Jacob Bannon of Converge

Freight Baggage Ruck Sack

I want I want I want.
Scared to see how much this will cost once it's on sale.

R.I.P J.D. Salinger

J.D. Salinger, author of the beloved novel "Catcher in the Rye" and a myriad of other short stories, passed away of natural causes yesterday (Wednesday the 27th). This really comes as sad news. My relationship with Mr. Salinger's work is actually quite interesting. I've read "Catcher in the Rye" once or twice, never really appreciating it as much as others might have. I've always wondered if this was because I was forced to read it under the English Program of my high school (the same situation with The Great Gatsby) and I definitely plan on giving it another chance. My second run in with Salinger's work was with "Franny & Zooey". My book club choose these two short stories for its first discussion. It was a great first for the club - an extremely interesting perspective on a New York Family. A truly refreshing work of literature. Reading "Franny & Zooey" really got me excited about Salinger's work and I went out and bought his other two books - "Nine Stories" and "Raise High the Roof Beams Carpenter - Seymour, an Introduction". These have been on the shelf for months (being pushed aside by what I've had to read for school or the book club). I will definitely be pushing these to the top of the list. "Nine Stories" is actually on my night stand as I type this. Anyways, its sad to see Salinger go. I'm interested to see if any unpublished work will come to light now that he's gone (He was a recluse for the last 40 or so years of his life). The New Yorker put all of his previously released New Yorker Stories up to read on the Digital Edition of their Magazine. Below is a video from PBS's art beat on J.D. Salinger's life and his work "Catcher in the Rye".

Django Reinhardt turns 100

Saturday the 24th marked Django Reinhardt's Centennial Birthday. Read a great article on this legendary French Guitarist's life and impact on jazz music at NPR. Also, if you get a chance, download the podcast available on the same page.

Tonight, I'm going to watch Woody Allen's "Sweet and Lowdown" starring Sean Penn in honor of Django! See it if you haven't!
Here's a clip of my favorite song from the movie:

"A Single Man" directed by Tom Ford

Go see it!

Italian Cinema

This semester, I'll be taking an Honors Course on Italian Cinema. Throughout the semester we'll be watching and discussing the following movies. Needless to say, I'm excited! Hope to update this post with thoughts on each film as I watch them.
1) Cabiria Pastrone, 1913
2) Open City (Roma Citta Aperta) Rossellini, 1945
3) Bicycle Thief (Ladri di Biciclette) De Sica, 1948
4) The Earth Trembles (La terra trema) Visconti, 1948
5) Miracle in Milan (Miracolo a Milano) De Sica, 1951
6) The Sweet Life (La Dolce Vita) Fellini, 1960
7) 8 1/2 Fellini, 1963
8) Red Dessert Antonioni, 1964
9) Teorema Pasolini, 1968
10) The Conformist Bertolucci, 1970
11) The Night Porter (Il Portiere di Notte) Cavani, 1974
12) A Special Day (Una gionata particolare) Scola, 1977

Vera Pavlova