While avoiding the 20 pages I have left to read for Media Law, I was surfing the internet, or more accurately, I was checking my email 15 times and compulsively checking away messages and profiles, and I stumbled upon blogger.com and I thought to myself "hey, I haven't updated in a long time. Let's go for it" because I talk to myself as if I'm another person... (and that was an extremely long sentence). Anyway, I was thinking about how the title of my blog is rather emo-y, and I'm not really that emo-y, so I should probably change it, but I have no idea what I'd change it to because my URL is the name of the journal (only now that's innacurrate because I changed one of the words, but whatever). Then I was thinking about changing the url, but I didn't know what that would do to my journal, so I guess I'm stuck with it, unless I decided to just make a new one, but I have more thoughts on that that I don't care to type because they're long. So instead of referring to myself in the third person, I opted for just the first person. So now I'm subdued in all my rage.
And I'm sure that was all extremely useful to all of you. I promise I'll post something more interesting later, but now I feel like rambling, because that's what i'm innately good at.
I have 20 more pages left for Media Law to read. I have until Thursday to read it. And it's not just reading, but I have to find two court cases to brief for that class. Not really hard, just tedious and immensely boring. I finally finished the forty pages of history reading that I had to do for this week. And the gajillion pages for Media Crit. But it's okay... don't worry about me getting bored. I'll get a crap load of more reading to do in no time. It never ends the reading. It has become the bane of my existence. I don't know if I've ever been more eager for the end of the semester. Except maybe senior year of high school. That was hell. But that's another story for another day (side note: there are people out in the hallway arguing with each other and generally being loud and annoying).
Also, my Chinese New Year's resolution is to be less of a recluse because this is what I was accused of being recently. I don't deny that fact. I admit it it. And since the first step is admitting you have a problem...
And In Music News: I have discovered James Blunt. I like him. Especially the song "Goodbye My Lover." The song "You're Beautiful" on the other hand is catchy, but contains a line that makes me cringe for reasons yet unknown: "she could tell from my face that I was fucking high." Does this bother anyone else? It seems... trite? Otherwise, the album "Back to Bedlam" is pretty good. I'd recommend it... I guess. But burn it, don't buy it.
Tuesday, January 31, 2006
Saturday, January 21, 2006
I got tagged...
Four jobs you've had in your life:
- Tutor at the Writing Center at school
- Filing for the service department of a car dealership
- and odd/under-the-table kind of jobs
- then I had my internship and I work at the college radio station, but I don't get paid
Four movies you would watch over and over again:
- Someone Like You
- Saved!
- American Beauty
- Garden State
Four places you have lived:
- Houston, TX
- Fort Mill, SC
- Pineville, NC
- South Orange, NJ
Four TV shows you love to watch:
- Lost
- My Name is Earl
- The Office
- Drawn Together
Four places you have been on vacation:
- New York
- Florida
- Europe (Germany, France, Switzerland, Liechtenstein, Austria)
- my house....?
- Seton Hall
- Yahoo -- for TV scheduling, haha
- that's really about it... that i visit daily
Four of your favorite foods:
- quesadillas
- turkey sandwiches... mmm
- mashed potatoes
- pickles
Four places you would rather be right now:
- NYC
- Starbucks... i'm so tired...
- a concert/show
- Charlotte...? i dunno
Four bloggers you are tagging:
- i don't really know anyone on blogger except Breanne, and she's the one who tagged me.
- so no one. if you're reading this: TAG, YOU'RE IT!
Friday, January 13, 2006
Random Things
I guess I don't like to be away from blogging for too long, just in case someone is actually really this (which doesn't really seem to be happening much, but who knows?). Plus, it keeps me semi-sane... Which is probably also the reason that I have a bajillion journals, each for specific topics or types of entries. I like to stay organized, I guess. I have one for dreams, and I have one for writing down things that happen to me that give me any extreme of emotion (i.e., elation, anger, depression, etc.). This one, well this one is for things that I do, or see, or whatever. But I've already explained that in my subtitle thingy. I'm babbling.
Anyway, yeah. The last entry I made was all about the music that I purchased last year. There's a lot of good stuff on there. For example, I'm still reeling from the purchase of Duncan Sheik, Duncan Sheik. I'm in freaking love with it. I'm also in love with another Duncan album, Humming, but I bought that one earlier this year so it wasn't on the list. I'm gonna try to go to his show in NYC in February. It's so exciting (but also on the same night as a Bain Mattox show in the city. Tough decision...). But I think I finally decided on Duncan Sheik. I've never seen him before. Plus, I'm in love with him. Haha.
In other news, I had this really bizarre dream two nights ago. I was at this camp or something and there were a lot of people there, mostly kids and only a couple adults. I was a kid in the dream, but one of the older kids. There were also a lot of babies, and I found myself spending more time with the babies than with the kids my own age. I don't think I liked the other kids my age. But, at one point I joined a game or something of a bunch of people in a tiny room. We were all just sort of hanging around, but then suddenly there was this great commotion and everyone stood up. But then I guess everything was alright, because everyone went to sit down again. I was sitting at a table just sort of staring at it, not paying any attention to anyone, when suddenly I realized that no one was in the room except for me and this other kid. Where the hell did everyone go? We decided to go outside, and when we walked out the door of the room, everyone was standing around the door, waiting for us. Then they started pointing and laughing and calling us stupid because we hadn't realized that they left the room. I started crying and yelling at them that I wasn't stupid and that they were the assholes for making fun of us. And then I ran off (real mature...) and was kinda trying to hide from everyone. I was much more comfortable either by myself or with the babies... people who couldn't/wouldn't judge me.
It was like an awful flashback that never actually happened. But I was suddenly 10 years old again. Please fucking excuse me for being introspective and thoughtful and having the mental maturity of an 18-year-old. I was ten years old when I became tired of drama.
Can you believe I was actually yelled at by a kid my age (around 8 or so) for thinking too much?? I fucking hate dreams like that...
Anyway, yeah. The last entry I made was all about the music that I purchased last year. There's a lot of good stuff on there. For example, I'm still reeling from the purchase of Duncan Sheik, Duncan Sheik. I'm in freaking love with it. I'm also in love with another Duncan album, Humming, but I bought that one earlier this year so it wasn't on the list. I'm gonna try to go to his show in NYC in February. It's so exciting (but also on the same night as a Bain Mattox show in the city. Tough decision...). But I think I finally decided on Duncan Sheik. I've never seen him before. Plus, I'm in love with him. Haha.
In other news, I had this really bizarre dream two nights ago. I was at this camp or something and there were a lot of people there, mostly kids and only a couple adults. I was a kid in the dream, but one of the older kids. There were also a lot of babies, and I found myself spending more time with the babies than with the kids my own age. I don't think I liked the other kids my age. But, at one point I joined a game or something of a bunch of people in a tiny room. We were all just sort of hanging around, but then suddenly there was this great commotion and everyone stood up. But then I guess everything was alright, because everyone went to sit down again. I was sitting at a table just sort of staring at it, not paying any attention to anyone, when suddenly I realized that no one was in the room except for me and this other kid. Where the hell did everyone go? We decided to go outside, and when we walked out the door of the room, everyone was standing around the door, waiting for us. Then they started pointing and laughing and calling us stupid because we hadn't realized that they left the room. I started crying and yelling at them that I wasn't stupid and that they were the assholes for making fun of us. And then I ran off (real mature...) and was kinda trying to hide from everyone. I was much more comfortable either by myself or with the babies... people who couldn't/wouldn't judge me.
It was like an awful flashback that never actually happened. But I was suddenly 10 years old again. Please fucking excuse me for being introspective and thoughtful and having the mental maturity of an 18-year-old. I was ten years old when I became tired of drama.
Can you believe I was actually yelled at by a kid my age (around 8 or so) for thinking too much?? I fucking hate dreams like that...
Sunday, January 01, 2006
Top 10 Albums of 2005
Well, it certainly has been a while. I really, really haven't been up to much since I last left you in the middle of December. I hope everyone's Christmas/Hannukah/whatever was great, and that the New Year was brought in with a bang. I know mine was. Sitting in my living room, alone, sipping/gulping rum and coke and listening to music, then turning on the tv at 11:58 to watch the ball drop then turning it off at 12:01. Back to my booze and music. Good times.
Anyway, now for the purpose of this post. Toward the end of the year, all the entertainment newspapers and whatnot do their Top 10 of (insert year here). Some people I know do that too. So I thought to myself, "i don't really know when things are released... so I can't really do that. But I can make a list of my own." So I have decided to do just that. This is my Top 10 Albums of 2005. This list contains my 10 favorite albums that I have purchased or burned or whatever this year, whether they be fresh out the recording studio, or been sitting in the record store for months or even years.
If I haven't heard it, it's new to me.
Top 10 (Purchased or Otherwise Acquired) Albums of 2005
10. U2, The Best of 1980-1990 (Island 1998) - I have kissed and made up with U2. I used to have something against them, I think it was that song "Beautiful Day." I don't know why I hated them because of that song. But then I heard "Vertigo" and I was all like "ooooooooh. that's right." But then I realized that there were a lot of U2 songs that I enjoyed. And they all seemed to be from the 80s. Luckily for me, there was a "Best of" CD that covered most of those songs. I purchased it. And I enjoy it. The Gap is lessening... dare I say: I like U2. Track Check: #3 With or Without You; #8 I Will Follow
9. The Fray, How to Save a Life, (Sony 2005) - A disc I bought on a whim one trip to NYC. Almost irritatingly Pop-y, but Indie enough for the street-cred, I think. There was a moment there where I thought they were Christian, but they're just so catchy, I'm willing to overlook that fact, if it be true. Track Check: #2 Over My Head (Cable Car)
8. Doves, Some Cities, (Capitol 2005) - This was one of the many CDs on this list recommended to me by the kind staff at Manifest Discs & Tapes in Charlotte, NC. I own no other album like this one. I find this album energizing, the kind of fast rock that makes you bob your head, makes you shake your whole body. Track Check: #2 Black and White Town; #10 Sky Starts Falling
7. Death Cab for Cutie, Transatlanticism, (Barsuk 2003) - This is another album that I should have purchased long ago, but I never got around to it because I was trying to borrow it from a friend to burn it, but that plan fell through. Thus I didn't purchase it until around October of this year. Anyway, it's Indie. What can I say? Though many of the songs sound similar, it's not necessarily a bad thing. It's fun, and the title track is epic. Love it. Track Check: #3 Title and Registration; #7 Transatlanticism
6. Bain Mattox, Prizefighter (2005) - The band's sophomore album. It shows a real growth in the music and lyrics of lead singer of the same name. Though considerably less Pop-y than their first album released three years ago, and with less emphasis on their more eclectic instrumentation including banjo, mandolin and accordion, it definitely has the potential of mainstream appeal. Track Check: #4 Prizefighter; #11 Closer To Me
5. Coldplay, X&Y, (Capitol 2005) - It took me a long time to jump on this bandwagon and I now eat the words I misguidedly muttered back in 2000: I hate Coldplay. I LOVE Coldplay. They are wonderful. This album has the most expansive sound of the three, but it isn't a diminishing trait in the least. Track Check: #4 Fix You; #5 Talk; #11 Swallowed in the Sea
4. Various Artists, Garden State Soundtrack (Sony 2004) - I can gladly say that I had plans to purchase this CD before Friendly Manifest Employee walked by as I held it and told me that it was great. I already knew it would be. The movie instantly became one of my favorites, and the soundtrack is so perfect, you scarcely notice it's there, but at the same time, you're all too aware of it. Track Check: #3 Zero 7 - In The Waiting Line; #5 Colin Hay - I Just Don't Think I'll Ever Get Over You; #12 Frou Frou - Let Go
3. Coldplay, Parachutes, (Capitol 2000) - This first album grabbed me and sucked me in, chewed me and swallowed me up. There's not one track on this album that I hate. Every single song brings back memories of good times. Simple, but up-beat and enveloping. The words embed themselves in your memory. Track Check: #2 Shiver; #3 Spies; #5 Yellow; #6 Trouble
2. Duncan Sheik, Duncan Sheik, (Atlantic/Wea 1996) - This was one of my last purchases of the year. It was a hard sucker to hunt down, beginning in October. Best Buy: nope. Circut City had it on its website: nope. My mom couldn't find it for Christmas. I finally found it 12/29 at... dun dun dun, big surprise: Manifest. I have fond memories and flashbacks of the big single "Barely Breathing." I have also fallen in love with a majority of the other songs as well. It's pretty much all I've listened to for the past 4 days, and it brought me into the new year. It pretty much seems to sum up the 90s for me. I'm in love. Track Check: #1 She Runs Away; #3 Barely Breathing; #6 Serena; #11 Little Hands
1. Damien Rice, O, (Vector Recordings 2003) - This album, again, is a recommendation from that friendly Manifest staff member. Originally I wasn't going to buy it that fateful day back in March, but Mary Ann persuaded me otherwise. One of the best musical decisions of my life. This album has seen me through elation, sadness... mostly sadness. It's a very sad, touching album. It unfortunately reminds me of a depressing time last March, but the greatness of the music and the power of the lyrics enable it to still exist as one of my favorite albums of all time. Track Check: #1 Delicate; #3 The Blower's Daughter; #4 Cannonball; #9 I Remember
Well I hope that was as entertaining for you to read as it was for me to write. And I hope it was perhaps informative and helpful. Until next time...
Anyway, now for the purpose of this post. Toward the end of the year, all the entertainment newspapers and whatnot do their Top 10 of (insert year here). Some people I know do that too. So I thought to myself, "i don't really know when things are released... so I can't really do that. But I can make a list of my own." So I have decided to do just that. This is my Top 10 Albums of 2005. This list contains my 10 favorite albums that I have purchased or burned or whatever this year, whether they be fresh out the recording studio, or been sitting in the record store for months or even years.
If I haven't heard it, it's new to me.
Top 10 (Purchased or Otherwise Acquired) Albums of 2005
10. U2, The Best of 1980-1990 (Island 1998) - I have kissed and made up with U2. I used to have something against them, I think it was that song "Beautiful Day." I don't know why I hated them because of that song. But then I heard "Vertigo" and I was all like "ooooooooh. that's right." But then I realized that there were a lot of U2 songs that I enjoyed. And they all seemed to be from the 80s. Luckily for me, there was a "Best of" CD that covered most of those songs. I purchased it. And I enjoy it. The Gap is lessening... dare I say: I like U2. Track Check: #3 With or Without You; #8 I Will Follow
9. The Fray, How to Save a Life, (Sony 2005) - A disc I bought on a whim one trip to NYC. Almost irritatingly Pop-y, but Indie enough for the street-cred, I think. There was a moment there where I thought they were Christian, but they're just so catchy, I'm willing to overlook that fact, if it be true. Track Check: #2 Over My Head (Cable Car)
8. Doves, Some Cities, (Capitol 2005) - This was one of the many CDs on this list recommended to me by the kind staff at Manifest Discs & Tapes in Charlotte, NC. I own no other album like this one. I find this album energizing, the kind of fast rock that makes you bob your head, makes you shake your whole body. Track Check: #2 Black and White Town; #10 Sky Starts Falling
7. Death Cab for Cutie, Transatlanticism, (Barsuk 2003) - This is another album that I should have purchased long ago, but I never got around to it because I was trying to borrow it from a friend to burn it, but that plan fell through. Thus I didn't purchase it until around October of this year. Anyway, it's Indie. What can I say? Though many of the songs sound similar, it's not necessarily a bad thing. It's fun, and the title track is epic. Love it. Track Check: #3 Title and Registration; #7 Transatlanticism
6. Bain Mattox, Prizefighter (2005) - The band's sophomore album. It shows a real growth in the music and lyrics of lead singer of the same name. Though considerably less Pop-y than their first album released three years ago, and with less emphasis on their more eclectic instrumentation including banjo, mandolin and accordion, it definitely has the potential of mainstream appeal. Track Check: #4 Prizefighter; #11 Closer To Me
5. Coldplay, X&Y, (Capitol 2005) - It took me a long time to jump on this bandwagon and I now eat the words I misguidedly muttered back in 2000: I hate Coldplay. I LOVE Coldplay. They are wonderful. This album has the most expansive sound of the three, but it isn't a diminishing trait in the least. Track Check: #4 Fix You; #5 Talk; #11 Swallowed in the Sea
4. Various Artists, Garden State Soundtrack (Sony 2004) - I can gladly say that I had plans to purchase this CD before Friendly Manifest Employee walked by as I held it and told me that it was great. I already knew it would be. The movie instantly became one of my favorites, and the soundtrack is so perfect, you scarcely notice it's there, but at the same time, you're all too aware of it. Track Check: #3 Zero 7 - In The Waiting Line; #5 Colin Hay - I Just Don't Think I'll Ever Get Over You; #12 Frou Frou - Let Go
3. Coldplay, Parachutes, (Capitol 2000) - This first album grabbed me and sucked me in, chewed me and swallowed me up. There's not one track on this album that I hate. Every single song brings back memories of good times. Simple, but up-beat and enveloping. The words embed themselves in your memory. Track Check: #2 Shiver; #3 Spies; #5 Yellow; #6 Trouble
2. Duncan Sheik, Duncan Sheik, (Atlantic/Wea 1996) - This was one of my last purchases of the year. It was a hard sucker to hunt down, beginning in October. Best Buy: nope. Circut City had it on its website: nope. My mom couldn't find it for Christmas. I finally found it 12/29 at... dun dun dun, big surprise: Manifest. I have fond memories and flashbacks of the big single "Barely Breathing." I have also fallen in love with a majority of the other songs as well. It's pretty much all I've listened to for the past 4 days, and it brought me into the new year. It pretty much seems to sum up the 90s for me. I'm in love. Track Check: #1 She Runs Away; #3 Barely Breathing; #6 Serena; #11 Little Hands
1. Damien Rice, O, (Vector Recordings 2003) - This album, again, is a recommendation from that friendly Manifest staff member. Originally I wasn't going to buy it that fateful day back in March, but Mary Ann persuaded me otherwise. One of the best musical decisions of my life. This album has seen me through elation, sadness... mostly sadness. It's a very sad, touching album. It unfortunately reminds me of a depressing time last March, but the greatness of the music and the power of the lyrics enable it to still exist as one of my favorite albums of all time. Track Check: #1 Delicate; #3 The Blower's Daughter; #4 Cannonball; #9 I Remember
Well I hope that was as entertaining for you to read as it was for me to write. And I hope it was perhaps informative and helpful. Until next time...
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