2009 in Lists

2010. Wow. Let’s start the year with some lists. It’s the time of year for top ten lists. To reflect my love of prime numbers, I think I’ll do a few top 7 lists. They won’t be in any particular order. Keep in mind; I’m not calling these the best of 2009, just my favorites.

MOVIES

I guess I’ll start with movies. Here are the top 7 movies I saw in 2009. These weren’t necessarily movies from 2009, but movies I saw for the first time last year.

1. The Illusionist – To be honest, I can’t remember that much about it right now. It was good. I recall it being similar to The Prestige, but I not as good. Still it was good enough to make the list.
2. Monsters vs. Aliens – Fun, fun movie for kids. Lots of good performances.
3. Once – Another one that was not released this year, but I saw it this year. A struggling singer-songwriter meets a girl who encourages him to record his songs. Good stuff.
4. King of Kong – Documentary about competitive gaming. An everyman from Washington State battles an arcade god for the world record Donkey Kong score. I promise, it’s better than it sounds.
5. Cabaret – Bob Fosse directed film version of Kander & Ebbs classic musical about an American girl working in a pre-WWII Berlin burlesque theater. Real and surreal at the same time. Plus it made me like Liza (with a “Z”) Minnelli.
6. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince – Not my favorite of the books, but my favorite of the movies so far. We watched it again last night. I liked it even more.
7. Star Trek – My favorite movie of 2009. Love the cast. Love the sets. Love the story. Love the winks and nods to classic Trek lore.

Honorable Mention: Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog – This was great! Not sure I can call it a movie, but there was not really any other category to fit into. If you have Netflix, add this to your queue. You’ll be glad you did.

MUSIC

I can’t remember the last CD I actually bought. I’m not sure I bought anything this year. Wait, I take that back I did buy a Michael Jackson CD in July (along with the rest of the world.) In no particular order, here are my favorite albums of the year. Not that I actually bought any of them…

1. Veterans of the Loudness Wars by Remote Tree Children – A Glen Phillips side project. Fun electronic nonsense. Well, mostly nonsense. You can listen here. It’s worth your time.
2. My Dear Machine EP by Sixpence None the Richer – What a comeback! Great rock from a great rock band. I was very happy to see Leigh Nash and Matt Slocum reunited and making music again. I think this came out in 2008, but well, my list, my prerogative! You can listen to the title track on YouTube.
3. Stockholm Syndrome by Derek Webb – I still have not bought it, but I’ve listened and it is really good stuff. It’s almost electronica and quite a departure from Derek’s typical acoustic, singer/songwriter stuff. It is typical Derek Webb in lyrical content, though. As per usual Derek’s lyrics make you think, make you examine your beliefs, and take a critical look at the church. In this case he deals rather bluntly with the church’s historical stance on homosexuality. You should listen if not buy. You can do both on his website.
4. Works Progress Administration – This is another Glen Phillips side project along with Sean Watkins (of Nickel Creek) and Luke Bulla, among others. Folksy, bluegrassy, country pop. Great music, catchy melodies. Good stuff. Give it a listen.
5. Star Trek soundtrack – What a great score. I don’t have a link, but you can listen on iTunes, I’m sure.

That’s all I’ve got album wise. Since I didn’t get the full 7 I’ll share my most listened to songs on iTunes. That should be fun.

1. Live Free by FA4C – Is it narcissistic when your most listened to song is one you wrote? Probably. By the way, you can here it on our FaceBook page.
2. Mockingbird by Derek Webb
3. Sleep of the Blessed by Glen Phillips
4. Ready For Anything by Chris Thile
5. Better Off Here by Glen Phillips
6. Grace by FA4C – Yes, again. I know.
7. Copper Mining by Remote Tree Children

TV

My 7 favorite TV shows of 2009. I bet you can guess #1.

1. Glee – I cannot say enough good things about his show. I like it. A lot.
2. LOST – February 2^nd, come quickly!
3. V – Only 4 episodes aired in 2009, but they were intriguing and engaging. I can’t wait for more in March.
4. Dr. G: Medical Examiner – Voyeurism TV with a little real CSI mixed in. I love it!
5. The First 48 – More realism. The show follows murder investigators in various cities through as they solve cases.
6. 30 Rock – I just started watching at the end of last season. Love it, love it.
7. Community – Great new show. I love Joel McHale and here he is surrounded by a great cast of characters.

BLOG

Just for fun I thought I’d list the most viewed posts from this very blog.

1. Look at these melons – A very misleading title. I think that’s what brought the pageviews. It’s about gardening.
2. A proper title escapes me
3. Against my better judgement…
4. A Very Crappy Story
5. Can I Talk “The Talk”?
6. G.O.S.

LIFE EVENTS

If I’m listing all of this other stuff, then why not make a list of the significant events in my life over the last 365 days? I guess I’ll list them chronologically.

1. Bursitis – Early in 2009 I realized I am no longer a young man. Young men don’t have bursitis in their shoulders. One cortisone shot and several weeks of Physical Therapy later and I could actually sleep through the night.
2. Recorded a Demo – This was a fun process. It is quite amazing to hear something you created playing on your car stereo.
3. Went to NYC – My dad took my son, my nephew, and me to New York. Good times. Here’s a recap of the trip – NYC.
4. My daughter went to camp. – This was traumatic. She loved it. I survived it. To cope with the stress, I shared my own camp experiences. Read them here, here, and here.
5. Wiley Caught a Bird – A bird got in the house. Our cat caught it in mid-air in front of the kids. Again, you can read all about it here.
6. Seeing Gray – I lead a book discussion of Adam Hamilton’s Seeing Gray in a World of Black and White. Great group. Great discussions. I miss it.
7. David Sedaris with Heath – As much fun as I’ve had in a long time. Want to re-live the weekend with me? Read about it here.

I had to add another. This kills my prime number plan, but so be it.

8. The Magic Bullet – I got one for Christmas. Greatest. Christmas. Gift. EVER! (By the way, I’m talking about the kitchen appliance, not the projectile that allegedly killed JFK.)

CRAP

Here’s what really sucked in 2009.

1. The Economy, stupid – It was bad. Bad. Bad. It sucked, too.
2. Bursitis – Yep, it made 2 lists. Being stabbed in the shoulder 24/7 would suck, but it could not be any worse than Bursitis.
3. Heroes – I love this show, but last season was horrible. This season is better, a little.
4. MJ died Celebrity Deaths – Michael Jackson’s death hit me hard. It’s tough when a part of your childhood ceases to exist. You know what, I’m going to change this to celebrity deaths. Far too many this year.
5. Our minor flood – It was far from devastating, but it sure was inconvenient.
6. Our washer broke – The cost for repair was going to be around $300. Luckily a couple from church let us borrow an extra.
7. Our borrowed back-up washer broke – The ultimate suck. We bought a new one. For them.

That’s it, a 2009 review in list form. Heath Mixon, I’m sure you’re happy.