Add Radiohead and Lykke Li to the Mix

From PJ Harvey to Radiohead to Lykke Li, my head is about to explode with awesome new music. Lykke Li's album isn't out yet (March 1st!), but she leaked it last week online. I posted some PJ in my last post, so here are my two favorite songs from Radiohead and Li.

New PJ Harvey

"Let England Shake", the new album released today by PJ Harvey is pretty remarkable. On my third round; each round brings about new understanding. This is a war album, and it shows. Marching beats and explicit references to death sprinkle almost every song. Highly recommended.

OMG! Obama a Christian!

Apparently, Obama's team finds it necessary to underscore (yet again!) that he is in fact a Christian. I get it. A lot of Americans vote by their faith, and a lot of Americans are Christians. A politician must exploit his belief system in order to cater to the concerns of his more religious constituents. (Well, technically, nobody ever HAS to do anything, but politics is certainly a game of "whatever it takes to get on top".)

(Here's the article on Yahoo!, which if you've ever read the comments on Yahoo! articles, you'll realize why it's pretty apropos that it's a major headline there. Even articles on cute cat tricks inevitably contain comments praising Sarah Palin as an angel and Obama as a demonic socialist.)

So, even though I understand the necessity for this, I still find it pretty unnerving. I believe Obama. Being the US President is a tough job and it is often under extremely stressful situations that people turn to faith. I totally buy every quote he's spewing out; however, it's the reason that bothers me.

The reality is, if Obama wants to get reelected in 2012, he is going to need to build a stronger base among typically conservative Christians. This is a great start to a necessary PR scheme. All I'm saying is, I don't have to like it.

Lia Ices

Lia Ices. Music as smooth and comfortably cold as her surname. She peers over the fence at all the waif-sounding, dime-a-dozen song fairies, but doesn't climb over. Instead she runs back to all her friends (like that Bon Iver guy) and they sing songs by the fire of pretentious genius - but, you know, they just sing and dance around it, totally unaffected.

Check out the album, Grown Unknown, released on January 25 (coincidentally, also the best day of the year... ahem).

"Alan! Alan! Alan! Al! Alan!"

Absurd.

Hang 10PM

Remarkably dangerous, I'm sure. Still pretty awesome.

Mark Visser Rides JAWS at Night! from Fortrus Sports on Vimeo.

How to Extend Your Life without Extending Your Life

Via BoingBoing, an interesting experiment on how to prolong your life by manipulating the passage of time. Sign me up.

The Time Hack - Day 4: Explainer from The Time Hack on Vimeo.

Visit www.thetimehack.com to follow the journey.

2010 Musical Highlights

A tad too lazy for creating a thorough top ten album list for 2010 (not to mention, totally delayed).

The circumstances for 2010 were strange for me in general, and unfortunately, I didn't get a chance to pay attention to the music scene as much as I normally would. Regardless, I'd still like to share some of my favorite songs from the year.

No rankings, no explanations, no need:

The Roots (feat. Joanna Newsom & STS), "Right On"


M.I.A., "Space"


Arcade Fire, "We Used to Wait"

The National, "Sorrow"


Robyn, "Indestructible"


Sharon Jones & The Dap Kings, "Better Things"


Black Keys, "Too Afraid to Love You"


Fatboy Slim & David Byrne, "Here Lies Love"



... and because I can't resist. I don't know why I love this song so much.

Flo Rida (feat. David Guetta), "The Club Can't Handle Me"



I can say quite confidently that I am missing many favorites that I had, but have just forgotten. Here's hoping 2011 is a better year for music... or at least, a better year for musical posterity by me.

Josh Groban on Jimmy Kimmel

Please watch this 400 times in a row.

My Sister's Neater

Growing up, my sister could never clean her room well enough to even make a pathway to the door. Now she's hosting parties, brunches, and events for her family, friends, and church that rival event planning professionals. Just goes to show that we all change as we grow older.

Over Christmas, we reminisced about how she once coerced me into admitting that I put a hole in the bathroom wall (a hole that she made!) in order that we could both end up going to the Harvest Festival in Irvine where we grew up. I took the fall. My sister went, I didn't.

Now she's a married, mother of two with her hands full. Yet she still manages to do things like this:

To read more from her blog (in my opinion, much more interesting, creative and inspiring than mine) visit: http://jmtjohnson.blogspot.com/

1/1/11

I'm back from my 9-month sabbatical. It was unannounced, unplanned and totally not kosher with the "being disciplined" theme of this blog. 2010 turned out to be a bit tougher than I expected. Lots of capital-C Crossroads (yes, Britney-serious), revelations and letdowns. But it's a new year. Amid all the resolutions, celebrations and irresponsible drinking, one thing that I love about New Year's Day is the communal belief that it truly is the beginning of a new chapter. I find it remarkable that we as an intelligent species are still so prone to hop on the bandwagon at each arbitrary turn of a year. I like that. It reminds me that we as humans are a) capable of starting over and learning from our mistakes, and, b) stupid.

So, what are my resolutions? I'm not quite sure, but I have some ideas. One, which may be obvious as I'm saying this all here, is to write more (or, again) on this blog. I had a few people say they missed reading my posts (which was validating) and a lot negative Nancies in my head pushing me towards abstaining given my personal disappointment with the content/quality/laziness of writing that had started to creep out. No guarantees that this blog will change anyone's life (including my own), but I think any opportunity that arises where I can get out of my own head is a good one.

One big change this year: I started graduate school. Along with the long nights of cramming microeconomic concepts, interpreting financial statements, and analyzing political case studies, my diet sort of flew out the window. Rewarding yourself with buckets of licorice and vats of Diet Coke just for finishing assigned readings is not a healthy habit. It's amazing how your mind can justify your behavior under stressful situations. I was eating pretty healthy for the first nine months of 2010, and I'm going back to that. My body will probably really enjoy getting rid of the extra 15 pounds I managed to pack on in under 100 days.

So, what else? Not sure. 4.0? Find love? Cook more? Save an Asian elephant? For everything else that the year will offer, I'm just resolving to be open-minded... and to stay out of the ivory trade.

Happy New Year!

Telephone, Redialed

Listen. I love Lady Gaga. I've said it here before. I think she's innovative and risky. In fact, I've got tickets to see her in Seattle in August. Is she overplayed? Probably. Does she dress like a maniacal looney? Definitely.

Regardless of how you feel about her, this video is a must watch. A great "Telephone" parody, this video really addresses a lot of issues people have with Lady Gaga and kind of gets them right. I still like her, but I'm way on board with the message of this video. I've seen the real "Telephone" video a few times now, and I'm still scratching my head.

Song of the Mo: "This Too Shall Pass" by Ok Go

This music video makes me so happy. From those infamous treadmill guys.

Embedding has been disabled by request (stupid music labels). Click here to watch the awesome video on YouTube.

Ladies and Gentlemen, Lori Watt!

TRAIN WRECK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Weekly WTF?: Lindsay Lohan Suing E-Trade

Lindsay Lohan is suing E-Trade for "pain and suffering." Why?

Well, during E-Trade's Superbowl commercial, a baby named "Lindsay" is referenced as being a "milkaholic." Is it eTrade's fault that whenever we hear the words "Lindsay" and "holic", we think of Lindsay Lohan? No. That's her own damn fault. Also, who does she think she is - Cher? Madonna? Lindsay is one of the most popular girl's names in America. You can't claim it like that, girlfriend. Get over yourself and put the bottle down.

And because I like E-Trade today (since my stocks are up) I am totally on their side. Also, the commercial is HILARIOUS! See for yourself.

TED Talks: Responsible Eating

I LOVE TED Talks!

I've been trying to watch 2 to 3 TED videos each week. It's like free continuing education and your professors happen to be the experts in their fields!

My latest viewing theme is related to food. Mark Bittman and Jamie Oliver (this year's TED winner) both give dynamic speeches about the importance of healthy eating and consequences of unhealthy (or, "convenient") eating.

We kill 10 billion animals a year. To put that in perspective, there are only about 6 billion people on Earth. These talks totally confirm my belief in practicing "flexitarianism" - eating meat in true moderation (I only eat chicken and turkey).

Song of the Mo: "Monday Morning" by Melanie Fiona

Melanie Fiona is an emerging R&B artist who released her first album, "The Bridge," last year. I am not really a huge R&B person and - in the spirit of total transparency - I'm actually not a huge fan of this entire album. She's also a Kanye West protege, which is kind of a bummer since he's a major douche squirt . That said, this song is equal parts catchy, original and makes-you-all-smiley. Not to mention a total throwback. Love it.

Currently touring with Alicia Keys, Melanie Fiona was nominated for a Grammy this past year for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance (not for this song, but for the snoozefest, "It Kills Me") and "Monday Morning" reached #1 on the Swiss charts (I LOVE Switzerland!). Hailing from Canada and already a pretty big deal in half of Europe, she's bound to have a bright career ahead of her.

Thanks, Easy Street, for the introduction. Enjoy.

Religion is Funny

Watch Betty Bowers, America's Best Christian, explain exactly why same sex marriage is a sin.

On Lot's wife: "...so a Bible based marriage can sometimes be between one man... and a kitchen condiment!"

Just goes to show, you should really only take what the Bible says with... a grain of salt!

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year! Yes, I know it's March. I extend this wish now because this is about the time every year when the new year starts to settle in. Writing the date with 2010 has become a bit more routine, the holiday season is over and (if you live in Seattle, at least) spring is rapidly approaching. I believe that it is in March, not January, when things really start to come together to feel "new."

It is also in March when reality starts to set in. A new year is typically accompanied by positive resolutions, temporary motivation and an abnormal case of the "happies" possessed by everyone from the grocery clerk to the businessman. It's like we back flip from December and start acting like the children of the corn, acting so totally out of character that those of us not subscribing to new year customs are thoroughly creeped out. By March, however, our eyes start to lose that awkward glaze and we officially stop drinking the Kool-Aid. People start to realize that their lives are just as miserable as they were the previous year. Newbie gym bunnies suddenly understand that in order to lose the weight you can't just join the gym, you actually have to go. Young professionals with new outlooks on their jobs finally cave in and scratch those genius plans for "restructuring the organization." Frustrated commuters again realize that their third finger is for more than just nose-picking and resume sticking it up in front of their rear view mirrors.

But it doesn't have to be this way, does it? For the past few years, I've tried to avoid the crowds and the inevitable let down that is the New Year. I think we've got it all screwed up. The majority of the world celebrates in January, which is way too early. I mean, you don't really start to celebrate a business transaction until you start seeing results, right? January is just too overwhelming anyway. A new year, and 365 more days before another one... come on now, that's stressful!

In January, I never make resolutions. I lose all motivation (as displayed by my lack of blog posts) and crankiness tends to dominate most of my conversations with people I forget are supposed to be my friends. I think the only serious resolution we should make in January is to resolve to turn another year older at some point in the new year. It's a guarantee. Well, unless you die of course - but then none of this would apply to you anyway. It's a win-win!

The Chinese are close - they celebrate in February. February gives a bit more leeway with resolutions and we've got at least a month's wort of experience to get a better idea of where the year is headed. But Valentine's Day sort of screws everything up there because half of the country is miserably not in love.

Which brings us to March. March is spring, spring is rebirth and rebirth is a new beginning. I mean, can you come up with a better argument for celebrating a new year during this time? You've got to give the new year sometime to introduce itself to you. By March, we've had two whole months to figure out how we're going to approach the new year, because the new year has already given us some information to use to help us make new decisions.

It may be unconventional, but it makes sense - and I'm actively recruiting. So Happy New Year to you, my friend. If things haven't been going well for you so far this year, there's no need to worry. It's a new year! And if things have been going well, that's great. You can keep up the good work and celebrate the new year by celebrating the successes you've already had. Either way, it's a new beginning - embrace it, create it and believe in it.

Avahontar (Revisited)

To follow up on a previous post, Avahontar, here is a video mash-up that combines the two strikingly similar concepts of Avatar and Pocahontas.

Here's to hoping it does NOT win the Oscar for Best Picture.

CFV 426 - Avatar/Pocahontas Mashup FINAL VERSION from Randy Szuch on Vimeo.