Nov. 16: Movie music

Did you know that there’s a new community over at dooce.com? Well, there is. I haven’t spent much time there yet—in fact, I finally just registered today—but some of the discussions have been interesting to follow. A popular one right now is about memorable movie scenes made even more memorable because of the music accompanying the scene.

The movie scenes that first came to my mind were the last scene in Sixteen Candles and the emergency C-section scene in She’s Having a Baby. It was no surprise that several members of the dooce.com community mentioned these two as well. Both of these movie soundtracks are next to impossible to find, so I’m gonna very generously and probably a bit illegally share these two scene-accompanying songs here. But only because I love you.

 

If You Were Here
Thompson Twins

Download this MP3 - (Right Click)  This Woman’s Work
Kate Bush

Download this MP3 - (Right Click)

 

I can think of lots more memorable movie scenes—some from Love Actually, Singles, Toy Story 2, to name a few—but I don’t want to start a whole new discussion here when the one that initiated this is perfectly good and much more active. So share some of your favorite movie scenes here, or check out the boards at dooce.com and add to that discussion. Remember to ignore the trolls. She’s got lots. Fortunately, she’s got lots of clever, intelligent contributors who make it a site worth visiting.

Mar. 30: I saw Dooce

Heather Armstrong, more widely known as Dooce, is on a book tour promoting her new book It Sucked and Then I Cried: How I Had a Baby, a Breakdown, and a Much Needed Margarita. Tonight was a stop in Portland so I met up with Erin for dinner and we walked over to Powell’s.

There was a line to go up the stairs to the Pearl Room, where the reading/signing was being held. Erin and I were fourth and fifth in line with about 20 minutes until showtime. We were sure to get good seats, right? Then some guy announced overhead that the Pearl Room had reached capacity and they would have to turn away any additional customers for Heather Armstrong’s reading.

What???

We were confused—was he saying there were enough people in line to reach capacity, or were all available seats already taken? Is she more popular than we ever imagined? The guard at the bottom of the stairwell said that there would probably be people leaving because the Pearl Room gets very hot, so we were welcome to wait for seats to open up.

Erin and I decided to wait, and it was just a few minutes before we got past the velvet rope. Heather was at the top of the stairs, about to be announced, and because all the chairs were occupied, we ended up standing near her until just before she went up front. I didn’t want to stick my camera in her face, so here’s a very blurry picture of her taken from behind one of my purse straps.

She read a couple of chapters from her new book and then started a Q&A. I couldn’t hear the Qs so the As didn’t mean much. It was god-awful hot up there—that guard wasn’t kidding—and I quickly decided I didn’t want to stand in line for two hours to have her sign my book. I went back downstairs and another person in line went up in my place. The line was still to the back of the store. Crazy. Not crazy like “why would anyone want to see her?” but crazy like “an awful lot of people really want to see her!” Erin came down soon after I did, and we escaped to the fresh cool evening air. Ah.

Dooce was entertaining, and the things she read were amusing. Erin and I both said her accent was much more southern than we expected, but because she occasionally posts videos on her blog, it wasn’t a complete surprise. She said lots of girly-parts words. She’s tall. She apologized for her hair, saying she got a little carried away with the curling iron—but it was cute and she knew it.

I’m glad we went, but big crowds at these events are always frustrating to me because I hate waiting in those horrific lines. At the same time, not getting my book signed means I don’t actually have to speak to the author. I’m never quite sure what to say to them when it’s my turn. “Hi. I like your book.” Memorable.

Also, for the author’s sake I always hope for a good turnout. I can’t imagine what it must feel like if no one shows, and you know that’s gotta happen sometimes.

Mar. 16: April’s lookin’ gooood

I don’t mean my BFF ♥April♥, who looks good-no-matter-what-why-do-I-even-like-her-anyway. I mean April, the month, is shaping up to be a busy and exciting month. Why, you ask? Let me count the ways.

1. The first thing, and I know that this is technically in March, but it’ll almost be April and will set the trend for all my entertaining activities: ♥Erin♥ and I are going to Heather Armstrong’s reading at Powells on March 30. Heather Armstrong is better known as Dooce, and is kind of the queen of all bloggers. She has just written a new book about her childbirth and postpartum depression experience, It Sucked and Then I Cried. I’m so looking forward to meeting her in person.
   
   
2. On April 9 we have another show in our Broadway in Portland series. This one is The Rat Pack Live at the Sands. Should be some great music.
   
   
3. My sister’s going to be in Oregon for a week mid-month, and we look forward to some quality time with her.
   
   
4. On April 19, ♥The Lovely Lori♥ and I are going to the Unwigged & Unplugged concert. If you haven’t heard about it, Christopher Guest, Michael McKean and Harry Shearer are appearing as themselves, performing music as their alter egos in This is Spinal Tap and as The Folksmen in A Mighty Wind.
   
   The Unplugged interview:
   
   
   
   One of the most memorable scenes from the movie This is Spinal Tap.
   
   
   
   One of my favorites of The Folksmen’s songs from A Mighty Wind:
   
   
   
   I’m crossing my fingers Harry Shearer will sneak in some of the voices he does on The Simpsons, just for kicks.
   
   I should add, too, that if you haven’t seen Spinal Tap, Waiting for Guffman, Best in Show, or A Mighty Wind, see them! If you enjoy the humor of The Office (both British and U.S. versions) you’ll love these movies.
   
   
5. On April 23 we’ll go to the last of our regular Broadway in Portland shows: Grease, with Taylor Hicks as Teen Angel. When I first heard he was going to be in it, I assumed he’d be Danny Zuko and I thought NO WAY is he right for Danny. He seems right for Teen Angel, though. But better than Frankie Avalon? Hmmmm…
   
   
6. I’ll be meeting my mom for the David Sedaris show in Eugene on April 24. If you’re not yet familiar with David Sedaris’ books, watch this (and also, what is wrong with you?). Here’s a perfect example of his style and subjects of humor:
   
   
   

There are other small things going on here and there, but these are the biggies on my calendar in April. It’s the best kind of exhausting schedule, wouldn’t you agree?