top five albums of the last decade, part five: 2008 & 2009

2008

5. Vampire Weekend - Vampire Weekend

"Who gives a fuck about an Oxford comma?" Actually, I happen to like the Oxford comma. I think it helps to avoid confusion. But anyways, that isn't the point of this. This is another great workout record, and it's got a song titled "Walcott"! Although I doubt Theo Walcott has ever been to Cape Cod.

4. Hold On Now, Youngster - Los Campesinos

Los Campesinos are a band from Wales that aren't actually Welsh. Another very fun album, plus the girl is a ginger!

3. ¿Cómo Te Llama? - Albert Hammond, Jr.

Overall I don't like this album as much as Yours To Keep, but it's got a few of my favorite songs by him, including "The Boss Americana", "Gfc", and "Victory At Monterey".

2. Oracular Spectacular - MGMT

I heard how good this album was from several different people when it came out, but I didn't believe them, and for a while was all "MGMT, meh whatever, they aren't that good." Then I actually got the whole album and had to kick myself because they are that good. Love it.

1. Raise The Dead - Phantom Planet

I first saw that video soon after it was put up in 2007 and I became obsessed with the song and absolutely couldn't wait for the album to come out. Also I love how Darren commented on the video through PP's official youtube channel. I don't know if this is my favorite Phantom Planet album, but I do think it is their most complete. They grew and changed their sound so much throughout the first three albums, and this is the final result. Even though I was very upset when they called it quits, this was a great album to end on.

2009

5. Troubadour - K'naan

Yes, more rap. Deal with it Stephanie. I got this song as a free iTunes download, and then a few weeks later I learned that his song "Waving Flag" was picked as the official 2010 World Cup song. So I bought the whole album and it's super catchy.

4. To Lose My Life - White Lies

Total 80's post-punk throwback band and I love it. I first got "Death" in an Urban Outfitters compilation CD free with a purchase, then in January I started seeing ads for the album in the London underground, and then I finally got it online (thanks Roz!)

3. Tonight: Franz Ferdinand - Franz Ferdinand

The information for this video on youtube is "Alex Kapranos of the band commented - Tonight: Franz Ferdinand is music of the night: to fling yourself around your room to as you psyche yourself for a night of hedonism, for the dance-floor, flirtation, for your desolate heart-stop, for losing it and loving losing it, for the chemical surge in your bloodstream. Its for that lonely hour gently rocking yourself waiting for dawn and it all to be even again." This is why I love songwriters.

2. Veckatimest - Grizzly Bear

I heard about this album around the time it came out over the summer, but I didn't get it until a month or two ago. So it's been on my current listening playlist and I am really liking it a lot.

1. Quicken The Heart - Maxïmo Park

For some reason, this song makes me really melancholy. It's hard to find more poetic representation of a storm than "static headlights glow / in the flooded streets below / the TV turns to snow / gutters weep with overflow", and the whole song has a very bittersweet feeling. I've talked about how much I love Maxïmo Park several times before so I'm not going to bore you all again, but this was definitely my favorite album of the past year.

top five albums of the last decade, part four: 2006 & 2007

2006

5. Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not - Arctic Monkeys

I know lots of English people got annoyed when this album came out because of all the hype about a band that wasn't really all that great. But since I was safely in my American bubble, I didn't get any of that, and I just enjoyed it for what it is: a fun record about boring teenage life sung in a very strong Yorkshire accent. And you all know how I love the northerners!

4. Robbers & Cowards - Cold War Kids

This is an awesome video for an amazing song. This album is a very cool blend of west coast quirky rock and folksy-bluesy undertones.

3. Yours To Keep - Albert Hammond, Jr.

While browsing youtube for a video to link to, I noticed that a lot of comments had to do with the Jonas Brothers. Apparently they wrote a song about a pizza girl (?) that sounds a lot like "Call An Ambulance". So I had to look it up and it does sound really similar, and now I'm getting Jonas Brothers youtube recommendations. Fuck them. Anyways, this guy is awesome. The guitars still sound very Strokesy, but without Casablancas' voice the overall sound is a lot less rock with a little more pop.

2. Ganging Up On The Sun - Guster

Like Phantom Planet, Guster have been one of my favorite bands for a very long time, and I think they will always be up there. I'm pretty sure we have three copies of this CD floating around our house, because my brother and sister and I were all in different places during the summer that it was released, and we all bought it. It's that good.

1. Bring It Back - Mates of State

(I'm not sure what's going on in this video. You can ignore it.) I really like male-female vocals, and this husband and wife duo is one of the best around. Neither of them have particularly incredible voices, but the harmonies and especially the rhythms are really great.

2007

5. The Good, The Bad, and The Queen - The Good, The Bad, and The Queen

This album was a collaboration between singer Damon Albarn (of Blur and Gorillaz fame), guitarist Simon Tong (The Verve), bassist Paul Simonon (The Clash), and drummer Tony Allen (Feta Kuli). It's not an album that really pops out at you, but rather one that grows on you. It's one of my studying records: not too loud or upbeat that it will distract me, but interesting enough to keep me awake.

4. Night Falls Over Kortedala - Jens Lekman

The sophomore album from everyone's favorite Swedish crooner, Night Falls Over Kortedala is happy, romantic, sometimes melancholic, and always witty. I totally see why my best friend is a little bit in love with him.

3. I'll Be Lightning - Liam Finn

Liam Finn is one of those people that are born into rock royalty (weird fact: I have a cousin named Neil Finn), but he's not hiding in his father's shadow. I'll Be Lightning is a hauntingly beautiful debut album from a talented young musician. This is another one of my study-at-Starbucks records.

2. Neon Bible - Arcade Fire

In my opinion, Neon Bible isn't as good as Funeral, but it's still great (especially the first four songs). Again, the mix of French and English lyrics make me geekily happy, especially when I can understand them, i.e. "le miroir casse / the mirror casts mon reflet partout" from Black Mirror.

1. In Rainbows - Radiohead

I remember the day this album came out. It was the infamous "pay what you want" deal, and their website crashed because so many people were trying to download it. After I finally got it, I didn't stop listening to it for about two months. And then I saw them in concert and it was uh-mazing.

top five albums of the last decade, part three: 2004 & 2005

2004

5. So Jealous - Tegan and Sara

I love Canadians. And I love twin sister duos (see Exit Clov). So yeah, I love Tegan and Sara. I first heard of them through Phantom Planet's old blog, when Darren and Jeff played around with a cover of "Walking With A Ghost". I loved the song so I looked it up and found this gem of an album.

4. Franz Ferdinand - Franz Ferdinand

The beginning bit of "Take Me Out" was my first musical phone ringtone ever. I actually thought it was so weird when I first heard it, but I couldn't get it out of my head.

3. Futures - Jimmy Eat World

I bought this CD for my brother for his birthday the year it came out, and then promptly stole it. I may be a bad sister but I do have cracking good taste in music! Jimmy Eat World are often lumped in with other random pop-punk or emo bands from the era, but they are really so much better than that.

2. Antics - Interpol

"I'm timeless like a broken watch / I make money like Fred Astaire" Awesome. I still regularly listen to this album.

1. Funeral - Arcade Fire

This is another band that I didn't love until recently. I thought they were okay for years, but never really tried to listen to a whole album. But last summer and this past semester I have become obsessed. I love the mixture of singing in French and English; it creates a beautiful, if strange, sound.

2005

5. Has A Good Home - Final Fantasy

I just found this video when I was searching for a song to link to, and it made me so happy. I love Owen Pallett. He was one of the collaborators on Arcade Fire's first album, but he is amazing on his own too. The electric violin fascinates me; it's so cool how he is like a one man orchestra, creating the melodies and harmonies live at the same time.

4. Silent Alarm - Bloc Party

Bloc Party aren't one of my favorite bands exactly, but the type of music they make is the reason I love British music. The British have a history of blending rock and dance music to create something that is much more fun to dance to than rap or techno. Of course it isn't limited to the UK; bands like MGMT and The Strokes and We Are Scientists do it too, which is probably why they're more popular in the UK than they are over here.

3. The Sunlandic Twins - Of Montreal

Despite the misleading name, Of Montreal is an American band. They're very quirky and I love them. Good to work out to and good to clean to because they put me in a good mood.

2. Illinois - Sufjan Stevens

There are some artists that are better live than in studio, and I think Sufjan is one of them. Not that I've ever seen him live unforch, but all of his live youtube videos are fantastic (Owen Pallett also falls under this category). Plus, of course I love the U 0f I-like gear.

1. Twin Cinema - The New Pornographers

I've talked about this album before so I'm not going to go into detail about why I love it. Suffice it to say that I really do.

top five albums of the last decade, part two: 2002 & 2003

2002

5. Un Día Normal - Juanes

I just discovered Juanes a few summers ago (I never took high school Spanish, so I didn't get to translate his lyrics - we just got MC Solaar in French class), but Latino pop has always been a guilty pleasure of mine, and this is some fantastic stuff. The Black Eyed Peas actually did a remix of La Paga that I like a lot, although the original is better.

4. Turn On The Bright Lights - Interpol

I actually didn't get this album until last year, and I don't like it as much as Antics, but it's still great.

3. Songs About Jane - Maroon 5

My sister got this album from a friend of hers right when it came out, and we both quickly became obsessed. Maroon 5 was the first band I ever saw in concert, when they were opening for John Mayer. They didn't get popular until like two or three years after they released their debut, and it was my first real experience with discovering awesome music before everyone else and being able to say I told you so. Hee, I still love that feeling.

2. O - Damien Rice

There are certain albums that bring me back to a very specific place and time when I listen to them. This album reminds me of summer camp in 2006. I had heard Damien Rice before that and didn't pay much attention, but my friend played "The Blower's Daughter" in one of the talent shows and I fell in love with it.

1. A Rush Of Blood To The Head - Coldplay

Like I said earlier, I don't listen to Coldplay all that much anymore, and I hadn't listened to this album in years until I started making this list. Then I re-listened and remembered how amazing it is.

2003

5. Keep It Together - Guster

This was such a great year for music that it was really hard to narrow this list down. But this album definitely deserves a place. Guster's best in my opinion, with "Amsterdam", "Homecoming King", "Keep It Together", and "Come Downstairs and Say Hello".

4. The Guest - Phantom Planet

This album--and band--is famous for "that OC song!" but there's much more to it than "California", which isn't even my favorite on the CD. Their first album was classic Cali pop rock, but this one is great because it has so many different sounding songs.

3. Absolution - Muse

This is the album that made me a Muse fangirl. I love the Rachmaninov influenced piano solo in "Butterflies & Hurricanes", "Hysteria" is my favorite road trip song, and "Time Is Running Out" is still one of the best songs ever.

2. Dear Catastrophe Waitress - Belle and Sebastian

I discovered Belle and Sebastian far too late. I had heard how good they were for years but I never got around to getting an album until pretty recently. Silly me. This album is freaking awesome. Go listen to it if you haven't.

1. Chutes Too Narrow - The Shins

I don't even know how to describe how much I love Chutes Too Narrow. When I try to think of my favorite song, I can't choose. For every time I think "Saint Simon", I remember "Gone for Good" and "Pink Bullets" and "So Says I" and I give up and go listen to the CD over and over.

apparently i like funny guys

I think I'm developing a thing for Joel McHale.

Of course I've always found him hilarious on The Soup, but I don't see it that often because I don't watch reality tv so I don't know what he's talking about half the time. Plus it's on past my bedtime.

But I finally started watching Community-which I had no idea he was in until tonight-and I've realized I'm a little bit in love. Something about the sarcasm mixed with the intelligence mixed with the arrogance is appealing to me. And don't ask me why I think arrogance is an attractive trait because I don't really know. Humility just kind of annoys me sometimes.

Plus, who knew he was so tall? You only see him from the torso up in The Soup so I always thought he was short, but he and Chevy Chase look like they're the same height! I'd be willing to overlook the light hair for that.

Am I crazy for thinking it or am I crazy for just now noticing?

top five albums of the last decade, part one: 2000 & 2001

This will be a five-part series to celebrate the musical awesomeness that was the naughties, now that they're just about over. The new millenium has become a tween, how exciting! I originally divided this up into country of origin, but decided to do a top five list by year instead because it was easier. It's also good this way because I can include both nostalgia albums and great albums that I didn't discover until years after their release.

2000

5. Country Grammar - Nelly

First rap album I ever had, and I still rock out to it when my itunes shuffles it on. Andale, andale, mama EI, EI! Don't judge.

4. The Moon And Antarctica - Modest Mouse

I've never been a huge Modest Mouse fan, but this was the album that everyone always told me to get if I wanted to try to get into them. So I finally got it and realized that yeah, its actually pretty good! I still don't love the band exactly (although I did get-and like-We Were Dead Before The Ship Even Sank because of Johnny Marr), but this is one of those CDs that should be in any music fan's collection.

3. Parachutes - Coldplay

I've gone through several stages with Coldplay. I actually remember hating the band around this time. They played "Yellow" on DC101 radio all the time, and I thought it was whiny and dull. It wasn't until A Rush Of Blood To The Head came out and my sister played it over and over again that I started to like them and rediscovered this album. Since then, they have both grown and...shrunk on me, but this is still a fantastic debut album from an iconic band of the 00s.

2. Mass Romantic - The New Pornographers

The debut album from one of my favorite bands. It's not as good as Twin Cinema, but I still love it. The title track is one of the best on the CD, and I also love "Jackie", which is slightly strange but fun.

1. Kid A - Radiohead

First Radiohead album of the decade, and it was certainly a good one. It was definitely boundary-pushing with it's weird electronic feel, which is one of the reasons it is so memorable. Another reason is that it produced one of the best songs to be performed live in "Idioteque". The crowd turns into a giant rave dance floor and Thom Yorke does his crazy dance.


2001

5. Room For Squares - John Mayer

I don't listen to this album much anymore, but whenever I do, I get serious flashbacks to ninth grade. Katie and Alex, my two gym/health class buddies, introduced me to it when we were supposed to be watching a Kevin Costner baseball movie. It wasn't one of the good ones, so we were bored. So I spent a few months listening to it through Alex's headphones, then got it for Christmas and it didn't leave my CD player for ages.

4. Rockin' The Suburbs - Ben Folds

I was introduced to Ben Folds by my best friend from high school, who is a pianist so gets excited when any artist uses the piano in their music. We saw him in concert at the beginning of junior year during his Songs For Silverman tour, and it was amazing. Only the second concert I ever went to but it was still one of the best because he is such a great performer. I love this album because it is a mix of silly Ben Folds Five-esque songs and more mature songs, like the father's anthem "Still Fighting It".

3. Up The Bracket - The Libertines

I didn't know about The Libertines until right about the time that they broke up, but this was one of the first British indie bands that I heard that really sparked the whole obsession. I like this album better than their second, because it's kind of rough and loud and weird, like how The Clash would sound today. Pete Doherty grosses me out a little, but he and Carl Barat really were a great songwriting team and I miss them together.

2. Oh, Inverted World - The Shins

I also got this album from Emily, right around the time when we were discovering good music. The Shins became one of my favorite bands then, and they remain so now. I now like Chutes Too Narrow a bit better, but this holds a special place in my heart because it was my introduction to a fantastic band, and it was my favorite CD for a very long time. "New Slang" is of course a gorgeous song and probably their most well known, but the whole album is full of great songs.

1. Origin of Symmetry - Muse

Oh Muse. I still miss the Muse of this era, even though I have grown to like their new sound. Absolution was the first of theirs that I got, but Origin of Symmetry was always my favorite after I discovered them all. This album wasn't even released in the US until 2005, but my sister's boyfriend at the time had a UK copy of it, so we were in luck. "Citizen Erased" is still my favorite song of theirs (specifically the live version that was on Hullabaloo, but the album version is great too).

the american public strikes again

I'm a little behind on my So You Think You Can Dance episodes, so I didn't see who was voted off last week until today.

Nathan is gone and I am sad.

I hate Mollee, she is so annoying and she needs to go. Like yesterday. She and Nathan never should have been paired together, and Nathan got voted off because he didn't get much of a chance to show his stuff with a better partner. He also seemed like kind of a douche, so maybe that's why people didn't vote for him, but he's still an amazing dancer.

Okay, the real reason I like him is because he danced his LA audition to Made Up Lovesong #43. Guillemots are <3 and so is this song.

Nathan was really only my third fave guy (go Jakob and Russell!) so I'm not too cut up about it, but the fact that he got voted off before Mollee is just stupid. And I liked Noelle too! Ugh, just total voting public fail.

Last thought: I freaking love Sonya Tayeh's choreography. Almost as much as Travis Wall and Tabitha and Napoleon.


I had the exact same thought as Adam while watching that routine; it reminded me a lot of The Garden with Courtney and Mark from season 4, and I loved that one just as much.

Yay dance.

the starbucks or the starbucks or the starbucks...

I saw this for the first time yesterday and split my sides laughing. I don't live in Arlington, but I'm not far from it and I know lots of people from there, and truer words have never been spoken (or rapped, I guess) about a place.



EDIT: I just found the Fairfax response!



Ooh, it's on now! (Although the Arlington one is better...sorry Funfax.)



Mmmm, bulgogi.

finally!

After November weather in the mid-70s, I was so ready for winter to get here.

And get here it did!

After the Arsenal win, I walked to campus with the vague idea of getting food. Then I realized that it was the first snowfall of the season, and so I had to get a peppermint mocha from Starbucks. When I got downtown, I decided to pick two up and take one to my friend LA, who was holed up inside her apartment because she hates snow.

On the way over however, the snow went from a light but steady dusting to a blinding swirl of white, and by the time I got there, I was soaked. So I ended up staying the afternoon because I didn't want to walk back in the blizzard.

Home sweet home!

sotw: this is the one

I should probably change this segment to song of the month. Or song of the year, with the way this blog is going. Oh well, maybe my weeks are just super long compared to the rest of the world.

Anyways, on to "This is the One". (Side note: I found out a few years ago that they play this song at Old Trafford when the ManUre players are taking the pitch. This was far more upsetting news to me than it probably should have been. It makes sense, as the Roses are from Manchester and Brown is unfortunately a red, but ugh. It makes me angry that they get such an awesome song while we have Elvis. Not that I dislike Elvis exactly, but I mean, come on.)

The Stone Roses lyrics have always had a sort of understated beauty to them in my opinion. They aren't too complicated (although the word "brigantine" is used in Waterfall; how often do you hear that in a song?) but they manage to convey very stark images or emotions when you hear them put to music. Being a travel whore, the lines "I'd like to leave the country / for a month of Sundays / burn the town where I was born" have always seemed to stick with me. (This is the SOUND of my soul!) This track isn't really one of their greatest lyrical moments, as it does get repetitive at the end. But it doesn't really need a lot of words; the way it's composed makes it a very powerful song anyways.

Ian Brown's voice is nearly impossible to hear , let alone decipher, for the first minute or so. But I've always liked the way the voice blends with the music: rather than sitting on top of the melody, it integrates with the melody, almost like an extra instrument in its own right. And the way the song is very quiet at the start and then has these bursts of sound is not only cool, it's great to tap fingers and toes (or legs or any other body part) along to. Definitely the "Good Part" of the song (see: YLNT). I also love the jangling sort of guitar sound that is so indicative of late 80s Britrock. Overall great melody and great composition.

This whole album is fantastic actually; definitely one of my favorites. Most people point to "I am the Resurrection" and "I Wanna Be Adored" as the staple Stone Roses songs, and while both are great, my favorites have always been this song, She Bangs the Drums, and Waterfall. Check them out if you have no idea what I've been rambling about in this post.

singlehandedly keeping the american economy afloat

Shopaholic, thy name is Sarah.

I have spent lots of money on myself lately. When, you know, Christmas is in about a month and I really need to be spending money on OTHER people. Here are some of my latest acquisitions (yes, this isn't even all of it).

Purple knit top from Anne Taylor Loft:
Blue Tahari dress and black pointed Steve Madden pumps:

ModCloth dress and purple boots (these I actually bought a month or two ago, but I had to take the dress to the tailor to get taken in so I still spent money on it recently):
Anthropologie dress and CL by Laundry shoes:

And this sweet hat from Forever 21 (this was actually only $4 so I don't know if it really counts):

I'd make a vow to stop buying clothes, but I know that won't happen because my sister just got a job at Urban Outfitters so now I get 40% off everything in my favorite store. 'Tis the season of consumerism!

help!

I am thinking of getting a new Arsenal shirt (I feel like I just got one, but oh well. I have an obsession and a money spending problem) but I can't decide which name to get on the back. I love them all so much and this feels like I'm picking favorites! So I need input.

poll by twiigs.com

serious news

Charlie Davies was involved in a serious car accident early this morning on the GW parkway in NoVA. He apparently suffered a broken leg and internal injuries, and went through extensive surgery. His injuries appear to be non-life threatening, but at the moment it's unclear as to how they will affect his career.

More about it here and here.

Get better soon, Charlie. Here's hoping it won't be long before he does the stanky leg again.

UPDATE from US Soccer :

U.S. National Soccer Team forward Charlie Davies is in serious but stable condition and resting following several hours of surgery at Washington Hospital Center in Washington, D.C. to treat injuries suffered in a one-car accident on the George Washington Parkway early Tuesday morning in Northern Virginia.

Davies suffered a lacerated bladder and fractures to the tibia and femur bones in his right leg. He also suffered facial fractures and a left elbow fracture. Davies was air-lifted to the hospital where a team of doctors first repaired a ruptured bladder and then inserted titanium rods in both the tibia, the bone in the lower leg, and the femur, which is the thigh bone, with no complications. Davies will be hospitalized for at least a week and additional surgeries will be required to stabilize his left elbow fracture and possibly the facial fractures.

“Injuries of this nature usually require a recovery period of six to 12 months and extensive rehabilitation,” said U.S. Soccer physician Dr. Dan Kalbac, who is with the team in D.C. and collaborated with the treating doctors. ”Due to Charlie’s fitness level, his prognosis for recovery and his ability to resume high-level competition is substantially improved.”

south africa 2010: be there

We did it!


In what I hear was an incredibly unconvincing win, the USMNT beat Honduras 3-2 to secure a spot in World Cup 2010. OOO-sah!

I didn't watch the game because 1) I've already gotten in trouble once for streaming too many games so I didn't want to get a judicial referral (fuck college) and 2) I was too tired to stay up anyways, especially if all I could do was read a live report.

But Conor Casey (Conor fucking Casey???) got a brace and Landy scored the third, and Honduras missed a penalty and did other various things to choke and ensure our passage into next summer's tournament. They'll probably still make it anyways.

So yeah, go us! We better shape up massively before next summer though if we want any sort of a chance to, erm, win a game or two.

they don't just listen to rap?

So Les Bleus have been growing on me lately.

Why, you ask?

No, it's not because of their stellar performances in the World Cup Qualifiers. And no, it's not because this crazy woman convinced me that Ray Domenech is awesome.

It's because they've started sporting awesome classic rock tees.

Yes, I know this one was from a photoshoot (that made him look very gay...) but still, good choice photogs.

But there is also this:
Um, I think Ribery has been raiding my closet.

One of my favorite t-shirts (and number five in my Top Five Albums of All Time list). Yes, he very well could have gotten the shirt because, i don't know, he really likes bananas. But I prefer to think that he's a fan of 60s experimental rock. Ribery would totally be in Ravenclaw.


Speaking of Frenchies and music, this post would not be complete without this gem. Let's play a game of spot the footballer!



Wow, two posts in three days! I'm on a roll...

tuesday night insanity

There are tons of things I should be writing about, like the wonderful 6-2 drubbing of Blackburn at the weekend, the beginning of hockey season and the awesome start that the Caps have had, or possibly even the reign of Napoleon for my French class.

Instead, I mark my brief return to the blogosphere by penning this masterpiece.


Lucy and I were talking this evening about football and Harry Potter (as we do) and the two subjects started to mix. The discussion started with Thomas Vermaelen clearly being a Slytherin. Not because he is evil (on the contrary, he is wonderful and amazing and full of so much win...wow, I'm pretty sure this infatuation is not going to go away anytime soon) but because he is pale and slightly vampire-esque and sticks his tongue out a lot like a snake. He just has a very Slytheriny vibe.

So we started sorting other footballers into houses, and this is what we came up with (side note: I was watching a replay of Saturday's Arsenal game, so a lot of these happen to be Gunners)...

Gryffindor [Head of house = Pep Guardiola]:

Thierry Henry
Cesc Fàbregas
Robin van Persie (although he could potentially be in Ravenclaw too...he's a smart guy)
Steven Gerrard
Theo Walcott
Raúl Gonzalez
Andres Iniesta
Alex Song (specifically Neville Longbottom. He used to be pretty hopeless, but he's really started to come into his own. Perhaps one day he will help to bring down Voldemort's army AKA Manchester United, OBV.)

Hufflepuff [Head of house = Guti AKA Professor Lockhart]:

Gonzalo Higuain
Vedran Ćorluka
Nicklas Bendtner
Manuel Almunia
Aaron Ramsey
Lukasz Podolski
Lionel Messi
David Beckham (Lucy tried her hardest to put him into Gryffindor, but I won't allow it because he was a ManUre player.)

Ravenclaw [Head of house = Arsène Wenger]:

Dennis Bergkamp
Niko Kranjčar
Iker Casillas
Fernando Torres
Xabi Alonso
Bojan Krkic

This house is pretty sparse...there aren't too many bright footballers around, are there?

Slytherin [Head of house = Sir Alex Ferguson]:

Thomas Vermaelen
Cristiano Ronaldo
Wayne Rooney
...actually, all ManUre players.
Didier Drogba
Michael Ballack
...actually, all Chelski players too.
Torsten Frings
Bastian Schweinsteiger
Oliver Kahn
...and pretty much all Germans (especially the ones in the 2002 World Cup squad.)
Martin Skrtel
Karim Benzema
Vito Mannone
Alvaro Arbeloa
Artur Boruc
Gerard Pique
Carles Puyol
Zlatan Ibrahimovic
Esteban Granero
Emmanuel Adebayor (Wormtail: used to be on the good side, but has gone very, very bad.)
All Italians (I know Steph will be happy about this one, being a Slytherin herself.)
Michael Owen (Lucy has dubbed him He Who Must Not Be Named, so clearly he's Voldy.)

Yeah so we put a lot of people in Slytherin. Like I said, not all of them are bad, some just have the right characteristics. But some really are evil, i.e. Drogba, Adebayor, and Ballack.


To borrow a phrase from my World Regions prof, I should really stop drinking. Good night, folks.

this is a rage post.

I've been ranting about this to various people since I found out about it yesterday, so I figured I'd post a general rant on here for everyone to read. This place is seriously turning into a "Sarah bitches about football" page. I know you love it...

So Tottenham Hotspur. I hate them. This is no surprise, as I am an Arsenal fan, but lately I've been hating them for a very different reason. 'ARRY KEEPS SIGNING PLAYERS I LIKE!

In the same way that Arsenal are the France of the Premier League and Liverpool are (or used to be) the Spain, Spurs are becoming the Croatia of English football.

I am not okay with this.

Luka Modric went, and I was sad because he's awesome. Then Vedran Corluka went, and it wasn't super surprising because he follows Luka everywhere, but it was very sad because he's hot and I don't like lusting over the opposition.

Nice manbag, Charlie.

Now it turns out they signed Niko Kranjcar and I just don't know how to deal. I love Niko. Niko is hot like Charlie, but his personality is a little more complex. He's a smart cookie and seems like a genuinely sweet guy. I know Arsenal don't need a player in his position, so I guess I can't really complain, but from a selfish standpoint I'd rather see him on a sinking Pompey ship than with the North London Scum. (Sorry Ven!)

Jay kay. Real hottie picture here.

I hate that I like so many of their players now, because logically that should mean I should hate them less, but it just makes me more annoyed at them because it's Tottenham. I'm so confused! Vanilla Bear says I should dispense with the hatred a little and learn to accept, but I'm pretty sure I can't do that.

So...other opinions?

he's a cheat!

[Somewhat unrelated note: I typed Eduardo da Silva in google image search to look for a picture to accompany this rant. I need to not do that ever again. I am now equal parts saddened and disgusted.]

Diving is bad. No two ways about it, it just is. And it depresses and embarrasses me when players I like engage in such "simulation". Yes, I'm looking at you Eduardo. I even wore your shirt yesterday! I thought you were better than that. Please don't make a habit of it.

That being said, the media hype that's surrounded this is ridiculous. He is not the only player to have ever attempted to gain a penalty that wasn't deserved, and he won't be the last. He's not a serial diver, and I don't believe he will ever become so. At least I hope not. And even if the penalty hadn't been given, we still would have won 4-1 on aggregate. WHAT IS THE BIG FUCKING DEAL? The media don't get this worked up when Drogba dives in every single Chelsea match he plays in. The media don't make a peep when an English hero like Stevie G happens to fall easily. Eduardo is not a bad guy, and while he shouldn't have done what he did, it's not the end of the world. All I'm asking for is a little consistency here!

Also, if I were Eduardo I'd be extremely wary of going up against any challenge, let alone crazy Artur Boruc. He probably was trying for the penalty, but I wouldn't be surprised if he had gone down just to avoid getting run into again.

Lastly, I'd just like to point out that every Arsenal fan I've talked to and comment I've seen online have all agreed that it was a dive and it shouldn't have been a penalty. Even "I didn't see it" Wenger said it! I can't remember hearing the same honesty from most Chelsea fans about the Anelka dive in the Champions League semifinal or Man United fans every time Cristiano Ronaldo made like a swan. Yes, I may have a massive sense of entitlement here, but Arsenal fans rock. That's all I'm saying. The end.

more summer soccer adventures

My computer is broken again, so I've been a bit m.i.a. lately. I want to post these though because I'm still all giddy over the game. And I don't even like Real Madrid that much!

(For Vanilla Bear)

So the game was awesome, even though it was a shut out. Poor DCU. Seeing Iker and Raul in person was so so good though!

fellow potterheads know what i'm talking about

As most of you know, I'm a huge nerd. So when July 31st rolls around, I immediately think of Harry Potter.

Happy birthday Harry! According to the original timeline of the book, he is 29 years old today.

It's also J.K. Rowling's birthday (weird coincidence, huh?) so happy birthday to her too!

Speaking of HP, I still haven't seen the sixth movie. I hear it's good, or as good as we can expect the movies to be, so I should watch it eventually.

for he's a jolly good vela

This afternoon was the Gold Cup final, and once again the USA played Mexico. Unlike two years ago though, this one sucked. 5-0 to Mexico, with all of the goals coming in the second half, and each goal being scored by a different player. Okay, so it was only the Gold Cup, and we were fielding what was basically a C team full of MLS players. But still, El Tri's recent World Cup qualifiers have been very substandard. Did they really have to choose this game to start playing well again?

The American fan in me is annoyed, slightly embarrassed, and a little worried as to how this will affect the World Cup qualifier at the Azteca in two weeks. The Arsenal fan in me is pretty damn excited, because let's face it, the second half was totally the Carlos Vela show. He only scored one of the goals but he set up several others. He was subbed on for Medina at the start of the second half and immediately invigorated the whole team. Here's hoping he can do the same for the Gunners this season. Who needs Adebayor? We've got Theo's Mexican Twin.

americans are stupid.

How did they vote this guy off??


Evan and Melissa needed to go, and they're both still here. It's all Tyce's fault for doing that stupid cancer dance. No one wanted to vote Melissa and Ade off after that, and while I didn't want Ade voted off, I did really want Melissa to go. I love ballerinas normally, but she's too one-dimensional and also kind of annoying. I used to love Evan, but he's long overstayed his welcome. Kupono was better than him, and Jason was better than all of the boys. My mom and I have decided that maybe we should actually start voting in these stupid things if we really care that much.

But seriously, what the fuck America? How can you not like a guy that looks like a cross between Eduardo da Silva, Goomba (haha thanks Ali), and a puppy dog? I am most seriously displeased.

spring break adventures, part three: when in rome...buy shot glasses of the pope

Warning: Very long and picture heavy post. There's a lot of history in this city.

I met up with three of the other RoHo internationals in Rome, which was fun except I'm really not a fan of one of the guys that came on the trip. He was his usual self, but we all tolerated it because, well, we were in Rome.

On the first day we checked into our hostel, then went to see the Four Fountains, which was a bit of a letdown because they were flanking a very busy intersection, so there were people and cars everywhere and nowhere to stand. We moved on quickly.

First full day we were there we visited the Trevi Fountain, the Spanish Steps, and walked around and got lost for a while.

Fontana di Trevi

The Spanish Steps

View from the top of the steps.

Day two was Ancient Rome day. BTW, the whole week I was in Italy it happened to be "culture week" meaning that tons of museums and exhibits and other things were free. So we only had to pay for the audio guides, and then we proceeded to get lost in the ruins, looking for the correlating structures to the stupid guide numbers. We ended up running around trying to identify every structure by its foundations and getting super confused, but it ended up being a ton of fun anyways. And surprisingly informative.

Ancient ruins.

Palatine Hill had a killer view. The remains of ancient Rome are spread out below, and as I looked from left to right the Colosseum loomed out of the distance. It was totally one of those "woah, this is unreal" moments.

View from Palatine Hill.

We splashed out a bit and joined an official tour of the Colosseum because we hadn't paid for anything else so far, and I'm glad we did because it was full of interesting tidbits of info. For instance, did you know that contrary to popular assumption, only four Christians were ever killed in the Colosseum? Also, despite what some people think it was never flooded for naval battles.

The Colosseum. Pretty cool, huh?

The inside of the Colosseum. Really made me want to watch Gladiator.

The third day was dedicated to all things Catholic. We woke up early to take the Metro to Vatican City, which in itself was quite an experience. I never want to take the Roman Metro ever again. We were packed in like sardines and the whole time I was thinking that someone was about to pickpocket me. The random guy in front of me had the same idea about me, since he kept looking backwards at me and his backpack. Do I look like a thief, really?

The Vatican Museum wasn't too interesting. Usually I love art museums, but this was full of religious art which isn't really my thing. Only so many times I can see a graphic picture of Jesus being killed or God casting sinners into hell before I get bored and a little freaked out. But the Sistene Chapel was amazing. We weren't allowed to take pictures or videos, so naturally I took both.

I'm sure this is familiar to all of you. Yeah, yeah I know what you're all thinking: where's the FSM? And the cloud behind God is totally a human brain. Michelangelo was a closet pathologist (autopsist?).

St. Peter's Cathedral is pretty indescribably breathtaking. It's ginormous and a little too ornate for my particular taste, but still really pretty. We spent a long time in there because the four of us got separated and then couldn't find each other again for ages. Then we climbed to the top of the basilica, which was quite literally breathtaking. That's a hell of a lot of stairs and we were exhausted by the time we got to the top.

Halfway up there (at the top of the church but before the cupola) there was a place to stop and catch your breath, and go out and look at the view. This resting place had a gift shop with lots of religious style things to buy like crucifixes and angels and such. They also had shot glasses. With pictures of the pope on them. We dared Rob to buy one from the scary nuns who didn't speak English but he chickened out. Brigid went traditional and bought a rosary for her grandmother. She managed to communicate with them in French. I didn't buy anything because a) my french is atrocious, b) I'm not really one for religion, and c) I had very little money left.

The curve of the walls near the top of the cupola. I'm not claustrophobic in the least, but this part even had me a little spooked.

View from the top.

A Swiss Guard in the fabulously stylish uniforms allegedly designed by Michelangelo.

We found another tourist to take a picture of the whole gang.

After we left the Vatican, we realized that we hadn't quite gotten our fill of climbing things, so we climbed to the top of the Castel Sant'Angelo. Another great view from the top.


That night we went to a (surprise, surprise) pizza place in Trastevere (the medieval quarter) for dinner. This place was recommended as having the best pizza for a reasonable price in the city, and I wholeheartedly agree with that guide book. It started raining while we ate, but stopped before we left so we decided to get gelato as well. Bad idea. Just as we were finishing our cones we saw lightning and the wind started howling, and within two seconds we were drenched. And we were all the way across the city (and the river) from our hostel. So we had a long walk in front of us and by the time we got back we looked like this:
Brigid and I were numb and slightly delirious by this point, and we turned on Italian TV and proceeded to find every channel hilarious. There was a football talk show with these old men with the most ridiculous haircuts I've ever seen in my life. And Italian pop music is...well, awesome, to say the least. Fun times.

Our fourth and final day was filled with seeing/doing the miscellaneous things that we couldn't do the previous days. First stop was Piazza Navona, to see more Bernini sculptures. I swear, just like Florence is filled with Medici things, Rome is covered in Bernini.

Fontana dei Quattro Fiumi

From the back, con obelisk

Then we moved on to the Parthenon.

Raphael's tomb. And a bit of my finger. Picture taking win right there...

Bernini's Fontana del Tritone in Piazza Barberini

Finally, we went to the Monumento Nazionale a Vittorio Emanuele II, or the Altar of the Fatherland. We wanted to climb more stairs, and didn't have anything else on our list of things to see. Unforch it closed right when we got there, and then we got yelled at by guards for sitting on the steps outside while we figured out what to do after.

When in doubt, get gelato. Since the guidebook pointed us in the direction of great pizza earlier, we decided to trust it again when it said Gelato di San Crispino was the best in Rome. And boy were they right again. I got nocciolo e cioccolato (hazelnut and chocolate) and it was pure creamy heaven.
*deep breath* Oookay that's pretty much it. The next morning the three others had an early flight so they left before I woke up, and I took a noon train to Pisa. My final Italian adventures coming soon...