You go first!
No wait….
2009 was weird. It went fast, but it seems like a lot happened, even though I feel like I can’t remember that much of it, for better or worse.
Random top 10:
1. Year of the Vag.
2. Walking on frozen Lake Michigan multiple times. Martian freakery and silent reflection.
3. “Logan’s Run” in the backyard of Merrill Street.
4. Hiking to the top of Water Rock Knob with Wiz and Dusty!
5. The mighty Lake Michigan ASS GHOST, and the illicit exploration of the house next door.
6. Getting laid off. Thank GOD.
7. Burning old shitty art and purging my vast collection of garbage. I seriously can’t tell you what a relief it was.
8. Hatching a monarch caterpillar into butterfly, and actually getting to watch it break free from its chrysalis, dry its wings, and fly away. TOTALLY bizarre and beautiful.
9. Sinatras at Bells.
10. brazilian music. I know, I’m late on the bandwagon. But that Tropicalia shit is AMAZING.
I’m going to have to think a while to come up with books and records that tickled my fancy this year.
Now you.
Hmm, it seems unwise to assign attributes to events.
I’m going to have an even more literal problem doing it this year, because many things that happened to me are commonly classified as “bad”. But, in the long run, things that were not “bad” were the result. And a list of stuff that happened is pretty boring (“bad”, yes?). And I can never pick the best of anything, because I didn’t really see / hear / touch “everything”, and that would be the first criteria for picking the best, in my literal world.
So, I say to hell with 2009, and good riddance. Everyone has a crappy year once in a while, and this was one of mine. I got slapped around, disillusioned, left behind, humbled, re-attenuated, lifted up, and jostled.
It was kind of like the day I went to Michigan’s Adventure with the gardening crew. We never went to amusement parks when I was kid, and the teenage / college crew was too punk rock or something to do it either. Richard vehemently hates them. So I could still harbor the delusion that I secretly liked roller coasters, and just hadn’t been on enough to prove it.
So the first one we ride is the Shivering Timbers. It’s old school, made of wood, awesome, big, etc. Perfect for the first ride of the secret roller coaster bad-ass. Except I hated it. It wasn’t scary fun. It was SCARY. I was actually terrified that my teeth were going to fall out. (Ironically, the photo at the end was quite the glamor shot!) I then spent the rest of the day not enjoying roller coasters, and trying to put my shattered image back together.
Next post I’ll make a list with numbers.
ROLLER COASTERS!
I feel the same way! They are not fun! I also don’t like the sensation when I’m dreaming that I’m falling off a cliff. While it’s probably a ridiculous thing for a former smoker to say, I have no desire to court death for “entertainment” purposes. Seriously. Yikes. I have only been on two rollercoasters in my life. The first one was at a kiddie carnival in a field in Vicksburg. It was teeny and gentle and more like a model railroad and I loved it. Based on my happy experience with that “rollercoaster,” my brother got me to go on the goddamned horrifying spinning SPIDER ride with him at that same field carnival. I had such a freakout that he had to convince the carnie to STOP THE RIDE AND LET US OFF. Then in later years, I went on the Mine Ride at Cedar Point. My brother and my dad talked both me and my mom into going on it because it was “the oldest and goofiest and not scary AT ALL.” Despite being high school age, I think I held my mom’s hand and that we were both crying a little bit by the end. It’s officially genetic. I don’t like rollercoasters. Thank god there were no rollercoasters or other non-bumper-car carnival rides in 2009. Walking around the Knoxville Solarball thing observation deck was bad enough for me!
doesn't anybody else have anything to list?
Fine, then, I’ll think of more!
I liked seeing a whole bunch of elk in a field.
I liked seeing the untouched can of SPAM LITE in the kitchen cupboard down here again. It, and the deviled beef spread that will also never be opened, are sort of friendly ol’ familiar faces at this point.
i know this is kind of a rerun, but I really liked pretending that I was retired for a few months.
I like that “Love is Love” record on Missippi Records
“Choubi Choubi” on Sublime Frequencies
I liked finding out how truly easy it can be to rectify stupid little household issues that you’ve been putting off because you think they’re going to be some huge pain in the butt.
I like you guys.
Belly dancing was fun, even though I sucked.
And, obviously, the greatest animal of 2009 is the lovely and talented Mister Sammy Awesome.
ai, craigslist, love you
From the Jack Black line at Kids Bedzzzzzzzzzz?
http://kalamazoo.craigslist.org/fuo/1484993773.html
OMG
Doesn’t your old man need that for Chrimmus?
more GOOD things aught 9
The Sinatras finally gave us something to listen to other than 20th generation cassettes!
Darrin Doyle published an insanely good novel.
Loop-D-Loop recorded an album that I really love.
Oh yeah, I made a list, too!
I know nobody cares now that it’s TWENTY TEN, or however we end up saying it. But you have to read it anyway.
The Best of 2009, as far as I can tell.
1. I got to go to California again, and I loved it. Avocado, Joshua Tree, beach, friends, etc.
2. I worked for someone who’s idea of a field trip was a drive to Fennville, where we ate at Su Casa, then went to the Wavecrest nursery and looked at fanciful evergreens, then got ice cream and drove home in a pick-up truck.
3. I got to see the Bat Cave!
4. I would have to also vote for the Water Rock Knob. We thought we’d gotten to the top several times, and it was just a little further. An apt metaphor for whatever.
5. The Sinatras played, and I called it my birthday party.
6. Mr. Sam Awesome.
7. The day I realized I could just keep running.
8. Dance party. Any of them.
9. Zoorona party. Either of them.
10. I got a job! And, I like it.