Star Clipper

I have a confession. It's been a really long time since I've paid the marked price for a book. (Does anyone know the technical name for that?) It's been a long time since I've even paid the full Amazon price for a book. When my sister Lilly was in town and we were clothes shopping in the Loop, and I remembered I needed to get a couple books for my graphic novel book club, I thought I'd stop into Star Clipper. This is a really long way of saying that my only complaint about the store was the prices, which were the ones marked on the books. And I shouldn't be upset about this, really, but because I'm not used to paying it, I am anyway.

I was really surprised by Star Clipper's store interior. When I'd seen it from the outside, it always seemed like there were lots of comics and kitschy novelty items, so I assumed the store contained about half and half. Not so much. It's pretty sparse inside, and very much focused on comics and graphic novels. Books were organized alphabetically by title, and most things were pretty easy to find. An employee also asked me if I needed help, which was nice.

I don't visit that many comic shops, mostly because they're usually so much cheaper to buy online, or even better, requested from the library. However, I hear horror stories from friends about incredibly awkward (at best) or rude experiences in stores, mostly based on gender. I didn't get any of that at Star Clipper, and even though I was buy two stereotypically "intro" graphic novels (Fables and Y: The Last Man), I never felt like I was looked down on as a "less serious" graphic novel fan. In fact, my cashier was really enthusiastic about my purchases, and seemed genuinely interested in whether or not I would like them. So far, customer service = A+.

So, as long as I have disposable income, I will certainly be a loyal Star Clipper customer, and I'll definitely recommend it to others I know. Like I said, I'm not a huge comic/graphic novel fan, so I can't speak as much to how good their selection is, but I found everything I was looking for easily (and there were some more obscure things than the ones I mentioned above).

Review Capsules!

So I've been absent. I'm sorry. But not that sorry. Both my sisters have come into town, which means lots of fun activities! Well, sort of. Lots of eating out, and other annual St. Louis fall activities. Anyway, to see the kinds of things I've been up to this fall, including awesome reviews of Winslow's Home, Katie's Pizza. Shaw Art Fair, and more follow the jump.

absence making the heart grow fonder?

hopefully.  sorry all, I've been attacked by midterms and finals and new responsibilities at work and have had zero time for blog posts.  this one is only being written because I am procrastinating on finals.  don't worry, though, I have tons of book reviews and restaurant review and movie reviews coming at you sooner than you can say "homework is dumb."

for now, I leave you with:

zombieland = awesome

tofu frittata with peas, potatoes, and onions = also awesome.  if I had a camera, I would make you all jealous with pictures.

I'll be back soon.  I promise.  for now, go watch this episode of parks and recreation:

Mad Men Season 1 (or I want to punch everyone in the face)

I should probably not even be writing this post yet.  I've only watched the first disc of the first season of Mad Men, and I feel, like a record album, the TV show season should really be judged as whole work of art, not in small chunks.

BUT.  Just the first three episodes of this show made me want to go on a rampage.  I almost turned into the Hulk.  I kept wanting to punch Don Draper and Pete Campbell in the face over and over and over until their shellacked hair and cancer-ridden lungs popped.  If you'd like to know why, go on and read after the jump.

Not Complaining, Yeah! (or Whip It! the movie)

I complain on this blog a lot.  I complain out loud in life a lot.  And sometimes I catch myself and wonder where all this negative energy comes from, and then realize oh, duh, me.  So I thought I'd write a post (or maybe even two!) about things I actually like.

As a 22-year-old gal with no kids and steady, mostly disposable income, I like to go to the movies.  I haven't been as much recently (at times, it's been up there to at least 1 time/week), but tonight, dammit, I wanted to see things projected larger than life on a screen.  And I've also been wanting to see Whip It! since the awesome trailer with the awesomely crescendo-ing Pork and Beans Weezer song.  Which is an absolutely perfect song for a climactic trailer, by the way.

(And yes, I know there's no ! in the movie title, but it makes it so much better.  Especially since Jimmy Fallon informed me no less than four times that WHEN YOU WHIP A DERBY GIRL SHE GOES REALLY FAST.  NO SERIOUSLY, FASTER THAN YOU CAN POSSIBLY IMAGINE.)

Anyway, this movie was awesome.  I was either grinning broadly or crying the whole time, which is a good sign for me.  And really, the ratio for smile:cry was pretty high, so that's good.  Everyone had awesome performances, and I really really hope there is an extended version, because I loved the characters and I wanted more scenes and background on all of them.  Especially Pash (played by the awesome Alia Shawkat, aka Maeby Fuenke), who I like to think is a cuter, more freckled, more awesome me.  Her equivalent to Ellen Page's character's childhood roller skating phase was being a fat kid indoors reading.  THAT IS MY LIFE.  I mean was.  Whatever.

Marcia Gay Harden is always awesome, and while I don't remember seeing Daniel Stern in anything but Home Alone (another favorite), he was also pretty great in this.  Drew Barrymore has done an excellent job directing, and an awesome job of being in the movie, but not taking the spotlight, a la Quentin Tarantino.  This movie also made me no longer annoyed with Ellen Page, which is quite a feat, and really excited for her show with Shawkat.  And (SPOILER?) best pre-sex scene ever.  Everything is better underwater.

So, kudos all around, and I really hope that Drew Barrymore decides to direct more movies, because I will totally see them.  And to all 3 readers out there: go see this movie!  I will gladly go again if anyone needs the company.

Carry Out (or: I Should Have Known Better)

So, the previous rant was prompted a couple days ago when I called a restaurant that clearly said they delivered on their website only to find out that's for large catering orders.  The person on the other end of the phone laughed at me when I said my order was for two people.  Sorry, I can not magically know that delivery means large orders only.  My bad.  I don't mind that they only deliver large orders, just that it's not specified.

Anyway, it was a restaurant I've really been wanting to try (Urban Eats Cafe) because I love sandwiches, and the reviews on yelp.com were awesome.  So I was disappointed that they wouldn't make it easy for me, and just deliver hopefully delicious sandwiches into my greedy little hands.

What's a person to do?  Send the boyfriend out in the pouring rain to get carry out, of course.

Alarm bells should have gone off when I called and ordered a sandwich that apparently isn't on the menu anymore.  Outdated websites are a pet peeve of mine.  Especially weirdly-designed outdated websites.  It's so easy to update your menu, especially if it's HTML and not a PDF (this one was a PDF).  (Aside: Local Harvest Cafe tends to suffer from outdated-website syndrome quite a bit too.  Maybe it's something about sandwich shops in St. Louis?).  And I know running a cafe is hard and busy, but for many of your customers, the website is going to be their first experience with your business, and you know what they say about good first impressions.

A-n-y-w-a-y, tonight I placed my order with a very nice person on the phone, and I am getting hungry and excited.  I am counting the minutes until the food arrives back at my house.  Finally, finally, finally the BF arrives.  He's carry SunChips and Jay's potato chips (so much for the homemade-looking chips from the website picture), a caddy with smoothies, and two of those spaghetti containers.  You know, like the one at the right.  Inside each is a 4 x 3 in. sandwich.  Seriously.  Each looks like it's been cut in half.  Where did the rest of my sandwich go?  I paid $4.79 for my veggie, and $5.49 for Gabe's meat sandwich, and that gets half a sandwich?  Are you kidding me?  That doesn't include the $0.89 chips or $3.49 smoothie either.  Our bread preferences had been switched.  And to top it off, the bottom half of my sandwich is completely soggy, which might be one of the saddest things in the world.  You know, after world hunger and all that jazz.

Needless to say, I'm incredibly disappointed.  I really wanted to like Urban Eats Cafe, and this feels almost like a betrayal.  I know that's pretty overly dramatic, but I am serious about my sandwiches.  Unfortunately there just aren't that many sandwich options in St. Louis, and because they seem like their heart is in the right place, I'll probably try out Urban Eats again.  Maybe my mistake was the carry out order - some food just doesn't travel well, or maybe this was an off-night for them.  And hey - my smoothie was pretty good, if you like banana and peanut butter.

Delivery

Warning: There is a rant coming.

Why don't any fucking restaurants in St. Louis deliver food to me?  I did not forget that there is St. Louis style pizza (blech), Papa John's (which I am heartily sick of at this point), and Domino's Pizza (which almost didn't even get dignified with a parenthetical comment).  No sandwiches, no East Asian food, no Indian food, no South American food, no Mexican food.  I am drooling at the possibilities, only to call and have them laugh at me because the idea that they deliver food is so absurd and aren't I amusing.

I just want to lazily enjoy a fucking sandwich prepared by someone else and delivered to my house by someone else.  Is that too much to ask?

The Captive Chains of Apple

It grates on me that Apple dictates my taste.  Well, I guess dictate isn't exactly the right word.  Manipulates?  Predicts?  Sends-opinions-into-my-brain?  That's not enough to stop me spreading the hand-picked-Apple love, though. (see what I did there?)  Whoever is in charge of marketing/ads at Apple knows what the fuck they're doing.  And I usually fall for it, like the big sucker I am.  I believe I have mentioned my weakness for catchy music, a void that Apple always fills whenever a new iPod device (or any Apple device, really), comes out.  Yes, I bought this CD.  And was sick of it a month later (but what a catchy month it was!).

This time, though, I really really think they've hit on something genius and long-lasting.  How do I know this?  Because the one song they picked for the new Nano TV ad isn't even the best one!

I am now in love with Miss Li, I think.  Based on her songs and music videos, which I know is a great basis for friendship.  She's like Squirrel Nut Zippers + Kelly Clarkson + Neutral Milk Hotel.  And all those things = Happy Bobblehead Gretchen.  So please, go forth and Youtube, and enjoy this bounty of Swedish goodness.  Or eat some Swedish fish.  Both will give you approximately the same sugar rush.  And you wish you could carry both in your pocket.

Creepster Factor of 8.5

Just so you all know, the player piano in CAM was playing smooth jazz yesterday.  With multiple instrument sounds.  None of them were a piano.

True Blood True Confession

My name is Gretchen, and I read the Sookie Stackhouse books.

It is sort of shameful (sidenotepoll: what is more shameful, Twilight or True Blood?), and I really only feel okay about it because there are so many parts about the books that make me mad. One of these parts is from early on in the series (SPOILERS, I GUESS?): Bill's infantalization of Sookie. Namely, when he brushes her hair. Over and over. And washes it. And then brushes it. And then of course they have the mindblowing sex, but the hairbrushing, the hairbrushing! I am creeped out by this so much. I can never imagine a situation where I would want one of my s.o.s brushing my hair. Part of this may be due to the fact that I haven't owned or used a brush in approximately 8 years, but whatever.

Disclaimer to all: even though I am thoroughly creeped out and annoyed by parts of these books, I still enjoy them, and will probably read them again and again. I've already bookmarked the release date of short stories so I can put in my request at the library.

So this is usually the point I bring up when I say I feel uncomfortable full endorsing the Southern Vampire Mysteries, blah blah blah. And usually people agree with me, and then I feel smart and very literary critic-ish.

However, I noticed a funny thing when I got my hair cut yesterday. The hair-washing is my favorite part. There is something incredibly relaxing about someone washing your hair: making sure the water temperature is just fine, using deliciously foreign-to-me shampoo and conditioner, and massaging my head. It's incredibly relaxing to have someone clean your hair and you don't have to do anything at all - you don't even have to make small talk if you don't want to. And to give credit to Ms. Stackhouse, I suppose it would be even better if it was a vampire you found incredibly attractive doing the washing and brushing.

So once every couple of months, I will indulge my inner Sookie, and surrender to the pleasure of someone else washing and brushing my hair. Just know, Ms. Sookie, that this does not change my opinion of all your cute midriff-baring tops.

(image from here and uses this license)

Schlafly Art Outside

Went to Schlafly Art Outside this weekend (their fancy name for "Art Fair on Our Parking Lot"), and it was...good. Not mindblowing, but solid. Sort of like Schlafly beer, I guess (but not like Bottleworks food, oh my god I could write 22634634 billion posts about how delicious that stuff is). I digress! Sorry!

There are a limited number of booths (53, by my count on the website), and lots offered the same things. Ceramics, photography, living room paintings, etc. Most were also prohibitively expensive (at least for my wallet). Some awesome jewelry was found, and some prints I wished I could afford, but I wasn't blown away by the options. I think I've become more a fan of "craft" shows than "art" shows. I want art that I can use, not that I can look at.

(Here's my plug for the jewelry - I bought two necklaces and some earrings from Zanne Avenue that I love love love. Maps/comics/book images + awesome settings are, well, awesome! And it wasn't ungodly expensive, just sort of pricey.)

The non-art part of Art Outside was pretty satisfying. I still can't get used to $4.25 beers, but then again, I'm cheap. And the more you drink, the more reasonable the price seems. They were tasty, and even though every time I went up the sign said they were out of Summer Lager, they always had it. The Mac and Cheese was likewise delicious, but I was a little too full of beer to sample anything else. The pretzel sticks looked great, even though i did think they were chocolate covered bananas for the first two hours we were there.

The music was hopping and good - I loved Maid Rite (the first band), and I will definitely make an effort to see them more around the St. Louis area. The middle band I dimly recall (sorry! looking at art! and sort of drunk!), and Bob Reuter's Alley Ghost played last, which was satisfying. It's nice to hear a band and know lots of songs. Luckily, they ended their set 1/2 hour early and I got to go on to bed.

It was definitely a satisfying evening, and since the looking and listening is free, I'm certain I'll be back next year.

Creepster Factor of 8

I am a lazy person. You may have gathered this from my sporadic blog posts. I like short cuts, and I like air conditioning. Both of these things usually lead me to cut through the Center for Advanced Medicine (a lovely building from HOK), on my way from work to the bus stop. Usually this is a brisk, fun walk through fancy medical land, but some days it's downright terrifying. Why? What could possibly be so creepy about a medical building?

Could it be scary patients with terminal illnesses, thus the threat of my own mortality dangled in front of me?
Nope.

Could it be the darkened and usually deserted hallways I cut through?
Nah.

Could it be the glossy black piano in the lobby?
You bet.

This is no ordinary baby grand. It's a fucking self-playing piano. Why is the self-playing piano (technical name: player piano) so goosebump inducing? Because it's like a one-instrument freak show. It's almost paranormal - the music comes out, just like a stereo, but it sounds like hammers hitting strings. I understand the appeal of player pianos for an outpatient medical center - you get the classiness of a piano and piano music without having to actually pay someone to play it. Evidently you also get piano versions of out of date pop songs, which I have had occasion to hear. However, what was the 1870s appeal of the household player piano? Hey look at us, we have enough money to buy a piano but we don't actually want to take the time to learn how to play it. The Industrial Era was truly odd.

CAM's particular player piano has no visible paper roll or software to dictate the notes. It's just a piano being played by no one. It's not just an oversized music box - it's a ghost piano. And that sir, is a creepy thing.

Hi Jena!

Evidently at least one person reads my inanities. That news has inspired me to start writing again, so thanks Jena! Now there will be just a few more unimportant, uninspiring, but definitely insipid blog posts out there in Internet-land. We'll see how long this bout lasts. The next post will be a doozy, I promise.

quick update!

I've been reading again, so expect more on that very soon.

To tide you over, go to songza.com and type in "Boobarella" and click on The Queers choice. Why do I like this song so much? So much is wrong with it, in so many ways.

Melancholy Music is Beautiful and Dangerous

Music gives me chills. I love music. It is one of my biggest sadnesses that I am tone deaf and have a horrible singing voice and no other musical talent to speak of. Luckily, I can still listen and appreciate and savor.

Loud and fast and catchy punk is usually my first choice. It energizes me, it makes me happy, it restores my faith in humanity. Trust me, I can wax poetic about the virtues of good, anarchistic, pop punk for days on end. And no, anarchistic and pop punk can indeed go together. The Queers, anyone?

However, every once in awhile I get sucked into a cycle of listening to slower, sadder, beautiful music. I am extremely picky about the slow music I listen to - it has to be a combination of factors mixed just right. I don't even understand all the components of what I like, I just know when I like it. Oddly, some element of folk music is usually in there somewhere. Maybe that part reminds me of people I've been told over and over again were more idealistic and committed to change than kids today.

For instance, the Mamas and the Papas really do it for me. As one of my first-ever CDs I listened to this one over and over again. I'm not really sure why my mom thought I would like it, but I'm glad she did. This is still one of my favorite songs ever. I still have no idea what it's about, but it gives me a sweet and sad feeling that is so amazing. The feeling when you hear something beautiful that you know you could never reproduce but you want to experience again and again.

I think that feeling really epitomizes melancholy for me. It's a feeling that there is beauty but only because there is sadness and we all have to return to that sadness. You can see why I end up in a sad contemplative cycle when I get on one of these music kicks. It is usually provoked by gorgeous retro-sounding music, like my recent discoveries of Coconut Records, and She & Him. Yes, both celebrity fronted, and both highly resisted by me at first, especially the hipster-tastic She & Him. It was just too much to resist, though. I dare you to try.

Newstead Tower Public House Reviewed

I have lapsed, I know. But for a good reason - I got a job! In October! So now I can pay my student loans! Hoorah!

However, while money is nice, the job is not super fulfilling, so I return to the world of writing my own insipid opinions and hoping that someone, somewhere will read them. Today I bring you an actual review of a St. Louis institution: The Newstead Tower Public House (hereon referred to as TNTPH).

I went for dinner last night with the boyfriend and another friend. Now, all of us are recently graduated and pretty young. We're not used to fancy things or really even going out to bars and such that much. Well, I'm not anyway. I'd heard good things about TNTPH from people at my own work and was curious to try it out. The menu online looked pretty tasty and any place with organic beer piques my interest. Everyone was game and we'd all been cooped up inside with this crazy cold weather so we wanted to go out.

I suppose I'll start with the bad things. First - the name. I get that it's kind of fun and catchy, and they have a fun logo/crest to go with it (very hipster - fleur de lis, star, rooster, trees), but I could not get it straight for the life of me. I kept calling it the Newstead Tower Grove Public House or the Tower Newstead House. Hopefully that will get better over time, but I couldn't tell our friend where exactly we were going.

The atmosphere seemed off to me. Granted, this could have been because it was balls-ass cold and no one besides us was even there when we walked in and for a good 20 minutes afterwards. Everything seemed very fancy and nice - I was afraid I was going to break something. I'm not exactly sure who TNTPH's target audience is. It wasn't me, I'm sure. Too fancy, and slightly too expensive. It wasn't exactly family-friendly, either, with it's imposing dark walls and tables. I would go again, but I would probably dress up a little more and save it for a special occasion. I certainly couldn't afford it on a regular basis.

Now for the good things, though - the food! Everything I ordered (Beer Battered Seasonal Vegetables & Housemade Curry Mayonaisse and the Crostini) was absolutely delicious. I had to stop myself from consuming it all so that I wouldn't be sick. The vegetables were fantastic - cooked just the right amount with delicious breading. I wish there had been a little more variety - all I had were eggplant and onion. Granted, it's what's in season, but some sweet potato or squash would have been nice as well. The crostini was likewise delicious. My companions weren't as impressed by their food, but what I tried was great - some of the Cream of Potato soup, as well as the chips of the Fish and Chips. My beer was also delicious (Samual Smith Organic Lager) and large (18.7 oz). Boyfriend seemed pretty pleased with his Boulevard seasonal (Irish Ale).

TNTPH also gains points in my book for their promotions. We went on University Night, so boyfriend and I each got 25% off beer and appetizers all night long. Other promotions include a general Happy Hour (same as University Night) 4-6 pm Tues-Fri, Trivia on Tuesdays (with all-night happy hour for neighborhood residents), and Dare 2 Pair on Wednesdays with 50% off the beer they suggest for specific menu items. Any of these make the higher prices a little more reasonable.

I think I'll be back to TNTPH at some point - I'd like to go for Trivia night, or some time when there are more people. I'd also like to go when I have a little more money and don't have a heart attack over a $41 bill for three people. May those times come soon :).