Stuff I Love: Friends, Food, and Films

Happy Leap Day! I hope everyone made the most out of this extra day. You only get an extra day once every four years so you gotta make it count. I came back from vacation and went to work so there's that.

I thought we'd close out a month of "Stuff I Love" talking about three things I love separately and together: friends, food, and films. All three played a role in my recent visit to the great city of Austin, TX. I used to think that having friends all over the country (and world - hey Shellie in India!) was the worst part of being an adult who has friends. I have a lot of friends who live more than a 2 hour plane ride away. While I love my DMV friends, I miss my other friends and the ease of going to happy hour or grabbing brunch on a Saturday. Sometimes an event inspires the feeling: With new Gilmore Girls episodes on the horizon, I want nothing more than to schedule pizza and tv with Heather and Mary. Heather lives in Wisconsin and Mary lives in Washington state so that's not going to happen.

Here's what I was ignoring: having friends all over the place means I can go visit them OR they can come visit me. This equals new places to explores and excuses to play tourist in our own cities. If we're feeling really adventurous we might even plan to meet somewhere in the middle for a true adventure. I assume this is how I'll finally make my dreams of visiting the Dakotas happen; one of my friends has to want to do that too.

My friend, Jessica, moved to Austin a few years ago and we've been trying to schedule a visit ever since. We've failed pretty miserably since life and work seem to always get in the way. I've been to Austin before but not really; I was there for a work event four or five years ago and never made it past the gates of the resort where the event was being held. The travel gods finally showed us favor and I bought my ticket back in January. We've been emailing and plotting ever since. Of course the plotting and planning culminated in Jessica creating this:

Yes, that is an Excel spreadsheet planning our activities and meals. This is one of the reasons Jessica and I are friends.

Two themes immediately emerge from this spreadsheet: 1. Jessica takes food very seriously 2. A movie was involved each day. Jessica is a great host. She made sure we had plenty to do while also including downtime (we all need downtime). She indulged my record buying habit and did some very tourist-y things at my request because that's what friends are for. She also instinctively knew that dancing to 80s music at a bar/club called Barbarella was something I needed in my life at this exact moment. Lastly, she decided that the only was to keep us from getting lost on our adventures around Austin was to be guided by Morgan Freeman. No, the actor was not physically with us but his voice guided us around clear and present dangers on the highway and to our destinations as quick as possible. Always trust Morgan Freeman.

(Side note: Waze has a Morgan Freeman option right now in conjunction with the new movie London Has Fallen. Do yourself and your country a favor and use it.)

Austin is definitely a food city. It's a lot of other things too but we don't have time for everything today. When I say food I'm referring to three specific groups: BBQ, breakfast tacos, and queso. This is pretty much what we ate the entire time I was in town. I estimate that I'm 40% taco right now. 

Breakfast tacos are a revelation. I had never had one until this trip. There are subtleties to the breakfast taco that I never considered: flour versus corn tortilla (flour is sturdier, corn has a richer flavor); salsa and salsa combinations, egg to cheese ratio, and the wonder of migas. It's a lot to take in all at once. Everyone has their favorite place. We went to three places:

1. Tacodeli
2. Maria's Taco Xpress
3. Rudy's

I experienced tacos to go (Tacodeli) and sit in tacos (Maria's, Rudy's, and Torchy's - those were dinner tacos).  I built my own (Rudy's). I tried seven different types of salsa (and combined several for even more options) and three distinctly different cups of coffee. I can understand why Autinites (Austintonians?) are so into their breakfast tacos. Breakfast tacos are the best parts of breakfast with the best parts of a taco. I don't know what I'm going to do without them.

My favorite overall was Maria's Taco Xpress. This is one of the few places I was able to add to the list. I saw it on an episode of Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives and some Travel Channel show on tacos. The owners is a hoot and they're consistently named one of the best taco places in Austin. The experience is like being in someone's garage where delicious tacos are made. There's a lot of eclectic decor and fun signs. I had the Cactus taco and it was awesome.

Tacodeli wins best salsa. To say that I would like some right now is an understatement. It was the right level of spicy and tasted homemade. We picked up tacos from Tacodeli on our way to Franklin Barbecue, a popular BBQ place where you have to wait in line for hours and may not actually make it in. Jessica (remember she's a great host) planned our day perfectly so that we'd grab our tacos to go and make it to Franklin's by 9:15 am to wait. Yes, we waited in line for three hours for BBQ. Yes, it was worth it. In addition to our tacos, we came prepared with beer (allowed in line), additional snacks, and bottled water (the most hipster bottled water of all time).

The line at Franklin's is part of the experience. As Jessica told me, it's also why a lot of native Austinites (I'm sticking with that) avoid it despite the fact that the food is awesome and the service outstanding. Austin is know for barbecue and there are lots of places you can enjoy it (Jessica and I also went to Rudy's - yes Rudy's for both barbecue and tacos). But you know me, I love an experience. That's part of travel, in my humble opinion. The thing about place like Franklin Barbecue and Rudy's is that you buy meat by the pound. This means that you have to guess how much you want to each and consider sides since you're going to want sides. I'm terrible at ordering this way because I think I want more than I actually can eat. This happened at both places although I feel like I did better about setting expectations at Rudy's.


The line was fun. We got there right on time and it wasn't nearly as bad as I thought it would be. Jessica prepared me for a long wait in the sun with the potential that we wouldn't even get food. I'm guessing that the fact that we went on a Thursday helped us; most people we at their jobs. We brought chairs and beer and enjoyed eavesdropping on the groups around us. We also found Carmen Sandiego. We didn't make friends but we did learn a lot about whether the girl behind us was a Swiftie or a Bielber (Bielber) and that the guys in front of us were out as part of a bachelor party. Their next stop: the barbershop. Calm down, dudes.

Anyway, the food was excellent but we did order too much. My decision to order potato salad was a poor life choice but ordering pecan pie was not (although I didn't eat until returning to DC). My favorite thing: brisket with pickles and onions and espresso barbecue sauce. It was well worth the three hour wait. I'd do it again too.

After indulging in Franklin's, we decided to make our way to the area near UT Austin. I wanted to see the Daniel Johnston mural at 21st and Guadalupe. It's now attached to a Thai restaurant much to the chagrin of some people. However, if the owner of that restaurant wants to protect the iconic mural, I say let him. We also walked around the area (known as "the drag" or so I'm told) and eventually made our way over to the State Capitol area. Along the way I found some great historical markers for various buildings and some equally wonderful street art. Both Jessica and I had a hard time getting over how creepy the school children of Texas tribute statue is; I'll spare you the photo.

We finished out the day taking in our first film of the week, Deadpool. I had already seen it opening weekend but as I was planning on seeing it again it made sense to enjoy it after a long day of waiting in line, eating all of the food, and walking. The second time around was just as funny so if you haven't seen Deadpool go ahead and do that now.

After excellent tacos at Maria's we head to South Congress Street. It's a cool area filled with vintage shops, made in Austin places, and great coffee at Jo's Coffee home to another famous mural and excellent coffee. I also found the coolest thing in a vintage store: an old UT notebook that a woman (possibly two) used to keep recipes and her address book in. There are handwritten recipes and recipe cards stuck in throughout the pages. At the back is an address list. I'm planning on writing a longer post about this little find; by far the coolest thing I've ever purchased from a vintage store.

I also did what I assume is required when visiting Texas: I tried on cowboy boots and hats. I still believe I was not meant to wear hats but it was still fun. I did find a few pairs of boots I liked but as they are rather expensive, I decided trying them on was enough for one trip.

Which brings us to our third food group: queso.

Why doesn't everything come with queso? I would add queso to the list of perfect foods (along with potatoes, bread of all forms, and cheese). We had queso at Trudy's and later at Torchy's (where I also had a dinner taco which I guess is just a taco). I could have just eaten the queso at Torchy's and I would have been happy but then I would have missed out on peach habanero jam and no one wants that. This also gave Jessica and I ample time to discuss our evening of another movie and dancing at Barbarella.

I've never been to the Alamo Drafthouse here in Virginia so I was excited to go to one in Austin, where the theatres were founded. It's a great experience and coupled with the amazingly funny Master Pancake, my first Alamo experience became the highlight of my trip. If you like MST3K you'll love Master Pancake. It's like a live action version; the cast provides commentary while watching the movie with the audience (this time Mad Max: Fury Road) and there's a skit in the middle. Jessica's pizza was stolen during the skit but she did get a thanks so there's that. I'm not entirely sure I'll ever be able to watch Fury Road without thinking of Tracy Chapman's "Fast Car" or how perfectly "Lost Yourself" fits into the action. If you have a chance to see them, do it regardless of what movie they're showing. The show was at the Alamo location on 6th Street so I got a taste of that craziness too. It's like a tamer, less dirty version of Bourbon Street. We stopped at two places, Easy Tiger and Barbarella. I'm not what you'd call a club person but I do like dive-y bars where you can dance to good music. By "good music" I mean 70s punk, 80s anything, and some stuff from the 90s. It was fun and while it made me feel a little old ("Is that Madonna?" a twenty-something exclaimed when "Lucky Star" played), I was okay with that feeling. I'm not a twenty-something and that is perfectly fine with me.

My last day in Austin included a great view from brunch near the Arboretum before jetting off, with Morgan Freeman's help, to the Domain to see our final film of the week Zoolander 2. The Domain is this super swank shopping mall with a super swank movie theatre called iPic. It's basically a cocktail lounge where movies happen to be screened. We ordered a fancy cocktail for our viewing of one of the most ridiculous movies I've seen in a very long time. Y'all know I have I have a healthy suspension of disbelief but this one pushed it a bit even for me. It was still funny but left me with one very important unanswered question: was Billy Zane the bad guy in this one? I don't want to think that for even a second.

My visit to Austin and with Jessica was a much needed break from the the usual February doldrums of NOVA. Did we do everything we could have done? No, but we did enough and I enjoyed every minute of it. Austin is a cool town and definitely worth another visit soon.

The only thing missing was my impression of Wooderson from Dazed and Confused. You'll just have to imagine driving down the street listening to War's "Low Rider" and me saying "All right, all right, all right."

Stuff I Love: The Department of Useless Information

My brother and I often joke that we would be the top employees if there was ever a Department of Useless Information anywhere in the world. Between the two of us we know a lot of random and fairly useless information spanning historical references to pop culture to geography and sports. While this skill helps with things like pub trivia and small talk at parties, it's not a particularly marketable skill. Unless one of us went on Jeopardy. I'm voting for Scott to do this.

So what does this have to do with this week's "Stuff I Love?" Everything! For once my skills for useless information will serve a higher purpose. Remember my friend Jordana? Jordana and I played the role of fake bridesmaids at a Mary Kay party and we navigated Jungle Jim's together during a visit to Cincinnati last January. Jordana is in grad school and is taking a course on humanities this semester. She has to visit various art and public spaces for assignments related to the class. This month, the focus is on public spaces.

Given that we live in a region where lots of history happened, I suggested that she visit a monument. After some discussion about which monument and Jordana's desire to visit a less visited option, I came up with the idea that she should drive around and investigate the Virginia Historical Markers. If you've driven on any road in Virginia you've probably seen one of these; they're white squarish signs along the road that mark an important historical event or person. Virginia has the oldest and largest of these marker programs in the United states. There are over 2000 markers throughout the state. Many of the earliest markers are along US 1. The markers include everything from battle sites, birthplaces, and other random historic events that have made it through the application process. The Department of Historic Resources maintains the program.

I've always wanted to plan a road trip around these historic markers. Road trips have always been a favorite of mine and I remember seeing these signs everywhere when we first moved to Virginia in the early 1990s. Other states have these signs but I don't think I ever really noticed them until we moved here because they are literally everywhere. There's so much history in Virginia specifically and the DMV generally. In my own neighborhood there are several historic markers, mostly from Arlington County. There's the Lomax AME Zion Church, opened in 1874 and a spot of one of Martin Luther King's speeches in 1963. The Drew School was also in this area; it opened in 1945 to serve the Nauck community. And finally, there's Green Valley Pharmacy. The pharmacy opened in 1952 and served the African-American neighborhood when others would not. The owner, Dr. Leonard Muse, is in his 90s but still works in the pharmacy along with his granddaughter. When I first moved into the neighborhood, I didn't know the history of Green Valley Pharmacy. It wasn't until I saw a group of middle schoolers on a field trip that I realized the historical and social significance of the place. There's so much history in this region and we (the collective DMV "we") tend to take it for granted. We often neglect it which is why we can't have nice things. So I was very excited when Jordana suggested that I join her in her project. What other nuggets of history would we find?

Despite the fact that there are several websites devoted to these markers, we found it challenging to find an actual map of the markers. If we knew of a marker or a keyword from a marker we could look it up on Google maps or the DHR website but that wasn't really what we were looking for. How is it possible that this program has existed for over 80 years and no one thought, "Let's create a map! Tourists and intrepid road trippers will love it!" Given that this program was originally created to encourage tourism, you'd think there would be a map.

But I digress. Jordana found an app instead. It's called Field Trip and it is awesome. Field Trip uses your location, a Google Map, and a database of historic markers to make it easy to find the sites near your location. Each marker is in the database along with additional historical information about the person or event listed. We decided to start near Jordana's house in Fairfax and were immediately dropped into the Battle of Ox Hill which took place in 1862. Starting with this event, our day would be filled with more John Mosby and Stonewall Jackson than two people actually need in their lives. But I guess that's what happens when you live in the middle of where a large portion of the Civil War took place. 

After tracing part of the Battle of Ox Hill and attempting to locate Jordana's house on the map of the battlefield, we continued our drive to Frying Pan Park and meeting house. According to A Guidebook to Virginia's Historical Markers (and the marker itself), the meeting house is a "rare example of 18th-century architecture in western Fairfax County." From Field Trip we learned that in 1840 it was the most integrated church in the area. While the meeting house has been preserved and there are lots of signs, there was no indication why the rock in the below photo was enclosed by a fence. We guessed (as did the FB hive) that it's actually a grave marker. We also threw out the idea that maybe it was cursed and another friend suggested that it turns into a gremlin at night but grave marker seems to the most grounded in reality answer. There is a cemetery here but this stone is closer to the road so maybe the fence is there to protect it from terrible NOVA drivers. Good job, Fairfax County. 

After Frying Pan Park, we jumped back on to Route 50 to continue our trip into Aldie, Middleburg, and Upperville. Did you know you can take Route 50 from Ocean City, MD to Sacramento, CA? That would be a cool road trip. Along the way we attempted to see the home of President James Monroe but the marker was missing. I was able to look it up and apparently Monroe "lived there for some years." I believe that's the historical equivalent of "he's just not that into you" for a house rather than a person. We were also treated to a weird song called "James Monroe" on the Southern Gothic Spotify playlist Jordana found. Upon a second listen, I don't actually think this song is about President Monroe so listen to this little gem instead.

 

What we started to discover along the way was the sort of history that we're not sure is actual history. Yes, we followed the Civil War battles from Ox Hill through to battles in little towns like Aldie and Upperville and slightly larger little towns like Middleburg, but the consistent theme through these markers were things like "John Mosby avoided capture here" or "Stonewall Jackson stood watch so his men could rest, then he took a nap, then they went and started First Manassas" or "Stonewall Jackon's mother might have grown up around here" (these are actual markers but I've paraphrased for you). Where were all the inventors or the non-war themed markers? Jordana wondered where all the whimsical history markers were; is history doomed to be textbook boring?

That's not to say we didn't learn interesting things. We drove through four counties (Fairfax, Loudoun, Clarke, and Faquier) and learned their namesakes and founding dates, learned that the father of American architecture's work is not as impressive as we hoped (B. Henry Latrobe and Long Branch), and that the estate of Welbourne was inspiration for both F. Scott Fitzgerald and Thomas Wolfe. We saw a lot of churches. We enjoyed a cider tasting at Mt. Defiance Cidery & Distillery and coffee at Middleburg Common Grounds. Mt. Defiance (the actual land not the cidery) was part of the Battle of Middleburg; we saw the monument as we drove back through town.

Jordana couldn't get over how it was nearly impossible to stop to actually see any of the markers.We discussed this at length during the trip. I suggested that we look at the markers from a 1927 perspective (that's when the marker program began). There were less cars in 1927 than there are today. Those cars weren't designed to drive at the speeds we drive at today. People spent their leisure time differently. They didn't have smart phones so they would have to get out of their cars or at least pull up beside the marker to read it. Pull-off areas were added to marker areas in 1934; safety being the main reason. These markers were designed for a time that didn't have the Internet and Google. For that audience, historic markers would have been enough. We take it for granted today that if we want to know about a topic, any topic, we can use our phones to figure it out. As convenient as my phone is, it takes away the adventure of learning and the hunt for history. 

We also realized how much history in this concentrated area was focused on the history of a few people, mostly John Mosby and Stonewall Jackson. Yes, we learned about the Barlow and Haight families, the aforementioned B. Henry Latrobe, and "A Revolutionary War Hero" (marker B-33), but it was mostly the Mosby/Jackson show all day. There was Mosby's Rock, where raider Mosby would retrieve secret documents from Confederate spy Laura Ratcliffe and Jackson's Bivouac, basically the spot where Jackson took a nap. Where was the rest of history? As I read later in the day, it wasn't until the last 20 years or so that the markers have looked past the "Great Men of History" to more diverse people and "neglected history" rather than countless battles and napping spots for defeated generals. 

Our last stop of the day was Chantilly. The original plantation (now a very expensive country club) was built by Charles and Cornelia Calvert Stuart in 1817. Cornelia's grandfather was Richard Henry Lee, one of the signers of the Declaration of Independence. The stone house on the property near the sign is all that's left of the original property. We took a few last photos and made our way to Dogfish Head Alehouse which happens to be a five minutes away from this last marker. A sign of progress or some such thing I'm sure. As we enjoyed a beer and dinner, we discussed what we enjoyed and disliked about our day. A few key takeaways:

• I have the snacking habits of a 6 year old. I brought pretzels sticks, Goldfish crackers, and Star Wars shaped fruit snacks along as our road trip snacks. We needed snacks and that's what I had at home.
• Modern drivers are not designed to allow for leisurely viewing of historic markers. I'm pretty certain we made at least three enemies as we made our way through Middleburg and back. 
• I missed my calling as the provider of historic narration for any tour group. Jordana drove so I played navigator and read the signs and other information from Field Trip and the guidebook. If the Department of Historic Resources ever wants to make an audio tour of the guidebook, I hope they'll contact me to be the narrator.
• The "Great Men of History" were not nearly as great as they may have seemed. We were disappointed with Long Branch and tired of the antics of Mosby and Jackson. Where's the fun history or the weird history? Don't they deserve historic markers too?
• Always stop for a cider or wine or beer tasting. I have some Mt. Defiance cider waiting in my fridge and it's going to be delicious. If you really care about local businesses, stop at these places whenever you're doing a little road trip. Skip the fast food and the Starbucks and truly go local.
• History is everywhere. We should all be better about slowing down and learning about what happened in our own backyards (both literally and figuratively). 

Signing off from the Department of Useless Information. If you need me, I'll be plotting my next Virginia Historic Marker road trip. I think I hear Central Virginia and Piedmont calling.

Next week: The final "Stuff I Love" post - tentatively titled "Texas, Tacos, and Travel." 
 
References:
Department of Historic Resources
A Guidebook to Viriginia's Historical Markers complied by Scott David Arnold
Fairfax County History Commission
Field Trip app
Arlington County Projects & Planning

All photos by me

Stuff I Love: Mix Tape for Quentin Tarantino

I was at a party back in December with a bunch of people I didn't know (the hostess is a friend of mine). You know how it goes when new people meet at parties; they either get along famously or talk about something they shouldn't like politics or religion. Or Quentin Tarantino movies. I ended up debating about my favorite Tarantino movie, Reservoir Dogs, with a guy who professed his love for Pulp Fiction, a movie I only sort of like. His main argument against Reservoir Dogs was that it's basically a movie about a bunch of guys who talk a lot and then happen to commit a robbery and most of them die. "Nothing happens," I remember him saying. My counter-argument was that this was exactly what happens in every Tarantino movie: a bunch of people at various times throughout any of his movies talk and talk and talk and talk some more. Then a bunch of people die. Usually their deaths happen in some crazy way and they talk about random and amazing things along the way. Or super pretentious things.

I went on to discuss the genius of the Reservoir Dogs soundtrack and Tarantino's ability to do things in a film that you don't expect (more on this later). Eventually this led to a mildly insufferable conversation about modern pop and rock music. Then I decided to leave. I considered this conversation as I settled in to watch The Hateful Eight in its roadshow/70 mm glory a week or so later. Since I always write a Valentine's Day post about something weird and February is devoted to stuff I love, today we focus on my favorite musical moments from the films of Quentin Tarantino. I believe he is one the best directors when it comes to creating a musical world for a film that works perfectly within the context of the world of that film. He appreciates the power songs and scores have in making characters and plot resonant with an audience. Tarantino gets it right over and over again when it comes to the music and has fun while doing it. Also, he somehow convinced Ennio Morricone to compose the score for The Hateful Eight, the first Western score Morricone has composed in 40 years.

A few words of caution before you continue:

1. There are spoilers - some of these movies have been out for over 20 years. It's your fault if you haven't seen them yet.
2. I've included some NSFW/small children language mostly in the form of quotes from the movies and descriptions of violent happenings as needed.
3. Links to songs are from YouTube. I tried very hard to find legit postings of songs instead of someone recording the movie from their television.
4. Only feature films that Tarantino directed are included. Yes, he has written and starred in several other films with great soundtracks and had special directing segments in movies like Four Rooms and Sin City but none of those count. 
5. I watched all of the movies again in preparation for this post. Yes, I own all of them but The Hateful Eight. 

Mix Tape for Quentin Tarantino

1. "Misirlou" by Dick Dale & His Del-Tones from Pulp Fiction
Pulp Fiction is not my favorite Tarantino film but it is one of my favorite film soundtracks. There's a lot going on musically in this movie and it all makes sense in this world of Pulp Fiction. The movie opens with two characters, Pumpkin and Honey Bunny. These are two of the billion characters that we have to keep track of (this is one of the things that annoys me about this movie). Pumpkin (Tim Roth) and Honey Bunny (Amanda Plummer) open the film talking about their life of crime and bank robberies, smoking cigarettes, and drinking coffee. Then they turn to the restaurant and all hell breaks lose. Honey Bunny shouts, "Any of you fucking pricks move, and I'll execute every motherfuckin' last one of you!"

BOOM - Dick Dale's "Misirlou" starts over the opening credits. It's an electric moment and a great example of how music punctuates action throughout the movie. I admit, I wanted more of Pumpkin and Honey Bunny in the movie (we come back to them later) but the later sequence is not nearly as great as this one.

Disclaimer: Tim Roth is my second favorite regular Tarantino cast member. I believe most of his movies could benefit from more Tim Roth.

2. "Little Green Bag" by The George Baker Selection from Reservoir Dogs
Another great title sequence. This particular one exudes cool in a way that most movies from the 1990s fail to do with the effortlessness of Harvey Keitel and Michael Madsen walking and Steve Buscemi throwing on some sunglasses. In a decade of movies about Gen X slackers and cool guys who were cool because they were in bands or drank coffee or treated their girlfriends terribly, these guys were just cool because they were. Even Chris Penn (may he rest in peace) manages to look cool in the opening credits despite the fact that he's wearing an incredibly unflattering tracksuit (Movie trivia: it was his tracksuit). I also love Steven Wright as the K-Billy DJ; it's so perfect. Having his voice-overs on the soundtrack make it more fun to listen to later (as well as Harvey Keitel's "Let's Get a Taco" speech). Yes, these guys are about to commit a crime and a bunch of very violent things are about to go down but man, they can enter a movie.

I sometimes hum this song for no reason even if I haven't heard in awhile.

3. "Hold Tight" by Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick & Tich from Death Proof
Death Proof is my least favorite Tarantino movie. That's not entirely true; the first part of the movie is my least favorite Tarantino movie. The second part, which features Zoe Bell, Tracie Thoms, and a 1970 Dodge Challenger, is pretty kick ass. The only things I really enjoy about the first part are the music, the appearance of future Inglorious Basterds, and Tarantino's cameo as bar owner Warren.

The band, Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick & Tich are a British rock/pop group who had a few hit singles in the late 1960s. The appearance of this song in the movie was the first time I had ever heard it. The rest of their stuff is okay in a 1960s British rock band that's not The Who or The Rolling Stones  kind of way.

The song is featured as the soundtrack in a very violent scene at the end of the first part of the movie. Stuntman Mike has caught up to Jungle Julia and her friends as they drive out to the lake after a night out in Austin. They're listening to this great song, each woman finding her groove; it's the kind of song that is impossible to listen to with tapping your feet or playing air drums. Then terrible things happen including a character's face getting basically torn off by the tire of Stuntman Mike's car. I didn't link to the actual scene because it's gross but it's beautifully timed with the song.

4. "Twisted Nerve" by Bernard Herrmann from Kill Bill: Vol. 1
Without fail, any time I see an ad for Kill Bill (either volume) or anyone mentions the movies, this song gets lodged in my brain. Forever. The song is from a 1968 movie called Twisted Nerve which is about a disturbed young man who starts to kill people in order to get closer to a woman he's infatuated with. I've never seen this movie but the song has been used in other movies and tv shows that depict psychopaths doing their psychopathic things (like Tate in the first season of American Horror Story). I've refer to this song as "Psychopath Whistling Song" for years.

The song appears early in Kill Bill: Vol. 1. We meet Elle Driver aka California Mountain Snake, one of Bill's trained assassins. She enters the hospitalwith the intention of killing the Bride once and for all while whistling this song. It's a chilling sequence and it has always made me wonder: where the hell is everyone else that works in this hospital? Seriously, how is it possible that Elle can waltz in whistling and make it all the way into a patient's room and no one notices? This scene also makes the final confrontation between Elle and the Bride so much more awesome because Elle is the worst and deserves everything she gets in the end.

5. "Girl, You'll Be a Woman Soon" by Urge Overkill from Pulp Fiction
I love Neil Diamond and I love this song. But I love it more as sung by Urge Overkill. Urge Overkill was one of those bands that came about in the early to mid-90s and that no one really remembers because they came out at the same time as a bunch of other bands that no one remembers. They did open for bands like Nirvana and Pearl Jam but are probably best known for this cover.

I like this moment in Pulp Fiction for two reasons: 1. It shows the delicate position a person like Vincent Vega is in when asked to entertain the wife of his employer, mobster Marcellus Wallace. Mrs. Mia Wallace is off limits but there is something between Vincent and Mia throughout this entire sequence of events. You can see Vincent struggle with this throughout the evening. 2. It shows a recklessness in Mia that makes you feel sad for her. She probably spends a lot of time alone or with people who have to be nice to her because of her husband. Not even a minute into this song she shoots up some heroin she found in Vincent's pocket (as one does). Vincent saves her and that completely shatters the moment that was this song.

6. "Stuck in the Middle with You" by Stealers Wheel from Reservoir Dogs
I LOVE Michael Madsen. This was the first movie I saw him in and I have, in my devotion, watched some crappy movies because he was in them. Seriously, he was the dad in the first two Free Willy movies. I almost watched Lifetime's Mason family movie last weekend because his son is in it and his son looks just like him. But I did not. I watched Django Unchained instead.

He is mesmerizing as Vic Vega/Mr. Blonde. I had to write a paper about this movie in college and I recall referring to him as a "psychopathic Elvis." The smirk! The eyes! The scene with Mr. Blonde and the cop and this song is one of those scenes that fits into my earlier comment about the unexpected in Tarantino movies. I don't think anyone sits down to watch this movie and thinks this scene is going to happen even if they know it happens. No one thinks, "That guy is going to cut off that cop's ear and dance to 'Stuck in the Middle with You.' But boy does it happen. I don't know if I read this at one point or if it was in special features on the DVD but Madsen had a hard time shooting this scene because he's pretty adverse to violence (ironic I know). Knowing that makes it even more fascinating to watch this scene play out.

It's the craziest scene in this movie and one of the most unexpected scenes in all of his movies. Yes, more violent and crazier things happen in later films but I think we have the expectation that they will be part of his films. No one expected this to happen. No one expected "Stuck in the Middle with You."

7. "Cat People (Putting Out Fire)" by David Bowie from Inglorious Basterds
Y'all know I love Bowie and this is one of my top five favorite Bowie songs. It's from a terrible 1982 movie, Cat People, which was a remake of a really great 1942 horror movie of the same name. The best parts of the 1982 movie are this song and a young, sexy John Heard.

Tarantino uses the song in Inglorious Basterds in the lead up to the film premiere during the final act of the film. Shosanna, one of Tarantino's best female characters ever, is getting ready to exact her revenge on the Nazis who will soon be taking up space in her theatre. The song plays as she gets dressed and puts the pieces of her plan into place. I remember seeing this scene in the theatre and being the only person who got excited about the song. It's a battle cry for Shosanna. If I were a superhero this would be my theme song and it's entirely because of this film sequence. It's brilliant.

8.  "I Got a Name" by Jim Croce from Django Unchained
I only recently watched Django Unchained. It came out at a time where I wasn't going to movies very frequently so I skipped it and in my mind said I'd come back to it at some point. The movie takes place pre-Civil War and is about a German bounty hunter, Dr. Schultz (Christoph Waltz) who frees a slave named Django (Jamie Foxx) after Django helps him identify some outlaws for a bounty. The pair then become partners with a plan that includes finding and freeing Django's wife Broomhilda. The film is violent (including a man being torn to death by dogs, lots of heads being shot of, and others being used as shields in a gun fight), weird (Tarantino's Australian accent, Leonardo DiCaprio as a whole), and a Western in its own Tarantino way.

This song comes after Dr. Schultz and Django decide to become partners. In the previous scene Django is wearing one of the most ridiculous outfits of all time while trying to capture some outlaws. He looks like Little Lord Fauntleroy without the haircut. This song and sequence is all about him becoming who he is and riding down that path to the woman he lost and their freedom. It also helps establish the relationship between Schultz and Django; I like the two of them as a team. It's a quick part of the movie but it does a lot to build dimension in both characters and set the stage for events between them in the final act of the film.

9. "Overture" by Ennio Morricone from The Hateful Eight
I hope that this score earns Morricone an actual Oscar. He deserves it; the score is as wonderful as any of his other film scores. Tarantino has used other Morricone works in his films (most notably in Django Unchained) and they work but it's not the same as having the master write a score for the film. The score adds another layer to the bleakness and vastness of The Hateful Eight. It's also eerie and violent at times which fits in nicely with the plot. I saw the road show version of the movie and probably should have gone to see it again.

Side note 1: Walton Goggins is by far the best part of The Hateful Eight. This has nothing whatsoever to do with the overture but I had to say it. He's up there with Michael Madsen, Tim Roth, and Steve Buscemi on my list of favorite Tarantino regulars.

Side note 2: I was listening to this in my car on the way home the other night. The song started as I was turning into the driveway to my parking garage. It was dark, raining, and super creepy. I ended up turning it off because it made me uncomfortable outside of the context of the movie. Success for Mr. Morricone and Mr. Tarantino.

10. "Who Did That To You?" by John Legend from Django Unchained
There are a lot of great songs on the Django Unchained soundtrack. It aslso has the distinction of being the first Tarantino movie to feature original songs including songs by Rick Ross, Ennio Morricone, Elayna Boynton, and Anthony Hamilton. I've already talked about my favorite musical moment from this movie but I thought I'd also include an original song for balance.

This is my favorite original song on the soundtrack; it would be a great R&B song without the film  but it works so beautifully in the story with its lyrics focused on retribution. Listening to John Legend sing anything is a hobby we should all start. The audience has followed Django on this journey to find Broomhilda and it's come down to this final ride back to the plantation and his last shot at getting her back. After this sequence and the end of the movie, I really wanted to see Jamie Foxx star in another movie as a cowboy or sheriff in the Old West. He's everything that Will Smith always wanted to be in movies when he tried to be a badass but just came off as a smug jerk. Maybe Foxx could team up with Common and Anson Mount for a weird Django Unchained/Hell on Wheels mash up.

11. "Didn't I Blow Your Mind This Time?" by The Delfonics from Jackie Brown
Let's all be honest, Jackie Brown is a love story featuring two of our national treasures, Pam Grier and Robert Forster. Yes, it is also a heist film based on Elmore Leonard's Rum Punch but to me, it will always be the story of Jackie and Max. It's one of my favorites but it often gets overshadowed by the flashier movies like Pulp Fiction and the Kill Bill movies. Grier's Jackie gets arrested for bringing money and drugs (she didn't know about the drugs) from Mexico for Ordell (Samuel L. Jackson sporting one of the most ridiculous hairdos of his career). Ordell posts her bail with bail bondsman Max Cherry (Forester). Max goes to get Jackie from jail and falls in love with her on the spot. By this time, Jackie is already plotting her plan to steal Ordell's money while also helping a couple of federal agents arrest him for selling guns. There's a lot of plot and characters but not in an annoying Pulp Fiction way.

Anyway, this song. Jackie plays it for Max when he returns to her apartment to get the gun she "borrowed" from him. They talk about CDs and vinyl and music. We later see Max buying a cassette tape of The Delfonics and listening to it in his car. I love him singing along with the song as he drives around helping Jackie and trying not to get shot by Ordell and his minions. It's like when your crush gives you a mix tape and you listen to it over and over again. Max's mix tape is just one song but it's the same feeling. In my heart I want to believe that Max eventually followed Jackie to Spain and they dance to this song in their kitchen overlooking some elegant boulevard in Madrid.

It's possible this is the most romantic movie Quentin Tarantino will ever make.

12. "Goodnight Moon" by Shivaree from Kill Bill: Vol. 2
This song plays over the end credits of the Kill Bill: Vol. 2. It's basically Uma Thurman driving in a super cool car down a road occasionally making direct eye contact. It's an incredibly satisfying ending to these two movies after experiencing everything the Bride has experienced. The song is very cool and stylized and fits perfectly into this soundtrack. The score and the soundtracks from the Kill Bill movies are amazing (composed by RZA from the Wu-Tang Clan) and like Reservoir Dogs and Pulp Fiction, they feel like a character too.

This song, like many of the other songs on this list, gets stuck in my head whenever I listen to it. It reminds me of when I used to hang out at the Red Room in college with my friends who were into swing dancing. I feel like this would have been a song we would have listened to while drinking martinis and feigning cool like you do in your early twenties.

I know this was a long post but I'm glad you made it to the end. I'll leave with some final words from K-Billy's Super Sounds of the 70s. Oh, and Happy Valentine's Day!

Michael Madsen photo
Death Proof photo
Jackie and Max
Film/Audio from YouTube
Quotes from IMDB listings for the various films

Stuff I Love: Mandatory Fun

It's February! Is everyone excited? February brings us many things: groundhogs, a holiday about love, and the promise of getting closer to the end of winter. This year we're even treated to a leap year - a whole extra day to really enjoy all that February has to offer. I thought I'd spend February discussing "Stuff I Love." I know I'm not Oprah but I feel like if she gets her favorite things, I get "Stuff I Love." That's how the world works.

Up first: mandatory fun.

What's that? You don't know what mandatory fun is? Mandatory fun or "Mandofun" is actually a military term.  It's something that you're "invited" to attend (i.e. told to attend). I don't recall my parents ever using it when we were growing up. However, I can definitely recall multiple events from my childhood that fit nicely into this category. This includes but is not limited to multiple trips to the air show and a picnic that included a group of mildly inebriated Army officers singing the Oak Ridge Boys song "Elvira." Memorable but not really what I'd call fun. In non-military terms, this could apply to things like a company holiday party or that really awkward happy hour you have to attend with senior leadership team members. Y'all know what I'm talking about.

It's also the name of Weird Al's latest album. I saw Weird Al in concert for the first time last summer. If you haven't seen him live before, make sure to catch him the next time he visits your town/city/fair hamlet. It's a fun show; lots of costume changes and cool lighting effects and multimedia elements. He plays a ton of songs from his extensive catalog including all the hits and some songs I had no idea he ever did. His band is awesome - they can play just about any type of music and have fun doing it. Weird Al's latest album is called Mandatory Fun and this phrase has become a mantra of mine. Given the album artwork, Al knows where "mandatory fun" comes from

Personally, I like to use the term to refer to those little oases in the day that allow you recenter yourself and take a little break from what's going on. I'm more on the introverted side of life and I find little mandatory fun breaks help me focus during the day. It's also important for me to have opportunities to be creative everyday. In my job some days are devoted to doing things like reserving conference rooms and updating whether or not a person has attended an education program I run. Neither of those things are fun, interesting, or creative so I have to get that elsewhere. Mandatory fun helps.

Over the summer, several of my co-workers decided that we needed to get on the adult coloring bandwagon and dedicate lunch once a month to taking a coloring break. If you're not familiar with what adult coloring is, check out this article or this one. Lots of people, including doctors and other mental health professionals, see coloring as a way for adults to calm their anxiety, relax, and create something. So for a few lunches over the summer, a group of us spent our break in a conference room, coloring, eating lunch, and chatting quietly. We didn't eat lunch at our desks for a change. We created a little moment of quiet and calm in the middle of busy, often over-scheduled days.

After our first coloring lunch, I started joking with people that I'd really like my title at work to be "Director of Mandatory Fun." In addition to having a coloring book library and art supplies at the ready, I have Legos available whenever anyone needs a building break.


It's fun to be able to spend part of the day coloring or building something cool out of Legos or reading or whatever else fits into your definition of mandatory fun. It's easy to lose sight of all of these things when there are deadlines to meet and people to train and other important work stuff to do. We all spend a lot of time at work so we might as well enjoy it while we're there. Mandatory fun doesn't have to feel like those company parties and military command picnics we're all so used to. Mandatory fun can be just that...fun.


What other stuff do I love? Up next a special Valentine's Day post devoted to the best musical moments from Quentin Tarantino films. "Stuck in the Middle with You" is the obvious one but there are more surprises to come.