rainy day media

it's been raining for four days straight. these are good things to do when it rains for four days straight and also when the predicted forecast involves another four days of rain and you don't have a car so leaving your bedroom during a torrential downpour sucks:

1. watch literally any movie

"it's raining, let's watch a movie."

"what movie?"

"i dunno."

"sounds good."

though i myself am experiencing an unexpected urge to watch the devil wears prada. i think this is probably caused by rainy day activity number 5.

2. listen to bon iver

the best piddle around your house on a lazy sunday album ever is [of course] bon iver's for emma forever ago. low key acoustic tunes and the thought of justin vernon alone in a wisconsin cabin banging instruments around? it's just cool, OKAY.

similar suggestions for a more varied playlist: sufjan stevens (seven swans is my favorite album), fleetfoxes (go for the self-titled album, yeah).

3. read the short stories of dorothy parker

there's not much to say except they're awesome.

also i am about to start this book. it's a collection of several years worth of messages transcribed from ouija board seances. but at the end of his life, james merrill advised against using ouija boards. in-ter-esting.

4. do endless internet stumbling

here's some good things i've stumbled upon this week.

-some photo essays (5o most stylish new yorkers and where children sleep)

-some blogs (hipster musings and man repeller)

note: i post links to these as points of interest, not as things i necessarily like. isabel slone of hipster musings is intelligent and captivating enough for me to go through her entire blog archive in a week. (yeah, i've read them all.) also i never stop and think, "why doesn't this girl ever just wear shorts?" because she's a real live student who dresses like a real live [real cool] student. i also just ordered her zine from etsy. (in my justnow search for the link to that i ran across this little gem.)

meanwhile i think leandra medine of man repeller thinks she's doing a great service to women everywhere by being funny and nonchalant about men's opinions, but really is just encouraging women to believe in an omnipresent, judgmental male figure that has opinions. THERE IS NO SUCH MAN, leandra.

other note: i found the man repeller really difficult to read post by post, so for a summary of her whole outlook click here.

other other note: sorry that note turned into a rant. but just look at a cover of any fashion magazine. there's at least one story claiming they know, "HOW TO PLEASE HIM IN BED" or "THE TRENDS YOUR BOYFRIEND HATES" or "HOW TO HIDE YOUR UNFLATTERING BODY PARTS FROM YOUR BOYFRIEND WHO CAN NEVER SEE THEM EVER OR HE'LL PROBABLY STOP LOVING YOU". but none of them say, "IF YOUR BOYFRIEND HATES YOUR CLOTHES WHY ARE YOU DATING HIM?" or "WHO CARES". also for the man repeller to pin every [heterosexual] male as sartorially disinclined is kind of demeaning to men as well.

5. shop online

it's raining, so i might as well get everyone's birthday presents for the next year right right? this is how i justify the hours i've spent buying socks for someone whose birthday is in june. even now i'm flicking between the tab for this blog and modcloth's shoe page. but mostly i just want these awesome jeans from urban outfitters.

AND FINALLY an interesting and somewhat debunking fact to contemplate: on his deathbed, the cofounder of alcoholics anonymous demanded whiskey. [discovered during rainy day activity 4]