Laid

In belated honor of St. Valentine's Day, I present the satisfyingly awful "Laid," produced by Brian Eno.

When I was younger, I had but a vague idea of what this song was about. Today, I'm amazed that these lyrics were broadcast on mid-nineties American radio.

Other exciting tidbits:

• I did standup for the first time on Friday night at Worcester Polytechnic Institute. The audience was receptive and attentive, especially the generous friends who trekked out to cheer me on. Already I'm itching to perform again.
• Over the course of the weekend, I've spent a solid four hours in front of a piano (two hours of which were under the tutelage of my dear pal Deeks, who patiently taught me all sorts of songs).
• Today I impulsively hopped on the bus and wandered around Cambridge and Boston like a dense little tourist. I got back to Wellesley an hour ago, and I'm still defrosting.

-"Laid" by James, from Laid (1993)

Sister I'm a Poet

This time last year, I was a complete mess: my body was covered in hives, I was moving out, my entire bookshelf was soon to be lost by the USPS, and finals were happening. December, this time around, is a breeze in comparison. It feels like the last few weeks have happened without much thought or planning (though that's certainly not true).

Already I'm dreaming of trekking to the river and diving into some Arthur Bryant's burnt ends when I get home. New England can do a lot of things well, but barbecue is not one of them.

But before I get ahead of myself, I'm going to keep working to these sweet melodies.

"Along this way

Outside the prison gates

I love the romance of crime

and I wonder does anybody feel the same way I do

and is evil just something you are or something you do"

- "Sister I'm a Poet" by Morrissey, from Beethoven Was Deaf (1993)

The Frog

This is a wonderfully endearing little film by an artist named Nick Fox-Gieg (his website is here). It's called "The Frog." It's only a minute long, too, if you're into the whole brevity thing.

On an unrelated note, when I watched it, I thought of this legend we heard in Salamanca. On the (extremely ornate) facade of the University, which is the oldest in Spain, there is hidden a frog sitting on a skull. The rumor is that students are not allowed to graduate with their terminal degrees unless they've found it.

But enough of that; here's "The Frog."

Blue Light

I'm not very good at this consistency thing, am I?

Yesterday, when the temperature rose to a balmy thirty-three degrees (Fahrenheit, of course), I went for a walk near my parents' house and listened to So Tonight That I Might See by Mazzy Star. For whatever reason, this song hit me like a bus. May you enjoy it even half as much.

- "Blue Light" by Mazzy Star, from So Tonight That I Might See (1993)