Ahhh!! I only have 4 minutes before it's the next day, and I forgot to throw on a song of the day! (I've decided this is a good way to keep me interested in actually writing each day... and then I forgot, but you know!)
Today's song: Grace Potter and the Nocturnals "Paris (Oh La La)"
Mt. McKinley
Peace in a photograph- Mt. McKinley
Saturday, April 2, 2011
Might be turning a new leaf
I have been told that I am opinionated. Well, who isn't? And, sometimes you declare your opinion and find out later that someone has 'taken offense' simply because they didn't declare their opinion back. Well, that's damn annoying. In any case, I know I used to be worse when I was in high school; if I didn't like it, I damn well said that- a mild example is my avid dislike of country.
Well, I'm not sure if it's because I'm the ripe old age of 25, or if I generally just am becoming more mild, but I've been deliberately trying to expand my experience/run-ins with different genres of books, movies, music, and food. That being said, I've made huge progress. Today is a great example of this. I went to the movies today with six other girls. Six other girls!! Behavior unheard of before this day. Typically I prefer the company of males, so that was new territory. We went to go see the movie Jane Eyre. This is a book I have read, and actually rather disliked/was bored by the book. I thought seeing it visually would make it much more entertaining, and I have to say, I walked away from the movie feeling pretty good about it.
There are parts that are definitely left out, but I thought they were the boring parts anyway. And, Edward Rochester (Michael Fassbender) was much, much better looking than the character in the book. While it's not a 'edge of your seat' type movie, it was still entertaining. And, those 6 girls and I got chocolates afterwards (anymore stereotypes to play off of??), so it was quite enjoyable. So, I must be turning a new leaf. Who knows what I will do next?!
Well, I'm not sure if it's because I'm the ripe old age of 25, or if I generally just am becoming more mild, but I've been deliberately trying to expand my experience/run-ins with different genres of books, movies, music, and food. That being said, I've made huge progress. Today is a great example of this. I went to the movies today with six other girls. Six other girls!! Behavior unheard of before this day. Typically I prefer the company of males, so that was new territory. We went to go see the movie Jane Eyre. This is a book I have read, and actually rather disliked/was bored by the book. I thought seeing it visually would make it much more entertaining, and I have to say, I walked away from the movie feeling pretty good about it.
There are parts that are definitely left out, but I thought they were the boring parts anyway. And, Edward Rochester (Michael Fassbender) was much, much better looking than the character in the book. While it's not a 'edge of your seat' type movie, it was still entertaining. And, those 6 girls and I got chocolates afterwards (anymore stereotypes to play off of??), so it was quite enjoyable. So, I must be turning a new leaf. Who knows what I will do next?!
Friday, April 1, 2011
Thoughts for the day
One of my current favorite quotes comes from Steven Erikson. In his 9th book of his 10 book series, A Tale of the Malazan Book of the Fallen, he has a passage about evil. Here it is:
"Does evil exist? Is it a force, some deadly possession that slips into the unwary? Is it a thing separate and thus subject to accusation and blame, distinct from the one it has used? Does it flit from soul to soul, weaving its diabolical scheme in all the unseen places, snarling into knots tremulous fears and appalling opportunity, stark terrors and brutal self-interest?
Or is the dread word nothing more than a quaint and oh so convenient encapsulation of all those traits distinctly lacking moral context, a sweeping generalization embracing all things depraved and breathtakingly cruel, a word to define that peculiar glint in the eye -- the voyeur to one's own delivery of horror, of pain and anguish and impossible grief?
But really. Evil is nothing but a word, an objectification where no objectification is necessary. Cast aside this notion of some external agency as the source of inconceivable inhumanity -- the sad part is our possession of an innate proclivity towards indifference, towards deliberate denial of mercy, towards disengaging all that is moral within us.
But if that is too dire, let's call it evil. And paint it with fire and venom."
I tend to find it is a convenient encapsulation that can be dropped on any person whose actions cannot be explained or one does not want to understand- therefore, I do agree with Erikson. What are your thoughts??
On a more light heartened topic, today is finally Friday! I've been expecting a rejection letter from an interview I had last week- haven't gotten it yet, don't want to get my hopes up. And, I have a phone interview set up for next week. That's a good place to start a weekend! Now I want to go kick it and just have fun!
Song for the day: Cory Chisel and the Wandering Sons- Born Again [my friend Colin suggested this local WI band to me, and I really dig this song. The band is from the Appleton area]
Born Again- Cory Chisel and the Wandering Sons
"Does evil exist? Is it a force, some deadly possession that slips into the unwary? Is it a thing separate and thus subject to accusation and blame, distinct from the one it has used? Does it flit from soul to soul, weaving its diabolical scheme in all the unseen places, snarling into knots tremulous fears and appalling opportunity, stark terrors and brutal self-interest?
Or is the dread word nothing more than a quaint and oh so convenient encapsulation of all those traits distinctly lacking moral context, a sweeping generalization embracing all things depraved and breathtakingly cruel, a word to define that peculiar glint in the eye -- the voyeur to one's own delivery of horror, of pain and anguish and impossible grief?
But really. Evil is nothing but a word, an objectification where no objectification is necessary. Cast aside this notion of some external agency as the source of inconceivable inhumanity -- the sad part is our possession of an innate proclivity towards indifference, towards deliberate denial of mercy, towards disengaging all that is moral within us.
But if that is too dire, let's call it evil. And paint it with fire and venom."
I tend to find it is a convenient encapsulation that can be dropped on any person whose actions cannot be explained or one does not want to understand- therefore, I do agree with Erikson. What are your thoughts??
On a more light heartened topic, today is finally Friday! I've been expecting a rejection letter from an interview I had last week- haven't gotten it yet, don't want to get my hopes up. And, I have a phone interview set up for next week. That's a good place to start a weekend! Now I want to go kick it and just have fun!
Song for the day: Cory Chisel and the Wandering Sons- Born Again [my friend Colin suggested this local WI band to me, and I really dig this song. The band is from the Appleton area]
Born Again- Cory Chisel and the Wandering Sons
Thursday, March 31, 2011
Arcade Fire's good deed
Our lives are becoming more and more stuffed with advertisements, and it's annoying me more and more. Whether it's a TV show- like American Idol that runs air time for both Coke and Ford in addition to the long commercial breaks, or a music video from sell-out artists- like Avril Lavigne's music video for "What the Hell." VEVO adds an ad before the video, and then there's 3 brands displayed in the video: Lavigne's perfume, designer Abbey Dawn's clothing line, and Sony cameras.
Not subtle product placement
Anyway, this is something that's very easy to bitch about. And, it's only going to get worse. Then, I got a much needed breath of fresh air this morning when I saw this news article from CNN. Arcade Fire play surprise show in Haiti
With all of the crazy disasters the world has experienced in the recent past, it's easy to forget about how earthquake-battered this country still is. The people of Haiti deserved this great night of entertainment, and Arcade Fire has been able to raise more than 1 million dollars in aid funding for relief projects. This is a much better way to highlight your music. Hurray Arcade Fire! I would call this more than just a 'good deed!'
Not subtle product placement
Anyway, this is something that's very easy to bitch about. And, it's only going to get worse. Then, I got a much needed breath of fresh air this morning when I saw this news article from CNN. Arcade Fire play surprise show in Haiti
With all of the crazy disasters the world has experienced in the recent past, it's easy to forget about how earthquake-battered this country still is. The people of Haiti deserved this great night of entertainment, and Arcade Fire has been able to raise more than 1 million dollars in aid funding for relief projects. This is a much better way to highlight your music. Hurray Arcade Fire! I would call this more than just a 'good deed!'
Wednesday, March 30, 2011
What are friends for? Blogging, apparently.
The creation of this blog may be attributed directly to my friend, Mandy.
She had an odd request for a group of her friends; she said, "Well, here's the story: my sister has convinced me to Blog Every Day in April (BEDA). It's something one of my favorite Young Adult authors started, and this year I'm up for the challenge. We're trying to get a team of fun, interesting people to be a part of our BEDA team."
Naturally, this first attempt to get me to blog did not work. So, she threw in a personalized "You are funny and have interesting stuff to talk about. I think you'd be fun to read. Just saying." Almost the same thing as the group message, but for some reason, it changed my mind.
Thus, I am doing this as a favor for a friend. It's the right thing to do. But, I also hope to dash my prejudices against blogging, and perhaps entertain, enlighten, and/or encourage people along the way.
Oh, and I guess I need to add that not all blogs are created equally and there are many shades of quality, content, and value.
She had an odd request for a group of her friends; she said, "Well, here's the story: my sister has convinced me to Blog Every Day in April (BEDA). It's something one of my favorite Young Adult authors started, and this year I'm up for the challenge. We're trying to get a team of fun, interesting people to be a part of our BEDA team."
Naturally, this first attempt to get me to blog did not work. So, she threw in a personalized "You are funny and have interesting stuff to talk about. I think you'd be fun to read. Just saying." Almost the same thing as the group message, but for some reason, it changed my mind.
Thus, I am doing this as a favor for a friend. It's the right thing to do. But, I also hope to dash my prejudices against blogging, and perhaps entertain, enlighten, and/or encourage people along the way.
Oh, and I guess I need to add that not all blogs are created equally and there are many shades of quality, content, and value.
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