angie's right leg and other oscar aftermath

Ten golden thoughts:

- I got all the major categories right. I am like Nostradamus or something. Or I read enough expert analysis and listened to the right people. Glad I changed George Clooney to Jean Dujardin last minute.

- Angie's right leg is stupid. Did she practice that at home? Can we make that the new Tebowing or Bradying?

- Does it seem patronizing to everyone else that those Hollywood types are so freaking supportive whenever someone like Octavia Spencer or Jennifer Hudson wins? A white first-time nominee will never get that standing ovation. What is that about?

- George Clooney and Brad Pitt are looking old, while Tom Cruise looks like a twenty-something whenever he cuts his hair. I feel after Mission Impossible Ghost Protocol, Tom Cruise is on his way back.

- Emma Stone is adorable. I think I like her look the best last night. (Yup, Charlize wasn't there.)

- Why are there tv stars (Modern Family's Sarah Hyland, for example) here? This ain't no Golden Globes. Standards, Academy people...

- If I were The Dictator, it would not be merely Bisquick mix I would dump on smarmy Ryan Seacrest.

- So how exactly is Billy Crystal a good Oscar host again? I forget.

- Aw...Madonna's W.E. didn't win best costume design. I was hoping she would get that one.

- Richard Dreyfuss - WTF?

oscar predictions

This year I have zero interest in the Oscars. I'll be watching of course, but I am rooting for nobody, except maybe rooting for some stars I like to show up (Charlize? Ryan? Marisa?).

Anyways, my predictions are: The Artist, Michel Hazanavicius (director for The Artist), Meryl Streep, George Clooney Jean Dujardin, Octavia Spencer, and Christopher Plummer.

live 8 revisited

Madonna's Superbowl half-time show actually does not hold a candle to some of her greatest live performances. One of her best is what she did at Live 8 - she performed with reckless abandon and a spirit of joy and confidence that was somewhat missed at the Superbowl:







That slo-mo breakdown during Music is insane! Wow was that really seven years ago?

month lin a jar

February has been a bust thus far. And we just barely made it past Valentine's Day. Oh joy - yay to single people everywhere. I swear, sometimes I feel as if holidays were invented to make lonely people feel even lonelier...I am trying to survive the Patriot's failure at the Superbowl. It's been rather brutal - the attacks on Tom Brady and G and the Pats. I am trying to avoid reading too much, especially the non-sense about Bradying. I will always be a fan of Tom (not so much of G. but whatever), and I am holding out hope that they'll make another run. He's already won three. Really, any more that I pray for is just out of greed...Whitney is dead. Well, this one actually wasn't that shocking given her trouble with drugs. Nonetheless, it's such a shame. When you got God-given talent like that and all the fame and fortune that came with it, why not parlay it into something good rather than waste away? Remember you always gotta fight...I have never been a fan of the type of vocal acrobatics that Whitney and Mariah and Christina Aguilera represent. It's just too over the top, showing off for the sake of it. Dolly Parton's original version of I Will Always Love You is leagues more touching than Whitney's grandiose version from The Bodyguard. When Dolly says she wishes you joy and happiness and love, your heart breaks a little bit...Speaking of body parts breaking, my back/neck continue to bother me since I got rear-ended by that Saturn on Jan 26. I went to the doc who thinks I should be fine, but I am not sure I believe him yet. The snap, crackle and pop sounds that my back and neck make are not really convincing me that all is good...I made cheesecakes in a jar, from a Martha Stewart Living magazine recipe. I had to use a jar that is less pretty than the Weck ones she featured in her magazine, cuz Weck jars are too rich for my blood. I always had to bake the cakes longer than she suggested, cuz the toothpick just wouldn't come up clean. But it all turned out fine and lovely. Actually until I made these cheesecakes and started googling around, I never knew that desserts in a jar is actually a thing, like there are recipes all over the web for cakes in a jar or pies in a jar...I have three more payments to go before paying off the car and less than four years to go before paying off the house. Thank god. I hate debts. I really don't like financial obligations and worrying about money. I don't dream of being rich, but I do dream of having financial freedom, which I guess basically equates to the same thing as being rich. I cannot wait til the day when I don't have to work for a living. I don't so much mind working, but it's working at a job I hate just to pay bills - that I mind, a lot...Jeremy Lin of the NY Knicks is all the rage in the NBA now, and there is all sorts of Lin puns, like lin-sanity, lin-ning, etc. This is the most unlikely story - a Chinese American Harvard grad who makes dorky youtube videos with his Asian friends (KevJumba!) ends up being the toast of the NBA. I don't keep up with basketball, but I guess anything to get me over football is fine...Revenge's "Chaos" episode was so good. I haven't been so hooked by episodic tv in a while. And thank goodness they didn't kill off Daniel Grayson and instead got rid of creepy Tyler instead. Actually I kinda wish they killed off Charlotte and Declan instead - they are really annoying. Oh and throw Ashley in the bunch too. So the question now is, who actually killed Tyler? It's Takeda or Faux-manda or somebody else...Okay, Happy Endings is a heck of a funny show. It's definitely the son of Friends and brother of New Girl, but who cares if it's crazy and hilarious?...I just sold three Jason Wu for Target items on ebay and made me about 50 bucks. I was hoping for more. The time and effort that went into this are worth way more than 50 bucks. But it's really not even about the money but just the thrill of scoring...Listening to Johnny Cash right now - I love his American Recordings series. So much weariness and heartbreaks I could barely stand it...The box lunches from 10 UN - this student-operated culinary school restaurant near my workplace - are a great deal. Yesterday I got a portabella mushroom focaccia sandwich, with a side salad and home-made chips for $7. And it was delicious. Too bad the place is only open Thursdays and Fridays...This Sunday, Amazing Race is back. It's the 20th season - woah! I am so excited, even though I think it's dreadful that one of the competing teams are those two annoying people (I dunno their names and couldn't be bothered to look it up right now) from Big Brother. I hate it when reality shows cross each other. Why, Phil, why?...I wish I could just put this month in a jar and set it out to the sea, never to be seen again. That way, the Patriots did not lose the Superbowl and my back is not hurting from being rear-ended...

like a single

Worst lead single from a Madonna cd:
1. Four Minutes (ugh - that Timbaland/Justin Timberlake sound just irks me)
2. Give Me All Your Luvin' (too trite, inconsequential - not the Madonna I was hoping for and not the song to show who is queen. I mean, you got Adele doing Rolling In The Deep and Someone Like You - this ain't gonna cut it)
3. American Life (actually American Life is an awesome cd, but this lead single with the rapping about soy latte just didn't connect)
(hmm...these are all from her more recent cds - what is that saying???)

Best lead single from a Madonna cd:
1. Like A Prayer (this is an event - it's downright spiritual)
2. Frozen (ushered in the electronica Madonna - dark and mystery, with the perfect video. Yup, no dancing in front of a stupid backdrop)
3. Music (that beat is a monster - this is how you make a dance single)

Am I being too harsh on Madonna's new material? They all can't be classics, right? Most artists would be lucky to have a few signature songs, while Madonna has them up the wazoo and can fill a whole concert without a single throwaway. I should give her a break.

give her all your money

Weather: Overcast
Mood: Sad
Music: Dolly Parton Greatest Hits
Last Movie: 50/50
Reading: 1Q84
Last Pleasure: Madonna at Superbowl
Last Worry: My neck pain from the car accident last week (some guy in a Saturn rear-ended me at a red light)
Last accomplishment: Finally getting some videos off my Tivo machine onto my computer
Looking Forward To: Madonna concert Oct 6 (the Give Me All Your Money tour)
Not Really Looking Forward To: Needing to do taxes
Gas Price: $3.86/gallon for Honda
Clothes: Land's End Canvas navy blue hoodie sweatshirt, straight fit jeans
Today's Headline: Whitney Houston Found Dead In California Hotel, Age 48 (Say no to drugs, kids.)
Current iPad Wallpaper: MDNA
Last Website Visited: ebay trying to sell off a few Jason Wu for Target items I acquired last weekend
Last Meal: Grilled pork over rice from Loi's - one of the most reliably cheap and delicious meals around
Last Purchase: Loads of cds from amazon, for less than $1.50 a piece
Item Off My Wishlist: Solar Joos personal solar charger for iphone/ipad
Latest Evidence It's A Beautiful World:

EF - Live The Language - Beijing from Albin Holmqvist on Vimeo.

somebodys

This song came up on my iTunes randomly. God, I feel sad every time I hear this. Breaks my heart. Or reminds me of how broken my heart is. Elliott Smith - genius.



I had tender feelings that you made hard
But it's your heart, not mine, that's scarred
So when I go home I'll be happy to go
You're just somebody that I used to know
You don't need my help anymore
It's all now to you, there ain't no before
Now that you're big enough to run your own show
You're just somebody that I used to know
I watched you deal in a dying day
And throw a living past away
So you can be sure that you're in control
You're just somebody that I used to know
I know you don't think you did me wrong
And I can't stay this mad for long
Keeping ahold of what you just let go
You're just somebody that I used to know

Bonus - Two more songs with the word "Somebody" in the title:

To Love Somebody - Ray Lamontagne & Damine Rice


Last Night I Dreamt Somebody Loved Me - The Smiths

rage, rage against the dying of the ray of light

I am saddened, not only for my beloved Patriots' loss yesterday but also by some of the comments I've been reading directed at Madonna's Superbowl half-time show. Mainly I am saddened by the pure ageism and misogyny that are so obvious in the venomous rantings of anonymous people out there in the cyber-world. Anonymous people are so ready to spew hate, as if there are no consequences for putting that negativity out there. Just because you cannot be identified, that does not make you not accountable. The world works in mysterious ways. You know who you are. God knows who you are. The Universe knows who you are.

Anyways, back to Madonna. I posted an article a couple of weeks back. The most striking thing I took from the article, and what I wholeheartedly agree with, is that Madonna's biggest crime is that she aged in a pop world where aging is forbidden.

People say she should hang it up, she should act her age, she's ugly, she's talentless, she's desperate, she's plastic, she belongs back in the 80's, she belongs in a crypt, she should die already.

The woman is 53. She defined pop music. She is the very model by which pop stars are made these days, for better or worse. She's a self-made woman. She made the most of what she got. She is the world's popular singer, all done without being blessed by a God-given voice like Mariah's or Celine's or Whitney's. That's like being the world's successful mathematician without having a knack for numbers. Everything that she's got is forged by sheer will and determination. She didn't fall by the way side as a drug addict or an alcoholic. She works out like a fiend. She has a million tasks. She's a legendary hard worker. She shows up. She tries new things.

Isn't that what you want people to do? Isn't that the right way to age - instead of closing up shop and retiring into obscurity and oblivion? In life, shouldn't you always fight - not for fame or fortune but for relevance? Shouldn't you always make sure your work matters in whatever work you do? Shouldn't you always scratch and crawl your way to be heard? You can mess up, you can fail on catastrophic levels, but that's okay as long as you get back up and do it all over again. You don't cheat, and you earn your last breath.

Most of us haven't one-thousandth of her guts or gumption or discipline. We would fold like a tent under the slightest pressure or setback. We would retreat. We would think ourselves less worthy as we grow older. The world is for the young, we would think. The world slowly closes in on us. Life slowly closes in on us. And we accept that as truth, as inevitable. We walk away from the fight, the fight against time, the fight against social and cultural expectations, against the odds. We go on the internet anonymously and take cheap shots. We don't add anything to the world. We are cowards.

Madonna is definitely not a coward. She wins.

giant pain

My heart is so broken right now. It's a game of just misses. A just miss (by the Ravens) got the Patriots to the Superbowl and a just miss cost them the championship trophy. I want to be philosophical about it. And at the end of the day, it's really just football. It shouldn't hurt this badly. Not even Madonna doing Vogue in a Cleopatra costume is enough to heal my pain. I guess I'll just avoid all media reports for the next week lauding Eli Manning and those pain-in-the-ass Giants. I am deleting the Superbowl immediately from my DVR (ok, as soon as I figure out how to extract the Madonna half-time show from it). I am doing a cleanse. No more football thinking for the next seven months...

go pats, go mdna!

All kidding aside, I really am anxious about the Superbowl today. In life, I am Team Madonna and Team Patriots all the way. If I have to list a few of my favorites things, they would be up there with hobbits and Jesse/Celine and Vonnegut and Murakami and Amazing Race. Actually they would be atop the list. So as you can imagine, I am a ball of nervous energy today. I am not even sure whether I can bare to watch. Anyways, best of luck to the Pats and Madonna. I already know she will win, but will they?

like a prayer

I interrupt regular programming to bring you an urgent message from supermodel Gisele:

This Sunday will be a really important day in my husband's life. He and his team worked so hard to get to this point and now they need us more than ever to send them positive energy so they can fulfill their dream of winning this Super Bowl...

So I kindly ask all of you to join me on this positive chain and pray for him, so he can feel confident, healthy and strong. Envision him happy and fulfilled experiencing with his team a victory this Sunday.

Thank you for your love and support. Love, G :)

G., you know it that I am praying like craziness for Tom and the Pats! I am praying that the Pats stomp down the Giants like you stomp down the runway. Tom will win his fourth Superbowl and cement his place amongst the football legends - not that he really needs to win another Superbowl to do that, but just in case the haters still have any doubt. I am praying to every God I know. I don't pull out the God card just for anybody or just for any occasion, but this is special. This is for you, G., just because I always listen to supermodels.

So, G., may you and Tom continue to live that charmed life of yours, while I admire from afar. I feel lucky just to have contributed to it through my prayers.

simple songs

Current top ten songs:

10. You Da One - Rihanna
9. I Belong In Your Arms - Chairlift
8. I Won't Give Up - Jason Mraz
7. Give Me All Your Luvin' - Madonna
6. Safe And Sound - Taylor Swift
5. Emmylou - First Aid Kit
4. Bad For Me - Brendan Benson
3. When I Was Young - Nada Surf
2. Off The Wall - Lee Ranaldo
1. Simple Song - The Shins

Here is Madonna's first video from the new MDNA era. It's alright, better than the Hard Candy stuff but nowhere near as impactful to me as the classics. The song Give Me All Your Luvin' itself is also somewhat slight - I guess I just keep looking for Ray Of Light or Like A Prayer. This is just too...simple.



Oh my favorite part of the video is when she's walking and a car pulls up and shoots at her. Some imaginative fan went ahead and made this - so funny: