Literature Nerd, checking in.

Three weeks ago, over Halloween weekend, I got to take part in an Edgar Allan Poe conference at UMass. I’m still bummed about the turn-out, because we had such amazing presenters, but the people who did come really enjoyed themselves.

There’s something about admitting to liking Poe’s work that makes people look at you like they just caught you in front of the fridge at four in the morning, eating ice cream from the carton while crying. You’re supposed to feel guilty about liking Poe because he isn’t supposed to be serious literature; he wrote scary stories because he had no daylight inside his heart, he wrote scary stories because he wasn’t good enough to be a real writer. Wrong, so very wrong. The more you learn about Poe, the more you realize he was a fascinating, brilliant, mercurial, and kind man.

Anyways! Part of the reason I was so excited for the conference was because I got the chance to be a writer-wrangler for one of our guest readers — Elizabeth Hand. She’s one of my favorite authors and I spent most of the weekend trying not to be outwardly star-struck. The fact that John Crowley (yes, that John Crowley) and Martin Espada also read didn’t help with the not-being-starstruck bit. Martin Espada is one of my professors, but a semester full of lectures could not have prepared me for hearing him read “The Bells”.

After the reading, some of the faculty and students involved in planning the conference went out to dinner with Elizabeth Hand and John Crowley. I went with them and — wow. About halfway through the evening, I sat back in my chair, a glass of mango juice in my hand, and realized that I had just debated the various merits of Harry Potter with two of my favorite authors. It was a dreamy moment.

The next morning, I did a short, nervous presentation on H.P. Lovecraft and Poe — I should have done much better, but the fact that Elizabeth Hand and my father both came to see me present really wracked my nerves. I’m still sad that I didn’t do more justice to my material.

It was a great weekend, as you can tell by the glee on my face in this (really awkward) picture of me with Elizabeth Hand:

Check it out — flaunting my Laminaria!

Of course, only I would meet my favorite author and forget to ask her to take a picture with my sock-in-progress. Aaaah!

Bad Romance?

I usually try to avoid pop culture — especially pop music as much as possible. I LOVE knowing when new movies are coming out and I’ve spent countless Friday nights just watching all the available trailers on Apple.com, but that’s about it. Tonight, someone on my favorite LJ community posted the new Lady Gaga music video. I’ve missed out on most of the Gaga giddiness but for some reason I can’t stop watching this video (most of those 55,000+ views must be mine!).

A few observations:

1. They must have done something to her eyes when she’s in her peach-colored hair incarnation; they’re freakishly huge and it is tripping me out.

2. The white-vinyl-cloaked dancers crawling out of the coffins (spacecraft? rice cookers?) remind me of the bowling alley scenes in Suicide Club. Eeeehhhh.

3. WAS THAT SEAN BEAN?

4. Bondage shoes with gold sequins.

5. I kind of love Lady Gaga now, because I get the distinct feeling that she does not give a sweet shit and is just having fun.

Hmph.

This semester hasn’t been a fun one. I’ve been sick on and off since the end of August, and I’ve been too busy to really rest and take care of myself. The Poe Conference is over, Rhinebeck is over, and now it’s time to start the holiday/exams panic.

Until I actually have blog content again (which should be tomorrow!), I’m going to steal this quiz from KateOhKatie’s blog.

The Only-One Game

If I could have ONLY ONE shirt, which would it be? My dark green and gold tie-dyed deep v t-shirt from American Apparel.

If I could visit ONLY ONE website, which would it be? Ravelry, obviously! I’d miss LJ and WordPress and Gmail and all the webcomics I love reading…but Ravelry is where it’s at.

If I could have ONLY ONE set of knitting needles, what would it be? I’m tempted to count my Knitpicks Options as a “set”, but I think that would be cheating. In any case, I’ll take my Size 4 29″ Addis. And I’ll probably try to sneak in a set of Size 2 DPNs as “hair accessories”.

If I could eat at ONLY ONE restaurant, which would it be? Zhang’s!! Delicious cheap Chinese. Mmmhmmm.

If I could read ONLY ONE book, which would it be? Jane Eyre. I keep going back to this book, even if I know chunks of it by heart.

If I could watch ONLY ONE DVD, what would it be? Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King, extended edition.

If I could own ONLY ONE shawl, which would it be? My Oxblood Laminaria.

If I could order ONLY ONE item from Starbucks, what would it be? Caramel apple cider!

If I could have ONLY ONE piece of jewelry, which would it be? My Celtic knit necklace.

If I could visit ONLY ONE state, which would it be? Maine.

If I could wear ONLY ONE cosmetic, what would it be? Burt’s Bees Replenishing Lip Balm with Pomegranate Oil. I am happily obsessed!

If I could bake ONLY ONE item, what would it be? Chocolate chip cookies!

If I could have ONLY ONE pair of shoes, which would it be? My Lifestride Debuts in black.

That helped to pass the time at work! Now it’s back to counting down the hours — in six of them, I can go home. Sigh.

Money/mouth.

Michael Vick’s signing with the Eagles has been dissected a thousand different ways online and in person but I think it’s a subject worth revisiting, because it’s highlighted so many issues plaguing professional sports, and the disparity between the crimes committed and the punishment served.

I’m so disgusted by the whole situation that I feel like I need to wash my hands and face whenever I think about it. He may have “paid his debt” to society, but society was not the victim of his abuse. The dogs were. Yes, he paid their medical bills, but the cynical side of me thinks that doing so wasn’t an act of contrition, but an attempt to salvage the tatters of his public image.

I don’t think he’s sorry about what he did. I think he’s sorry he got caught. Sorry that he lost all the privilege and money and the permissive atmosphere that he enjoyed as a star member of the NFL.

Now that he’s signed to a new team, and been welcomed back by many players and fans, he’s got his dream back. He’s got all the privilege and money and fame that comes with his position, and I don’t doubt that the temptations will reappear.

I’m pretty grossed out by the idea that my favorite professors and that really awesome police officer who responded when my apartment was broken into are struggling with debt, while this overgrown thug gets millions of dollars even after he’s proven he has no concept of empathy. It’s a problem with pro sports in general — they’re all overpaid, underworked, and too many of them have violent offenses on their records. Here’s my idea: if you’re convicted of a violent felony, you don’t play pro sports again. They may be talented, but playing at the pro level is a privilege, not a right.

I refuse to support a business that lets men like Ray Lewis or Michael Vick continue to play. As of last week, I started boycotting as many Philly Eagles sponsor companies as I could, and I will not buy from them as long as doing so means that a single cent could be going into his paycheck. That means no more hot chocolate from Dunkin’ Donuts after work, no more late-night Taco Bell runs, no more Pepsi products. I’ve let the companies know why I’m no longer going to be using their products, and that I’m encouraging everyone I know to do the same.

I won’t support a business that forgives violent crimes in light of superior physical ability. It’s a short leap from hurting animals to hurting people, and there are already too many players who have gone that far.

Fifteen minutes goes by fast on the Internet.

I’m so used to getting no hits on my blog that it was quite a shock when I checked my stats today to see this:

Eighteen views! I spent a few minutes wondering what I had done to get so much attention, and then I remembered that I had left a rather steamed (and possibly slightly sanctimonious, I admit it) comment on Pharyngula’s blog after another one of his patented attacks on religion. Aaah, so his angry hordes of godless heathens came stomping over here to attack me (all eighteen of them)!

All kidding aside, I respect his right to be an atheist, and I agree with many of his issues with religion, especially of the organized variety. It’s too often used as a divisive tool, or a weapon, or a way of keeping people from making educated, autonomous decisions about how they want to live their lives. I take issue with his high-handed attitude toward religion in general — that it’s all bad, all lies, all smoke-and-mirrors. Intolerance isn’t just a trademark of organized religion. Hmph.

However, now I know what to do whenever I want more blog hits.

Gulp.

Music In 2008.

My Top Ten Albums of 2008
(in no particular order)

1. M83 // Saturday = Youth
2. Cloud Cult // Feel Good Ghosts
3. Beach House // Devotion
4. Santogold // S/T
5. Grouper // Dragging a Dead Deer Up a Hill
6. Crystal Stilts // Alight Of Night
7. Marnie Stern // This Is It and I Am It and You Are It and So Is That and He Is It and She Is It and It Is It and That Is That
8. These Arms Are Snakes // Tail Swallower And Dove
9. Xiu Xiu // Women As Lovers
10. Foals // Antidotes

Honorable Mentions:
Fleet Foxes // S/T
Of Montreal // Skeletal Lamping
The Black Keys // Attack & Release
Deerhunter // Microcastles
Okkervil River // The Stand-Ins

I think 2008 was a great year for music! I discovered some new artists (Crystal Stilts, Marnie Stern), and some of my old favorites released impressive new albums (These Arms Are Snakes, Cloud Cult).

I started listening to a great deal more noise, thanks to my boyfriend, who’s not only obsessed with the genre, but is a performer himself. I have to thank him for introducing me to Merzbow, Masonna, Yellow Swans, and for everything else that’s made my vision blur as I listened to it

Apparently Britney Spears made a comeback, but I think I was taking a nap.

Here’s a non-knitting goal for this year: see more shows! I hope that These Arms Are Snakes, Rogue Wave, and Land of Talk have tour stops here in Western Mass, but I’ll be happy just to go. I used to see tons of shows in the early days of my undergrad career, but that’s tapered off in the past few years. Hopefully, I’ll be able to change that soon.

Sherwood out!

Moving Time.

I’ve spent the past few years of my blogging experience feeling guilty that I’m not using the space I pay for over at Typepad. I had big dreams of having a popular knitting/crafting/writing blog, but once I started paying for space…the allure was gone. I felt forced to write, forced to perform, and then when I didn’t have the audience I had hoped for, I lost interest in a powerful way.

In response, I’m scaling back. WordPress has gotten a lot of good press from blog friends, so I’ve decided to move my little dream over here, and to downsize accordingly. I’m just a college kid with a lot to learn, and it’s best not to push myself too hard just yet.

I want this to be a more open blog — I have a Livejournal, but that’s been friends-only for years and I don’t plan on changing that any time soon. Here, however, I can muse and ramble and not care if anyone is paying attention to my natterings.

Welcome to 2009.