My mother's house

My father pulled his new car into the garage and immediately pointed out the new lights. Once we got inside, he showed me where he had shelving built into the closet in the office, after the old shelf fell down. But other than that, the house seems the same as she left it -- the same furniture she picked out, the same art on the walls, the same piles of things that she never got around to.

It breaks my heart to be here. So I can understand why he keeps talking about selling the house. It's like being in a museum.

On ne voit bien qu'avec le cœur

To me, books are like comfort food. When I am sad or melancholy, I tend go back to the same ones over and over again.

Lately, one of those books is The Little Prince. I vaguely recall reading it as a kid -- I think I even read it in the original French -- but I don't think it had much of an effect on me then. But as an adult, I find it deeply moving. I think a lot about the episode with the fox, particularly the statement that "one sees clearly only with the heart," and the discussion of what it means to tame and to be tamed -- or, stepping outside the allegory, to love and to be loved -- and the responsibility that comes with it. It is so simple and yet, so very profound.

If you've read it, you know what I mean. If you haven't -- go read it now!

Albums of the Year(s)

Last year, the AV Club ran an article based on something they saw somewhere else -- which is essentially a highbrow meme -- where they picked a favorite album for each year they've been alive. Of course, I think it's kind of a neat idea. So, here are my favorite albums for each year that I've been alive:

1975: Fleetwood Mac, Fleetwood Mac
1976: Hotel California, The Eagles
1977: Rumours, Fleetwood Mac
1978: Outlandos d'Amour, The Police
1979: London Calling, The Clash
1980: Boys Don't Cry, The Cure
1981: Escape, Journey
1982: Thriller, Michael Jackson
1983: Madonna, Madonna
1984: The Unforgettable Fire, U2
1985: Songs From the Big Chair, Tears for Fears
1986: Slippery When Wet, Bon Jovi
1987: The Joshua Tree, U2
1988: New Jersey, Bon Jovi
1989: Disintigration, The Cure
1990: Violator, Depeche Mode
1991: Ten, Pearl Jam
1992: Wish, The Cure
1993: August and Everything After, Counting Crows
1994: Grace, Jeff Buckley
1995: A Boy Named Goo, Goo Goo Dolls
1996: Crash, Dave Matthews Band
1997: Whatever and Ever Amen, Ben Folds Five
1998: Wide Open Spaces, Dixie Chicks
1999: There is Nothing Left to Lose, Foo Fighters
2000: No Name Face, Lifehouse
2001: Room For Squares, John Mayer
2002: Songs About Jane, Maroon 5
2003: Elephant, The White Stripes
2004: How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb, U2
2005: X&Y, Coldplay
2006: Stand Still, Look Pretty, The Wreckers
2007: Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga, Spoon
2008: Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends, Coldplay
2009: Middle Cyclone, Neko Case

I'm shocked by how hard it was to make these choices, and how mainstream these choices are.