I found this post by doing a Find for "The Smiths". It's my answer for this week's Q&A, and it's probably been my answer more than half the time I bother to post anything. So I agree, Salieri, lately these have just been slight variations of the same Q&A.

okay, that's "I could NOT understand . . . "

When Banderas first started appearing in American films, I could understand what his appeal was. Then I saw "Atame!" (aka Tie Me Up, Tie Me Down). Now I get it.

Electric Version is my favorite with Twin Cinema close behind. I agree with Lone Audience that the title track from Challengers is fantastic, but the album as a whole just didn't work for me. I heard it was a "grower", so I tried hard to love it but just couldn't.

Argh! I finally got this book from the library yesterday—the bastard in the queue in front of me turned it in three weeks late. I'm already half way in (many chores have _not_ gotten done this weekend) and really loving it, so I am totally regretting not being able to participate this week.

And why does the state pay this man to clean Nathan's dad's apartment? No wonder Illinois is broke.

I think I have the same complaint about Volume Two, i.e. it's pleasant, but not very interesting.

I recently listened to this album again (finally got it on CD) and was pretty blown away by So Cruel. I don't remember it appealing to me particularly when I was 18 and was playing the album in a continuous loop in my Walkman. Of course, at 18 I hadn't had my heart smashed yet.

The Violent Femmes (debut album)
I still occasionally hear Violent Femmes songs on the radio (Blister in the Song, Kiss Off, even an edited version of "Add It Up"), but I wish they'd play "Good Feeling" and "Please Do Not Go".

The Smiths (of course)
I'm with Josh on "Rubber Ring". Another song I love from the second half of Louder Than Bombs is "Unlovable".

"Big Night" is the first thing that came to mind when I saw this Q&A topic. I believe he "meat and eggs pastry drum" is called timpano. I also really wanted to try it at the time, but I've never seen it on a restaurant menu or worked up the courage to try making it myself.

Me too.

When I read "written entirely in a devolved form of English", I thought: PASS! But Emmet Otter's Jugband Christmas is awesome. I'm back on board. See ya in April.

Thanks Hatofhomigold. If modern Fo'c'sles often smell of feet, I can't imagine what they smelled like during the Napoleonic wars.

I also found the diagram to be completely useless.

Just like learning a foreign language . . .
I also took the Linus approach to the ship terminology. I moved to Germany as a teen with little grasp of that language. At first I tended to get bogged down on words I didn't know and couldn't follow a conversation. Eventually I learned to just focus on stringing…

I didn't even get to see all the musicians showcased in the closing ceremonies, because NBC pre-empted the latter part in order to air the Marriage Ref. What the hell NBC?

Multiple people have commented now on how difficult the 2nd book is (at least the first time through). I picked it up immediately after finishing M&C and am enjoying the heck out of it (more than 2/3rds through). There's so much additional characterization of Maturin in this one, that I'm having trouble remembering…

I didn't find this dull at all. I zipped right through (being trapped in my house by the East coast snowpocalypse gave me some unexpected free time), and I have the second one on order through the library.

The bar is set so much lower for the winter olympics in terms of the sports they include. Ice dancing? Why isn't regular dancing a summer olympic sport, then? Moguls (i.e. moguls punctuated with random aerial moves)? How come I don't see a track guy jump a series of hurdles with some back flips thrown in in…