From the Bookshelves

 

On a wintry night in 1968 someone came to our door and told us Ed was in trouble. Robert and I went out to find him. I grabbed my black lamb toy that Robert had given to me. It was his black sheep boy to black sheep girl present. Ed was something of a black sheep himself, so I took it along as a comforting talisman.

Ed was perched high up on a crane; he wouldn't come down. It was a cold, clear night, and as Robert talked to him, I climbed up the crane and gave him the lamb. He was shivering. We were the rebels without a cause and he was our sad Sal Mineo. Griffith Park in Brooklyn. 

Ed followed me down, and Robert took him home.

"Don't worry about the lamb," he said when he returned. "I'll find you another."

We lost contact with Ed but a decade later he was with me in an unexpected way. As I approached the microphone with my electric guitar to sing the opening line "So you want to be a rock 'n' roll star," I remembered his words. Small prophecies.

Just Kids, by Patti Smith

It won the National Book Award for non-fiction, she writes like a dream, paints a picture in your head, and makes everything seem possible. And that's about all there is to say.   (and it's got some badass 60s/70s rock 'n' roll stories)

 

Today, my big sister and her fiance are getting married. I couldn't be happier, honestly. They are fantastic together, in every way. In honor of the occasion, I thought I'd post a picture of my parent's wedding, 30 years ago. My mom's dress was a gunne sax prom dress that she found on a rack hanging outside a regular shop, on sale for like, twelve dollars. My dad will moan and groan if/when he sees this, saying "I'm in a white tee shirt!!" (he was wearing a tux during the ceremony and reception. I've seen the pictures!). But I chose this one because to me, this is my parents as they exist in their everyday life. My dad makes lists and plans, and my mom sits around (just like that, actually) and laughs at him. Kindly, and with love, of course. 

So this post is essentially just a shout out to my two favorite couples in the whole wide world, one of which is just starting out together in life (legally) and the other, who are just as crazy about each other now as they were then, and are each other's best friends.

Christmas Countdown: Cinema Style

My mom and I try to watch White Christmas every year. Bing Crosby, Danny Kaye, Rosemary Clooney, Vera Ellen . . . so good, and such a classic Christmas movie. Just shows how amazing classic films are, and how they've stood the test of time.

Notes on a Thursday-Holiday Edition

Notes on a Thursday has been pretty sparse recently . . . there hasn't been much to say about the new albums that I've enjoyed that hasn't already been said (Kanye's My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, and just getting into the Avett Brothers more, etc), and my concert attendance has dropped to  . . . none. But I have some concerts coming up in the new year that I'm pretty excited about, and hopefully will have alot to say about. Plus, the new Decemberists album and some other new albums are coming out soon, so it should be a nice fresh start! Anywho, here's my playlist for the holidays (predominantly Christmas, though some overall "winter-y" ones): I hope you like it!

Vince Guaraldi Trio: Christmas Time is Here
The Raveonettes: Christmas Song
Fleet Foxes: White Winter Hymnal
Priscilla Ahn: Silent Night
The Waitresses: Christmas Wrapping
Sufjan Stevens: Holy, Holy, Holy
Mumford & Sons: Winter Winds
The Weepies: All that I Want
Clyde McPhatter & the Drifters: White Christmas
Death Cab for Cutie: Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)
The Pretenders: 2000 Miles
Rogue Wave: Christmas
Jimmy Eat World: Last Christmas
John Lennon: Happy Christmas (War is Over)
The Bird and the Bees: Carol of the Bells
Ben Folds: Lonely Christmas Eve
Sufjan Stevens: That was the Worst Christmas Ever
Brandi Carlile: The Heartache can Wait







 

EDIT: and also, Kanye West's new album is the bomb diggity. Damn it.
 

Film Review: Tangled

I love (love. love!) the early Disney fairytales . . . Sleeping Beauty, Beauty and the Beast, etc. When I first saw the first trailer for Tangled, I was a bit concerned. Rapunzel didn't seem like the most likable character, the male lead seemed annoying  . . . but then the other trailers made it seem much more enjoyable, and I wanted to see it! So Saturday, my sister, my really-really soon-to-be-brother-in-law, and I went to see it in 3D. First of all, the 3D was done incredibly well, and second of all, this was an absolute return to form for Disney. The artwork was spectacular (as the video below goes in to), Alan Menken did an excellent job on the score, and the characters/story were semi-relateable, surprising, and funny. Added bonus: excellent personified animal sidekicks that do NOT TALK! Loved it. Loved it. Will see it again in a heartbeat.

Christmas Countdown: Cinema Style

My sister and I absolutely love this movie, and it's been a Christmas staple in our house for years and years. I love the music, and of course the amazing landscape and set production (New England "country" style is the best thing that came out of transcendentalism, in my opinion!). As a history person, I always wish for a Christmas like this one . . . minus the scarlet fever.


Also: living in Little Women

Morning Covers- Madman Across the Water

Brandi Carlile knows my soul. It's kinda creepy.