Here it is- the very last day of September and I'm back.
I was without internet for a few weeks- the router was broken here at my house.
Luckily, there hasn't been much to report so you haven't missed anything. One thing I wanna talk about tonight, though, is songs from the past decade that I really love.
Last night I was on YouTube and I kept looking up videos for songs that really got a strong emotional response out of me over the last 10- 12 years. Songs that I consider beautiful and near- perfect, and- in some cases- kind of get me choked up.
One of the first songs I thought of was 1999's "My Love Is Your Love" by Whitney Houston. A second ago I said "near- perfect"; this song might be perfect. I'm not a big Whitney fan. Then again, I grew up with her music and there are a lot of her songs that I'm very, very fond of:
"I Wanna Dance With Somebody"
"Moment of Truth" (the B-side of the previous song)
"How Will I Know?"
"I Will Always Love You"
"I'm Your Baby Tonight"
"We Didn't Know" (duet with Stevie Wonder)
While "My Love Is Your Love" wasn't a huge hit and a lot of people have never heard it, I think it's one of those songs that everyone who has heard it, loves it. Right now, I think everyonwe considers "I Will Always Love You" to be her signiture song, but I believe that in the future, "My Love Is Your Love" is the song that she will be remembered by. From the very first lines it has something special.
One song that reminds me of a certain time period in my own life- around 2004- is the Sarah McLauchlin song "Fallen". While it's a bit over-produced it still hits its marks. It's sad and regretful. It's like a serious blues song. And I think a lot of people can relate to it. And even if it doesn't reflect your own life, I think that for four minutes or so you can imagine that you relate to it.
I never bought a Dido album and I only know her singles. I don't know why I've never sought any of her other songs. It' strange because the Dido songs that I've heard are so good and they really hit me. I know three Dido songs. The most popular is probably the weakest of the three: "Thank You". But it's a great song. Then there's 'White Flag". I love the sentiment. I'd really love the song but something doesn't match up. Maybe I just don't belive what she's saying. And for a song like that you have to belive that it's true and not just a love song.
I'd say that Dido's best song is the first of her's that I heard: "Here With Me". With this song I belive that she means ever word she says and this song still gets to me.
There's one song from the past decade that really hits me hard. I love all the songs from Kristin Hersh, Tanya Donelly, Aimee Mann, and Jenny Lewis. But it isn't a song from any of them. It's a big, commercial, radio song that really gets to me and puts a lump in my throat.
One summer- either trhe summer of 2008 or 2009- there was this big hit on the radio called "Bleeding Love" by Leona Lewis. I heard it a few times and didn't understand the appeal. I still don't.
A few months later, Lewis released another single, this one called "Better In Time". I fell in love. This song is so sad and so sweet and Lewis sings so beautifully. I feel two things when I hear this song. I relate to it because I've been through it and I understand it. And at the same time, I feel so bad for Leona Lewis. When she says "Gonna smile cause I deserve to" I get choked up.
Anyway, there are a lot of great songs that I've enjoyed over the past dozen years but those are the ones that hit me hard.
Friday, September 30, 2011
Sunday, September 4, 2011
These days
I can't believe it's already September 4. This summer- this whole year- has flown by. The sad thing is, I have nothing to show for it. I feel like spring and summer are the time when you've got a lot of energy and daylight and you accomplish a lot so that when the weather turns cool you can relax knowing that you've done what you need to in order to prepare for the winter. You reap what sow and falltime is harvest-time. I've got very little to harvest cause I've done next to nothing in 2011. I certainly have no savings.
But I guess it's not too late. Really, it's still summer, so I can still get things done.
I want to-
1) Save money
2) Do spring cleaning. I'd like to clean and organize my bedroom and take inventory and get all my clothes into order.
3) Have a sexy summer romance (That's not gonna happen. Next.)
4) Be in the moment, so that time stops passing me by
So, this Friday I'm taking a train to Baltimore. I've never been to Baltimore and I've never been on a train before- this is gonna be a big weekend.
But I guess it's not too late. Really, it's still summer, so I can still get things done.
I want to-
1) Save money
2) Do spring cleaning. I'd like to clean and organize my bedroom and take inventory and get all my clothes into order.
3) Have a sexy summer romance (That's not gonna happen. Next.)
4) Be in the moment, so that time stops passing me by
So, this Friday I'm taking a train to Baltimore. I've never been to Baltimore and I've never been on a train before- this is gonna be a big weekend.
Saturday, September 3, 2011
Roger Clemens
I was just reading a story about Roger Clemens in USA Today. It turns out that he's gonna be re-tried for perjery. The defense is saying that the prosecutors purposely introduced banned evidence so that they could start fresh- one of the jurors said he believes that the government has no business investigating steroid use by ballplayers- and, of course, he's right.
I think they should leave Clemens and the other baseball players alone, but anyway- I liked something I read in the story. The defense is accusing the prosecutors of having a "win-at-all-costs" attitude. Maybe the prosecutors should try some steroids.
I think they should leave Clemens and the other baseball players alone, but anyway- I liked something I read in the story. The defense is accusing the prosecutors of having a "win-at-all-costs" attitude. Maybe the prosecutors should try some steroids.
Saturday, August 27, 2011
Home
It's time to tell you about where I live.
December 1, 2009, I moved into this house on the outskirts of town- it's a 45 minute walk to my job downtown. The house id owned by a 48 year old man I'll call Papa Bear. He's a very cool guy, very enthusiastic with a lot of energy. He has a white Alaska Husky that's a lot like him, Porter. Porter is very friendly, always shaking his tail and holding a toy in his mouth.
For at least 20 years, Paopa Bear has been friends with an older guy I call Stickman. Stickman has been living here with him ever since he bought the house around 1995. Stickman is around 55 but looks and seems older (though I think he thinks he can pass for 40). He's a second shift nurse and he expects to have the bathroom all to himself for the 2 and a 1/2 hours leading up to the time he leaves for work. He takes insanely long showers and God knows what he does with the rest of the time.
The third and final roommate is a 20 year old coolege student who works part-time but spends most of his days and nights playing computer games. He pays partial rent and Papa Bear buys all his groceries and cooks dinner for him every night. I call him Baby Bear. Between his size and the way that Papa Bear cares for him the name fits perfectly. I like Baby Bear. All he needs to be happy is a computer game, some pot, and maybe some Doritos and Mountian Dew. He's got a good attitude. Like Papa Bear, he's got a good attitude: enthusiastic. It'll be late afternoon after a long day of work, or it'll be 10pm and I'll be in bed so that I can be up at 5am, and I can hear Baby Bear on his headphone/ speaker set, talking to his teammates, and it's very relaxing. It's loud sometimes but it never bothers me; it puts me right to sleep.
Here's how everyone gets along: I get along with everyone. Me and Papa Bear talk a lot. It can be rough sometimes- he's always gotta be right. And he's the dominant dog. Sometimes, too, it seems like he's being contrary on purpose. But that's it. Those are my only complaints, and, anyway, that's what makes him Papa Bear. I'm always happy to talk to him and he's very easygoing and flexible.
If I don't talk with Baby Bear much, it's only because he's almost always at the computer and i don't want to interupt. There are some trust issues as well. For instance, he never owns up to doing anything wrong when Papa bear asks who's the one who did something. On the other hand, I've overheard him rat out Stickman for certain things.
I've gotten along with Stickman but he's gotten crabby with me over stupid shit, like cutting into his bathroom time. But really, it's not that we've clashed so much- I avoid him because I overhear his fights with Papa Bear.
About once every 3 months Stickman will come home from work and get into a shouting match with PB. These fights get loud and ugly. Once, PB yelled that Stickman was a miserable piece of shit with no friends and no teeth. I was listening and laughing into my pillow.
Stickman and Baby get along alright. The have pot in common. But really, I don't think that Baby likes Stickman. I think he's using him for free pot and free cigarettes. Baby helps himself to smokes from both PB's and Stickman's packs when they're not around. I've heard them yell at him but most of the time Baby gets what Baby wants.
I mentioned that I have some trust issues with Baby Bear. It's because of this: For the first 6 months that I lived here, baby was sneaking into my room and taking cigarettes. Now I just said that he'd take cigarettes from the other guys. Well that's different. They had an understanding. Baby would help himself while PB was at work or while Stickman was outside doing yardwork all afternoon.
Baby was taking my cigarettes when I went to take a piss or while I was downstairs for 2 minutes putting my clothes in the dryer. It seemed like sometimes I'd have less cigarettes than I thought but I didn't think anything of it till one day I brought a load of laundry downstairs. As I walked past his room we nodded at each other. When I opened the washer door I could hear squeaking of floorboards directly above me and my bedroom was directly above me. I dropped my socks and rushed up the stairs. Honestly, I didn't want to catch him- that would be too awkward. But I caught his shadow in the hallway. When I got to the top of the stairs he was across the hall in Stickman's room, playing with Porter.
What really confirmed my suspician was one day later that week when I had company but they didn't park in the driveway. Baby came home a few minutes after we did and I was taking a piss. From the hallway you can always tell if someone's in the bathroom- you can hear the fan and you can see light through the door. My friend told me after that he opened the door without knocking, looked surprised to see them, and then said he was looking for a Sharpie to borrow.
So, yeah, I like Baby, but he's a little sneak and that bothers me. I feel like I should visit with him more often, but since i don't trust him I figure, Why bother?
To be continued...
December 1, 2009, I moved into this house on the outskirts of town- it's a 45 minute walk to my job downtown. The house id owned by a 48 year old man I'll call Papa Bear. He's a very cool guy, very enthusiastic with a lot of energy. He has a white Alaska Husky that's a lot like him, Porter. Porter is very friendly, always shaking his tail and holding a toy in his mouth.
For at least 20 years, Paopa Bear has been friends with an older guy I call Stickman. Stickman has been living here with him ever since he bought the house around 1995. Stickman is around 55 but looks and seems older (though I think he thinks he can pass for 40). He's a second shift nurse and he expects to have the bathroom all to himself for the 2 and a 1/2 hours leading up to the time he leaves for work. He takes insanely long showers and God knows what he does with the rest of the time.
The third and final roommate is a 20 year old coolege student who works part-time but spends most of his days and nights playing computer games. He pays partial rent and Papa Bear buys all his groceries and cooks dinner for him every night. I call him Baby Bear. Between his size and the way that Papa Bear cares for him the name fits perfectly. I like Baby Bear. All he needs to be happy is a computer game, some pot, and maybe some Doritos and Mountian Dew. He's got a good attitude. Like Papa Bear, he's got a good attitude: enthusiastic. It'll be late afternoon after a long day of work, or it'll be 10pm and I'll be in bed so that I can be up at 5am, and I can hear Baby Bear on his headphone/ speaker set, talking to his teammates, and it's very relaxing. It's loud sometimes but it never bothers me; it puts me right to sleep.
Here's how everyone gets along: I get along with everyone. Me and Papa Bear talk a lot. It can be rough sometimes- he's always gotta be right. And he's the dominant dog. Sometimes, too, it seems like he's being contrary on purpose. But that's it. Those are my only complaints, and, anyway, that's what makes him Papa Bear. I'm always happy to talk to him and he's very easygoing and flexible.
If I don't talk with Baby Bear much, it's only because he's almost always at the computer and i don't want to interupt. There are some trust issues as well. For instance, he never owns up to doing anything wrong when Papa bear asks who's the one who did something. On the other hand, I've overheard him rat out Stickman for certain things.
I've gotten along with Stickman but he's gotten crabby with me over stupid shit, like cutting into his bathroom time. But really, it's not that we've clashed so much- I avoid him because I overhear his fights with Papa Bear.
About once every 3 months Stickman will come home from work and get into a shouting match with PB. These fights get loud and ugly. Once, PB yelled that Stickman was a miserable piece of shit with no friends and no teeth. I was listening and laughing into my pillow.
Stickman and Baby get along alright. The have pot in common. But really, I don't think that Baby likes Stickman. I think he's using him for free pot and free cigarettes. Baby helps himself to smokes from both PB's and Stickman's packs when they're not around. I've heard them yell at him but most of the time Baby gets what Baby wants.
I mentioned that I have some trust issues with Baby Bear. It's because of this: For the first 6 months that I lived here, baby was sneaking into my room and taking cigarettes. Now I just said that he'd take cigarettes from the other guys. Well that's different. They had an understanding. Baby would help himself while PB was at work or while Stickman was outside doing yardwork all afternoon.
Baby was taking my cigarettes when I went to take a piss or while I was downstairs for 2 minutes putting my clothes in the dryer. It seemed like sometimes I'd have less cigarettes than I thought but I didn't think anything of it till one day I brought a load of laundry downstairs. As I walked past his room we nodded at each other. When I opened the washer door I could hear squeaking of floorboards directly above me and my bedroom was directly above me. I dropped my socks and rushed up the stairs. Honestly, I didn't want to catch him- that would be too awkward. But I caught his shadow in the hallway. When I got to the top of the stairs he was across the hall in Stickman's room, playing with Porter.
What really confirmed my suspician was one day later that week when I had company but they didn't park in the driveway. Baby came home a few minutes after we did and I was taking a piss. From the hallway you can always tell if someone's in the bathroom- you can hear the fan and you can see light through the door. My friend told me after that he opened the door without knocking, looked surprised to see them, and then said he was looking for a Sharpie to borrow.
So, yeah, I like Baby, but he's a little sneak and that bothers me. I feel like I should visit with him more often, but since i don't trust him I figure, Why bother?
To be continued...
Friday, August 26, 2011
Journal
I've been keeping a journal since I was in high school. I ended up throwing away the first 5 years- it all sounded so dumb. I also threw away another big chunk so now what I have is some notebooks going back to 2005, plus some enries that I made on the computer.
Nowadays I always write on the computer. One problem is that a year ago I had to delete my hard drive and one whole year had to go. It didn't bother me because nothing had really happened. Nothing happens in my life; it's very boring. I guess I'm lucky. In fact, I know I'm lucky.
My family is, for the most part, happy and healthy, as am I. I'm in my mid-30s and both of my parents are still living. Plus I have an enjoyable job and a place to sleep and a little bit of money and I owe less than $300.
I wish, though, that my diary was more interesting (I almost went back and deleted "diary" and replaced it with "journal" but, why bother?).
Maybe I'll start making entries here at RJ Battles instead of on Microsoft Notepad. That'll force me to make them more interesting.
The reason that I've always kept a journal is because I wanted to preserve my memories. My goal was always to record events that happened so that I could go back and read the diary and instantly be brought back to that particular day. It hasn't worked.
So maybe this new way will be better. We'll see tomorrow.
Nowadays I always write on the computer. One problem is that a year ago I had to delete my hard drive and one whole year had to go. It didn't bother me because nothing had really happened. Nothing happens in my life; it's very boring. I guess I'm lucky. In fact, I know I'm lucky.
My family is, for the most part, happy and healthy, as am I. I'm in my mid-30s and both of my parents are still living. Plus I have an enjoyable job and a place to sleep and a little bit of money and I owe less than $300.
I wish, though, that my diary was more interesting (I almost went back and deleted "diary" and replaced it with "journal" but, why bother?).
Maybe I'll start making entries here at RJ Battles instead of on Microsoft Notepad. That'll force me to make them more interesting.
The reason that I've always kept a journal is because I wanted to preserve my memories. My goal was always to record events that happened so that I could go back and read the diary and instantly be brought back to that particular day. It hasn't worked.
So maybe this new way will be better. We'll see tomorrow.
Thursday, August 18, 2011
"Lost in Translation"
I was reading Final Girl last night and saw her review of Battle Royale (2000). The name sounded familiar- where have I heard that recently? I know. Online I saw a clip of Quentin Tarentino listing his 20 favorite movies since 1992. Battle Royale was his top pick. He listed some other Japanese movies, including Audition, which Final Girl reviewed recently also. Plus, Boogie Nights, Speed, and The Matrix. A lot of his choice surprised me, especially Lost In Translation. I'll defend Sofia Coppola for The Godfather III, but I'm not crazy about her movies. The Virgin Suicides was good for what it was- it set a mood, which I consider one of the best things a movie can do, but I don't really like the mood that she set. Then there's Marie Antoinette- it doesn't do anything for me.
And then there's Lost In Translation. I'd seen parts of it before. It's just people lying in bed watching TV. That's what I do and I don't want to see that. Boring.
I'm 45 minutes into this movie, I keep waiting for it to wow me but I just wanna go to bed. Is this really a good movie? Really?
And then there's Lost In Translation. I'd seen parts of it before. It's just people lying in bed watching TV. That's what I do and I don't want to see that. Boring.
I'm 45 minutes into this movie, I keep waiting for it to wow me but I just wanna go to bed. Is this really a good movie? Really?
Friday, August 12, 2011
"Pumped Up Kicks"
"Pumped Up Kicks"
Foster The People
My friend Amy slept over last night and she woke up before I did so while I was laying in bed I heard some of the songs that were playing on whatever music station she had the TV turned to- probably VH1- and I heard this song and I love it.
It's so cool and so fucking catchy. I've been playing and replaying it on Youtube for the past half hour and I can't get enough of it. Check it out.
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