four things
Yes, a meme. What, you want to make something of it? Diane tagged me. It's fun. Why not?
(Maybe it'll get me posting again. We'll see...)
Four jobs I've had:
1. Heath food store employee. My first paid job, aside from occasional babysitting gigs. On my very first day, I said I'd do anything except sweep the floor. Guess what I did at closing time? Yup. Should've kept my mouth shut.
2. Payroll clerk. I also kept the books for various parts of the mostly-student-run business. Lots of camaraderie in that small basement office. A mix of college students with two middle aged accountants keeping us honest.
3. Dorm crew, cleaning up after students go home for the summer. Also cleaning bathrooms. Tip: Do not take a job which involves cleaning the bathroom of the freshman football team after a home game.
4. Assistant film editor. My previous career trajectory. On the first day on my first low paying apprentice job, I broke my pinky on the rewind, got it caught in a spoke of the take-up reel. Wrapped my hand up and kept going. Wondered why it never stopped hurting. Unwrapped at it at 7 pm. It was bright red and HUGE. Went to the emergency room. Owie.
Four movies I can watch over and over again:
I don't generally watch movies again. How about movies that resonated when I saw them? Movies I saw more than once back when I had the leisure to see movies more than once?
1. Gallipoli. I love Peter Weir's early films. They had a lyrical, poetic quality to them. And even though Gallipoli has a war at the heart of it, it's really a gentle, heartfelt movie about friendship.
2. Spirit of the Beehive. I adored this movie as a young teenager. It still haunts me. I want to see it again. Finding beauty in the heart of a terrible time in Spain's history. It has a quiet magic.
3. Midnight Run. Light fluff but perfect tight plotting and tons of fun.
4. So many choices…. How about Bringing Up Baby? That was a fun one.
Four places I've lived:
1. Brooklyn, NY
2. Somerville, MA
3. West Hollywood, CA
4. Montclair, NJ
Four TV shows I love:
1. Veronica Mars. Got involved late last season. Got thoroughly hooked. High school noir. It's sometimes uneven but always sharp and sassy and, at its best, brilliant.
2. Homicide. Andre Braugher rocked. So did the writing of Paul Attanasio.
3. thirtysomething. Or, well, just about any series produced by the remarkable Zwick/Herskovitz pairing. My So-Called Life, Relativity, Once and Again. They impart more subtext and truth in their work than anyone.
4. Homefront. Short-lived but wonderful.
(What? You wanted all current shows? I don't watch much TV these days, but okay, I get a kick out of Lost, I'm getting hooked on Gray's Anatomy and am extremely intrigued by the episodes of Prison Break I managed to catch.)
Four places I've vacationed:
1. Germany. Munich and surrounding towns. I was traveling solo, I was 20, and I was homesick, but I had fun anyway.
2. California central coast. Something I'll miss about living in LA: easy access to Cambria, Big Sur, Point Lobos, etc.
3. British Columbia. Vancouver, Victoria, and a close encounter with a black bear.
4. Louisiana. To visit Toni, of course.
Four of my favorite dishes:
1. Bread pudding. The best ever was at Mother's, a no-atmosphere dive in New Orleans with great red beans and rice and absolutely sublime bread pudding. Cooking Light has a less lethal but extremely tasty version.
2. Brisket, cooked slow and juicy, falling off the bone. Yum.
3. Fresh-caught steamed blue crab right from the shell. Dipped in butter, of course. Just blue, no Dungeness or King, thank you very much.
4. Sushi, particularly yellowtail, albacore, and toro. When it's stunningly fresh, it gets almost buttery.
Four blogs that I visit daily:
1. Daily Kos
3. Baristanet
4. Smart Bitches, Trashy Books (What? They're fun. Smart. Snarky. Shut up.)
Four places I would rather be right now:
Is "nowhere" a legitimate choice? No? Ah well.
Okay, call it four places I'd like to visit soon.
Oh hell, let's split this. First, four places I would like to revisit:
a1. Zion National Park in Utah. One of the two highlights of our cross country drive this past September.
a2. Cinque Terre, four tiny fishing villages perched among the hills right on the Italian coastline. Picturesque and charming without being cloying. Great hiking and Italian friendliness.
a3. The Berkshire mountains in western Mass. My childhood summer home. Haven't been back yet. Looking forward to it. Birch trees, gentle hills, Tanglewood concerts and outdoor Shakespeare.
a4. Rome. Second to New York, the city that most intrigues me with its layers of history and vibrant life.
Okay, now four places I've never been but would like to visit:
b1. Greece
b2. New Zealand
b3. Grand Tetons
b4. Japan
Greece and Japan have always intrigued me. History, culture, natural beauty. New Zealand? Lord of the Rings, wow, it's gorgeous. Grand Tetons? Our cross country trip. Didn't care that we missed the Grand Canyon, etc. Did wish we'd been able to visit western Wyoming instead of the dusty eastern edge.
Four bloggers I'm tagging: