Anberlin
Abington Boy's School
The Academy Is...
The All-American Rejects
All Time Low
Arisa
Avril Lavigne
B2ST
Barlow Girl
The Beatles
Bitter:Sweet
Black Eyed Peas
Blue October
BoA
Bonnie Pink
Bowling For Soup
Boys Like Girls
Brandon Heath
Breaking Benjamin
Britney Spears
Cartel
Creature Feature
Crystal Kay
David Archuleta
DBSK
Do As Infinity
Eminem
Evanescence
Everclear
Fall Out Boy
Far East Movement
Fergie
A Fine FrenzyThe Fray
Flyleaf
Foster The People
The GazettE
Good Charlotte
Gorillaz
Gwen Stefani
Hey! Say! JUMP!
Hilary Duff
Hilchryme
Hole
Hollywood Undead
Home Made Kazoku
India.Arie
Jason Mraz
Jay Chou
Jesse McCartney
J.J. Lin
Kagrra
Kana Nishino
Kanye West
KAT-TUN
Katy Perry
Kerli
Ke$ha
Kelly Clarkson
The Killers
Kylee
La Roux
Lady Gaga
Laura Pausini
LifeHouse
Linkin Park
LM.C
M.I.A.
Madonna
Maroon 5
Metro Station
Michael Buble
Michael Jackson
Mika Nakashima
Mike Posner
Mindless Self Indulgence
Ministry of Magic
Misia
Miyavi
Monkey Magic
Motion City Soundtrack
Muse
My Chemical Romance
Natasha Bedingfield
New Politics
Nickelback
Nirvana
Noriyuki Makihara
NSYNC
The Offspring
OneRepublic
Owl City
P!NK
Panic! At the Disco
Paramore
Plain White T's
Plastic Tree
Plugin Stereo
Punk~En~Ciel
RADWIMPS
The Rasmus
The Ready Set
Red Jumpsuit Apparatus
Relient K
Rihanna
Rise Against
Sam Tsui
Sara Bareilles
SCANDAL
SHINee
SID
Simple Plan
Smash Mouth
Snow
Sum-41
Super Junior
Susumu Hirasawa
Switchfoot
Taking Back Sunday
Taylor Swift
Third Eye Blind
Three Days Grace
The Ting Tings
Tokio Hotel
Train
TVXQ
U2
Utada
UVERworld
Vanessa Carlton
Velvet Revolver
Weezer
Weird Al
Yellowcard
2NE1
3OH!3

One of my favorite scenes is when Maude (***SPOILER ALERT***) steals a motorcycle. I also enjoyed when Harold and Maude dance. <3

So I've finally been able to watch the one cult classic I've always wanted to watch, that tragicomical romance between an emo young man and an exuberant woman almost five times his age: Harold and Maude (directed by Hal Ashby).

The first word is always "weird".

You really get a sense of the sixties here, and yes, the sixties were weird. Harold himself is weird (his facial expressions, his odd silence, his theatrics). Maude is weird too. And yet. It's better than just weird it's--

Artistic, yes. Entertaining: definitely. Harold and his strangely repressed emotions will startle a laugh out of you. Heartwarming:

Well I cried.

And the acting is superb. I'm not sure if it's just me but shortly after Harold and Maude (continuing on my theme of forbidden romance) I watched Brokeback Mountain, and each action seems so much less precise, and careful, in the newer movie. The emotions are conveyed convincingly, to sometimes a terrible effect.

If you're a fan of romance and you have a semi-dark sense of humor (the suicides are never terribly graphic; if you can stomach a death on a stage, then you can stomach what Harold does to himself), you will love this movie.

If you're a weirdo who is seeking some deeper meaning in life, you'll love this movie.

If you like emo boys and nonstandard relationships, you'll love this movie.

Yes, yes, I recommend it. I'd love to watch it again.

Though it is by no means PERFECT (I sometimes feel like the end hospital scene contained a little less emotion for the circumstances, it fell short of completely convincing. Yes, the end could be improved), it is indeed very, very, very good and has earned its place as a cult classic. So.

If I ever find the link to the deleted kissing scene, I shall post it.

(With special advice to kids living in Stouffer Mayer)

It's been a while. I've finally gotten my laptop in the mail, named him Yukito (after the dude from Cardcaptor Sakura) and now I can blog! Yes I can blog!

So. The first week at the University of Pennsylvania. Jesus. Hard to sum up in one post so instead a running list of advice:
1. Go to every NSO event. They're genuinely a lot of fun. Even the toga party, though it was sweaty, was fun. You wanna put yourself out there and meet people. Even if you're normally shy (like me, so shy I can't speak in any logical sequence while simultaneously looking into someone's eyes) just do it.

Take down numbers.

Have fun.

2. Idk about the other preceptorials but Mad Potter's Wheel was awesome. With substantial help, I made a bowl in the shape of a cat. It is now glazed and sitting on my shelf.

3.Go out and eat in the dining halls. You paid for NSO meals separately so you might as well, and, especially the first few days, you can pick up a lot of new aquaintences by sitting down randomly at a table and introducing yourself.

(Note: This happens less and less as time goes on...)

4. I thought I wouldn't get homesick at all, but I did. Bring something from home, a stuffed animal, photos, whatever. If you love books, bring some books. DVDs. Something familiar to ground yourself in this tide of new.

5. Yes, you must bring either an extension cord and/or a surge protector. Especially if you're rooming with other people. Because there are never enough power outlets.

6. Packing a huge crate of water bottles is recommended. Ditto for toilet paper and paper towels.

7. If you live in Stouffer Stouffer or Stouffer Mayer especially, bring light bulbs and a desk lamp. I know it's ridiculous but it is seriously dark and the only lamps are 1. bad and 2. light-bulb-less.

That's it for now. College is crazy, but a lot of fun. The workload is ridiculous and the classes are all damned hard. Even writing seminar, and writing's my best class. Jesus.

But you get used to it. You get used to anything.

I get what they say when they tell me, "Penn eats away at your soul."

It's not awful.

It's fun.

It's wonderfully stressful.

Can't write much because I haven't got my laptop yet and I have absolutely no idea what the dude is going on about in my Chem101 class. How is that possible? It's only Chem101!

Sweet Jesus.

One of the most common arguments for religion is that those with religion are happier but

CORRELATION =/= CAUSATION.

I know a million people have probably realized this before but I just thought of it okay and I'm on a roll.

Basically it means that religion doesn't necessarily make people happier. It could also mean that happy people tend to get religion easier.

It makes sense. I mean the cynical, depressed person isn't exactly open to the idea of some way to control her/his fate and bring herself/himself fulfillment and happiness. If that were true s/he wouldn't be depressed, duh.

So what does this mean?

It means we have one less possible benefit of religion. If it doesn't explicitly make us happier, what good is it?

I watched a news clip recently on ABC where a soldier said it gave her hope when she was captured. Opiate to the masses comes to mind. But hope. A nice, healthy drug. Is it really as bad as Marx or whoever makes it sound?

Maybe I'd become an advocate of self-delusion if the difference between deluded and clear-eyed is hope.

I mean, we all agree that sometimes a white lie is necessary.

Well no, we don't all agree on anything.

The truth doesn't necessarily set us free. And when we don't know for sure what the truth is, if we'll never be sure what the truth is in our lifetimes, what's wrong with picking the happier-sounding truth?

If some Christian will explain to me how a kind God can sentence Old Testament homosexuals to death, I might be able to answer,

"Nothing."

Though I'm sure there's more to it too. 

1. Juno
2. Ghost World
3. Kids
4. Midnght Cowboys
5. The Swimmer
6. Citizen Kane
7. One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest
8. The Outsiders
9. Vampire Hunter D (well that's an anime) Tried to watch but the animation was too ugly.
10. Harold and Maude Done! See My Review.
11. Three Colors Trilogy
12. Memento
13. Blowup
14. GATTICA
15. Of course all the Harry Potter movies, preferably all at once
16. This is Spinal Tap
17. The Rocky Horror Picture Show
18. Capturing the Friedmans
19. Elephant
20. Idioterne (The Idiots)
21. Man on Wire
22. Sex, Lies, and Videotape
23. Performance
24. Fantasia
25. The Decline of Western Civilization
26. Donnie Darko
27. Edward Scissorhands
28. All The Muppet Movies Ever Made
29. The Producers
30. Mystery Men
31. The Monster Squad
32. Election (with Reese Witherspoon)
33. Best In Show
34. The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert
35. Arsenic and Old Lace
36. Withnail and I
37. A Christmas Story
38. It's A Wonderful Life
39. Dr. Strangelove
40. Bubba Ho-Tep
41. The Big Lebowski
42. The Nightmare Before Christmas
43. The Lost Boys
44. The Grudge
45. The Ring
46. Ginger Snaps
47. Goodfellas
48. The godfather
49. Brick
50. Dog Day Afternoon
51. Blue Velvet
52. Star Trek: The Wrath of Khan
53. The First Star Wars Movie
54. Godzilla
55. Fahrenheit 451
56. Akira (anime)
57. Planet of the Apes
58. A Scanner Darkly
59. Infernal Affairs
60. Pan's Labyrinth
61. The Host
62. Sid and Nancy
63. Rushmore
64. Forrest Gump
65. Don't Look Now
66. The Boys in the Band
67. The Beguiled
68. All the Lord of the Rings Movies

This is going to take a long time...

1. Bleach
2. D. Gray-Man
3. HunterXHunter
4. Everything by Satoshi Kon, esp. Perfect Blue and Tokyo Godfathers
5. Everything by Hayao Miyazaki
6. Barefoot Gen
7. Death Note
8. Fullmetal Alchemist
9. Ghost in the Shell
10. Jin-Roh
11. Grave of the Fireflies
12. Code Geass
13. Gundam.
14. Mind Game directed by Masaaki Yuasa
15. Serial Experiments Lain
16. 5 Centimeters Per Second
17. Inuyasha
18. Akira
19. Only Yesterday by Isao Takahata
20. Neon Genesis Evangelion
21. Wings of Honneamise
22. Angel's Egg
23. Yu-Gi-Oh! (Major nostalgia.)
24. Le Chevalier D'Eon
25. Rose of Versailles
26. Human Crossing
27. The Secret of Blue Water
28. Traveler in Darkness with Hat and Books
29. Otaku no Video
30. We're Manga Artists: Tokiroa Villa
31. Maison Ikkoku
32. 24 Eyes
33. Sazae-san
34. Escaflowne
35. Darker Than Black
36. Nabari no Ou
37. Gravitation
38. Baka to Test
39. Kamisama no Memo-chou
40. Eden of the East
41. Puella Magi Madoka Magica