quick movie reviews...

as i know work at an independent theater, i've seen a few good films in the last week. here is my brief take on them:

the reader:
kate winslet, you have my heart. beautiful, tragic, poetic. oh the power of literacy. sidenote: artful nudity at its best.

revolutionary road:
high hopes, slightly disappointed. mendes, perhaps you ought to have opted for different subject matter and more varied music from that awesome movie with mr. spacey. on the whole, american beauty said everything this film says but better. the performances of both leo and kate were the only things that kept this film afloat(to me).

MILK:
mr. van sant, you make remarkable choices. this is a fantastic film. and i believe in you, mr. milk. and i still have hope, though our terribly sick and twisted society does some terribly sick and twisted things. even in your death, i see your plight as a triumph. gorgeous film, fantastic performances... very little i would change. MILK, you top the list...

i am now anxiously awaiting the opening of the wrestler and sunshine cleaning. am also hopeful to catch slumdog millionaire before it closes this week. fingers crossed that it lives up to the hype.

i also have plans to do this "25 notes about me" thing in the near future. be on the look-out.

Franny and Zooey

"It was a station-platform kiss--spontaneous enough to begin with, but rather inhibited in the follow-through, and with somewhat of a forehead-bumping aspect."

If you've never read this book, read it. I'm re-reading it for the zillionth time.

Happy New Year. I've much to report, but not the time to do it. Hopefully the weekend will allow it.


<3.>

the boy's first album cover!

COPYRIGHT ROUNDER RECORDS, 2008.
Visit www.viennateng.com for more information on the artist.

uh-oh

perhaps my parents were right.

at a point where i can share

so kali (the best friend) and i are going to start a side business where we sell ourselves as writers.
we are modeling ourselves after the great deep south entertainment (whose owners printed business cards and starting running up the credit cards wouldn't bush be proud?)
well, i just finished designing the bcards tonight, (photoshop skills = novice) AND since kali and i can't incur debt, we fancied ourselves a webpage through wordpress (sorry blogger, wordpress is better) you can see the page in its early stages here.

dushgernit those catchy hipster band songs have done it again....

The Airborne Toxic Event

Sometime Around Midnight Lyrics

And it starts, sometime around midnight.
Or at least that’s when you lose yourself
for a minute or two.
As you stand, under the bar lights.
And the band plays some song
about forgetting yourself for a while.
And the piano’s this melancholy soundtrack to her smile.
And that white dress she’s wearing
you haven’t seen her for a while.

But you know, that she’s watching.
She’s laughing, she’s turning.
She’s holding her tonic like a cross.
The room’s suddenly spinning.
She walks up and asks how you are.
So you can smell her perfume.
You can see her lying naked in your arms.

And so there’s a change, in your emotions.
And all these memories come rushing
like feral waves to your mind.
Of the curl of your bodies,
like two perfect circles entwined.
And you feel hopeless and homeless
and lost in the haze of the wine.

Then she leaves, with someone you don’t know.
But she makes sure you saw her.
She looks right at you and bolts.
As she walks out the door,
your blood boiling
your stomach in ropes.
Oh and when your friends say,
“What is it? You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”

Then you walk, under the streetlights.
And you’re too drunk to notice,
that everyone is staring at you.
You just don’t care what you look like,
the world is falling around you.

You just have to see her.
You just have to see her.
You just have to see her.
You just have to see her.
You just have to see her.
You know that she’ll break you in two.

Thanks dad. You found cool music. It's not bad that I hope I am this girl to someone? Anyone?

The band sounds like U2 fused with Arcade Fire and the Old 97's. Weee.

manchurian candidate

guess it means i'm a pretty big tree-hugging liberal if one's mother sends a photo of your town's mccain rally and your feeling is not one of envy for missing being there, but one of disgust at your town's misguided political favoring.

i'm not the most educated voter. but i do recognize fear.

our country feeds upon it. the same country that feared our greatest president (imo), John F. Kennedy, Jr., for being Catholic, now also fears a man who has ties to the Muslim faith. i just hope history doesn't repeat itself with president brains blown all over a big, fancy car.

dadgumit.

Support the Arts

I'll do my best to keep you sleepy, sleepy as the south

so. i started today with the best of intentions.

i WAS going to finish dr. pennink's bio today.

instead, i cut bangs into my hair (jury is still out), visited boy at work, cleaned house, uploaded and edited photos from the museum's Artastic! event, made mix cd's for some of my favorite people, and looked up hockey game times.

i am the best procrastinator in the world. (well, heather MAY have me beat.)

everytime i look at what i've written for dr. pennink, i don't know where to begin in editing and in reworking it creatively. ashajskdahsk. i feel blocked, is what it is.

and so, i thought, also, that to inspire me today, i would do some creative writing my own. but that hasn't happened either. and i've even had the writing "itch" all week. should've put a pen in my hand when the moment was there. not tried to FORCE it into a four hour period today. THIS is why i need internetz at the house. i know i can pull my computer out anytime at home and just write, however, for some reason, i don't stay seated at the computer unless i have the nerd to help inspire and illuminate. does that make me strange?

in other news, i re-purchased the young machines and you forget it in people from the glorious iTunes store. so, i can't be sad that i don't have them anymore. hurah. AND. last night i dreamt all night, continuously, about my trip to boston. i would even wake from sleeping, go back to sleep, and continue dreaming about the trip. (which to those of you who don't know-- i am going to DC, NYC, and BOSTON for my berfday/new years mega-cheaply because of the glorious transportation i discovered called boltbus.) highlights of the dream include missing the bus with kali and having to wait for the next one and talking to a small african american child who was an old soul and had beautiful albeit scary knowledge of the world, scouring the streets of nyc ala a video game, and approaching the boston harbor only to see dolphins and other sea creatures and actually be able to pet said creatures. yahooooo. AND. in going through some of my clothes last night, i found a fantastic red dress i forgot i had (it was my Christmas dress) that i can use for little red riding hood. still need to purchase: cloak/hood, knee socks, black boots, fake axe/knife. and then stuff for shannon's big bad wolf costume. (i'm thinking vest, tattered white shirt that we can cover with blood, and some brown paint for his face.) the point is that we are supposed to be a modern version of little red riding hood and the big bad wolf. however, for the purposes of this week's fayetteville after five after dark (which i have to work) i think some cat ears and all black will have to suffice.

the photo is one i snapped today. fall is finally arriving. (at least showing itself to a few trees about town.)

debt resolve

So. On October 3, 2006 I entered into a debt management program. As a soon-to-be graduate, my credit card debt was mounting, and I needed to get it under control (especially with those ginormous loan bills-a-looming--a completely different story). I was at about $5,000 from roughly 6 or 7 different creditors. Some of these cards went to pay mechanic bills, and some, I'm ashamed to say, bought groceries and gas--even christmas gifts for family and friends. (!!! Never do that!) However, two years later I am under $2,000 from only 3 creditors. I hope to get it ALL paid off within the next year. This is a manageable goal that I can most certainly accomplish. At any rate, I said all this to say this-- with the debt crisis trickling down to the average everyday joe-- don't fall into the same trap I did. Live within your means. And if you start feeling the pressure-- get help. This program has worked wonders for me. No, my credit is not in fantastic shape because of it, but I can bet it wouldn't be in better shape now if it was left to me. I likely would have resorted to applying for MORE credit cards to pay off the debt already accrued and be in a mess of a situation. Sometimes that seemed to be a negative-- I can promise it wasn't. It seems so easy when you are in a tough spot-- but it is really not, long term. At any rate, those are my lessons learned. And I am proud that I am taking care of these bills all by myself, no parent help involved.

!

Let your body sink into me, like a favorite memory, like a line of poetry, or a fucking fit of honesty

never have i looked back and felt like i was gloriously emo. i usually look back on it in mild disgust. i do have a nice tattoo from the phase, however.

in the past few weeks i've re-hashed my love for sappy, albeit fantastic, emo music. one could argue whether these bands are emo or not. i think you can classify them as such.

sad thing is i can't get a hold of this music anymore. two albums i want in full that i don't have anymore are her space holiday's young machines, and broken social scene's you forget it in people.

in looking up stuff online, i saw that her space holiday is coming out with a new album.

in their "about" section on myspace, they included this story regarding the new album's conception:

a single hand writing several stories...

we seem to find comfort in categories and peace in placement. the world moves quickly around us. there are so many variables, and unanswered questions. who? what? when? and more importantly why? we feel like we constantly need to pick a side and stick with it...whether it be politically, socially, or artistically. despite the fact that our outlooks and philosophies are ever changing with each passing day. I have struggled with this often through the years. taking one facet of myself, both personally and creatively, and holding onto it so tightly, until there was nothing but ash in my hand. who would i be without a definite description? a tangible tag line? the weight of one question can be enough to make a back break. i picked up the phone and called an old friend.

"this is how i am feeling...and i don't exactly know what to do with it"

"come visit me" she said "and we will figure it out together"

i packed my bags. three pairs of pants. two shirts. and one old notebook that i had yet to press a pen to. i kissed ella on the cheek and said. "i will see you when it's sorted." for two days we sat in silence on that beach and listened to the waves. foolishly, i waited for an answer to wash up on to the shore. but by my sandy feet there was only an old rusty bottle cap to speak of. this was of no surprise to me.

"nothing is easy" i thought.

"yes" she said aloud, "everything is possible!"

i looked at her. as deep into her big eyes as i could stand. it was such a simple four word statement. yet, it sat inside me with the strength of dynamite. little explosions started going off in my head that got bigger and bigger and bigger. with my lips slightly moving to the beat of the moment, i kept repeating her words over and over to myself...

"yes...everything is possible, yes...everything is possible, yes...everything is possible."

she sat back on her elbows and stretched out in the sun.

"you know" she said. "the thing with you, is that you somehow managed to take a tiny percent of yourself, the smallest fraction, and turn it into your only equation. in this life, there are so many sides to everything. and that includes you. you have so many things waiting to come out...and yet you insist on building from only one part of yourself. you wouldn't point to your pinky and say this is my entire body. just like you wouldn't look at one branch and declare that this is a tree. but if you add all of the little puzzle pieces together, it makes up one entire picture. but right now, how you live, and how you create, you are just a little torn corner of a photograph. and i know deep inside you, even more so than me, you are dying to see what's in the rest of the frame"

she continued....

"a single hand can write several stories. you have made your point. You have said everything you can about it. lay that old character aside for a minute and allow yourself to make some new ones. put them in films, paintings, poems or songs. give them different names if you like...they can be heroes or villains, it doesn't matter. but what does matter is that all of them together, standing side by side, will make up one thing as a whole...and that's you. be brand new, let yourself have the innocence of a kid again. have it be your call to arms...make a revival out of it."

i reached into my bag and pulled out my crumpled, empty notebook. she handed me a pen that was resting in secret behind her ear that suggested she knew all along that this is where the story would begin . i scribbled out four words of my own...


"THE NEW KID REVIVAL"


she looked at the smudged ink, gently smiled and said...

"i guess you're ready to go home now."

again, gloriously emo. don't you think?

they also had this fantastic simple little video on youtube. and i love cats, and consider times when my roxy is curled up in my lap as one of the most precious moments of the day and so completely and totally respect this video. run on sentence there, whoa.

anyway, enjoy. and goodnight and goodluck.

It’s Artastic!

The Fayetteville Museum of Art is gearing up for its FREE! Children’s Art Festival that is taking place on Saturday, October 3rd, from 10am to 3pm at Festival Park. People have been frantically running around the building, pulling together last minute items like, you know, helium tanks, banners, zip ties, the average every day GIGANTIC CARIBBEAN MASKS, and GINORMOUS CARIBBEAN ART BOARDS.

Needless to say, the event is going to bold and beautiful with a wide variety of majestic colors. We really hope that you and yours are able to come out and enjoy this wonderful event. Many of you may already know the event as it was formerly POND-O-MANIA on the Museum’s property. In keeping with this tradition, we are basing this year’s theme on the culture of the Caribbean. As such, we will have our very own Junkanoo parade of costumes created by YOUR children on site, a beat station, Island Story Time, A Caribbean Reaf Exploration station, a Rock-A-Bye Baby statio, children’s dance performances, and authentic Caribbean music by Maya Quinteao. It is an event NOT to miss. The Caribbean Grill will even be onsite to provide authentic cuisine!

Yay for free ARTASTIC! events that celebrate culture, children, and ART all in one!

i've been diligently working on dr. pennink's bio, but was still party shuffling on my ipod and came across this delicately beautiful song by the Sugarplum Fairies. i quite like it and think you should check it out. the lyrics are simple, yet describe adequately the complexity of love:

love is a flaw
In the logic of war
your typewriter's God
but he's in self-repair mode

and you're not smart at all
not smart at all
you're not smart at all
not smart at all

you're earning your bread
with giving good head
and you hope all your scars
will turn into stars

and you're not smart at all
not smart at all
you're not smart at all
not smart at all

my best friend in the world is struggling with the logic of love. i hope her scars turn into stars and she flys far away.

in other notes, i am city market deli downtown because rude was closed. this is not a place to go in hope or hunger. the flies circle like crows, the furniture is awkwardly arranged, and the employees are too absorbed in their online poker to pay attention to the needs of paying customers. plus, their coffee is poop. to be fair: pluses: free wi-fi and delicious chocolate mousse cake.

i wanted to take a brief moment to encourage you to visit this link. there are endangered words out there! save them! they are getting rid of these brilliant words to make room for more words like: fanboy. that's all.

okay. updates are in order, well, at least a little bit, since my only connection to the internet lately has been the five or ten minutes i can steal away at work.

so. i've reaquainted myself with the internet. i think i can now go back to referring to the internet by its nicknames- intersnacks and the nerd. i've been sitting in rude awakening for the last three hours uploading the insane amount of pictures that have accrued from NOT being online in the last little while.

my last attempt to become friends again with the nerd failed dismally. i went to the coffee scene and had to pay, gasp! three dollars just to access their stream-- on top of my four dollar coffee beverage, i thought it tooooooo much to bear. on top of it, the boy who oh so dutifully accompanied me accidentally spilled coffee on the 'puter. she seemed alright, initially, but then crashed later on in our visit. we took her home and used qtips in all the right places, unscrewed screws, insured that nothing vital was ruined, put her back together, and felt like good doctors when she turned on in the morning.

so yeah. i uploaded a butt ton o' pics. some of the better ones are there. the rest are on my facebook. yay. i also am a fan of the new blogger follower. keeping up to date on blogs was never any easier! speaking of, i was just recently able to convince Fayetteville's newspaper to put up a community blog. i was pretty proud of myself considering all of the negativity on those other blogs. i am hoping that now i am reinvigorated to the intersnacks, i will post regularly. here's to hoping. i'm also planning to get internet at home soon-ish, once the finances allow, so i won't ALWAYS have to make a trek to a coffee shop or other such establishment to steal streams.

lastly, i recently completed a chair in shannon and i's name for the children's advocacy center this week. they have a chair-ity auction/ball coming up this week and we get to go! it's a great cause-- hopefully our chair will get at least a little bit of money to a great charity!

sad moment of the day-- d'arcy's new love of killing things small and thinking they serve as presents.
best moment of the day-- driving home at five with the windows down and the weather perfect. fall weather makes me exceedingly happy and re-invigorates my writing.

Stalking your favorite rock star is easy if your favorite rock star is Conor Oberst.

Just follow the trail of beer post show to your local watering hole and watch him stumble and tell you all about Christmas lights in June.

Priceless.

And I like to think the shot I bought him was contributing to art firstly and alcoholism secondly.



+




= Never having to tell your favorite rock star "You love his music."

We have the FACTS and we’re voting YES to Festival Park.


1. In August of 2007 the City Council unanimously approved giving the parcel of land to the Museum in Festival Park when it realized that the Museum could absorb costs of building Festival Park by including parking, shelter, and sculpture gardens. These items were originally intended to take up space in the Park.
2. At that same meeting, the City Council voted in a split 6-3 vote to approve the 9 story design by architect Enrique Norten.
3. The fundraising efforts for the Museum intend for building to be financed by private donors, just as the current building is.
4. The building leaves a very small footprint on the park-- only 3,150 square feet. The original design of the building would have taken a space of 15,000 feet. One can see that though the original building was smaller, the new design takes up less space.
5. The building’s $15 million price tag includes a $3 million endowment fund for the Museum’s sustainability, so the Museum will NOT rely on the public’s tax paying dollars.


What the New Museum brings to Festival Park:

1. A world-renowned architect whose selection for the Leonardo da Vinci award and the next Guggenheim project speaks to his visionary status.
2. Scores of people from across the United States and around the world will come to visit this architectural work of art. A World Class building right here in Fayetteville.
3. The design of the suspended gallery is such that it acts as a giant carport for Festival Park. Festival Park patrons will now have relief from the elements that they currently do not.
4. The ability for the Museum to extend its mission to a larger audience currently untapped.
5. Restaurants, a café, a water feature—all items that the public requested and architect Enrique Norten gave.
6. An ICON and LANDMARK—an enriched culture to Fayetteville.

JOIN US IN SUPPORT OF A WORLD CLASS MUSEUM FOR FAYETTEVILLE!

VOTE FESTIVAL PARK @ www.fayobserver.com!

so there are days when my mind gets super bogged down with "life-what-am-i-doing-nonsense". it's been bogged down the past few days.
for us right brainers, that translates into coming up with some kind of plan.

my five year plan:

1. toil away working in fayetteville, trying to save monies and pay off debt.
2. apply & secure grant for children's book collaboration with mr. stamey through scwbi, while also working and saving monies and paying off debt.
3. apply & secure grant for fayetteville's literary magazine through the arts council, while also working and saving monies and paying off debt.
4. study like mad and take gre and do fantasmic & apply for grad school in boston (pray they let me in and ignore my crap gpa from college-- more like umass and less like harvard), for something related to publishing/writing, while also working and saving monies and paying off debt.
5. move to boston to enroll in school. hopefully have a job when i move, spend saved monies and try to avoid accruing more debt.

it's just a rough estimate. trying to be a bit realistic, here.

really rough. i'm up for suggestions.

the fortunate part of this "bogged-downness" thing is that it comes from a brain that is really happy with the "way things are" currently. i'm a simple girl with simple needs. i just moved in with the man i love, my cat and i have been reunited, i get to see my fam on a regular basis-- i just need a few girlfriends. doesn't mean i don't want to look forward, however. in addition, i think my "insecurities" stem from thinking myself capable-- being good at quite a lot of things. problem is i don't think myself excellent at any of them.


bah.

albums i want and i want 'em now but i don't have the funnnnndssss... i am writing them down so when i walk in the music store i don't go, duherr, what was i looking for?


cowboy junkies: trinity
bat for lashes: fur & gold
ambulette: the lottery
electrelane: no shouts, no calls
elliott smith: new moon
PORTISHEAD: third


annnnnd. i'm done.