12.31.2009
Snowball Fight
I'm sorry. I can't resist posting this-- I told you: see??? Winter wonderland blast in New York. See, told you so.
Top 5 Reads 2009
Here we go. Last year I complied my Top 5 reading list, which, actually, was more like a top 10. I sorted through my GoodReads reviews to come up with short quips about each book noted and sat down to really think things through. This year, well, lets just say 2009 has been, hmmm--a lot. One of those years where point A and B are so far distant the only explanation you can offer yourself is that the tornado picked you up en route to OZ. This time last year, Fosse and I were in our studio apartment, Darling and I were not technically living together yet, and I was still working my college job at the lab. Now, I drive home from my 8-5 office job to my duplex, where Cash and Darling and myself live together in Memphis, TN. I'm telling you friends, points A and B seem so, so very far apart...
(The checklist of the details in between is for a later date.)
All of this rambling is really just a cover, an excuse, for all of the reading I did not do in 2009 in comparison to years past. My goal for 2010 is 45 books. Forty-Five (if the book exceeds 400 pages, I am going to allow myself 2 weeks to read it--counting as 2 reads, I think--logistics later).
Anyone in for a challenge?
There are 52 weeks in a year and I think its do-able. One thing smart people have in common--they read. a lot. The best thing to help memory retention--reading. a lot. Not to mention, I love to read. And I have an enormous list of books I'd like to get my hands on--I'm going to be indulgent in 2010.
Looking at my overall list 2009 was really a year of non-fiction, which is new territory for me. Here we go, in no real order:
The Omnivore's Dilemma Michael Pollan
Pollan is such a conversational writer, which astounds me as there is an overwhelming amount of research presented in his work. I earlier wrote that I believe this book will lend itself to be the topic of 47% of the discussions I have this year--it is fascinating. (Now in retrospect, it was significantly influential in my conversations, decisions, and thoughts about food this year.)
From the overwhelming Corn Industry (everything is made of corn, cheap food=cheap calories), to Industrial Organic (whatever that means, and it's not the pastoral dream of small farming that is brought to mind), to the perfection of Polyface Farm (VA)(which sounds amazing), to finding one's roots as a Hunter-Gatherer (boys in the woods with walkie-talkies treasure hunting) I was enthralled by all of it. All of it.
My highest marks go to Pollan not for his style and easy prose, however, but that everything in his argument is worked back to the evolution and co-evolution (one of my favorite topics) of the food chain and how we as omnivore's--specifically humans--have disturbed our evolutionary co-existence with place and with our bodily needs for alternative motives.
Fascinating. Not to mention it makes a wonderful gift.
++++++
The Great Bridge David McCullough
See my review posted yesterday.
++++++
The Road Cormac McCarthy
I am really becoming a fan of McCarthy's work. The Road reads the way a traditional zombie movie is seen. America had been burnt down and is covered in gray ash, the roads are desolate--no, people, no food, no water, take what you can find (apocalyptic, distopic). As in Blood Meridian the protagonist(s) remain nameless and are coined by the handles the man and the boy (in the lowercase). These handles feel tragically relevant as there is no one else to be seen in its pages, no age, no time, no date. The books layout is self aware and exemplifies this as there are no chapters, just line breaks from beginning to end. Pages and pages pass in silence without dialog and yet the book never seems to lull*. McCarthy's descriptions and respect for craft fill the novel so expertly that the reader is intimately connected with the small actions portrayed (i.e. the man never "fixes" anything but the actions of going about each task are explicitly explained in a way that's incredibly engaging.) When the pair come across anything or anyone it's as startling to the reader as to the characters themselves. And as always with McCarthy, violence and grotesquities are to be found. This is not to say that The Road is anything like Blood Meridian in it's account of violence. I would say that The Road is a new kind of novel for McCarthy (post Appalachia weirdness, post Western border violence), and, it's surprisingly somber, tender. In true McCarthian fashion the lyrical prose contains no excess--each word for is written only as it is essential, no additional punctuation or filigree of language-- it is simple and perfect.
All this said, in actuality it took me 2 days to read but it took me a week and a half to bring myself to sit down with--it's so sad, so lonely.
* [From my Blood Meridian review: The bare-bones writing style of McCarthy leaves nothing out, but adds nothing extra. Every word, every punctuation mark is there because its absolutely necessary]
++++++
No Man Knows My History: The Life of Joseph Smith Fawn M. Brodie
This one my be a bit controversial for me to go into too much detail about. However, I found Brodie's writing enthralling, informative (I mean, copious amounts of research), engaging, and of high-literary style. I think that because it is (as Wikipedia says) "the first important non-hagiographic biography of Joseph Smith" or, essentially "secular" (I really didn't get any sense of it as anti-Mormon) it gets a bad reputation among the LDS community; however, I found Brodie to portray Joseph Smith as an incredibly fascinating and brilliant young leader. Really fascinating.
++++++
After Tupac and D Foster Jacqueline Woodson
The best contemporary children's (teen) book I've read in years. A Newbery Honor book, D Foster is not only compelling as a plot line but is written extremely well. I rarely find myself contemplating over sentences in books aimed for the said demographic. I am looking to read more Woodson in the future. Filled with local color of a neighborhood in Queens, the "dialect" is written conversationally, unlike forced misspellings and horrible stereotypical (and often times offensive) catch phrases that are often littered throughout novels where an "accent" is portrayed. A captivating tale of three girlfriends and the way their lives change in the pivotal ages between years 11-13: family, friends, social justice--made linear though the music of Tupac and a new friend D--Three the Hard Way. It's amazing how rich the text is, how many subversities lay within its few pages, and yet, it manages to stay free of becoming too wrapped up in "issues" it remains readable for both middle-readers and adults alike.
I laughed when all of the 50+ year old ladies working at the King's English Bookshop separately told me it was "just wonderful." Do they even know who Tupac is? It doesn't matter, they were totally right.
5 Additional Reads from 2009
The Rainbow D.H. Lawrence
Women in Love D.H. Lawrence
Gilead Marilynne Robinson
Travels With CharleyJohn Steinbeck
A Hunger Like No Other Kresley Cole (noteworthy as it was my first Romance novel ever: Vampires and Werewolves. However, I think I'll stick to more traditional literary categories.)
5 To-Reads for 2010
(I still have 4 leftovers from last years list--whoops: The Executioners Song, A Mercy, Home, Animal Dreams)
Rabbit Run
Animals Make Us Human
Animal, Vegetable, Miracle: A Year of Food Life
Gravity's Rainbow
Wuthering Heights
(The checklist of the details in between is for a later date.)
All of this rambling is really just a cover, an excuse, for all of the reading I did not do in 2009 in comparison to years past. My goal for 2010 is 45 books. Forty-Five (if the book exceeds 400 pages, I am going to allow myself 2 weeks to read it--counting as 2 reads, I think--logistics later).
Anyone in for a challenge?
There are 52 weeks in a year and I think its do-able. One thing smart people have in common--they read. a lot. The best thing to help memory retention--reading. a lot. Not to mention, I love to read. And I have an enormous list of books I'd like to get my hands on--I'm going to be indulgent in 2010.
Looking at my overall list 2009 was really a year of non-fiction, which is new territory for me. Here we go, in no real order:
The Omnivore's Dilemma Michael Pollan
Pollan is such a conversational writer, which astounds me as there is an overwhelming amount of research presented in his work. I earlier wrote that I believe this book will lend itself to be the topic of 47% of the discussions I have this year--it is fascinating. (Now in retrospect, it was significantly influential in my conversations, decisions, and thoughts about food this year.)
From the overwhelming Corn Industry (everything is made of corn, cheap food=cheap calories), to Industrial Organic (whatever that means, and it's not the pastoral dream of small farming that is brought to mind), to the perfection of Polyface Farm (VA)(which sounds amazing), to finding one's roots as a Hunter-Gatherer (boys in the woods with walkie-talkies treasure hunting) I was enthralled by all of it. All of it.
My highest marks go to Pollan not for his style and easy prose, however, but that everything in his argument is worked back to the evolution and co-evolution (one of my favorite topics) of the food chain and how we as omnivore's--specifically humans--have disturbed our evolutionary co-existence with place and with our bodily needs for alternative motives.
Fascinating. Not to mention it makes a wonderful gift.
++++++
The Great Bridge David McCullough
See my review posted yesterday.
++++++
The Road Cormac McCarthy
I am really becoming a fan of McCarthy's work. The Road reads the way a traditional zombie movie is seen. America had been burnt down and is covered in gray ash, the roads are desolate--no, people, no food, no water, take what you can find (apocalyptic, distopic). As in Blood Meridian the protagonist(s) remain nameless and are coined by the handles the man and the boy (in the lowercase). These handles feel tragically relevant as there is no one else to be seen in its pages, no age, no time, no date. The books layout is self aware and exemplifies this as there are no chapters, just line breaks from beginning to end. Pages and pages pass in silence without dialog and yet the book never seems to lull*. McCarthy's descriptions and respect for craft fill the novel so expertly that the reader is intimately connected with the small actions portrayed (i.e. the man never "fixes" anything but the actions of going about each task are explicitly explained in a way that's incredibly engaging.) When the pair come across anything or anyone it's as startling to the reader as to the characters themselves. And as always with McCarthy, violence and grotesquities are to be found. This is not to say that The Road is anything like Blood Meridian in it's account of violence. I would say that The Road is a new kind of novel for McCarthy (post Appalachia weirdness, post Western border violence), and, it's surprisingly somber, tender. In true McCarthian fashion the lyrical prose contains no excess--each word for is written only as it is essential, no additional punctuation or filigree of language-- it is simple and perfect.
All this said, in actuality it took me 2 days to read but it took me a week and a half to bring myself to sit down with--it's so sad, so lonely.
* [From my Blood Meridian review: The bare-bones writing style of McCarthy leaves nothing out, but adds nothing extra. Every word, every punctuation mark is there because its absolutely necessary]
++++++
No Man Knows My History: The Life of Joseph Smith Fawn M. Brodie
This one my be a bit controversial for me to go into too much detail about. However, I found Brodie's writing enthralling, informative (I mean, copious amounts of research), engaging, and of high-literary style. I think that because it is (as Wikipedia says) "the first important non-hagiographic biography of Joseph Smith" or, essentially "secular" (I really didn't get any sense of it as anti-Mormon) it gets a bad reputation among the LDS community; however, I found Brodie to portray Joseph Smith as an incredibly fascinating and brilliant young leader. Really fascinating.
++++++
After Tupac and D Foster Jacqueline Woodson
The best contemporary children's (teen) book I've read in years. A Newbery Honor book, D Foster is not only compelling as a plot line but is written extremely well. I rarely find myself contemplating over sentences in books aimed for the said demographic. I am looking to read more Woodson in the future. Filled with local color of a neighborhood in Queens, the "dialect" is written conversationally, unlike forced misspellings and horrible stereotypical (and often times offensive) catch phrases that are often littered throughout novels where an "accent" is portrayed. A captivating tale of three girlfriends and the way their lives change in the pivotal ages between years 11-13: family, friends, social justice--made linear though the music of Tupac and a new friend D--Three the Hard Way. It's amazing how rich the text is, how many subversities lay within its few pages, and yet, it manages to stay free of becoming too wrapped up in "issues" it remains readable for both middle-readers and adults alike.
I laughed when all of the 50+ year old ladies working at the King's English Bookshop separately told me it was "just wonderful." Do they even know who Tupac is? It doesn't matter, they were totally right.
5 Additional Reads from 2009
The Rainbow D.H. Lawrence
Women in Love D.H. Lawrence
Gilead Marilynne Robinson
Travels With CharleyJohn Steinbeck
A Hunger Like No Other Kresley Cole (noteworthy as it was my first Romance novel ever: Vampires and Werewolves. However, I think I'll stick to more traditional literary categories.)
5 To-Reads for 2010
(I still have 4 leftovers from last years list--whoops: The Executioners Song, A Mercy, Home, Animal Dreams)
Rabbit Run
Animals Make Us Human
Animal, Vegetable, Miracle: A Year of Food Life
Gravity's Rainbow
Wuthering Heights
CDA Crimble
To round out the week and wind down after so much walking and eating and staring googly-eyed at everything 'round us, Darling and I hopped on another plane just in time for Crimble's Eve to Darling's hometown in Coeur D'Alene, ID. Christmas with Darling's family is always spent at his older brother M's house. We eat, drink, be merry, and sleep there. We stay through dinner on Christmas day: lazing about, opening-slash-giving gifts, and eating some more, and a little more, and maybe decide to have a snack before eating again--seriously.
A toast of Patron (naturally) to Dad, aka. spending Christmas the way Dad would like us to:
M's "shop" is full of vintage cars, vintage signs, and vintage arcade games. Needless to say we found much entertainment (i.e. Mrs. Pac Man = awesome!):
Ms. Sierra and a '39 Ford. It's crazy to think at this point we are closer to 2039 than 1939...whoa:
M's house could easily be mistaken for the Griswold's. Moving light displays light up the front yard and every. single. piece. of artwork in the house is changed out to display something seasonal instead. Every china hutch, nook, cranny, (all of it) is filled with statuary, trinkets, ribbons, bells, and whistles to commemorate the holidays. There was talk of a 3rd tree just to display the ornament collection...It goes without saying that with 13 guests in the house the present situation was slightly ridiculous. Oh yeah, I love my new Hunter galoshes...
We left our stockings that I sewed last year in CDA hung above the fireplace in Memphis. We made do with these "sackings" instead:
2009 is, well, over. I'm picking up Darling from the airport tonight (he stayed with his family for the duration of the school holiday break) just in time to ring in 2010.
A toast of Patron (naturally) to Dad, aka. spending Christmas the way Dad would like us to:
M's "shop" is full of vintage cars, vintage signs, and vintage arcade games. Needless to say we found much entertainment (i.e. Mrs. Pac Man = awesome!):
Ms. Sierra and a '39 Ford. It's crazy to think at this point we are closer to 2039 than 1939...whoa:
M's house could easily be mistaken for the Griswold's. Moving light displays light up the front yard and every. single. piece. of artwork in the house is changed out to display something seasonal instead. Every china hutch, nook, cranny, (all of it) is filled with statuary, trinkets, ribbons, bells, and whistles to commemorate the holidays. There was talk of a 3rd tree just to display the ornament collection...It goes without saying that with 13 guests in the house the present situation was slightly ridiculous. Oh yeah, I love my new Hunter galoshes...
We left our stockings that I sewed last year in CDA hung above the fireplace in Memphis. We made do with these "sackings" instead:
2009 is, well, over. I'm picking up Darling from the airport tonight (he stayed with his family for the duration of the school holiday break) just in time to ring in 2010.
12.30.2009
I <3 NY ...
Photos snapped, things happened, here's a last blurb to show you what we did:
Window Shopping, Midtown:
Actual Shopping, Midtown:
NYC Ballet Nutcracker, Lincoln Center. A-mazing. I was so stressed out about not having black heels and for what?? pfff... E and I ended up sporting black galoshes as evening wear and called it a day:
Love-Mantra, Brooklyn:
Doing what it is we do best, Brooklyn:
The Tree, Rockefeller Center:
Where Alexander Hamilton is buried, and George Washington went to church. Once the tallest building in New York, Trinity Church:
BUY! BUY! SELL! SELL!, The New York Stock Exchange:
My Scott Shuman attempt, Brooklyn:
Pretending to be locals, Grand Central Station.
Freedom Tower Construction, Ground Zero. Estimated completion date~2013-18
Window Shopping, Midtown:
Actual Shopping, Midtown:
NYC Ballet Nutcracker, Lincoln Center. A-mazing. I was so stressed out about not having black heels and for what?? pfff... E and I ended up sporting black galoshes as evening wear and called it a day:
Love-Mantra, Brooklyn:
Doing what it is we do best, Brooklyn:
The Tree, Rockefeller Center:
Where Alexander Hamilton is buried, and George Washington went to church. Once the tallest building in New York, Trinity Church:
BUY! BUY! SELL! SELL!, The New York Stock Exchange:
My Scott Shuman attempt, Brooklyn:
Pretending to be locals, Grand Central Station.
Freedom Tower Construction, Ground Zero. Estimated completion date~2013-18
The Great Bridge
I finished reading David McCullough's The Great Bridge yesterday. For those of us who are not bridge engineers (which, I assume most people aren't) the information is dense but remains accessible. Really, it is a testament to McCullough's writing ability, style and skill. It's eloquent portrayal of the bridge, the mechanics, the plans, the men who built it, and all of the social context surrounding and encompassing the era in which it was built is fascinating and placed within reach of the reader's comprehension. For a book so thick (518 pages of reading + 90 pages of resources), it's surprisingly easy, engaging and quick to get through (it would have to be, right?). Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance, for me, dragged on and on (earlier this year) while I read all but 200(ish) pages of this little doozy en route to my various destinations.
McCullough places the bridge in the realm of awesome, comparable to the building of the ancient Egyptian pyramids. A feat for mankind, the threshold for a new era. Walking across the bridge myself (for the second time) with new eyes I felt humbled, astounded, and awestruck.
"The beautiful and stately structure fulfills the fondest hope...the impression upon the visitor is one of astonishment that grows with every visit. No one who has been upon it can ever forget it...Not one shall see it and not feel prouder to be a man." --Mayor Seth Low of Brooklyn 1883
McCullough places the bridge in the realm of awesome, comparable to the building of the ancient Egyptian pyramids. A feat for mankind, the threshold for a new era. Walking across the bridge myself (for the second time) with new eyes I felt humbled, astounded, and awestruck.
"The beautiful and stately structure fulfills the fondest hope...the impression upon the visitor is one of astonishment that grows with every visit. No one who has been upon it can ever forget it...Not one shall see it and not feel prouder to be a man." --Mayor Seth Low of Brooklyn 1883
12.29.2009
Broadway Dance Center
What is New York for a dancer if not an incredible opportunity for taking classes? From the second I stepped inside BDC I have to admit that I was instantly lost in a flurry of emotion: Sadness, because it's become such a small part of my life. Anger, at everyone in NY who doesn't take advantage of the opportunities they have. Excitement, because it's dance class in New York. Nervousness, Jealousy, Enthusiasm ... you get the idea, I think I spanned the entire spectrum.
So, my request upon arrival in town was to take class from Luam, who is kind of the "it" hip hop choreographer in NY among dance circles right now. The class combo I learned to Lil' Kim's "How Many Licks" has not been posted on YouTube as of today. I did, however, select a couple of videos for your viewing enjoyment to show you just what a badass she is.
**Notice: You should probably avoid viewing unless you have an entire hour to follow up on YouTube, it gets addicting.**
So, my request upon arrival in town was to take class from Luam, who is kind of the "it" hip hop choreographer in NY among dance circles right now. The class combo I learned to Lil' Kim's "How Many Licks" has not been posted on YouTube as of today. I did, however, select a couple of videos for your viewing enjoyment to show you just what a badass she is.
**Notice: You should probably avoid viewing unless you have an entire hour to follow up on YouTube, it gets addicting.**
Free Parking
Darling and I found ourselves drifting in and out of city parks as we tromped through the town. We found Bryant Park to be a sort of central hub where we designated "meeting places," walked, ice skated, browsed through holiday shops, and admired the city from afar, or, rather, we were allowed a wee bit of space to see things from a short distance rather than meeting everything nose to nose.
We spent one night at the swank Bryant Park Hotel on the twentieth floor with our own balcony and stunning view:
The Bank of America Tower completed in 2009 boasts itself as the greenest skyscraper in America.
Skating Rink, Fashion Stroll.
New York Public Library. One of my favorite parts of the trip was our walk through this building.
Glass blown holiday beauties found everywhere (I love the Metro Card).
+++++++++++++++
Strolling through Central:
We spent one night at the swank Bryant Park Hotel on the twentieth floor with our own balcony and stunning view:
The Bank of America Tower completed in 2009 boasts itself as the greenest skyscraper in America.
Skating Rink, Fashion Stroll.
New York Public Library. One of my favorite parts of the trip was our walk through this building.
Glass blown holiday beauties found everywhere (I love the Metro Card).
+++++++++++++++
Strolling through Central:
12.28.2009
May Your Days be Merry and White
Whew! I returned to Memphis last night around 10:30PM from a whirlwind of a week. Rather than trying to compile some monster post of my 10-day holiday adventure, I'm opting to do a few smaller highlight posts instead.
Thank you so so sooooo much to S & E for being fantastic hosts and wonderful friends. We (obviously) had an incredible time.
Our first day in the city, New York decided to let her first snow fall. We walked out onto Times Square after seeing In the Heights (which comes highly recommended--from me--as both a performance and soundtrack, it's a blast) to swirly-twirly-it's-snowing-side-ways-whiteout everywhere:
The resemblance to Grumpy Old Men is striking...
Thank you so so sooooo much to S & E for being fantastic hosts and wonderful friends. We (obviously) had an incredible time.
Our first day in the city, New York decided to let her first snow fall. We walked out onto Times Square after seeing In the Heights (which comes highly recommended--from me--as both a performance and soundtrack, it's a blast) to swirly-twirly-it's-snowing-side-ways-whiteout everywhere:
The resemblance to Grumpy Old Men is striking...
12.18.2009
New York State of Mind
I signed into blogger this morning to find this photo posted on Cupcakes and Cashmere:
Which was wonderful and surprising because I'll be going there ... tonight:
After a few days of that, I'm bumping on a plane to head over here to finish out the week:
so I'll be out for a while.
Happy Holidays, whatever it is you celebrate--
Love,
Sissy, Darling, and Cash
xoxo
Which was wonderful and surprising because I'll be going there ... tonight:
After a few days of that, I'm bumping on a plane to head over here to finish out the week:
so I'll be out for a while.
Happy Holidays, whatever it is you celebrate--
Love,
Sissy, Darling, and Cash
xoxo
12.14.2009
Four Eyes!
I can't believe how fast the weeks between Thanksgiving and Christmas seemed to fly by this year. I think it is due partly to the fact that Thanksgiving fell quite late on the calendar, and partly to the fact that I'm getting older. Before I continue my holiday adventures, my biggest priority is getting new contact lenses. I've been a big fat four eyes for a few days now, which is fine, aside from the fact that I see so. much. better. through contact lenses. If you know anything about my vision, you know that without some form of correction my depth of field is around 2", that I am the fool who bumbles about bumping into things looking with my fingertips for the smooth sleek plastic I know to be my glasses--really, it's not too pretty a situation.
If all goes well, I may treat to a new dress and some new heels (something fancy to wear--there's fancy in store).
Yesterday, Darling and I finally went to the Reverend Al Green's church to take a listen to some gospel music. Seriously, you and me and Al Green singing in a little bitty chapel. His voice. Sigh. Come visit me and I'll take you. It would be neat to see the Christmas program...
but...
I'll be out (of Memphis) and about starting Friday!!! I am being called to both the east coast and the pacific northwest. Cashy baby is going to spend Christmas with his auntie La and girlfriend Lucy (who is a beautiful brindle pitbull). Lots and lots and lots of excitement in store--which means today is the beginning of a very. busy. week.
12.11.2009
Caroling, caroling through the snow!
Really, I hate almost all Christmas music. Go ahead and call me Scrooge (I'm not offended) because I'm generally a grump about holiday things. After working in retail for 5 years (various coffee establishments) Christmas music (and Bob Marley) looses all appeal and excitement after working two 7 hour shifts, the week of Thanksgiving, your first year in retail. If I never hear a "Little Drummer Boy" cover for the rest of my life I'd feel content. Theoretically I like Christmas, the idea of Christmas, and actually, I like winter which I think of as a separate entity from Christmas, from "The Holidays". In practice, I tend to think that the holidays bring out the worst in people (I'm sorry, but sometimes my glass is half empty).
So.
Where is all this going you ask? My remedies to make the best of things include: hand-making gifts, ornaments, food, etc. (crafty/creative outlet), avoiding malls at all possible costs, (this year) sight seeing in New York City (because not even a scrooge like me can deny the magic of the burrows at holiday time), and listening to good tunes (because there is much music at home).
Here are my picks for holiday (but mostly winter) music that you can actually stand (and may even like):
Songs For Christmas--Sufjan Stevens. Songs so traditional they're new, favorites, originals + the soft goodness of Mr. Stevens' vocal abilities.
One More Drifter In The Snow--Aimee Mann. So sultry, smokey, and understated you'll forget to hate it + the best cover of "You're A Mean One Mr. Grinch" you'll ever hear.
The Very Best of Nat King Cole--Nat King Cole. He doesn't need to sing of chestnuts roasting for the velvety, crisp tenor of Mr. Cole to make staying warm inside (playing chess and drinking mint tea) *that* much cozier.
"A Charlie Brown Christmas"--The Vince Guaraldi Trio. It's jazzy goodness is so good it's good out of context (that is, away from Christmas) like when 2 of the tracks including "Christmastime is Here" are featured in Wes Anderson's The Royal Tenenbaums.
"Criss-Cross"--Thelonious Monk. Or any of Mr. Monk's albums actually... and you should keep this one going year round, and you should probably take me seriously this time.
(Sorry for the excessive amount of parenthetical statements.)
So.
Where is all this going you ask? My remedies to make the best of things include: hand-making gifts, ornaments, food, etc. (crafty/creative outlet), avoiding malls at all possible costs, (this year) sight seeing in New York City (because not even a scrooge like me can deny the magic of the burrows at holiday time), and listening to good tunes (because there is much music at home).
Here are my picks for holiday (but mostly winter) music that you can actually stand (and may even like):
Songs For Christmas--Sufjan Stevens. Songs so traditional they're new, favorites, originals + the soft goodness of Mr. Stevens' vocal abilities.
One More Drifter In The Snow--Aimee Mann. So sultry, smokey, and understated you'll forget to hate it + the best cover of "You're A Mean One Mr. Grinch" you'll ever hear.
The Very Best of Nat King Cole--Nat King Cole. He doesn't need to sing of chestnuts roasting for the velvety, crisp tenor of Mr. Cole to make staying warm inside (playing chess and drinking mint tea) *that* much cozier.
"A Charlie Brown Christmas"--The Vince Guaraldi Trio. It's jazzy goodness is so good it's good out of context (that is, away from Christmas) like when 2 of the tracks including "Christmastime is Here" are featured in Wes Anderson's The Royal Tenenbaums.
"Criss-Cross"--Thelonious Monk. Or any of Mr. Monk's albums actually... and you should keep this one going year round, and you should probably take me seriously this time.
(Sorry for the excessive amount of parenthetical statements.)
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