onenintneenamandaboutosleep

Man, have I been busy lately! I believe such happens when you have two jobs, one of which I'm still a noob at. But with all this new responsibly and limited availability I have taken two things very seriously in keeping myself sane: Riding my bike to work (psh, rain or shine!) and going to Borders every monday to get a blackberry cream coffee (one of my very few caffeine indulgences) and getting a new book to tear through. Last week I went in with a list of books yo check from New York Times reviews I'd read and some other authors (*coughNeilGainmancough*) but ended up buying the first book I picked up which happened to be by Laurie Halse Anderson, the author of one of my all-time favorite books Speak. I will be honest, I picked up this book because of the cover (it's all blue and kinda sparkly!!. Then I read the first page of Wintergirls and I knew I couldn't leave it there. It follows the three month decline of Lia, a girl plagued with anorexia. I won't go into to much detail, but this book had me seriously captivated. It's terrifying and at the same time the writing is so overwhelming, I was amazed. I also felt so strange when I finished it. It got to me, something I can't say for every book I read....which is a lot. 

This week I was cruising the fiction aisle, and found Elliot Perlman's Seven Types Of Ambiguity in the wrong aisle, picked it up and took it home with me. I read the first page and thought "Goddamn this sounds like me." and after that first page it was not like me at all. It change so quickly that I am now sucked into this complex web of strangers who all know each other but not really. It kind of makes my head spin in a good way. This brings me t a tangent, my mom mentioned at dinner on monday about me wanting a mini laptop and what-not and went on to say that I should write a book. For pre-teens. Because I've apparently matured very much and my writing is wonderful. Then I was disturbed because any real writing I do is 1) not blogging, 2) is kept with me at all times, 3) is pretty much a secret, and 40 not happening very often till this week really (and this might only last a little while another lapse). I had really hoped she wasn't sneaking around to read my most private thoughts that I also don't share with anyone. I do find it amusing that if one were to know what it is I wrote about they could find it a) sad, b) pathetic, or c) obsessive, or d) kind of romantic. This is all entirely besides the point. I did however, alert her that I could not possibly aim to  pre-teens because of my honesty- which includes sex and cursing. Not exactly pre-teen friendly. And I wouldn't aim to become the next J.K. Rowling or Stephanie Meyer. My stupid naive  philosophy is that if I could reach one person then that's enough for me (or a few). I'm too laid-back and introverted to need global success. It weirds me the hell out. In any case, I digress. I would like to point out quickly that I am half asleep right now, it's past my bedtime. How strange to be saying that. This past saturday I went to Philadelphia to see galleries and a concert at the Trocadero. Good Old War, Heartless Bastards, and The Gaslight Anthem played. It was very very good. Good Old War is super and if you don't know of em' you should check em out. Gaslight and Heartless Bastards are also good (but I haven't had them stuck in my head for the past five days). 

I taught one boss awkward turtle and the other had never "Oh snap!" before. This makes me smile.

And that is all for now. Hopefully, I will do this again soon, it's been good for the soul. 

oh, what a night to be famous

New this week:

I have indeed tried soy milk. While the flavor varies greatly from regular milk (it has a thinner feel than whole milk, is a tan color, and has a rice like taste to it) it's alright. It's good alternative to milk and it doesn't spoil as quickly as milk, but I think from now I'll just limit all milk consumption. 

Last night the eighty first Oscars were held on ABC and was a most spectacular event. The re-vamping that was done to make the show more entertaining went over fairly well. The stage was beautifully designed and mostly everyone looked fabulous (with a few exceptions. also, did Mickey Rourke and Adrien Brody forget to shower?) Granted the song and dance act with Beyonce, Hugh Jackman, and the kids from High School Musical was weird. The worst part being the kids from High School Musical. I was rather jealous of Beyonce because she got use Hugh Jackman as a pole. Damn her! I missed the first hour of the show but caught the best original screenplay for Milk. 

My top three favorite Oscar moments of this year:

-When Best Short Animated Film La Maison en Petite Cubes won and Kunio Kato accepted his award and ended his speech by saying, "Domo arigato Mr. Roboto!".  (I had secretly wished he'd say it and it did, therefore, I must have psychic abilities.)

- When Man On Wire won Best Documentary and James Marsh and Simon Chinn invited Philippe Petit onstage and he make a crazy speech and then proceeded to balance the Oscar on his chin (this is also because he's a crazy frenchmen)

-When Joaquin Stiller and Natalie Portman presented. I mean Joaquin Phoenix. Er, I mean Ben Stiller. I started watching The Late Show with David Letterman with my parents in the eight grade and continue to watch it (by myself now) almost every night or the next day on the dvr. So, to see one of the greatest moments of that show (that Joaquin stole from Andy Kauffman) made fun of on air at the Oscars with Natalie Portman saying "What is wrong with you? You look like you work at a hasidic meth lab." was quite possibly the best Oscar moment of all time (except maybe when Adrien Brody made out with Halle Berry). The moment has been criticized for being an 'inside joke' in Hollywood and the viewers outside the US might not understand it. And to that I say, Screw you! This is America! We can do whatever the hell we want at the Oscars because we own it! If anything, it set a path for the Oscars to become more like New Hollywood as opposed to what Hollywood used to be. Hollywood now isn't as classy as it once was, but is forging it's own way to the people of this century. 

And props to Kate Winslet (one of my favorite actresses), for her Best Lead Actress in The Reader. It was her first win and well overdue. I suspect the ticket sales are going to rocket up this week for Slumdog Millionaire, which I still would very much so like to see, along with The Reader (but mostly because I read the book about a year ago and liked it very much.) Overall though I feel I enjoyed this year's Oscar's more than previous years and perhaps it was because of the new format or watching with a friend and having wonderful pineapple upside down cake, all in all it was a pleasant experience. 

because horror television can go unnoticed

I have been feeling a tad bit off this week, I've decidedly become apathetic about finding a job, so with that lack of drive there, I hope to work on experiments.

Focus:

- Wake up early. 

I like sleeping. This one has been failing horribly. It's easier to wake up when one has a schedule to stick to, and I don't. I have to find a balance of when to work out, go to bed, and eat. Meals are on track and my caffeine consumption is very limited, so it's boiled down to being tired at a reasonable hour and fighting insomnia without medicinal aid. 

-Try soy milk.

I've been trying to not drink chocolate milk, but it's just so good! And yet it's really, really not good for me being slightly lactose intolerant. We'll see how this goes when we return from the store later this week. 

-Maybe find a job.

Not really an experiment, but a lie and wait kind of thing. 

-Blog more often. 

No need to explain. 

And other than all that, I found out a new channel! Okay, it's not really new (it was introduced in 2007 by NBC Universal). Chiller tv is kind of like Sci-fi but geared more towards horror fans. Granted, all the series they show are re-runs: 

Chris Carter's (creator of The X-Files) Millennium in which a profiler can see visions about said cases. 

Freddy's Nightmares is about Freddy Krueger terrorizing people one hour at a time. It sounds pretty terrible, but it's surprisingly decent. And! added bonus! You can see a few few famous people before they were famous. 

There's a few other classic series they show as well- Twin peaks, The Twilight Zone, Brimstone, Special Unit 2, and Monsters. 

Along with shows that you may have never seen are movies! Terribly awesome made for tv movies that very well may have been on Sci-Fi, but I don't care because they are fantastic. I have aptly recorded Manticore and will watch it after working out and putting off sleeping and it will be a night to remember. (I'm also sure I've lost sleep watching Lifetime movies, which some would argue are far worse.) And with that, I  shall go tune in to Chiller tv and advise the same for you. 

Whats more romantic than falling in love with a hooker and murdering her pimp and proceeding to travel cross country to sell cocaine?

Not much. Valentine's Day is tomorrow and to prevent if from sucking (whether you're alone or with someone) check out these awesome movies because not much beats a Christian Slater marathon. 

Christian Slater Movie Pick #1:

True Romance (1993)

Co-starring- Patricia Arquette, Dennis Hoper, Val Kilmer, Gary Oldman, and Brad Pitt.

 

Clarence (Christian Slater), a guy who works in a comic book store, falls head over heals in love with Alabama (Patricia Arquette) a hooker. Alabama is a noob at prostitution. They get spend the night together and get married. Clarence later goes to retrieve her things from Alabama's pimp, Drexl (Gary Oldman) and ends up killing him and instead of getting her stuff accidentally gets a suitcase full of cocaine. What's a guy to do? To protect his new lady they travel to Hollywood to sell the cocaine all the while being followed by gangsters. This early Quentin Tarantino movie (written by, directed by Tony Scott) is like Pretty Woman only better! It's the kind of romantic action comedy that both me and woman alike can enjoy. 

Christian Slater Movie Pick #2:

Bed Of Roses (1993)

Co-starring- Mary Stuart Masterson, Josh Brolin, Pamela Adlon

This is one of my personal favorite Christian Slater movies. Lewis (Christian Slater) who is a florist, falls in love with Lisa (Mary Stuart Masterson) who was an orphan and is now a career woman. The two find a connection, but struggle to keep it because Lisa is afraid of rejection. It's a sweet romantic drama that the ladies might like more than the fellas, but the overall message and sincerity of the film can melt anyone's heart.

Christian Slater Movie Pick #3:

Untamed Heart (1993)

Co-starring- Marissa Tomei, Rosie Perez 

I watched three fourths of this movie abut a year ago and them my sister took her dvd. I saw the last quarter this week and was shocked. Caroline (Marissa Tomei) is waitress trying to earn her keep while she attends beauty school. Adam (Christian Slater) is a shy busboy at the same diner. He follows Caroline home one night and protects her from two assailants. The two irrevocably fall in love. Caroline learns that Adam is an orphan and has a severe heart condition that requires a transplant, but he claims he needs his heart to love her. What will happen to these two lovebirds? Watch this moving film about true love found in the most unlikely of places. (P.s. Marissa Tomei's brooklyn accent is sometimes annoying but I find that in this movie it's almost cute) (p.s.s. this is totally a girl movie)

Christian Slater Movie Pick #4:

Heathers (1988)

Co-starring- Winona Ryder,Shannen Doherty 

It's obvious that I really like Christian Slater, but more than that I absolutely love Winona Ryder. Her crazy antics aside, this doe-eyed beauty can act and is oh so lovely. Heathers is a classic, the anecdote to John Hughes era of films about high school. Granted a lot of them are fantastic: Sixteen Candles, The Breakfast Club, Pretty In Pink, Weird Science, Ferris Bueller's Day Off, etc...but this movie is the ideal anti-valentine's day movie. Why you may ask? Veronica (Winona Ryder) is part of a group called The Heathers; the beautiful, bitchy, popular girls who run their school. A glance across the lunchroom one day brings J.D. (Christian Slater) and Veronica together. J.D. is a dark, brooding, sexy loner/outcast and finds that same kind of kindred spirit in Veronica. They accidentally murder the lead Heather and to cover their asses make it look like suicide. This is only the beginning. Things take a downward spiral and suicide becomes a cool trend. Veronica starts to have second thoughts she must deal with J.D.'s rampage. Filled with memorable quotes ("Dear diary, my teenage-angst bullshit now has a body count.")and dark comedy this movie is sure to squelch one's valentine's day blues.