by admin

iTunes Top 200: #124 – 145

Music.  It is a powerful thing that brings people together, creates memories, and evokes emotions.  It is the universal language that speaks to the soul.  It forms the soundtrack of our lives.

It has now been five years since we last counted down the Top 200 songs in my iTunes library, featuring he songs I have listened to the most since 2007.  It is time to do so again, seeing which older songs still resonate and if any newer ones have joined the fray.  So, without further ado, here are my most listened to songs, based on number of plays as of January 1, 2025.

We wrap up the batch of songs tied for 145th place with 38 plays this week and start on the group tied for 124th with 39 plays since my stats began in late 2007.

#145: Foo Fighters – All My Life
iTunes stats: 38 plays, most recently on 3/31/2024
Previous ranking: #144

Seven new listens over the past five years for this first single from the groups fourth album, which earned them a Grammy for best hard rock performance.

#145: Fiona Apple – Shadowboxer
iTunes stats: 38 plays, most recently on 11/15/2023
Previous ranking: #144

Released in 1996, Apple’s debut single spent six weeks on Billboard’s Alternative Songs chart, peaking at #34, and picked up seven new plays over the past five years.

#145: Coolio f/ L.V. – Gangsta’s Paradise
iTunes stats: 38 plays, most recently on 9/29/2022
Previous ranking: #112

The top-selling single of 1995, this hit from the Dangerous Minds soundtrack by the rapper who passed away in 2022 won the Grammy for Best Rap Solo Performance.

#145: Color Me Badd – All 4 Love
iTunes stats: 38 plays, most recently on 4/28/2024
Previous ranking: #112

The final #1 hit from the R&B group, used as the at-bat music by former White Sox catcher Tyler Flowers, added just five new listens over the past five years.

#145: The Cast of Buffy the Vampire Slayer – Standing
iTunes stats: 38 plays, most recently on 4/5/2023
Previous ranking: #89

Performed by Anthony Stewart Head as a ballad to Buffy that she does not hear, unlike the songs revealing truths elsewhere in the episode.

Continue reading →

by admin

The Oscar Goes To…

side_oscarAs they finish polishing up the statues for tonight’s ceremony, it’s time to finish up our predictions with the major categories for the 97th Academy Awards.  So, without further ado, we begin with:

Best Picture

Anora
The Brutalist
A Complete Unknown
Conclave
Dune: Part Two
Emilia Pérez
I’m Still Here
Nickel Boys
The Substance
Wicked

I’ve seen a grand total of two of these, but neither is likely to win so I’ll go with The Substance.

Best Actor

Adrien Brody, The Brutalist
Timothée Chalamet, A Complete Unknown
Colman Domingo, Sing Sing
Ralph Fiennes, Conclave
Sebastian Stan, The Apprentice

I haven’t seen any of these, but Timothée Chalamet’s performance as Bob Dylan seems like the type of thing that wins these awards.

Best Actress

Cynthia Erivo, Wicked
Karla Sofia Gascón, Emilia Pérez
Mikey Madison, Anora
Demi Moore, The Substance
Fernanda Torres, I’m Still Here

I’ve only seen one of these, but I’ll take a stab in the dark and pick Demi Moore for this.

Continue reading →

by admin

The End Of Dawn

Former Buffy the Vampire Slayer star Michelle Trachtenberg, who joined the main cast in the fifth season as Dawn, Buffy’s younger sister/mystical key, died yesterday in her New York City home at the age of 39.  She was believed to have recently undergone a liver transplant and her death was attributed to natural causes, pending an autopsy.

Trachtenberg earned early fame in the mid-90s, appearing on The Adventures of Pete & Pete on Nickelodeon and All My Children on ABC.  In 1996, at the age of 10, she nabbed the title role in the film Harriet the Spy.  She joined the cast of Buffy in 2000 and remained on the show until its conclusion in 2003.  In 2004, she appeared as one of the leads in the teen comedy EuroTrip.

Despite being the youngest main cast member by far, Trachtenberg is the first actor from the cult classic series to prematurely shuttle off this mortal coil.  Earlier this month, a sequel series was announced at Hulu, with Sarah Michelle Gellar reprising her role as Buffy on a recurring basis.  There was no word if any other cast members, including Trachtenberg, would be involved.

by admin

Book 11 (of 52) – The Blue Hour

The Blue Hour – Paula Hawkins

Paula Hawkins returns with her fourth novel, The Blue Hour.  In this go around, an art museum curator heads to a remote island to retrieve the remains of a collection left to the museum by an artist near and dear to his heart.  He deals with the friend/caretaker/lover? of the artist, who is loath to release any more material than she already has but relents somewhat when she sees he is a true fan.  A discovery in one of her pieces leads to the discovery of multiple murders, with perhaps more to come.

Hawkins hit the scene in 2015 with her smash debut, The Girl on the Train, which was one of many releases at that time to be dubbed “the next Gone Girl.” While I have enjoyed parts of all four of Hawkins’ efforts, there certainly are diminishing returns, as I liked each one less than its predecessor.  This one fell apart at the end, spoiling what had been an exciting tale to that point.  I may have reached the end of my road with her work, but I’ll probably forget my growing apprehension when she puts out her next new book.

by admin

Fitbit XI – Week 5

A pretty steady week, as training combined with a cold snap left me with only a 231-step difference between my best day and my worst day.  Sunday got the week off to a decent start, finishing just 19 steps shy of 4200.  Monday started a two-week training course at work, putting me 40 steps away from 4200.  Single digit temps on Tuesday led to my lowest total of the week, finishing with 4000 steps.  A slight improvement on Wednesday pushed me up to 4100 steps.  Thursday ended up the best of the week, , finishing over 4200 steps.  A slight decline on Friday put me back at 4100 steps.  I wrapped up the week on Saturday with yet another 4100-step day.

Total steps: 29,025

Daily average: 4146.4

by admin

iTunes Top 200: #145 – 158

Music.  It is a powerful thing that brings people together, creates memories, and evokes emotions.  It is the universal language that speaks to the soul.  It forms the soundtrack of our lives.

It has now been five years since we last counted down the Top 200 songs in my iTunes library, featuring he songs I have listened to the most since 2007.  It is time to do so again, seeing which older songs still resonate and if any newer ones have joined the fray.  So, without further ado, here are my most listened to songs, based on number of plays as of January 1, 2025.

We continue this week with the final batch of songs tied for 158th place with 37 plays apiece and move on to the first group of songs with 38 plays since my stats began in late 2007, good for 145th place.

#158: The Beatles – Help!
iTunes stats: 37 plays, most recently on 3/31/2024
Previous ranking: #98

A mere three new plays in the last five years for this title track from both the 1965 film and its soundtrack album.

#158: Aerosmith – Janie’s Got a Gun
iTunes stats: 37 plays, most recently on 1/4/2022
Previous ranking: #170

This Grammy winner for Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal in 1990 has somehow picked up seven new listens despite having gone unheard in over three years.

#158: Aerosmith – Dude (Looks Like a Lady)
iTunes stats: 37 plays, most recently on 10/28/2024
Previous ranking: #170

The 1987 hit, which earned the band their first VMA nominations, for Best Group Video and Best Stage Performance, picked up seven new plays in the last five years.

#145: The Wonders – That Thing You Do
iTunes stats: 38 plays, most recently on 10/29/2021
Previous ranking: #98

The theme song from the 1996 movie of the same name, about a band that hits it big in the 60s before disintegrating before they can record a follow up, has somehow not been heard in over three years.

#145: No Doubt – Just A Girl
iTunes stats: 38 plays, most recently on 11/13/2023
Previous ranking: #98

The band’s first charting single in the US, which spent 29 weeks on the Hot 100, topping out at #23, added 36 plays since I upgraded to the iPhone 5S in September of 2013.

Continue reading →

by admin

The Nominees Are…

It’s nearly time to play the music and to light the lights.  The 97th Academy Awards are going down next Sunday night, and my woeful predictions are back.  I don’t know that I’ve heard of many of these movies let alone seen them, so, with less basis in fact than most years, here’s my uneducated predictions for the non-acting awards.

Best Original Screenplay

Sean Baker, Anora
Brady Corbet and Mona Fastvold, The Brutalist
Jesse Eisenberg, A Real Pain
Moritz Binder and Tim Fehlbaum; co-written by Alex David, September 5
Coralie Fargeat, The Substance

I’ve heard of a whopping two of these films, so I’m going to flip a coin and end up with The Substance.

Best Adapted Screenplay

James Mangold and Jay Cocks, A Complete Unknown
Peter Straughan, Conclave
Jacques Audiard in collaboration with Thomas Bidegain, Léa Mysius, and Nicolas Livecchi, Emilia Pérez
RaMell Ross and Joslyn Barnes, Nickel Boys
Screenplay by Greg Kwedar and Clint Bentley; story by Greg Kwedar, Clint Bentley, Clarence Maclin, and John “Divine G” Whitfield, Sing Sing

This is a complete guest, as I’ve seen only one of these films.

Best Animated Feature

Flow
Inside Out 2
Memoir of a Snail
Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl
The Wild Robot

Once again, I’ll take a shot in the dark.

Best Cinematography

Lol Crawley, The Brutalist
Greig Fraser, Dune: Part Two
Paul Guilhaume, Emilia Pérez
Ed Lachman, Maria
Jarin Blaschke, Nosferatu

Sand seems like the way to go for this award.

Best Costume Design

Arianne Phillips, A Complete Unknown
Lisy Christl, Conclave
Janty Yates and Dave Crossman, Gladiator II
Linda Muir, Nosferatu
Paul Tazewell, Wicked

This seems like as good a place as any for Wicked to get on the board.

Continue reading →

by admin

Ballpark Tour: Rangers

With a little more than a month until the start of the 2025 baseball season, we continue our tour of all of the different baseball stadiums I’ve been to over the years. This week, we look at the Texas Rangers, a team you would think I would have visited more often due to its proximity to my father. So, without further ado, let’s take a deeper look at my history with the building originally named as the Ballpark in Arlington, the now former home of the Rangers.

Stadium Name: The Ballpark In Arlington/Ameriquest Field/Rangers Ballpark in Arlington/Globe Life Park

Years in Service: 1994 – 2019

Visits: 7

After spending their entire history at nearby Arlington Stadium, the Texas Rangers broke ground on their new stadium on April 2, 1992, and held their first game there nearly two years later, on April 11, 1994, against the Brewers.  The stadium was known by the somewhat clunky moniker of The Ballpark in Arlington until May of 2004, when Ameriquest bought the naming rights.  That deal ended in March of 2007, and the stadium was renamed again, this time to Rangers Ballpark in Arlington.  Corporate money came calling again in 2014, when Globe Life and Accident Insurance Company purchased the naming rights.  The stadium also features a Rangers Hall of Fame, which includes historical artifacts from the team along with visiting collections from Cooperstown.

I made my first trip to the Ballpark on May 22, 1998, to see the Rangers defeat the Royals during a visit to the Dallas area to see my dad.  I returned in 2001 for two games, against the Tigers and two days later against the White Sox.  In 2005, on my last trip to the area to date, I took in the entire four game series between the Rangers and the eventual World Series champion White Sox.

With Michael attending college in Texas, I should be able to add their new stadium, which opened in 2020, to my collection sooner rather than later.

by admin

Book 10 (of 52) – We Solve Murders

We Solve Murders – Richard Osman

When three low-level influencers, all with ties to a security firm in London, are killed in a very public fashion, bodyguard Amy Wheeler, alongside her father-in-law Steve and world-famous novelist Rosie D’Antonio go on a global journey to find out who is behind the murders and why.

Richard Osman returns with We Solve Murders, the first entry in what is primed to be another series.  To be honest, I had assumed this was a new book in his Thursday Murder Club series and was well into it before noticing it was not.  Nominated for the Best Mystery & Thriller category in the 2024 Goodreads Choice Awards, this looks to be another lighthearted, yet engaging series. I’ll be waiting for what comes next.