the alicia dk reader

1. Locked my keys in the car while it was running.
2. Went to the Apple Store for a new laptop charger. Realized after I arrived that I had forgotten my wallet.
3. Started a fire.
4. Stabbed myself in the thumb with an xacto knife.

First, I cleaned my closet.

The rest of the room was still a mess but I had ideas for how to fix it.

I hadn't eaten breakfast, so devoured lunch with much enthusiasm.

A trip to IKEA was necessary. I bought a lot of boxes.

Here are the white boxes. All of my clothes are now contained to the closet.

The orange boxes are being utilized on my desk that is a coffee table to contain old journals, art supplies, etc.

I also went to the gym, got my car’s oil changed, and had my comforter professionally cleaned. These are things I’m allowing myself to take satisfaction in, because if I don’t I get myself into a very bad situation with lots of disintegrating cups filled with molding coffee and only a sliver of bed to sleep on, still getting nothing done and feeling kooky. I can’t be contained to one room and it will be a great relief when my books, bed, and desks are all in separate rooms, but this must do for now. May fixing my clutter problems also cure the writing anxiety of the past couple of weeks. HA!

Watch out for future posts containing pictures of my soon-to-be organized CD collection and other parts of the room. Seriously, watch out and hold on to those shorts.

What did I write this past weekend? Notes on words that are odd to use when angry. What did I read? Nothing.

Gorge at Watkins Glen, NY

It could just be that my full-time job has been obnoxious, that I went to see the pictured gorge last weekend, that this week my dad has been on crutches and I’ve had to do domestic I usually do my best to avoid, and Scott and I have been working on creating a website for our friend Edwin the Artist. Well, Scott did most of the work but I wrote his bio, which he likes but I think needs some editing.

I should probably post more pictures and quotes here to keep engaged. I like to be transparent about my blogging.

Also, this is the current state of my desk (which is a coffee table):

It might be problematic.

Why are today so many problems perceived as problems of intolerance, not as problems of inequality, exploitation, injustice? Why is the proposed remedy tolerance, not emancipation, political struggle, even armed struggle? The immediate answer is the liberal multiculturalist’s basic ideological operation: the “culturalization of politics” – political differences, differences conditioned by political inequality, economic exploitation, etc., are naturalized/neutralized into “cultural” differences, different “ways of life,” which are something given, something that cannot be overcome, but merely “tolerated.”
—Slavoj Zizek, “Tolerance as an Ideological Category” (PDF)

Reading this in the background at work might keep my brain from caving in on itself. I am also very open to podcast recommendations.

…creative writers are confusing themselves with journalists and getting involved in arguments about making money that have nothing to do with them when in reality the key to making a living as a creative writer is doing something else.
—Stephen Elliott, The Part About Writing For Free

A bit fearful, but also growing out my hair, do you like it?

Starting infinite summer a day late. This could be good for fixing the bad reading habits I’ve acquired (getting involved in lots of books; finishing only the ones I already knew I’d love), or it could just be enabling. I’m going to stick closely to the schedule and continue with other stuff in the meantime. Apologies to Mr. Dave Eggers, but I think I’ll skip your foreword for now (hoping to give Away We Go a positive review later in the week, though).

Yeah, let’s get to it.

The truth, of course, is that writers are always working. When you ask a writer a direct question, and he smiles and nods and then says “Well!” and turns and walks away without saying goodbye, he is actually working.
—J. Robert Lennon, “The Truth About Writers” in the LA Times

Gallo, Ehrenreich

Francis Ford Coppola’s second film of the decade, Tetro, offers much in the way of visuals and star-gazing, but the story—which could have been a compelling tale of resentment in a family of artists—disintegrates into something you’d expect from a Lifetime movie. Walking out, I was stunned by its resolution, and have spent a few days trying to see a larger picture in which it makes sense. I’ve got nothing.

It’s worth seeing, though, for its virtuosic direction and humorous moments, which are exceptionally true-to-life and beautiful. You’ll wish there were more of those, that it had been a simple story rather than a reach for something grand. The use of retro fashions in a contemporary setting to underscore the timelessness of the theme of familial power struggles is also wonderful (I loved this about another recent film about blood bonds, The Brothers Bloom, too).

The most engaging part of this movie is the acting, as it stars people we don’t often see and a couple of brilliant new faces. Vincent Gallo (the only name billed on the poster, which really amuses me) has many detractors: I am not one of them. I once wrote 8 pages off the top of my head on his directorial vision. The part of Tetro—a writer tortured by an overbearing father—is perfect for him, and a great opportunity for him to enter back into the cultural consciousness after a few years of obscurity post-The Brown Bunny (his H&M ad campaign is another such chance). Does anyone do neurotic, irritable, hypersensitive, aloof, and totally lovable like him? Don’t think so. Maribel Verdú, usually in all-Spanish films, is charming in the somewhat whimsical role of Miranda, Tetro’s girlfriend and former psychiatrist. Rodrigo De la Sarna of The Motorcycle Diaries is hilarious in the minor role of Tetro’s affable friend Jose. Much has been said about the performance of Alden Ehrenreich as Bennie, Tetro’s younger brother, and it is all true. Bennie’s vulnerability shines through even when he has found some success, and you never question whether anything is more important to him than Tetro’s love. It is his ability to portray this about the character throughout his experiences in the film that almost makes the conclusion sensible. Almost.

I will probably go on for a few more days hoping to magically have a better opinion of the movie, because it really is gorgeous and I can always appreciate the vision of an auteur, but for now I’m still sighing and scratching my head.

My PJ Harvey/John Parish concert review was quoted at BrooklynVegan, coincidentally the only music blog I can stand. I was prett-y flattered.