Dates and Dar

I have a lot of great people in my life, and I am thankful for those people. However, so many of my friends from school are starting to, or have already moved on. And here I am, getting ready to take one last class, waiting with baited breath on pending student loan applications. As I sit and type this, off to the southeast cotton-candy pink clouds reflect the sunrise across the field behind my home. I am starting to meet more and more people, and that's a great thing. Though the first date is an ever-vexing event, games of Scrabble and sharing the planetarium of stars outside my house break the ice fairly easily. Still, I wonder what you all are up to. Working at Urban Outfitters? The Apple store? Getting ready to move to the big, bad city? Will things always feel this way? I have a 10-year plan, but G-d doesn't give a damn for the best laid plans, much less those of mine. Also, if you like folk music, you probably already know Dar Williams. I didn't. Check her on Pandora, you might be surprised.

Home sweet Twins

I went a little out of budget today getting gosh gifts for the folks I love back home. And then bought $30 on apples to make cran-applesauce. Which is what I'm doing right now, listening to Taylor Swift. About JDate...I've been dissapointed. I'm used to getting chased. But I'm in Blairstown, not Baltimore (despite still being the #1 Baltimore hipster on Google). My desires are pretty specific (I'll e-mail you what's on my profile, mama!), and the population of Jews is sparse. However, I'm willing to wait, and seek, and go on dates. And I know the guys must be afraid of rejection, but I find it really easy to say "yes!" Seriously, I'll give almost anyone a first date! Gas is cheap and my hopes are high! Come on, Jews of Jersey, what's taking you?

What is it about a guy who writes songs?

Somethin' that almost insists upon swooning, the offhanded poetry seems to be easy easy easy to them. The words fall from their lips, their voices cut through the sounds of their acoustic guitar and you know, you just know from the way those words escape their lips that they can only be such good singers from being good listeners. These are the boys who listen intently as addled and oxytocin-fueled words drizzle sleepily from your lips in hours that don't belong to night or day. Blue-eyed curly-haired boyish men that your mother can't help but love and approve of. Not to say they didn't approve of the last one, just that this one, they'd love, sometimes greeting him before you as they come home from work. Of course, that's the fantasy of the sweet poetic singer-songwriter boy rolling around in my head. The reality I'm sure includes burps and forgetting anniversaries and losing shopping lists and forgetting milk, but the nice thing about speculation is that the spectacles can be as rosy as I please. And of late, I am pleased to order those glasses tinted near-magenta. I like to know, I like to plan, but I am not what one would call a "planner." I'm a "Oh this is what I'd like to do yeah I'll make that work I think..." kind of girl. I like to know where I'll be, but I'm fairly flexible, and fairly pleased to try and be happy in every situation, take them all as learning experiences (painful and bloody as they may be). You never know what will lead to the next step, the next big thing, the next love of your life or life's work. And that sort of open-ended-ness is the scary thing, but it's also the most exciting bit of moving on. And who knows, maybe I'll fall in love with a musician? [edit 3.4.08 @ 7:18pm EST] I guess I should note that the boy who inspired this post was playing in front of me at the time at Baltimore Hostel--he's a Maryland-area acoustic folk singer-songwriter-guitarist named Michael Berkowitz, who just released A Song For Every Station and sold me a copy of the CD that night (his site here).

Things I am in love with (right now)

Pie for breakfast from Dangerously Delicious Pies (3 berry). Kola Champagne "Ginseng UP" carbonated beverage. XM Radio. Marla, who put the entirety of the X-Files on my external hard drive (yes, Kate M., you can get in on that action). My new cordless mouse care of the ex, who got it for half retail at his place of employment. And it's orange. These new artists that I am going to get more of as soon as I figure what is taking up so much darn space on my computers' hard drive. I'm sure there's an application that has some sort of beautiful graphs and things but I'm too lazy to go looking right now.

Calling all Baltimorons

Anyone want to hit the Ingrid Michaelson/Matt Nathanson show at the Recher in Towson on January 31st at 7 PM? Her station on Pandora has been my breakup listening of choice, and I think it's good to support cool indie-pop artists in concert. Last years' Girls and Boys' "December Baby" is from an Old Navy sweater commercial that was on this past December, and that's how I found out about Ingrid. Listen to a couple tracks on her myspace. And while you're at it, check out Michael Berkowitz, who writes songs about snow and the ocean and Baltimore. Also, if you are a person inclined towards praying or well-wishing, or sending good vibes, send some to my momma, who's having bilateral total knee replacements tomorrow at USC. She's been in so much pain for so long, I hope this brings her as much mobility and relief as possible.

Ninety degrees what?

Popsicles and Joni Mitchell. Fantastic.

Few are the things that cannot be made better by being battered and fried.

So, Brett Dennen is playing at the Recher Theatre on May 11th at 9pm with Animal Liberation Orchestra (who I don't know anything about) in Towson, but I was wondering if anyone was interested in joining me. Last concert I went to was Rhett Miller at Sonar with my big bro (excluding all the IlyAimy concerts with J & company). Also, why do I have a killer sweet-tooth today? I've been reading my new Nigella Lawson book "How to be a Domestic Goddess," but I don't have a ton of ingredients on-hand, so for now it's just looking. The past couple days I was just weepy. People who know me know that crying is something I do when I feel overwhelmed, it's not neccessarily indicator that OH G-D SOMETHING IS WRONG MAKE HER STOP CRYING! Seeing my dad made me happy, so I wept. Passed by places that reminded me of my ex (who, keep in mind, I'm on okay terms with), and I shed a couple tears. Said goodbye to my dad and cried. My New York Times didn't get delivered and that made me cry. I'm not even sad! I'm thinking a lot about grad school right now, since i know it's just around the corner at this point (if I choose to go straight out of art school). One thing that being dooced is affecting is job applications; that is, I have to explain why I was forced to resign as an RA, and that's a hard thing when it still seems unjustified, unfair, and leaves me feeling confused. I feel like I was so dedicated to the job, to my residents. And then I think of the course of events that transpired, and how I felt like I got tattled on, instead of someone coming to me with their concerns. I understand why they did it, I just think it was real low. I'm glad for these experiences in ResLife because I know they will make me a better residential coordinator or house director one day.

Wii for music lovers

I'm probably not the only individual frustrated at the fact that the Opera browser for the Wii doesn't fully support streaming audio like Pandora or XM Sattelite Radio. After all, if one can do non-keyboard intensive internet browsing or watch YouTube on their telly, then who's to say that we even need computers if Nintendo releases some sort of keyboard for the Wii? That being said, FineTune has a Wii-friendly player at www.finetune.com/wii . I'm not particularly familiar with FineTune, but it reminds me a lot of Pandora in that it matches related songs and artist to create a playlist that you'll enjoy, even if you're not a music connesour, per se. The player is very Wii-mote friendly, looks great on-screen, and I'm really excited to have found a solution to my music-listening quandary. You can check out my playlist and profile for FineTune, or add me if you have it (I don't know that I know anyone who does right now), by clicking here. Wii music info found on LiquidIce's Nintendo Wii Hacks blog, here.