I study Wikipedia.

Um...not really.

Let me explain.

In anticipation for Coachella I am listening to the four Beirut albums that I have on my iPod on shuffle as I get ready for my day today. And as I am listening I am reminded of a certain incident with a friend that occurred before a Cat Power show in Los Angeles about a year ago. There was a banner hanging at the venue announcing that Beirut would be playing in a few months, and my friend from college and I got very excited. Naturally: this man is very very easy to listen to. My college friend and I decided that his voice is like what we would expect to come out of Prince Charming's mouth, and the fact that the man can play something like 8 instruments is just damn impressive. And it makes him all the more attractive/interesting, and his songs make me want to dance down the Seine wearing stripes on a Parisian fall afternoon...Anyway, the other friend who was there with us wasn't familiar with Beirut, and inquired, "Beirut? Like the drinking game? That's pretty funny."

My response was, "Or, you know, like the city."

She turned to me with a snarky face. "What, did you like study the term on Wikipedia or something?"

I sat their quietly as she laughed at me, and it was today as I was listening to Zach Condon's sweet melodies that I was reminded of this, one of the few times in my recent adult life that I've been made to feel embarrassed about my knowledge.

But really, this is something I should (and have) turn(ed) into pride. My mother had a similar experience during the interviewing portion of jury selection. After answering a question on (what I believe was) her opinion of the role of law enforcement, she answered very astutely, unfaltering in her view even though it wasn't necessarily the answer the attorneys wanted to hear. During the lunch break, a woman who was sitting on the jury with her approached her and asked, "Do you, like, read the dictionary or something?"

Remembering my mother's account of this incident, I note that she told me the story with pride in her voice, and she should have. Because really, accusing someone of knowing something as if it were a huge negative thing is just such a teenager thing to do.

Thanks for sitting through that. I was telling a certain someone last night that I give myself flack when I don't update frequently enough, and I've certainly been feeling those guilty pangs lately. As a reward for actually reading my self-indulgent account of being made to feel nerdy, here's a little Condon for your eyes and ears. (For those of you who haven't seen this video series, it's pretty amazing. Thanks, Ken.)