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sinkwriterThis is a much belated post, and for that I should be flogged.
(I've been watching Merlin, so please forgive the medieval reference. Hee.)
Anyway, to explain: back in August, I responded to![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
readthesubtext's personal LJ when she asked her friends-list members to give her some 'top five' questions. In retribution for all the torturous questions I gave her to answer, she came back and gave me the same treatment when I posted the meme to my LJ. (And I love you for it, Gemma. *GRIN*) I answered everyone else's offerings first because they seemed easier, but then I got sick of reading my own voice on the page so I decided to take a break from answering before diving head-first into Gem's marvelously lengthy list.
Now I'm back. (Everybody run!)
She gave me fourteen top five questions, so I'm going to break up my responses into three posts in order to keep them from getting enormously unwieldy (well, as much as I can, given that I am a wordy, wieldy sort). I will also put my answers behind a cut, so as not to break your f-list pages.
Okay, let's have some fun! On to the Top 5!
Top Five Favourite Ways To Pass The Time
These five came fairly easily to me. Unsurprisingly, I suppose. In no particular order, because they're all fun in different ways.
* Kissing. *ahem* At least, from what I remember. It's been a while. *grumble, eyeroll* Hey, don't laugh; I'm trying to be honest, here!
* Singing. I could do this all day long. It makes me really happy. Seriously, you should see me jamming out in my car; it's quite the show, I'm sure. In fact, a guy once gave me a thumbs-up at a traffic light. I took that as high praise, even as I drove off, laughing and cringing in embarrassment at being caught. (In my defense, I didn't think anyone else was on the road at two in the morning to even see me singin' away! The streets were deserted until he came along and surprised me. I admit I may not have been paying great amounts of attention, though. What with all the singing going on.) All kidding aside, it's one of my purest joys. And harmonizing with someone else? Immeasurably fun. Though I suppose you could say that the first item on my list is also a way of harmonizing with someone. (Heh.) Right. Moving on...
* Writing. Be it fiction, essay, email, or quick comment to someone on LiveJournal, I love the brain exercise that comes from writing. In fact, I far prefer it to talking on the phone. Writing gives me the opportunity to thoroughly digest another person's comments, think about what they're saying and truly take the time to uncover the right words in response. I love the creativity of it, too: watching characters come alive on the page (or screen); choosing just the right words to accomplish it; finding interesting, emotionally effective ways to tell a story... all of it thrills me. I'm still learning to be a better writer and communicator -- I will always be learning -- but unquestionably, I find writing a great way to pass the time. Sometimes I forget this, especially when I've been away from it for a while, but when I do find my way back to it, I get swept up and say, "Oh, that's right! I always forget how much fun this is. I must remember." That's the thing, really. It's not a way to pass the time. It's a way for me to enjoy my time. I just have to learn how to make the time to do it more often.
* Watching favorite DVDs (whether TV show or film). Watching them with someone else is fun because you can enjoy and share in the experience together, and have a good conversation about it afterward. (Which is why LJ communities can be wonderful -- we may not get to watch the program together in person, but we can have marvelously thorough discussions after the fact. It's amazing, the bonds that can form across the miles over shared interests.) Watching by yourself is good, too, because you can get swept up in the show, the story, and the characters, without distraction, and if it makes you cry like a baby or laugh like an obnoxious hyena, who's going to know? People go on diatribes about the evils of watching television (or the occasional film), but I find that sort of rant ridiculous. Don't get me wrong, there is plenty of crap out there and I'm happy to ignore or skip past watching that stuff. *cough*most reality TV*cough* But I do think it's all very subjective and that there is more that is good out there than people are willing to see or admit. (In life, as well, but that's a whole other type of post.) As a writer and as someone who finds human behavior and emotional connections fascinating, moving, and revitalizing, I celebrate how these aspects can be beautifully expressed through the screen medium. I celebrate creativity. One of my favorite quotes comes from director Steven Soderbergh, as said during his Oscar acceptance speech:
"I don't care if it's a book, a film, a painting, a dance, a piece of theater, a piece of music -- anybody who spends part of their day sharing their experience with us. I think this world would be unlivable without art."
Right on.
And last, but not least:
* Going for walks in pretty nature. Again, doing this with someone else is wonderful because you can talk or be silent, soak up the scenery, bring a camera for taking pictures, and laugh together when you get lost on the trails in the woods, until you victoriously find your way out again. *ahem* Not that that's ever happened to me. Lost without a cell phone as the sun was going down? Nope. Never. As I was saying... going by yourself can be relaxing: you can look around, listen to music on your iPod (or Walkman, or tape player, whatever you've got), get emotionally lost in the beautiful setting, breathe in the fresh air, keep your own pace, and privately contemplate whatever you like. It seems to help me clear my head from the things that stress me. And some of the most entertaining conversations with friends have occurred while taking walks. (To wit, there should be tales of Todd and Sherry, and their Adventure with the Rabbit-Dog. It's classic, I'm telling you.) Plus, you know, they say it's good for you. So much to love about taking a walk.
Runner-up: Baking. Because making homemade granola and pumpkin bread is LOVE. (And makes your apartment smell really yummy and warm.)
Top Five Songs That Are Guaranteed To Make You Smile After A Bad Day
You have got to be kidding me, Gemma. I like many, many songs. At current count, my computer collection contains over 4400 delightful gems (they're gems to me, anyway, heh). I don't know that I can answer this one in only five. Not to mention that whether or not a song will make me smile depends entirely on my mood. Something that makes me smile today may simply annoy me and not be quite right for my mood next week. It's so tough to say!
Hmm. Let me troll through ye olde iTunes library for a few moments, see what stirs me most today.
Two hours later... nope, I cannot narrow it down to only five. There's just no way. At one point, I had about 60 selections on my list of potential makes-me-happy, makes-me-laugh, makes-me smile songs. I've narrowed that list down to around 27, with about 10 or so at the top. Best I can do. What can I say? Music makes me really happy.
Here are ten songs I'd put at the top of the list:
* "Mind Your Love" by the Captain & Tennille.
Yes, really. The Captain and Toni Tennille, known for such cheese as "Love Will Keep Us Together" and "Muskrat Love." I contend that I can find a song to like in pretty much every genre, and this is a prime example. Captain & Tennille have some dorky songs, it is true, but in my opinion, it's not the 'big hits' that you should pay attention to; it's the little ones that slip under the radar, the ones that don't become famous, that sometimes pleasantly surprise you. This one comes from their Song of Joy album -- my parents had it on LP and used to play it on the living room stereo when I was a kid, so I immediately have that childhood memory association. More than that, "Mind Your Love" is just fun. It starts off all quietly jazz/bluesy; then all of a sudden the beat kicks in on the second verse and everything amps up a level, and it becomes this really cool, swing-beat tune that makes me want to get up and dance. In fact, my parents would play it on the record player, and my siblings and I wouldflail dance around. All I have to hear is the opening piano jam, and I can't help but grin. I love that song. It's a great "belter" tune, I've got so many happy childhood memories tied to it, performing it in 'concerts' with a homemade microphone -- my weapon of choice was a turkey baster, which in all modesty I think is way more ingenious than a hair brush or a wooden spoon, haha -- and I think as a song it holds up well. Lively sax solo. Fun beat. Great bluesy piano (Captain) and vocal melody (Tennille). Plus, amidst the sappy love songs of the seventies, some of the lyrics were kind of bad-ass: a woman singing that a man better treat his woman right ("mind your love") or that love will grow cold. And then she tells him why he should (basically, because her lovin' is awesome). You tell him, sister.
* "Got To Be Real" by Cheryl Lynn.
This woman is fabulous: she sings beautiful duets ("If This World Were Mine" with Luther Vandross is a personal favorite), she is wicked voluptuous, and she has a gigantic vocal range. I don't even know how to classify this song. Disco funk dance tune? That's the best I can do. As soon as this song kicks in, I start to giggle. See, there was this Will & Grace season 1 episode in which Grace busts in on Will while he's in the bathroom getting ready for work, and what she finds is him standing there in his boxers and an undershirt, prepping his face for shaving while singing along to this song at the top of his high-pitched lungs. How can I not love Will for that? Hilarious and memorable. I certainly can't think of anything else but that moment when I hear the opener to this tune. Even without that bit of amusement, it's still a fun song and Miss Lynn rocks it.
* "Sing, Sing, Sing (With A Swing)" by composer Louis Prima (as found on the Swing Kids soundtrack).
I LOVE this song. Let me explain something: I get really self-conscious when it comes to dancing. I often feel like a big dork who can feel a beat and has rhythm but doesn't know any smooth moves; thus, I never know quite what to do with myself on a dance floor. But if you put this song on? All that goes out the window. I no longer care how ridiculous I look. I feel compelled to get up and dance. No matter how lousy I may be feeling, this song pulls me out of it. It's a high-energy, big band fantastic song. It makes me wish I'd learned how to swing dance. It loosens me up from any stress and makes me want to fling myself all over the room, shaking my hips and throwing my arms open wide. And if you ever happen upon a Bob Fosse special on PBS during Great Performances, they'll likely end with this tune because his choreography for it is sexy and seductive and simply amazing. I dare you not to tap your toes or swing your hips listening to this song. Whoo! As Kevin Bacon says at the end of Footloose, "LET'S DAAAAAANCE!" Irresistible. This one might even be my number one favorite of the top five (er... top ten) list.
* The soundtrack to the film Benny and Joon by composer Rachel Portman.
Not only is it a quirky movie with Johnny Freaking Depp (who already makes it interesting), its soundtrack immediately, without question, makes me smile. The instrumental pieces set the mood, either nicely dramatic and dissonant or appropriately unusual, and then it has one unforgettable vocal music offering: "I'm Gonna Be (500 Miles)" by The Proclaimers. How can you not want to sing along with that one? Da-da daaaa! Da-da daaaa! That song never gets old for me. (And I see the writers of How I Met Your Mother agree with me because they had an entire episode as well as subsequent flashbacks about how that song was the cassette single stuck in Marshall's car for years. Heeeee.) It's what I put on when I'm feeling down because I know it will make me laugh and remind me of Johnny Depp playing with his food. If you've seen the film, you'll know the scenes I mean. Ironing board grilled cheese? Tennis racket mashed potatoes? And my personal favorite: dinner roll dancing? Sends me into fits of giggles, just from the memory. The music is so bouncy and silly and odd, it just... makes me super happy. If "Sing, Sing, Sing" is number one, this would likely be number two. They're interchangeable options when it comes to needing a mood-lift.
* The "Farscape" theme song, composed by Chris Neal. (I'm talking about the first version, before they changed their theme song to something slightly different.)
Why this one? Because it's from one of my new -- already cancelled -- favorite shows. Because I love all the characters and hearing this song reminds me of them. Because the guttural grunting and otherworldly wailing in this song make me grin widely. In fact, hearing this song gets me giggling immediately. Also, there's a section during the wailing, a voice within the mix... that reminds me of my friend Sonnett every time I hear it. (Sonnett, I'll point it out to you sometime.) And hearing the lead actress Claudia Black try and sing along with it on a DVD commentary is hysterically funny. I kind of love her for it. Anyway, the song is hilariously bizarre, thus entirely appropriate as a theme for such a marvelously insane show.
* "Are You Gonna Go My Way?" by Lenny Kravitz.
Ohhhh yeah. Immediate smile. As soon as that guitar kicks in, I want to let down my long hair and let it fly. Hardcore beat, wild guitar licks, kick-ass syncopation. Makes for a great road trip tune. JAM OUT.
* "Throwing Stones" by Paula Cole.
Let me put a little 'warning' note on this one. It's not kiddie-safe, okay? This is a song I'll put on when I'm in a very bad mood. It's got a driving bass and piano line (which I love), and Paula just sings the hell out of it. And the reason it puts a grin on my face is because she uses a particular curse word that I don't use often (I'm talking about "motherf***er" *ahem*), so when I sing it with her at the top of my lungs? It feels very cathartic. In that moment, I will laugh, even though I am fully aware the lyric is mean. This is a 'don't mess with me' sort of song -- the lyric "be careful, I might bite your head off" pretty much says it all -- and that's why I like it. Sometimes you just gotta let it out, you know? If I can achieve that via singing, it's likely with this song.
* "Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic" by The Police.
If Paula Cole's song is one I'll play when I'm in a foul mood, this song by The Police is one I'll play because I'm in a playful mood. It's energizing, it's bouncy-happy, and it has a fun bass line. It automatically reminds me of seeing Sting in concert. This was one of his encore pieces, I swear he turned it into an extended version, and he got everyone in the audience jumping up and down, singing along: "On and on and on and... every little thing, every little every little every little every little thing she does! Ee-oh-ohh..." *BIG GRIN* I can still picture the colored lights flowing out over the crowd, can feel everyone's hyper energy, can hear them (and myself) singing exuberantly. It was one of the best moments I've ever experienced during a concert. "Magic, magic, maaaaa-gic!" You said it, Sting. If I'm feeling down, playing this one will lift me right up. Works every time.
* "Do I Do" by Stevie Wonder.
I mentioned that I like to go for walks. Stevie Wonder's Song Review: A Greatest Hits Collection is often what I'll listen to, and this song is the last one I'll cue up as I'm heading into the home stretch because it perks me right up and keeps me going. First of all, it's ten and a half minutes long. Awesome. (Heee.) Secondly, he's got Dizzy Gillespie playing trumpet during the instrumental break. Dizzy. Gillespie. Like he happened to have one of the best trumpeters ever just stop by and record a few bars, for kicks. (I confess I giggle like crazy when he instructs Dizzy to go ahead and "Blow! Blow, blow blow blow!" Heehehehee. See? I can't help it. It's hilariously infectious.) Speaking of hilarity, how can you not love a song that has wacky lyrics like "I got some honeysuckle chocolate dippin' kisses full of love for youuuu"? Come on! Near the end Stevie jams out like a madman and growls, "Do you want some candy?" Yes, baby, I sure do. Bring it. Heeeeeeeeee. Does this song make me smile? You better believe it. If you ever give it a listen, promise me you'll listen to all ten minutes of this piece. It's worth it.
* "Englishman in New York" by Sting.
Out of all the Sting songs that I love -- and I will admit there are many -- this one is number two. ("Fragile" gets the top prize because of its gorgeous overlapping instrumental and vocal layers, stunning lyrics and heartbreaking guitar part.) However, just because it's not my number one favorite Sting song doesn't mean it isn't magnificent, because it is. I love the plucky violin strings coming in on the off-beat; that's a standout bit that made me instantly like this song (and yes, it does make me smile). I love the whining cries of the soprano sax, and the jazzy swing rhythm of the bass. I love the brief bit of drum solo. And I especially love the lyrics. They seem simple at first --
I don't drink coffee
I take tea, my dear
I like my toast done on one side
You can hear it in my accent when I talk
I'm an Englishman in New York...
-- but my favorite is the repeated part at the end, which has a profound lesson for me: "Be yourself, no matter what they say." I love that and remember it always.
Those are just ten of the many songs that make me smile after a bad day (or any kind of day). If you aren't familiar with any of them and want to hear them, let me know. I'll send 'em your way. :)
Top Five Scenes From Any Show That Never Fail To Make You Laugh, No Matter How Many Times You Watch Them
I know I sound like a broken record when I say "this is a tough one to answer," but it's true! In this case, it's because I love to laugh (cue the Mary Poppins song, heh) and have enjoyed scenes from many different shows for that very purpose. You just never know what will tickle me in the moment. I'll likely give you five, and next week I'll see something, laugh hysterically, slap myself in the forehead, and say, "Oh, how could I have forgotten that?" So, just keep in mind, these kinds of lists are ever-changing for me. *GRIN*
In no particular order, here are five scenes that make me laugh:
* Brad Pitt saying "YAMS!"
Nothing against Mr. Pitt, but I've never been a huge fan of his. Not in the drooling, ohmygodIlovehim sort of way that some women express. He's definitely attractive, but he's just never been my type, I guess. I do admire that he takes chances and plays an unusual variety of roles, and I'm highly entertained by his work in Ocean's Eleven. But if you were to ask me what my favorite Brad Pitt bit is... it's when he guest starred on Friends.
In that episode, he plays Will, a former "fat friend" of Ross and Monica's. Since high school, both Will and Monica have lost enormous amounts of weight, but it turns out Brad's character still has major food issues. When Monica invites him to Thanksgiving dinner, he is disturbed to find that his former high school 'nemesis' Rachel Green is Monica's roommate. Seeing her stirs up all his emotional eating habits. He starts slapping piles of food on his plate, even his self-proclaimed greatest enemy, "complex carbohydrates." When he asks Monica to pass him the mashed sweet potatoes, she gently tries to remind him that he doesn't want to sabotage all the work he put into losing weight, but he cuts her off with a hyper amped-up holler: "YAMS!" It's hilarious. This is the main exchange from that scene:
MONICA: (to Rachel) Apparently you were, umm, a little mean to him in high school.
WILL: A little mean? You made my life miserable!
RACHEL: (stunned) I'm--I'm--I had no idea. I'm sorry. I...
WILL: Well, you should be. (pauses) Screw it! Bring on the yams!
MONICA: Oh, Will. But you--you've worked so hard...
WILL: YAMS!!!
It's all in the delivery. I can't even... it's just so funny. (And this is coming from a girl who usually despises any type of fat joke, so that's saying something.) Makes me laugh every single time.
* Ted Mosby dancing on (and falling off) the bar table, while singing a Cheap Trick song.
The show: How I Met Your Mother. The episode: Season 1's "The Pineapple Incident."
Really, more than one moment or scene, I love the entire thing. There are five main characters and every single one of them makes me laugh out loud at some point during the watching of this episode. However, there is one scene that gets me laughing every time.
What's it all about? Well, to quote from IMDb: "After sucking down a quintet of shots at the bar (on a dare), Ted blacks out. He wakes up the next morning with a sprained ankle, a burned jacket, a phone number written on his arm, a pineapple on his nightstand, and an unknown woman face down in his bed. With the help of his friends, Ted attempts to piece together precisely what happened the night before."
Before you get worried, this is a sitcom, so the woman in his bed is alive (merely sleeping). *chuckles*
Ted's usually the reasonable, good-boy, straight man (comically and sexually speaking, heh) of the program, so to have his character get wildly drunk is immediately surprising. But it also turns out to be a very funny premise.
First of all, his drunk language to his friends is hilarious. Here's a sample (when his buddy puts him to bed for the night) --
TED: Barney, you've always taken care of me. You are a gentleman and a scholar! Go into my stable and take my finest stallion. He's yours. His name is Windjammer!
Heee.
His friends are clearly as tickled by this rare occasion as I am, as his best friend Marshall chuckles at Ted's antics and declares, "I love Drunk Ted!"
I also adore Drunk Ted's logic: "At least someone appreciates the fact that I am doing and not thinking. (pauses) And now, I don't think I won't not go to the bathroom."
That's my favorite line. Every time he says it, I pause to ponder the grammatical mess of that latter sentence. *laughs uproariously* Hilarious.
And finally, to see Ted (the underappreciated, talented Josh Radnor) get up onto a table and start singing along with a Cheap Trick song -- over his cell phone, to the girl he's secretly in love with -- is both sad and embarrassingly funny. He starts out belting in front of everyone in the bar, "Hey, it's me again..."
After singing a few lines, he then pauses in his song stylings to announce, "I love everybody in this bar!" His friends giggle.
He continues singing, "I'm a fool again. I fell in love wi--"
At which point he drunkenly stumbles and falls right off the table. OUCH. He fell, all right. Poor Drunk Ted.
Hence, how he sprained his ankle. And the revelation of all the other bizarre mysteries of the episode (except for the one we never find out: what he was doing with a pineapple on his nightstand) continues from there with remarkable hilarity. It's one of my favorite episodes of the entire series. I ♥ Ted. That girl doesn't know what she's missing.
* Scully's 'cream cheese' rant in The X-Files episode "Bad Blood."
Let me say this right now: the entire "Bad Blood" episode is HILARIOUS and AWESOME. A must-watch. There is a reason why this episode makes many XF fans' "top ten favorite" lists.
The structure of it -- his and hers accounts of what happened on one particular case, both wildly exaggerated according to who is telling the story -- is well-written and hysterically funny. We start to see how FBI partners Mulder and Scully might see each other when they're frustrated: Mulder thinks Scully can be a bit of a cranky killjoy, while Scully thinks Mulder is obnoxiously, exuberantly excited about turning every case into something supernaturally themed whether the science merits it or not. Both of those assessments can be true about the characters, but we know neither one of them is that bad in actuality so the exaggerated demonstration of those traits is unbelievably funny. Especially for a show that is usually so dark in tone.
We learn many things throughout the episode. From Mulder, that it's surprisingly tough to shoot out the tires on a runaway RV. (Heeee.) From Scully, that Mulder (when drugged) will sing the theme song from "Shaft" and use terms like "he came at me like a flying squirrel" when talking about a suspect attacking him.
(In a hilarious manner, Mulder will deny that he did or said any of this. "I was drugged!" David Duchovny is at his dryly funny best in this ep.)
But one of the funniest bits is when -- during Mulder's account of the case -- Scully bitches at him at length, after a very long day that's about to get even longer for Scully:
SCULLY: What do you mean you want me to do another autopsy?! And why do I have to do it right now?! I just spent hours on my feet doing an autopsy, all for you. I do it all for you, Mulder. You know, I haven't eaten since six o'clock this morning, and all that was, was a half a cream cheese bagel, and it wasn't even real cream cheese, it was light cream cheese. And now you want me to run off and do another autopsy? (she finally notices that he's covered in mud) What the hell happened to you?
The way actress Gillian Anderson tackles that whiny rant is funnier than I can ever express. Of course, it's especially funny if you're a regular viewer of that show, because then you know what parts of the characters are being mocked so mercilessly, but I hope it's still funny even if you don't know as much about the show. You just have to see it for yourself. HI-LARIOUS. Love it love it love it.
* CJ Cregg's root canal incident during The West Wing episode, "Celestial Navigation."
When The West Wing really rocks, I think it's partially because writer Aaron Sorkin manages to make a statement with a marvelous blend of dramatic and comedic moments, all in the same episode. He can tell a poignant story, yet manage to make you clutch yourself with laughter, too. "Celestial Navigation" is one of those episodes.
At first glance, we've got some serious stories going on: a HUD secretary might lose her job because she insulted a rude, racist committee chairman; and a Supreme Court Justice nominee is arrested in Connecticut, but the cops don't know who he is because all they see is that he's a Latino man driving a nice car in an upper middle-class, predominantly white neighborhood. Heavy stuff.
However, the episode is wonderfully narrated with self-deprecating humor by Deputy Chief of Staff Josh Lyman (the delightfully funny and charming Bradley Whitford), and contains so many laugh-out-loud exchanges between characters that it's nearly impossible to narrow it down to just one. There's Toby and Sam getting lost trying to find the police station in order to get Judge Mendoza out of jail (and Sam navigating his way by the stars, to Toby's great irritation). There's Josh sitting in for CJ on an afternoon press briefing because she can't talk properly after getting a root canal. There's Josh messing up said press briefing because he is not the press secretary and therefore tries to do it his own way, which involves giving sarcastic answers and telling a reporter his question was stupid. (Hee. Oh, Josh, you idiot.) The reporters gleefully eat him alive for his obnoxiousness. And there's so much more. Every time the characters think they have the incidents sorted out, something or someone (*ahem* mainly Josh) messes it all up again. The problems keep snowballing until the President intervenes with a verbal bitch-slapping for his whole staff and instructs them to fix it once and for all. I wish I could just post the entire episode right here for you to see; it is that funny.
But if I had to single out a moment from all the chaos, this is the one that makes me laugh every time. CJ gets back from her root canal and stops off in Josh's office to tell him she's going to have to cancel the press briefing because her mouth's all swollen and sore. (Case in point, a frustrated Toby finally yells at her, "CJ, so help me, if you use the words 'pwesident' or 'bwiefed' again...")
Actress Allison Janney is hysterically funny as CJ -- she tries to talk to Josh but he keeps messing with her, getting her to say words just because he knows she'll sound ridiculous doing so with a mouth full of cotton.
A sampling of their silliness:
CJ: I have to cancew the bwiefing.
JOSH: You can't cancel the briefing.
CJ: Wook at me.
JOSH: You'll be great.
CJ: I can't do the bwiefing.
JOSH: Why not?
CJ: I can't even say "bwiefing."
JOSH: You can't cancel the briefing, CJ. You got to wrap up O'Leary, got to move them back to the bill signing.
CJ: Yoshua!
JOSH: (chuckling) Sorry, did -- did you just say my name?
CJ: You weawwy think I can do it?
JOSH: Don't be insane, CJ. You're not going to do a press briefing looking like Bullwinkle.
...
JOSH: We're still doing it.
CJ: Who?
JOSH: Me.
CJ: No way.
JOSH: CJ?
CJ: You get howstiwe.
JOSH: I get... hot stuff?
CJ: Howstiwe. Howstiwe. You get howstiwe!
JOSH: I don't get hostile. I don't get randomly hostile. I get hostile when hostility's called for.
CJ: Wet Sam do it.
JOSH: Sam went to Foggy Bottom.
CJ: What's he doing in Fwoggy Bowtew?
JOSH: (laughing) I just wanted to see if I could make you say "Foggy Bottom." Sam's working with the speechwriters.
CJ: Toby?
JOSH: Toby's with Leo and the President.
CJ: Josh...
JOSH: (already walking away) Hey there, cats and kittens, this is Josh Lyman coming at you with your two o'clock briefing! Here we go. Whoo!
Heeheheheheeeeeee.
There is no way to properly illuminate just how funny these actors are. Oh, man. Cracks me up, especially that 'cats and kittens' line. *BIG GRIN*
* The entire "Smile Time" episode from Angel.
Bad-ass vampire-with-a-soul Angel getting turned into a felt, muppet-like puppet could have been really stupid, but instead it turned out unbelievably funny. A furious Puppet Angel launching himself at human vampire Spike and getting into a fistfight with him after Spike mocks him mercilessly ("you're a bloody puppet!") is priceless. Seeing the usually brave and strong Angel shaking like a terrified puppy while in his puppet form after getting away from a woman who turns into a werewolf and starts to rip the stuffing out of him is funnier than it really should be. ("She's gonna eat meeeee!") And just watching him march down the hallway in warrior hero mode, only this time as a two-feet-tall puppet -- still managing to wield a sword, no less -- is just one of those sights that causes a viewer (this viewer, anyway) to dissolve into fits of laughter. Great stuff.
There are also little lines here and there from a multitude of shows that make me laugh every time I hear them. Here are a few of the one-liners that always get me giggling like an idiot. As a full-service poster, I'm throwing 'em in for free. *GRIN*
"Nothing brings people together like a Christmas lung fungus."
~ Agent Seeley Booth (David Boreanaz), Bones, "The Man in the Fallout Shelter"
"Pirates aren't Santa, Zack."
~ Dr. Jack Hodgins (TJ Thyne) to Zack Addy (Eric Milligan), Bones, "The Man with the Bone"
"I'll send him a bundt cake."
~ Fox Mulder (David Duchovny), The X-Files, "Conduit"
SAM: So, how do you feel there, big guy?
TOBY: Like I just got screwed with my pants on.
~ Toby Ziegler (Richard Schiff), The West Wing, "Five Votes Down"
"I'm cuddly, bitch! Deal with it."
~ Marshall Eriksen (Jason Segel) to Barney Stinson (Neil Patrick Harris), How I Met Your Mother, "The Three Days Rule"
...and among so many others, this wacky scene:
FEMALE AIDE: I've got news for you, Toby. When PBS claims that a majority of households are weekly viewers, they use the Nielsen index. That's based on diaries.
MALE AIDE: Those results always show vastly higher PBS viewing than the numbers gathered by the automated boxes.
FEMALE AIDE: Why? Because...
TOBY: Because people want to claim they're more sophisticated than they are.
FEMALE AIDE: That's right.
TOBY: Look...
MALE AIDE: Wait, wait, hang on. There's one other thing. Product licensing for Big Bird dolls and Fuzzy Bear toys?
TOBY: Fozzy Bear.
MALE AIDE: Oh, whatever.
TOBY: (irritated) It's Fozzy Bear, not Fuzzy Bear.
MALE AIDE: Product licensing for this merchandise brings in over $20 million a year, none of which goes to PBS, all of which goes to the show's producer, the Children's Television Workshop. Now this is a company whose Chief Executive earns high six figures in salary and benefits per year; yet, the show is subsidized by taxpayer dollars.
TOBY: It's a perfectly reasonable complaint.
FEMALE AIDE: And?
TOBY: I don't care.
MALE AIDE: Toby...
TOBY: We're gonna see to all those things. In the meantime, a time when the public is rightly concerned about the impact of sex and violence on TV, this administration is gonna protect the Muppets, we're gonna protect Wall Street Week, we're gonna protect Live
from Lincoln Center and by god, we are going to protect Julia Child!
FEMALE AIDE: Toby...
(CJ knocks on the conference room door)
TOBY: Hang on.
(Toby goes out to meet CJ)
CJ: I got a message you wanted to see me?
TOBY: I've got good news.
CJ: What?
TOBY: Josh and Sam cut a deal on the hill. No hearing for Leo, he's gonna be out of the woods.
CJ: (relieved) Oh, Toby, that's -- that's great.
TOBY: (grinning) I gotta get back in there. This is just too much fun.
~ Toby Ziegler (Richard Schiff), The West Wing, "Take Out The Trash Day"
Heeeeeeeee.
Top Five Books You Loved So Much You Read Them More Than Once
When I was a kid, I devoured books. Couldn't get enough of them. My mom had to tell me to stop picking out so many at the library because they weren't going to let me take them all home at once. Sometimes I wish I still had that time and energy when it comes to reading, because there are so many books yet to be read and others I'd love to revisit.
It's been a while since I've had time to read a book more than once, but these are definitely some that I've read countless times because I love them so very much.
* To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee.
Hands down, my favorite book ever.
I first fell in love with it in the fifth grade -- that would make me approximately eleven years old, I think? -- when our teacher Mr. Hoffman read it to us in class. Talk about an eye-opener. I'd never experienced anything quite like it.
Most of the cheesy 'young adult' novels we read outside of class were about silly, ridiculous, frothy stuff: falling in love and going to parties and experiencing overly melodramatic teen angst. This novel was nothing like that. Mr. Hoffman challenged us to read books with more depth, and this one certainly fit that criteria. It felt intensely real. Its subject matter -- racism and civil rights, a girl growing up without a mother in the tumultuous South, her older brother trying to break free from childhood and learn what it means to be a man, and the story of their father, a lawyer (and single parent) fighting to do what's right amidst dangerous, violent obstacles -- stunned me. Most of it so far outside my experience, I was shaken and disturbed by the cruelty of certain characters and the injustice of the trial outcome. I couldn't understand how a jury could try and convict a man for something he clearly didn't do, simply because he was black. I vowed never to treat anyone like that. (A good lesson for a young kid, I think.)
The prose is beautifully written, all the southern locations and character voices coming vividly alive through every deliciously chosen word. It's dramatic and tense, but also remarkably funny (surprising, given the subject matter). The tale is narrated by the young girl, Scout, a tomboy struggling to be herself in a time and place where girls are supposed to behave like ladies, and her adventures are hilarious and thought-provoking. It's an interesting blend of drama and comedy, intensity and silliness.
Incidentally, I re-read this book for a Novel course during my senior year in high school, and for the final exam I wrote an essay comparing and contrasting how I've grown up with it, how when I was a young reader, I saw it one way, and when I revisited the novel as a teenager, I came to understand it on a much deeper level. I love studying the evolution of that and realizing the impact it had on me in so many ways.
I got an A on that essay and a glowing compliment from the teacher after class. Maybe it's easy to get good grades when you're passionate about the subject matter. It's a damn shame author Harper Lee never published another novel, but I guess, why mess with perfection? Put quite simply, To Kill A Mockingbird is an amazing novel, and I enthusiastically recommend it. I'd re-read it again in a heartbeat.
P.S. The film version is just as awesome. Oftentimes screen adaptations are unable to capture the essence of a novel, but this one does it justice. The kids are wonderful, and Gregory Peck as Atticus Finch was perfect casting. ♥
* Little Women by Louisa May Alcott.
I first checked this novel out of the library during grade school, and the librarian actually tried to talk me out of reading it. She said it was a really long book and she didn't think I'd be able to read it within the confines of the checkout time limit. Plus, she wasn't sure I'd understand it. Can you believe that?? Why hold a kid back? I insisted that I would understand it and get it back in time. And I did. In fact, I liked it so much, I requested it from our school library repeatedly so that I could read it again and again.
I loved the sense of family amongst the sisters of the story, how they fought to take care of each other and their mother while their father was away at war, and how they struggled but made it through even when times got really tough and food and finances were meager. I laughed at their silly antics. I adored the bond between Jo and Beth. And I especially admired Jo's wild behaviors and fierce independence. Plus, she was a writer, which inspired me so much. I wanted to be her.
I haven't read this novel in years, but it's one I'd like to revisit because I wonder if I'll look at it the same way as I did when I first read it as a kid. My perspective about being a woman -- and an adult, for that matter -- is quite different from the way I believed it would be (how I fantasized it would be, back then). I wonder if I'll still love these characters and their stories, or if cynicism will tarnish my vision of them all. Hmm. *ponders this*
* The Outsiders by S. E. Hinton.
My copy of this book is so worn, the pages are yellowed and the binding is coming apart. For a long time, I could recite by heart the first few paragraphs. And yes, I've read it many, many times.
I can't tell you exactly what drew me to it. I remember pulling it off the shelf, finding the back blurb intriguing, and deciding to borrow it from my teacher's personal library (relax, he gave me permission). I believe I thought it sounded different from the other books I'd been reading. Its narrator was a teenaged boy -- the majority of books I'd read had come from the perspective of girls or women, so I think I felt compelled to read this take, to see if it might shed some light upon the intricacies of the male mind, something I sure didn't understand back in grade school and likely struggle to understand to this day. (Heh.)
Side note: isn't it interesting how I first read most of these books during my very young years? I was an impressionable child, and clearly these novels stuck with me.
Not being a guy, I can't say for sure whether or not this novel accurately depicts the thought processes and actions of boys, but I can say that S.E. Hinton managed to make the characters come alive for me as a reader. I was fascinated by the statements regarding social class structure, and though I related more to the poor kids (the troubled 'heroes' of the story), I liked that the author humanized the characters from the other side of the tracks as well. I adored Ponyboy as the narrator; I loved his sensitivity (which was demonstrated in sharp contrast to the behaviors of most of the other male characters, especially his oldest brother), understood how he felt as he struggled to fit in, and appreciated his attempts to make sense of his place in life amidst society's ridiculously divisive rules. His adventures were riveting, and my heart broke with his when he lost his best friend, Johnny.
I have very fond memories of reading this novel.
* On A Pale Horse, from the "Incarnations of Immortality" series by Piers Anthony.
My friend Theresa used to recommend the best books and music to me, and this was one from that never-ending list. I can't recall if it was during junior high or high school (probably high school), but she loaned me the entire series, and this book was by far my favorite of the bunch. I've read it numerous times; I even read it aloud to my friend Sonnett during a road trip from Illinois to Pennsylvania. (Explanatory side note: I would have helped with the driving, but we took her car and I don't know how to drive a stick shift, so she drove and I read. It was my goal to keep her awake, but I hope I also was entertaining! Heeee.)
This book is hilarious and thought-provoking and bizarre, even a bit sacrilegious. It is awesome. Death comes for a man who is contemplating suicide, but in a spur of the moment decision, the man decides not to kill himself and instead turns his weapon upon Death. He soon learns that the person who kills Death must take up his job requirements. The rest of the novel is all about how he takes over the position of Death (like it's an office job or something, so funny), learns the ins and outs of taking people's souls before they die and sorting them properly to send them where they need to go (to Heaven, Hell, or the 'undecided' section, Purgatory), and deal with the pain-in-the-ass aspects of being Death (like having to coordinate schedules with War and Time and Nature, and make sure the Devil doesn't interfere too much or muck everything up). All sorts of cleverness and wackiness abounds! It's really indescribable -- you have to read it and decide for yourself -- but I just loved it so much. I found it hilarious, unusual and mind-blowing. This novel made me look at the subject of death in ways I'd never thought about it before, and while that may sound morbid, it was actually quite fascinating and surprisingly positive. Even comforting. I highly recommend this novel. Read it again and again. *GRIN*
* The Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling, especially book 4 entitled Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire.
This one may seem a bit juvenile in comparison to some of my other choices, but I don't choose to see it that way. I love these stories with a sense of wide-eyed wonder that I haven't experienced through reading in what feels like a very long time. Maybe it's a bit obvious to call them magical, but to me they are. These books remind me to look at things with the eyes of a child, and by that I mean with the vividness and imagination that goes with being young and pure and curious. Untarnished by cynicism.
I love the vibrant, fantastical world that author J.K. Rowling created in Hogwarts, I am tickled by its many bits of cleverness, and I adore the three main characters, Harry, Ron and Hermione. Their bond is funny, sweet, and really lovely. Even when the stories turn dark and intense -- especially when they do -- they still manage to remind me how important it is to keep a sense of lightness and play in my life. I really, really love these books.
Runner-up choices include: Succulent Wild Woman by SARK (great "grrrl power" self-esteem boost, this one); Kenneth Branagh's memoir Beginning (fascinating and funny); Curious George books (a childhood favorite); and the unique, marvelously mysterious, letter-and-postcard book Griffin and Sabine by Nick Bantock. I've read them all repeatedly because they are marvelous.
Top Five Pet Peeves
* Rude people.
A few random examples: in the car (cutting you off in traffic or not allowing you to enter their lane); in customer service (being crabby and rude right off the bat irks me); and in life in general. Nobody's perfect, everybody has bad days, but at least try not to be a dick.
* People who won't tell the truth or just say what they mean.
I may not always take it well, I may need a few days to let the information digest, but I'd rather hear the truth from someone than have them bullshit me. How am I supposed to learn or become better if you don't tell me what I'm not seeing? And seriously, I'd far prefer a guy to come up to me and say outright that he's interested in me than for him to play games and leave me wondering what the hell is going on. I'd far prefer a friend to tell me when I've done or said something that troubled them than be left in the dark about it. I can't take action or make changes unless I have all the information. Honesty is surprising and refreshing. For the most part. *GRIN*
* Those who act all condescending and superior to others.
Confidence is attractive. Arrogance is NOT. You cannot demand my respect by acting like an ass; you earn it by being kind-hearted, hard-working, talented, honest, and open. (And willing to have fun, thorough conversations with me. Heh.) Someone who is genuine? I will adore forever.
* Being woken up extra-early or talked to first thing in the morning.
There's a reason my mom once got me a nightshirt that read, "I SAID... DON'T BOTHER ME!" I am pleasant the majority of the time, I can even reach scary levels of perkiness depending on the day (and if I've had a Caribou Coffee hot cocoa, mmmm), but generally I really, really do not like to talk first thing in the morning. You can tell by the way I squint sleepily and grunt at you instead of using actual words. My body may be moving around, but trust me when I say my brain hasn't quite kicked in to high gear yet. Therefore, until that happens, you might want to leave me alone and let me power up gradually. Thank you very much. *GRIN*
* People who cut you off, don't really listen to what you're saying, or are too distracted (especially by their cell phone, Blackberry, or whatever) when they're hanging out with you.
Don't do that to me. Just... don't. If you want my full attention, I gladly give it to you, but I expect the same in return.
Runner-up: People who don't clean up after themselves (like in the kitchen or bathroom).
I may be projecting a little on this one from the time I had a roommate. LOL. We all have our messy moments, but for heaven's sake, if you're not going to do the damn dishes within a certain window of time, at least let them soak in the sink so they don't get all moldy and gross! *ahem* Okay, I'm done ranting now.
I'm sure I could think of other little nitpicky things that bug me, but they likely won't come to mind until someone does them and I find myself bristling in the moment. *chuckles*
Annnnd that's it for now!
I'll be back soon with such madness as "Top Five Films That Had A Lasting Impact On You" and "Top Five People You'd Like To Smack Upside The Head." *laughs uproariously*
Thanks again for playing along! (Especially Gemma, my hilarious taskmaster. *wink*) I hope you're finding these entertaining thus far.
:)
(I've been watching Merlin, so please forgive the medieval reference. Hee.)
Anyway, to explain: back in August, I responded to
readthesubtext's personal LJ when she asked her friends-list members to give her some 'top five' questions. In retribution for all the torturous questions I gave her to answer, she came back and gave me the same treatment when I posted the meme to my LJ. (And I love you for it, Gemma. *GRIN*) I answered everyone else's offerings first because they seemed easier, but then I got sick of reading my own voice on the page so I decided to take a break from answering before diving head-first into Gem's marvelously lengthy list. Now I'm back. (Everybody run!)
She gave me fourteen top five questions, so I'm going to break up my responses into three posts in order to keep them from getting enormously unwieldy (well, as much as I can, given that I am a wordy, wieldy sort). I will also put my answers behind a cut, so as not to break your f-list pages.
Okay, let's have some fun! On to the Top 5!
Top Five Favourite Ways To Pass The Time
These five came fairly easily to me. Unsurprisingly, I suppose. In no particular order, because they're all fun in different ways.
* Kissing. *ahem* At least, from what I remember. It's been a while. *grumble, eyeroll* Hey, don't laugh; I'm trying to be honest, here!
* Singing. I could do this all day long. It makes me really happy. Seriously, you should see me jamming out in my car; it's quite the show, I'm sure. In fact, a guy once gave me a thumbs-up at a traffic light. I took that as high praise, even as I drove off, laughing and cringing in embarrassment at being caught. (In my defense, I didn't think anyone else was on the road at two in the morning to even see me singin' away! The streets were deserted until he came along and surprised me. I admit I may not have been paying great amounts of attention, though. What with all the singing going on.) All kidding aside, it's one of my purest joys. And harmonizing with someone else? Immeasurably fun. Though I suppose you could say that the first item on my list is also a way of harmonizing with someone. (Heh.) Right. Moving on...
* Writing. Be it fiction, essay, email, or quick comment to someone on LiveJournal, I love the brain exercise that comes from writing. In fact, I far prefer it to talking on the phone. Writing gives me the opportunity to thoroughly digest another person's comments, think about what they're saying and truly take the time to uncover the right words in response. I love the creativity of it, too: watching characters come alive on the page (or screen); choosing just the right words to accomplish it; finding interesting, emotionally effective ways to tell a story... all of it thrills me. I'm still learning to be a better writer and communicator -- I will always be learning -- but unquestionably, I find writing a great way to pass the time. Sometimes I forget this, especially when I've been away from it for a while, but when I do find my way back to it, I get swept up and say, "Oh, that's right! I always forget how much fun this is. I must remember." That's the thing, really. It's not a way to pass the time. It's a way for me to enjoy my time. I just have to learn how to make the time to do it more often.
* Watching favorite DVDs (whether TV show or film). Watching them with someone else is fun because you can enjoy and share in the experience together, and have a good conversation about it afterward. (Which is why LJ communities can be wonderful -- we may not get to watch the program together in person, but we can have marvelously thorough discussions after the fact. It's amazing, the bonds that can form across the miles over shared interests.) Watching by yourself is good, too, because you can get swept up in the show, the story, and the characters, without distraction, and if it makes you cry like a baby or laugh like an obnoxious hyena, who's going to know? People go on diatribes about the evils of watching television (or the occasional film), but I find that sort of rant ridiculous. Don't get me wrong, there is plenty of crap out there and I'm happy to ignore or skip past watching that stuff. *cough*most reality TV*cough* But I do think it's all very subjective and that there is more that is good out there than people are willing to see or admit. (In life, as well, but that's a whole other type of post.) As a writer and as someone who finds human behavior and emotional connections fascinating, moving, and revitalizing, I celebrate how these aspects can be beautifully expressed through the screen medium. I celebrate creativity. One of my favorite quotes comes from director Steven Soderbergh, as said during his Oscar acceptance speech:
"I don't care if it's a book, a film, a painting, a dance, a piece of theater, a piece of music -- anybody who spends part of their day sharing their experience with us. I think this world would be unlivable without art."
Right on.
And last, but not least:
* Going for walks in pretty nature. Again, doing this with someone else is wonderful because you can talk or be silent, soak up the scenery, bring a camera for taking pictures, and laugh together when you get lost on the trails in the woods, until you victoriously find your way out again. *ahem* Not that that's ever happened to me. Lost without a cell phone as the sun was going down? Nope. Never. As I was saying... going by yourself can be relaxing: you can look around, listen to music on your iPod (or Walkman, or tape player, whatever you've got), get emotionally lost in the beautiful setting, breathe in the fresh air, keep your own pace, and privately contemplate whatever you like. It seems to help me clear my head from the things that stress me. And some of the most entertaining conversations with friends have occurred while taking walks. (To wit, there should be tales of Todd and Sherry, and their Adventure with the Rabbit-Dog. It's classic, I'm telling you.) Plus, you know, they say it's good for you. So much to love about taking a walk.
Runner-up: Baking. Because making homemade granola and pumpkin bread is LOVE. (And makes your apartment smell really yummy and warm.)
Top Five Songs That Are Guaranteed To Make You Smile After A Bad Day
You have got to be kidding me, Gemma. I like many, many songs. At current count, my computer collection contains over 4400 delightful gems (they're gems to me, anyway, heh). I don't know that I can answer this one in only five. Not to mention that whether or not a song will make me smile depends entirely on my mood. Something that makes me smile today may simply annoy me and not be quite right for my mood next week. It's so tough to say!
Hmm. Let me troll through ye olde iTunes library for a few moments, see what stirs me most today.
Two hours later... nope, I cannot narrow it down to only five. There's just no way. At one point, I had about 60 selections on my list of potential makes-me-happy, makes-me-laugh, makes-me smile songs. I've narrowed that list down to around 27, with about 10 or so at the top. Best I can do. What can I say? Music makes me really happy.
Here are ten songs I'd put at the top of the list:
* "Mind Your Love" by the Captain & Tennille.
Yes, really. The Captain and Toni Tennille, known for such cheese as "Love Will Keep Us Together" and "Muskrat Love." I contend that I can find a song to like in pretty much every genre, and this is a prime example. Captain & Tennille have some dorky songs, it is true, but in my opinion, it's not the 'big hits' that you should pay attention to; it's the little ones that slip under the radar, the ones that don't become famous, that sometimes pleasantly surprise you. This one comes from their Song of Joy album -- my parents had it on LP and used to play it on the living room stereo when I was a kid, so I immediately have that childhood memory association. More than that, "Mind Your Love" is just fun. It starts off all quietly jazz/bluesy; then all of a sudden the beat kicks in on the second verse and everything amps up a level, and it becomes this really cool, swing-beat tune that makes me want to get up and dance. In fact, my parents would play it on the record player, and my siblings and I would
* "Got To Be Real" by Cheryl Lynn.
This woman is fabulous: she sings beautiful duets ("If This World Were Mine" with Luther Vandross is a personal favorite), she is wicked voluptuous, and she has a gigantic vocal range. I don't even know how to classify this song. Disco funk dance tune? That's the best I can do. As soon as this song kicks in, I start to giggle. See, there was this Will & Grace season 1 episode in which Grace busts in on Will while he's in the bathroom getting ready for work, and what she finds is him standing there in his boxers and an undershirt, prepping his face for shaving while singing along to this song at the top of his high-pitched lungs. How can I not love Will for that? Hilarious and memorable. I certainly can't think of anything else but that moment when I hear the opener to this tune. Even without that bit of amusement, it's still a fun song and Miss Lynn rocks it.
* "Sing, Sing, Sing (With A Swing)" by composer Louis Prima (as found on the Swing Kids soundtrack).
I LOVE this song. Let me explain something: I get really self-conscious when it comes to dancing. I often feel like a big dork who can feel a beat and has rhythm but doesn't know any smooth moves; thus, I never know quite what to do with myself on a dance floor. But if you put this song on? All that goes out the window. I no longer care how ridiculous I look. I feel compelled to get up and dance. No matter how lousy I may be feeling, this song pulls me out of it. It's a high-energy, big band fantastic song. It makes me wish I'd learned how to swing dance. It loosens me up from any stress and makes me want to fling myself all over the room, shaking my hips and throwing my arms open wide. And if you ever happen upon a Bob Fosse special on PBS during Great Performances, they'll likely end with this tune because his choreography for it is sexy and seductive and simply amazing. I dare you not to tap your toes or swing your hips listening to this song. Whoo! As Kevin Bacon says at the end of Footloose, "LET'S DAAAAAANCE!" Irresistible. This one might even be my number one favorite of the top five (er... top ten) list.
* The soundtrack to the film Benny and Joon by composer Rachel Portman.
Not only is it a quirky movie with Johnny Freaking Depp (who already makes it interesting), its soundtrack immediately, without question, makes me smile. The instrumental pieces set the mood, either nicely dramatic and dissonant or appropriately unusual, and then it has one unforgettable vocal music offering: "I'm Gonna Be (500 Miles)" by The Proclaimers. How can you not want to sing along with that one? Da-da daaaa! Da-da daaaa! That song never gets old for me. (And I see the writers of How I Met Your Mother agree with me because they had an entire episode as well as subsequent flashbacks about how that song was the cassette single stuck in Marshall's car for years. Heeeee.) It's what I put on when I'm feeling down because I know it will make me laugh and remind me of Johnny Depp playing with his food. If you've seen the film, you'll know the scenes I mean. Ironing board grilled cheese? Tennis racket mashed potatoes? And my personal favorite: dinner roll dancing? Sends me into fits of giggles, just from the memory. The music is so bouncy and silly and odd, it just... makes me super happy. If "Sing, Sing, Sing" is number one, this would likely be number two. They're interchangeable options when it comes to needing a mood-lift.
* The "Farscape" theme song, composed by Chris Neal. (I'm talking about the first version, before they changed their theme song to something slightly different.)
Why this one? Because it's from one of my new -- already cancelled -- favorite shows. Because I love all the characters and hearing this song reminds me of them. Because the guttural grunting and otherworldly wailing in this song make me grin widely. In fact, hearing this song gets me giggling immediately. Also, there's a section during the wailing, a voice within the mix... that reminds me of my friend Sonnett every time I hear it. (Sonnett, I'll point it out to you sometime.) And hearing the lead actress Claudia Black try and sing along with it on a DVD commentary is hysterically funny. I kind of love her for it. Anyway, the song is hilariously bizarre, thus entirely appropriate as a theme for such a marvelously insane show.
* "Are You Gonna Go My Way?" by Lenny Kravitz.
Ohhhh yeah. Immediate smile. As soon as that guitar kicks in, I want to let down my long hair and let it fly. Hardcore beat, wild guitar licks, kick-ass syncopation. Makes for a great road trip tune. JAM OUT.
* "Throwing Stones" by Paula Cole.
Let me put a little 'warning' note on this one. It's not kiddie-safe, okay? This is a song I'll put on when I'm in a very bad mood. It's got a driving bass and piano line (which I love), and Paula just sings the hell out of it. And the reason it puts a grin on my face is because she uses a particular curse word that I don't use often (I'm talking about "motherf***er" *ahem*), so when I sing it with her at the top of my lungs? It feels very cathartic. In that moment, I will laugh, even though I am fully aware the lyric is mean. This is a 'don't mess with me' sort of song -- the lyric "be careful, I might bite your head off" pretty much says it all -- and that's why I like it. Sometimes you just gotta let it out, you know? If I can achieve that via singing, it's likely with this song.
* "Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic" by The Police.
If Paula Cole's song is one I'll play when I'm in a foul mood, this song by The Police is one I'll play because I'm in a playful mood. It's energizing, it's bouncy-happy, and it has a fun bass line. It automatically reminds me of seeing Sting in concert. This was one of his encore pieces, I swear he turned it into an extended version, and he got everyone in the audience jumping up and down, singing along: "On and on and on and... every little thing, every little every little every little every little thing she does! Ee-oh-ohh..." *BIG GRIN* I can still picture the colored lights flowing out over the crowd, can feel everyone's hyper energy, can hear them (and myself) singing exuberantly. It was one of the best moments I've ever experienced during a concert. "Magic, magic, maaaaa-gic!" You said it, Sting. If I'm feeling down, playing this one will lift me right up. Works every time.
* "Do I Do" by Stevie Wonder.
I mentioned that I like to go for walks. Stevie Wonder's Song Review: A Greatest Hits Collection is often what I'll listen to, and this song is the last one I'll cue up as I'm heading into the home stretch because it perks me right up and keeps me going. First of all, it's ten and a half minutes long. Awesome. (Heee.) Secondly, he's got Dizzy Gillespie playing trumpet during the instrumental break. Dizzy. Gillespie. Like he happened to have one of the best trumpeters ever just stop by and record a few bars, for kicks. (I confess I giggle like crazy when he instructs Dizzy to go ahead and "Blow! Blow, blow blow blow!" Heehehehee. See? I can't help it. It's hilariously infectious.) Speaking of hilarity, how can you not love a song that has wacky lyrics like "I got some honeysuckle chocolate dippin' kisses full of love for youuuu"? Come on! Near the end Stevie jams out like a madman and growls, "Do you want some candy?" Yes, baby, I sure do. Bring it. Heeeeeeeeee. Does this song make me smile? You better believe it. If you ever give it a listen, promise me you'll listen to all ten minutes of this piece. It's worth it.
* "Englishman in New York" by Sting.
Out of all the Sting songs that I love -- and I will admit there are many -- this one is number two. ("Fragile" gets the top prize because of its gorgeous overlapping instrumental and vocal layers, stunning lyrics and heartbreaking guitar part.) However, just because it's not my number one favorite Sting song doesn't mean it isn't magnificent, because it is. I love the plucky violin strings coming in on the off-beat; that's a standout bit that made me instantly like this song (and yes, it does make me smile). I love the whining cries of the soprano sax, and the jazzy swing rhythm of the bass. I love the brief bit of drum solo. And I especially love the lyrics. They seem simple at first --
I don't drink coffee
I take tea, my dear
I like my toast done on one side
You can hear it in my accent when I talk
I'm an Englishman in New York...
-- but my favorite is the repeated part at the end, which has a profound lesson for me: "Be yourself, no matter what they say." I love that and remember it always.
Those are just ten of the many songs that make me smile after a bad day (or any kind of day). If you aren't familiar with any of them and want to hear them, let me know. I'll send 'em your way. :)
Top Five Scenes From Any Show That Never Fail To Make You Laugh, No Matter How Many Times You Watch Them
I know I sound like a broken record when I say "this is a tough one to answer," but it's true! In this case, it's because I love to laugh (cue the Mary Poppins song, heh) and have enjoyed scenes from many different shows for that very purpose. You just never know what will tickle me in the moment. I'll likely give you five, and next week I'll see something, laugh hysterically, slap myself in the forehead, and say, "Oh, how could I have forgotten that?" So, just keep in mind, these kinds of lists are ever-changing for me. *GRIN*
In no particular order, here are five scenes that make me laugh:
* Brad Pitt saying "YAMS!"
Nothing against Mr. Pitt, but I've never been a huge fan of his. Not in the drooling, ohmygodIlovehim sort of way that some women express. He's definitely attractive, but he's just never been my type, I guess. I do admire that he takes chances and plays an unusual variety of roles, and I'm highly entertained by his work in Ocean's Eleven. But if you were to ask me what my favorite Brad Pitt bit is... it's when he guest starred on Friends.
In that episode, he plays Will, a former "fat friend" of Ross and Monica's. Since high school, both Will and Monica have lost enormous amounts of weight, but it turns out Brad's character still has major food issues. When Monica invites him to Thanksgiving dinner, he is disturbed to find that his former high school 'nemesis' Rachel Green is Monica's roommate. Seeing her stirs up all his emotional eating habits. He starts slapping piles of food on his plate, even his self-proclaimed greatest enemy, "complex carbohydrates." When he asks Monica to pass him the mashed sweet potatoes, she gently tries to remind him that he doesn't want to sabotage all the work he put into losing weight, but he cuts her off with a hyper amped-up holler: "YAMS!" It's hilarious. This is the main exchange from that scene:
MONICA: (to Rachel) Apparently you were, umm, a little mean to him in high school.
WILL: A little mean? You made my life miserable!
RACHEL: (stunned) I'm--I'm--I had no idea. I'm sorry. I...
WILL: Well, you should be. (pauses) Screw it! Bring on the yams!
MONICA: Oh, Will. But you--you've worked so hard...
WILL: YAMS!!!
It's all in the delivery. I can't even... it's just so funny. (And this is coming from a girl who usually despises any type of fat joke, so that's saying something.) Makes me laugh every single time.
* Ted Mosby dancing on (and falling off) the bar table, while singing a Cheap Trick song.
The show: How I Met Your Mother. The episode: Season 1's "The Pineapple Incident."
Really, more than one moment or scene, I love the entire thing. There are five main characters and every single one of them makes me laugh out loud at some point during the watching of this episode. However, there is one scene that gets me laughing every time.
What's it all about? Well, to quote from IMDb: "After sucking down a quintet of shots at the bar (on a dare), Ted blacks out. He wakes up the next morning with a sprained ankle, a burned jacket, a phone number written on his arm, a pineapple on his nightstand, and an unknown woman face down in his bed. With the help of his friends, Ted attempts to piece together precisely what happened the night before."
Before you get worried, this is a sitcom, so the woman in his bed is alive (merely sleeping). *chuckles*
Ted's usually the reasonable, good-boy, straight man (comically and sexually speaking, heh) of the program, so to have his character get wildly drunk is immediately surprising. But it also turns out to be a very funny premise.
First of all, his drunk language to his friends is hilarious. Here's a sample (when his buddy puts him to bed for the night) --
TED: Barney, you've always taken care of me. You are a gentleman and a scholar! Go into my stable and take my finest stallion. He's yours. His name is Windjammer!
Heee.
His friends are clearly as tickled by this rare occasion as I am, as his best friend Marshall chuckles at Ted's antics and declares, "I love Drunk Ted!"
I also adore Drunk Ted's logic: "At least someone appreciates the fact that I am doing and not thinking. (pauses) And now, I don't think I won't not go to the bathroom."
That's my favorite line. Every time he says it, I pause to ponder the grammatical mess of that latter sentence. *laughs uproariously* Hilarious.
And finally, to see Ted (the underappreciated, talented Josh Radnor) get up onto a table and start singing along with a Cheap Trick song -- over his cell phone, to the girl he's secretly in love with -- is both sad and embarrassingly funny. He starts out belting in front of everyone in the bar, "Hey, it's me again..."
After singing a few lines, he then pauses in his song stylings to announce, "I love everybody in this bar!" His friends giggle.
He continues singing, "I'm a fool again. I fell in love wi--"
At which point he drunkenly stumbles and falls right off the table. OUCH. He fell, all right. Poor Drunk Ted.
Hence, how he sprained his ankle. And the revelation of all the other bizarre mysteries of the episode (except for the one we never find out: what he was doing with a pineapple on his nightstand) continues from there with remarkable hilarity. It's one of my favorite episodes of the entire series. I ♥ Ted. That girl doesn't know what she's missing.
* Scully's 'cream cheese' rant in The X-Files episode "Bad Blood."
Let me say this right now: the entire "Bad Blood" episode is HILARIOUS and AWESOME. A must-watch. There is a reason why this episode makes many XF fans' "top ten favorite" lists.
The structure of it -- his and hers accounts of what happened on one particular case, both wildly exaggerated according to who is telling the story -- is well-written and hysterically funny. We start to see how FBI partners Mulder and Scully might see each other when they're frustrated: Mulder thinks Scully can be a bit of a cranky killjoy, while Scully thinks Mulder is obnoxiously, exuberantly excited about turning every case into something supernaturally themed whether the science merits it or not. Both of those assessments can be true about the characters, but we know neither one of them is that bad in actuality so the exaggerated demonstration of those traits is unbelievably funny. Especially for a show that is usually so dark in tone.
We learn many things throughout the episode. From Mulder, that it's surprisingly tough to shoot out the tires on a runaway RV. (Heeee.) From Scully, that Mulder (when drugged) will sing the theme song from "Shaft" and use terms like "he came at me like a flying squirrel" when talking about a suspect attacking him.
(In a hilarious manner, Mulder will deny that he did or said any of this. "I was drugged!" David Duchovny is at his dryly funny best in this ep.)
But one of the funniest bits is when -- during Mulder's account of the case -- Scully bitches at him at length, after a very long day that's about to get even longer for Scully:
SCULLY: What do you mean you want me to do another autopsy?! And why do I have to do it right now?! I just spent hours on my feet doing an autopsy, all for you. I do it all for you, Mulder. You know, I haven't eaten since six o'clock this morning, and all that was, was a half a cream cheese bagel, and it wasn't even real cream cheese, it was light cream cheese. And now you want me to run off and do another autopsy? (she finally notices that he's covered in mud) What the hell happened to you?
The way actress Gillian Anderson tackles that whiny rant is funnier than I can ever express. Of course, it's especially funny if you're a regular viewer of that show, because then you know what parts of the characters are being mocked so mercilessly, but I hope it's still funny even if you don't know as much about the show. You just have to see it for yourself. HI-LARIOUS. Love it love it love it.
* CJ Cregg's root canal incident during The West Wing episode, "Celestial Navigation."
When The West Wing really rocks, I think it's partially because writer Aaron Sorkin manages to make a statement with a marvelous blend of dramatic and comedic moments, all in the same episode. He can tell a poignant story, yet manage to make you clutch yourself with laughter, too. "Celestial Navigation" is one of those episodes.
At first glance, we've got some serious stories going on: a HUD secretary might lose her job because she insulted a rude, racist committee chairman; and a Supreme Court Justice nominee is arrested in Connecticut, but the cops don't know who he is because all they see is that he's a Latino man driving a nice car in an upper middle-class, predominantly white neighborhood. Heavy stuff.
However, the episode is wonderfully narrated with self-deprecating humor by Deputy Chief of Staff Josh Lyman (the delightfully funny and charming Bradley Whitford), and contains so many laugh-out-loud exchanges between characters that it's nearly impossible to narrow it down to just one. There's Toby and Sam getting lost trying to find the police station in order to get Judge Mendoza out of jail (and Sam navigating his way by the stars, to Toby's great irritation). There's Josh sitting in for CJ on an afternoon press briefing because she can't talk properly after getting a root canal. There's Josh messing up said press briefing because he is not the press secretary and therefore tries to do it his own way, which involves giving sarcastic answers and telling a reporter his question was stupid. (Hee. Oh, Josh, you idiot.) The reporters gleefully eat him alive for his obnoxiousness. And there's so much more. Every time the characters think they have the incidents sorted out, something or someone (*ahem* mainly Josh) messes it all up again. The problems keep snowballing until the President intervenes with a verbal bitch-slapping for his whole staff and instructs them to fix it once and for all. I wish I could just post the entire episode right here for you to see; it is that funny.
But if I had to single out a moment from all the chaos, this is the one that makes me laugh every time. CJ gets back from her root canal and stops off in Josh's office to tell him she's going to have to cancel the press briefing because her mouth's all swollen and sore. (Case in point, a frustrated Toby finally yells at her, "CJ, so help me, if you use the words 'pwesident' or 'bwiefed' again...")
Actress Allison Janney is hysterically funny as CJ -- she tries to talk to Josh but he keeps messing with her, getting her to say words just because he knows she'll sound ridiculous doing so with a mouth full of cotton.
A sampling of their silliness:
CJ: I have to cancew the bwiefing.
JOSH: You can't cancel the briefing.
CJ: Wook at me.
JOSH: You'll be great.
CJ: I can't do the bwiefing.
JOSH: Why not?
CJ: I can't even say "bwiefing."
JOSH: You can't cancel the briefing, CJ. You got to wrap up O'Leary, got to move them back to the bill signing.
CJ: Yoshua!
JOSH: (chuckling) Sorry, did -- did you just say my name?
CJ: You weawwy think I can do it?
JOSH: Don't be insane, CJ. You're not going to do a press briefing looking like Bullwinkle.
...
JOSH: We're still doing it.
CJ: Who?
JOSH: Me.
CJ: No way.
JOSH: CJ?
CJ: You get howstiwe.
JOSH: I get... hot stuff?
CJ: Howstiwe. Howstiwe. You get howstiwe!
JOSH: I don't get hostile. I don't get randomly hostile. I get hostile when hostility's called for.
CJ: Wet Sam do it.
JOSH: Sam went to Foggy Bottom.
CJ: What's he doing in Fwoggy Bowtew?
JOSH: (laughing) I just wanted to see if I could make you say "Foggy Bottom." Sam's working with the speechwriters.
CJ: Toby?
JOSH: Toby's with Leo and the President.
CJ: Josh...
JOSH: (already walking away) Hey there, cats and kittens, this is Josh Lyman coming at you with your two o'clock briefing! Here we go. Whoo!
Heeheheheheeeeeee.
There is no way to properly illuminate just how funny these actors are. Oh, man. Cracks me up, especially that 'cats and kittens' line. *BIG GRIN*
* The entire "Smile Time" episode from Angel.
Bad-ass vampire-with-a-soul Angel getting turned into a felt, muppet-like puppet could have been really stupid, but instead it turned out unbelievably funny. A furious Puppet Angel launching himself at human vampire Spike and getting into a fistfight with him after Spike mocks him mercilessly ("you're a bloody puppet!") is priceless. Seeing the usually brave and strong Angel shaking like a terrified puppy while in his puppet form after getting away from a woman who turns into a werewolf and starts to rip the stuffing out of him is funnier than it really should be. ("She's gonna eat meeeee!") And just watching him march down the hallway in warrior hero mode, only this time as a two-feet-tall puppet -- still managing to wield a sword, no less -- is just one of those sights that causes a viewer (this viewer, anyway) to dissolve into fits of laughter. Great stuff.
There are also little lines here and there from a multitude of shows that make me laugh every time I hear them. Here are a few of the one-liners that always get me giggling like an idiot. As a full-service poster, I'm throwing 'em in for free. *GRIN*
"Nothing brings people together like a Christmas lung fungus."
~ Agent Seeley Booth (David Boreanaz), Bones, "The Man in the Fallout Shelter"
"Pirates aren't Santa, Zack."
~ Dr. Jack Hodgins (TJ Thyne) to Zack Addy (Eric Milligan), Bones, "The Man with the Bone"
"I'll send him a bundt cake."
~ Fox Mulder (David Duchovny), The X-Files, "Conduit"
SAM: So, how do you feel there, big guy?
TOBY: Like I just got screwed with my pants on.
~ Toby Ziegler (Richard Schiff), The West Wing, "Five Votes Down"
"I'm cuddly, bitch! Deal with it."
~ Marshall Eriksen (Jason Segel) to Barney Stinson (Neil Patrick Harris), How I Met Your Mother, "The Three Days Rule"
...and among so many others, this wacky scene:
FEMALE AIDE: I've got news for you, Toby. When PBS claims that a majority of households are weekly viewers, they use the Nielsen index. That's based on diaries.
MALE AIDE: Those results always show vastly higher PBS viewing than the numbers gathered by the automated boxes.
FEMALE AIDE: Why? Because...
TOBY: Because people want to claim they're more sophisticated than they are.
FEMALE AIDE: That's right.
TOBY: Look...
MALE AIDE: Wait, wait, hang on. There's one other thing. Product licensing for Big Bird dolls and Fuzzy Bear toys?
TOBY: Fozzy Bear.
MALE AIDE: Oh, whatever.
TOBY: (irritated) It's Fozzy Bear, not Fuzzy Bear.
MALE AIDE: Product licensing for this merchandise brings in over $20 million a year, none of which goes to PBS, all of which goes to the show's producer, the Children's Television Workshop. Now this is a company whose Chief Executive earns high six figures in salary and benefits per year; yet, the show is subsidized by taxpayer dollars.
TOBY: It's a perfectly reasonable complaint.
FEMALE AIDE: And?
TOBY: I don't care.
MALE AIDE: Toby...
TOBY: We're gonna see to all those things. In the meantime, a time when the public is rightly concerned about the impact of sex and violence on TV, this administration is gonna protect the Muppets, we're gonna protect Wall Street Week, we're gonna protect Live
from Lincoln Center and by god, we are going to protect Julia Child!
FEMALE AIDE: Toby...
(CJ knocks on the conference room door)
TOBY: Hang on.
(Toby goes out to meet CJ)
CJ: I got a message you wanted to see me?
TOBY: I've got good news.
CJ: What?
TOBY: Josh and Sam cut a deal on the hill. No hearing for Leo, he's gonna be out of the woods.
CJ: (relieved) Oh, Toby, that's -- that's great.
TOBY: (grinning) I gotta get back in there. This is just too much fun.
~ Toby Ziegler (Richard Schiff), The West Wing, "Take Out The Trash Day"
Heeeeeeeee.
Top Five Books You Loved So Much You Read Them More Than Once
When I was a kid, I devoured books. Couldn't get enough of them. My mom had to tell me to stop picking out so many at the library because they weren't going to let me take them all home at once. Sometimes I wish I still had that time and energy when it comes to reading, because there are so many books yet to be read and others I'd love to revisit.
It's been a while since I've had time to read a book more than once, but these are definitely some that I've read countless times because I love them so very much.
* To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee.
Hands down, my favorite book ever.
I first fell in love with it in the fifth grade -- that would make me approximately eleven years old, I think? -- when our teacher Mr. Hoffman read it to us in class. Talk about an eye-opener. I'd never experienced anything quite like it.
Most of the cheesy 'young adult' novels we read outside of class were about silly, ridiculous, frothy stuff: falling in love and going to parties and experiencing overly melodramatic teen angst. This novel was nothing like that. Mr. Hoffman challenged us to read books with more depth, and this one certainly fit that criteria. It felt intensely real. Its subject matter -- racism and civil rights, a girl growing up without a mother in the tumultuous South, her older brother trying to break free from childhood and learn what it means to be a man, and the story of their father, a lawyer (and single parent) fighting to do what's right amidst dangerous, violent obstacles -- stunned me. Most of it so far outside my experience, I was shaken and disturbed by the cruelty of certain characters and the injustice of the trial outcome. I couldn't understand how a jury could try and convict a man for something he clearly didn't do, simply because he was black. I vowed never to treat anyone like that. (A good lesson for a young kid, I think.)
The prose is beautifully written, all the southern locations and character voices coming vividly alive through every deliciously chosen word. It's dramatic and tense, but also remarkably funny (surprising, given the subject matter). The tale is narrated by the young girl, Scout, a tomboy struggling to be herself in a time and place where girls are supposed to behave like ladies, and her adventures are hilarious and thought-provoking. It's an interesting blend of drama and comedy, intensity and silliness.
Incidentally, I re-read this book for a Novel course during my senior year in high school, and for the final exam I wrote an essay comparing and contrasting how I've grown up with it, how when I was a young reader, I saw it one way, and when I revisited the novel as a teenager, I came to understand it on a much deeper level. I love studying the evolution of that and realizing the impact it had on me in so many ways.
I got an A on that essay and a glowing compliment from the teacher after class. Maybe it's easy to get good grades when you're passionate about the subject matter. It's a damn shame author Harper Lee never published another novel, but I guess, why mess with perfection? Put quite simply, To Kill A Mockingbird is an amazing novel, and I enthusiastically recommend it. I'd re-read it again in a heartbeat.
P.S. The film version is just as awesome. Oftentimes screen adaptations are unable to capture the essence of a novel, but this one does it justice. The kids are wonderful, and Gregory Peck as Atticus Finch was perfect casting. ♥
* Little Women by Louisa May Alcott.
I first checked this novel out of the library during grade school, and the librarian actually tried to talk me out of reading it. She said it was a really long book and she didn't think I'd be able to read it within the confines of the checkout time limit. Plus, she wasn't sure I'd understand it. Can you believe that?? Why hold a kid back? I insisted that I would understand it and get it back in time. And I did. In fact, I liked it so much, I requested it from our school library repeatedly so that I could read it again and again.
I loved the sense of family amongst the sisters of the story, how they fought to take care of each other and their mother while their father was away at war, and how they struggled but made it through even when times got really tough and food and finances were meager. I laughed at their silly antics. I adored the bond between Jo and Beth. And I especially admired Jo's wild behaviors and fierce independence. Plus, she was a writer, which inspired me so much. I wanted to be her.
I haven't read this novel in years, but it's one I'd like to revisit because I wonder if I'll look at it the same way as I did when I first read it as a kid. My perspective about being a woman -- and an adult, for that matter -- is quite different from the way I believed it would be (how I fantasized it would be, back then). I wonder if I'll still love these characters and their stories, or if cynicism will tarnish my vision of them all. Hmm. *ponders this*
* The Outsiders by S. E. Hinton.
My copy of this book is so worn, the pages are yellowed and the binding is coming apart. For a long time, I could recite by heart the first few paragraphs. And yes, I've read it many, many times.
I can't tell you exactly what drew me to it. I remember pulling it off the shelf, finding the back blurb intriguing, and deciding to borrow it from my teacher's personal library (relax, he gave me permission). I believe I thought it sounded different from the other books I'd been reading. Its narrator was a teenaged boy -- the majority of books I'd read had come from the perspective of girls or women, so I think I felt compelled to read this take, to see if it might shed some light upon the intricacies of the male mind, something I sure didn't understand back in grade school and likely struggle to understand to this day. (Heh.)
Side note: isn't it interesting how I first read most of these books during my very young years? I was an impressionable child, and clearly these novels stuck with me.
Not being a guy, I can't say for sure whether or not this novel accurately depicts the thought processes and actions of boys, but I can say that S.E. Hinton managed to make the characters come alive for me as a reader. I was fascinated by the statements regarding social class structure, and though I related more to the poor kids (the troubled 'heroes' of the story), I liked that the author humanized the characters from the other side of the tracks as well. I adored Ponyboy as the narrator; I loved his sensitivity (which was demonstrated in sharp contrast to the behaviors of most of the other male characters, especially his oldest brother), understood how he felt as he struggled to fit in, and appreciated his attempts to make sense of his place in life amidst society's ridiculously divisive rules. His adventures were riveting, and my heart broke with his when he lost his best friend, Johnny.
I have very fond memories of reading this novel.
* On A Pale Horse, from the "Incarnations of Immortality" series by Piers Anthony.
My friend Theresa used to recommend the best books and music to me, and this was one from that never-ending list. I can't recall if it was during junior high or high school (probably high school), but she loaned me the entire series, and this book was by far my favorite of the bunch. I've read it numerous times; I even read it aloud to my friend Sonnett during a road trip from Illinois to Pennsylvania. (Explanatory side note: I would have helped with the driving, but we took her car and I don't know how to drive a stick shift, so she drove and I read. It was my goal to keep her awake, but I hope I also was entertaining! Heeee.)
This book is hilarious and thought-provoking and bizarre, even a bit sacrilegious. It is awesome. Death comes for a man who is contemplating suicide, but in a spur of the moment decision, the man decides not to kill himself and instead turns his weapon upon Death. He soon learns that the person who kills Death must take up his job requirements. The rest of the novel is all about how he takes over the position of Death (like it's an office job or something, so funny), learns the ins and outs of taking people's souls before they die and sorting them properly to send them where they need to go (to Heaven, Hell, or the 'undecided' section, Purgatory), and deal with the pain-in-the-ass aspects of being Death (like having to coordinate schedules with War and Time and Nature, and make sure the Devil doesn't interfere too much or muck everything up). All sorts of cleverness and wackiness abounds! It's really indescribable -- you have to read it and decide for yourself -- but I just loved it so much. I found it hilarious, unusual and mind-blowing. This novel made me look at the subject of death in ways I'd never thought about it before, and while that may sound morbid, it was actually quite fascinating and surprisingly positive. Even comforting. I highly recommend this novel. Read it again and again. *GRIN*
* The Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling, especially book 4 entitled Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire.
This one may seem a bit juvenile in comparison to some of my other choices, but I don't choose to see it that way. I love these stories with a sense of wide-eyed wonder that I haven't experienced through reading in what feels like a very long time. Maybe it's a bit obvious to call them magical, but to me they are. These books remind me to look at things with the eyes of a child, and by that I mean with the vividness and imagination that goes with being young and pure and curious. Untarnished by cynicism.
I love the vibrant, fantastical world that author J.K. Rowling created in Hogwarts, I am tickled by its many bits of cleverness, and I adore the three main characters, Harry, Ron and Hermione. Their bond is funny, sweet, and really lovely. Even when the stories turn dark and intense -- especially when they do -- they still manage to remind me how important it is to keep a sense of lightness and play in my life. I really, really love these books.
Runner-up choices include: Succulent Wild Woman by SARK (great "grrrl power" self-esteem boost, this one); Kenneth Branagh's memoir Beginning (fascinating and funny); Curious George books (a childhood favorite); and the unique, marvelously mysterious, letter-and-postcard book Griffin and Sabine by Nick Bantock. I've read them all repeatedly because they are marvelous.
Top Five Pet Peeves
* Rude people.
A few random examples: in the car (cutting you off in traffic or not allowing you to enter their lane); in customer service (being crabby and rude right off the bat irks me); and in life in general. Nobody's perfect, everybody has bad days, but at least try not to be a dick.
* People who won't tell the truth or just say what they mean.
I may not always take it well, I may need a few days to let the information digest, but I'd rather hear the truth from someone than have them bullshit me. How am I supposed to learn or become better if you don't tell me what I'm not seeing? And seriously, I'd far prefer a guy to come up to me and say outright that he's interested in me than for him to play games and leave me wondering what the hell is going on. I'd far prefer a friend to tell me when I've done or said something that troubled them than be left in the dark about it. I can't take action or make changes unless I have all the information. Honesty is surprising and refreshing. For the most part. *GRIN*
* Those who act all condescending and superior to others.
Confidence is attractive. Arrogance is NOT. You cannot demand my respect by acting like an ass; you earn it by being kind-hearted, hard-working, talented, honest, and open. (And willing to have fun, thorough conversations with me. Heh.) Someone who is genuine? I will adore forever.
* Being woken up extra-early or talked to first thing in the morning.
There's a reason my mom once got me a nightshirt that read, "I SAID... DON'T BOTHER ME!" I am pleasant the majority of the time, I can even reach scary levels of perkiness depending on the day (and if I've had a Caribou Coffee hot cocoa, mmmm), but generally I really, really do not like to talk first thing in the morning. You can tell by the way I squint sleepily and grunt at you instead of using actual words. My body may be moving around, but trust me when I say my brain hasn't quite kicked in to high gear yet. Therefore, until that happens, you might want to leave me alone and let me power up gradually. Thank you very much. *GRIN*
* People who cut you off, don't really listen to what you're saying, or are too distracted (especially by their cell phone, Blackberry, or whatever) when they're hanging out with you.
Don't do that to me. Just... don't. If you want my full attention, I gladly give it to you, but I expect the same in return.
Runner-up: People who don't clean up after themselves (like in the kitchen or bathroom).
I may be projecting a little on this one from the time I had a roommate. LOL. We all have our messy moments, but for heaven's sake, if you're not going to do the damn dishes within a certain window of time, at least let them soak in the sink so they don't get all moldy and gross! *ahem* Okay, I'm done ranting now.
I'm sure I could think of other little nitpicky things that bug me, but they likely won't come to mind until someone does them and I find myself bristling in the moment. *chuckles*
Annnnd that's it for now!
I'll be back soon with such madness as "Top Five Films That Had A Lasting Impact On You" and "Top Five People You'd Like To Smack Upside The Head." *laughs uproariously*
Thanks again for playing along! (Especially Gemma, my hilarious taskmaster. *wink*) I hope you're finding these entertaining thus far.
:)
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Date: 2009-11-06 01:05 am (UTC)Brad Pitt was PERFECT in that Friends episode. I always crack up when I watch it. And Bad Blood has me cracking up too *uses special icon* Smile Time cracks me up, but not as much as The Cautionary Tale Of Numero Cinco. I watched that while in Guatemala with my bff and we were just dying of laughter. Maybe it's a cultural thing, though.
I LOVE To Kill a Mockingbird! I saw the movie when I was 12 and had to read the book, and it was just amazing. Then I read it again in 8th grade, along with The Outsiders. I think it was one of the few times I really enjoyed something I read for school, even if the activities were meh. I love to read, but I don't like the way books are taught at school or the choices. Big Harry Potter fan, too, though I wasn't terribly fond of the last two books *coughhatedthemcough*
As for your favorite things to do, I agree with singing, writing, and watching my favorite DVDs! Don't know about kissing, haven't done it yet. *grin*
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Date: 2009-11-06 01:32 am (UTC)Totally with you on watching favorite DVDs and whatnot. I could say I indulge in that way too often, but I really don't think there is such a thing. It's like comfort food.
"Throwing Stones"! Awesome! It's an amazing angry song, isn't it? Damn, Paula is just fantastic, I love her. I first listened to that album when I was about 13 or 14, I think. It was particularly great as a restless adolescent, I remember that very specifically.
It also pleases me to see Goblet of Fire on your reread list! I've sort of fallen away from HP in recent years, but I do still love the series, a lot of which is tied up in personal nostalgia. Goblet of Fire is by far my most thumbed through copy, I think because it was the first one that was "new" to me once I finally discovered the series; it came out the summer I started reading them, so I just kept reading and rereading it while waiting for #5. Little Women was also a major reread for me as a young girl (and screw that librarian, what the hell?). Did you ever see the film adaptation? I'm sure there's been more than one, but I also grew up watching the Winona Ryder version, which also has a big soft place in my heart. Like you, I'd be curious to revisit the book now, since my views on things are so changed with time. I've never been one of those only children who grew up wanting a sibling, but the closest I ever came to wanting a sister was when I was reading those books.
I also adore To Kill a Mockingbird (and the film adaptation) like mad. I remember being devastated in 11th grade when I discovered I couldn't choose Harper Lee for my year-long author project because she hadn't written at least three novels (which was the base requirement), because I was just dying to sink my teeth more fully into that novel.
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Date: 2009-11-06 03:03 am (UTC)Favourite Ways To Pass The Time
We're having one of those mind-melding moments again, because I'm with you on four out of the five activities you listed. Usually things I enjoy tend to be things that I'm pretty good at (call me a narcissist), but singing has always been the exception to prove the rule. The performance aspect is half the fun (and trust me, what you saw the other night was the mere tip of the iceberg LOL), but I try to rein it in when I'm in public for the most part... try being the operative word there. If a song I know is playing, no matter where it happens to be, I feel this irrepressible compulsion to sing along. I used to drive people crazy when I worked at Clinton Cards - we'd have the same 60s/70s mix blaring all day long, and the only way I could survive the monotony of it all was by humming along. I'm surprised I didn't scare all the customers away ;) Ringing insurance agencies when I worked at a law firm was a nightmare, because I'd invariably be kept on hold for ages, but instead of that god awful elevator music, some of the companies played pretty decent tunes - like the Eurythmics' 'Sweet Dreams' and Suzanne Vega's 'Luka,' so I'd wap it on speaker phone and start dancing in my seat. I was actually singing once when one of the guys picked up the phone, which was hilarious. Anything to get me through the day LOL. I promise I do take my jobs very seriously when I have to, though ;)
You encapsulated all the reasons why I adore writing. I couldn't have put it any better myself. And, as I was telling Mel the other day, I prefer communicating like this to chatting on the phone, too. I'm not a terrible conversationalist by any means, but I'm no where near as articulate IRL as I am on paper. Still, I can speak to someone in person and think that they're an amazing communicator and then I get an e-mail from them and they seem borderline illiterate, so I suppose it works both ways LOL.
TBC…
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Date: 2009-11-06 03:07 am (UTC)People go on diatribes about the evils of watching television (or the occasional film), but I find that sort of rant ridiculous. Don't get me wrong, there is plenty of crap out there and I'm happy to ignore or skip past watching that stuff. *cough*most reality TV*cough* But I do think it's all very subjective and that there is more that is good out there than people are willing to see or admit.
I agree with you 100%. A lot of my friends are horrified that, if I'm honest, I'd rather watch TV than pick up a book 99.9% of the time. If I'm going to get invested in it and take it halfway seriously, then obviously it's got to be a thought-provoking and high quality show, but hell, 20% of my film collection comprises of chick flicks, dance movies and goofy comedies like Scary Movie, South Park, Dumb & Dumber etc. I like them because they're not claiming to be remotely profound, but they're enjoyable for what they are - like Strictly & The X Factor etc. Still, there's a reason why they're on a totally different shelf from the meaty, weighty stuff, and that's because I don't expect to see slapstick and mindless fluff working its way into shows that used to speak to me on a level that transcended basic entertainment value *cough* 'Bones' *cough*.
Top Five Songs That Are Guaranteed To Make You Smile After A Bad Day
You know, for our remarkably similar tastes in a lot of artists, I only recognise a handful of the songs you mentioned - the tracks by Sting and (thanks to you) the amazing 'Throwing Stones' by Paula Cole. And, of course, the barn-stomping classic that is the Proclaimer's '500 Miles.' Ah, I remember many a night out spent linking arms and jumping up and down to that. I personally feel compelled to do a chicken dance when they get to the part just after the "da-da-da-daaa"s, namely the "dai-dai-dai-did-a-lai, did-a-lai..." well, you get the drift LOL. I didn't know what the word "haver" meant until I encountered it in that song - "and if I haver, yeah I know I'm gonna be, I'm gonna be the man who's havering to you." Of course, I had to look it up, because I'm a geek like that, and I was highly amused to discover that it was Scottish slang for chatting shit. He he. I will definitely check out the others at some point, though - you speak about them all so passionately, how could I not?
Anyway Sherry, it's getting pretty late on this side of the pond so I'll return tomorrow to reply to the rest of your epic post! Good night *hugs*
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Date: 2009-11-06 09:31 am (UTC)Have a Toby icon :D
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Date: 2009-11-06 07:01 pm (UTC)Ted's drunken escapades sound hilarious (unfortunately, I've never seen HIMYM), as do CJ's incoherent ramblings. It reminds me of the Xena episode 'In Sickness & In Hell' ("there is a fungus among us!") where Gabrielle's lips go numb after she inadvertently munches on a herb with anesthetic properties, and she winds up drooling over everyone and talking in a similar fashion to what you described. Xena, meanwhile, contracts foot rot and lice. I just about killed myself laughing when she yanked one out of her hair and flicked it across the room, only to be greeted by a chorus of tiny little voices squealing, "oh my God, she killed Kenny - you bitch!" LOL. I don't usually go in for toilet humour, but I found it pretty funny at the time - in the same kind of way I was tickled pink by "Katrina," the troll from 'Merlin.'
I promised Mel I'd resume watching the X-Files from Season 4 onwards (I enjoy the majority of episodes, but it's not a show I've ever fallen in love with), but I'm going to give it another shot and maybe I'll encounter 'Bad Blood' on my travels.
Top Five Books You Loved So Much You Read Them More Than Once
I was also a voracious reader as a child and prone to selecting books that were tailored to older children and sometimes even adults (thankfully my librarian was a lot more encouraging than yours!), but I seem to have developed ADD when it comes to reading novels nowadays. I did manage to tackle 'To Kill A Mockingbird' in one sitting a couple of months ago, though (God only knows why I hadn't read it before). I can understand why you speak so highly of it; not only is the plight of Tom Robinson truly heart-wrenching (reasonable doubt means nothing to a jury so steeped in prejudice), the sub-plots are just as riveting - the mystery of Boo Radley, the so-called monster who turns out to have more humanity than most, Scout's steadfast refusal to be moulded into her Aunt's version of a proper young lady, and Jem's ongoing development as he begins to understand things from an adult perspective. The Ewells were the original trailer trash, but although you despise Mayella for lying, there's still a smidgen of empathy for her when you know she lives with a father who will surely kill her for telling the truth. I loved Atticus and his endless compassion - for the Cunninghams, who couldn't afford to pay for their legal representation (and boy, was I relieved when the father came to his senses and disbanded his Klan thanks to Scout's innocent inquiries after his son); and for the miserable old coot who was addicted to morphine. I have no clue how Harper Lee managed to weave so many rich and complex characters - and so much depth - into one story. I loved the neighbour whose house burnt down, too.
I've read a few of your other selections, as well - 'Little Women,' and, of course, Harry Potter. 'Prisoner of Azkaban' is probably my favourite of them all. I'll never tire of children's literature. My top two are 'Goodnight, Mr Tom' by Michelle Magorian (about a young evacuee who goes to stay with a gruff, but kindly old man and gradually learns about love - and loss - away from the clutches of his abusive mother, only to have to return to her when the war is over) and 'The Illustrated Mum' by Jacqueline Wilson, about two young girls dealing with a mother who has bi-polar disorder. Both of them still have the capacity to make me bawl like a baby whenever I read them.
TBC...
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Date: 2009-11-07 12:33 am (UTC)As for your pet peeves - agreed 100%.
I like assertive people who’re willing to stand up for themselves in the face of adversity, even if it means ripping someone a new asshole (Julia Robert's portrayal of Erin Brocovich, for example, is just pitch perfect for me: "that's all you got, lady; two left feet and fucking ugly shoes!"). But of course, I only dig scenes like that if the person in question deserves it. I can’t stand people who are rude for no conceivable reason or take out their frustrations on you when you haven’t done anything to contribute to them.
I can't abide insincerity, affectations or airs and graces, either. If you're not going to be yourself, and put on an act in accordance with whoever you're with, then what's the point of existing as an individual? I abhor the pack mentality and trying to fit into the 'in crowd,' too. Either you like me for who I am, or you fuck off - I'm not going to pander to you so you'll be my BFF. It sets my teeth on edge when people talk down to me, too - especially if I'm more intelligent than they are. One of the solicitors in our law firm pointed at me once and literally said, "you, dear, be a good girl and go and make me a cup of tea" so I turned around and said to him, "I'm sorry, does it look like I'm on work experience? Make it yourself!" and then just walked away. Gah!
I’m with you on the whole ‘like a bear with a sore head’ in the morning thing, too, and I practically have OCD when it comes to cleanliness, so living with my sister has been somewhat traumatic for me, as she seems to be physically incapable of tidying up after herself.
I had no idea my questions were going to consume so much of your time, so a part of me feels guilty, but I enjoyed reading your answers so much that I'm not going to let the remorse eat away at me for too long :D
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Date: 2009-11-07 04:08 pm (UTC)Hope to see you soon, miss you.
Much Love,
Sonnett