Ryan O’Connell is my new spirit animal. I relate. I relate to EVERYTHING he puts out. He’s basically the best (and I wish we could be BFFs). A Ryan video means I am instantly cheered up and energized. This is what Friday nights are all about people.

On a side note: I’ve had some lame depressing family shit going on for the past week and have been too preoccupied to even be on my computer. Don’t you hate when life happens? Serious Mac withdrawal has ensued and my attempt at blogging regularly has failed. But I’ll be back soon!

Here are some photos to make up for the lack of blog yesterday (I know I didn’t say I’d do seven in a row, but in the back of my head, I was totally planning to!). Not bad for an iPhone 4, right?

Paper | Download Link

Really?

One of the things that always astounds me is how artists with huge record companies backing them release the most horrendous album covers. Any number of talented designers would do a better job, or even most of the Tumblr users I follow. I imagine in my head that it comes down to the taste level of record execs, who say something like, “Uhhh… I don’t like that. It’s too abstract. Can we just get a close-up of his face and I want THIS FONT. Oh yeah, I don’t like the colours either, how about black and yellow?” So really, the designer has little to do with the end product and has to deal with Clients From Hell-type scenarios.

One album I’m really looking forward to is Adam Lambert’s Trespassing, HELLO POP HEAVEN. Here’s the album cover. REALLY? REALLY?! Are we still living in the ’90s? I mean, I know you want to get everyone’s attention at HMV, but this may not be the most elegant way to do it.

So I thought I’d go through my iTunes library and pick out some of the most creative/best designed covers. Sadly, a lot of my favourite albums are missing from this list because they have some of the most uninspiring designs. I was originally going to do a list of the worst covers, but who wants to look at that?

Fall Out Boy, From Under the Cork Tree

The Calling, Two

Glasvegas, Glasvegas

Coldplay, Viva la Vida

Damien Rice, Cannonball

Babyshambles, Albion

Franz Ferdinand, You Could Have It So Much Better

Guster, Keep It Together

Bedouin Soundclash, Light the Horizon

Keane, Under the Iron Sea

Keane, A Bad Dream

Keane, Crystal Ball

Train, Save Me, San Francisco

Matthew Barber, Sweet Nothing

Augustana, All the Stars and Boulevards

Better Than Ezra, Before the Robots

The Libertines, The Libertines

Kanye West, My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy

Arcade Fire, Funeral

Hot Hot Heat, Elevator

Rinôçérôse, Schizophonia

Wolfman feat. Pete Doherty, For Lovers

Jack Savoretti, Between The Minds

The Fratellis, Costello Music

The Afters, I Wish We All Could Win

Mika, Life in Cartoon Motion

Damien Rice, 9

Among Savages, The Wanderings of an Illustrative Mind

The Script, Science & Faith

Aside from that highlight to my day, I also realized yesterday how much I just cannot fucking stand the TTC. I live in Scarborough, so the trip downtown, back and forth, takes three hours in total, or more, I don’t know. Yesterday’s trip honestly FELT like it ate up my whole day. Maybe it’s not the whole TTC that I should call out but just the 54A bus and its permanent stench of urine and god knows what else. And then the people who get on that bus, whether or not they ever bathe is questionable. It’s just unfortunate. Oh wait, and then there’s the fact that when I finally get off the subway, I have to get on the RT just so that I can get to ANOTHER station where I have to wait half an hour just to get on said bus. It’s ridiculous. Getting on the RT at night, I always feel like I’ve stepped into Gotham City or something, everyone’s faces are covered in misery and it’s just BLEAK. Never mind the creepy men with blank faces who just can’t help but stare. /rant

I think that’s a fair summary of the highs and lows of my day. Although, I’d have sat on the TTC for another three hours for John Irving.

I leave you with a clip of him being awesome.

Here’s the excerpt he reads in the beginning, from his new novel, In One Person:

I’m going to begin by telling you about Miss Frost. While I say to everyone that I became a writer because I read a certain novel by Charles Dickens at the formative age of fifteen, the truth is I was younger than that when I first met Miss Frost and imagined having sex with her, and this moment of my sexual awakening also marked the fitful birth of my imagination. We are formed by what we desire. In less than a minute of excited, secretive longing, I desired to become a writer and to have sex with Miss Frost—not necessarily in that order.

I think I need to get a job again, all this free time is NOT healthy. I need some order in my life and an actual place that I am obligated to go to every day. You know, something that requires showering and getting out of bed at a normal hour? Of course, the problem is I’m an entitled brat and don’t feel like working retail or “painting”, which is a job I’ve seen pop up at least twenty times in my job searches over the past few days. I also don’t feel like designing websites for anyone right now, because 1) I don’t feel like dealing with clients who will amp up my anxiety some more, and 2) because, that won’t mean leaving the damn house. And I REALLY need to leave the house more often.

So ya, there’s that whole thing.

Second, there’s this blogging thing. I came to a realization the other day. I like making websites, designing and coding a blog, but the actual blogging part? I don’t know. I type drafts and then proceed to delete them because I feel like I sound inanely boring and who would want to read this? And hasn’t everyone on the Internet already said this a hundred times?

Weirdly, I found myself hugely relating to Charlie’s mid-life crisis week. Even though he has a million subscribers and I have like 5 readers, I GET IT. What is wrong with our generation? WHAT IS THIS POINTLESS ANXIETY OVER? Why can’t I just write a post and hit publish. Why do I care what everyone else thinks so much? When really, no one even really cares that much? Especially when they’re living in their own world of stress and WHAT AM I DOING WITH MY LIFE type problems.

Maybe I should follow suit and blog every day this week?!

VB photographed for Harper’s Bazaar China May 2012 by Chen Men (via Tom & Lorenzo/The Fashion Spot)

2. I’m falling in love with Smash! I watched the first two episodes awhile ago and got bored (and the cheesiness was off putting at first), but then I started up again and am hooked. I love the gays, namely adorable Tom (dying for Tom and Sam to hook up), Debra Messing, AND WILL CHASE, WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN MY WHOLE LIFE?
3. When I went out for a walk the other night, I came across the most tragic thing – someone had tied up this teddy bear in their front yard. I’m planning a rescue mission for the poor thing.

4. Earlier I interrupted a heated debate between my parents about whether Jake Gyllenhaal is attractive or not (Zodiac was on, muted, in the background). My mom was furiously defending him trying to explain his allure, while my dad sat there shaking his head. I asked him which male actors he actually does find attractive and he quickly listed: Robert De Niro, Dustin Hoffman, Michael Douglas and Jack Nicholson. “Anyone under 60?” “…no.” Although I think he’s forgetting his man crush on Ryan Reynolds…
5. JOHN IRVING IS COMING TO TORONTO. If you know me, you know he is my favourite author EVER. ANDDDD, canadawhore got us both tickets to his Strombo taping and I’m DYINGGGGGGGG. I’m going to take my novels and shamelessly try to get his autograph. I’m a terrible fan because I didn’t even realize he was releasing a new book soon – In One Person. Needless to say, I’m ecstatic. I’m going to re-read a couple of his books before the date. It’s a month away. A Prayer for Owen Meany and Until I Find You, I’m thinking?