I don't have much to say, really. I love Meryl Streep. I cried when she won tonight. Man. I want to be her a little bit. She goes on the list of bad ass women actresses.
Along with:
Dame Judi Dench
Maggie Smith
Helen Mirren
Diane Keaton
Sandra Bullock
It's a short list because it's so exclusive. But Streep and Dench are on top.
I like Smith and Mirren because they are sexy-- yes, Smith is sexy. I like Keaton because she is sassy. I like Bullock because I relate to almost every character she's every portrayed--especially the one's where she falls in love with a hot man. And if you ever have to ask me why I love Dench and Streep I will slap you so hard, they don't even make an analogy for it.
Congrats Meryl Streep. You should've won your 17th award tonight, not your third.
I'm feeling good about next year though. I think it's Dench's year. I have high hopes for The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel. Which might not be a good thing actually.
Sunday, February 26, 2012
Tuesday, February 14, 2012
Fly Me to the Moon
I have a new Valentine's Day tradition. I found it oddly comforting today to listen to my Frank Sinatra/Michael Bublé pandora playlist, wash the mile high pile of dishes on my desk, clean my room, put on make-up--including lipstic... For some reason domesticity hit me today, and it hit me hard. I even put heels on to get ready. It wasn't a wonder I didn't vacuum or wash the windows or tie my hair up in a floral print scarf. Saint Valentine bitch slapped me all the way to 1950.
You may very well be wrinkling your brow thinking, why did Valentine's Day bother you, don't you have a boyfriend. Yes, yes I do. A boyfriend far away in a land I left. Long distance relationships are weird on Valentine's Day. You aren't being taken out, you don't get flowers, or candy, or the other consumer products Hallmark beats men over the head with. You also don't get invited to the singleton party--metaphorically speaking. It's a bizarre limbo in which you, apparently, become the mom from Happy Days... I don't quite understand it yet.
This Valentine's Day was especially...weird... Because I haven't p exactly on the most stable terms with the beau for the last 24 hours... I mean we are all made up but it did mean waking up on Valentine's Day wasn't like waking up in a Romantic Comedy. Or if it was, it was like waking up during the dramatic part where no one knows who will end up with who but there's a lot of heated discussion and you can only pray it ends with a kiss as the credits role.
Well the credits aren't rolling, yet. But after recovering from the relationship icu I spent the rest of the day in a domestic haze. I even gave motherly advice to two friends about their love lives. I still can't believe I washed dishes. I'm glad the day ended, I was about to head down to the laundry room.
You can do whatever psychologic interpretation of that as you want, but I think it might stay a tradition. I quite liked how relaxing it felt. Especially with Sinatra and Bublé crooning their love in my ear all day. Their music flew my to the moon.
You may very well be wrinkling your brow thinking, why did Valentine's Day bother you, don't you have a boyfriend. Yes, yes I do. A boyfriend far away in a land I left. Long distance relationships are weird on Valentine's Day. You aren't being taken out, you don't get flowers, or candy, or the other consumer products Hallmark beats men over the head with. You also don't get invited to the singleton party--metaphorically speaking. It's a bizarre limbo in which you, apparently, become the mom from Happy Days... I don't quite understand it yet.
This Valentine's Day was especially...weird... Because I haven't p exactly on the most stable terms with the beau for the last 24 hours... I mean we are all made up but it did mean waking up on Valentine's Day wasn't like waking up in a Romantic Comedy. Or if it was, it was like waking up during the dramatic part where no one knows who will end up with who but there's a lot of heated discussion and you can only pray it ends with a kiss as the credits role.
Well the credits aren't rolling, yet. But after recovering from the relationship icu I spent the rest of the day in a domestic haze. I even gave motherly advice to two friends about their love lives. I still can't believe I washed dishes. I'm glad the day ended, I was about to head down to the laundry room.
You can do whatever psychologic interpretation of that as you want, but I think it might stay a tradition. I quite liked how relaxing it felt. Especially with Sinatra and Bublé crooning their love in my ear all day. Their music flew my to the moon.
Monday, February 6, 2012
The Village People
This post is sort of a non sequitur. It's about the music group The Village People. It is spurred by the startling realization that no one knows who The Village People are. For years I have brought up The Village People in conversations. They are an easy target, given their resume of ridiculous songs and even more ridiculous outfits.
More often than not I get blank stares blinking at me. I had looked for a laugh, or a chuckle, or even a smile. But I don't even see recognition in people's eyes.
I'm not speaking another language. I'm not referencing an obscure hipster band that only I have heard of. Everyone in the entire universe has heard at least one of their songs.
So let me explain, to anyone else still ignorant to my very simple references, who the Village People are.
Remember YMCA? Macho Man? In the Navy? All of those are Village People songs.
So now you know what I'm talking about when YMCA is played. I'm not talking about a village somewhere, I'm talking about the people singing the song.
Now the other thing of significance about the Village People is that they all dressed in ridiculous costumes. One was a police man, one an Indian--sorry, Native American, one a naval/army officer, one a cowboy, one a biker, and one a construction worker. As far as I can tell, every member of the group was gay, and every members costume was appropriately sexualized.
So when I see a cop walk by in tight pants and say, "he looks like someone out of the Village People", again, I am not talking about an actual village. I'm talking about one of the six men who spent their entire musical careers dressed in sexy uniforms.
There now you know. Go google images The Village People, or watch their music videos on YouTube.
More often than not I get blank stares blinking at me. I had looked for a laugh, or a chuckle, or even a smile. But I don't even see recognition in people's eyes.
I'm not speaking another language. I'm not referencing an obscure hipster band that only I have heard of. Everyone in the entire universe has heard at least one of their songs.
So let me explain, to anyone else still ignorant to my very simple references, who the Village People are.
Remember YMCA? Macho Man? In the Navy? All of those are Village People songs.
So now you know what I'm talking about when YMCA is played. I'm not talking about a village somewhere, I'm talking about the people singing the song.
Now the other thing of significance about the Village People is that they all dressed in ridiculous costumes. One was a police man, one an Indian--sorry, Native American, one a naval/army officer, one a cowboy, one a biker, and one a construction worker. As far as I can tell, every member of the group was gay, and every members costume was appropriately sexualized.
So when I see a cop walk by in tight pants and say, "he looks like someone out of the Village People", again, I am not talking about an actual village. I'm talking about one of the six men who spent their entire musical careers dressed in sexy uniforms.
There now you know. Go google images The Village People, or watch their music videos on YouTube.
Sunday, February 5, 2012
Shop Til You Drop
So I went shopping for the first time in a long time. Like real shopping. I've actually never gone real shopping in downtown Seattle; at least not until now. I've gone shopping in the mall near the UW campus, but I've never gone down to the center of the city to shop. I was... just like San Francisco... I think maybe all cities are set up similarly in terms of shopping. There is about a 10 block radius in which all the regular stores exist. There are mecca-esque versions of all the stores you are used to; American Apparel, Urban Outfitters, Sephora, Victoria Secret, H&M, and Forever 21. The latter two are the stores I went to yesterday with my two friends.
It was exactly what I needed. Don't kid yourself, ladies, retail therapy works. I new outfit and a little (or a lot) less cash in your bank account really can make you feel better. It might not be a permanent fix, but hey, neither is seeing a therapist. If you're going to spend 100 bucks a week making yourself feel better, wouldn't you rather look simply fabulous? Kidding, kidding. But not really. In a world where therapists and prescriptions come in 12-packs on the same isle as the soap in the grocery store, maybe it's not so bad to relieve stress with a new spring outfit (that's not such a crazy idea either, given the marvelous weather we've been having in Seattle lately).
I know there is criticism about our culture's materialism. Madonna said it simply enough, "We are living in a material world, and I am a material girl", but I think Lily Allen said it more eloquently, "I am a weapon of massive consumption and its not my fault it’s how I’m programmed to function". Madonna, Lily Allen, and I all recognize this materialism. And we all embrace it. We aren't niave, but we also embrace it.
I think we could benefit from thinking about things in those terms more often. If you know something exists, does that still make it bad? If I know that drinking soda is horrible for me, but still drink it, does that still make it bad that I drink it? Yeah, it's still bad for my health but you can't really lump me with the other people struggling with America's obesity epidemic, can you? It's the same with this "disease" of materialism. I know I have this inclination, so does it still make me a bad person to embrace it, not fight it.
I spend too much time fighting things because I know they exist as a stigmatized behavior. I tried to deny drinking coffee because everyone is recognizing that caffeine is bad for you. I've stopped doing that. Don't deny yourself things that make you happy. The last week or so I have had coffee any time I've felt the urge and not only have I been more energetic, I've also just felt better about myself because I didn't feel guilty about having it or even wanting it. But actually, I want to return to shopping before I get too off topic because I want to save this for another discussion.
I like shopping. I feel good spoiling myself. I have a job and I work hard saving money. I don't have many expenses with food and housing and school paid for by my parents. So why not feel good about yourself? Shopping isn't only about that instant feeling during the shopping. You have this final product, these new pieces of clothes that you can cherish for months (or years, as in my case, I hate throwing away clothes. I still have clothes from middle school...)
Shopping is a whole experience, and I know I've already talked a lot about it, but I had so many funny observations yesterday that that's really what I wanted to talk about.
First are the women who go into the dressing room with their friends and spend the whole time monologue about what their friends should wear/try on. There was this one woman who went on and on about her friend's body type and what that meant for the clothes she should wear. Things like, "Well you are tall so you would look good in skinny jeans" or "Given this or that feature, the peasant top style doesn't really work on you". After a while I couldn't help but feel like this woman didn't have a clue what she was saying. It was like she was quoting Cosmo, but... like, misquoting it. She was just throwing out random criticism and commentary. I think this is a common phenomenon and I hope to God if I ever sounded like that with a friend, they would bitch slap that right out of me.
Second are the moms who think it's okay to bring their little kids shopping with them. There was one mom who not only had her infant and toddler with her, but had belted them into a double wide stroller and forced her husband to push them around the crowded store. She wedged through clothing displays saying "Momma needs to shop". Oh hell no, you did not just bring your family into a store. Where's your mom? How about your dad? Or your uncle or sister or cousin or nephew. Just bring 'em all. And dad, what are you thinking? Take the kids, the stroller, and the shamed face and go to a park or playground while momma shops.
Which brings me too third: women who bring their husbands or boyfriends with them. "Honey, do you like thiiiiis?" Is not something I like to hear being whined as a boy slouches around with his phone out, playing angry birds. "Huh? Oh yeah, yeah, that's good." Girls, what was the thought process here? "I need to go shopping; who would hate this the most?" Don't you have girl friends who will A) want to go with you, B) will care, and C) will be able to actually give you proper advice. Do you think by inviting you boyfriend/husband along, you'll be able to tailor your wardrobe to his liking? Because A) If he thinks your hot, he think that no matter what you wear, B) if he doesn't think that no matter what, he's not the right guy, and C) WTF, dress yourself in whatever you want, betch. Boys, what was the thought process? Why did you say yes to this? Did she bribe you? Because otherwise, GTFO this store, you are standing in front of the sale rack. My boyfriend will be comforted in the fact that I will never make him go shopping with me. In fact, I don't want him to go with me. Sorry, dude.
Fourth, are the young women who flock to stores in groups of ten, twenty, thirty. At one point I think an entire middle school was in H&M. They are so funny and I TOTALLY used to be like them. Parents having just let you off the leash, you've got $100 in babysitting money, more money than you've ever had in your life, and all you want is a new shirt or belt from, like, the best store, like, ever. Hell, I'm still like that. They arrive in flocks, spreading across the store like some sort of awkward, yet adorable, mob. They are all size 2, and if they aren't they desperately want to be. They talk about everything we talk about, fashion, boys, school, movies, music... but everything you over hear is like an audio-photograph. It's so familiar, but so distance. I can remember what it was like, it was only a few years ago, but it still feels two dimensional.
Fifth, there are the women who work at these stores. They are so funny, they know spot on what look they are repping, usually a bastardized version of the stores look. Honestly, I am more than a little jealous of them. I don't have a "look". I've already kind of talked about projected identity, and when it comes to fashion I get a little lost. But they have this made into an art form.
So those are some observations I had while shopping. I have some more superficial ones, like when did stripes and lace get so popular? Or fucking CROP TOPS that I think are so ridiculous. But those are about fashion trends that don't last. Social currents that will pass. These observations are social facts, they are here to stay, even if they are a little ridiculous, and a lot materialistic.
It was exactly what I needed. Don't kid yourself, ladies, retail therapy works. I new outfit and a little (or a lot) less cash in your bank account really can make you feel better. It might not be a permanent fix, but hey, neither is seeing a therapist. If you're going to spend 100 bucks a week making yourself feel better, wouldn't you rather look simply fabulous? Kidding, kidding. But not really. In a world where therapists and prescriptions come in 12-packs on the same isle as the soap in the grocery store, maybe it's not so bad to relieve stress with a new spring outfit (that's not such a crazy idea either, given the marvelous weather we've been having in Seattle lately).
I know there is criticism about our culture's materialism. Madonna said it simply enough, "We are living in a material world, and I am a material girl", but I think Lily Allen said it more eloquently, "I am a weapon of massive consumption and its not my fault it’s how I’m programmed to function". Madonna, Lily Allen, and I all recognize this materialism. And we all embrace it. We aren't niave, but we also embrace it.
I think we could benefit from thinking about things in those terms more often. If you know something exists, does that still make it bad? If I know that drinking soda is horrible for me, but still drink it, does that still make it bad that I drink it? Yeah, it's still bad for my health but you can't really lump me with the other people struggling with America's obesity epidemic, can you? It's the same with this "disease" of materialism. I know I have this inclination, so does it still make me a bad person to embrace it, not fight it.
I spend too much time fighting things because I know they exist as a stigmatized behavior. I tried to deny drinking coffee because everyone is recognizing that caffeine is bad for you. I've stopped doing that. Don't deny yourself things that make you happy. The last week or so I have had coffee any time I've felt the urge and not only have I been more energetic, I've also just felt better about myself because I didn't feel guilty about having it or even wanting it. But actually, I want to return to shopping before I get too off topic because I want to save this for another discussion.
I like shopping. I feel good spoiling myself. I have a job and I work hard saving money. I don't have many expenses with food and housing and school paid for by my parents. So why not feel good about yourself? Shopping isn't only about that instant feeling during the shopping. You have this final product, these new pieces of clothes that you can cherish for months (or years, as in my case, I hate throwing away clothes. I still have clothes from middle school...)
Shopping is a whole experience, and I know I've already talked a lot about it, but I had so many funny observations yesterday that that's really what I wanted to talk about.
First are the women who go into the dressing room with their friends and spend the whole time monologue about what their friends should wear/try on. There was this one woman who went on and on about her friend's body type and what that meant for the clothes she should wear. Things like, "Well you are tall so you would look good in skinny jeans" or "Given this or that feature, the peasant top style doesn't really work on you". After a while I couldn't help but feel like this woman didn't have a clue what she was saying. It was like she was quoting Cosmo, but... like, misquoting it. She was just throwing out random criticism and commentary. I think this is a common phenomenon and I hope to God if I ever sounded like that with a friend, they would bitch slap that right out of me.
Second are the moms who think it's okay to bring their little kids shopping with them. There was one mom who not only had her infant and toddler with her, but had belted them into a double wide stroller and forced her husband to push them around the crowded store. She wedged through clothing displays saying "Momma needs to shop". Oh hell no, you did not just bring your family into a store. Where's your mom? How about your dad? Or your uncle or sister or cousin or nephew. Just bring 'em all. And dad, what are you thinking? Take the kids, the stroller, and the shamed face and go to a park or playground while momma shops.
Which brings me too third: women who bring their husbands or boyfriends with them. "Honey, do you like thiiiiis?" Is not something I like to hear being whined as a boy slouches around with his phone out, playing angry birds. "Huh? Oh yeah, yeah, that's good." Girls, what was the thought process here? "I need to go shopping; who would hate this the most?" Don't you have girl friends who will A) want to go with you, B) will care, and C) will be able to actually give you proper advice. Do you think by inviting you boyfriend/husband along, you'll be able to tailor your wardrobe to his liking? Because A) If he thinks your hot, he think that no matter what you wear, B) if he doesn't think that no matter what, he's not the right guy, and C) WTF, dress yourself in whatever you want, betch. Boys, what was the thought process? Why did you say yes to this? Did she bribe you? Because otherwise, GTFO this store, you are standing in front of the sale rack. My boyfriend will be comforted in the fact that I will never make him go shopping with me. In fact, I don't want him to go with me. Sorry, dude.
Fourth, are the young women who flock to stores in groups of ten, twenty, thirty. At one point I think an entire middle school was in H&M. They are so funny and I TOTALLY used to be like them. Parents having just let you off the leash, you've got $100 in babysitting money, more money than you've ever had in your life, and all you want is a new shirt or belt from, like, the best store, like, ever. Hell, I'm still like that. They arrive in flocks, spreading across the store like some sort of awkward, yet adorable, mob. They are all size 2, and if they aren't they desperately want to be. They talk about everything we talk about, fashion, boys, school, movies, music... but everything you over hear is like an audio-photograph. It's so familiar, but so distance. I can remember what it was like, it was only a few years ago, but it still feels two dimensional.
Fifth, there are the women who work at these stores. They are so funny, they know spot on what look they are repping, usually a bastardized version of the stores look. Honestly, I am more than a little jealous of them. I don't have a "look". I've already kind of talked about projected identity, and when it comes to fashion I get a little lost. But they have this made into an art form.
So those are some observations I had while shopping. I have some more superficial ones, like when did stripes and lace get so popular? Or fucking CROP TOPS that I think are so ridiculous. But those are about fashion trends that don't last. Social currents that will pass. These observations are social facts, they are here to stay, even if they are a little ridiculous, and a lot materialistic.
Thursday, February 2, 2012
Happy Groundhog Day
I always forget about Groundhog Day. It's kind of a silly holiday, really. Why does a groundhog need to decide the weather? Why is it his shadow that he must see before it is established that there will be six more weeks of winter? How can they tell if he sees it or not?
I think that if a groundhog saw his shadow it would mean that there would less winter because the sun is out. But it's the opposite of that, and that just doesn't compute for me.
But I like it for one reason, the movie. I love the movie Groundhog Day. I just do, it's a comedy, it's a romance, it's philosophy. And that's kind of it actually. I wish I could watch it today, but it's been a busy day so I think I'll wait until tomorrow.
I think that if a groundhog saw his shadow it would mean that there would less winter because the sun is out. But it's the opposite of that, and that just doesn't compute for me.
But I like it for one reason, the movie. I love the movie Groundhog Day. I just do, it's a comedy, it's a romance, it's philosophy. And that's kind of it actually. I wish I could watch it today, but it's been a busy day so I think I'll wait until tomorrow.
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