never finding answers to certain questions, finding my inner bass player, sarcasm, laughing uncontrollably, belittling my friends in public, live music -- love it love it love it, dancing, wine-tasting, showing my son what not to put in his mouth, mindfulness, people watching, NPR, holding hands and making out, quantum non-locality, dark chocolate and/or beer, Jon Stewart, training for and competing in endurance events, reading about science and philosophy, writing as a form of escapism, textured vegetable protein, fisticuffs, firepits, stand-up comedy, backpacking/camping/hiking in national parks (my heart is in Jackson Hole, WY)
Noam Chomsky, Howard Lyman, Ingrid Newkirk, Cynthia McKinney...
The Yes Men: http://www.theyesmen.org/
The guy that writes this: http://www.thesneeze.com
Elbow, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, Decemberists, of Montreal, Rogue Wave, Illinois, South, Ambulance LTD, Beirut, Jesse Sykes and the Sweet Hereafter, Versa Vice, Sufjan Stevens, Annuals, Dr. Dog, Radiohead, Menomena, The Teeth, Neutral Milk Hotel, Elf Power, Pink Martini, The Shins, The Octopus Project, The Guillemots, Explosions in the Sky, Earlimart, DeVotchKa, Grandaddy, Mono, The Minders, Wolf Parade, West Indian Girl, Junior Boys, January, The Dandy Warhols, Girls in Hawaii, Azure Ray, The Walkmen, The Knife, Radar Bros., Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, The Perishers, Modest Mouse, Parts and Labor, Raconteurs, Stars, Camera Obscura, Supergrass, Locksley, Mira, Halou, Built to Spill, Band of Horses, Goldfrapp, Film School, London Suede, Aqualung, Trespassers William, Low, Hem, The Blue Van, The Shore, Kasabian, The Veils, Bowery Electric, Stone Roses, Muse, Snow Patrol, The Delays, Longwave, Blonde Redhead, The Elected, Delerium, Conjure One, Portishead, Sigur Ros, Hope Sandoval, Curve, Thievery Corporation, Cocteau Twins, Tear Garden, Mellowdrone, Air, Doves, Beethoven, Haujobb, Legendary Pink Dots, Current 93, Death in June, Skinny Puppy/OhGr, And One, Beatles, Madeleine Peyroux, The The, Mojave 3, Chris Connelly, Hooverphonic, Electric 6, VAST, Talk Talk, Peter Gabriel, Billie Holiday, Ella Fitzgerald, Etta James, Fleetwood Mac, Massive Attack, Sinead O'Connor, Lamb, Billy Joel, Tears for Fears, O.M.D., Patsy Cline, Johnny Cash, Oasis, Jellyfish, Crowded House, kd lang, Covenant, James Brown, Norah Jones, Bob Schneider... there are countless others.
Local acts (of many different genres) who I highly recommend: Saint Rorschach, Ghost Lodge, Namoli Brennet, Vicki Brown, Leila Lopez, Howe Gelb, Golden Boots, The Mission Creeps, Fourkiller Flats, Naim Amor, Spacefish, The Deludes, Tom Walbank, The Year of Acceleration, Redlands, The Jons, The Splitters, ...music video?, Campo Bravo, La Cerca, Mr. Free and the Satellite Freakout, Great American Tragedy.
People of Tucson, you are so lucky to be surrounded by such talent! Now get your arses out there and support your local musicians!
Check out www.tucsonscene.com for the best unfiltered guide to music in the Old Pueblo.
I'm a dokumentary junkie. As for the rest? My taste is very mood dependent, thus the following eclectic mess: Lost in Translation, Harold and Maude, Little Miss Sunshine, The Mission, Eternal Sunshine of a Spotless Mind, Death & the Maiden, Heavenly Creatures, Schindler's List, The Piano, Donnie Darko, Birdcage, Buffalo '66, The Princess Bride, Dane Cook's DVD Harmful If Swallowed (only if you have a change of shorts handy), Drop Dead Gorgeous, Network, Magnolia, The Royal Tennenbaums, Thank You For Smoking, The Anchorman, Immortal Beloved, Spaceballs, Best In Show, Slingblade, This is Spinal Tap, Boys Don't Cry, Requiem For A Dream, O Brother Where Art Thou?, Breakfast Club, Goonies, Babe, anything Monty Python, anything Polanski or Kubrick... and yes, I liked Titanic.
I miss the Bob Ross painting show. I watched it fervently when I visited my grandma back in the day. His fan brushes were so... fanny. And those little fluffy, "happy" clouds? That was sweet. Plus I had a thing for older dudes. Bob was the bomb.Arrested Development was the best show ever. I have no need for TV anymore.
Existentialism and Post-modernism are my favorite genres, in addition to the fine selection of Harlequin romance novels tucked away under my matress. Favorite authors? Cormac McCarthy, Fyodor Dostoevsky, John Barth, Jean-Paul Sartre, Albert Camus, Robert Wright, Victor Hugo, Rebecca Solnit, Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, Philip Roth, Simone de Beauvoir, Danielle Steele (just kidding).
My husband, Mark. He's wise beyond his years, kind beyond measure, not to mention a hot rockin' musician. He will always do the right thing. And I will always love him for that. I also love him for putting up with me, which he does with a great deal of grace. I married the perfect human specimen.
My son, Connor. He makes me laugh, he makes me cry, he makes me look at my world through a less selfish pair of lenses. He's loving and brutally honest. He's a wonderful little person, even when he's being a pain in my ass.