Lady Gaga only wishes she were half as weird as Kate Bush... and wishes she had 1/100th of her talent. She has been my favorite since I was a little 5 year old dancing around in our living room and accidentally skipping the record jumping to close to the player. She is unbelievably gorgeous and has the voice of a freaking angel.
And I don't really think I should be comparing Lady Gaga to her because she was more than a pop singer, at least to me. But I do think she did that wacky stuff way better than Gaga ever could. She didn't seem like she was trying to hard, she just seemed like she really was just that eccentric.She's really into that interpretive dance. For me sometimes it is almost embarrassing to watch it is so weird.
But a lot of people these days aren't familiar with her, so since it is her birthday I thought I'd post the videos of some of my favorite songs so you can witness the weirdness and listen to the greatness.
Wuthering Heights was my favorite when I was a kid and I read the book because of it. I was pretty young, though, so I don't remember much and should probably reread?
Cloudbusting! Donald Sutherland! YAY! Funny enough, Organon was the first brand of birth control pills I took when I was a teenager and it always made me think of this song.
Babooshka - I totally didn't understand this song right when I was little. I still kind of don't.
The Kick Inside - I've never seen this before, but I sure do love this beautiful song.
And of course no Kate Bush post would be complete without Running Up That Hill, which I think to this date is her most popular song in the US. Placebo's cover is tops, check that out too.
Those of you who know me might now that I sometimes fixate on certain celebrities. Crushes, if you will. I went through a really wild Alan Rickman phase a few years ago that may or may not have to do with my little Harry Potter addiction. Or perhaps that his portrayal of Colonel Brandon in the film adaptation of Sense and Sensibility was pretty much amazingly sexy? I then had to run out and watch every movie I could get my hands on that he was in. Eventually the obsession faded, but when I watch Love, Actually I still get all twitterpated even though his character is a stupid jerk who should not even THINK about cheating on Emma Thompson with that secretary harlot.
Anyways, you get the general idea.
So I have in the past had this obsession with JGL. I can trace its roots back to 3rd Rock from the Sun, although I wasn't really a huge fan of the show and didn't watch further than some episodes in the first season. I'm just saying I thought he was cute even back then. Because he was. Funny, I just watched a video on his tumblr blog that was from a Rolling Stone interview (that I highly recommend watching) where he mentions in passing that he looked like a girl back then. No, Joe, you looked like a really adorable adolescent boy with pretty hairs. Now, when I think about it at this moment I think it is weird that I thought an early teenage boy was totally cute, but then I realize that he and I are the same age and it really isn't all that strange. My boyfriend at the time had a similar slightly feminine aesthetic and the girls in my high school ate it up. (He was pretty delicious, I must admit.)
That isn't really when my obsession started, though. I mean, I totally liked him in 10 Things I Hate About You, but I wasn't all super swoony (I was over Heath Ledger... dang, now I'm all bummed). No, it was when I saw Mysterious Skin that my obsession began to blossom. That movie is super depressing, and JGL plays a homosexual teenage prostitute. He is 100% fantastic in this film and after watching it I had to watch more. I totally recommend Brick and The Lookout as well. Brick really made me feel all swoony! You know, I never saw Shadowboxer because I don't think he had a huge role in it, but now that I see this photo I think it may be something I have to go back and watch.
OH MY GOODNESS!
So one day while I was bored at my old job I started googling him (boy do I wish that was something dirty) and I found a website he had recently started Hit Record and started reading about it. It isn't like a hit record that sells a million copies, it is like hitting the record button to make a record of something. It is all about art - music, film, photos, paintings, performance, etc. In the beginning there was a lot of his films, music and art creations, or "records" and I was just totally fascinated. He is handsome, talented, smart, interesting, creative. Dude, the guy has it GOING ON. Back then I was totally in a bad relationship and had just lost a crazy amount of weight, so I would just sit and fantasize all day about going to LA to visit friends or something and meeting him at a party and well, stuff. It was dorky and lame, but I loved having an obsession. Not a lot of young, hot Hollywood actors make me feel all fluttery inside because they just don't seem like real people and they aren't that interesting. Here was this man opening himself up for everyone to see. And it felt like a secret because it was pretty low key and wasn't flashy celebrity crap.
But I'm not super hard core like those "Twi-hards" and creepy "Twi-moms", so eventually my extreme affections faded into an appreciation for a talented actor/artist. I've watched his movies, like 500 Days of Summer where all I could think through the whole thing is that Zooey must be a loon for not falling for those dimples, and OH that dance scene, HOW CUTE IS HE? So yeah, I still really like him, but I'm not obsessed with him. Oh, Wait.
Seriously, though, have you seen Inception yet?
Cut to last Sunday, seeing Inception with Fiance and his brother. OH.MY.GOD. Designer suits. Slick hair. Floaty fight scenes. And I suppose I have noticed it before, but did you hear his low voice? Sexy. SEX-EEEE. It was a little like porn, not to mention the fact that there is plenty of other eye candy in that movie and it is also visually stunning and very interesting. So I'm back, guys. I am almost 30 and getting married, and he is almost 30 and all famous, but in my drifting mind he is like, one of my good friends or something, who has a crush on me and is secretly sad that I am getting married. Wait, what? This is my brain folks, for reals. Right after I got home I watched Uncertainty which was really weird, but there is a sex scene and lots of making out and damn, Gina. Just sayin'. I'm all hooked again. And it isn't just his looks, he just seems awesome. I can't quite put my finger on it. Or he's just adorable. I don't know, guys.
It is nice to see that Joe has made Hit Record into his very own production company featuring art from real people all over the place. He even helps them profit from it. I totally renewed my membership to the website today, and while I'm not sure I'm as creative as other people on there, I figure I can bring a knitter voice into the equation. Particularly because lately I've been feeling like doing some more artistic things with my knitting, rather than functional. I've seen some really amazing installation art done with knitting. I'm super interested in that.
Or perhaps I just rejoined to see more videos of JGL like this one from the terms of service agreement.
I need to use the camera more, because seriously, it is amazing compared to every other camera phone I've had. Plus it has more megapixels than my old digital camera.
Seriously. Look at this.
These are from the Hipstamatic App, the main reason I wanted an iPhone and not some other fancy smart phone. And I'm happy with it. It makes me appear more creative than I actually am.
So, yes, I know I pay insane amounts of money per month for service, particularly insane from the viewpoint of someone who doesn't use their phone for much other than calls. But I don't even like talking on the phone. I really love all the wacky apps and games and I don't care that you think it is dumb or that the Evo is better. I love my damn iPhone. Yeah, I said it. It may have taken me a few years, but here I am. In love.
I'm going to go make out with my phone now, excuse me.
There is this salad at the Nordstrom Cafe that is described as a parmesan crusted chicken salad that I really like. But as I was eating it today, I realized what they should really call it is a fried chicken, bacon and egg salad. I mean, that's really all that is in it. Oh, that and some avocado and fatty delicious dressing. I am serious when I say that this salad is good. Really good. BUT IT IS NOT A SALAD. Ok? Oh yes, there are some vegetables, I think a few pieces of tomato, corn and some greens? But just because you put a layer of leaves under something doesn't make it healthy. In fact I think I may have been better off eating a big mac and fries. I think the last bite I ate consisted of hardboiled egg and bacon drenched in fat.
I am not eating well is my point. Not at all. Yet someone yesterday who has been gone from work for a few weeks asked me if I've lost weight. Really? I doubt it. But I haven't gained any that I can tell. I should weigh 300 pounds. The fact that I'm even upset about my weight is comical considering I do absolutely nothing about it 90% of the time.
In other news, I'm getting married. Since I have all of about 5 readers, I'm sure you already know. It's weird, being engaged. I hate calling Dan FIANCE. It doesn't come out right. Boyfriend does. I hope I don't have this same issue with husband. I think husband at least sounds less pretentious. I guess I have a year to get used to fiance. I am and also am not a huge fan of talking about wedding things. Like, on one hand I love talking about the wedding details because I feel so creative and have really enjoyed reading and looking at new ideas and coming up with some interesting things of my own. On the other hand, I totally feel weird because I'm not able to invite everyone I know. So I need to not talk about it because I don't want to hurt people's feelings, but we're having it somewhere already possibly too small, so I can't just keep inviting people. Also, what is up with the advice, people? I mean if you have planned a lot of weddings or your wedding was crazy cool and interesting and you just want to tell me about it, that's cool. But if you just feel like my ideas are dumb and that I should do things differently? Please, oh PLEASE just keep it to yourself. I have it covered. Unless I asked you a question, don't give me your answer. I'm not trying to be bitchy, I just feel like people aren't even suggesting at this point, they are telling me what I should do. I'm not a fan.
I'm also not a huge fan of people acting like I'm ridiculous for planning so early. It's ok with me if you want to wait until the last minute and freak out with everything you have to do right before your event, but that doesn't work for me. I am easily stressed. If I have details worked out way ahead of time, that is just how I roll. I couldn't handle leaving it all to the last minute, my head would explode. Like, literally. BOOM. Poor Dan would be all alone. DO YOU WANT THAT PEOPLE? Well, do you?
Anyway, I just wish people would stop acting like I'm doing something weird or being a freak. I have the ideas, so why not dive right in?
I totally received a few compliments on my blog recently and realized that I always have fully intended to keep it up and then get lazy. Maybe now that I have a wedding to blog about, it can be here where I talk about it rather to friends who may feel slighted. Or maybe I'll be lame and get lazy again. Aren't you excited to find out? Heh.
(Click photo for full size, plus the rest of our ENGAGEMENT photo shoot. I know, right?)