Top 5

So, has anyone seen "High Fidelity"? If you haven't, it has John Cusack, who I love. Throughout the movie he makes lists of his Top 5 songs/albums/artists for various reasons (sorry for the vagueness, I haven't seen it is a while). So I've decided to do my Top 5, because I have opinions and like to share them.

Top 5 Bands Ever
1. 311
2. Bright Eyes
3. Damien Rice
4. Unwritten Law
5. Weezer

Top 5 Live Performances
1. 311
2. Social Distortion
3. Weezer
4. Unwritten Law
5. Dashboard Confessional (so long as no face-punching is involved)
(Note: there are many honorable mentions, but in the name of Top 5-ing I had to pick the best)

Top 5 Live Performances I Wish to See
1. O.A.R.
2. Say Anything
3. Bright Eyes
4. Bob Dylan
5. Nirvana (what a wish)

Top 5 Bands I Have Recently Gotten Into
1. G Love and Special Sauce (they're on their way to the Best Bands Ever List)
2. Ben Folds
3. Ben Lee
4. Ludo
5. Death Cab for Cutie

Top 5 Movies Ever
1. Anchorman
2. Shaun of the Dead
3. So I Married An Axe Murderer
4. Brother, Where Art Thou?
5. Pineapple Express (its a rash move, but I have a lot of faith in this movie)

Top 5 TV Shows Ever
1. Heroes
2. Scrubs
3. Sex and the City
4. Psyche
5. Law and Order: SVU/Grey's Anatomy (its a tie, I won't decided which I like best)

Top 5 Books Ever (Fiction-ish)
1. The Monkey Wrench Gang - Edward Abbey
2. Where the Sidewalk Ends - Shel Silverstein
3. The Portrait of Dorian Grey - Oscar Wilde
4. America - Jon Stewart
5. The Kite Runner - Khaled Hosseini

Top 5 Books Ever (Non-fiction)
1. Crossing the Next Meridian - Charles Wilkinson
2. Lies My Teacher Told Me - James Loewen
3. Collapse - Jared Diamond
4. A Sand County Almanac - Aldo Leopold
5. Infrastructure: a Field Guide to the Industrial Landscape (also known as the Dork Book) - Brian Hayes

Top 2 Book Series Ever (Dorky)
1. Lord of the Rings
2. Harry Potter

Note to readers: the term EVER is used here very loosely, things could be different tomorrow, but today I'm feeling very emphatic (except for 311, they will always be tops). Also, the picture up top is from this Pon and Zi website, check it out, the artist does these darling, slightly emo-ish pictures that warm my heart cockles.

So, the reason I'm doing this is that Shelfari is doing this 50 book challenge, they want people to read 50 books this year to show that reading isn't obsolete. I have lots of books sitting around waiting to be read or bought, but not 50. So, I looking for some recommendations on books that I should read this year. I'm easy, I read the ingredients from my shampoo bottles, however, if its a tear-jerker I need a warning so I don't end up reading something tragic in public (fun story: I couldn't stop reading the 6th Harry Potter book, even though I had to work in the box office at the theater, I spent a good hour crying and telling customers I was having allergy problems). The other reason I'm doing this is that I built a killer Netflix queue. I'm freaking psyched for them to start arriving (I am currently very agitated that "I'm Not There" was supposed to arrive Thursday, but still has not shown itself). So far my queue is 53 deep, but I'll take recommendations on that front too. Hope everyone is having a good weekend!

----------------
Now playing: Cold War Kids - Hospital Beds
via FoxyTunes

Tagged 4:4:4

Here's what I found in the bowels of my computer. Turns out its one of my faves. I love this veterinary clinic, mostly because I love their signs. If this doesn't give you a giggle I don't know what will. Boo ya!

----------------
Now playing: G- Love & Special Sauce - Beautiful
via FoxyTunes

Becka takes a mental health day...and has a happy Halloween

Um, so, last week got kind of out of control by the end of it. Come Thursday I was just too stressed out to function. Turns out that's October for me in Logan. 2006 I was miserable in my job (at Qwest) then stressing about the responsibilities of my new job (at the mall). 2007 I was dealing with weird illness and boy troubles. 2008 was just school mostly. Blah. In talking to my fellow students they feel the same way (the same way being that we're getting no where in our school work), so I feel a bit better about that. Anyways, Thursday I decided not to go to my history class, even though I had read the book. I figured taking a mental health night to carve pumpkins would serve me better in the long term, and I was totally right.

Take a look at the photo below. Notice the general disheveled-ness and the sense that I had given up on everything.
After carving my Batman pumpkin things were definitely looking up. Part of it was that I was watching "Psyche" and carving a pumpkin. I think the other part of it was creating a work of art. Really, the stencils and stuff they have on the internet are amazing. Y'all may know that I'm no artist (at least when it comes to visual art), but I think I did pretty well.
Then I got to carve my happy pumpkin. I think this picture really exemplifies the therapeutic benefits of carving pumpkins. Plus I got a pan full of pumpkin seeds to bake and eat (I ate them almost all at once, I feel like I've had better ideas).
Friday I went to a Halloween party with some friends, and it was way fun. My camera didn't take the journey with me, so I only have this cell phone picture. I had a lot of fun getting ready. I decided my costume lacked a certain something, so I added some spray-on sparkle, then the face paint. I was struggling not to touch my face all night, but I've decided it was well worth the effort (mostly because the effort was fun).
After all of this I'm kind of glad that it's November. While November means that I'm one month closer to a thesis defense deadline that I might not make, November is not October (and that means a lot). Plus Thanksgiving is in November, and my family kicks ass. So stay awesome.

I also did something productive this first weekend in November: I started winterizing my apartment. I've said it before, sometimes I feel like I live in a refrigerator, a hobbit sized refrigerator. Sunday I put of this plastic-wrap-type stuff on both my windows to keep the cold out, and I think its working pretty well. Unfortunately my blinds are on the inside of that seal. I weighed a few options and decided that keeping the blinds open but adding curtains was the best option (especially compared with the open-blinds-no-curtains and closed-blinds options). However, I have no blinds, so here's what my windows look like now.

I need to do laundry because I don't have any flat sheets around. But more likely I'll just rely on my wonderful mom to make me some curtains (because she's epically talented and generous). Now I'm off to get a good nights rest (I got one last night, it was fabulous) and get ready to tackle another Tuesday. I'm feeling pretty good about it.


----------------
Now playing: Oasis - Wonderwall
via FoxyTunes