Best Hey Hey it's the Twenty-Ninth!

Happy Birthday, Mom











from Me, Brigham

Everyone Else: Don't be rude. Wish my mom a Happy Birthday!

Best Way to Start Off Your Week

Now here we go. Here's someone with the right idea.

Best I Cannot Be Trusted to Take Care of Myself

One reason: I always buy shirts that look just like ones I already own.


There will be returns. I promise this. To myself.

Best Mighty Challenges at the End of My Day

Yesterday, before I could escape from the Financial District, I had to cross the Uncrossable River of Corporate Fun Runners.



And then do battle with the Fearsome Golem of City Hall.

But my labors went not unrewarded, for after emerging the victor I feasted upon:

Duck!

Vegetables!


Cow!


A twisting of icecream, flavored strawberry and sweet pea. I speak not in jest when I say it was a delicious treat!

On my way home, I found myself being watched by spectral things not of this earth.

Best I Got this in the Email Yesterday

January or February 1995. As was swim team tradition, I had dyed my hair the night before with a deadly combination of salon chemicals in preparation for shaving down for Sectionals. Which I won.

Best Discuss Amongst Yourselves

Here's a question I've been asking in real life that I thought I'd throw out to the internet:

Which will happen first? (if they happen at all)

1) The mainstream (and I mean MAINSTREAM, as big as baseball/football/basketball) popularity of Soccer in the United States

or

2) The legalization of marijuana?

Both have been talked about and dreamt of by their supporters for so, so long. Both have made inroads . . . so, which will win?

Best Party, Best Book, Best Dinner, Best Band

A couple Thursdays ago I went to the release party for my buddy Pete's newest cookbook, "The Frankies Spuntino Kitchen Companion and Cooking Manual" at the Frankies in Brooklyn.

It all seemed so calm from out front . . .

But in back, there was a good deal of elbow to elbow Italian food-celebrating partying going on . . .



Music was provided by Spectre Folk, featuring a Magic Marker on guitar, a Sonic Youth on drums, and a food writer/mogul on guitar.



And to top it all off, there was food. Everywhere.



Taken between trays of delicious pork pinwheels.


First, in front, turns out that's not pasta but a celery root salad. Second, in back, those meatballs? For every meatball you eat you will spend a day thinking about those meatballs. For example, I had two meatballs on Thursday, so I was thinking about Frankies meat & raisin & pinenut meatballs until the end of Saturday. You've been warned (and encouraged).


On hand, mixing drinks? Pete's brother (and my fellow OPRF Class of 95 alum), Jim, the world famous mixologist. (That's a link to him on the Jimmy Fallon show)

Goodbye, Frankies party.


Hello, Brooklyn.


One final item,you can file this under the I Can't Keep it Cool: Maybe at the party I found myself standing beside Thurston Moore and Gibby Haynes as they discussed baby names? Okay, you got me, I did.

Best Well I'm Surprised

This Green Hornet trailer . . . it's kind of cool. I had been dismissive about this Michel Gondry production, now I think I welcome it. Shame about the 3D, though.

Best Sudden Vacation Supplement

Just a little trip I took in the middle of last week, that's all.



Check it out over at the Photosupplement

Best Something that Happened in Fantasyland

We weren't alone on King Arthur's Carousel last week . . .



(bigger)

Disneyland photos . . . imminent

And Happy Bloomsday, by the way.

Best If This Interests You, You've Probably Already Seen It

Portal and Half Life 2 run so poorly on my Mac. I hate to say it.

Best You'll Never Guessed Who Directed This

Oh, I guess YouTube tells you before you even click it.

This Somewhere looks so Sofia Coppola the way Royal Tenenbaums looked so Wes Anderson when that preview came out. Yet . . . by the end . . . I'll admit there's a charm.

Stephen Dorff plays an A-list actor . . . must have been quite the stretch for him, am I right?

And that song playing throughtout that you can't quite put your finger on? It's a Strokes demo.

So many years ago, I posted the Marie Antoinette trailer. Want to take a walk down memory lane?

Best This is How We Do

Fun Fact: In 2009, there was about a week where it looked like Jamar and I were going to be roommates. Sometimes I lie awake at night imagining what that would have been like. Probably a lot like this, but nonstop:


Anyway, here's what I played at Jamar's Party:

Warming Up: (although people were dancing from track one)

Shoop — Salt n Peppa
Iesha — Another Bad Creation
The Boy is Mine — Brandy and Monica
I Can Transform You — Chris Brown & Lil Wayne
Turnin Me On — Keri Hilson
Steve Biko — A Tribe Called Quest
A Rollerskating Jame Called Saturday — De La Soul
If I Had No Loot — Tony Toni Tone
You're a Jerk — New Boyz
Bonnie n Clyde '03 (Everyday People Remix) — DJ Crooked
Are You that Somebody — Aaliyah
Just Wanna Love You — Jay Z
Doo Wop (That Thing) — Lauryn Hill

From about this point you could say a party was happening:

Cyclone — Baby Bash
Gin and Juice — Snoop Dogg
Tipsy — J Kwon
Right Thurr — Chingy
Hypnotize — The Notorious B.I.G.
Just Dance — Lady Gaga
Get Low — Flo-Rida
Carry Out — Timbaland and Justin Timberlake
On to the Next One — Jay-Z
Down — Jay Sean and Lil Wayne
Crazy — Pitbull and Lil John

At this time we paused for the toast from Joe (the apartment was packed and it was time to honor Jamar)

Single Ladies — Beyonce
Bad Romance — Lady Gaga (I thought this song would set everything on fire, it did)
Right Round — Flo-Rida
Womanizer — Britney Spears
Umbrella — Rihanna (Received with cheers, surprised me)
Gold Digger — Kanye West (More cheers, it killed me to have to end it early for . . .)

Birthday Cake and Singing Happy Birthday

In da Club — 50 Cent (Somesay best post-Happy Birthday notion possible. I say, "Of course.")
Work It — Missy Elliott
Empire State of Mind — Jay-Z and Alicia Keyes
The Thong Song — Sisqo (Riskiest jam of the night, went over big, gave me the courage to follow with:)
Summertime — DJ Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince (Received like the Prodigal Son. The party fell on its neck and kissed it)
Baby — Justin Bieber (You could sense the split-second initial hesitance to accept this song, the quick glances of "Is it cool if I'm down?" before the universal downness with this song)
Telephone — Lady Gaga
OMG — Usher
Walk it Out — Unk (People LOVE to Walk it Out)
Get Low — Lil Jon & the Eastside Boyz
Let Me Clear My Throat — DJ Cool
Tick Tock — Kesha
Three — Britney Spears
Boom Boom Pow — Black Eyed Peas
American Boy — Estelle and Kanye West
Billie Jean — Michael Jackson
All These Things That I Have Done — The Killers (Only rock song of the night, just shaking things up. For singing along to.)
Paper Planes — M.I.A.
Crank That — Souljaboy
Live Your Life — T.I.
Poker Face — Lady Gaga (Lots of requests for Alejandro, I don't have Alejandro, here, take my last remaining Gaga song)
Check on It — Beyonce
Big Pimpin' — Jay Z
Country Grammar — Nelly (Beloved! So glad.)
Who I Am? — Snoop Dogg
California Love — 2Pac and Dr. Dre
Tootsie Roll — Quad City DJs (People love to tootsie roll! Do you know that dance was banned from my High School dances? It was the twist of 1994.)
Ms. Jackson — Outkast
I Want You Back — Jackson 5
Forever — Chris Brown
Flashing Lights — Kanye West
Dirt Off Your Shoulder — Jay-Z (this was my after-party song. It was 1 am, the party organizers thought it best to end. Over a dozen partiers remained, I believe they would have danced all night)

63 songs, a little more than 4 hours. I think we all had a good time.

Best Partying after the Manner of Diddy

UPDATE: I forgot to say something important--Carol took most of the party pictures for me while I was clicking on my iTunes. Thank you, Carol, for doing Collin's job. And Collin, good job not doing your job. Again.

Saturday night, why am I dressed so fresh?

Because Saturday night was the night of Jamar's completely bizonkers All-White Birthday Party.

Everywhere you looked, people looking absolutely excellent in white.




And if you couldn't guess, it was hot up in that apartment.




Preparing for the birthday toast . . .

Having a good laugh at the toast . . .


Which was delivered, via technology, by Jamar's homie Joe.

Back to partying . . .


And gesturing . . .











Bringing 2007 back







I, like probably many many others, had to buy white pants for the party. I was honestly surprised that 90% of the attenders showed up in white. I assumed it was going to be about 50/50 all-white/dudes in jeans and red t-shirts.


Let me be bold: if you couldn't tell, this party went off. At first I thought it might be the "official beginning of the summer" party (errr . . . in the middle of June) but now I think it might have been the "official end of the summer" party because, well, there might not be any topping it. I just wish I had played Drop it Low for Rustin, but he made due with Tootsie Roll.



This is what it really looked like in there without all the flashing. The apartment was decorated so, so well.

Tomorrow: My setlist from the party. Jamar jam after Jamar jam after Jamar jam.