Pillow Fight

We've had sort of a constant swapping of beds going on between the bedrooms of my siblings and I. I slept on my parents' old queen bed growing up; my brother had a set of extra-long twin bunk beds and my sister had a little twin bed she got as a present when she graduated from her crib. The swapping reached a pretty high frequency after I moved out and my sister took over my bedroom, so we've all slept at one point or another on one of the three twin beds. Right now, my sister's room (my old one) houses one of the bunk beds and the queen. My tiny room holds the My First Big Girl Bed.

For the past few years, this bed wasn't a big deal. I used it a weekend or two every semester and that was that. Even this summer, I sucked it up and slept on it, even though I was bothered by the fact that I could easily dangle my feet off the end. Unfortunately, I was probably able to sleep in such an awful little bed because I was regularly going to the chiropractor who was doing miraculous things to my neck and back.

This being my first time sleeping in my Big Girl bed without A. leaving after two nights and B. having my back professionally cracked, it has been a little rough. So I pleaded with my sister to please put her clothes in the dresser, no, the queen bed does not double as a dresser, neither does the floor, what? no, I will not do it for you, and she agreed to let me sleep in the bed that saw me through jr. high and high school, because Loren? That bed in your room is so soft! I think I will sleep in it! We will trade! It will be great!

And MAN, did I miss this bed. It's big, it's got soft, worn-in sheets, and the mattress is hard as a rock so I don't wake up feeling like...well, like I slept in the Big Girl bed, which is small and soft and has sheets I can never seem to keep from getting twisted up in.

Apparently, this revelation of mine was followed shortly by my sister having a similar one, because two nights ago as I was about to go to sleep I found her sprawled upside-down in the middle of the bed with my pillows strewn across the floor. I was wholly disappointed, let me tell you. I sulked the whole way back to the Big Girl bed, where I sunk down into the middle and didn't fall alseep for several hours.

I sense that for the rest of my time at home, there will be a bed war going on--and let me tell you, I don't intend to lose.

Friday Favorites: My Favorite Albums of 2006

No mp3's today. Just a list.

10. Rabbit Fur Coat, Jenny Lewis with the Watson Twins - At first, I thought this album was way too folksy. But now I'm in love with it, and I catch myself singing the songs all the time. Jenny Lewis's voice is gorgeous.

9. The Mysterious Production of Eggs, Andrew Bird - I love this album. It's my favorite thing to listen to while I wait for the bus in the morning.

8. Let it Die, Feist - Last spring, I would listen to this album when I went to the tanning bed, so now when I hear it, I'm always reminded of warmth and quiet calm and smelling like coconut. Also, I really love the songs.

7. The Crane Wife, The Decemberists - I have to admit, I wasn't really a fan of these guys until after I saw them last month. But this album grew on me and now I'm pretty attached.

6. I Am Not Afraid of You and I Will Beat Your Ass, Yo La Tengo - There is so much variety on this album that I always forget I don't have my iPod on shuffle when I listen to it. "Black Flowers" is my favorite track, but I could listen to the whole album over and over again--and I did, during finals week in the library, when that girl at the table next to mine wouldn't SHUT UP ALREADY SO I CAN LEARN ABOUT PUBLIC SPEAKING.

5. Apologies to the Queen Mary, Wolf Parade - I bought this album at home one weekend in March and didn't take it out of my car until I drove home for summer break. It's different, but for some reason I can't get enough of it. I still pull it out every once in a while.

4. The Information, Beck - I loved Guero, and then I heard this, and I love it more. I always have to listen to "Think I'm in Love" at least twice.

3. Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, Clap Your Hands Say Yeah - I heard CYHSY at 3Hive in April and made a mental note to try to listen to the rest of their stuff. I got my hands on this album this summer, and I LOVE IT. I love it so much I went to see them, and they did not disappoint. "Gimmie Some Salt" is my favorite song from this year, hands down.

2. First Impressions of Earth, The Strokes - It's The Strokes. And I love them. That's all there is to say.

1. Broken Boy Soldier, The Raconteurs - About three days after I got home for the summer, I heard "Steady as She Goes." The next day I bought the album. The day after that, I bought concert tickets. The rest of the summer, I listened to this band. The concert was the best rock concert I've ever been to, but that's probably because I caught Patrick Keeler's drumstick at the end of the show. There are some misses, but I'd say that if I could only listen to one album from this year, I'd pick this one.

Mommy's alright, Daddy's alright

I had a wonderful Christmas, but unfortunately I don't have time to tell you about it because everyone in my house is currently obsessed with the Guitar Hero II my aunt and uncle gave me. That includes my mother, who started a band called "Help" and claims that her favorite part of the game is watching the tour bus travel from city to city on an animated map.

I think I've heard Cheap Trick's "Surrender" over 40 times in the last 24 hours. But that doesn't mean I shouldn't go try to play it one more time.

Favorite Friday: Find your own mp3's.

Well suddenly it's Friday and I have no new music to share, and honestly I don't feel like going and digging it up for you, for multiple reasons. However:

1. I just bought The Ventures: Christmas Joy for my brother. Surf guitars and Christmas carols, I ask you, can it get any better? It cannot. Someday I will spend the holidays on the beach, and I will bring this album along.

2. Pitchfork's Top 100 Tracks of 2006 is up; you can get a zipped file of all 100 tracks at Stereogum.

3. You can use Pandora.com to listen to holiday music by specific artists (even Neil Young, if, heaven forbid, you're into that kind of thing). Here's how.

And my peanut brittle is tasty, although it's a little chewy

In the following photograph, you can see the following:

• Chocolate Cherry cookies. Minus one half stick of butter.
• A pan of caramels which did not reach the correct temperature, and therefore did not set (nor, as you can see, turn the correct color).
• Cookie cutters from the cut-outs I made. Did you know that Nestle Tollhouse makes the BEST kind of chocolate chip comes-in-a-tube dough, and the WORST kind of sugar cookie comes-in-a-tube dough? I didn't know that until I tried to make cut-outs with it yesterday.
  

If they don't like the gifts, well, that's another story

I have always been terrible at Christmas shopping, and I've always been stressed out by that. I always thought it was probably because I've been intimidated by the overcrowded stores, or that I was too selfish to actually be able to think about what someone else would like. But really I think what it comes down to is that in general, I am not a good shopper: I go into the store with something in mind, and that's what I get. So if I don't really know what to get you, I am easily discouraged.

All of this is to say though, that if I end up actually getting you a gift, one that I'm positive you'll like, I am way more excited for you to love it than I am to find out what I'll be receiving. I can barely stand the wait until Christmas morning this year because I have gotten my siblings some gifts that I am sure they will love!

You see? I'm so excited I'm writing about it. Well, excited and hoping you'll notice that my heart isn't as black as we previously assumed.

(Forgive me. I find it difficult to write anything worth reading when I'm at home. The inspiration just isn't here. Or something.)

The only joke I've ever made that my family has laughed at

"Where have you been? You said you were heading home five hours ago."

"I got held up."

"Held up?"

"I got held up helping Sammie pack, and then I got held up helping Megan pack."

"Is 'held up' just a euphemism, or are you being serious?"

Favorite Friday: Sorry I Missed You

Everyone's doing their "Best of '06" lists right now (AEFD's is forthcoming--just don't expect brilliant musical taste) and I've gotten to dig around and listen to stuff I missed when it was brand new. Some of it's pretty amazing. Here we go.

I'd heard of Gnarls Barkley but never took the time to listen to this song of his everyone thought was so fantastic because I just didn't think it seemed like my kind of thing. I listened to it yesterday. I was wrong, and everyone else was right.
Gnarls Barkley - Crazy.mp3

I know nothing about the band Destroyer, but they've been all over the Best of Lists, and after I heard them, I knew why.
Destroyer - Rubies.mp3

I had a brief encounter with Casiotone for the Painfully Alone in March or April, and then kind of forgot about them. Which is too bad, because they are fun to listen to.
Casiotone for the Painfully Alone - New Year's Kiss.mp3

Update

It appears I was right about Wal-Mart. They hired these people to create a flog as a publicity stunt.

Turns out, people forget that you can't always believe what you read when they open an internet browser.

RANT: Y'all ONLY know what it's like/being male middle-class and white

I'll be the first to admit that it doesn't take much to annoy me or make me mad. But it does, however, take a lot for me to actually let you know that you have done so. I try hard to be nice to people, even if I think they are obnoxious or rude or have bad ideas about how our group project should be done. Oops. There I go.

(If you live with me? You're going to want to leave this page now before you have to hear this story one. more. time.)

I am pulling my hair out over a project that's due in the morning. And really, it should be no big deal: it's an intro course on multimedia. It's been piece of cake--the class is geared toward freshmen and sophomores, so it was smooth sailing for me during the first two months.

And then we started working on our final projects. In groups. That were picked by our instructor.

The basic project is this: create a product, a website to explain it, and a video to market it. Not bad at all.

But then the guy who would become my Favorite Group Member (FGM) took over (and let's face it, the girl for whom this class seems like a cakewalk is not going to take kindly to NOT BEING IN CHARGE) (why all the cake references?). My approach to group work? Delegate. His approach? "Let's all do everything together." Ha. Ha. Ha.

Anyway, after taking over, this guy developed an idea for a real estate agency that sells apartments in the ghetto. And not just any ghetto, but the "Miami ghetto" which is really just a few streets in Oxford where the houses are run-down. Rich white kids live there, with their pearls, iPods, and BMW's. This "ghetto" he speaks of does not exist. And after writing this piece and being scared to EVER go back to Cincinnati EVER AGAIN (a story for another time), I was not too keen on the idea of poking fun at "the ghetto." Because we are all rich white kids who don't get it.

And because FGM does not get it, we continued to develop the worst idea ever.

So I went along with it, I'm in the damn video, I DESIGNED THE WEBSITE (which FGM just wasn't sure if he liked or not), I'm hosting everything on my webspace. And FGM was a big jerk, and no one else wanted to do any work. So I began to hate this project with the kind of rage I generally reserve for Swim Team Mothers.

The rage comes from two places. The first is that I have never been part of a group that was so...bad at being a group. (Notice: If you leave a comment about life lessons, I will punch you in the face. And, I will delete your comment.) But mostly, I don't like FGM. He is awful.

Second, it comes from the lack of respect for people who actually live in a ghetto, who don't sell drugs because it's funny or have a gun because they pretend to be bad ass, but because that is the reality of their lives. And when I have to sit around with these people, I get the feeling that they take for granted their comfortable lifestyles. Which is about 75% of the reason why FGM is awful. I am embarrassed to be a part of this project.

I finished the website over the weekend and had put it behind me when I got an email from a group member today that said she didn't feel comfortable with all the stereotypes we'd used, so could I go in and change the website. Well OF COURSE I will! But why didn't she say something sooner, when I wanted to change the whole project? Or when I tried to point out that it was AN AWFUL IDEA?

So I will change the website. I couldn't agree with her more. I just feel like it's too little, too late.

Wherein my sister tells the dirtiest joke she knows

I was digging around in my photos last night and I found some film clips I'd done with my camera over the summer. Most of them were me or my sister getting the dog to do stupid things, but I couldn't resist posting this one.

Listen carefully, because my sister, she cracks herself up.

Wondering

how people who regularly watch Extreme Makeover: Home Edition don't spend the rest of the night sobbing.

Yummy holiday ideas

These jello-flavored cookies are great for holidays, because the recipe makes about a billion cookies, and you can change the kind of jello you use depending on the color you want. I suggest Lime and Cran-Raspberry. We used strawberry jello and dipped them in dark chocolate when we made them for Valentine's Day last year, and they were delicious.

I came across this recipe for peppermint cupcakes the other day and decided to try it, and they came out so pretty!



And lest we forget, you could always tackle a gingerbread architectural feat. There are lots of patterns at this site.

Just because I've got three web-based projects to do

Dear Miami University,
It would be nice if we could access the server during the weekend before finals.

Just a thought.

Love,
Loren

Favorite Friday: I've got you covered

Ben Folds covers Such Great Heights! I'm more of the Iron & Wine camp myself, but here it is just in case you're a Ben Folds fan (his new album came out 10/24).
Ben Folds - Such Great Heights.mp3

The Cold War Kids cover Fiona Apple. What can go wrong? I like them both.
Cold War Kids - Fast as You Can.mp3

The Puppini Sisters are essentially today's Andrews Sisters, and while they perform some of the same music, they've also done their own versions of I Will Survive and Heart of Glass. Here's their version of Morrissey's Panic.
The Puppini Sisters - Panic.mp3

And if that wasn't enough for you, My Old Kentucky Blog is the one who really has you covered with a Cover Song Project. I think my favorite cover song collection of theirs is Sympathy for the Devil--although, none of them beat the original, in my opinion. Here's Guster's version.
Guster - Sympathy for the Devil.mp3

And here's two random ones:
Me First and the Gimme Gimmes - Goodbye Earl.mp3 (Originally by the Dixie Chicks)
Feist - That Girl. mp3 (Originally by The Kinks) (By the way, did you know I love Feist? Because I love Feist.)

Oh what a laugh it would have been, if I had only gotten the joke

	Your Christmas Song Is
	I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus Then I saw mommy tickle santa claus Underneath his beard so snowy white Oh, what a laugh it would have been If daddy had only seen Mommy kissing santa claus last night At Christmas, you feel like a kid again Complete with major Christmas eve insomnia

What Christmas Carol Are You?

Christmas carols are probably my favorite thing about the holiday season, so when I saw this quiz, I had to take it. I don't even think it's really a quiz, to tell you the truth, because all you do is tell it if you've been naughty or nice this year.

However, after much consideration I feel that this is my Christmas carol. First, there's that weird, fortune-esque line at the bottom which is strangely applicable (you mean there's another night this year I won't be able to sleep?).

And then there's the choice of this particular song. I've never been a big fan of it, but I suppose as far as silly internet personality quizzes this song does a good job of helping me explain a little bit about one of my less-desirable personality traits. I was in high school (it may have even been college, I can't quite remember) by the time I figured out that Mommy wasn't being unfaithful. Because Santa? (SPOILER ALERT) He doesn't exist! And Mommy was actually kissing DADDY! The irony is rich here, is it not?

I'm embarrassed to admit that it took me this long to get it, but I think there are several reasons why:
1. Hello? I sang this when I was in Kindergarten. At this point in my life, I still believed that there was a man who broke into my house and brought me presents. The idea that I was mistaking my father for this gift-giving stranger was not something I ever considered.

2. I spent a lot of time when I was little using strange, child-like logic to reason things through. I'm pretty sure I made some strange sort of peace with this song and went along my way, singing it each December without further considering its subject matter. Even after someone referenced its meaning. (Oh, did I fail to mention that I came to this realization myself?)

3. WHO WRITES A CHRISTMAS CAROL ABOUT SANTA BEING FAKE???

So if you were wondering about this eye for detail I have? This is a good example of what I've got going on in the intelligent observations department.

Reflections on NaBloPoMo

After finding that I am capable of posting every single day, the last few days that I have not written, I've felt guilty about it in an "I know I could do better" sort of way. Then I think about the things I wrote about, and I'm all, well, quality over quantity.

But now I realize that you know what? Normally, I provide you with neither quality nor quantity! My sincere apologies.

Don't look for me to buy an Xbox or anything, but...

Yesterday I spent most of my evening (after making videos for class projects all afternoon--AWFUL) playing Nintendo 64 with my friends. I am pretty sure that the only games I ever really played growing up were Goldeneye and MarioKart, and I am not very good at either. But I was having fun nonetheless.

After a few rounds of MarioKart, we decided to run to EB Games and look for used games to play. I get bored really easily in video game stores, so after about 30 seconds of searching through 8 billion Madden games and a couple Pokemon cartridges, I wandered to the front of the store and found the most wonderful thing I've ever seen (as far as video game stores are concerned, of course): Guitar Hero II.

So while my friends looked for their used games, I learned how to play Sweet Child O' Mine on a fake guitar. But it was probably the most fun video game I've ever played (maybe because I wasn't losing to someone?). It's sort of like DDR for your hands, and with WAY better music.

I suppose I have taken an interest in video games recently (not a real interest, just less of a non-interest, if that makes sense) because I'm reading Everything Bad is Good for You: How Today's Popular Culture is Actually Making Us Smarter, a book about how today's video games, television shows, and movies are all much more complex than the entertainment of the past. The first chapter, which is about video games, is pretty long, but as I've worked my way through (I'm a busy girl, people, and the Top 100 are waiting impatiently over there for me to finish them), I've learned to see video game-players differently. One of the main arguments, for example, is that through no other form of entertainment do we rely so heavily on our ability to make decisions, and video games are helping people hone this skill. I never really thought about it that way before. At any rate, I can't wait to get to the tv and movies part, because that actually pertains to me.

So, in conclusion (because I have to go do homework, y'all, and I don't have time to be creative): Try Guitar Hero II, and read Everything Bad is Good for You. You will feel good about the video game because of the book, and you will feel good about the book because...it's a book.

Favorite Friday: Christmas Songs!

It's time to start celebrating, people.

I'm already loving Sufjan Stevens' Songs for Christmas, and I've only been listening to it for about two days. All five discs are streaming here, or if you want a track to keep, you can listen to this one:
Sufjan Stevens - That Was the Worst Christmas Ever!.mp3

Here are some fun indie Christmas songs/covers:
Feist - Lo, How a Rose E're Blooming.mp3
Rilo Kiley - Christmas Cake.mp3 (It's a little depressing, but I like Rilo Kiley)
Hem - Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas.mp3 (My most favorite Christmas song)

These, plus a lot more, are over at The Late Greats, so if you like out-of-the-ordinary Christmas music, you're so in luck.

Also, on Halloween Stereogum had a Christmas music buyer's guide that wouldn't be a bad idea to use now.

Finally (is it even worth mentioning? Probably just for a laugh): Billy Idol is releasing a Christmas album, if you're into that sort of thing.