tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-186845042024-03-07T18:21:39.337-06:00Another Piece of ShooflypieThoughts on books, music, comics, TV, movies and more
By Justin Steiner, age 37Justin Steinerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09151752685005651437noreply@blogger.comBlogger607125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18684504.post-14238969346903633552009-07-04T08:46:00.002-05:002009-07-04T09:02:36.404-05:00<b>RELAUNCH</b><div><b><br /></b></div><div>I've changed my mind completely. Not only am I going to continue blogging, I am relaunching the blog as <a href="http://shooflypieseason3.blogspot.com">Shooflypie Season 3</a>. Please join me over there and see if I can actually produce.</div>Justin Steinerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09151752685005651437noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18684504.post-91899918912637720642009-06-30T22:44:00.002-05:002009-06-30T22:51:02.273-05:00<strong>GONE AGAIN</strong><br /><strong></strong><br />I am hanging up the blogging hat again and I won't be picking it up for the next 6 months minimum. It is part of a number of changes I am making to try and open myself up to creative ventures - I haven't written a new song this year and only 1 in the last year total. I've still never given myself a chance to write and I want to do it. I'm shutting down my file at the comics shop as well; I'm not giving up comics, just sticking to trades and not pre-ordering (hard to budget that way). I'm thinking about ditching Twitter for a while as well and cutting down on my feeds on my Google Reader. I need to change the way I go about things for a while and see what happens. Doesn't mean I'll never do these things again; it's what I need to do to try and activate dreams that go back to my childhood.<br /><br />See you in 2010...or not.Justin Steinerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09151752685005651437noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18684504.post-45922306002899304422009-06-28T21:36:00.002-05:002009-06-28T22:24:23.663-05:00<strong>SUNDAY SHUFFLE #140</strong><br /><br />I spent most of the day at a picnic as part of a celebration of my 20th high school reunion. It was a blast but it's late, so here comes the music...<br /><br />1. Major Label Debut (Fast)/Broken Social Scene (2)<br />2. All I Need Is Y0u/Portastatic (7)<br />3. The Hazards of Love 3 (Revenge!)/The Decemberists (5)<br />4. Black Eyed Suzy/Justin Townes Earle (4)<br />5. Cocoon/The Decemberists (5)<br />6. Better Dead Than Lead/Ted Leo & The Pharmacists (2)<br />7. Andiamo/The Twilight Singers (12)<br />8. Priest's Knees/Destroyer (12)<br />9. Singer Castle Bells/Great Lake Swimmers (5)<br />10. Disappear/Crooked Fingers (3)Justin Steinerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09151752685005651437noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18684504.post-56901153208774864412009-06-21T20:32:00.007-05:002009-06-21T21:20:41.600-05:00<strong><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:130%;">DOUBLE FEATURE</span></strong><br /><div><div><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;"></span></div><div><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">I've mentioned on more than one occasion that I've gone back and forth on the issue of whether I should buy comics in single format at all. There have been periods where I've bought only trades and periods where I've bought a few monthlies as well. Those latter times usually last 6 to 8 months before I give it all up and go back to trades. Well, I'm determined to try to find a way for me to buy and read both, even buying some things in singles format that I may want to buy in collected form later. Yes, it's all very complicated or at least I make it that way. Getting to the point, I bought a couple comics two Wednesdays ago that remind me why I do like to read things is serialized format.</span></div><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDjbcD9jcdBnSkYHoikGVHKU8G3lYYqwn9SBId5te8HcLpipoNdmFDV6Tcx5niaq2UrZzmDDtY3qhGKBnko0XXL7Tz_kqvbo7KUduXGMqshzEV4F48CpDm8RemTIseHmKsS23t/s1600-h/Booster+Gold+%2321.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5349969033429117106" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 216px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 265px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDjbcD9jcdBnSkYHoikGVHKU8G3lYYqwn9SBId5te8HcLpipoNdmFDV6Tcx5niaq2UrZzmDDtY3qhGKBnko0XXL7Tz_kqvbo7KUduXGMqshzEV4F48CpDm8RemTIseHmKsS23t/s320/Booster+Gold+%2321.JPG" border="0" /></a> <span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">I bought the new series of <em>Booster Gold</em> when it started up in 2007. I'd always liked the character and I found the book to be highly entertaining but ended up losing touch in the last swing back to trades. The series is now in the hands of Dan Jurgens, who originally created Booster and made the first series such a favorite of mine that I talked about it in a speech my freshman year of high school (in 1986).</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">I picked up #21 of the current series for 2 reasons. First, the cover promised Booster tangling with Batman (whose cape is now being filled by Dick Grayson, the first Robin, due to Bruce Wayne's death). Second, the series is now carrying a second feature - Blue Beetle. DC is adding 10 page co-features to a number of its comics as a way of justifying higher prices ($3.99 per issue on selected titles). It's pricey but in this instance, the comic was worth it.</span></div><br /><div><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">The lead feature is the first of the four-part "Day of Death" storyline. Booster is big-time hero but he has to pretend he is an ineffectual glory hound in order to keep secret his status as a time-traveler. He is working with Rip Hunter, who seems to be up to something as the issue opens. Sure, it looks like he is looking for a chink in the Black Beetle's armor but Booster isn't sure he can be fully trusted. Rip sends Booster to the Batcave, because there are some pictures there that reveal the truth about Booster (Batman was the only one aware of Booster's mission but Batman isn't exactly Batman anymore). Booster decides to trust Dick with the secret (that he tried to save Barbara Gordon from being shot; Dick is very close to Barbara) when the Black Beetle shows up and decides to change the timeline. At the end, it appears he has succeeding in killing Dick in the past. I'm interested to see where the story goes from here.</span></div><div><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;"></span> </div><div><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;"></span> </div><div><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;"></span></div><div><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">I read the first issue or three of the <em>Blue Beetle</em> series when it first came out but quickly lost track. I've found the character to be a lot of fun on the <em>Batman: Brave and the Bold</em> TV show and welcomed the chance to check in the character in the comics realm. Plus, writer Matt Sturges is someone I like (I read his novel <em>Midwinter</em> a few months back and have enjoyed his work on <em>Jack of Fables</em>, though I'm woefully behind on that series) and artist Mike Norton always turns out quality work. Well, there was plenty to like. Most especially, a giant yellow robot named Thinko! that Beetle had to battle. A fun comic.</span></div><div><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;"></span> </div><div> </div><div><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;"></span></div><div><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">Two good stories in one comic book? That's the way it should be. I will definitely be back for the next issue.</span></div><br /><div><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">On the other end of the spectrum is the latest series from Vertigo, <em>The Unwritten</em>. This is a creator-owned series from Mike Carey and Peter Gross (such an underrated artist) and the first issue was over-sized and priced at $1. How can you resist that? I didn't and while I liked the issue well enough, the series really takes off with #2. The book is the story of Tom Taylor, the inspiration for a series of Harry Potter-like novels by his father. But it turns out he might not be Wilson Taylor's son after all. The series is steeped in fiction; Tom knows geography by way of fiction, though he hasn't read the books. There are forces skulking about, including a man who creates a cell phone through letters and then let's it dissolve back into the same. And what is the deal with Lizzie Hexam? Is she more than the protagonist of Dickens' <em>Our Mutual Friend?</em> I can't wait to see where this series goes and I'm not going to wait for trades either. How's that for an endorsement?</span></div></div>Justin Steinerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09151752685005651437noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18684504.post-61984530307038238292009-06-21T07:21:00.002-05:002009-06-21T07:59:11.440-05:00<strong><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:130%;">SUNDAY SHUFFLE #139</span></strong><br /><span style="font-family:times new roman;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">Happy Father's Day to those of you who may be reading. I'm going to spend the day doing a lot of chores, watching baseball, and reading (Infinite Summer starts today). But first, we're going to see what pops up on iTunes...</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">1. Market Girl/Headlights (7)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">2. Alphabet Pony/The Kills (4)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">3. It's Me/Dinosaur Jr. (14)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">4. Puncture Repair/Elbow (19)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">5. Learo, You're a Hole/Archers of Loaf (10)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">6. Keep A Friend/Dr. Dog (6)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">7. What Do You Look Forward To?/Superchunk (14)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">8. Wine, Women, and Song/Harvey Danger (35)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">9. Un Dernier Verre (Pour La Route)/Beirut (3)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">10. Another Radio Song/Okkervil River (7)</span>Justin Steinerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09151752685005651437noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18684504.post-63980146342656991472009-06-15T08:42:00.004-05:002009-06-15T09:39:41.967-05:00<strong><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:130%;">A JUNE TRADITION</span></strong><br /><span style="font-family:times new roman;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">I've been reading <em>Asimov's</em> for many years now. I believe I started around 1993 or 1994 and at some point not too long after I dropped my subscription for a year or so before picking back up and reading it continuously ever since. The magazine has introduced me to a bunch of writers I love, including James Patrick Kelly. The June 2009 issue has a bit of a tribute to Kelly, as it marks the 25th anniversary of his first June issue story. That's right, he has had a story in the June issue every year since 1994, for a total of 26 stories. It's quite a feat.</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">Taking a look at the bibliography on Kelly's <a href="http://www.jimkelly.net/">website</a>, the first of the June stories that I remember reading for sure is "Breakaway, Backdown" from 1996 (guess I've been reading consistently at least that long and I don't recall reading "Think Like a Dinsosaur" from the June 1995 issue, though I've since read it). I also remember wanting to talk to people about it at the time but none of my friends (internet or otherwise) were reading Asimov's. Unfortunately, I don't recall what the story was about, only my enthusiasm for it.</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">Over the years, I've come to anticpate Kelly's June appearances. I know I'm going to get a story I like and I know the stories aren't necessarily going to be similar. He doesn't have a partiuclar style other than clear writing, a willingness to experiment with ideas big or small, and characters you can care about. From recent years, "Men Are Trouble" (2004) and "The Leila Torn Show" (2006) are particular standouts.</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">Kelly has three story collections that have been published by <a href="http://www.goldengryphon.com/">Golden Gryphon</a> - <em>Think Like a Dinosaur and Other Stories</em>, <em>Strange But Not a Stranger</em>, and <em>The Wreck of the Godpseed</em> (which came out late last year). I'm a big fan of Golden Gryphon and have always meant to pick up the collections...but have never gotten around to it. Well, there is a 2-for-1 sale going on right now and with Father's Day coming up this weekend, I think I'm going to make a request for a present. That means I'll probably be talking about his work more on the blog as the months roll by.</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">Oh, I almost forgot to mention this year's story, "Going Deep." It's the story of Mariska, a 13 year-old clone of a spacer, who has an adopted father, an upcoming arranged marriage, and ambivalent thoughts about her predetermined life. She reaches a decision that she knows isn't the best but it ends up working out in the end. While it's not my favorite Kelly story, it's definitely worth reading.</span>Justin Steinerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09151752685005651437noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18684504.post-9291320133891205672009-06-14T19:20:00.003-05:002009-06-14T19:48:08.721-05:00<strong><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:130%;">DICKENSIAN</span></strong><br /><span style="font-family:times new roman;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">I feel like the universe is telling me to read Charles Dickens and not just one book either. No, his total output. I'm not sure why this is happening either. The notion popped into my head a week or so ago and since then I've seen references to Dickens here and there in my life. It's not a project I'm going to undertake right now, especially with my reading of Infinite Jest scheduled to start in a week. Once that project is over, I'll already have been in an English class for a few weeks and will have a bunch of reading to do there, I'm sure. It remains to be seen if the idea keeps afloat in the back of my brain - if that's the case, I'll probably have to do something about it.</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">I did just finish my 16th book of the year, <em>Stalking the Unicorn</em> by Mike Resnick. Originally published in 1987, it was just reissued last year by Pyr along with a sequel, <em>Stalking the Vampire</em> (which I also have out from the library). John Justin Mallory is a detective in Manhattan who is drunk on New Year's Eve. He is hired by an elf to recover a unicorn, which takes him to another Manhattan where such creatures life, along with leprechauns, demons, Gnomes of the Subway, goblins, trolls, and magic doesn't exist (what you think is magic is just science you don't know). Over the course of the novel, Mallory learns about the world and makes a few big decisions about his own. It's a fun book. I've been trying to decide if I should plow straight into the next book or read something in between, just because. We'll see.</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">This week I also read the April/May issue of <em>F&SF</em>. It is the first of the new bigger-sized bi-monthly issues but the only real changes are just those two things. F&SF is always dependable and if this issue didn't have any particular standouts, it also didn't have any stories that weren't worth reading. I call that a win.</span>Justin Steinerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09151752685005651437noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18684504.post-49770895616908090932009-06-14T07:23:00.002-05:002009-06-14T08:12:13.428-05:00<strong><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:130%;">SUNDAY SHUFFLE #138</span></strong><br /><span style="font-family:times new roman;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">It looks like we might get two nice days out of the last three today; it would be nice if summer finally showed up. It would also be nice if I could stop going around and around in my head about the blog...we'll see if I put up some posts this week. Anyway, how about some music?</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">1. Ashes of American Flags (engineer demo)/Wilco (2)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">2. I Feel Better/Frightened Rabbit (14)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">3. Song for Myla Goldberg/The Decemberists (11)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">4. No Dreams/Oakley Hall (8)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">5. It's Not the End of the World/Sloan (17)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">6. Almost Over/Elliott Smith (8)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">7. The Lines You Amend/Sloan (13)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">8. Guyamas Sonora/Beirut (5)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">9. Ada/The National (17)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">10. Down in the Valley/The Broken West (21)</span>Justin Steinerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09151752685005651437noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18684504.post-19252983412202251462009-06-09T09:10:00.003-05:002009-06-09T09:23:01.633-05:00<strong><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:130%;">FINITELY INFINITE</span></strong><br /><span style="font-family:times new roman;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">I have committed to a summer project - along with a couple thousand other people, I am going to be reading David Foster Wallace's <em>Infinite Jest</em>. The reading group is called <a href="http://infinitesummer.org/">Infinite Summer</a> and the goal is to read the book over the course of the summer, June 21 to Sept. 22. The book is over 1000 pages long with a ridiculous amount of endnotes, so you need to average about 75 pages a week. That's doable.</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">When I was younger, it was a badge of honor to read books that were 500 pages or more; I would even reject books that were under 300 pages as not being worth my time. Obviously, I don't feel that way anymore but I still do like the challenge of a big book. Plus, I've been interested in reading <em>Infinite Jest</em> for years and this is a good way to finally do it.</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">I'm not a reader who usually reads multiple books at the same time, so this will be an interesting experiment in that regard as well. I plan on posting about what I read each week and will try to keep up with the discussion over at the website. I finally start taking an English class this fall, so this will be a good kickstart for that as well.</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">If anyone else is going to do it, let me know!</span>Justin Steinerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09151752685005651437noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18684504.post-89675056510865723412009-06-07T21:09:00.002-05:002009-06-07T21:22:12.193-05:00<strong><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:130%;">POWERING UP</span></strong><br /><span style="font-family:times new roman;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">I've decided to resume semi-regular posting to the blog with this, my 600th post. Now that summer's here I have some more to to devote to it and I've found I do miss it. I am not coming back with promises as to frequency of posts or as to what the subject matter will be, though I do have some ideas as to features. I do want to get away from my posts just being a series of lists, to bring some actual content. A quick perusal of my 2009 posts shows I haven't talked about any music or books or anything of substance, so there is quite a bit I could talk about. So please stop by occasionally or add me to your feed reader; I hope to entertain.</span>Justin Steinerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09151752685005651437noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18684504.post-65989898371696570342009-06-07T07:45:00.003-05:002009-06-07T09:33:54.633-05:00<strong><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:130%;">SUNDAY SHUFFLE #137</span></strong><br /><span style="font-family:times new roman;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">It's not been a good week - my back seized up on me Tuesday morning and I spent a good portion of time on the floor unable to move without excruciating pain. It's gotten better as the week has gone along but I missed the last few days of school and couldn't even play cornhole at a birthday party yesterday. At least we had a great time in Baltimore and Washington D.C. for my cousin's wedding last weekend. So, I'm using the Sunday Shuffle as some comfort food this morning and I'm okay with that.</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">1. She's A Rejecter/Of Montreal (7)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">2. Take A Rake/Centro-Matic (9)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">3. Quito/The Mountain Goats (17)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">4. Sex On Fire/Kings of Leon (8)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">5. An Apology/Canasta (12)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">6. The Next Messiah/Jenny Lewis (12)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">7. Jezebel/Two Hours Traffic (15)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">8. Dark Leaves Form a Thread/Destroyer (7)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">9. Oh, Take Me Back/M. Ward (6)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">10. And Your Bird Can Sing/Matthew Sweet & Susanna Hoffs (2)</span>Justin Steinerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09151752685005651437noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18684504.post-81798196892787579262009-05-24T07:25:00.002-05:002009-05-24T08:17:52.374-05:00<strong><span style="font-family:Arial;font-size:130%;">SUNDAY SHUFFLE #136</span></strong><br /><span style="font-family:times new roman;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">Woke up this morning and felt like doing a Sunday Shuffle. It's not indicative of anything necessarily, though I have been giving thought to coming back to blogging on a more regular basis. For now, ten random songs from my iTunes is enough...</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">1. My Goodbyes/South San Gabriel (6)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">2. This Ain't a Scene/The Henry Clay People (9)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">3. Snakes of Hawaii/Army Navy (9)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">4. Furr/Blitzen Trapper (7)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">5. A Side Wins/Sloan (18)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">6. Stuck Between Stations/The Hold Steady (27)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">7. Great Expectations/Elbow (14)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">8. Silence Kid/Pavement (12)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">9. Lady On The Water/Blitzen Trapper (6)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">10. Look, Honey, Peaches/Portastatic (5)</span>Justin Steinerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09151752685005651437noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18684504.post-1217352530992297422009-03-29T15:34:00.003-05:002009-03-29T15:42:29.037-05:00<strong><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:130%;">POWERING DOWN</span></strong><br /><span style="font-family:times new roman;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">I am setting the blog aside for an indeterminate amount of time. The reality is that I spend time on Twitter and Facebook and that probably won't be changing anytime soon. I do like the idea of the blog but there is a big disconnect between coming up with ideas for posts and writing the actual posts themselves. I also still have dreams to be published as a creative writer and I want to take some time to work towards that goal (though it will have to wait another 6 weeks until college is over for me). Today is my 38th birthday and I'm feeling some of that "Year of 35" spirit; I am soon going to record an EP and I feel it is time to keep pushing myself forward.</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">I'm not sure how long I will be away from this blog...it could be a couple months and I could never come back to it. I have no plan and that's just fine with me. Close to a quarter of my almost 600 posts over the past 3+ years here have been Sunday Shuffles and while I will miss that ritual every Sunday morning, I'll probably still do it for myself.</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">Thanks to all of you who have come by over the years. Please check me out on <a href="http://www.twitter.com/justinsteiner">Twitter</a> and you can look me up on Facebook if you so desire. Take care.</span>Justin Steinerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09151752685005651437noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18684504.post-63958699994736972202009-03-29T07:43:00.003-05:002009-03-29T10:03:42.519-05:00<strong><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:130%;">SUNDAY SHUFFLE #135</span></strong><br /><span style="font-family:times new roman;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">Today's shuffle is going to be a double issue for two reasons - today is my 38th birthday and this will be the last Sunday Shuffle for an indeterminate amount of time (more on that later). So, let's celebrate with a bunch of music...</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">1. Too Much to Hide/Joseph Arthur (12)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">2. Weary Arms/Crooked Fingers (3)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">3. Capturing Moods/Rilo Kiley (3)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">4. Long As I Can See the Light/Creedence Clearwater Revival (5)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">5. Slow Down Chicago/Canasta (9)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">6. Jaipur/The Mountain Goats (14)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">7. Time Left For Love/Shout Out Louds (8)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">8. Sleep Sunshine/The Whigs (15)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">9. Whatever (Folk Song In C)/Elliott Smith (12)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">10. Flying High Again/Sloan (17)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">11. Old Time Lovin'/Al Green (3)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">12. Blood Bank/Bon Iver (5)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">13. Nevermind The Phonecalls/Earlimart (12)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">14. Forget Myself/Elbow (11)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">15. Jigsaw/Mates Of State (6)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">16. Idylls Of The King/The Mountain Goats (19)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">17. Claws Tracking/Spoon (4)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">18. Angela/Oakley Hall (4)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">19. [Untitled Track]/The Black Keys (11)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">20. Souls Like the Wheels/The Avett Brothers (5)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">21. Act Of The Apostle/Belle and Sebastian (12)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">22. A Sunday Smile/Beirut (4)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">23. Pick Me Up/Dinosaur Jr. (10)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">24. Flume/Bon Iver (9)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">25. Manitoba/Tapes 'n Tapes (9)</span>Justin Steinerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09151752685005651437noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18684504.post-20260671555790366952009-03-22T07:24:00.002-05:002009-03-22T08:16:32.845-05:00<strong><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:130%;">SUNDAY SHUFFLE #134</span></strong><br /><span style="font-family:times new roman;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">I'm on my second spring break of the year, so this week will either bring a handful of blog posts or I'll just accept the fact that I'm just a Sunday shuffler...</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">1. Where's That Hit?/Hoodoo Gurus (3)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">2. Before I Do/Sloan (12)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">3. These Days Nothing But Sunshine/The Clientele (8)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">4. Challengers/The New Pornographers (22)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">5. Working Girls (Sunlight Shines)/Pernice Brothers (15)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">6. How To Fight Loneliness/Wilco (1)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">7. Little Round Mirrors/Harvey Danger (46)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">8. Green River/Creedence Clearwater Revival (9)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">9. Open Eyes/Apples In Stereo (13)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">10. Where I'm Anymore/Grandaddy (13)</span>Justin Steinerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09151752685005651437noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18684504.post-86474754810339661632009-03-15T08:06:00.003-05:002009-03-15T09:28:11.905-05:00<strong><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:130%;">SUNDAY SHUFFLE #133</span></strong><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">The Sunday Shuffle is determined by turning the shuffle mode on and then taking the first 10 songs that I have loaded onto iTunes. I share the computer with my wife and son, so there is plenty of music I don't care for and don't claim. Here's <em>my</em> music...</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">1. Andalucia/Crooked Fingers (3)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">2. Black Out/Pavement (7)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">3. Souverian/Andrew Bird (5)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">4. Shaped Like a Gun/Verbena (3)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">5. Jet Stream/Brendan Benson (19)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">6. Town Where You Belong/Earlimart (9)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">7. Campershell Dreams/Grandaddy (13)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">8. Giving It Up/Josh Rouse (11)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">9. Charly/Higgins (5)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">10. It's Natural To Be Afraid/Explosions In The Sky (12)</span>Justin Steinerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09151752685005651437noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18684504.post-45799725924982430562009-03-08T08:08:00.003-05:002009-03-08T09:10:07.177-05:00<strong><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:130%;">SUNDAY SHUFFLE #132</span></strong><br /><span style="font-family:times new roman;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">I'm on my college spring break this week, so maybe I'll get to other posts. Maybe. This past week was one where I was in more of a reading mode than a watching mode...I really don't have time to be in both at once. I'm always in a listening mode, though, so let's get to the songs...</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">1. Red Dust/Iron And Wine/Calexico (11)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">2. Apple/Saturday Looks Good To Me (9)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">3. Jornada Del Muerto #20/South San Gabriel (5)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">4. A Cunning Latch/Portastatic (4)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">5. No Backbone/The Lemonheads (14)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">6. Fisher of Men/M. Ward (6)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">7. Marie Provost/Nick Lowe (5)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">8. Elijah/The Mountain Goats (9)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">9. Jimmy the Exploder/The White Stripes (10)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">10. If It Works/Tokyo Police Club (12)</span>Justin Steinerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09151752685005651437noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18684504.post-8728069998949340612009-03-02T22:26:00.002-06:002009-03-02T22:33:42.089-06:00<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large; font-weight: bold;">FEBRUARY 2009 ROUNDUP</span><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 18px;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial;">I started doing one tonight but I ended up boring myself and erased it. I may just discontinue this feature. What I'd rather do is write more meaningful posts about what I've consumed rather than the laundry lists, so this is either the first step in that direction or just more waffling. Time will tell...</span></span></div>Justin Steinerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09151752685005651437noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18684504.post-38051409586150933182009-03-02T21:35:00.002-06:002009-03-02T22:20:31.367-06:00<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 18px; font-weight: bold;">SUNDAY SHUFFLE #131 (MONDAY EDITION)</span><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 18px; font-weight: bold;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: medium;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'times new roman';">We've been having some internet issues over the past few days and I wasn't able to get the suffle done yesterday. It's after 9:30 on Monday night but my week just doesn't feel right unless it starts off with the shuffle, so here we go...</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'times new roman';"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'times new roman';">1. Tractor Rape Chain/Guided By Voices (6)</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'times new roman';">2. 1995/Luna (6)</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'times new roman';">3. Pink Clouds/Superchunk (9)</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'times new roman';">4. pleasure is mine/Matthew Sweet (7)</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'times new roman';">5. The Death Of Big Ed Delahanty/The Baseball Project (3)</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'times new roman';">6. Pinball Song/Slobberbone (16)</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'times new roman';">7. Grounded/Pavement (5)</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'times new roman';">8. What Do You Go Home To?/Explosions In The Sky (9)</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'times new roman';">9. Imitosis/Andrew Bird (8)</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: 'times new roman';">10. Summerteeth (live)/Jeff Tweedy (9)</span></div>Justin Steinerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09151752685005651437noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18684504.post-74982078595582280882009-02-28T10:10:00.002-06:002009-02-28T10:14:42.861-06:00<strong><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:130%;">eMUSIC ROUND THIRTY-SEVEN</span></strong><br /><span style="font-family:times new roman;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">This month marks the start of my fourth year with eMusic and I continue to be very happy with the service. My biggest problem is trying to get my downloads to work out every month but I've managed to do it 36 times, so I guess it's not that big of a problem. Anyway, here's what I downloaded in February...</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;"><strong>Ben Kweller/Changing Horses</strong></span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;"><strong>The Henry Clay People/For Cheap Or For Free</strong></span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;"><strong>M. Ward/Hold Time</strong></span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;"><strong>Jason Isbell and The 400 Unit/Jason Isbell and The 400 Unit</strong></span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;"><strong>Le Switch/And Now...Le Switch</strong></span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;"><strong>J. Tillman/Minor Works</strong></span>Justin Steinerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09151752685005651437noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18684504.post-73765106060688953032009-02-22T07:37:00.002-06:002009-02-22T09:14:28.612-06:00<strong><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:130%;">SUNDAY SHUFFLE #130</span></strong><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">Lots of college work this week wiped out any chance of posting. I may get one or two up today but I've got a pretty bad cold, so my head isn't that sharp. We'll see. It doesn't take any brainpower to bring you today's ten, however, so without further rambling...</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">1. Half Dead/The Mountain Goats (9)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">2. Nineteen Seventy Nine/Lucero (4)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">3. California Stopover/The Ladybug Transistor (7)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">4. Shooting Rockets (From the Desk of Night's Ape)/Destroyer (8)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">5. The Next Messiah/Jenny Lewis (8)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">6. Don't Buy the Realistic/Spoon (3)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">7. Black Hole/The Rosebuds (8)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">8. Little Brother/Elk City (10)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">9. Black Rain, Black Rain/A.A. Bondy (13)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">10. Suzy Lee/The White Stripes (11)</span>Justin Steinerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09151752685005651437noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18684504.post-50562204253600459092009-02-15T15:11:00.003-06:002009-02-15T15:37:44.088-06:00<strong><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:130%;">ASIMOV'S JAN. 2009</span></strong><br /><span style="font-family:times new roman;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">I finished this issue a few weeks ago but never got around to writing about it. It got recycled back then but I think I can remember well enough to say a few things about the stories; I'd like to not miss writing about a month of either <em>Asimov's</em> or <em>F&SF</em> this year.</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">The issue started off with Mary Rosenblum's "Lion Walk," where a mystery arises about girls getting killed on a nature preserve in the near future. Rosenblum is not concerned only with the mystery but where society has gotten to. It's good solid SF.</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">"Passing Perry Crater Base, Time Uncertain" is a short piece by Larry Niven that was okay but not memorable enough that I can remember anything about it other than my general impression.</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">Will McIntosh's "Bridesicle," on the other hand, is completely memorable. It's set in (perhaps) the same future as a previous <em>Asimov's</em> story (was it "Midnight Blue?") where people who die can stick around in the consciousness of their offspring. This story goes even further, into a future where the cryogenically-frozen dead can be brought back to life (and maybe to a real body) if they become brides. It's told from the perspective of a prospective "bridesicle" who also happens to be a lesbian. Good stuff.</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">"Five Thousand Light Years from Birdland" by Robert R. Chase is a solid first contact story in which a member of the translation team is sacrificed by being sent to the alien world, except for the fact that he understands more than the rest. Solid SF.</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">E. Salih makes his debut with "Messiah Excelsa" but unfortunately doesn't do much for me with a story about time travel and Stradivarius. It wasn't the subject as much as the execution.</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">Nancy Kress looks at divorce through the lens of a dog who can "talk" in "Unintended Behavior," a sharp little tale that I liked.</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">Finally, "Uncle Bones" by Damien Broderick focuses on the conspiracy behind a treatment that allows the dead to live, albeit in a way that makes them outcasts from society (as well they would be). It's a fun story (and yes, I know that sounds incongruous but it is).</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">In all, it's another solid issue of <em>Asimov's</em>...</span>Justin Steinerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09151752685005651437noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18684504.post-19394112887765560182009-02-15T09:05:00.002-06:002009-02-15T09:43:11.576-06:00<strong><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:130%;">SUNDAY SHUFFLE #129</span></strong><br /><span style="font-family:times new roman;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">I still have two days left of my weekend (minus a couple hours teaching at the Y tomorrow), which makes me happy. I've got things to do, of course, but it's nice not to have to try and get it all done immediately. What I will do immediately is hit you with 10 songs from my iTunes...</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">1. Frightening Lives/Broken Social Scene Presents: Kevin Drew (6)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">2. Written Invitation/The Whigs (19)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">3. Slope Song/The Essex Green (22)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">4. Buffalo Boots/Luna (3)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">5. Nursery, Academy/Tokyo Police Club (4)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">6. Shiftee/The Broken West (20)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">7. a second reply to st anselm of canterbury (ps 17:15)/The Prayers & Tears of Arthur Digby Sellers (17)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">8. Submarines Of Stockholm/A.C. Newman (9)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">9. Heatseeker/Two Hours Traffic (12)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">10. New Year's Day/The Broken West (21)</span>Justin Steinerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09151752685005651437noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18684504.post-11505086777613120322009-02-08T08:01:00.002-06:002009-02-08T10:06:45.907-06:00<strong><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:130%;">SUNDAY SHUFFLE #128</span></strong><br /><span style="font-family:times new roman;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">I started a couple different posts this week but I ended up deleting them. Maybe this week I'll actually write something and post it! But right now I'm going to get to the music since we're going out to breakfast in the near future...</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">1. You Can Always Count On Me (In The Worst Way)/Superchunk (8)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">2. Queen of Cans and Jars/Guided By Voices (6)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">3. Before I Do/Sloan (11)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">4. This Is Something I Might Miss/I Love Math (3)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">5. San Francisco/Lucero (4)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">6. There's A Reason/A.A. Bondy (14)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">7. Neon Bible/Arcade Fire (16)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">8. Mistaken For Strangers/The National (16)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">9. About This Love/Alejandro Escovedo (1)</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">10. Labyrinthian Pomp/Of Montreal (7)</span>Justin Steinerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09151752685005651437noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18684504.post-85873304623564684562009-02-01T15:49:00.004-06:002009-02-01T16:22:41.540-06:00<strong><span style="font-family:arial;font-size:130%;">JANUARY 2009 ROUNDUP</span></strong><br /><span style="font-family:times new roman;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">I wasn't going to do these this year but then I realized I hadn't talked a lot about my pop culture intake lately and this is a (easy) way to do it. I also decided that this year I will count books and comics in the month I read most of them; for example, I started reading a trade yesterday but only read 2 out of the 6 issues collected, so that trade will go on February's log. Okay, blah blah...</span><br /><span style="font-family:times new roman;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">I read 2 books in January (<em>Prince of Stories</em> and <em>The Physiognomy</em>). The latter is by Jeffrey Ford, who is one of my favorite writers. It is the first of a trilogy, which was reissued by Golden Gryphon late last year. I liked it, of course, and just a short while ago I started on the next book in the series. Anyway, I'm on a pace for 24 books read this year and it may end up being close to that...we'll see. Last January I read 4 books; my overall average books read in January for the last three years is 2.67.</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">I read 19 stories in January. Those stories came from the Dec. 2008 and Jan. 2009 issues of <em>Asimov's</em> and the Dec. 2008 issue of <em>F&SF</em>. I also read 19 stories last January; my overall average stories read in January for the last three years is 22.3.</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">I read 4 comics in January, 3 of which trades (<em>Superman and the Legion of Super-Heroes</em>; <em>Fables Vol. 11: War and Pieces</em>; and <em>Scalped Vol. 1: Indian Country</em>). The other was the first issue of <em>Incognito</em>. Last January I read 7 comics, 4 of which were trades; my overall average comics read in January for the last three years is 9 (3.3 trades).</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">I bought 3 CDs and downloaded 6 more for a total of 9 new CDs in January (the downloads were covered in yesterday's eMusic post; the others were Bruce Springsteen's <em>Working On A Dream</em>; Mark Olson & Gary Louris' <em>Ready For the Flood,</em> and the reissue of The Replacements' <em>All Shook Down</em>). Last January I got 7 new CDs (5 downloads); my overall average of CDs bought in January for the last three years is 8.3 (6 downloads).</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">I didn't see any movies in the theater in January. I also didn't see any movies in the theater last January; my overall average of movies seen in January for the last three years is .3.</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">Once again, I've started keeping track of what I'm watching on DVD. I watched all 12 episodes on <em>Flight of the Conchords Season One</em>, all 10 episodes of <em>Battlestar Galactica Seson 4.0</em>, and 6 episodes of <em>Superman: The Animated Series Vol. 3</em> for a total of 28 episodes. In addition, I watched one commentary (<em>S:TAS Vol. 3</em>), two features (<em>BSG Vol. 4.0</em> and <em>S:TAS Vol. 3</em>), and the whole of the DVD that came with my deluxe edition of <em>Working On A Dream</em>. That gives me 33 separate DVD viewings in January, more than 1 a day.</span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;"></span><br /><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;">I have not kept track of all the TV I've watched In January and won't do so this year. That said, I'll plan on doing a "What I'm Watching" post in the near future.</span>Justin Steinerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09151752685005651437noreply@blogger.com0