I've been reading lately, more than just the usual steampunk or manga. It's still amazes me just how much a piece of literature, when written properly, can influence my state of mind. Which is the only reason I felt it necessary to hop back on this supposedly dead platform (blogging)and to compose something longer than the 140 characters I've since grown accustomed to.
Winston Groom's beloved character would have you believe that Life, and yes that is life with a capital L, the portion of life we need to take seriously without any amount of severity, is like a box of chocolates (only spoken in the movie though, not the book). Without knowing what you may be choosing, you end up with that flavor in your mouth, and the experience is yours alone. Sometimes it feels as though this is true, but perhaps Life could be best described in other terms. Recently on suggestion of someone whose reading tastes are pretty much in line with my own suggested I try out a much acclaimed Japanese author who was publishing amazing pieces of postmodern and surrealist fiction when I was still a world-unaware child, Haruki Murakami. In Norwegian Wood, the main character, Toru Watanabe is told that Life is a box of cookies. The reasoning behind this is in that box of cookies there are those cookies you want to eat straight off the bat, and those that are always left behind, which you end up bolting down just to get through the box. To me this seems like more of a truism than Gump could ever have expressed.
So what does this have to do with anything? Ok, when I first wrote that sentence it read "So what does this have to do with me?" which just goes to show you that I guess I relate just about everything beck to my own experiences and life. The best response to this would have to be something along the lines of, That's Life.
Labels: Books, personal, Reflection
Labels: Arts, Blog, humor, music, personal
Labels: Blog, movies, music, personal, work
Labels: politics
Labels: music
Pity Me ;P
Wondermark Lite, I can just see you now...
Oh man, I couldn't let this one pass by. Three of us at work nearly convulsed with laughter after reading this perfect webcomic today. Thank you Wondermark Lite!
Still. I have been twittering this all night long, but I'm on some crazy streak of perfectly chosen songs by using random on itunes. Normally there are good choices, interspersed with great ones, and the occasional meh selection (yes, I still have some stuff I don't care to listen to). Tonight has been epic song, one after another. Best part of it is it's not all of the same things itunes generally plays. I mean it picked up a Gogol Bordello, Stephen Malkmus and the Jicks among the many I don't have a lot of tracks from. It's just been my night.
Burn Rubber, Feed Informer!
Yes, I'm shameless. In other news I'm going to be trying to get permissions to use several bands' songs in a documentary I'm working on, and I expect it might take some time to get all of that sorted out. If you're a music artist, and want to let me use your music in a documentary about intellectual freedom, please contact me. I can use the help, I'm positive of that much.
Bigfoot was pretty much figured to be a fake to begin with, but I'm sad anyway to find out this one's faked. It would be amazing to know that something like that actually exists. And have proof! Eh, if you're going to fake it, don't offer to have DNA tests run on it I guess...
On small pet peeve. People riding in cars with their feet dangling from the window, or up on the dash. It's trashy. Don't do it. If you get in the smallest of wrecks, your airbag will deploy shards from your lower leg and knee straight through your brain. And you'd totally split your pants or something...
From enraged to disheartened. It turns out that Obama felt the need to defend his economic situation. I'm sure this has nothing to do with the polls being so close, and with the statistics that taxes feature heavily on the average voter's mind. No nothing at all. I'm not making this bit long, just know a few things; (a) Obama isn't Bill Clinton and our economy isn't even near the upswing it was in when Clinton made a responsible tax increase, (b) Obama has one of the largest spending platforms known to presidential races. His plan is nowhere near achieving the necessary balance, and (c) Why are all his plans based on a 10-year cycle? Is he special enough to negate the two-term limit set out in the 22nd Amendment?
To me this sounds like another political maneuver, not that Obama does that sort of thing, his platform is one of change ya' know...
Take this album for example. What is it about a lady with a light lilting english accent that makes their song-voice just shy of perfect? Katie White uses that light accent and a range of vocal styles to keep each song on the album We Started Nothing fresh and original. Where most bands seek to homogenize their album with like-styled songs, The Ting Tings provide a 10-song combination of a variety of similar yet unique songs, a refreshing change from the Radioheads and Weezers out there (no offense Radiohead and Weezer!). With catchy guitar loops, club-like beats and all this done by only Katie, on vocals, guitar and bass drum, and her drummer, vocalist and guitarist all-in-one partner, Jules De Martino, you'd expect a underdeveloped sound, but what you're given is a great indie-pop party in your ears. Normally I don't go for albums this pop-y, but Katie and Jules don't disappoint with their catchy riffs and beats and they give plenty of chance for the listener to join in their song with memorable lyrics and light-hearted dance-tunes.
I've been a fan of the Wolf Parade for a while now. Their first album, Apologies to the Queen Mary, released in 2005, was one of the first indie albums I purchased. So needless to say, they had a lot to live up to in their sophomore release. At Mount Zoomer contains much of what endeared me to Spencer Krug's band; rough vocals that belie a lackadaisical attitude, lyrics that show depth and an overall music sound that keeps the album both whimsical and serious all at the same time. However you can tell a difference in sound quality between the first and second albums, and I'm not completely certain that I like the change. It is an improvement in sound quality, but to me that was half the fun of Apologies. I'll definitely be keeping this one in heavy rotation on my playlist, until I've either overplayed it, or figured out what keeps me so interested in it. While I may not have the immediate fondness for Zoomer that I did with Apologies, there is something about the album that prevents me from completely dismissing it. I'd suggest this one for fans of Arcade Fire (part of Zoomer was recorded in the old church where Neon Bible was recorded), and anyone who takes time to listen to their music. This isn't an album that will stick right in your head.
2008 Olympic Logo
Our house smelled perpetually like popcorn, and our tv rarely was off. More shouts than every came from our house, ranging for excited shouts of "WE DID IT" to angered ravings at our poor abused television blaming it for showing a failure. These are how I remember the Olympics of my childhood, exciting, suspenseful, entertaining and overall thrilling. We would commiserate with an athlete who earned a low mark from one of the judges, who we all knew was purposefully scoring all but their own national athletes low. We would vault over one another as if an extra half-inch on our part would help the ski jumper reach their maximum jump height. At the end of the day we would begrudgingly and mercifully turn off our overheated television, wipe our eyes of tears of joy and sadness and head off to bed where we became those athletes we watched throughout the day. To us, the Olympics were our chance to connect with the sporting world (we were big-game watchers only), and even witness some of the lesser advertised sports. The slaloms and horsemanship competitions intrigued us as we had no idea of just what would happen.
I don't remember any of the nuances of political misgivings, protests or any other troubles until the 2002 bomb scare at the Salt Lake Olympics. And now, this year, it seems that the Olympics are going to be all about scandal, political sway and even media censorship. The first concern was about the location of the Olympics, Beijing China, due to their questionable human rights. This has called for rebukes from national leaders, including our own, and has kept a string of protestors just outside of Olympic Stadium for the weeks leading up to today.
It's also come to the surface that China has made a very odd decision in who to hire to take care of the Beijing DRM; SafeNet (better known as MediaSentry). That makes me wonder if we could just export the RIAA to China, and have one big ball of intellectual restriction... Then there are the environmental concerns that have sparked a lot of talk, and have sparked controversy when 4 US cyclists arrived at the games wearing black respiratory masks.
Still, there is some excitement to be had. The games are always thrilling, Beijing is a very unique place to hold the Olympics, and there's a chance there to learn more about the Chinese culture. The buildings the Olympics will be held in are, in large, very unique pieces of architecture, and are surrounded by even more interesting pieces of art. The Bird's Nest the Water Cube and the Egg (not an Olympic venue) are all great examples of functional aesthetics. Another interesting happening this year is the creation the five Fuwa, "good luck dolls" who will serve as the Olympic Mascots. They are playful-looking manga styles dolls; a Fish, a Panda, a Tibetan Antelope, a Swallow and the Olympic Flame, each in one of the colors of the Olympic Rings. Their names, Bei Jing Huan Ying Ni, combine to say "Welcome to Beijing". I think they're great mascots, though some don't like their playful look. They are by far my favorite mascots, towering well above the likes of Izzy and Neve and Gliz.
So I, for one, and curious to see how the games unfold, how hyped the conflicts might actually be, and most importantly, how good the popcorn tastes watching the Opening Ceremony tonight.
