Nicole Scherzinger – Don’t Hold Your Breath
This is actually a fantastic track. It’s got a really good chorus (so I think at least, it’s easy, and catchy). Plus, Nicole Scherzinger sounds exactly like how PCD did (ha! get it?) and of course, she’s still good as ever. It really feels like a good summer track, but Wikipedia says that the track will be released 3/20/2011. Also it says that she’s going to be in MiB III. Ooky.

Katy Perry – Part of Me
Starts out with a drumbeat that reminds me of “The One that Got Away”, and then starts a guitar riff that sounds like “California Gurls”. Part of Me is reported to actually have been from the same studio sessions as the rest of Teenage Dream, but it got cut. Which is too bad – it’s a good track, easy listen. I guess it feels too similar to some of the other stuff.

Avril Lavigne – What The Hell
Avril Lavigne is fun to listen to, even if everything is super annoyingly catchy (I guess that is the point). She’s still as good as ever at writing songs that get in your head. “What the Hell” was released 1/11/11 (clever), though it premiered on NYE. It really just reminds me of high school, for some reason. Er, not my own experience. Just the stereotypical one. Somewhere.

LMFAO – Party Rock Anthem
“Party Rock Anthem” was also released on NYE. It is, like the rest of LMFAO’s tracks, party oriented. Feels a lot dancier than a lot of the stuff from their first album, Party Rock. Probably because of all the synths. Probably also a bit more approachable due to the lack of SHOTS SHOTS SHOTSSHOTSSHOTS SHOTS.

Panic at the Disco – The Ballad of Mona Lisa
I love Panic at the Disco for everything they do, because they make great music. They kind of took control of their own identity in their sophomore album, doing less emo stuff and some more happy sounding things. They dropped the exclamation mark from the name as well. The band lineup’s changed from the last album. Brandon Urie’s still around (hence the recognizable voice), as well as the drummer. Supposed goal is to go to a more pop sound, though this song really seems to hearken back to the first album, which I approve of. “The Ballad of Mona Lisa” was released 2/1/2011

Frankmusik – Stereo World
Frankmusik’s working hard on his album, to be released shortly. For those who don’t know, Frankmusik busted into my library last year and has quickly become one of my favorite artists – with some great synth tracks. Kind of reminds me (in terms of tech) of Owl City but not so saccharine (good thing). Stereo Love is such a happy song and I love it. Unfortunately, it’s not going to be on the next album – he’s released all the tracks that were cut in downloads and EP’s. This track was out in mid January (and makes me want to dance every time I hear it)

Taio Cruz – Higher (ft Kylie Minogue and Travie McCoy)
There are actually a bunch of versions – one with just Taio, a duet with Kylie, a duet with Travie, a collab with both, and another with K3 (some Flemish girl band). Highly catchy song, I imagine good for play in a club/dance scene. I like the version with Kylie in it because I think she is awesome and makes good music etc. This version was released 2/1/2011

Sean Kingston – Won’t Stop (ft Justin Bieber)
Ok I don’t actually like this song (well, yet, maybe). And that isn’t just because Justin Bieber is in it – he has some songs that are fun to listen to. I haven’t listened to it that much, because it was released maybe a few hours ago (2/3/2011). And c’mon, who wouldn’t be amused at Justin Bieber a) autotuned to hell and b) with a mid-pubescent voice and c) rapping with said mid-pubescent voice. Oh Justin Bieber, you embarrass yourself, but it seems to work for the ladies (if they are between the age of 4 and 17).

Colbie Caillat – I Do
Everyone loves Colbie Caillat! And you can’t not like her after listening to “I Do”. It’s a silly song about weddings (she says it’s a joke) but it is absolutely a joy to listen to (ukelele!) and she’s a beautiful singer, as usual. The song is planned to be out 2/7/2011, and the album on 5/3/2011.

Lots of good albums to look forward to this year! If I can manage to keep my interest in blogging high, maybe you’ll hear about them before your friends who don’t have the joy of knowing me and reading my fantastically interesting blog posts. Also as usual, ask me if you want anything! Dropbox is generally full of what I’m listening to for the week, so just ask for access.

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Also because I know everyone loves the Chicago skyline (I know I do), I took a sunset series (as in I took 5 pics with the 5 exposure settings on my camera). Oh the joys of having a window that can actually balance a camera. And a nice view =).

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The floors had their final coat of finishing on Friday, so I was unable to go and check it out on that day. However, I decided to go on Saturday, when the light was bright and beautiful. It’s such a great day! As you can see, the floors are looking really great right now – I’m afraid of moving anything for fear of them scratching. But I guess that is the point of having these coatings, right?

Thursday night, some more things has been put in – namely bathroom fixtures and the windowsill. Pretty standard stuff.

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I was concerned that the marble counters wouldn’t match the tile since I was mostly guessing about the color when we were picking tiles. As you can see in the below pictures, the tile can appear both light and dark – which is pretty cool.

The faucets and fixtures are all from Grohe. Fun things! And they are oh so shiny. Another thing I like – the sink faucets both have laminar spouts! I love when water comes out of the tap and its nice and smooth.

The kitchen faucet is chrome, and has a nice high arc. It’s pretty cool! As you can see, there is a double sink, The left sink is larger and deeper. The right sink is shallower and smaller, but has the added benefit of having a garbage disposal unit attached to it. Woot! Now I can throw food related garbage in the sink. In theory, at least.

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Also if you were wondering, I do take pictures when the sun has gone down. Also there isn’t very good lighting in that room. Consequently, the following photos are with flash. (photogs, you can’t criticize me because I’m using a point and shoot! I’m immune)

Also due to the fact that I have an odd number of photos, I’m going to group the next pair together. This is the bathroom vanity. It’s not in the bathroom at the moment though. I’m not sure why – I assume there is a good reason. In any case, it’s most likely going to go in tomorrow.

I really like the pattern on the bathroom counter. It’s actually a marble slab, not granite. The thing is, it’s not the conventional 1/2" inch thickness that bathroom counters are. However, it’s got a really nice spiderweb/crackle pattern through it. I’m hoping that it kind of matches the rest of the bathroom, since we really just picked something at random.

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The two types of baseboards I am getting in my apartment. One of them is wood – this is going in the living room and closets. The latter photograph depicts the tile variety that is going in the bathroom.

Feel free to gawk. These are my cabinets – they’re a dark cherry wood, with an “espresso” stain, or something along those lines. A few of the doors need to be reversed, and some of the doors also need to be replaced. Some other things – the crowns are not in yet. Those will go in tomorrow, along with some appliances.

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Grout’s in the wall now – it’s a light grout that matches the color of the big tiles. I rather like how it is looking right now. Also, note that you can see the rest of the shower in the tile. How meta!

Not many new modifications have been made to the main studio area – a second part to the baseboards, connecting the floor to the wall boards was just put in. Not worth showing specifically.

Also this is my building. I’d have thought most people know what it looks like by now, but who knows, some people are SLOW. Just kidding.

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In other news, I was allowed in the unit today! Yesterday, the contractor told me that I was not allowed to go in, because they were doing floor varnishing. However, that means that I wanted to go in today!.

They look really nice – and there has only been one coat of varnish on it. I believe a second coat will be going on a little later. The wood, though, is a really warm gold with a pale red kind of running through it. At this point, my studio looks more like a ballet studio than a living space, but eh, it’s nice!

To compare with before, here’s a comparison shot of before the sanding/varnish, and after.

It’s rather handy being able to have an excuse to use the same photo twice in one post, really.

Work is going pretty well otherwise – I received an email from one of my neighbors saying that the dust and varnish were starting to irritate an asthmatic patient in one of the units. I contacted the contractor, so he’ll make sure to follow some extra precautions for my neighbor’s benefit.

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It’s a really beautiful maple floor – I think it looks really good. Some close up shots are in order – you can kind of see the pattern/grain in the wood. Steps remaining for the floor are things like sanding and varnishing – maybe a light stain, who knows. I rather like this color

Bathroom tiles are coming along nicely – the remainder of the shower area that was missing tiles has been filled in. The bathroom floor is also being put in.

Those were all from Friday – the following are from today (Monday morning). You can see in the first two pics that the floor is raised up a significant amount from before – and we’re trying to figure out how to deal with that height.

Today, baseboards went in, and some of the problematic seams on the walls and a missing portion of the ceiling popcorn were fixed.

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