Thoughts - Ten Years Later

I wasn’t really going to say anything. Then, I was in the room when someone flipped on World News Tonight, they started showing clips, and a ton of emotions came up. Well, to be fair, I’d already decided to write about it before then, but the tone of what I had to say changed a bit.

Everyone old enough to remember it knows exactly where they were and what they were doing 10 years ago. I do not need to tell you about mine. You have your own.

Sometimes it feels like 10 years have passed, and, other times, it just doesn’t. The one thing that I think just about everyone on the planet has in common in their recollections of that day is that that was the day that we entered a new world, and we knew exactly what was happening.

I don’t mean that we knew all of the ramifications. We didn’t. We didn’t know that Afghanistan would claim 1,562 of America’s best and brightest and wound 11,191 more. We didn’t know about the 4,466 of our own dead, the 33,080 wounded, and over half a million dead civilians that would lose all in one blinded group of people’s headlong rush into an Iraqi conflict that was at once horribly unnecessary and entirely unsustainable. Did you hear me? I said over half a million people. Gone forever. And for what?

We didn’t know that we’d never again be able to travel simply and easily through the airport, or that we would no longer be able to meet our sleepy-eyed loved ones at the gate. We didn’t know the hatred that our own countrymen and women were capable of toward people who seemed to look “like” those who’d attacked us.

We didn’t know that the president who was an emotional lifeline so soon after the attack would soon be so deep over his head that he’d never find his way out. We didn’t know the way that the world that rallied behind us would turn on us so quickly because of the decisions he made. We didn’t know.

So, what did we know? We knew that the world we’d been living in was gone. We knew that America would never be invincible again, and the words “things like that can’t happen here” were now meaningless.

We knew our neighbors weren’t so different than we were, and that the oft-hated New York Yankees were just a bunch of guys who were a huge part of a wounded city’s attempt to heal. We knew we were living in a new world, and that we’d have to find a way to pick up the pieces of the old one.

We knew that much.

Now, our country seems to be divided more than ever. Elected representatives seem to be more interested in fighting with each other than trying to get anything done to help people who desperately need it. Pundits point fingers and scream endlessly. Money’s tight, and people hold on to jobs that are below the pay grade and comfort level they’ve spent a lifetime establishing because they know too well the hard times of unemployment checks and fruitless searches.

But you know something? I think we’re going to be all right.

I believe this because in our hearts, we share one thing. It may be simplistic/idealistic of me to say, but it's something that I desperately want to believe to be true.

We’re Americans, and the things that bind us together are stronger than the things that push us apart.

Shantih shantih shantih.

Such Sweet Sorrow - Part 1

For an outwardly gregarious person, I don’t make the best partier.

Seriously, partying tends to make me feel contemplative, restless, and incredibly introverted. You know, just the kind of things that you'd look for in a night on the town. I’m talking about all kinds of parties too, not just the BOOM-KA-KA-BOOM club to-dos. If I had a dime for every time I went to a social event in high school, came home and contemplated my life, I would be a rich, rich person.

So, why so serious? I think there’s a few reasons why.

The Set-UP

I took to alcohol later than a lot of people. That sounds awkward. I’m not an alcoholic here! I only mean that I hadn’t really touched the stuff until a few years ago due to a lack of interest (and a serious aversion to fizzy drinks). Furthermore, I didn’t take to partying until around the same time I decided that drinking was fun.

My job. I work with a film festival with a couple of major booze sponsors, so, once a year, I’m able to drink as much as I’d like every night for about a week straight. FOR FREE. Then, when I go out to other festivals . . . same deal. FREE hooch. (unless you count tipping the bartender, which I try to get out of doing if I possibly can)

Do you have any idea how difficult it is to go out and actually have to pay for a drink when you’re used to getting it for free? It’s kinda tough.

And going to a party every night means that there’s 8 days of (mostly) good food, (hopefully) good music, and (usually/maybe) good company. So, for one concentrated period every year, I can drink, dance, eat, hang out, and have a good time. This would be pretty perfect except that I have to stay aware of the next day’s events/screenings/general mayhem and try to be cognizant of the fact that I not only have to be functional then, but want to get home before 2:30 AM.

But most importantly, I really enjoy the chance to talk to people about the things that I think actually matter. So, rather than go out and shake it until dawn, I’d much prefer sitting in the corner with somebody interesting and finding out what makes him/her tick. It’s fascinating.

The Breakdown

Partying, in general, makes that kind of interaction really hard. Instead, it’s all “WHOOOOO!!!!!”, trying to stop thinking about how much you’re actually paying for the drink you think you’ve asked for, and making a half-hearted attempt to groove to a song that you know in the 30 seconds that it’s played before the song changes abruptly to something you’ve never heard before and hopefully will never hear again.

And did I mention that I think over-crowded dance floors are a kind of slow DEATH to a party?

Besides, when you’re the dyad/small group specialist that I am, partying just seems so . . . shallow. It’s that kind of “Why am I here again?” feeling. Sometimes, I don’t even really know the people I’m with. The party atmosphere is deceptive too. It’s so high-energy that you think that all of these cool people you meet are your buddies, which isn’t entirely untrue, but in the cold light of day, they’re not there, you know? Again, if I had the proverbial dime for the folks who’ve said, “oh, Adam, we’ve GOT to hang out when this whole thing is done!” and actually MEANT it . . . I’d be a pretty poor guy. Which I kinda am already. Dangnabit.

I don’t want to seem like I don’t like parties at all. I’ve been to some AWESOME leg-shakers in my day, and it’s not that I want to suddenly see all of my options for going out on a Saturday night dry up.

I suppose that I’d just like to find the balance between the frivolous and the profound.

That sounds easy enough, right?

Laters,

-Adam

P.S. I'm going to post something about the new Noel Gallagher single really soon.

If I Had A Gun

Sometimes, most times, ok, ALL THE TIME, Oasis songs are the soundtrack of my life. They're relentlessly singable for a guy who spends most of his time with some kind of song in his head, and probably coming out his mouth to the endless joy of those within his blast radius.

When they split up a few years ago, a part of me was kinda gutted. Since then, they've gone their separate ways. Liam and the rest of the band are doing the Beady Eye thing, which, let's face it, is just ok. I mean, it's not bad, but a lot of Different Gear, Still Speeding sounds like a bunch of subpar Oasis B-sides. Do love The Beat Goes On though.

Noel, on the other hand, has been biding his time, prepping his songs and putting them out a little at a time. Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds is due to drop October 17, and I liked the first single, The Death of You and Me, even if it did seem a bit like a knockoff of The Importance of Being Idle.

Today, it all changed.

Today, he dropped a doozy.

One of the next singles is going to be this little song called If I Had A Gun. It's been around for a while and has enjoyed some popularity online, mostly through this bootleg someone recorded at a soundcheck. It's a nice tease, but left me utterly unprepared for the glory that is the final track. I sat on the couch, getting in some iNet time before heading off to work, and found myself drinking it in through my headphones, wondering if I was going to cry. It's the kind of song someone would sing after just realizing that the person they were with was someone with whom they wanted to spend a forever.

Enjoy.

If you will it, Dude, it is no dream

I haven’t blogged much here, and, while a lot of it has to do with laziness, I wonder if one reason might be the tremendous amount of societal interconnection that seems to be inescapable. I’d really like to come here and say exactly what I think about certain things, but can’t get away from the fact that people know that I’m the guy writing things. I mean, what if I get on and really say what I think about that horrible person I used to know? The odds are decent that it might get back to him/her, and, while I’m not ashamed of the way I feel about STUFF, I’m not terribly interested in antagonizing folks.

Despite that, I want to use this forum a little more honestly. That’s a funny way of putting it, but maybe there’s something to online journaling. I’ve been inspired a bit by Your Wishcake, my friend’s blog. Kerri seems to have the definitive handle on how to express oneself honestly and openly. It makes me want to use this site to chronicle my life experience. Of course, if I can keep this up, and you keep up on it, AND we ever end up at a party together, this will spoil all of the perfectly charming stories I’ll want to tell you.

Whatever, man. Whatever.

Amy Winehouse - (1983-2011)

When I heard the news that Amy Winehouse had been found dead in her London home yesterday, I immediately wondered and hoped that it was a mistake. That it wasn’t is heartrending and provides the most tragic possible conclusion to an already terribly sad story.

What I have a tough time understanding is how this moment hadn’t been seen as more of a foregone conclusion. Her decline has been so absolute that I wonder why more of an effort wasn’t made to try and help her. Then again, maybe there were countless attempts made that I’m just not aware of. I don’t know.

It seemed a few months ago like 2011 might be Amy’s year to come back triumphantly into the spotlight. She’d played some strong shows in Brazil and there was finally talk about her third album actually being tinkered with. Then, she played a disastrous show in Belgrade where she was clearly intoxicated and things were suddenly in doubt all over again.

There’s a terrible public fascination with celebrity screw-ups, particularly female celebrity screw-ups. The Lindsey Lohans, Britney Spears, and Paris Hiltons become a strange kind of twisted diversion where ordinary people with ordinary problems can look out and say, “My life may be messed up, but I’m not nearly as messed up as she is.” It’s due in no small part to people eating things like that up that they continue. Public frenzy + demand for pictures/info = an insane amount of media attention. These poor people are hounded wherever they go and whatever they do. If you knew that you were being watched when you got drive-thru, not to mention when you went out on a Saturday night, how do you think you’d react? Do you think it’d be terribly conducive to helping you make better decisions about an already unstable life?

I hope that people will look back at her short 27 years of life and see more than the hopelessly lost woman who made headlines. Amy Winehouse was a fabulous musician with tremendous talent for vocal phrasing that made one of the finest soul albums in modern memory. That album, Back to Black, is full of songs that sound like they could have been at home on an Otis Redding or Aretha Franklin record. One of the things about Amy that I’ve always appreciated was the fact that she wrote her own material. She wasn’t the figurehead at the head of a publicity stunt to make a “star” a la the Spice Girls or the American Idol media machine. No, these fabulous soul songs were hers. She wasn’t just serving as a mouthpiece for what someone else had to say. They were HER thoughts and her emotions that she was trying to communicate. In an age of so many talented singers who seem to value technical skill more than an honest communication of emotion, Amy was a rarity.

And her voice . . . what do I say? If you sat in a dark room having no clue who she was or what she looked like, I’d have thought that she was a bodacious, curvaceous black woman from Brooklyn, not a skinny, white Jewish girl from London with a beehive. That’s the one of the beautiful things about first impressions. They’re only shadows and possibilities of what might be. The truth is often so much more exciting than that.

In conclusion, I’m grateful for the impact that Amy Winehouse has had on popular music. Would someone like Adele be 2011’s top seller to date without Amy having gone before her? I have my doubts. More importantly, I’m grateful for the impact that Amy Winehouse has had on my record collection.

My thoughts go out to her family and friends in this time of sadness.

Goodbye, love.



My favorite AW song.

Is passion always a good thing?

This bit from Lady Gaga made me think about a few things.

“I have attention. Is it that you believe that I am attention-seeking or shock for shock's sake, or is it just that it's been a long time since someone has embraced the art form the way that I have? Perhaps it's been a couple of decades since there's been an artist that's been as vocal about culture, religion, human rights, politics. I'm so passionate about what I do, every bass line, every EQ. Why is it that you don't want more from the artist, why is it that you expect so little, so when I give and give, you assume it's narcissistic?"

Is she right? Is the general public/media hypocritical where she’s concerned? Do we only want recording artists to be bigger and better in a way defined by the box we’ve created in our consciousness for art to go into?

I’ve often criticized Gaga. I really like her music, but find her continuous attempts to surprise/shock the public with her crazy costumes tiresome.

My usual line goes something like this.

• Lady Gaga’s mistake is in thinking that she’s the second coming of Andy Warhol when she’s really just an entertainer.
• Her material isn’t as cutting-edge as she thinks. It’s just really good dance pop music, but that’s OK. We need more really good dance pop music.

Now, I’m wondering if I’m the one in the box.

Oscar Night 2011: Welcome to the Big Dance

Hello, Oscar night. It seems like an eternity since last year’s ceremony, but here we are again. Changes? We still have 10 nominees for Best Picture, unfortunately. Can’t win ‘em all.

I have to admit that I have a good feeling about James Franco & Anne Hathaway as hosts. I think they’ll be charmingly, disarmingly cute, but here’s hoping they take a risk or two.

Here are my predictions in each category, with the “Big 6” getting some extra time. If you win big in your Oscar pool, message me, and I'll tell you where to send my share of the winnings.

Best Picture

· “Black Swan”

· “The Fighter”

· “Inception”

· “The Kids Are All Right”

· “The King's Speech”

· “127 Hours”

· “The Social Network”

· “Toy Story 3”

· “True Grit”

· “Winter's Bone"

Predicted winner: The King’s Speech
If I was voting: True Grit
Possible upsets: The Social Network

Analysis: The change in momentum that’s occurred over the last month has been almost dizzying. The Social Network had a full head of steam behind it and was the clear picture to beat. Then . . . The King’s Speech . . . happened. After winning almost all of the major “Best Film” awards (with the exception of the Golden Globe – Drama), it’s practically vaulted over the competition to the top. Look for it to pick up the big one on Oscar night, with a very strong possibility that The Social Network could swoop in, flip back the clock and take what lots of folks thought it was going to get anyway.

Directing

· “Black Swan” Darren Aronofsky

· “The Fighter” David O. Russell

· “The King's Speech” Tom Hooper

· “The Social Network” David Fincher

· “True Grit” Joel Coen and Ethan Coen

Predicted winner: David Fincher
If I was voting: Joel Coen and Ethan Coen
Possible upsets: Tom Hooper

Analysis: I know that Tom Hooper’s won the Director’s Guild Award. I know that that’s an almost frighteningly accurate indicator of who’s going to walk off with Oscar. I still think that the Academy’s going to see this as David Fincher’s “time” and reward his second nomination with the win. Besides, Hooper’s young, British, and probably not going anywhere. He’ll have other chances. I would be remiss if I didn’t point out that Christopher Nolan should be one of the nominees. While I’m not a big fan of his film, he did a very gutsy thing in making a $160 million art movie. I’d give him Russell’s spot.

Actor in a Leading Role

· Javier Bardem in “Biutiful”

· Jeff Bridges in “True Grit”

· Jesse Eisenberg in “The Social Network”

· Colin Firth in “The King's Speech”

· James Franco in “127 Hours”

Predicted winner: Colin Firth
If I was voting: Jeff Bridges
Possible upsets: None.

Analysis: Colin Firth will win. Period. I think the Academy ought to pull a Tom Hanks and give it to Jeff Bridges for his outstanding work in True Grit, but it ain’t gonna happen.

Actress in a Leading Role

· Annette Bening in “The Kids Are All Right”

· Nicole Kidman in “Rabbit Hole”

· Jennifer Lawrence in “Winter's Bone”

· Natalie Portman in “Black Swan”

· Michelle Williams in “Blue Valentine”

Predicted winner: Natalie Portman
If I was voting: Natalie Portman
Possible upsets: Annette Bening

Analysis: Lesley Manville should be nominated in this category, and she should win. Her performance in Another Year was that good. Silly Academy. (sighs back into reality) Black Swan was the first occasion that Natalie Portman’s ever blown me away, and I think she’s a strong favorite. While I’d be very surprised if she didn’t win, Annette Bening might challenge her here. She’s lost a couple of times previously, and some might say that this is her last, best chance to win. I still don’t think it’s going to happen. Besides, if you’re going to nominate someone from The Kids Are All Right, it should have been Julianne Moore.

Actor in a Supporting Role

· Christian Bale in “The Fighter”

· John Hawkes in “Winter's Bone”

· Jeremy Renner in “The Town”

· Mark Ruffalo in “The Kids Are All Right”

· Geoffrey Rush in “The King's Speech”

Predicted winner: Christian Bale
If I was voting: Christian Bale
Possible upsets: Geoffrey Rush

Analysis: The Fighter is a film that’s really lucked out this year. It’s decently entertaining, but never takes flight in the way that it could. Christian Bale’s outstanding performance is the finest thing about the film, and I think it’s going to be rewarded. However, if Geoffrey Rush pulls off an upset in one of the first prizes of the telecast, get ready for a British avalanche of The King’s Speech winning everything under the sun.

Actress in a Supporting Role

· Amy Adams in “The Fighter”

· Helena Bonham Carter in “The King's Speech”

· Melissa Leo in “The Fighter”

· Hailee Steinfeld in “True Grit”

· Jacki Weaver in “Animal Kingdom”

Predicted winner: Melissa Leo
If I was voting: Helena Bonham Carter
Possible upsets: Hailee Steinfeld, Helena Bonham Cater

Analysis: This is the trickiest of the 6 majors to call. Hailee Steinfeld is the fresh, young face that impressed a lot of people with her plucky (LEAD) performance in True Grit. Helena Bonham Carter has the good fortune to be attached to The King’s Speech(and had a nice turn to boot). However, I think Melissa Leo’s got the momentum, and might squeak out the victory. This is a very tough category. Could go to any of the aforementioned 3.

• Animated Feature Film: Toy Story 3
• Art Direction: The King’s Speech
• Cinematography: Roger Deakins – True Grit
• Costume Design: Alice In Wonderland
• Documentary (Feature): Exit Through The Gift Shop
• Documentary (Short Subject): Strangers No More
• Film Editing: The Social Network
• Foreign Language Film: In A Better World
• Makeup: The Wolfman
• Music (Original Score): Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross – The Social Network
• Music (Original Song): “We Belong Together” – Randy Newman (Toy Story 3)
• Short Film (Animated): Day & Night
• Short Film (Live Action): Wish 143
• Sound Editing: Inception
• Sound Mixing: Inception
• Visual Effects: Inception
• Writing (Adapted Screenplay): Aaron Sorkin – The Social Network
• Writing (Original Screenplay): David Seidler – The King’s Speech

Happy Superbowl Sunday to all!

You thought Superbowl Sunday was in February? Really?

I'm BACK. After sleeping through the Oscars last year in a hotel bed in London, I am so glad to be back on American soil gearing up for the big night.

That said, I am an somewhat unhappy Yank. After last year's totally predictable set of winners, I'm sad to say that this year isn't shaping up to be much better. No less than 3 out of the 4 Acting categories are sure things, and I wouldn't be surprised to find myself 6 for 6 in the major categories. I realize that, if a film/nominee deserves the award, then it doesn't matter if it makes the show predictable. That said, I like it a little better when there's more variety.


Best Picture

• Avatar
• The Blind Side
• District 9
• An Education
• The Hurt Locker
• Inglourious Basterds
• Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire
• A Serious Man
• Up
• Up in the Air

Predicted winner: The Hurt Locker
If I was voting: Avatar
Possible upsets: Avatar

Analysis: 10 nominees means that the field is spread for a greater chance of an upset, right? Not even close. This race is between 2 films, folks. From a personal standpoint, while I admired The Hurt Locker, in the end, it seemed to me to be a really well-made war film, but nothing that terribly revolutionary or groundbreaking. On the other hand, Avatar was an accomplishment the likes of which I've never seen before. After its victory at the Golden Globes, I think Avatar seemed like a much stronger contender than it does now. The Hurt Locker has picked up a lot of momentum with major victories at the Producer's Guild Awards and BAFTA's. All of the signs right now point to a victory for The Hurt Locker, but Avatar is definitely lurking on the horizon.


Best Director

• James Cameron - Avatar
• Kathryn Bigelow - The Hurt Locker
• Quentin Tarantino - Inglourious Basterds
• Lee Daniels - Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire
• Jason Reitman - Up in the Air

Predicted winner: Kathryn Bigelow
If I was voting: James Cameron
Possible upsets: James Cameron

Analysis: Imagine this. The only two nominees with a chance in this category used to be married. Who would have thought we'd see that? Kathryn Bigelow has all the momentum right now, and, most importantly, the Director's Guild Award. Sadly, gender is playing a big role in this race, when it shouldn't even be an issue. The Academy has only nominated 4 women for this award in its history, with none of them walking off with Oscar. The pressure is on the Academy right now to change that. That said, I still believe that James Cameron's achievement is much more significant than Bigelow's, despite the fact that she definitely deserves her nomination.

Best Actor

• Jeff Bridges - Crazy Heart
• George Clooney - Up in the Air
• Colin Firth - A Single Man
• Morgan Freeman - Invictus
• Jeremy Renner - The Hurt Locker

Predicted winner: Jeff Bridges
If I was voting: Jeff Bridges
Possible upsets: None.

Analysis: Jeff Bridges has won almost every major award leading up to Oscar night, and I think that tonight will be no different. There are some strong performances in this category, but I don't see anyone beating The Dude.

Best Actress

• Sandra Bullock - The Blind Side
• Helen Mirren - The Last Station
• Carey Mulligan - An Education
• Gabourey Sidibe - Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire
• Meryl Streep - Julie & Julia
  

Predicted winner: Sandra Bullock
If I was voting: Carey Mulligan
Possible upsets: Meryl Streep

Analyis: If you would have told me last year that Sandra Bullock would be the favorite to win any major Best Actress award, I would have thought you were nuts. I don't think she's really got a ton of range to work with. That said, I think she's clearly the front-runner here. Ordinarily, I'm a big Streep fan, but don't think her performance as Julia Child is nearly as good as it's getting credit for. There were a number of times that I felt that it drifted into caricature, which is certainly not what she was going for. One question: what happend to Abbie Cornish? How did her work in Bright Star manage to fall off the Oscar map?


Best Supporting Actor:

• Matt Damon - Invictus
• Woody Harrelson - The Messenger
• Christopher Plummer - The Last Station
• Stanley Tucci - The Lovely Bones
• Christoph Waltz - Inglourious Basterds

Predicted winner: Christoph Waltz
If I was voting: Christoph Waltz
Possible upsets: None.

Analysis: This category is closed. No one else stands a chance. In a year defined by sure things, this is the surest of them all.

Best Supporting Actress

• Penélope Cruz - Nine
• Vera Farmiga - Up in the Air
• Maggie Gyllenhaal - Crazy Heart
• Anna Kendrick - Up in the Air
• Mo’Nique - Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire

Predicted winner: Mo'Nique
If I was voting: Vera Farmiga
Possible upsets: None

Analysis: Mo'Nique is the heavy favorite here, and has won nearly every major award of the season. Personally, I absolutely loved Vera Farmiga in Up in the Air. Her presence in the film was effortless nuanced and confident in its maturity. That said, she has no chance here, as any opportunity that she might have had is undercut by the nomination of co-star Anna Kendrick, who is the winner of my own award for Least Deserving Nominee. I have no idea what people saw in this performance. Oh well. Congrats, Mo'Nique.

In closing, here are a few more picks for you. Quentin Tarantino/Inglourious Basterds for Best Original Screenplay. Jason Reitman and Sheldon Turner/Up in the Air for Best Adapted Screenplay. The White Ribbon for Best Foreign Language Film, with a possible upset coming from A Prophet. Up for Best Animated Film. "The Weary Kind" for Best Original Song

Here's hoping that Steve Martin (one of my favorite Oscar hosts) and Alec Baldwin ROCK the HOUSE.

Enjoy the show.

Things I learned in 2009

• People really don’t know how to spell.
• Seeing “En film av Ingmar Bergman” against a black screen means that something special is about to happen.
• Being single rocks.
• Bono has a LOT of energy for a short guy.
• Whenever 96,000 people get together for anything, it will be inadequately organized, poorly executed, and result in unhappy people who feel like their devotion and hours spent waiting are being spit upon.
• If you go to a U2 concert, you just might find yourself in the inner circle about 25 feet from the stage against all odds.
• Woody Allen films make me happy.
• Fergie is much finer in person than she is in photos of her in the press. I don’t know exactly why.
• Jet lag has solid ground beneath its exalted reputation. When you and the two people you’re rooming with are all awake at 3 in the morning, there is a reason.
• When going to a foreign country, make it a priority to learn the word for “toilet.”
• There are more cars in Rome than I have ever seen in my life. If parking was allowed in St. Peter’s Basilica, people would park there.
• Paris has fewer cars than Rome does, but the drivers are significantly worse.
• Eggs are never the same from one hotel to the next. Sometimes, one is even led to question their validity as eggs.
• Members of a large group of people exploring a foreign city together will probably have conflicting ideas as to how best do it.
• If you don’t try to help figure out how to get where the group is going, you can’t be blamed when everyone gets lost.
• When you’re at the top, the Eiffel Tower is really high off the ground, and I do mean really high off the ground. It’s the highest you get without being in a plane, unless you’re an avid skydiver, but you probably aren’t one of those, because you would have told me that by now. C’mon, fess up. When did you start?
• Venice during Carnivale is CRAZY. Did you know that even Batman heads over there?
• St. Mark’s Square gets incredibly cold at night in February. Things you thought were unreachable (like your memories of second grade) even feel the chill.
• If you’re going to travel on one of the bigger water taxis in Venice and it’s not completely freezing outside, sit on the top on the little bench. It’s the only way to go.
• If you want to find a date in a European city, I have one word of advice for you. Lucerne. Case closed.
• Browse the postcards at the rest stops in Switzerland. You’ll be glad you did.
• Quentin Tarantino is one crazy, crazy virtuoso.
• Being single sucks.
• Even though he’d been reduced to an easy punchline for years, Michael Jackson meant far more to me than I ever realized.
• On sparring in a tournament: if the judges holdup their hand with the red ribbon on it and you have the red armbands on, that means you won.
• When your friend says something to you, followed by the phrase “no pressure,” chances are they probably don’t mean it.
• Netflix is a beautiful thing. Imagine this: it’s actually possible to find the movies you want to watch and, what’s more, you actually get to. Something like this would be unheard of in the realm of Blockbusterdom.
• Pixar still hasn’t rebounded. Bah.
• Sometimes, your worst fears get realized. Almost every single concern I had about J.J. Abrams’ Star Trek ended up coming true.
• Something called Star Trek can suck. I hated it more than I’ve hated just about any film I can think of in the entire time I’ve lived on this planet, in this body, and eating this cheese. I wanted to boo at the screen. I’ve never wanted to do that before. It was THAT bad.
• New Year’s parties are fun.
• Bruce Springsteen has more energy than I do. Bruce Springsteen has more energy than you do. Bruce Springsteen abides.
• The E Street Band is probably the best backing band these ears have ever heard.
• You never know where your journey will take you. This year, I found myself in a theater drinking a glass of cabernet sauvignon watching a movie with Seth Rogen as a mall security guy. You never know.
• A classic is a classic for a very good reason. Sometimes not so much, but usually yes.
• For some reason, some people actually still think that George W. Bush was good at his last job. Please don’t explain.
• Not everything Radiohead does is all gilded beauty and summershine smiles. I still don’t know why they said they were so proud of These Are My Twisted Words.
• There are at least a couple people you think are close friends that aren’t.
• There are few things that are worse in this world than having someone that you love look at you and tell you that, when all is said and done, you are expendable.
• In Europe, they call a quarter-pounder with cheese a Royale with cheese, on account of the metric system and all.
• I miss little things sometimes in ways I didn’t comprehend. I went back to CSUF with Di for Jeff’s graduation, and realized how much I’d missed walking with my friend.
• Krzysztof Kieślowski’s films are special. That is the kind of thing that I want to do in my own career. He understood a lot more about people than most. I wish that I could have met him.
• Alcohol is good.
• Pulling off a surprise birthday party for my mother is actually doable. It helps significantly to be a “yes man” who does what your sister asks you to. A lot of responsibility comes off your shoulders that way, and you feel better.
• When you’re being driven home after flying halfway across the world and are more tired than you care to blink at, the driver will, by necessity, be a man who’s just passed the exam for U.S. citizenship and feels the need to quiz you on the material.

Here's to 2010. Let's hope it's an improvement on the last one.

Peace, Love, & Understanding,
-Adam

So that's what you're telling me, eh?

Someone named Taylor Lautner is on the cover of Rolling Stone magazine and it ticks me off. On one hand, he’s not even a musician, which, in a perfect world, would tend to disqualify him from being on the cover of one of the most influential music magazines on the planet. On the other hand, it ticks me off because men are more like women than I would care to admit.

The fact that women can become insanely jealous of each other’s looks, possessions, and social status is as much of a secret as a pair of slacks in a 99 cent store. The thing that is much more surprising is that men aren’t immune to this kind of thing, no matter how much we may deny it. Now, we may not eye each other like women do, but we certainly notice things about other human beings dependent on testosterone. Chicks have it better anyway in their examinatory comings and goings. We're not so much to look at. We would definitely eye a woman up and down if we were you, but we’re probably not be going over the same kind of checklist that you lovely creatures from the other side of the aisle are.

A big area where I think we genders differ is in the way we relate to the person we’re checking out. Women tend to look at the other woman’s clothes and sense of style, combine it with a quick judgment of her character, and then ascertain whether or not she looks good or not. It might be more accurate to say that it’s not just how she looks or what she’s wearing, but how she’s wearing it and if she seems to be showing sufficient humility for what she's been given. Guys look at other guys and use a different set of criteria. We look at another guy and wonder why in the world the beautiful woman on his arm would want to be with him. Then, many times, we get jealous.

I’m not suggesting that I don’t look also look at the (often inane) fashion choices made by other dudes. I do, and believe you me, most guys are clueless and would probably do better if their moms dressed them. Here’s what I am driving at. I am not as jealous of certain guys if I feel that they deserve what they have. Tom Hanks? He’s just so down-to-earth and up front with who he is that he probably deserves more credit than he gets. Bono? He may be a little annoying sometimes, but he’s got the major charisma factor thing going. Plus, he’s a fantastic writer. Both of those guys are married to beautiful women and seem like they're really happy, so for these and the above reasons, they get a pass.

But Taylor Lautner? Who the heck is he? What has he done to deserve all these thousands of people (especially women) drooling over him? What has he done to deserve the level of fame he’s going to have for, potentially, the rest of his life? He pretended to be a werewolf in a movie? He pretended to be a werewolf in a movie.

This is where I suppose I take a page from the manual of the sisterhood. I look at that picture and just don’t get why he should have all that stuff and I don’t.

Six

What Saint Stephen Saw

I know what Saint Stephen saw on the day he died
Late afternoon, middle of June
Shadows creeping through the dune
And all around him an angry mass
Each throwing bigger stone
Than ones before.

His mind wandered
As came the sandstone rain
To shower him with loving touch
And caress him quiet through thoughts of much
Happiness and notions of coming joy
to follow breaking of the body, divine toy.

“Why is it that we’ve come this way?”
said Stephen quietly, day running away
Rock claiming left eye, jolt of pain shaking
From bare bloody foot to sandaled twisted toes
“Solitary death was mine, not this display through which to die.”
And a young man standing off at side.

He knew the time was nigh
Unhindered eye searching the sky for sign of life
Then the final blow
Looking up, seeing nothing
A brokenhearted man turned
And told a lie about the light.

It may be long, but it's the truth

My relationship with U2 began when I was in high school, when dinosaurs roamed the earth and the world was new. I used a gift certificate to buy a copy of The Joshua Tree, because I’d heard that that was supposedly their landmark achievement. I wasn’t completely enamored with it at first, because the music that I grew up on was usually of a quieter variety and almost always featured a vocalist with a silky smooth touch. As you might imagine, these factors weren’t exactly conducive to my appreciation of a band like U2. Times have changed, and for the better.

In time, U2 became my favorite band, and, currently, occupy a space in my version of the musical trinity with Bob Dylan and Radiohead. I first saw them live in 2005 with my best pal and my younger brother at Staples Center in Los Angeles on their Vertigo tour in support of How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb. That show remains one of the finest shows I’ve ever seen. We may have been in the final row of the last section with our backs to the wall and our seats behind the stage at a diagonal, but it was an incredible night. We hardly used our seats all night. Before that night, I’d told my pal that U2 was the best live band in the world, to which he replied with a certain degree of skepticism, “I’m not sure about that.” After the show was over and we were driving back home, I asked him if he’d changed his mind. The answer was, not surprisingly, “yes.” As the years passed and we’ve both seen more shows, I’m not sure if we’d answer that question exactly the same way, but I think neither of us would (or could) deny that U2 is in the top tier of live acts currently performing today.

So, when U2 announced the dates for their 360 Tour, I eagerly began planning exactly how we were going to land tickets. Sure enough, in April when the tickets went on sale for the Rose Bowl show last Sunday, there were 3 people in my house on 3 different computers trying to score tickets. We landed 6 tickets: 2 seats up high for my pal, 2 more of the same for my brother’s friend, and 2 on the field for me and my brother. We were stoked.

So, finally, after months of waiting, October 25 rolled around and it was time to go. We got to the Rose Bowl at about noon, and got in the GA line, where we stayed for several hours. The waiting actually wasn’t too bad. We were right behind a couple of very cool people who we befriended and were able to pass the time with. After a while, the concert people (or whatever their official title is) came through the line writing numbers on our hands. Mine was 1866. I asked the guy what it meant, but he told me he was tired and that I should ask another guy behind him. No joke. And this was after the lady writing on my hand rudely told me to make a fist so it’d be easier to write. Look, I was grateful to have a number on my hand and all, but what happened to good manners and good service? More on that later . . . Anyway, I found out that the number meant that we had a good chance getting inside the inner circle and be closest to the stage. (all U2 tours since 2000 have featured an inner circle created by a ramp in the shape of a heart, ellipse, or circle. That way, the band can “go out into the crowd” and get closer to the fans.) Apparently, the circle holds about 2500 fans, although the guy thought it was between 1500-2000. We were really excited at the thought of getting inside that area. Traditionally, the inner circle is pretty tough to get inside and is reserved either for fan club members or for those whose tickets were winners of a lottery. When we left the house that morning, we’d had no idea that we’d even have a chance at getting in there. Then we had to get wristbands and have a hole punched in our tickets, which we thought only increased our odds.

The above is all the calm before the storm . . .

The doors were supposed to open at 5 PM. Given that info, we (and those around us) planned to be ready to go at that time. We figured we’d have the time to use the bathroom and take stuff back to the car if we did it around 4 or so. Right?

Wrong. At 4:24 PM, I was in line for the bathroom, and my brother was in line for merchandise on the other side of the stadium. Our place in line was secure with our new friends. I’m about 50-60 people back (there were FOUR portable toilets at that location. FOUR!) and the GA line starts moving forward. I take off to get back to the line and call my brother. I thought he told me that he was back in line. When I get there, he’s not there. I call him again and find out that he’s still in the incredibly long line for merchandise about halfway to the booth. I try to tell him what’s going on. He doesn’t get it and thinks the line is only moving forward a couple of feet. I finally tell him that I need him to come back right away. Everyone is cutting sideways to get to the main column instead of following the line forward in an orderly fashion. It became apparent that, even though it wasn’t the proper way to do it, cutting forward was the only way to keep up with everyone. I’m still waiting for my brother. Our new friends, after promising to save space for us in the circle (if we all ended up in there) take off to keep up with the crowd and leave me a phone number to get ahold of them. Finally, I move forward with the line and arrange to meet my brother at a point on my route. We meet up and end up in a throng of people at the gate of the Rose Bowl. Suddenly, everyone's all mixed up together, numbered, non-numbered, you name it. People are starting to get angry. I was next to one woman who had number 700-something who was now stuck in the back of the line because she was in line for the bathroom when the line started moving. Finally, we decide to try and move sideways through the line in order to try and move around to meet up with our friends, who were close to the front of the crowd. Well, we got to the other side of the crowd, but moving forward proved impossible. Now, even though many of us had been in line for hours and followed the rules, none of our numbered hands meant squat.

Finally, they started letting us in about 100-200 people at a time, in order to keep a stampede from happening. After getting in, we went down the tunnel to the field, granted easy access because of those wonderful wristbands. When we arrived on the field, we were pretty excited because the area by the stage wasn’t even close to being full. That’s when it happened.
We got up by the stage and saw IT. The entrance to the inner circle. We decided to give it a try and see if we could get in. We made it in without a problem in the world. We wound our way around and found ourselves about 20 feet away from the stage at a diagonal. We were thrilled. We’d planned to try and get as close as we could, but this was RIDICULOUS.

The show started at about 7:15 PM with the Black Eyed Peas, who surprised my brother and I by actually being pretty good. I don’t normally like live hip hop/rap, but they had a lot of energy and really made their set work a lot better than I’d originally thought. We were particularly astounded by Fergie. Now, mind you, I’ve seen her picture a ton of times, but I had no idea of how FINE she is. Seriously, wow. They also had us do a “light wave” with our cell phones, which was a particularly inspired idea. I’ve been to shows where everyone takes out their phone and waves it around, but never one where the guy on stage cued us when to put the lights on and turn them off. Honestly, when you see tens of thousands of lights coming on all around you . . . it’s awesome. It felt like being in the stars or something. Late in their set, Will.i.am said they had a special guest who he wasn't even going to introduce at first. He relented, but all he said was that the guy was "Slash's competition." It was Slash! Who knew? He proceeded to lead the band through a pretty sweet cover of "Sweet Child 'O Mine." It wasn't the last song they did, but it made an already strong set even stronger.

U2 came on at about 9 PM or so. They played about 25 songs, with a nice mix of older and newer songs. (I’ll include the setlist below) Right before they came on stage, David Bowie’s “Space Oddity” played over the sound system, which was pretty awesome. From the get go, they were going for it as far as energy and excitement went. I was particularly moved to hear “I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For” live. Bono actually stopped singing a few words into the first verse. 96,000 people sang the rest, and, my friend, let me tell you, we sang it very well. After that song finished, Bono and Edge immediately went into a little bit of “Stand By Me,” which seemed to fit for some reason. All in all, there weren’t a ton of surprises as far as the setlist went, although I wasn’t expecting to hear “In a Little While” or the acoustic version of “Stuck In A Moment That You Can’t Get Out Of.” Additionally, the remixed version of “I’ll Go Crazy If I Don’t Go Crazy Tonight” was SWEET. All 4 guys were out running around. Bono and Larry ended up back to back over by us at one point, and it was really cool when the Edge started pogoing up and down right behind us. It really ratcheted up the party vibe, which isn’t typical for a U2 show. Another inspired moment came when Bono started singing “Amazing Grace” to segue from “One” to “Where the Streets Have No Name,” which is arguably the greatest song that U2’s got, as far as their live performances go. I’ve often said that, if the world was ending and I could only sing one song, it’d be “Amazing Grace.” Hearing it in that setting was great.

I’d had some doubts about how well the 360 setup was going to work. I’d seen another concert performed in the round, and it hadn’t worked as well as it could have. Fortunately, U2’s stage worked really well. The obligatory walkway really works when the band starts moving around, particularly when one of the guys is right by you. The video screen came down in a really cool way during some songs. It almost created a kind of vortex of light and color. That was pretty awesome, if I do say so myself. Unfortunately, while Bono’s laser jacket that he wore during the second encore worked to a T, the “steering wheel microphone” that he used was one of the lamest stage props I’ve ever seen. Oh well.

The single greatest thing about the evening was how CLOSE we were. It’s almost unbelievable that we were so close to the stage. I’m telling you, I could see the sweat on the back of Bono’s head. That’s how close we were at times. However, the proximity also created its own problems. Sitting down was next to impossible, as was changing positions in such a way as to take the strain off of my back. I was still stiff the next day, to tell you the truth. Would I do the whole GA thing again? I’m still up in the air. U2’s coming to Angel Stadium next June and, while I know I’ll be there, I can’t say that I’m really on board to do that again yet. Part of me would like to be further back so I can take in the show from a wider angle. That said, who knows? I might just change my mind.

All in all, it was a really good night. I would have to give the edge to the Vertigo tour show if I had to pick my favorite of the two U2 shows I’ve seen. That said, the scale of this show was much, much bigger. In addition to the 96,000 people at the Rose Bowl (a record for the venue), approximately 6 million people from all over the world watched the live stream on YouTube, and the show was filmed for a future DVD release. Who knows? Maybe, when I sit my kids down to watch the show one day, I’ll be able to say, “Look, there’s your dad!”

I know this was a bit long, but, all in all, if you have any chance to go see U2, you owe it to yourself to take that chance and go. Trust me.

You’ll be glad you did.

The setlist:
Breathe
Get on Your Boots
Magnificent
Mysterious Ways
Beautiful Day
I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For
Stuck In A Moment
No Line on the Horizon
Elevation
In A Little While
Unknown Caller
Until The End of the World
Unforgettable Fire
City of Blinding Lights
Vertigo
I'll Go Crazy - Remix
Sunday Bloody Sunday
MLK
Walk On
One
Where The Streets Have No Name

Ultraviolet
With or Without You
Moment of Surrender

The dream is over

I learned on Saturday that Oasis, one of my favorite bands, had broken up. More properly, Noel Gallagher, guitarist, occasional vocalist, and principal songwriter, left the band on Friday. Apparently, he found himself at a point where he was no longer willing to deal with his brother, Liam, the band's lead singer. Being somewhat familiar with Liam's past and present antics, I can sympathize, but that doesn't diminish the sadness that I felt when I heard the news.

There have been times when either Noel or Liam wouldn't show up for a gig or left the band temporarily, but this really seems final. I'm very glad that I was able to see them live last year before all this happened. Now, I guess, Noel's finally going to put out that solo album, and Liam's probably going to try keep Oasis going without him. For me though, it's over, and that's a terribly tragic thing.

An Inside Smile

At Starbucks, there were two men sitting next to each other in the comfortable chairs, enjoying a drink. They didn’t know each other. After a while, one of them got up to leave and stood in line to get another drink or some food or something. Out of the blue, the other guy goes up to him and hands him the cell phone that the he'd accidentally left on his seat. The first guy was, understandably, very grateful and thanked him. Then, right before he walked out the door, he walked back over to the other guy and handed him a Starbucks giftcard in appreciation for his help. I guess chivalry and doing the right thing aren’t dead after all. Yesterday, I felt a small measure of grace.

riverrun . . .

I sort of have a bit of a dilemma. I enjoy modernist literature . . . well, make that, "I enjoy Virginia Woolf, who's a modernist writer, and I wonder if maybe I might be able to consider myself someone who enjoys modernist literature as a whole." Now, I am interested in approaching the Mount Sinai of modernism, James Joyce. Thing is, I'm concerned that he'd be too hard to read, considering the idiosyncratic style he used in his two most famous works, Ulysses and Finnegans Wake. If you're not familiar with what I mean, go do some reading at Amazon here. I think you'll quickly understand what I mean.

So, here's the question. Should I go for it or not? I've gone through this with Joyce before. He's widely considered to be one of the greatest masters of the English language and the pinnacle of modernist literature. Furthermore, his work inevitably shows up (and places very high) on the lists of the greatest novels of the 20th century. For a serious aficionado of literature, Joyce is obviously someone that has to be dealt with. I really don't want to miss out on something great, and I do want to be as well-read as possible. That said, is it possible for something to just be too hard to read? I know of someone who read War and Peace for the express reason that it was considered an impossible book to get through, and I believe that she liked it. I've encountered difficult writing before. Anyone who's read Woolf knows that she's not exactly John Grisham. (although that's a good thing) Reading her work takes commitment and determination, but that perseverance has yielded some wonderful results. There are passages and sentences in her work that are among the finest I've ever read. Perhaps the same approach would work with Joyce.

Thoughts?