shit i like...

Sorry I missed last week. It was a bit busy with training and so forth for work. I am back with my syndicated weekly post about, well, shit I like. Let's get this thing started.

First off, Up came out on dvd this past week. What the what?!? You dont know what that is? I have actually talked to people this week who had no clue what the hell I was talking about, fool! (Never end a sentence with a preposition!). I smacked those bitches. Up is another brilliant Pixar stunner with an emotional resonance that builds straight from the tearjerker of a beginning through to the literal metaphor of a man carrying his entire life on his back. What can only be one of the best movies of the year if not a Best Picture contender, Up proves Pixar is the place to look for important filmmaking without fear of making the fantastical seem like real life.

So, a certain music video by a certain popstar that I dont normally like came out this past week. And I gotta say Lady Gaga surprised me. The video is downright extraordinary. Typically, I can't stand her for the refusal to wear anything but ridiculous outfits, but this time it worked for me. Plus, a side from that fact that occasionally she looks a little like Amy Winehouse, there are moments when she actually looks pretty. Who knew?

I found the pilot for V very interesting. I had to watch this one since it was part of the reason Elizabeth Mitchell bit the big one on Lost. I was very impressed with the pilot and plan on continuing to watch (unlike FlashForward). The show is intriguing and even timely. The aliens are bringing universal healthcare ideals, the reporter has no problem selling out to get the exclusive, etc. The effects looked pretty flashy for a TV show budget and the acting is rather strong, especially Mitchell.

Finally, I will probably be in trouble for saying I enjoy the new OneRepublic single. Yes, the band led by that guy (Ryan Tedder) who writes a bunch of songs that sound identical. Ask Beyonce, Kelly, or Leona and they will tell you all about that. Once again on "Good Life," he does his formulaic atmospheric pop sound with some hip-hop beats except now he throws in some acoustic guitar strumming. But I'll be damned if it doesnt make for an excellent pop song. I enjoy that he brings up how so much in life can be good but we, as people, cannot help but look for more. I like it, now let the hating commence.

shit i like this week...

In hopes of keeping things going strong this time, perhaps a weekly column is in order. So I bring you a little something called, "shit i like this week..."

First off, can I just say how much I loved my Hween 09 costume? I had a great time in it, and I must say I look pretty damn good. Take a look to your right there ->

I thoroughly enjoyed myself at Taste this past Sunday for brunch. I am quite sure I had not been since this past summer, and it was a delight to enjoy one last brunch on the patio there. The atmosphere is pretty spot-on and pleasant, plus you can easily kill a couple hours there chatting and recapping the night before's indiscretions with some pals. And did we have some this past weekend...

The Precious Trailer is also tops on my list this week. I don't really see the need to disclose just how many times I've watched it this week (about 7) and how many times I've cried watching it (every fucking time). This is obvs going to be a movie I need to see asap (because apparently I dont do enough crying already). So, check out the trailer...

Alright, tissues away. Something not definitely not making me cry this week is a song from Tegan and Sara circa their 2007 release The Con. The song is called "Nineteen." It sounds exactly like something the indie twins would have made but completely better than anything they've made before. The song still has their quirk with a nice bit of rock on top. I'd go back to being nineteen if it would sound this good.

Finally, these guys make my week better every week...

shit i suck at...

Can you seriously believe I have a GD blog that I haven't touched since February of this year? Seriously? On that note, I bring you a list of shit I suck at. Starting with...

1. Keeping a blog. You know, this was the year I swore I would do it, and you see how well that went for me. Consider this my jump start on next year.

2. Dating. I mean damn, do I suck at this one. I am pretty certain I have been on close to 20 first dates this year, maybe 5 second dates, and one person I considered myself dating and almost had a relationship with. Liz Lemon is doing better than I am.

3. Greeting Cards. My New Year resolution for 2010 will be to get out greeting cards to family members for birthdays and major holidays.

4. Working out. I make these great starts but I never follow through. I have always been someone who expects to see perfect immediate results or I think I just don't have it and give up. And let me tell you, doing 25 crunches does not get you perfect abs, and so I figure I should just quit cause it's not going to happen.

5. Following through with something. It's the story of my life. I'm not even sure how many things I have started to just never get near completing. Let me see: playing guitar, going back to school, completing one of my written works, blogging, certain books, etc.

6. Keeping a consistent bed time. I try so hard to get myself to bed by 10pm work nights, but once again I suck. For some reason, I get caught up in some online bullshit or something and suddenly it's midnight before I am getting some shut eye.

7. Getting my car serviced. I would rather spend money on something much more important, like a new pair of jeans or a jacket. Who's with me?

8. Telling someone what I really want. I so rarely actually tell someone else what I want from a situation whether it be dating or going out or whatever. I worry the other person will not be cool with it so I just avoid bringing up what I want and go along with his or her plan.

9. Believing in myself. Sure, the kid may look like he's got it all together without breaking a sweat, but I constantly worry about how I am doing. I doubt everything I do. I am certain most of the things I do could be better if done by someone else.

10. Interacting with children. They freak me out and I just want them to go back to their parents.

I am pretty sure I am going to need to stop sucking at these things if I want to have a full, healthy life. So, I figure starting at the top of the list is the best place to get things rolling. In other words, I'm back bitches!

...At least for now.

love love love...

this song and video.

everyone is doing it

So, everyone is doing this whole "25 random things about yourself" on facebook, and I am refusing to do it...on there. I keep reading them, and I like learning these things about people who I thought I knew pretty well. I debated finally posting one on there, but I've decided to do it here. As I formulated my list in my head, I realized that they're not things I want all my "friends" on facebook learning. My one or two readers at 11:11 can learn them instead.

1. I never go anywhere without my Ipod. It is either in my jacket pocket, my car, my carry-on, etc. I hate being away from my music. You never know when a situation calls for just the right tune.

2. I think my Grandma Bretz is one of the most important people in my life. I think she is the one family member I am most like. She has always seemed to understand me in ways others couldn't.

3. I told my trainer that I want to work out to develop a healthy, active lifestyle. I really want to have the body of Ryan Gosling circa Half Nelson. I don't believe it will every happen.

4. I have created two television series in my head that I think are inspired. I can tell you pretty much everything that will happen to the characters up to about four or five seasons. One is about the end of a relationship and features flashbacks of when the couple was still together. The other is about the social stratification and drama in a hotel. I want Aaron Sorkin to help me write it.

5. I have two tattoos. I want three more.

6. I don't believe in "the one," or marriage for that matter. Why can't people just be in a relationship and if it doesn't work it doesn't work?

7. Men's clothing/fashion gets me more excited than most things in life. My heart literally races when I go shopping and find things I love.

8. I try not to regret anything in life, though I seriously wish I would have kept in touch more with some of my friends in high school. I wish I wasn't so terrified that they would think less of me now.

9. I was in love only once. It hurt. It still does.

10. My biggest fear is that I will just be average.

11. My second is that I will never find someone to fall in love with again. Am I doomed to spend the rest of my life without a partner? Who will surprise me with dirty messages on the fridge?

12. Charlotte from Sex and the City touched me more than any TV character ever could because of number 11. She said to the girls, “Maybe we could be each other’s soul mates. And men could be these great nice guys to have fun with." I believe my friends are my soul mates, and I could think of no other people I would rather spend my life with.

13. Wall-E is the greatest love story I have ever seen.

14. I act like my family is not that important to me, but I named my blog after the street number of the house I grew up in (also a Rufus Wainwright song). They mean more to me than I would ever let on.

15. A college instructor once told me that sometimes "life just gets in the way of living." I understand that.

16. College was truly some of the greatest years of my life..so far.

17. The saddest day of my life was my last day in Bloomington. I left behind so much, and I cried the entire drive home.

18. I have to finish lunch and dinner with something sweet. I go crazy if I don't get sugar after a meal.

19. One of the greatest pleasures I have ever experienced is the simple joy of sitting outside on a summer evening enjoying drinks with friends. I long for another summer of this.

20. I am a terrible singer, but I love to do it.

21. I have a finally found an apartment I feel at home in.

22. I always have iced tea in my fridge. Not that shitty instant stuff or the kind you buy at the store either. I make my own. My mom makes the best iced tea ever, and everyone in my family tries so hard to do it as well as her.

23. I feel most free on the dancefloor.

24. I had just signed a lease on the apartment I shared with Chad after moving to Indy when I was offered a teaching job in Southern IN at the school I student taught at. I turned it down. I lied to my family and said they wanted someone with media experience like yearbook.

25. I shudder every time I think what my life would have been like had I accepted the position. I think it was one my best decisions ever. I would have never met some of the people I now love. I would not have some of the most amazing experiences I know. I would feel so average and it would have been the closest thing to a nightmare to me.

to be wonderful in the world

I had the pleasure of viewing Revolutionary Road last night conmiga Angela. If brevity is your thing, the movie is in one word: intense. If you prefer more descriptors, I can toss in visionary, frightening, and dark.

Winselt and DiCaprio soar as a 30 something couple, April and Frank Wheeler, trying to recover some semblance of their idealism they had before kids and marriage and suburbia. He wanted to be a passionate thinker, she wanted to be an actress, and instead they ended up in a house on Revolutionary Road wishing they were anywhere else. They develop a plan to move to Paris to reclaim what they lost, and we know from the moment the plan is presented it will never work for them. And, oh boy, when it doesn't work does the shit hit the fan.

Every character in this movie is expertly played and nuanced to create a breathtaking picture of marital decay. Michael Shannon is bitingly fantastic as the loony John Givings throwing everything in the faces of our couple. Winslet and DiCaprio don't just take bites out of each other, they tear huge pieces and spit them in the other's face. These are two outstanding actors doing their best work I've seen them do under the guidance of the brilliant Sam Mendes.

Brilliant Moments:

-The opening party scene where April and Frank first glance one another through the crowd before chatting and dancing. A bit of calm before the storm.

-April dancing in a bar with their neighbor, Shep, before an embarassing moment(and I do mean moment) of extramarital coitus.

-April's painful breakfast with her husband on the day of his big promotion. I obviously need to see The Reader because this scene alone should score Winslet an Oscar.

when the hotel doesn't deliver the lolz...

Or maybe it does. Like why the hell does the valet talk? He has been chatting on his Bluetooth for about 30 minutes now gesticulating and getting a little too into his conversation. Essentially he looks like some ass-hat warden guarding the doors of this nuthouse.

Then some random female guest with sizeable (read huge) thighs is wearing a mini skirt and boots. It's not even 8:00am. No one is buying what you're selling. Trot on.

I am forced to watch ESPN because I guess there is some big sporting event on television today. I plan on going to see a movie (Revolutionary Road or The Wrestler) and have some drinks later. I suppose I'll have to Boonville Tivo the Superbowl.

I smell an Amber Alert! Who the shit lets their three kids ranging in age from what looks like five to two walk around a huge-ass hotel by themselves? The best thing is if those kids did go missing, I know the parents would think very clearly and calmly before blaming the whole mess on me, the MOD today. "Ma'm, I am so sorry I wasn't keeping a better eye on your children. Sir, I completely forgot that I had to be their surrogate parent while you were hungover this morning."

OMG, the ass-hat valet is now singing James Blunt's "You're Beautiful." Because that song wasn't horrible enough, I guess. He talks and sings and says random things. I can't take this torture.

seven

I went out on a completely enjoyable date last night (number 7 I might add, it's a new record). I got picked up in the lovely Mini Cooper with seat warmers -if those aren't the way to a guy's heart I don't know what is. We dined at Mama Corolla's in Broad Ripple. I had been past there many times but this was my first visit. It is hard not to have an enjoyable experience there, and it's not just attributed to the service or food though both are excellent. The Italian eatery glows with life and laughter from the chatty regulars to the overall warm tones of the dining area. There were a couple of tables of ladies who were having an absolute ball there. While some may find the excessive merriment distracting, I found it brought out the conviviality of our own conversation.



On the subject of conversation, I broached the relationship area with him. 7 dates in isn't too early, right? I was pleased with the response. He hasn't been in a significant relationship in close to 2.5 years, so I was grateful that my 3 years didn't sound freakish or something. He's been on many dates but none leading anywhere lasting in the time since. It basically sounds like we have been in the same dating purgatory; I believe the natives call it Indy.



All together it was a very nice night. We went back to my place and finished off my expensive ass, yet delightful bottle of red wine. He made fun of my music and said he had never heard of any of "these people" (I thought everyone knew Adele, Ray LaMontaigne, Me'Shell, and the gang). A pending sleepover was floated, which I wholeheartedly endorsed. And the snogging was pretty par excellence.



It was a nice night.

life in 2009 in the new place

After a nice dinner with some fantastic red wine, I realize just how much I am enjoying my new place and the New Year in general. I have settled in quite nicely, and I am still adjusting to some of the changes of living downtown (one parking ticket and one tow in a month, I guess it could be worse). Things at work are going even better than last year as I feel more and more like I have a firm grasp on everything. Plus I have a been on a record 6 dates with someone and am eagerly anticipating more. For once I have met a guy in Indy who is not a loser or crazy or so on. It feels nice, and I am looking very forward to the rest of the year.

On another note after listening to Adele's 19 album while preparing dinner, I am sad that she is probably going to get shut out at the Grammy's. Her album is still enjoyably listenable with more control and nuance than Amy Winehouse. It's sad she doesn't get anywhere near as much attention.

i know you don't understand me...i don't understand me

Maybe I am one of the few people out there who still really loves my friends at Seattle Grace but with scenes like these, how can you not?




I also have actually enjoyed the Izzie and Denny story line. I loved when it finally became clear to Izzie just what the hell had been going on.

10 fave albums of 2008

I know I know, I'm a bit behind on this. There were some delays on getting the interwebs set up at the new place, plus just transitioning and all that entails. Since I am no where near ready to give you a rundown of my fave movies of 08 (I live in the Midwest; we're the last ones to get the good movies), I can at least give you my fave albums. In a year dominated by large scale albums that aren't much my style (My Morning Jacket, Guns n Roses, Metallica, etc.), I was able to find some exciting new artists with outstanding material.

You can laugh all you want... I really had some difficulty nailing down my number 10 choice. I was close to selecting Adele's 19 or even Beyonce, but the Jonas Brothers won out. A Little Bit Longer is an immediately listenable album with unabashed pop joy behind every beat. While I found the title track a little schlocky, I loved "Burning Up" and "Lovebug." And yeah, I have been labeled a bit of a dork since proclaiming my love of this album during the summer.

I was surprised to not see more of this one on year end lists. I adore Rilo Kiley, so I knew I had to check out Jenny Lewis' Acid Tongue. She proves to be one of the most innovative women to be working in music today. While working with a whole host of guest vocalists (including Elvis Costello and Zooey Deschanel), she created simple, rousing melodies, such as the title track, and also brings down the house with tracks like "Jack Killed Mom" and "The Next Messiah."

Vampire Weekend unleashed a great debut album that had me running to the lake house in boat shoes and a cardigan. With a New England sensibility, this eponymous album showcased some dancey pop rock tunes with a collegiate wit and wink. "Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa," "A-Punk," and "Oxford Comma" are just a few of the highlights. This one is perfect for summer vacations, and for feelings of self-entitlement.

A whole host of influences and styles make up the Oregon band Blitzen Trapper's album Furr. At times they are at their Pacific Northwest folksy best like the feel good title track, before heading into territory that reminds the listener of Beck like on "Black River Killer." I also thought I heard some Bob Dylan and Scissor Sisters in there as well. This album does not disappoint in creating a whole gamut of sounds.

Apparently Conor Oberst is the lead singer of Bright Eyes, a band I heard of many times but never really listened to before. He then goes to Mexico to record an album that reeks of Americana and life of the road sensibility. It works wonderfully, and I am intensely jealous. The album feels amazingly organic, and all I wanted to do was be there hanging out with him and his friends while they were recording because it sounded so damn fun. Tracks to check out include "Moab," "Souled Out," "Get-Well-Cards," and, well, the entire album.

Never one too big into rap music, curiosity still got the best of me this summer when heaps of praise were being poured out on Lil' Wayne's Tha Carter III. The praise was well deserved, and before Michael Phelps could ruin it for me like he did so much else this past year, I was hooked on the album. The rhymes go beyond typical hip hop drivel into ominous territory, but Wayne still brings the fun on some tracks. I know I partied to "Mrs. Officer" many a time this year.

I first learned of Jay Brannan from the movie Shortbus in which he got quite a bit of attention for his song "Soda Shop." I kind of forgot about him until I saw his video for "Housewife" this summer, and I decided to give the rest of the album a listen. Jay crafts songs that are lyrically brilliant carried by a fitting melody, but in most of his tracks he doesn't let it end there. Somewhere near the end of a track, he throws in a jarring curve ball that takes the song in an entirely different direction that makes the overall picture much stronger. For instances of this, listen to "Home," "Bowlegged and Starving," "On All Fours," and the potent title track.

Though I love Blackout more, Circus is definitely one of Britney's strongest albums ever. The biggest plus this has over her last album is the vocals sound like she was actually there in the studio instead of maybe singing them over her cell phone on the way to a court hearing. "Womanizer" and its video proved Britney was back in a stronger way than "Gimme More." She followed that up with the even stronger "Circus" video which might be my new fave video of hers. Plus "Unusual You became my all time favorite Brit song. Tickets to the Circus this April just sweeten the pot.

I have never really been a Coldplay fan. Sure they have produced some nice singles in the past, but they always reminded me of the ever overrated U2. Viva La Vida changed all of that for me. While the single almost got me molested by a rabid Coldplay fan in bar because someone had to scream out how much I loved the song, the title track is only the start of even greater songs found on the album. "Strawberry Swing" may very well be one of my favorite songs of the year. "Violet Hill" and "Lost!" are both brilliant entries. I only wish I didn't have to look at all those pictures on said fan's camera phone while trying to get my drink on. Coldplay: Bringing the crazy when you least want it.

Like my lover Netflix, Itunes rarely steers me wrong. In May of this year, they recommended I check out Santogold's eponymous album. I did some previewing, saw it was 7.99, and bought it up. This album still gets loads of play time from me, and I am sure will be looked back upon as one of the most important LP's of the year. I find the comparison's to MIA valid but a little annoying. Yes, she does sound quite a bit like the rap star, but Santi White has made an even more cohesive, listenable album than Kala was last year. "L.E.S Artistes" is pop music magic, I danced it out with Mer and Christina to "Creator" as well, and mellowed out to "Light's Out." With every track a standout, I look forward to hearing and maybe seeing more of this musician in the future.

Honorable Mentions: Kings of Leon Only by the Night, John Legend's Evolver, Adele's 19, Beyonce's I am...Sasha Fierce, MGMT's Oracular Spectacular, Janelle Monae's Metropolis, and Racheal Yamagata's Elephants...Teeth Sinking in to Heart.

Tracks I couldn't stop listening to this year:

Beyonce's "Single Ladies"

Estelle's "American Boy"

Jason Mraz's "I'm Yours"

Chris Brown's "Forever"

Rihanna's "Disturbia"

Katy Perry's "Hot n Cold"

Leann Womack's "Last Call"

Lily Allen's "The Fear"

Miley Cyrus' "Seven Things"

My biggest disappointment this year was Pink's Funhouse album. Did she call it that to deceive us? It was anything but fun from a singer I am usually so thrilled by.