Chinese Apple

Wonder if any of them are going to guest at the Andrew Bird set earlier in the day...

It's not a long set, but I guess I am ultimately grateful that Wilco squeezed an Irish show into their schedule this year. They are coming to Dublin between two Iberian Peninsula shows (Spain on May 31 and Portugal on June 8). When I think about the logistics that sort of detour would require, with all of their equipment and personnel, I am thankful that they've included Dublin on their itinerary at all.

That IS a super short set. I'm so sad.

I bet it will rain, too.

I don't think I can get from Mazzy Star to Wilco in time to get a good spot. But at least I will get to see Beirut.

http://www.goldenplec.com/forbidden-fruit-2012-stage-times-released/

Go to Google Translate; Copy this text:

pv zk bschk pv zk pv bschk zk pv zk bschk pv zk pv bschk zk bschk pv bschk bschk pv kkkkkkkkkk bschk bschk bschk pv zk bschk pv zk pv bschk zk pv zk bschk pv zk pv bschk zk bschk pv bschk bschk pv kkkkkkkkkk bschk bschk bschk pv zk bschk pv zk pv bschk zk pv zk bschk pv zk pv bschk zk bschk pv bschk bschk pv kkkkkkkkkk bschk bschk bschk pv zk bschk pv zk pv bschk zk pv zk bschk pv zk pv bschk zk bschk pv bschk bschk pv kkkkkkkkkk bschk bschk bschk pv zk bschk pv zk pv bschk zk pv zk bschk pv zk pv bschk zk bschk pv bschk bschk pv kkkkkkkkkk bschk bschk bschk

Pick German as the 'from' language; Press the 'Listen'-button.

Best song ever. :-)

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But I would have to eat it, out of love.

Ok, so Wilco Day at the Florida cheese shop will be Monday, of course. (As portended by a Wilco song that mentions, Monday and FLA.)

The grilled "Cheesus, etc" sandwich will feature a pimiento cheese -- a little bit spicy, in honor of the hot sextet.

I'm putting together a Wilco playlist for the store. (I live in Ireland, and I miss my sister and this is how we bond. I'm helping out at the shop without Being There.) Very open to suggestions for the playlist!

Speaking of grilled Cheesus, I was reminded of the Virgin Mary apparition on the 10 year old grilled cheese sandwich that was sold on eBay for 28,000 dollars. (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/4034787.stm)

I would totally pay at least 28 dollars for a grilled cheese on which Jeff Tweedy's likeness appeared.

I love it!

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Can't figure out if they are general admission or assigned seats... Anyone buy tickets yet? Are the outlets linked on the Wilcoworld.net/shows page necessarily the best way to buy tickets?

And this: http://www.npr.org/2011/09/20/140435330/this-pig-wants-to-party-maurice-sendaks-latest

There is this great little cheese shop there.

(from the Sarasota Herald Tribune http://www.heraldtri...hest-businesses)

Artisan Cheese Co., 1310 Main St., Sarasota. Opened by Parker and Louise Converse, the shop offers a large variety of hand-cut-to-order artisanal and farmhouse cheeses. Specialty pantry items include charcuterie, honeys, jams, chocolates, and chutneys that the Converses have sourced from small-batch artisans. The couple have added their signature Mac & Cheese and a grilled cheese sandwich to the daily blackboard specials, which include cheese plates for one and two, and a breakfast cheese plate -- usually a chevre served with bread and jam and a piece of fruit. Hours are 7:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Saturday. 951-7860.

The owners assured me they will do a special Wilco-themed grilled cheese sandwich that week, called "Cheesus, etc." perhaps featuring some artisan (you can rely on me) honey. They will play Wilco in their shop all week too.

(Ok. Full disclosure: Louise is my sister; and yes, Parker is related to the sneaker.)

Brilliant.

I wonder if this was because (Six-degrees-of-Wilco) Elizabeth Moss was dating/engaged to Fred Armisen at the time, and Mr. Armisen and Mr. Tweedy go way back:

http://www.myspace.com/video/artistonartist/artist-on-artist-fred-armisen-jeff-tweedy/3425517

but back in 2009 there was this:

http://jezebel.com/5329015/the-stars-of-mad-men-sure-do-love-wilco

Maybe this is old news, but in this month's Esquire Magazine, UK edition:

“Hamm’s favourite song lyric, he tells me, is from 'A Shot in the Arm' by Wilco: 'What you once were isnt what you want to be anymore.' Waiting for our espressos, we roll that around our tongues: What you once were isn’t what you want to be anymore.”

“'For whatever reason,' he says, 'that resonates with me.'”

Also:

I contacted Forbidden Fruit and they said set times will be announced two weeks before the show. Check their website around May 20?

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I had a GF for 10 years and we would go see Wilco many times during our relationship, travel to different states to see them, etc....The relationship is over now and I still love Wilco and the music and the shows but it is different now, not the same enjoyment. It can't be shared with her anymore. anyone understand?

Wow, ten years is a long time to be with someone. Many marriages don't last as long as that! I read somewhere once that the amount of time required to get over a relationship is equal to the amount of time you were in it. It may take awhile before you can listen to Wilco completely unfettered by the residual habits/emotions from your last relationship.

I imagine that listening to Wilco with someone new so soon after the end of a serious relationship would probably feel like you are having rebound-Wilco. It will be fun but you are not going to put your whole heart in it.

Last night I finished editing it, I'll put it on disc and give it a listen, then I'll put it out there.

You are a saint.

...

he'd like to be on American Idol not to judge the contestants but to judge the stupid judges "especially Randy."

That would be so great if he did; last year Randy mentioned Wilco in one of his critiques. (Um, I watch American Idol as an exercise in anthropological field work...) http://www.americansongwriter.com/2011/03/ryan-adams-befuddles-american-idol-judges/

Some of us do quite well about providing and finding cultural opportunities here, though. Fun is where you find it, right?

Absolutely! I remember you did Ireland last year. (That's where where I currently live!). Hope that was a success.

Funny about most movies from that region--they have deep themes but aren't so big on plot or suspense to say the least, for better or worse.

In my undergrad anthropology course we had a discussion about how narrative structures are culturally specific. A number of Asian cultures tend to have a "concentric circle" storytelling structure rather than a linear or reverse/upright triangle (broad to specific or the reverse). That might have something to do with how films from this region are structured. (It maybe influenced by Buddhism; the cycling of karma where a moment of enlightenment comes to you.)

Hope the Philippine project is well received. I lived there in my early teens when my family was posted there with an American multinational. I love the beautiful beaches and the post-colonial Spanish architecture. Also the traditional "nipa huts" on stilts to keep above flood water. Food wise, my favorite Filipino dish is chicken adobo. Here is a recipe that was in the NY Times: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/09/magazine/09Food-t-001.html

One last last recommendation, for the cerebral elements in your community who are into high theory and post-colonial discourse, I LOVE LOVE LOVE the arty films of Trinh T. Mnh-ha and her accompanying writings. http://www.trinhminh-ha.com/ She teaches at Berkeley and maybe would be available to come to give a talk.

Her film "A Tale of Love", based on a Vietnamese poem, for instance, http://www.wmm.com/f...pages/c60.shtml

And the movie "The Scent of Green Papaya" that was a best foreign picture nominee in 1994. Trailer here:

Oh, and the whole fascinating discussion about the Tasadays, a supposed lost tribe that many anthropologists think was an elaborate hoax. Here is a clip from the original 1971 documentary by Elizalde: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g8BGW-HwHzA.

There is also a more recent Nova documentary about the controversy.

They were supposedly a tribe still living in the stone age, and had no contact with the outside world, and there was a lot of excitement in the 1970s about this "discovery" but later some anthropologists argued that Elizalde fabricated the discovery and hiring actors to play cavemen.

I think the Philippines is a good place to start. The Philippine archipelago was an US territory until the end of World War II, and it is amazing to think that until the 1970s it was Asia's strongest economy. I recommend the book Dogeaters by Jessica Hagedorn http://www.amazon.co...n/dp/1559362154> about the lives of the Filipino upper-crust from the 1950s. It was nominated for a National Book Award in 1990.

And my two young sons (kindergarten and second grade) enjoyed the beautifully illustrated The Two Brothers, about two Cambodian orphans who grew up in a Buddhist monastery : http://www.amazon.co...s/dp/0688125506

Also Somerset Maugham wrote several short stories set in Southeast Asia. Check out his novel The Gentleman in the Parlour http://www.amazon.co...s/dp/0099286777> and short story collection Far Eastern Tales http://www.amazon.co...2155066-9517029>.

How fun! I wish I lived in your town!

I probably won't be implementing his hair care and grooming tips though.

I am curious about the haircare tips!!! Not that I would want to duplicate the look, but there was a brief discussion here on the VC boards; it might be a good conclusion to that narrative thread. Enquiring minds want to know.

I read Oliver Sachs' Musicophilia when I first got into Wilco in a big way, in an effort to deconstruct my own fanaticism. One of the interesting discussions in that book for me was on how music is used in almost every religion as a part of worship. Music can induce spiritual rapture. It's close to how I feel.

I have my own theories about applying the resonant frequencies of objects -- Maybe the specific frequency of Wilco's music or Jeff Tweedy's singing voice makes me oscillate on a cellular level. And just as certain frequencies of sound can shatter glass but leave our eardrums intact, we all have different composition and so not everyone will find the same resonance.

Maybe a bad analogy would be the whistle that only dogs can hear, which is what I usually say about things my friends like that I just don't "get".

Also, I'm of the school that thinks our heroes like for us to tell them they are amazing. What is tricky is that sometimes we want to be special to our heroes and so when we do have that encounter we end up wanting to tell them how amazing WE are, and struggle to find something uncommon to say so we would be unforgettable. Maybe that's when it gets awkward.

I enjoy the exercise in unrequitable love that defines being a fan. Love requited risks losing luster.

(I am amazed at my ability to wax at length about minutiae to strangers on the interwebs when there is a deadline looming...)

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I've met Jeff Tweedy. The question I asked him was: "Could you sign an autograph?" His answer was: "Sure." And then "Nice pen." (Staedtler permanent fine lumocolor in black, by the way.)

Afterwards I wondered why there is this compulsion to want to meet our heroes. I guess I imagined it would feel like God's own light shining down on me. And in retrospect, it was exactly like that.

The second time I met Jeff Tweedy, I asked him: "Did you read that Jonathan Franzen book that you were in?" His answer was "No, was it good?" I'd just finished the book and hadn't thoroughly digested it, so I said, "Um, well, you were good in it." And his assistant guy said "Freedom? I want to read that book." And then I had my photo taken with him, and he said "Sorry I'm so sweaty." I could have said something crass in reply, but I did not because I am a lady.

(I've also met Anthony from the Wiggles. He sat at the next table when we were having dinner at a very fancy restaurant. I asked him about the big red car, he told me he parked the big red car in the tow zone.)