Things of note and interest from 2008

Now, many things on this list were not “new” in 2008, but were at least new or I became more interested (some might say obsessed….) in 2008.

*Ingrid Michaelson, Erin McKeown, & Kelli Rae Powell
Folky women who are twisting lyrics, using different genres to influence their voices. And ukuleles!

*Bones and House
Addictive with fun dialogue and relationships. They may be formulaic, but they offer what the repetitive Law & Order/CSI/NCIS are lacking for me. Plus, who can resist the marathons on USA…. Not I!

*Dr. Horrible’s Sing Along Blog
I am not sure I need to go on much more here. Which leads me to my undying love of…

*Neil Patrick Harris
If he ever needed a marriage of convenience to stay closeted, I would be that woman. Granted, he does not need that now… so I would settle for best friends or even second cousin. My god I love this man! I already had a man-crush – well wait, what is the female equivalent of a crush where there is no sexual attraction but you obsessively love them to bits? Men use the word man-crush…. Gaycrush? Plutonic crush? Pluto-crush? That last one works fairly well. If you have not listened to the music from Assassins – whoa doggie – what are you waiting for? Different side of the NPH – but a great demonstration of his musical prowess.

*The Bonnie Hunt Show
I am usually not a fan of day time TV. Sick days are full of DVD’s for me… not being schilled dish detergent or diapers every 10 minutes. But, oh Bonnie! I have always liked her quite a bit. And her show feels comfortable and casual. Plus her accent sounds a bit like home!

*The Song of Ice and Fire Series by George R.R. Martin
I had not really dived into the world of the fantasy novel before. I am intentionally excluding the Harry Potter series here and the like – they are a bit main stream and not quite given the mantle of geekdom the fantasy novel is. This series had me hooked this summer. Strong female characters, twists in plot that kept me guessing. Characters I thought would be the centerpiece of the work killed unexpectedly. No clear lines of good and evil, you are not sure who to pull for. It was thrilling – and he does a great job with color and symbolism with the banners of the houses and who they represent. A very rich and textured world.

*YA novels
I am really itching to write one… so why not do research. Scott Westerberg is an author that I recommend and does not disappoint. But I think that YA novels get a bad rap some times. Yes, some of them are vapid fluff, but so are some ADULT novels! I started getting into them last year, and have been really enthralled by what they can do.

*Jonathan Coulton
Not only is he the kind of 90’s geeky cute I miss (occasional flannel with longish hair and a beard and GLASSES… oh glasses), but he writes a mean pop song that takes you by surprise. And his cover of “Baby Got Back” brings ghetto booty to us folksters. Yes, I want to be soft rocked by him.

*My disillusionment with the Twilight series
I am not going to lie, they entertained me at first. I was hooked. But as the series went on, I just felt that Bella was lacking. She felt too blank, too weak, and was just reacting to what was around her. The idea that any girl could insert themselves into her shoes because of that blandness is both genius and sad. It made Meyer a lot of money. I wanted her to be stronger, more kick-ass. And Edward was not all that dreamy to me. He was not flawed – or he was because he was traditionally “perfect”. Gag. Call me cynical – but I want more out of this crazy idea of love. A friend once called me picky – and I realize she may be right!

*Spring Awakening
On a spending whim, I picked up the soundtrack when I started my travel season, and the disc did not leave my car once. I was hooked, and I sing it all the time. The story is amazing, the songs are catchy and poetic, and some songs make me cry even after the 864th listen. And I am amazed that this play written in 1891 is still relevant and crucial today. It blows Rent clear out of the water.

*NPR and embroidering
Much of my time in the fall was listening to NPR in the parked car and embroidering like a little grandma while I waited for my next appointment or college fair. It was one of the few ways that kept me sane in the election madness. I did not spend much time in front of the cable news shows – other than my pals Jon and Stephen --- so I was able to strip away some of the sensationalism. NPR is not perfect, I know. But it suits my needs well – and just feels more organic.

*Olives
I love them now. We were once foes, but now, I adore their salty brine, their pleasant earthiness… the unassuming ovalness of them.

I may tack on more later… retrospection is wonderful! But this is what I can think of right now in the last day of 2008!