My Year in Reading

Here is a little picture of the books I read this year and how I rated them on Goodreads:



For more specifics you can click here and see a more detailed list.

I ended the year by reading three absolutely amazing novels that are completely different from one another; Possession, Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World and A Storm of Swords. Possession was extremely literary but also accessible and human. I have the film on my DVR currently but Aaron Eckhart and Gwynneth Paltrow seem like pretty terrible casting choices for Roland and Maud so I'm not expecting it to live up to the book. I am excited to see Lena "Cersei Lannister" Headey as Blanche Glover though. And speaking of George R. R. Martin properties A Storm of Swords has been my favorite of the series so far. Even though by being on Tumblr I had some major plot points spoiled there were still so many other things that came at me from nowhere. It was exciting, I started to like characters I had hated and think twice about characters that I loved and it makes me really happy that such a popular novel does things like that.

I ended the year with my first Murakami and loved it. It's the kind of novel that would have made me feel so cool to read in High School or college but I feel now I can just really enjoy it on its own merits as a thoughtful and ambiguous experience. I feel like I didn't really read enough books that left a lot unexplained and this kind of made up for it. It managed to be exciting, existential, sad, wacky, and very real all at the same time. I listened to the version of Danny Boy from Straight to Hell, Like a Rolling Stone, Stuck Inside of Mobile With the Memphis Blues Again, and Sad-Eyed Lady of the Lowlands on repeat through the last few chapters and it enhanced the experience.

I had challenged myself to read 50 books this year and managed to surpass that once I decided to branch out into YA territory and realized it was faster for me to read 3 books concurrently than reading one-at-a-time. I wasn't sure if I'd make it because I started the year with the long and dense 2666 and even though it seemed like a bad idea at the time it was a great way to start the year off.

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Long Tennis Post 1: A New Era and the Streak

Until I do two things: 1. Decide what to name my future tennis blog and 2. Decide whether I want to use Blogger or Tumblr, I'm going to post this and any other tennis posts here. This will be the first post on that hypothetical tennis blog since it’s the first thing that I've written with that express purpose.

Inspired by Sunday’s eventsI want to begin my tennis blogging by summarizing my take on the current atmosphere in men’s tennis. For the past few years that I've been paying attention (as well as several years prior), tennis was dominated by Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer and now it isn't. Sunday Novak Djokovic earned his second win of the year against Nadal on clay (which, coincidentally, is his second win against Nadal on clay ever) and his fourth win in a row against him this year which brings his record against Nadal from 7-16 to 11-16. The moment Djokovic won yesterday’s final in Rome I realized, with complete certainty, that men’s tennis is in the midst of a new era. Of course, the moment one recognizes the existence of a new era is not necessarily the moment the era started.

Even though at the beginning of the year Djokovic was just as undefeated as he is now, it didn't mean as much. Nadal not winning hard court tournaments against Djokovic isn't exactly surprising, Djokovic had already won a major so his winning the Australian Open wasn’t that surprising either, and neither Federer nor Andy Murray were playing their best tennis. Also, even though Djokovic beat Nadal in Madrid on clay, which was surprising, Madrid is at a higher altitude allowing for faster play. It was definitely a majorly important accomplishment for Djokovic but I don't think it was as important a win as Rome.

That's not to say that he wasn't playing impressively or even excellently, he definitely was, but Sunday when he beat Nadal a second time on clay, in a tournament that Nadal has won 5 times in the past 7 years, I became utterly convinced that tennis is in the middle of a new era. Although, I think that in the future the exact point this new era began will be recognized as either Djokovic's win over Federer at the US Open semi-finals in 2010 or when Robin Söderling ended Federer’s epic Grand Slam semi-final streak at last year’s French Open, depending on how dominating a force Djokovic is in the future.

Right now he’s invincible. In the past Djokovic, while always a threat, had the occasional tendency to choke, exit tournaments early, and double fault often. It's like Failvak Chokeavic (a nickname endearingly used on tennis forums by frustrated fans) has been eliminated completely. It’s as if Djokovic, to use a reference to True Blood, went to Miss Jeanette and stabbed a flawed version of himself in some hallucinatory ceremony and all that's left is an unbeatable player who makes few, if any mistakes and double faults rarely. Or, to use a Buffy the Vampire Slayer reference, it's as if Toth used his separation ray on Djokovic and the half with the concentrated strengths is keeping the weak half chained in Giles' book cage, always far enough away so that none of its weakness rubs off. Less interestingly, in reality it probably has more to do with better conditioning, mental toughness and maybe even a gluten free diet.

The one thing I'm not sure of is whether Djokovic would have won in Rome had Nadal been playing his absolute best tennis. I'm going to answer that with a probably. I do think that if Nadal was as good as he can be the score would have been closer, and it was close, but I think there would have been tiebreaks involved. Also I think that some part of Nadal’s loss was mental. I think that the whole reason Murray lost the semi-final to Djokovic was mental, and I think there has been a mental component in many of Djokovic’s wins since, let's say, Indian Wells. There were only a few times, however, when that mental advantage made even a sliver of a difference because of the level of tennis Djokovic has been playing.

I think there are only three ways Djokovic’s winning streak will end; either by injury, which would be terrible, and, sad, and unfitting, or defeat by either a 100% on-form Nadal who has gotten over any streak-related intimidation, or someone like Thomaz Bellucci, who has less to lose and doesn't feel much pressure. If this streak had happened at this time last year I would have added a long match on a hot day to the list of steak ending scenarios but I don't think that's a possibility anymore.

Elaborating on the 'someone with no pressure and nothing to lose' theory; unlike Nadal, or Murray, there was no expectation for Bellucci to beat Djokovic in Madrid. If he hadn't injured himself he might have won that match. It'll be interesting to see Djokovic's draw going into the French. Someone like Bellucci or Jürgen Melzer, who have so much ability but virtually no pressure could potentially pull off the elusive win over Djokovic.

Finally, I want to clarify that by saying that Djokovic's win in Rome is, basically, the final nail in the coffin of the Fedal era, I don't mean that whatever new era we're in is going to be a strictly Rafole era. Djokovic's streak has lasted 5 months which is ridiculous and awesome and lots of other superlatives but it is nothing compared to the length of the Fedal era.

It's exciting that the state of men’s tennis is in flux. The era is defining itself as tournaments go by and players distinguish themselves. Anything can happen. Federer could return to form, Murray could finally win a slam, Söderling could win the French after losing the last two finals, Juan Martin Del Potro could overcome his injuries, win a few more slams, and reclaim a spot in the top five, Milos Raonic could continue to live up to his potential and consistently be a major threat. It's all happening now. Bring on the French.

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Project Runway; Why We're Done*

Disclaimer: Ok, this is a super old post but it's the end of the year and I haven't posted much here (at all) since I got tumblr (but I hope to change that soon now that I'm FINALLY getting a new laptop and won't have to use a communal computer) so I decided to post two drafts in a kind of bare-bones, what I have written already, form. This one is basically just bullet points I was going to post in the heat of the moment that now border on irrelevancy. Anyway, here we go.

So basically I, like every other right-minded person who watched Project Runway (including Jack Black who I recently heard voice this opinion making me feel slightly less irrelevant), think Mondo was robbed. He deserved to win, he is awesome and I was really pissed when he didn't. I decided that I wasn't going to watch Project Runway anymore; not just because of this outrage but also because it really hasn't been as good since its move to Lifetime. The challenges are uninspired and I just feel like I've seen it all before.

Here are some reasons why I thought the finale was a travesty of epic proportions:

-the ugliness of Gretchen's clothes
-the fact that her aesthetic was so trendy and therefore ephemeral
-the unfounded criticism of Mondo, I don't think his looks were unoriginal which seemed to be a major point of the judges
-bad for business? Christian Siriano and Chris March have been the only ProjRun names on the red carpet giving the show credibility. They were more avant garde like Mondo who is more likely to have his clothes show up on red carpets (Heidi wore his dress sans-sleeves to the Black Swan premiere)
-even from a 'producer wanting a happy ending' standpoint Mondo is much more likable

*I probably will still watch it next year. Especially now that tons of time has passed.

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Tumblr And Books

I started a tumblr. It seems pretty fun so far but I haven't done too much with it yet. I need a better theme too but the infinite scrolling thing kind of overloads this computer. Here is the link (which should be obvious): http://ambivalentalumna.tumblr.com/

Also I decided that I'm going to start writing about my progress going through Jezebel's list of 75 Books Every Woman Should Read. When I joined the library, finally, I figured it was a good way to have a ready-made list of books to go to if I was feeling particularly stumped about what I wanted to read next. I'd only read like 6 of the books on the list before I came across it and now I'm about one third of the way through. I already wrote specifically about The House Of The Spirits but I'll probably write a little more about it in a separate post later. So my first Jez Book List post should be coming pretty soon (as soon as I decided what I want the inaugural book to be).

I'm currently reading 100 Years Of Solitude which isn't on the list but I already read Love In The Time Of Cholera which is.

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Behind on Internet Memes: 25 Random Things (aka The Final Post In My Half-Assed-List-Post Trilogy)

1. I can’t stand the bottoms of my feet touching or rubbing together, I kind of get over it for yoga.2. I have really high arches in my feet.
3. I have really short fingers, like when I worked at an elementary school, 4th graders had longer fingers than me.
4. I can’t use chopsticks. I’ve tried really hard many times but I just can’t do it. I worry that when I ask for a fork people will think that I’m some assy ethnocentric person that just refuses to use them.
5. Certain loud noises really bother me; vacuum cleaners, my grandmother’s television.
6. When I’m in a closed in space (usually some form of train) and someone stinks I put on hand cream and smell my hands until I can get out of there.
7. I’m vegetarian.
8. I’m definitely one of those people who don’t know what their real hair color is. I imagine it’s darker now than it was when I started dyeing it, but I’m not entirely sure.
9. I hardly wore any makeup when I was in high school but now I LOVE it and spend way too much money on it.
10. Drinking too much too strong coffee has more of an effect on me than actual stimulant drugs.
11. I started watching tennis again for the same reason I started watching it when I was in middle school: male tennis players are hot, they’re strong but not too muscle-y looking.
12. I probably watch TV more on the internet than on actual TV. This is probably because I watch a lot of UK TV shows.
13. I really miss living in London and being in Europe in general and I wish I had enough money to go back and forth between New York and London/Europe more often.
14. I miss being in college but I can’t decide what to go to grad school for (or if I even want to go because it seems like an insane amount of work and is ridic expensive)
15. I’ve recently decided that instead of dress pants I’ll only wear skirts and dresses. Jeans, of course, are ok.
16. I think I decided to wear skirts and dresses instead of dress pants as an excuse to buy more cute dresses.
17. I always take way too much stuff with me whenever I go anywhere and usually have a way too big bag that annoys me at the time but that in the end I’m happy I had with me.
18. My writing style tends to be confessional, possibly a vestige of Catholicism.
19. I like to read bad reviews of books before I buy them because I think it's important to know why the people who hate them feel that way.
20. I consider myself nerdy and cool and I can’t decide whether I’d be considered a hipster or not. I don’t consider myself one.
21. I tend to wear clothes inappropriate for the weather. I generally dress as if it’s a warm fall day and the actual days that are warm fall days are very small in number.
22. I love to be barefoot and if I’m home or at someone's home I usually am barefoot.
23. I worry about whether people think I’m copying them or copying some famous person but I own up to it if I am deliberately taking inspiration from copyingsomeone.
24. I usually respond to emails right away unless I’m feeling depressed and then I take forever to respond or don’t respond at all.
25. I don’t wash my hair as often as I should and it’s gotten used to the fact that it’s not washed as often as it should be (doesn’t get greasy for a really long time).

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10 Albums I've Been Meaning To Check Out But Haven't Yet

I've been in a music rut lately. More specifically I haven't listened to anything new, as in current, in awhile. I also haven't been listening to anything new, as far as older albums go, to me. I've pretty much just been listening to a bunch of MP3s, mostly not current, that are more or less impulse downloads. I dunno why, I guess I just go from phases of being voracious about music to being more complacent about acquiring new stuff. Maybe it's because I've been extra cash poor lately. I've also been reading more often. I like the concept of the album, and as much as I love getting eclectic and obscure MP3's I also enjoy listening to music the way the artist generally intended it to be listened to. Anyway, here's a list of 10 albums (an arbitrary, but round, number) I've been meaning to check out, old and new, but haven't gotten around to (although I have heard a song or two (or more) off most).

In no particular order:

Cornershop - When I Was Born For The 7th Time

Richard Hawley - Coles Corner

Noisettes - Wild Young Hearts

Next 7 after the jump.

Santoigold - Santogold

Graham Coxon - The Spinning Top

Bat For Lashes - Two Suns

Pete(r) Doherty - Grace/Wastelands

Monks - Black Monk Time

Lily Allen - It's Not Me, It's You

Wire - Chairs Missing

Hopefully getting all these down in list form will help inspire me to actually check them out, in album form, sometime in the near future, and maybe I'll actually write about them.

PS: I took out the yet from the title of this post originally but then taking it out made me think of the yet scene in High Fidelity and it kind of sums up my position perfectly. I'm not desperate to hear all these albums but I want to and I probably will. I mean Laura did sleep with Ian/Ray in the movie and I've been of the opinion, for awhile, that High Fidelity contains most of life's answers.

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Off The Face Of The Internet

I'm back. It's been awhile...

I haven't been particularly busy, I guess once you start not writing it's easy to continue not writing. Also things that I maybe should have gone into further detail in I mentioned on Twitter and never followed up. Like the incongruousness of the title of the taking of Pelham 123 and the horribleness of NBC's tennis coverage. Or, speaking of tennis, the Serena incident, which I didn't even mention on Twitter but had an opinion on (team Serena all the way).

I've also kind of become a crazy cat lady since the last time I wrote so there may be cat pictures popping up from time to time but I'll try not to let them take over.

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Twitter

So I didn't think that I was going to join Twitter but I've had an exceptionally bad day and needed to do something that would occupy my mind but at the same time not require too much actual thought, like writing on here about Southland Tales, which I've been meaning to do and probably will do soon unless my day (and days in the near future) manage to get even worse which is a distinct possibility. See that was an extremely bad run-on sentence that I'm not going to even bother fixing because it would require too much thought. Anyway here's my twitter address:
www.twitter.com/ambivlentalumna. I couldn't spell ambivalent properly because it would have been too many letters so I deleted the a so it would still more or less work phonetically.

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Beginning Blogging

I decided that I'd start a blog the day after the election. My first idea for a blog name was 'Post-Grad Limbo', which is maybe a little more pretentious than what I ultimately went with. But there was already a blog with that name so I thesaurus-ed Limbo, which led me to uncertain, which led me to ambivalent.

I think ambivalent is a kind of perfect description of my current state. Also, post-grad was the wrong word because I'm not in any kind of post-graduate school. I've simply graduated. My ambivalence is what's keeping me from grad school.

Since weeks passed between when I intended to start writing and now, an even more fitting blog title might have included procrastination. Right now I should be doing something else, but I'm not, I'm writing this.

In future blog posts I want to write about pop culture type stuff, analyze TV and movies (my academic true love), reactions to books I'm reading, and Music* I'm listening to (my non-academic true love) and maybe post a bit about politics and analyze media coverage of politics. I'll probably also post any random thoughts I feel are blog worthy. Oh and I want to post some of my favorite pictures that I've taken too.

I could post some get-to-know-me-type facts but I think I'll hold off. I was just thinking about how I hate small talk; talking about what people do, how they know each other, etc. I'll try to avoid that and let the boring details come out in a more organic, and hopefully more interesting way.

Joe Strummer once said, "I think it's a sin to be boring." Keeping that in mind, I probably sinned a bit with this first entry. In the future I'll try to be as virtuous in that regard as possible.

*when editing, I noticed that I capitalized music by mistake but I decided that it was kind of Freudian so I'm keeping it

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