Asymptotic Hiatus

Hey all of my loyal readers! (All 5 of you...) So as to ease your burden of checking for updates on my slowly dying blog, I have decided to declare an official hiatus on posting on Asymptosy. So, no need to check back for new posts, unless I specifically contact you and tell you I'm up and running again. (Don't worry about missing out on notification, thanks to the stalker-like technology that we have been graced with in modern society, I pretty much know who my regulars are.)

I'd like to say this wasn't an easy decision, but it actually was. I no longer have a computer (or even a desire to own one), and have too many other activities in my life that I enjoy more than blogging. It was fun the first couple of years, but then became more of a chore. In the meantime, thanks for caring enough to read this, and maybe in lieu of checking my blog you can call me and we can engage in some real communication! Yay!

Blogworthy

• My fantastic friend Leah has opened her very own high-end kitchen store in the Eastern Market neighborhood of D.C. I don't know anyone better equipped to start a small business, particularly in that 'hood. With her enthusiasm and desire to know everything about quality kitchen gadgets, Hill's Kitchen is sure to succeed. Read this blurb about the store in the Washington Post. Go Leah!
• While it wasn't quite the same as seeing Throwing Muses in concert, watching The Breeders on stage at First Ave. May 30 was an amazing experience. Kim and Kelley seem to have gotten over any "issues" between them (most likely because they were brought on by alcohol- and drug-related behavior, and that, thankfully, seems to be over) and had a great on-stage rapport. The band sounded amazing -- crystal clear vocals and guitars. I couldn't have asked for a better show. (And to that dude who said it was the most boring concert he's seen in a long time -- get over yourself. You just don't get it.)
• Martha Wainwright's new album is a blistering disappointment for me. Can someone help me understand it? I like a few songs, but overall it's way too commercial and lacks her usual intensity and unique voice. What happened?
• The Zombies are coming! The Zombies are coming!

Misogyny I Won't Miss

Read this simple -- but great -- article by Marie Cocco about the sexist attacks toward Clinton during the primaries and the utter lack of public outrage about this sexism.

How many times can I say I love this woman?

"Rich people shouldn't write songs for real people." -- Kristin Hersh

Basia! (No, not the opera singer...)

Best new album of the year (so far): Basia Bulat's Oh, My Darling. Gorgeous voice, fantastic songwriting, dynamic percussion (thanks to her bro), and the unique sound of her autoharp. I can't stop listening to it, especially "In the Night," "I Was a Daughter," and "Pilgriming Vine." Wow.

She'll be opening for DeVotchKa at First Ave. on May 7th and I'm going to do my darnedest to be there.

Katha Pollitt gets it right (again)

Read Katha here.

My Fantasy Baseball Team

Here's my roster. I honestly didn't mean to have a full 4/5 of my team be Red Sox players. It just happened. That's my story, and I'm sticking to it.

C - Jason Varitek (Bos)
1B - David Ortiz (Bos)
2B - Dustin Pedroia (Bos)
3B - Mike Lowell (Bos)
SS - Orlando Cabrera (CWS)
OF - Manny Ramirez (Bos)
OF - Jacoby Ellsbury (Bos)
OF - Michael Cuddyer (Min)
Util - JD Drew (Bos)
BN - Kazuo Matsui (Hou)
BN - Coco Crisp (Bos)

SP - Josh Beckett (Bos)
SP - Daisuke Matsuzaka (Bos)
RP - Jonathan Papelbon (Bos)
RP - Hideki Okajima (Bos)
P - Clay Buchholz (Bos)
P - Jon Lester (Bos)
P - Pat Neshek (Min)
BN - Tim Wakefield (Bos)
BN - Mike Timlin (Bos)
BN - Greg Maddux (SD)

Top 12 Albums of the Year That Ended 2 Months Ago

It's taken me so long to post my Top 12 Albums of 2007 because I was looking at it as a mountainous chore; something I had to do well and in detail. Well, I've decided that's bull and that I just want my list out there. So, here are the albums. No frills, no fuss. (Also no links and no pictures. Suck it up.)

1. Arcade Fire - Neon Bible
2. Emma Pollock - Watch the Fireworks
3. Eric Clapton - Complete Clapton
4. Amy Winehouse - Back to Black
5. The Guess Who - Let's Go
6. Kristin Hersh - Learn to Sing Like a Star
7. Herbie Hancock - River: the joni letters
8. Rufus Wainwright - Release the Stars
9. Detroit Cobras - Tied & True
10. Macy Gray - Big
11. Jon Rauhouse - Steel Guitar Heart Attack
12. Imperial Teen - the hair the tv the baby & the band

Honorable Mentions: Rufus Wainwright - Rufus Does Judy at Carnegie Hall; Laura Veirs - Saltbreakers

Albums that May Have Made the List Had I Heard Them: Radiohead - In Rainbows; Kamikaze Hearts - Oneida Road; The National - Boxer

Most Disappointing: The Go! Team - Proof of Youth

Most Overrated: The Hold Steady - Boys and Girls in America (except for the song w/ Elizabeth Elmore)

Rant from the Stone Age

Due to recent changes in living arrangements, I am currently without a computer and TV and have been so for a couple months. When I tell some people this fact, they seem utterly amazed. "Do you have electricity?" Yes, and running water, thank you very much.

I've also returned to my childhood habit of starting off every day reading the newspaper cover-to-cover while eating cereal. (Inevitably, the cereal runs out before the newspaper.) It's absolutely blissful. "But, how can you trust the information in the newspaper? It's so slanted!" Uh, I actually don't think it's all that bad, and it's certainly not as slanted as the liberal conspiracy theory blogs you read, thank you very much.

Actually, my home life right now is damn near perfect. After Tuesday, I will have my very own cat whose name will either be Victor or Hugo -- the verdict is still out. All I need now is a record player and I will be perfectly satisfied with the state of my apartment. Technology-less and all.