When I move away, I’ll get my own blog and it will be nothing but useless lists. Until then, link-lists (with little to no book/writing related content) and the occasional embarrassing comment will likely be my only contribution to this fine robotblog:
- Michael Chabon writes about the good his MFA program, with its “regular exposure to the healing rays of healthy disillusion, and in particular the hard-earned skepticism of grown women,” did him. I very much like the end, where Chabon manages to mention Doritos and the smallness of our lives in a single paragraph. (The Doritos-&-life-is-finite combo. actually seems a pretty natural match. Doritos totally freak me out though, for reasons I won’t get into here). [Via Bookslut]
- I read “Black Hole” by Charles Burns this weekend and was mesmerized. Any recommendations of other graphic-novel/comic series that I should immediately read (besides Optic Nerve, Strangers in Paradise, and Jimmy Corrigan—my only other genuine forays into the genre) would be most welcome.
- None of the aforementioned comics brings me as much glee as my new favorite. I sure hope there is more to come, and soon. (Click the pictures to make them bigger.)
- The main squeeze and I saw “Thank You for Smoking”last weekend and both dug it (a two thumbs up from the Bizness/Squeeze duo is far rarer than the Ebert/Roeper variety). It was quick and fun; I’m not sure how long it will stick with me, particularly since it seemed to last a little over six minutes. The Michigan theater screening room was totally packed and while I love watching funny movies in full theaters (never were burp jokes funnier than when I watched “Monster’s Inc.” seated behind a class full of kindergartners) the laughter was so riotous as to obscure some of the very hilarity it was in response to. It reminded me of concerts where you can’t hear the singer’s banter over the fans. Let Debbie Gibson talk, people! (Hers was the first concert where I personally experienced this frustration).
- As hard as I try, and the Squeeze can attest to the fact that I have been trying very, very hard, I cannot grow tired of this song.
4 comments:
This post makes me happy. And, I wish I had some Cheetos. George Saunders talks about Doritos in the mini-profile/interview in the sunday times magazine. I'm too tired to write anything else now.
Oh, Mandy (code name: bizness), you've inspired me. Things floating my end-of-graduate-school boat:
1. The way the new flowers pop up out of the ground wherever they feel like it. We've got some random clumps of tiny, white flowers in the middle of the yard. How did they get there?
2. Music! I've found a new way to waste my time on the internet, but I'm convinced it's doing my spirits and writing good, so phooey on that idea of a time waste. Some particularly lovely sites:
a) www.3hive.com They post mini-intros to lots of bands you've never heard of and you can search by genre. Also, links to the songs played in QuickTime make it easy to decide whether you're interested or not.
b) www.pandora.com The folks who undertook the Music Genome Project--where over 400 attributes are used to describe individual songs (rather than artists)--have created this cool player that makes a "station" based on your own music tastes. It's free. It requires 0 downloading. AND you can link to iTunes or Amazon for purchase if you're especially smitten.
3. Wolf Parade's "I'll Believe in Anything." I can't link you to it here because I don't know how. (bizness, hook me up?)
4. Arnold Palmer dates
5. the idea of Easter
6. crunchy, red grapes
7. anticipation of new flip-flops
8. Brenda Hillman's new book: Pieces of Air in the Epic.
I gotta figure out this link thing...
Late as usual.
1. City of Men on Sundance. Made by the directors and production people behind City of God, and using a lot of the same kids as actors. They only get more beautiful, and my heart breaks everytime I see them on the screen.
2. There's something called a chocolate lounge on S. Main Street. It's a block or two away from my house, and I went there a few nights ago. The chocolate was terribly expensive but good, and if you buy only one hot chocolate, you can lounge on the sofas and plush chairs til they close. You can even kick your shoes off and show off your tube socks. I didn't, but this other woman did.
3. The Triplets of Belleville. I got it from Netflix and now I'm holding it hostage. I can't stop watching it. This movie makes me want to eat frogs and own a big, fat, elderly delusional dog who farts a lot, barks at subway trains, and has delusions of being a canine locomotive.
I just had THE WORST conference with a student ever, and it is helping me a lot to try to remember some of the good things I love, instead of little shits of students. bizness, when I have a blog (maybe soon) it will also be entirely lists. and that's fine.
In no particular order right now I love the following:
1. Saskia Hamilton's book Divide These, which I have loved now for almost a year. Here
is one poem from the book, but I recommend reading it as a whole, in one sitting, and then about a week later reading it all again. Repeat.
2. These sculptures by the artist Sarah Sze, which I guess are hard to appreciate unless you imagine them enormous, filling an entire room, or at least the corners of the room, so do that.
3. Remembering to go look at the daffodils in the arb.
4. Okay, I know I talk about it too much, but ray-ray and glass as selves are already on board, it's time for the rest of you to go out and rent the DVDs of the best show on television. You knew it was only a matter of time before Battlestar Galactica made an appearance on the blog. We claim to have some connection to robots, anyway.
If it bothers you that it's on the Sci Fi channel, just block it out. Seriously.
5. These pictures make me pretty happy.
6. In a different way, so do these
7. Regina Spektor continues to entertain me with surprising regularity. Click on the Radio Player link when you get to the site.
8. Last, but certainly not least, this video of Will Ferrell impersonating our dear president.. well, it speaks for itself.
phew. spring.
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