Through one eye of the 3-D machine

Through one eye of the 3-D machine
Originally uploaded by lesliegardner.

Go see the rest of these super-cool pictures here.
It is an awesome photoset! Surreal and lovely.

faux profundity, reconditeness, and other job search vocab

In an effort to be a better prepared candidate in that thing we call "looking for work", I have been reading Competency-Based Resumes: how to bring your resume to the top of the pile. I figured it wouldn't hurt to get up to date with the latest job-search jargon. What I hate is that there IS so much jargon. To my untrained ear it just sounds like Dr. Phil and Oprah sloganeering crossed with management seminar dogma. I wish this were a world where saying that I am honest, hard-working, quick to learn, conscientious, and a good typist would be enough. I'm not naive enough to think this is possible, hence brushing up on the jargon. What I have learned today: Competency-based skill assessment is all the rage. It says so right here on every single page up to chapter 4. It also has The Sphinx-style (from The Mystery Men) profound statements like In order to aim the arrow, you must see the target. Which, granted, is not bad advice, but it followed too close to a whole segment about Alice receiving directions from the Cheshire cat.

That being said, so far it isn't a BAD book, for what it is.

My vocabulary word of the day (that I just learned when checking to make sure I was spelling profundity right):

recondite adj : difficult to penetrate; incomprehensible to one of ordinary understanding or knowledge; "the professor's lectures were so abstruse that students tended to avoid them"; "a deep metaphysical theory"; "some recondite problem in historiography"

first goal

I have made strides toward one of my first GOYLA 2005 goals (Get Off Your Lazy Ass): I have made progress in my re-write of 2003 nano. I printed it out, was able to read all but the last 30 or so pages (oh, Lord! So bad!), and have outlined what sounds like a good idea for going forward. I am sure once I am in the midst of it, it will seem like a less good idea. That's just the way it goes, though - I'd rather go forward with a less-brilliant plan than sit around and wait for the perfect idea to drop out of the sky into my brain. That's the beauty of GOYLA. Just do it any old way you can, and worry about making it pretty/perfect later on.

Prince is singing The Beautiful Ones in my iPod. I have a feeling he never has to GOYLA, because he is lacking the LA factor. But we can't all be Prince!

eiffel tower illuminated

eiffel tower illuminated
Originally uploaded by Nyx.

I really like the contrast of the almost-dark sky and the lights on the tower.

code name: Frenchie

Leslita reminded me of another mix I made that I really liked. It's official name was Ooh, La La. But it's before-it-was-finished-name (what is that word? I know there is one) was Frenchie. Leslita was going on a trip to Paris, and I realized I had a bunch of french-language songs, and... well, you know. I branched out and decided that anything that was a) in french, b) referred to France was fair game. It was fun to try to find things that I thought would work. I looked all over for Oxo's Whirly Girl She comes from Paris, France/and she can really dance/ooh whirly whirly I tried the iTunes music store, I tried obvious compilations. Finally I found it on an 80's compilation at the library, but it just didn't work. I remembered it being much more fun than it actually is. But that's ok - I found some other good ones to work in its stead.


1. I Love Paris - Les Negresses Vertes - From Red Hot and Blue (the first one, and the best one that I've heard). I had this version, and an Ella Fitzgerald version. I love Ella and wanted to put her first, but hers was much slower and worked better at the end. This gets the accordion theme working hard right off the bat. Hurrah for Cole Porter!

2. Complainte De La Butte - Rufus Wainwright - - From the Moulin Rouge soundtrack. I like how Rufus sings french - I think his voice lends itself to it. I actually think I like him singing french better than english.

3. The Night You Can't Remember - The Magnetic Fields - more accordion, and more importantly ukulele! You were an army officer/and I just a rockette/the night you can't remember/is the night I can't forget I love this song. It is so silly, and so bittersweet at the same time. That's not an easy combination, I think. You don't remember Paris, hon/But it remembers you. From the fantastic 69 Love Songs.

4. Lo Boob Oscillator - Stereolab - I think I got this from the High Fidelity soundtrack. This is great - all french singing, and it sounds like Snoopy and the gang could be dancing to it (wearing berets, but of course).

5. Flying - Chris Isaak - I was playing a club by the Eiffel tower/ taking a break for half an hour . No french, but obligitory Eiffel tower mention. This is a lightly swinging love song to a brief encounter, with Chris singing toward the higher end of his range (which I dig). Monday was the day we met/Tuesday I was flyin/flyyyyyyyyyyyyyiiiiiiiin. Yes, he rhymes it with cryin, that is just his way. I never met a girl like that before/ every day I miss her more. It sounds really good through headphones.

6. Rebel Prince - Rufus Wainwright - More Rufus! Is there a name I am more likely to mangle when speaking than Rufus Wainwright? Only time will tell. This one is mostly in english, but it has plenty of french in it. And my favorite sing-along flower moments, ever. Marigold, marigold, marigoooooooooold

7. Sympathique - Pink Martini - my most favorite sing along french song, ever! (I should have an awards ceremony). Jaunty. French. Swingin'. Just hearing this makes one feel like a cosmopolitan citizen of the world. Unless, of course, one grew over-tired of it when it was ubiquitous. If that is the case, I am sorry for you and hope you can regain the joy that this song is capable of bringing. My rudimentary french indicates that this is one of those songs where the lyric runs counter to the music. I think it is something about not wanting to work, to just sit at ones window and smoke ciggies and forget all the things that are making one miserable. That's sort of in the spirit of French songs, anyway. I recently read that the song Beyond The Sea is originally French, and much more melancholy than the Carnival Cruise lines would like you to believe. In related news, this reminds me of a story I heard on NPR: the summer Sympathique came out it was the number one downloaded ring-tone in all of France! In random news - this also makes me think of one of my favorite english words: Defenestrate. It means to throw out or through a window. WordNet gives the following example: "The rebels stormed the palace and defenestrated the President." Use it in a sentence today!

8. Michelle - The Beatles -This song always makes me think of my high school pal Michelle F and a frosty winter evening begging for canned beans. OK, it was in Florida, so it was more like a 50 degree evening, but still. One winter we were out Ingathering - collecting canned food and money for "the less fortunate." A lot of groups do it (Boyscouts, Pathfinders, etc.) and it is a good cause, but I have never really loved doing anything door to door. We were dropped off in a neighborhood we never went to (we both lived in a dorm, so we didn't go much of anywhere), and let loose. We came across a homeless gentleman who was ingathering on his own behalf. He asked us for our names, Michelle told him, and he proceeded to sing this song to us! Michelle, ma belle/ these are words that go together well/ my Michelle. It was a little strange, but sweet. Paul McCartney does not sing in French as well as Pink Martini, but it doesn't matter because he's a Beatle.


9. The Legionnaire's Lament - The Decemberists - The first time I heard the Decemberists, I was in the back seat of a friend's car, trying to make sense of what I was hearing. Is it Robyn Hitchcock? no. hrmmm. Is it that other guy whose name I don't remember? no. It was a lot to take in while in a moving vehicle, let me tell you. By the time I heard this song, I was a goner. What's not to love about the story of a Parisian Legionnaire longing for the city he will probably never see again? It's been a year or more, since they shipped me to this foreign shore/ fighting in a foreign war, so far away from my home...... the sweetly sleeping sweeping of the Seine/ Lord I don't know if I'll ever be back again. The Decemberists would probably have to actually run me down in their touring van for me to disavow them. And even then, maybe not. There is a camel in disrepair! There is self medicating in the sun/ pinch doses of lauuuuuudinuuuuuuum, for heaven's sake! (which is a lot of fun to sing out loud, let me assure you.) Like Jill Sobule below, the Decemberists make top-notch story songs.

10. Resistance Song - Jill Sobule - Love Jill Sobule - she is one of the masters of the story song. She is mainly known for her two novelty hits (I Kissed A Girl, and Supermodel). They are both great songs, but neither of them really hint at what a great songwriter she is. I mean, she writes these great little vignettes and has a whole story with characters and story arc, for god's sake - in THREE MINUTES. Amazing. This one had to go on this mix because of the heavy accordion, and of course the Resistance theme. It has a great resistance-style la la la la singalong chorus. I had this dream we were in the Resistance/ somewhere in France fighting traitors and fascists/ you were my mistress, yes you were a woman/ but I knew it was you by the shape of your mouth/ You called me Maurice and I had a small mustache, played clarinet in a decadent band/ until we hid in the bushes, we shot from the bushes, made love in the bushes like there was no tomorrow/ la la la la la la la la la la..... There is a heavy repitition of the word bushes (so much so that my sister calls it The Bushes Song).

11. Lady Marmalade - Christina Aguilera, L'il Kim, Mya, Pink - This song is so trashy, but it also has a certain diva-like charm. Listen, especially for L'il Kim's contributions. She knows how to update a classic: You come through with the money in the garter belts/ let them know we got their cake, straight out the gate/ we be independent women some mistake us for whores/ I'm sayin' why spend mine, when I can spend yours?/ disagree? well that's you and I'm sorry/ I'ma keep playing these cats out like atari/ wearin' high heeled shoes, getting love from the Jews[editors comment: WTF?]/ four bad ass chicks from the Moulin Rouge.

12. Voulez Vous - ABBA To go right in the middle of the rockin' french section of the CD. This is not my most favorite ABBA song ever, but a song can be a mediocre ABBA song, and still be better than most other songs! Voulez Vous!

13. Tour Heart Throb - All Girl Summer Fun Band - Unsurprisingly, I love this song: I hope some day you and I could go to France/ yeah yeah yeah yeah/ We'll hold hands/ and I'll get to see your underpants. The yeah yeah yeahs are reason enough alone to love this song, but you've got to really love a song that says 'underpants.' For real.

14. Canned Candies - Stereolab - More all-french. I don't like this one as much as Lo Boob Oscillator, but it is very pretty and has bells. I have no idea what it is about. Except I think she says un chien at the beginning, and I think that means dog. Or maybe Dogg. Maybe this is a clever Snoop Dogg cover (but I have my doubts).

15. Underwear - The Magnetic Fields - Another equal opportunity song from the Magnetic Fields. A pretty girl, in her underwear/ if there's anything better in this world who cares? and then the french bit - about love and death (what else?) La mort, c'est la mort /mais l'amour, c'est l'amour/ La mort, c'est seulement la mort/ mais l'amour, c'est l'amour And then back to underwear! A pretty boy, in his underwear/ if there's a better reason to jump for joy, who cares?

16. Les Poissons - Rene Auberjonois - Heh. Cheeeeezy (fromagey?) french accent from the chef in The Little Mermaid. Les Poissons, les poissons, how I love les poissons/love to chop and to serve little fish/ first I cut off their heads/ then I pull out their bones.... A children's classic! Sacre Bleu!

17. L'accordeoniste - Edith Piaf - I happened to have an Edith Piaf master series disc, but I it didn't have La Vie En Rose, which is her most famous song (I think). Anyway, that is all sweeping and epic and lovely, but this one really hits the accordion buttons pretty hard, and is fast and rollicking good old-time all-french fun. And has the record-scratchy song, which adds a certain old-french veracity. Plus, not the first thing one would expect to hear when noting there is an Edith Piaf song on a compilation.

18. I Love Paris - Ella Fitzgerald - Ella! the thing I love about Ella's voice is that it is so bright and clear, but also rich. She makes me happy when I hear her, even if it is a sad song. Ella Fitzgerald and Cole Porter are two great tastes that taste great together. I love Paris in the springtime/ I love Paris in the fall/ I love Paris in the winter when it drizzles/ I love Paris in the summer when it sizzles...... I love Paris, why oh why do I love Paris? Because my love is near.

That's a lot of paper

Today I am printing out my 2003 nano masterpiece* Finally, after many trials and tribulations (which included installing a whole new version of Word - which I despise, more on that later - troubleshooting my printer, and then picking up paper from across the room. Printer doesn't like troubleshooting, apparently), I am printing! Hooray!

How many pages it works out to blows my mind. I know it's short compared to, say, Stephen King, or Jennifer Crusie,or any other author at all, but it is the single longest piece of anything I have ever written. So far it is just under 60K words, I expect it will get longer by at least a third by the time I am finished. But, just to take stock of where I am at the moment, I decided to print the whole thing out so I could read it in one big stack instead of 40 different files. At first I was going to use standard manuscript formatting (details found here.) - but that was waaaaaay too much paper. I struck a compromise after running the following comparisons in Word.

Courier 12pt double spaced with 1" margins all around = 291 pages
Courier 12pt 1.5 spaced with 1" margins = 217 pgs
Courier 10pt double spaced with 1"' margins = 211 pgs
Courier 10pt 1.5 spaced with 1" margins = 157 pgs

I ended up going the 157 page route, which I think will be just fine for readabliity. I might even get it all printed out some time this century too, now that I have disciplined the printer. Yay!

* the words nano and masterpiece are usually said together with some irony. I do not claim that it is particularly brilliant, but I do claim that I did it - and I am proud of the accomplishment, no matter how humble. Even if you take away the thinking up the story part - that's a LOT of typing!!!

Snow ice and water

Snow ice and water
Originally uploaded by stureyk.

I love the color - it looks so cold.

The Gap

So, I am in major job-search mode again. Working - I have no problem with it! Have I enjoyed my time off? Absolutely. Am I ready to work hard, have some responsibilities outside my personal sphere, and make money once again? Absolutely. Am I really racking my brain to come up with good reasons for my 3 year employment gap? you know it!

Here are some contenders. I'm trying to separate the wheat from the chaff, and it's not as easy as it would seem:
Abducted by aliens: Pros: no real way to check and see if it is true. cons: crazy land
Babies: pro: nobody can really give you shit for taking time off to have babies. con: absolute falsehood. I could get pictures of babies from my cousin, but I really don't think this is maintainable over the long haul.
Time Spent in Nervous Hospital: pro: I can't think of one. con: putative employer will worry that I am headed back to N.H. Also, absolute falsehood.
Writing Novels: pro: true, if only by the most generous description of novel. con: someone may ask to read one.
Sabbatical: pros: sounds vaguely academic, is kind of true. cons: sounds vaguely pompous, and kind of a cop out.

I just don't think they are ready for the truth - that I was abducted by aliens, implanted with alien babies, had to spend time in the nervous hospital to recover, where I wrote my novel (but it is in the alien's language so nobody but my alien babies, and my alien baby daddies (Kang and Kodos) would be able to understand). The truth? They can't handle the truth!

disco ball

disco ball
Originally uploaded by iv0.

So red, so happy, so round, so fun!

Clueless/Emma

I just watched Clueless again yesterday while I did some mending. I think I have probably seen it about 5 or 6 times now, and each time I notice more of the Emma parallels. It is still a good movie - sure, the fashions and music are out of date, but they only would have been contemporary for the summer it came out anyway.
Cher/Emma is a young woman of means with no mother and a doting yet somewhat absent father. She likes to arrange things to her precise specifications, and sees no reason to stop with herself or things directly related and branches out to arranging others lives with no compunction. Due to her status/wealth/charm, she is gets away with it most of the time. I always get the idea that while Emma/Cher is a meddling meddler who meddles that she is usually coming from a pretty decent place. It may benefit her personally, but it will also be good for others. A meddling do-gooder. Amy Heckerling did a great job of mapping the story on to a modern setting. Here are some of the character parallels:

Cher - Emma
Josh - Mr. Knightly - I know a lot of people are skeeved by the step-brother thing. It doesn't bother me for the following reasons: Josh only lived with them a very short time when they were both children, and Jane Austen had her heroines marrying thier cousins all of the time. It was fairly common then, so I just wave my hands and say 'whatever'.
Daddy - Daddy. Dan Hedaya kills me in this movie. I love when Christian comes over to pick up Cher and he says, "Be good to my little girl. I have a .45 and a shovel, and I don't think anyone would miss you." (aprox)
Dionne - ?(could be Mrs. Weston as a good friend who knows Cher/Emma and is happily in a relationship of her own..)
Elton - Mr. Elton - officious ass whom Cher/Emma (in her oblivious way) is trying to fix up with a friend when in fact Mr./Elton has the hots for Cher/Emma.
Amber - Mrs. Elton?? She is an obnoxious pain in the ass like Mrs. Elton, but not connected exclusively to Elton...unsure.
Tai - Harriet Smith - Tai is a transfer student, Harriet is an undistinguished student with uncertain parentage. In both cases Cher/Emma take a social risk to befriend and "help." Of course, her help turns out being a big mess which is sort of the point.
Travis (stoner/skateboarder) - George Martin (Farmer). Tai/Harriet is attracted to this character, but Cher/Emma thinks he isn't good enough for her, and that with Cher/Emma's help she will do "far better."
Christian - Frank Churchill - the too good to be true man that Cher/Emma is convinced she must be in love with. It turns out in both instances that this character is unavailable.
homosexuality - Jane Fairfax - the reasons why the above is not available to Cher/Emma.
Lucy (the maid) - Miss Bates - at first I thought there wasn't a Miss Bates parellel, but then I remember Cher gets into a pointless fight with Lucy when Cher's world is turning to shit, which is just about the same time that Emma issues a devastatingly cutting remark to Miss Bates. Everyone turns on Emma, and her bad time gets worse. In both instances it is in front of Josh/Mr. Knightly, and it is also the only instance I can think of where there is the same sort of upper/lower social dynamic.

There are some really obvious parallels to plot points too - the whole thing is not an exact copy of Emma, but the scenes are there, particualry where the Tai/Harriet character is concerned. I'm thinking mainly of

*the portrait Emma paints/picture Cher takes of Harriet/Tai that Elton asks for.
*The bandage that Tai/Harriet keeps because it was on Elton's finger (so gross!)
*When Christian/Frank Churchill rescues Tai/Harriet from the mall rats/gypsies
*When Josh/Mr. Knightly rescues Tai/Harriet from embarrassment at the dance. (and consequently how happy this makes Cher/Emma)
*Tai/Harriet falling for Josh/Mr. Knightly and Cher/Emma being devastated, since she only just realized how she felt about him. (in Looooove)
more later, I have to make dinner.

Mixing it up

I love making mix CDs. I loved making mix tapes too, but they were a lot more infrequent due to the hassle of pausing the tape, switching the CD, unpausing the tape, etc. Mix CDs and I became very good friends in 2001 when I first got my iBook. I began making them for road trips and it started going crazy from there. One of the more recent mixes I made was for my friend, who I will call Blondie. Blondie's birthday is right before Christmas, which sucks - who can compete with Jesus for a birthday? So we try to find little ways to make it better. Of course because I suck, she still doesn't have her Christmas presents, but really - that's a story for another post. I tried to pick songs that I thought she would like. She's a fan of harmonizing and generally prefers a more gentle sound. If you follow any music blogs you will no doubt recognize a lot of these. Anyway, here's the Blondie's B-Day Mix with commentary:

1. Here's To Love - Ewan McGregor and Renee Zelwegger - I know she loves Ewan (who doesn't?), and Down With Love in particular. Ewan plays Catcher Block - man's man, ladies man, and man about town. I still don't get the lyric about babysitters, but that can be the something new I learn on another day.

2. Strange Magic - Darrin Hayes. I have actual shame about loving this song. It is like the elevator music on the way to the easy listening hell, YET I LOVE IT. I have no shame about some other songs that might be considered mockable, including other songs by Savage Garden - I love their I Want You song - you know the one with the Cherry Cola. Fun, fast, poppy. This one is slow, syrupy, saccharine sweet - but I cannot get enough! It must be his voice, or more likely some sort of hypnotic suggestion. Easily sounding like it could be from a Disney movie in the 50's (the beginning part, anyway), it is actually from the Ella Enchanted soundtrack. The movie is cute, and this song is crack (to me - I realize I am probably alone. here's hoping Blondie liked it or at least doesn't want to jab her ears with a fork when she hears it)

3. Float On - Ben Lee I didn't realize that this was a Modest Mouse cover, because I am not always too bright. Anyway, I like this song - when I first heard it through my crappy computer speakers I thought it was a typewriter at the beginning. I love typewriter songs! (Dear mr. and mrs. troublemaker by the AGSFB comes immediately to mind). But I also like this song with its gentle insistance that things will be ok eventually, even if they are shitty right now. It is sort of from a detached but concerned POV. good news is on the way

4. The Mayor of Simpleton - XTC Love this song, so much. When all logic grows cold and all thinking gets done/you'll be warm in the arms of the Mayor of Simpleton. For the overthinkers among us.

5. Memory Lane - Elliott Smith - This one is like so many Elliott Smith songs - it sounds so beautiful, so bouncy, but is a complete heart-breaker/kick in the gut. Honestly, I was going from a 'sounds pretty' standpoint when I put it on this mix. But I think that knowing the Mayor's name is Fear/his force patrols the pier is something. Hey! Maybe I should collect songs that refer to city elected officials. This is part of the mayoral run of this mix cd.

6. Be My Baby - Travis I like Travis from the The Man Who era a lot. They've gone and gotten kind of hippy/jambandish which ruins it for me. shakes fist at hippies I'll never forget being up far too late one night working on a project and hearing Why Does It Always Rain on Me, and seeing the video with the dead fox, the water, the kilts, etc. It was surreal, and at 3am just the ticket. Its been downhill from there, if you ask me, which I realize nobody has. Anyway, this is a great cover of a girl group classic.

7.Every Little Bit Hurts - The Spencer Davis Group - with young Steve Winwood on vocals. I like this song, and it seemed like it would be in one of those British romantic comedies from the mid-late nineties, which Blondie is a big fan of. So from this point, I tried to think of this as my own british romantic comedy soundtrack. I largely failed since I am neither british, nor living in a romantic comedy, but it was fun to try.

8. Look For Me (I'll Be Around) - Neko Case See how fast I came off the british romcom rails? This one has the creepy western reverb/vibraphone sound found in David Lynch movies everywhere! And Neko Case - amazing! I put this on here because I think everyone should know about her. This song is slow, slinky, sexy, and sad. And reverbilicious.

9. Grace Cathedral Hill - The Decemberists I find myself practically incapable of making a mix without a Decemberists track on it these days, and this one is lovely, so I put it on. I have a theory that Colin Meloy has actually invented a new vowel sound, but it isn't very well thought out yet.

10. Polly - The Long Blondes - crazy catchy retro sounding tune, straight from the slow dance at the sockhop. One could also hear this while waiting for the waitress on rollerskates to bring hamburgers and milkshakes to the car, while ones date tries his luck getting hands inside the inevitable angora sweater.

11. The Dress Looks Nice On You- Sufjan Stevens Banjo, baby! OK, this is just a pretty, pretty song. I can see a lot of life in you. Not a bad thing to hear.

12.It's There - The All Girl Summer Fun Band One of the best crush songs, ever. At the part of the crush where you are trying to convince yourself that it's not all in your head, and that the object of your desire is secretly crushing on you too. For delusionals everywhere! plus, they sing about tying your shoelaces together, which is just adorable. oh, dear, you'd better stay away from me/ for fear I'll tell you how I feel/oh sure, it's something good, its something real/ oh yeah, it's there

13. Kyle's Mom is a Bitch - Eric Cartman - what can I say? Blondie loves Southpark!

14. I'm So Thankful - the Ikettes - I was still in my BritRomCom state of mind, despite all of my digressions and transgressions. This has great horns and motown sound.

15. Wildflowers - Tom Petty - my friend (not Blondie) insists that Tom Petty belongs in my hall of shame, the way Rod Stewart is in hers, or Billy Joel is in my sisters. She is wrongedy wrong wrong. I insist that Tom Petty is not NEARLY as shamefull as RS or BJ. This song is a favorite of his slower ones - it is so heartfelt and sincere. I also heard a busker singing it this summer while I stood in line for a sno-cone before the cops made him leave. He did a nice job with it. Way to go, anonymous busker at Art in the Pearl! Ummm, Blondie really loves Art in the Pearl, therefore this was an obvious choice.

16. Four Seasons In One Day - Crowded House - I don't care what anyone says - Neil Finn writes amazing pop songs! In addition to being an amazing pop song, this one has very nice harmonies, which as I mentioned above, Blondie really likes.

17. Jacques Derrida - Scritti Politti Oh, how I love this song! It showed up on fluxblog not that long ago. It brought back how much and how obsessively I listened to Cupid and Psyche back in the day (although this song was not from that album). Mr. Scritti Politti has one of the sweetest sounding pure pop voices I have ever heard. So, this song had very little to do with Blondie, and a great deal with how much I needed to put this on something I could listen to easily in the car. Plus - it is a great way to expand or reinforce your vocabulary ( rapacious, voracious, nation-state, assuage, living-wage ) and familiarity with French deconstructionists. For more than you ever wanted to know, check here.

18. mahnamahna - Muppet Show My friend PSC and I used to sing this for HOURS. I thought Blondie would like it, and it sort of bookends the Cartman song.

19. Bittersweet Symphony - The Verve - I know, I know. Overdramatic, used in a nike commercial, dated to the mid-late 90's. I Care Not. I love it. I have identified that I am pretty much a sucker for any symphonic pop songs, and this is the start of more than one on this mix. It is the kind of thing Blondie would like too, so it's not like I'm torturing her.

20. Flowers In The Windows - Travis Another Travis song, and not even from The Man Who. It is jolly, jaunty, and hopeful (and sounds that way, unlike that sneaky E. Smith) and therefore deemed appropriate for the mix. Not my favorite song ever or anything, but I like it and thought Blondie would like it too. It has disturbing seagull sounds, however.

21. The Shining - Badly Drawn Boy Everytime I type this out, I picture The Shinning from the Simpson's Tree House of Terror. Use the Shinning, boy! This song fulfills the BritRomCom AND symphonic themes. If only it were called The Mayor of the Shining it would be perfect. This is appropriate to the mix also because Blondie bought me a ticket to see Badly Drawn Boy once. She hated the opening act, and then the band proceeded to chainsmoke through the whole show despite it being a non-smoking venue. I think she was bummed that they did not sound just like they did throughout About A Boy. This song sounds like the sound she prefers, so hopefully this will help get the smoke out of her lungs and improve the memory.

22. Innocent When You Dream- Tom WaitsTom Waits is a werewolf, I am sure of it. Anyway, she really likes this song, but had no Tom Waits AT ALL. She remembered it from the soundtrack to the movie Smoke (excellent), and had asked me to help her figure out what song it was. I did, and put it on here for her. It was her birthday, after all.

kacey models

kacey models
Originally uploaded by hundertwasser.

Love the colors, the dress, and the attitude.

Mid-week, New Year

So, I busted out the iCal after the new year in an effort to be more purposeful and productive in 2005. 2004, (I first typed 2--4, I should have left it because 2004 was like a dirty word)2004, you sucked. I am trying to keep expectations low for 2005, but I remain optimistic. Anyway, back to iCal I think it will be tremendously useful because when I get spinning my wheels the most, I usually just really need to focus. This program lets me do that without being TOO obsessive. I haven't quite figured out the correct amount of to do listing yet, though. Somewhere between having a check mark for every glass of water I drink, and "survive until 2006".

In shallow Alias news, they need to figure out a way for Rick Yune to be on every week. yowza.

I have some predictable thoughts on Veronica Mars, Alias, and Lost - but they will have to wait for another time. My To Do list is telling me I need to still answer some email and put away all of my CDs before I go to bed.

When worlds collide

Ok, that is definitely a little dramatic for the following, but I'm fine with that. First, I should probably explain that I am an observer by nature. Observer, rather than participant, to clarify. There are a few web forums that I have followed off and on for a few years (since Salon's Tabletalk days, actually). It's called lurking, and although I feel I am a benevolent lurker it is still a little strange to be in a position of knowing so much about people who know nothing at all about me. Maybe one day, but maybe not.

Flickr is the first website that I have actually worked up the nerve to participate in. I signed up for Flickr because I wanted free hosting for my garden pictures for a garden blog. Over (a very short) time, Flickr became far more important to me than the garden journal, although I imagine it will eventually level out. (It is a great site by the way, and very easy and friendly to use. You should try it, if you haven't already). The point of all of this is reading the blog of a poster in a forum I follow (see how convoluted!) she mentioned the blog of one of my flickr contacts. It is sort of strange and circular and makes me wonder if the internet is self-selecting in a way. That even if I hadn't lurked here or there that I would still end up in proximity to certian people because of shared interests, tastes, and inclinations.

2005, baybee

The year of the rooster! My year! I hope so, anyway. For 2005 I am trying to shake off the mantle of inertia that has kept me within a 100 mile radius of my house for 365 days! OK, I did do a little bit of travel, but it was all in state. How sad is that? SAD!

So, that being said, I am trying to actually DO the things I keep thinking I will do. I have gone through my closets and jettisoned all the non-fitters, out-of-stylers, and otherwise repellant to me now clothing. I have even gone through my t-shirt drawer, which was quite an undertaking. So - my motto for 2005 is Get Off Your Lazy Ass.

We'll see how it goes! Today's tasks - clean off desk, update address book (so I can throw away all those scraps of paper with names and phone numbers), take the 4 garbage bags of rejected clothing to goodwill. That should be doable. I am also trying to squeeze in the CD project, but that's almost done so it shouldn't be a problem.

More on books, movies, television, comics and all the other things I love so much later.