Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: bye, hiatus, london, noel gallagher, oasis, paris, ryan adams
Blah. For no reason (kinda?) I am feeling a whirlwind of emotions about everything and nothing at the same time. Ryan Adams and Noel Gallagher are the only two men I want in my life, ever [well hypothetically; hopefully it does not turn out that way in the long run -shrug-]. Speaking of Noel Gallagher… Oasis has brought back Live Forever, Roll With It, and My Big Mouth in the setlist. that’s so legit, and the night isn’t even over yet! BTW It’s a huge sin that I will be in the UK when Oasis are playing Manchester and I will not be attending. That goes against my religion essentially.
So on that note, kids, I will be HERE:
until the 13th/14th or something.
Hopefully this trip will be good and will take my mind off whatever. This post makes no sense and I am rambling. Have a good June.
while I’m gone, you can chuckle to yourself over the fact that I’m missing a serious opportunity.
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: brussels, cinema, film, leonard cohen, london, music, paris, penelope cruz, photography, roman polanski, self, self portrait, tom waits, vicky cristina barcelona
I’ve been busy obsessing over the most disjointed random things/people in the world. That’s what I’ve been busy doing instead of blogging on this shit.
1. Leonard Cohen. It’s because every time that doc Leonard Cohen: I’m Your Man is on Sundance I watch it. It changes my life every time. I always love Leonard Cohen because he gets you at all points in your life. And as I’m going through a whirlwind of dullness and mood swings and everything, he is making the most sense. He tends to make sense a lot more than most people do. Something about Cohen’s voice and words and presence is just comforting. I almost wish he was my father.
2. Penelope Cruz. I would do the little accent mark but I have no idea how to. I finally saw Vicky Cristina Barcelona and she blew my mind. She’s just so sickeningly beautiful and amazing. I think I might add her to my extremely short list of people I’d go gay for. (and btw, the movie was really good too, but I’m biased since I love anything by Mr Woody)
3. Self portraits. I’ve been taking too many of them.
(me and Edith, I tried very hard to get her into the photo)
4. This fucking Canon 28-135mm f/3.5-5.6 USM Image Stabilizer lens. I NEED IT IN ORDER TO SUSTAIN MY LIFE.
I was playing around with it when Madelaine and I bought her new camera yesterday. It has the best focus of any lens I’ve ever had my hands on. I’m going to try and find a cheaper one somewhere (ebay? reliable y/n?) before I leave in 15 days.
5. Obsessing over the fact that in 15 days (give or take, too lazy to calculate exactly) I’ll be in London, Paris, and Brussels. Yeah. WHAT!? Thank GOD. I don’t even know what to do with myself. We basically have no plans for anything. I can find my own way around London by now so Madelaine just plans on following me around to places that are for sure hits, and then just hanging out. and then eventually celebrating her birthday by doing something dangerous and stupid most likely. Maybe I’ll try and see the family. Who knows. The only plans for Paris is the Louvre, so I can cry and recreate the race in Band of Outsiders while trying to not get kicked out (oh and look at epic art pieces, of course). I might try and visit the Cinematheque Francais so I can weep. No plans for Brussels at all except to get Belgian chocolate.
6. Tom Waits. I am going through a serious musical rut where he is basically all I listen to. I would marry Tom Waits.
7. and last: ROMAN POLANSKI. I finally got around to watching that documentary Roman Polanski: Wanted and Desired. I love him so much I refuse to believe he’s a pervert, but it’s obvious he got his groove on with that 13 year old girl, what Humbert Humbert would call a nymphet (that reference was necessary). She wanted it though, I guarantee it. Who wouldn’t want to get it on with a young RP?… Like, come on girl, just admit it, stop tormenting this little man’s soul. He’s a genius, a god of his art form, let’s allow him to frequent our country again and continue making spectacular films…. give it up girl!
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: amorphous androgynous, anthology 3, franz ferdinand, jaguar shoes, london, music, paris, paul weller, psychedelia, the beatles, the black keys, the jam, the killers
One of my history teachers said something really relevant to our class a few months back. How I just thought of it again, I have no idea. Now, Lesnau is not the most philosophical person in the world (i.e. “you know… there is another way to stop drunk drivers from driving. it’s hard to drive without any arms.”) but he said something that struck a chord with me. He said that if you want to do something, just go for it. Especially when holding a job is so fickle anyway, why not just try something you want to try. Worst thing is you fail and you learn from it. Too bad there aren’t more people telling us things like that every day.
I have nothing to post about today that’s of any interest… But I’m getting really attached to this blogging bullshit, so I kind of feel the need to sporadically update it. I’m in a weird mode right now, listening to all this random music. I listened to so much of the Beatles Anthology 3 over the last couple days it was scary (you NEED to buy that. even if you’re not a big fan of the Beatles or you have no money, INVEST IN THAT!!!!). that and that psychedelic compilation A Monstrous Psychedelic Bubble Exploding In Your Mind (Space Volume 1) by the Amorphous Androgynous (you probably all know where I heard of that one).It is truly psychedelia at its best and it has a couple of really great Donovan tracks on there I had never heard before. and more acid induced rambling. Besides those… I used to LOVE the Black Keys but I totally forgot about them/lost all their music that I had on my transfer to the macbook. I’m listening to their new album. I highly recommend it. It’s so bluesy and old school and generally great. If anyone’s interested I can send it your way. Also listening to the Killers’ new album, not too impressed with it. There are a couple songs on there that I find absolutely appalling, but a few more are pretty good. The new Franz Ferdinand album, however, is enjoyable. Apparently it isn’t out yet but I got a hold of it, who knows. I always loved Franz… I feel like it isn’t cool anymore to like them and I don’t know why. I might just be making that up. My pal Guy Eppel did the single’s artwork. It seems like it’s a pretty solid piece of music here.
You know, I was just thinking about this so randomly but, when did it become a sin to be a smoker? I’m not a smoker. I’m not saying I am. But I swear to god, the next time I see an anti-smoking commercial I’m going to blow up. I don’t see the big deal. You know, the only reason alcohol is legal isn’t as condemned is because it’s used in the church. What kind of crap is that?
I’m going to link you all to my awesome friend Victor’s band/collaboration/musical experiment thing JAGUAR SHOES. The first two songs that come up on the playlist are my two favourites. Hope you enjoy ‘em.
I’m listening to the Jam at the moment. what a solid band. I adore Paul Weller. seeing him live was so great. He is the modfather. He always looks SO fucking cool and amazing as well.
That photo looks freakishly like the other one I just posted.
Oh and by the way, this is where I’m staying in London in the summer. It’s more south London than I’ve ever spent a good amount of time in, so it should be interesting times.
awesome, no?
No idea where I’m staying in Paris yet. honestly I think the best plan is to just show up, locate Louis Garrel and/or Gaspard Ulliel and tell them I need a place to stay. Sounds like a good plan to me.
within the span of the next 5 months I will have been back to London and Paris, and to New York. and then moving to Chicago. something tells me this will be a good year.
Anyway, this update is really unnecessary (and unnecessarily long) and no one read that. I think I’m off to the used book store that I’ve never been to that’s like, 3 minutes away.
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: cards, drawing, friends, holidays, london, noel gallagher, paris, school, travel, UK, wtf
I kind of forgot about writing in here for a few days.
I went back to school yesterday. It was appalling. The entire experience. School is so pointless to me at this point. And that for me is the hardest thing to do, go through something you don’t want to when there is absolutely no purpose to it.
I don’t know what to blog about. Does anyone else hate the ‘b’ word?
OH HERE’S SOMETHING. I’m going back to London. For the first time in two years. In June. My best friend’s parents are taking us and we’re using their friend’s flat. It’s 10 minutes walking distance from Hyde Park. I can’t even deal with that awesome. And well, the plan for about a year was we were going to spend a fortnight in Paris. But I can deal with being in London and commuting to Paris a couple times. Wow. I need to get all the info about it and let you all know what it looks like. This news is the ONLY thing getting me past finals.
In other news, Patrice sent me this wonderful thing in the mail:
a homemade holiday card. It made my day 
And in other other news, Abby drew Noel. And it’s fucking incredible. LOOK AT IT BIG.
This post has been utterly useless. I hope you are all doing fantastic.
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: edinburgh, great britain, london, love, photography, travel, UK, united kingdom
I was going through my flickr photostream today and I came across my Glastonbury photos from 2007, then I started to look at all my photos of London. Over the last year or so I haven’t been longing for London as much as I normally do. All of that interest kind of shifted back into the US with all this Barack Obama hullabaloo and into Paris. Looking at my photos I realized how much I miss London. I haven’t been in over a year and a half but it honestly feels like eternities.
I think London is the best city in the world, and without a doubt, has the most interesting people I’ve ever met. The first time I went to London (although the first time I went was a 2-day stay or something like that in 2005) I kind of felt at home. Ever since the last time I left (end of June 2007) I feel like I left a part of my heart there or something. I know how lame that sounds so spare me. There is an energy in London that I haven’t felt anywhere else. It’s undeniably busy and fast-moving but there is always a quiet place to go if you need it. The romanticism that surround the idea of London is all true as well. Everything is just.. different in London. Things fall into place, at least for me. People that are normally labeled “freaks” around here (or most places in the US) are just normal people in London. Everyone is different but is normal at the same time. I don’t know why, and as lame and sap-ass as this sounds, but existing in London just makes sense. If I could live ABSOLUTELY anywhere in the world, it would be either Camden or Notting Hill in London.
Of course for someone like me, the art culture in London is unbelievable. I think London is getting a major second wind, almost like how it was in the ’60s. I mean, I can’t fully account for that because I haven’t been in over a year but it seems like the 3rd and 4th time I went, people are so alive. There is an anticipation in the air when you walk along Oxford Street or into a small bar on Portobello. Music is buzzing again. People are making art in so many different forms, it’s just churning out of the city. The film stars are getting popular again and so is the fashion. I think if I could go back right now, wearing what I’m wearing with nothing else, I would go. Actually I would need a camera.
I love a lot of places in the world, don’t get me wrong. I’ve been a lot of places. I love Chicago, I love New York, I LOVE Edinburgh, I love a lot of the east coast. But I either haven’t been to those places as much as London, or I don’t ‘get’ other places as much as I get London. I think it’s the latter.
Here are some of my pictures that made me feel as nostalgic. I’ll give you the links for the bigger versions on flickr too.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/shes_electric/273360958/in/set-72157594334713358/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/shes_electric/273370826/in/set-72157594334713358/
this is one of my favourite places in London. it’s a really musty and kind of grotty Garkfunkel’s off of Oxford Street. this tiny street called Duke Street. I love how you can see the guys chilling in the guitar store and in the apartment above it but also the commuters.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/shes_electric/273376646/in/set-72157594334713358/
absolutely my favourite place in London. the smaller Rough Trade Records shop in Notting Hill on Talbot Road. you know, the place that signed the Libertines, the Smiths, the Strokes… you know. no biggie whatsoever.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/shes_electric/458902671/in/set-72157600076322674/
and you know, the people you see aren’t too shabby either. Tom Meighan from Kasabian in april 2007. pre-obsession.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/shes_electric/526465936/sizes/m/in/set-72157600076322674/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/shes_electric/730349762/in/set-72157600544443466/
Trafalgar square at night. I think this was after Glastonbury and Madelaine and I decided that London was too perfect to waste a night sleeping in it.
alright, this is mildly random, but these are some of my favourite photos. they are all from Edinburgh in Scotland. I don’t know why my film turned out this colour. I’ve used my red filter before but they turned out especially red this time. Edinburgh is a great place too, again, really lively. and gorgeous.
