As I type this, there is a middle-aged gentleman lighting a glass pipe dead center in the middle of my alleyway. He keeps looking around to make sure no one can see him. You know, in the middle of a road.
Well, I can see you, sir.
And you’ll be one of my last memories of Bellefonte. Just you, in your puffy, disgusting sports team jacket, exhaling huge clouds of pot smoke. Thank you.
So I got bored while I was at Lindsie’s for my grad school tours (she’s not a bad hostess…she was just at work while I was in her apartment) and decided to make Sonya a mix CD. I figured it was appropriate because we spend so much of our time asking when the world is just going to end and leave us alone. I liked it so much, though, that I thought I’d share with everyone!
|
|
The entire album is available here for your listening enjoyment, but only for a limited time, Hoover. (~50 MB, mp3)
Download cover art as a PDF if you’d like to burn a copy.
Did you see Lost in Translation? Did you like it? If you did, consider yourself a shoe-in for Marie Antoinette because it’s the exact same ambiance just transported back 200 years and moved half a planet West. This makes it sound like the film was boring. And I won’t lie, there were times when it was. But in the way that Coppola’s other film was boring: the boredom of reality. What you see in Marie Antoinette is not a retelling of a dramatic moment in time or a period piece about romance or tragedy. You see random days in the life of a girl made queen, of an outsider in a strange culture.
What’s more than the ambiance of feeling is that of vision. Holy hell. This film is a visual overload: mirrors and silk and flowers and velvet and fondant and….. Many reviewers mentioned how you would be absolutely dizzied by the endless layering of beauty. They were not exaggerating. It was like a pastel Moulin Rouge in broad daylight. My new HDTV is arriving tonight and I’m absolutely watching for a second time just to see what the set can do. It’s that kind of experience.
And the soundtrack! Aphex Twin and Siouxie and the Banshees in one place? Yes, sir…you are right. Little anachronisms like this made for a quirky vibe that lent itself to life at Versailles under Louis XVI.
What I like most about Sofia Coppola’s films is the way they are so repeatable. She does not force you to follow one emotional path through from start to end but instead lets you create whatever feelings you want by filling your mind with nuanced glances and deafening silences. Marie Antoinette reminded me of visiting a gallery full of sublime art…so good that you will visit again and again just to uncover what else you can possibly draw from what’s on display.
In short, unless you are looking for a film that does the storytelling for you, you’ll love it. 4 stars!
I never would have suspected that leaving could be nearly as stressful as staying. Now I know.
Note: This baby sloth has absolutely nothing to do with the post you just read. I just like him. Thank you.
Ice-age heat wave, can’t complain.
If the world’s at large, why should I remain?
Walked away to another plan.
Gonna find another place, maybe one I can stand.
I move on to another day,
to a whole new town with a whole new way.
Went to the porch to have a thought.
Got to the door and again, I couldn’t stop.
You don’t know where and you don’t know when.
But you still got your words and you got your friends.
Walk along to another day.
Work a little harder, work another way.Well uh-uh baby I ain’t got no plan.
We’ll float on maybe would you understand?
Gonna float on maybe would you understand?
Well float on maybe would you understand?The days get shorter and the nights get cold.
I like the autumn but this place is getting old.
I pack up my belongings and I head for the coast.
It might not be a lot but I feel like I’m making the most.
The days get longer and the nights smell green.
I guess it’s not surprising but it’s spring and I should leave.I like songs about drifters – books about the same.
They both seem to make me feel a little less insane.
Walked on off to another spot.
I still haven’t gotten anywhere that I want.
Did I want love? Did I need to know?
Why does it always feel like I’m caught in an undertow?The moths beat themselves to death against the lights.
Adding their breeze to the summer nights.
Outside, water like air was great.
I didn’t know what I had that day.
Walk a little farther to another plan.
You said that you did, but you didn’t understand.I know that starting over is not what life’s about.
But my thoughts were so loud I couldn’t hear my mouth.
My thoughts were so loud I couldn’t hear my mouth.
My thoughts were so loud.“The World at Large” by Modest Mouse
Apparently I’m no longer interested in taking photos, because I just got back from Philadelphia and have nothing photographic to show for it. My camera never even left its bag during the entire weekend.
My visit to Lindsie’s was great, but back to that in a second.
Some things I hate about living with my brother:
But, back to things that are good.
Aside from alcoholic-level drinking, Lindsie and I also did some really fun things over the weekend that was. On Friday, I was tasked with locating a college in the Main Line alone. I survived. I even made it to my intended destination with minimal lost-ness. I also walked to Philadelphia University and had a good meeting with admissions and the Digital Design/Instructional Design & Technology programs’ director. So hooray for that. Lindsie arrived home not long after I had settled back into her place and we departed for the theater to see The Number 23. It sucked balls. However, due to a traffic-y journey, we had plenty of time for enjoyable conversations. On Saturday, we made our way to Center City to shop and tour the Mütter Museum, which was delightfully disgusting. I finally located a sweater with asymmetrical buttons on the shoulder and Lindsie absolutely SLAUGHTERED in Ann Taylor. The crowds proved too much and we packed it in not long after, though. Take away lesson: bitch can make a mean Tom Collins. And, evidently, so can I.
This week is going to be busy with grad school applyin’ and GRE-preparin’ and other such things. I guess the upside is that it will keep me occupied so I don’t fillet my brother.
…running like 1000 mph. If only I wanted it to zip along like this.
ThalidomideBeyoncétumourMexicoCityvisioncoveragewhitetrashmonster
cathaircaloriessaltwaterdamagegradschooldegreeprogramMastersdesign
diskfailuredefragCouplandcolorsorangeyellowtimeoffbreaknewjobnewcity
newtownMarylandTorontoawayhomefamilyfriendsnothingaloneNineInch
NailsBjörksuicideforeverneveroncepinkpurrsleepmoneymoneymoneymoney
moneybillssleep.
This stream of conciousness brought to you by my last thoughts before bed.
…having off on Wednesday was pretty kick ass.
Getting out of my parking spot this morning: not so much. I’m not entirely sure how I actually did it, but there was definitely a heroic amount of engine revving and spinning. Probably looked ridiculous for anyone living over my alleyway. Picture my Jetta, bustin’ out of the garage at like 15 mph, full stop before I plowed into the electric pole, snow flying as I ramped over a 2 foot snowbank and then ditched hard into my neighbour’s spot. I’d pee myself giggling from my window if I were upstairs.
Of course, I totally – and purposely – got it hung up in a drift on the way back from the grocery store tonight. I just wanted to see if I could get through the little secret alley I use to get home. Haha. I’m glad Nate was there to push or I’d have just left Klaus until the morning.
Speaking of morning, I should get ready for bed because 6 am approaches quickly.
This holiday started early for me. I gave myself the greatest VD gift I could find:
My very own Seagate Momentus 5400.3 120 GB hard drive! I’m so pleased with myself for not only installing it but for also not breaking my computer in the process. I love me! Thanks, VD, for reminding me of this best love of all.
