2008

Aug

Things happening on the internet

-Zach Galifianakis has a twitter! It’s all jokes, and they’re funny. -An...
Aug 19th
Because I don't break promises -
Aug 19th

Sorry, B.

I have unabashedly loved Beyoncé since 1999, and that love has only billowed with each passing year....
Aug 18th
“If you saw Barack on a yacht, that would be pretty unseemly....”
— Kenneth Mack, from “The...
Aug 16th
Warch Watch
Aug 16th
Listen Listen
“The Birds & The Bees” - Lupe Fiasco/Kanye West From Fake Shore Drive: Lupe had an...
Aug 15th
“The spring of the works seemed unfound only by her: she...”
— The Death of the Heart, p. 72
Aug 15th
Telling wordclouds of McCain and Obama’s blogs [via...
Aug 15th

Busy lady

Elsam’s Restaurant & Bar. If you’re planning on wearing sneakers, hoodies or any other...
Aug 14th
This is what I spent the past half hour doing at work. For...
Aug 14th
Jess: yes, reading watchmen is a trend
Jess: it has been observed by others!
Elsa: i didn't disavow that it was a trend
Elsa: just not a trend piece
Jessica: haha, not yet!
Elsa: i think to officially fall into the category of trend story
Elsa: it needs to be [observed thing/trend] + [unlikely component]
Jessica: such as?
Elsa: well, obviously now i can't think of examples! but boys on subway reading watchmen in anticipation of impending movie is not a trend piece
Elsa: okay like [women are eating steak] + [to impress dates]
Elsa: to use the ultimate story
Jess: so [people reading watchmen] + [to get ready for the movie] isn't one
Jess: but maybe [people reading watchmen] + [the fact that everyone thought this was the one comic that couldn't be translated into a movie, but they're so damn excited by the trailer that they're giving it a shot anyway] might be
Aug 13th

Where my job meets thinking about Mad...

I spent hours last week slogging through Flickr for good-looking vintage food advertisements. A good...
Aug 13th

Trending

Leila: fun fact!
Leila: there have been less ny reviews on menupages this week
Leila: you know why?
Elsa: why?
Leila: because people are staying home and watching the olympics
Elsa: oh my gosh
Elsa: that's kind of awesome
Leila: other anecdotal "trend stories"
Leila: lots of people are reading watchmen on the subway
Elsa: that was not a trend story
Leila: three on my car this morning!
Leila: THREE IS A TREND
Elsa: but not a trend story!
Elsa: the differences are crucial
Leila: story:
Leila: i was on the train this morning.
Leila: three people were reading watchmen
Leila: is this a trend?
Leila: yes.
Leila: PUBLISH THAT SHIT NYT STYLE SECTION
Elsa: it is a trend.
Elsa: it is half of a story.
Elsa: it is not a trend story.
Elsa: it would be a trend story
Elsa: if say
Elsa: three people were reading watchmen on the subway this morning
Elsa: and all three of them were ladies wearing gloves
Elsa: trend story! people who are trying to bring back gloves are into watchmen!
Elsa: here's the REAL trend story
Elsa: people who interpret everything as a trend story
Leila: aka EVERYONE IN NEW YORK MEDIA
Elsa: i'm actually a little bit serious
Elsa: jokes about trend stories / seeing everything as a trend story IS the new trend story
Aug 13th

Looking ahead

I don’t usually do anything for Halloween, because it feels dumb, but also because I never...
Aug 13th
Warch Watch
“Souled Out!!” - Conor Oberst This sounds very Pavement-y, so duh I like it. Also, from...
Aug 13th

Mad Men

Makes me want a housewife.
Aug 13th

Once it's already crossed over to...

Elsa: embarrassing fact
Elsa: i've been hearing about mgmt for months now obvi, because the rock i live under is not that big
Elsa: but didn't have the energy to investigate
Elsa: and i finally heard their song and realized that i know it very well. very well indeed
Elsa: FROM FOREVER 21
Leila: i had a similar experience
Elsa: THIS IS HOW I LEARN ABOUT HIP MUSIC
Aug 12th
How did it become fall within the space of a day? The light has totally changed and now I feel like...
Aug 12th

I finally:

-Bought a blender/food processor. Dinner was homemade hummus and a smoothie. -Made a muxtape! Who...
Aug 12th
Holy shit MBTA. Pull it together.
Aug 11th
Elizabeth Moss/"Peggy"/"Zoey" is maybe a...
Aug 11th
Warch Watch
I know this is old, but it took me until now to realize that Obams dances just like my dad! This...
Aug 10th
Motor Yacht “A” - this, from the man who...
Aug 10th

Twittering (tweeting?), really

My apartment is filled with an overpowering rose scent. I don’t have roses. This seems...
Aug 9th
Listen Listen
“Furr” - Blitzen Trapper Still liking these dudes. (A whole year later! This is rare!)...
Aug 9th

Bad ideas/good ideas

Bad ideas that didn’t end in tragedy: slicing onions with my eyes closed. Good ideas that...
Aug 9th

Today things

-Wait, what? Bernie Mac is dead? -Taking control of my CSA bounty. I already made cucumber pickles...
Aug 9th
Warch Watch
Lightening in slow motion. Holy something. (Putting it out there: just plain holy?)
Aug 9th
Warch Watch
leilacohan: Kitty and Crow are friends!!!!! As ridiculously adorable as the animals are, my vote...
Aug 5th
Listen Listen
“Nights Of The Week” - Apes & Androids Late to the game, deuxieme partie.
Aug 4th

Late to the game

I watched most of the first season of Mad Men this weekend, and yeah, what they say is true:...
Aug 4th
Daph took this picture of our cousin Olivia. I’m...
Aug 3rd

(Brownstone) Brooklyn TROUBLZ

UH-OH, GUYS. My CSA was too productive this week!
Aug 1st

Jul

Yes, this is one of those ridiculous articles that the NYT...
Jul 31st
Warch Watch
I will say though, that I emphatically do not want to see movies of my dreams.
Jul 28th
Listen Listen
“Where Lies My Tarp? (Microphones cover)” - Damien Jurado More beauty by way of...
Jul 26th
This is what happiness looks like. The not captured: behind...
Jul 25th
“_____ is part of a whole popular tumblr clique. YES I JUST...”
— El Sam
Jul 23rd
Peter Granser’s photos are basically exactly what I...
Jul 23rd
Listen Listen
“Flaming Home” - Mount Eerie with Julie Doiron and Fred Squire Well, it’s not...
Jul 22nd
1. Alec Baldwin does not seem like the man for this job. 2....
Jul 22nd

I'm fully expecting someone to have face...

Carly: i'm sorry, i know it's uncool now, but the hills looks kind of awes
Elsa: oh, i agree! but i think that might have more to do with the producers perfecting the art of the trailer? because the last season looked great on trailer too, and then totally fell flat for me
Elsa: so
Elsa: i would like for them to just make trailers for me to watch all the time
Carly: also, i am embracing the entirely staged ridiculous nature of this
Carly: which has gotten pointedly more absurd over the years
Carly: DOUG HAS A JET?
Elsa: maybe this season will be better than the last for that reason?
Elsa: like, they were still a little bit pretending it was real even though it was so very clearly not
Carly: yeah, like a parabola
Elsa: and now it has descended into outright, very, very obvious soap opera which might just be its salvation
Jul 22nd
Listen Listen
“If It’s The Beaches” - The Avett Brothers We here at the El Sam blog have been...
Jul 21st
“To repent of egoism: is autobiography the best method? Well,...”
— The Sea, The Sea, Iris...
Jul 20th
Warch Watch
“Why Do You Let Me Stay Here?” - She and Not Him I totally fell for this song when I...
Jul 18th

Eternal questions

Construction workers and catcalling. Does it happen because: - They already know that it’s...
Jul 18th

More from the Archives

Also year 13. Still remember all the lyrics. It could be worse.
Jul 18th

Still not apologizing for it

“What’s your favorite band?” Alexa asks. We’re sitting in the back...
Jul 17th
Elsa: new york magazine came to menupages
Elsa: and said
Elsa: "let me upgrade u"
Leila: they can do for us what martin did for the people
Jul 16th

On the subject of teen movie marathons

Elsa: Also I feel like "Dick" should be in it.
Leila: yeah, I love -
Elsa: YEAH YOU DO
Jul 16th

Deal with the devil / breaking the...

Elsa: he wants me to talk about how i sleep with him whenever i post things
Elsa: but that is not how el sam works
Elsa: my blog is (basically!) a model of discretion, in re: my dating life
Jess: unless, of course, you do get that baby out of the deal
Jess: in which case, it's probably legit to be like
Jess: HI THIS GUY IS ON YOUTUBE. ALSO, IN MY TUBES.
Jul 16th
I signed up for a mailing list today that asked me to identify my gender. Nothing so crazy about...
Jul 15th
Warch Watch
“Come A Little Bit Closer” - Jay & The Americans Everyone who Leila should ask her...
Jul 14th

So it turns out

That a few hours of writing with the royal we is a great way to fast-track feeling like an asshole....
Jul 14th
Warch Watch
“What Happened To That Boy?” - Baby feat. Clipse Where else is “eghck”...
Jul 13th
Listen Listen
“Eghck” - Clipse & Famlay feat. Clinton Sparks Who/what am I? Good question. P.S....
Jul 13th

Take note, lexicographers!

Leila: DAY PLANNER
Elsa: GOOGENDAR
Jul 11th

Say what?

I woke up this morning with “Say It Ain’t So” stuck in my head, so when I turned...
Jul 11th
Muxtape Stumbler
Jul 10th
leilacohan: Everything wrong with America in one picture. ...
Jul 10th
Warch Watch
“If I Could Talk I’d Tell You” - The Lemonheads I was reading the Too Much Awesome...
Jul 10th

Dreams do come true!

Elsa: because you're on the fame track?
Gabriel: yes
Elsa: oh geez
Gabriel: it's insane
Gabriel: ASK ME WHAT I MEAN
Gabriel: I NEED TO BOAST
Elsa: OKAY
Elsa: WHAT EVER DO YOU MEAN, GABRIEL?
Gabriel: nevermind
Gabriel: forget it
Gabriel: it's no biggie
Elsa: don't be so modest!
Gabriel: let's just say... you should let me get you pregnant so you can sue for palimony
Elsa: wow
Gabriel: i mean
Gabriel: not right away
Gabriel: but soonish
Jul 10th
"100 Candles: Anne of Green Gables grows old...
Jul 10th

Yeah, yeah

Maine, island, private, and all that, but still - a little awful to sign in to facebook this morning...
Jul 10th
Oh my!
Jul 9th

Shut up today

Current interests: pizza (specifically, Sam’s); Wall-E, online shopping (specifically,...
Jul 9th
Warch Watch
leilacohan: Elsa: i wish i didn’t enjoy bo burnham as much as i doLeila: ?Elsa: you haven’t...
Jul 9th

Exercises in ?

Two weekends ago - back when I had exhaustion - my internet wasn’t working, so I went to the...
Jul 9th
Listen Listen
“Mr. Me Too (z.a.k. remix)” - Clipse feat. Pharrell Similarly… (And actually, the...
Jul 9th
Warch Watch
“Mirando” - Ratatat Really into these guys, and this song, as of late. I like how all of...
Jul 8th

These are the things I want to hold...

My visceral negative reaction to being back in the city is fading, especially post-discovery of...
Jul 8th
Listen Listen
“Roc Knife” - Jay-Z vs. Grizzly Bear I know some people don’t like these sorts of...
Jul 8th
ROOFDECK ROOFDECK ROOFDECK. Thanks, blogosphere, for...
Jul 7th

Not Maine!

… but a sort of funny thing that happened to me this morning! Dragging myself up out of the...
Jul 7th
This is a gnome dwelling. There is a path on the Island that...
Jul 7th
Warch Watch
“Hey Mami” - Fannypack Okay, so, this song is silly and totally not the kind of thing...
Jul 7th

A little more about Sunday

Sunday’s edition of Potluck Club was dumpling themed, and my-oh-my was it good. Everything was...
Jul 1st

Minutaie (a misdiagnosis + a...

This weekend, I floated through the days not doing much of anything at all. I chalked it up to the...
Jul 1st
fredseibert: Barack Obama - Santa Fe Art District (via...
Jul 1st

Jun

“Can Jigga be Obama’s VP? Please?”
— Leila
Jun 30th
Warch Watch
“How y’all doin’ out there? For those that didn’t get the memo, my name is...
Jun 30th

A text message I sent this weekend

To add to the library of girl escalator thoughts: “oh, that dog is a ghost.” WHAT AM I?
Jun 30th

Thoughts on today

Elsa: the worrrrrrrrrst
Elsa: worrrrrrrrrrrrst
Elsa: it makes me feel like scratching a hole through my skull
Leila: SHUT UP
Elsa: i was considering "putting a pencil through my eye"
Elsa: but it didn't have the same ring of timeliness!
Leila: update
Leila: another hour has passed wherein i did nothing
Elsa: update
Elsa: blerg
Elsa: YES, THAT IS THE BEST I COULD COME UP WITH
Jun 26th
“You have probably seen this kind of guy at London parties,...”
— Karl Rove, saying some things...
Jun 25th
Warch Watch
My week has been overwhelmed by Bucky Fuller events; first a dinner at the Century Club on Monday,...
Jun 25th
“The theory—and a theory is all it is right now—has begun to...”
— from “The Itch,”...
Jun 25th

More thoughts on that song

Elsa: another thing i love about this song
Elsa: is when they list all the articles of clothing that the girl was wearing
Elsa: also
Elsa: they all had the same girl that summer?
Elsa: i don't think the conceit works for a group sing
Leila: right?
Leila: i mean
Leila: that's the boy band problem in a nutshell
Jun 25th

I just can't get over the dance...

Elsa: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=25qiZy7vmqY
Leila: this video is amazing
Elsa: right?
Leila: also, i like that jonathan is jon now
Leila: we all know!
Leila: this song is a lfo knockoff
Elsa: i put it on my tumblr when i first heard it, and that's exactly what i said
Leila: YEAH BOSTON
Leila: that is all nkotb makes me think
Elsa: mhmm
Elsa: "jones beach 1988!"
Leila: especially because they could not look more like boston
Elsa: also something about the way he says "the boy from the city"
Elsa: super boston
Leila: also, joey is still cute
Elsa: YEAH HE IS
Leila: I'D HIT THAT
Elsa: YEAH YOU WOULD
Elsa: (so would i)
Leila: AT THE LIL' PEACH
Leila: NOW TEDESCHI'S
Leila: that was amazing
Elsa: it's a triumph of songwriting AND cinematography
Jun 25th
“Even if you never met him, you know this guy. He’s the...”
— Karl Rove, on Obama...
Jun 24th
Warch Watch
Today is a tedious and tired day, for no real reason. This is helping!
Jun 24th

Because The Wire is still happening

Carly: http://www.mcnultys.com
Elsa: heh mcnulty's
Carly: right? now i like to imagine that he quit the force and opened a coffee place!
Elsa: yep! that's totally what he did. it's family-owned - _____ works there too. i just like to believe that the wire world is still going on. like, they all exist now and are going around living their lives in baltimore.
Jun 24th
Listen Listen
“These Are The Fables” - The New Pornographers
Jun 24th
From “Hyper”, a series by Denis Darzacq.
Jun 23rd
Listen Listen
“Are You That Somebody?” - Aaliyah & Timbaland Whenever I reveal that I was...
Jun 20th

A great thing about my life

I went to IKEA (!!) last night, which is a great thing about my life in its own right, because,...
Jun 20th
The Curious Expeditions flickr photostream just might be the...
Jun 19th

Sad news, guys

REAL SAD NEWS. I think the end of the world might be here. Yesterday, Jess sent me millions of...
Jun 19th
By Mike Lemanski. There is nothing that I don’t love...
Jun 18th
Listen Listen
“Polyester Bride” - Liz Phair “Vintage”!
Jun 18th

Extension of a conversation with Jess

Yesterday shaped up to be a pretty nerdy day for me, in my little way. I started out by playing Set,...
Jun 18th
Listen Listen
“Strange Victory, Strange Defeat” - Silver Jews It’s new, I like it, poignant...
Jun 16th
Time's 50 Best Websites of 2008
Jun 16th
“Melting Words” from Kotama Bouabane.
Jun 16th
Listen Listen
“Ragged Wood” - Fleet Foxes My favorite part happens midway through, when the song...
Jun 13th
Twenty years ago today, Jamie Livingston took this polaroid...
Jun 13th

Oh gosh

Too much nail polish and too much alone time today, kids. Sometimes this Fridays off thing turns out...
Jun 13th
Listen Listen
“Let the Beat Build” - Lil Wayne “Hello, hi you.” (Summer jam? SUMMER JAM.)