i'm in the midst of packing for my trip east tomorrow morning...

but I had to look this up and then tell someone (since I forgot to do it once I got home)!

I am pretty sure I saw Danny Murphy at the Glendale Galleria this evening. He was talking on his cell phone.

oooh la la

I have now seen all of Romain Duris. And I want more.





P.S. Traffic was non-existent in L.A. today. I made it to Beverly and Fairfax within fifteen minutes each way. That is a minor miracle, alert the Pope.

in honor of memorial day...

This article misses the mark on memorialization. Paul Richard doesn't seem to get that memorials are not static creatures beholden to some mystical formula for hero worship (though they certainly follow in that mold). Since memorials reflect not only the era they commemorate but also the era of creation, it's only natural that there is a shift in forms for our National monuments since the Lincoln Memorial (dedicated in 1922).

As somewhat of an expert on the FDR Memorial (see my undergraduate thesis) I find it laughable that he only mentions the ambiguity of the wheelchair statue rather than the grand representation of FDR in the original memorial. The original one was trying to follow his formula, but guess what, it was heavily criticized for skirting FDR's paralyzed state and betrayed modern sensibilities. The wheelchair statue isn't great either, but it was designed to serve a different purpose than what Richard takes it to task for.

Really, aren't we sick of casting our "heroes" in Greek and Roman marble? Times change, the built environment needs to as well.

death and a white laptop

What an action-packed twenty-four hours or so it's been. First I was stood up, or rather, thought I was stood up through a bizarre series of events. Now I think it was just a miscommunication. Still a bit of an unnerving experience. Look, I can take rejection, but I think we all know uncertainty drives me more insane than just about anything else.

In the midst of that confusion, my hard drive on my three-year-old PC notebook crashed. Afterwards I was never able to fully reboot Windows. It was a fast death. Is that the end of the world? Not really, but foolish me (can you really call yourself foolish when you know better?) hadn't backed up in a REALLY long time. I bought an external DVD writer to do the trick a month or two ago because it was never going to happen with my patience level and a 1x burner. I was planning to do it this morning. Irony bit me in the ass yet again.

I took the thing to Geek Squad at Best Buy and paid them $59 to tell me that the hard drive was completely dead and they could not salvage any of the data. FUCK. There are some papers and perhaps little things for school that are lost, but nothing totally catastrophic. Just remember to back the motherfucker up, ok? Learn from my mistakes.

So I had planned to just buy a new hard drive and install it myself. But in the back of my mind was a shiny white MacBook. Allie ordered one on Sunday and it arrived just a couple of hours before my hard drive was pronounced dead. For the last year I've said that when my computer dies I'm buying a Mac. But when do you know that a computer is really dead? Certainly the most vulnerable thing is the hard drive, but things get sluggish, it was three years old, and I don't know, it just seemed really logical to switch platforms at a time when you do not have any pertinent files to transfer. Sort of like a blank slate. And of course I had to have the thing today, because there was no way I could survive the long holiday weekend without a computer and internet access. I had to go to two Apple stores, but I got it, and I've been playing with it all day.

But I still have this sinking feeling. Maybe it's because Monday is the 6-year anniversary of my mother's death, and for the first time it lands on Memorial Day, which it was when she died.

i'm the first to admit...

that academics are weird. But this weird?

This whole situation just seems bizarre.

gelato love

Since I moved to Silver Lake, I've been waiting for the gelato place on Sunset at Hyperion to open. It finally did on Wednesday, and I noticed it on Thursday evening. When I drove by I started screaming and very nearly called Anna right then and there to deliver the good news. Why would I get so excited? Well, we know I have an ice cream/frozen yogurt fetish, and there aren't really any places to my liking in walking distance...until now. It's also been at least 8.5 months since they've announced their pending arrival. Plus, my tiny freezer quite frankly sucks and really fucks up the texture and taste of ice cream. (For example, Trader Joe's gelato fits well in there, but tends to get yucky once I've opened it.)

Anyway, I finally tried the gelato. They were out of some flavors I would have loved to try and probably gotten (pistachio, which is afterall my favorite gelato flavor, and chocolate martini). I settled for cinnamon and espresso. I hate cinnamon, yet I loved this gelato. I'm always a sucker for coffee-flavored ice cream despite my distaste for coffee, so that was an obvious choice for me. At any rate, this was the best gelato I have ever tasted! It was like a rich, flavorful but not overly sweet soft serve (scooped out of a metal bowl). That's exactly how I like it.

the queen is back

Once upon a time I used to be the queen of mix tapes. Yes, TAPES. It took me a bit to get my groove with mixed CDs, because the ability to mess with the tracklisting after you've made your selections ruined the balance of my art. Well, I don't think I've even made a mix CD since I moved out west. Part of that was the introduction of a new technology into my life (the 40 GB mp3 player). It has that nifty playlist ability, akin to making a mix CD, but since I've got my whole record collection in the palm of my hand, I didn't really feel compelled to do that. Until now. Oh, and baby, the queen is back. I listened to my creation all the way through and it's just right. Don't ask me how I do this, I don't know. Should you want to recreate it (it should fit on one 80 minute CD):

1. "if you say jump i will say no" -- Irving
2. "Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow" -- The Bonapartes
3. "Black and White Town" -- Doves
4. "Sister Jack" -- Spoon
5. "Blankest Year" -- Nada Surf
6. "Down in the Valley" -- The Brokedown
7. "A Letter to Dominique" -- Louis XIV
8. "Everything is Everything" -- Phoenix
9. "Oh Lately It's So Quiet" -- OK Go
10. "Time Stops" -- Teenage Fanclub
11. "Sold You An Alibi" -- Superdrag
12. "Hide Another Mistake" -- The 88
13. "The Last High" -- The Dandy Warhols
14. "Stay Tuned" -- Ambulance LTD
15. "Sing Me Spanish Techno" -- The New Pornographers
16. "Wicked Little Town" -- Hedwig and the Angry Inch
17. "Write What You Know" -- The Plus Ones
18. "Tell Me Something I Don't Know" -- The Thrills
19. "Don't Make Me Wait" -- Locksley
20. "Burbank, Luther (1849-1926)" -- Artichoke
21. "Everyday I Love You Less and Less" -- Kaiser Chiefs
22. "Goodnight Goodnight" -- Hot Hot Heat
23. "Coffee in the Pot" -- Supergrass

"Are we straight on that? Women speak their minds; men don't want to have sex with them anymore."

Check out this article I've linked you to. It was brought to my attention by my pal Chris. It is a pointed criticism of a recent Washington Post article by Laura Sessions Stepp. Let's just say I'll refrain from making some really nasty, snooty remarks because I know people google themselves, but I know Stepp from my experimental days as freelancer for the Post in the dumbest section on earth ("Style Plus"). Stepp's beat is youth or something to that effect. She always manages to write these articles that are supposed to be a fresh look on a major issue facing people of my generation, but in the end, they miss the mark because she levels her middle-aged, mothering ideology on issues that are a lot bigger than these individuals.

You'll see what I mean. Just click the link, you're going to love it.

wow-wow for wah-wah

Wow. I just got home from a very interesting night at the movies. But of course it's Arclight so it's always an elevated experience, right? At least that's what I paid my $10 for.

Two and a half weeks ago I purchased a ticket to see an advanced screening of Wah-Wah, written and directed by Richard E. Grant, which is an autobiographical tale of his childhood in Swaziland at the end of the colonial era. The synopsis sounded like something I'd love to see, and as an AFI Director's screening the added bonus included a Q&A with Grant moderated by Steve Martin following the picture. Like I was going to pass that up.

Before the movie began, AFI's program director provided some announcements, including the surprise of a gift bag and bracelet to attend a reception across the street at Sterling after the film. Then she introduced Grant, who gave the film a heartfelt introduction (making the film was a long and bumpy journey). He sat down, and as the lights went out, Martin's white hair shone brightly as he rushed to sit next to his good friend Grant.

The film was incredible. I whole-heartedly recommend it. Naturally it isn't the most original film ever made (however, it's the first to be filmed in and about? Swaziland) but it manages to avoid appearing cliche. The acting is top notch. And Nicholas Hoult (of About a Boy fame) is not only quite the actor, but one sexy minor (he is nearly a 1.5 years younger than my brother!). Gabriel Byrne was marvelous (so much so that I think I may have finally forgiven him for stealing Jo away from Laurie in Little Women). Just go see the film.

The film ends and the Q&A begins. It's funny (as you would expect) and the banter between the two is genuine. Martin asked some good questions that provided some of the heart-wrenching details of the trials of making the film. The questions from the audience didn't turn my stomach like the last Q&A I attended at Arclight (i.e. this time people weren't concerned with how to get their big break). The first question was from none other than Julian Sands! I thought, "Wow, look at this." I had no idea what was to come.

Once the Q&A ended and people began to file out, I noticed a row of A-list celebrities. I think the complete list was: (in addition to Sands) Michael York, Eric Idle, and Eugene Levy. I actually recognized Levy as he sat down, but shrugged it off thinking he just looked like him.

Cut to the reception. I slip to the bathroom first. On my way back to the bar, Steve Martin is within arm distance of me but I don't say anything. I know he sees me (and he didn't say anything either, but did I really expect that?). I couldn't think of anything to say that wasn't so ridiculously trite I thought it best to just look like an awkward gawker. I have to compliment him though. He looked good. From what I could see in the theater (I was in the very back row, as always!) I could tell he'd drop some weight since filming Shopgirl, and upon seeing him up-close I have to say he really did look good (now he could really play the part and make it sexy). He was drinking a cosmopolitan, by the way.

After watching the bar for a while to see if and what was free, I waited and finally got my turn (I, too, ordered a cosmo since I'd never had one...and fuck, that is good! Those ridiculous Sex and the City girls at least got something right). While I was waiting at the bar, I tried to scope out other celebrities (though I think only Julian Sands of that supplemental list ended up at the party) and sexy men. All the damn men were either middle-aged or if attractive to me with a girl. So there goes my free opportunity to mingle with a sexy guy in a place I wouldn't usually be. Oh well. But before I concluded this I saw some guy I thought, "Hey, not bad." But then close behind him I saw an attractive brunette wearing a newsboy hat. C'est la vie.

I finally get my drink and move away from the bar, but I got sort of stuck in a place and I'm not in anyone's way, so I figure I'm going to stand there. The middle-aged guy next to me starts some brief chatting. Soon enough Richard E. Grant walks past and basically gets stopped just in front of me by Winona Ryder! But the best part is that she had been standing next to the guy I was sort of chatting with for a long time and neither of us realized it was her (I couldn't really see her), but the funny thing is that she was with the guy I noticed and thought was attractive--that was her in the hat. I nearly said something to her, but again felt like I'd be so embarrassed. I wanted to say, "You were robbed of the Oscar for Little Women!" She looked really good. I overheard Grant telling her how she looked so young, that she hadn't aged since 15. I don't know about that...she definitely looks more mature than her Heathers days (she was older than 15 when filming that), but she does look quite youthful, you'd never guess she was going on 35.

I also may have seen Jude Law lurking behind the frenzy of voyeurs (me included) and photographers surrounding Grant and Ryder, but I can't be sure. One, I didn't see him talk to anyone. Two, I think he had too much hair to be Law.

Once I decided I wasn't going to say anything to Ryder and had gotten pushed farther away anyway and had already finished my drink I decided to leave. What else was I really going to get out of that, right?

But, man, I knew this was going to be great blog material. I saw more celebrities--A-list ones at that--in the span of an hour than I will probably see for the rest of my tenure in L.A.

And the best part? It was free in the end. The gift bag's only gift was a $10 gift card to Arclight.

back from the dead

Well, I'm back. I needed some time to decompress before I could even blog about it. For about a week I was locked in my apartment, only emerging occasionally to get some dinner, except the last 48 hours when I never even opened the door. I had to frantically write two term papers, and I really didn't think I was going to make it. I did, and I learned a couple of things in the process:

1. Don't think that taking three full seminars, working 20 hours a week, and perfecting the art of academic slackerdome is a realistic strategy. Stated differently, take only two courses.

2. The death penalty is more humane than solitary confinement. At least I had the internet, a cell phone, and DVDs to simulate humanity--and I still wanted to kill myself!

When I emerged, I learned something terrible had happened. I found out that one of my favorite bands broke up. Yes, The Bonapartes claim to be no more. I guess I'm hoping it's just a publicity stunt to sell out the Black Cat on June 2. And considering the internet "frenzy" (i.e. I'm not the only one who thought they really had something and were going places) I saw on their demise, it just might. So I've sent Allie to buy advance tickets.

That brings me to other news. I moved up my trip east to June 1-13. Yes, I will embarrassingly admit that wanting to go to the last Bonapartes show had something to do with it. But I'm not fucking insane enough to rearrange my life for something as trivial as that. The truth is, I want to see Allie, I still don't have a summer job so my schedule isn't set, and I didn't like the way that the prime visiting time was sucked up by this trip to Charlotte, North Carolina. Southwest is great (though I hate the no seat assignment thing). They don't charge a fee to change your ticket, and I was able to get the same promotional fare.

Some other random shit:

I don't usually promote the awesome food places I go to, but I'm going to do it for once. It just opened, and I want it to stay in business. Check out Spitz on Colorado in Eagle Rock. I had been waiting for them to open for months. Oh man, incredible food, reasonably priced, and apparently only sexy men work there. They also have gelato, but amazingly I didn't try it because I was full from dinner.

Rent is one of the worst movies I've seen in a really long time. How can people even stand the music? The lyrics are trite and flat-out stupid and the music really sucks.