MILK EGGS VODKA [By Bill Keaggy]

So… I never made a video for the hardcover edition back in 2007, but since MILK EGGS VODKA has been re-released in paperback I figured I better get to it. This one’s an experiment in re-use. I edited public domain Prelinger Archive footage from 1950s educational videos, the soundtrack is a song written for $5, and the lists are from my collection. Watch it bigger at Vimeo.com or on YouTube.

About MILK EGGS VODKA: The book is a compilation of abandoned grocery lists that have been discovered in grocery carts, market floors, and parking lots across the country. If we are what we eat, then this book reveals deep truths about the average American (not to mention more mundane truths like a surprising number of people enjoy onions, and, for most people, banana and mayonnaise are very, very difficult words to spell). Separated into chapters (funny lists, sad lists, unhealthy lists, organized lists) the book also includes snarky commentary and delicious recipes created from found grocery lists. Sidebars and food facts round out the menu.

More info about the video:

• www.grocerylists.org, is the original project which turned into MILK EGGS VODKA
• And here’s the book on Amazon
• The story in the song is based on a promo site I made for the hardcover release: www.milkeggsvodka.com
• The awesome song is by Israel279 which cost just $5 on fiverr.com
• I used Prelinger Archives public domain educational films from the 1950s for the video footage
• Here’s some background on how I used fiverr.com to make an entire CD of songs about other peoples’ grocery lists
• And here’s where you can contribute your found lists!

So… check it out, buy it, borrow it, whatever. If you like it, please give it a good review on Amazon. And massive thanks to the hundreds of people who have sent in lists over the years — this is your project too, now!

Cheers,
bk

PS: This is not an April Fools joke.

Another year, another grocerylists.org holiday gift guide.

You know you want that egg and muffin toaster.

Check it out!

Please see this very important announcement over at grocerylists.org.

Offer expires July 1, 2010.

Update, early August: Speaking of expired, I recently learned that post-Kimmell the remaining stock of the book pretty much sold out and Milk Eggs Vodka can now officially be considered “out-of-print.” Obviously it’s still available used, 3rd party, etc. Thank you so much to those of you who bought it, have contributed lists, have linked the site or simply laughed at the collection.

I encourage you to let HOW Books know if you’d like to see a new edition.

Update, late December: Look for a new paperback edition in April 2011! Although you can pre-order it now, so go ahead.

…but not much happens over here these days. The book’s been out for a long time and until there’s a sequel, I doubt you’ll see any new content here at milkeggsvodka.com.

That said, grocerylists.org will always be a happenin’ spot, so head over there — we gave it a new paint job, updated the Ultimatest Grocery List and have been trying some new things.

Cheers!

Here’s what people are saying about the book on Twitter:

• brandyglows : Milk, Eggs and Vodka by Bill Keaggy may be the funniest book. Ever.
• Autoclave239 : Just found a hilarious book that I must read. It’s called “Milk Eggs Vodka: Grocery Lists Lost and Found.”
• fueledbyoreos: I just bought this book called Milk Eggs Vodka. and its basically just full of peoples silly grocery lists. I love it
• Jaykee: note to self : get the book called milk eggs vodka

And here are a few more tweets…

• cclibrarian: I want to read: Milk Eggs Vodka: Grocery Lists Lost a… by Bill Keaggy – http://goodreads.com/review/show/62363305
• bridgetmckenzie: @breann_nicole Haha no. It’s in this cool book of found shopping lists I checked out today, called ”Milk Eggs Vodka”. Really fascinating.
• csheffield: Blogging ‘Milk Eggs Vodka’ http://bit.ly/ihf6O
• ferusprocella: Photo: Amazon.com: Milk Eggs Vodka: Grocery Lists Lost and Found: Bill Keaggy: Books I saw this @ T.J. Max… http://tumblr.com/xoe1wq5te
• juliejulie: At borders in Eugene looking at book called: milk, eggs, vodka grocery lists lost and found by bill keaggy. Hilarious!
• Jojo_katarzyna: Just saw a book that was called ” milk, eggs and vodka ” wtf? Lol
• pcurl: I have to go to the store, but I don’t need onions. Cleaning supplies, beer, milk, eggs, vodka … http://bit.ly/dLU6M http://bit.ly/Owv7D
• paigepresley: @dankcook I think I’m more interested in the titles you purchased on 4/14/2008… Milk Eggs Vodka?
• modernemama: An antidote to tea parties RT @midosmom: @modernemama just learning this tweet stuff, but google milk, eggs, vodka for a good laugh.
• omg_raptor: Milk, Eggs, Vodka: Grocery Lists Lost & Found. I want this book! http://is.gd/t1fe
• Librarian74: Want to read: Milk Eggs Vodka: Grocery Lists Lost and Found by Bill Keaggy – http://tinyurl.com/dxy3t4
• lpdnvr: has read Milk Eggs Vodka: Grocery Lists Lost and Found by Bill Keaggy – http://is.gd/lmqS
• Dani_H: @supa Isn’t ‘Milk, Eggs, Vodka’ great?
• imperialczarina: Milk Eggs Vodka http://tinyurl.com/88dtyd it may just be a coffee table book, but I want it
• mradomski: @hyperboledotzip Not sure what Phish says about a person, we have Creature by Andrew Zukerman, Post Secret and Milk, Eggs and Vodka
• naliniprasanna: want to read: Milk Eggs Vodka: Grocery Lists Lost and Found

And that’s just this year’s tweets!

Get a copy for yourself at Amazon. :-)

Hey, I gave grocerylists.org a facelift. Highlights include:

• It actually looks cool, finally — has the feel of a publication
• Added the 2,000th list
• You can now upload a list to me through the contact form
• All blog posts now categorized
• The lists themselves are faster, easier to browse

Waste some time. Go check it out.

The Ultimatest Grocery List, a downloadable PDF shopping list that I made for the book and have available at grocerylists.org, made it into the sidebar on this Wall Street Journal story about the economy and making lists:

You know times are hard when the shopping list makes a comeback.

As the recession takes hold, consumers who used to shop impulsively are seeking ways to rein in their spending, and many are finding that sticking to a list can help them navigate through stores and limit their purchases.

Yes, I meant to post this a while ago.

Really. You can. Be a fan. On Facebook.

You can also follow me on Twitter: twitter.com/keaggy.

…but here are some blog mentions, just for the freakin’ hell of it.

• Pure, poor desire at Ferus Procella: “I still want this book. Badly. I hate being poor.”
• Big giggles at Shotty, No Blitz!: “…spent half an hour standing in the Humor section laughing through my teeth…”
• Just a mention at Absolut Materialist.
• Look at all these fake reviews! Weird! The best one? … “I fuck this book… it cracks me up!”
• Also noted at shelterric.
• Lickety-List: “I crack up every time I peruse the lists.”
• And finally, as if we didn’t already know it: We’re “odd.”

The holidays are almost here.

The easiest thing to do at this point is to just buy people you love/like/know/owe a copy “Milk Eggs Vodka: Grocery Lists Lost & Found.” No, really. That will take care of it. You’ll be done shopping. They’ll be happy. On Christmas, your drunk uncle (known as a “drunkle”) will page through the book and claim that anybody could collect scraps of paper and other people’s garbage and put them in a book — even him! You’ll point out that he’s a no-good drunk and, in fact, he didn’t collect these found grocery lists or get a book deal or anything even close. There will be yelling and fighting. Glass will be broken and tears will be shed. People will be disowned — banned from all future holiday get-togethers.

But at least you’ll have given the best present of the day, and whoever got it will love you and thank you and finally admit that they never liked that drunkle anyway.

Um, OK. Actually, none of that would happen. Hopefully things will go a bit more like this: An amazing reader email.

PS: If you don’t think they’ll like MEV, then buy them “50 Sad Chairs” instead!

Happy Holidays everyone!

Hey! On Monday, November 17 I will be presenting a portion of my immense collection of found grocery lists at an underground art event in Chicago, and giving a talk about the lists, collecting and my books.

The event is sponsored by He Said/She Said, an exhibition and event series held in the home of Pamela Fraser and Randall Szott. They take turns presenting what amounts to an ongoing conversation about art and culture — Ms. Fraser presenting art and artists, and Mr. Szott sharing the activities of people who work in other contexts (that’s me :-). Together they hope to offer up a fun and thoughtful take on current ideas in art and life.

All the info you need is here: http://upcoming.yahoo.com/event/1327562/

Hope to see you there!

-bk

I probably should mention that my new book is out. It’s published by the weird and wonderful folks at BlueQ. It’s a nice little photo book of the sad chairs of St. Louis. No, really. Discarded chairs in alleys. Abandoned chairs on street corners. Abused chairs on loading docks. You get the picture. You’re gonna like it.

Check out www.50sadchairs.com to see some page samples and (if you want) by it at Amazon or Blueq.com.

C’mon!

Yep. It’s been a while. But didn’t think I would stop blathering on about my book, did you? Check out the latest press/etc mentions…

From an interview with me at Orato:

I saw a story on the BBC the other day about a 300-year-old shopping list that had been found in the UK. For some weird reason, I started Googling “shopping lists” and stumbled upon grocerylists.org, owned and operated by a man named Bill Keaggy. Not only was he running this insanely entertaining website, but he had published a book, Milk Eggs Vodka: Grocery Lists Lost And Found, which featured the very best of his grocery list collection! I found myself more interested in shopping lists than I ever thought I could be, and strangely satisfied, in a voyeuristic kind of way, by this little peep into other people’s lives. Who was this man? I just had to know, so I phoned him – here’s what he told me.

A 2007 books roundup from the Akron Beacon-Journal (now behind the stupid newspaper paywall — boo!):

Authors with area connections came through with fine work this year. Here’s a look at some of the best.

At Lifehacker: Never Forget an Item at the Supermarket:

Never forget to buy anything the next time you stop at the supermarket with the “Ultimatest Grocery list.” …For a comprehensive list that should cover anything you need on your trip to the food mart, this one’s it.

From the Real Life Survival Guide radio show on WNPR:

…it’s just a eight and a half by eleven sheet that has a lot of different products on it, pretty well sorted into the department that you’re gonna find in most grocery stores…

The Ultimatest Grocery List was featured in “Milk Eggs Vodka” and is available on the grocerylists.org site. btw, it’s good to know that the fine students at MIT have access to some quality study materials.

I just wanted to let everyone who bought my book this year know that I donated a percentage of the royalties to a couple great causes:

1. The St. Louis Area Foodbank (feeding struggling single-parent families, the elderly and the working poor)
2. Mentor St. Louis (a school-based youth and literacy organization)

Thank you! I hope everyone has a great holiday season!

A couple weeks ago “Milk Eggs Vodka” was a recommended book over at the Barnes & Noble Review’s ‘The Long List,’ which is a rundown of “50 books, CDS, and DVDs to know about now.”

Nice! Especially the part where they called it “surprisingly but absolutely addictive.”