full name: Cynthia Ann Louise (Ann Louise) Y.
age: 23
location: Pittsburgh, PA
occupation: assistant a&e editor for Pulp, an alternative weekly paper
hobbies: playing music, going to Gooski's, Mad Libs, copious record buying/selling, collecting vintage handbags and other '60s-'70s home décor
pets: Two cats, Duran Duran and Serafina

1: the heavy part
Update us on your situation in life.
All Cindot, all the time. A rocky year and a half, to say the least, but a promising light at the end of the tunnel beckons. Job situation -- stable/happy. Can't complain, but do anyway. Home situation -- unhappy. Wanting desperately to live alone and move out of current apartment. Unfortunately, my ideal situation (a one bedroom house with stairs and a front and/or back yard) does not exist in my price range, unless I want to move to Crafton or Sheridan or another suburban locale. I've had pipe dreams of purchasing a house -- at least that way my monthly payment will go toward owning something. Pushing for early-mid summer relocation. Relationship situation -- uh, (cough, choke) pass. Friend situation -- Sara, Margaret and I call ourselves "the glue" because the three of us hold some pretty heavy stuff together. Aside from them, I have Dave and a lot of good acquaintances, but how many of them actually, genuinely like me or just want to get their band written about is yet to be determined. Financial situation -- (cough, choke) Bleak.

Ideally, what will your life look like on New Year's Day 2004?
I will be one year older, wiser, healthier and drunker. Hopefully, I will break the chain of embarrassingly inebriated messes the past four years have been.

Have your early-to-mid '20s been like you imagined?
Not sure. In my formative years, I imagined many different things would come of my '20s: moving to Hawaii, being a professional dancer for music videos (a Fly Girl, if you will), being in a semi-successful band, running a little stuffy bookstore, being a tarot card reader, owning a vintage clothing store, starting a 'zine, being whisked off my feet by a mysterious young man, touring the world with the semi-successful band, etc. But now that I'm almost halfway through, my goals have become more realistic. Now I'm just working towards contentment. If I can be content in all areas of my life, then that's really all I want; and I'm getting there.

Which was the best year, for you, of the aforementioned early-to-mid '20s?
I would say that my junior year of college, my twentieth year, was the best -- starting from say, September of that year and extending to November of the next. I had just moved into my first apartment; I was up on the party scene circuit (many of which involving Colored Lights parties); I had just recently joined H.A.R.M; I had a great party on New Years Eve (where I met one Steve May); I delved into the world of journalism with my internship at In Pittsburgh (consequently where Steve May and I worked and interacted most); I had an early-mid summer's worth of wonderful evening walks around Oakland, Shadyside with a great companion; I went on a much-needed vacation with the Beckermans; I saw Morrissey live (in your face!); I got to play at CMJ in October, etc.

When I look back at it, everything appears so clear and colorful -- most other memories are dull or fuzzy, but everything about that year, particularly the summer, is vibrant and lucid. It was when I felt the most like a young person doing what a young person is supposed to do. Like when you're supposed to go back and think of how your college years were so great, things like that are what come to mind.

Which was the best year, you-wise, of your life?
Same.

Compare those two years. How were they different? How were they the same?
They were the same because they were the same.

So you're in how many musical projects right now?
Two. An indie-pop band called Tourister and a yet unnamed darkwave project with Richard (although we've focused in on Shackelton or Holstenwall or the Minarchy); though talk has been talked between Jennifer Baron (of the Ladybug Transistor/Saturnine/New Alcindors fame) and I to finally do the girl group thing we've both dreamt of.

We have noticed a strong Cindy/Music tie. what is it about music that draws you in?
Discounting prepubescent fascinations like NKOTB, Vanilla Ice and Paula Abdul, music really started appealing to me in middle school because it seemed to say so much about people, those who wrote it and more importantly, those who related to it. Nirvana blew me away as a faux-rebellious, troubled teenager; and somehow, oddly, Nirvana gave way to Morrissey, and from Morrissey I developed a taste for underground music with smarter-than-average words, thus bringing me to Belle and Sebastian, where I stay. Listening to music like that is better than reading, in some ways.

Similarly, what is it about television programs like Pete and Pete and Spongebob Squarepants that draws you in?
Good humor, my boy.

Finally, which is your favorite fur pattern/color for a cat?
Used to be gray stripes but I'm partial to calicos and orange tabbies right now.

2: the not-heavy part

Describe a good night out on the town...
A good night on the town would start off with an early evening feast at Taste of India, complete with veggie samosas, paneer mahkni (level 6) and a possible shared dessert of kheer, if any room was left in the ol' stomach, and a bottle of red wine would be implemented throughout the course of the meal. Festivities would ensue at Gooski's, where everybody knows your name, where I would play only the Faint, Belle & Sebastian and selections from the Nuggets box sets on the jukebox and drink cheap Straubs while playing some mean games of pool. Then a party would magically materialize at the Melwood house, as they often do, which would include a lot of boogieing down.

And a good night in the apartment, describe that, too.
A bottle of red wine or a pot of Oolong tea, depending on the mood, a Spongebob/Pete & Pete/Adult Swim marathon on the boob tube, and a cat on both sides of me, of course. Perhaps a long, indulgent bubble bath before or after.

Current favorite ethnic food and, if possible, dish.
Indian food is my passion, but I am also rather obsessed with sushi. Other than the aforementioned dish, I'd have to say the spicy makki combo at the New Dumpling House is something I'm almost always in the mood for.

What have you been listening to?
Azure Ray, Bright Eyes, the Faint, Palace, T.A.T.U., Iron & Wine, Dalek, Jurassic 5, Black Heart Procession, Kraftwerk, Love Life.

Was hast you been reading?
Nick Bantock is this crazy guy who writes these books of letters and postcards between two fictitious characters, Griffin and Sabine. Each one gets a little stranger and more surreal, but they're all quite good. I started the first chapter of The Hours the other day, but I don't have that much time to myself to read, really.

What have you been watching on TV?
I don't really watch TV, except for the previously mentioned shows. I'm getting rid of my cable.

Seen any movies lately? What did you think? I saw Adaptation and thought it was too clever for its own good. Didn't care for it much. I saw Gangs of New York, which I liked very much, if just for the spectacle of it all, and I recently rented Scarlet Diva, which is not worth the plastic it's made of.

3: the cocktail party

So you're having a cocktail party: list five A-list guests, other than Jesus, me and your friends...

1. Winona Ryder, but I'd hide the good silverware
2. David Berman, he'd be the introverted observer
3. Morrissey, he'd be the other introverted observer
4. David Bowie, he'd be the life of the party, I'm sure
5. The Crocodile Hunter, he'd be the storyteller, but his wife and kid can't come.

What will be in the stereo?
Etta James in the beginning, the Pixies in the middle, and Can by the end.

Conversation topics will include...
Anything not involving politics, money or our professions. "Don't you have a lovely home, Cindy? Isn't this the most fascinating party? Aren't you delightful?" all that stuff.

How will the evening end?
With a big game of poker/spin the bottle/Scrabble. Haven't decided which would be the most fun.