woosh - and just like that.

September passed by like a flash of light. It was a warm and sunny month for the most part. We turned the furnace back on yesterday. The windows will stay mostly closed for the next six months. I will admit that I have to fight against the feeling of sadness that accompanies being kept indoors more. I know we will have some beautiful October days. I will relish them. We'll keep the deck furniture out for another week or so and then it will be time to put it all into storage for another long winter. I don't mind taking walks or hikes in cold weather, but it isn't the same as having access to fresh air on a regular basis.

The cherry tomato plants in the whiskey barrel are still producing tomatoes and flowers like crazy. I can't believe it. I have made fried green tomatoes twice and tomorrow may make up another big batch. It is too cold outside for them to ripen any more, and yet they keep popping out! 

Today I mixed up my first batch of artisan bread dough to rise and refrigerate. I haven't baked since spring, so that will be a nice scent to enjoy in the colder season. I lit candles for the first time last night too - and the glowing, flickering lights in the living room instilled peace and calm. Looking for the good...

Tomorrow I hope to get my flu shot. The memory of the flu last April despite being immunized the previous fall is still very fresh. It.was.awful. I know the flu shot takes about two weeks to kick in and I have some work travels coming up in a couple of weeks. Yes. It's time. 

We are having a catching up weekend. Staying in tonight to read and maybe watch an episode of one of my new favorites on Acorn network called William and Mary. It's new to me - a British drama that ran for three series back in 2003, 2004 and 2005. 

spaces of memory

My Facebook feed is full of cute memes and profile photo filters celebrating 50 years of Star Trek. I have very happy associations with the show as it reminds me of my cult-nerdy first couple of years of college. The show was already nearly 20 years old when I was in college. I was always attracted to the show in high school, but I hadn't watched it all that religiously before college. I fell in love with the show my freshman year, and when I think back to those times, I conjure up the feeling of lightness and fun and community that Star Trek thoughts have come to mean for me.

In my dorm, it was a rare student who had a television in their dorm room. (Heck, very few of us even paid to have a phone in our room for the year... there was one pay phone in the lobby we took turns using to call home once a week.) Watching television was not a big thing except for late night when a small subset of dorm residents. We were maybe 20-30 people out of 200. I'd like to think now that we were the equivalent of what "hipster" is now. Monday through Thursday evenings, in the dorm lounge, in slippers and sweats, toting blankets and pillows (or in my case, wearing my famous green plaid wool blanket poncho with the diagonal zipper at the center) and we would watch Star Trek followed by The Twilight Zone before programming went off for the night. (Cue the multicolored bar graph icon followed by black and white t.v. snow on the screen.) I can't even remember if this was 11:30 p.m. to 1 a.m.? I think it was.

Anyway, we had a lot of fun enjoying and poking fun at the show at the same time. My friend Susan and I were more "ironic trekkies" than some of the assembled. We saw the sexism in the show and just laughed. I loved Kirk's bad acting. I loved Mr. Spock, my favorite character. I loved the drama and the ethical and moral dilemmas.

These days it is hard to imagine that college students could have this kind of experience. Cell phones are ubiquitous. People can watch Netflix on their phones or laptops. There isn't the kind of community gathering we had, even though there are still dorm lounge events. Our dorm lounge was our living room except on weekends when it became the party place. I would like to think today's college students have something equivalent. For their sake, I truly hope they do!

Anyone who remembers Star Trek really, REALLY, needs to watch Other Space on Yahoo streaming. I have watched the series 2x now (there are only eight episodes). Brilliant and so funny. It is today's cult-nerdy offering for those who might have fond Star Trek memories. If you watched the original MST 3000, you will see a familiar character in this series.

on the genius of tom petty and other memories

With my daily micro-poem writing over at tiny river splash this month, I haven't been spending much time here. But after going on a Tom Petty video watching marathon last night (streaming YouTube on the television screen), I knew I had to post a video or two today here. (My) Tom and I had read an article on the seven most underrated Tom Petty videos since we both agree he presents as just one of the coolest human beings ever. (Do you notice his detached observation mode in almost every performance? The videos somehow capture that ethos.)

Anyway, from the moment I first set eyes on him singing Refugee on Saturday Night Live in 1979*, I have felt a strange kinship with a rock and roller I will never meet. There is a deeper level to his lyrics and videos than the surface might show. He seems to have an understanding of suffering, pathos, and mistreatment of human beings in this world and yet, his songs and countenance portray the necessity that we still exist within and among this array of emotions and scenes, this crazy world.

Anyway, feel free to scan the article linked above and search out the seven videos. You might certainly be thinking of some of the more famous videos like Last Dance With Mary Jane... that one doesn't appear because it certainly isn't underrated. I will embed two below that I found interesting, disturbing and brilliant, each in different ways. These videos remind me of the MTV era of my younger days when there was a layer of interpretive art added to what would otherwise have been more two dimensional listening of music. We have been mainly back to just listening and watching live or studio performance videos with only the occasional true art video in recent years. Enjoy Swingin' and Walls. You will see a few cameos in Walls if you look carefully.

*Watching Tom Petty on his SNL debut is a very clear memory. Just recalling it now, I am transported back to the family room of the Moritz's home on W. Pine St. in my hometown where I was babysitting into the wee hours of the morning most Saturday nights. I was 14 years old with fairly conventional and strict parents. I would otherwise not have been allowed to be out at night at that hour and I wouldn't have been up allowed to be up watching SNL on the family TV. I loved babysitting at the Moritz's. Not only did they have great snacks (and always macaroons during Passover), the kids were nice, went to bed by 10, and I had hours of freedom after dark in a fun home. Sometimes I would call the late night radio host and request songs, in the days before caller ID, preserving my anonymity. My guess is that the DJ did not know how young I was or he wouldn't have flirted with me the way he did. The family paid pretty well (although babysitting wages were abysmal), and they came home happy and toasted. It was definitely one of my better babysitting gigs.

raised by wolves

Periodically I do a post on something I am watching on television, and these days I seem to only watch streaming shows. I had to break down and subscribe to the Acorn app on the Roku for more British shows. I got the 30-day free trial so that I could watch all of the available Grantchester episodes, and then I found series 2 of The Detectorists, which I love, so I just stayed with it. I have not been disappointed. It has been very worth the $4.99 per month.

My latest favorite, having just torn through the six episodes of available Series 1 in just two weeks, is Raised by Wolves. Hilarious. This is a re imaging of the writers' childhood -- "A large family is raised by an unconventional single mother on a council estate in Wolverhampton, England."

If you get a chance to catch this show, have a laugh with me. Here's a bit of trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M7o7RITgN54. 

ups and downs of spring

It's May 15th. We've had a bit of sunshine since early April, but not a lot. Rather, we have had an abundance of rain and clouds and cold here in Central New York. After a low 70s and sunny Friday, we are having a low 40s day - feels like 35 degrees -- and we can now see snowflakes flying outside.Yes, that's right. I said snowflakes. They won't stick, but really now?

Please enjoy these flowers given to me by my friend Carol last weekend. We had a dinner and "let's watch Kimmy Schmidt" party, which turned into a "let's stream old Strangers with Candy episodes" evening. She knows I love purple tulips and so this is what she does when I say please don't bring anything.

I love how tulips start all straight up pretty, and then they wildly wind out and down, until each beautiful flower nearly hits the table. It's like watching a gradual and complete surrender. It's a yoga pose in slow motion. And they all fall down. Beauty right until the end.

vying for a record

Hello there. With just one more day to go in April, I realize I have been an unusually lazy blogger (for me) this month! I have been known to quote T.S. Elliot's The Wasteland this time of year, especially working in higher education: "April is the cruellest month." Of course Elliott was referring to something other than what we might be complaining about (the mostly wintery weather when everyone else seems to get spring - but a few days where we can taste spring - and the fact that it is really, really busy with student issues and events).

The New Yorker

I have been blogging here since December 2006. It started out slowly as a temporary project, but I quickly got the hang of it and generally speaking, when zooming through the archive list, I can see that my monthly post count is generally anywhere from 15 to 25 posts per month (with a couple of months where the posts count was in the 50s because I participated in an online poem-a-day for the month). My lowest post count of 8 posts in a month goes back to June 2007. With this morning's post, I am tying that low. That is a record of sorts. Maybe I will blog tomorrow and dig out.

I had all good intentions of spending some writing time earlier this week when Tom and Matt jaunted off to Florida to visit friends during the school spring break. I pretty much had Saturday through Wed. to myself and managed to occupy the time elsewhere . . . having my parents for a visit Sunday, cooking and baking, practicing my band music for an upcoming concert, binge-watching Doc Martin's last series on Acorn, and starting in on Grantchester, a fast new Amazon Prime "friend." While the boys enjoyed warm temperatures and sunshine, I have been here at home enjoying gray skies, temps in the 30s and 40s, and even one really soggy and rainy day. Work is work - no complaints. 

Anyway, off to the day. This post was mainly about getting the count for April up to 8 measly posts. It's not a new low, after all. 

winter aconite means spring

I've been a bad blogger lately. Sorry. My excuses are pretty valid. Work has been busy and play has been busy. In between I have had my chores. I am practicing my band music whenever I get a free hour for the concert coming up on Sunday. I can't wait. I leave Monday for a conference for four days. I am reading a really interesting and powerful book called Dietland by Sarai Walker. On television, there are so many good Netflix shows to catch up on (and why do I keep going back to 30 Rock re-runs to just laugh?) I can only take so much of Nurse Jackie and Battle Creek.

This photo was snapped on my phone on Saturday. We took a walk over at Cornell Plantations, and the winter aconite is popping up everywhere in the botanical gardens. Winter aconite means spring, even if we are forecast to get snow this weekend. It has been a winter of extremes - mostly mild for around here - but with some weeks of bitterly cold weather and wind, and several "shovelable" snow falls (most coming when Tom was away.) I think we used the snow blower just two times. There have been some very unseasonably warm days. It has been pretty odd.

Anyway, it is spring break at the college where I work. I am saving my vacation days for better weather, so off I go into work. It is actually nice to have it be a little quieter on campus. I am hoping I can "catch up." Wishing you well.

broadchurch

Broadchurch can't hurt me any more. Or, at least not until series 3 comes out on Netflix. I finally finished the second series this past week. It was really well done - although it wasn't without some pain. Broadchurch is largely filmed in a beautiful spot in England -- West Bay on the Dorset coastline. The mesmerizing Icelandic music by Olafur Arnalds (excellent samples from the soundtrack are here) and interesting characters, along with "worst nightmare" type story lines just grab hold. This is definitely a great winter show. I won't give anything away except to say it took my breath away at times. It is perhaps not as concise and well done as River was... but it isn't the same type of show. River was done in 5 episodes. This is designed to take place slowly over many episodes. Enjoy this Vevo video of the main theme from the show.

We also finished the first season of The Detectorists... sweet, quirky, and the perfect antidote for Broadchurch - for those evenings when you have to watch one more show - something sweeter - to be able to get to sleep.

that post in which I admit

that I like Downton Abbey better than the Superbowl (and I don't like Downton Abbey all that much . . . anymore).

I just realized that tomorrow is Superbowl Sunday. When our friends Paula and Cliff lived in town, we used to have Souper Bowl Sunday parties and we would make some kind of excellent soup and we would put the game on in the background, but the foreground of good food was much more important. The teen has had some small gatherings the last couple of years, but told me today that he really isn't all that into football (none of us in this household are), so he doesn't know if he wants to watch the game. We will probably plan for Superbowl-ish food and he may watch the game.

My television will be set to PBS as I tune into the final season of Downton Abbey. Even though I love to make fun of the show now and continue to feel that it should have wrapped up a year or so ago, I still don't want to miss how each character's arc resolves. It's been fun in that way this season. On log odds, I keep hoping that Thomas Barrow turns out to experience love and that goodness will take over his unkind/angry/mean-spirited/persecuted/misunderstood core. While I think there is a chance Lady Mary ends up alone, destined to be her grandmother's granddaughter, I am hoping she ends up with her late sister's husband Tom. That could be a nice arrangement and love, if not romance, among equals. Always the optimist, I suppose.

I don't believe that the servants were actually treated quite as well at turn of the century England as this show makes it seem. I would like to think there were exceptions as this drama depicts. Mrs. Patmore's cooking inspires me. Tonight I made a loaf of artisan bread and acorn squash topped with meatballs and savory tomato sauce. Were it not for the bread, it would have been a very nice no-carb, high protein dish with a touch of sweetness. I think I might have made up the recipe. Of course, there are few truly original recipes, so maybe not. In any event, it was yummy and I will have to remember that. I didn't take a photo, but it was pretty. (Shiny dark green skin, deep red sauce, golden squash, and a touch of shredded cheese.) You can use your imagination. I could also probably come up with a catchier name...

Spaghetti Sauce and Meatball Stuffed Acorn Squash

Cut an acorn squash in half; scoop out seeds
Fill a a large microwave safe bowl with about 1 and 1/2 inches of water
turn half a squash upside down in the water and poke a couple of fork holes in skin
Microwave for 15 minutes
(you have to cook each half separately)

Remove from water, put butter, salt and pepper in the squash to taste
Top with bubbly tomato sauce and small meatballs
Garnish with shredded parmesan if you like


Off to the evening I go. I hope you are having a nice weekend!

this every day

When I sit down at the computer to tap out a post, I often know what I will write about. I start with a post title and then hit the narrative or the poem or the video. This morning, I sit down with the idea of doing an "everyday" post since I haven't written in a while. I have only had a few sips of coffee, rather unmindfully, and so I only have a vague idea of what I will write. Thus, my title, and now, if you wish, follow along a strand of consciousness. There are no pictures.

Like many people, I have different personas all wrapped into one, and most of the time I keep them all together and whole and the unifying persona of responsible, competent, pleasant and balanced adult is what the world sees. A few close friends see my silly, wacky, childlike self. Occasionally, party girl comes out, and then there's humorless super woman, the meditator, the band geek, and others. Recently a few of these personas have made appearances.

For a couple of weeks in January, while the spouse was on a 2+ week work trip, I got to be a single parent. It was fun at times, although definitely more work doing the duties that are normally split between two parents, and it gave the teen and I a chance to have some nice time together (when he wasn't working at the ski center or spending time with his girlfriend). There were moments, however of humorless superwoman. She gets it done, but she is more tired and less interesting than she'd like.

This past week things got back to normal. Well, sort of. My semester at work started up again and when a new semester starts, it is like my campus goes from humming-busy to / light switch flipped warp speed. We'll be at this speed until mid-March when there is a week where the students mostly go away. The added excitement to my week is that a friend of mine who has played in a concert band in the next city over told me that they need flutes. That is something you almost never hear as usually there are plenty of flutes. I was, at one time, a good flute player. I haven't played with a concert band in 30 years, and this is a high caliber band. Kind of impulsively, I joined. I have a LOT of practicing to do to get my fingers back into shape. We rehearse one night a week. There are two concerts every spring and fall, and four in the summer. I will travel about 30 min. one way to get to rehearsal one evening after work each week. I had so much fun, I can't even tell you. I hope I can keep up and get back to where I need to be quickly. I really hope nobody finds out how rusty my playing really is.

This morning I promised myself I would go back to yoga. I haven't been to yoga on a Saturday morning in weeks... since before the holidays. Part of that was because of the holidays, and then the spouse's absence, and this morning, it is because I couldn't drag ass out of bed because I had not one but two vodka gimlets last night when we went out on the town to hear some live music and then dinner. I fell asleep watching television at 10:30 p.m. Party girl doesn't have the same capacity that she used to. It was, however, fun, and I do hope to get to yoga tomorrow afternoon. 

Okay, that's all for now. The coffee cup needs refilling and I am getting ready to face the day. Chores, practicing, maybe some Netflix*, some food to cook and bread to bake.  (*Current shows: Nurse Jackie, Broadchurch, and The Detectorists...) Have a great weekend. I hope to be back with music and poetry soon. 

river

Vacation comes to a close. A busy week will commence first thing tomorrow and on some level, I am ready to get back to the usual routine and work. We enjoyed some "small" entertaining this past week. We did get the tree and decorations down yesterday. It was sad walking through the living room this morning, but a few hours later, things seem back to normal. (I did leave three white candle lights in the front windows... I figured they could be cheering for a couple more weeks in the evenings.)

It is snowing steadily outside and we just finished the last two installments of a five-episode television series on Netflix called River. It was terrific. I don't want to give anything away. Let's just say it is worth watching, and carefully. It is a detective show set in London. It delves into dysfunction on several levels as it solves a crime and unfolds a tightly folded human heart. The characters are all very interesting and several of them are absolutely lovable. Others, not so much. Anyway, I recommend it to you. It reminded me a bit of the Life on Mars series I liked so much a few years ago, although that was a bit lighter, involved time travel, and was much a much longer running series. 

Have a good week ahead. Here we go, 2016.

rifling through the basket

In my vacation basket:

• I finished a book I have long savored, but had a hard time finding time to read... The Rules of Civility by Amor Towles. Really enjoyable. Beautifully, poetically written. Interesting plot and setting. This may end up being a movie. 

• Two friends have been baking artisan bread at home in recent months. After getting a recipe that looks fairly do-able, I have my first batch of dough rising. This can stay in the fridge for up to two weeks, and each grapefruit sized dough ball that is taken from the batch makes a perfect loaf of bread. I can't wait. 

• This morning I enjoyed a perfectly lazy and guilty-pleasure morning... after not sleeping well and after getting up early anyway, I stayed in bed, watched an episode of Last Tango in Halifax on Netflix and drank black coffee. So.much.fun. (It is not lost on me that being the mom of a teenager brings more worries and less responsibilities, and since the teen had slept over at a friend's house, there was no reason not be revert back to some lazy, earlier, carefree ways of  my own.)

• Boring stuff... laundry and cleaning - putting that off for a day or two more.

• Good stuff... going to a movie and then dinner at my favorite theater and go-to restaurant in Ithaca later today. I think we are going to see "Brooklyn." I'll let you know.


• Fun cooking on the horizon. Need to take down the Christmas tree. Plans with friends on 12/31 and 1/1... and I suppose a few other errands and chores. A new set of short stories to read. Life is good. 

master of none etc.

As I occasionally do, I am writing to recommend some good television. We are Netflix and Amazon streaming viewers. I watch virtually no regular television because I can't stand commercials (and I don't have to watch them anymore with the availability of streaming programming) and I find a lot of what is on television to be really horrible stuff. I don't mind being out of those popular culture loops when people talk about what is on TV these days.

I digress. We are catching up with re-runs of Parks and Recreation (love Amy Poehler and crew) and when I am in the right mood, Louis CK. Tom read about new Netflix original series Master of None with (and by) Aziz Ansari and Alan Yang. I wasn't sure I would like the show if the main character was anything like the over the top character Ansari plays on Parks and Recreation. He isn't. The show is quirky, interesting and real with a great soundtrack. You can read about it here. Recommend.

Oh! And I may have written about one of our all time favorite series before, but Amazon has Dead Like Me available on streaming. This show originally aired in 2003-2004, and it is every bit as good now as it was then. 

other space

If you haven't seen Yahoo original series Other Space (Paul Feig), I highly recommend it. I haven't enjoyed silliness like this in a while, and I certainly needed it this week while slogging through Missoula, a book a little too close to my work for my own good. Whether or not you used to watch Star Trek or the original MST 3000 with Joel (I watched both), this show is a breath of funny fresh air. The first episode sets the stage and isn't as funny as it gets as it goes on. Right now only 8 episodes are available via streaming, so it is very easy to binge watch.

telly talk

Occasionally I like to pass along some recommendations for good things on the telly (delayed, because I watch through Netflix or Amazon Prime). I have a new favorite, just four episodes in, called Last Tango in Halifax.

Initially I thought this was set in Nova Scotia, but it is set somewhere in West Yorkshire, England. The setting is gorgeous. The language is interesting and charming. The characters are complex and each has redeeming qualities, some more than others. The story lines intersect like threads in a spider web, and the humor and drama are thoroughly entertaining. 

A big recommend and a big thank you to BBC One and Netflix. So far, Netflix has 12 of the 18 episodes and I am already slowing down the watching after four episodes so I don't have too long a gap before series three comes to Netflix. 

Honorable mention goes to an unlikely Ricky Gervais series on Netflix called Derek. It isn't what I expected from Ricky Gervais, and when I first "met" the character Derek, I wondered if Ricky was making fun in a way I didn't like. However, I stayed with it, watched two episodes, and I saw something very interesting in the way the show depicts what is worthy in life.The show is a vehicle for presenting true kindness and honor, thinly veiled as a story about caring for the elderly. (There is one repulsive character, and the show provides a vehicle for even tolerating or finding acceptance of the repulsive.) Give it a try. I haven't watched many of the episodes yet, but it too is worth your time when you can find it (the time, that is, not Derek).

Two other shows we have been enjoying on Amazon Prime are more episodes of Drunk History and Key and Peele. Netflix recently added new episodes of Wilfred, so we'll have to check those out. 

what we do in the shadows

What do you do on a Sunday afternoon to avoid worrying about your teenage son who is driving 45 minutes away with two friends to go to a specialty store? You go to see a funny movie in your favorite theater.

We saw a film called What We Do in the Shadows with some familiar faces from old favorite Flight of the Conchords... in a horror comedy/ spoof on the vampire genre. Those who know me know that I can't watch even 30 seconds of a real horror movie. I don't enjoy scary movies of any sort and am a real baby about anything suspenseful or violent unless the violence or suspense is real/necessary and there are redeeming values to the film. (Therefore, I have never actually seen a vampire movie or read any vampire novels because - sorry if I am offending anyone - they just seem really stupid).

For some reason, I laugh out loud at the horror comedy genre based on an n of 2 movies (this and Shawn of the Dead.) The writing and acting in this movie are great. Little touches are ridiculously funny. It certainly didn't hurt to have a delicious iced red zinger tea and some freshly popped popcorn (the real kind... not the artificial type usually found at most cinemas). I recommend this movie for a laugh. It is absurd, witty, and has a New Zealand charm. It was a great distraction from another cold, damp, and yes, snowy late March day in CNY. (And all is well when the teenager arrives home safe and sound.)

P.S. In the realm of television, Flight of the Conchords can be found on Amazon Prime... as can Mozart in the Jungle. My new Netflix favorite is The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt. Great writing and acting on that one. It is just bizarre enough to work. If you liked 30 Rock and Tina Fey, you will enjoy Kimmy.

what's on the telly?

I don't watch any cable t.v. anymore. Not even the news. Not even sports (although I won't rule out a few basketball or baseball games). But truly, when I watch the tube, I am streaming Netflix or Amazon Prime. There are no commercials. I can watch shows that I want, when I want to, and however many episodes I can stay awake for. What a wonderful thing!

Here are some of the shows  I am watching right now, or want to watch. Call me your Netflix host. (Tom isn't crazy about a couple of these, and he has some on his list that he watches that I will not -- so that affects the scheduling of how often we watch these and whether separately or apart.)

• Call the Midwife  - one of the realest, most heart-warming shows. Ever. Set in post WWII London, and based on true stories, this show has a bit of everything. The episodes are chronicled in three volumes of memoirs (and I have read only the first, by the same title). Simply outstanding.  I love this show. I started this thinking it could be my "alone time" show, but Tom watched it one night and now likes it as much as I do. Go figure. 

• Doc Martin - funny, entertaining, charming, and endearing. Set in Cornwall. Give it a try. Tom got sick of it, but I don't tire of it. 

• Comedy Bang Bang - odd, quirky, light fun. And it's legal. (But it might remind you of a state of mind by which one would need to engage in illegal behavior -- unless for medical purposes).

• Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries - set in the 1920s, Australia, and absolutely fun. If you like Agatha Christie/Miss Marple/ Hercule Poirot corny murder mysteries, coupled with great costuming and musical score, and witty repartee, this is a show for you. Just when you think a show about murder can't be playful...

• House of Cards - now I know what all the fuss is about. I will watch this one only every now and then and have only seen the first two episodes. It is too dark and creepy feeling for me to watch most nights, but Robin Wright and Kevin Spacey are excellent. It took me a little bit to get over Robin in a role so different from her role in The Princess Bride. 

• Lilyhammer - a Norwegian comedy series that is a Netflix exclusive. A NYC gangster goes into witness protection and opts to move to Norway, where he proceeds to bring his behaviors to one of the most non-corrupt places in the world. Very funny.

Still on the list to keep watching: Wilfred, Portlandia, Amy Schumer, TED Talks (so many!), Mozart in the Jungle, Drunk History and more that I am sure I am forgetting. If you are looking for any past recommendations, just search on the blog label "quality television" to read about some other great shows from the past couple of years...

When it comes to movies, there are several we want to see that are finally available on Netflix or Amazon Prime, and if I can just find 2-hour blocks of time during which I can keep my eyes open, I might just watch one.

This was a public service "chasing the winter blahs" blog post brought to you by WJPP.

bohemian like you

Back from four days of work travel, with visits on the way home to see my parents and my sister. One of my favorite road trip CDs is the Soundtrack from Six Feet Under (what a show!). And on that CD, one of my favorite songs is this one by The Dandy Warhols . . . Bohemian Like You.

[This album is not to be confused with the very good Six Feet Under, Volume 2: Everything Ends CD.]

When I fell in love with the song, I had only heard the audio. The lyrics are funny. Really funny. And it is catchy. Really catchy. When I went to surf for the video YouTube, I found that it is even funnier than I thought. And still catchy. Really catchy.

Viewer discretion advised for sexual / suggestive content during some of the fantasy scenes. It is satire - sort of. Trust me.  Ordinarily I wouldn't post this kind of thing on the blog where I like to keep things nice and neat. I am punchy tired this afternoon and I decided to be a little bit more laid back than usual. Enjoy!

particle fever

We saw a great film last night, and if you missed it, it is on Netflix! Particle Fever is fascinating, suspenseful and thought-provoking. This post doesn't have any spoilers.

"For the first time, a film gives audiences a front row seat to a significant and inspiring scientific breakthrough as it happens. Particle Fever follows six brilliant scientists during the launch of the Large Hadron Collider, marking the start-up of the biggest and most expensive experiment in the history of the planet, pushing the edge of human innovation."

As much as I love going to the movies, and even have a favorite, special movie theater just 25 minutes away, the busy pace of every day life these days precludes me getting to movies as often as I'd like. With the advent of the Netflix DVD program, I immediately became a poster child. Over the past few years I watch fewer and fewer movies and have transitioned to more television series - due to the shorter time bytes to watch a commercial-free episode. I was slower to switch over to streaming, but now that I have, I truly have no need for cable television (although the baseball fans in my household do appreciate having it.)

Given that I hardly ever watch movies anymore, last night, being a Friday night of a holiday weekend, we decided to forgo continuation of West Wing Season 5 for a night to watch this film we had been meaning to get to a theater to see.  (West Wing, you say? Wasn't that on from like 1999 to 2006? Yes - and we were busy with a baby and young child during those years so never tuned in. So glad we are watching it now! Great show!)

Netflix has added a category for the queue of "critically acclaimed" movies. This movie is on that list. Recommend!

waiting

I was introduced to The Devlins and this song on the 2002 Six Feet Under Soundtrack album. It first appeared on The Devlins' 1997 album, Waiting. This alternative rock band is out of Dublin Ireland. This song really stays with me. You are listening to WJPP. Peace out and have a great weekend.