I'm on the bandwagon.

By which I mean, the the Hold Steady bandwagon. Last Monday (that is, the twenty-second) was a dark and gloomy day of moping over male cluelessness and being anxious over my Augustine essay, so I decided to indulge and buy myself a CD. Thus, on the recommendation of both D-Robes and Nemo, I purchased "Separation Sunday." I haven't been able to stop listening to it (although I'm not *currently* listening to it... it's late and I have an Augustine essay to write). I made Kolya listen to it on Tuesday night after the CMS pub night, and then I made T. listen to it when he came over Wednesday morning to make pancakes.

As for the male stupidity, well, it turned out to not be quite so stupid. (Some) details on personal application, but remember this is Canada, so you'll need two forms of ID and a recommendation on proper letterhead.

(Oh, and today's lunchtime discussion saw suggestions for Reformation Day party games. My contribution: "Pin-the-Paintbrush-on-the-Iconoclast".)

Five Things I Have Tried To Like Because My Friends Do

...and still just don't.

1. dinosaur comics (Although today's does remind me of Mr. Thompson: "A new lunar year, and guess who's still not married?")

2. White Russians

3. The Flaming Lips (Actually, the song of theirs playing on Pandora as I write this is not so annoying, but still... eh. I prefer Broken Social Scene, for reasons unclear even to me.)

4. Great Expectations (Quod Mother: "If you start to like Dickens because of that boy, I will be forever in his debt.")

5. The cookies Andrew brings to Calvert House.

Five Things I Have Discovered Because of My Friends:

1. xkcd

2. Iphigenie en Tauride, the first opera I honestly enjoyed.

3. Dar Williams (okay, so this isn't a recent discovery)

4. Amaretto sour (yummy).

5. The culinary possibilities of mushrooms.



Conclusion: Eh, whatever, I do my own thing. Although I really should try to like Dickens...

Let's get this clear.

I was informed by at least one ex that I have objectively bad taste in popular music... at least, according to his taste.* That said, Christmas and my Birthday left me with a great deal to spend in the way of iTunes gift cards, and so I indulged in albums from some of my second-year favorites. Review: Carbon Leaf's 2006 Love, Loss, Hope, Repeat has all the good qualities I liked in Indian Summer and Echo Echo. American Hi-Fi's Hearts on Parade, however, was just disappointing.

Conclusion: I need KFOG.

Second Conclusion: Favorite Song EVER: Guster, "Barrel of a Gun"

Lemma: New Theme Song (via KFOG): The Killers, "When You Were Young"

Second Lemma: New Musical Obsession: Carbon Leaf, "A Girl and Horse" (Isn't that the obvious choice?)


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*I'm pretty sure alternative/rock/punk is a like ice cream. It's to your taste, or not. It's not Bach**, for crying out loud.
** "If someone says, "I like chocolate ice cream" and you reply, "chocolate ice cream is bad," that's a nonsensical statement. If, however, they say, "This new song by Britney Spears is the best piece of music ever," then you're allowed to say, "well, there's this little piece by Bach I'd like you to listen to."-- Prof. Dan Brudney. I think about this a lot during discussions of liturgical music.