365 T-shirts - the reasoning

This blog should be sub-titled: a journal of my life in geek.

I get my geek on with things about which I am geeky: comic books, Baseball, Ultimate, science fiction, my favorite bands, books I have read and loved, and Jungian psychology to name some of the most frequently traversed subjects.

I began this project simply as a way to count my T-shirts. I own a lot of T-shirts. But how many do I have? Do I have 365? We shall find out.

When I started this blog, I thought about how each T-shirt means something to me. I bought it for a reason, after all. I set myself the task to post an entry about a new T-shirt every day as a way to simply write something every day, a warm up for writing fiction, which is my passion. Writing is like exercise. Warm ups are good for exercise. But after completing a month of blogging about T-shirts, I have learned that this blog serves as a journal; it documents my life in geek, sort of a tour of my interests in pop culture. The blog serves as a tool for self-inventory, for assessment and analysis of self and the origins of self, for stepping through the process of individuation in catalogues, lists, and ranks.

The blog also made me aware that I have some serious gaps in my T-shirt ownership, and I am in the process of collecting some new T-shirts for several of the great popular culture icons that I truly love. Stay tuned.

I was also a bit surprised that people checked out my blog and continue to check it, read it, and even comment on it. I am very appreciative of this readership. Please feel free to share your thoughts in my comments section. I will respond.

Also, please note that I have moved the original introductory text to the side bar. And now, I present to you the most recent entry of 365 T-shirts: a journal of my life in geek. Thank you for reading.
(Second Update - 1310.24. First Update - 1306.05 Originally Posted - 1304.25.)

Sunday, March 16, 2014

T-shirt #360 - Ani DiFranco & My Top Ten Women in Music

TODAY'S COUNT: 05 blog posts remaining in the T-shirt year!!
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T-shirt #360 - Ani DiFranco - Little Naked Me

Today is a brief one. Re-presenting T-shirt #255 because it not only describes my dream about Ani DiFranco but collects links to all my other Ani content. I made the banner title below a hot link to #255 if you want to see the whole thing. IF you are looking at my blog on Google Chrome, all the videos in the past blog entries linked below are broken. But they do work on other browsers. I may attempt to fix the broken links as it bothers me, but this a more long term project hence the note at the top of the current blog page, which may be this one depending on how and when you are viewing it.

Today features the previous Ani content and some videos, a playlist of a dozen or so with an emphasis on women artists, though I may not restrict myself 100% to this goal.

T-shirt #255 - Ani DiFranco Purple Every Tool

T-shirt #255 - Ani DiFranco Purple Every Tool is a weapon if you hold it right

I dreamed about Ani DiFranco last night. She was at my house, and I was interviewing her for some article I was going to write. I had to confess that I have not liked, though I have not really listened to, any albums since Educated Guess (2004), and really, Revelling/Reckoning (2001) was the last album by her that really spoke strongly to me.

Ani took this in stride and told me she understood, though she encouraged me to give her more recent works another listen or twelve.

And so I invited her to the Dinner Party.

I have already written about Ani DiFranco in T-shirt #121 and T-shirt #173 because I own four Ani shirts and a hat.

I have seen Ani DiFranco in concert eight times.

I like this shirt. I like purple. I am going to present a few more videos that I have not yet presented. In T-shirt #173, I shared videos for "Swan Dive" and "Gravel." In T-shirt #121, I presented videos for 'your Next Bold Move," School Night," and the poem "Grand Canyon."
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OFFICIAL BOILERPLATE TEXT OF THE LAST TWENTY POSTS COUNTDOWN: Hi. Thanks for reading. I am posting this "boilerplate" text everyday for the last TWENTY posts in the T-SHIRT blog year, which started on March 22, 2013. I will close out daily transmission on March 21st, day 365 of my T-shirt blog-tastic extravaganza spectacular. I will give myself a short hiatus of total non-transmission or  publication for an as yet undetermined period of time, though I am estimating about two weeks. After my blog vacation hiatus, I will resume T-shirt posts on a regular basis, also as yet to be determined (weekly? Twice monthly?) to finish blogging about all the T-shirts that were not featured in the blog year. At some point, once I feel I am rolling along nicely, I will begin regular posting through my main blog: SENSE OF DOUBT. T-shirt posts will direct to the T-shirt blog from SENSE OF DOUBT. I will continue to post THE WEEKLY COMIC LIST, the features of occasional T-SHIRTS I AM WEARING THIS WEEK, book reviews, comic book reviews, and other popular culture nonsense as I have been for a year now but all will go up at SENSE OF DOUBT and some will direct back here to 365 T-SHIRTS. Ultimately, I will begin Internet publication of my fiction, primarily the comic book satire episodic story called POP! among other projects. So, in summary, 365 T-SHIRTS will continue though intermittently. SENSE OF DOUBT will host my main blog presence and fiction writing as well as links to any T-shirt posts shared here. I hope you will continue to follow me in my journey as a writer and a content provider. Thank you for your kind attention and time you have spent with me on this and/or any other day this year. I am humbled and blessed by your readership. - chris tower, blogger, originated 1403.02
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Here we go. Without much strongly considered thought or research, just off the top of my head, my best and favorites, though I will stick to a general concept of women who have never been part of a band to make the list easier to concoct. And thus, the list provides for me a guide for videos to post.

I already posted about women artists in T-shirt #263. I made a top twenty for that blog entry. My top ten is very much the same, but when I am stricter about the "no bands" thing then I must drop Tracey Thorn and Annie Lennox and replace them. Tori Amos and Jane Siberry take those spots in the top ten with the no bands caveat. The videos on that page (T-shirt #263) in Google Chrome are also broken. But here's my revised list and new videos. ENJOY.

TOP TEN SOLO WOMEN MUSICAL ARTISTS

1. Joni Mitchell
2. Kate Bush
3. Ani DiFranco
4. Suzanne Vega
5. Erykah Badu
6. Rickie Lee Jones
7. Tori Amos
8. Sade
9. Beth Orton
10. Jane Siberry

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TODAY'S VIDEO GALLERY

Joni Mitchell-California (BBC)

I have too many Joni Mitchell favorites to select just one, so I made choices based on what was available via video. This BBC clip is very good, and I do love this song. It's excellent.



Kate Bush - Suspended in Gaffa - Official Music Video

I am not sure if I am going to argue that this is my favorite Kate Bush song, but I believe it's the first one I ever heard and so I am fondest of it for that reason. I will argue any one to the death that The Dreaming is her best work, though most people consider it to be Hounds of Love. Like many albums from the fertile early 1980s, The Dreaming sounds like it could have been produced today. It was that far ahead of its time.




Ani DiFranco - 32 Flavors w/ Melissa Ferrick 

(Live in New York) | Moshcam

Lots of Ani choices, and I am pretty sure I have not shared this one yet. Great to see a duet with Melissa Ferrick, who is also a wonderful solo artist in her own right.




Suzanne Vega - The Queen And The Soldier

I shared this video originally in T-shirt #78, even though if you visit that page now, in Google Chrome, the videos are missing. I did check on more than one computer. But this song and the video version of it is worth sharing again, especially since I did not realize that the "World Before Columbus" follows "The Queen and the Solider."





I shared about Erykah Badu in T-shirt #86. But I only posted two videos in that entry. Badu is an amazing artist, and I should have shared more than two videos. But for the early days of the blog that entry is rather extensive.

Erykah Badu - On & On


I am a huge Badu fan. But of a flap with the Flaming Lips from almost two years ago that I am just catching up with now.
But for now, this excellent song with a much different feel and message.




Rickie Lee Jones - "We Belong Together" [Madrid 17/07/2013]


I can't resist this pick because it's a recent, live version of one of my favorite Rickie Lee Jones songs.




TORI AMOS live SLEEPS WITH BUTTERFLIES


This has become my favorite Tori Amos song. So beautiful.



SADE - No Ordinary Love [ 2011 ] (dlz)

Liesel and I saw Sade in concert in Detroit on this tour. This is the most amazing Sade song and my favorite.




Beth Orton - Stolen Car | Live in Los Angeles | Moshcam

I just shared about Beth Orton the other day. Here's another great song from the second album Central Reservation. 






Jane Siberry Love Is Everything

This is a good song to end on today. Love, love is everything. Yup.


COUNTDOWN TO END OF THE BLOG YEAR - 05 shirts remaining


- chris tower - 1403.16 - 16:49