"I know you'll help us when you're feeling better, and we realize that it might not be for a long, long time. But we're willing to wait on you, we believe in everything that you can do, if you could only lay down your mind. I want you to try to help yourself.
Take the time to take apart each brick that sits outside your heart, and look around you, there's people everywhere. And though they don't always show it, they're just as scared, and we'd be more prepared if you just pulled on through. I want you to try to help yourself." ~sad brad smith

Because the Golden Globes got me revved up for the Oscars (scroll down for my Golden Globes post), I've been listening to songs eligible for the 2010 Oscar for Best Song, so here are four of my favorites. I'd like to add "Petey's Song" from Fantastic Mr. Fox, but I don't have the soundtrack. Oh well.

"Help Yourself" - by Sad Brad Smith - from Up in the Air
"The Weary Kind" - by Ryan Bingham and T-Bone Burnett - from Crazy Heart
"Winter" - by U2 - from Brothers
"(I Want To) Come Home" - Paul McCartney - from Everybody's Fine

Audio:

Get Your Own Player!

"And this ain’t no place for the weary kind. And this ain’t no place to lose your mind. And this ain’t no place to fall behind. Pick up your crazy heart and give it one more try." ~ryan bingham & t-bone burnett

My Golden Globes thoughts:

GOOD

* JEFF BRIDGES, Jeff Bridges, Jeff Bridges. I was afraid he wouldn't win because not many people have seen Crazy Heart (but I have!). Luckily he did win. And gave such a classy speech. I loved his heartfelt thanks to his stand-in. Who thanks their stand-in?! He just seems like such a good guy. And he gave a great performance in Crazy Heart. So I was very happy.

* Sandra Bullock. I actually think Carey Mulligan was more deserving in that category, but I was still happy to see Sandra win. At least Meryl Streep didn't win for It's Complicated. It was bad enough that she won in the musical/comedy category over Marion Cotillard. I like Sandra Bullock, I think she's a very good actress, and I'm glad to see her being recognized. And I loved her in The Blind Side.

* Michael C. Hall. He should have won a Golden Globe a long time ago for Six Feet Under. Even though this award was for Dexter, I was glad to see him recognized.

* "The Weary Kind" from Crazy Heart winning Best Song. I love T-Bone Burnett. Love him. So I was happy for him. And I love that song. Although I'm still peeved that Sad Brad Smith wasn't even nominated (for "Help Yourself" from Up in the Air).

* Grey Gardens! And Drew Barrymore! I love Grey Gardens. And I love Drew Barrymore. So glad that it won Best Miniseries/TV Movie and she won Best Actress for it.

Hmmmm.....I can't think of any other winners that I was thrilled about. Of course I was extremely excited to see some of the presenters. Lauren Graham! Kristen Bell! Zachary Levi! Nicole thought it was hilarious that I knew in advance with whom Lauren was presenting, what award she was presenting, and when it would appear in the telecast.

BAD

* JANE LYNCH WAS SNUBBED. BIG TIME. Seriously. She is the best thing about Glee by far. She is absolutely brilliant in it. I've read some reports and I'm not the only person who believes she was snubbed, which is some consolation, but not much. Hopefully she'll win an Emmy instead.

* AVATAR?! I actually didn't see Avatar, but the fact that Nicole was so angry she was ready to destroy my TV is proof enough for me that it should not have won best director and best picture (I trust her judgment). Everything I've read about it indicates that it is NOT the best picture of the year. Best Picture should have been Up in the Air, which steadily grew on me the more I thought about it after seeing it. And I wanted James Cameron's ex-wife, Kathryn Bigelow, to win best director (for The Hurt Locker). In his speech he even said he thought she would win. She's won the season's other awards for best director, and hopefully she still manages to win the Oscar.


Anyway, those are my strong feelings. Everything else I was kind of 'meh' about. I wanted 500 Days of Summer to win Best Musical/Comedy, but I liked The Hangover so I wasn't too disappointed that it won. I don't think Robert Downey Jr. should have won Best Actor in a Musical/Comedy, but I like him so I wasn't too disappointed.

It was a fun evening overall. Nic and I had TONS of food; it looked like we were having a big party when it was just the two of us. We ate a lot and drank a lot. And screamed a few times. It was a good time.

"She could pull the sunlight through me, oh, coming down into Miami, Miami." ~counting crows

Sorry, I know I already posted once tonight (scroll down), but I'm on a roll. I really want to share this, because it's one of the reasons I love Counting Crows. They can take a song (whether it be one that they wrote or a cover) and make it sound like a completely different song. And they do it all the time. I posted an acoustic video of "Miami" in my last post. So now I'm going to illustrate how different that song can sound depending on the night. They can play the original electric version from Hard Candy. And I absolutely love it. Here's an example; it's from Pinkpop 2003. I think it's amazing. My favorite part of this version is "The summer's gone, and so are we...", when they really kick it up a notch. There's so much energy.

Now here's another acoustic version of it, from AbsoluteRadio. It has such a different tone to it; it's so much more melancholy.

AD wrote the song while Counting Crows were touring with Live, after waiting at the Miami Airport for his girlfriend to arrive from Japan (where she had been working). He was excited to see her, but at the same time he knew he would end up screwing it up and leaving her. They mostly play the acoustic version in concert now (not always, but mostly). I think the tone demonstrates maturity on his part; it seems more reflective. I've heard both live and I can't decide which I prefer. I love them both. And I'm sure I'll listen to tons of different live recordings of the song while I am in Miami.

"It looks like darkness to me, drifting down into Miami." ~counting crows

I have stable internet now! The technician came yesterday and spent over an hour here, much of that time on a ladder outside the building fiddling with the cable box as I stood below him, watched helplessly, hoped he didn't fall, and froze. It was a big ordeal, but now I'm happy.

What to talk about? Hm, how about some excitement? I'm going to Miami in February! My friend Lauren and I decided that we were sick of the cold, so we looked at places in Florida and found a good deal during our week-long break from school. I have not gotten Counting Crows' "Miami" out of my head since we booked the trip (well, every once in a while Will Smith's song pops in). Lauren said we'll be just like Rory and Paris on spring break (we're both obsessed with Gilmore Girls). I love that episode. And I'm sure we will be like Paris and Rory. We plan on sitting on the beach and reading all day (we both love reading). But instead of watching The Power of Myth at night, we'll probably watch our Gilmore Girls or Chuck DVDs. I got her hooked on Chuck. The prospect of this vacation is helping me survive winter in New York.

And now it's time for a videospam. If you watch any, watch the very last one.
First of all, I don't think I've really written about Parenthood here much. But I'm really excited for it. Check out this promo:


And here's some music. A long time ago I uploaded "A Long December" from Counting Crows' Abbey Road Sessions, and someone requested the other songs they played on the show. So I uploaded those as well and will share them here. But "A Long December" is the best. Somehow AD's illness enhances that song, but I don't think it does much for the others. But watch the dialogue one, because that's interesting. I love their perspectives on bootlegs.

Covering The Beatles: "Abbey Road" medley (with some good dialogue)


Sundays:


Washington Square:


Dialogue between songs:


And A Long December again, just because it's really good:


Finally, not from Abbey Road, but just because it's in my head and it's wonderful. An acoustic version of Miami. Trust me, watch this one; it's gorgeous. I've been at many concerts where they played this version, and I love how totally different it sounds from the album version.

"Six o'clock, time clocks make a way again. It's twilight, it's darkening, it's winter in New York. Moments like these don't come so easily to you, do they?" ~meghan coffee


I'm sorry for my lack of posting. It will be explained below in this recap. And I am definitely making up for it here, so settle in for a long post.

For Christmas I went out to Colorado to see my parents. It was definitely a white Christmas; there was tons of snow. The house was beautifully decorated, complete with a ridiculously tall Christmas tree that I was glad they got before I arrived (because it sounded like quite an ordeal). I only went skiing two days while I was out there. All my family members have season passes at the local ski slope. Two days was enough for me, although I did enjoy it. It's a nice mountain and there was great snow. I was content to spend the rest of my days there relaxing. My parents don't understand my happiness at doing nothing and being still and staying home. They always want to be out exploring, but I guess that gene missed me; I feel bad about it, but I can't help it. They're all outdoorsy and like watching sports and I'm a city girl who loves theater and movies and music and just staying in. They're probably wondering how they ended up with me. For the most part they put up with me being a bump on a log. I needed to do that. They don't understand what my work is like and why I needed a break from doing anything. Anyway, I enjoyed being out there and seeing them and getting to relax.
The outside of the house:

Skiing with my brother:
I was supposed to come home to New York on Saturday, January 2nd. Due to mechanical problems (this has happened to me BOTH times I've traveled to Colorado), one of my planes was delayed and I missed my connection. So I ended up spending that night in Phoenix. They put me up in a nice hotel room, which somewhat mollified the situation, even though I was not thrilled that I had to spend the entire day (and part of the next day) in the Phoenix airport.
Phoenix (my hotel room and the view from my balcony):

It was in the 70's in Phoenix, so on Sunday morning i sat out on my balcony in a t-shirt and got some sun. That was lovely. I finally arrived home on Sunday night and had to prepare for school the next day. I hardly got any sleep (being on mountain time screwed me up). Oh, and I came home on Sunday to discover that I had no internet connection. I've been without it for a week. But it magically began working again today!

It was not easy to come back to school. Things have been crazy. Of course. This weekend my friends Kim and Elizabeth came to stay with me, and it was good to see them. Last week I briefly got to see my cousin and my aunt who were visiting from Maine. I also saw Nicole (we saw a screening of Leap Year). Check out what she brought me:
How cool is my best friend?? Six Feet Under and Chuck were my Christmas present, and the rest she picked up at a Blockbuster sale for me for a total of $15. I was thrilled. Now if only I could find time to watch all of them!

And check out all the cool Christmas cards I received this year. I love them.
I saw Finian's Rainbow on Broadway today. It's closing next Sunday, and I needed to see it before it closes because I've heard such wonderful things about it and it got fabulous reviews. I was so glad I caught it. It's a beautiful, lovely production. It's a feel-good, fanciful show with a gorgeous score and an extremely talented cast. It's a shame it's closing. Jim Norton is in it and I'm a big fan of his (I was so glad he won the Tony for The Seafarer). He was so nice to me at the stage door, too. Cheyenne Jackson was another highlight for me. I love him. I loved him in Xanadu and I loved him in Finian's Rainbow. He's just so charming. Here we are (he was also very nice):
So I've been busy.

Finally: CHUCK returns tonight! It's two new episodes tonight and one new episode tomorrow (it's regular night is Monday). You have no idea how excited I am. This is my favorite show. I've been happy to see NBC promoting it pretty well. Check out their cool board in Times Square:
Start watching it if you don't already. It's awesome. I promise.