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This past week I saw two good documentaries on rock bands on TV. One was Pearl Jam Twenty, which was a look back at whole career of the band and included interviews with lots of musicians and some amazing concert footage. The other was From the Sky Down, a doc about U2 that focused on the creation of their album Achtung Baby, which came at a time they almost broke up. It's so interesting to see what actually happens when a band creates music and how hard it is for them to process their fame.
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Check it out. I have hit upon the holy grail of websites:

http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Main_Page

Free, public domain images in the thousands.
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I'm afraid I'm going to have to insist that you all get this beautiful, powerful, amazing album.

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I highly recommend this. Fascinating, in-depth research and writing on, well, everything.
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This is one beautiful dress:

(thank you Daily Mail UK)
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After spending hours today (and many hours on previous days) picking through XML code to weed out errors, I feel that I can claim this.
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We went to a friend's photography show this evening, and I was amazed at the effects he achieves. Really beautiful unusual pieces like this one:

Check out his work here.
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I recently read an article with ten pieces of advice for bloggers. And the one I have the hardest time following, by far, is "Don't blog about the weather."
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I love cosmetics. Love love love them. Could spend $50 a week on them. Here are a few recent faves.

1. Nars powder foundation and blush

The thing that irritates me most about cheap cosmetics is the packaging. I have bought many compact of foundation or blush whose packaging has broken apart within weeks of purchase, once even on the first use. The lids are made with cheap plastic and the hinges just don't hold up.
   Nars cosmetics, on the other hand, has packaging that is the equivalent of a tank. The casing is made out of something strong and heavy and is coated in something that feels like a very thin layer of rubber. It doesn't come open in your purse, it doesn't slip from your hands, and it's solid and long-lasting. I am now a 100% Nars devotee when it comes to anything with a lid.

2.  e.l.f. mascara:

Unlike Nars, e.l.f. is a cheapo brand, cheaper than most drugstore brands in fact. One reason for the lower price is that the quantity of actual cosmetics in the product is probably half of that of most brands. e.l.f. mascara has a long wand and a short well. But, if you are persnickety about hygiene, you are going to throw out the mascara long before you run out of product anyway. So it' super cheap and I like it better than most brands. It goes on quick with good definition.

3. e.l.f. cream eyeliner:

I have tried many, many eyeliners: liquid, pencil, gel, and cream. And this cheapo from e.l.f. is my favorite by far. Not too loose and not too stiff, it goes on smooth and is durable.

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It's so important for kids to have extra-parental adult figures in their lives. For instance, just today, thanks to me, Ryan knows about planking and "going commando."

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Kind of excited to see a photo of mine as the new masthead of the Little Patuxent Review website.

Click here to see it.
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Dream House

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This Daniel Craig supernatural thriller is a genre I like a lot: the scary, creepy, puzzle movie. It's not as great as a classic in the genre like The Sixth Sense but was still an enjoyable time. Daniel Craig does a good job of looking quite different in various stages of the movie, which is a good talent to have. Some actors like him and Viggo Mortensen have faces that can veer handsome or ugly depending on their acting and even the lighting, which is handy for certain roles.

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