Wednesday, February 23, 2005
here comes this thing
This done brung to my attention by Hillary, of course.
1. I’ve never attended the universities of Copenhagen and Leipzig.
2. I’ve never bought any astronomical instruments.
3. I’ve never lost part of my nose in a duel with another student.
4. I’ve never worn a metal insert over the part of nose that I’ve never missed.
5. I’ve never observed the new star in Cassiopeia.
6. I’ve never been convinced that the improvement of astronomy hinged on accurate observations.
7. I’ve never accepted an offer from King Frederic II to fund an observatory.
8. I’ve never been given the little island of Hven in the Sont near Copenhagen.
9. I’ve never trained a generation of young astronomers in the art of observing.
10. I’ve never settled in Prague as the Imperial Mathematician at the court of Emperor Rudolph II.
This done brung to my attention by Hillary, of course.
1. I’ve never attended the universities of Copenhagen and Leipzig.
2. I’ve never bought any astronomical instruments.
3. I’ve never lost part of my nose in a duel with another student.
4. I’ve never worn a metal insert over the part of nose that I’ve never missed.
5. I’ve never observed the new star in Cassiopeia.
6. I’ve never been convinced that the improvement of astronomy hinged on accurate observations.
7. I’ve never accepted an offer from King Frederic II to fund an observatory.
8. I’ve never been given the little island of Hven in the Sont near Copenhagen.
9. I’ve never trained a generation of young astronomers in the art of observing.
10. I’ve never settled in Prague as the Imperial Mathematician at the court of Emperor Rudolph II.
anybody know anything about BitTorrent?
So I downloaded the BitTorrent program, and I hooked up to easytrees.com, or whatever. When I'd connect to a torrent, though, I'd always have a red light, and it would say I hadn't downloaded anything. But the FLAC files would still wind up on my computer. So I downloaded first one FLAC player and then another, but neither one will play any of the files I've apparently downloaded. Anyone know what's going on? The files seem to be on my computer, they're taking up a gig and a half thus far, but the BitTorrent client thing tells me I haven't downloaded anything, and the audio players can't read the files.
So I downloaded the BitTorrent program, and I hooked up to easytrees.com, or whatever. When I'd connect to a torrent, though, I'd always have a red light, and it would say I hadn't downloaded anything. But the FLAC files would still wind up on my computer. So I downloaded first one FLAC player and then another, but neither one will play any of the files I've apparently downloaded. Anyone know what's going on? The files seem to be on my computer, they're taking up a gig and a half thus far, but the BitTorrent client thing tells me I haven't downloaded anything, and the audio players can't read the files.
Monday, February 21, 2005
a few points
1. This Kings of Leon song ain't so bad. I'd heard it on the radio a few times, and didn't think much of it. A couple dozen spins on Media Player, though, and now I'm a convert. I didn't dislike their first album half as much as I thought I would, and am actually kind of interested in hearing this new one.
2. I'm two-thirds of the way through Apocalypse Now (the redux), and I'm none too impressed. What a yawning chasm of aimlessness. I'm over two hours in, and the point he's been repetitively hammering home wore thin at about the 45th minute. Yeah, great, war's fuckin' nuts, and these kids don't know shit, and Fishburne was one ugly kid, okay, yes, we get it, dude. What a sprawling mess. Points for Chef's partial Van Dyke, though.
3. After ten minutes of this past SNL I wanted to put a bullet through my head. Maybe that's what got to Thompson.
1. This Kings of Leon song ain't so bad. I'd heard it on the radio a few times, and didn't think much of it. A couple dozen spins on Media Player, though, and now I'm a convert. I didn't dislike their first album half as much as I thought I would, and am actually kind of interested in hearing this new one.
2. I'm two-thirds of the way through Apocalypse Now (the redux), and I'm none too impressed. What a yawning chasm of aimlessness. I'm over two hours in, and the point he's been repetitively hammering home wore thin at about the 45th minute. Yeah, great, war's fuckin' nuts, and these kids don't know shit, and Fishburne was one ugly kid, okay, yes, we get it, dude. What a sprawling mess. Points for Chef's partial Van Dyke, though.
3. After ten minutes of this past SNL I wanted to put a bullet through my head. Maybe that's what got to Thompson.
this movie review has some content, but none of it is worthwhile
Hoo boy, The Aviator was one damn good picture. But I fucking hate it when people call movies pictures. Tony, the guy who sits behind me, and wants to make IMAX movies, always calls them pictures, and half the time I have no idea what the hell he's talking about. I'm all for anachronistic vocabulary, but for some reason that one just rankles like nobody's business.
But so, The Aviator is a beaut. I've only seen two of the most acceptable picture nominees, and although Sideways is pretty good, The Aviator is far better. Sideways was about as "small" as a "small" movie could be. It was well-written and well-acted, but it didn't resonate or touch me in any way. And though the performances were good across the board, none of them were outstanding, or even all that notable. Giamatti's great in everything, but in Sideways he seemed to be doing his Harvey Pekar half the time. All that did was make me think of American Splendor, and how much more I liked that movie than this one. Virginia Madsen, one of the women most responsible for first acquainting me with the female anatomy, was fine and servicable, but nothing in her performance stood out as being extraordinary. She wasn't any better than Sandra Oh, for that matter. Lowell was probably the best of the main four, but he's always been a personal fave of mine, and his role didn't really seem like a stretch for him. Sideways is still probably one of the five best movies I've seen from 2004, but it can't even begin to touch the greatness of The Aviator, much less the real best picture, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind.
But back to the Aviator. It's a fantastic film. DiCaprio is excellent, surprisingly enough, putting in probably the best head acting job I've seen since American Splendor. I haven't seen Ray, so no idea if Foxx licks him in that dept, but it's odd how everybody's acting like it's a foregone conclusion. Is he that much better than DiCaprio? Or is sentimentality mucking stuff up? Would there be riots if they gave Foxx the supporting dude and Leo the other? Of course the actor category is about as fucked a one you can find. Crowe should have won in '99 and '01, but instead got it in '00. Denzel was entertaining in a flashy role, but Crowe's turn in This Beautiful Head was the only thing that defunked that film's miserable stench. He single-handedly made that film, but got shut out while it won every single other award ever created. But Leo is definitely a deserving champ, if only because he knows how to wear his mustaches.
Anyway, The Aviator was good. Better than Melvin and Howard, mostly because there were less Mary Steenburgen breasts. But that one rocked "Fortunate Son", so its got it's shit together too. Maybe it's a toss-up, then.
We hope to catch Ray before Sunday, and expect to watch Hotel Rwanda someday. That Peter Pan crap can go take a Brody, for all I care.
Hoo boy, The Aviator was one damn good picture. But I fucking hate it when people call movies pictures. Tony, the guy who sits behind me, and wants to make IMAX movies, always calls them pictures, and half the time I have no idea what the hell he's talking about. I'm all for anachronistic vocabulary, but for some reason that one just rankles like nobody's business.
But so, The Aviator is a beaut. I've only seen two of the most acceptable picture nominees, and although Sideways is pretty good, The Aviator is far better. Sideways was about as "small" as a "small" movie could be. It was well-written and well-acted, but it didn't resonate or touch me in any way. And though the performances were good across the board, none of them were outstanding, or even all that notable. Giamatti's great in everything, but in Sideways he seemed to be doing his Harvey Pekar half the time. All that did was make me think of American Splendor, and how much more I liked that movie than this one. Virginia Madsen, one of the women most responsible for first acquainting me with the female anatomy, was fine and servicable, but nothing in her performance stood out as being extraordinary. She wasn't any better than Sandra Oh, for that matter. Lowell was probably the best of the main four, but he's always been a personal fave of mine, and his role didn't really seem like a stretch for him. Sideways is still probably one of the five best movies I've seen from 2004, but it can't even begin to touch the greatness of The Aviator, much less the real best picture, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind.
But back to the Aviator. It's a fantastic film. DiCaprio is excellent, surprisingly enough, putting in probably the best head acting job I've seen since American Splendor. I haven't seen Ray, so no idea if Foxx licks him in that dept, but it's odd how everybody's acting like it's a foregone conclusion. Is he that much better than DiCaprio? Or is sentimentality mucking stuff up? Would there be riots if they gave Foxx the supporting dude and Leo the other? Of course the actor category is about as fucked a one you can find. Crowe should have won in '99 and '01, but instead got it in '00. Denzel was entertaining in a flashy role, but Crowe's turn in This Beautiful Head was the only thing that defunked that film's miserable stench. He single-handedly made that film, but got shut out while it won every single other award ever created. But Leo is definitely a deserving champ, if only because he knows how to wear his mustaches.
Anyway, The Aviator was good. Better than Melvin and Howard, mostly because there were less Mary Steenburgen breasts. But that one rocked "Fortunate Son", so its got it's shit together too. Maybe it's a toss-up, then.
We hope to catch Ray before Sunday, and expect to watch Hotel Rwanda someday. That Peter Pan crap can go take a Brody, for all I care.
Friday, February 18, 2005
Thursday, February 17, 2005
this should dominate late-night talk show monologues for the next decade or so
We don’t get into politics much here, but not because we don’t care. We just want to keep it light and breezy. We used to have all the typical political links over to the right, but we took ‘em down a few months ago. That shit’s better left for more serious-minded and astute observers, like our friends at Oceanchum, or this guy. But occasionally we feel the need to broach the subject, and please consider it to now be duly broached.
So let’s get this straight. A male prostitute, with no journalism experience, working for an obscure website run by Texas GOP operatives, gets credentialed, under an assumed name, for almost two years, to White House press conferences and briefings, wherein he asks biased questions that misstate and mischaracterize Democrat positions and speeches, and somehow gains access to classified CIA documents. But now pretty much no-one in the professional press will touch this story. Meanwhile, Howard Dean tells an unfunny, but fundamentally accurate, joke about the Republican Party, and I get to hear about Ken Mehlman accusing him of racism on my morning newscast and in my free daily commuter tabloid.
Do the White House and the RNC have incriminating photographs of every single member of the legitimate press? Or have they been dishing that cash out to more than just a few unethical shills?
(I started writing this on the train this morning, and now I see that the central point may no longer be valid. Apparently The Today Show and the New York Times both covered the Gannon / Guckert deal today. I'm going to post this anyhow, because the idea of a gay escort hustling his way into the White House is actually almost kind of awesome. I mean, kind of scary, in terms of security and stuff, but this guy should have one hell of a memoir, eventually. For more information, including stuff you probably shouldn't be looking at in the office, go to americablog.org, the folks who blew this wide open.)
We don’t get into politics much here, but not because we don’t care. We just want to keep it light and breezy. We used to have all the typical political links over to the right, but we took ‘em down a few months ago. That shit’s better left for more serious-minded and astute observers, like our friends at Oceanchum, or this guy. But occasionally we feel the need to broach the subject, and please consider it to now be duly broached.
So let’s get this straight. A male prostitute, with no journalism experience, working for an obscure website run by Texas GOP operatives, gets credentialed, under an assumed name, for almost two years, to White House press conferences and briefings, wherein he asks biased questions that misstate and mischaracterize Democrat positions and speeches, and somehow gains access to classified CIA documents. But now pretty much no-one in the professional press will touch this story. Meanwhile, Howard Dean tells an unfunny, but fundamentally accurate, joke about the Republican Party, and I get to hear about Ken Mehlman accusing him of racism on my morning newscast and in my free daily commuter tabloid.
Do the White House and the RNC have incriminating photographs of every single member of the legitimate press? Or have they been dishing that cash out to more than just a few unethical shills?
(I started writing this on the train this morning, and now I see that the central point may no longer be valid. Apparently The Today Show and the New York Times both covered the Gannon / Guckert deal today. I'm going to post this anyhow, because the idea of a gay escort hustling his way into the White House is actually almost kind of awesome. I mean, kind of scary, in terms of security and stuff, but this guy should have one hell of a memoir, eventually. For more information, including stuff you probably shouldn't be looking at in the office, go to americablog.org, the folks who blew this wide open.)
Wednesday, February 16, 2005
I thought it was gonna be about Abe Froman
Why hadn't I heard about this earlier?
I'm a fairly voracious consumer of news and information. I have been for years. I don't have cable, but I check CNN's website about twenty times a day. I regularly visit dozens of news sites of varying legitimacy, biases, and inclinations. And yet I've heard nothing about this, despite the murders happening years ago. Did it just now become a national story?
This culture has failed me.
Better hurry, dude; I'm sure somebody else has already started work on that book or movie.
Why hadn't I heard about this earlier?
I'm a fairly voracious consumer of news and information. I have been for years. I don't have cable, but I check CNN's website about twenty times a day. I regularly visit dozens of news sites of varying legitimacy, biases, and inclinations. And yet I've heard nothing about this, despite the murders happening years ago. Did it just now become a national story?
This culture has failed me.
Prosecutors argued that Alexander hatched a "diabolical plan" to kill the inspectors, get away with it by pleading insanity, then write a book or movie to profit and gain notoriety from the crime.
Better hurry, dude; I'm sure somebody else has already started work on that book or movie.
Tuesday, February 15, 2005
Jeopardy Ultimate Tournament of Champions
Day Three: Friday, February 11, 2005
It’s been a few days, so the memory’s a bit rusty. I remember Babu, an Indo-Pak history professor from Houston, and some girl who was completely anonymous. I also remember some tall white guy who had ridiculously angular, New Wave hair in his first appearance, which was only eight years ago. He was a speech-writer from Boston turned novelist, whose two books I had never heard of. That doesn’t mean anything, though, because I only read books written by professional wrestlers or Clive Cussler. Anyhow, I do remember that Babu was in command the whole way, before slipping up and slightly misspelling the correct question to Final Jeopardy. It’s All Quiet on the Western Front, and there’s no ’s anywhere in there. But poor Babu didn’t know that, or forgot, and so the Duran Duran guy wound up winning by a hundred bucks, or something similarly small-change. Afterward Babu lost his composure, shaking his finger at Trebek and repeatedly calling him a “very bad man”, degrading the great game and bringing eternal shame upon himself and his family.
Day Four: Monday, February 14, 2005
Great imbroglio last night, as an early rout evaporated after an ill-considered Daily Double. Alan Bailey, 2001 champion (and flowery playwright), built a commanding lead over 2000 college champ Janet Wong and 1987 Tournament of Champions runner-up (and Melissa Etheridge look-alike) David Traini. Bailey pissed it away on a $5000 wager on Movie Taglines, though, revealing a fundamental ignorance of The Manchurian Candidate. Candidate was released in 1962, not 1960, and the tagline “They trained him to kill for their pleasure… but they trained him a little too well…” makes no sense when applied to that film. The correct question, of course, was “What is Spartcaus?”, an alternate answer to which would be “the greatest film of all time.” But Bailey lost half his cash, got rattled something fierce, and reeled off a series of wrong questions that left him dead last and near zero. He battled back, gamely, but finished Double Jeopardy with less than half of Traini’s $12800, making his loss inevitable. And sure enough, Bailey correctly answered Final Jeopardy, but fell $800 short of Traini’s total, despite Traini’s getting it wrong. Yet again, the importance of the Daily Double is hammered home by Bailey’s daring but deadly ploy.
Day Three: Friday, February 11, 2005
It’s been a few days, so the memory’s a bit rusty. I remember Babu, an Indo-Pak history professor from Houston, and some girl who was completely anonymous. I also remember some tall white guy who had ridiculously angular, New Wave hair in his first appearance, which was only eight years ago. He was a speech-writer from Boston turned novelist, whose two books I had never heard of. That doesn’t mean anything, though, because I only read books written by professional wrestlers or Clive Cussler. Anyhow, I do remember that Babu was in command the whole way, before slipping up and slightly misspelling the correct question to Final Jeopardy. It’s All Quiet on the Western Front, and there’s no ’s anywhere in there. But poor Babu didn’t know that, or forgot, and so the Duran Duran guy wound up winning by a hundred bucks, or something similarly small-change. Afterward Babu lost his composure, shaking his finger at Trebek and repeatedly calling him a “very bad man”, degrading the great game and bringing eternal shame upon himself and his family.
Day Four: Monday, February 14, 2005
Great imbroglio last night, as an early rout evaporated after an ill-considered Daily Double. Alan Bailey, 2001 champion (and flowery playwright), built a commanding lead over 2000 college champ Janet Wong and 1987 Tournament of Champions runner-up (and Melissa Etheridge look-alike) David Traini. Bailey pissed it away on a $5000 wager on Movie Taglines, though, revealing a fundamental ignorance of The Manchurian Candidate. Candidate was released in 1962, not 1960, and the tagline “They trained him to kill for their pleasure… but they trained him a little too well…” makes no sense when applied to that film. The correct question, of course, was “What is Spartcaus?”, an alternate answer to which would be “the greatest film of all time.” But Bailey lost half his cash, got rattled something fierce, and reeled off a series of wrong questions that left him dead last and near zero. He battled back, gamely, but finished Double Jeopardy with less than half of Traini’s $12800, making his loss inevitable. And sure enough, Bailey correctly answered Final Jeopardy, but fell $800 short of Traini’s total, despite Traini’s getting it wrong. Yet again, the importance of the Daily Double is hammered home by Bailey’s daring but deadly ploy.
Monday, February 14, 2005
Right Up the Ass
Old chum Ludlam (aka Lord Douchebag) has a new weblog thing up over here. Dude's one of the smartest / funniest guys I've ever known. And I never properly thanked him for driving my ass to school every day back when. I was an ungrateful jerk, and I apologize, my friend, for everything.
Old chum Ludlam (aka Lord Douchebag) has a new weblog thing up over here. Dude's one of the smartest / funniest guys I've ever known. And I never properly thanked him for driving my ass to school every day back when. I was an ungrateful jerk, and I apologize, my friend, for everything.
Friday, February 11, 2005
Those Who Are About to Die Really Aren't Nearly As Good As They're Made Out to Be
Outer space aliens from a differing dimension have abducted the Fiery Furnaces and the Arcade Fire and plopped them down in the middle of an intergalactic gladiatorial mid-sized theater of death. Armed only with rave reviews from Pitchfork, "next big thing" tags from Spin, oceans of drool from bloggers and MySpacers, and their instruments, the two must wage bitter battle until only one still draws breath. A reference on Gilmore Girls acts like a turkey leg from Castlevania. Who wins?
The victor then must go on to face whoever survives the Most Overhyped Indie-rock Band of 2003 Finals between the Broken Social Scene and the Decemberists.
The super-secret, end-game, nigh-unbeatable Final Boss? C'mon.
Outer space aliens from a differing dimension have abducted the Fiery Furnaces and the Arcade Fire and plopped them down in the middle of an intergalactic gladiatorial mid-sized theater of death. Armed only with rave reviews from Pitchfork, "next big thing" tags from Spin, oceans of drool from bloggers and MySpacers, and their instruments, the two must wage bitter battle until only one still draws breath. A reference on Gilmore Girls acts like a turkey leg from Castlevania. Who wins?
The victor then must go on to face whoever survives the Most Overhyped Indie-rock Band of 2003 Finals between the Broken Social Scene and the Decemberists.
The super-secret, end-game, nigh-unbeatable Final Boss? C'mon.
Ultimate Tournament of Champions, Day Two
No let-up on the Jeopardy tourneys, as they head straight from the teen round-up to what they’re calling the “Ultimate Tournament of Champions”. 144 previous tourney champs or five-time winners are facing off in a blood-splattered melee of relentless intellectual prowess. Eventually only two shall remain standing, and they will get to face off against the synthetic Mormon brain of former media sensation and current immigrant smuggler Ken Jennings. It’s like Thanksgiving day for nerds, but only if they came back from the dead.
The shit began on Wednesday, in an episode even more forgettable than your typical Jeopardy. Three warriors from times long gone came back and slugged it out with their minds. I think one of them lost their hair. And one of them was in Groundhog Day, I think. But it was an uneventful half-hour, full of questions that were surprisingly not as difficult as we had expected. Some man, or woman, or somebody, won, I guess, but I can’t remember. I do know that the Final Jeopardy question was Ulysses S. Grant, and that I got it wrong.
Last night was a step in the right direction. The questions were harder, especially a category on conductors that reminded me of the Jeopardy of my youth, when cultural categories were generally about opera and classical music. Nowadays every other question is about Kiersten Dunst. They had a good range of contestants, too, including the earliest five-game winner in the tourney, John Genova, Jeopardy Class of ’84. I think he finished with $800. Rachael Schwarzt had the run of the joint early on; the first woman to ever win a Tournament of Champions, back in 1994, Schwarz took an early lead, and probably would have won had it not been for the Daily Doubles. She answered more questions correctly than the eventual winner in both rounds, but got her one Daily Double wrong. Michael Rankins, a preacher from somewhere or the other, who was a five-game winner in 1988, lucked into two Daily Doubles. Both times he wagered big, and twice reaped a whirlwind of digital cash. He was able to hold off Schwartz’s persistent advances and emerge victorious. Way to go, Michael!
Tonight three more ghosts from Trebek’s past return to tolerate him. Unfortunately none of them are his mustache. They briefly introduced them at the end of last night’s program, and of course they all had the unseemly countenance and sickly disposition of the professional pseudo-intellectual. Let’s hope they can provide some excitement.
I like Jeopardy, because I like yelling at my TV set.
No let-up on the Jeopardy tourneys, as they head straight from the teen round-up to what they’re calling the “Ultimate Tournament of Champions”. 144 previous tourney champs or five-time winners are facing off in a blood-splattered melee of relentless intellectual prowess. Eventually only two shall remain standing, and they will get to face off against the synthetic Mormon brain of former media sensation and current immigrant smuggler Ken Jennings. It’s like Thanksgiving day for nerds, but only if they came back from the dead.
The shit began on Wednesday, in an episode even more forgettable than your typical Jeopardy. Three warriors from times long gone came back and slugged it out with their minds. I think one of them lost their hair. And one of them was in Groundhog Day, I think. But it was an uneventful half-hour, full of questions that were surprisingly not as difficult as we had expected. Some man, or woman, or somebody, won, I guess, but I can’t remember. I do know that the Final Jeopardy question was Ulysses S. Grant, and that I got it wrong.
Last night was a step in the right direction. The questions were harder, especially a category on conductors that reminded me of the Jeopardy of my youth, when cultural categories were generally about opera and classical music. Nowadays every other question is about Kiersten Dunst. They had a good range of contestants, too, including the earliest five-game winner in the tourney, John Genova, Jeopardy Class of ’84. I think he finished with $800. Rachael Schwarzt had the run of the joint early on; the first woman to ever win a Tournament of Champions, back in 1994, Schwarz took an early lead, and probably would have won had it not been for the Daily Doubles. She answered more questions correctly than the eventual winner in both rounds, but got her one Daily Double wrong. Michael Rankins, a preacher from somewhere or the other, who was a five-game winner in 1988, lucked into two Daily Doubles. Both times he wagered big, and twice reaped a whirlwind of digital cash. He was able to hold off Schwartz’s persistent advances and emerge victorious. Way to go, Michael!
Tonight three more ghosts from Trebek’s past return to tolerate him. Unfortunately none of them are his mustache. They briefly introduced them at the end of last night’s program, and of course they all had the unseemly countenance and sickly disposition of the professional pseudo-intellectual. Let’s hope they can provide some excitement.
I like Jeopardy, because I like yelling at my TV set.
Thursday, February 10, 2005
holy heck, how wrong can it get?
Just got back from a lunch with a pal. This took me roughly 25 minutes to come up with (and a while to type them in). It is wrong- especially after number 8- but at this precise moment, it is almost right. A lot came out of Hillary and Darks' lists. Thanks for the inspiration, dudes!
1. Beach Boys - Surf's Up
2. Bruce Springsteen - Thunder Road
3. Talking Heads - Naive Melody (This Must Be The Place)
4. Wire - Outdoor Miner
5. Big Star - Thirteen
6. Beach Boys - God Only Knows
7. Go-Betweens - Cattle And Cane
8. Pixies - Debaser
9. Bruce Springsteen - Born To Run
10. Stone Roses - She Bangs the Drums
11. Daniel Johnston - Walking the Cow
12. OMD - Souvenir
13. New Order - Age of Consent
14. Fleetwood Mac - Gypsy
15. New Order - Ceremony
16. Ropers - You Have A Light
17. Fleetwood Mac - 2nd Hand News
18. Velvet Underground - I'm Beginning To See The Light
19. Elvis Costello - Radio Radio
20. Jackson 5 - I Want You Back
21. Gang Of Four - Damaged Goods
22. Big Star - Ballad of El Goodo
23. Joy Division - Love Will Tear Us Apart
24. Buzzcocks - Ever Fallen In Love...
25. Neil Young - Only Love Can Break Your Heart
26. Elizabeth Cotten - Shake Sugaree
27. Postal Workers Cancelling Stamps at University of Ghana
28. the song "Beyond the Sea"
29. the song "What a Wonderful World" (oh shit, cheesy)
30. Kinks - Days
31. Beatles - I'm Looking Through You
32. Nerves - Hangin' On The Telephone
33. GBV - Game Of Pricks
34. Stone Roses - Elephant Stone
35. Go-Betweens - Right Here
36. They Might Be Giants - Ana Ng
37. Who - The Kids Are Alright
38. Desmond Dekker - Shantytown
39. Four Tops - It's the Same Old Song
40. Clash - Police On My Back
41. Daniel Johnston - Honey I Sure Miss You
42. Television - Days
43. Clean - Billy Two
44. Clean - Anything Could Happen
45. Small Factory - If You Hurt Me
46. Tom Petty - I Won't Back Down
47. Byrds - Feel A Whole Lot Better
48. Husker Du - Celebrated Summer
49. Replacements - Can't Hardly Wait (Tim Version)
50. REM - Wolves, Lower
51. REM - Gardening At Night
52. Kinks - Picture Book
53. Pavement - Gold Soundz
54. Who - Substitute
55. Buzzcocks - I don't Mind
56. Chairmen Of The Board - Give Me Just A Little More Time
57. Marvin Gaye - Mercy
58. REM - Sitting Still
59. Pixies - Here Comes Your Man
60. REM - So. Central Rain
61. Unrest - Make Out Club
62. Nico - These Days
63. Supremes - You Can't Hurry Love
64. Jimmy Cliff - The Harder They Come
65. Superchunk - Why Do You Have To Put A Date On Everything?
66. Sugar - If I Can't Change Your Mind
67. CSNY - Suite: Judy Blue Eyes
68. Donovan - Colours
69. Bruce Springsteen - Atlantic City
70. Talking Heads - Found A Job
71. Chills - Rolling Moon
72. Bob Mould - See A Little Light
73. Velvet Underground - I'm Sticking With You
74. Go-Betweens - Part Company
75. Big Country - In a Big Country
76. Journey - Don't Stop Believing
77. Only Ones - Another Girl Another Planet
78. REM -
79. Smiths - There Is A Light That Never Goes Out
80. Bruce Springsteen - Brilliant Disguise
81. Belle And Sebastian - The State I Am In
82. Rolling Stones - Under My Thumb
83. Huey Lewis & the News - Walking On a Thin Line
Just got back from a lunch with a pal. This took me roughly 25 minutes to come up with (and a while to type them in). It is wrong- especially after number 8- but at this precise moment, it is almost right. A lot came out of Hillary and Darks' lists. Thanks for the inspiration, dudes!
1. Beach Boys - Surf's Up
2. Bruce Springsteen - Thunder Road
3. Talking Heads - Naive Melody (This Must Be The Place)
4. Wire - Outdoor Miner
5. Big Star - Thirteen
6. Beach Boys - God Only Knows
7. Go-Betweens - Cattle And Cane
8. Pixies - Debaser
9. Bruce Springsteen - Born To Run
10. Stone Roses - She Bangs the Drums
11. Daniel Johnston - Walking the Cow
12. OMD - Souvenir
13. New Order - Age of Consent
14. Fleetwood Mac - Gypsy
15. New Order - Ceremony
16. Ropers - You Have A Light
17. Fleetwood Mac - 2nd Hand News
18. Velvet Underground - I'm Beginning To See The Light
19. Elvis Costello - Radio Radio
20. Jackson 5 - I Want You Back
21. Gang Of Four - Damaged Goods
22. Big Star - Ballad of El Goodo
23. Joy Division - Love Will Tear Us Apart
24. Buzzcocks - Ever Fallen In Love...
25. Neil Young - Only Love Can Break Your Heart
26. Elizabeth Cotten - Shake Sugaree
27. Postal Workers Cancelling Stamps at University of Ghana
28. the song "Beyond the Sea"
29. the song "What a Wonderful World" (oh shit, cheesy)
30. Kinks - Days
31. Beatles - I'm Looking Through You
32. Nerves - Hangin' On The Telephone
33. GBV - Game Of Pricks
34. Stone Roses - Elephant Stone
35. Go-Betweens - Right Here
36. They Might Be Giants - Ana Ng
37. Who - The Kids Are Alright
38. Desmond Dekker - Shantytown
39. Four Tops - It's the Same Old Song
40. Clash - Police On My Back
41. Daniel Johnston - Honey I Sure Miss You
42. Television - Days
43. Clean - Billy Two
44. Clean - Anything Could Happen
45. Small Factory - If You Hurt Me
46. Tom Petty - I Won't Back Down
47. Byrds - Feel A Whole Lot Better
48. Husker Du - Celebrated Summer
49. Replacements - Can't Hardly Wait (Tim Version)
50. REM - Wolves, Lower
51. REM - Gardening At Night
52. Kinks - Picture Book
53. Pavement - Gold Soundz
54. Who - Substitute
55. Buzzcocks - I don't Mind
56. Chairmen Of The Board - Give Me Just A Little More Time
57. Marvin Gaye - Mercy
58. REM - Sitting Still
59. Pixies - Here Comes Your Man
60. REM - So. Central Rain
61. Unrest - Make Out Club
62. Nico - These Days
63. Supremes - You Can't Hurry Love
64. Jimmy Cliff - The Harder They Come
65. Superchunk - Why Do You Have To Put A Date On Everything?
66. Sugar - If I Can't Change Your Mind
67. CSNY - Suite: Judy Blue Eyes
68. Donovan - Colours
69. Bruce Springsteen - Atlantic City
70. Talking Heads - Found A Job
71. Chills - Rolling Moon
72. Bob Mould - See A Little Light
73. Velvet Underground - I'm Sticking With You
74. Go-Betweens - Part Company
75. Big Country - In a Big Country
76. Journey - Don't Stop Believing
77. Only Ones - Another Girl Another Planet
78. REM -
79. Smiths - There Is A Light That Never Goes Out
80. Bruce Springsteen - Brilliant Disguise
81. Belle And Sebastian - The State I Am In
82. Rolling Stones - Under My Thumb
83. Huey Lewis & the News - Walking On a Thin Line
straight off these cuffs
As requested by Gardner Linn, and brought to my attention by Hillary, here's a quickly dashed off list of my favorite songs. There's some overlap between this list and Hillary's, but her list has not influenced mine in the least. I'm sure this isn't entirely accurate; it's merely a quickly planned, poorly thought-out approximation. Yes sir.
1. Under Pressure, Queen and David Bowie
2. Don’t Fear the Reaper, Blue Oyster Cult
3. Born to Run, Bruce Springsteen
4. Make-Out Club, Unrest
5. Can’t Hardly Wait (Tim version), the Replacements
6. A Day in the Life, the Beatles
7. Ace of Spades, Motorhead
8. Sister Ray, Velvet Underground
9. Crimson and Clover, Tommy James and the Shondells
10. Baba O’Riley, the Who
11. Kanga Roo, Big Star
12. Here, Pavement
13. Celebrated Summer, Husker Du
14. Gimme Just a Little More Time, the Chairmen of the Board
15. Some Enchanted Evening, Rodgers and Hammerstein
16. More Than a Feeling, Boston
17. Simple Man, Lynard Skynard
18. With or Without You, U2
19. Brand New Love, Sebadoh
20. Throwing Things, Superchunk
21. I Wanna Destroy You, the Soft Boys
22. No Action, Elvis Costello
23. Outdoor Miner, Wire
24. In Between Days, the Cure
25. Age of Consent, New Order
26. Double Shot of My Baby’s Love, the Swinging Medallions
27. History Lesson Part Two, the Minutemen
28. Don't Stop Believin', Journey
29. At Home He’s a Tourist, Gang of Four
30. Bye Bye Pride, the Go-Betweens
31. And Your Bird Can Sing, the Beatles
32. Another Girl, Another Planet, the Only Ones
33. Hollywood Nights, Bob Seger
34. theme from the Midnight Express, Giorgio Moroder
35. Hangin’ on the Telephone, the Nerves
36. Woman, Woman, Gary Puckett and the Union Gap
37. Shocker in Gloomtown, Guided by Voices
38. Blue Moon, Big Star
39. Eternal Flame, the Bangles
40. In a Jar, Dinosaur Jr
41. Makes No Sense at All, Husker Du
42. I’m on Fire, Bruce Springsteen
43. Warpigs, Black Sabbath
44. Atlantic City, Bruce Springsteen
45. Frankenstein, Johnny Winter
46. Lucky Man, ELP
47. Spacetruckin’, Deep Purple
48. Web in Front, Archers of Loaf
49. Wouldn’t it Be Nice, Beach Boys
50. Grey Cell Green, Ned’s Atomic Dustbin
As requested by Gardner Linn, and brought to my attention by Hillary, here's a quickly dashed off list of my favorite songs. There's some overlap between this list and Hillary's, but her list has not influenced mine in the least. I'm sure this isn't entirely accurate; it's merely a quickly planned, poorly thought-out approximation. Yes sir.
1. Under Pressure, Queen and David Bowie
2. Don’t Fear the Reaper, Blue Oyster Cult
3. Born to Run, Bruce Springsteen
4. Make-Out Club, Unrest
5. Can’t Hardly Wait (Tim version), the Replacements
6. A Day in the Life, the Beatles
7. Ace of Spades, Motorhead
8. Sister Ray, Velvet Underground
9. Crimson and Clover, Tommy James and the Shondells
10. Baba O’Riley, the Who
11. Kanga Roo, Big Star
12. Here, Pavement
13. Celebrated Summer, Husker Du
14. Gimme Just a Little More Time, the Chairmen of the Board
15. Some Enchanted Evening, Rodgers and Hammerstein
16. More Than a Feeling, Boston
17. Simple Man, Lynard Skynard
18. With or Without You, U2
19. Brand New Love, Sebadoh
20. Throwing Things, Superchunk
21. I Wanna Destroy You, the Soft Boys
22. No Action, Elvis Costello
23. Outdoor Miner, Wire
24. In Between Days, the Cure
25. Age of Consent, New Order
26. Double Shot of My Baby’s Love, the Swinging Medallions
27. History Lesson Part Two, the Minutemen
28. Don't Stop Believin', Journey
29. At Home He’s a Tourist, Gang of Four
30. Bye Bye Pride, the Go-Betweens
31. And Your Bird Can Sing, the Beatles
32. Another Girl, Another Planet, the Only Ones
33. Hollywood Nights, Bob Seger
34. theme from the Midnight Express, Giorgio Moroder
35. Hangin’ on the Telephone, the Nerves
36. Woman, Woman, Gary Puckett and the Union Gap
37. Shocker in Gloomtown, Guided by Voices
38. Blue Moon, Big Star
39. Eternal Flame, the Bangles
40. In a Jar, Dinosaur Jr
41. Makes No Sense at All, Husker Du
42. I’m on Fire, Bruce Springsteen
43. Warpigs, Black Sabbath
44. Atlantic City, Bruce Springsteen
45. Frankenstein, Johnny Winter
46. Lucky Man, ELP
47. Spacetruckin’, Deep Purple
48. Web in Front, Archers of Loaf
49. Wouldn’t it Be Nice, Beach Boys
50. Grey Cell Green, Ned’s Atomic Dustbin
Wednesday, February 09, 2005
Arrested Development in Trouble?
I'm surprised it's lasted this long, despite the awards and reviews. If the producers weren't mind-numbingly powerful, I'm sure it would have been gone by January of '04.
If this is a cancellation, Fox will regret it. Arrested Development's ratings are relatively poor now, but the way the networks are going, those same numbers will be respectable in a couple of years.
I'm surprised it's lasted this long, despite the awards and reviews. If the producers weren't mind-numbingly powerful, I'm sure it would have been gone by January of '04.
If this is a cancellation, Fox will regret it. Arrested Development's ratings are relatively poor now, but the way the networks are going, those same numbers will be respectable in a couple of years.
Tuesday, February 08, 2005
baseball people
So in our monumentally stupid and overwrought fantasy league we can hold onto five franchisers. If you have a player with rookie eligibility, you can keep him forever as a franchiser. I already know I'm keeping Johan Santana, Rich Harden, Joel Pineiro, and Bobby Crosby. I can't decide on the final slot, though, and was wondering what some of you thought. Which one would do you think I should keep, Chone Figgens, Wily Mo Pena, or David DeJesus? DeJesus is a long-shot, but I can't decide between Chone and Wily Mo. And they all can play center-field, which is a required position in our league. Chone, though, will also be eligible at second, should have a good average and lots of steals, and thus may be the best bet. But Pena hit 26 or so homers in a little over 300 at bats, and just turned 23 two weeks ago. So, what to do?
So in our monumentally stupid and overwrought fantasy league we can hold onto five franchisers. If you have a player with rookie eligibility, you can keep him forever as a franchiser. I already know I'm keeping Johan Santana, Rich Harden, Joel Pineiro, and Bobby Crosby. I can't decide on the final slot, though, and was wondering what some of you thought. Which one would do you think I should keep, Chone Figgens, Wily Mo Pena, or David DeJesus? DeJesus is a long-shot, but I can't decide between Chone and Wily Mo. And they all can play center-field, which is a required position in our league. Chone, though, will also be eligible at second, should have a good average and lots of steals, and thus may be the best bet. But Pena hit 26 or so homers in a little over 300 at bats, and just turned 23 two weeks ago. So, what to do?
Monday, February 07, 2005
I'm not the only one who was apathetic
I guess rioting and hooliganism can get dull after a few years of winning. There was lots of screaming on our block when the game ended, but nothing like when the Sox won, and not nearly as much as after last year's Super Bowl. No debris or newspaper boxes in the middle of the road or anything this morning. Pretty damn dull. We saw cops setting up blue barricades on Brighton Ave, in front of the Kells, two hours before the game even began, so they were prepared.
The complete lack of any post-game excitement didn't keep Fox 25 from running an hour and a half of post-game coverage before showing The Simpsons. They'd keep on showing aerial views of Kenmore Square (near Fenway, sports bar central), where there were a thousand cops in riot gear standing around with nothing to do. They recapped the commercials and the half-time show, ran interviews with what seemed like every god-damned player and coach, and spent five minutes visiting a family in Lynn or Revere or somewhere who host annual massive SuperBowl parties in their house. Finally, right before midnight, they started to show The Simpsons. And of course it kind of sucked. But lordy was I pissed, and I wrote Fox 25 a very strongly worded email to let them know it.
Speaking of the Kells, by the way, they used to have a really great, cheap Sunday brunch, where you could get a stack of pancakes, fruit, and bacon for like four bucks. Back in the fall they changed their menu, and now all they serve is low-carb Asian food. It's an Irish pub with art-deco interior, Asian health food, and regular electro / techno / house dance nights. It no longer has any logical reason to exist.
Collins, who watched the game at The Kells in Brighton, spoke for millions in Patriots Nation who were surprised by the drama of last night's game, if not the outcome. He also could have been speaking for Boston police, who turned out in force and presided over street celebrations that were nearly nonexistent, in contrast to last year's deadly riots. The crowds were miniscule, and there were just a handful of arrests
I guess rioting and hooliganism can get dull after a few years of winning. There was lots of screaming on our block when the game ended, but nothing like when the Sox won, and not nearly as much as after last year's Super Bowl. No debris or newspaper boxes in the middle of the road or anything this morning. Pretty damn dull. We saw cops setting up blue barricades on Brighton Ave, in front of the Kells, two hours before the game even began, so they were prepared.
The complete lack of any post-game excitement didn't keep Fox 25 from running an hour and a half of post-game coverage before showing The Simpsons. They'd keep on showing aerial views of Kenmore Square (near Fenway, sports bar central), where there were a thousand cops in riot gear standing around with nothing to do. They recapped the commercials and the half-time show, ran interviews with what seemed like every god-damned player and coach, and spent five minutes visiting a family in Lynn or Revere or somewhere who host annual massive SuperBowl parties in their house. Finally, right before midnight, they started to show The Simpsons. And of course it kind of sucked. But lordy was I pissed, and I wrote Fox 25 a very strongly worded email to let them know it.
Speaking of the Kells, by the way, they used to have a really great, cheap Sunday brunch, where you could get a stack of pancakes, fruit, and bacon for like four bucks. Back in the fall they changed their menu, and now all they serve is low-carb Asian food. It's an Irish pub with art-deco interior, Asian health food, and regular electro / techno / house dance nights. It no longer has any logical reason to exist.
Things I Touched With My Hand This Weekend
door knob
car
wife
cup
toilet paper
Sealab season two dvd
Robert Pollard cd
computer mouse
movie ticket
spoon
sticky brown stain on wall of bathroom stall
cat
Sunday Boston Globe
bottle
Skygreen Leopards record
clothes
various foodstuffs
self
fork
remote control
video game controller
other cat
computer keyboard
Xacto knife
paper
water
plastic bags
smoke detector
door knob
car
wife
cup
toilet paper
Sealab season two dvd
Robert Pollard cd
computer mouse
movie ticket
spoon
sticky brown stain on wall of bathroom stall
cat
Sunday Boston Globe
bottle
Skygreen Leopards record
clothes
various foodstuffs
self
fork
remote control
video game controller
other cat
computer keyboard
Xacto knife
paper
water
plastic bags
smoke detector
Friday, February 04, 2005
co. tailgate party
Oh man, eatin' wings at nine in the morning, chinese swedish meatballs in a crockpot, fuckin' Dunkin everywhere, and all the ladies in their Vinatieri and Brady jerseys, the fellas in their Dillions and Seymours... it'd be a magical sight, if it weren't OUTTASITE!
What a great day to be a fuckin' New Englander, and a damn-hell-fuck Pats fan!
I hope I cancelled payment on that Mike Vick erotic cake I was gonna have delivered.
I'm gonna go eat a ton of shit and puke in my boss's toupee...
Oh man, eatin' wings at nine in the morning, chinese swedish meatballs in a crockpot, fuckin' Dunkin everywhere, and all the ladies in their Vinatieri and Brady jerseys, the fellas in their Dillions and Seymours... it'd be a magical sight, if it weren't OUTTASITE!
What a great day to be a fuckin' New Englander, and a damn-hell-fuck Pats fan!
I hope I cancelled payment on that Mike Vick erotic cake I was gonna have delivered.
I'm gonna go eat a ton of shit and puke in my boss's toupee...
Thursday, February 03, 2005
As Seen on TV
This morning, while looking for the temperature and an update on the Red Line explosion, there was a brief story about Tom Brady’s grandma dying. The on-screen graphic read “Tom Brady grieves dead grandmother”, or something like that. This was placed over a clip of Brady sitting on a car next to Mickey Mouse, laughing and waving. I don't think they could've found better file footage to accompany that headline.
I only know three things about football: Julius Peppers is a badass, the Falcons rock when they don't suck, and the Patriots are the most boring and eminently dislikable team around.
This morning, while looking for the temperature and an update on the Red Line explosion, there was a brief story about Tom Brady’s grandma dying. The on-screen graphic read “Tom Brady grieves dead grandmother”, or something like that. This was placed over a clip of Brady sitting on a car next to Mickey Mouse, laughing and waving. I don't think they could've found better file footage to accompany that headline.
I only know three things about football: Julius Peppers is a badass, the Falcons rock when they don't suck, and the Patriots are the most boring and eminently dislikable team around.
Wednesday, February 02, 2005
Tuesday, February 01, 2005
Dignity and Shame
Crooked Fingers' new album, due out in a couple of weeks, is currently being streamed at their site. It seems pretty excellent thus far. That first single seemed a bit too Clem Snide for me, but the rest of it resembles the dusty American balladry of 2003's Red Devil Dawn. Who could have imagined, ten years ago, that the guy who wrote "Audiowhore" would mature into a cross between Stephin Merritt and Bruce Springsteen?
UPDATE: Okay, it's not just Dignity and Shame they're streaming. Seems to be a random assortment of songs taken from their entire body of work. Which means I may not be visiting any other websites soon; I can get pretty obsessive about Crooked Fingers. If I listen to one of their records I wind up wanting to listen to all of them, back to back. It's sort of like with Guided by Voices, or Pringles; once I pop I just can't stop. I've actually started loading every single GBV song that I can find on to my work pc, so that I can just load up the folder and put it on shuffle/repeat. That'll save me from having to lug a couple dozen cds to work every time I get on a Pollard kick.
Crooked Fingers' new album, due out in a couple of weeks, is currently being streamed at their site. It seems pretty excellent thus far. That first single seemed a bit too Clem Snide for me, but the rest of it resembles the dusty American balladry of 2003's Red Devil Dawn. Who could have imagined, ten years ago, that the guy who wrote "Audiowhore" would mature into a cross between Stephin Merritt and Bruce Springsteen?
UPDATE: Okay, it's not just Dignity and Shame they're streaming. Seems to be a random assortment of songs taken from their entire body of work. Which means I may not be visiting any other websites soon; I can get pretty obsessive about Crooked Fingers. If I listen to one of their records I wind up wanting to listen to all of them, back to back. It's sort of like with Guided by Voices, or Pringles; once I pop I just can't stop. I've actually started loading every single GBV song that I can find on to my work pc, so that I can just load up the folder and put it on shuffle/repeat. That'll save me from having to lug a couple dozen cds to work every time I get on a Pollard kick.
