Prepare for an incredibly tl;dr post, and I apologize in advance if this incredibly somber post brings you down.

A couple of you guys know what has been going on with my life for the last couple months, but for those of you who don't know, here's the story:

For the past year and a half to two years, my grandmother has been battling with lymphoma,going through chemotherapy to try and cure it. Things were looking up after she finished chemotherapy, and that was at the beginning of 2009. This past October, however, we discovered that her cancer had relapsed, and her situation has been going downhill fast.

Fast forward to this week.

My sister came home this Tuesday, and we went over to my grandmother's apartment to spend some time with her. It was a good day for her, and we three went around running errands, but we learned through what she told us that she had been having incredible difficulty standing up. It had been a problem before, but never that bad. That's when my dad insisted that she stay at our house. She was reluctant because she's an independent and stubborn woman, qualities she's quite famous for, but she gave in and we relocated her to our house for the time being. That was Tuesday. Four days ago.

We didn't expect her condition to deteriorate so fast, but it did, and now everything is a race against the clock. Watching her go through this is the most painful thing I have ever experienced. Watching the hearts of my family members break is just as hard to deal with. I cannot shove food down my throat anymore. My appetite is gone. I cannot sleep through the night anymore. I feel like a zombie. Even my dog knows something is wrong as he spends all day curled in a ball, watching us frantically run around.

Logic tells me that this too shall pass, but that doesn't stop me from breaking down every 15 minutes. Part of the purpose of this blog is to explain the situation to you guys because I know some of you are concerned about me. For that, I thank you. The other part of this blog is to ask you guys a favor, that being go tell someone you love how much you care about them. Your mother, father, brother, sister, dog, cat, whatever.
Because even a lifetime is not enough time to say goodbye.

If you made it this far, thanks for reading.

That you have the most beautiful face?

So today I received a huge ten pound box at my doorstep. And it was from my secret santa, KEVIN MOTHERFUCKING WELLS. As embarrassing as this is, I recorded myself opening the gifts to show Kevin just 'cause I know it would make him happy. Well now he's seen it, and you can, too!!
It's 11 minutes, but you get to see how happy I am! And you can skip around if you feel like it, I suppose, but take a looksy!
What is in this box! from Anna Crain on Vimeo.

THANK YOU SO MUCH, KEVIN!!!!!!!!

Hello ladies and gents! I come to you beseeching advice in regard to the blog title.

I have wanted an electronic keyboard for a very long time, but never actually had an opportunity to get one until now. My parents have been asking me what kind of keyboard I would like, which leads me to believe they would like to buy me one as a Christmas present. The problem is, I do not know what kind of keyboard or synth I would want because I don't know anything about them! So here's where I come to you guys for help, hoping that some of you are more knowledgeable about this topic.

Any advice? I don't know where to start researching! I think I would prefer a synth. And also, if this helps at all, my friend and I are thinking about starting a band. What says you? I have looked at one called the Alesis Micron and it looks neat! Any thoughts?





Cool, right?!

So excite.
This festival is the bomb. They have a skating ramp and mechanical bull this year! Who does that!

There is no reason for this blog other than
I am so
fucking
excited.

Today, Les Savy Fav.
Tomorrow, MOTHERFUCKING DANZIG.

Alright mangs and womangs, I made a mix of songs for you today. Last night in baconchats, Omair asked me kindly if I would put something together, so I thought I'd try my hand at it, and I ended up with something I'm pleased with.

I called it "Samplers" because all the songs are fairly short, the longest being 5:36, so it should be an easy listen. The track listing is as follows:

The xx - Heart Skipped A Beat
Former Ghosts - The Bull and the Ram
Cold Cave - life magazine
Neon Indian - Should have taken acid with you
The Octopus Project - Wood Trumpet
The Depreciation Guild - Darklooming
Lotus Plaza - Sunday Night
Karen O and the Kids - All Is Love
Slow Club - Me and You
The Dovers - What Am I Going to Do
Dirty Projectors - Temecula Sunrise
Joe Pug - Speak Plainly Diana
Pavement - Texas Never Whispers
UME - The Conductor
Sufjan Stevens - Year of the Tiger
Mount Eerie - Moon Sequel

Samplers Mix

Feel free to leave comments about how much you love it or hate it. Hopefully I'll be able to introduce you guys to something new or cool that you like. :)
Enjoy!

From an extremely special dude.


Some of you might remember those delicious peanut butter marshmallow bars Brian brought to Chicago. Well today I received some of those in the mail from the guy himself! But wait! He replaced the peanut butter with Nutella, making some incredible concoction that makes my mouth do tastebud orgasms.
Annnnnddddd...


He sent me the remaining Nutella!!


And an 11-page note, which I enjoyed all the way through. :)

Basically what I'm saying is that I love Brian more than anybody in the world, and you all should too. That guy rules.

Also, I just got back from Where the Wild Things Are! How is your Saturday night?

OH MY GODDDDDDDD

DISCUSS THE HELL OUT OF THIS.

So I know there are quite a few bloggers, including myself, who are really excited about the new Where the Wild Things Are movie, and the soundtrack for it should garner just as much excitement. You know why? Because it is so damn great. I got a copy of it this morning, and I think it's really impressive as a soundtrack and as an album on it's own.

I want to share the wealth with you guys because I know you all are nerding out over this movie just as much as I am, so:
Karen O and the Kids - Where the Wild Things Are (2009) [V0]
In V0 so your ears will thank me later. ;)

GO SEE THE MOVIE WHEN IT COMES OUT, AND BUY THE SOUNDTRACK IF YOU CAN!!!

And here's a little background information about who all is included in the soundtrack:
To compose the music, O enlisted friends and fellow musicians she believed had a musical intuition that would bolster her intent to marry sound to vision. Dubbed Karen O and the Kids, these include Tristan Bechet (Services), Tom Biller (co-producer with Karen O and member of Afternoons), Bradford Cox (Deerhunter), Brian Chase (Yeah Yeah Yeahs), Dean Fertita (Queens of the Stone Age, The Dead Weather, The Raconteurs), Aaron Hemphill (Liars), Greg Kurstin (The Bird and the Bee), Jack Lawrence (The Dead Weather, The Raconteurs, The Greenhornes), Oscar Michel (The Gris Gris), Imaad Wasif (The Folk Implosion, Alaska), Nick Zinner, (Yeah Yeah Yeahs) and an untrained children's choir.

I WANT TO BELIEVE.

I believe you, Pitchfork. Oh boy, do I ever believe you.
Now all I have to do is pray that this is not a one-show thing. Can you please tour for me, Pavement? PLEASE?
I don't know if you could tell, but I am excited.