The Friday Five: Ask Kate P (Nearly) Anything Edition, Round 2

Some eager readers have been waiting for the conclusion since last Friday, so without further ado. . .

1. My fave post-finals week indulgence? (from ArcheryChic22)

Besides sleep? Movie rentals and cocktails. I don’t have to watch a movie in segments over the course of several days owing to schoolwork constraints, and I don’t exactly need to be clear-headed because I’m reading a ton. My eyeballs are happier post-finals, too.



2. Any favorite TV shows lately? (from Ashley)

Monday nights I don't answer the phone between 8:30 and 10:00. That time is for How I Met Your Mother and Heroes. Wednesday nights I stay up for Top Chef/Project Runway (whichever's running at the time), and maybe if I'm home in time from pilates class I'll catch the occasional America's Next Top Model (guilty!). At some point during the weekend, I must see The Soup, and now I'm starting to get into The Dish, thanks to my mom. (Confession: could not stand Danielle Fishel and her big lips and hair on Boy Meets World. But she's great on The Dish. She seems more normal. My kind of normal, anyway.)


3. Favorite movie? (Also from Ashley)


I don’t know if I have an all-time favorite, because I don't think I've seen enough to know, but I’ll give you two of my top ones, an everyday one and a Christmas one. The everyday one is Little Voice. Probably not a widely recognized title, but a great, well-acted piece (if you don’t mind a few f-words used by working class British people). It’s based on the play of the same name, and the cast is stellar: Brenda Blethyn as the rough-tongued mother, Jane Horrocks as a quiet young woman with a talent for imitating singers like Judy Garland and Billie Holiday, Michael Caine as a scheming agent, and Ewan McGregor as a timid phone company worker. Music, humor, drama—it’s all there.

My favorite Christmas movie is Miracle on 34th Street, the original. Again, great cast (other than that one hammy postal worker), warm, wonderful story. I always try to catch it when it’s aired in December. As many airings as possible.


4. “Guilty pleasures” when it comes to music. . . (from Dave E.)

I dunno. My collection looks really random when taken on the whole. I guess people are probably surprised that I have CDs from artists like Blink-182, and there are probably people who think that because I’m Catholic I shouldn’t listen to Depeche Mode or R.E.M. or whatever, but the people who think that don’t understand the music or need their faith strengthened or something. I also have a bunch of soundtracks, including just about all the ones for The O.C., and a really eclectic Christmas section: Electronica (with companion “video fireplace” DVD), John Denver & the Muppets, the Rat Pack, Sesame Street, some locally produced ones for charity, and James Brown. Everybody should have the James Brown Christmas CD. There's nothing like hearing James Brown yell at America to unite and make Christmas mean something.

However, the biggest “guilt” is probably that I even buy CDs while supposedly everybody else is downloading music. I try not to buy them new, but I’m itching to get the upcoming release for the Killers.

5. . . . or movies? (Also from Dave E., because I cheated to make this a separate question)

I didn’t notice it until my (crazy bitch ex-) roommate pointed it out: I have a thing about “teen” movies. Among my movie collection are this one and this one. And I’m hoping to see the Twilight movie, whether I finish the dreadful final installment of the series in time or not, at some point next week.



All done, for now! There's always the 300th post around the corner, right? I've got a crazy weekend full of schoolwork and actually getting out of the house to see people. I'm also celebrating some really good news: my graduate advisor went to bat for me with the bursar's office and I now have a zero balance on my account, at long last. At least there are no financial barriers to my graduation anymore. As for the other stuff, well, I'd better get to work.

Hope everyone has a terrific weekend!

Comments

Dave E. said…
The original Miracle on 34th Street is my favorite Christmas movie. Lots of funny little details in that movie, like the judge and his political advisor. Great cast.

You are pretty tame on your guilty pleasures compared to me. Or maybe it's just my friends and what we used to have for "image". I really don't care anymore, but years ago a friend of mine found a certain cassette in my truck and I actually lied that my sister had borrowed my truck so it must have been hers. I think he bought it, or maybe he was smart enough to not want to know the truth. The things I used to do to keep shallow appearances up.

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