You know what time it is! Time for me to accomplish more procrastination with another blog post!!! Today, I bring you March song picks and one fabulous link. First, the songs:
Underworld - Trim Pas/Cal -The Bronze Beached Boys (Come On Let's Go) Dani Siciliano - Extra Ordinary The French Kicks - The Trial of the Century (These guys have been my very recent "band of the moment." Love them!) Aqueduct - Growing up with GNR Cinerama - Manhattan The Delgados - Reasons for Silence Dear Nora - Rollercoaster Kristin Hersh - Your Ghost (I listened to this song on repeat for three hours Saturday night. That's how good it is.) Augustana - Boston The Be Good Tanyas - The Junkie Song Sixpence None the Richer - Dizzy
And now, a link. Pandora. I just discovered this the other day, but it's a REALLY cool online radio that will give you recommendations based on a song that you like. Sooo, for example, say you love "The Junkie Song." Type that sucker into the radio and it will stream a bunch of songs that have the same "genes" as that song - vocals, instrumentalization, tonal quality, etc. It's fun, addicting and a really good way to get some new songs on the ol' playlist. You know, when my fabulous choices are worn out :)
Just a PSA. 'Cause that's what I'm good for. Today is NATIONAL PANCAKE DAY (jazz hands). For those of you who don't live in Manhattan, wherein there is nary an IHOP --- IHOP will give you free pancakes today in celebration. Woo. Woo. Woo.
In other "I can't believe I'm excited" news, SHAMROCK SHAKES are back at McDonalds. The sweet, delicious, "I think it's mint-flavored but that's really more because it's green than because it actually has any mint flavor to it but, besides, it's sweet and delicious, like your mom" treat is here for a "limited time only." Which is also to say "St. Patrick's Day."
The NYT had an interesting article recently about separating twins in the classroom. Apparently, Illinois recently changed the rules so that parents could petition to keep twins in the same classroom in school. When I was in elementary school there was a pretty strong rule to keep us separated. But before, when we went to Catholic school in New York, there was only one class per grade, so there wasn't any separating to be done.
So, which method was better for the Mental Health and Wellbeing of the twinnies? Well...
From first to third grade, Michael and Anna ruled the playground with a benevolent yet iron fist(s). We were together and we were the coolest cats in town, had social skills and were quite the popular twosome. Teachers loved us, children feared and respected us and we would soon become the Awesomest Kids in Catskill.
And then we moved to Illinois. And with it, the cruel and ridiculous rule that AnnaAndMichael, could be no more. We were torn apart, each to our separate feifdoms where we could no long rule as golden tyrants. Without the other to "fill in the gaps" of our respective social skills, we floundered. For the next three years, our unfortunate haircuts, my choice to wear flower-printed culottes to the first day of fifth grade and being two years behind in Recorder Skills (the ubiquitous flute-pipe instrument that the Midwest thought integral to any young child's musical growth that, unfortunately, Upstate Catholic Education frowned upon) --- the Twins were at the bottom of the social totem pole. And there we stayed, for much of our elementary school education, in our separate spheres of doom and despair.
And we weren't wowing the academcis, either. Stupid and nerdy, not a good combo.
Upon entering high school, we started being in the same classes and I traded in the culottes for a snappy pair of white denim overalls. And -- SUCCESS --- again we were stationed at the top of our academic class and moved our way up from the bottom of the social ladder to, say, the third step. Maybe.
Lessoned learned? Let twinnies be together! And, under no circumstances, allow the female counterpart to wear billowy culottes on the first day of school.
Thanks to a fabulous birthday present from Mr. Jim, I was able to go see Spamalot last night with Mr. Pete. It was AWESOME. There was a part where they did one of my favorite scenes (three shall be the number thou shall count to; the number of thou's counting shall be three. Five is RIGHT OUT) but they did not do my most most favorite scene (what else floats? Rocks! Little tiny rocks?) but that was okay because it was nonetheless very funny and [jazz hands!] daaaazzling!
Also, Hank Azaria is in it and HAD I KNOWN while I was watching it, methinks I would have enjoyed it a touch more. Regardless, it comes highly recommended.
On that note, as Niki mentioned last week, our recommendations, really, mean crap. We have no discernable taste when it comes to musicals or other such "arty" things. Mainly because our main mode of comparison is what the high school drama deparment would put on every year so, really, everything is top notch in comparison. Of course, Spamalot's Tony Award might give a little creednance to my recommendation -- so there ya go.
Of course, NOTHING screams "Movie One Should Watch After Seeing Spamalot" like Boys Don't Cry. I had started the movie the other night but then about three quartes of the way through the music turned sinister and, well, I was skerrrrreddd. So, I decided, three courage drinks later, to pop it back in the laptop and finish it off.
Oh boy.
That move done MOVED me. I know, I know, this would go in the catergory of "Newsflash, Seven Years Removed" but it was a totally depressing film. But, I loves me some depressing movies, so it was welcomed. Still, no joke, it was SO amazing. Again, the mildly discerning tastes of Banana recommends it.
Alas! I awoke Thursday morning with the same feeling in my throat that I did four days before The Plague two weeks ago. Afraid of having to go through the whole ordeal again, I decided to tame the beast before it could rear its ugly head in the form of "no ability to swallow" and "general crappiness." So, I headed to the trusty Cold Aid aisle at CVS and stocked up. Now, I am SO IMMUNE (knock on wood) from any and all diseases. Or so I like to believe. My current regimen:
2 zinc tablets, twice a day 4 vitamin C tablets, twice a day gargle with listerine, every 4 hours gargle with hydrogen peroxide, every 4 hours (on alternating two hour cycles with the listerine) Airborne Jr., 2 tablets three times a day (I like the Jr. version because it's fake-grape flavored - one of the best flavors known to man) Zithromax antibiotics, 2 tablets once a day
If anyone else has any other ideas, let me know. Because after 1 FULL DAY of this regiment, my throat still feels exactly the same; slightly scratchy. And Leftie the Tonsil is ANGRY again (read: covering the left side of my throat) and I'm half-convinced I should just drink half the bottle of Goldschlager in the freezer and cut the sucker out. Because Leftie needs to f*cking RELAX.
Oh, and there's a 40-45% chance I might be living in Rochester this summer. Save me. SAVE ME!
Our property professor came and talked to our section (we had our final in December) to apologize for the String of Problematic Problems that happened with our finals. In short, he took two months to grade our exams and then mis-keyed the grades so, a week after grades were FINALLY posted, he had to change (up AND down) about a tenth of the section's grades.
The sea was angry that day, my friends.
At least our section was. I've never seen such biting comments towards our professor --- and, with good reason, I suppose. But, seriously, people were angry. It all came down to the fact that law school professors, bless their hearts, can really pull whatever kind of crap they want to pull and nothing will happen to them. Law students, not so much given the same amount of latitude.
But, I guess, in the end, that's life. The big wigs are always able to get away with a lot more than the peons would ever dream of doing. Por ejemplo, my boss last summer would start drinking around 2pm and not stop until after closing. And he'd smoke his icky filterless cigarettes at the bar. ALL THE WHILE, the rest of the "team members" had to stay sober and smoke outside near the Dumpsters. One time, though, Mr. Boss left (in a semi-drunk stupor) only for the rest of us to get all giddy on sips of whiskey and puffs of cigarettes at the bar. Shocking, I know. We were SO badass.
Pitchers and catchers have reported and that can mean only one thing --- I start getting excited about yet another outlet for me to procrastinate --- FANTASY BASEBALL. The last few years I have dabbled in leagues with twinnie's best friends & sorority girls, but this year, I'm ready for something new. That's right, whether you're a law student, friend from high school, friend from college or someone I've never met, I want you in my league. No, really. I do.
Please sign up if you're serious, because I AM, but if you don't know anything about fantasy baseball, no woories --- it's pretty straightfoward and mildly addicting. Within a few weeks of starting a few years ago, I was spending all sorts of hours researching random "secrets of the professionals" - and I still am, you know, kinda sucky. So there's a very good chance you will kick my ass which, if nothing else, would be good for your soul.
So, yes, please sign up. Here's the info. If it gets confusing, or doesn't work, just let me know and I'll try to fix/help where I can. You need a Yahoo ID, but those are free and easy to get, so don't let that stop you.
Follow this link. Or, start from scratch, click the "Sign Up Now" or "Get Another Team" button and follow the links to "Join a Custom League". When prompted, enter the League ID# and password below. League ID#: 140977 Password: bananaesq
I highly recommend just following the first link, much easier. But whatever you need to do.
Marie did this on her blog and I wanted to do it. Then I got scared. Then Mark did it on his MySpace blog. Then I decided, what the hey, I'll give it a try. So, here you are dear readers, the "Interactive Johari Window."
Essentially, you click on some adjectives you think I am like. It's anonymous. And then I read it, feel judged and drink away the pain. Or some derivative thereof.
Hahah. I crack up because the title is clearly not true. But whatever, these are mega-late February song picks. Obviously, you were all the edge of your respective seats.
1. Highwater Rising - In My Head - I have been meaning to recommend their stuff for quite a long time. 2. Mates of State - Ride AgainI just started listening to their stuff the past two weeks and it was SO HARD to figure out which song to recommend -- really, eveything is awesome. 3. Handsome Boy Modeling School - A Day in the Life -Hilarious little skit at the end of this song. 4. Ron Sexsmith - Not About To Lose 5. Brandi Carlile - What Can I Say 6. The New Pornographers - The Bleeding Heart Show 7. The Rosebuds - Code of Ethics 8. Slow Runner - Everything is Exactly What it Seems 9. Last Days of April - Angel Youth 10. Acceptance - Different
I was all set to make a big ol' blog post about the weekend, detailing every minute. But then I realized that was lame and would only be interesting to, like, two people out there. Especially because we didn't have any adventures with condoms. So, instead, a quick list of Cheers & Jeers, with easy links for your "note-to-self" enjoyment.
Cheers! Bernarda Alba Niki's boyfriend Dan interns for the guy who wrote it, Michael John Michael John! Great musical, but I was NOT able to ask Mrs. Huxtable (star of the musical) how Cleo and Rudy were doing. Dan said it was "a bad idea" while we were backstage lest we experience the wrath of Phylicia RASHAD.
Jeers! Copacabana Yes, Jonathan Peters was DJing. But the club was a little lame, but the WORST part of all is the fact that a club with such a name almost necessarily means that, instead of humming along to jazzy tunes, you will spend seven hours with "her name is Lola" ringing in your head.
Cheers! New mascara I recommend it highly. You can put thirteen coats on (like I am known to do) without it getting clumpy. Woo!
Jeers! Fung Wah Somehow, it took Sara & Niki almost 7 hours to come from Boston to NYC. We were almost late for fabulous Cheers! number one. No, actually we WERE late.
Cheers! Isabella's We were trying to back it for brunch at 10:30. Of course, because the night before, we may have "drank" "a little," we didn't quite get there until 1. But we were pleasantly surprised that lunch was delciously satisfying .
Overall, the weekend gets 100 points for fun. You read that right, 100 points!
I have been neglecting The Blog, I know. I blame it on a spotty internet connection that refuses to actually "post" what I write and instead gives me time-out errors. That, and The Brief and The JobHunt and Finals; ThreeMonths.
Why are you so wooried about Finals; ThreeMonths, Banana?
Well, allow me to tell you. First of all, last semester's finals period consisted of 8 credits worth of finals. This semester? 20 credits: 6 Contracts, 5 Torts, 4 Con Law, 4 Civ Pro. So, mathamatically speaking, it really should be two and a half times worse this go around.
But, Banana, you're a PRO at this law school thing by now!
Yes, but my professional growth as a law student is matched by my classmates, let's be serious. So, in reality, (thank you Forced Curve), I'm really in exactly the same place I was last semester, comparatively-speaking. And comparatively-speaking is the only kind of speaking that matters.
But didn't you do okay last semester? Shouldn't that give you some wiggle room?
Wiggle room? Problem with "wiggle room" is that I am all but mathamatically assured that my GPA will drop next semester. Becuase, like the Winter Olympics, some Good Things only happen once every four years. And law school, alas, is but three years in duration.
What are you doing this summer? I am the proud new owner of a blow up mattress so that I can happily live (in comfort!) on a street corner. 'Cause thanks to The Plague, I lost eleven interviews and No One Has Responded To Reschedule! I sent them an apology letter complete with "I'm sorry I bailed, I was almost dead" sentiment. Where is the mercy? So, back to sending out mass mailings and realizing that I could have saved a few bucks had I sent these Letters of Inquiry before the USPS hiked the price of a stamp.
Enough questions. I want to talk about muffins. I made, literally, 35 muffins this week. And there are none left because they have been pawned off to someone who will enjoy and metabolize them far better than I could ever dream. So, in more good news, I am only one strawberry muffin and four whisk-lisks tubbier.
I had coffee with one-L Michele this afternoon and we talked all about our ridiculous sorority from college (sorry, ridiculous sorority members who haven't yet switched to alumni status, but you KNOW you're ridiculous). I remembered how I sat in the front row in a history class freshman year during pledging (taught by -swoon- Professor Weaver). In the Year Before The Interveaning, our pledge class was still told to wear ridiculous clothes the last few weeks of pledging. And we did with GUSTO. I wore these ridiculous (see, ridiculous sorority!) Minnie Mouse ears with the name "Heather" embroidered in cursive on the back. That, coupled with a Minnie Mouse lunch box and the MOST HEINOUS DG plaid heavy-knit gold-purple-hunter green sweatshit with applique anchor --- I was one cool cat. Unfortunately, because of The Intervention, our pledgies are now able to maintain some semlence of self-respect and all these trinkets are stowed for "safekeeping" under Rachel's bed. I wish I had this blog a year ago so I could raise an angry fist about How The Chapter Has Changed For the Worse Because We Don't Dress the Pledgebabies Like Bafoons Anymore. But no, now you just get to hear me complain about law school. HAHA.
Silver lining to getting the plague last week is that I haven't (and won't) ever smoke again. Clearly, smoking a cigarette a day had nothing to do with the tonsilitis/strep - BUT when you can't swallow your own spit for two days, the thought of putting smoke and tar and other ick past your tonsils on PURPOSE is just painful. So, I'm gonna treat the little guys right; else they rebel AGAIN.
I receieved about a million emails today from friends and family asking about the "Big Snow." Apparently, it snowed a couple feet over the weekend. Outside of one cancelled class, though, it's really not that ridiculous of deal. I don't have a car to shovel out and, unlike Rochester, they actually shovel the sidewalks AND the part of the sidewalk that joins the street (because, really, what's the point of walking on a shoveled walkway when you have to, eventually, stomp hip-deep just to cross the street?) And, in the end, after you hit, say, 6 inches -- there's "a lot of snow;" whether it's 6 inches, a foot or two. As I've said before, what's all the hubbub!?
Now, we should really be focusing the fact that OUR VICE-PRESIDENT SHOT A MAN.
So, finally all rested up and feeling better today (I can speak without sounding like I am deaf). Went to Bed Bath & Beyond (B-cubed!) and bought new hangers and vanilla-scented sachets and cleaning supplies and OTHER THINGS THAT ARE NOT THE BRIEF. Because, although B3 has a large selection of plush towels, candels and those little waterfall/rock calming oasis things, it does not have any 1L legal writing briefs for my purchasing pleasure.
I finally got down to working on the brief hard-core and I realized that I hate it and, with it, legal writing. There's just something about a three-credit full-year class that I put so much work in for what? Hmm? To learn ALWD-citation and how to write legal papers for a single individual's very specific requirements and needs that will be nothing like my future boss? Consider me underwhelmed.
There's something so cute about watching snow fall and listening to AM radio, though. Every 10 minutes, though, I get a weather advisory update about the crazy snowstorm that is coming in tonight. Rochester has trained me well - I cannot so much bat an eyelash at a foot of snow coming in on a Saturday night. Come ON. Make it interesting and during the Monday commute or something. That would be something I could get excited about. Also, the fact of the matter is that it's supposed to be 50 degrees in 5 days so, really, WHAT'S ALL THE HUBBUB?
Sara & Niki are going to be in NYC next weekend!! It will be most exciting. I am thinking of buying an inflatable mattress for my little houseguest because I don't want S sleeping in my bed (not because I am a bad host, but because I was recently diagnosed with the plague, and, although I have washed my sheets and doused them with anti-bacterial suds, I do not trust them!) but I also don't want S to sleep on our "couch," in all its fire-retardent scratchy glory. Lindsay and Pete have both slept on that couch --- and in PROOF that it is a horrible sleep-spot, Pete purchased a new mattress not 20 MINUTES after waking from its slumber. (totally unrelated to the couch, I know, but give me my poetic license). And, if I get an inflatable mattress, I can carry it with my in its handy carrying case in my jaunts around the US and A this summer (you know, because I'll be unemployed).
So, this week has been crummy, what with the "emergency room," "fainting at CVS," and warnings of "brain stem infection." I still can barely talk above a gargled whisper, but I'm a lot less lightheaded today, which is a good thing. And all this stemming from one annoying tonsil. Boo! I had to cancel some interviews for tomorrow, which makes me quite sad - and missed a lot of class this week. Hopefully I will get back on track soon because I have a crazy legal writing paper due in a week and a half and SARA AND NIKI AND CHRISTY will be here in a week (only Sassa is staying here, so roomies, don't be skerred). I cannot wait for that weekend, even if that means going crazy on this magical legal writing brief this weekend while semi-addicted to (perscribed!) vicodin.
In other news, I've succesfully watched Amelie, Hotel Rwanda & We Don't Live Here Anymore. Kinda depressing choices (save the first), but they've been on my to-watch list for quite some time & I suppose this will be last clear chance of movie-watching for a while. They all now come highly-recommended, with the Anna-Seal-Of-Approval.
I've been working on February song picks, but those will have to wait for a little while and I get caught up on school things.
