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January 8th, 2010
marmalade_fish
[arkeiryn]
 | 09:59 am - Marmfish demographics
I was in the endless chat yesterday, having fun talking to ![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif) caecandy and lisaheron (and playwithfyr and sarkysnarky , but they weren't around for this bit), when I realised something. Apart from playwithfyr , and possibly eternal_vows , I don't know of a single straight marmfish. The majority seem to ID as bisexual or "straight-but-not-really". (If it helps, I'm one of the the bisexual crowd :P)
So yeah. I just wondered if this was common throughout the "marmfish population", or whether it is just us who are endless chat regulars that are "not normal"?
Current Mood: ![[mood icon]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/mood/growf/smileys/tired.gif) tired
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sherrif_topato
 | 06:02 pm
Also on a totally unrelated note I got my septum pierced today. so it's not all bad.
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sherrif_topato
| 06:01 pm - RAGE!
Angry ragenings! I was so looking forward to going back to Capoeira today. That was until I got home and COULDN"T FIND MY CAPOEIRA PANTS!!
ARGH! I haven't been this angry in ages!
To put a bit of perspective on this, my Capoeira uniform cost over $100 and those pants are frickin expensive.
Also, I recently lost my belt, and had to get a new one. Now I may have to go to my teacher and say "guess what, you're never going to believe this, but somehow I appear to have lost my pants as well..."
I can see the funny side of this, except that I know my teacher will not see the funny side to this, and most likely get annoyed at me. He gets annoyed if you don't wear your uniform to training.
The worst part is, the last time I remember seeing them was on the washing line, and we have a communal washing line. I think someone in my building may have my pants!
Sniff. I'm just going to go to Sarah's and watch flight of the concords and get drunk instead.
Current Mood: ![[mood icon]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/mood/moonsis/angry.gif) angry
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librarianidol
| 01:47 pm - 2010 - the year of e-readers (or why print media is here to stay)
http://librarianidol.blogspot.com/2010/01/2010-year-of-e-readers-or-why-print.html There has been a substantial reflection in recent months about the "future of books". Two pieces that have caught my attention, and worthy of consideration are John Green's essay The Future of Books, writen for the School Library Journal, and Corey Doctorow's How to destroy the book.
Both are excellent reads, and whilst this post is somewhat inspired by them, I'm going to digress straight away. I want to briefly discuss what seems to be a false dichotomy between bibliophiles and tech-lovers.
From these articles, and many others, there is a very conscious sense that this year is going to be a big year for e-readers. Australia will see the introduction of the Kindle as a common accessory, and we're all anxiously awaiting the Apple's "iSlate" portable netbook/tablet/e-reader, not to mention other competitors with e-reader capabilities. Similarly, in libraries, we're seeing a growth of periodicals and academic texts becoming available online, with many libraries considering the removal of their print collections if they are available through online subscriptions.
And here's the thing. I absolutely love the fact that if I want to, I will be able to download a new release book into my device, and have that immediate satisfaction of being able to start reading it in a lightweight device. I could happily lie in bed and read a book on an e-reader, the same way that I read a book. After all, I do most of my recreational online reading that way.
But here's the catch. I like to own my favourite books, and have them on a shelf for my own re-reading purposes. But moreso, my personal shelf collection is a part of my life. Whenever I need inspiration, cheering up, profound reflection on life, or the beauty of poetry, I can go straight up, gaze over the titles, pick one out, and flick through them. My collection is part of my personality, and the visual stimulus of physical books on a shelf is a necessary part of my natural habitat. It's my home.
Furthermore, I like to share. If somebody comes over to my house, and expresses an interest in one of my books, I'll take it off, and thrust it upon them, saying "Here! Read it, and then come back and tell me what you thought about it." For me, the mutual love, or hatred, or impassioned disagreement over books are what defines much of my relationship with people.
And, of course, this is all legal, because I paid to own the book. I can read it, and then give it to a friend to read, and so on. In the same way, libraries pay for books, so that they can be shared with a vast amount of the community. And then, once they start falling apart, or are no longer en vogue, then can be sold off in a second-hand book sale, and somebody can have the pleasure of owning a book that has been physically enjoyed by countless of other people in the community.
Basically, the real value in a physical book is that it can be shared. This is how it's been for centuries, even before the printing press was born. The book is an entity in itself, which can be kept, borrowed and/or re-sold.
And as a librarian, it's wonderful to be able to sing the praises of a book, and to be able to share the pleasure of reading with library patrons, and then place a copy of the book in somebody's hand, ready for them to check out and walk away. It's not quite the same to say "This book is great, and you can download it for $X from amazon or various other sites, depending on the brand of e-reader you own, if in fact you do own an e-reader, and no you won't be able to give it to anybody else, but you can recommend that they buy an e-book the same way."
Because, as Doctorow points out, it's not the same with an e-reader. When you download an e-book, you don't own it. You own a licence to read it, in the same way that you would own a licence to use a piece of computer software. But you may not share it. Unless, of course, you physically give your e-reader to a friend to borrow, so that they can read it that way. You don't own the book - you own the right to view the contents of the book on your device, but that's all.
And it's in this respect, that I honestly do not believe that the e-reader will "replace" the book, any more than pay-per-view film has replaced DVDs. I use iView (for example) to watch TV and films from ABC, but I also buy films and TV shows on DVD that I can share with other people.
Furthermore, the physical existence of a book is fundamental for it survival. You see books on display in bookstores, in libraries, on bookshelves and, most of all, in the streets - being read by people. The prominent titles and author's names, emblazoned on the front, as the hottest accessory of a reader passing the time on a 20-minute train trip. It's a conversation starter, when meeting somebody for a coffee and they notice it in your bag. Simply put - books sell themselves by being in the limelight, and they enrich our lives by being present and in the public eye. Again, it's about sharing the joy of reading in our community, and enriching the community simply by being present.
And, again, I will doubtlessly have my own portable e-reader in tow, as a solitary reading device. But I will never underestimate the power of the physical book in building communities, friendships, and fostering a love of literature and culture in the world.
E-readers will be valuable in facilitating ease of access and portability of a story. However, a good story is infinitely more valuable if it can be shared.
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nclean
 | 03:32 pm
A few little things:
1) I appear to have IV lurgy. That is, a cold that affects primarily my throat. I'm otherwise mostly fine, but my throat is sore, I have a decent range of about an octave, with abominable timbre, in the 2nd to 3rd Bass range. Plus, I get the distinct feeling that if I work my voice too hard, I'll get laryngitis, and be hoarse throughout IV. Definitely not something I want to spread. Therefore, I'm kind of planning to wear a flu mask tonight
2) I liked Avatar a lot, in a lot of ways, apart from the visuals. Sure, the metaphor is paper thin, but that's OK. No-one said you need to make metaphors opaque. That said, with some of the comments that the chief of security makes about Aboriginals, I don't know that it really counts as a metaphor. I think its well balanced by Cameron's other films - in this film, the non-Imperialists are depicted overly positively, whereas in Aliens, the Gooks are acid-blooded monsters, and the enduring effect of Ho-Chi-Min's ideals tries to eat children.
And sure, there's a Hollywood romance thrown in, but it's not handled particularly badly, even if it is a little saccharine.
Yes, of course it had to go Hollywood, but there's a really obvious cutting point - at the end of the 3rd act (where there's some fire), the screen even GOES DARK at just the point where they could have made it an incredibly depressing, dark, aren't-we-just-showing-the-pain-of-the-human-condition, give me an artsy award, film. It would have also been a reasonable length if they'd cut it at that point. A brilliant and DEPRESSING film.
Also, although the film is full of technical dodginess (I can't remember the proper SciFi term for technical elements that aren't necessarily important to the plot, and so aren't just plot devices), but at least a lot of the technically-dodgy elements are well explained by other technically-dodgy elements. Hey, getting ambitious sci-fi right is HARD. I will choose only two things to comment on:
1) If other Pandoran species breathe through vents on their chests, why don't the main humanoid species (who are obviously supposed to be closely related to a number of other species, like the fliers)?
2) If there are a number of Biome types on the planet (plains, oceans and so on) why oh WHY would you set up principal mining operations in the middle of the fucking jungle?
So, yes, I expect the film to spawn many sequels and sell many video games. But doing so does not make a film, or even a film not good. If a movie has to bend over backwards to do so, that's bad. If those things flow on as a natural result of the world creation (think Star Wars), that's just a nice side effect. The balance of forces, which will help so much in creating video games, are kind of necessary for the story.
3) Spending money in great big lumps is so bloody easy, and the value received is often dubious. Yes, cash blown yesterday will help achieve certain specific goals, but it's not so clear that those goals will aid in overall happiness in the long term.
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January 7th, 2010
yalitlovers
[quippe]
 | 10:43 pm - The Hundred-Towered City by Garry Kilworth
The Blurb On The Back:
Magic ... Mystery ... Monsters
This is exactly what awaits Jack, Annie and Davey when they are transported back in time to the gothic city of Prague, to search for their missing parents. Trying to avoid capture by the secret police, they find themselves running through dark and dangerous cobbled streets where they meet some very shady characters. But where are their parents? And who has stolen the key to the time machine?
Alchemists, mythical creatures and a man with a hook for a hand hold the answers they’re looking for. Will the daring group be in time to save their parents from the eerie Karlstein Castle? And even if they do, how will they return to the present day without the key?
( The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )
The Verdict:
A potentially interesting story is rendered dull by a listless narrative and too many contrivances.
Cross-posted to ![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/community.gif) cool_teen_reads.
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aquandrian
 | 01:24 pm - kindly walk, do not run to the nearest exit
Movies watched today on YouTube: 3.
The Women. The 1939 original, omg. Which I still can't find anywhere to purchase on DVD. I only idly put it into the YouTube search cos I was so bored. And omg, nearly fell over myself when it came up with the whole movie and the right version, too! Dear god, it's amazing. The dialogue was so fast and so naturalistic I was almost embarrassed with how badly I wanted subtitles. But oh man, the dynamics ... the way they said so much with silence, the amazing expressive vulnerability of Norma Shearer's silence. And argh, such a clever script with the intertwined beginnings and endings. Written by a woman, thank you. Directed by my darling George Cukor. It's got me so curious about Virginia Weidler's adult career cos I'd love to see her as an adult actress. She's so good. What? Retired at 17, died at 42?! Good god, poor Virginia Weidler! Ah. Vale Virginia. You were awesome and you will always be the girl friend I wished I had. And it was so inventive the way they avoided showing any man at all. We didn't even hear a man. Brilliant. And oh god, some of those gowns were to die for ... *drools* I always did love Adrian best. Almost more than Edith Head.
Yours Mine And Ours. Again the original. With Lucille Ball and Henry Fonda. In colour! 1968. It was actually quite entertaining, although I was quite sure the son would meet with a bad end. Tim Matheson as the son. Tim Matheson who I kinda crushed on when he was in Sometimes They Come Back. But ah Lucy and Hank were so funny in their own different ways. Mmmm Henry Fondaaaaa ...
And Freaky Friday. Also the original, 1976. Cos I keep thinking it was Hayley Mills in the original but that's not right cos she was in the original of The Parent Trap and because Lindsay Lohan is in both the remakes, I get them confused. So I keep forgetting and then I keep getting shocked every time I read or remember that it was Jodie Foster in the original Freaky Friday. Dear god, it's scary that her voice hasn't changed one bit. Most of her mannerisms, too. Cute film, started out quite awesomely authentic in terms of the conflicts but that whole climax was way too drawn-out and silly for my liking. Brilliant final scene, though. Hee hee hee.
Words written today: 0.
But I did some reading cos I realised I'd need to refresh physical details before starting the next scene. May have bit off a bit more. Oy. But am trying not to panic. Just read and build it up in your head. Whatever you do, DON'T PANIC! Yes.
Current Mood: ![[mood icon]](http://img98.imageshack.us/img98/2856/anxiousd.png) anxious
Current Music: silence before bed
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cest_what
 | 11:25 pm - Sixties Girl Group/Beat Combo: An Epic The Like Picspam
So, because I now have eleventy billion pictures of them, let's have another Like picspam!
( Before it breaks my heart )
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smartbitchestb
| 09:46 am - The Bookmatcher: Apocalypse and Class Lines
http://www.smartbitchestrashybooks.com/index.php/weblog/comments/the-bookmatcher-apocalypse-and-class-lines/  Time again for hand selling online, when book mastermind Billie Bloebaum from Powells books (stop by and say hi when you’re next at the Portland airport!) matches enquiring minds with required reading.
Raney writes: I recently finished an epic jag of reading exclusively graphic novels and trade paperbacks (basically trying to catch up on that entire, wonderful genre that I apparently missed when hitting the library growing up.) I was lucky enough to come across The Walking Dead, by Robert Kirkman. I’ve always been a fan of zombie movies, but this was my first venture into another zombie medium (oh, except for the amazing World War Z). I now think that I am drawn more to the post-apocalyptic setting than the zombies themselves. I find the idea of hearty survivors banding together against hostile forces and broken infrastructure to be quite appealing. Even the MacGyver-ing of life-sustaining necessities (running water, food storage, etc.) is interesting to me.
A post-apocalyptic romance would be wonderful - if such a thing exists - but I’m open to any genre pairing (including more zombie fiction, if need be). I also enjoy Urban Fantasy, so if that needed to be worked in I wouldn’t be opposed. :) I’d love any help the Bookmatcher can offer me - thanks, Smart Bitches!
Billie says: Zombies! I love Zombies! ‘The Forest of Hands and Teeth’ is an excellent (YA) zombie novel with some romance. Mark Henry has a highly entertaining urban fantasy series (starting with ‘Happy Hour of the Damned’) whose protagonist is a fashion-obsessed female zombie. David Wellington’s ‘Monster Island’ is the first (and, in my opinion, best) in a trilogy about the worldwide zombie apocalypse.
Stephen King’s Under the Dome is neither strictly post-apocalyptic nor a romance, but there is a great love story between two of the central characters and the setting—a small town confined under an invisible dome—does quickly degenerate into a post-apocalyptic-style nightmare.
Richelle Mead’s ‘Thorn Queen’, the second book in her Urban Shaman series, is set largely in a bleak and quickly dying landscape. So, though it’s not really post-apocalyptic, the landscape and the inhabitants’ struggles to survive give it some of that same feel.
And, if you haven’t read it already, the graphic novel series ‘Y: The Last Man’ about a world where every mammal with a Y chromosome is killed except for Yorick and his monkey, Ampersand (where monkey is not a euphemism, but a primate) is an excellent piece of post-apocalyptic graphic storytelling.
The best post-apocalyptic stuff that I’ve read, though, seems to be getting published for the YA market. ‘The Hunger Games’, ‘Gone’, ‘The Maze Runner’.
I’m at a loss for anything that would be shelved in Romance that takes place in a post-apocalyptic landscape (or has zombies), but I’m sure it’s out there and that some member of the Bitchery has read it. (And, if so, I wanna know what it is so I can read it myself.)
SB Sarah adds: I haven’t read, but I know the new Joss Ware books are set in a post-apocalyptic world.
Billie adds: I completely forgot one of my favoritest p-a novels: ‘Go-Go Girls of the Apocalypse’ by Victor Gischler. “What little civilization remains revolves around Joey Armageddon’s Sassy A-Go-Go strip clubs, where the beer is cold, the lap dancers are hot, and the bouncers are armed with M16s.”
Brandy writes: I am a huge fan of historical romance, mainly 19th century, and I don’t have a huge preference of Regency over Victorian or vice versa. What I do mind is that every other person in every other book is a lord or lady or some other member of the British peerage. I’m not looking for a Western, just some city-people who are industrialists or railroad builders or shop owners. As far as 19th century historical romance is concerned, it seems that two people can;t be in love unless one of them owns a manor or a castle.
I’ve read all the Lisa Kleypas and she does drift somewhat into non-peer heroes which is nice (especially her newest ‘Times of Day’ series [Hathaways]). I just read a fantastic short-story in ‘The Hearts of Christmas’ collection by Courtney Milan called ‘This Wicked Gift’. She’s a shop assistant and he’s an accountant. It was amazing and really made me realize how sick I am of reading about Lord Hottentotten and the latest house party.
Billie says: The first two Sally Lockhart mysteries by Philip Pullman, The Ruby in the Smoke and ‘The Shadow in the North’. Neither are strictly romances and they were marketed to the YA audience, but the love story is very important to the plots, as are the careers of both the hero and heroine.
Patricia Gaffney’s Wyckerly trilogy: Okay, so the hero of ‘To Have and To Hold’ is a Viscount, but he’s flanked by a vicar (’To Love and To Cherish’) and a miner (’Forever and Ever’).
Nicola Cornick’s Desperate Duchesses trilogy—Again, with a rural setting and an occasional title does make an appearance, but ‘Confessions of a Duchess featured a non-titled (though employed by the Home Office) hero and a heroine who had been unhappily married to a Duke and came away from the marriage with nothing but the title of dowager Duchess. What I especially liked about this book was that neither character was wealthy and they both worried over how to support themselves (and the daughter from their brief affair several years earlier) if they were to marry.
‘The Leopard Prince’ by Elizabeth Hoyt—Harry Pye is Lady Georgiana Maitland’s land steward. ‘To Taste Temptation’ also by Elizabeth Hoyt—Samuel Hartley is a wealthy businessman from Boston intent on launching his younger sister into society.
‘Delicious’ by Sherry Thomas—He’s a barrister, she’s a cook to die for.
SB Sarah adds: Proof by Seduction, by Courtney Milan, continues in the cross-class-lines romance in London started with the short story “This Wicked Gift.”
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etfb
 | 03:34 pm - Kneedful Things
Went and saw the kneeologist (that's a knew word!) about my bodgy knee, and he generally agreed with my GP's assessment. It'll need arthroscopy to scrape and smooth the bit of the meniscus that's torn, after which I should be pretty well cured. So I'm booked in for Tuesday the 19th, mid-morning, and I've applied for the next two days off from work after that.
Losing weight, however, is the only long term solution to prevent general degradation. With less cartilage, my knee has less resistance to the slings and arrows of outrageous gravity, so I need to reduce the stress on the system. According to the BMI calculation, for my height of 178cm I should weigh no more than about 79kg, but that's just ridiculous. I think I'd be doing well to hit 90kg, and any less than that would be patently unhealthy.
So what the hell. I had no trouble quitting chocolate and Diet Coke. Losing weight should be a doddle. I'm a stubborn bastard when I want to be...
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randomblade
 | 10:17 am
Happy birthday Twinbro! I will miss you so much when you go to india - though you are only away for 6 weeks, by the time you come back I will be in New York. And then it's a year. For my birthday present I want you to put in every effort to come visit me.
One of my biggest regrets was that I didn't get to show you round cambridge.
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January 6th, 2010
marmalade_fish
[mimicre]
 | 01:34 pm - Fanart: Cast in Cards
Um, hello. ::waves:: First time posting here, so. Let me know if I'm doing something I shouldn't.
Click for full size and notes.
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aquandrian
 | 02:55 pm - bowlegged?
Awwwwwww .... I just finished watching The Shop Around The Corner on YouTube and awwwwwwwwwwwwww!!
It's so much much more awesome than You've Got Mail and I'm actually rather fond of that film. But this is just ah light years better. And since it's Ernest Lubitsch, I should have known it would be. The tightly located cosmos of bubbling tension and so many personal agendas clashing up against each other, every character wonderfully charming and real in their own way, and a totally prickly unromantic unlikeable and thoroughly adorable lead couple.
Even if I do find the pairing of Jimmy Stewart and Margaret Sullavan a little incestuous and icky cos ewww, in my mind they're totally siblings in-law. Well, cos he would already have been fast friends with Henry Fonda when Hank was married to Margaret Sullavan. Yeurk. *shudders*
But ahahahaha, so utterly hysterical, the twists and turns of their relationship and oh man, Frank Morgan always makes my heart clench. That man does bluster and pathos so well. Fantastic how real and yet beautiful Ernest Lubitsch manages to make his films. It all looks so wonderful that you know it was very very tightly controlled but yet the characters are so messy and flawed that you can't help but be totally persuaded it's all real.
And it was absolutely fascinating to see what Nora Ephron put into her screenplay for You've Got Mail, almost word for word, scene by scene, and where it totally deviated.
*sighs* I should own this film. Even if it is slightly icky.
Current Mood: ![[mood icon]](http://img3.imageshack.us/img3/9203/loveds.png) loved
Current Music: silence before bed
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etfb
| 11:11 pm - Rundown
Ah, nostalgia. I started out on one of these and lusted after this, this and even this, because I'm inherently perverse. Nowadays I can download emulators for the lot, but somehow it's not the same.
Meanwhile, the link on one of the above sites to eBay auctions (buy your own piece of pitifully underpowered plastic with a zillionth of the processing capacity of your wristwatch!) reminded me to check my so far one-and-only sale, which ends in twelve hours. And guess what? I have a bidder! Unfortunately, he seems to be based in the UK, which is going to cause a nasty surprise when it comes time to calculate the shipping costs, but I assume eBay has already allowed for that. Ten dollars for the comics, thirty million for the distance to the Old Dart. Hey ho, if he wants to pay, I'm happy to reclaim the space.
Another thing I'll be happy about will be getting my knee fixed. It's taken a sharp turn for the worse. I'm off to see a surgeon tomorrow, and if my GP is right I'll probably be ready to go under the kniferobotic cartilege grinding robot in two or three weeks. I hope so. I'm bloody sick of limping, and worrying about tripping over and doing myself even more damage.
Speaking of damage, King Spud has been doing his worst on the Shambles again. He's earned a new courtesy title, as far as I'm concerned. Henceforth he will be referred to as His "Grace" the Duke in all correspondence. If he wants to complain about the scare quotes, let him give one example of a recent occasion where he's deserved the courtesy. Futtock.
Meanwhile, Giles put down a particularly stupid whinge from an ex-herald. Did my batty heart good to see it. I may not agree with everything the old boy says and does, but that was Made Of Win.
And I've been noticing a sharp up-tick in heraldic interest, despite the cynicism of iPhone Boy and his friends. I'm doing a bit of work for a kiwi knight who's had a lot of trouble getting his paperwork together, and I may just help out basal_surge with his not-very-enthusiastic obligation toward heraldry, though that will mainly mean sticking a hand grenade under his local pursuivant.
I'm close to getting a solution for high-speed consulting up and running too, though Drupal is not being kind to me so I'm falling behind my deadline. Better get back to that now.
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aquandrian
 | 11:30 am - from a different window
This post is coming to you from my new laptop, khurided --- ha, just finished watching a Hindi movie, my second in two days and the first didn't even have subtitles so I've almost been thinking in Hindi for the past two hours --- bought today. Reviews to come.
A Compaq Presario for six hundred dollars cos the local Retravision is moving one town over. I actually have inbuilt wireless now. DVD burner and all. The twenty-first century looks damned fine now that I'm actually in it. *lol* In the process of transferring all my files over and customising Windows7 to look as clean as possible.
All this thanks to my godmother who gave me a ridiculous amount of money to cover a Christmas and birthday present. *sigh* I know, I'm thoroughly spoilt.
Current Mood: ![[mood icon]](http://img197.imageshack.us/img197/2332/geekyr.png) geeky
Current Music: late night silence
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why_am_i
 | 10:00 pm
So pretty much everybody who's spent more than 2 seconds enquiring about my plans for 2010 has been gleefully earbashed regarding the impending arrival of frankkincense. So, pretty much everybody should have worked out by now that she's pretty damn awesome.
You guys, she is so damn awesome I don't have the words. Fortunately for me, she has words, and plenty of them. Brendon is a christmas fairy living in Ryan's tree! Go forth and read, because it's definitely a rec. :D
*squeak*
[ETA: why is there a sudden proliferation of Bob fic? I mean, dude - I'm totally not complaining. Bring on the Bob fic! ...but...why? It seems that all of my christmases have come at once. Dear bandom, keep up your excellent work.]
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smartbitchestb
| 08:23 am - Summer Songs: The Recommended Playlist
http://www.smartbitchestrashybooks.com/index.php/weblog/comments/summer-songs-the-recommended-playlist/ Over the past week, I’ve asked Twitter for some recommendations that had nothing to do with romance, but a few folks asked me to compile the list of responses and share it, so I’m doing so here. It’s all below the fold - obviously this has little to jack all to do with romance novels, but if you’re looking for some music, this might help you out.
In response to my tweet asking for warm-weather music, here’s the master list of every recommendation I received. It rocked my socks, and might warm your feet, too, if it’s as cold where you are as it is here - and if you’re in the southern hemisphere (G’day, mate!) enjoy some seasonally-appropriate tunage.
The Outfield Your Love
Wake Up Happy by Greta Gaines, recommended by @knitmeapony
Dust in the Wind by Kansas, Margaritaville by Jimmy Buffett, or A Horse with No Name by America, recommended by @silverwriter
Summer of 69 by Bryan Adams, Boys of Summer by Don Henley, recommended by @elise_logan
And @elise_logan recommended the playlist here, as well.
Kokomo, by the Beach Boys, In the Summer Time by Mungo Jerry, Summertime Blues by Eddie Cochran, recommended by @peggyhailey
@wiremama seconds “Boys of Summer,” which, oh yes, I third and fourth that.
@wiremama also recommends Blister in the Sun by the Violent Femmes.
My college friend @LadyLiberal recommended Jimmy Buffet’s cover of Stars Fell on Alabama, and Preservation Hall Jazz Band’s “Do U Know What it Means to Miss New Orleans.”
@younglibrarian suggests Vacation by The Go-Go’s.
@bookslover says Walking on Sunshine by Katrina and the Waves.
@jodyth says I Melt with You- which OMG Yes. I hear that song and I’m grubby and at summer camp again.
@Brooksbelle suggests Cruel Summer by Bananarama, plus re-ups the rec for Boys of Summer, and Summer of ‘69.
@StephaniHaefner says Summertime by the Fresh Prince - Yes! This is one of those songs where it’s not actually summer until I hear it on the radio.
Over on Facebook, where everyone knows everyone and everything, I have more recommendations:
Chris Hamilton suggests Margaritaville, California Girls by the Beach Boys, Beach Baby (First Class), Summer in the City by Lovin’ Spoonful, Magic by The Cars, and A Horse with No Name - everyone thinks summer with this song, really.
I think everything by The Beach Boys pretty much qualifies, now that I think about it.
Carrie Lofty says that anything by Chris Isaak should be on the playlist, particularly Blue Spanish Sky.
Suddenly Last Summer by the Motels is recommended by Zoe Archer.
Tanja Cilia recommends 9 Million Bicycles (covered by Norah Jones in that link), and Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds.
And Santa O’Byrne recommends Margaritaville, The Summer Wind (covered by Michael Buble) - oh, good one! - and Summer in the City.
Thanks for the awesome list, y’all. My iTunes is a rocking place. I’m surprised the icon doesn’t shimmy like when I hold the home button down on my iPhone too long.
Still feeling cold? Leave your warm weather song in the comments. I’ll pick one winner at random to receive a $20 iTunes giftcard. And yes, if you already recommended one above, you can enter again. I’m off to make margaritas!
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bitspike
 | 05:33 pm
Haven't posted in ages and I feel like updating. Don't know where to begin so I think I'll do my usual 'dot point thing' - sans dots, because animated fire images are just so much awesomer.
 Cassie is asleep in my old bedroom in Canberra. We drove here today and on our way almost managed to picnic near the windfarm.
The January first party was fun, but I was grumpy around midnight because the house was messy and I hate tradition. I'm a party popper pooper.
I've been grumpier than usual lately. I don't actually know why. It's alright because I can deal with it, though. Listening to Scottish rock helps.
Related: I downloaded a lot of new music last week! Still haven't listened to it all. Will have to hijack the AUX input on the drive back to Sydney so Cassie will have to listen to my crappy music and not vice versa =)
I have a vague study schedule (I pronounce the 'sch' as in 'shuttle', not 'school') set for January. I know things will pop up and try to stop me from spending whole days in the library, but I'm going to try and stick to it. Nobody try and be fun until next November, okay?
I saw Andrew Bird! He was awesomesauce! I'm actually quite glad I went alone and think I'll make going to events/films by myself a regular occurrence.
Work has been very busy because people are away and I'm taking on their shifts. The uni food co-op has been closed, so it kind of evens out. No break for Andrew!
I'm looking forward to not taking on as much responsibility at Thoughtful Foods this year - my catchphrase for 2010 will be 'fuck that shit, somebody else can do it'!
Avatar in 3D has been postponed. Things shouldn't be allowed to get sold out!
The last thing Sheree wrote to me was "do not google 'child porn'".
I think it's time to wake Cassie up, again.
*gets his squishing torso ready*
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fearlessflight
 | 08:55 pm - Getting some help at long last.
After writing that last post I've finally decided to seek a formal diagnosis. It's something I have avoided as I've always thought that I might hide behind the label, instead of trying to find ways of operating with my natural tendencies. But just an hour of trawling through the web and reading about the disorder for the first time and I'm convinced that some outside help would be nice. This is the most complete description of what I've always assumed was laziness, dimwittedness and stupidity in my life to date. This could be all literally be written about me.
"An ADHD-I child or adult has problems getting their mind on and keeping their mind on the task at hand. And should they manage to do this, they then have problems with the task at hand. And should they manage to do this, they then have problems with absorbing all the information correctly. The ADHD-I child or adult will go about the house in, what appears to be their own world. If they are given a series of instructions, say three or four, they will have problems. Firstly they may not have actually tuned in and even understood each instruction, and then they will need to remember the instructions. This is difficult for the ADHD-I person, as they are also hampered by poor short-term and long-term memories. There is also the added burden of trying to sort out the priorities of each of the things they need to do. Thus a child with ADHD-I will sit in class possibly staring at the teacher. The teacher thinks that the child is paying attention in actual fact the child is not, but rather their thoughts are engaged in what ever is on the child’s mind at the time. The child sits hoping that they will not be noticed. While the adult, if say a female, will be totally disorganized at home. She will start one task, get sidetracked, start another, get sidetracked again and so it goes on. With nothing ever being organized or any task being completed. ADHD-I people often lose things; forget where they have placed them. When going out and if they need to take two items with them, they will pick up one, if they remember, and can leave the other behind even if the two items are next and close to each other. Both ADHD-I children and adults can have problems with their social relationships. They do not appear to read and therefore react to the body language of the person they are conversing with. Due to their attention problem and their slow processing speed, they can at times lose track of what the other person is saying. And do not always interpret what is being said correctly. This can led to them becoming lost in the middle of a conversation, and when they give what they think is the appropriate response: it may not be.
ADHD-I children and adults are not able to take in information fully or necessarily correctly. This is not helped by their poor short term memories. Nor are they able to retrieve the correct information from their long term memories. This can lead them to make poor decisons, and they can end up obsessed with unrealistic ideas or plans. While as children they will be regarded by their peers as possibly a little odd, they are liked. This is not the case of course with an ADHD-C child, the reverse in fact. However as adults with adult company, the ADHD-I adult can have social problems as they are not quite "with" the current conversation. They do not record all that is said and that they do record may not be correctly recorded or remembered. They find it difficult to hold their attention on the speaker, and can stare at the speaker with their mind off elsewhere." From the website Understanding ADHD http://www.adhd.org.au/adhdi.html
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librarianidol
| 10:00 am - Melbourne Flashmob (TM)
http://librarianidol.blogspot.com/2010/01/melbourne-flashmob-tm.html I just had the experience of witnessing the Melbourne Flashmob, which was not-so-secretly held at Bourke St Mall this morning at 11am.
Firstly, I feel it necessary to say that it was an impressive dance performance, especially subscribing to that kind of grass-roots community arts ethos that allows anybody to come aboard and join in on a large-scale choreographed dance routine in a public performance. I would encourage those who were involved to continue to pursue performing in similar artistic ventures in the community. It was fun, diverse, and embodied community spirit. Well done.
HOWEVER
When one thinks of a flashmob, one thinks of performance art as civil disobedience albeit apolitical. One thinks of performance art that challenges social norms of acceptable public behaviour. What's more, it's coordinated by "the people", and not endorsed by government organisations. It's spread through word of mouth, or through obscure online channels. It's seemingly spontaneous, with the majority of audience members being unsuspecting "innocent" bystanders, and should disappear as suddenly as it appeared, as though nothing had just happened, leaving an air of WTF? in its wake. I'm talking hundreds of people freezing on the spot in Antwerp Station. Or dozens of extra customer service assistants appearing in a homewares store and assisting customers with their choices. Or something as simple as 70 people appearing at Flinders St Station during peak hour pedestrian traffic, producing yellow rubber gloves, and pointing at the sky.
This is not a flashmob:
- Close to a thousand people crowded into Bourke St Mall - at least a quarter of whom had cameras at the ready. Not exactly your 11am crowd in the city.
- Official-looking tram people walking around with walky-talkies, getting ready to stop trams for the event.
- Hundreds of people rushing into a confined - and what looked like a very organised and set-out performance area.
- An audience of hundreds of people who seemed to know what was about to happen.
- And finally, the icing on the cake - an announcement over the PA, to the tune of "YOU HAVE JUST BEEN WATCHING THE OFFICIAL MELBOURNE FLASHMOB DANCERS, BROUGHT TO YOU BY THE CITY OF MELBOURNE AS PART OF THE SUMMER OF FUN PROGRAM. YOU TOO CAN LEARN TO DANCE LIKE THIS - GO TO WWW.blahblahblah... etc.
And, again, I hate to curb the enthusiasm of those who performed. As a well-produced large-scale public performance, it really was a wonderful. The only thing that really REALLY upset me was that it called itself a flashmob. FLASHMOBS AREN'T COORDINATED BY GOVERNMENT AGENCIES. FULL STOP. Perhaps I'm being too precious, having been involved in one in the past. Perhaps it's my dismay at witnessing a self-proclaimed flashmob that's devoid of artistic subversiveness or civil disobedience.
What upsets me the most? The thought of all the council bureacracy involved in staging this event. All the red tape, rubber stamps and authorisations needed, and presumably getting permission from the state government to delay public transport traffic. Anybody who's worked in government agencies can imagine the number of meetings and proposals that went into organising this "flashmob". And you can bet that one of the conditions for the performance was to have a very official and commercial announcement at the end, incorporating the council's branding... I almost expected an acknowledgement of corporate sponsors.
It just doesn't seem right.
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