Vote for Obama.

I love this clip.

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I woke up this Saturday morning with my cup of coffee, relaxing before I head into a much-dreaded closing retail shift this afternoon. And every Saturday night for that matter. Not much to comment regarding the news. I am an Obama supporter and that's all I have to conclude from the latest political farce. The economy sucks, sales are slumping, everyone is on edge (both co-workers and my customers) and there are a million problems to be fixed. No sense dwelling on the bad. Instead I shall focus on a few of my favorite things à la Julie Andrews.

In no particular order.

1. The new yarn I bought this week. It's knitting season! I haven't picked it up the last few years so I had to borrow a knitting dvd from the library to refresh my memory on a few steps.

2. Ricky Gervais. He has a particular twinkle in his eye that entertains me so. Have I already commented on this? I don't remember. After watching the film Ghost Town I have concluded that the Ricky Gervais eye-twinkle is similar to that of the Tin Man in Wizard of Oz.

3. The new Lucinda Williams release. This one, Little Honey, is like listening to Car Wheels on a Gravel Road for the first time. Not so much in its sound, but in the sensation of hearing something so incredibly new and rockin and refreshing. I have seen her in concert several times and was even invited to the Soundstage taping at WTTW long, long ago. She is just the coolest. Incredible record.

4. Blindness. This film was genuinely disturbing but I was captivated throughout the entire picture. I was unfamiliar with the book but plan to read it once I get through all the other thirty books in line before it. I don't know why I seem to be drawn to apocalyptic themes so often....hmmm.

5. Halloween music. In particular, the latest Little Steven's Underground Garage release Halloween-a-Go-Go, the Classics from the Crypt album and an old Rhino release Halloween Hits with all the whimsical favorites such as Monster Mash, the Blob and Ghostbusters. You cannot deny the magnificence of the Monster Mash. I wish someone like Nick Cave or David Byrne would do a cover...

6. The 7-11 voter cups. I had no idea when I wandered into a 7-11 on my way to the train yesterday morning that I could CHOOSE an Obama, McCain or Undecided cup. I know I said I wasn't going to mention politics in this blog entry but I got a lot of questions about that cup I was holding. I told them it was a new blend at Starbucks - the Obama blend: a smooth, rich flavor with hints of anti-anxiety medication for a rich, robust experience.

6. Pretenders' Break Up the Concrete. Fantastic energy in this one. This is one to purchase and not download because the packaging includes a paper sleeve you can plant in soil and see some sprouts. I've always mentioned what an incredible incentive it would be to buy physical discs if there was a Willy Wonka golden ticket factor played in the surprise of it all...

So speaking of avalanched cd sales, I must now prepare myself for work.

SIGH!

To Sir, With Love

God, I love this movie. I just watched it again for the first time in years.

Discipline.

I have been trying to devote a little time each day to a concrete writing submission project, but I fall down on the job each time. I'm not going to beat myself up over this. I work a ridiculous work schedule, never have two consecutive days off, and if I do have free time I like to spend it with my husband. It would be fantastic to find myself an agent and receive some spectacular publishing house funding to concentrate solely on W-R-I-T-I-N-G, but I am well aware of the reality of 'luck' and find refuge in the mere fun of it all.

As I sift through candid writings from days of yore, old travelogues and travelblogs that were originally written as a correspondence to all the family and friends I've met along the way, I cringe at times when I remember the thoughts I had at the moment of the original writing. Again, I pull from the months in France in 2005. This was written at the moment of the so-called Parisian suburb riots, incidentally only 3 towns away from the one I was in, and at a time when I had absolutely no idea where my life would be taking me even one week from that point.

You re-read your own thoughts and relive those particular experiences and laugh at how silly everything seemed. But you also slowly smile and thank God for allowing you to choose your own adventure....

Monday, November 7th, 2005

1:05 pm - Creators, Creation, Media and Everything Else Out-of-Proportion

It's been a bizarre few days. I just heard from the folks back home and everyone was scared that I would somehow get lost in the Paris riots. I've watched it slowly grow, from the first few burnings being covered on the french news, to the eventual coverage by the BBC satellite tv at my cousin's house, to the concerned American family members and their kooky coverage back home. Kinda ironic how a little news story a week or two ago spread like a wildfire around the globe and is now out of control. I have walked and climbed and scaled these city walls and I haven't even smelled one whiff of fire. You know what? There are a million other things going on in this city too. I went to the Louvre yesterday because it was free and they moved the Mona Lisa to a nicer room and got rid of that scratched acrylic panel and replaced it with a very tall piece of glass. Also, the Information Desk at the Louvre is on strike. Everyone here in France goes on strike! Immigrants flock to this country because the social benefits are incredulous. I watched a tiny little nation's people protest around the Bastille to bring attention to their atrocious government and the loss of their culture. They had music, a bunch of loud percusions and you could hear it almost all the way over to the Seine. Today I was roaming and sat down on a bench near the Arc de Triomphe and some Arab women asked me if I could give them some money. The first one cursed me when i shook my head no. I explained to the second one that I also did not have any income and she blessed me as a sister in her language and the others smiled around me and did a two-second prayer vigil around me or something. They flirted with French security standing nearby and everyone laughed and they went on their way with their daily beggings. Globalism is here. Il faut melanger. C'est la vie. I wandered around the Pompidou Centre and looked at an incredible modern art collection, not organised chronologically or by school, but by socialist themes. The last rooms were war, death, voyeurism and prostitution. I left feeling rather melancholic, as if that's ALL we have to come together and create right now but mass chaos everywhere, but there was one last room right by the Big Bang entrance, which was nearly pitch black, you had to walk around a dark room with strangers and search for the guiding lights, featuring five film installations of particular cosmic happenings in the astral skies above. Five Angels for the Universe. Great, a little optimism never hurt anyone, perhaps misdiagnosed as naivete often, but pray tell, where exactly ARE these five angels and when are people going to start listening to them?

honka for wonka

There are many random occurrences in our daily routines that can make life a little more extraordinary.

While on my way to the train this past august, Willy Wonka was parked right outside my place. What do you think he announces over his rooftop intercom system? Or what song do you think plays as he drives? Most importantly, WHAT WAS HE DOING OUTSIDE MY HOME?

In the spirit of random joys, here are some other things that have made me smile recently.

1. Nick Cave @ the Riviera, September 28th. I have always wanted to catch one of his shows...his ballads and screechers and beat poems and other diversities have repeatedly piqued my curiosity. So he didn't perform Nobody's Baby Now, but I was pleased nonetheless. He even includes a Charlie Manson lookalike among his Bad Seeds. Mr. Cave swaggered like Mick Jagger and beguiled everyone with Polly Jean Harvey gestures. Had they not dated I would swear they were born from the same initial group of cells. The opening band, Black Diamond Heavies, showed us what the world would have been like had Animal the Muppet played piano instead of drums.

2. Two movies. The Fall, starring the most charismatic little Romanian actress who absolutely MADE the film. And Young@Heart. One of the most endearing film experiences I've encountered in quite some time.

3. My brothers. My brothers are my sisters. Does that make sense? One brother in NYC went to his first psychic to celebrate his birthday. I imagine the experience as that of Peewee Herman stepping into the psychic's office as he went for advice on where to find his bike. The basement of the Alamo. Don't forget your wallet, Peewee. And the other brother, who is a longtime rock-n-roll show attendee extraordinaire, has become a grown up and started wearing earplugs at loud shows. In his most recent rock-n-roll excursion, he forgot about his earplugs, they got stuck and he had to have them removed by doctors.

4. Cost Plus World Market's brand of Nutella-like spreads. They have a dark chocolate version. Slap some a dat slop on your bagel or croissant and behold. It tastes like thick brownie batter.

5. The autumn. This is, by far, my favorite time of the year in Chicago. I don't fare well in the heat, and I love tall boots and scarves and the scent of leaves and HALLOWEEN and warm jackets and crunching leaves in my path and cuddling on the couch under the blankets with Eric and watching scary movies.

6. Barack Obama. What can I say? He is above all the madness and stupidity in the world and knows the profundity of human interconnectedness. Chicago's early voting starts after Columbus Day and you can bet your big tall autumn boots I'll be at my neighborhood library to seal my vote first chance I get.