Tuesday, August 05, 2008

autophobia is "the fear of being alone." fun! today is 8-5-08

[sarah wilmner]
you should check out her website for real, it's kinda magical work she does

quote: "Perhaps her mother had never shown Abby affection, not really, but she had given her a knack for solitude, with its terrible lurches outward, and its smooth glide back to peace. Abby would toast her for that. It was really the world that was one's brutal mother, the one that nursed and neglected you, and your own mother was your only sibling in that world." [from ""Which is More I Can Say About Some People." by Lorrie Moore]

links:
1. FLIRT! is up! I made it! Watch it now! Starring Haviland of course, and featuring Daphne Rubin-Vega, Andrew Keenan-Bolger, Rosie and Kelli O'Donnell, Anne Van Cleave, Andrea McArdle, Lillias White, Christine Ebersole, Seth Rudetsky, Tressa and many more! (@broadway world)
2. Clara. By Roberto Bolaño. Please read. It's short, I promise. (@the new yorker)
3. The Battery's Down! w/Havi-land and smokin' hot Cortney!: Episode 6: Ro, Ro Ro Your Boat (@battery's down)
4. 35 Beautiful Music Album Covers (p.s. I heart that pixies album, and the michael jackson brings me back to the 90's) (@smashing magazine)
5. Sam Anderson! How James Wood's 'How Fiction Works' Works: and why it sometimes doesn't. (@ny magazine)
6. 50 Sexiest Music Videos of all Time (highlights include Rilo Kiley,and the video for God-des & She's "Lick It" which's actually awesome and redeems its inclusion in The L Word. (@nerve.com)
7. I am really really confused about this: Irvine Welsh calls 'A Bright Shiny Morning' "an uncompromising affirmation of our humanity."? (@the guardian uk books)
8. In art and politics, 'elitism' gets unfair rap.: "Elitism" also is being sullied in the political arena, where Democratic candidate Barack Obama has been accused of thinking he's smarter than the average guy. To me, this is an astonishing attack strategy. Do we not want the president of the country to be smart? (@the review journal)
9. American Film is Obsessed with Teens but Try as one might to carefully slot teenagers, and adolescence, into designated cubbyholes, some part of the whole is too messy, too real, to fit. (@boston globe)
10. Thank you, finally, someone for agreeing with me: Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog: In Online Musical Serial, the Mad Doctor Is In (@ny times)


insomnia poetry #7

open letter to our parents:
we know you meant well &
wanted all best things for us
but wtf re: college?
no, not the college itself, not the learning?
but the certificate at the end, the receipt.
meet, greet, we've got the whole world under our fat feet
it's like clay, like a curtain.
I've got so much paper I should burn 'em.
I just want to be a hiro, kick past august three - zero

I'm starting a 'zine called "the yellow wallpaper."
I've always wanted to use the word "xerox" in a poem.
The word xerox / is in a poem.

Just so you know I think Haviland reported the earthquake first
to me on bbm. not that other girl on twitter.
She said something about it
I was saying something else
like a ship and an earthquake,
passing in a storm.
If you were xeroxing the earthquake
it would be smaller and darker, with little dots
are those people, or rocks?

So I was thinking earlier about Julia Allison. If you're not familiar with J.A., check out this month's WIRED cover story "How to Get Internet Famous (Even if You're Nobody)" on Julia Allison. I get her Twitter feed now. I don't know, I can't help it. It just keeps coming and I let it spiral out of control. Here's the thing: she has the platform to offer something compelling to the world. What is that going to be?

Like Julia, Emily Gould also writes, primarily, about herself, but she does so with an inventive and curious tone. Her navel-gazing aims for insight, hopes for a breakthrough. I believe Gould has a mission with her work, even if she's still figuring out what that mission is ... it's got something to do with what most of the best personal bloggers are looking at: the impact of pop culture, art, economics, feminism and sociology upon personal identity.

Like Julia, Paris Hilton is also famous for doing nothing, but she has a product to sell -- herself as an actress, herself as a clothing designer and so on. She's got heaps of money, which's a unique trait, and a sort of sassy attitude that can be interesting.

But Julia Allison has no mission. It's not even like she wants to make people feel less alone or sell her handbags to save the whales. She just wants to ... get more people around who want to talk about her? Her new website NonSociety has this mission statement: "Your window into our crazy lives. See what we're up to and what we have to say. Take it or leave it. We hope we inspire you to live differently." This is followed, of course, by a site map of self-indulgent conformist nonsense. It's the same way I feel about "The Hills" or "Gimme Sugar" : you appear to be the people I avoid in real life, why would I pursue you on the internet?

When asked why she does what she does, her answer is both telling and desperately un-interesting: "I'm a writer!" If I asked a Gap salesman why he sold khaki pants, I bet he'd at least try to talk to me about style 'cause "because I'm a retail salesperson!" is not gonna seal any kind of deal.

I always give female bloggers who blog about themselves, especially ones who are often already hated on by gawker and the like, the benefit of the doubt. But I don't dislike her for any of the reasons that gawker doesn't like her. I don't care that she talks about herself or wants attention or makes bad decisions in public. Those things can be pulled off quite eloquently (see: Emily Gould, Tracie/Slutmachine).

I don't judge her for putting herself out there -- but I'm intrigued that she doesn't have a point and she is in and of herself all there is to her. I wish she could get more weird and Elle Woodsy so she could be made fun of in a new/interesting way. My question for Julia Alison is "what's the point?" and the answer cannot be "Julia Allison." I think she could be so much more than she is. I'd like her to be the editor-at-large of The Yellow Wallpaper, my new 'zine. Since I'm much better at telling other people what to do than I am at getting my own life in order.

Anyhow. FLIRT BETTER BE UP TODAY OR I'M CRACKING SKULLS.

20 comments:

Vashti said...

i believe it's time for my late night/early morning comment. and look! i'm first. it's late, i'm bored, somewhat watching a movie [but i'm a cheerleader], and looking over all the stuff on google reader.

i read clara. i enjoyed it.

your reference to "the yellow wallpaper" in your insomnia poem brought back memories of last year and having to read it on a very hot day in english class where all i wanted to do was go to sleep.

forgive my rambling. i'm a bit sleepy.

[i'm still waiting to see the editing on flirt!]

Anonymous said...

Don't mess with the bull, young man.

Adam Tiller said...

what a tease. the 50 sexiest music videos links to the previous article.

more thoughts on Dr H later. I disagree, but I need to figure out why.

Anonymous said...

ok- totally agree re:
1. the president needing to be the smartest person. uh duh?
2. haviland totally reported the earthquake. i wrote down what she said to me
h-yes central casting is a real place!!
omg
i think there was just an earthquake
it was awesome, it felt like we were underwater
c- omg are you ok???????????????

this was all before it was even on cnn, cause i thought hav had done gone lost her mind. just saying.
3. cortney is smokin hot for sure
4. i am not a fan of julia alison or her twitter
5. if flirt is not up today, i'm gonna kill a bitch

Anonymous said...

i hate the term navel-gazing.

basia said...

"I've always wanted to use the word "xerox" in a poem.
The word xerox / is in a poem."

= brill

basia said...

ps. my word verif was oneha, like, "oh, neha!". i know a girl named neha. but i would never do her.

Anonymous said...

It is very clear to me that Julia Allison is mentally ill. I find it strange how the internet is amused by mentally unstable people.

green said...

my opinion re: album artwork, passive/aggressively told to you and not the ppl who wrote the article:

-The cover of Yes's Relayer pales in comparison to Tales from Topographic Oceans, obvs. and now i have to listen to "And You and I", from Close to the Edge, whose inside cover art was better than Relayer and Tales combined. so there.

-what is the big damn deal about Dark Side of the Moon??! it's... a prism. :| i'm not downplaying the effect PF had on music and people and all that jazz, even though i personally can't stand PF, but come on. it's. a. prism.

i love your poems. i wish they came in a small book. the kind with high-quality paper, like Paper magazine? yez. the book would be 5" x 3.5" with purple print [like the elementary school "dittos". remember? purple]. i've got this all worked out.

i could write a lot more to you right now, but i think that's what my own blog is for. i don't know. i'm feeling kind of internet-homeless.

fantastic FLIRT editing, by the way. really. amaze.

[longest word verf EVER. is lozo in on this?]

Vashti said...

ps - now that i'm awake, i've watched FLIRT! and i must say you did a great job. =]

dani said...

great editing on FLIRT!!
and...i think i said it the last 6 times, but just to make sure, that you can still remember: I LOVE YOUR POEMS!
xo

autumn m said...

earthquakes freak me out. we dont have them in the midwest, just tornadoes. i would rather have a tornado, than an earthquake anyday, at least you can run from a tornado.

eric mathew said...

OMFG! Riese you should be so proud of yourself it looks amazing.

Maybe Hav and Riese could do Side Show on the next cruise? maybe.

All I'm saying is that if they can do 'The Odyssey the musical' than we can so do 'Romy and Michelle.'

anyway... much love... your the best.

emc

Anonymous said...

is there an older post that would give a new reader a sort of "the origin of Haviland & Riese " ?

Anonymous said...

FLIRT is amazing...
Riese, you're a star.
So is Haviland, but we already knew that.
I love you both!

riese said...

vashti: i was told to read the yellow wallpaper by someone on this very blog. i never read it in english class. it's one of those things that stuck in me thematically though I wasn't all that into the story itself while reading it. If that makes sense.

burningsteady: Or you'll get the HORNS!

adam: Fixed! I don't know why I can't seem to just once execute a perfect link list before bed. Maybe it's the sleeping pills.

caitlin: my favorite part of everything you said was that clearly you didn't know central casting was a real place. also haviland uses the phrase "straight out of central casting" all the time. thank g-d that flirt went up, otherwise you would've started a streetfight.

david: I hate navel oranges.

basia: You really know girl named Neha? There's a word I'd like to rhyme or xerox.

fred norris: It's not just the internet, it's all media (look what they do to britney who i think just needs some seroquel). The internet loves narcissitic personality disorder ... and it basically runs on mania ... i find it upsetting, not so much in the part where they're amused, but the part afterwards where they leave them, crazy and alone.

green: There's a few things I love about this comment. One of them is the reference to the paper quality of Paper magazine, which I also appreciate. I also lke the simplicity of their design, which does not worship random prisims (perhaps it would've been more aptly included in the 35 most iconic album covers of all time), and also I don't understand why Tool is on that list. And where was the NKOTB X-mas album.

Yes! The dittos with the purple print and you could tell when the ditto machine was fucking up 'cause then sometimes you'd get one printed near the end that was blurry and then you'd have to share someone else's ditto, which always sucked.

and thank you!

vashti: thanks!!!

dani: thank yououuuuU!!!!

autumn m: the thing i liked about tornados is the part where we all got to have a party in the basement like a family sleepover.

eric mathew: OMFG thank you!!! I love how you brought it back around from The Odyssey to Romy and Michelle. What's Side Show? Does it involve singing and dancing, 'cause 'm good at that.

mr darkbloom: ha, amazing question. we actually hung out for the first time right when I started this blog, so it's almost engrained in the first few posts. They also are bad.

There's also this vlog, which contains a brief "Haviland and Riese: The True Hollywood Story" segment and actually a sort of bizarrely mediocre OurChart column I wrote for Haviland called "That Teenaged Nightmare." Sometimes I give more clarity in essays since they're written in retrospect than I ever do on the blog which's more real-time-ish.

a;ex: OMG thanxxxxxxxxxx! All our love, alll of our loveeee

Anonymous said...

my favorite part of your comment was that you knew it was me even though i posted without my name. also, totally thought that 'straight out of central casting' was an expression. we decided that you'd be 'tall best friend' or 'skinny neighbor'. i need to get out of my house.

eric mathew said...

Side Show is a musical about conjoined twins. Watch this clip your life will be changed for the good (bad wicked reference).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NX8VVljroIU

It is the Side Show Tony performance.

Adam Tiller said...

r: I forgive you, but only because you bring me things like Clara (not that I wouldn't still need you if I started reading magazines) (not that I'd start reading magazines)

mr darkbloom: I didn't know Viv had a mister. Welcome to the party. I heart anagrams.

Anonymous said...

Ohmigosh, loved FLIRT!, it was positively steamy! Nice editing, Riese, you're basically a pro, yes?

I wonder what Clara would be like in the original Spanish. Also, I liked your observations on Julia Allison, I think they're spot on--what is the point? and the answer cannot be "Julia Allison".

Also, nice poem, I agree with green, it's time for a book.

I like both navel-gazing and navel oranges. The word "navel" reminds me of ships (spaceships and pirate ships) and gravel. And oranges.

Cortney is indeed smokin' hot.

My number one feeling is currently: "random". But even this comment is better than no comment, right?