The blog is back after a lengthy summer vacay, but as always, I have an excuse. One month ago, I finished up chemotherapy (the last weeks are the toughest) and have been acclimating back to the real world. I'm not going to lie--it hasn't been easy, and I've been slowly picking up all the things I enjoy doing--writing, hiking, playing the violin and blogging.
So, let's get right to it. This is a Love List inspired by the music that's gotten me through this rough patch...with some movies and delicious food rounding it all out.
Take a listen here. You will not be disappointed.
2. Also loving: "Drive-In Movies" off the new Ray LaMontaigne album, Supernova.
Photo via New York Times.
If I ever direct my own quirky, indie film about a bittersweet summer romance between two misunderstood twenty-somethings, this is the song that will play when they first get it on.
3. Love "Dead Flowers," a Rolling Stones tune (off Sticky Fingers) I had never heard before.
The Stones wrote it during a country phase (and don't we all have one?) while they were hanging out with Gram Parsons. It really struck me, because I could've sworn I was listening to early Uncle Tupelo (aka the Nirvana of alt-country).
4. Another song I've turned up when it plays in the car is "Silver Lining" by the Swedish duo, First Aid Kit, off their album Stay Gold.
If I ever direct a film about powerful female lawyer who leaves the corporate boardroom to bail her ex-con, gambling dad out of a Las Vegas jail, and they road trip to the Mexican border to pay back the drug cartel he robbed where she falls in love with a DEA agent--this is the song that will play as they careen down the highway.
5. Love that Charlie Chaplin played the violin and composed music. I mean--I had no idea!
Here is Anne-Akiko Myers playing his composition "Smile," which appeared on the soundtrack to Modern Times.
6. Another discovery--the Nielsen Violin Concerto (again: who knew?) is pleasantly blowing my mind, performed by the amazing Norwegian violinist, Vilde Frang.
7. Love Cookie and Kate, a St. Louis-based, vegetarian blog. I've been trying to eat healthier since finishing chemotherapy. Here I tried out her recipe for Curried Coconut Quinoa and Greens with Roast Cauliflower--and added some roasted tomatoes to boot.
It was delicious. I just love food blogs.
8. Loved catching the film A Most-Wanted Man at the Arclight. Now this is my kind of summer flick. I love any movie based on a John Le Carré novel, and this was no exception.
But man, it was hard to watch Philip Seymour Hoffman in his last role. It was almost like he was inhabiting his character with his own personal pain. Very tragic, but I felt like it was quietly brilliant ending to his incredible career.
9. Love catching up on movies I missed in the theater, including Blue Ruin...
...and Under the Skin with Scarlett Johansson.
Thank you for reading...and I'll be back with something exciting very soon.
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