A case of the cutes

Okay, so it's been a while. I got caught in the Noise Pop whirlwind and then the mom visit whirlwind and now the Kauai preparation whirlwind (or tsunami or whatever they have down there). I figured I'd check in here while I can.

I'm in love with a new band: Herman Dune. It's a couple brothers and sometimes a sister, with some kind of confusing French/Swedish parentage. They kind of sound like Jonathan Richman if he was the brother of Jens Lekman and the sister of Kimya Dawson (of Juno fame, see more below). Very cute at times, with girl-group backing vocals, but also romantically miserable lyrics. They're playing the Rickshaw on March 19, and I'm bummed I won't be there, but at least I can watching this adorably cute video over and over.

On the subject of cute, I've got to tell you that nothing knocks the blues (more below, too) out of you faster than being interviewed about your job by your (also) adorably cute little sister. And when she said at the end of the phone call, "I hope I get to see you soon," I thought I would cry. Maybe I should try that on my next big interview. Somehow I doubt Mark Eitzel or whoever would react the same way.

So, yes, my birthday's coming up. And anyone who knows me well knows that I get depressed every year before my birthday. Never fails. But this year it hasn't happened yet, mostly because I'll be in Kauai. I can get depressed when I get back; right now, I'm just trying to figure out which beaches will have the best snorkeling. Of course, that didn't stop the Saturday blues a-coming on a little today. I think it had to do with dropping my mom off at the airport, because I seem to miss family more than usual these days, even if they drive me a bit batty at times. And then last night I met up with some ex- and current SF Weekly folks, which always gets me thinking about what I should be accomplishing in life. I always get competitive about that kind of thing, even if I'm fine with my daily life. I mean, I don't really want to compete with the guy who got divorced but moved a block away so he could be near his kids, even if it meant he was a lonely bachelor two weeks out of a month. Right?

Enough maudlinity. Have you seen the Diablo Cody impersonation? Ouch! Hey, I loved Juno and I loved the fact that an outsider in a bad dress won an Oscar. She seems normal and kooky, like one of us. But this SNL bit is pretty funny.

And that She & Him show at the Great American? Getting mixed reviews, but I loved it, even if Zooey Deschanel didn't exactly show a lot of stage presence. What a voice! I could've listened to them cover standards all night, along with her originals, which mix together Patsy Cline, Carole King, and the Shirelles. Here's a track from the upcoming Merge Records album

And now a preface to the new Grumpy Guy: In case they, by some amazing coincidence, they ever see it, the strip in no way reflects my general feelings towards my parents. Thank you and good night.