Where Have All the Smart Girls Gone?

I am hoping for a cultural shift.  For some time now I have found myself extremely discontent with the way our society, particularly our pop culture and the figures we lionize.  Now I don't mean to get all hippy-dippy here, but hear me out.

I miss the 90s.  I miss the empowered female singers like Fiona Apple, Jewel, Liz Phair, and the like.  It used to be so cool for chicks to have a fuck you attitude towards both the men in their lives as well as the culture that reveres them.  I miss the fact that it used to be cool for chicks to be smart.  I miss Daria, and Tabitha Soren.

Hipster Must-Watch: The State

Thanks to the power of instantly streaming Netflix, I get the opportunity to rediscover a million shows that I never really knew existed.  One such show is The State, the short-lived sketch comedy show that I've heard buzzing about for a while.

This sketch comedy show that aired on MTV for 29 episodes launched the careers of Michael Ian Black, Thomas Lennon, and Ken Marino.  Sketch comedy, which was huge in the 90s, has somehow essentially died in our modern television (aside from SNL, but that's a duh).  The State brings us back to all that glory that made sketch comedy so cool in the 90s.  Sketches on government, the environment, and spoofs on popular television commercials remind me of my childhood.

The only problem is that watching The State has made me terribly nostalgic for MTV in the 1990s.  Ya know, the days of MTV Unplugged, Tabitha Soren, and actual music videos.  Pretty much everything before MTV decided it was going to worship the consumer-culture of spoiled brats and girls pregnant way before they should be.  The days when MTV had shows on that required actual talent.  When MTV actually had some sort of credibility as a subversive television station that broke the pop culture barriers and made it cool to be different (ahem, Daria).

Oh MTV, how I miss you.

Style Inspiration: Jawbreaker

When I was 13, the video store I went to gave away free posters, and one day, the poster for Jawbreaker was in there.  Immediately drawn to the pop art colours, and enviable females (remember, this was during my easily impressionable stages of my looks), I picked up the poster, and Jawbreaker continues to be one of my favourite movies to this day.

Rose McGowan, Julie Benz, Rebecca Gayheart, and Judy Greer are all gorgeous.  The visuals are stunning, and the storyline about killing your popular best friend is purely Heathers.  But the part that continues to get me is the clothes.

Part 1960s sorority, part 1990s matchy-matchy, the clothes in Jawbreaker make me want to fill my closet with flower patterns, kitten heels, matching clutches, and cardigan sets.  And Rose McGowans technicolor lipstick/pale skin/liquid liner combo is already something I've become quite familiar with.

So here's my essential fashion ala Jawbreaker check-list:

1. Invest in a printed floral dress.
2. Buy some bright coloured scarves to tie around my neck ala Courtney Shane.
3. Invest in a matching clutch purse where I can keep all my make-up for my essential "pre-lunch touch-up."
4. Start building a collection of super-high heels and too tight cardigans.
5. Expose the manipulative popular girl for the evil murderess she is...

Oh, wait, that last one is from my "things to do before graduating high school" list.  My bad.  Though in all fairness I think that the style from Jawbreaker is something I could pull off for a super warm summer in New York.

Style Icon: Courtney Love

I have had a thing for the 90s for a while now.  A couple years ago, anticipating the return of the 90s, I started to collect vintage Doc Martens and a few babydoll dresses that would give me that early 90s Courtney Love grunge look.  Now, I am well aware that most people hate Courtney Love, and while I consider myself lucky that my ex-boyfriend no longer reads my blog (saving me hours of a lecture about how awful Courtney Love is), I am still certain to get some flack for secretly loving her.

The once prominent musician (thanks to her tumultuous relationships, zany antics, and Cobain written lyrics), has certainly had her fair share of media downfall.  She is constantly run over the coals for things she is saying, lawsuits she is dealing with, and issues with her daughter.  All that aside, if I could dress like she did in the early and mid-90s and pull it off, I would.

The first step is to build my collection of too tight/sheer/ripped/stained baby-doll dresses.  Thankfully, Spring and Summer are just around the corner and if I pair these with an oversized cardigan (or maybe a flannel button-down), I may just be able to pull it off.

The second item I will need to start acquiring is a great collection of Doc Martens.  This is actually going to be surprisingly difficult.  Now, this won't be difficult because Doc Martens are tough to find, no, it will be difficult to create a great collection of them without looking like a total poser.  Thankfully, I am already well on my way already owning a few pairs, including my white and black polka dot graphic Doc Marten boots, which are perfect for rainy weather or bar hopping in Williamsburg.

I bought these Doc Martens at a thrift store in Missoula, Montana a few years ago for around $35.  I've gotten more then my fair share of wear out of them in the rainy New York weather we've had this past year.

Finally, what really makes Courtney Love who she is, is her makeup and hair, and the fact that it is all just way to extreme.  Dark red lipstick, pale white skin, and kohl rimmed eyes that always look as though you've just slept with your make-up on after one too many PBR's.  The final touch is the bleach blond bob.  Having already been a blond for a large portion of my life, I have recently been contemplating switching my dark to light and my long to short. 

That's not all Ms. Love has proven herself to be.  No matter how much MAC Russian Red lipstick or peroxide I use, I could never be like Courtney without all the attitude and "I don't give a fuck" attitude that she projects.  Love her or hate her, get used to her, because even in her 40s, this woman is still making headlines.  

Quick Grammy Recap

I normally don't write much on award shows.  I don't usually watch many award shows, but I did watch the first half of the Grammy's this year.  Here were a few of my favorite highlights:

-Leonard Cohen receiving a Lifetime Achievement award.

-Green Day performing with the cast of American Idiot, which releases March 24, and I will definitely be seeing it.

-Beyonce covering Alanis Morissette's "You Oughta Know."  When asked why this song was so often covered by pop stars in the past year by a music loving friend, I suggested that it offered an interesting juxtaposition between anti-misogonist lyrics in the grunge-loving mid-90s, versus 2010 with Beyonce's "If I Were a Boy"

-Pink's aerial silk performance.  The female chandelier is very Howard Hawks circa Gentlemen Prefer Blonds, but Pink's body is banging, she's an amazing performer, and a killer singer.  I really just want to be her.

-Finally, I have to say, that as much as I adored Lady Gaga and Elton John's performance, it was a Lady Gaga performance, that made me originally decide to give into my love for the woman, and I was expecting something insane and wonderful again.  It's okay, I still love her.  In fact, she was so awesome in this Giorgio Armani Prive dress, that it was difficult for me to look directly at her.

Lady Gaga wins my vote for being the best dressed of the night.  I know I'm pretty much alone in this, but the weirder you dress the more I like you (ahem, Bjork).

Lady Gaga has become my surrealist fantasy.  Everything I loved in modern art and cinema is becoming realized through this woman, and one day I feel as though they'll be teaching a class in modern and surrealist performance, studying Lady Gaga concerts and videos!

Style Icon: Angela Chase

Due to my bed rest last week and current unemployment this week, I have had a lot of time to re-watch old TV shows, mainly My So-Called Life. Now this is not my first watching of MSCL. In fact, I've watched the entire series probably 4 or 5 times, if not more.

Re-watching this show has made me decide one thing...I want to be Angela Chase.



Claire Danes perfectly captured that teen angst that the 90s was known for. I understand feeling that way at 10, then again at 12, 15, 17, and at 23. Only, Angela did it better. That hair, those friends, those emotions, that family, that drama, and more importantly...




That boy. Ahhh, Jordan Catalano, you were the childhood crush I never recovered from. You have been and always will be the perfect bruting male. If I dye my hair can you pretend that you wrote "Red" about me, and not your car?

Let's not forget the clothes. The flower prints, the plaid, the boots, the perfect shapelessness of Angela's dresses.




It makes me think that the 90s coming back won't be such a bad thing. I'm dusting off my Doc Martens in anticipation.

Top 10 Favorite Books of 2009

I am not the New York Times Best-Seller list. I don’t rush out to buy the newest books, and I have never read a Twilight novel in my life. But I love literature and think my opinion is valid, so here is a top ten list of the books I have read in the past year:

10. Geek Love
Catharine Dunn’s novel about a family who’s members are nearly all in a carnival sideshow strikes a chord and common theme among books I like to read…it’s bizarre. It manages to be crazy, emotional, and sad all at the same time. I recommend it for anyone looking for something a little bit different from the New York Times Best Sellers.

9. Famous for 15 Minutes
Ultra Violet was an integral part of the Andy Warhol factory scene in the 60s. This memoir, albeit not well written, is fascinating to anyone interested in Warhol, Dali, and the sex, drugs, and rock and roll scene that was the New York 60s. Now out-of-print, it is relatively easy to find a used copy online.

8. Animal Farm
2009 was my year of catching up on classics. Unfortunately, most of those classics did not make my list, but George Orwell’s metaphorical novel has affected my core. Read in the course of two hours at a local coffee shop, I found myself deeply upset, and I don’t think I ate meat for weeks.

7. Drugs are Nice: A Post-Punk Memoir
Lisa Crystal Carver’s memoir of the 1980s and 1990s underground is missing the one thing you’d think it would have: drugs, at least from her. What it does have is lots of music references, the start of ‘zine culture, alleged Nazi’s and the story of one woman’s pain and strength to get through it.

6. Into the Wild
I found my copy of Into the Wild on the street and had I not, I probably never would have read it. Part of me envy’s Chris McCandless’ adventure, and the interviews with everyone he touched during his travels is inspiring. Later made into a movie starring the amazing Emile Hirsch, this story is wonderful and heartbreaking.

5. Middlesex
Jeffrey Eugenides ode to a hermaphrodite is his first, but not only appearance on my list. Spanning from Greek grandparents, to Grosse Pointe, Michigan, this novel is truly an amazing read.

4. Sex, Drugs, and Cocoa Puffs
Chuck Klosterman’s best selling essay collection makes it pretty high on my list. It is perfect for anyone in their 20s, it deals with topics relevant to growing up in the late 80s and early 90s, and it made me want to rewatch My So-Called Life.

3. The Fountainhead
Ayn Rand’s objectivism is not a popular topic among most people, and while I wouldn’t consider myself an objectivist, I will say this. I want to be Dominique Francon. Her powerful female role is admirable and inspiring, if only one day I can be that much of a ball buster.

2. American Psycho
Bret Easton Ellis tribute to New York and all it’s Patrick Bateman’s in the late 1980s. This was the last B.E.E. book for me to read, the most difficult, and my favorite. I had to speed through this one because I began thinking like Patrick Bateman and my inner monologues kept me up at night.

1. The Virgin Suicides
Jeffrey Eugenides first novel that was later adapted into a feature film by Sophia Coppola. Not only is it my favorite read of 2009, but it’s quite possibly my favorite read ever. Written with grace and eloquence, The Virgin Suicides hits a note that anyone who has ever faced adolescence can relate to.

Hipster Must-See: The Wackness

I have a tendency to joyfully watch horrible movies. If it has zombies, violence, young girls being bitchy, etc., I usually enjoy rather thoroughly. I find myself needing to be in a certain mood in order to sit through a serious movie. Last night, I happened to put myself in that mood and Netflix had sent me The Wackness, so I geared up to be depressed. Boy was I pleasantly surprised.

Set in New York City in 1994, The Wackness has a great plot, great acting, and a great soundtrack. Josh Peck, best known for his role in Nickolodeon's Drake and Josh pleasantly surprised me with his serious acting ability. Starring opposite Ben Kingsley, Famke Jansen, and Mary-Kate Olsen, Peck delivered a thoroughly impressive performance as a young, in-love, and genetically fucked up drug-dealer. It is safe to say that I now have a crush on him. His love interest, Olivia Thirlby, who is somewhat recognizable for her various other roles, did an amazing job as well. Rounding out the younger cast was Mary-Kate Olsen, who I seem to remember doing press across the country for this film. While she was great for the fifteen minutes she was in the film, I seemed to feel as though with all the hype of her being in the film, she really should have had a larger role, or just less publicity. Okay, I love Mary-Kate Olsen, so I really don't care either way, but it makes me hate society a little bit more.

Growing up in the late 1990s, I was too young to really take full advantage of everything a movie in 1994 could bring. I feel as though if I would've been in high-school at that time I could have appreciated the movie so much more then I did. Either way, I really enjoyed the film and would highly recommend it to any of my friends. I feel as though it is easily a film that can transcend various generations, being able to reach out to everyone.