Slacking...

Currently Reading: Kingdom Come by Alex Ross & Mark Waid and Bird By Bird by Anne Lamott (slowly, because I keep stopping to write)

Currently Listening: The Best Mixtape Ever: Comprised of everything from Stevie Wonder to Dave Barnes, Matt Wertz to JT, Mutemath to Copeland and Jon Foreman. I can't turn it off!

Currently Watching: LOST Season 5, Scrubs Season 5 and Chuck Season 1.

Currently Writing: A vignette that I can't decide whether to adapt for screen or narrative.

Currently Waking Up At: 8:30. On a regular basis. Just cause

Currently Eating: Chocolate Pumpkin cupcakes. Mmmm. 

Currently Drinking: A lot of hot green tea with honey and lemon

Currently Living: In a movie. A fantastic, daring, romantic blockbuster of epic proportions.

Currently Feeling: Like eleventybillion dollars. Encrusted in diamonds. And chocolate syrup.

:)   :)   :)

Snapshot of the American Music Industry

AKA the Grammys: Cacophonous Fusion Extravaganza of 2009 

Timberlake and Rev. Al Green. A good idea. Shakily executed at first, but it worked itself out. Plus, Justin is so freaking adorable that it doesn't matter. 

Taylor Swift and Miley Cyrus. I see the logic. And while I'm not a Taylor Swift fan-- she came across as incredibly mature tonight. She did a great performance and she's a good writer who totally gets her demographic. In contrast? Miley Cyrus just kind of makes me want to wrap my face in Saran wrap.

Kanye West and the Afro-Mullet. A resounding NO.

MIA and the Rap Pack was the most ridiculous and abrasive thing I've seen since/heard... since Katy Perry descended to the stage in a banana and proved once again that she is the worst performer EVER.

I can't even talk about Stevie Wonder and the Jonas Brothers. I don' t even know where to begin. Pairing Legend with Fad is such an icky, uncreative marketing ploy.

Paul McCartney & Dave Grohl?

Okay, that one worked.

JT, TI, Drumline and The Cello Girls weren't bad. I liked Justin's  scarf. And the cellos. 

Smokey Robinson, Jamie Foxx, Ne-Yo and Duke Fakir... were actually very good. It was a nice tribute. And Ne-Yo really surprised me.

Mad props to Sugarland and Adele, who totally deserved their accolades for being phenomenal with little to no visible effort.

And to Coldplay-- who are adorable. And very talented.

Also, props to 

• Queen Latifah and Jennifer Hudson, for looking like sleek, beautiful, old-school jazz singers.
  
• Kate Beckinsale, for being gorgeous and classy.
• Alison Krauss' amazing purple dress.
• Jack Black, for having a hilarious face.
• Moses Martin, for letting his dad borrow his shirt to wear to the Grammys.
• Adele and McCartney's drummer for blatantly chewing gum on stage.
• Jason Mraz, for attractive facial hair. And a very handsome hat.
• Carrie Underwood's rockin female guitar player.
• Radiohead, for bringing a marching band onstage.
• Christina Aguilera's Target Superhero Comic commerical
• The quartet of diversely talented guitarist gentlemen (including Keith Urban, John Mayer and BB King)
• And Justin Timberlake.

It's not over. But I'm done!

BANG!

Figured I should end the month with one.

Tonight? Fiction Family concert. 

AKA my first Jon Foreman adventure of the year.

First of all, I got to go with my amazing friend Kara and her brother Josh, which was great. We nabbed front row seats to the show at the historic Belcourt theatre, which is a really awesome, 

intimate kind of venue. But after the first few songs, Jon decided that rugs on stage really made the place it feel like a living room... so he invited the people in the front to jump up on stage and chill in the "living room" for the second 1/2 of the show.

I was on my feet before he finished his sentence.

I spent the second half of the show on stage, sitting at Sean Watkins' feet, feeling very much a part of Fiction Family. :) Not only did they play a song (that's not on any of the albums) that I requested them to play via a blog comment, but they did a few really good covers too, including Radiohead's "Idioteque", Arcade Fire's "Keep The Car Runnin" and a bluegrass version of Weezer's "Pink Triangle" which was hilarious.

The show ended, and I was delighted-- but not done. And without Tyler there to hold me back ;) I decided to wait around and see if anyone would venture from backstage. Josh and Kara ran across the street to grab something to eat and I... dawdled. I texted, I listened to messages, I made small talk with some girl who liked my headband...

...until a flash of white shirt and long blonde hair caught my eye.

Beeline.

Wait for it... wait for it... breathe... stop shaking... stop staring!... wait for him to finish talking to his extended family... girl at my right better not even THINK about stepping in front of me... breathe... breathe some more... no, dark-haired girl, don't tell him that Dave's pulling the car around! I need to do this! Wait for it... let him put his iPhone away... one more second...

"Jon?"

Eye contact.

"Hey!"

Stop shaking! Stop grinning like a fool!

"Hi! I'm Juliette."

Shakes my hand. 

"Nice to meet you, Juliette."

"Youtoo!Ijustwantedtosaythanksforplayingthecowboysongbecauseiwassooooohopingyouwouldplayitandirequesteditonyourblogtheotherdayandsothatwasawesomeandtheshowwassogoodandyouaremyfavoritelyricistofalltimeandijustappreciateeverythingyoudosomucheverythingyouwritejustspeakstomysoulblahblahblahandifyouevergettiredofjustwritingamazingmusicandplayingshowsandyouwanttowritethelibrettoforastagemusicalyoushouldcallmeandwewilltotallycollaborate!

"You write musicals?"

"I'm working on it. I'm going to write one."

"That's great! Musicals are awesome. Well hey, I gotta run but thanks for coming out tonight, and for sitting on the stage! It was so great having you guys up there. Etc, etc, farewell pleasantries."

Still grinning. Like a fool.

It's gonna be a good year. :)

p.s. somewhere in there, there was also a "Could I get a picture?" Fortunately, I'm pretty good at the one-armed thing, but then I realized I might be shaking and it might come out all trembly, and then he put his hand on my shoulder and I went to put mine around his waist but he's married and I have way too big a crush on him to do that without feeling awkward. So... I don't remember whether I did or not. But this happened.

:)  :)  :)

Astonishing.

This is pretty crazy.

Thanks to Luke Reeves for introducing me to the TED.com website

***

Artist Chris Jordan shows an arresting view of what Western culture looks like. His supersized images picture some almost unimaginable statistics -- like the astonishing number of paper cups we use every single day.

Bridesmaid Blather...

My teeth feel crazy.

I'm doing the whitestrips thing for the first time and it's kind of freaking me out. 30 minutes is a long time to have that stuff on your grill. I hope it works. I'm kind of worried that it might only whiten pieces of my teeth? That would be awkward. I can't believe I'm even putting things on my teeth. They better not fall out. OoOoOo.... no.

I'm surrounded by clothes. And shoes. I am packing. Everyone else wrote an O.C. flavored post, and I didn't want to be left out so... here I am!

*da dat da dat* Rock you like a hurricane! *da dat da dat dat da da*

Sorry.

I still wish we had Guitar Hero.

Or a puppy.

But I'm glad we don't have one right now because we'd have to try and figure out where to put it while we're gone to Cali. We do need someone to feed littleBocafish while we're gone though. And water my plants. (Did I really just say that?) I mean, they might be okay, but... probably not.

I'm pretty dang excited about my reunion with my roommates. And the Pacific Ocean. And In-N-Out Burger. And flip-flops. I'm pretty excited that its going to be 29 degrees in Nashville on Thursday and 73 degrees in Orange County.

But it hasn't entirely hit me yet. That my roommate is about to be married. Rings and cake and brand new appliances and sharing covers and a new last name. For real. I can't wrap my head around it yet. I think it'll hit me when they kiss. I'll be standing there with eye makeup all over my face and my hair blowing every which way, realizing that this day that she's wondered about her entire life will be-- all happening. Right then.

Whew!

I better get all this stuff in my bag. :)

2008: The Set List

I've actually kept a list all year. Val, aren't you kind of proud? :) I trimmed it a tiny bit, but it's still a pretty long list.

• Yesterday- switchfoot
Beautiful, melancholy tribute to a friend of the band. It's quite sad, but so hopeful at the same time. Very comforting if you've lost someone you love.

• Falling Slowly- The Frames
I too was charmed by Once, and the opening lines of this song are perfect. Also, I remember laughing during the movie when he went up high in the chorus while they were practicing. I wasn't sure it would work. But then when they sang it for real, it was so lovely, I practically melted, and bought the soundtrack the following day.

• Natalie- Florez
My roommate used to manage this band. This song was on Scrubs and it's actually NOT about a girl, but about a boy named Nate who auditioned to sing for Florez-- and then bailed out on them at the last minute. Terribly clever revenge, Alex. :)

• Question- Old 97's
This song plays when Turk asks Carla to marry him for the last time. It's adorable.

• Lovesong- Sara Bareilles
I sang this all. summer. long. And I can sort of play some of it on the piano. Anyway, I think Sara is brilliant and I really hope she doesn't fizzle out in the next couple years. I expect at least a few more great singles from her.

• You Give Me Something- James Morrison
This is one of those songs that just makes sense to me. The composition is perfection. If I had written this I could die absolutely delighted. It's also very Stevie Wonder-ish, which is probably why I love it.

• New Soul- Yael Naim
At first it was just catchy. Then it grew on me. It's so sweet and carefree. What's not to love?

• Say- John Mayer
This song is very simple. Comfortingly so. It speaks for itself.

• Almost Lover- A Fine Frenzy
If heartache had a sound, it would be the first two chords of this song. And then her tone is just-- ouch. Wow. Heartbreak personified. Mad Props.

• Supermassive Black Hole- Muse
I know this song is old, but I rediscovered it. I have it set as my ringtone. It makes me want to walk into a party, dressed like a rockstar, wearing some kickass boots, flanked by my equally rockstar roommates and own the entire party. And this is all in slow motion of course.

• Misery Business- Paramore
Why isn't this song on Guitar Hero? or Rock Band? Is it? I want to play! Hooray for yelling while driving! And hooray for wildly successful local bands. :)

• Astonishing- Little Women
Wow. I'm still going to write a musical. The end of this song reminds me of that every time I hear it.

• Without Love- Hairspray
I wish I'd written this too. Talking about it doesn't do it justice. And honestly, neither does either recorded version of it. The movie soundtrack is missing some power, and the original Broadway cast version would actually be fine if Marissa Jaret Winokur's "Tracy voice" didn't make me want to throw my iPod at the wall. But the lyrics are spectacular. I think I need to see it live.

• Just- Mark Ronson/Phantom Planet
I'm obsessed with horns this year too. The horns in this song (which is actually a Radiohead cover) are so sassy and delicious. I love it.

• Pork & Beans- Weezer
Yes. :) I love the video. I love how stupid and awesome and hilarious and geekishly rebellious it is. Makes me happy.

• Troublemaker- Weezer
This song should have a music video starring Ryan Atwood. It sounds like it would be an opening song during season one of The O.C. I can't explain why that makes me so happy. But it does. Probably because season one of The O.C. was fantastic. Is fantastic.
Also, the line "Marryin a beeyotch-- havin 7 ki-yads" is-- amazing.

• Cliffs of Dover- Eric Johnson
My favorite song to "play" on Guitar Hero 3. Which I'm terrible at. But still love unconditionally. I also think it's hilarious that Joanna and I "sing" this song like it has words. But really we just play air guitar and make riff noises.

• Rehab- Amy Winehouse
Lord, Lord, help the tragedy that is Amy Winehouse. But this is a great song. Again with the old school feel and the horns. I like it a lot. And I'm actually quite fond of her inebriated vocals.
"They have the courage to be drunken buffoons, which makes them poetic!"

• A Mirror Is Harder To Hold- Jon Foreman
Gut-check honest, hopeful, pleading and sweetly pathetic. The horns add just the right amount of sap. And 6/8 time is the best. And if was Jon singing this to me? I would definitely not go.

• A Change Gon' Come- Sam Cooke & Cold War Kids
This song still rings true. The Sam Cooke version is so epic too. I mean, the intro sounds like an old school Disney movie. It's incredible. Music just doesn't sound like this anymore. Cold War made it their own, which I respect. But Sam is the man.

• Consolers of the Lonely- The Raconteurs
Jack White is like the unofficial King of Nashville. And this whole album really is great. But the drummer does a phenomenal job navigating through the various tempo/style changes and the whole track has great swagger too.

• Shake It- Metro Station
Remember when "Yeah!" came out? It's like that. Something about having the chorus memorized by the end of the song is so satisfying, isn't it? ;) Stupid? Yes. But who doesn't enjoy driving and singing "Shake, shake-- shake, shake-- a-shake it!!!"

• Signed, Sealed, Delivered, I'm Yours- Stevie Wonder
One of many Motown tracks I listened to on repeat this summer. Stevie can pretty much do no wrong.

• The Way I Am- Ingrid Michaelson
This song is just adorable. And except for the Rogaine part, entirely true for me. I'm excited for the day I'll be able to relate to it wholeheartedly.

• Viva La Vida- Coldplay
One of those songs it's really hard not to listen to. Something authoritative and fanfare-esque and dreamlike about that symphonic intro. And then the intriguing opening lines; "You USED to rule the world?! What happened?!" Very effective storytelling device. :) Also, the line "Revolutionaries wait... for my head on a silver plate," got stuck in my head all the time this summer.

• City- Sara Bareilles
Violins + Piano will always be a winner. I listen to/sing this song pretty much every Saturday night that I'm cleaning up the Blue Room at work. It's so-- accurate. Heartbreakingly so. It's like a monologue. Sara Bareilles must be descended from Eponine Thenardier.

• This Is Home- switchfoot
I wasn't crazy about it when I first heard it. I mean, it works for Caspian, but I wasn't feelin it. But one day I heard it differently. I thought about "home" a little differently. More like a person than a place. And then I loved it.

• Rock N Roll- Eric Hutchinson
Why is it so fun to sing the line "Fancy drinks and fifty dollar cover charge!" I don't know. But this is BOCA's current car song. A little summer in the midst of dreary wintry-ness.

• To Make You Feel My Love- Adele
My second favorite song of the year. I already wrote a whole blog about it, so I won't ramble on any longer. :)

Artist of the Year: Tyrone Wells
Need. Sugar So Sweet. Baby Don't You Change. Seabreeze. Patience. Sexy Yodeling.
I can't get enough.
This guy is phenomenal. I will never pass up a chance to see him live.

Song of the Year: Southbound Train- Jon Foreman
Relaxing. Reflective. Rugged. Cellos. Harmonica train whistles. And my most favorite voice in the whole world. I can't get enough of it.

First Album I'll Be Purchasing In 2009:
Fiction Family
(read: Jon Foreman meets Nickel Creek. Literally.)

Three Songs That Sum Up My 2008:
Somebody To Love- Queen
Change The World- Eric Clapton
Patience- Tyrone Wells

The first two sung BY me. The last, sung AT me. You can laugh. And you should.
But it's very true. :)

Less Tragic

I'm tired of reality TV.

Actually, I'm tired of reality in general, muscling me around like a stubborn, cynical hardass, telling me to get over it because "that's just how it is"...

Telling me not to worry about it because it's not my problem...

Telling me to live and let live and insisting that everything is relative and everything is gray and all roads lead to Rome or space or nothingness.

That is bullshit.

I'm tired of the movies that end like real life.

I mean, I'm not always tired of them, but in this moment I am.

I don't want the good guys to die. I don't want the babies to die. I don't want people to find redemption and then die before something amazing happens. I don't want the bad guys to leave with the money and I don't want the random hot girl to get picked over the faithful best friend. I want the guy to chase the girl until she says yes. I want the couples to look for new reasons to love each other every day. I want the wives to have sex with their husbands and not their pool boys. I want the husbands to have sex with their wives and not their boyfriends. I want the teenagers to stop having sex with each other. I want the mommies and daddies to stay together and the children to grow up confident, loving and generous. I want the daddies to admit when they were wrong and the mommies to let go when they're supposed to. I want the church to stop being a tepid, elitist, whore in the eyes of unbelievers. I want the addicts to own up to their issues and ask for help. I want the burnouts to start over and the dreamers to take action. I want the apathetics to stop being bored and find something worth burning about. I want the skeptics to embrace hope and the cynics to fall in love. I want the music to mean something. I want it all to matter. So much.

Because it does.

I'm not wishing for or expecting a perennial Utopia.

But would it kill us to have a happy ending or two? Hundred? Million?

Would it kill us to be a little more diligent in fostering the growth of happy endings?

Would it kill us to stop being so selfish?

Would it kill us to acknowledge the bigger picture—and our raging, innate longing to be part of it?

When did we stop wanting to be in it?!

I don't understand. I don't understand when the brainwash began.

I want to be in it.

Oh, do I ever.

There is joy.
There is purpose.
There is adventure.
There is understanding.
There is total acceptance.
There is a reason to get out of bed every day.

But none without You-- my dear, wild and mighty Father.
Help me. Help me to live this life like its Christmas morning, instead of Black Friday at Wal-Mart.