hello bitches

You know how happy families send out Christmas/New Year updates to their friends to let them know how everyone had a great time at Orlando, Joey is in AP physics, and Madison is playing soccer?  Well, this is mine for the year:

Hello Bitches:  Haha, don't get offended.  That's what all the cool people use now as a term of endearment.  You're my bitch is not like you are beneath me and I own you; it's like you're in my gang - we are homies; we are so tight that we are each other's bitches.  That's cool, right?  Just because we have a few decades under our belt now, it doesn't mean we cannot be cool and hip and say all the things the yutes are saying these days.  You gotta roll with the times, bitch.  Speaking of rolling with the times, where did 2015 go?  Another year.  The family is doing great.  By family, I mean lonesome ol' me, since I've got no wife and no kids and no girlfriend or boyfriend.  Not even a pet.  But I'm doing great.  I only went to the doctor a few times this year, for things like knee pain and some growth on my face that I wanted to make sure wasn't skin cancer.  It wasn't.  Phew.  I am taking time off work for the holidays, to use up leave that I would otherwise lose.  I am home shredding papers which isn't as fun as it sounds, because my shredder basket is kinda small and I keep having to empty it before I could continue.  It's a pain.  I am also home monitoring the leaks in my house as it rains.  Yup, just like last year, I am having leaks that I cannot resolve.  I am going to re-roof early next year to see if that helps.  There goes another $15,000.  But that's ok - I mean what else am I saving money for?  Vacation?  Ha.  I am optimistic for the new year though.  Problems don't always stay problems (I stole that from a movie).  And everytime you want to hit refresh, you can.  Anyways, thank you for being my bitches.  All the best to you! See you next year.  Bye bye, bitches.   

Needless to say, I didn't actually send this holiday letter out to all my friends.  I am too cheap to spend money on five stamps.  

california christmas time

Watching these videos will make you happy this Christmas day:












The joy in James Corden's face when he sings is just plain infectious. And Crazy Ex-Girlfriend is just plain crazy. Oh please tv God, don't let this one get canceled.

mad about max and james and rachel and sufjan

Favorite 2015 Movies I Watched in 2015 (as per usual, there are lots of 2015 movies I likely won't get to watch til 2016 on blu ray):
Mad Max Fury Road (Tom Hardy, Charlize Theron, and Nicholas Hoult are all out great in the most badass movie out this year)
Inside Out  (It makes me feel all kinds of emotions)
Kingsman (so good that I can even ignore Samuel L. Jackson in it - I want a sequel now)
Mission Impossible Rogue Nation (so good I think Leah Remini would even like this)
Paddington (the art direction!!!)


Favorite TV show in 2015:
Amazing Race
iZombie
Crazy Ex-Girlfriend
Limitless
Late Late Show With James Corden


Favorite 2015 Albums:
Jason Isbell - Something More Than Free
Madonna - Rebel Heart
Sufjan Stevens - Carrie & Lowell
Carly Rae Jepsen - Emotion
Brandon Flowers - The Desire Effect

in the way of beauty

I really like the scene in Wild where Reese Witherspoon encounters a boy and his grandmother.  He says to Reese Witherspoon that his grandmother takes him out on hikes because he has a problem that he is not supposed to talk about.  Reese Witherspoon says to him that she has problems too, but the good thing is that problems don't always stay problems.  The message of the movie is, there is a sunrise and a sunset everyday, so everyday you need to put yourself in the way of beauty.  Yes indeed.  Despite my moodiness and neuroses, despite my house leaks and physical ailments, deep down I know this. 

the things i do

Things I did a lot of this year 2015:
-  Watching Madonna Rebel Heart tour videos on youtube.
-  Laughing at James Corden on Late Late Show.
-  Worrying about house leaks.
-  Worrying about knee pain.
-  Checking bank and credit card accounts online for fraud activities.
-  Going to Grocery Outlet, Target, Costco, Trader Joe's, and Sprouts.
-  Opening Amazon packages.
-  Eating Habits burgers.
-  Throwing away win-less lottery tickets.
-  Drinking tea.
-  Checking emails on my phone every half an hour.
-  Calling health insurance company to get status on claims.
-  Calling door people to fix door leaks.
-  Calling Comcast for billing issues.
-  Getting annoyed at my mother and then feeling guilty for getting annoyed.
-  Watching QVC and resisting buying things I don't need.  (How can those old ladies afford all that stuff?)
-  Groaning at every mentioning of Kardashian or Jenner or Real Housewives.
-  Ditto above for Beyonce, Gaga, and Taylor Swift.
-  Waking up with a headache.
-  Checking Next Muni for the N Judah.
-  Talking myself out of buying a boba drink.
-  Transferring money between accounts.
-  Cringing at my boss.
-  Getting annoyed by nonworking escalators at Muni subway stations.
-  Worrying about Chi Young's unemployment.
-  Thinking about a life that didn't happen and feeling sorry for myself.
-  Making macaroni in soup.
-  Buying jackets and sweats from Uniqlo.
-  Wishing Matt Smith was still the Doctor.
-  Wondering why I cannot understand the plots on Doctor Who anymore.
-  Retrieving and returning blu ray discs from Redbox vending machines.
-  Forgetting to insert rather than swipe the new CHIP-enabled credit cards.
-  Eating instant udon at my desk at work.
-  Falling asleep with the tv and lights on.
-  Calculating how much (or how little) I have when I retire.
-  Throwing away expired food.
-  Making broth in my pressure cooker.
-  Killing ants.
-  Checking imdb for new Marisa Tomei projects.
-  Wishing I were Australian, because all Australians look like Hemsworths.
-  Hating on my haircut and wishing it would grow out quicker.
-  Watching news about mass shootings and terrorist attacks.
-  Cursing at Roger Goodell and the NFL and the media for Deflatgate.
-  Man-crushing on Julian Edelman.
-  Eating chicken pho in the Tenderloin.
-  Getting bombarded by Star Wars merchandising.
-  Switching channels whenever that blowhard Donald Trump is on tv spewing nonsense.
-  Feeling swoony with Sufjan Stevens.
-  Watching Adele break sales records.
-  Wondering why people are mostly assholes.

stuff and nonsense

Things I've bought in the last week:
-  Five Uniqlo fleece jackets and six pairs of Uniqlo fleece pants
-  Five boxes of 24-count Ferrero Rocher chocolates
-  X-Men Days Of Future Past blu ray
-  John Wick blu ray
-  New Balance MW877
-  Adele's 25
-  Parenthood complete series dvd
-  Three Ravensburger jigsaw puzzles
-  Taotronics BT speaker
-  Taotronics BT audio receiver
-  New Trent iPad Mini Gladius case
-  Uniqlo ultra light down parka
-  Silicone collapsible colanders
-  eBag packing cubes
-  Superglue
-  Eneloop AA rechargeable batteries
-  Amazon Basics tv antenna
-  Contact paper

One might ask, why do you need five fleece jackets and six pairs of fleece pants?  Well, you know what they say about not going grocery shopping when you are hungry?  Same idea - you shouldn't go cold weather clothing shopping when you are freezing your butt off.

Each of those fleece jackets were only $15 each.  And Days Of Future Past only cost me $1 because I had $5 reward certificate from Best Buy, and John Wick was on sale for $4.50 from Target.  Pretty much everything was on sale and discounted with coupons and credits.  But then, once I start adding everything up, I realize I probably still ended up spending about $500 out of pocket.  Yikes. The retailers suckered me in again!

thank you

I am thankful this year for:
-  Gilmore Girls returning next year!
-  James Corden (best talk show host right now)
-  the Patriots season so far (except for Julian Edelman's broken foot - ugh)
-  iZombie (an undead Veronica Mars)
-  my favorite new shows this fall: Limitless and Crazy Ex-Girfriend
-  getting to work at home (save on the knees for two days a week)
-  that Amazing Race is still alive and kicking
-  Bindi Irwin and Derek winning DTWS (you have to be a real cynic to root against her, and I am only a fake cynic)
-  youtube videos of Madonna's Rebel Heart tour (every show I get to watch something)
-  free products (lamps, headphones, BT speakers, iPad cases) I get as a test user
-  no signs of house leaks from the rain this week (albeit rain was rather light)
-  stuffing (mmm...probably my favorite part of any Thanksgiving meal)
-  family is safe during these chaotic times

mark the psychic

I predict -

- The new Star Wars movie itself will be very anti-climatic cuz there is no way it can live up to the hype and the ubiquitous marketing.  I mean, we have Star Wars soup cans...

- The Adele album 25 will sell a lot.  I am going out on a limb on this one.  Hehe.

- Julian Edelman will be back for the playoffs, and the Patriots will repeat at Super Bowl 50.

- Leonardo DiCaprio will finally win Best Actor Oscar for The Revenant.

- Empire will fizzle out by season 3.

- I am gonna waste a lot of money this Black Friday week, cuz I've been pretty frugal this year and the itch to spend has been pushed to a breaking point.  It's like people on withdraw from crack having crack dangled in front of them.  But I predict Amazon Black Friday is still gonna suck.  It's been worse every year since the heydays (like, three years ago?).

- Hilary Clinton will be the POTUS come next year.  God, please, America, we cannot possibly have a serious Presidential race with Donald Trump.  He is a freaking joke of a man, much less a Presidential candidate.  I know nothing about politics, but I can sound more intelligent talking about the state of our country and our world on any given day. 

- The SF housing bubble will burst by 2017.  By then, you can buy a decent house in the neighborhood for less than $1M.

- In ten years, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram will be no more.

prayer for paris

Madonna in her Stockholm concert yesterday, giving an emotional speech about Paris attacks followed by Like A Prayer:

paris

About Paris, the most beautiful city I've ever been in.  Yesterday night a series of terrorist attacks in the City Of Light killed at least 129 people.  The orchestrated attacks hit Stade de France, four restaurants/bars, and the concert hall Bataclan at the same time, about 9:30 Friday evening.  It is at Bataclan where most of the casualties occurred.  There four gunmen fired their automatic assault rifles into the packed crowd.  It could have been worse at Stade de France where a France-Germany match attended by the President of France was going on, but fortunately security stopped two terrorists with explosives before they were able to enter the stadium.  ISIS has now claimed responsibility for the attacks.

So here we are, about ten months after Charlie Hebdo and fourteen years after 9/11, mourning more lives lost in the hands of those who murder in the name of ideology and religion.  That's not even counting the innumberable lives being lost every day in the other parts of the world, including and particularly the Middle East, for this ongoing war.  I highly doubt that this is acceptable with any God. 

I don't know why we cannot just all occupy our own little space on this earth and live and let live.  Why does anybody or any side have to be right?  Why can't we be all right, or for that matter, all wrong?  Does any of us really know anything beyond this corporal existence?  Isn't everything else just a mystery?  A guess, a gamble, a chance. Is it really that impossible to accept that maybe none of us actually know the absolute truth?

And while we search and cope with this life and all the discontent and disillusions that haunt us, we just need to hold on to the things that we do know.  We know we can get up in the morning, be kind to the people you encounter, love whatever family and friends you have, cherish art and music and food and culture.  We know those things are real, so live for those things.  Make meaning of those things that are in front of us, because anything else is too much to comprehend.

used to love them

Oh Gwen Stefani.  Why?  You were this supercool, super kawaii girl.  Then you went on The Voice and started hanging out with smug douchbag supreme Adam Levine, and now you are dating that equally smug country bumpkin Blake Shelton.  Hey I ain't got nothing against country music - I seriously adore Johnny Cash and Dolly Parton.  I have been listening to my Dolly playlist in my car for the last couple of weeks, and even watched Joyful Noise cuz she's in it.  But that Blake Shelton guy is bad news, Gwen.  Can't you smell that a mile away?  Just ask his ex Miranda Lambert.  Argh.  By the way, your new video Used To Love Me, where it's basically four minutes of your face trying to emote?  Fail.  It's pretentious, and I can honestly act better at being hurt and I didn't just get a divorce.  You ain't no Sinead O'Connor...And then there's Coldplay.  Yesterday morning they released first single off their seventh (and possibly last, if you believe the hype) album.  It's called Adventure Of A Lifetime, and it stinks.  Ah, how much I used to love Coldplay?  Still remember how I could listen to Parachutes endlessly and feel every bit of melancholy in those songs.  And then there were the masterful Rush of Blood and majestic Viva La Vida.  But then somewhere along the line, Chris Martin married Gwyneth Paltrow, hung out with Jay Z and Beyonce, and Coldplay has never been the same.  I just don't hear what I want to hear anymore.  My favorite Britpop band went looking for American celebrity and unfortunately found it.  I supposed I never want my favorite music acts to stay the same album after album, but I guess the question is whether I can relate to whatever they grow into.  And the most tricky thing about change is to maintain your core and soul while you're at it.  I mean, I listen to a song like Adventure Of A Lifetime, and it sounds so freaking empty to me, just like 90% of stuff out there.  At least I had them for a good ten years or so.    

P.S. Despite the bitching and moaning, I think Used To Love Me is the best Gwen Stefani song in a while, and you know I am going to buy Coldplay's latest no matter, cuz I have every album that they've released.  

blue bucket of silence

Songs I am loving so much right now -

Sufjan's Blue Bucket Of Gold remixed:


James Blake doing his magic on The Sounds Of Silence:

winter spring summer or fall

This week, news broke (screw presidential election - all noise to me) that Netflix will be bringing back The Gilmore Girls in four 90-minute episodes.  All the actual Gilmore girls - Lauren Graham, Alexis Bledel, and Kelly Bishop - are expected back.  Sadly of course Edward Herrmann has passed, so Friday night dinner will not be the same.  But how sweet it is to get one more chance to revisit that magical world.  And to have four mini-movies is such a treat.  Each episode will cover one of four seasons over a calendar year.  That's so Gilmore Girls-esque.  We get spring, summer, fall, and winter in Stars Hollow.  I can almost picture, and hear, everything.

We will also get the final four words that Amy Sherman-Palladino had originally envisioned would end the series but never got the chance to use because, due to some contract dispute non-sense, she didn't end up having a role in the final season of the original series.  Now everything will end the way it's supposed to end. How often in life does that occur?

This kind of kismet only happens every once in a great while.  Like getting not one but two sequels to Before Sunset, or getting a Kickstarter-funded Veronica Mars movie.  I thank the entertainment gods for this shit.  If the gods throw me a bone like this every once in a while, I will tolerate the existence of your Kardashians and Housewives.  Praise the lord.

like a miser

I would like to apologize to Madonna.  The Rebel Heart Tour will be the first Mo tour I would miss since I started earning my own money.  I sold my tickets this week, not for profit but just so I can recover my cost.  Since I have been putting myself on a strict budget, I just couldn't see myself spending close to $800 for two tickets at this time.  Trust me, as soon as I sold the tickets, I immediately felt regret and guilt, as if I had let our girl down.  Really, if there is anybody I would spend that much money on, it's her, but I said I would try to live like a miser, and I need to stay on track.  The $800 will pay for my auto insurance, or something like that.  I know $800 is not life or death, but if I keep making exceptions, then I will never become a Savings Jedi.  Gain discipline, I must.

Regardless, it's all killing me, especially knowing I am going to miss this kick-ass performance of Like A Virgin.  Who needs backup dancers and fancy sets when you got charisma overload:

 

chaka khan, chaka khan

New season of tv just started.  Here is what I sat through this week:

-  Dancing With The Stars:  Bindi Irwin is front runner, because she is surprisingly good and she is dancing with Derek (the best pro hands down).  I actually really like Nick Carter too.  Who knew I ever would say that?  But he seems like a good guy.  I was sorry to see Chaka Khan, Chaka Khan go.  I feel for her.  B

-  Empire:  Over the top.  Pure camp.  I only watch for Cookie.  And now also for my necessary dose of Marisa Tomei!  B-

-  Limitless:  I wasn't counting on liking this (I wasn't too big of a fan of the movie) but I was entertained and can see this sustaining itself.  Jake McDorman is a totally likable lead.  B+

-  Scream Queens:  Too much style for its own good.  Unlike Limitless, I don't see how the story can last past a few episodes, much less a whole season or beyond.  C

-  Survivor Cambodia:  I always tune in even if I cannot call myself a fan.  I guess I am rooting for Joe but he won't win cuz he is too much of a threat.  There is no way anybody would want to keep him around for long.  B

-  Late Late Show With James Corden:  I love Carpool Karaoke and Crosswalk the Musical.  James Corden is my new favorite late night talk show host.  A-

-  How To Get Away With Murder:  How Viola Davis beat out Cookie and Tatiana Maslany at the Emmy's with this role is beyond me.  It's actually a pretty crappy show to begin with.  And now, she's suddenly a lesbian???  C

-  Doctor Who:  I have to admit, since Peter Calpadi took over as the 12th Doctor, I have not been able to follow what the hell is going on.  I am still a fan of the show but I am not a fanboy as I was with the previous seven series and three doctors.  I recently watched a repeat of Vincent And The Doctor - man, that episode made me cry.  I miss Matt Smith so much.  B

-  FabLife:  A Chew copycat, except instead of food, it's a lifestyle show on fashion, home decor, beauty, and DYI.  A little of Tyra Banks goes a long way - tone it down a bit (or a lot), girl.  C

ios nyet

Ten random thoughts this Saturday morning:
- I am going to go to Baltimore for work this coming week.  I've been watching The Wire.  That's like watching Jaws before going to the beach. Yikes.
- I am so happy that the Rebel Heart Tour is garnering rave reviews.  Consensus is that Madonna seems so happy and engaging this time around.  She just added dates to numerous Asian stops including my hometown (Macau).
- I just rewatched Desperately Seeking Susan on Amazon.  I heart the eighties.
- Damn ios 9 update, which promised to fix performance issue on older devices, slowed down my iPad 2 even more.  I am beginning to dislike Apple.
- Only two and a half months stand between me and my long vacation, during which I will do nothing. 
- Only one week stands between me and the premiere of new season of Amazing Race.
- My room is clean now.  Everything is in its right place.
- I've been living as a miser for the past three months or so.  Yet my account balances are going down because the market is not behaving.  I keep telling myself, "Eye on the prize, dude."
- I enjoy watching James Corden on The Late, Late Show.  Carpool Karaoke is the best.
- New Doctor Who - series 9 premiere - is tonight.  I am not a fan of series 8 and Peter Capaldi, but I am a Doctor Who fan, so I'll be sat in front of BBC tonight.
 

bitch she's touring

Madonna's Rebel Heart Tour kicked off this past Wednesday, 9/9, in Montreal. She treks through North America and Europe for the rest of this year and then hits Australia and Asia next year.  I am tired just looking at the schedule.  But she's got mouths to feed and Frida Kahlo paintings to buy.

pulp fiction and nonfiction

oh snaps

sunday candies

Two songs and videos I am really liking today:

Major Lazer & DJ Snake featuring MØ - Lean On


Donnie Trumpet & the Social Experiment - Sunday Candy

life is short, hell will be upon you soon

Finally hackers attack people who deserve it!  I mean, all that power is finally used for good rather than evil.  I do wish though celebrities would stop apologizing for their bad behaviors once they are caught.  The contrition routine inevitably involves clocking in a couple of weeks at some magical "rehab" place and resurfacing with an interview on 20/20 or a People magazine cover story.  I want someone to just own it, like fuck it, I am rich and can do whatever and it's none of your goddamn business anyways.  I ain't apologizing for shit.  I am gonna do it over and over again.  Cuz I can. 

What I don't understand though is, why would people use their credit cards on a site like Ashley Madison?  I even worry about using my card online buying a non-stick pan from Kohl's.  The idea of using a website to cheat, and then to give them my credit card to leave a trail of evidence of my adultery, is just inconceivable to me.  If I were a celebrity, especially one with a fake goody-two-shoe image, no way in hell would I be stupid enough to do that kind of dirty work myself.  Isn't that what personal assistants are for?   Surely you don't really pay them to just to stand in line at the DMV and make breakfast smoothies for you.

Oh and then there was that reward offered by Ashley Madison for any information related to the hackers.  The company, whose slogan is "Life is short - have an affair," is asking people to "do the right thing" by helping catch the perps.  The irony!

she's all that

In the last year or two, I've totally given up on popular music.  The yoots these days have bad taste.  Taylor Swift is the best that you got???  Puh-leeze.  And then artists like Robyn get nowhere.



Another artist who just put out a rather catchy album but is being ignored in America is Carly Rae Jepsen.  I really like I Really Like You and All That.

keira x 4

Keira Knightley is amongst my top five favorite actresses.  She turned in two top-notch performances last year, with Begin Again and The Imitation Game.  She is a new mother, and is on four different covers of Elle magazine this month. 

Here she is (I love the pink one):

it's her birthday

It's Madonna's 57th birthday!  My favorite musical artist.  Hard working.  Unapologetic.  Bold.  Ambitious.  Giving us entertainment for thirty years plus.   Refusing to be what you expect her to be. 

To celebrate what an amazing artist she is, here are three under-appreciated gems from her deep repertoire:

who are y'all to judge?

This Saturday morning, I am listening to my Broadway playlist.  It's not like I have much on there.  I have the Book Of Mormon cast recording.  I got Billy Elliot.  And I got an Ultimate Broadway cd purchased many moons back.  But you know, Broadway show tunes are awesome.  They are melodic.  They tell a story.  And they are superfun or supersad or superswoony.  Everybody needs a little razzle dazzle every once in a while...I think I might head off to Costco in a couple of hours to buy Brita water filters, instant coffee for my mom, and paper napkins.  Yup, I am a wife-less husband...This year has been passing rather slowly, has it not?  It's only August.  I want it to be December already so I can take my three weeks off.  Actually I still have five weeks of leave I need to use by end of the year, but it would be crazy to take all five weeks together.  So I guess I should figure out when to take a couple of weeks off between now and December...Somebody said to me that I would have a really great career as a consultant after I leave my current job.  But then, wouldn't that interfere with my dream job giving out free samples at Costco?...How disastrous is this whole Fantastic Four reboot?  Critical and box office bomb.  Director publicly trashing the studio and disowning responsibility for his own movie.  And Miles Teller acting like the douche he is.  It's too bad Jamie Bell is in this mess...In other douchery news, is Tom Brady really becoming bff with head douchebag Ben Affleck?  Ok, now you've pushed me too far.  I was sure you didn't just up and leave a pregnant Bridget Moynahan for supermodel Gisele (relationships are complicated...).  I wholly believed you throughout Deflate-gate (pffft, as if you need the balls deflated to win...).  But if you are going to now hang out with that douchebag extraordinaire who ruined both Daredevil and Batman for me, I am really questioning my loyalty.  Maybe you too are a douchebag, and I was just too blind to see it.  I mean, of every actor out there, you choose Ben Affleck?  Was Matt Damon not interested?  Come on, just dump him and stick with Julian Edelman..Mission Impossible Rogue Nation on the other hand is a great movie.  A worthy successor to the super Ghost Protocol.  Tom Cruise is actually a great movie star.  We sometimes forget.  Shame on us for letting Scientology get in the way...Word is there is going to be a sequel to The Incredibles, my favorite Pixar movie (well actually a toss-up with Toy Story)...This year the stock market has not been doing too great.  Looking at my portfolio is like waiting for a pot of water to boil...I am getting very close to the finale of Fringe.  Probably about eight episodes or so left.  It was a crazy bold show that wasn't afraid to turn everything on its head, jumping over universes and timelines.  What started out as an X-Files monster-of-the-week series (although it was never really just that) would end with an apocalyptic resistance war against the machine a la Terminator and The Matrix.  I am growing sad having to soon say goodbye to Walter (and Walternate), Peter, Olivia (and Fauxlivia), Astrid, Broyles, Lincoln, Nina, and September...Donald Trump, a GOP candidate for the 2016 Presidential run, is delivering the goods by offending Mexicans (drug dealers and rapists) and women (fat pigs who's got blood coming out of their eyes and who knows where else).  Best response by a Mexican?  Donald Trump pinatas!...Speaking of being rich, there was a single mother of four who won the $20M+ Powerball.  What a heartwarming story, right?  Well, she went and spent $9M of it bailing her drug dealer boyfriend out of jail.  You don't like that?  Here is what she has to say to you:  "What Y’all need to be worried about is Y’all money and not how I spend mine this is benefitting Y’all how? And no he’s no drug dealer or user but who are Y’all to judge anybody? I will definitely pray for Y’all because it’s much need…they talked about Jesus so I’m not surprised Y’all are talking about me but be blessed though."   You tell them, sister!  Y'all simmer down now.        

something more than free

I am really liking Jason Isbell's new album Something More Than Free.
Check him out doing 24 Frames on Conan:

destiny will choose u in the end

Here she comes:

comfy ninja

Weather:  Overcast but likely to burn off by mid morning
Mood:  Numb
Music:  Jason Isabell - Something More Than Free
Last Movie: The Last Five Years (C for being depressing; musicals should be joyful - no?)
Reading:  nothing
Last Pleasure:  Watching Fringe on blu ray
Last Worry: Chi Young's coughing and joblessness
Last accomplishment:  Keeping savings goal on target this year
Looking Forward To:  Mission Impossible Rogue Nation
Not Really Looking Forward To:  September trip to Baltimore
Gas Price: $3.799/gallon premium
Clothes:  Black t-shirt from JCP and black sweatpants from Uniqlo - I am a comfy Ninja

Today's Headline: No plane link to new debris in island hunt for MH370 clues

Last Website Visited:  fandango (to buy tickets to see Inside Out)
Last Meal: Chipotle burrito (really bland burrito C-)
Last Purchase:  Calphalon Unison nonstick pans (amongst many other items from Amazon)
Item On My Wishlist:  Uni Shift Pipe Lock retractable mechanical pencil
Latest Evidence It's A Beautiful World:  http://www.spoon-tamago.com/2015/07/27/misa-sawairi-alters-her-environment-with-whimsical-site-specific-installations/#more-32976

i've got questions

?  Does oatmeal cause acne breakouts?  I think it does.

?  When the heck are the new James Blake and Frank Ocean coming out?  Been waiting too long.

?  Should I sell my Madonna Rebel Heart concert tickets?  I'm really trying to save money and spending $800 on one evening is not prudent.  But it's Madonna...

?  Why is my 401k growing so slowly?

?  Should I get a haircut or let it grow?

?  What's the best nonstick frying pan out there?  I am tired of throwing pans out.

?  Why does evil always win?

?  Why do people hunt (other than for food)?

?  Why does a dentist pay $50,000 in order to kill a lion?

?  Why does my Yahoo keep showing me ads of women over 50 who want a boyfriend?  What did I click?  And what link do I click to instead get ads of supermodels who want a boyfriend who doesn't own a yacht but is saving hard for it?

?  How do I chill and not sweat things?

?  How do I get myself to have more discipline about good habits like eating well, exercising, writing?

?  How do I quit you, Amazon?  Damn you.

?  Why is the N Judah train so dang crowded?

?  Will Chi Young ever find a job?

?  How much is enough for an emergency fund?

?  Why is Ben Affleck Batman?

?  Why is Ben Affleck a douche?

?  At what point would people stop being politically correct and make fun of Caitlyn Jenner like we make fun of all the other Kardashians?  Cuz she is still a Kardashian after all, trans or not.

?  Where do broken hearts go?

?  Why do I keep buying Uniqlo ultra light down jackets when I only wear one for layering under another jacket?

?  Will there be a Kingsman sequel?

?  Am I talented enough to make money off my drawings?

?  Does talent matter?

?  Will I ever go on another vacation or am I too frugal now to spend thousands of dollars on a couple of weeks?

?  Will they ever figure out what happened to MH370 now that they found a part of a wing washed up on Reunion Island?

?  What the heck is a Reunion Island?  Why is it called that?

?  In the case where I was a potential juror this past week, did the jury find the kid guilty of vandalizing his sister's car?  Did Alexis Carrington make an appearance as a surprise witness?

?  Is my glass one-fourth full or three-quarter cup empty?
   

one angry man

Dang it.  I have jury duty tomorrow.  I thought I would have made it through the week without being called in.  But no such luck.

They really should let people opt out of jury duty if they really don't want to serve.  Do you really want to leave justice in the hands of people like me, who would rather be daydreaming about lunch and the previous night's So You Think You Can Dance performances?  Besides, I am the type of person who dislike people just because.  No reason needed.  Of course I am prejudiced.  Not by race or gender or sexual orientation or age or any of the usual stuff.  I just get a vibe and go with it for the most part.  Why do you think I avoid Matthew McConaughey or Anne Hathaway movies?  Just because.

Well here is hoping that they won't end up putting me in the jury box.  If there is ever a time to put out that leave-me-the-hell-alone vibe (which I think I naturally emit, because no stranger ever talks to me out of the blue), it's tomorrow.

Oh one more thing - there was an earthquake the other night.  Hayward fault.  And word is any day now, we are gonna get a big one.  Crap.  If there is anything in life that I fear on a regular basis, it's earthquakes.  Sure I fear a lot of other things like flying and dying in poverty, but I think those other things are largely avoidable.  The big one is really not.

So what I need tonight is to pray to the Jury God and the Earthquake God.  You guys, please leave me the hell alone.  Please do me this solid.

return to stars hollow

Gilmore Girls make me happy.

marki recommends

Three blu rays/dvd you should be renting now:

St. Vincent (Yup I got all teary-eyed)

The Book of Life (See, Donald Trump, not all Mexicans are rapists.  They make really good movies too.)

Kingsman (Probably most fun movie I've seen this year.  Matthew Vaughn made Stardust, Kick-Ass, X-Men First Class and this.  He pretty much rocks.)

three lessons

Hello people - Don't call it a comeback.

It's more of "oh damn, has it been that long?"

Lotsa happened in the world since March.  Donald Trump called all Mexicans rapists.  Doctor Clifford Huxtable is a real rapist (except in Whoopi Goldberg's eyes).  Bruce Jenner became Jessica Lange, American Horror Story- and not Tootsie-version.  Celine and Jesse walked all over Greece and couldn't find an open bank.  According to the Supreme Court, the gays getting married is a-ok now.   A white guy went into a church and killed nine African Americans in South Carolina, and the lesson we all learned from this tragedy is that...the Confederate flag is not a-ok and we need to take Dukes of Hazzard off the air.  People really like dinosaurs and Chris Pratt.  Taylor Swift went all Norma Rae on Apple, and Apple proved to be deathly scared of Swifties and said "Hey girl, no bad blood here."  Amazon Prime Day, the second coming of Black Friday, came and left with this hilarious tweet:  "When I die I want whoever's responsible for #AmazonPrimeDay to lower me into my grave so they can let me down one last time."  We finally saw a picture of Pluto, and honestly, it looks just like any other non-planet out there to me.

There we are all caught up now.

We are now at the half way mark of the year.  I still have not figured out the leaks in my house.  Since it hasn't rained, I guess I feel less urgent about it.  It's putting off the inevitable.  But honestly, I don't even know how to address it.  Nobody I've brought in has any real idea on what to do.  So do nothing is what I did.  Sigh.  And don't even get me started on my new doors and paint job, except that I would say I have never hated water and bubbles more.

My current obsession is saving money for the future.  Recently I realized that I have not been contributing enough for my retirement, and that I won't be a billionaire by the time I turn 56 (my target retirement age at which point I would just not even bother showering or leaving the house).  Now I am trying really hard to be a miser to catch up.  It's either that or invest in the lottery and "limited edition" action figures and comic books.  But I learned that my Legolas dolls, even unopened and in mint condition, are just not appreciating like I thought they would.  Maybe it's Peter Jackson's fault, for not leaving good enough alone and making The Hobbit movies.  So plan B it is - save and invest.

That's my second lesson to all you young-uns out there (reminder of first one:  Confederate flag no good).  Invest in your future NOW.  The effect of compounding is pretty amazing.  You put your money in something that yields an average annual growth of between 7-8%, and in ten years that money will double.  And if you get into the habit of putting in money regularly on top of that, you too can have a boat and be surrounded by beautiful (in a cheap, empty way), scantily-clad women (or men) by the time you become old and irrelevant like Madonna.  See, the final lesson here is that if you are old and irelevant but rich, it actually doesn't suck.

carrying on

I am enjoying these at the moment:

Budapest is a thing now, with the beautiful and surprisingly touching The Grand Budapest Hotel and now this catchy as hell hit song from up-and-comer George Ezra.


Witness what a pro does when she falls. She's gonna carry on.


OMG. Blur has a new album coming out in April. It was started in Hong Kong during a tour stop.


Sufjan Stevens has a new cd called Carrie & Lowell coming out. It's about his deceased mother and his stepfather. It's preceded by the beautiful first single No Shade In The Shadow Of The Cross.


And because you can never have too much Madonna, says I - here she is doing Ghosttown, the 2nd single from Rebel Heart, which is coming out this Tuesday.

iconic

Of the nine Rebel Heart tracks released so far, here is my ranking:

1.  Devil Pray
2.  Joan Of Arc
3.  Ghosttown
4.  Living For Love
5.  Hold Tight
6.  Iconic
7.  Unapologetic Bitch
8.  Bitch I'm Madonna
9.  Illuminati

Actually Illuminati is the only track I don't care for.  All others rank from brilliant/awesome to good.  And there are 10 more tracks to come on March 9 (and maybe even a few more bonus tracks).

While the Grammy's performance might not really be one of her most iconic performances, it's an exciting time to be a Madonna fan, with so much new music to enjoy.  At the same time, being a Madonna fan is exhausting.  She is just so divisive.  She always has been.  For thirty years now, she's been written off as talentless and slutty.  Now, you add in the ageism, and it's infuriating.  People want a woman in her fifties to behave a certain way, and when she doesn't, she is considered desperate.  What the general masses fail to get is, she's not being desperate; she is being Madonna.  She is not your average person.  If she were, you wouldn't be talking about her now.  She would have disappeared many moons back.  Or maybe she wouldn't have even appeared to begin with.  Her DNA is just not that of your average human.  She has a voracious appetite to push the envelop and to challenge the status quo.  She doesn't believe in conventions.  You might not like anything she does while she is doing it, but all the while you are hating, she is changing our culture.  So I look back and am exceedingly proud that I chose the right one to follow from the beginning.  I mean, geez, what if back in the day, I had joined the Cyndi Lauper camp instead.  Cyndi Lauper is talented as heck, but come on, my musical idol does not go on Celebrity Apprentice - ok?  And if she did, she would win the whole thing and shut Donald Trump down.

Anyways, back to Rebel Heart, I have no idea how this album would go down in her discography.  But this era is just starting to get good.

duck boat randomness

Rosie O'Donnell is leaving The View, after she split from her wife.  I love Rosie.  She should be on her own show instead of having to put up with Whoopi, who acts like a real ass to Rosie on the show.  The Rosie O'Donnell show from the 90's was something so joyful to watch everyday...So Madonna got upstaged by MIA's middle finger, and Katy Perry is getting upstaged by the Left Shark.  If I were to perform at the Super Bowl, I would do away with any backup dancers or supporting acts.  It will be all eyes, and media attention, on me and me alone, thank you...Madonna's matador-themed Living For Love video is out now.  I like the video more than Give Me All Your Luvin' and maybe about as much as Girls Gone Wild, but the song itself totally slays.  I hope it becomes a hit.  Ah, how I miss back in the days when nobody could touch Madonna on the charts.  I am so excited for her Grammy's performance tonight...No call or email from GY still, so I guess all that was for nothing.  Unless there's some secret message I was supposed to have gotten from it.  I just want to say to God that I ain't no Sherlock.  If you got something to say to me, you gotta spell it out.  These cryptic clues and signs are not going to do it for someone as dense as myself.  I need it in skywriting or something along that line...It's raining again, and that means leaks again.  I am so worried...I am still enjoying the afterglow of the Patriots win. I just love how the haters are mad now.  Yeah, suck it, Trent Dilfer, Chris Collinsworth, Troy Aikman, and all the ex-quarterbacks who were so ready to jump on Tom Brady's back.  And Julian Edelman is my new hero.  He was instrumental in the Pats' win.  He went to Disneyland with Malcolm Butler.  And he owned the Pats' victory parade atop the duck boat...I am doing pretty good with controlling my online shopping.  So far this year I've only bought some Kind granola bars for cheap, a jigsaw puzzle for my mom to keep her from watching tv all day long (like mother, like son), The Grand Budapest Hotel blu ray for $6, and some Command picture hanging strips.  That's not bad for me.  Of course, the few dollars I am saving from controlling my shopping are all going to be offset by the cost of expensive house repairs eventually.  So like everything else in my life, I feel as if nothing's gained from all the efforts.  But whatevs...The lady at my orthotics place is so awesome that she is willing to take a Sunday appointment on her day off to help me get my orthotics faster.  So while I bitch about my contractors' shoddy workmanship and customer service, I have to express my gratitude to Paula for going out of her way to help me...Whitney Houston's daughter Bobbi Kristina Brown was found unconscious in her bath last weekend and has been in a medically-induced coma since.  Reports coming out do not sound good at all.  It's eerily reminiscent of how her mother died three years ago.  So sad.  The better story would be that celebrity child grows up and makes good, instead of another typical drug addict parent begets drug addict children tragedy...

super monday

Woohoo!  The Pats did it.  They narrowly escaped tbe Seahawks and won their fourth Super Bowl by 28-24.  Brady won his third MVP.  Edelman was brilliant and caught everything thrown his way.  And the defense saved the day at the very last minute, with a miraculous interception by rookie Macolm Butler. I kinda loved that the three people who are most responsible for the Pats' win were a 6th round draft pick (Brady), a 7th round draft pick (Edelman), and an undrafted rookie (Butler).  Each of those people worked really hard and made the most of the opportunity they got. This victory was also extra sweet because everyone maybe other than Boston and I were rooting against the Pats. Now all the haters can stick their deflated footballs up their you-know-where.

My painter came back today and did the touch-ups finally.  I am really hoping this is the last time I have to call him back.  Granted, the leaks are still there, and we still haven't figured them out.  But for now at least, my house actually doesn't look like shit.

I just also found out today that my insurance company is going to cover this item that I need.  Last year they refused to authorize it, and I would have had to pay about $5000 out of pocket.  But I decided to wait, and then in late December, I decided to give it another go and try the request again, with more medical support.  Well, it looks like they are going to say yes this time.  That is such a relief.  I honestly don't have $5000 to shell out at this point, so I likely would have done without.

So yeah, this is a good Monday.  I seriously needed a good Monday.  Now that I've had a taste of good news, please, sir, may I have some more?

fate the sequel

Three days later.  I guess for once I let myself believe that there is a master plan, but Fate turned out to be a no-show.  I am not surprised but still cannot help but be disappointed.  I am not sure why the cruel joke on me.  Why after all these years open up old wounds?  Doesn't Fate know she is dealing with a sensitive soul and a fragile heart?  Any further toying and poking might have irreversible consequence.  What a bitch she is.  She is now just preying on the weak.

The past three days have been really hard.  Not only am I once again remembering those years, but that phone call also got me thinking about my future.  I think about how GY's life and my life have diverged.  He went on and got married to a seemingly smart, successful woman and had two kids.  I went on to do nothing but collect more action figures and blu rays.  I am past that age where you can be youthfully optimistic about what's to come when you grow up, where the forks of life are still ahead of you.  I am afraid that I've already walked down that tine that leads to a dead end with no room to turn around.  I've squandered time and opportunities.  I spent so much time holed up with my neuroses that I actually ended up feeding them into powerful, hungry, and merciless monsters.  I desperately want to make things right, build myself a life worth living.  But in all honesty, I haven't a clue how.  Sometimes I try to convince myself there is a Hail Mary somewhere.  I live too moral of a life and I care too much to be one of those lost souls that the good life forgot.  Like in those games, I don't want to be one of those dots that fall down the screen into oblivion, one of those dots nobody bother to catch.    

Maybe there still is a master plan but it is slow in revealing itself.  Maybe I need to be more patient and let the magic of the universe work itself out.  I grow up in a generation craving instant gratification, but you know what they say about a watched pot never boiling.  I've been intently staring at that pot for the last two days.  Heck, I've been staring at that pot for decades now.  Screw you, pot.  Screw you, Fate.

Oh by the way - Go Pats!!!

fate

The weirdest thing occurred to me today.  I typically don't have stories to tell, but today I've got one.

Back in the mid-2000's, I had a close friend named GY.  I thought of him like a brother.  I supported him in any way I could.  I can for certain say I was the best friend I could be.  I listened to his constant girlfriend problems.  I encouraged him when he was trying to find a job after getting his MBA.  We talked on the phone all the time, went out to dinner and lunch and movies and even on a memorable month-long trip.  He was a pretty important person to me back in the day.  But then we fell out.  I have no idea how or why.  All I know is that the last couple of times we talked, he was behaving very differently.  And then there was nothing.  This was about seven years ago.  I still think of him and our friendship often.  There was no real closure. I was always left wondering what the hell happened, what did I do.  Being who I am, I always think I did something, so for the past seven years, I still beat myself up.  For what specifically?  I don't know.  When I say that life happens in small moments, I mean it.  In fact, in this case, life happened in a moment so small that I didn't even realize it, and I lost a friend, a friend that I held in the highest esteem, in the process.

Flash forward to today.  I was sitting in the office this afternoon.  My office phone rang.  As usual, I looked at the caller ID before I picked up the phone.  The number I didn't recognize, but the name that flashed across was that name - GY.  I froze. I was so shocked that I didn't pick up the phone.  The call went to voicemail.  I then went to retrieve the message, and it was a message left by an attorney who needed to talk to me about a work issue.  The number she left me was a different number from the caller ID number.  I returned her call, and took care of the work issue.  Then before we hung up, I asked her about the caller ID name.  She said that her kid was sick, so she was working from home and calling from her land line.  The name was her husband's name.  I told her that's funny because I used to know someone by that name but I haven't talked to this person in a long time.  Then we started comparing notes.  Yup he went to UC Irvine.  Yup his brother has an unusual name.  Yup he likes rock climbing and worked at REI at one point.  Yup her husband is in fact this person I used to know.  My mind was just blown.

I mean, I am not sure I have had many instances in my life that I can attribute to fate and divine intervention.  But I have to admit - this was rather freaky.  If the attorney's kid did not get sick, and she did not choose to call me from her land line today, this call would have just been a typical work call.  Another ten minutes in my stressful day.  But something happened that led her to call me with that phone with that particular caller ID.

So, in the seven years, he met this girl, got married, had two kids (boy and girl).  They live just across the park from me, like less than ten minutes away.  His mother is fine (she had cancer before).

I told her to tell him hello for me.

Now I spent the rest of the day wondering whether he would take this as a sign that he owes me an explanation.  I hope that he would call and I finally can understand what happened.  But I highly doubt it, knowing the type of person he is and the way things ended.  I think people like him don't really know how much they can hurt other people by their actions.  They just go around life more focused on themselves.  That didn't make me think less of him when we were friends, but now I need to understand I shouldn't have any expectation that the end of the friendship meant nearly as much to him as it did to me.  Likely to him, I was just another dude he once knew, some guy he hung out with for a few years.

But if that was it, then what was the point of this fateful turn of event?  I don't know.  Life is a mystery indeed.

je suis

I am:

-  Fed up:  What's with all the people behaving badly?  I got yelled at twice in the last three weeks on Noriega Street over car situation.  One was when I sat in a parked car and some guy was waiting for me to leave, and when I didn't, he came up and pounded on my window and started cussing at me.  Apparently he said my tail lights were on, when I didn't think they were.  Another was today when this truck did a U to double park and was trying to back up.  I at around the same time pulled up to pick up my mother from the front of a restaurant.  Apparently I got in his way and he got out of his truck to scream at me.  So I was supposed to know how far he was going to back up???  I mean, neither of these instances were my fault, but even if it were, why do people feel the need to act so fucking rude?  I mean, if a car you thought was leaving a space wasn't, just go find another damn space.  That happens to me all the time.  If you need to wait twenty seconds for an elderly person to get into a car before you can back up, just wait.  Is that such a big fucking deal?

-  Ecstatic:  The Pats are going back to the Super Bowl.  It's gonna be Tom Brady's 6th time.  This time he has Gronk and Julian Edelman and a pretty solid defense.

-  Nervous:  But the Pats are playing against the Seahawks, who are pretty formidable.

-  Annoyed:  By the Pats haters.  Now there's some random accusation about the Pats deflating the footballs before yesterday's game.  Whatevs.

-  More annoyed:  By Madonna haters.  Her new song Living For Love is her best in ages, but I don't think it's gonna get much traction on the radio because people are ageist.  They wouldn't think it's cool to like a pop song by a 56-year-old woman.  And yes, every article about Madonna cites her age.  Why???

-  Hopeful:  That Boyhood will win Best Picture and Best Director at the Oscars this year.  For me, it's not only because Boyhood on its own is a great movie, but I also think it makes up for the lack of Oscar love that the Before Sunrise series got.  Richard Linklater deserves all the accolades.  But then I am keeping my optimism in check because there is a late surge for Selma and American Sniper - two more "important" films.  I am really not a fan of "important" films.

-  Impatient:  Come on, painter guy and door guy.  I need y'all to come back and get things corrected already.  It's mid-January for Christ's sake.

-  Disappointed:  I waited 15 years for the chance to retake my terrible driver's license photo.  Well the new one is downright horrific.  Those DMV photographers can join painters and contractors on my list of "people who suck at their jobs and/or take no pride in their workmanship."  I mean, I am not asking for Justin Bieber Calvin Klein ad photoshopping, but come on! 

-  Charlie:  Actually I am not.  Those people fight the good fight for their art.  I would be too scared.  If you threaten my life for a cartoon I am drawing, I can pretty much tell you I would stop drawing that cartoon.  I am being honest.  I am not that brave.  I supposed that there are some things even I would sacrifice my life for, but surely my "art" is not one of those things.  So good for Charlie Hebdo and all the people who aren't afraid to stand up for things they believe in.  We need those people in this world to make up for people like me, ordinary folks with ordinary cojones.

i'm just a kid like anyone else

My favorite song of the moment, from Boyhood:

imdb roundup

Let's check in, via IMDB, on what some of my favorite actors are up to:

Marisa Tomei - she has two small films coming out this month - Loitering With Intent and Spare Parts.  There is a Judd Apatow movie coming soon called Trainwreck.  And then another small film in preproduction called Lemonade.  None of these I am too excited about, but then again, she's good in everything.  I am still waiting for some type of release for that rom-com she has with Hugh Grant called The Rewrite - no idea when that one is getting a US release, although reviews overseas have not been great.

Michelle Pfeiffer - nada since The Family.  Michelle!!!  Come on, aren't the kids all grown by now?  You need to get your butt out there and show them who's boss, cuz we know you are!

Naomi Watts - This girl is busy.  She's got a part in those Divergent sequels and movies costarring with (ugh) Matthew McConaughey (Sea of Trees directed by Gus Van Sant) and (meh) Jake Gyllenhaal (Demolition).  And there are a whole bunch of upcoming stuff too.  Unfortunately I am not falling over my chair over any of these projects.

Keanu Reeves - The most awesome and mysterious guy in Hollywood has a few meh projects (a movie with Mira Sorvino and an Eli Roth thriller called Knock Knock), but what's kinda exciting/curious is the tv miniseries Rain in which he plays assassin John Rain, a character from a series of espionage novels.  I am not familiar with those books or the character (not a fan of that type of fiction) but I would love to see Keanu on my tv.

Emma Watson - Hermione has two thriller movies in the work - Regression in which she plays daughter to Ethan Hawke who may or may not have committed a crime (yeah that's a lame ass description but it's directed by the guy who made The Others so it's got potential) and Colonia in which she has to infiltrate an infamous Chilean cult in order to find her abducted boyfriend (it's based on a true story).

Julie Delpy - Celine wrote and directed something called Lolo - I am not idea what it's about.  And then there is some movie she's about to do called Wiener-Dog, which is described as "several stories featuring people who find their life inspired or changed by one particular dachshund, who seems to be spreading comfort and joy."  Okaaay...

Keira Knightley - She's preggers so the only thing she has in the can is Everest, in which she has supposedly a very small role opposite Jake Gyllenhaal.  I hope she's an actual climber and not just a wife or girlfriend.  Anyways, cannot wait til she starts working again after the baby.  I want another Joe Wright collab!!!  (Atonement and Pride and Prejudice are two of my favorite films ever!)

Garrett Hedlund -He's gonna be Captain Hook in Pan next, directed by Joe Wright.  Supposedly this Hook is a swashbuckling good guy like Indiana Jones.  Works for me.  And then there might be a sequel to Tron, which I am ambivalent about.

Leonardo DiCaprio - The Revenant with Tom Hardy directed by Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu (21 Grams, Birdman, Amorres Perros).  "The frontiersman, Hugh Glass, who in the 1820s set out on a path of vengeance against those who left him for dead after a bear mauling."  Sounds awesome to me!

colorless 2014 and the year of untimely deaths

Favorite movie:  Boyhood; runner up Guardians Of The Galaxy
Favorite actor:  Chris Pratt in Guardians Of The Galaxy
Favorite scene from a movie:  Quicksilver "Time in a Bottle" sequence in X-Men Days Of Future Past
Favorite actress:  Keira Knightley in Begin Again
Favorite band:  OneRepublic
Favorite male singer:  Hozier
Favorite female singer:  Madonna
Biggest mystery:  The disappearance of Malaysian Air Flight MH370
Biggest villain:  ISIS; Boko Haram
Smallest villain:  Kim Jong Un
Favorite tv show that is not Amazing Race:  Orphan Black
Favorite new show:  Jane The Virgin
Favorite new show that is no longer:  Selfie starring John Cho and Karen Gillam
Liking these a little less in 2014 than I did in 2013:  Sherlock, Doctor Who, the Apple brand
Most welcomed return:  Veronica Mars
Biggest worries:  1. Chi Young possibly moving away; 2. house leaks; 3. back pain
Favorite song:  Take Me To Church; runner up I Lived
Most overrated celebrity:  Beyonce
Most annoying celebrity:  Kimye
Most annoying trend:  Butts; selfies
A trend that at least did some good:  ALS ice bucket challenges
Disease of the year:  Ebola
People's cause of the year:  Ferguson, Missouri protests; Hong Kong Umbrella Revolution
Favorite book:  Colorless Tsukuru Tazaki
Public transportation tragedy:  Capsizing of South Korean ferry Sewol; downing of MH17 in East Ukraine
Least favorite activity:  Attending 3 funerals in 2014; working with contractors for house repairs
In memoriam:  Joan Rivers

12 years a boy

I finally saw Boyhood on blu ray yesterday night.  It has all the classic Richard Linklater touches.  I really like how he is able to capture the passage of time, just as he did with the Before movies.  The way our lives unfold, the way we pass our days, the things that we do, the conversations we engage in - everything is mundane and meaningless at first and yet wondrous and consequential.  All the moments that string together to become our lives give our lives their narrative and their form and shape.  We are defined by those moments over the continuum of time.  We ARE those snapshots.

Boyhood is my favorite movie of 2014.  A

the new year

Weather:  Clear and chilly
Mood:  Worried
Music:  My 2014 top 100 playlist
Last Movie: The Hobbit:  Battle of the Five Armies (B)
Reading:  Does the latest issue of Entertainment Weekly count as reading?
Last Pleasure:  Seafood Laksa with Teh Tarik milk tea at Kopi Cafe in Milpitas
Last Worry: It's neck-and-neck race between my house and my back as to which bothers me more
Last accomplishment:  Year end shredding
Looking Forward To:  New season of Downton Abbey
Not Really Looking Forward To:  More expenses for the house
Gas Price: $3.219/gallon premium
Clothes:  Old Navy's blue fleece sweatshirt, fleece sweatpants
Today's Headline:  Some AirAsia Victims Found Belted In Seats
Last Website Visited:  Yelp
Last Meal: Chinese tamale
Last Purchase:  Textbooks for Chi Young
Item On My Wishlist:  Interview magazine with Madonna on cover, 12/2014 issue - cannot find it at local stores
Latest Evidence It's A Beautiful World:  "The Last Goodbye" song from The Hobbit Battle of Five Armies closing credit, sung by Billy Boyd.  It's a beautiful song to send off the series.