The ANTINOMIES of ACTION

2009-12-22

My top 5 favorite films of 2k9

Because I was watching so many older films this year while prepping for my prelim exams, I didn’t go to the theater nearly as often as I usually do. With that said, here are my 2009 lists:

MY FAVORITES
5. The House of the Devil, Ti West (trailer)
4. Gomorrah, Matteo Garrone* (trailer)
3. Revanche, Götz Spielmann* (trailer)
2. The Hurt Locker, Kathryn Bigelow (trailer)
1. A Serious Man, Joel and Ethan Coen (trailer)

*These films were technically released in 2008 but didn’t open in Milwaukee ‘til this year so, if you don’t think they qualify for this list, I’ll offer two alternates: Derick Martini’s Lymelife (trailer) and Duncan Jones’ Moon (trailer).

And my least favorite films of the year (as a rule, I don’t typically see films that I expect to be bad so this list might be more accurately titled “Biggest Disappointments of 2009”):

5. Whatever Works, Woody Allen
4. The Girlfriend Experience, Steven Soderbergh
3. Big Fan, Robert D. Siegel
2. The Box, Richard Kelly
1. The Fourth Kind, Olatunde Osunsanmi

→

[Flash 9 is required to listen to audio.]

The Mad Lads — “I Want Someone”

2009-12-20

Things I've done recently

WEDNESDAY:
- Somehow passed my oral prelim defense, which was one of the most traumatic experiences EVA. Good grief and good riddance to that chapter of my life.
- Sat around, befuddled, for hours after the exam.

THURSDAY:
- Had a nice post-prelim celebration w/ friends at The Comet and then The Landmark. Began to feel like a human being again.

FRIDAY:
- Went to the English department’s holiday party, where several professors got drunk and embarrassed themselves (it sounds more fun than it was/is).
- Went to The Foundation afterwards with Adam O. and John R.—this used to be my favorite bar in MKE but, over the last year or two, it’s turned into a bro-bar. This was a great night, though—like old times. Lacy was bartending and helped get us properly imbibed. I did a shot of Tabasco sauce, ate a pickled egg, and consumed at least two strips of spicy beef jerky (plus a bunch of cigarettes and gin). I was in a Lee Marvin kind of mood, I guess. After this, Lacy let me take over the DJ booth for about 30 minutes. One guy came up to me and said, in a good and encouraging way, “You’re killin’ it!” Sometimes my drunken DJing is a disaster but, no, not that night. Well, according to me and that guy, at least.

Now I’m just trying to figure out what to do with my future/life. I’m pretty tired of school at this point.

2009-12-17

Frank Zappa — “Baby Snakes”

2009-12-16

[Flash 9 is required to listen to audio.]

The XX — “Infinity”

2009-12-15

In a landscape

Holy hell, man. I am nervous as heck about my prelim defense tomorrow. It’s difficult for me to envision a scenario in which I do well enough to pass. I guess we’ll see.

After assessing English 101 portfolios on campus for 7 hours earlier today, I ate at Noodles & Co. and then came home, where I tried to nap. I just sat there. Totally unable to sleep. Nervous about tomorrow, I think. How in the hell am I going to sleep well tonight? I feel like I’ll need to drink a bunch of whiskey just so I’ll be able to slumber—but, if I do that, I may not be at my sharpest tomorrow, you know? YIKES.

2009-12-13

Do not offer sympathy to the mentally ill.
Tell them firmly:
I am not paid to listen to this drivel.
You are a terminal boob.

— William S. Burroughs

2009-12-12

Jump in the fire

Fact: It’s better to burn out than to fade away.

I don’t believe in left-overs.
I don’t believe in the idea of ‘having a career.’

Thus, I don’t believe in retirement.

I think it’s unethical to have children. Having a child turns you into a slave; it gives you the permission to stop living your own life and forces you to submit to another person. In a sense, the act of having a child is a kind of sublimation, a surrender of one’s freedom. And don’t give me any bullshit about preserving a future for the human race—the planet would be better off without us. Get over yourself.

The ‘present’ is better than either the past or the future because it’s real, it’s here … right now.

Death by any cause other than ‘accidental misadventure’ is a cop-out.

When freed from the burdens of school (my studies, that is; I find teaching to be mostly a joy and an honor), I feel literally inspired: full of spirit, life. I need to find a way to be this free all the time.

→

Mouth breather

Hey. Everything is coming up roses. Or, at least, Bombay gin, which is infused with rare botanicals. Ho, ho. The semester is rapidly winding down. I’m still alive; what’s more, I’m thriving—for the first time in a long while. Leaving all the bullshit behind. I have a life to live. Go for the goddamn gusto. Do it. Assert yourself. You’re dying—you know that, right?