Art, Life

Stumbled across this totally NSFW music video the other day. It’s so brilliantly universal. Who hasn’t had this fantasy before? There are so many important life lessons packed into 5 minutes. Remember, your life is your own. Even if it doesn’t seem like it, you have a choice. You aren’t defined by what other people think of you. You can change course if you want. Things can be different. Just don’t wait too long…

Also, look out for the to do list. It’s too good.

Life

5 Memories for 5 Years

Today was the fifth anniversary of my dad’s death. I don’t put much stock in anniversaries, but this year made me especially sad. It’s hard to believe that it’s been 5 years- it’s just really surprising how time doesn’t stop passing.

Anybody that spends five minutes with me knows that I’m fascinated with morbid stuff. Taxidermy, mortality rates, death portraits… I could dwell on the significance of the death, and talk about how beautiful and crazy life/death is, but I thought that I would finish today (it’s had its ups and downs) on an optimistic note- by sharing five wonderful memories that I have of my father. These are not meant to be big, or particularly meaningful, but they made me smile when I thought of them.

  1. Everyday my dad made a GALLON of coffee in a makeshift pitcher crafted out of an old cooking oil container (just cut the top off). He would mix it up with loads of cream and sugar. Basically that’s how I like my coffee today. I know, sickly sweet and disgusting (and I do this to my $$$ coffee too).
  2. He was a total taoist and was always telling me while I was growing up that in life I just needed to follow “the way.” He practiced what he preached. Several weeks before he died, we sat on the couch talking. He said “I hate chemo. I don’t want to do it anymore. You can’t fight things like this, you just have to let it happen. I’m not afraid to die, but I am tired of the pain.” I think about this conversation quite often.
  3. I was a spoiled brat. I always got the latest stupidly expensive technology (scanners, digital cameras, computers, ipods). I was very touched that he was so supportive of my gadget love, and wanted me to have the best tools available to post boring photos of myself online with. I still have the camera I received as a present during Christmas 2005, and have no plans of donating or recycling it.
  4. He made up a song for me that went like this: “Ka-man-da-la-woo, Tracy eats poo poo.” I thought he was nuts, but whatever. About a year ago I heard the song “Comment Allez Vous” by Blossom Dearie, and I realized that he had been singing “Comment allez vous” the entire time. Really wild. The um… poop part… I think that was definitely in English.
  5. Dad drove me to school in downtown Little Rock every day during junior and senior high school (I could walk to elementary). He would watch the morning news and have his morning tea, and by 8:00 or so we were off in his rickety blue Jeep for the 20 minute drive. Oftentimes we didn’t talk at all, we just listened to my mix tapes or NPR while I finished up any leftover homework. He told my mom that he really cherished this time with me. I agree.

Five years! So wild. Don’t forget to tell your friends and family that you love them.

Life

Goodbye Borders, My Personal Therapist
Everything must go

The Borders store at Union Square is in the midst of closing down, and it makes me immensely sad. Normally I don’t get all sniffy about non-independent bookstores shutting down, but for some reason this feels different.

For nearly four years now this Borders has been my go to spot whenever I was feeling down and out (and on my lunch break). I came here and perused the knitting mags, poked around the self-help section, and got excited by checking out the travel guides. I normally head straight to the comics whenever in a bookshop, but then I always came to Borders for “crisis” situations.

Now what will I do when I am feeling blue in the middle of the day? I love SF Library, but it is just not the same. Crackheads do not cheer you up! Also sometimes you just HAVE TO HAVE THE BOOK NOW.  If I want “Too Good to Leave, Too Bad to Stay” at 2 in the afternoon, or “A Severed Head,” or a quick present for a friend… Now what?

The store is getting pretty bare at this point. Not much else but lots of signs proclaiming 20-40% off!!! My coworker pointed out that the truly sad bit is this: even now Amazon’s prices are probably still lower than Border’s “We are bankrupt sale” price.

I remember when Cody’s Books closed.

And then Virgin Megastore.

And then Stacey’s Books.

I guess I will have to make friends with the Alexander Book Co.