Jrc's picks

Taking the cue from Tony, here's my list of 2005 faves.

Music:

• "I May Hate Myself in the Morning" by Lee Ann Womack
• "Breathe (2 AM)" by Anna Nalick
• "Mushaboom" by Feist
• "Landed" by Ben Folds
• "In the Yard, Behind the Church" by Eels
• "All the Trees of the Field Will Clap Their Hands" by Sufjan Stevens
• "Feel Good, Inc." by Gorillaz

Performances:

Film:

• Gwyneth Paltrow in Proof. She was sublime. My favorite performance by an actor this year.
• Philip Seymour Hoffman in Capote. The film is so-so, but I have a feeling that he (and, from what I'm hearing, Heath Ledger in Brokeback Mountain) will be the one to beat come Oscar time.
• Dakota Fanning in War of the Worlds. She's damn good for a munchkin.
• Shirley MacLaine in In Her Shoes. Probably the ultimate chick flick, but MacLaine is fantastic in it. Fun, sassy, and honest. Love her.
• Matt Dillon in Crash. The best thing he's ever done. And it's a great movie, too.
• Christian Bale in Batman Begins. He's my new hero. I wonder if he'll marry me?
• Cillian Murphy in Batman Begins. I couldn't take my eyes off him. Wonderfully creepy.

TV:

• Matthew Fox in "Lost." Sigh. I'd eat him with a spoon. And I love his character.
• Jason Bateman in "Arrested Development." Who would have thought that Mr. Bateman would have grown into such a brilliantly subtle comic actor? He's flat out fantastic on "AD." God I hope Showtime grabs this show.
• Mary-Louise Parker in "Weeds." Like buttah. Tony always calls her an "interesting actress" because of her process or whatever ... but she takes my breath away. There's a scene in an early ep of the show when she's watching a video of her late husband. You can read all 9412 emotions on her face. She's perfect.
• Elizabeth Perkins in "Weeds." I'm convinced she's me, as a woman.
• Debra Messing in "Will & Grace." Yes, the show is tired and well past its prime. We all know that. But I don't think Messing has ever gotten the respect and accolades she deserves for her work on this show. She's so damn funny.
• Kathy Griffin in "My Life on the D-List." I have no words. I shall simply bow to her biting wit and scathing truth. And then I'll laugh my ass off.

Live music:

• Melissa Etheridge was amazing on the Grammys, performing "Piece of My Heart." Brave. Crazy. Spot-on.
• Trisha Yearwood's "Live By Request" concert on A&E was stunning. And she sang "Midnight Train to Georgia," so I nearly peed in my pants.
• Kai Mwaafrika's performance of "Trouble in Mind" during the Phoenix Theatre's production of "Further Mo'." I used to think the song belonged to the one and only Dinah Washington. I was mistaken.

Experiences:

• Seeing Marc Broussard with Tony. What a great show. And Marc is ever-so sexy.
• Seeing Eels with Timmy. Fun to hang out with Tim, after far too long, and very very fun to see a great band perform in a totally different way.
• Seeing The Finn Brothers with Ang. I was more familiar with their pre- and post-Crowded House work than Ang, but we had a lovely time. And the boys were great.
• Opening my digital camera earlier this week. Sigh. "He knows me so well...."
• The "bonding night" with Matty when the three of us laughed our asses off all night like schoolgirls.
• I had a really fun weeked at Bearfest. Lots of reasons why ...
• Seeing Tony onstage again was lovely.
• Reading Infinite Crisis #1. Total geek, yeah ... but this book is so fun and is shaping up to be the catalyst for big changes in the DC Universe. I love feeling that old anticipation for each new issue. And my buddy Phil is doing a bang-up job on the art.

I'm going to stop now, because if I don't, I'll go on forever. Merry Christmas!!