Off the Shelf

I hate being sick. Feeling sick I deal with, but coughing my lungs up, fever running, and aching body sick is something that I can't handle. Last week I was subject to such sickness and it was disgusting. On a more positive note, it allowed for plenty of reading, watching, and listening.

Reading
I've been reading Franny and Zooey by Salinger. I'm about fifty pages in and I absolutely love it. I'm not sure why. I mean, nothing is really happening. Maybe it's just his style. It just seems so hopeless. I've posted about Catcher in the Rye before and this novel has the same feel. I mean, they're totally different, but at the same time completely the same. They're just so truthful. Painfully so.
Besides Salinger, I've also been reading Slaughterhouse Five. I read it last year for an English project in Jankowski's AP Lit and I loved it. So I've been skimming and remembering. It's heartbreaking; there are so many statements that are so completely accurate, but no one has ever said them before.

Watching
My sister and I have this agreement regarding TV. She has Hulu Plus and I have Netflix, so we exchanged passwords and I love this system. While I was sick and lying on the couch, disgusting, I watched episode after episode of Community. Staring the flawless Donald Glover (the man I dedicated a post to), the handsome Joel McHale, the talented feminist Gilliam Jacobs, and the HILARIOUS Danny Pudi, it's one of my favorite shows. The Abed/Troy (Pudi/Glover) relationship is probably one of the funniest on TV; the witty bromance thoroughly enjoyable to audiences (especially me). They rival the Jim/Dwight relationship...and that is saying something.

Listening 
While rearranging our living room last week, I discovered a CD I haven't listened to since fourth or fifth grade. The type of CD that no matter when you hear it, you can't help but love it. Well, if you're a bluegrass fan. I'm usually into more of the rock and roll underground music, but underground bluegrass can be just as enjoyable. Nickel Creek. They became famous at a very young age, and wrote all their own music. On my favorite album "Nickel Creek" (they were very original--but seriously, they were) for every two or three songs with lyrics, they have one of just music, featuring Chris Thile on mandolin.

 I grew up on The Fox, my dad would play the guitar and I would dance and sing, to the best of my six year old ability. I also loved The Lighthouse's Tale, even though I didn't really understand it at the time. Chris Thile was only 19 at the time the album was released; just this past year he won the MacArthur "genius" Grant for 500,000 dollars to do nothing but study music.

Who knew he'd end up looking so adorable?