A blog about New York City, my books, and my cats. Mostly.
This is a sign in front of a tree, aimed towards dog owners, but still. Are we 2 years old??
So! Tonight is the Oscars. I love watching the Oscars, although this year movie-wise, is going to be a blah year. There’s nothing I’m really rooting for. I’m watching for the clothes.
I’ve got “et vitam venturi saeculi” (and the Life of the world to come) in my head. Over and over. HA!! I just read this in Wikipedia. It’s not just me: “Most notable about the movement, though, is the closing fugue on “et vitam venturi” that includes one of the most difficult passages in the choral repertoire, when the subject returns at doubled tempo for a thrilling conclusion.”
I would change that to read, “one of the most difficult passages in the choral repertoire, and so that part is usually sung by robots. Or aliens.”
But when I read this my response was, oh yeah?? You won’t kick our asses Beethoven:
“Compared to other works of similar stature, the Missa solemnis is rarely performed. Its notoriously difficult choral parts make it a stumbling block for many orchestras who only have access to volunteer choirs. Limited performances of the work have made the work far less known than Beethoven’s other large works.”
This was the tour group I had to maneuver around yesterday. We get a lot of tour groups in our neighborhood. I like that people like to visit and explore, but, well, I’m human. Sometimes I feel cranky about it. Not yesterday. Plus they all kept to the right so I could shoot around them easily. When I think about though, what is my problem? Sometimes I get delayed all of ten or fifteen seconds? This was a small tour group. The Sex and the City tours are bigger. Long, long lines of women holding cupcakes that they just bought from Magnolia. But I cut the Sex and the City tours a lot of slack, because I love Sex and the City and feel a solidarity with the women in line.
Nora sent me a link to pictures from Obama’s visit in the Ottawa Citizen.
We both liked this picture of people on a giant snowball trying to get a better view.
Meanwhile, I’m still hard at work trying to learn the hardest part in the hardest piece of choral music ever, the fugue in the Credo section of Beethoven’s Missa Solemnis.
First I had to learn the runs. But when I try to do them at the speed we’re supposed to do them, I stop sounding like I’m making music. It’s physically impossible, I tell you. Once again those must be robots or computers or aliens singing on the recording I have.
Plus, I have a headache.
And I’m stressed out about my book.
And Buddy is having bowel issues, poor thing.
And American Idol is screwing with their voting practices.
But Obama is my president and Canadians are great, so there’s that.
I’m posting for the fabulous Susie Bright, who is in town for three events for her new book. In one week. (That would kill me.) One is tonight, and I’m cutting and pasting from her blog.
Susie Bright Night:
“In The Flesh” Erotic Reading Series
Thursday, February 19th, 7:30 PM
I’ll be celebrating my new fancy baby, X: The Erotic Treasury with authors Paula Bomer, Ernie Conrick, Martha Garvey, Nicholas Kaufmann, Tsaurah Litzky, Maxim Jakubowski, Marcelle Manhattan, Lisa Montanarelli, Chelsea Summers, and host/curator Rachel Kramer Bussel.
Note special start time (for February only): 7:30 pm. Doors open at 7. Arriving early is highly recommended.
Happy Ending Lounge
202 Broome St.
(B/D to Grand, J/M/Z to Bowery, F to Delancey or F/V to 2nd Avenue)
These don’t look so interesting on the hangers, but they’re cute. This first top I got from H&M for $23 (I think). It was too long, but I’ve learned from Tim Gunn to not expect perfection off the rack, and to use a tailor. When we pinned it up even the tailor went, “Nice!” This is my “nice” top for dressier appearances.
I got this vest from Loehmanns for $29 and the tshirt from Hanes.com for $16. I had them send, like, five different styles and only one was truly flattering. I will wear this with nice jeans and hopefully new, brightly colored sneakers, and I’ll dress the whole thing up with a necklace and earrings. This is a more casual outfit.
This last shirt is very deceptively simple. I got it from Banana Republic for $39. It’s a lot for what is essentially a tshirt, but it’s very flattering and looks dressy.
