Reads

At the moment here's what I'm reading:

The Maid's Version - Daniel Woodrell

Vol. I-III of DC's new Wonder Woman comic series by Brian Azzarello

The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman

I also just binged on the PBS series The Mind of a Chef Season 2 which featured a dvd from Sean Brock and one from April Bloomfield.  Both were outstanding and humbling.  I really enjoyed April's as I like her style and tend to like those type of recipes.  I was able to eat at Tosca Cafe in San Francisco recently, her newest restaurant.  

Fast Forward 2014

My last post was January 9, 2011.  Life tends to push you around sometimes and apparently this hidden blog post fell behind the dresser of things to do.

What reminded me of this random thought-post was listening (again) to Sun Kil Moon's newest record, Benji.  There are so many things one could say about each of the eleven songs.  Benji is a new modern folk classic.  Diary entries set to music without attention to rhyme or hook.  Honesty.  Humor.


There's a fine line between a middle-aged guy with a backstage pass
And a guy with a gut hanging around like a jackass
Everybody there was twenty years younger than me
At least that this is not my fondest memory
I carried my legs back down and then I gave
My backstage passes to two cute asian girls
I drove to my place near Tahoe
Got in my hot tub and thought well that's how it goes
And it was quiet and I was listening to the crickets
And Ben's still out there, selling lots of tickets
And though while we pretend that there's a temperature competitiveness
But Ben's my friend and I know he gets it
Then in a couple of days my meltdown passed
Back to the studio doing twelve hours shifts
Singing a song about one thing or another
Another day behind the microphone this summer
Read more: Sun Kil Moon - Ben's My Friend Lyrics | MetroLyrics 

My favorite line is "singing a song about one thing or another."  That describes Benji perfectly.  So, pick this little beauty up and enjoy.  It isn't easy listening or an easy listen.  But it will grab you.

The final two books I read in 2010 were:

Crazy Heart by Thomas Cobb
The Whole Beast; Head to Tail Eating by Fergus Henderson

Crazy Heart was excellent and disarmingly depressing. I am set to watch the movie, was holding off until I read the book. Even though I knew Jeff Bridges plays Bad Blake in the movie, the whole time I read the book my mind pictured Guy Clark. I also pictured Lynn Collins as Jean instead of Maggie Gyllenhaal.

The Whole Beast, another cookbook/chef bio from the St John chef in London. Bourdain has raved about this chef/restaurant and apparently the first pressing of this book is a collector's item. This paperback version has a foreward by Bourdain.

So by my estimate, i beat my 3/month total by reading 40+ books in 2010. I did a worse job of keeping track, but looking back through the blog and scanning the shelf, I hit 41 or 42.


Currently reading:

Juliet Naked by Nick Hornby
A Return to Cooking by Eric Ripert & Michael Ruhlman (awesome so far)
The Shape of the Journey by Jim Harrison (this will take awhile, love it so far)

The Shape of the Journey

I found this first edition at Half Price Books for $9! It collects all of Harrison's astounding verse from 1965 - mid-1990's. I started last night and read through the first chapter. Harrison has a keen eye (of course he does, he lost an eye as a child) for describing a moment in time, usually nature, or relationships.

December is almost over *Updated*

Another long Absinthe!

Brief recap:

Saw the 13 Most Beautiful performance by Dean & Britta at the IMA for the Andy Warhol exhibit. Exhibit was cool too.

Went on a backpacking trip to the Linville Gorge in the Pisgah National Forest, near Asheville NC. Me, Adrian, John Veltri & BJ Livingston. We had a wonderful time. If you get the chance to go there, do it. We had quite an adventure.

Saw the reunited GBV again, this time at the Bluebird in Bloomington. They had definitely tightened up since the Vegas show. Have tickets to see them in Nashville on January 19th. Will likely hit Roberts Western Wear during the day, my favorite Nashville hangout!

With Jonny V saw Bobby Bare Jr at a house party in Beech Grove. 2 hours of pure fun. You name it, he played it. Did the great combo-cover of Sister Goldenhair/Where is My Mind! (America/Pixies) Bought vinyl from him outta the back of his car!

Books finished:
Shutter Island by Dennis LeHane
Point Omega by Don DeLillo (This book knocked me for a loop. Need to read again)
Elements of Cooking by Michael Ruhlman
The Whole Beast: Head to Tail Cooking by Fergus Henderson

Poetry Tomes:
Infinity Blues by Ryan Adams
Adult Head by Jeff Tweedy

In Process:
Crazy Heart by Thomas Cobb
The Food of a Younger Land by Mark Kurlansky

More to come.....

Desolation Row/Champaign, Illinois

Happened to catch Old 97's on Leno last week and they played this great song....

Best Coast

I've Been Busy

Thankfully RSS feeds make infrequent posters (posers?) from fading into the vast ether. Quick reading update and a pre-GBV show shout out. GBV @ the Bluebird in Bloomington tonight!

Finished:
Winter's Bone by Daniel Woodrell
First, Break All the Rules by Marcus Buckingham
The Death of Bunny Munro by Nick Cave

Started:
Shutter Island by Dennis LeHane
Addiction and Grace by Gerald May

I'm anxious to see the movie Winter's Bone which just came out on dvd. Also waiting to see this german film White Ribbon. I've read about it and it sounds fascinating.