* Photo by the Associated Press (taken in CHINA!)
With the coming of 2012, I say “Goodbye 2011!”
And with the end of this year comes my annual best of the year list.  I can’t end a year without doing this. I do need mention here that I haven’t seen, and heard everything I have wanted to … but I am only including things I have seen or heard. So if I am missing some of the obvious, that’s why. Also, It might be because I was in China and Nepal until April. So here it goes:
My Favorite Films of 2011
1. Shame
2. Drive
3. The Muppets
4. Beginners
5. Midnight in Paris
6. Fast Five (I’m not really joking)
7. Bridesmaids
8. X-men First Class
My Favorite Albums of 2011
THIS IS THE ONLY NEW ALBUM I BOUGHT IN 2011…WOW…The times they are a changin’
1. Bon Iver - Bon Iver
therefore…I’ll do this…
My Favorite Singles of 2011
1.Holocene - Bon Iver
2. Midnight City - M83
3. Dance Until The World Ends - Britney, B*tch
4. Look at Me Now - Chris Brown feat. Busta Rhymes and Lil’ John. (I know, it’s Chris Brown, but it’s goooooooood).
5. E.T. - Katy Perry and Kanye (although overplayed, I still loved it).
6. We Found Love- Rhianna
7. Lonely Boy - The Black Keys
My Favorite Favorite Books I Read in 2011
1. Eating Animals by Jonathan Safran Foer
2. The Wind Up Bird Chronicle by Haruki Murakami
3. Kafka on The Shore by Haruki Murakami
4. Man’s Search for Meaning by Viktor Fankl
My Personal Best 2011
1. Surprising my parents on Easter day after being abroad for 16 months. They thought I was coming home a month later, but after a 36+ hour trip from Kathmandu, Nepal … I arrived on their doorstep with dirty hair and no sleep, to a shocked Dad and crying Mom and sister.
2. Celebrating the New Year (2011). I swear, I don’t know when I will top last year’s dance party at a Gay Club in China.
3. Reaching Everest Base Camp. It was a hard 20 days, but one of the truest adventures I will ever put myself through.
4. My last week in China. From the scavenger hunt, to my goodbye parties, to tearfully saying good bye to my kids. It was a sad time, but it was a very happy time too. I realized how worth that experience was during that week. And how lucky I was to
5. Getting into Graduate School. That was good!
6. Surprising Kristina with Kevin in Sacramento a few weeks ago.
7. Meeting Ethan for the first time.
8. Finding out Kristina is pregnant at Disneyland. 
9. Roadtrip Nation 10 Year Anniversary/ Avocado Monster Party w/ Kelli and Beer Visit
10. Surprising Everyone at RTN when I got back from China
</2011>

* Photo by the Associated Press (taken in CHINA!)

With the coming of 2012, I say “Goodbye 2011!”


And with the end of this year comes my annual best of the year list.  I can’t end a year without doing this. I do need mention here that I haven’t seen, and heard everything I have wanted to … but I am only including things I have seen or heard. So if I am missing some of the obvious, that’s why. Also, It might be because I was in China and Nepal until April. So here it goes:

My Favorite Films of 2011

1. Shame

2. Drive

3. The Muppets

4. Beginners

5. Midnight in Paris

6. Fast Five (I’m not really joking)

7. Bridesmaids

8. X-men First Class

My Favorite Albums of 2011

THIS IS THE ONLY NEW ALBUM I BOUGHT IN 2011…WOW…The times they are a changin’

1. Bon Iver - Bon Iver

therefore…I’ll do this…

My Favorite Singles of 2011

1.Holocene - Bon Iver

2. Midnight City - M83

3. Dance Until The World Ends - Britney, B*tch

4. Look at Me Now - Chris Brown feat. Busta Rhymes and Lil’ John. (I know, it’s Chris Brown, but it’s goooooooood).

5. E.T. - Katy Perry and Kanye (although overplayed, I still loved it).

6. We Found Love- Rhianna

7. Lonely Boy - The Black Keys

My Favorite Favorite Books I Read in 2011

1. Eating Animals by Jonathan Safran Foer

2. The Wind Up Bird Chronicle by Haruki Murakami

3. Kafka on The Shore by Haruki Murakami

4. Man’s Search for Meaning by Viktor Fankl

My Personal Best 2011

1. Surprising my parents on Easter day after being abroad for 16 months. They thought I was coming home a month later, but after a 36+ hour trip from Kathmandu, Nepal … I arrived on their doorstep with dirty hair and no sleep, to a shocked Dad and crying Mom and sister.

2. Celebrating the New Year (2011). I swear, I don’t know when I will top last year’s dance party at a Gay Club in China.

3. Reaching Everest Base Camp. It was a hard 20 days, but one of the truest adventures I will ever put myself through.

4. My last week in China. From the scavenger hunt, to my goodbye parties, to tearfully saying good bye to my kids. It was a sad time, but it was a very happy time too. I realized how worth that experience was during that week. And how lucky I was to

5. Getting into Graduate School. That was good!

6. Surprising Kristina with Kevin in Sacramento a few weeks ago.

7. Meeting Ethan for the first time.

8. Finding out Kristina is pregnant at Disneyland. 

9. Roadtrip Nation 10 Year Anniversary/ Avocado Monster Party w/ Kelli and Beer Visit

10. Surprising Everyone at RTN when I got back from China

</2011>

I saw this on my dashboard and after reading it, I love it. Good job McSweeny’s.
And I need to keep this here so I can reference it later.

God, I love lists.

austin film critics

oldfilmsflicker:

Best Film: The Hurt Locker

Best Director: Kathryn Bigelow, The Hurt Locker

Best Actor: Colin Firth, A Single Man

Best Actress: Melanie Laurent, Inglourious Basterds

Best Supporting Actor: Christoph Waltz, Inglourious Basterds

Best Supporting Actress: Anna Kendrick, Up in the Air

Best Original Screenplay: Inglourious Basterds, Quentin Tarantino

Best Adapted Screenplay: Up in the Air, Jason Reitman and Sheldon Turner

Best Cinematography: The Hurt Locker, Barry Ackroyd

Best Original Score: Up, Michael Glacchino

Best Foreign Language Film: Sin Nombre, Cary Fukunaga

Best Documentary: Anvil! The Story of Anvil

Best Animated Feature: Up

Best First Film: District 9, Neill Blomkamp

Breakthrough Artist Award: Christian McKay, Me & Orson Welles

Austin Film Award: Me & Orson Welles

Top 10 Films:
The Hurt Locker
Star Trek
Up
A Serious Man
Up in the Air
Avatar
Inglourious Basterds
District 9
Where the Wild Things Are
(tie) Moon, The Messenger

Top 10 Films of the Decade:
Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004)
There Will Be Blood (2007)
The Lord of the Rings (2001-2003)
The Dark Knight (2008)
Requiem for a Dream (2000)
Kill Bill (2003/4)
No Country for Old Men (2007)
The Incredibles (2004)
Children of Men (2006)
(tie) Memento (2000), The Departed (2006)

Austin! I like this. Good job.

Except for ONE little thing. I would switch out “Wall-E” for “The Incredibles”.

But, this is your list, not mine.

Tags: movies lists best

I didn’t know this existed!?

The future has arrived.

P.S. End of The Decade lists are like CRACK to me. I can’t stop reading them.

I really like these lists, and I really like the “hipster” evolution chart towards the beginning of the magazine. Thanks Lauren!

Rockin’.

Tags: music lists npr