Month: April 2011

The third of May

Things I did today:

  • I did my taxes, which took about an hour. I think my federal refund will pretty much cover what I owe to the state of New York.
  • I finished reading Bryan Talbot’s terrifically inventive and entertaining Alice in Sunderland. As John Tufail, “Carrollian scholar,” notes in his endorsement:

    Alice in Sunderland is parochial in its focus — but not in content. I believe anyone interested in the way history is formed and, in itself, forms culture, character and a sense of place will be entranced by it.

    It’s also a wild, meta-fictional ride into the life of Lewis Carroll and his most famous work.

  • I watched a quasi-documentary, Believe: The Eddie Izzard Story. There are some genuine moments, particularly when Izzard talks about the death of his mother, which has possibly forever scarred him. And it’s not uninteresting from a fan’s perspective, but it’s a fawning and superficial look at the man.
  • I actually managed to finish the Sunday New York Times crossword for a change this week. Maybe it was just easier, though I got even further than usual with the Diagramless.
  • I went for a walk.

And that, plus an early dinner before my sister, her husband, and their dog returned home, was my Sunday.

March music

If you were wondering what I was listening to in March — and how could you not be? — wonder no longer:

  1. “Paris (Ooh La La)” by Grace & the Nocturnals
  2. “Goods” by Mates of State
  3. “Dreams” by Brandi Carlile
  4. “Swim Club” by the Cave Singers
  5. “No Nostalgia” by AgesandAges
  6. “Cradle” by the Joy Formidable
  7. “Washing Machine” by Amy LaVere
  8. “Optimist” by Zoe Keating
  9. “The Night Will Always Win” by Elbow
  10. “Barton Hollow” by the Civil Wars
  11. “Elephants & Little Girls” by Loch Lomond
  12. “Police on My Back” by the Clash
  13. “Is There a Ghost” by Band of Horses
  14. “Freak Out” by Tapes ‘n Tapes
  15. “Rest Your Head” by Static of the Gods
  16. “Belong” by the Pains of Being Pure at Heart
  17. “Slip Slidin’ Away” by Beth Waters
  18. “The Write-Up” by Mascott
  19. “Shoreline” by Anna Ternheim

Vanishing act

I spent this afternoon at a surprise birthday/anniversary party for my aunt and uncle in Queens, a big party with lots of family and friends. I didn’t recognize most of the people there, maybe only a quarter — we were like three or four separate parties, with just the one common bond — and the loud music made it difficult to talk with the relatives I did know. But the look of genuine surprise and tears of real joy on my aunt’s face made it all worthwhile. (My uncle had planned the event, so he wasn’t surprised.)

I will say this much, though: while I may be moving to Queens in the relatively near future, it won’t be to Maspeth. It looks nice enough, but I don’t think you could pick a spot less accessible to Manhattan or more poorly laid out. It’s a knot of streets and avenues and drives that don’t follow any logical pattern. When I first moved back to New York, I interviewed for a job at a map company. The night before, I consulted the company’s own map of the area, which amazingly still made finding them the day of extremely difficult. (Even with the same uncle, who’s lived there for decades, in the passenger seat, helping me navigate.)

This evening, I watched The Lady Vanishes, a strange but delightful mix of Hitchcockian humor and suspense. It’s equal parts tense and ridiculous.