What a year it has been for me.  I paid off a bunch of debt.   Trained tons of people, lost my ambassador role at Amazon but got it back.  I get so wrapped up in trying to do so many things and be awesome at so many times that I don't really get to say how much I like my friends.  


Also, thanks to my friend Ethan for sharing this video.

Happy Hanukkah/holiday season to everyone I know.  

Wow Christmas was pretty merry for me, but then I found out we lost George Michael.  RIP a supreme talent.  

Things I have done that are out of my comfort zone in the past few years:

-Got on a plane with a bunch of strangers and went to Israel.

-Delivered food in very treacherous conditions.

-Operated a forklift

-Spoke in front of groups of people at my job.  Led stretches for large groups of people.  

More to come, maybe.  Not sure if skydiving is one of those things though.....

I'd have to put meeting my ex girlfriend's father on that list as well.  
Best holiday wishes to all.  

Been getting into these guys lately.

Another excellent end of the year discovery.  

PJ Harvey is on tour in 2017.  Performances like this are why I'd want to see her, even though I thought I gave up going to concerts.

Amazing album.

It's a bit early for favorite albums of the year, but here were a few of mine.  I had some undoubted favorites, and plenty of others that could have been on there, including a really underrated PJ Harvey release and that new album from A Tribe Called Quest.

1. Radiohead
2. David Bowie
3. Nick Cave
4. Leonard Cohen
5. Mitski
6. Nicolas Jaar
7. The Avalanches
8. Weyes Blood
9. Vijay Iyer and Wadada Leo Smith
10. Blood Orange
11. Esperanza Spalding
12. James Blake
13. Jenny Hval
14. Anohni
15. Jessy Lanza

Also, I found new Devendra Banhart to be very underrated.  Great album.

I'll take a mediocre Justice album over no Justice album.  This song is quality though.

There's a new baby in my family.  Her name is Charlotte.  I hope to somehow play a part in her life.      

Bruno Mars is fun stuff.  This is no different.  

I was just listening to Leonard Cohen's 2016 album You Want It Darker on my way home, in it's entirety.  I arrived home to find out he passed away.   It seems like everyone I listen to is dying, from Prince to Bowie to Leonard Cohen, and even Lou Reed fairly recently.  

I couldn't even write yesterday.  I actually did shed a few tears during Hilary's concession.  Especially when she started talking to all the little girls of America and how she felt like she disappointed them by not becoming the first female president, etc.  

Trump actually might call me a little girl.  But maybe he wouldn't.  

We're all still Americans though, so we have be open-minded towards our new president.

How do you be goth without looking the part? You can do what I do.  Stay in your room with the lights out instead of going out.  And don't get your hair cut.  

First one in a really long time from these guys.  I remember sitting in high school physics class and I had Sumday in my disc man and I was probably holding Catcher in the Rye and questioning the sincerity of everybody.

How awesome is this?

I finally saw Ex Machina, and one of my favorite scenes, predictably, was the dance scene.

It's strange how we change.  I guess at times I used to think that drinking made me better-looking or something.  But in reality, it is just a way to trick your head into feeling uninhibited.  

I'm living on my own terms now.  Don't try to change me.  And blow your smoke in another direction.    

Also, it's been more than a year since I went to a concert.  I still crave a Prince or Bowie show (too late though now) or a Leonard Cohen show (well he's too old to tour now).  

I guess if Depeche Mode were to tour, I'd consider going.

I don't usually talk about politics that much, but I understand the outrage with Donald Trump.  I do excuse people and forgive people, but people really need to watch it with what they say, whether it is on the radio, in the workplace, or elsewhere.         

I like the slow buildup of this song.

Rosh Hashanah is a good time to reflect.  With some gospel, of course, not ironically.  

What are you looking for this year? Whatever, I'm looking for, I still haven't found it.  

There's new Frank Ocean material out, and more rumored to be on the way.

Here's something fun.

Jenny Lewis has a new band with some new music.

I haven't been posting a lot, but there's still stuff out there to listen to, one being the collaboration between Neko Case, K.D. Lang and Laura Veirs.  

I love this band.  I saw them a couple of years ago.

First new music in 16 years from these guys.  

Here's something new.

Everything they've released over the past couple of years is awesome.  Since when are bands allowed to release awesome stuff for several decades?

Excited for new music from these guys.

T-Pain as Morrissey doing his own take on the Stop Me If You Think That You've Heard This One Before video.  Classixx have new album.  Their first one was one of my absolute favorites of that particular year.  I championed that album more than most things.  

I guess I dismiss emo music sometimes, but other times I'll be into it, but no denying that I did listen to Brand New back in the day.  They're back with some new music.

My favorite song of the year so far.  It's really just like fresh air blowing in your face when you open the window.

Well, a couple of weeks ago, I said I wanted to sing backup for Prince.  Well, that's not going to happen now.  

I'm super excited about new music from the Deftones.

New video.  Song off of last year's album.

Sturgill Simpson doing his take on Nirvana.

Amongst the first albums I ever bought: No Doubt's Return to Saturn.  Years later, Gwen Stefani is still making good pop music.

Kim Gordon is making music again.

As I approach age thirty, I look back at the things I have done and the things I haven't done, but I try to focus on the things I have done.  I haven't made a million, but that was never my goal.  My goal has always been to be a person of good character.  That being said, I still haven't given up on that pop star career.  If not that, singing backup for Prince would be nice.   

First new music from this artist in a while.

My friend Jeff made some new music.  He asked me to pick which one I liked the best, and I told him that is like comparing apples to oranges to pears.  We've got three different beasts here!

Chris from Vampire weekend is doing solo stuff now.

Off of last year's album.  Love these guys.

I was listening to his new album last night only to wake up to the news that he passed.  I remember I once said, jokingly, that I'm not going to be the next David Bowie or anything.  If there was any artist I really wanted to be like, it was probably him.  He's at Morrissey/David Byrne levels of admiration from me.  

They've got nothing left to prove, so they can do what they want now.

New stuff from a band I haven't heard from in what seems like a while.

So I guess I'll keep this thing going.  Much anticipated 2016 release from Savages.