i'll never find another you

Ben Gibbard, Zooey Deschanel and cover of The Seekers? Yeah, I like all of these things.

Screw Angelina and Brad, this is my favorite famous married couple.

And can they please perform together more often? Death Cab is supposed to be releasing a new album next year - maybe a new song on there? Or heck, release an album together. I'd listen to the two of them be folksy and adorable together all day.

the beat's real good but the lyrics suck

1. If you have yet to watch last week's Halloween episode of Community, please remedy this right now. I know I say it all the time but this really might be one of my new favorites.

It's a zombie attack scored to ABBA, how could it not be the best thing ever?



It was also just announced that NBC ordered an addition two episodes for the season so WHOO! GOOD NEWS!! Thank you NBC. Sometimes you DO get it right.

2. Want a laugh?

Go to Google Maps.
Get Directions from "Japan" to "USA."
Laugh at direction Number 27

3.  Yes, it's that time of the year again. NaNoWriMo. Three days in and honestly? I still have no clue what I'm doing. I've only written 600 words so far and I appear to be in training for an Olympic Gold Medal in the Art of Procrastination. Seriously, it's a problem. I need help. More on this later when I get my act together.

4.  In more important and serious news, I will be praying extra hard tomorrow morning for one of my best friends and her family as her baby boy goes in for surgery. He was in an accident on Halloween night that resulted in 2nd and 3rd degree burns to over 34% of his body. The surgery tomorrow will determine if he's going to need skin grafting. The doctors are confident and encouraging but it's still a really scary and trying time. All I want to do is go down to Arizona and hug them all so I just ask God to watch over them and give them comfort through the next days.

I love you my friends. And I have faith that everything will be okay. XOXO

Bank of America Really DOES Suck

Interesting. I include the words "Bank of America sucks" in the midst of a post about my weekend and suddenly my internet traffic increases by about 150%. Not a lot of love lost for this institution huh?

Hey look, there's even a twitter account: @BofA_FuckYou

Oh modern technology, how I adore you.

P.S. For anyone that actually cares, my debit card was actually found. Apparently I dropped it at my school's homecoming game. Not that it really matters because it's already been canceled but at least I know it's not in the hands of some creepy creeper.

What Goes Up...

... Must Come Down (Or, Things That Happened This Weekend).

1.) Food Poisoning. Or something. Something awful and horrible and it might be awhile before I can look at a hamburger the same way again.

2.) My friend Melissa flew in from Chicago to hang out for the weekend. I drove to LAX to pick her up (while still suffering from the food poisoning mentioned above) armed with an entire bottle of Pepto Bismol.

3.) Traffic in L.A. kicked my ass. Melissa's flight got in at 3:45. We didn't get back to my house until almost 8:00.

Dear 405 Freeway,

I hate you.

Love,

Shannon

4.) Melissa, being on Central Time and having just spent four hours on a plane and three hours in the car on the damn freeway, needed food. (My stomach was still attempting to tear it's way from my body, so I was good). We stopped at Sharkey's but the wait was 40 minutes so we decided it would be easier to just go through the In & Out drive thru.

5.) This was not a good idea. Enough said.

6.) The next night (after a day of "haha, oh wait, you mean my In & Out adventure isn't over yet?" fun) we went to the local Community College production of Rent. It was actually pretty awesome and I was pleasantly surprised. I had only ever seen the movie version of Rent and I wasn't huge fan. Needless to say, the stage production = BETTER. One of my sister's friends was in the ensemble and it was a lot of fun to see him up there kicking ass with the singing and whatnot.

7.) On Saturday we attended our Alma Mater's Homecoming Game. Our team won. Yay! (And quite handily too. 38-7). Afterward there was a Festival where they had food and drinks and games and such.

8.) It was our five year reunion so there were a handful of people from our class there. Hardly anyone recognized me. And I'm not super surprised. I didn't have a million friends while I was there and the friends I did have are all scattered around the country and probably not going to make it for a little dinky 5 Year Reunion. Also, I'm 40 lbs lighter and brunette now. I don't look the same. These are good things.

9.) We took a drive down to the coast and had dinner at Duke's in Malibu. The food was delicious and the sunset over the water was gorgeous.

10.) This is where I realized I lost my debit card.

11.) Bank of America sucks.

12.) On Sunday we drove down to Burbank and had lunch with a couple of Melissa's friends, then walked through IKEA and found ourselves wishing for an endless supply of money.

13.) We ended out the weekend on the couch, watching 50 First Dates and Pretty Woman (Commercial free! Thanks USA!) and snacking on Pinkberry yogurt.

14.) We got up at 5:00 this morning so Melissa could get back to the airport on time.

15.) It took me 2 hours to get home. Once again 405 Freeway, see the above note.

16.) Despite the title of this post and the food poisoning and the In & Out drive thru debacle and the lost debit card and the utter FAIL that is the 405 freeway, it was a good weekend.

MELISSA! MOVE BACK!!!

That is all.

What I Did Over My Summer Vacation Part III

Summer is freedom.

At least this is what eighteen years of summer vacations have indoctrinated into my soul. Remember that feeling? The countdown to the final week of school, the flurry of year-book signings and class parties and studying for final exams, the warmth of the sun welcoming you to three months of glorious nothingness? And I say this as someone who did in fact love school - those summer months were perfection personified.

I suppose it helps that when I was ten we moved to Southern California where we had the blessed option of spending entire weekends at the beach or playing outside all day in the usually not too warm sun. Of course, I admit, I was always more of an indoor girl and it was often a fight with my parents to get me to even go outside. (In my mind there was nothing more adventurous and stimulating than that tempting stack of library books I could consume so ravenously. Every Saturday we would have to take another trip to the local library just so I could get another stack of books. There were times when it was difficult to even find books I hadn't yet read I was devouring them so quickly.)

But that in itself was a freedom - to sit in an air conditioned house, curled up in my pajamas all day with a new book or playing Barbies with my sisters (or house or school or "The Floor is Lava" or any other myriad of games we could imagine). There were no worries, no bills or job to think about and stress over. It was simple. Nice. Easy.

Oh those were the days.

But even now, amidst stress and work hours and car payments and rent and grocery shopping and what-the-heck-ever, there are those moments - little perfect pinpricks of time when the sun is warm and the breeze is rustling through the trees and I close my eyes to a wash of honeysuckle and fresh cut grass floating through the air - when summer can still be perfection.

In July I drove the eight hours to Mesa, Arizona to visit one of my best friends and her family. I’ve done this drive before but never by myself and let me tell you, it’s a completely different experience to do it alone. For one, it was completely and utterly boring. Mind-meldingly boring. I understand now why long distance truckers might go insane. Luckily, I had some music and the Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows book on CD to keep me entertained. I also stopped a lot more frequently than I might if I was with someone else. So yes, round trip it was sixteen hours of alone time and endless stretches of the same scenery and lots and lots of thinking (scary combination). But it was also sort of cathartic -  being out there on the road, with the windows down and the wind in my hair and the radio blasting. The freedom in that is intoxicating. It's easy to get lost in the possibility of going places and meeting new people and driving until the gas tank is empty. (Fortunately, considering the 120 degree temperatures, this did not actually happen). I had a map and a set destination and schedule but in those long stretches of alone, endless highway, it was nice to just get lost, even for a moment, in the fantasy of going somewhere completely new and being someone completely new - as if I had just packed a few belongings, jumped in the car and headed towards whatever direction felt right. Again, I didn't do this, but maybe someday.

Earlier that month I went up to SLO to visit my friend Wendy. We spent that Saturday in her boyfriend's car, driving up the coast with the top down, the wind in our hair, singing along in most cliche fashion to Katy Perry's "California Girls".  After spending some time shopping in Morro Bay and taking pictures of the Elephant Seals in Cambria we went hunting for tide pools and found all kinds of starfish and sea urchins and sea anemones. We were completely unprepared, in our skirts and flip flops, to go climbing and scrambling like little kids over rocks and boulders but we hardly even cared. As the sun began to dip lower into the Western Sky and the ocean stretched out into a deep purple horizon I was suddenly so enthralled by that moment in time. I was a kid again, playing freely and laughing and not wanting any of it to end.

Maybe it's just moments and maybe it's fleeting and maybe high tide eventually rolls in and washes it all away and sends you running for shore but why not enjoy the moment while it's there in hand? I don't want to regret letting anything slip away.

So. Summer of 2010, you've been blissful and beautiful and kind of awesome. I've breathed in deep and watched a sunset and been enlightened by the laughter of children. I've sunk my toes into the sands of the Pacific Shores, sipped smoothies and driven down the coast with the music too loud. I've danced with strangers in Chicago and danced in my underwear in the safety of my air conditioned house.  I've found new strengths and flailed with new friends and written words and shared words. I've drunk wine till I'm dizzy and listened to jazz on a warm night and talked on the phone until my ear was sore. I've traveled by plane, train and automobile and I have LOVED this summer.

Until next year.

It Gets Better

I know I've been posting a lot of videos this week but this needed to be done.

Random Randomness and Stuff

1. I still have one last post in my "What I Did Over My Summer Vacation" series. I have no excuses, I'm just being lazy. But it should be up by the end of the week.

2. Europe According to the United States - This makes me laugh. Unfortunately, as a country, we're self-absorbed enough that it probably IS all too true.

3. Carl Paladino = Douchebag.

4. For the fifth year in a row I will be participating in National Novel Writing Month. I have a vague idea about what I'll be writing about and I'm actually pretty excited about it because I feel all motivated and creative right now. Plus this year I have a friend who is also participating so hopefully we can be cheerleaders for each other. I'll probably have a lot more to say of this subject as that time draws near.

5. Prettiness. Enjoy.

Abed Delivers a Baby

Did you watch last week's episode of Community? Did you notice the entire storyline taking place in the background? Check out the video below if you missed it.

I Have Way Too Much Free Time

Watch the video, then click "Shoot the Bear" or "Don't Shoot the Bear." Have fun.

How do they do it? I don't know. The internet still confuses me. ;)

What I Did Over My Summer Vacation Part II

In August I flew to Chicago to visit my friend Melissa and attend the Lollapallooza music festival. The entire weekend was, without a doubt, one of my tip-top mountain top moments of the summer. It would be impossible for me to really talk about the whole thing without becoming a crazy rambling person. So... just a few notes.

1. There were somewhere upward of a hundred bands, musicians and groups that performed during these three days. We were able to see about twenty of these including: The National, The New Pornographers, Lady Gaga, Arcade Fire, Frightened Rabbit, B.o.B., Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeroes, Mumford & Sons, The Temper Trap, Matt and Kim, Green Day, Rogue Wave, Grizzly Bear, Switchfoot and Hockey (these are just the ones I can name off the top of my head). Anyone paying attention to some of my music playlists over the past year should know that all those names together were enough to throw me into fits of glee.

2. I don't like humidity. My hair specifically does not like humidity and I ended up having to wear it curly for almost the entire weekend.

3. I could have handled the humidity on it's own but couple that with being outside ALL DAY surrounded by thousands of people who are equally sweaty and sticky? Gross. At the end of each day, the moment we re-entered my friend's air-conditioned apartment it was all I could to not not throw myself into the shower weeping with joy.

4. Cicadas are creepy. And loud. But kind of perfect.

5. Say what you will about her, Lady Gaga puts on a pretty damn good show.

6. Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeroes are one part sixties-throwback, two parts pure love. I fell in love with this band when I first heard “Home” on Community and that song still fills me with lovely fits of joy. And now I think I know why.  Of all the bands I saw that weekend they were the one that seemed to best exemplify the spirit of a music festival. And I do believe that the organizers underestimated the size of the crowd they could draw because we ended up packed in with a couple thousand sweaty fans into a too small venue. (Other than the Lady Gaga concert it was the most "crowded" I felt all weekend). But somehow it just became part of the experience.

And at the end of the show, it was obvious that the crowd didn’t want it to be over and the band ended up coming back out for an encore (the only time I saw this happen over the weekend with a band that wasn’t headlining). The lead singer asked everyone to sit down and miracle of miracles people found a way to do so. He then walked out into the crowd and sang the song “Brother.” It was moving and lovely and for a moment I could almost imagine that it was forty years ago and we were in the middle of the Summer of Love at Woodstock. 

7. It rained on Saturday morning, which made for some pretty muddy conditions. Honestly, I wasn't too horrifed by it through because it felt like a nice respite from the heat (plus it made for thinner crowds) Unfortunately, the clouds burned off fairly early and we were once again left with suffocating humidity and and sweaty crowds of Lollapalooza revelers.

8. Another favorite Lollapallooza moment came at the very end. Arcade Fire closed out Sunday night and it was, for lack of a better term, epic. I can’t imagine another band being more suited for the moment. Arcade Fire already has a grand quality about them with their seven members switching off violin, cello, guitar, drum, keyboard (and on and on) playing duties. When they’re on stage they exude an energy that is completely infectious. Although, I have a feeling that the crowd of thousands they were playing for contributed to the energy on that field. It was the end of three long, hot and tiring days and yet for that hour we all seemed to gather the energy to dance and sway and scream the lyrics together. They last song played at the end of their encore was "Wake Up" and it was absolutely beautiful. Hearing thousands of people belt out in unison the "Oh-ooohs" with crazy abandon was nothing short of breathtaking. And as luck would have it I found a YouTube video of the moment. 



9. I love Chicago. Not that I would ever live there because again - Humidity + My hair = Frightening. But it really is a lovely city. The Thursday before Lollapalooza Melisa and I took the entire day to walk around the city, find some good food and hit up Sprinkles for some yummy cupcakes (yeah, I live in L.A. but it took a trip to Chicago for me to have my first Sprinkles cupcakes).

Perhaps one of my favorite aspects of the city is that it actually has a dependent and useful transportation system. Sounds like a weird thing to love right? But it lends to an unmistakable energy about the city - rumblings of different train lines, the footsteps and chatter of commuters walking to work, blaring taxi horns...  there's life in all that.

Each day we took the train into the city and spent the commute listening to music and watching episodes of Community on our iPhones (and I would choose this over an hours worth of freeway traffic in a heartbeat.) And each night, after an exhausting day of walking and standing around, there was nothing like the relief of sliding into those vinyl train seats and curling up to enjoy the ride home. Saturday may have been my favorite night because we were on the 12:30 am train and most of our riding companions were fellow Lollapallooza-goers or drunk bar crawlers. As you might imagine, this lead to some highly entertaining antics. And lots of singing.

10. Each night of Lollapalooza closes out with dueling headliners. Friday it was Lady Gaga/The Strokes, Saturday it was Green Day/Phoenix, and Sunday it was Arcade Fire/Soundgarden. The acts would play until 10:00 at which time the entire park would spill out onto the streets of Chicago. I'm almost positive that the regular citizens of the city did not much appreciate having tens of thousands of crazy drunk people screaming and singing down the streets. But for me? It pretty much cemented this weekend as one of the most epically beautiful ever.

The last night, after the final strains of Arcade Fire's "Wake Up" drifted off into the night, we directed our achy and tired feet toward the exits. We were sweaty and sticky and covered in beer and mud but we were exhilarated after three days of music and fun and laughter. As we moved with the crowd onto the streets I even half wondered if we would even make it the twelve or so blocks back to the train station (I had been on my feet so long that they were actually swollen in pain). There was a sense of bittersweet melancholy as we walked away from the park for the last time but even blocks away we could still hear the swell of people singing the "Oh-Oh's" chorus of "Wake Up." Maybe it's cheesy but at that moment I felt a sense of camaraderie with these strangers and I knew that I would never forget that moment or the entire three days preceding.

Thanks for the memories Lollapalooza 2010.

My Whole Brain is Crying

This just in: I apparently do not have the same taste in television as the majority of the American viewing public. Actually, I'm sorry, this is not news. Also, the Nielsen Company can kiss my ass.

But I'm not bitter or anything.

Sigh. It breaks my heart that Community doesn't get better ratings. (And if it gets canceled at any near point in time expect devastation from me). This past weeks episode was so perfect and included the following scene which had me CRYING with laughter. I have since watched this about thirty-five times and I laugh every single time. Donald Glover is a comedic genius and Abed, Annie and Troy need to have more story lines together.



WATCH THIS SHOW PEOPLE. DO IT.

What I Did Over My Summer Vacation Part I

This past summer was beautiful but I admit that I’ve been a bit remiss at chronicling my adventures.  I'd rather not forget these little moments of splendor though so I thought I'd do a little "Best of" list. Over the next few days I'll be posting about my favorite memories from the past few months. It might not mean a lot to anyone but me and those friends who were there for the ride, but there you go; a little insight into why this summer will go down as one of the best in recent memory.

In Which Joel McHale is Really Tall 

In June some of my friends and I had the opportunity to attend a taping of The Soup with Joel McHale. Ever since my new-found infatuation with Community I’ve had a bit of a crush on Mr. McHale so needless to say, I was nervous/excited at the chance to meet him.

Fortunately, the experience lived up to, nay, exceeded expectation. The studio that the show is taped in is so tiny and there are only about thirty people in the audience. It was pretty cool to get a glimpse into the taping of a show like this and of course, it’s completely different than sitting on the couch and watching at home. For example: it's only a half an hour show but we were there for about three hours. Every time Joel messed up a punchline (or if a joke completely bombed) they would have to replay the clip and then re-do the joke. This means then that there were some clips we saw at least four or five times. There was a particular clip from SYTYCD that we saw maybe forty-seven times (I might be exaggerating a slight bit) and by the end of it the studio laughter was completely strained and unnatural.

Please know though that this is not a complaint. Joel kept us plenty entertained. He talked with the audience in between breaks, telling stories about his kids and his recent trip to Europe. His sense of humor is really dry and sarcastic and I loved hearing his take on the whole reality TV phenomenon. Dude, is not a fan. (Which only endears him to me more). After the show he stayed behind and took pictures. We were the last ones in lines and it was almost 11:00pm so they started kicking us out and we were afraid we weren't going to get to talk to him. But he followed us out to this little side hallway and even though you could tell he was exhausted he stayed and took pictures (and even stuck with us when a couple of the pictures were blurry and needed to be retaken). Really cool guy. Oh, yeah, and tall. So tall. Loved it.

In Which That Naked Guy from the Hangover Hugs Me

A few weeks later there was an invitation on the Community Facebook page for a screening of the show in L.A. with Joel and Ken Jeong. It sounded fun, like we would just be watching a couple of episodes and Ken and Joel would be there for a Q&A type thing. My friend Mary and I decided "what the heck, let's take the day off and do it." So we drove down there early in the morning, thinking that there would be a long line. Turns out, we were the first people there which was kind of weird but turned out to only lead to good things. While we were waiting there in line Kevin Bacon drove up to the lot and flashed us the peace sign. This was exciting... but we had no idea how much better the day was about to get.

While we were waiting a guy with a headset came and pulled ten random people out of line. Mary and I were part of this group and they led us, secret-service style, through the lot all-the-while calling us "The Ten" like we were survivors of Oceanic 815. When we finally got to the theater Joel and Ken were sitting at the front in director's chairs looking over scripts. Of course, we had already met Joel so we were like "yawn, whatevs" (OR NOT). We were directed to sit in the front row, dead center. As it turned out we weren't just going to be watching episodes. Oh no. This was a promo shoot for the Community marathon that was going to be airing the next week. The technical term is "wrap-around" but what we got out of it was, "We're going to be on NBC? The hell?"


This was a hard enough fact to absorb. Add that to the fact that we were in a room with Joel McHale and Ken Jeong for five hours and it was basically five hours of free comedy entertainment. By the end of the day my cheeks actually hurt from smiling and laughing all day. There were scripts that they were supposed to be following but in all honesty, the scripts sucked and Ken and Joel seemed to know this and it turned into a complete improv session - imagine two hilarious people trying to crack each other up. Unfortunately, some of the best moments would never have made it past NBC sensors. This includes a moment where Ken came out into the audience and sat on Mary's lap. He started doing these crazy hand motions and making these noises and seriously, how people work and act and keep straight faces around him is unimaginable to me. Shooting this one thirty-second clip took about forty-five minutes and afterward he hugged and thanked both of us. (Apparently my reactions to him were impressive - GO ME. ACTING).  He was just so sweet and genuine and a huge part of what made this such an awesome day. Mary and I have even dubbed it The Day of Awesome. The video above is a somewhat poor quality version of some of the outtakes. And yes, there I am front and center laughing like a lunatic.

In Which I Almost Get Into a Spazzy Twitter Related Car Accident

After said Day of Awesome  Mary and I decided to head over to IHOP to reminisce about the day and just generally freak out together. We were in the middle of Hollywood and I really didn’t have much of a clue where I was going (although, thank you GPS) but I was trying to navigate the streets during rush hour when suddenly… I almost crash the damn car. Why? Because in the middle of our “Oh, wasn’t that a lovely day?” Joel McHale tweeted a picture of us. Cue lots of "we're too old for this but who even cares" kind of screaming.

This guy has somewhere upward of a million followers and he tweeted a picture of US. CRAZY. I SAY AGAIN, CRAZY. Needless to say, we kind of had a mini meltdown and it was a bit of a miracle that we arrived at IHOP in one place. We ended up staying there for about three hours just rambling incoherently about the day and how much we love this show (because has being a fan of a television show ever paid off in such a huge way? I used to love Dawson's Creek but I never got to hang out with Joshua Jackson for the day. Although, THAT would still send me into fits of tween-like squeeing). 

Now as I write all this I realize that I should have titled this section, "How Community and Joel McHale Made My Summer Fan-Freaking-Tastic." But that's kind of implied.

I also realize that I sound like a twelve year old. But hey, at least I don't have Beiber Fever. 

we're just a weatherman (you make the wind blow)

Yes, I know it's irritating to complain about the weather, especially when I live in Southern California where everything is so mild. Our summers are never too hot. Our winters are never too cold. (Althought, that whole, "it never rains in California" thing is obnoxious. It does rain here. Sometimes it's cold and cloudy and foggy. We don't run around, basking in the warmth of blue skies three-hundred and sixty five days a year. I remember an episode of The O.C. where the characters where ASTONISHED to find it raining one day. Uggh, shut up. We don't act like that. - But I digress).

However, when it's six days into fall and the barometer is reading 110° and rising, I'm probably going to do a little bit of bitching. Cause, what the heck? That's ridiculous. One of my facebook friends wrote, "I wonder if any of the California people complaining about the weather know how hot it is in Arizona." To which I wanted to respond: "Why yes I do. THAT'S WHY I DON'T LIVE THERE."

Whatever, it was weird. Let us bitch. You can complain about your heat and your humidity and snow and what-the-heck-ever too when it comes to it.

(As a sidenote: There's something weirdly cathartic about complaining via social networking sites. "I will tweet my thoughts to the world and somehow everything will magically seem better!" Maybe we're just a society that, at heart, loves to complain and talk about ourselves. Bunch of narcissistic babies.)

I'll end with something that isn't complaining though. Two days removed from the record setting heat on Monday and it's still hot but now we've got cloud cover and humidty and rain in the forecast. Which, while gross, also makes for some splendid sunsets. Like the one we had tonight. 

Hello Shows, I Missed You

The Fall Television Season officially kicked off this week. And oh, what a lovely week it's been. (Okay yes, I watch too much television. Whatever. Some people knit. I like to watch television. It's my hobby.) The summer was lovely but I've missed these characters over the past few months and somehow this is a little bit like welcoming back old friends. (Yes, one day I WILL get a life.)

I just have a few brief thoughts on some of the shows I watched this week. There are more than normal because I wanted to try out a couple of the new premieres. Over the next few weeks I will probably taper back down to normal television-watching habits.

In Which I Get Actual Chills

Is it November 19th yet? Because this looks amazing.

Albert Einstein Randomness

I read "Know it All" by A.J. Jacobs recently and came across this lovely little tidbit about Albert Einstein: a note that he wrote to his wife in an effort to save his marriage.

"You will make sure that I get my three meals a day in my room. You are neither to expect intimacy nor to reproach me in any way."

Yup. That'll do it buddy.

It's both horrible and hilarious but also a little insight into the man whose name has become synonymous with "genius." I've honestly never known much about him other than he helped to initiate the Manhattan Project and then developed a little something called E=MC² (Yeah, I know, my knowledge is astounding.) But apparently he was also kind of a jackass of a husband. Good to know.

If you're interested in garnering some more random knowledge I do recommend "Know it All." Jacobs takes on the almost impossible task of reading through the entire set of Encyclopedia Britannica (44 million words!) and chronicles the journey in alphabetical order through random facts about various Britannica subjects. He also interweaves personal memoirs, including the struggle he and his wife have in trying to conceive their first child. It's a hilarious and at times poignant read. Two thumbs up.

Things I'm Loving

1. The Hunger Games

I had heard a lot of talk recently about the release of the third book in this trilogy, Mockingjay, and everything seemed to point to it being something I would enjoy so I bought the first book while I was at Target the other day. After a few days of it just sitting around in various places around my house I finally picked it up last night at around 10:30. And I COULD. NOT. PUT. IT. DOWN. Which resulted in me staying up till about 3 am to finish the dang thing. My eyeballs were ready to melt out of my skull but it was so worth it - really well written and thought-provoking and riveting. I was completely caught up in the world of of Katniss and Peeta and this strange North America That Was.

I've always had a weird fascination with these post-apocalyptic/Big Brother-taking-over kinds of stories where human character is tested: The Giver, Brave New World, The Road - books that ask, when faced with the direst of circumstances how will we respond and react to the world and each other? And yes, sometimes it's extremely dark and brutal but also just so lovely at the same time. Kind of like life I suppose.

Needless to say, I'm on my way out to pick up books two and three right now.

2. AMC

So, I was going to give this spot to Breaking Bad because I've been main-lining that show like a heroin (IRONY) these past few weeks and am just absolutely blown away by everything that this show chooses to be. But then Mad Men waltzed on in this week and punched me in the face with about eighty-seven different emotions. So, AMC in general? I love you.

I started in on Breaking Bad actually for silly reasons (I saw Aaron Paul hanging around at Lollapallooza and thought, hey I should watch his show) but then it completely sucked me in. These characters are so well-drawn and believable. I simultaneously hate them and love them. Walt is a complete badass and scary as hell at times but at the same time I can't help rooting for the guy. And Jesse is a whiny entitled idiot but I just want to weep for him because despite it all he still feels so innocent. And in almost every single episode I find myself at some point all curled-up and tense at wondering about the fate of these characters. I'm loving it and hating it at the same time because it's SO good but it's destroying my soul in the telling of this completely devastating story.

And speaking of devastating: Mad Men. Holy goodness, Jon Hamm. You sir, are an actor. This past episode killed me. Don and Peggy bonding and leaning on each other and yelling at each other and being so truthful in a way hardly anyone on this show every is - it was just beautiful. The last scene where he holds her hand? Still makes me a little choked up just thinking about it.

Yes AMC, thank you for your deliciously wonderful programming. This is quality.

Oh! And I find myself a little stupidly excited for The Walking Dead. I think this might go back to what I was saying above about my weird fascination with post-apocalyptic themes. Check out the trailer.





3. Lollapallooza Artists

I still really need to do a blog dedicated to the entirety of Lollapallooza but right now I'm just focusing on some of my new favorite artists that have come from the event. Namely, Mumford and Sons, Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeroes and The Temper Trap. In the case of Edward Sharpe, this was a band that I already loved; "Home" is one of my favorite songs right now and will probably always remind me a little bit of 2010. But watching them live is a completely new experience. First, their set was probably one of my favorites from the entire weekend. It was also probably the biggest hippy-dippy-love-fest I've ever been a part of (This band EXUDES love and happiness). I've since been listening to the entire self-titled C.D. and it's the perfect companion for a drive down the coast with the windows down. (Fun/sad fact: the seed money to record their first album came from Mr. Health Ledger *sigh*).

I also knew The Temper Trap previously. Or rather, the one song "Sweet Disposition" from the "500 Days of Summer" soundtrack. But the entire CD is pretty fabulous. Every song is something unique and ranging between the upbeat "Fader" ad the smooth "Soldier On" that accentuates the crazy high falsetto of the lead singer.

Then there's Mumford and Sons who are adorable Aussies with a folksy sound. And... I don't even know what to say. Amazing lyrics and harmony. It's hard to choose a favorite song but I'd have to say that The Cave is pretty high on the list. It's one of those songs that makes me want to get up and DO something with this life.


4. Threadless.com

If I could live in a tee-shirt and jeans forever I would. And this website would keep me in tee-shirts for life cause I would buy almost everything. Like this design which has been sold out forever. But I WANT.

5. Blueberry Vodka

It's like you're not even drinking alcohol. Which yeah, kind of dangerous. But it's all good. Just throw a splash of lemonade in there and it's like blueberries are having a party in your mouth! Plus you get drunk. And sometimes that's fun.

Spring Music Soundtrack

Lately, I seem to be downloading new music every single day so the spring was an eclectic mix of everything from jazz to rap. I'm pretty sure my neighbors are going to start thinking I have some sort of weird split personality.

Here's my soundtrack from the past few months.

1. Blinding - Florence and The Machine
This band has such an interesting sound. It’s kind of weird and haunting but also kind of addicting. Right? It’s one of those songs I’ve found myself listening to over and over on repeat just because I can’t get tired of it.

2. Bye Bye Bye - Plants and Animals
I think this is one that I first heard on Chuck (seriously, the music on that show is so good). Anyway, I have this playlist in itunes called “Movie Montage Moments” and it’s basically a list of all the songs that I can imagine being part of the soundtrack of some of the ongoing stories in my head. And I think that makes me sound like a crazy person a little bit. But nevertheless, this song is now a part of that playlist.

3. Catch Them All – Headlights
I think this may have been one of those free Starbucks songs, or otherwise it just magically appeared in my list of recent downloads but either way I love it.

4. Closer to Love – Mat Kearney
So I had kind of forgotten about this guy and then one day I was randomly looking through itunes and saw that he had a new album. I listened to a couple songs and really liked this one but I didn’t download it. And then I kid you not, the next day I was sitting at Starbucks and it started playing. So of course I was like, IT’S A SIGN! And I went home and downloaded it. I really like the line, “We’re all just one phone call from our knees.”

5. Conversation 16 – The National
The National is really quickly becoming my favorite band. I LOVE their new album and I am so ridiculously excited to see them at Lolla. I especially love them for lines line, “I was afraid I’d eat your brains cause I’m evil.”

6. The Curse – Josh Ritter
I can’t even handle how much I love this song. Look up the lyrics and read through them, like eight times. Because there’s a really interesting story there but there are about eighteen different underlying meanings you could take away from it and the writer in me is a little amazed by that.

7. Feeling Good – Nina Simone
This is another one from Chuck. It’s old school but I’ve been listening to a lot of jazz lately. Sometimes I’m up really late at night and jazz just seems appropriate. Although sometimes it makes me feel like taking up smoking and drinking scotch. Weird.

8. Get It – Childish Gambino
Okay, so I don’t really have an explanation for this one. First, there’s an obvious NOT SUITABLE FOR CHILDREN that should be stamped over this track. Second, I’ve never been into rap at all but I can’t help it, I love this. Maybe I’m biased because it’s Donald Glover who plays Troy on Community and I’m a teeny bit in love with him. So there you so. I don’t even know who I am anymore.

9. Humdrum Town – Theophilus London
Pretty sure I found this one because it was recommended by my fake cutie political boyfriend Chris Hayes. And it turned into another one of those songs that I can listen to on hour long loops. I like to listen to it while driving around with the windows down through my own little humdrum town.

10. I Go to the Barn Because I Like the – Band of Horses
I really love Band of Horses and I know they just came out with a new album but I was again, on itunes, and I found this older one. The opening line is my favorite. “Well I'd like to think I'm the mess you'd wear with pride.”

11. In These Arms – The Swell Season
I just re-watched Once recently and it got me wanting to search out more of their stuff. This entire album is pretty awesome. Now that I’m using my iphone as my ipod I usually plug it in at night and play music as I’m trying to sleep (and I usually end up waking up in the morning to music still playing) and this is one of the albums that is fabulous to sleep to.

12. Lessons Learned – Matt & Kim
I think I’ve put some Matt & Kim stuff on earlier mixes but I really like them. They’re so upbeat. And they’re going to be at Lolla! I love that so many awesome bands are going to be there. Me = EXCITED.

13. Live Forever – Matt Morris
You know how I said that I’ve been playing music to put myself to sleep? Well, this is on my playlist of “Sleepy Time” songs and weirdly enough it was the song that was playing when I woke up for about five days in a row. Which also meant that it was in my head continuously for those five days. This is okay. I’m not complaining.

14. Myriad Harbor – The New Pornographers
I love this band enough for the name alone. Okay, well, there’s more than just the name but really? Where do these bands come up with these names? If you were in a band what would the name be? My sisters and I used to try and come up with weird names. I think my favorite was “Shannon and the Sunburns.” Another good one: “Sock Drawer.”

15. The Myth of Us – Joshua Radin
So randomly I was going through my itunes one Tuesday and I was listening to some Joshua Radin songs and found myself thinking that I hadn’t seen anything new from him in awhile. And when I checked online I discovered that he had just released a new EP THAT VERY DAY. It was a sign. So purchased it and this was my favorite song. All the others are good too though. Of course.

16. Physics Never Stood a Chance
I don’t know where I find these songs. But I LOVE this lyric. “And I was … to capture you in song but your will’s too strong, I can’t write you into my life, in my greatest work of fiction, is it true that we don’t work on paper.” Sometimes that’s all it takes, this hook or lyrics to make me feel ridiculous about some of these songs. I want to be able to write something so beautiful and meaningful.

17. Solitary Gun – Rogue Wave
I know they say that the album is a slowly dying art and that everyone just buys all theses single and I’m afraid I’m a part of that. I love Rogue Wave but I’ve only heard this song from their newest album. Oh, I’m a horrible fan. Why can’t I have an endless supply of money to spend any which way on itunes? Life is so unfair.

18. Swim Until You Can’t See Land – Frightened Rabbit
I was trying to figure out where I first found this band and then I remembered that it was from Rainn Wilson in an interview I saw online and seriously, what was life like before the internets? I cannot remember. Where would I find all this amazing music otherwise? Best Buy? Pshaw. So archaic.

19. Walls – The Rocket Summer
I believe I first heard this song in the Friday Night Light promos – which seriously give me chills every single time. I think the lead singer sounds a lot like the lead singer from Augustana. He kind of has the same upper register thing going on.

20. 40 Day Dream – Edward Sharpe
I didn’t realize how many Lolla bands there were on this list until I started writing it. But I am ridiculously excited for this band. Why? Because it sounds like they would be fun in concert. They’re so folksy and throwback and “Home” is basically one of my favorite songs in this world right now.

I'm Having a Moment

I can maybe understand why people get so easily addicted to drugs. Not that I'm personally into any illegal substances (that you know of mom, what what? - TOTALLY KIDDING). But there's something deliciously thrilling about being in a state of perpetual blissful high. Right now, my drug of choice? Life.

Life and friends and family and music and writing are lifting me up in a way, right now, that is hard to even describe. There's that whole Miltonian idea of Felix Culpa, a fortunate fall. Sometimes you have to know darkness before you can know light. Or, put another way, life has to really, really suck balls before you can appreciate the beauty of everything else that is there.

Now, yeah, obviously my life never got that dark, nothing completely tragic struck me down. Just a couple of crappy people and some bad decisions. But a year removed from all that muck and I feel like there is this constant light of happiness shining over me and I'm probably going to start freaking people out with my overzealous optimism and joy right now. (Seriously, how depressing was I that now every time I post something positive on Facebook people are like, WOW, WHO ARE YOU?)

So what's good?

Well, the next month is going to be filled with traveling and visiting friends and the Lollapalooza Music Festival in Chicago and really, this is all I need in my life - some amazing music, people to laugh with, and places to go and see and explore. And then I can come home and write about it all. This is my life. I like you.

Also, on July 1st I went to a promo shoot for some wrap-arounds that NBC is doing during a Community marathon tomorrow night. And let me let you, this day was incredible. There really are no words. Ken Jeong and Joel McHale were present and I'm not lying when I say that they were ridiculously kind and sweet and AMAZINGLY funny. And I got to spend five hours with them shooting these promo clips and laughing and oh yeah, now I'm going to be on NBC tomorrow. Say what?

Yeah, look for me. I'll be the girl with the WTF? expression as Ken Jeong whispers INSANE things in my friend's ear while sitting on her lap. Yes, this happened.

These things also happened:

Joel McHale tweeted a picture of me 

Joel McHale clearly thinks I'm awesome

These things feel surreal and not normal to my life. But hey, I'm up for change.

Also, did I say I have amazing friends? Cause I do and right now I feel like I'm wrapped in this constant cocoon of support and encouragement and love and hours long phone conversations about nonsense and friends who text me pictures of cupcakes when I'm sad, and genius people who flail with me for three hours at IHOP over television shows and writing, and okay I'm rambling like an idiot.

But life right now, is a beautiful thing and I'm having this moment and eating it too.

(I don't know what that means. Ignore me.)

LOVE.

Typicality

“I’ve always believed that you were meant for an atypical life.”

Someone told me the above the other day. I like it. I've never wanted to be typical.

Not that there’s anything wrong with that. The typical life is a beautiful thing about who we are as a people. It's foundation and core and society. But maybe it’s not meant for me. I’d love to have kids. I’d love to get married and share my life with someone. But maybe, maybe there’s something else.

Maybe I’ll be atypical. Maybe I’ll spend my days holed up in a little corner of this Starbucks, watching people come and go. Maybe I’ll be one of those people, sipping foamy dark cappuccinos and clacking in heels across the tile floor. Maybe I’ll leave tomorrow and head out on the open road, wind in my hair, stereo blasting some appropriate indie song. Maybe I’ll stay. I’ll fall in love and then fall out of love and cry myself to sleep and then laugh about it all later. Maybe I’ve already met the man of my dreams. Maybe I never will. Maybe I’ll sit and listen to the same song over and over again on repeat, wishing those words had been my own. Maybe I'll spend my entire life waiting. Or moving. Or singing. Or writing about other people. Maybe one day someone will write about me. Or write me a song. Kiss me under the stars. Hold my hand. Introduce me to his parents. Maybe we won't get married. We'll travel and talk and make love and dance and never settle. Maybe I’ll spend an entire day with my toes in the sand, salty sea air curling my hair in waves around my face. Maybe it will all come true. Maybe faith will be rewarded and love will be returned and smiles will be exchanged. Maybe I’ll survive. And laugh through it all. Maybe I won’t. Maybe I will be typical. I’ll get married. Have children. A dog. A cat. A minivan. Maybe I’ll be blissful. Maybe the earth will just continue turning. Maybe none of this matters. Maybe all of it does.

Maybe there are possibilities that can't even be comprehended.

Maybe I just want to fall into this endless pool of maybe, float in lazy circles over the water, languid and relaxed, eyes shaded from the sun. Even just for a little bit...

Maybe.

Current Music: Finish Line by Fanfarlo

In Which Everything I Need to Know, I Learned from Saved by the Bell

After watching Rachel Maddow (and let me just say now that I want to BE her when I grow up) tonight I'm a little overwhelmed by the feeling of utter helplessness I feel over this whole oil spill crisis. Well, hopelessness mixed with total blackout inducing rage would actually be a more apt way to describe how I feel toward it right now - but tomay-to, tomah-to.

And I can't help but wonder, didn't we learn this lesson already?

Let's go back shall we, way back to a simpler time when problems were solved in hilarious fashion and under 30 minutes, back to circa 1990...

Zach Morris and his friends are playing baseball or football or some kind of sport (because every single character on that show played every single sport - seriously, I think there was even a gymnastics episode) out on the field and there’s apparently a pond nearby and a wayward duck ends up being beened by a ball. Because he’s Zack and he’s awesome, he takes the duck to the science teacher for help. Oh, and it just so happens that he and his friends all have the same science class together (and every other class for that matter and I really wish high school had been more like that). The classroom also suspiciously looks like the same room where they have math and history and sometimes practice white water rafting (remember, that episode with Mr. Belding's cooler younger brother and how we knew he was cool because he had long hair and wore jeans?).

So the science teacher helps Zach take care of the duck while simultaneously giving a lesson on biology with a bunch of other little animals that they’ve taken from the nearby pond. And of course Mr. Belding wanders into the classroom (Did that guy ever work? I seriously never saw my principal unless I was at a pep rally) and it turns out that he recognizes the duck as Becky (named after his wife) a duck that he likes to go and feed at lunch (Mr. Belding is truly the most tragic character in this show).

The second plot line of the episode starts when Slater runs into the Max covered in oil. But why?! Well it turns out that they struck oil! On the football field. Yeah, okay.

So suddenly the school is rich and the students start having delusional fantasies about what life will be like in a rich fancy Bayside and it pretty much involves them not going to class anymore and dating supermodels and suddenly speaking in British accents or something (I might also be thinking of that episode where they think they're going to get rich off making friendship bracelets). And of course the only person that doesn’t like this is Jessie. Cause she’s a freaking buzzkill.

But then the duck is healed and the students take all the animals back to the pond and we all know what’s going to happen now. Queue Slater once again covered in oil because there’s been an oil spill and everyone rushes to the pond to save the animals but it’s too late. So Zach's got Becky in his jacket but she’s covered in oil and clearly dead and everyone cries. (I think this special episode was even more special that that one where that famous guy offers Kelly pot and Screech finds a joint in the boys bathroom and they all flip out, as teenagers are wont to do if they find a joint in the school bathroom, and then Brandon Tartikoff comes and films a commercial with the gang where they teach people to say no to dope.)

So everyone is sad and obviously Jessie was right the entire time (because she’s always right, unless she’s taking caffeine pills to stay up and study). And they team up to teach the big bad oil company a lesson and the plan involves Zach spilling oil on a guy (a guy who's wearing a bolo tie and has a Southern accent because ALL people in the oil business are from Texas and wear bolo ties) and explaining to the students that a new fancy Bayside means they won't be able to have class outside under the shade of trees anymore (I only ever had one teacher in high school let us have class outside. And I’m pretty sure it’s because she wasn’t saying no to dope). And of course, they win and the evil oil company goes away and the episode ends with one of their epic six way high fives. Good times.

So what?

I’m not an idiot. I 100% realize that life's problems will never be as simple as Saved by the Bell presents them. Problems don’t get solved in thirty minutes to the dulcet sounds of a laugh track. We can't just say, "We're already a better Bayside/Country/World without the oil so let all drilling henceforth be stopped." But can't we take a little responsibility? Or at least look beyond pocketbooks and the bottom line to see the reality of this planet and the people who have to live and breathe and survive here?

We dig and we dig and we use technology to get more oil faster and from deeper depths than ever before and we steamroll ahead with dollar signs in our eyes without stopping to think of the consequences. How is this okay? How have we let this happen? How have our politicians and fellow human beings let this happen? This is not something for which simple human error is an acceptable excuse. Shutoff valves are broken and fail safe plans don't work all because someone somewhere was trying to cut a few corners, because checking and rechecking takes time and manpower and money. Efforts to stop the spill all fail one after the other because no one knows what to do with an oil spill at this depth. Why? Because that kind of research takes time and money. Efforts to clean up the oil are half-ass, not well-manned and poorly planned. Why? Time and money, time and money.

It makes me a little bit ill.

Hundreds of thousands of barrels of oil pour into the Gulf every day and no one has any idea what to do. The latest reports say that a cap is in place but now it's just "sit around and cross your fingers that it works" time. And all of that is just so maddening. It shouldn't be, "let's hope this works" or "let's throw everything but the kitchen sink at this thing and hope something sticks." There should be a plan. There should be research that is oh, I don't know, NOT outdated and thirty years old.

BP, I want to punch you in the face.

I wish I could be ten years old again; I wish I could believe that all our problems had simple solutions; I wish life was as easy as Zach Morris taught me it was back all those years ago.  Because, it's not. It's complicated and it's frustrating and sometimes I want to run around in circles screaming because, what do we do? Where does this end?

I'm going to repeat what Rachel Maddow said tonight: things need to change. The way these oil companies are run, needs to change. Our politicians need to change the way they do business. If lesson's aren't learned and changes aren't made in the wake of this disaster, then our political system is failing - failing us, failing our Founding Fathers.

So listen up elected officials. Shut your mouths and your partisan, greedy bickering and get something done, do something for the people. And by people, I mean, the people - not the lobbyists, not the corporations  -the people. Because if you can't, well then, I don't even know anymore.

Zach Morris, I need a hug.

A Lost Farewell

It was almost six years ago when I watched the premiere of a show called Lost about a bunch of plane cash survivors stranded on a deserted island. From the very beginning I was captured by the mystery of a place that was home to polar bears, an unseen "monster" and an underground hatch. I was held in suspense during the fast paced pilot, right down to the famous, "Guys, where are we?"

But most of all, there were the characters. Jack and Kate and Sawyer, Charlie and Claire, Locke, Sayid, Hurley, Sun and Jin, Shannon and Boone, Walt and Michael and a dog named Vincent. Through a series of flashbacks we learn about their lives before the crash, their mistakes and failures and loves and losses. We learn that Kate is a accused convict and Sawyer is a conman and Charlie is a rockstar with a heroin addiction and Hurley is a lotto winner.

And through it all - the Dharma Initiative, polar bear cage sex, the Others, explosions and and a crazy French chick, the whispers, the Oceanic Six, a donkey wheel, time travel, more explosions, another plane crash, infertility issues, a button that needs to be pushed every 108 minutes, the numbers, ghosts, creepy creepy Ethan Rom, the return of the tailies, a mysteries source of light, baby stealing, more explosions, the freighter folk, the manipulations of Benjamin Linus, hydrogen bombs, daddy issues, flash forwards, flash sideways, names on a cave wall, the ultimate battle between dark and light, me screaming "WTF, show?!" at the end of every episode - through ALL that, we always had these characters.

Set to Michael Giacchino's incredibly mesmerizing score (seriously, I can't listen to the Life and Death track without wanting to cry) we've been taken on a journey, and I for one am satisfied with the outcome

Honestly, I still don't know the answer to the "Guys, where are we?" question. I don't know exactly what or where the island is. I don't completely understand The Source and the light and what happens if it goes unprotected. I don't know what the deal was between Widmore and Ben or why Walt was special or why Aaron had to be raised by Claire or why women on the island couldn't have babies or why time travel rules don't apply to Desmond and why why why a million other things. And yet, I don't really care. I'm okay with the unanswered questions. In the end, the only thing that really mattered to me was the characters. It was seeing a character like Jack, the man of science, finally finding faith, finally finding something he could really fix and truly believe in.

Maybe it was sappy and cliche  but I loved seeing Claire and Charlie together with Aaron, and Sun and Jim come to remembrance of their lives and Locke walking and greeting Jack like a friend. (Honestly, I think my favorite moment of enlightenment was between Sawyer and Juliet and mainly because I'd been hoping for it since the first episode of the season. I sort of fell in love with the idea of these two characters being in love and probably because we never see either of them as happy as they are when they are together in Dharma Hippyville). It was lovely to see characters like Boone and Shannon and Libby return and all unite in one cosmically beautiful reunion

I've read a couple of reviews from people who seem to think that this episode was implying that all the events from the past six years on the island were in fact some kind of manifestation of purgatory.  I'm sorry,  but if you think that, then you are wrong and you need to go watch the episode again. As Christian Shephard said, "I'm real. You're real. Everything that's ever happened to you is real." The events of the island happened. The characters that died on the island, died. The characters that eventually left the island -  Kate, Sawyer, Lapidus, Miles, Richard, Claire - moved on and lived their lives, however long after that happened to be. And the sideways world was somehow this place out of time and space, call it purgatory or whatever, where they all ended up to somehow be together in the afterlife. And as they slowly came to enlightenment together, they could finally let go and move on.

So that's how I'm choosing to read it. It's cheesy, it's hokey, it's deeply saturated in feeling and faith and heart and know some people don't like that, but it was enough for me, it left me satisfied.

So thank you so Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse for bringing us six memorable years. Yes, there are questions unanswered but isn't that life? Maybe we're not going to all end up on a mysterious island somewhere in the Pacific with a bunch of attractive strangers with daddy issues, but we all go through tests and challenges and struggles. We all experience pain and we all search for redemption. And through all that, the most important thing, beyond the questions and the search for truths, are the people that we love. The people that struggle and rejoice and cry and laugh and live with us. And really, for the characters that I've gotten to know over the past six years, that's all I needed - a closure, a redemptive ending. And for that, for this show and for six incredible seasons, I am thankful.

I'll miss you.

Season Finale Round-Up

I sort of love television. A lot. Sometimes more so than movies. I think it's because I adore characters and learning about characters and watching them grow and change and experience life. And yes, good movies do give us memorable characters. But in television, we get to watch their stories unfold over time, we get to grow with them, we get to turn in each week and wonder what's going to happen.

So yes, I watch a fair amount of television. And that being the case, I've decided that I should talk more on this blog about some of the shows I'm watching, starting with a little roundup of thoughts on my favorite recent season finales. (Yes, I have chosen to start talking more about television at a time when most shows are on hiatus. Whatever.)

Season Finales

Community 

This show sneakily became my favorite show of the season. I've fallen in love with the antics and "weird little relationship" of Troy and Abed; with Shirley as the tough but sweet Christan single mom; with Britta's quirkiness and Annie's intensity and Jeff's snark; and yes, even with Pierce's oddly endearing ignorance. Meta humor abounds (the paintball episode that parodied Die Hard and 28 Days Later and basically every other action movie ever, was absolute epic perfection) and yet, there's a sweetness and a heart behind it all so that in the end you're really just rooting for this entire ragtag study group to always be BFF's 4Life.

The finale spun the typical love triangle drama as Prof. Slater and Britta battled it out for Jeff's affection (all this was interlaced of course with jokes about jumping the shark and the consumption of a giant cookie and men in dalmatian costume and Ken Jeong punching John Oliver in the face with a roll of quarters) but everything got turned on its head when Jeff ends up making out with Annie as the screen fades to black. And yes, I realize that there's supposed to be like a sixteen-some-odd-year difference between Jeff and Annie but I don't care. Joel McHale and Alison Brie have kickass chemistry and those kisses were kind of hot. Plus, their characters just somehow make adorable sense together. I don't expect that any sort of romantic entanglement will ever take center stage on this show but I'm intrigued to see how it will all go down next season.

Spinning, In the Art of Holding On

Hands inch around in steady ticking heartbeats
sweeping away at each moment, tick... tock... tick
A stopping starting endless merry-go-round loop,
up-down, up-down, ceaseless lull,
run full speed, to find the finish line at the start.

... and begin...

rivers of rain droplets slide down a window pane,
as we splash, laughing, through puddles,
and days stretch fingertips into hazy twilight
expand into day and a warm sun beats down,
leaving skin pink and freckled,
the salty sea air singing while sand slides between toes
and falling leaves will fall,
leave bare scraggly branches pointing crookedly to the sky,
as footsteps crunching over paths of golden browns and yellows
step in from harsh, biting, chill with red noses
to snuggle in deep and warm, clutching mugs of hot chocolate
and watch flickering shadows dance over the walls

End...

... And again...

rivers of rain pink and freckled scraggly branches shadows dance

Moments dance and leap frog over each other,
twist around like ribbons waving in the wind, in vibrant hues
of pinks and ambers and violets as music swells
with the steady echoing thump of drumbeats and deep bass,
spinning wildly in twirling circles, arms outspread,
feet dancing in perfect motion around and around
until the whole thing spins away.

Stuck in this wild spin until we fall, we bargain with hands folded,
eyes lifted for another moment, another breath,
swallow it up, store it away - each moment away
a drumbeat, a heartbeat, tick...tock...tick

...to begin again...

For a circle is unbroken, until it's broken
loose ends hanging empty into indeterminate space
Around and around - seconds, hours, days piling up, spilling over
falling fast behind - nothing but time until there's no time left
Until a stillness, roaring silence, useless clock.

Words and More Words

Words are my inspiration. (I find inspiration from many sources but there is such power in a single word or phrase). The following quotes are just a random few of the ones that are currently bringing me much motivation and love.

"But for now we are young, let us lay in the sun and count every beautiful thing we see." 

- Neutral Milk Hotel, Aeroplane Over the Sea

"Every plan is a tiny prayer to Father time." 

- Death Cab for Cutie, What Sarah Said

"The turning point in the process of growing up is when you discover the core of strength within you that survives all hurt." 

- Max Lerner

"Only those who risk going too far can possibly find out how far one can go." 

- T.S. Eliot

"I wanted a perfect ending... Now, I've learned, the hard way, that some poems don't rhyme, and some stories don't have a clear beginning, middle and end. Life is about not knowing, having to change, taking the moment and making the best of it, without knowing what's going to happen next. Delicious ambiguity." 

- Gilda Radner

"Everything we do is a choice. Oatmeal or cereal. Highway or side streets. Kiss her or keep her. We make choices and we live with the consequences. If someone gets hurt along the way we ask for forgiveness. It's the best anyone can do."  

- Ned, Pushing Daisies

"Nobody in life gets exactly what they thought they were going to get. But if you work really 
hard and you're kind, amazing things will happen." 

- Conan O'Brien

Here's to remembering the everlasting power of words, and using those words to inspire, uplift and cherish in the week and life ahead.

♥ Shannon

Winter Music Soundtrack

So every season my lovely friend Melissa and I exchange some of the top songs that we've been listening to over the past few months. I like to think of these as little seasonal soundtracks.  It's a teensy bit late but here is my Winter 2009-2010 Music Soundtrack. I've included links to YouTube Videos where you can hear the songs.

1. Intro by The xx

So this song was in that Visa commercial (the one with Apollo Ono) that played during the Olympics. It’s just a little instrumental ditty but something about it struck a cord with me and I had to download it. Now it just makes me think about winter sports.

2. Can’t Go Back Now – The Weepies

I love the mellowness of The Weepies. They are my “fall asleep” music. I find it soothing. And this song is just pretty.

3. 100,000 Strong – Matt Morris           

This is the guy that sang Hallelujah with Justin Timberlake during the Haiti Relief Telethon. I had to look him up and ended up falling in love with a bunch of his songs. I'm always a sucker for new singer/songwriters in my life. Thanks JT!

           

4. Flawz by Caitlin Crosby

This is my uplifting, self-esteem boosting song of the season. If you haven’t seen the video I recommend clicking on the link. It’s pretty cool and includes a quick cameo by everyone's favorite Nerd Spy.

5. Nantes – Beirut

I just think this is a really cool song. I love the French interlude in the middle.

6. Good Ol’ Fashioned Nightmare - Matt and Kim

I'm starting to realize that this might be one of the most upbeat mixes I’ve ever done. And I LOVE this song. It’s upbeat and catchy and totally just in my brain man. I first heard this song on Community, a show that has featured some pretty awesome music actually (some others are featured on this list).

7. Cello Song – The Books (feat. Jose Gonzalez)

I found this one awhile ago going through all my itunes recommendations and I fell in love with it and downloaded it and it further contributed to the way itunes is slowly bankrupting me. But then this past weekend I FINALLY saw The Blind Side and this was the opening song and I was like “Hey, I already know this song!” And then everyone looked at me like I was insane. So... there.

8. Fake Empire – The National

I think The National might be my new favorite band. Their CD Boxer is basically the greatest thing ever and I can’t stop listening. I love, love, love the lead singer’s voice. It a really nice mix of deep and raspy. I actually had a really hard time deciding which song to put on here. I chose this one because it's one of the more popular ones. Their song "Slow Show"- yeah, I pretty much want to marry it and have it's babies.

9. Home – Edward Sharpe

Maybe I’m just too in love with all of my songs this season. Cause, I really want to say that this is my favorite song. I can’t choose! It's just so much folksy fun. And the little talking part in the middle is adorable.

10. Merry Happy – Kate Nash

(Another one from Community) I don’t know what “dancing at discos and eating cheese on toast” has to do with anything but it makes me laugh in it’s absurdity and the rest of this lyrics are fantastic. I especially like, “but you can grow flowers from where dirt used to be. And I like to sing the “do do do da do do” part.

11. New Theory – Washed Out
Eh, I don't know. I can't always describe why I like a song. Something about it just calls to my soul.

12. Horchata – Vampire Weekend

This is one that again feels like a more summery song. It’s a good one to play in the car. It’s just makes everything feel warm and sunny – like I need to be sitting on the beach drinking something pink with an umbrella.

13. Beginner’s Luck – Eels

I’ve always liked the Eels and this is a fun song. Again, upbeat. Usually my music is so depressing.  I like what this song has to say about love being “a ride.” It sounds “beginning of a relationship” kind of hopeful.

14. Relator – Pete Yorn & Scarlet Johansson

I sort of hate myself for loving this song. But I can’t help it. Crap.

15. Song Away – Hockey

No, wait! This is my favorite song! Oh, I don’t know. This is my favorite driving song. I love rolling down the windows and blasting the speakers. Especially when the weather is warm. It makes everything feel summery. Seriously, am I just using the same words over and over to describe every song? It's summery! It's warm! It's fun and pretty!

16. In the Sun – She & Him

I adore Zooey Daschanel’s voice. It’s so old-fashioned and vintage and dreamy. The video to this song is adorable.

17. I Will Live On Islands – Josh Rouse
This song is so fun! And summery! And pretty! Wait a minute...

18. Two Weeks – Grizzly Bear

Okay, so I first heard this song in a car commercial and didn't think anything of it. THEN, I was listening to this song by Childish Gambino (Rapper name of Donald Glover, one of the actors on Community). And what he does is take indie songs and lay them down with rap lyrics. And one of them was over this song. Here's the link to the Childish Gambino song. (It's funny, I don't normally listen to rap but he's really good and I like his stuff.) And I ended up really enjoying the original song. (The video however, I find to be a little creepy).

19. Kiss With a Fist – Florence and The Machine

Totally not advocating violence but I love this song. I like to think of it as being about a couple that just likes to piss each other off. And that’s good fun. This is also another one from Community and the scene it plays over is classic. Complete with Anthony Michael Hall as a gym-rat bully. Click for awesomeness.

20. Not Miserable – Frightened Rabbit

I already talked about this one a few blog posts ago but words cannot describe how perfect this song is. All the crap is gone and while it was painful for awhile, suddenly things are a million times better than they’ve ever been.  Thanks Frightened Rabbit.