Swan Song

I haven’t blogged in a very long time and I think it’s officially time to say goodbye to this blog. It was fun while it lasted and of course I still love film, but I think I will either revamp this blog or create an entirely new one dedicated to other things. I have moved on with some of my interests and time and no longer have the commitment I once did to keeping this updated. I appreciate anyone who actually took the time to read this blog or who commented or appreciated it. Thank you again.

Don’t Want no Paper Gangstah

So, I haven’t blogged in a very long time, and I still haven’t seen any movies in far too long of a time so that won’t be the subject of my most recent post. Instead of movies, I’ll talk about me! Which I know is what really interests you guys the most, because I’m actually fascinating. So let’s take a look at what has been going on in the life of me lately…

The Promise of Winter Break: Only a few more finals and I’m done! I have only three finals, despite my four classes and I’m so excited. Although it will require a lot of studying, as well as a lot of time dedicated to writing papers which will accompany these finals it will be worth it to get to winter break and get hang out in my house enjoying hot chocolate, my friend and my city. Boston, I love and miss ya. Can’t wait to peruse the Garden, walk around with tourists in Faneuil Hall, get hot chocolate after falling over ice skating in the Frog Pond, tromping through the Theater District and gazing around at Harvard Square.

Christmas!: And on that note… I can not wait for Christmas! Of course I love the day, but the month of December is one of my favorites. I love all of the decorations, the music on the radio, the Starbucks Christmas cups, the lights gleaming in the snow (when it finally snows…), and the general good feeling of the whole time. I can’t wait to decorate the tree with my family and listen to a Charlie Brown Christmas Soundtrack on repeat for hours.

Dirty Chais: I had never heard of this phenomenon before heading to NYC to hang with my good friend Hannah. I encountered them at The Bean, a fantastic little coffee shop near her dorm, and was quickly hooked. Fortunately, or, possibly unfortunately (at least for my bank account) I have figured out that they in fact make these delectable drinks at my own school! The “dirty” part of the chai is a shot of espresso. It’s absolutely delicious and the perfect fall drink!

Gummies: Influenced originally by my friend Cora I have fallen into the gummy craze. This craze, I am almost positive, is only within the three of us that feel the need to eat them all the time, but it’s a craze all the same. Whether they’re fruit gummies or lifesaver gummies, I am there and ready to go! I only wish they have gummi bears… that would really make my day.

Soccer: My school is in the process of building a new gym which will be open in January. It’s going to be pristine–beautiful and top of the line. But for now the gym is disgusting. It’s cramped and old and smelly. To avoid this dreadful place, my friend Francesca and I have taken to playing soccer outside! It’s great exercise, and despite the fact that it was 40 degrees outside today, it’s a blast, as long as you bundle up!

New Classes: Although I have thoroughly enjoyed my classes this semester, it’s time to move on. Next semester I’m taking some really interesting classes which include History of Ancient Medicine, Gender in 20th Century Art, Intro to Art History (which I kind of skipped and took a 200 level art history class this semester anyway…) and an English class entitled Post Colonization Literature and Film. Can’t wait!

Ukelele Anthem: I am SO obsessed with Amanda Palmer and have been for years. Recently she put out a song called Ukelele Anthem that I absolutely love . I can not wait for her next solo album. Although I love the Dresden Dolls, Palmer’s solo songs always hit home a little more, were always a little more emotional, and overall I think a little more emotional overall, though both will always have a place in my heart. My sister recently put a version of this on youtube that has gotten a lot of traffic, especially after being noticed by Amanda Palmer herself on twitter! Go check it out, my sister is uber talented and the song is fantastic! Click here to join in on the craze!

11/22/63: This new Stephen King novel is killer. It’s a historical fiction about a man who travels back in time to save the life of John F. Kennedy. It’s almost 1,000 pages long which may seem a little intimidating but it flies by. Last night I read 150 pages before I was able to put it down and go to bed. And as much as I love King I have to admit that it’s not exactly heavy reading, so no worries, you won’t need your dictionaries while flipping through it. But the story is riveting, and it’s the first King novel in a while I’ve been able to dig into and not compare to his former stuff. Set in Maine, as you read the story becomes more and more Stephen King as he references his own works (including Shawshank Redemption, It and a few others). It’s a great story that moves extremely quickly despite the length.

Well, I’m sure there’s more going on in my life than that… what do you want me to talk about in my blog? I know I’m slacking but in order for me to not I need inspiration!! Let me know readers!

Real Human Being

After going to see the movie Drive, definitely check out the soundtrack (or just check it out without seeing it… also a valid plan of action).

 

 

 

Although not actually from the 80s, there is something very reminiscent of that period about the music. I like it anyway.

Drive

It’s been a very long time since I’ve done an actual movie review so please excuse me if I’m a little rusty.

As the opening song states, there’s something inside of Driver which is hard to explain. A lot of mystery and an intense emotional divide within his compassion that splits between extreme violence and a sweet love makes up what is Driver, played by Ryan Gosling. His name and past are void from the film, his inner workings complicated and intricate. But this is vaguely true of all of the characters in this high speed drama.

The opening twenty minutes Gosling doesn’t even speak. He’s the driver of a get away car for a pair of robbers. The pace is perfect, the music apropos and the camera angles spot on. The movie quickly progresses from this to a combination of a violent thriller and a love story. Driver lives in LA, his next door neighbor a mother (Carey Mulligan) whose husband is in prison. Their romance quickly progresses as he helps out around the house, growing close to her son. As fate would have it though, the husband returns. While Driver does make amends with the husband, he quickly gets wrapped up in a crime ring in order to try to help the family. Everything goes wrong.

The movie progresses from there. The film is extremely violent in a no bullcrap kind of way–the bad guys feel no remorse and aren’t screwing around when it comes to their kills, which I find quite refreshing. In addition to Gosling, who is fantastic as a stoic and yet distantly sad man, Albert Brooks plays a gangster, dead straight, and is perfect. He’s still Brooks, but there’s a subtle change in his demeanor and mannerisms that evolve him from the funny man to an asshole gangster, out to make a profit. In addition, Bryan Cranston perfectly plays the owner of a garage who had previously been involved in the crime circle. Christina Hendricks (Mad Men) does a great job playing a role completely different from that which she plays on Mad Men.

The film moves quickly and with purpose. The emotions are real and to the point. The realizations throughout are devastating, and the music, which is slightly reminiscent of that from the ’80s, some how perfectly contrasts the modern feel of the film to bring out the emotional tensions.

City Life

Although I love my college, I essentially live in a cow field. For my fall break I took a very long bus ride to New York City to visit my best friend Hannah. I didn’t even realize how much I missed city life until I got here. Forget the shopping and the abundance of varieties of coffee shops (which I don’t mind at all) I miss the energy and hustle and bustle of people, the ability to meet random strangers who aren’t fellow college students, and the immersion of one’s self into a sea of complete strangers. Growing up in Boston I feed off of this energy. While I adore Wooster, it is seriously lacking in almost all of these qualities. So what have we been doing for the past three days? Hmm… let’s recap.

Coffee at The Bean: If I lived here, this would be my go to coffee place (and it already is Hannah’s). The atmosphere is terrific and lends itself perfectly to getting work done. It’s small enough that we ended up having a lengthy conversation with the guys sitting next to us, but not so tiny as to necessitate eaves dropping on your neighbors (although it’s always a fun thing to do). My personal favorite? The Dirty Chai: a chai latte with a shot of espresso. Maybe it’s a good thing I don’t live here… who knows how many of these I would consume a day…

Insomnia Cookies: It’s one am in New York City on a Sunday. You go to try to see Rocky Horror Picture Show but the guy at the box office lied to you and it’s actually not showing. What do you do? Obviously you get cookies.

Hipsters: We’re in New York. Hannah goes to NYU. They’re unavoidable.

Shopping: Okay, so I lied when I said I didn’t really miss shopping. I’m a fiend for sales, and I had the best time rifling through sale racks and poking through street vendors for the past few days. I did have to make up for the past three months of the only store being Kohl’s…

The Strand: I have never been in this bookstore before this trip but it is a reader’s heaven. I’m sure many of you have been to this glorious place, but I’m pretty sure it’s an English major’s mecca. Hannah bought be a shirt with The Great Gatsby on it and I will probably wear it every single day of my life.

Sequins and Sushi: If you add in leopard print, this statement kind of defines my life. We headed out to a Japanese restaurant, and had some delicious food while fabulously dress (my skirt may or may not have been entirely covered in silver sequins…). Despite the fact that my toes hurt the entire night following, it was such a great way to spend a Saturday night catching up with my best friend!

Even though I love New York, I do love having a campus, but there are positives and negatives of every college campus. I wish I lived closer to a city, but I will always be able to take the bus to visit Hannah or scoot into Boston during my breaks at home. While I have not quite exhausted my desire to be in a city for now, it was an incredible break from the fields of Wooster. I can’t wait to get home to Boston to walk around Newbury with complete strangers, sit on a park bench in the common and people watch and sit in coffee shops around the city with my laptop switching between Facebook and a paper. I will always be a city girl, and although I love my college I can’t wait to move back into a city environment.

Let’s the bass kick it

I’ve been having some serious problems blogging lately. Lack of material, perhaps? Simply writer’s block? Partying until the early hours of the morning? Being in college? Being addicted to watching episodes of Desperate Housewives on Netflix? Hmm… it really could be anything.

In other news, I’m reading Tennessee Williams’ “Cat on a Hot Tin Roof” and I am in love. His stories are so beautifully crafted, and actually, some of the few plays I enjoy reading the scripts of instead of watching (although watching them always a good time…). I have not watched the full movie yet, but I did begin to watch the movie with Paul Newman (sigh…) and Elizabeth Taylor and the casting is genius, absolutely spot on.

I watched Roman Polanski’s Oliver Twist today. Hmm… it was… long? boring? uninspired? oh, I take that back. It inspired me to play Angry Birds Rio through a good portion of it. …..not exactly sure that was the inspiration that Roman was going for. Sorry, bud.

Can someone hit me up with some music recommendations? Not that I don’t love my perpetual playlist of Ingrid Michaelson, Regina Spektor and various dubstep remixes, but I feel like I need a little bit of a change-up.

Oh, but if you ARE in the mood for dubstep go check out Bass Cannon by Flux Pavilion. It’s heavy.

 

Come on, Sox!

For those of you that aren’t following this, you should be, right now.

We want the Rays to lose and the Red Sox to win so head to nesn.com right now and follow their live blogs. It’s the most intense it’s gonna get.

I don’t know why I’m so obsessed with this painting but there’s something so very grabbing about it. I’m so drawn to it.

Bissman 219

Hello, and welcome to my dorm room!

Although I moved in about a month ago, I haven’t gotten around to really putting up the final touches until recently, and even then I’m not sure I’m exactly happy with the way I have it. Of course, it’s tough when you live in Bissman Hall. Here is a dialogue that is typical for someone who lives in this dorm:

Student: where do you live?

Me: Bissman.

Student: oh… I’m sorry!

(or)

Student: *wince* Ohhhh that’s rough.

(or)

Student: *giggles* oh.

So you can see that it’s not exactly the most fabulous of dorms. Yes, it’s tiny. Yes, it retains heat. YES it is annoying that it used to be the Greek dorm and so there are random holes in the walls from where they got drunk and probably ran into the walls with a pole form who knows where or just punched it with their arms, thereby breaking both the wall and their hands. But it’s still my home for this year so I have tried to make the best of it.

My bed and posters. I have a plethora of Marilyn Monroe pictures (one of which I acquired in Prague and absolutely adore). I also have quite a few Alfons Mucha prints, which also are from Prague. I ADORE his work, in it’s art nouveaus style.

My desk. Another Mucha, some Celtics pride, the usual. I’ve got some pretty bitchin’ milk cartons for my book shelves…

Just a few of the many pictures I decided to bring with me. Of course one of me and my fabulous best friend Hannah looking classy at prom, as well as one of my sister in scuba gear (because let’s face it, she’s always in scuba gear in some form or another) and my mom when I was a baby (wasn’t she a HOTTY?!).

Some of my hallmates and I before heading out to a RAVEEEEEE. We be gettin’ crazy.

A C.O.W. (student –me) with a cow!! We went to the Wayne County Fair and got to hang with all of the farm animals… I love cows. I think they’re beautiful, with their enormous, peaceful eyes. They seem so relaxes and insightful…

 

I had another picture of my closet but of course it turned out upside down for some strange reason…

What are your dorm rooms like? Are they as horribly small as mine is? What farm animals have you been hanging out with lately?

St. Netflix

Since I’m in college and funds are running extremely low, movies have become a little out of the question. And since movies often take too much time to watch in one sitting, I have found my new vice: TV.

I do own a TV (it’s a nice 19 inch flat screen that my father purchased for me so graciously), and since my room is so friggin’ small I have nowhere to put it. So who have I turned to? The newest holy entity in my book, St. Netflix. This wonderful device has filled many hours so far in my college career, and has (somewhat) replaced my yearning for the over-salted popcorn and reclining chair experience of a film.

Drop Dead Diva: This is the ultimate chick-….. damnit I can’t say flick. Um, chick fluff? Alright, you come up with something and let me know. It’s at the top of my stupid yet entertaining TV list. The pilot follows an aspiring model who dies in a car accident. When she goes to be judged as to whether she goes to heaven, or you know… not, she hits the illegal return button and ends up back on earth–in someone elses’ body. Deb, the woman whom she returns as is a plus-sized attorney. So now, she’s smart, a workaholic, and also a little bigger in the britches. There’s a lot of silly fun about clothes, and of course your typical office romance, but there’s also a lot of empowerment of bigger woman and realizations about people’s size. Stupid show, good time, great message.

Misfits: Ever seen Skins UK? Well, first of all, I recommend that you rush out immediately to go watch all four seasons (yeah there’s a fifth season but it doesn’t count and usually I refuse to speak of it). If you have seen Skins, Misfits is the obvious next step. It’s about a group of British kids who get hit by an enormous storm and end up having super powers. Missing the drugs, sex and drama that followed the characters of Skins around? Well, it’s right here, only now they’re superheros (…kind of). The best part is htat this show is still on TV so when you’ve gone through all of the episodes available on hulu you still have more to look forward to.

Desperate Housewives: I’m only about four episodes into this show and I’m aware that I’m the last person on the planet to discover it, but it is fabulous. It’s funny and witty and also dramatic and suspenseful. It follows a lot of common themes in every day life and yet also mixes in some surprises in a very realistic way. I love the lying, affairs and cheating, as well as the backstabbing and competition. It’s very stylized in a Mad Men kind of way. No, it’s not a period piece, but if you’ve ever seen the show you’ll know what I’m talking about when I say they have similar tones. This show also is still on TV and so even though I’ve got about seven more seasons to go through before I’m done, when I am I’ve got real time to look forward to.

In addition to this, some of my favorite shows like Modern Family, House and 30 Rock are coming back to TV soon!

What is everyone else watching on TV? What shows are you looking forward to coming back?

Oh yeah, remember Mad Men? Only my favorite TV show of all time, and the best thing to have ever happened? It doesn’t come back until next year. You should probably go sob a little. It’s a tragedy.