Each Thursday (or Friday, since some weeks we seem to be running behind on everything), Needcoffee.com's staff of whackos will wrack our brains to give you interesting and new things to do over the weekend. Books, movies, whatever. We'll throw them out, you do with them what you will. And hey...if you have something you want to recommend--whatever it is--drop us a line.

Incidentally, we've provided links where we can for you to buy the stuff or find out more if you're interested, courtesy of those Amazon types. Hey, come on, we can't be totally selfless in this, can we?

July 25, 2002

Book of the Week: Where the Sidewalk Ends by Shel Silverstein. Nobody, and we mean nobody, does cool illustrated children's poetry like Silverstein did. He covered topics that kids could relate to...you know, like not taking out the garbage and being swallowed whole by a monstrous snake. Truly a master of morbid whimsy, if you haven't ever checked him out, fie upon thee. But those who have read his stuff should get reacquainted. Some days you just need your Shel fix.

Graphic Novel of the Week: Dark Blue by Warren Ellis & Jacen Burrows. How to describe it, hmmm. It's like Quentin Tarantino's The Matrix on acid. Frank Christchurch is a cop in a world turned upside down by a serial killer who can manipulate reality to his own ends. This leads to an inevitable bloodbath, of course. Gore-streaked and disturbed, it's good and good for you.

DVD of the Week: The Royal Tenenbaums. Ahhhh. The only way to make this film better would be to have it be a Criterion release. Wait a tick, what's this? A Criterion release! Not only do you get the movie that was robbed of a screenplay Oscar last year, but there's also great interviews, a pretty sweet commentary by Anderson and Anjelica Houston's hair catching on fire. What more could you want from a DVD?

CD of the Week: The Waterboys' Dream Harder. This folk rock album truly showcases the lyrical complexity of Mike Scott's writing style. "Glastonbury Song" and "Winter Winter" are just luminous in their Irish simplicity, and "Corn Circles" manages to be hysterical, even following on the heels of the moving and rich "The Return of Pan." "The Return of Jimi Hendrix" with make any Hendrix fan weep. Seems to be out of print these days, so catch it where you can.

Beverage of the Week: Tuscany Orange Spice Tea. You know, I'd be happy just to have a few bags of this lying about the room, because it smells terrific. But hey--bonus--it's a great caffeinated tea as well. It hits you with a bit of sweetness before the tea taste comes in and the combination is different, but very pleasurable. And again, you could sit with a cup of it under your nose for hours. If you're looking for a unique tea experience, this new brand from Celestial Seasonings is very nice indeed.

Obscure Paralyzing Fear of the Week: Arachibutyrophobia. This is the fear that peanut butter will stick to the roof of your mouth. And no, I'm not kidding.