This is the place for geekery of all kinds, right? Right. Good. OK, good.
Listen, internet, I am REALLY PISSED AT YOU.
I rely on you, internet, to advise me of things I would love. And usually, you totally come through for me! And, therefore, you have pointed me in the direction of all things geekery, of all varieties, and I love you for it. I would never have picked up The Walking Dead graphic novel series if Cara hadn’t told me I’d love it (and she’s so beyond right it’s insane); I wouldn’t have read/watched A Game of Thrones if it weren’t for the Geek Girls Book Club (and for that, I probably should send flowers or something, because, well, LOVE. And Tyrion. And Jaime. SIGH.)
So internet! You are usually very, very good at pointing me in the direction of the awesome, and if I am all “no no no” yelling at me and saying “AMY YOU JACKASS STOP DIGGING IN YOUR HEELS AND JUST DO IT” and then I do and I’m the first to admit I was being a total donkey.
So why exactly were you hiding the complete and total awesomeness of Marian Call from me for the past four years? Seriously, I want to punch you all in the heads. This is completely unforgivable.
I was having a somewhat innocuous conversation last night, and as conversations do, it meandered around and over and through, like Harold’s purple crayon, and then it was about avocados (which I love, doesn’t everyone? I mean, unless you’re broken or something) and he told me that avocados only last for one day (which, listen, that’s totally flawed, because who leaves LEFTOVER avocados? I couldn’t not eat a whole avocado if you tied my HANDS behind my back, I’d chow that damn thing with my FACE) and he said, “you know, like in the Marian Call song” and I was all “I don’t know who that is.”
Listen, this isn’t out of the ordinary for me. I am a music heathen. I am a music raised-by-wolves-baby. I know showtunes, classic rock, late 80s/early 90s top-40 music, a few selected musicians I am obsessed with, and the things they play a lot on my favorite radio station. Oh, and more country music than I should. Don’t judge me.
Anyway, apparently it was a surprise that I didn’t know who that was (I KNOW, raised by WOLVES, sorry, SORRY) so he showed me where to listen to some of her music so I could see if I liked it.
ZOMG INTERNET I AM SO MAD AT YOU RIGHT NOW.
Seriously, not a single one of you thought maybe, MAYBE, I might be interested in KNOWING that there is an ALBUM based on FIREFLY? I mean, I suppose some of you might have thought that I already knew who she was, so why tell me something I already know. Fine. Those of you who thought that? YOU ARE SORT OF FORGIVEN. The rest of you? What the hell is WRONG with you. You do NOT win. NOT AT ALL. Because when I checked her Twitter account you were ALL ALREADY FOLLOWING HER. You are all AWESOMENESS HOARDERS.
So here. HERE. Because I believe in sharing things when they are so amazing they bring tears to my eyes, HERE.
Marian Call is completely awesome.
First, with no prior knowledge at all, look at the gorgeousness!
You know my total and complete ginger obsession, right? Right. Rawr.
Anyway. ANYWAY. So, Marian Call is a Stanford graduate – listen, they don’t let just any yahoo do that! – and a self-proclaimed geek girl. This makes me love her. I’m kind of easily won over when it comes to my tribe. She wrote a post on her blog recently about it. Quotes that made me happy:
“I quickly learned not to bring up the things I loved, or how much I loved them, around other girls. I definitely learned how uncool it was to like my homework and my teachers and computers.”
“I cannot tell you how amazing it feels to find you belong to a community when you thought you were alone.”
“By joining the ‘geek’ community I have met female friends who enjoy what I enjoy, and who had childhood experiences like mine. I’ve also met plenty of awesome women who were unafraid to be themselves all along, who boast about their accomplishments and their nerdiness, and I admire the heck out of them. Geek girls are nothing new, but our openness about it is.”
OK, are you in love yet? I know you are. AND YOU HAVEN’T EVEN HEARD THE MUSIC YET.
So on her 2008 album Got to Fly, which is inspired by Firefly and Battlestar Galactica (I know, right? You people thought you were SO CLEVER hiding all this awesome from me, I’m pretty much never forgiving you for this, just so you know) there are some gorgeous songs (like “Don’t Try,” “Dark Dark Eyes,” and “Vera Flew the Coop”) and fun songs and then there is the entire song that they sang in honor of Jayne in episode 7 of Firefly, “Jaynestown.” You know what I mean, right? The whole “it’s good to have Jayne on your side” song? IT’S ON THE ALBUM. No, I’m NOT kidding. Why would I kid about something like that? Here. You can listen to it. Here’s a link. Listen, listen. It made me so happy I had tears. Seriously, you guys. Complete tears of happy geekery. Also? There’s a song on this album titled – again? Totally without an OUNCE of kidding – “I’ll Still be a Geek After Nobody Thinks it’s Chic (The Nerd Anthem).” I…you…how didn’t I…I am…dead. Dead.
Also, her voice is really beautiful and luminous and haunting, and she seems to be having a wonderful time, and I’ve been doing nothing but listening to her on repeat since I found out she existed THANK YOU VERY MUCH because I have years to make UP for that I could have been listening. I am so in a huff right now.
So here’s the recap. You all totally suck, because for SOME reason, you were HIDING the awesome from me. The person who TOLD me about her is the only person I am not TOTALLY THE MOST MAD AT RIGHT NOW. Also, just a heads-up, he got all the points, and he won music? And that’s a hard one to win. Like, I often tell people they’ve won the internet, so that’s a fairly easy one to win. But he won MUSIC, you guys. I bet you feel pretty stupid right now. You could have won MUSIC. So keep that in mind the next time you want to hoard awesome! I might give you a PRIZE!
Also, added photo. Because, seriously, how can you resist this? She is wonderful, you guys. WONDERFUL.
(In case you want to do what any sane person should do and own some of her music for your very own: go here, follow directions. Easy as pie. You will love.)
