe Buck, but that's a trade I'm willing to make.

Lucy, daughter of the devil

So, for the past few weeks The Dude has been all "Dude, Lucy: daughter of the devil is awesome!"

I've been totally non-committal about checking it out mostly because I'm asleep when he finally gets around to watching it. See, his Tivo is upstairs and we only hang out upstairs to watch TV when we go to bed.

Last night when we went to bed, I couldn't sleep. I tossed and turned for a while and couldn't fall asleep.

The Dude put on Lucy, daughter of the devil. The awesome part is that it's 15 minutes w/commercials. If you fast forward, it's about 11 minutes. We were both pretty sure that I could stay awake for 11 minutes.

Lucy, daughter of the devil uses some of the voice talents from Home Movies. I mean, The Devil is play by Coach McGurk...

Apparently the premise is that Lucy is the daughter of the devil and is the Anti-Christ. Hilarity ensues from there.

It's very funny. It has to be tight, plot-wise, since it's only 15 minutes, and the episode I saw was able to do that pretty well. It was sharp and witty, too.

It's an Adult Swim joint and I'm not sure when it actually airs, but I'd definitely recommend it.

Favorite new fall show!

Apparently a majority of you are digging Pushing Daisies.

I haven't seen it, though it's sitting in the TiFaux queue, so I can't affirm this selection. But, it does give me even more of a reason to get off my booty and watch it.

A poll!

I am lazy, yes I am.

Well, lazy and curious.

What's your favorite new show so far this season?

If it's "none of the above," tell me in the comments section of this post.

Also, if you choose "Moonlight," I will out you as a person with no taste.

My big brother was Big's brother

The song "Big Brother" on Kanye West's album, Graduation, makes me tear up almost every time I hear it.

Stupid, right?

For a guy who spends so much time spewing the "I-did-it-myself-aren't-I-special" line, it's a crazy humble song about having somebody be your idol and mentor and how competition makes you do them dirty.

I'm not saying that West doesn't have the right to be arrogant. He's really talented and makes a lot of great music. But he's right when he says that on the Diamonds remix (Diamonds from Sierra Leone) that Jay-Z blew him away lyrically. Kanye West may sell more albums, but Jay-Z will always be the teacher and West will always be the student. And no amount of dirty doings is going to change that.

And maybe remembering where you came from isn't such a bad thing.

I'm not dead.

I haven't posted recently, mostly because I can't think of things to write about. So, I'm going to cop out and write a "this is what's been catching my eye lately" post.

1. I've watched the first 2 episodes of Private Practice, the Grey's Anatomy spin off. I only watched the first season of Grey's Anatomy, so I stopped watching right when Addison showed up. I don't have a history of or a context for Addison, so it's interesting seeing the show with fresh eyes. The cast is pretty awesome: Taye Diggs, Tim Daly, Audra McDonald, Amy Brenneman, Chris Lowell, Kate Walsh, and Paul Adelstein. They run a holistic wellness center or something. It's pretty interesting when, in the second episode, you still have no idea what they actually do. Anyway, I dig it.

2. The new Tegan and Sara disc, The Con, is fantastic. I love it more than I could begin to tell you. I kept hearing the radio single, "Back in Your Head," and thinking 'wow, that's nice.' I bought the album because I couldn't shake that song. It turns out that the whole album is this fantastic assortment of songs that work like that--all haunting and mesmerizing.

3.I have the following TV shows TiFauxed but not watched: Dirty, Sexy, Money; Big Shots; Reaper; Pushing Daisies; Life; and Cane. What do you want to bet that one of those shows gets cancelled by the time I can watch it?

Maybe I'll have more to write about sometime soon. Maybe not. Who can tell?

It goes on and on and on...

Why am I obsessed with Don't stop believin' by Journey?

Is it that Family Guy episode where the guys have a karaoke night at the Drunken Clam and they sing it?

I didn't grow up listening to Journey and it wasn't in my consciousness until that episode of Family Guy, so it isn't warm and fuzzy memories.

It's not all that great of a song, so it's not that.

Yet here I am listening to it on my iPod and thinking how much that songs rocks.

Huh.

A truth

I will always choose to listen to a Duncan Sheik song when presented the opportunity.

Also, if I know the words well enough, I will probably sing along.

Good news for people who (don't) love bad news

It's been a rough week for The Dude and I.

Okay, now I'm going to envision The Dude as played by Yul Brenner.

Imagine how excited I was, then, that the The Dude emailed me to tell me that Modest Mouse is coming to the StL.

I am so overjoyed that I might cry.

Seriously.

Things I didn't like at all and urge you to avoid at all costs: Prep by Curtis Sittenfeld

About two years ago, I read the book I am Charlotte Simmons by Tom Wolfe.

It was awful.

I knew it was going to be awful when I started it, based on all of the terrible reviews it got.

I read it anyway.

It was amazing how terribly wrong an 80-something year old man got the college experiences of a teenage girl.

I chalked Wolfe's inability to encapsulate the "college girl" experience to the fact that it was too far out of his realm of experience.

You'd think, then, that Curtis Sittenfeld, a twenty-something year old woman, could do a better job of relating to a teenage girl's prep school experience.

You'd be wrong, though. Really, really wrong.

Prep tells Lee Fiora's prep school experience, giving us 4 years in 403 pages.

Lee, the child of middle class working people, has a hard time fitting in at a school where most of the students are the children of wealth and privilege.

Well, duh.

It's hard to tell, though, if Lee has a hard time fitting in because she's "poor" or because she's so unbelievably self-conscious and socially stunted.

In the end, I'm not sure it matters.

Throw in a couple of storylines that don't make any sense and you've got a recipe for disaster.

I didn't like anyone in this book, not even Lee's likable friend Martha.

It took me about a week to read this book and I want all of that time back.

Ah well, I'd probably just waste it anyway.

BSC Headquarters

If you're a woman of a certain age, you remember reading The Baby-Sitters Club books. I spent many an hour with Kristy, Claudia, Stacey, and Mary Anne. Later, Mallory, Jessie, and Dawn joined the group.

I always found myself identifying with Mary Anne--geeky, quiet, and sweet.

Anyway, if you find yourself filled with pangs of longing for days gone by, you should stop by BSC Headquarters. Tiff, a librarian, is re-reading the BSC books and blogging about them.

It is, in a word, hilarious.

How cool is this?

A coffee table with a magazine rack built into its "belly."

It's $160.

I think I'm in lurve.

Thanks, Boing Boing!

Things I kind of used to like: The Jessica Darling books

I try to keep the tone positive over here at A few of Mrs. Dude's favorite things. My aim is always to highlight things that are good in the world and to keep the negativity to a minimum. Yes, I bring the snark. But I don't want this to be a blog where I snark about everything.

But I am seething with rage, so I have to get this out.

Kat(ie) at Kat with a K alerted me to the fact that Megan McCafferty was planning to write a 5th Jessica Darling book.

I was suspicious, but cautiously optimistic that maybe that wasn't the case.

I now have confirmation that Kat(ie) was right.

I've read all four of the Jessica Darling books. It could be argued that Jessica and Marcus are the greatest romance of our generation, literarily speaking.

For teens and twenty-somethings everywhere, Marcus Flutie is every guy they crushed on in high school. He is brooding and sweet and hot as can be. Jessica is all of us--insecure, snarky, and unable to decide what to commit to.

They are Veronica and Logan for the bookish set.

Fourth Comings was terrible. Maybe it was a necessary evolution for Jessica, but it stunk to high heaven. It was tepid and uninspired at best.

It was as if McCafferty couldn't leave well enough alone.

Now we get word that McCafferty is writing a fifth book.

I liken it to going to the hairdresser and getting a really bad haircut. The hairdresser cuts too much off of one side of your hair. To make it "right," she cuts hair off of the other side to even it up, but she manages to make the other side even shorter. She goes back and forth, desperately trying to even things up and you walk out with a dorky haircut that you paid way too much money for.

Maybe the ending of Fouth Comings didn't feel "right" to McCafferty. Maybe it was her plan all along to make a fifth book to resolve things. Maybe she just gots to get paid. I don't know know.

But I wish that she'd stop picking at the scab that is Marcus and Jessica. After all, there is such a thing as saying too much.

You know what the sad thing is? I'll read the fifth book. And I'll probably bitch and moan on my blog.

Graduation by Kanye West

Let me start by saying how thrilled I am that he didn't include any of those skits on this album. I hate the skits. They always mess with the flow of the album.

Overall, I thought it was pretty good. It was certainly a solid B effort.

Biggest (pleasant) surprises:
Everything I am
Big brother

Biggest disappointment:
Homecoming (with Chris Martin of Coldplay)

I liked:
Good morning
Can't tell me nothin'
Stronger

I could have lived without:
Drunk and hot girls
Champion

I felt like this album was way too overproduced. There was too much sampling, I thought, which is funny because I usually end up thinking that West does a pretty good job with making the sampling seem effortless.

This album reminded me a lot of Jay-Z's The Black Album in its tone and level of polish. Clearly West had a lot to say.

Drum Corps International: Marching Music's Major League

A hearty huzzah goes out to The Concord Blue Devils. Their "A" corps won the Gold Medal for DCI's world championships back on August 11th at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena.

I am late in extending my congratulations, frankly, because I had no idea. I saw it tonight on ESPN2.

If you're not familiar with drum and bugle corps you should try to catch the DCI World Championships if they play again on ESPN.

I saw the Blue Devils' performance and it brought tears to my eyes. It was amazingly executed and almost flawless.

I am happy to give credit where credit is due, even if I'm a Cavaliers girl at heart.

Drum and bugle corps is an amazing thing to see. It's the percussion and brass sections of a marching band coupled with the color guard. These kids, between the ages of 17 and about 22 or 23 give up their entire summer to travel with a corps. They practice together, eat together, travel together, sleep on gym floors and on buses, and perform on football fields across America.

And they do all of this for the love of music and performance.

Oh yeah, and they audition and pay for the privilege of doing all of this.

The best of the best get invited to DCI to perform for a crowd of thousands for a gold medal.

And even on television, the excitement, the heart, the soul, the drive are all evident.

I never did drum and bugle corps, but my cousin did. He was a member of The Cavaliers Drum and Bugle Corps. For five summers my family drove to high schools in the tri-state area to see him perform. We even went to DCI for his age-out year performance which, by the way, was a DCI-winning performance.

There's nothing like it in the world. So huzzah to the Concord Blue Devils. You certainly earned that Gold Metal.

San Diego Dispatches

My friend Jessie has a blog called San Diego Dispatches.

Jessie is funny and smart and likes fish tacos. She is also a librarian. Take that, librarian stereotype!

You should go read her blog.

She writes about everything from stuff to do in San Diego to knitting to her adorable kitties and her husband who knits, too, according to her blog.

Also? Jessie is an aspiring writer. So if you wanted to, you know, give her a 2-book contract based on how fabulous her blog is I'm sure it would be much appreciated.

Anyway, Jessie rocks!

Mrs. Dude gives a history lesson

If The Dude objects to this post, I will most certainly remove it...

Once upon a time in Greenwich Village, there was a coffee house called The Gaslight Cafe.

If you know Bob Dylan, you undoubtedly know The Gaslight Cafe.

Anyway, in 1961 a man by the name of Clarence Hood bought The Gaslight Cafe and his son, Sam Hood, ran the joint.

According to this story, Clarence sold the Gaslight in 1968 to a guy named Ed Simon after Sam left to open his own club in Florida.

Sam came back, though, and continued to run the club until its close in the early 1970s.

Thus endeth Mrs. Dude's history lesson.

What have I been doing lately?

I saw Superbad. It was pretty good and very funny. I loved Michael Cera in it, which isn't surprising.

I caught up on Season 3 of Top Chef. Casey grew on me. I hate Howie. Sara M. is rad. Sarah has a heart of gold. Brian is funny. Tre is cool. Daryl is a cutie. And I have mad love for CJ. And Ted Allen loves bacon.

I read the latest (and last?) installment of the Jessica Darling books. I don't find Jessica Darling very sympathetic as a character. I love Marcus Flutie, though, so I guess it balances itself out.

I listened to Icky Thump, the new White Stripes disc. It was fantastic and made me love them even more.

I know it's a drive-by update, but I wanted to stop by and tell y'all what was up.

Summer Movie of 2007

We have a winner for Summer Movie of 2007. A hearty congratulations to Transformers who beat out Superbad to win the title.

Stardust by Neil Gaiman (the book. not the movie)

I don't like fantasy, but I think I've talked about that already. I don't like dragons and fairies and elven folk.

I know that a lot of people do, but it's just not my thing.

I have this large contingent of friends who love Neil Gaiman. They think he is a brilliant writer and that his stories are fantastic. I ended up with a copy of Stardust and, with the movie out right now, I decided to read it.

It was fabulous. I cried.

Gaiman's tale isn't so much about magic as it is the relationship between the characters. Magic is certainly involved, obviously, but it isn't what makes Stardust special.

Tristran Thorn lives in Wall and falls in love with Victoria Forester. When the two see a star fall, Tristran vows to retrieve the star for her. True to his word, Tristran leaves Wall to find the star. It turns out, though, that he isn't the only one after the star. There is much excitement, adventure, and danger in the story and, in the end, Tristran is forever changed.

Gaiman's prose is, for lack of a better word, lovely. I read the book quickly, feeling transported to another world.

It turns out that my friends were right about Gaiman and his writing. I intend to read something else by him.

Deryck Whibley is wrong, wrong, wrong

I don't know if Rolling Stone does this in their print magazine (since I don't read Rolling Stone), but Rolling Stone's website does this feature called "My List." I get the Rolling Stone features through RSS, and sometimes the "My List" features appeal to me, and sometimes they don't. Basically, an artist makes a list of songs they like. Maybe it's themed and maybe it's their favorite songs ever.

Deryck Whibley of Sum 41 fame did a "My List" recently.

Whibley had three obvious picks: Elvis Costello's Radio, Radio, The Clash's Clash City Rockers, and Iggy Pop's The Passenger. After all, how do you become a pop punk band with a disdain for corporate radio without those three?

I was shocked to see that he digs Oasis' Live Forever. I love Oasis, and that isn't my favorite of their tracks, but it does okay. It seems way too earnest for a pop punk frontman, though, and I am suspicious.

But Deryck Whibley is wrong, wrong, wrong when he prefers Boys Don't Cry by The Cure to their later stuff. Whibley says "It's way cooler than their bigger later songs."

Seriously, dude?

How can you say that Boys Don't Cry is better than Pictures of You? or Just Like Heaven? or Friday I'm in Love? or, heaven forbid, Mint Car.

I get his general principle here, which is that band's are "better" before they get big and "sell out" and, sometimes, I share it.

And I do love that song.

But I cannot go down this road with you, Deryck Whibley. You are wrong. Wrong, wrong, wrong.

Dear MTVu: I love you

MTVu, the MTV channel to be broadcast only on college campuses, has chosen John Ashbery as their "poet laureate."

His work will be featured on the MTVu website and on short commercial spots on the channel.

This makes me unspeakably happy, as Ashbery is my favorite poet. It is fantastic that:
A. MTV is making poetry seem hip.
B. They are using a poetic giant like Ashbery to do so.

It's a funny juxtaposition, though, because Ashbery doesn't absorb modern popular culture and still writes his poetry on a typewriter.

Anyway, you can read some of Ashbery's work on the MTVu website.

Kissing Suzy Kolber

Remember that time that Joe Namath showed up on ESPN tanked up and told Suzy Kolber that he wanted to kiss her?

I don't, actually, but Wikipedia has everything these days.

And another thing, you'd think that Wikipedia could send me a tee shirt or something for the amount that I pimp them.

Anyway, there's this sports blog called "Kissing Suzy Kolber."

A sports blog, Mrs. Dude?

A sports blog, people.

The Dude got me clued into KSK by sending me links to their "stories." KSK is like Jezebel except that they're dudes. So they talk about sports instead of celebrities and getting drunk.

It's very funny, but much of their content is rude and crude, though, so don't say I didn't warn you. Chances are that you'll be offended as much as you end up laughing.

Best movie of Summer 2007?

Why stop with Song of Summer 2007?

It's madness over here at "A few of Mrs. Dude's favorite things..."

Vote for your favorite movie of the summer over in the handy dandy poll on the left side of the screen. If you choose "other" please specify in the comments of this thread.

You have until September 3rd to vote.

"Summer Song of 2007"

The polls are closed.

There was a tie in the 1st annual award for the "Mrs. Dude award for excellent achievement in the field of outstanding-ness" in the category of "Summer Song of 2007."

The bronze metal goes to: Summer Love by Justin Timberlake
The two gold metals go to: Dashboard by Modest Mouse and Umbrella by Rihanna (featuring Jay-Z)

Congratulations to the winners.

Sarah Dessen rocks my socks off

Sarah Dessen writes YA novels that make me wish I could write fiction. Her writing is smart and full of real emotion and she is one of a handful of YA authors whose books I have forced on The Dude.

She has a blog. It is full of fantastic tidbits into her life. She makes herself open and available to her readers in a way that I find inspiring. And she's really fascinating.

There's an article from CNN.com make its way around the blogosphere. It's about how people don't read much for leisure. In fact, the article says that 1 in 4 Americans didn't read a book last year.

Dessen is pregnant and in this post, she talks about hoping that her baby grows up to be a reader.

I admire Dessen for a lot of reasons and this is one of them.

Kanye West makes me giggle sometimes

Kanye West has this ridiculous ability to appeal to a mainstream audience. I saw him open for U2, and there's nothing more entertaining than a bunch of upper middle class white folks screaming "We want prenup!"

The best part is that he can do this while not losing any of his hip hop street cred. Have you heard the Diamonds from Sierra Leone remix with Jay-Z? That stuff makes me tear up almost every time, it's so good.

To promote the first single from his new album, Can't tell me nothin', West put out a video that features comedian Zach Galifianakis lip synching the words to West's song. It's brilliant and I'm sure it introduced a generation of hipper-than-thou folks to West's music.

Anyway, CNN.com has an articlethat quotes West as saying that he has never cared about being No. 1. The CNN piece quotes heavily from an interview West did with XXL Magazine (as an aside, can you imagine CNN.com staffers paging through XXL to write this story?) and, in the interview, West talks about how he doesn't rap about guns or drugs.

My favorite line?

"Further, 'there's nothing about wearing a pink Polo that would make anyone believe that I would hold a gun,' he says."

Brilliant.

Mrs. Dude award for excellent achievement in the field of outstanding-ness

Remember that Simpsons episode, Brother, can you spare two dimes?, where Homer wins the "Montgomery Burns Award for Outstanding Achievement in the Field of Excellence"?

No?

Go read about it here.

I'll wait...

You're back? Cool.

Anyway, this is nothing like that episode at all.

Earlier in the Summer, I waxed poetic on Summer Songs--those songs that you hear all summer and, therefore, come to associate with a certain summer.

Well, it's mid-August and I still don't have a clear winner for Song of Summer 2007. Therefore, gentle readers, I am putting up a poll. Vote for your favorite contender and we'll see how it goes.

**Edit: For those of you voting "other," put your vote in the comments of this message.**

Rainy days and Mondays

I listen to my iPod at work. I have always listened to music when I have work to do. Music helps me focus and helps me be more productive. I can't explain the "why" of it--it just does. When I was in college, I had the radio on (or CDs playing) for almost the entire four years.

Today is a rainy day in the StL. I don't have a window that faces outside, but I can see outside from my office. I work underground, so I can't see the rain falling, but I can hear it and I can see that it is gray.

For some reason, the weather is dictating the music I'm listening to. I've been listening to dreamy, slightly melancholy music. So far I've listened to all of Recovering the Satellites by Counting Crows and I'm midway through Under the Table and Dreaming by DMB.

Listening to DMB is strange for me because I don't really like them all that much. It's nothing personal, I just don't like jam bands. Well, okay, I do like the Black Crows, but I don't like it when they jam in concert. I don't like Phish. I don't like The Dead. I don't like jam bands.

I do keep Under the Table and Dreaming on my iPod, though, for days like this.

Christine Daniels

Christine Daniels writes a blog for the L.A. Times.

I didn't know about her blog until this morning when I stumbled upon it from another site.

I read Daniels' blog and enjoyed the diversity in subject matter, her writing style, and the care with which it was written.

What makes Daniels' blog even cooler is that Daniels used to be Mike Penner.

In this article written in April, Penner discusses his feelings on "coming out" as a transgendered sportswriter and how his friends and colleagues reacted to him.

In a profession where gender is sometimes a big deal, I can't imagine struggling with your identity and then choosing to live your truth.

If I was going to put it in such strong of terms, I might say that Christine Daniels is my hero. I'm sure she hears that every day, though, so I won't.

I will say, though, that it gives me courage to see a person living her truth and a profession willing to accept her.

Mandy Moore covers Umbrella

Mandy Moore covered the song Umbrella, originally performed by good girl gone bad Rhianna.

It's a good song to begin with--catchy hook, decent lyrics--and could easily be one of the best summer songs. Also? Having Jay-Z in your corner doesn't hurt. How you think he got the name HOVA?

Anyway, Trent from Pink is the New Blog linked Moore's cover from his site and, curious as ever, I followed it.

Man. That was fantastic.

Mandy Moore is fast becoming my girl crush. After being a bubble gum teen queen, Moore emerged reasonable unscathed to tell the tale. She acted in a few movies and put out an album called Wild Hope. Did I blog about Wild Hope? I don't think I did. Bad, Erin, no biscuit. I'll do that soon, I promise. Anyway, I liked it a lot. It was lacking in a few places, but overall it was a fantastic way for her to shed her teen queen skin and step into grown up-hood.

Fast forward to Moore's cover of Umbrella which, in my opinion, is fantastic.

She gives it a sweet, melancholy, heartfelt twist and, most importantly, she performs it non-ironically.

Go check it out on her website.

A strange education by The Cinematic

Remember when the Smashing Pumpkins used to have a crunchy guitar sound? It must have been around Gish and Siamese Dream but before Mellon Collie.

The Cinematics have captured that crunch sound on their album A Strange Education.

I ended up digging A Strange education a lot more than I expected to. The album had the crunchy guitar sound of the Pumpkins, the heaviness of Interpol, and the lyrical earnestness of Snow Patrol.

I know that The Cinematics have put out a few albums before this, so I'm not sure how their sound has evolved over time. Wikipedia, in this article, cites their influences as The Clash and the Talking Heads. Maybe every band cites The Clash as an influence, because I certainly didn't hear it on this album.

Anyway, I heartily endorse A strange education.

Books I now own

I bought 2 books yesterday:
1. Spook City by William Gibson
2. Fourth Comings by Megan McCafferty

My in-laws bought me:
3. Shopaholic & baby by Sophie Kinsella

I got a Paperback Swap book:
4. Undead and unwed by MaryJanice Davidson

My to-read list runneth over. Luckily I need to read 3 more books by the end of the month for my Summer Reading Club.

Paperback swap

I joined the Paperback swap community this week. I signed up and logged 33 books that I was willing to swap. You agree to send, at your own expense, books to other people who want them. For every book that you successfully swap, you get a credit. Credits can be used to "buy" books. You can search the database to find books you want to "buy," and order them from other members.

You have to commit to a time frame when you will send a book, though, rather than having it sit on your coffee table for a month while you know that someone else wants your book. If you don't send it within that time frame, you don't get a credit.

It seems like a really awesome system. I have a ton of books that I don't want anymore--mostly popular fiction--and there aren't a lot of used book stores in my area. I can swap hardback or paperback books, and the cost for postage is under $3. So, everyone ends up spending about $3 per book, which they get back when they receive the books they ordered.

If you want to join, email me privately to get my Paperback Swap username. I'll get "credits" for referring you.

Miner Wines

For our 1-year anniversary, M. and I went to Napa. We knew that we wanted to do some of the big-name vineyards, but we also knew that we wanted to see some places off the beaten path. On our last day in Napa, we ended up at Miner Family Vineyards which, for those of you who know Napa, is on the Silverado Trail. We overheard the recommendation while at another vineyard.

The folks were friendly and the wine was tasty. For the cost of a tasting, we tried almost every wine in the arsenal. We had purchased a bottle of wine at two of the vineyard's we visited (Alexander Valley and ZD--both very good, btw), and wanted to buy a bottle at Miner Family. But, after tasting so many good wines, we couldn't decide on one. We ended up joining their wine club, and now we get two bottles every two months.

Last night we opened a bottle of the White Zinfandel to have with dinner. M. and I don't usually like white wine, but this one was both light and complex. Airy and full-bodied. It was more robust than a white usually is, but it was never overwhelming.

If you are ever in Napa, you should check them out. Their wines are reasonably priced, but a fantastic value. And the people are friendly and love what they do.

Stuff I used to like: Top Chef

During Seasons 1 and 2 of Top Chef, I was a rabid fan (Team Harold! Team Marcel!). Now? Eh, not so much.

It used to be a novel idea: make people cook stuff in various situations and then eliminate them based on whose food is the worst.

Top Chef introduced the world to Katie Lee Joel and then to Padma Lakshmi. I'm not sure why producers thought Padma would be a better fit for the show than Katie was. They're both different shades of uninteresting and uninspiring.

Chef Tom seemed irritated after the suggestions by the Season One audience that he should be more like Tim Gunn. I watch Project Runway and love Tim Gunn. Chef Tom is no Tim Gunn. And, as if he knows this about himself, he says in the Season Two opener that he isn't there to mentor these kids.

Also? When did Chef Tom start trying to be like Anthony Bourdain? One Bourdain is enough, thank you very much.

Also? Every season these contestants seem confused as to what's going on. I was trying to catch up on Season Three and there was a team challenge episode. I love team challenge episodes because they up the drama factor. Remember 'I'm not your bitch, bitch'? Yeah, that was a team challenge. Anyway, during this challenge all of the contestants seemed confused about the idea of a team challenge. Guys, did you not see any of Season Two? No? Any of Season One, then? This is how it always goes.

One upside to Top Chef this season, though, is more Ted Allen. Ted Allen is awesome. He's all snarky and sweet and he makes me want to have him over for dinner until I remember that I watch Top Chef because I can't cook. He could be all Tim Gunn with these kids, but he's not. Instead we get Anthony Bourdain's 'what's your major malfunction' line. Again. Dude, didn't you say that about Mikey last year when he made that monochromatic plate of sides? That, by the way, was genius. I love corn and potatoes so screw the modern convention that food can't be monochromatic.

Anyway, I used to love Top Chef. And now I don't. I mean, it's okay, but it's nowhere near the glory days of Tiffany snarking at Dave or Cliff holding Marcel down and trying to shave his head.

Just because

I love LOL Cats.

Jezebel

Do you read Jezebel? If you do, pat yourself on the back. If you don't, why not?

I don't really know how I found Jezebel, but it's a blog about fashion, celebrity, and media. If you liked Sassy (and Jane before Jane lost its soul), you'll like Jezebel.

Jezebel did a post recently about re-touched magazine covers. They apparently paid $10K for an untouched photo of Faith Hill that morphed into a retouched cover photo. The point wasn't to make fun of how Faith Hill looks before being re-touched. In fact, it was quite the opposite. They wanted to prove that Faith Hill was beautiful with all of the imperfections that make us human.

Jezebel made the news this morning (well...the Today Show anyway) when they talked about what the site had done and what the implications were.

I'm not particularly interested in talking about how wrong I think it is that cover photos get photoshopped. Don't get me wrong, I hate it. I think it's heinous that women get left with this skewed sense of what's possible in their lives because publishers want to sell a lifestyle. But it is what it is and as long as women continue to give money to magazines that have airbrushed and photoshopped pictures on their covers, we're not really in a place to complain about it.

Mostly, my point is how fantastic Jezebel is. They're snarky and smart. And though they do get it on poking some fun at celebs, they also expose the stupidity of mainstream media and the dumb things it does.

Anyway, go to Jezebel's site and check it out.

Lip Gloss by Lil Mama

Every summer there are those catchy "summer singles." You know, the ones that radio plays over and over and that a year or two or ten later you remember those songs as the soundtrack of a particular summer.

That song by Lil Mama, Lip Gloss, will probably be one of them.

And, frankly, I can't turn it off when it comes on my radio. This is nonsense, given that I have satellite radio and there are a billion channels with music more "my taste."

It's silly and frivolous in a way that LFO's Summer Girls was. Though, one could argue if one were so inclined, that LFO's song better encapsulated that summer experience.

Anyway, if you're so inclined, check it out and prove me wrong about how catchy it is. Try to turn it off.

When I grow up...

I write this blog because I want to make a difference. I want you to fill your minds and your hearts with some of the really great art and music and movies that are being made.

I am not a taste-maker. I'm just some girl sitting at her keyboard.

There's a blog I read--Hollywood Farm Girl.

Now that's someone blogging to make a difference.

I don't know how I found her--Pink is the new Blog, maybe? Yeah, I think that was it.

Hollywood Farm Girl is famous, but that isn't why I read her. I read her because her poetic musings both break my heart and help my spirit soar. She is fantastically courageous when speaks truth to power. And she is fun to read when she's living the life less ordinary.

I encourage you to go read her stuff. It's a hollywoodfarmgirl.blogspot.com. Maybe I should have asked her permission to blog about her, but I figure that as sisters-in-blog that maybe she doesn't mind so much.

When I grow up, maybe I'll learn to speak truth to power. But I figure that's not what you've come to expect from me.

Back from hiatus

Apparently I am embracing the very European tradition of month-long vacation...

Yesterday was the Live Earth show and I didn't move very much from my couch from about 3 until about 10:30.

There's a lot I want to say about the Live Earth performances, but I want to re-watch the sets before I do. My brief analyses, though?

1. Hip hop seems to have a harder time translating from album to live shows. Akon's set left a lot to be desired, as did Ludacris' set. I started wondering if maybe it had something to do with a lack of crowd response (both went on early in the day in NYC). Kanye West ripped the roof off the joint, though. He owned the stage and the audience.

2. The Smashing Pumpkins aren't giving me a lot to hope for. They're set was so lackluster and I hated the new arrangements of Today and Bullet with Butterfly Wings.

3. The most amazing performances came from some of the most unlikely performers. Who'd have thought that the Pussycat Dolls would rock Live Earth? Not me.

Most important of all of these is:

4. AFI is the new Depeche Mode. And I love them. They were so passionate about the cause and the rocked the house despite having a terrible crowd to work with. They had so much life and energy and their music was rich, deep, and thoughtful. I ran upstairs and looked them up on iTunes, immediately buying their newest album. They are fantastic, and I genuinely hope that Live Earth gets them more of the mainstream recognition they deserve.

You can view any or all of the Live Earth performances at liveearth.msn.com

Some things I hope to blog about soon:
The Transformers movie
Seeing Steve Poltz perform in Chicago
Mandy Moore's new album
The Golden Compass (the book, not the movie)

I promise to get back to a normal blogging schedule.

Monday's gem

I listened to some stuff today, but I'm not going to talk about all of it. I just want to talk about the one that really stuck.


I listened to Albert Hammond, Jr.'s Yours to keep and loved it. Hammond, Jr. is a member of the band The Strokes, but despite my lukewarm feelings toward the band, I loved this album. It was fresh, inventive, and fun to listen to. A quieter and more introspective album than anything done by The Strokes, Yours to keep made an impact with its musical and lyrical dexterity. It was subtle in ways that The Strokes dream of being. Hammond, Jr. works his way from upbeat to wistful and back again in the span of twelve tracks and, in the process, makes a name for himself as a solo artist with soul.

I highly recommend Yours to keep.

Wednesday's music

Today feels like another short day. I have a meeting this afternoon, so I only got to listen to two albums:
Frank Sinatra's Swingin' songs for swingin' lovers
Glen Phillips' Winter pays for summer

You may remember Phillips as the lead singer of the now defunct Toad the Wet Sprocket. In Winter pays for summer, Phillips trade the amplified rock sound of Toad for a softer, gentler, more introspective sound. I loved this album from the first listen and it continues to grow on me every time I hear it.

Tuesday's music roundup

I started to type "Monday" and then realized that it wasn't Monday anymore. Yesterday was my first Staff Day, so my afternoon was filled with cookout-y food and fun activities.

Today I listened to:
Taking the long way by Dixie Chicks
A blessing and a curse by Drive-By Truckers
Tidal by Fiona Apple

If you ask The Dude what his favorite album of 2006 was, he'd tell you that Drive-By Truckers album is his favorite. It took a while to grow on me, but I do like it a lot.

Breaking on through

There are albums that, for a long time, I didn't "get." Some of them, I knew that I liked them, but I wasn't connecting with them in any meaningful way. Some of them, I couldn't even listen to them without hitting an invisible wall and turning them off in frustration.

For some reason, my level of connection with an album is sometimes connected with mood. I won't "get" an album until I listen to it whilst in a certain mood. Then, for some reason, it reaches into my soul and we connect. Sounds corny, right? It's actually quite soothing. The Dude and I have talked a lot about how I listen more closely to lyrics than he does and how I have to buy into something whole-heartedly before it makes an impact. So, it stands to reason that it might take the precise alignment of the stars for me to fully appreciate some things.

Erin McKeown's We Will Become Like Birds has been crazy problematic for me for a while. I latched on to McKeown when her album Sing You Sinners got rave reviews. I love her voice, but I didn't connect much with that album so I decided to go with an older album. Her voice is wispy and ephemeral which is funny because those two adjectives probably couldn't be used to describe McKeown herself. Based on all of the pictures of her I've seen, I would expect her voice to be deeper and smokier.

Anyway, I love McKeown's voice, but I was having such a hard time connecting with We Will Become Like Birds. It seemed too wildly esoteric for me. I couldn't crack her code. So, I'm sitting her in my PJs doing some work on my computer. It's a Saturday morning and I was up late last night hanging out with some people I've met from Church. I'm not usually slow to start my day, but today I am. I was listening to Modest Mouse's We were dead before the ship even sank and the next album in my iTunes playlist is McKeown's We will become like birds. Suddenly it makes sense. It's light playfulness makes sense to me suddenly on my lazy Saturday morning. It never clicked with me at work because I wasn't in the right headspace, I guess.

It's funny how those things work.

Old and busted vs. New hotness

I was just considering this as I was looking in my iPod for something to listen to:

One of the fun things about writing about what I'm listening to every day is that it challenges me to listen to new music instead of relying on old favorites. It's simultaneously really fun and really terrible. I love finding gems on my iPod or rediscovering old favorites. But, there are albums I come to over and over again for comfort. They are like musical security blankets, and I need them to be productive or to make it through a particularly difficult day.

I try to do my best of finding new things and leaning on the old. And, I want to expose my admittedly small readership to music you might not have heard before. This doesn't work if I listen to the same things all the time, right?

I do my best to mix the best of old and new.

RIP Ms. Mars...

I came to the Veronica Mars party a little late. Everybody loved that show, but I watched a couple of episodes and didn't care much for it. One day I went to Target and Season One was cheap. Because I am, in fact, the highly suggestible type, I decided to give it a go.

I was very, very wrong about Veronica Mars.

I devoured the first two season in time to start the third--now on the CW.

I loved Veronica Mars (the show) because the dialogue was smart. I loved it because Veronica (the character) was tough and vulnerable and honest and fair. I loved Wallace. I loved Duncan. And, against my better judgement, I loved Logan.

Enrico Colantoni, the guy who played Elliott on Just Shoot Me, played Veronica's dad. That was pretty awesome, too.

For me, though, the best thing about Veronica Mars (the show) was Tina Majorino. She played Mac--the brainy computer grrl who ended up being Veronica's friend and sorta sidekick. She was smart and funny and like-able, and was a more realistic teenager than Veronica.

Part of the reason that Veronica Mars (the show) worked so well is that there was an overarching mystery that kept me watching all season. Every week a little bit more was revealed and, by the end, we knew everything. There were also mini-mysteries each week that kept the plot moving. Mixing the easily-solvable mysteries with the One Big Mystery kept people watching weekly because it gave people instant gratification.

The other reason that Veronica Mars (the show) worked so well is the dialogue. One of my favorite TV shows starring young adults was Boy Meets World. Want to know why? Because it put words in its characters' mouths that teenagers would actually say. Dawson's Creek made its teenagers seem way older than they were. My So-Called Life made them seem more intellectual than real teenagers. And 90210? Well those kids were just unreal. Awesome, but unreal. What was so great about Veronica Mars (the show) is that its teenagers seemed normal, even as they were put in ridiculously unrealistic situations. It worked, though, because even as they were in over their heads, they talked like real teenagers.

I loved Veronica Mars because it was perfect. And, any imbalance of what made if perfect (cast, plot, dialogue) would kill it.

Then, Veronica Mars jumped the shark.

When the kids went to college, the perfect-ness disappeared. Why? Because the balance was thrown off. And, like I said two lines up, any imbalance of what made it perfect would kill it.

The addition of new characters (okay, I liked Piz a little bit), the disappearance of old characters, and a mess of contrived situations so convoluted that even I couldn't suspend my disbelief that much were the demise of Veronica Mars (the person and the show).

Rumor has it that Veronica Mars got the old heave-ho for the CW to make way for such gems as Gossip Girl and a dating show with a cowboy.

I will keep Veronica, Wallace, Mac, Keith, Logan and, okay, Piz in my heart forever. But, sometimes a show has a shelf-life. And, this one was over before it even began.

Tuesday's music roundup

I was expecting to have to go to a workshop this afternoon, but I was pleasantly surprised to learn it was cancelled. Sadly, the person presenting the workshop was really sick, but I was glad to have the day to hunker down and get a lot of work done.

Today, I listened to:
Fight for your mind by Ben Harper
Bridge by Blues Traveler
My better self by Dar Williams
Bleed like me by Garbage

Fight for your mind has my favorite Ben Harper song: By my side. I love how smokey and full of longing his voice is on that song. It's not a sexual longing, though, so much as a desperate need for companionship and solidarity. It might be brash and ballsy to compare him to Marvin Gaye, but I'm going to. His lyrics are alternately whimsical, full of longing, and politically charged (depending on the song). And his voice is smooth like caramel. Fight for your mind has a lot of reggae influence that Harper loses in some of his later work. I often wonder if commercial success changed his sound to appeal to a more mainstream palate.

The long tail by Christopher Anderson

There are people that need to know the "why" of every phenomenon, and that's cool. There are a lot of people writing books that explain the "why" of every phenomenon, so eventually the two groups meet up somewhere and congratulate each other for their intellectual curiosity.

There are also a lot of people who write business books. You know the books: the ones that will teach you how to run your business bigger, faster, stronger, better? And, there are people looking to run their businesses bigger, faster, strong, and better and who look for any competitive edge they can get.

The Long Tail by Christopher Anderson explains, at great length, the ways in which the internet has democratized retail. In brick-and-mortar stores, he explains, 20 percent of the items provide 80 percent of sales. It is for this reason that most brick-and-mortar stores only stock things that will appeal to the mainest of mainstream consumers. In an online environment, retailers can provide more options. And, even if a small number of people chose any one of those options, they can provide a lot of revenue. The infinite number of choices is what creates "the long tail" from which this book receives its name.

I don't dispute Anderson's claim in the least. As anecdotal evidence, I have almost completely stopped buying CDs from brick-and-mortar stores and buy almost exclusively from iTunes. Why? Because I can't find the titles I'm looking for at Target. And, at $0.99 a song or $9.99 an album, my dollars go a lot farther.

What interested me most about Anderson's book, though, was the idea that online retailers have a distinct advantage over brick-and-mortar retailers in the way in which they can re-arrange their products based on a consumer's needs. If you're looking for an album at Amazon.com, you can find it by genre, by artist, by record label, or by recording date and any way you choose to search for it is "right. And, when you find what you're looking for, Amazon.com will recommend 5 similar artists that you might like. If you walk into Best Buy, you have to figure out Best Buy's organizational scheme or you have to ask someone for help. And, you're probably not going to get recommendations tailored to your specific interests.

I think this book was an interesting intellectual exercise, but I'm not sure how it would change the business model of a corporation. Most large brick-and-mortar retailers have an online face that can offer consumers an alternative shopping experience and some smaller brick-and-mortar retailers can't afford an online presence. Still, in the age where people are looking for an edge, this book might offer them hope.

Monday's music roundup

I spent most of the day brushing up on my HTML skillz in anticipation of a workshop I'll be attending on Wed. It is for this reason that I have pathetically little to show in the way of music listening.

10K Maniacs--MTV Unplugged
Counting Crows--New Amsterdam

Both discs are similarly mellow and, though I'd never thought of it before, the two groups are disarmingly similar. The Maniacs do have an activist leaning that the Crows don't, though. But both bands have lyrical depth and their lead vocalists both have rich, vibrant voices.

My favorite arrangement of "Rain King" is the slowed down version that smacks of the melancholy. I much prefer it to the more up-tempo version featured on August and Everything After. I always thought, lyrically, that that song lent itself to a slower arrangement, and the up-tempo version seemed untrue to the spirit of the song.

Friday's music recap

I attended the viewing of a webinar in the middle of the day about the relevancy of libraries in a digital age, so I didn't get much album-listening done today.

Today I listened to:
1. A beautiful lie by 30 seconds to Mars
2. Knuckle down by Ani Difranco
3. Maybe you should drive by BNL

For me, what's interesting about Difranco is that, as she's aged, she's become easier to listen to. She's clearly still politically-minded and she still does the spoken-word thing, so she's still authentic. But, to me, she's not as raw and a smidge more polished. I'm guessing that it turns a lot of people off, though, which is sad. Because she's still lyrically sharp.

BNL (Barenaked Ladies) is always lyrically nimble, but I love the understated-ness of Maybe you should drive. I think it might be my favorite BNL album, actually. Maybe you should drive has an undercurrent of sadness or, more accurately, of melancholy. Unlike Barenaked Ladies Are Me, though, they don't beat you over the head with it. It's always there, that twinge of regret, even on the upbeat-verging-on-bouncy track "A." Sometimes, though (like with You will be waiting), it's right in front of your face, clouding your vising like glasses with an outdated prescription.

Enjoy your weekend, y'all.

Thursday's music recap

He was a scary bear. He was a hairy bear.

Oh, er, um...hi there.

Today's music recap is compilation-themed.

Today I listened to:
1.School House Rock! Rocks
2.Q:Best of 86/06
3.Modern rocks:1986-1987 (Discs 1&2)

The first two discs were covers. The second disc is a disc of covers put out by Q magazine and is really fun.

Highlights:
(from the School House Rock disc)
No more kings performed by Pavement
The energy blues performed by Biz Markie

(from the Q disc)
What you waiting for? performed by Franz Ferdinand
I bet that you look good on the dance floor performed by Sugababes

Spiderman 3, or, Why Mrs. Dude loves irony

We went to see Spiderman 3 last night.

I liked it a smidge less than Spiderman 2, but I did like it. The special effects seemed much less fake than Spiderman 2, which is strange because some of the stuff they did was clearly done in front of a Green Screen.

Kirsten Dunst's nipples didn't make an appearance this time. I'm not sure if The Dude was sad about that or not. I was certainly relieved. I mean, you'd hope that they've got a SAG card and are getting a fair wage. Maybe if Dunst refuses to do Spiderman 4, her nipples will agree to make an appearance.

Tobey Maguire didn't do as right by Peter Parker as he did in Spiderman 2. Maybe it was because I spent most of the middle portion of the movie laughing that I didn't see him being true to Parker's emotions. Emo Tobey Maguire is funny stuff. You know how Johnny Depp modeled his Jack Sparrow after Keith Richards? I think that Tobey Maguire modeled his emo Spiderman after Pete Wentz. He was certainly rocking Wentz's eyeliner and pretty emo bangs.

My one big complaint with this movie (and really all the rest of them, too) is that it had a pacing problem. They spent a lot of time in the exposition and then had a mess to tidy up in the last half hour. I ended up wondering if this is because, in comics, you have an infinite amount of time to set the stage in a thoughtful and nuanced way that you simply don't have in movies.

Overall, I liked it. I was fun and fluffy. You should go see it and laugh at emo Spiderman.

As an aside, James Cromwell is in this movie. Cromwell has been in everything from Six Feet Under to Revenge of the Nerds to L.A. Confidential. It's staggering how many things he's been in. I know him best as Farmer Hoggett in Babe. The Dude couldn't figure out where he knew him from. We talked about it on the way home and he said that Cromwell was probably in something iconic and that he'd probably be mad at himself for not knowing it when he saw his IMDB profile. All of the sudden, The Dude turns to me and says "He was Jack's dad on 24!" I replied "something iconic, huh?"

Wednesday's music recap

Today I listened to:

(What's the story) Morning glory? by Oasis
Feels like home by Norah Jones
We were dead before the ship even sank by Modest Mouse
Haughty melodic by Mike Doughty

Three observations:
1.Oasis can write a catchy pop song like nobody's business. There are some great tunes on ...Morning glory?

2. I'd never listened to Feels like home before today. Nora's previous album Come away with me, in my opinion, was a nearly perfect jazz/pop album. You can understand, then, why I was nervous to listen to the follow-up album. It was pretty good. Not as great as the previous one, but not terrible. I was shocked when I heard Dolly Parton's voice on the track "Creepin' in" but I think it was my favorite song on the album. I got bored near the end, though, which is the kiss of death for an album (in my opinion). If you can't produce 13 compelling tracks, cut down the number of tracks on the album, I say. If I get to track 9 or 10 and I'm bored, woe be unto you.

3. Mike Doughty writes ridiculously good songs. I want to write, produce, and direct a movie so that he can write the soundtrack.

Tuesday's music recap

I used to listen to podcasts at work, but the project I'm working on now isn't compatible with podcast-listening. So, now I'm listening to fewer podcasts and more music. I suspect that, as my projects change, I'll go back and forth between podcasts and music.

Yesterday, Black Frances played:
Sarah McLachlan's Afterglow
Regina Spektor's Begin to hope
R.E.M.'s Green
Pearl Jam's Vs.

I have only listened to Afterglow and Begin to Hope a few times. It was interesting listening to them again. Both had gems of songs that I loved uncovering. And I was reminded how much I love Sarah McLachlan's voice. It's alternately sweet and husky, soaring and smoky. I love when singers have depth of range. And Regina Spektor has both range and quirky-ness. She is doing what Nelly McKay did and I prefer it to McKay's work.

Spiderman 2, or, Why Mrs. Dude should learn to suspend her disbelief

It is rare that The Dude and I actually make time to see a movie. We always say, 'we should go see that,' but usually we forget about it and, six months later, we see it at Blockbuster. When we went to see the Aqua Teen Hunger Force movie, we saw a preview for Spiderman 3. Despite all of the estrogen in my body, I have a soft spot for movies where 'shit blows up' as The Dude likes to put it. So, we made plans to see Spiderman 3 upon its release. The only problem is that we'd never seen Spiderman 2. So, The Dude procured it from Blockbuster, it sat on our TV for two weeks, he took it back and rented it again (along with Die Hard).

Last night we watched it.

Why does Kirsten Dunst always look like her dog died? I mean, I get that Mary-Jane is supposed to have the weight of the world on her shoulders and all that, but still...it doesn't show a good range of acting.

Overall, I liked it. I'm not very good at suspending my disbelief, though, so there were some parts that I ended up not liking very much. Basically, I didn't like the inconsistency in the MJ-Peter Parker friendship. She kept talking about how they'd always been friends, but in the beginning of the first Spiderman movie, she barely knew his name.

The special effects were good, but not great. The mark of a good computer-based special effect, for me, is that you can't immediately say 'gee, that was obviously done with a Green Screen.' I have low standards--I know this.

Toby Maguire did right by Peter Parker, I thought. He expressed Parker's confusion, sadness, and determination honestly and with integrity. I should say that I have loved Maguire for quite a while, so seeing him get lots of screen time (some of it with his shirt off) is so exciting to me.

The Dude noticed the dearth of screaming women. He's right--there were a lot of screaming women.

And Kirsten Dunst's nipples made a cameo.

Overall, I enjoyed Spiderman 2. Tonight we're going to see Spiderman 3. It seems like a lot of Spiderman, but I'm game...

Obviously Mrs. Dude got up on the wrong side of the bed this morning...

I feel like the old man sitting on the front porch of his house shaking his fist and swearing at the young folks. Still, it's not going to stop me from griping.

Two things:

1. Amy Winehouse is the new "it girl" in music. I'll admit that the song "Rehab" is catchy. And what smacks or irony more than a song about rehab set to a catchy beat? Not much, I say. Anyway, when listening to her single "You know I'm no good" on my way to work, I was reminded of my issue with Amy Winehouse. Katherine Whalen did what Amy Winehouse is doing now, only Katherine Whalen did it better.

Who's Katherine Whalen, you're probably wondering. She was the female vocalist for the swing-revival band Squirrel Nut Zippers. After the band broke up (did you know they got back together?), Whalen developed a solo career. Katherine Whalen's voice is rich and layered, sultry and husky, sweet and soulful. And, while Amy Winehouse isn't a slouch, I have a hard time finding the depth in her voice the way I do in Whalen's. So, if you dig Amy Winehouse's album, you should look into Whalen's newest album "Dirty little secret" or, better yet, check out the Squirrel Nut Zipper's 1997 album "Hot."

2. I'm okay with bands doing covers. In fact, there have been a lot of covers that have been fantastic. One of my favorite Better Than Ezra songs is their cover of the James song "Laid." But have you heard the Green Day cover of the Who's "My Generation?" It's awful. My feeling on covers is that if you don't have something interesting to bring to the song, seriously consider why you've decided to cover it. The Green Day song actually takes away from what The Who did with it. It's raw and stripped down, which I appreciated as a nod to the punk aesthetic that influences them. But it just isn't sung well. To me, there's a difference between Eddie Vedder knowing he can't hit all of the notes in "Reign O'er Me" and Billy Joe just not trying to hit the notes in "My generation." Maybe there's supposed to be some irony in an aging rockstar singing about he'd rather die than get old...

Hot stuff by Carly Phillips

There's this bookstore near my house. Most of what it sells is mass-market paperbacks. Yes, there are a few hardcovers and a few nicer paperbacks. But mostly, the shelves are full of mass-market paperbacks. Most of these paperbacks are romance novels. What I have learned about romance novels is that they are fun and easy to read. I sometimes feel a sense of shame that I enjoy romance novels so much. I know, as a librarian, that this is stupid; people should read what makes them happy. I like reading books with happy endings. And nothing gives you a happy ending like a romance novel.

I picked up the title "Hot stuff" in this bookstore. It is the first title in the "Hot Zone" series. I hadn't ever read anything by Carly Phillips, so this was uncharted territory for me.

Hot stuff centers around the eldest of three sisters who were orphaned when their parents died and who were sent to live with their Uncle Yank. Yank Morgan owns and operates a PR firm that specializes in athletes and his three nieces joined the family business after finishing their education.

In this title, Annabelle is paired with former pro-football player Brandon Vaughn. Vaughn was a former client of Yank's until his money-grubbing ex-wife chose a different PR firm for Vaughn while he was recovering from surgery and loopy on meds.

Vaughn comes crawling back to Hot Zone (and Yank) with his tail between his legs needing their services. See, he's trying to build a lodge in his hometown. He wants to build a resort for the wealthy and he wants to use the profits to fund his real dream--a camp for kids with learning disabilities. The problem is that someone doesn't want Vaughn to succeed.

Lovesick Annabelle is the victim of some not-so-subtle matchmaking from her family and reluctantly takes the assignment to work with Vaughn. Hilarity and romance ensues . And, at the end of the story, everyone gets to live happily ever after.

I enjoyed this title. It was fairly well written and had just enough intrigue to get me through the graphic sex scenes. Now, I don't consider myself a prude, but I did find myself blushing a little when Phillips talked about various characters and their sexual activities.

Overall, though, it was a fun and fluffy read.

Coming up this week...

This week you can look forward to:
A post about Tori Amos' new disc American Doll posse
A post about our new Tivo

and whatever else strikes my fancy.

TTFN, y'all

Why Mrs. Dude was painfully wrong about Arctic Monkeys

I have trouble liking critics darlings sometimes. When the Arctic Monkeys disc "Whatever people say I am, that's what I'm not" came out, I didn't like it very much. I liked the single "I bet you look good on the dance floor," sure, but I didn't dig the album very much. I felt like the energy didn't hold up over the duration of the album and I got bored fairly quickly. So, I wrote off Arctic Monkeys as just another critics darling.

When "Favourite Worst Nightmare" came out, The Dude bought it. It made it's way onto Black Frances and, eventually, I found myself face-to-face with this disc.

About two tracks in, I knew I was in trouble.

See, this album was everything I didn't think the previous one was. The lyrics were fantastic and the music was the right mix of rock and pop. I wasn't the least bit bored with it, and found that the end came way too quickly. What I loved most about this disc was that they were able to keep up the energy over 12 songs. Sometimes, pop-punky bands have a problem keeping that energy going and one or two tracks end up being throw-away tracks. Not on this disc.

So, I must say that I was wrong about Arctic Monkeys.

Things I've been excited about lately

1.) Romance novels with a sense of humor
I can't help it. Despite my English major sensibilities, I prefer chick lit to literary fiction. And, I refuse to make a value judgment about what I'm reading. So many people are down on chick lit. The librarian in me says that we should all read what makes us happy.

I read Faking it by Jennifer Cruisie. It was fun and funny. Not too terribly realistic, but so what?

Now I'm reading Hot stuff by Carly Phillips. I think the author goes out of her way to write "sexy" which, honestly, bugs me a little. But, I still think it'll be fun.

2.)Reality television
I haven't watched the Top Design finale yet, but I couldn't stop myself from looking to see who won.

I picked up the second season of Work Out and I'm going to watch this season's Real World/Road Rules challenge. Also, MTV has been showing reruns of Beauty and the Geek. Not this season, but one of the earlier seasons. And, Flavor of Love Charm School starts soon as does a new season of Celebrity Fit Club.

No wonder The Dude wants to get a second DVR...

I know full well that reality tv isn't realistic at all. But, since all of the scripted shows I like get cancelled, I decided to accept reality television as the wave of the future. And, nothing is funnier than reality television's worst moments.

3.) 30 seconds to Mars
I didn't want to like them. I thought that Jared Leto's emo stylings were a lot over-the-top. But I kept hearing "The Kill" on the radio and I could never get it out of my head. So, I listened to the clips on iTunes and bought the album.

I dig it. A lot.

It's got more depth than I originally gave the band credit for. But they balance that depth with a sense of humor.

Sooo....what are you digging right now?

A beautiful lie by 30 second to mars

Dear Jared Leto,
When I was in high school and you were Jordan Catalano, I had the biggest crush on you. Okay, not on you exactly. I wanted a boyfriend just like Jordan. In retrospect this seems really dumb. While Jordan was a bad boy with a heart of gold buried somewhere deep down, he wasn't exactly good for Angela. And, in the end, I married a man more like Brian than like Jordan.

Anyway, when I heard you'd started a band, I didn't really pay too much attention to it. I knew you could sing--I'd heard it on My So-Called Life. But could you really front a band? And, if you could, would it be any good?

I didn't think about again until the single "The Kill" became big on the radio. I couldn't get it out of my head. It's dark and catchy at the same time. It's musical complexity is outshone only by it's angst. That, Mr. Leto, takes talent.

I ended up picking up a copy of the disc that the aforementioned single is from and was pleasantly surprised to realize that it doesn't suck. Although it's heavy and atmospheric, I don't get bored by the end of the album. This is quite the accomplishment because, though I enjoy bands like yours, I often grow tired of them.

Well done, Mr. Leto. Well done.

And, if it matters, I still have a crush on Jordan.

Sincerely,
Mrs. Dude

You just walked in to find me here...

I guess you should have made me leave my key.

I've been absent from blogging, but I'm back. I went to visit The Dude in Florida and then, upon my return, I fell ill.

I am finally feeling better, though, so I'll be back up and running again soon.

Despite our differences by Indigo Girls

Despite our differences, released in 2006, is comfortingly similar to a lot of the Indigo Girls previous albums but is also starkly different. It is a mixture of sweet songs about love, loss, and regret and heavier songs infused with the spirit of rock and roll. Ray and Saliers still have a lot to say, but this album seems less overtly political. When they do have a political message to sell, they're able to do so in a subtle way and with a sense of refinement.

It's a fun stretch from what I'm used to hearing from Ray and Saliers, but I like it a lot. It's an album that I haven't tired of yet and, with each listen, I'm finding new things to love about it.

'But wait, Mrs. Dude,' you're probably saying. You said in a previous post that you don't usually like female vocalists. 'What gives,' you ask.

I realize that I probably should have prefaced that rant by saying that there are some female vocalists that I love. I love Jodee Lewis' vocals because her voice is so rich and conveys a vulnerability. I love Natalie Merchant's vocals because of how smokey and sultry she can make her voice sound. I am growing to love Aimee Mann's voice because it's unlike anything I've heard before in its complexity.

And I love Amy's and Emily's vocals. For me, though, it's not what one or the other of them brings to the table. For me, it's the interplay of their voices and how one is gravely and earthy while the other soars. Their music, especially on this album, gives each of them the chance to shine.

Starburst jelly beans

No matter your beliefs on religion, you have to love Easter. Because while I firmly believe, like Benjamin Franklin, that beer is God's way of telling us he loves us and wants us to be happy, Easter is God's way of telling us not to take ourselves too seriously.

I was at Target yesterday (yet another of my favorite things...) and went purposely into the Easter candy aisle in search of Starburst jelly beans. I came out with two bags of jelly beans (original and "red" flavors [which I bought to get more strawberry flavored jelly beans]), a single-serving bag of Cadbury mini-eggs, a Reese's peanut butter egg, and a Kit Kat bar.

If you didn't understand why I took down my weight-loss blog, you do now.

I mixed the two kinds of jelly beans together and brought a small bag of the jelly beans to work with me. I was at a loss for what to write about today, but then it occurred to me that some of you might not know about the awesometasticness that is the Starburst jelly bean.

I never felt strongly about jelly beans before. Yeah, Jelly Bellies are okay, but ultimately I could take them or leave them. I like the Starburst jelly beans because they taste sort of like Starburst candies (hence my desparation for more strawberry beans). They taste like the flavors they claim to be--a huge feat in the candy industry--but aren't overwhelmingly sweet or tart.

Also, I tend to shy away from candy that isn't chocolate. I do like Skittles and Starburst candies and, occasionally, I'll eat a chewy Sweet Tart. But these jelly beans are as appealing to me as any candy bar.

In conclusion, Starburst jelly beans are yum.

Questionable Content

**Original post, per Snalin's request,has been edited as not to spoil**

I'd be hard pressed to tell you who introduced me to Questionable Content. I just remember that I came late to this party and spent the better part of a weekend reading through the archives in a crazed attempt to catch up.

Jeph Jacques' web comic stars Martin, Faye (Martin's roommate), Dora (Faye's boss), Pintsize (Martin's AnthroPC), and a range of other characters who help move the plot on at a glacial pace. It must be noted, though, that the plot is secondary. We are going someplace, but it doesn't matter how long it takes us to get there because we're having so much fun.

Jacques' is dead-on when it comes to the complexity of romantic relationships, but he also has a knack for finding the subtlety (or lack thereof)in friendships, both male and female. And, even more surprising, his female characters are interesting and complex. And they also have large racks.

It's fun to look at the way in which Jacques' drawing has improved over time, because it has. Not only has Jacques improved as an artist, but he also devotes his full time to this endeavor, having become a full-time artist.

Mostly, though, it's funny.

There's a link on the left side of my blog. You should check it out.

"Dashboard" by Modest Mouse

You'd think that between the satellite radio and my iPod that I'd never actually listen to commercial radio. But, I do. The local "alternative rock" station has a killer morning show that I listen to on my way to work.

Modest Mouse's new single "Dashboard" is in heavy rotation on this morning show and has me geeked for their new album. It's everything I loved about their last album--jangly, catchy, and eccentric. I can't listen to it without singing along and dancing in my seat.

I think it's fair to say that over the course of their career that Modest Mouse has toned down the crazy in their music to appeal to a wider (and more commercial) audience without losing their whimsy. I'm cool with that, since I actually prefer the toned down version of their work.

Basically, I can't wait for the new album, We were dead before the ship even sank. It comes out on March 20.

Martin Amis almost made me cry.

I consider myself to be reasonably intelligent. I have a Masters Degree, so that must count for something, right?

Not so, my friends. Not so.

The Dude recommended London Fields to me. He said that it "just blew him away," and I try my best to read the books that The Dude recommends.

It took me over a month to read London Fields. During that time I grew so frustrated with it, that by the time I got to the end, I didn't care. Amis gives us this supposedly Earth-shattering plot twist, and I wasn't the least bit surprised nor did I really care much. I'd grown so tired of having these characters in my life that I would have been just as happy if the book had turned into a Shakespearean tragedy with all of the characters dead.

That isn't what happened, by the way.

This isn't to say that London Fields wasn't good, because it was. I enjoyed meeting this eccentric cast of characters: Nicola Six, the batshit crazy heroine; Keith, the darts player whose penchant for drink and for promiscuity threaten his game; Guy, a family man who gets pulled into this world of wanton debauchery by Keith. There's also a huge supporting cast who help move the drama to its conclusion, albeit at a snail's pace. It seems good that Amis can put the story on the collective shoulders of his characters, considering that this novel comes off more as a character study than a plot-driven work of fiction.

My trusty friend Wikipedia claims that Amis' writing style influenced Zadie Smith. This intrigues me, as I enjoyed what I read of On Beauty and intend, one of these days, to finish it. It seems, though, that Smith does a way better job of using her characters to drive her plot. One can have his character study and a plot, too, it seems.

London Fields reminded me a lot of Irvine Welsh's book Trainspotting. It, too, made me crazy and it, too, was a worthwhile read. Though their plots aren't anything alike, the tone and language struck me as quite similar.

So, if you're into character studies and characters obsessed with the Postmodern Condition, check this out.

The Sound of Young America

I kind of have a crush on Jesse Thorn now. Don't tell The Dude, though. We don't have *that* kind of marriage...

After America's Radio Sweetheart informed me that I could, in fact, determine the subject of a show in a painless way, I dove in. I had a long drive yesterday evening and listened to two interviews--one with Neal Pollack and one with Maria Bamford. Today I listened to the fantastically funny Brendon Small discuss metal and to the Rock Snobbery and Hip Hop Heads shows.

Basically, Jesse interviews the people I would interview if I had a radio show. Only he does it better than I could. Do what you're good at, I always say. I'm good at organizing information and Jesse is good at making people talk.

His interviews are witty without being too precious. His personality shines in interviews without outshining the guests.

Also? His theme song is pretty catchy.

You can find The Sound of Young America on iTunes or on the website www.maximumfun.org

I highly recommend it.

More podcasts

Since my last update, I added:
Speaking of faith
The splendid table
Filmschool
Intelligence squared
On the media
The sound of Young America
The Diane Rehm show

I love my iPod, Frances. It's a black iPod and I call it Frances. Get it? Black Frances? Anyway, my only big complaint with Frances is that when I download podcasts to him, I have no idea what the podcasts are about. In iTunes, the podcasts have descriptions, but not on my iPod. Right now, there's an episode of 'The sound of Young America" with an interview with Brendon Small. But I don't know which one, which sucks because I really wanted to listen to it.

UPDATE: Jesse Thorn, America's Radio Sweetheart, let me know that for 'The sound of Young America' podcasts, the subject of the show appears where the song title does for music. And lo, he was right. Jesse Thorn, awesometastic? You decide...

I like an Oscar...

I was watching the Oscars last night and didn't have much to say about how things turned out, with the exception of one category--Best Supporting Actor.

In the spirit of full disclosure, I didn't like Little Miss Sunshine much. I didn't think it was a funny movie. I thought it tried to hard to be an indie film by trying to keep an air of "indie-ness" about it. In being intentionally bizarre, the film lost its funny.

For me, the one bright spot was Steve Carrell's performance as Frank, the foremost Proust scholar in the United States recovering from a suicide attempt. I thought that Carrell's performance was nuanced and that he was able to convey Frank's pain without being over-the-top like Greg Kinear and Adam Arkin. More importantly, though, I thought that Carell's performance was a stretch for him. After all, this is the guy who might be best known either from the US version of The Office or for voicing Hammy in Over the Hedge.

I was disappointed that The Academy overlooked Carrell's performance in Little Miss Sunshine. I was even more disappointed that they chose, instead, to nominate Arkin. I didn't feel like Arkin's performance was noteworthy in the least. I thought that his portrayal of the smackhead grandpa was heavy-handed and that we were never exposed to his character's private pain.

Imagine, then, my horror when Arkin won.

When you compare his performance to the other nominees, he falls short in my opinion.

I'm baffled and disappointed.

Then again, I thought that Will Ferrell should have been nominated for Stranger Than Fiction, so maybe my barometer is a little off...

New iTunes purchases (2/25)

What I bought:
1. Tokyo Police Club's A lesson in crime. It was $5.99, and I liked the free samples I heard. They remind me a lot of Artic Monkeys and Franz Ferdinand. I'm not sure if this is a good thing.

2. All time low's Put up or shut up. It was $4.99, and I am a sucker for pop punk. They remind me of the Ataris. I loved So long Astoria. Yes, I'm putting that in writing. Shut up, you. What? You think you're better than me because you have disdain for pop punk. You're probably right...

3. Erin McKeown's We will become like birds. It was the priciest of my purchases. I hadn't ever heard of McKeown until Entertainment Weekly did a review of her newest album Sing you sinners. I did listen to that one, but decided on the earlier album. Her voice is mezmerizing, and I was curious to hear her sing her own songs as opposed to standards. She reminds me of Nelly McKay, but without the whimsical randomness.


What I listened to but didn't buy:
1. Bloc Party's Silent alarm. The free samples were okay. As a rule, though, I don't usually buy albums by Critics' Darlings. And, if I remember correctly, people wet their pants over Bloc Party.

2. Kate Havnevik's Melankton. If Bjork and Sinead O'Connor got drunk and made a baby, this is what the baby would sound like when she got old enough to get a recording contract and make an album.

3. Young Love's Too young to fight it. It's incredibly pop-y. And produced by Def Jam. So I thought 'hey, I bet I would like this.' And when I listened to it, I was so very confused.

4. The Shins' Wincing the night away. Remember when I told you that I don't buy albums by Critics' Darlings? Well, The Shins fit that bill. Every critic and his dog has said how awesome The Shins are. And, not to knock people who like them, but I don't get it. They're okay, but they sound like a lot like Death Cab for Cutie. And, Death Cab for Cutie does precious emo rock much better than they do.

Podcast, podcasts, roly poly podcasts...

In my working life, I spend a lot of time in front of the computer doing mundane and repetitive work. This is not to say that I am not satisfied career-wise. I am. I love my job. But, my mind sometimes wonders when I'm doing this work.

Some friends of mine were telling me how they like to listen to podcasts when they do work that is repetitive. It engages their minds while their fingers to the typing.

What the heck, I thought, let's give it a try.

I already subscribed to Brini Maxwell's hints for gracious living. Brini is a stitch and a topic for another day...

I picked up Science Friday from Talk of the Nation, Fresh air, This American life, It's only a game, and ESPN's the Big Show with Dan Patrick and Keith Olbermann.

I was pleasantly surprised to learn that podcasts do allow me to work without letting my mind wander. And, since Monday, I've learned about avian flu, pandemics, Mark Wahlburg's career, and a film called "The Lives of others" that is nominated for an Oscar as Best Foreign Film.

And, I guess, if you took a podcast out to see a movie you wouldn't have to buy it a ticket....

Right back 'atcha!

The Spares came to town this weekend and played a show at Off Broadway. Y'all remember me telling you how great they are, right? And you all went to their website (www.thespares.net) or to iTunes and bought their newest album, right?

Anyway, I got a shoutout at the show. I was "the mysterious Mrs. Dude."

Their set was fantastic. They peppered their set with songs from both Beautiful and Treacherous Thing and Hand Me Down. And, I believe, they threw a little Johnny Cash in too. You know, for good measure. Because if there's one thing we all know, it's that you can't have too much Johnny Cash. The vocals, both Jodee's and Steve's, were spot on. And man...that mandolin? Wicked awesome.

It was fun to see them play in a setting other than Church. They have a great stage presence and playing a concert allowed them to interact with the crowd in a way that they can't in a church setting. And, as much as I love to hear them play hymns (and I do), playing in a smoky bar allows them to be freer with their vocals and their playing.

Today, The Spares played at Church. And, like last time, they were awesome. As an added bonus, they played two songs from Beautiful and Treacherous Thing.

I went up to Steve after they played and introduced myself as Mrs. Dude. We chatted for a few minutes and I was left with the feeling that not only are The Spares an amazingly talented band but that they are really nice, too.

So, I'm giving them a shoutout back! Hooray, The Spares!

Time to laugh and shiver and cry...

I'd forgotten how much I love Clone High. It aired in 2002 on MTV and lasted only a season, and I was obsessed with it. For Christmas, The Dude's parents got me the DVD but I hadn't gotten around to watching it yet. Last night I popped it in and watched 2 episodes.

Clone High's premise is disarmingly simple--scientists made clones of famous people and now these clones are in High School. The show revolves around Abe, Joan of Arc, Cleo (Cleopatra's clone), JFK, and Gandhi.

It got some press when it came out because the people of India didn't like their revered leader portrayed as a goofy, socially inept partier. I get that. I do. But man is Gandhi funny.

My favorite Gandhi bit is when he becomes a rapper with the stage name G-Spot. His rap? "What's my name? G-Spot. And what do I rock? The G-Spot."

Good times.

I'd urge you to try to find the DVD. It contains the entire first season, including 5 episodes that didn't air on MTV (the series originally ran in Canada).

Is this thing on?

So, I got quiet in the last few weeks. Basically, there hasn't been a lot that I've been excited about, so I've kept quiet.

I expect, though, that in the next few weeks there will be more feedback. I've got a ton of stuff on the TiFaux (3 episodes Veronica Mars--4 after tonight, 3 episodes of Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip, and goodness knows what else...), 3 movies from Blockbuster Online, and a lot of music floating around my house that I haven't listened to and a lot of books to be read. So, I'm certain that I'll have a lot to talk about.

Stay tuned...

I always wondered what that would sound like...

A friend told me about Best of Bootie 2006, a mashup disc. There are a lot of great tracks, but my favorite is a She Wants Revenge/Joy Division mashup. It's a mashup of "Love will tear us apart" and "Tear you apart." Strangely, it also features a tiny snippet of the Bauhaus song "Bela Lugosi's Dead."

The song amuses me, mostly, because I think that Justin Warfield sounds so much like Ian Curtis.

The Spares

I attend a Methodist Church that is so new that the New Church Smell hasn't worn off yet.

This week, we had the musical group The Spares as part of our Sunday Worship service. They were so amazing that I bought both of their CDs. Well, Mrs. Dude's dad did. But you get the idea.

Anyway, you should find out about The Spares.

They're not exclusively a Christian band, though some of their songs do have a Christian theme. They're indie acoustic rock. Alt-country rock. Roots rock. Americana rock.

Jodee Lewis has the most amazing voice. Her vocals are tough and tender. Vulnerable and fierce. I don't normally like female singers, but I love her voice.

I feel like I could listen to their discs, Beautiful and Treacherous Thing and Hand Me Down, a hundred times and never fully understand their rich complexity.

If indie, acoustic, alt-country, roots, Americana rock is your thing...check them out.

Even if it's not, give them a chance.

Children of Men (the movie)

I don't normally like thrillers of the pre-apocolyptic dystopian variety.

The Dude and I hadn't seen a movie in the theater for a looong time, and we agreed that we both wanted to see Children of Men.

So, we tucked in with our popcorn (me) and milk duds (The Dude) and watched a movie that ended up punching us both in the gut.

The premise is that in London in 2027, the world is a mess and that London seems to be the least messy. And, in the midst of all that mess, women aren't having babies anymore. Theo, our hero, seems comfortably numb until he is shocked back to reality by his ex-wife. His ex-wife just happens to be the leader of The Fishes, a terrorist organization in London. And she needs a favor. A BIG favor. And Theo isn't sure that he can come through.

But, as we all know, Julianne Moore has a nice rack. So Theo, our hero, manages to find a way to get his ex the goods.

And, hilarity ensues, as I am fond of saying.

Except that it isn't funny.

What *does* happen is that an unbelievable set of events unfolds before our eyes.

Children of Men is heart-wrenching and hopeful at the same time.

And their stunt crew earns is money.

Go see it.

Mike Doughty and Steve Poltz

The Dude introduced me to Mike Doughty. Not the man, though it would be awesome if he knew him.

Anyway...I'd never listened to Soul Coughing beyond their radio hits. But after The Dude put "Soft Serve" on a mix CD for me, I stole his copy of Irresistible Bliss. He had to marry me to get it back.

Anyway, a couple of summers ago, The Dude told me about Mike Doughty's album Haughty Melodic. I listened to it, but didn't pay it much mind. Suddenly, though, late this summer it became one of my five favorite albums.

An ex-boyfriend introduced me to Steve Poltz. I had never even heard of his band The Rugburns, but we saw Poltz at a festival and again that weekend at The Bluebird Cafe. We saw Poltz another time. All three were great shows. The ex didn't stick, but I still love Steve Poltz.

I realized that I think that Mike Doughty and Steve Poltz have a similar feel. They both enjoy wordplay and have some of the best lyrics I've ever heard. Both have a stripped down sound. Both have interesting vocal stuff going on.

I'm listening, right now, to Poltz's Chinese Vacation. I hadn't put the two of them together until just now, and I'm not certain why.

Year in review: Books

Apparently I started counting the books I read in February, so I've only got 11 months of books. I suspect, though, that I probably didn't read any books in January. I got married January 21st, 2006.

February
1. The lion, the witch, and the wardrobe by C.S. Lewis (206 p.)
2. The horse and his boy by C.S. Lewis (241 p.)
3. Prince Caspian by C.S. Lewis (238 p.)
February totals=3 books/685 p.

March
4.Every boy's got one by Meg Cabot (328 p.)
5. Keeping the moon by Sarah Dessen (228 p.)
6. Marley and Me by John Grogan (289 p.)
7. It's not you, it's me by Allison Rushby (281 p.)
8. The voyage of the Dawn Treader by C.S. Lewis (271 p.)
March totals=5 books/1,407 p.

April
9. Diary by Chuck Palahniuk (260 p.)
10. Luckiest man by Johnathan Eig (364 p.)
11. Just listen by Sarah Dessen (371 p.)
April totals=3 books/995 pages

May
12. Positively fifth street by James McManus (398 p.)
13. Fat chance by Deborah Blumental (313 p.)
14. Confessions of an organized homemaker by Denice Schofield (215 p.)
15. I'm not the new me by Wendy McClure (304 p.)
May totals=4 books/1,230 p.

June
16.The perks of being a wallflower by Stephen Chbosky (213 p.)
17. JPod by Douglas Coupland (448 p.)
18. The beach house by James Patterson and Peter de Jonge (356 p.)
19. Bloodsucking fiends by Christopher Moore (300 p.)
20. Ecstasia by Francesca Lia Block (196 p.)
June totals=5 books/1,513 p.

July
21. Primavera by Francesca Lia Block (189 p.)
22. Sloppy firsts by Megan McCafferty (280 p.)
23. Size 12 is not fat by Meg Cabot (345 p.)
24. Nick and Nora's infinite playlist by Rachel Cohen and David Levithan (183 p.)
July totals=4 books/997 p.

August
25. Pledged by Alexandra Robbins (370 p.)
26. Amalee by Dar Williams (180 p.)
27. How to be popular by Meg Cabot (288 p.)
28. Baby proof by Emily Giffen (340 p.)
29. Olive's ocean by Kevin Henkes (216 p.)
August totals=5 books/1,394 p.

September
30. Sea glass by Anita Shreve (400 p.)
September totals=1 book/400 p.

October
31. The summerhouse by Jude Deveraux (391 p.)
32. A is for Alibi by Sue Grafton (214 p.)
33. Queen of babble by Meg Cabot (306 p.)
October totals=3 books/911 p.

November
34. Flush by Carl Hiassen (263 p.)
35. The secret life of bees by Sue Monk Kidd (302 p.)
36. Babyville by Jane Green (438 p.)
37. Lucy Sullivan is getting married by Marian Keyes (610 p.)
38. Teen idol by Meg Cabot (291 p.)
November totals=5 books/1,904 p.

December
39. A dirty job by Christopher Moore (384 p.)
40. Angus, thongs, and full-frontal snogging by Louise Rennison (247 p.)
41. Over sea, under stone by Susan Cooper (196 p.)
December totals=3 books/827 p.

Totals for the year=41 books/12,263 p.

This is sort of a sad development for someone who claims she likes to read. I must certainly try to do better next year.

Now for the awards:
Favorite book I read this year: (Tie) Marley and Me & Just listen
Least favorite book I read this year:Pledged
Book I read with the strangest concept:A dirty job