Dear No One in Particular,
I finally finished my epic research paper, meaning I am that much closer to never needing to write an academic paper ever. again.
To celebrate, I've been cozying up to this fantastic post on Jezebel with a giant glass of red. The commenters have great taste in music, and I've been downloading like a mad woman, inspired by the videos they've posted.
Celebrate with me! Share some amazing music.
Here are my selections:
Squeeze -- "Tempted" (the greatest song EVER. It won't embed, sadly.)
Jamiroquai -- "Virtual Insanity" (much better than "Canned Heat", IMO. Another disabled embed-video.)
(I HAD TO.)
(I can't explain why I love this song with passion that burns like the clap. I just do.)
(Also: a great video or THE GREATEST VIDEO?)
What gets your booty groovin'?
--amanda
Showing posts with label dance. Show all posts
Showing posts with label dance. Show all posts
Tuesday, December 2, 2008
Saturday, November 29, 2008
International Dance Party
This is totally great. I'm going to now document my travels by dancing spasmodically on film. Extra points if I can get locals to join in.
--amanda
Friday, May 9, 2008
Crazy Train
Dear No One in Particular,
Finals week is creeping ever closer, so blogging will be more and more infrequent. Not that it had any sort of schedule in the first place.
I've been taking the past couple of nights off, just to give my mind some rest. I've finished 2 finals, and have 4 to go, so every spare moment is treasured. I have a couple of reviews and rants at the ready, but no time to actually write up a post! Sadly, I probably won't have that time for a while, since after finals, I'm going on a mini-vacation (ok, not the sad part), only to go right back to school (sad part).
To hold my place here in the blogosphere:
-- Meiji Gummy Choco. These are made of crack, ya'll. I wish I could write a more eloquent review of these delicious candies, but I'm too busy freebasing entire tubes of them. I've tried the Strawberry version of them, and today picked up the mixed variety. While not all the flavours are winners, they're painfully addictive. I've had chocolate-covered gummis before, but those were incredibly -- and inedible-y -- disappointing. The Candy Blog has a wonderful review of these bite-size wonders -- it's far better written than anything I could write.
-- I've blogged about my love for Step It Up and Dance before, but I think it bears repeating. I have this terrible relationship with reality TV, and man, talent shows are something else. I'm still not completely in love with the show -- it hasn't stolen my heart from So You Think You Can Dance. Recently, I've become OBSESSED with lindy hop videos. I'm thinking of proposing soon, granted they drop the restraining order. NOTHING CAN STOP OUR LOVE, LINDY HOP.
--amanda
Finals week is creeping ever closer, so blogging will be more and more infrequent. Not that it had any sort of schedule in the first place.
I've been taking the past couple of nights off, just to give my mind some rest. I've finished 2 finals, and have 4 to go, so every spare moment is treasured. I have a couple of reviews and rants at the ready, but no time to actually write up a post! Sadly, I probably won't have that time for a while, since after finals, I'm going on a mini-vacation (ok, not the sad part), only to go right back to school (sad part).
To hold my place here in the blogosphere:
-- Meiji Gummy Choco. These are made of crack, ya'll. I wish I could write a more eloquent review of these delicious candies, but I'm too busy freebasing entire tubes of them. I've tried the Strawberry version of them, and today picked up the mixed variety. While not all the flavours are winners, they're painfully addictive. I've had chocolate-covered gummis before, but those were incredibly -- and inedible-y -- disappointing. The Candy Blog has a wonderful review of these bite-size wonders -- it's far better written than anything I could write.
-- I've blogged about my love for Step It Up and Dance before, but I think it bears repeating. I have this terrible relationship with reality TV, and man, talent shows are something else. I'm still not completely in love with the show -- it hasn't stolen my heart from So You Think You Can Dance. Recently, I've become OBSESSED with lindy hop videos. I'm thinking of proposing soon, granted they drop the restraining order. NOTHING CAN STOP OUR LOVE, LINDY HOP.
--amanda
Sunday, April 6, 2008
Hula Aiha‘a
Dear No One in Particular,
It is the Merrie Monarch Festival weekend here in Hawaii, and while I don't live on the Big Island, where the Festival is held, it is showing on local TV. I absolutely love watching hula -- real hula, the kind that tells a story.
As an anthropologist, hula is an interesting study. Nearly every aspect of (modern) hula has diverged from the traditional, pre-contact (or should it be pre-missionary ?) hula; it is a testament to the resiliency of the people and how adaptive culture really is.
Then again, as an anthropologist, my favourite hula are the kahiko hula, or the more traditional ones. I can't stand the modern hula auana, with the singing and steel guitars.
It's hard to watch the Merrie Monarch Festival, since I only understand what they're talking about half the time. I can pick up a few words, like "halau" and "kumu" (the hula school, and teacher, respectively), but when the commentators begin their assessment of the dancers, I'm completely in the dark.
For example, right now, there are a bunch of people filing on stage, recieving maile leis and greeting each other. Traditional Hawaiian names are a mouthful, and I can't really tell if they're introducing the people, or just commenting on the various halau.
Ah -- okay, so now the kumu are all dancing together. It's interesting to see the subtle differences in their interpretations of the same mele.
I have a slightly creepy sounding confession: I love watching dancers. Rather, I love watching dance being performed. Some of my absolute favourite TV shows are dance-related, like "So You Think You Can Dance", and the new Elizabeth Berkley vehicle, "Step It Up and Dance", which by the way, is pretty fabulous. I have pretty high hopes for "Step It Up and Dance", imaginary reader, because any show that opens with Spice Girls routines is aces in my book, especially when they invite Scary Spice to be a guest judge. I pretty much fell in love when, a contestant pointed out that they don't have much experience as a hip-hop dancer, she shot back with "But you're BLACK." A-mazing.
I know I said a movie review was forthcoming, and I did see Leatherheads, which was utterly charming, but I don't really have the energy, so a full-on review will have to wait.
Sorry to keep you on tenterhooks, non-specified blog reader.
--amanda
P.S. In case you were wondering, the title refers to a specific type of hula dedicated to Pele. The more you know, unknown reader.
It is the Merrie Monarch Festival weekend here in Hawaii, and while I don't live on the Big Island, where the Festival is held, it is showing on local TV. I absolutely love watching hula -- real hula, the kind that tells a story.
As an anthropologist, hula is an interesting study. Nearly every aspect of (modern) hula has diverged from the traditional, pre-contact (or should it be pre-missionary ?) hula; it is a testament to the resiliency of the people and how adaptive culture really is.
Then again, as an anthropologist, my favourite hula are the kahiko hula, or the more traditional ones. I can't stand the modern hula auana, with the singing and steel guitars.
It's hard to watch the Merrie Monarch Festival, since I only understand what they're talking about half the time. I can pick up a few words, like "halau" and "kumu" (the hula school, and teacher, respectively), but when the commentators begin their assessment of the dancers, I'm completely in the dark.
For example, right now, there are a bunch of people filing on stage, recieving maile leis and greeting each other. Traditional Hawaiian names are a mouthful, and I can't really tell if they're introducing the people, or just commenting on the various halau.
Ah -- okay, so now the kumu are all dancing together. It's interesting to see the subtle differences in their interpretations of the same mele.
I have a slightly creepy sounding confession: I love watching dancers. Rather, I love watching dance being performed. Some of my absolute favourite TV shows are dance-related, like "So You Think You Can Dance", and the new Elizabeth Berkley vehicle, "Step It Up and Dance", which by the way, is pretty fabulous. I have pretty high hopes for "Step It Up and Dance", imaginary reader, because any show that opens with Spice Girls routines is aces in my book, especially when they invite Scary Spice to be a guest judge. I pretty much fell in love when, a contestant pointed out that they don't have much experience as a hip-hop dancer, she shot back with "But you're BLACK." A-mazing.
I know I said a movie review was forthcoming, and I did see Leatherheads, which was utterly charming, but I don't really have the energy, so a full-on review will have to wait.
Sorry to keep you on tenterhooks, non-specified blog reader.
--amanda
P.S. In case you were wondering, the title refers to a specific type of hula dedicated to Pele. The more you know, unknown reader.
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