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For an explanation of this alphabet theme, see my first NaBloPoMo post.
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So I was thinking that T was going to be for technical writer. I was going to talk about what I do and how I ended up not hating technical writing and editing even though it was the one thing I was not going to do with my English degree. (Scratch that. Teaching was the one thing I was not going to do with my English degree. But tech writing was in the list as well.) I was going to write about that, but then I remembered that the whole reason I started a blog in the first place was to encourage myself to write non-technically more often, and just thinking about technical writing in my non-technical forum seems counterproductive. Not to mention boring. To me and all of you.
Besides that, I have already told you what I do. Remember? I make fake flow charts and explain to grown adults how time zones work. Good times, right?
Instead then, T is for They Might Be Giants. Why? Because they have consistently ranked as one of my very, very favorites ever since my friend Zoey introduced me to them seventeen years ago. (Remember the opening bars of Flood? "A brand-new record for 1990?" I had that album in 1990. Lordy be, among a lot of you whippersnappers, I am old.)
Zoey, by the way, is the friend I ran into at the Andrew Bird show I was very late for several months ago, and I am still a little hurt that he apparently didn't want to follow-up and rekindle our long lost friendship. I cannot hold a grudge, however, because without Zoey, I might never have discovered the awesomeness that is John and John--the original (for me) smart and funny nerdy boys. And I do love me a smart and funny nerdy boy.
I'll admit I have not really kept up with everything Linnell and Flansburgh have done in recent years, but they still make the short list whenever anyone asks that "desert island" question, and they will always have a place in my head (and my music collection). Besides that, the classics are all I need anyway.
Check it: my very first embedded YouTube clip! Maybe I am a whippersnapper after all. (And speaking of young whippersnappers, check out the baby face on Linnell!)
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14 comments:
Zoey is a guy???
You have me beat. I have never tried to put a video on my blog. And you taught me how to text message too! You are certainly young at heart, at least.
I kid! I kid!
I don't know why I don't own more of their stuff, because it's one band that NEVER fails to cheer me up.
I dare say you're far ahead of the game than I am, Stef. I started my blog for the same reasons as you, and you've obviously done a much better job of knockin' it out of the park.
As if that weren't enough, you're younger than I. Damn you!
I share your excitement for video posting on the blog. I posted my firsts this month. Wait until it's your own video that you shoot. It's magical.
And thanks for the mild props to technical writers. I, too, always knew I would not use my English degree for teaching. Talk to people all day long for a profession? shudder
Yeah, I used to dig John and John. In 1990. When I was fifteen. (I'm 32, so I think I've got you beat.)
Every time I come to your blog I get "Stephanie Says" by the Velvet Underground stuck in my head. Not a bad thing, but seriously.
You make flow charts as your job? That's taking nerdy to a whole new level. :)
Also, I was all like, "How did she change the color on her YouTube embed?" and then I noticed the "customize" option. How long has it been there? Am I blind?
You may be an embedding neophyte, but you've taught me something new.
R--Yes. It didn't seem strange at the time, since he was the only Zoey I'd ever met. Plus, his sister had a traditionally guy's name, so... whatever. Hippie parents. ;-)
Nabb--I know, right? Searching for which YouTube video to use was all kinds of fun.
Steve--Knockin' it out of the park? That may be the first time a sports metaphor has ever been applied to me. I'm so unathletic that even the metaphors seem just wrong.
Pam--Yeah, we can expect that maybe a year or two from now. Baby steps, you know.
Aaron--You were a cooler kid than I was, obviously, because I was 16 before I discovered them. (I'm 33, so I've got a year on you.) And I actually got my blog name from that song, so I'm glad you got the reference. :-)
NPW--No, not really. I just had to write some Visio courseware last year, and I needed some sample files to use. And I had no idea what to include in a flow chart, hence the ridiculous one I included in that post.
Aaron again--Well, seeing as it's the first time I embedded anything, I can't tell you if it's new. I'm just curious by nature (or by profession--I spend my life clicking around on every button and link in software to see what it does so I can properly document it), so when I saw that "Customize" link, I clicked it to see what was there.
Unlike Aaron, I loved TMBG then, and I loved them now. I don't think I got Flood until 1991, when they were featured on "Tiny Toons" and I couldn't get "Particle Man" out of my head. Like you, I haven't kept up with everything they've done, but I have seen them in concert a couple of times, and I got the new album this year, and it was great. They have never failed to disappoint.
BTW, did you see the documentary about them? So worth a look.
I discovered TMBG in 2000. You are obviously way more cutting edge than I am. I still love them, though.
This is really strange, but when I was watching that video, all I could think of was Duckie from Pretty in Pink. Now talk about showing my age...
btw, I took a Journalism degree into tech writing. I'm in marketing now, but it can be just as boring!
I am head over heels in love with Flans, but he forgot to pull me out of the audience at the last concert and take me with him on tour. I am crushed.
Noelle--I think that Tiny Toons episode is how my little sister was finally convinced TMBG was worthwhile, too. And yes! I loved that documentary. Sarah Vowell's comments about "Don't Let's Start" gave me an even greater appreciation for the song. "No one in the world ever gets what they want, and that is beautiful." Brilliant (if you choose to avoid the depressing aspect of it).
Jess--Well, you were what, six when that album came out? ;-) Can't blame you for that. (Then again, six year olds NOW can be fans... Have you heard "Here come the ABCs"?)
Babs--I think most of us have vivid recollections of Duckie. Even the 20-somethings, I would bet.
Poppy--Well, there's always next time, right? Good luck with that.
-R- just learned how to text message?
I thought she was, like, a lawyer or something.
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