Five New Yorkers who wear the same color every day

Here it is. I think Stephin Merritt's interview is the best, personally, but I'm also quite fond of the kelly green lady (who seems the craziest.)

In other events, the concert I attended last week has completely rekindled my love for the Magnetic Fields. I bought Get Lost a couple days ago, and I can't get enough of it. I think it's absolutely perfect, and I want to learn all the songs on my ukulele.
Here's a special sample of Pantone 292 for you to enjoy. Personally, I'm a little disappointed, because I remember it as a little darker, with less red in it - more like Pantone 2728.

Today I got my nose pierced! Sorry, you've probably already seen this picture on me mum's blog. I went first, so I wouldn't see my vampire friend get a needle stuck through her nose. It was very strategic.



Here's my vampire friend. Note that her mom is looking away.

To answer some questions you might have, it hardly hurt at all (I actually didn't notice when the guy pierced it, because it felt like a small pinch) but I'm nervous about it getting infected. I don't think it will, though. The guy who did it was very nice, and the place looked clean. He actually does studs, too (good news for Miss Gliss) but I got a ring because I've heard it's a lot cleaner. I like it. It aches a little now, but not too much.

The Diving Bell and the Butterfly

Here's the trailer for a movie that I loved.

Plans for next year

Just a little update about my plans for next year! I won't know if I got the scholarship to Germany until the first week of March (this has been an extremely long month.) I had to send my AFS representative a couple things I didn't put in my application, like a photocopy of my passport, my pulse, etc, and by the time everything was in, Iceland and Sweden had filled up. My AFS guy asked me if I still wanted Finland (my third choice,) and I said no, I'd prefer Germany. So my application has been sent to Germany, and unless they refuse it for some reason (which is unlikely,) that's where I'm heading! Knowing where I'm going has taken about 80% of the stress away from waiting to hear from Congress-Bundestag.
I can say, basically, guten Tag and guten Morgen. And:

ich bin, wir sind
du bist, ihr seid
er/sie/es ist, sie/Sie sind

Billy Ruane

Hey, look! It's Billy Ruane, from the 80s! (He's the guy who jumps onto the stage about halfway(?) through this random video.) Apparently he was a regular at the Middle East who called loudly from the audience, but he doesn't have a Wikipedia page.

The Magnetic Fields, again

For those who are curious, here are the songs the Magnetic Fields played on the 15th:

1. California Girls (Distortion)
2. I Don't Believe You (I Don't Believe You 7", i)
3. All My Little Words (69 Love Songs Vol. 1)
4. Come Back From San Francisco (69 Love Songs Vol. 1)
5. Old Fools (Distortion)
6. Xavier Says (Distortion)
7. Walking My Gargoyle (The Gothic Archies - The Tragic Treasury: Songs from A Series of Unfortunate Events)
8. Too Drunk to Dream (Distortion)
9. Till the Bitter End (Distortion)
10. Night You Can't Remember (69 Love Songs Vol. 3)
11. I Thought You Were My Boyfriend (i)
12. Water Torture (Stephin Merritt - Eban & Charley Soundtrack)
(Intermission)
13. Lovers From the Moon (The Wayward Bus)
14. I Wish I Had an Evil Twin (i)
15. Give Me Back My Dreams (The 6ths - Hyacinths and Thistles)
16. Grand Canyon (69 Love Songs Vol. 2)
17. Papa Was a Rodeo (69 Love Songs Vol. 2)
18. Drive On, Driver (Distortion)
19. The Nun's Litany (Distortion)
20. The Tiny Goat (The Gothic Archies - The New Despair)
21. Smoke and Mirrors (Get Lost)
22. Zombie Boy (Distortion)
(Encore)
23. Three-Way (Distortion)
24. Take Ecstasy With Me (Holiday, Original Susan Anway vocal recording released on Oh, Merge: A Merge Records 10 Year Anniversary Compilation)
25. Book of Love (69 Love Songs Vol. 1)

(Thanks to The Motion Sick for the setlist.)

I bought Distortion yesterday, and I love it. It kind of hurts your ears, in a good way. It was a bit strange to hear it after seeing the concert because it's so loud and, um, distorted, and when I heard the songs live, they were completely acoustic.

The Magnetic Fields

Yesterday Charlotte and I saw the Magnetic Fields at the Sommerville Theater! It was so wonderful. They hardly spoke at all, and when they did it felt sort of strange and awkward, as if we were listening in on a private conversation. They played a good mix of songs: three or four from Distortion, the new album, a couple of really old songs, and a couple ol' favorites, including "The Book of Love," "Papa Was a Rodeo," "Come Back From San Francisco," and "Grand Canyon."
Also, just before the encore, they announced that there was a celebrity in the audience: Billy Rewain (whose name I obviously can't spell.) A couple of audience members reacted to this news with cheers, but most people (myself included) seemed to have never heard of this person. Does anyone know who Billy Rewain is?? Apparently he's "from the 80s." What a mystery.
Also, if you haven't heard the song "Smoke and Mirrors" (from an ancient Magnetic Fields album, Get Lost) illegally download it. Immediately.

Entertaining videos

First, this is adorable.



Second, for all those who have seen "Yes We Can" with Barack Obama, check this out.

A day in the life

Here's an example of a typical lunch conversation:

Charlotte: Hi, everyone! My name is Frenchell.

Rafa: Hello, Frenchell! What a funny name. That's what my friends in high school used to call their French class because they hated it so much.

Charlotte: Oh, really? My mom used to call her French class Frenchell too!

Rafa: Is your mom's name Charlotte McDonald?

Charlotte: Yes, it is!

Rafa: She used to be one of my best friends in high school, before I went to jail. Do you want to get some lunch and talk about old times?

Charlotte: Sorry, I have to go to horrible never-ending flute practice that my mom is making me do, just because she never played the flute when she was a girl. It's horrible!

Rafa: Oh, I'm sorry, Frenchell.