#1 - WHAT IS THE ONE ALBUM (OR EP OR SONG) THAT YOU THINK SHOULD BE THE VERY NEXT MUSICAL THING THAT EVERYONE PRESSES PLAY ON THE NEXT TIME THEY FIND THEMSELVES THINKING “WHAT SHOULD I LISTEN TO NOW”?

My friend J.E. Sunde out of Minneapolis is putting out a new album soon. There’s a live video of one of the songs ‘I don’t care to dance,’ on youtube and it’s one of the most moving three and a half minutes of writing I’ve ever heard. He’s great and this album is gonna be a stunner.

#2 - WHAT IS THE ONE MOVIE OR TV SHOW THAT YOU THINK SHOULD BE NEXT IN EVERYBODY’S NETFLIX QUEUE (OK, DOESN’T HAVE TO BE NETFLIX, WE’RE ALL INTERNET ADULTS HERE AND KNOW HOW TO FIND ANYTHING ONLINE, ONE WAY OR ANOTHER)?

The show Tig Notaro made called ‘One Mississippi’ is so darn good. I watched both seasons in a shamefully short amount of time. It’s just so human and dark and funny and real.

#3. I (AND BY “I” I MEAN “THE PERSON THAT IS READING THIS”) AM GOING TO THE BOOK STORE (OK, PROBABLY AMAZON) TO FIND THE VERY NEXT BOOK THAT I WILL BE PUTTING SOME EXTREMELY VALUABLE ‘ME-TIME' ASIDE FOR. WHICH BOOK WOULD YOU GET, IF YOU WERE ME (AND, I SUPPOSE, YOU HADN’T ALREADY READ WHAT YOU’RE ABOUT TO SUGGEST)?

Oh man, that’s so hard. I just reread ‘Beloved’ by Toni Morrison for the fifth time. It reveals another layer every time I pick it up.

Or anything by Annie Proulx, all her incredible short story collections. Or ‘True North’ by Jim Harrison, or his poetry. Someday I’ll read some non-fiction. Maybe.

#4 - WHAT IS THE ONE WEBSITE (OR JUST ANY OLD INTERNET THING: APP, GIF, SERVICE, WHATEVER) THAT YOU WOULD GET REALLY DOWN IN THE DUMPS ABOUT IF IT WERE TO SUDDENLY GO AWAY?

That video of dogs playing bluegrass where someone dressed up their dogs and sat hidden behind them in chairs and picked a tune. That one cheers me up every time.

Also dogs out to dinner is a fine piece of cinema made by the same wonderful humans.

#5 - AND FINALLY… PLEASE GIVE ONE COMPLETELY UNAIDED RECOMMENDATION THAT YOU THINK EVERYONE SHOULD START DOING / USING / WATCHING / EATING / THINKING / QUITING / ETC-ING TO MAKE THEIR LIVES A LITTLE BIT MORE BETTER AND/OR BEARABLE.

Hm, lately I’m a big fan of green grapes. Each one is like a tiny juicy world.

Try to get a bag that’s only half full, or else you run the risk of eating the whole thing at once and feeling quite ill, like a bottle of wine without the fun.

OK folks, there you have it. Things that Anna Tivel thinks you should consider incorporating into your day/life. Before you log off and go stock up on half-full bags of green (not red) grapes, makes sure to follow Anna on Facebook & Instagram and then pop over to Soundcloud to give the new single a listen + pop over to Bandcamp to give the back catalogue a listen while you wait for the new album to drop in April.