Another year, another list… (I did this for 2005, 2006 and 2007)…
This year was defined by a lot of weddings.. 8 to be exact (appropriate for 2008, I guess)… Bachelor parties took me to Mexico and Georgia (I suppose that’s wedding related), but I went on a completely wedding-free vacation to Taiwan.. I also started using dopplr, so you can see my 2008 there (but I think you need to sign up and friend me or something), but I’m still not sure whether or not I find dopplr useful or not… I want it to automagically make me a map of 2008, but I can’t seem to find that anywhere. Like, that would be a very nice blog-widget for them to have, non?) Maybe I’ll make a Google Earth flythrough if I get ambitious..
Cities that I spent the night in 2008 (* means multiple trips):
San Diego, CA
North Hollywood, CA
San Francisco, CA*
New York, NY
Sarasota, FL
Cabo San Lucas, Mexico
Morgan Hill, CA
Garberville, CA
Coloma, CA
Healdsburg, CA
Cleveland, OH
Pigeon Point, CA
Savannah, GA
Las Vegas, NV
Taipei, Taiwan
Kenting, Taiwan
Kaohsiung, Taiwan
Somewhere over the Pacific Ocean…
Philadelphia, PA
Lots of California travelin’ this year, although ZERO Tahoe trips for some reason (I am guessing that will change)..
All in all, a good year!
(Update: Thanks Mike for reminding me of my red-eye back from Taiwan)
I consume a lot of music. Out of the 1,259 songs I’ve added to my library this year, 61 songs received the coveted 5 Star “Dennis Loves This Song” rating. 304 songs garnered the still prestigious 4 star “This Song Makes It Onto My Ipod” award. So yah, it’s been a pretty good year, musically..
Anyway, I made a little mixtape of my 11 favorite songs of 2008… Enjoy.
Drive My Soul, by Lights
Yes, I admit it.. I first heard this song on The Hills. It’s bubble gummy, but that doesn’t mean that it’s bad. Cheese flavoured (spelled that way since Lights is canadian) gum to be exact.
Last Day Of Our Love, by The Bird And The Bee
With its retro-ish sound and wispy vocals, listening to this song is like eating cotton candy in the park on a brisk fall day in the 1960s.
I Adore You, by Melpo Mene
Like I’ve said before, this song is so frikkin cute. So, if you’ve had enough of shiba-inu puppycam, listen to this.
Only A Song, by Ben Sollee
This dude is like the coolest cello player I know. Well, besides that dude Yo Yo Ma, that dude is bad ass.
Momma’s Boy, by Chromeo
Chromeo rocks. This song, while honestly, not as good as “Needy Girl,” is still a really solid, solid track from the Montreal duo. (Hmm.. why are there so many Canadians on my list?)
A Lovely Beginning, by Vic Ruggiero featuring Lisa
So, Masnick and I went to see Vic play at Amante this year. He has been doing solo projects, sans the Slackers, for awhile now, and yah, it’s good.. This track is from his latest solo cd, and features some woman named “Lisa,” who Masnick tells me is German or something. It’s not very ska, it’s got a nice Calypso thing going on..
I’m Yours, by Jason Mraz
This is the second song that I’ve been introduced to by Jocelyn Yvette, a girl who covers songs and posts the videos on YouTube. I found her cover of Regina Spektor’s “Samson” last year, which is still one of my favorite versions of that song.. Anyway, here’s her version of I’m Yours if you’re interested.. Anyway, she’s good, and I wonder if she’ll make it big one of these days.. Oh yah, and Jason Mraz does a pretty good job on his song too. Thing is, after hearing this song, I bought the whole album, and I must say it sucks pretty bad. Aside from this song and “Lucky” with Colbie Cailait, the entire album is pretty much teh suck.
To Be Loved, by Joan As Policewoman
Yet another sophomore album release on this list (along with Chromeo), this track is really, really good.. but.. “I Defy” from her first album is absolutely amazing, which is the same problem I had with this year’s Chromeo track… Oh, the bitchy shadows of success.
Coney Island, by Good Old War
Weeee! I fun little country-ish, bluegrass ditty. It’s got it all knee slappin’, vocal harmonies, pickin’ guitar, and a tambourine.
Falcon Jab, by Ratatat
Ratatat’s album LP3 is probably my vote for best album of the year. It’s insane. It’s hard for me to even pick a best song off that entire album, so just go buy it and listen to it in its whole-y glory please.
Undertow, by Stars
Sheeza, yet another Canadian on this list. I guess they make good music up there. I first heard this song when Stars played the Fillmore, and immediately I was in love with it. A simple soothing melody followed by a nicely jamming bridge.. good stuff.
Anyway… that’s it.. if you’ve made it this far, then you deserve to actually LISTEN to this mixtape… so go here to listen.
Well… it’s that time of the year again.. the holidays. Huge shopping lines, christmas trees, and (my favorite) christmas music. I’m not sure why I love the christmas music so much, but I do.
This is my fifth such holiday mix that I’ve made, and I have yet to repeat a version of a song yet (sure, songs themselves appear every year, but exact versions haven’t been repeated). 2007’s mix is still available as an online podcast if you’re so inclined…
Anyway, without further ado, here’s the mix:
Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas - Coldplay
All That I Want - The Weepies
Baby It’s Cold Outside - The Brian Setzer Orchestra
I’ll Be Home For Christmas - Elvis Presley & Carrie Underwood
Let It Snow / The Last Christmas Medley You’ll Ever Need To Hear - Riders In The Sky
Silent Night - Venus Hum
Angels We Have Heard on High - Christina Aguilera with the La Mass Choir and the Celebrity Voices Choir
Mistletoe - Colbie Cailat
Winter Wonderland - Liz Phair
I Want a Hippopotamus for Christmas - Gayla Peevey
Frosty The Snowman - Fiona Apple
Santa Claus Got Stuck In My Chimney - Ella Fitzgerald
Carol Of The Bells - The Bird And The Bee
Silver Bells - Kristin Chenoweth
Winter Paradise (I Miss You This Christmas) - Liam and Me
Christmas is Going to the Dogs - Eels
Give Me A Second Chance For Christmas - Mike Vioa And The Candy Butchers
The First Noel - Bright Eyes
Happy Xmas (War Is Over) - The Fray
O Holy Night - UltraJoeBot
Zat You, Santa Claus - Louis Armstrong
Christmas Never Comes - Tralala
Merry Christmas (I Don’t Wanna Fight Tonight) - Ramones
andrewsyang (11:55:32 AM): what are you going to do with it?
luckyvespa13 (11:55:36 AM):i can look at bailey
luckyvespa13 (11:55:37 AM):at night
luckyvespa13 (11:55:55 AM):ok youre right.
andrewsyang (11:56:02 AM): wtf
andrewsyang (11:56:05 AM): don’t get it
luckyvespa13 (11:57:12 AM):phew
luckyvespa13 (11:57:30 AM):NIGHT VISION!!!
Epilogue:
I didn’t end up getting it, thanks to my brother’s rational judgement. But c’mon.. NIGHT VISION! Who doesn’t want to be able to see at night? How cool is that? It’s like being an owl. And everyone knows owls are cool.
I’ve been listening to the latest Ben Sollee album, Learning to Bend, all week (the first artist that I’ve been introduced to by the brand new Sirius XMU)… his album is awesome so go check it out if you want..
Anyway, Dj 2nd Nature took his track “A Few Honest Words,” and remixed it with some of President-elect Obama’s speeches.. here’s the video.
As for the rest of the election, maybe I’ll find some time to write some more about this, but in general, I’m really looking forward to some good changes enacted by the Obama administration, (despite Picked Nits’ fears — interesting counterpoint reading, if you’re into it, btw…). I’m befuddled by the whole Yes on 8 thing passing, it’s just sad. I’m happy that the train proposition is looking like it’ll pass… and I’m annoyed that L didn’t pass. Grr. I’m really tired of walking around piss and poop in this city, and if something like L worked in NYC, then maybe it would work here too. Luckily, the funding has already been approved, so hopefully we’ll get to see if it works.
This reminds me… a few years back, there was this trailer I saw at the Opera Plaza Cinemas for some bicycle movie… I think it was set in New York as well (so it’s not MASH or Macaframa), and the trailer ended with a shot of a cyclist slamming an opening taxi door shut to avoid getting doored..
This song and its video are so frikkin cute, that I think a herd of bunnies and puppies just appeared in my house just from me posting this. It’s like a cute convention or something.
Although.. honestly, I don’t really pay attention to lyrics, so I had to check to make sure that like the song and video weren’t just *cute sounding* — although, that would be really quite funny, to make like a *cute sounding* song and video, and have the lyrics actually be like about something really not cute.
Hmm. Now that I actually read the lyrics, it’s not nearly as cute, lyrically.. it’s kind of sad, since I think it’s more about unrequited love, or love lost…
Yah, great.. now I’m sad. Or maybe I’m projecting bits of myself onto this song. Ugh.
From those guys at MASH.. Here’s them in Austin with noneother than… Lance Armstrong. Awesome. That said, the one I found on YouTube isn’t as high quality as the one on the MASH video page, but I can’t seem to embed that one… lame.
In other bikey movie news, macaframa is premiering on September 24th in Vegas — tickets are FREE, so if you’re there, get on that, yo.
So, I was emailing back and forth with my friend Dan this morning, an efficiency expert.. A long-standing debate between us has been whether or not IM increases or decreases one’s work efficiency.
Anyway… of course, as per most conversations that involve me, our discussion digressed.
On Sep 17, 2008, at 9:39 AM, Dennis Yang wrote:
see? this is why IM is better than email.
On Wed, Sep 17, 2008 at 9:45 AM, Dan wrote:
ah yes…. but like a sword, IM has two edges. as long as you’re using the right edge, you’re okay.
On Sep 17, 2008, at 9:47 AM, Dennis Yang wrote:
i dislike that metaphor. who says that there’s a “wrong side” of a double edged sword anyway? i mean, last i checked, a double edged sword affords the wielder *more* cutting power, both in a thrust and a backhanded swashbuckle. i don’t think that having a sharpened opposing edge of a sword really increases the danger to its wielder appreciably. sword wielding skill is still paramount, and if you’re hitting yourself in the head with a single edged sword, it’s really your fault, and not the sword’s.
Ahh.. summers in Ohio. What did that mean? Trips to amusement parks and carnivals, mainly: Cedar Point (the gem), Geagua Lake (since closed, sadly), and Sea World (closed for awhile apparently, even though on my last trip to Ohio, I happily advised my row-mate to “definitely go check it out” — oops. Figures, it never really made sense to put an ocean park in OHIO of all places, did it?).
Anyway, without further adieu, here’s my list of carnival games that I love. I was talking with Steph the other day and that Roller Bowler game came to mind, and that was inspiration enough for this post. Thanks Steph!
Roller Bowler.
Man, this game was awesome. Deceptively simple, yet wickedishly hard. Oooo.. There’s one for sale on eBay! Only 104 days till Christmas! Act Now!
Whac-a-Mole.
Ok, even though I said that Steph inspired this post, that’s only half true. Cuz Masnick wrote up a post last night that mentioned this game, and I was like “Wow, two mentions of carnival games in one week — yah, I should write this up.” I do remember that it was fairly easy to cheat at this game though. At some kid’s birthday party at Chuck-E-Cheese’s in like 1986, I recall four kids, each with their hands holding down a mole. The moles had no chance, and the machine was streaming out tickets like a mofo, natch.
That Spinny Rope Ladder Game.
I did love this game, although apparently being a fat, nerdy kid does not prime you for a career in spinny rope ladder walking. I never did get even remotely close to that darned bell. Oh, the bell!
Other games that I love, but this list is getting long.
Shoot Out The Star (man, I love that game). Shoot The Clown In The Mouth With A Water Gun. Throw Darts At Balloons. Throw Rings At Bottles. Throw Balls At Bottles. Throw Dimes On Plates.
Hmmm. It appears that I love all carnival games. I can’t really think of one that I don’t like. Man, I’m a sucker. Or maybe just a huge aficionado of ginormous stuffed animals.
It’s Thursday, so that means.. new music! (Ok, I don’t nearly do this enough to warrant saying that, but whatever.) Today’s track comes from a little indie outfit out of Philadelphia, Good Old War.
Scene: Talking to K on the phone, because she doesn’t want to IM me anymore after I blogged our previous conversation.
K: So is she more marina or hipster? Me: I guess more of a hipster.. but I think she was a hippie before. K: So a hippie can become a hipster? Me: Yah.. you just remove the “pie” and add a “ster” K: Oh, okay.
Btw… K, wherever you are, you are my favorite. honest.
So.. a few years ago, I posted an image of a monkey washing a cat. Well, you’re all in luck, because I came across it again, and this time, bigger and in higher quality.
Behold:
If anyone ever tells you that the Internet is a waste of time, you can send them right over here.
A bunch of us headed over to the Red Vic last night to see The Fall. Directed by the same dude that did The Cell, it was an equally visual movie.
I enjoyed it. It is a movie about storytelling, which is one of my favorite themes (like one of my all time favorites, Big Fish).
So yah.. that’s my review. Wow, I’m not so good at movie reviews.. maybe that’s why I don’t write these very much. I’ll try harder next time, I promise.
So, yah, I have a secret love for particle physics. There, I said it.
In the 11th grade, I attended a super nerdy particle physics summer camp at Northwestern.. Yah, while most kids were out frolicking their summers away, I was learning about all sorts of uber-nerdy stuff like quarks, muons, something-ons, and a whole bunch of stuff that really was completely useless from the standpoint of a high school kid. And, we got to go and visit Fermilab which is this super huge particle accelerator. That said, it was pretty much the peak of my particle physics education.
So, that’s why when I found this rap about particle physics this morning on BoingBoing, I was super amused. And the flow is actually not bad..
entering a brave new world called "mac" - apparently people like it, so i'm giving it a try. i don't get this one button mouse thing though. 12 hrs ago
, all week (the first artist that I’ve been introduced to by the brand new Sirius XMU)… his album is awesome so go check it out if you want..
