Alone and Unobserved

I hope you all enjoyed the three Rufus Wainwright videos I posted yesterday. Remember, there are many more of his videos and many, many more of his tracks to watch and listen to. YouTube and iTunes are your friends! Also: bittorrent.

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If you don’t know what “slash fiction” is, Mr. Neil Gaiman has your back. Or had your back, back in 2002. But his words are timeless: in response to a reader’s request, he explained that

. . . slash fiction is basically erotic fan fiction, normally TV series based, pairing off two (er or more I suppose) members of the same sex who don’t normally couple for the cameras. From the “/” mark in the middle of “Kirk/Spock” or “K/S” fiction, which is where it all started. (“But Spock,” said Kirk, huskily, realising, finally, irrevocably, what his true self had been trying to tell him ever since the beginning of season one, “it’s so huge. And it’s green.” “And it would be logical for you to… touch it, Captain,” said Spock. And so on. It’s normally written by extremely nice ladies. I have several very sane, respected, and respectable friends who write slash fiction, and do not try to make me read it.)

Thanks to Dan Guy the webgoblin for this quote.

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Oktapodi
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HhNvQZ7DrNk&hl=en&fs=1]

[Via Fabulist]

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Mr. Rogers Can See You
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fBTpSqE3ipY&hl=en&fs=1]
[Via ericdsnider.com]

Thanks to the Fabulist for pointing me to this hilarious short film, about two aliens who meet in a diner to discuss their findings about human physiology.

Watch the preview below, or click to watch the full clip on atomfilms.com. (Warning: the full film may require Internet Explorer. Don’t look at me!)

As my advice has never led anyone wrong, ever, I try to dole it out as generously, and as often, as possible. So here’s some media-related advice for y’all. Partake!

You should watch:

Babies Eating Lemons

[Via The Great Whatsit]

Postcards from Italy
A music video assembled (mostly) from old Italian home videos.

[Via Fabulist]

You should listen to:

The Fabulist’s new mix,
The Beginning of the Dawning of a Brand New Day {The Mix Tape}

Highlights of the mix include Lupe Fiasco’s “Daydreamin’,” CAKE’s version of “Mahna Mahna,” Kate Nash’s single “Foundations,” Camille’s “1,2,3” and Mic Christopher’s “Heyday.”

You should read:

Darkly Dreaming Dexter, by Jeff Lindsay

The basis for the hit Showtime series Dexter, about a Miami blood-spatter analyst who has an uncanny knack for catching serial killers . . . because he is a sociopathic killer himself, although he limits himself to targeting those who “deserve” his attentions.

In this novel (the first book in the series), Dexter is troubled when he finds himself fascinated by the artistry of a new killer’s modus operandi and feels tempted to abandon his moral principles.

Also remember that, as a reference librarian, I am available at any time (night or day!) to answer your reference questions and to dispense much-needed advice. Except, if I’m asleep or otherwise occupied, it had better be good.

Yes, Fabulist rocks my world. That has already been established. But Fabulist is willing to rock your world, too: go check out Mitzi’s Mix, a ripsnorting collection of high-energy dance songs, which is guaranteed to “energize yer face off.” [The songs, by the way, are not suitable for all audiences.]

Oh, and for those of you for whom clicking on an mp3 link and waiting for the song to load is too time-consuming (and for whom right-clicking and saving the song sounds like the most arduous chore in the world), take a quick detour to the del.icio.us Play Tagger page and prepare to have your mind blown. Play Tagger has changed my life, man.

A movie you should not see this week, or ever: Curse of the Golden Flower. It really doesn’t have any redeeming qualities: the story is like an extravagant, impossibly complex opera; there isn’t really any fighting, or rather, there isn’t any good fighting; it’s depressing, slow, and doesn’t seem to have any real message or point.

What you should see instead: Flushed Away. Lots of fun! Takes place in a sewer! Rats dance, slugs sing, toads mime . . . it’s like heaven!

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Hilarious mystery/adventure series you should read: Elizabeth Peters’ Amelia Peabody books. Start with Crocodile on the Sandbank—it’s an oldie, but a goodie.

Hilarious teen confessional series you should be reading: The Confessions of Georgia Nicolson, by Louise Rennison. Imported from Britain, where things are funnier, and where “fanny” is a naughty word.

Grunge/steampunk author you should definitely investigate: China Miéville. The Scar is his best so far, but read Perdido Street Station first, and don’t miss Iron Council and King Rat. He has a new book coming out next month, Un Lun Dun, and yours truly will read it as soon as he can get his grubby mitts on a copy.

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Indie band you should be listening to: The Blow, i.e. Khaela Maricich and Jona Bechtolt. Go to their Myspace page to hear some sample tracks.

Indie soloist you should be listening to: David Ford. He also has a Myspace page.

Folk/rock/unclassifiable artist whom you will love, or I’ll know the reason why: Jonathan Coulton.

[Via Fabulist, naturally.]

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YouTube video you should definitely watch, unless you are upset by vulgarity, innuendo, and/or foul language: Love Letters, by Liam Sullivan.

YouTube music video you should see, regardless of the above considerations: Mushaboom, by (Leslie) Feist.

I thought I’d draw your attention to the features I’ve added to my blog in the past little while.

1. Each post has a handy little link that allows you to tag it on del.icio.us, Yahoo’s link-sharing community. In the sidebar I’ve also included my own del.icio.us information, as well as another del.icio.us link, should you wish to jump on this particular bandwagon with me.
2. I’ve put up a short list of the most recent comments on my blog posts. I’ve also added my comment feed to the Blogs and Subscriptions section of the sidebar.
3. Also new to the sidebar is my Last.fm “recent tracks” list. It’s not updated as often as I wish it were, but it’s usually accurate to within at least a day, if not a few minutes. Clicking on any of the titles will take you to my Last.fm profile, which has, among other things, up-to-the-minute info on what I’ve been listening to, as well as aggregate lists on my favorite artists and tracks.
4. I’ve added several links to the Blogs and Subscriptions section of the sidebar:
   • My RecipeThing Recipe Box link. RecipeThing is a recipe-cataloging/sharing community that I just joined, and I’m slowly adding my favorite recipes to my profile.
   • Fabulist, quirky media-and-culture blog extraordinaire. (My recent post)
   • Longtime standbys Towleroad and AMERICAblog, the former a news blog geared towards gays and lesbians, the latter a liberal political blog.
   • Go Fug Yourself, the hip, snarky and hilarious fashion blog written by TWoP recappers Heather and Jessica. (My blog post)
   • Petullant’s a girl who wears glasses, Jerilyn’s Aunt Marvel Salad and Miss Nemesis’ Voice of Reason, each the blog of a different online friend.

Are there any links or features you would like to see, or things you think should be changed? Discuss.

“What gives, Sean?” you ask. “Yesterday you were completely free—no exams to put off studying for, no work to dress up for, no classes to skip, no homework to ignore—but we didn’t see you at all! WHY DO YOU HATE AND DESPISE US?!”

That is a very good question, but first let me tell you what I did do yesterday, besides fail to converse with my readers via a blog entry.

One big thing was an impromptu shopping trip to Salt Lake’s glacial outdoor mall, The Gateway. I really don’t know what they were thinking, putting a California-style open-air mall in the middle of Utah, a state that actually experiences weather year round, a state that is currently experiencing winter weather, no less. I only hope my chilblains heal before the big dance, or none of the boys will ask me out.

Anyway, I meant to go to the movies, but I got sidetracked by all the stores, and by the time the movie was about to start I was so weighed down by shopping bags that I decided Children of Men could wait until tomorrow (which is now today), and I went home with my loot. Well, first I stopped and had a quick, gargantuan bite to eat at the California Pizza Kitchen. Then, stuffed to the gills and several inches rounder, I waddled home.

Then I spent some time with my new best friend, Fabulist. She introduced me to a lot of great music, and showed me some hi-LAR-ious video clips online, and—

What’s that?

Oh, how awkward. That’s right, I have a new friend. Fabulist.

Of course you can still be my friend! Just not my best friend. You’re only my second-best friend now. I mean, how many fantastic bands and artists and videos have you shown me? I didn’t hear about The Blow from you, did I? No. It was Fabulist. Ditto for David Ford, and Jason Webley, and The Postmarks, and Alberto Cerrito, and Samurai, and Yam Roll . . . well, that list could go on for a while.

But I don’t hold it against you. You are very good at what you do, which is reading and commenting on my blog entries. And I’m sure Fabulist would love to make some new friends herself. I’ll put in a good word for you.