tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32860472024-03-07T19:52:02.043+13:00shake that cola dragThe office-block persecution affinity.
<p>Daniellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03896817139131485525noreply@blogger.comBlogger665125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3286047.post-66691612553524488042008-07-10T11:26:00.002+12:002008-07-10T12:19:15.573+12:00The Annual Four-Eyed Frenzy<div id="sidebar"><div id="advertising"> <img src="http://www.nzff.co.nz/f5816,148292/148292_national_poster3_advertising.JPG" alt="advert" /> </div> </div> The film festival total stands at a respectable (but not excessive) seventeen this year:<br /><br /><div class="my-schedule"> <h3>Friday, July 11</h3> <hr class="myScheduleLine"> <div class="session"> <div class="date"> 6:15PM<br /> </div> <div class="data"> <span><a href="http://www.nzff.co.nz/n5824,356,region=2.html">Anita O'Day: The Life of a Jazz Singer</a></span> </div> </div> <h3>Sunday, July 13</h3> <hr class="myScheduleLine"> <div class="session"> <div class="date"> 1:15PM<br /> </div> <div class="data"> <span><a href="http://www.nzff.co.nz/n5840,356,region=2.html">The Adventures of Robin Hood</a></span> </div> </div> <h3>Tuesday, July 15</h3> <hr class="myScheduleLine"> <div class="session"> <div class="date"> 8:00PM<br /> </div> <div class="data"> <span><a href="http://www.nzff.co.nz/n6174,356,region=2.html">Respect Yourself: The Stax Records Story</a></span> </div> </div> <h3>Wednesday, July 16</h3> <hr class="myScheduleLine"> <div class="session"> <div class="date"> 6:15PM<br /> </div> <div class="data"> <span><a href="http://www.nzff.co.nz/n6095,356,region=2.html">Blockade</a></span> <p>Preceded by: <a href="http://www.nzff.co.nz/n6513.html?region=2">Amateur Photographer</a><br /></p> </div> </div><div class="session"> <div class="date"> 8:45PM<br /> </div> <div class="data"> <span><a href="http://www.nzff.co.nz/n5978,356,region=2.html">Taipei Story</a></span> </div> </div> <h3>Thursday, July 17</h3> <hr class="myScheduleLine"> <div class="session"> <div class="date"> 4:00PM<br /> </div> <div class="data"> <span><a href="http://www.nzff.co.nz/n6182,356,region=2.html">Be Kind Rewind</a></span> </div> </div> <h3>Friday, July 18</h3> <hr class="myScheduleLine"> <div class="session"> <div class="date"> 2:00PM<br /> </div> <div class="data"> <span><a href="http://www.nzff.co.nz/n6248,356,region=2.html">Gonzo: The Life and Work of Dr Hunter S. Thompson</a></span><br /><br /> </div> </div><div class="session"> <div class="date"> 4:15PM<br /> </div> <div class="data"> <span><a href="http://www.nzff.co.nz/n6289,356,region=2.html">Planet B-Boy</a></span> </div> </div> <h3>Saturday, July 19</h3> <hr class="myScheduleLine"> <div class="session"> <div class="date"> 12:15PM<br /> </div> <div class="data"> <span><a href="http://www.nzff.co.nz/n6403,356,region=2.html">The Order of Myths</a></span> </div> </div> <h3>Sunday, July 20</h3> <hr class="myScheduleLine"> <div class="session"> <div class="date"> 6:15PM<br /> </div> <div class="data"> <span><a href="http://www.nzff.co.nz/n6370,356,region=2.html">The Kid Brother</a></span> </div> </div> <h3>Monday, July 21</h3> <hr class="myScheduleLine"> <div class="session"> <div class="date"> 4:30PM<br /> </div> <div class="data"> <span><a href="http://www.nzff.co.nz/n5828,356,region=2.html">Crazy Love</a></span> </div> </div> <h3>Wednesday, July 23</h3> <hr class="myScheduleLine"> <div class="session"> <div class="date"> 6:30PM<br /> </div> <div class="data"> <span><a href="http://www.nzff.co.nz/n6251,356,region=2.html">I Think We're Alone Now</a></span> </div> </div> <h3>Friday, July 25</h3> <hr class="myScheduleLine"> <div class="session"> <div class="date"> 6:30PM<br /> </div> <div class="data"> <span><a href="http://www.nzff.co.nz/n6101,356,region=2.html">The Cool School</a></span> </div> </div> <h3>Saturday, July 26</h3> <hr class="myScheduleLine"> <div class="session"> <div class="date"> 5:00PM<br /> </div> <div class="data"> <span><a href="http://www.nzff.co.nz/n6176,356,region=2.html">Revue</a></span> </div> </div> <h3>Sunday, July 27</h3> <hr class="myScheduleLine"> <div class="session"> <div class="date"> 1:15PM<br /> </div> <div class="data"> <span><a href="http://www.nzff.co.nz/n5842,356,region=2.html">The Red Balloon</a></span> <p>Followed by: <a href="http://www.nzff.co.nz/n6266.html?region=2">White Mane</a><br /></p> </div> </div><div class="session"> <div class="date"> 6:15PM<br /> </div> <div class="data"> <span><a href="http://www.nzff.co.nz/n6260,356,region=2.html">Not Quite Hollywood</a></span><br /><br /> </div> </div><div class="session"> <div class="date"> 8:30PM<br /> </div> <div class="data"> <span><a href="http://www.nzff.co.nz/n6556,356,region=2.html">Anvil! The Story of Anvil</a></span><br /><br />We are, as usual, heavy on 'documentaries about weird shit' (Tiffany's stalker! Obsessive abusive relationships! Propaganda films from behind the Iron Curtain! Ozploitation movies! The real Spinal Tap!) and 'vintage things you will never otherwise see on the big screen' (The Red Balloon, Errol Flynn's Robin Hood, Harold Lloyd's The Kid Brother). The Lloyd film also has the dubious honour of being Brent's media studies class field trip, which means I am the other supervisory adult trucking in from Otara on a bus with over 20 teenagers to watch a silent movie with an orchestra in <a href="http://www.dmd.co.nz/site_resources/vr/civic.html">a 1929-opulent orientalist movie palace</a>. (By the way, follow that link. The panorama will blow your mind.) B assures me this whole trip is going to be totally fine. Naturally, I'm picturing that scene in The Wire season four, when Bunny takes his teen charges to the fancy restaurant and they all turn sour in an instant. (Yeah, I know, I tend to predict doom too much.)<br /></div></div></div>Daniellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03896817139131485525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3286047.post-59759761025681101592008-06-17T09:09:00.001+12:002008-06-17T09:09:50.132+12:00DixieA few weeks ago I was telling <a href="http://www.replevin.smugmug.com">Ben</a> this story, and he was all 'why is this not on your blog?' and so... yeah. Here is the weirdest thing that happened to us during WOMAD weekend. We were driving on the outskirts of small-town New Plymouth at about 10pm, looking for our hotel. We're trucking along in the dark, and suddenly we see a tiny vehicle on the footpath to our left. As we come closer, we realise it's one of those mobility scooters that the elderly and handicapped use. Driving it is... basically the modern version of dust bowl migrant, with a wife-beater and a mullet, and on his vehicle is flying - I kid you not - a *full sized <span class="nfakPe">Confederate</span> flag*. It was car-dealership-sized. I can't believe it didn't tip his scooter over.<br> <br>The whole thing happened in a flash - it was so crazy it was almost like we hallucinated it, but there were four of us in the car. So... I have so many questions! I mean, when they say 'the south will rise again', do they mean *this* far south? And where did he even *get* a <span class="nfakPe">Confederate</span> flag, and why would he be carrying it around with him in the dark on the outskirts of town, and... I mean, wow. Just wow. Daniellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03896817139131485525noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3286047.post-3893509121450194482008-06-04T08:12:00.001+12:002008-06-04T08:12:31.130+12:00I'm just twenty-two and I don't mind dying<div xmlns='http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml'><p><object height='350' width='425'><param value='http://youtube.com/v/6F1Mk6U5zVY' name='movie'/><embed height='350' width='425' type='application/x-shockwave-flash' src='http://youtube.com/v/6F1Mk6U5zVY'/></object></p><p>It's not 'Who Do You Love?' but it is pretty damn awesome, nonetheless. RIP Bo.</p></div>Daniellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03896817139131485525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3286047.post-46998123447805475942008-05-20T09:16:00.001+12:002008-05-20T09:16:17.362+12:00From Whence it Sprang<div xmlns='http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml'><p><object height='350' width='425'><param value='http://youtube.com/v/gbkoeJ7BVsI' name='movie'/><embed height='350' width='425' type='application/x-shockwave-flash' src='http://youtube.com/v/gbkoeJ7BVsI'/></object></p><p>I don't think I've ever explained the title of my blog, and thanks to the miracle of YouTube, you can see its inspiration. There are several in this series, but I particularly like Nancy's eye make-up and mugging in this version of the advertisement. They're all great, though.</p></div>Daniellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03896817139131485525noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3286047.post-49410043972858827762008-03-02T09:47:00.001+13:002008-03-02T09:47:38.274+13:00OMG!I have just realised that the main sample from Warren G's 'Regulate' is from Michael McDonald's 'Keep Forgettin''!<br><br>(You all knew this already, right? I'm fifteen years late? OK. As you were.)<br> Daniellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03896817139131485525noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3286047.post-54613686401962746172008-02-08T09:01:00.000+13:002008-12-10T12:06:12.740+13:00Alert: I am about to say something positive about librarianship.<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyqC18gCVGFfyHiiqwM2Qr7eUc6CHjqSi7ovwcMsXVZPn8UZ5aFex5IvHKggjOM4Huh1e_4bEoCbG0sY69FlzTvmWFhJ1nsxjzRYqGdvVklXTIljDw6Ruqdct_gV4oQtKuTw/s1600-h/blackpanther.gif"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyqC18gCVGFfyHiiqwM2Qr7eUc6CHjqSi7ovwcMsXVZPn8UZ5aFex5IvHKggjOM4Huh1e_4bEoCbG0sY69FlzTvmWFhJ1nsxjzRYqGdvVklXTIljDw6Ruqdct_gV4oQtKuTw/s400/blackpanther.gif" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5164331148109515506" border="0" /></a><br />It's a red letter day! Sometimes, my job is not completely tedious. Sometimes, I get to search through public domain photographs for appropriate website illustrations. Sometimes, I find incredibly cool things of badassery, like this photo of a Black Panther in 1970 at the Lincoln Memorial. Thank you, Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division.Daniellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03896817139131485525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3286047.post-83700773001729978862007-12-16T13:08:00.000+13:002007-12-16T13:20:47.962+13:00how you ain't gonna fuck? bitch I mean! I'm the GODdamn reason you in VIP or: feminism, hiphop, false consciousness, and my inconsistent principlesI am a bad feminist. Here is why I am a bad feminist: I am about to write a post in which I defend the indefensible. Here are six mainstream hiphop songs I love which are either partially or wholly... wrong. Wonderfully wrong.<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">Ludacris, 'Stand Up' </span><br /><br /><object width="425" height="355"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/t8mcJynweck&rel=1"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/t8mcJynweck&rel=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="355"></embed></object><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;"> Why It's Wrong</span>: it gives us our post title (unfortunately the video is censored so thoroughly that the 'new' first line of the verse makes no sense), which manages to encapsulate everything that's gross about the 'sex for goods' gender imbalance; the women are a giant cliche and all about their butts (and, to a lesser extent, their boobs); the lyrics encourage drunk girlfights.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;"> Redeeming Qualities</span>: the production is one giant BOMP of joy (thanks Kanye, I think); Ludacris is the flow equivalent of Lewis Black - angry and hilariously funny, often at his own expense; and the video contains giant things. Giant things rule.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;"> Notorious B.I.G., 'Hypnotize'</span><br /><br /><object width="425" height="355"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/_S1fUyW6riE&rel=1"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/_S1fUyW6riE&rel=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="355"></embed></object><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;"> Why It's Wrong</span>: why *isn't* it wrong? Aggressive, scary, horribly violent and sexist, contains gratuitous Puff Daddy; the line about the girl tied up in the basement is fucking chilling; and, uh, the video is astonishingly stupid and contains dumbass interludes.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;"> Redeeming Qualities</span>: bassline, beat, and chorus, which ride roughshod over everything else and force me to love them.<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;"> Jay-Z, 'Girls, Girls, Girls'</span><br /><br /><object width="425" height="355"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/Y3eukm4SKoA&rel=1"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/Y3eukm4SKoA&rel=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="355"></embed></object><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;"> Why It's Wrong</span>: hmmmm. I can't possibly imagine what a feminist would have to object to in this song, can you? Jay-Z, the man with an adoring girl in every port, all of them waiting for him to turn up and reduce their entire beings to a couplet in his song; oh, and the casual racism is nice too.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;"> Redeeming Qualities</span>: the oldschool soul samples are pure delight; and I'm sorry, but Jay-Z is so fucking funny and inventive. I can't believe he makes the conceit of this song last as long as he does - every description is great! Apologies, my sisters. I sold you out.<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;"> Ol' Dirty Bastard, 'Got Your Money'</span><br /><br /><object width="425" height="355"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/_VYz7gEBFCs&rel=1"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/_VYz7gEBFCs&rel=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="355"></embed></object><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;"> Why It's Wrong</span>: erm, well, it's a song about pimping, general sexual exploitation, and threats of murdering women who don't come up with the cash. Oh dear.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;"> Redeeming Qualities</span>: ODB (RIP) is so completely ridiculous, grunty, and ranty that he undercuts his hateful lyrics at every turn (nothing is *less* sexy than Ol' Dirty saying 'sexy sexy sexy' - I tend to assume that he's like the 90s version of Screamin' Jay Hawkins or something); I have never laughed so much at a song as I have at this one; catchiest chorus ever thanks to Kelis; handclaps! Plus: bonus blaxploitation video is hilarious.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Justin Timberlake, Snoop Dogg, 'Signs'</span><br /><br /><object width="425" height="355"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/-Pu9EYv1HBc&rel=1"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/-Pu9EYv1HBc&rel=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="355"></embed></object><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;"> Why It's Wrong</span>: well, there are much, much worse Snoop songs. MUCH worse. This is just a generically sexist song, really: fickle hot girl won over by the cash-heavy gangsta, lots of scantily clad chicks in the video. However, that exchange where Snoop says 'you with your friend right? She ain't trying to bring over no men right?' has always struck me. Snoop, are you that challenged by the mere prospect of another dude at your party? Weird. Disturbing.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;"> Redeeming Qualities</span>: this Neptunes production job makes all human beings dance. It is a scientific fact. I challenge you to put this on at a party and see what happens. Also: Justin sings and dances; Uncle Charlie preaches; and Snoop does that thing he does with the laidback tone. It's pretty much pure love as soon as you hear the first 'Cupid don't fuck with me', and you never look back.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Ghostface Killah feat. Ne-Yo, 'Back Like That'</span><br /><br /><object width="425" height="355"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/UYK3JY6p5jk&rel=1"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/UYK3JY6p5jk&rel=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="355"></embed></object><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;"> Why It's Wrong</span>: hello, Ghostface? This is the double standard calling: I would like to let you know that you are a thoughtless, casual misogynist, because you cheated on her first, and she responded in kind, and now you're cutting off her finger to get the ring back and threatening her with 'my girl cousins, they gonna rock you!'? Dude, I gotta say, that's way uncool.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;"> Redeeming Qualities</span>: Pretty much everything else. Ne-Yo sings his little heart out on yet another catchy chorus with some old-school-soul-sampling production (I think there's a pattern emerging here for me); Ghostface gives us some interestingly rage-filled background to the whole sorry saga, because he is a fine storyteller; and I'm all about the random ranting at the end ('got my swagger back and all that!')<br /><br /><br />So, what have we learned? (Apart from 'never trust a female with no skills', of course.) I think we have learned that something which makes me dance or laugh has an enormous amount of leeway, and that storytelling trumps orthodoxy, and that, yes, I am a bad feminist. I'm not sure what to do about this, though...Daniellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03896817139131485525noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3286047.post-84771620979590157242007-12-06T14:52:00.001+13:002007-12-06T14:52:23.893+13:00Why Brent and I Are Thoroughly RidiculousIn honour of <a href="http://linusblog.wordpress.com/2007/10/14/five-months-tomorrow/">Sonnet's List of Things She Calls Linus</a>, I have made a list of all the things we call our dogs in the privacy of our own home. (Seriously, we are *this close* to being characters from Best in Show.) <br><br><u>Ellie's Nicknames</u><br><br>Elsinore <br>Ellsworth McGillicuddy<br>Ellington O'Shea<br>Elderberry<br><br><u>Vinnie's Nicknames<br><br></u>Vincent<br>Vindaloo<br>Vinsworth (a pattern is emerging here) <br>Little Gentleman (a tribute to Anchorman)<br> Daniellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03896817139131485525noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3286047.post-38388849790903317312007-10-19T15:05:00.001+13:002007-10-19T15:05:28.468+13:00Top 10 Reasons Why The Pixies Still Rule, As Pondered on the Bus Home Yesterday1. Black Francis, inevitably<br>2. Complete invisibility on commercial radio, so they are thereby guaranteed to avoid the edge-blurring sameness of classic rock oldies, forever and ever, amen<br>3. Kim Deal. Kim Deal. Kim Deal <br>4. Surf music guitar<br>5. Cod Espanol a la Peggy Hill<br>6. Loudness<br>7. Short songs. I cannot emphasise this enough. Leave them wanting more. Do you know how long 'Allison' is? One minute and seventeen goddamned seconds! Intro, verse, chorus, guitar solo, and they're OUT. I second that emotion! <br>8. Incest, incomprehensibility, and aliens<br>9. Singalongability<br>10. No image problems, because they didn't have one. David Lovering is the biggest dork-dresser of all time. And no one has ever given a fuck, and that is completely awesome <br><br> Daniellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03896817139131485525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3286047.post-15740940613068479302007-10-19T11:42:00.001+13:002008-12-10T12:06:12.777+13:00My Hero<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNvP6Xtz4ktN6sOjdmoCRXzAoqtaXV_7ZTyAYGcGUgE4172FaVl2va9PCO9-jmH2ZuLb_PF8OdeV2ca6utNlFBRhqQew7yqZ2GG0r2Mf1_gkgQMYhEFQIxxTNcSa3vHCsXLQ/s1600-h/nyenters.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNvP6Xtz4ktN6sOjdmoCRXzAoqtaXV_7ZTyAYGcGUgE4172FaVl2va9PCO9-jmH2ZuLb_PF8OdeV2ca6utNlFBRhqQew7yqZ2GG0r2Mf1_gkgQMYhEFQIxxTNcSa3vHCsXLQ/s400/nyenters.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5122811949782742690" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Oh man, am I shamefully fucking late on this shit. For some reason Brent and I were overcome with some kind of weird tastefulness for the entire recent New Zealand run of this show on MTVNZ, and we didn't record it. Yet we managed to catch the reunion show and woooooowwwww. Yes, I too love New York. What a thoroughly horrendous, stupid, mean-spirited, crazy, wonderful woman she is.Daniellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03896817139131485525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3286047.post-44308257198328764662007-10-10T15:29:00.001+13:002007-10-10T15:52:11.537+13:00Bless all CantabriansYou know, I've said some pretty mean things about Christchurch in my life, and I feel ashamed of those mean things right now. Even if you hate the game and attendant hoopla more than life itself, <a href="http://www.nzherald.co.nz/event/story.cfm?c_id=522&objectid=10468963"> this shit</a> is pretty heartwarming on a basic human level. Thanks for your maturity, Cantabrians, because I was starting to think this whole country was pretty damned mean-spirited. And it turns out that no, it's not, and I can feel OK about us after all.Daniellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03896817139131485525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3286047.post-86374714071576150932007-10-02T10:35:00.001+13:002007-10-02T10:35:59.059+13:00And shit, while I'm squeeing, let's take a moment to be happy about the Big Day Out. January 18, 2008: Arcade Fire, Dizzee Rascal, Bjork, LCD Soundsystem, The Clean, Paul Kelly, Billy Bragg, The Phoenix Foundation, SJD! Wahey! (Please, please, please let everyone I like be on the Green and Blue stages, in a row, without clashes... unlikely, but... please.) <br> Daniellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03896817139131485525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3286047.post-7620742972878837692007-10-02T08:29:00.001+13:002007-10-02T08:29:56.338+13:00And another thing: I got a Justin Timberlake ticket, thanks to the beneficence of my mother. I am ridiculously squee about it. I am also mentally fourteen years old.<br> Daniellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03896817139131485525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3286047.post-67621792475736050582007-10-02T08:21:00.001+13:002007-10-02T08:21:36.443+13:00It occurs to me with horrifying clarity that Chutes Too Narrow came out in 2004. Didn't it? Which means I forgot 'Saint Simon'. And, uh, I also really like that Phantom Planet song, 'Lonely Day'. Does this make me... an emo? <br> Daniellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03896817139131485525noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3286047.post-12672357472054357792007-09-15T11:33:00.001+12:002007-09-15T11:33:34.281+12:00More Pointless Musical RantingCrap. It just occurred to me that I never finished my top 40 of the 90s, and Lawrence just asked the same crew to compile a 'top 20 of 2000-2004' - which, I must say, I found immensely more simple. I'm not sure why, as I'm a big, big fan of the Oughties so far, so you'd think I would have the same kind of crushing emotional burden. Perhaps it's the smaller scale, or my more mainstream/poptimist tastes this decade, or that there are some songs so huuuuuuuuuuuuuuge that they were impossible to ignore, or... I don't know. Anyway, I even managed to rank them! Which is unheard-of (and possibly inaccurate). Rules: it had to be released as a single; the ranking is subjective, as in 'my favourites', not objective, as in 'most important'; and I limited myself to one track per artist because otherwise there would be some unfair advantages to Jay-Z, Kanye, The White Stripes and the Super Furry Animals. Track list, 20-1: <br><br><span style="font-weight: bold;">Since I Left You - The Avalanches</span> (The only flute sample on the list! Ethereal and joyous.)<br><br><span style="font-weight: bold;">No One Knows - Queens of the Stone Age</span> (My favourite air-drumming song. Proof that I only like loud, hard stuff if if you can sing along and dance to it.)<br><br><span style="font-weight: bold;">Hate To Say I Told You So - The Hives </span>(Ridiculously badass. How can this song rule so much when the riff is just one giant recycling project? I don't understand it.) <br><br><span style="font-weight: bold;">Trick Me - Kelis </span>(Milkshake is more, uh, 'important', but I like this one better. 'Freedom to you has always been whoever landed on your dick...' That economical little guitar part makes me happy.) <br><br><span style="font-weight: bold;">What You Waiting For - Gwen Stefani </span>(I am the only person I know who loves this song. The only person. I don't get it: that awesome metronome beat! Those Missing Persons vocal tics! The weird-ass synth-guitar attack at 1 minute 40 seconds! 'You're still a super-hot fe-male!' It's a fucking ridiculous, over-the-top, amazing, stoopid piece of work. Still not sick of it. And it's a hit song whose subject is being anxious about... having a hit song. Heh.) <br><br><span style="font-weight: bold;">I'll Be Around - Cee-Lo</span> (Timbaland's verse is hilarious, and I could listen to Cee-Lo read the phone book. Plus how infectious is this production? Nice work, Tim.)<br> <br><span style="font-weight: bold;">Envy - Ash </span>(It would be any old Ash song, except for those girlie 'ooooh-ooooh-oooohs'. And it kicks ass!)<br><br><span style="font-weight: bold;">Cherry Lips (Go Baby Go!) </span> - Garbage (The only great song they've done since about 1995? Well, maybe that's harsh, but that squelchy backing track, and the handclaps, and listen to the *bells*! The bells in the middle eight! Oh my god that's great.) <br><br><span style="font-weight: bold;">H to the Izzo</span> - Jay-Z ('He who does not feel me is not real to me, therefore he doesn't exist. So poof! Vamoose, son of a bitch.' The best thing Michael Jackson's been involved with since 1983: that Kanye West is a clever man. This fought 'Girls, Girls, Girls' and '99 Problems' for the top spot - but hey, it's the anthem. Get your damn hands up.) <br><br><span style="font-weight: bold;">(Drawing) Rings Around the World</span> - Super Furry Animals (It's droney *and* poppy! Eat your heart out, Dandy Warhols! If you listen veeerrrrrry carefully towards the end, you can hear the New Zealand telephone-recording-lady saying 'please hold on while I try that extension'. It really is rings around the world!) <br><br><span style="font-weight: bold;">Rock Your Body - Justin Timberlake</span> (Poor old Michael Jackson. Why can't he do this any more? Not being able to afford a Justin ticket this year is an everlasting regret...) <br><br><span style="font-weight: bold;">Listening for the Weather - Bic Runga </span>(She seems to write perfect songs - melodies and lyrics - absolutely effortlessly. 'Busy with their starring roles in their own tragedies.' Every time she hits that high note in the chorus, I turn into mush.) <br><br><span style="font-weight: bold;">Groovejet (If This Ain't Love) - Spiller feat. Sophie Ellis-Bextor</span> (I could listen to this on repeat for six straight hours. I bet someone has: one of the last gasps of ecstasy. I almost put Kylie's 'Love at First Sight' on this list, too, but thought it covered too much of the same ground.) <br><br><span style="font-weight: bold;">Take Me Out - Franz Ferdinand</span> (I don't know what I could say about this that someone else hasn't said. It's like some dance-rock mini-epic. With puns.)<br><br><span style="font-weight: bold;"> Seven Nation Army - The White Stripes</span> (Isn't it kind of ridiculous that this mighty, mighty brick shithouse of a song and 'Hey Ya!' came out in the same year? What was in the water?)<br><br><span style="font-weight: bold;"> All Falls Down - Kanye West feat. Syleena </span>(This wins the 'which Kanye song?' battle because, well, fuck me if the catchy bugger doesn't say something sort of profound in three minutes forty-five seconds. 'They made us hate ourself and love they wealth.') <br><br><span style="font-weight: bold;">Something to Talk About - Badly Drawn Boy </span>(Ahhhhhhh. This is so mindblowingly pretty. How does he *do* this?)<br><br><span style="font-weight: bold;">Do You Realize?? - The Flaming Lips </span> (Yes. Yes, I am a dirty stinking hippy. Yes, I cried during The Flaming Lips' set at the Big Day Out. Inexplicably comforting, transcendent and beautiful.)<br><br><span style="font-weight: bold;">Work It - Missy Elliott </span>(She and Timbaland together are just awe-inspiring. It's... a Blondie sample, and a chorus you actually can't sing along with because it's backwards, and the sound of an elephant, and some bleeps and bloops, and some jokes, and... all these things somehow combine to make something utterly wonderful and bizarre and danceable and silly.) <br><br><span style="font-weight: bold;">Hey Ya! - OutKast</span> (If there's a bigger song this decade, I don't know what it could be. The crazy thing is that it's fucking *great* too. Every single part of it is a hook, somehow: there are handclaps and grunts and synth parts and backing vocals all creating this giant Catchy Monster of a track, and then the lead vocal is... so idiosyncratic and compelling. And that's before you even get to the 'breakdown', which will utterly destroy the dancefloor at any decent party. 'Lend me some sugar. I am your neighbour!' One of those songs which fades out and you're like 'where did it go? Can it be that short?') <br><br>Bubbling under, apart from those already mentioned: 'Gone Fishing', The Phoenix Foundation; 'Hot in Herre', Nelly; 'Clint Eastwood', Gorillaz; 'Don't Tell Me', Madonna; 'Imitation of Life'', REM; 'Crazy in Love', Beyonce; 'A Little Less Conversation', Elvis vs JXL; 'I See You Baby', Groove Armada; 'Pretty (Ugly Before), Elliott Smith; 'Toxic', Britney Spears (amazingly); 'Get the Party Started', Pink; 'Hurt', Johnny Cash; 'Northern Lights', Goldenhorse. Daniellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03896817139131485525noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3286047.post-46062849036169023152007-08-17T18:12:00.001+12:002007-08-17T18:12:45.762+12:00Reason 1387 to love The Muppets<div xmlns='http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml'><p><object height='350' width='425'><param value='http://youtube.com/v/rigqvv2Dk1I' name='movie'/><embed height='350' width='425' type='application/x-shockwave-flash' src='http://youtube.com/v/rigqvv2Dk1I'/></object></p><p>I have a theory about The Muppets. Actually, I have several theories about The Muppets, but one of the most important is that their appeal lies partly in how obvious it is that they really, really love songs. All kinds of songs. They're like a big old mp3 player on shuffle: you don't know what's going to come out next. Music-hall, vaudeville, the Beatles, the Great American Songbook, Broadway, disco, soul, rock - they really have such a generous musical spirit. I credit them as a big part of my early musical education: who else would teach me about songs like 'Lydia the Tattooed Lady', or 'Lady of Spain'? And although they can make a song ridiculous like no one ever has (the Viking warship version of 'In the Navy' springs to mind), there is often a kind of beauty to that ridiculousness. Which brings me to this clip of Linda Ronstadt singing 'Blue Bayou' with Floyd, Janis, Animal, that hairy dude on the xylophone... and a delightful chorus of percussive frogs. I honestly think this is one of the prettiest versions of this song I've ever heard - and also the silliest, by some considerable margin. Kudos, Muppet Band!</p></div>Daniellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03896817139131485525noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3286047.post-57336853505079573682007-07-15T12:11:00.003+12:002007-07-15T12:11:43.298+12:00Cheaters <div xmlns='http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml'><p><object height='350' width='425'><param value='http://youtube.com/v/C6WDDs710UQ' name='movie'/><embed height='350' width='425' type='application/x-shockwave-flash' src='http://youtube.com/v/C6WDDs710UQ'/></object></p><p>Then clip two: the confrontation! The 'meeting with the client' takes place in the car park of a strip mall (natch). Joey Greco really comes into his own here, with a truly magnificent showing of fake tasteful sympathy, and an underlying (yet terribly obvious) desire to get the money-shot. He's like King Cockroach, with a scuttling film crew of sub-cockroaches. I really love the way the cheatee isn't acting emotionally enough for him, so he attempts to make her more upset by saying something lame about the cheater 'only being honest with his dog'. Way to be, Greco! The actual players in the drama follow the usual pattern: the cheater initially denies, then falls back on apology, then blame; the cheatees start off blaming him, but then predictably round on each other. This clip is a good one because it allows for a thoroughly undignified exit: gather up your wet laundry and carry it away, my friend! Note that Joey Greco hovers around the confrontation, twisting the knife wherever he can in an attempt to make everything more and more dramatic. I particularly like the way he gazes manfully after the car as it takes off: you can tell that he thinks he's looking rather heroic.</p></div>Daniellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03896817139131485525noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3286047.post-53361630499347350072007-07-15T12:11:00.001+12:002007-07-15T12:11:13.704+12:00Cheaters <div xmlns='http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml'><p><object height='350' width='425'><param value='http://youtube.com/v/r3jfEuEUABo' name='movie'/><embed height='350' width='425' type='application/x-shockwave-flash' src='http://youtube.com/v/r3jfEuEUABo'/></object></p><p>Let me share with you just a little bit of the joy that is Cheaters. Clip one: the set-up. Please note several Cheaters stalwarts: the music bed is always just a little too loud; there are always some 'tasty licks' from an electric guitar to underpin the hot mess to follow; Joey Greco starts off as a malevolent little cheeseball gremlin (don't worry, he will only get worse). Then there's the voiceover dialogue, which is so marvellously overwritten that it deserves its own parade. Never say 'dog' when you could use 'loyal canine'! Never say 'goes' when you could say 'proceeds to leave the area'! The call for more suckers is also wonderfully worded. 'Exercise your right to be informed': let us exploit you and say that we're helping you out! I also love the way the investigators are apparently 'licensed'. By whom?</p></div>Daniellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03896817139131485525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3286047.post-31629447459530683492007-07-09T21:18:00.001+12:002007-07-09T21:18:33.935+12:00Flight of the Conchords were just quoted on *Sportscenter*.<p>Stunned, meet mullet.Daniellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03896817139131485525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3286047.post-87203363188742188972007-07-09T10:43:00.001+12:002007-07-09T10:43:36.482+12:00Literal LOLcat: yesterday, I made some spinach and feta muffins (well,<br>silverbeet and feta, actually, because the vege shop was out of<br>spinach, but that's incidental to the story). I left them to cool on a<br>plate on the kitchen worktop, covered with a tea towel, and Brent and<br>I went to visit my mother for a while. When we came back, my cat was<br>curled up on them, asleep. The integrity of the muffins was somewhat<br>compromised. I now have spinach and feta... coasters.Daniellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03896817139131485525noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3286047.post-90775447841297611632007-06-21T11:04:00.001+12:002007-06-21T11:04:03.958+12:00<!-- Converted from text/plain format --> <P><FONT SIZE=2>Man, all I seem to do on this blog is get tagged, lately. This is probably a sign that I should write more. Anyway, Marika sez:<BR> <BR> Instructions: Each player starts with 7 random facts/habits about themselves. People who are tagged need to write on their own blog about their seven things, as well as these rules. At the end of your blog, you need to choose 7 people to get tagged and list their names. Don't forget to leave them a comment telling them that they have been tagged and to read your blog!<BR> <BR> OK, seven random facts about me.<BR> <BR> 1) I never won any prizes at school until sixth form, when I won the Sociology prize *and* the Sociology cup (yes, there was a Sociology cup. Why? I don't know). Unfortunately, at the prize-giving assembly, this necessitated two consecutive walks across the stage to accept the prizes, so I had to tear frantically down the stairs, across the floor in front of the stage, and up the other side at terrific speed. It rather undercut my immense 16 year old dignity. (Ironically, I have come to regard Sociology as a rather problematic, ahistorical, bean-counting discipline in later life.)<BR> <BR> 2) When I was born, I had to be assisted with one of those weird suction-cup things because I was facing up instead of down. This caused my head to look slightly like a Smurf's hat. My mother, who was one of the last, blessedly generally anaesthetised of her generation, woke up to find a child she thought was deformed. Oh, did I mention that we were in Venezuela and her Spanish was limited? Yes. It took some time for her to have things explained in an intelligible way.<BR> <BR> 3) The herb I use most at home when cooking is coriander/cilantro. It is a major factor in Indian, Thai, Malaysian, Vietnamese, and Mexican foods. Annoyingly, it is also one of the herbs my next-door-neighbour-and-gardener mother hates growing, because it goes to seed so fast and needs so much space. Thus, I have way more sage than I know what to do with, and way less coriander than I need.<BR> <BR> 4) The show I miss the most from living in the USA is not anything actually awesome, like, say, The Colbert Report or Conan O'Brien - that shit is downloadable. No, it's Cheaters. It never shows up on any file-sharing networks, because it is a horrible schadenfreude-y nastiness low-budget reality show, originally filmed in Dallas. Brent and Gary and I loved it so much. We watched it religiously on a channel with absolutely no reception and terrible snow.<BR> <BR> 5) When I was a really little kid, my father made me a slide and swing set from scratch. I don't know how he managed to make a workable, non-splintering slide from wood, but he did. He also made me a mock-Tudor playhouse with a real glass window. This does not in any way detract from his general assholery in later life. I think my mother was a good influence on him. Unfortunately, I have not inherited a) his mathematical ability or b) his DIY skills. I can, however, cook nearly as well as him.<BR> <BR> 6) I have over fifty pairs of shoes, fifty handbags and fifty brooches. I also have more than one cape. 'Who wears a cape?' Yet with minor variations, I wear the same thing to work every day.<BR> <BR> 7) My first Beatles albums were Please Please Me, With the Beatles, A Hard Day's Night, Beatles for Sale, and Abbey Road. The first four were my mother's original albums from the 60s. The last one was my uncle Gary's original album from the 60s. (They were all scratched to hell.) As a result, I never heard arguably the best Beatles music until my teens. I received The White Album as a reward for getting chickenpox in 1989. I got Revolver last - and it's my favourite! When I met Brent, we discovered that we followed the same pattern of Beatle-album-collecting, at about the same time. It was a sign.<BR> <BR> Bonus random fact number eight: I never tag people when I'm told to. Suck it, tag-rule-makers!</FONT> </P> Daniellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03896817139131485525noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3286047.post-24002532056586039102007-05-15T16:45:00.001+12:002007-05-15T16:45:23.759+12:00Yesterday, after work, I got on the free city circuit bus, and a woman started singing Dave Dobbyn's 'You Oughta Be in Love', and a person was filming her from the opposite seat with a wee camera. I don't know, guerrilla art installation? Music video? But here's the weird part: everyone was initially kind of embarrassed, and then after about thirty seconds, the whole bus started singing along. Including me! <br> Daniellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03896817139131485525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3286047.post-7571697109956175222007-05-02T14:05:00.001+12:002007-05-02T14:05:05.231+12:00So, Marika tagged me. And for once, I will respond! (Trip to Europe: awesome. More later.)<br><br><div><font face="Gill Sans MT">FOODOLOGY<br><br>Q. What is your salad dressing of choice?<br>A. <span class="106271901-02052007">Balsamic vinaigrette. If I'm feeling creamy, ranch.</span><br><br>Q. What is your favorite fast food restaurant?<br>A. <span class="106271901-02052007">I assume you mean a chain? Given NZ's limitations in this area, I'm going with Burger Fuel.</span><br><br>Q. What is your favorite sit-down restaurant?<br>A. <span class="106271901-02052007">Cheap: that little Malaysian place in New Lynn. Less cheap: Bouchon Creperie in Kingsland.</span></font></div> <div><br>Q. On average, what size tip do you leave at a restaurant?<br>A. <span class="106271901-02052007">None! Hahahahaha! For we pay our waitstaff a living wage! (Actually, I'll round up the bill sometimes, as a bonus. In the US, I usually went with 20%. It's easy to work out and you don't look like an asshole.)</span></div><span class="106271901-02052007"></span> <div><br>Q. What food could you eat every day for two weeks and not get sick off of?<br>A. <span class="106271901-02052007">There are quite a lot of these, I think. But I'll go with toast and Vegemite. Or toast and jam. </span></div><span class="106271901-02052007"></span><span class="106271901-02052007"></span> <div><br>Q. What is your favorite type of gum?<br>A. <span class="106271901-02052007">I feel like gum is a have. It inspires your stomach to get all hungry, but you never get the payoff. And your jaw hurts. And the flavour disappears too damn fast. Given all that, Brent usually uses this stuff called 'Extra Professional' (don't ask me what's 'professional' about it), and that's what I have if I'm going to have gum.</span></div> <div><br>TECHNOLOGY<br><br>Q. What is your wallpaper on your computer?<br>A. <span class="106271901-02052007">At work, it's <a href="http://collection.aucklandartgallery.govt.nz/results.jsp?view=detail&id=6191">a 1981 Robin Morrison photograph</a> of the sadly defunct Paua Shell House in Bluff (an erstwhile wonder of the folk-art world). At home: a dumb picture of my dog.</span></div> <div><span class="106271901-02052007"></span><br>Q. How many televisions are in your house?<br>A. <span class="106271901-02052007">Three. Only one has Sky. And one of the minor TVs is just to play video games on.</span></div><span class="106271901-02052007"></span> <div><br>BIOLOGY<br><br>Q. What's your best feature?<br>A. <span class="106271901-02052007">Ack. Next!</span></div> <div><span class="106271901-02052007"></span><br>Q. Have you ever had anything removed from your body?<br>A. <span class="106271901-02052007">Blood plasma. Teeth. Oh no, wait, none of the teeth were forcibly extracted.</span></div><span class="106271901-02052007"></span> <div><br>Q. Which of your five senses do you think is keenest?<br>A. <span class="106271901-02052007">Any but sight. I am a four-eyes.</span></div> <div><br>Q. When was the last time you had a cavity?<br>A. <span class="106271901-02052007">The last time I went to the dentist, two years ago. I am not the greatest cavity-withstander. I probably have nine fillings.</span></div><span class="106271901-02052007"></span> <div><br>Q. What is the heaviest item you lifted last?<br>A. <span class="106271901-02052007">Either a box of donated books about Latin American history, or a suitcase from the Europe trip. That bag of Johnny Walker whisky for my mother was pretty heavy, too...</span></div> <div><br>Q. Have you ever been knocked unconscious?<br>A. <span class="106271901-02052007">I fainted once. Those trilling birds circling your head aren't just in cartoons.</span><br><br>BULLSHITOLOGY<br><br>Q. If it were possible, would you want to know the day you were going to die?<br>A. <span class="106271901-02052007">No! Wow, that would suck.</span><br><br>Q. Is love for real?<br>A. <span class="106271901-02052007">Duh.</span></div><span class="106271901-02052007"></span> <div><br>Q. If you could change your first name, what would you change it to?<br>A. <span class="106271901-02052007">I wouldn't change my name. My name kicks ass.</span></div> <div><br>Q. What color do you think looks best on you?<br>A. <span class="106271901-02052007">As a wee kid, my mother consistently dressed me in blue and/or brown. (Yes, it was the seventies.)</span></div><span class="106271901-02052007"></span> <div><br>Q. Have you ever swallowed a non-food item by mistake?<br>A. <span class="106271901-02052007">I have swallowed several bugs in my lifetime. Are they a non-food item?</span></div> <div><br>Q. Have you ever saved someone's life?<br>A. <span class="106271901-02052007">No.</span></div><span class="106271901-02052007"></span> <div><br>Q. Has someone ever saved yours?<br>A. <span class="106271901-02052007">Oh! Once when I was little I fell into the neighbour's pool. He got me out pretty fast, though.</span></div><span class="106271901-02052007"></span> <div><br>DAREOLOGY<br><br>Q. Would you walk naked for a half mile down a public street for $100,000?<br>A. <span class="106271901-02052007">US dollars? </span><span class="106271901-02052007">Just call me Lady Godiva. </span></div><span class="106271901-02052007"></span><span class="106271901-02052007"></span> <div><br>Q. Would you kiss a member of the same sex for $100?<br>A. <span class="106271901-02052007">I've done it for free. Sure.</span><br><br>Q. Would you allow one of your little fingers to be cut off for $200,000?<br>A. <span class="106271901-02052007">My *little* finger? US dollars? Maybe, depending on painkiller availability and reconstructive surgery options. I mean, that would totally crush my mortgage into submission, and I could then become a lady of leisure (see below).</span></div> <div><br>Q. Would you never blog again for $50,000?<br>A. <span class="106271901-02052007">There's always Livejournal, isn't there?</span></div><span class="106271901-02052007"></span> <div><br>Q. Would you pose nude in a magazine for $250,000?<br>A. <span class="106271901-02052007">No. That's way too big an audience.</span></div><span class="106271901-02052007"></span> <div><br>Q. Would you drink an entire bottle of hot sauce for $1,000?<br>A. <span class="106271901-02052007">Probably not. I may be cheap, but I'm not that cheap.</span></div><span class="106271901-02052007"></span> <div><br>Q. Would you, without fear of punishment, take a human life for $1,000,000?<br>A. <span class="106271901-02052007">Oh dear. No, I probably couldn't go through with that. Even if it was Hitler.</span></div><span class="106271901-02052007"></span> <div><br>Q. Would you give up watching television for a year for $25,000?<br>A. <span class="106271901-02052007">Not an option. Do you *know* me?</span></div><span class="106271901-02052007"></span> <div><br>Q. Give up MySpace forever for $30,000?<br>A. <span class="106271901-02052007">I hate MySpace. I just find it confusing. I am old. Yes, in other words.</span></div><span class="106271901-02052007"></span> <div><br>DUMBOLOGY<br><br>Q: What is in your left pocket?<br>A. <span class="106271901-02052007">Nada.</span></div><span class="106271901-02052007"></span> <div><br>Q: Is Napoleon Dynamite actually a good movie?<br>A. <span class="106271901-02052007">No! I'm so glad you asked that. It's funny in parts, but you never invest in the characters enough, and the 'laughing at quirky nerds in suburbia' trope is getting old. The opening credits are the best part. Rushmore mines the same territory but is about one hundred billion times better.</span></div><span class="106271901-02052007"></span> <div><br>Q: Do you have hardwood or carpet in your house?<br>A. <span class="106271901-02052007">Oooh, both. Walls are Scandinavian-wash wood, floor is carpet. Did I just blow your mind?</span></div><span class="106271901-02052007"></span> <div><br>Q: Do you sit or stand in the shower?<br>A. <span class="106271901-02052007">Stand. Is there a seat in your shower or something?</span></div><span class="106271901-02052007"></span> <div><br>Q: Could you live with roommates?<br>A. <span class="106271901-02052007">Nay. I have a very high need for home to equal personal sanctuary.</span></div><span class="106271901-02052007"></span> <div><br>Q: How many pairs of flip-flops do you own?<br>A. <span class="106271901-02052007">Two. I only wear one, though.</span></div><span class="106271901-02052007"></span> <div><br>Q: Last time you had a run-in with the cops?<br>A. <span class="106271901-02052007">Define 'run-in'. I reported a stolen bag...</span><br><br>Q: What do you want to be when you grow up?</div> <div><span class="106271901-02052007"></span>A<span class="106271901-02052007"> lady of leisure.</span><br><br>LASTOLOGY<br><br>Q: Friend you talked to?<br>A. <span class="106271901-02052007">On the computer? Lawrence. Or Rachael. In person? Danni and Gary, weirdly enough.</span></div> <div><br>Q: Last person you called?<br>A. <span class="106271901-02052007">My mother.</span></div><span class="106271901-02052007"></span> <div><br>RANDOMOLOGY<br><br>Q: First place you went this morning?<br>A. <span class="106271901-02052007">Work.</span></div><span class="106271901-02052007"></span> <div><br>Q: What can you not wait to do?<br>A. <span class="106271901-02052007">Get paid so I don't have to keep eating ramen noodles.</span></div> <div><span class="106271901-02052007"></span><br>Q: What's the last movie you saw?<br>A. <span class="106271901-02052007">Something on the plane. Notes on a Scandal. Or Borat.</span><br><br>Q: Are you a friendly person?<br>A. <span class="106271901-02052007">Yes! Although I might be less eager-puppy friendly than I used to be, in general. Is this maturity or just fatigue?</span></div><br> Daniellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03896817139131485525noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3286047.post-1174595884044182852007-03-23T09:38:00.000+12:002007-03-23T09:38:04.053+12:00Maybe it's my privileged 90s alternative concert upbringing, but until last night I don't think I had ever seen a girl on someone's shoulders flash her tits at an 'I love you'-mouthing lead singer. And it's unlikely that I'll ever see it again at the same show as a full-fledged 80s-California-punk moshpit. The weird and wonderful world of the Eagles of Death Metal, ladies and gentlemen! <br><br>Brent calls them the ultimate chicken-walking band, and he is not wrong. That show was all kinds of fun. I think I might love that skeezy truck-stop gay-biker faux-fey-southern lead singer, and all he stands for.<br> Daniellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03896817139131485525noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3286047.post-1171051454332239142007-02-10T09:04:00.000+13:002007-02-10T09:04:14.446+13:00Ahem. Hi. I just wanted to say that I am hugely thrilled by those low-cost laptops Google is organising for developing countries, because... you can power them with a treadle! Like an old-school sewing machine! How awesome is that? I want one. <br> Daniellehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03896817139131485525noreply@blogger.com1