pedestrian saga

Last night, I hugged my dogs tight, attempting to shake myself out of a treacherous rut of low energy. We needed to play. So I cranked Ted Leo + Pharmacists and let the moshing begin! In one magical moment, I observed Gordon and Maddy’s intricate, um, furry tango twist and pause right in time with the opening of “Little Dawn”– just at that sweet spot after the bass joins in and TL’s guitar dives down to meet his rhythm boys. Shiver!

Here you’ll find a video of Ted Leo + Pharmacists performing “Little Dawn” live in a Unitarian church. I highly recommend going to the trouble of downloading it.

Eventually I decided to stop dancing with the dogs and sit down to the soup. I was skimming the table of contents of America: the Book, my new kitchen table read (several months coming from the public library), searching for an appropriate point of entry (”Hmm, I already checked out the nude Supreme Court at the airport bookstore…”) when “Shake the Sheets” led me straight to Chapter 6.

The TL+Rx site doesn’t offer audio of that one, but the others I find just as fabulous and inspiring (and maybe a little easier to access technically than the Unitarian gig).

Once you’ve converted, be sure to thank Caption Jockey. The motherscratcher is a music guru.

A gentle, mysterious voice had crooned irresistably, “There’s beauty in the breakdown,” and I was ready– burrowed into the sofa, wrapped in a warm blanket, hugging a pillow (or was it a dog?), long sleeves on hanky duty… Too bad Zach Braff never really snaps out of his Garden State* to deliver that breakdown he promised. (He promised!) With bated breath, I anticipated the cathartic payoff I was sure had been worked into the film’s formula. I waited for him to crumple and writhe about in his own saline sea, that pretty face all ruddy and contorted beyond recognition… all in vain, oh, my brothers. (more…)

It was a unique honor to be invited back to school by my kid sister earlier this month. Indeed, it was the chance of a lifetime to witness firsthand Em in her element at the finis of her undergraduate career. That weekend I slurped my way through an inebriating cocktail of nostalgia and, well, edification. Dorm living, for example– I remember you well, but co-ed, co-op, shared-meals-and-chores dorm living? Definitely new ground. (more…)

It’s Poop for Peace Day, y’all. Do your doody and really take some time to think while you work up a stink!