As is typical for me, I've spent the last week or so assuaging the feelings of personal and career dissatisfaction through the purchase of material goods. Girls often do this, at least in TV shows in movies, mostly in the form of shoes and clothes or ice cream. Mine usually take the form of consumer electronics. Two weeks ago I was feeling particularly shitty about my job situation. Then I got a call in response to a job I applied for over three weeks earlier. So that momentarily lifted me up a bit. I didn't get my hopes up, but I still really would've liked the job. I haven't heard anything yet, but I'm fairly certain I didn't get it. This feeling, of course, has swung the morale back the other way, into the part of the meter I call "shit." So, on Thursday, I went and got me a digital tv recorder from Time Warner Cable. It's basically like a TiVo, only the box was free, and it's about 7 bucks a month. Then, through a matter of serendipitous bad luck, my TV started to go all haywire, which resulted in the screen just turning blue. This was awful, as I'd just got a new TV-related toy, but this was great, because I'd been wanting a new TV for quite some time and was having a tough time convincing Miss Charming Melodee that this was a justifiable expense. Mostly because it wasn't. Not that I need her permission to buy whatever I want, but I do need her permission to have her throw in for me buying whatever I want. But now, ta-da. So now I've got a nice flat-screen TV to go with my digital tv recorder. And it's great. I spent some quality time with the unit in the dark last night, with my big picture, superior video quality, and surround sound. Of course, we now face the ugly barrier of runaway consumerism. Basically, I'm running out of things to buy, and I'm more than a little worried that I'll just start buying a bunch of stuff that's increasingly unnecessary. Like "Mall Walker" shoes or something. Last night I was asking Miss CM if she ever thought she'd be living in a place with a big TV, digital cable, and high-speed, wireless internet access. Have I ever mentioned that not to long ago she told me that I was about the exact opposite of everything she ever thought she'd look for in a guy? On this front, last week I was standing in the mirror here at work, giving myself a good look, when I suddendly thought about my domestic situation. The first thought that came to me, which I spoke outloud, was "How the hell did that happen?"
On the musical interest front, I was reading an article in a copy of Spin that Caryn gave me on the Strokes, who I've sort of hated for no real reason other than everybody loving them, so I thought I'd give their new song, 12:51, a listen. It's pretty catchy and innocuous, and it was buzzing around in my brain non-stop for about five days. But it wasn't until just now, while reading a review in the Onion, that I remembered that I'd actually heard this song already. Instantly catchy, easily forgettable. My hatred for them stemmed from their hot-shit status, particularly since the music I'd heard from them sounded so derivative. Their songs are undeniably catchy, but I don't understand what the big screaming deal is about. But I gave their songs an honest listen and tried to like it. I no longer hate them, and even find them somewhat interesting, but now I couldn't really care one way or another. Next...
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