Tuesday, November 29, 2011

Heard and seen

I saw:

It's been an eventful few days. Mostly.. hopeful. I celebrated Thanksgiving away from my mother's delicious cooking, my dad's snoring and my even louder brother(all which i miss..especially my dad's ability to fall asleep at any given moment. literally). I made, in my opinion, a pretty damn good vegan thanksgiving dinner for some great guys and impressively drank many glasses of wine and whiskey without succumbing to a 33 year old hangover the next day.

We went to see The Muppets(so good) which made us nostalgic for the old episodes the following day. I'm glad we had a few on DVD. It's like SNL, but with puppets. SNL, but awesome. SNL with Eddie Murphy...you feel me. It operates in such a friendly space in the world. You forgive, you're accountable, you laugh, you lend a hand, you sing a song with Paul Simon, etc. But this is all done genuinely. There's really nothing forced about understanding the good, flawed and real nature of these characters.

P.S. I saw Like Crazy. It's all kinds of tiny emotional tortures. Initially sweet and optimistic, details seem to be the make or breaking point, which is very unromantic(but realistic all the same, right?). A part of me wanted them to give up altogether.

I would also like to feel less cynical.

I heard:

A little plug and love for a Baltimore local label. We listened to this while making thanksgiving lattes at work. Friends Records released a compilation of what seems like a pretty good lineup of Baltimore bands. There's a few winners, dance favorites and Baltimore staples. Check it out!

The cool kids seem to think this is fun or something..they are right! Cheers to the youth of Baltimore and their ability to embrace a good dance song. Does he sound like dracula light?

Tuesday, November 22, 2011

Monday, November 14, 2011

One computer, two

I hope you are still out there in the web world. I'm computerless these days. Also, I seem to be the destroyer of all these electronic.. my backup laptop has also breathed its last. While I didn't do anything to break either of these, I may be cursed. Don't let me around your electronics, unless I ask nicely.

There's much to say. This Penn State scandal, or as a writer put so eloquently, Sex scandal infers that there was consensual sex involved which children can't consent to. Let's call it what it is. A child abuse/rape scandal. Let's not go to further because I'll say things that are not...tasteful(that doesn't usually affect my non-filtered sentiments) .

Read this.


I'll be back when I'm properly equipped with my new netbook.

Thursday, November 3, 2011

Your mom is who?

I'm not sure why, but lately I've been trying to find documentaries about families. Families dealing with the past, possible reconciliations, small town guilt, individuality, etc. So I remembered Prodigal Sons.

I'm not sure if this life could have been written. This small town family from Montana was, well, not your stereotypical small town family. I guess in some ways, as young children, they embodied that stereotype. They had a loving father, creative sibling relationships, active in their small high school, etc. For the most part, a close knit and emotionally expressive family on the outside, but those factors were a reflection of youth and memorable photos. They became adults and..please see this. It's surprising and really well done, I loved it. It starts off a little slow but unravels in ways that initially make you wonder if it's a well crafted drama. It's not.





So this one might be a little difficult to see, but I feel compelled to watch it. The local independent video store doesn't have it yet(though it was released in 2007). It's the story of Allis and Charley. They were separated for several years because of work so they kept in touch via audio tapes and letters(all which Allis saved). These aren't love letters. They aren't even remotely pleasant, but it's their life. After the wife's death, she leaves this personal history behind, sealed with a message: Must Read After My Death. Her grandson unlocks this troubling world explaining a great deal about Allis, her children and who they have become as adults. It's not a new story, it's been told before: Artifacts and remnants of a horrible marriage discovered years later. But no matter how many times It's told, each story IS a different family with different outcomes and tragedies. To me, that's a timeless tale. I hope I find this soon.




Happy hibernating.