My resolutions

To follow in the footsteps of the esteemed Vanderslice, here is my list of futility for the coming year:

1. Make more money.
2. See things through from start to finish.
3. Blog more.
4. Drink less.
5. Quit gambling.
6. Embrace a more creative-minded existence.
7. Figure out what #6 means.
8. Focus.
9. Ask for help more freely.
10. Work toward a life where I don't need as much help.

I just executed half of these in the course of this entry.

This finally could be my year....

The resolutions I won't keep

Every year I basically have one New Year's resolution. Stop biting my fingernails and cuticles. I'm usually pretty decent at it until March when I'm watching 12 straight hours of college basketball and realize that I've unknowingly went to town on my fingertips. By then, what's done is done and I just keep at it until New Years again. This year I'm going to have a couple of New Year's resolutions so if one of them sticks then I'll feel pretty good about myself. Here they are:

1. Contribute to the blog at least 3 times a week
2. Stop biting my fingernails and cuticles
3. Do some form of creative writing for at least a half hour a day
4. Eat a little bit healthier (key words "a little bit"...I don't want to live in a world where I can't eat Cheesesteaks and drink Coke once and a while)
5. Listen to one new CD (new to me) a week
6. Bring lunch to work at least 3 times a week

So I saw Juno...

Every Christmas evening I go to the movies. This year I opted for Juno. The theatre was surprisingly packed for a 4:00pm on Christmas. With Kiterunner and The Great Debaters already sold out and standing on the back of a long line with only 25 minutes til the movie started, I wasn't feeling too confident in getting tickets. Luckily enough, simultaneously with the two tickets being placed in my hands the guy behind the ticket counter announced that Juno has been sold out. For the first time probably ever, I had to bypass the refreshment counter in favor of getting a seat. Predictably my special lady friend and I had to sit in the second row. Normally I have a problem with this because the last time I had to sit up front for a movie was actually 7 years to the day for Dracula 2000 (Gerard Butler...how far you have come). Even though it was a terrible movie, my head actually had to turn from side to side to follow the action and I still think I have the kink in my neck. Nevertheless, I knew that this movie was a dialouge driven film and probably wouldn't have to lube up my neck joints for it. As for the movie, I really enjoyed it. The dialogue was fast-paced and chock full of pop-culture references which is always a hit with me. There was only one problem I had with the movie and it did have to do with some of the dialogue. For the most part the slangy phrases worked but once and awhile it was overkill. It was only two or three times total but it was glaring enough to me where I thought about it and I imagine that's not what the film makers want me to be thinking at those moments. Other than that, Ellen Page was great (very pleased to find out she's 20 for reasons I don't want to delve in to here). One could even say she was perfect for the role of Juno. I celebrate everything Micheal Cera does at this point. Even though I'm a little nervous that he's a one trick pony with his perfected timing in doing the awkward and uncomfortable thing. Even if he is, that's a pony I'd like to ride for awhile. That sounded bad. J.K. Simmons and Jason Bateman were also very good. Simmons as Juno's dad was perfect in playing the disappointed but supportive father. The one character that I didn't particularly care for was Juno's best friend Leah. She was slightly irritating but I guess that it was nessesary since Juno was a pretty mature 16 year old and Leah was that reminder that she is only 16. The soundtrack fit the movie well also. It was mostly "cute" acoustic guitar, indie-rock stuff but also some cool stuff from Belle and Sebastian, and the Sonic Youth cover of Superstar by The Carpenters that I forgot existed.

Adventures in Solitude - New Pornographers 12/11/07

-Last night I went to a free New Pornographers at the Apple Store in SoHo. It's the fourth time I've seen them in 2007 (5th overall) but this was the first time I've ever seen an in-store performance, the first time I've ever seen a concert by myself and the first time seeing them sober.
-I'm usually not one to do something like this by myself. I did once go to the movies alone. All my friends saw Black Hawk Down before me and I guess it was a very important movie for me to see before it came out on DVD, so I tried that. Didn't like it much. So for me to actually get on a train and go into NYC myself was pretty out of character. I probably would have only done it for The New Pornographers...or any movie with helicopters.
-I got to the Apple Store at about 6:30ish. I was a little nervous approaching the store because I saw a line of people that started to bend around the corner but it was only about 45-50 people deep. A guy from the Apple Store gave me a bracelet and told me that it guaranteed my spot in the show but not my place in line. A minute later a girl with a British accent was on line (the queue) behind me talking on her cell phone. Just curious to see what she looked like since accents are awesome, I did the "stretching my back" turnaround. Let down.
-After about an hour and a half, they let us in. There were only 80-90 seats so I was lucky enough to get one on the good side of the stage where Neko Case stands. I had to be careful here. It was such an intimate setting that she probably could probably see me if she looked into the crowd. I had to keep my staring problem in check. Easier said than done when she's on stage.
-The show lasted pretty much an hour which apparently is a long time for an in-store. It was 10 songs plus an encore. The only weird thing was that the Apple Store hooked up a camera and projected the show on the screen behind them but with about a 2 second delay. It started out as an annoyance but soon became a pretty funny part of the show with the band commenting on it throughout the set.
-All in all it was definately worth going. I learned that I can go to a concert and not drink, I learned that not everyone with an accent is going to be attractive and I learned I can go out and enjoy a form of entertainment by myself. I might even try a movie again one day...maybe if they do a Fire Birds sequel or bring Airwolf to the big screen.

Setlist:
1. All The Things That Go To Make Heaven and Earth
2. Use It
3. All The Old Showstoppers
4. Challengers
5. My Rights Versus Yours
6. Adventures in Solitude
7. The Laws Have Changed
8.Unguided
9. Sing Me Spanish Techno
10. Don't Bring Me Down (ELO cover)
Encore
11. Bleeding Heart Show