19: Yuletide (or Holiday) Cheer

From me to you (“you” being the only person who may be reading this), hopefully you and your family are having a merry Christmas. I’ll be busy until 2007, because I got resolutions to make and some to keep. See you at New Year’s Day…

18: Stu's Favorite Songs of All Time, Part 2

As promised, a continuation of the list I started a while back (in case you were actually interested in my inane ramblings):

Isaac Hayes, Walk On By: Dionne Warwick did this Burt Bacharach penned tune, but this version of it has lingered on in my brain for some reason. It’s slower, but a lot more funky.

Sarah McLachlan, Possession: Okay, I confess. This one is odd, especially knowing me. And especially since the subject matter its based on is equally disturbing. This pre-Lilith Fair tune though is quite mesmerizing.

Motorhead, Ace of Spades: Considering the previous two entries, this seems rather a sharp left turn in musical taste. However, this two and a half minute speed metal classic gets me up and roaring. It makes me want to grow my hair out like I did some years back.

The Brothers Johnson, Strawberry Letter 23: If you ever seen Jackie Brown, you might remember this as the tune that Samuel Jackson plays taking Chris Tucker to his death in the trunk of a car. It’s still a nice jam nonetheless.

Run-D.M.C., Rock Box: One of the reasons many white boys in the eighties love rap, myself among them, is these Adidas wearing guys. While some will argue other tunes from them as their favorite (It’s Tricky, Walk This Way), this one is it for me.

The Cure, Pictures of You: Wasn’t big into the Goth scene or The Cure growing up, but now I really dig it, especially this particular tune.

The Smiths, How Soon Is Now: Another Goth-oriented classic. Nice, smooth, and moody. Love them distorted guitars.

The Rolling Stones, Tumbling Dice: One of my top favorites in the favorites folder. The Stones get into a bluesy riff and make a really great tune to listen and sing to in the car. “Got to roll me…”

To be continued again another time…

17: current stimuli for November 24, 2006

MOVIES: "Hard Candy": A mind-eff for guys. Especially for you guys who love your privates.
"Mission: Impossible III": I quite liked this one, despite any controversy about Mr. Cruise. "Slither": Nasty, sticky fun with bugs and "some f---ed up sh-t". "Hot Fuzz" (trailer): The guys of "Shaun of the Dead" take on cops, and from what I can see, hilarity ensues.
MUSIC: Deftones, "Saturday Night Wrist", Muse, "Black Holes and Revelations"
TV: "Battlestar Galactica": BEST. SEASON. EVER. "South Park": The recent Buck Rogers parody had me crying and laughing in pain.
"Is it true that if you shoot a certain part of the human head, it will explode?"

16: Thanksgiving Sleep-In?

Well, hopefully those three (let's face it, probably one) person(s) reading this hopefully enjoyed their Thanksgiving. Me, I'm still recovering from the stuffing I made. Dear Lord, why do I have to be such a good cook of fattening foods? I'm trying to keep off the pounds as it is! Also, I spent this vacation time to update my other blog: http://avstimuli.blogspot.com with some new reviews and also got my TV working again. Hooray for me! More ramblings very soon...

15: Current Stimuli for October 10, 2006

MOVIES: "United 93": One of the most gripping films I have seen in a long time, and my favorite film of this year. "The Proposition": A Western in the Outback? Well, color me shocked by this one. "X-Men: The Last Stand": Not as bad as some would claim, more like "Return of The Jedi" than "Return of The King". "300 (trailer)": One of my favorite comics becomes a movie, and it looks good too. March is seeming closer now...
MUSIC: The Killers, "Sam's Town"; Jet, "Shine On"; Audioslave, "Revelations"; Gnarls Barkley, "St. Elsewhere"
TV: "Battlestar Galactica": Just saw the third season opener and am still in awe.
"The Office": I came to this one late, and am kicking myself for it.
"South Park": A new episode on "World of Warcraft" that kept me in stitches. Only because I know people who play, but they are no where as far gone as on that episode. "Mom, more Hot Pockets!"

14: Stu's Favorite Songs of All Time, Part 1

Everyone’s got them, myself included. The songs that you just stop and listen to. So, I thought in the interest of disclosure, I’d share a few of my favorite songs ever in this posting (with more to follow):

Led Zeppelin, Over the Hills and Far Away: Out of the many great songs this band has managed to create, why this one? The guitar from Jimmy Page and vocals by Robert Plant in the first two minutes is reason enough for me to keep listening. The rest of it is as good.

This Mortal Coil, Song to the Siren: Man, I don’t even know how to explain this one. While not a band in the normal sense (it was a project involving artists who were on the same label), this one from their album It’ll End in Tears still haunts me every time I hear it. Something about Liz Fraser’s vocals on this linger on in my brain. It’s popped up in a few commercials here and there, but my discovery of this goes back to the David Lynch movie Lost Highway, where two of the main characters make love in the desert. Naked. Under car lights. Not my cup of tea when it comes to lovemaking, but the song seemed to last in my mind longer than that movie did.

Public Enemy, Black Steel In The Hour of Chaos: A rough and tough tale of black men busting out of prison. Deeply political, and for a song done in 1988, the opening lines of this one still stick out: I got a letter from the government the other day/ I opened and read it and said they were suckas. Preach on, brother Chuck D.

AC/DC, Back In Black: A great rock tune if there ever was one. I need to crank this up whenever I hear it.

Jimi Hendrix, Foxy Lady: Just about the majority of Jimi’s tunes would fit in this list in my opinion, but this one gets the mojo going. If you're not into this one ladies, I just don’t know what to think of you.

Depeche Mode, Enjoy the Silence: My cousin in Fresno and I dig this song. The production on this one is amazing, as I think it’s the band’s greatest musical hurrah.

To be continued another time…

13: current stimuli for May 7, 2006

MOVIES: "King Kong": Long movie, but still good. Never did I think I'd see a movie with tragic love AND dinosaurs. Beat that, "Jurassic Park". "Walk the Line": I like Johnny Cash's music, so this was a no-brainer for me. "Network": One of my favorite movies ever. Ever ten minutes has something quote worthy. Ahead of its time, and still surprising as ever. MUSIC: Pearl Jam, "Pearl Jam"; Tool, "10,000 Days"; Anthony Hamilton, "Comin' Up Where I'm From" (loved this one when it came out, and now back on my jukebox again); Ides of March, "Vehicle" (a 70's soul gem you probably heard before, but just don't remember). "Think about it. A hour of airline crahses. Automobile smash-ups. The Death Hour. Fun for the whole family. It'll knock that ****in' Disney right off the air." --from Network (1976)

12: Someone forgot the first two rules of Fight Club...

Being born in Fresno, California, I can claim with some assurance that when I ended up in a fight, no one videotaped them and posted them on the Internet. Not say, like the recent video of two girls in my hometown duking it out on a street that was posted on MySpace not too long ago. Now, while this is a good thing this is being dealt with by the police, it does beg the question: are our young criminals getting dumber every year? Since when do you tape evidence, and then post it online where EVERYBODY can see? Doesn’t really help your defense now, does it? A few years ago, some kids taped themselves firing paintballs at people from a moving car. Guess what else they taped? The cops that pulled them over and busted them! I suppose the bright side of this is that it may be a good thing that these young “gangstas” in training aren’t wising up. It makes it easier to put them in prison. Remember…”do not talk about Fight Club”, and “DO NOT TALK about Fight Club.”

11: Everything's Not Okay, April (I Promise)

Ah April, how I hate thee…let me count the ways. Tax time, rising gas prices, and nary a budget to pay it all in. I do find it very disturbing that Easter Sunday occurs the day before taxes are due in the mail this year. It’s almost a conspiracy. A day of prayer and celebration for Jesus before getting turned into a human money piñata for Uncle Sam. Maybe it wouldn’t be as bad or as painful if I didn’t have to pay 3 bucks for a gallon of gas…Oh, who am I kidding? I’ve never liked April…as a month. It’s the month that reminds me of those “Peanuts” cartoons where Lucy props up the football for Charlie Brown to kick, only to pull it away from him at the last minute, dropping him on his back. Well, I’d like to leave this special message for April (excluding Easter, of course): EFF YOU APRIL! EFF YOU UP THE EFFIN’ EAR! There, I said it…Come on, May, hurry up and get here, why don’t ya!

10: stimuli for February 18, 2006

MOVIES: "The Constant Gardener": A favorite of mine from last year. DVD: "The Outsiders: The Complete Novel": Interesting story I have about this movie and how it came to be made, but I'll bring that up another time. TV: "24": 'A soap opera for action movie buffs'? More like rock cocaine for me. Not that I have had any rock before, but its that addictive for me. MUSIC: Death Cab For Cutie, "Soul Meets Body", Foo Fighters, "Resolve", Kanye West, "Touch the Sky", Coldplay, "Kingdom Come".

9: hugs and kisses

Well, Valentine's Day has come and gone. I thought I'd offer a belated greeting to all the ladies I've known and to those who seem to know me. Hope you all weren't lonely this 14th. Nothing but love here for ya. Cheesy to say, I know. But I once said I've got the heart of a romantic and the mind of a cynic. The mind got beat today. For the cynics, I'm sorry.

8: Resolutions

• Well, it's another year and another time to make resolutions regarding my life. However, as I have discovered, keeping them is harder than it is to make them. So, in order to stop the jinx this year, here is the list of things I resolve NOT to do: --I resolve NOT to post as many posts as I do on my blogs: --I resolve NOT to enjoy being myself; --I resolve NOT to spend as little and to NOT save my money; --I resolve NOT to eat so little; --I resolve NOT to be positive; --I resolve NOT to experience new things; and --I resolve NOT to get a girlfriend. See, now that I've resolved not to do the following, that means it will happen. Hot damn, I like reverse psychology. I'll do my best to fulfill my resolutions, especially the blog postings one. I mean, I'll try not to post as much as I do. Waitaminute, I thought I was going to post more. Ummm.....I think I confused myself. Didn't resolve NOT to confuse myself. Or is it the other way around? Ugh. I'll have to sleep on that one...