So Ive widely admitted to be a music nerd. And not just "I like going to concerts" or "I have a bunch of random stuff on my Ipod", but more like, I obsess over random bridges or a 2 second snippet of melody that a lead singer did on CD but unfortunately will not do live. Genre, era, style, doesn't really matter. I've had conversations with people Ive just met, and they mention a favorite band, and I'll excitedly breakdown my favorite part of a certain song and they in turn give me a look like I'm a crazy cat lady showing pictures of the sweaters I knitted for Mittens and Fluffkins.
But its pretty ridiculous. Im not so much an elistist that I need to know and like bands people have never heard of. On the contrary, that gets obnoxious at times cause you want people to be familiar with your musical groups of choice, or at least I do, so you can discuss them or appreciate certain songs. For example, the emo/pop-punk/punk scene I was in in HS and college immediately turned on bands whenever they had success. It was just sooooo much cooler in their eyes to like bands that nobody had ever heard of. Don't get me wrong, its awesome to see bands in intimate venues, be ahead of the curve, etc... But I am not going to bash a band just because they got radio play or because people outside of this special bubble have heard their music now. Sure I get bummed when I have to see a band I love in an arena as opposed to the smaller club Im used to seeing them in, but I don't begrudge their success. Hell, I am happy for them. They busted their asses to get there, so I am not going to dislike them unless they give me a reason to (aka putting out recent awful music, Im looking at you No Doubt.)
I guess in this roundabout way, I was trying to make the point that 1) I have a semi-serious music obsession and 2) I am perfectly cool with popular or...*gasp* pop music. I began thinking about this as I was having a legit debate/discussion with a friend about female pop vocalists. Like hardcore breaking down songs and melody lines and how they picked songs/handled certain genres. Now outwardly, this may appear odd or to some of the aforementioned hipsters, abhorrent, but fuck it. I like female vocals alot actually. Its a fantastic change of pace from most of the vocals I listen to and usually add a certain elegant element. For example, when I first found Paramore my sophmore year of college, I was immediately hooked, mostly by the outrageously awesome female vocal element. Anyways, I got to thinking about female pop. Its a genre that I definitely appreciate, but it specific doses. I think its a matter of really really liking what I do like because its littered with so much garbage. Maybe its because my Mom loves Whitney Houston (hell so does my Dad) and that was always playing when I was growing up, i dont know where the affinity came from. And I love creating lists. So without further ado, my top 5 favorite female pop songs of the last 3-5 years (in no particular order)
Kelly Clarkson-Behind These Hazel Eyes: My sister bought Breakaway and I thus decided I would give it a spin cause I always was impressed by Kelly Clarkson vocally. Then I heard this song, and was like, holy shit. She just gets after it. It immediately supplanted Since You Been Gone as the best thing she had ever done. Towards the end, the last chorus, around 2:30 and onward, there are the INSANE vocal double tracks where she is just dominating these highnotes over top of the actual chorus. That to me is how you get it done as a producer.
Alicia Keys-No One: Alright, I really really like and respect Alicia Keys. I own Alicia Keys CDs and think she is an absurd talent and was just what that genre needed when Songs in A Minor came out. But I never really was all about any singular song till I heard this jam. After I heard it on whatever awful MTV awards show she debuted it at, I scoured the internet til I found the demo...and then I played it for a bunch of people. Those who didn't appreciate it drew my ire and when it blew up, I felt satisfied to be ahead of the curve. That run she makes down ward at the start of the second verse, just ridiculous.
Nelly Furtado-Maneater: Nelly Furtado was the first female "popstar" I ever really got into. I still listen to Whoa Nelly. On the Radio was my jam and if I lived in the 80s, I would have plastered posters of her all over my room cause I was, and still probably am, in love with her. Then even though her second cd was baller, she vanished from the collective popular line of sight. When Promiscuous came out, I was mildly amused, but I wasn't too into it. And then I found Maneater. I initially thought it was going to be a cover of this, which would have been amazing cause thats my absolute favorite song of the 80s, but thats another matter. Then I quickly heard it in ever bar I ever entered. And normally that makes me hate songs due to the Tim Tebow effect of overexposure. But oddly I didn't and I still get pumped to hear it. And Nelly Furtado is still a fox.
Lady Gaga-Paparazzi: Lady Gaga is beyond fascinating to me. When I heard Just Dance, I was like meh. But then when I heard Poker Face, I began to delve into this chica a bit more. She is so bizarre, but yet so musically talented. We've been over my respect of her musical abilities, but Ive begun to love the just absolute absurdity of her whole persona. Its become really cool to hate on her lately, but I think its just haters. I'm not old enough to have experienced his heyday, but I bet it was the same for David Bowie. Dude dressed and pretended to be a damn alien for an entire cd. He got insanely popular putting a fresh twist on a common genre and probably was mocked in the meantime. The chorus of this song is just haunting and etheral, and just so damn good. And this video, I mean, so fucked up, but captivating. And she reminds me of Alice in Wonderland, which is never a bad thing. That movie rules. Its gotten to the point where I watch anything Lady Gaga on TV. I'm not sure why but damn, its intriguing. She wins.
Leona Lewis-Better in Time: I put this one last, cause though I have no real ranking, this is just so epically good, that I think it rises like cream. I heard Bleeding Love and thought it was catchy as hell, and I was like who is this Leona Lewis character. So I went to YouTube and found this masterpiece. I mentioned the Whitney Houston thing before, so I was like, this dime has RIDICULOUS pipes and anyone can appreciate that. So I downloaded Spirit, and I'll be damned if I don't listen to that with regularity. And this song? Just awesome, I don't know why, but its fricken sweet. Its just really damn good. Simple but effective lyrically, excellent and understated backing track, all around solid.
So yeah, I'm sure some would scoff at my honest admittance of such "guilty pleasures", but I frankly don't give a damn. My favorite quote from Almost Famous is what I always use when people bash pop music because its on the radio or whatever. Especially all the douche hipsters like my old roommate, I keep alluding to (damn, I was around them too much):
I've studied the entire history of music. Most of the time, the best stuff is the popular stuff. It's much safer to say popularity sucks, because that allows you to forgive yourself if you suck. And I don't forgive myself. Do you?
I'm gonna go listen to Halo now cause I have no shame, do you?
"Thought I couldn't live without you. It's gonna hurt when it heals too, It'll all get better in time"
JW
Tuesday, August 4, 2009
Wednesday, July 29, 2009
Well I guess this is growing up...
Well, where to begin. So much has happened since I began slacking on my blog game.
Hmm, well, last week I turned 24. While many would scoff at the idea of feeling "old" at 24, bear with me for a precious few seconds. Its the first birthday where Ive sort of felt like I was stepping off the high dive into the murky waters of adulthood. My 23rd birthday was the cusp of moving to Chicago and other "adult" activities/landmarks, but I was still just 2 months removed from college graduation and still living at home, sorting out the job situation. Now I mean, 24 is almost halfway through this little 20s phase in my life, and while I still realized I'm "young" per se, there is still that feeling. On the flip side, thats one of my favorite things about being in the "real world" and such. Seeing as I took a satisfying 5 years to explore my way through college, by the time I graduated, I was somewhat of the "elder" statesmen. And I can tell you, that was foreign and quite odd. Being a summer birthday, I was always the youngest in my grade. On my dad's side, I had a bunch of older cousins. I liked being young. Felt like I had potential, tons of stuff ahead of me. Being the older one was odd. I was the oldest of the 4 kids in my family, that was enough. Now being the ripe old age of 24, I feel "old-ish" yet I am constantly reminded by co-workers, family members, and other people I run into, how young I am. Thats nice, suddenly I don't feel all old again. Im the young Turk with hopes and dreams and limitless horizon, hurrah!
So this past week I was in NYC. 2 summers ago, I interned on Long Island. Since my Dad is in the diamond business, his company naturally does ridiculous amounts of work in NYC. Thus, they have an apartment as it ends up being more cost effective than getting a hotel each time. So I had the priviledge of spending most of my weekends in Manhattan. However, I hadn't been back since that summer, so I was pretty stoked to return. My first thoughts were of the variety that I often had when I was there 2 years ago. For such a dynamic, enormous, seemingly impersonal city...sometimes it feels unchanged and oh so familiar. I was there for 30 min and felt like I never left. I saw the same dogs that I'd seen, stuff smelled the same, it was just kind of surreal. Maybe it was because I essentially lived there for 3 months. That also made it cool because I felt no need to specifically DO anything. I didn't need to see tourist attractions or get a ton of activities accomplished. I could just enjoy the city...and drink my face off. The whole bars are open till 4 is just awesome. Its not like Chicago where there are "late-night" bars that are open till 4. I mean, everything is open till 4 so it doesnt make it feel like you were out till some ungodly hour like it does when it get after in the Windy City. For that, I thank you New York. But it also makes me realize a pet peeve of mine: when people compare Chicago and New York. You just can't. There are pluses and minuses to both, but its apples to oranges. New York is a metropolis that you don't find anywhere else in the country, whereas Chicago is a big city. While there are similarities, the differences just make it non comparable. Maybe its just my completely separate love for both cities, idk, I just hate when people like to bash Chicago for the simple reason that its not NYC.
In my ongoing commentary about the CTA, the trip to the Big Apple did bring to light one difference. The Subway utterly kicks the EL's ass. Yes its dirty and mostly underground so its hot as hell and smells funky, but the trains are so much more efficient and on time and you normally don't have some ridiculous walk because the train routes are pretty narrow. I actually find it fast to take the subway at times to certain "far" places in Manhattan as opposed to taking a cab. Thats almost never true in Chicago.
Speaking of cabs, I always complain about Chicago cabs being sheisty and overpriced compared to NYC cabs. Well, my lauding of NYC cabs obviously came around to bite me this trip as I had the worst experiences ever. My cab from the airport tried to charge me $5 more plus a toll I didn't authorize. I had a cab that picked such a purposefully terrible route to get a higher fare as we sat in traffic that I got out and went to the nearest subway. And then my final cab back to the airport, the cabbie picked me up in the middle of Manhattan and then drove all the way to the west side in the complete opposite direction of the airport to "get a better route." No, fuck you sir! I will not authorize this charge of an extra 5 bucks as you drive me on some damn sightseeing tour of the Westside Highway. I definitely spent 10-15 min arguing with cabbies this weekend, which I didn't plan on. Thankfully, I seem to be quite intimidating, or just correct, thus I won everytime. I should be a cab negociator. I bet there is a market for that.
Just as I was thinking maybe I should just start trying to ride buses, the CTA bus system gently took me aside...and punched me right in the face. I get back to O'Hare around 6:15 and land at the brand new runway...which happens to be somewhere in Iowa. So after taxing for about 3 hours, we finally arrive at the gate and I trek over to the Blue Line station. After riding the crusty Blue Line for a good 40 min to the Division stop, I rise up from underground looking forward to getting quickly onto the Division bus and getting home to eat. However, as I stand at the stop, I look westward on Division for the bus and see nothing but tumbleweeds, a distant oasis, and some hipsters wearing flannel and black jeans though its 80 degrees out. So I figure I'll save some time and walk east a bit to the next stop as I wait for the bus to arrive. Well I start walking...and walking...and walking. I walked until a bus finally passed me and I got on...a block and a half from my intersection. As you can see by this excellent map, I treked across half of Chicago. CTA...can suck it. Not to mention, I was walking through an area that I later, when speaking to my mother, referred to as "the land Chicago forgot". There was no sign of life. Im pretty sure animals and bugs avoided this industrial wasteland as even they can't subsist on garbage, rusted metal and used condoms. Despite the fact that I could see the Chicago skyline nearby, I could of swore I was meadering through bombed out Sarajevo. So thank you CTA for having horrible bus schedules on Sunday's around 7 PM allowing me to work up a horrendous sweat while dragging luggage around urban hell.
On a positive note, Sherwood-For the Longest Time is a splendid song. It sounds like pop-punk mixed with the Beach Boys. Oddly enough, it works...and works so well. Ive found myself listening to it around 8 times per workday. And normally that dries songs out like a salted slug, but this stays fresh like a sealed bag of marshmellows. The rest of their catalog is pretty solid. Not as splendid, but definitely worth listening to. Yeah, I think I'm going to go listen to it again...
"Cause in the longest line, The front and the back are the same sometimes..."
JW
Hmm, well, last week I turned 24. While many would scoff at the idea of feeling "old" at 24, bear with me for a precious few seconds. Its the first birthday where Ive sort of felt like I was stepping off the high dive into the murky waters of adulthood. My 23rd birthday was the cusp of moving to Chicago and other "adult" activities/landmarks, but I was still just 2 months removed from college graduation and still living at home, sorting out the job situation. Now I mean, 24 is almost halfway through this little 20s phase in my life, and while I still realized I'm "young" per se, there is still that feeling. On the flip side, thats one of my favorite things about being in the "real world" and such. Seeing as I took a satisfying 5 years to explore my way through college, by the time I graduated, I was somewhat of the "elder" statesmen. And I can tell you, that was foreign and quite odd. Being a summer birthday, I was always the youngest in my grade. On my dad's side, I had a bunch of older cousins. I liked being young. Felt like I had potential, tons of stuff ahead of me. Being the older one was odd. I was the oldest of the 4 kids in my family, that was enough. Now being the ripe old age of 24, I feel "old-ish" yet I am constantly reminded by co-workers, family members, and other people I run into, how young I am. Thats nice, suddenly I don't feel all old again. Im the young Turk with hopes and dreams and limitless horizon, hurrah!
So this past week I was in NYC. 2 summers ago, I interned on Long Island. Since my Dad is in the diamond business, his company naturally does ridiculous amounts of work in NYC. Thus, they have an apartment as it ends up being more cost effective than getting a hotel each time. So I had the priviledge of spending most of my weekends in Manhattan. However, I hadn't been back since that summer, so I was pretty stoked to return. My first thoughts were of the variety that I often had when I was there 2 years ago. For such a dynamic, enormous, seemingly impersonal city...sometimes it feels unchanged and oh so familiar. I was there for 30 min and felt like I never left. I saw the same dogs that I'd seen, stuff smelled the same, it was just kind of surreal. Maybe it was because I essentially lived there for 3 months. That also made it cool because I felt no need to specifically DO anything. I didn't need to see tourist attractions or get a ton of activities accomplished. I could just enjoy the city...and drink my face off. The whole bars are open till 4 is just awesome. Its not like Chicago where there are "late-night" bars that are open till 4. I mean, everything is open till 4 so it doesnt make it feel like you were out till some ungodly hour like it does when it get after in the Windy City. For that, I thank you New York. But it also makes me realize a pet peeve of mine: when people compare Chicago and New York. You just can't. There are pluses and minuses to both, but its apples to oranges. New York is a metropolis that you don't find anywhere else in the country, whereas Chicago is a big city. While there are similarities, the differences just make it non comparable. Maybe its just my completely separate love for both cities, idk, I just hate when people like to bash Chicago for the simple reason that its not NYC.
In my ongoing commentary about the CTA, the trip to the Big Apple did bring to light one difference. The Subway utterly kicks the EL's ass. Yes its dirty and mostly underground so its hot as hell and smells funky, but the trains are so much more efficient and on time and you normally don't have some ridiculous walk because the train routes are pretty narrow. I actually find it fast to take the subway at times to certain "far" places in Manhattan as opposed to taking a cab. Thats almost never true in Chicago.
Speaking of cabs, I always complain about Chicago cabs being sheisty and overpriced compared to NYC cabs. Well, my lauding of NYC cabs obviously came around to bite me this trip as I had the worst experiences ever. My cab from the airport tried to charge me $5 more plus a toll I didn't authorize. I had a cab that picked such a purposefully terrible route to get a higher fare as we sat in traffic that I got out and went to the nearest subway. And then my final cab back to the airport, the cabbie picked me up in the middle of Manhattan and then drove all the way to the west side in the complete opposite direction of the airport to "get a better route." No, fuck you sir! I will not authorize this charge of an extra 5 bucks as you drive me on some damn sightseeing tour of the Westside Highway. I definitely spent 10-15 min arguing with cabbies this weekend, which I didn't plan on. Thankfully, I seem to be quite intimidating, or just correct, thus I won everytime. I should be a cab negociator. I bet there is a market for that.
Just as I was thinking maybe I should just start trying to ride buses, the CTA bus system gently took me aside...and punched me right in the face. I get back to O'Hare around 6:15 and land at the brand new runway...which happens to be somewhere in Iowa. So after taxing for about 3 hours, we finally arrive at the gate and I trek over to the Blue Line station. After riding the crusty Blue Line for a good 40 min to the Division stop, I rise up from underground looking forward to getting quickly onto the Division bus and getting home to eat. However, as I stand at the stop, I look westward on Division for the bus and see nothing but tumbleweeds, a distant oasis, and some hipsters wearing flannel and black jeans though its 80 degrees out. So I figure I'll save some time and walk east a bit to the next stop as I wait for the bus to arrive. Well I start walking...and walking...and walking. I walked until a bus finally passed me and I got on...a block and a half from my intersection. As you can see by this excellent map, I treked across half of Chicago. CTA...can suck it. Not to mention, I was walking through an area that I later, when speaking to my mother, referred to as "the land Chicago forgot". There was no sign of life. Im pretty sure animals and bugs avoided this industrial wasteland as even they can't subsist on garbage, rusted metal and used condoms. Despite the fact that I could see the Chicago skyline nearby, I could of swore I was meadering through bombed out Sarajevo. So thank you CTA for having horrible bus schedules on Sunday's around 7 PM allowing me to work up a horrendous sweat while dragging luggage around urban hell.
On a positive note, Sherwood-For the Longest Time is a splendid song. It sounds like pop-punk mixed with the Beach Boys. Oddly enough, it works...and works so well. Ive found myself listening to it around 8 times per workday. And normally that dries songs out like a salted slug, but this stays fresh like a sealed bag of marshmellows. The rest of their catalog is pretty solid. Not as splendid, but definitely worth listening to. Yeah, I think I'm going to go listen to it again...
"Cause in the longest line, The front and the back are the same sometimes..."
JW
Monday, July 6, 2009
Is this hotel pager friendly?
So last week, I came to the realization that for some reason, when it comes to the homeless, people needing random strangers, people selling random nonsense, I have a giant "I am kind and tolerating of your approach" bullseye on my face. But the thing is, I am not that individual. I have a certain inherent sadness and pity for the homeless, but seeing as I am currently not flush with monies and I value my quarters for the 25c vending and soda machines at work. Thus I cannot contribute to their malt liquor and cheeseburger fund.
Anyways, last Monday, I had no less than 6-8 specific direct approaches towards me, exempting all others around me. When I left my office to take a lunchtime walk, I passed a homeless man who I politely apologized to when he asked me for change. This prompted him to say "Come on man, I can tell you have money on you!" What? Seriously? How did he spot me out in a downtown crowd to accuse of holding back change?! And mind you, I have no dress code at work, so I was rocking a t-shirt, looking positively average. I left my Armani suit and Prada shoes home that day. Well anyways, mildly peturbed, I continue deeper into down coming to a fairly busy corner at Randolph and LaSalle. There a youngish blond girl was excitedly waving to someone. I kind of glanced behind me assuming she saw a friend. Then I realized she was motioning to me. Quickly ascertaining I had no clue who this chica was and noticing she had a clipboard, I shifted to thoughts of "You're kidding me, why me again?"
Girl: "Hey there."
Me: *placating half-smile*
Girl: "How old are you?!"
Me: "Not old enough, sorry."
Girl: "Just come over here!"
Me: "Thats not gonna happen."
I am rarely that brisk, normally giving a smile and a no thank you. But by this point, I'm getting peeved. I understand those people have a job to do (as do the homeless I guess), I was in sales once, I don't derive pleasure from blowing these people off. Yet I keep getting into these situations, and clearly I am going to deny them, so my patience is tested.
Later that night, I go to the Taste of Chicago with some friends. No sooner do I tell them about my unfortunate occurances, which naturally they found humorous (cause if it wasn't me it would be), then I am approached by a gentleman who asks me if I have any extra tickets. Now at the Taste, you buy 12 tickets for $8 and those tickets are your currency to purchase food. 4 tickets gets you some gazpacho and 6 gets you some goat meat with special rice from a Caribbean stand, etc... Well, I politely tell him no as I have not even gotten food yet while also ponder that its a pretty good gig for a homeless dude, or even someone who just feels like mooching some free food. Stand by the exit and pick off some leftover tix. Well over the next hour, I am approached directly, but not my friends, by 3-4 different people within the festival asking for my tix. This included a woman who got about 6 in from my face asking me "Are you using those tickets?" when I had about 8 in my hand. Of course I am, its not like I have 1 or 2. I didn't buy these just to make it rain on you and your friends like dollar bills at Scores. Yes, this woman was in a group of people, so its not like she was just hungry. She was there with a group of people and looking to scrounge up some free morsels...cheap skank. The most disturbing of these was a middle-aged gentleman kind of wandering around a center area awkwardly asking passers-by for tickets. He was wearing khakis and a horrendous button-down, but gave no impression of being impoverished. He was carrying a briefcase and just really acting in an odd fashion. I have no clue what was going on there, but of course he approached me and I chalked it up to the lunacy of my day.
So thinking the schenanigans were over, we left the Taste for the Red Line to travel home. Well as the 3 of us approach the train station, two, umm, urban youths sitting next to the entrance immediately hop up and make a beeline for us. Well, the one did. And by us, I mean...of course, me. Extending his hand, he offers "Hey man, hold up, let me talk to you for a minute." FML...No good can come of this situation, no matter how innocuous, so I just tell him sorry and that I have to catch my train. I am immediately peppered with insults.
"You didn't have to be rude man."
"Cheap ass motherfucker."
"Wearing that blue shirt you fucking faggot."
Just awesome, what a picture perfect ending to a picture perfect day. So all of you out there who are either looking for change, bus fare, donations...please leave me along for like 6 months and then I will have regained my patience and my monetary backing. Then I will be glad to entertain your spiel. Until then, please tell me what I can do facially to convey my lack of desire to hook you up. Thanks.
So other randomness:
-This song is currently my jam and I don't care what sort of social reprecussions it has. I think its baller and I am unashamed of my enjoyment of it.
-"I'm 'a go where I always go; Drinks are on the house,
Whiskey's on the rocks while your sister's on my mouth"
That is my favorite lyric of the moment, it has no deep meaning. Its just stuck in my hand and its pretty happily staying there.
-Frasier is a hilarious show that I don't think my demographic properly appreciates.
-A full year out of college, I have just finally started to master the puke and rally.
-I love Orbit's Sangria Fresca gum. Its delicious.
So on a monthly basis, I choose one of my favorite bands to just listen to repeatedly. I put their cd's in my work playlists in addition to whatever I'm feeling. This month its the Academy Is... Yet another band I started listening to in HS that suddenly appeared everywhere and then by the time I graduated college, on every teen playlist. But I still love this band. They do pop-punk as well as anyone. Their newest cd, Fast Times at Barrington High, pretty solid. Nothing like their debut, but a solid cd nonetheless. Listen to One More Weekend and thank me later. Attention, Same Blood, Almost Here, and Neighbors are also all worth spinning and getting an idea how baller they are.
"You'll go off, you'll forget, you'll grow out of hanging from the edges, breaking off the past..."
JW
Anyways, last Monday, I had no less than 6-8 specific direct approaches towards me, exempting all others around me. When I left my office to take a lunchtime walk, I passed a homeless man who I politely apologized to when he asked me for change. This prompted him to say "Come on man, I can tell you have money on you!" What? Seriously? How did he spot me out in a downtown crowd to accuse of holding back change?! And mind you, I have no dress code at work, so I was rocking a t-shirt, looking positively average. I left my Armani suit and Prada shoes home that day. Well anyways, mildly peturbed, I continue deeper into down coming to a fairly busy corner at Randolph and LaSalle. There a youngish blond girl was excitedly waving to someone. I kind of glanced behind me assuming she saw a friend. Then I realized she was motioning to me. Quickly ascertaining I had no clue who this chica was and noticing she had a clipboard, I shifted to thoughts of "You're kidding me, why me again?"
Girl: "Hey there."
Me: *placating half-smile*
Girl: "How old are you?!"
Me: "Not old enough, sorry."
Girl: "Just come over here!"
Me: "Thats not gonna happen."
I am rarely that brisk, normally giving a smile and a no thank you. But by this point, I'm getting peeved. I understand those people have a job to do (as do the homeless I guess), I was in sales once, I don't derive pleasure from blowing these people off. Yet I keep getting into these situations, and clearly I am going to deny them, so my patience is tested.
Later that night, I go to the Taste of Chicago with some friends. No sooner do I tell them about my unfortunate occurances, which naturally they found humorous (cause if it wasn't me it would be), then I am approached by a gentleman who asks me if I have any extra tickets. Now at the Taste, you buy 12 tickets for $8 and those tickets are your currency to purchase food. 4 tickets gets you some gazpacho and 6 gets you some goat meat with special rice from a Caribbean stand, etc... Well, I politely tell him no as I have not even gotten food yet while also ponder that its a pretty good gig for a homeless dude, or even someone who just feels like mooching some free food. Stand by the exit and pick off some leftover tix. Well over the next hour, I am approached directly, but not my friends, by 3-4 different people within the festival asking for my tix. This included a woman who got about 6 in from my face asking me "Are you using those tickets?" when I had about 8 in my hand. Of course I am, its not like I have 1 or 2. I didn't buy these just to make it rain on you and your friends like dollar bills at Scores. Yes, this woman was in a group of people, so its not like she was just hungry. She was there with a group of people and looking to scrounge up some free morsels...cheap skank. The most disturbing of these was a middle-aged gentleman kind of wandering around a center area awkwardly asking passers-by for tickets. He was wearing khakis and a horrendous button-down, but gave no impression of being impoverished. He was carrying a briefcase and just really acting in an odd fashion. I have no clue what was going on there, but of course he approached me and I chalked it up to the lunacy of my day.
So thinking the schenanigans were over, we left the Taste for the Red Line to travel home. Well as the 3 of us approach the train station, two, umm, urban youths sitting next to the entrance immediately hop up and make a beeline for us. Well, the one did. And by us, I mean...of course, me. Extending his hand, he offers "Hey man, hold up, let me talk to you for a minute." FML...No good can come of this situation, no matter how innocuous, so I just tell him sorry and that I have to catch my train. I am immediately peppered with insults.
"You didn't have to be rude man."
"Cheap ass motherfucker."
"Wearing that blue shirt you fucking faggot."
Just awesome, what a picture perfect ending to a picture perfect day. So all of you out there who are either looking for change, bus fare, donations...please leave me along for like 6 months and then I will have regained my patience and my monetary backing. Then I will be glad to entertain your spiel. Until then, please tell me what I can do facially to convey my lack of desire to hook you up. Thanks.
So other randomness:
-This song is currently my jam and I don't care what sort of social reprecussions it has. I think its baller and I am unashamed of my enjoyment of it.
-"I'm 'a go where I always go; Drinks are on the house,
Whiskey's on the rocks while your sister's on my mouth"
That is my favorite lyric of the moment, it has no deep meaning. Its just stuck in my hand and its pretty happily staying there.
-Frasier is a hilarious show that I don't think my demographic properly appreciates.
-A full year out of college, I have just finally started to master the puke and rally.
-I love Orbit's Sangria Fresca gum. Its delicious.
So on a monthly basis, I choose one of my favorite bands to just listen to repeatedly. I put their cd's in my work playlists in addition to whatever I'm feeling. This month its the Academy Is... Yet another band I started listening to in HS that suddenly appeared everywhere and then by the time I graduated college, on every teen playlist. But I still love this band. They do pop-punk as well as anyone. Their newest cd, Fast Times at Barrington High, pretty solid. Nothing like their debut, but a solid cd nonetheless. Listen to One More Weekend and thank me later. Attention, Same Blood, Almost Here, and Neighbors are also all worth spinning and getting an idea how baller they are.
"You'll go off, you'll forget, you'll grow out of hanging from the edges, breaking off the past..."
JW
Sunday, June 28, 2009
Am I Wrong?
"Well I talk too much to myself
And I turn my back on my faith
It's like glass when we Break
I wish no one in my place
I can't stand I can't see my way
I feel blind On my feet
I can't stay too long
Am I wrong?"
So Ive been pretty much driving myself crazy the last 2 weeks for really no reason what so ever. There is no real rhyme or reason to my angst or frustration, and it all feels pretty much misplaced. I mean, I try to look at it critically, but then it gets even more confusing. And sometimes people can tell, and they ask, "Whats wrong?" And honestly, I don't know what to tell them, cause outwardly I don't know if anything is...
1) Job: I love work. I have absolutely no job security, get paid next to nothing, and there is no guarantee everything is going to work out and I am going to be making it rain in 6 months, a year, whatever. But I still look forward to getting in to the office of everyday and I look at Monday morning with hope and promise instead of dread.
2) Friends: I have a great group of friends that have my pack and prove time and time again why I can count on them and why I am so thankful to have them in my life.
3) Location: Ive wanted to live in Chicago since I was a little kid, and now I am moving into a new place, in a cool new area of the city that will allow me to immerse myself even more into this crazy cool city.
So I mean, I look at 3 of the more important factors in my life and they are all pretty copasetic. For once, I don't have major gripes about the female gender. They still are spell binding and infuriating, but I have a temporary zen and am just letting them, like the rest of life, come at me at whatever pace is decided. But I can't shake this nagging feeling that there is something missing. Like I have the urge to be extraordinary or do something significant besides being a typical employed 23 year old college grad. One blatant factor is monetary. As much as I hate to let it keep coming back, when you work in a job and an industry thats completely centered on money, not having any is a smidge obnoxious. And that in turn makes it a bit hard to be patient. Not saying I need my mansion and my Ferrari right now, but I would love more disgressionary income. You create this faulty mental assumption that being out of college means having the means to do some awesome stuff you couldn't do when you were stretching your summer job money over the next 9 months. So readjusting that idea is a bit grating. I just want to go out and buy shit that Ive had my eye on for months, while instead I'm busy calculating how I am going to get out of the debt I accumulated when I had no income for months. Fuck me.
Maybe thats the problem, to escape the minor annoyances and inconveniences of daily life, I get wistful and expect something earth moving to come along and change the focus of my attention. But thats also tied in with my worry that I am one of those people that gets too bored too easily. I feel like I constantly need to be re-engaged. For example, one of my fears when it comes to relationships is that I get stir crazy. I am not a commitment-phobe persay, but sometimes I wonder if I am, because I like the new, the fresh, the something to watch for around the corner. So some people, when they get into relationships, like to settle in. They get comfortable with the other person and look for that stability. Thats what always shook me. Edges and quirks that initially drew me in get eroded over time, and suddenly the situation has changed and I'm looking at why I am in this in the first place. So Ive tried to pump the brakes a bit on the initial dalliances. I am notorious for falling into infatuation real quick, and then 2 weeks later when the other person has come around, I get the "oh shit I rushed into this" moment. So I need to mature there, and I feel like that could bleed elsewhere in my life. Being more content with the present and fully living in that. I don't know how thats gonna happy, but I'd like to believe I can try. I think thats why work is so fulfilling for me right now. Every day is a complete crap shoot as to whats going to happen, its completely dynamic, its IMPOSSIBLE to get bored. And if you are, you should have never been doing this to begin with.
So i really dont know what to say, I probably just should stop thinking about it so much. Ill have these spells where I am just on autopilot, zoning out cause my mind is going a mile a minute, planning, scheming, thinking, dreaming, etc... and the rest of my faculties are pretty much muted. And people always say when you find it, you'll know it; whether they are talking about the right job, the right relationship, etc... I wonder how that is. And I guess I fear I will be too dense or too preoccupied with stressing about my future to realize when its at my doorstep. So basically I stress about being stressed and worry about worrying about the future. I think I'm a fucking basket case. Reading back over this, it probably makes no real sense and is just the rambling thoughts of someone with an overactive mind. Welcome to my world, take a seat and be patient, we'll get this sorted out eventually...
Luckily, I can still escape into music. That never changes. I have decided the last week to revisit the awesomeness which is the Arctic Monkey's first CD. It never ceases to just jack my mood up a few notches. I still think I Bet That You Look Good on the Dance Floor is one of the best "radio singles" of the last 10 years. That song still blows my mind, its just brilliant. But the intro song, A View From the Afternoon, is what gets me. I bought the CD, put it on in my car, and I honestly replayed that song 3 times before even going any deeper into the CD. There is just something about the changes in tempo, the spring and pep to the chorus, the unsheltered awesome Britishness to the lyrics and melody. I am jealous I am not them, that I am. If your day needs a jolt, these lads will give it to you
"Anticipation has a habit to set you up, for disappointment in evening entertainment but, tonight there'll be some love, tonight there'll be a ruckus yeah..."
JW
And I turn my back on my faith
It's like glass when we Break
I wish no one in my place
I can't stand I can't see my way
I feel blind On my feet
I can't stay too long
Am I wrong?"
So Ive been pretty much driving myself crazy the last 2 weeks for really no reason what so ever. There is no real rhyme or reason to my angst or frustration, and it all feels pretty much misplaced. I mean, I try to look at it critically, but then it gets even more confusing. And sometimes people can tell, and they ask, "Whats wrong?" And honestly, I don't know what to tell them, cause outwardly I don't know if anything is...
1) Job: I love work. I have absolutely no job security, get paid next to nothing, and there is no guarantee everything is going to work out and I am going to be making it rain in 6 months, a year, whatever. But I still look forward to getting in to the office of everyday and I look at Monday morning with hope and promise instead of dread.
2) Friends: I have a great group of friends that have my pack and prove time and time again why I can count on them and why I am so thankful to have them in my life.
3) Location: Ive wanted to live in Chicago since I was a little kid, and now I am moving into a new place, in a cool new area of the city that will allow me to immerse myself even more into this crazy cool city.
So I mean, I look at 3 of the more important factors in my life and they are all pretty copasetic. For once, I don't have major gripes about the female gender. They still are spell binding and infuriating, but I have a temporary zen and am just letting them, like the rest of life, come at me at whatever pace is decided. But I can't shake this nagging feeling that there is something missing. Like I have the urge to be extraordinary or do something significant besides being a typical employed 23 year old college grad. One blatant factor is monetary. As much as I hate to let it keep coming back, when you work in a job and an industry thats completely centered on money, not having any is a smidge obnoxious. And that in turn makes it a bit hard to be patient. Not saying I need my mansion and my Ferrari right now, but I would love more disgressionary income. You create this faulty mental assumption that being out of college means having the means to do some awesome stuff you couldn't do when you were stretching your summer job money over the next 9 months. So readjusting that idea is a bit grating. I just want to go out and buy shit that Ive had my eye on for months, while instead I'm busy calculating how I am going to get out of the debt I accumulated when I had no income for months. Fuck me.
Maybe thats the problem, to escape the minor annoyances and inconveniences of daily life, I get wistful and expect something earth moving to come along and change the focus of my attention. But thats also tied in with my worry that I am one of those people that gets too bored too easily. I feel like I constantly need to be re-engaged. For example, one of my fears when it comes to relationships is that I get stir crazy. I am not a commitment-phobe persay, but sometimes I wonder if I am, because I like the new, the fresh, the something to watch for around the corner. So some people, when they get into relationships, like to settle in. They get comfortable with the other person and look for that stability. Thats what always shook me. Edges and quirks that initially drew me in get eroded over time, and suddenly the situation has changed and I'm looking at why I am in this in the first place. So Ive tried to pump the brakes a bit on the initial dalliances. I am notorious for falling into infatuation real quick, and then 2 weeks later when the other person has come around, I get the "oh shit I rushed into this" moment. So I need to mature there, and I feel like that could bleed elsewhere in my life. Being more content with the present and fully living in that. I don't know how thats gonna happy, but I'd like to believe I can try. I think thats why work is so fulfilling for me right now. Every day is a complete crap shoot as to whats going to happen, its completely dynamic, its IMPOSSIBLE to get bored. And if you are, you should have never been doing this to begin with.
So i really dont know what to say, I probably just should stop thinking about it so much. Ill have these spells where I am just on autopilot, zoning out cause my mind is going a mile a minute, planning, scheming, thinking, dreaming, etc... and the rest of my faculties are pretty much muted. And people always say when you find it, you'll know it; whether they are talking about the right job, the right relationship, etc... I wonder how that is. And I guess I fear I will be too dense or too preoccupied with stressing about my future to realize when its at my doorstep. So basically I stress about being stressed and worry about worrying about the future. I think I'm a fucking basket case. Reading back over this, it probably makes no real sense and is just the rambling thoughts of someone with an overactive mind. Welcome to my world, take a seat and be patient, we'll get this sorted out eventually...
Luckily, I can still escape into music. That never changes. I have decided the last week to revisit the awesomeness which is the Arctic Monkey's first CD. It never ceases to just jack my mood up a few notches. I still think I Bet That You Look Good on the Dance Floor is one of the best "radio singles" of the last 10 years. That song still blows my mind, its just brilliant. But the intro song, A View From the Afternoon, is what gets me. I bought the CD, put it on in my car, and I honestly replayed that song 3 times before even going any deeper into the CD. There is just something about the changes in tempo, the spring and pep to the chorus, the unsheltered awesome Britishness to the lyrics and melody. I am jealous I am not them, that I am. If your day needs a jolt, these lads will give it to you
"Anticipation has a habit to set you up, for disappointment in evening entertainment but, tonight there'll be some love, tonight there'll be a ruckus yeah..."
JW
Monday, June 22, 2009
Who needs running water? Pssh, obviously not me
So I am moving into a new apartment down in Old Town in July. I am pretty freaking excited, but my excitement has crescendoed at a rapid pace in the last month as "renovations" in my building have rendered all the common spaces with an appearnce to that of a bombed out Sarajevo in the mid-90s. I mean, be it the 8 foot by 5 foot hole in the wall in my hallway that is now boarded up like an abandoned warehouse? Or the piles of new and broken drywall taking up most of the lobby? Maybe the plastic tarping cutting a ghetto path through this same hallway since there is dust everywhere and they don't want the mid-40s era carpeting to be damaged. I was talking to a kid in the elevator and he said he has had trouble sleeping and is constantly coughing like he has tuberculosis cause of all the dust on his floor.
And that is just the common areas. In my apartment, everything related to plumbing is FUBAR. My bathroom sink is clogged, and Draino had no effect (maybe I should have just chugged it). One day I flushed my toilet and it kept on flushing...for 3 hours. Both my kitchen sink and shower shoot out random brown water for extended periods of time when I periodically turn them on. And now my shower flat out just doesn't work. It has a flow similar to an old man with an enlarged prostate. And when I contacted my building manager to administer Flomax to said shower? I was told someone will be by within the week. Are you serious?!?! Within the week? So I get to look forward to bathing in water droplets like some emaciated contestant on Survivor for the foreseeable future. My apartment once had an old-school, pre-war charm. Now it feels like its going to be condemned. This move can't arrive soon enough.
Seeing as yesterday was Father's Day, my family came down to Chi-city for the day, which was sweet as I didn't have to drive up 94 to MKE like I always do. We decided to go to the Shedd Aquarium aka The Best Place in the World. So we decided to CTA it up, for adventure's sake, and get on the Red Line down to Roosevelt. Now its an easy trip, you get off at Roosevelt, head due east and BAM, you're there. Well, my mother is one of the most outgoing and social people you will ever meet. So naturally, she starts chatting with people on the train. Well her gregarious nature was noticed by one of the Red Line's many resident crackheads. So as we depart the train, my mom is being approached/chatted up by a woman who I think starred in that leprechaun video. Well as we are trying to get away politely and expediently, I manage to point us due south and we start walking. All of a sudden, I realize that we are well into the South Loop and have walked way too far south, and not east at all. No big deal, except my dad is in a walking splint since he broke his leg a few weeks ago and it was not reacting well to all the walking. So I got a big fat dumbass label on my forehead and gifted my father an awesome inflamed leg for Father's Day. Love you Dad!
The Shedd was amazing per usual, except for the one thing I always neglect to recall when fondly remembering the joy of the Shedd...the horrible little children. Seeing as it was a Sunday afternoon, every exhibit looked a filming of Jon and Kate plus 8...plus another 25. Kids climbing the walls, and tables, and anything with a flat surface. All those cool interactive screens where you can scroll through fish names and facts and such to get an idea of what you are looking at? Pretty much all either malfunctioning due to being treated like a Whack-a-mole or occupied by grubby little beasts with one hand up their nose and the other smacking the LCD. It was a lesson in how not to parent. It was also an awesome unintentional ad for birth control. I could feel all my sperm committing suicide in my body's attempt to provide me with sterility to avoid such pint sized disasters. I literally had a kid pop up from between my arms as I was holding a railing and looking downward, scaring the hell out of me and nearly causing me to swat him like a fly. I did see one father pulling his son off a display and scolding him for acting like a savage. I wanted to go give the dude a hug or a high five or something. He clearly deserved to celebrate Father's Day, while the rest stood idly by like prison guards as the inmates brawl. But fear not, I still had an awesome time and think that fish are still cooler than most girls I knew in college.
So Ive had The Offspring- Half Truism stuck in my head for awhile now. The little rise he does in his voice in the verses "show in your eye-i-eyes" just really makes me happy for some reason. But it also made me realize that they were a band I love that I never really mention. Like everyone has a band or two that they know a million songs from and really crave from time to time, but never mention among their favorite bands and don't really own a CD from. My dad's band of this description? Scorpions. I can't even talk about how awesome that is especially if you know my dad. And I did find an old Scorpions album, but they didn't have ITunes back then, so it still fits. But yeah, ive always loved the Offspring, though I hate Pretty Fly for a White guy. The Kids Aren't Alright is one of the most badass intro riffs of the 90s and its just awesome and upbeat music. Not to mention the lead singer was once a PHD student in Molecular Biology at USC. How nuts is that? Most lead singers of punk bands have advanced degrees in regrettable tattoos and dropping out of High School, so booyah. So go figure out your fav band you never mention and rock out to their catalog.
"Your self-liberation will leave this behind, beyond slings and arrows, that rain on your minds..."
JW
And that is just the common areas. In my apartment, everything related to plumbing is FUBAR. My bathroom sink is clogged, and Draino had no effect (maybe I should have just chugged it). One day I flushed my toilet and it kept on flushing...for 3 hours. Both my kitchen sink and shower shoot out random brown water for extended periods of time when I periodically turn them on. And now my shower flat out just doesn't work. It has a flow similar to an old man with an enlarged prostate. And when I contacted my building manager to administer Flomax to said shower? I was told someone will be by within the week. Are you serious?!?! Within the week? So I get to look forward to bathing in water droplets like some emaciated contestant on Survivor for the foreseeable future. My apartment once had an old-school, pre-war charm. Now it feels like its going to be condemned. This move can't arrive soon enough.
Seeing as yesterday was Father's Day, my family came down to Chi-city for the day, which was sweet as I didn't have to drive up 94 to MKE like I always do. We decided to go to the Shedd Aquarium aka The Best Place in the World. So we decided to CTA it up, for adventure's sake, and get on the Red Line down to Roosevelt. Now its an easy trip, you get off at Roosevelt, head due east and BAM, you're there. Well, my mother is one of the most outgoing and social people you will ever meet. So naturally, she starts chatting with people on the train. Well her gregarious nature was noticed by one of the Red Line's many resident crackheads. So as we depart the train, my mom is being approached/chatted up by a woman who I think starred in that leprechaun video. Well as we are trying to get away politely and expediently, I manage to point us due south and we start walking. All of a sudden, I realize that we are well into the South Loop and have walked way too far south, and not east at all. No big deal, except my dad is in a walking splint since he broke his leg a few weeks ago and it was not reacting well to all the walking. So I got a big fat dumbass label on my forehead and gifted my father an awesome inflamed leg for Father's Day. Love you Dad!
The Shedd was amazing per usual, except for the one thing I always neglect to recall when fondly remembering the joy of the Shedd...the horrible little children. Seeing as it was a Sunday afternoon, every exhibit looked a filming of Jon and Kate plus 8...plus another 25. Kids climbing the walls, and tables, and anything with a flat surface. All those cool interactive screens where you can scroll through fish names and facts and such to get an idea of what you are looking at? Pretty much all either malfunctioning due to being treated like a Whack-a-mole or occupied by grubby little beasts with one hand up their nose and the other smacking the LCD. It was a lesson in how not to parent. It was also an awesome unintentional ad for birth control. I could feel all my sperm committing suicide in my body's attempt to provide me with sterility to avoid such pint sized disasters. I literally had a kid pop up from between my arms as I was holding a railing and looking downward, scaring the hell out of me and nearly causing me to swat him like a fly. I did see one father pulling his son off a display and scolding him for acting like a savage. I wanted to go give the dude a hug or a high five or something. He clearly deserved to celebrate Father's Day, while the rest stood idly by like prison guards as the inmates brawl. But fear not, I still had an awesome time and think that fish are still cooler than most girls I knew in college.
So Ive had The Offspring- Half Truism stuck in my head for awhile now. The little rise he does in his voice in the verses "show in your eye-i-eyes" just really makes me happy for some reason. But it also made me realize that they were a band I love that I never really mention. Like everyone has a band or two that they know a million songs from and really crave from time to time, but never mention among their favorite bands and don't really own a CD from. My dad's band of this description? Scorpions. I can't even talk about how awesome that is especially if you know my dad. And I did find an old Scorpions album, but they didn't have ITunes back then, so it still fits. But yeah, ive always loved the Offspring, though I hate Pretty Fly for a White guy. The Kids Aren't Alright is one of the most badass intro riffs of the 90s and its just awesome and upbeat music. Not to mention the lead singer was once a PHD student in Molecular Biology at USC. How nuts is that? Most lead singers of punk bands have advanced degrees in regrettable tattoos and dropping out of High School, so booyah. So go figure out your fav band you never mention and rock out to their catalog.
"Your self-liberation will leave this behind, beyond slings and arrows, that rain on your minds..."
JW
Tuesday, June 16, 2009
Mother Nature? A word please...
So this has honestly been one of the worst Springs I can recall in a long time. Granted, the last 5 of them, I was a few hundred miles south, so the climate was a bit different, but still. Spring officially ends in less than a week, and I can't recall a stretch of nice weather that lasted more than a day or two. For instance this morning, I check weather.com at around 6:45, find that it is a BALMY 68 degrees, and immediately am pumped that I don't have to wear a jacket to work in the morning for once. Whilst riding the train, the sun is shining a bit and I am getting all ahead of myself planning on maybe doing a little reading on my building's horribly underutilized rooftop deck after work. Well, naturally, I leave work and its raining. I mean, come on. April showers bring May flowers. June showers bring an apathetic outlook on life and an insatiable desire to nap...which I did. Lame. Lets have some fun with analogies.
This year's spring is:
...the fiancée who pushed hard to get you to believe marriage was the right idea, and gradually you came around, against your better judgment, and got damn excited about the idea...then she left you at the alter like f-ing Julia Roberts.
...the delicious bag of peanuts that finally arrives on the plane's snack cart after 2 hours of a flight in which you are in front of a screaming baby and you are absolutely famished...but you are allergic to peanuts and you break into hives and other assorted unpleasantries.
...as much as it pains me to say it, the Cubs every fall.
So spring, you can suck it.
In other random news, I was riding a crowded train home last week and naturally I was wearing my bag since I was coming home from work. Well I accidentally brushed said bag against an older African-American woman's arm as she was sitting. As any sane and calm person would do, she aggressively pushed it as hard as she could and it nearly came off my arm and I stumbled a bit due to the shift in balance. I turned around to apologize and was met by a horrific glare.
"Im sorry, I didn't realize I bumped you, my bad."
Her response?
"You slammed it into my head you selfish idiot. This isn't your personal damn train."
I was so bewildered that I got off at the next stop, Sedgwick, and just waited for the next train. Fuck that noise, I don't need an angry ass BBW trying to beat my ass for accidentally occupying her plus size bubble for a moment. I love the CTA.
In case you hadn't heard, Blink-182 has reunited and a full concert tour is scheduled for the summer. Now I was not a huge Blink fan until much later than most. Enema of the State came out when I was a freshman in HS and to be honest, its my least favorite of all their releases. So Take Off Your Pants... came out a few years later, I liked it much more, so then I picked up Cheshire Cat, Buddha, and Dude Ranch, and then I suddenly understood the buzz. Its so rough, and out of key vocally, but yet so earnest and without pretension, and I think thats whats the best. Though, I don't know how I feel about seeing them in concert now playing songs they wrote 10-15 years ago about girls and bathroom humor when they are in their mid-30s with kids. But hey, as ridiculous as it sounds, they are the equivalent of the Ramones or Iggy and the Stooges for this generation, so rock on. I listened to Reckless Abandon today. That song rules and its pacing is just amazing. Just never lets up, pure musical energy.
"Nothing to hold on to, we'll use this song, to lead you on..."
JW
This year's spring is:
...the fiancée who pushed hard to get you to believe marriage was the right idea, and gradually you came around, against your better judgment, and got damn excited about the idea...then she left you at the alter like f-ing Julia Roberts.
...the delicious bag of peanuts that finally arrives on the plane's snack cart after 2 hours of a flight in which you are in front of a screaming baby and you are absolutely famished...but you are allergic to peanuts and you break into hives and other assorted unpleasantries.
...as much as it pains me to say it, the Cubs every fall.
So spring, you can suck it.
In other random news, I was riding a crowded train home last week and naturally I was wearing my bag since I was coming home from work. Well I accidentally brushed said bag against an older African-American woman's arm as she was sitting. As any sane and calm person would do, she aggressively pushed it as hard as she could and it nearly came off my arm and I stumbled a bit due to the shift in balance. I turned around to apologize and was met by a horrific glare.
"Im sorry, I didn't realize I bumped you, my bad."
Her response?
"You slammed it into my head you selfish idiot. This isn't your personal damn train."
I was so bewildered that I got off at the next stop, Sedgwick, and just waited for the next train. Fuck that noise, I don't need an angry ass BBW trying to beat my ass for accidentally occupying her plus size bubble for a moment. I love the CTA.
In case you hadn't heard, Blink-182 has reunited and a full concert tour is scheduled for the summer. Now I was not a huge Blink fan until much later than most. Enema of the State came out when I was a freshman in HS and to be honest, its my least favorite of all their releases. So Take Off Your Pants... came out a few years later, I liked it much more, so then I picked up Cheshire Cat, Buddha, and Dude Ranch, and then I suddenly understood the buzz. Its so rough, and out of key vocally, but yet so earnest and without pretension, and I think thats whats the best. Though, I don't know how I feel about seeing them in concert now playing songs they wrote 10-15 years ago about girls and bathroom humor when they are in their mid-30s with kids. But hey, as ridiculous as it sounds, they are the equivalent of the Ramones or Iggy and the Stooges for this generation, so rock on. I listened to Reckless Abandon today. That song rules and its pacing is just amazing. Just never lets up, pure musical energy.
"Nothing to hold on to, we'll use this song, to lead you on..."
JW
Monday, June 1, 2009
Funny the way it is, if you think about it
So I recently went home for Memorial Day and was hanging out with my sister and some of her friends. Being 20 years old and clearly not well versed in politics, the arts, and literature such as myself, they were talking, dare I say gossiping, about some others within their little circle of friendship, specifically the interesting dynamic between my sister and her ex. Now my sister and her ex, B, dated for a long ass time. From the end of 8th grade through the beginnings of their freshman year of college last year. As high school breakups normally do, it ended on sketchy terms and their relationship has been strained to say the least. They are cordial and hang out due to their copious amounts of mutual friends, but in the future, I don't see them frolicking in fields of daisies or playfully shoving in each other in a promo for TNT's newest show about best friends. Anyways, they were talking about how ex's can never be friends, too much history, blah blah. The struck me as patently immature and very much indicative of that black and white teen mindset. Its a mentality that never really resonated with me.
Maybe its because I didn't have my first serious relationship till I was 18 and a freshman in college, or maybe because by that time, I had created such a caricature of what I was looking for in a relationship that I couldn't help but be friends with who I was dating, regardless of the situation or outcome. Of the 4 significant relationships Ive been in (dating for 3+ months), I consider two of those ex's some of my closest friends. Now in both situations, it was not break-up and then... *poof*... we were homies.
One of the relationships was a long distance ordeal at the end so we had the, funny enough, benefit of not having to see or speak with each other except via phone or IM or whatever when someone really wanted to have something to say. It kind of eased the cooling off period and then allowed us to kind of test the proverbial friendship waters and enter at our own pace. Then it got to the point where we were talking a couple times a week and got past our history as an awkward point and realized we were invaluable to each other as friends as a result of the 9 month relationship and the transparency such a situation offered.
The second was completely different. Took place at school, break actually occurred just before school reconvened and we had tons of mutual friends and obligations which put us in contact almost daily. To say it was tense and awkward at times is an understatement. It was ugly at points, but again, once you approach the whole situation with the understanding that there is a transition period and it doesn't always have to be this ridiculous, then strangely enough, things improve greatly as the weeks pass. Rarely is one side completely vindicated of any "wrongdoing" (there was no cheating involved in either of these situations) and thus both parties are equal in blame for whatever fallouts occur. So while I felt I was handling everything with grace and poise and maturity, my inability to end a relationship properly at that time in my life probably caused most of the riffs that happened early in the school year. But then again, as in the previous situation, we realized our value as friends and that really helped get on and frankly, I couldn't be happier with how it turned out.
Now this whole little spiel isn't to seem all philosophical and it does seem awfully contrived with the talk of "friendship value" and such, but its more the idea that good friends are hard to come by, its something I value tremendously and deeply as anything, and to let one go for something as trivial, in the grand scheme, as you once dated, seems like a waste. Now extenuating circumstances are of course divorces, infidelity, breaking off of engagements. Thankfully I've never experienced those, so I don't feel qualified to comment for or against anything related to that. I just feel like if you are close enough to date someone for a period of time, you obviously like spending time with them and you have enough in common, it has to stretch past just the romance. You can't date someone you aren't friends with, am I wrong? Well, idk, you could, I dont want to get into that, haha.
But the whole reason I address the question is that Ive found it to be quite a point of contention. Some people either find it completely foreign and abnormal, or are completely turned off or threatened by it. For example, I had a relationship, about 6 months after the second break up I referenced, where the new gf was so completely against any friendship I had with my ex that it became a stressor on the relationship and was one of the reasons for the eventual dissolution of the relationship. And to clarify, at this point, we were both dating other people, and were still starting to explore the whole being good friends thing. It was not a BFF situation where we were going to dinner and spending tons of time 1 on 1. We were simply talking, being cordial, hanging out when mutual friends were together, etc... Well the new gf just couldn't take it. It was not a hatred of my ex, maybe it was jealousy (I don't know of what?), but she just was baffled as to why we were friends. I found nothing wrong with it, and her outrage to be strange, especially since I never put her second to the ex, but who knows. And then recently, this mentioned ex just got out of a pretty long (in college terms) relationship in which we didn't speak much unfortunately. However, upon their break-up, she called me and apologized for the recent distance between us and mentioned how her bf during that time really didn't like the thought of us talking and being friends, so she scaled it back for his sake, and then realized the utter stupidity of it all post break up. And for clarifications sake, this whole time they were dating, they were in Oxford, OH, at Miami...and I was living in Chicago. I wasn't even around?!!? Are people really this insecure and scared? Im not some Lothario who was making an impassioned attempt to get her back, just ridiculous. Add it to the list of relationship issues and problems I never will understand and hopefully can manage to dance around the rest of my romantic life...bah
Speaking of ridiculous, time for some CTA gems. I have compiled my top 5 from my recent blogging absence:
5) Girl on the train today actually:
"If a bitch wants to sell her p****y for cash, thats her damn choice. If a playa is gonna give me some green to tap this, then hell yeah."
Umm, seriously? This is why the Red Line frightens me, cause this shit is normal.
4) I have not been keeping stats, but I imagine I am batting about 85% in terms of winning the fucking "Being the first person chose to sit next to on the entire train, leading to an awkward ass ride home" lottery. I guess I have kind eyes or because I'm thin, but I have no idea. Without fail, whenever people get on the train and there are no open double seats, they make a beeline for me, its absurd...and uncomfortable cause sometimes when I have a rough trading day, the last thing I want is my bubble being awkwardly popped.
3) Couple on the Purple Line home last week. Probably around 19-20, most likely Depaul students. Managed to make out for about 10 min straight from Merchandise Mart to Fullerton. I almost wanted to give them a standing O as they left. I guess the smell of masses of people and flatulence turns some people on.
2) Older woman reading the paper. To her left and directly in front of me, a man of Middle Eastern descent was talking on his phone, probably in Arabic, at a low level, completely non-invasive. She remarks to nobody in particular, but quite audibly:
"Damn towel heads. Always blabbing in Hindu or some shit. Speak fucking English."
Hooray intolerance! This man wasn't wearing a turban or being obnoxious. What an old skank.
1) Finally, a similarly aged couple to the one mentioned below were talking about YouTube videos. The girl excitedly remembers one she had seen but can't remember the title:
Girl: "Have you seen the one about the city in Ohio? Its like talking about how bad it is. I don't know which one, its not Columbus. But its all dirty and broken down, like Gary."
Guy: "Cincinnati?"
Girl: "No, its way worse than that..."
I almost wet myself holding my laughter in. Of course she was talking about the brilliant Cleveland Tourism videos, but her frank and horrible comparison of Cleveland to Gary fucking Indiana was hilarious, only because of the tremendous amount of crap my friends from Cleveland get even before this video.
So Dave Matthews Band's new CD comes out tomorrow. The whole thing is streaming here www.pandora.com/davematthewsband . Give it a listen for sure if you are even a casual fan. Its awesome, but it got me thinking. They were my fav band in early HS and I listened to tons of other stuff in that genre. The Ben Harpers and the like. But then I heard a couple of songs that basically turned me into the pop-punk/emo kid fiend I am today. Like, people always joke about a song "changing your life" but these songs literally did. Turned me on to a completely different scene and got me going to concerts all the time, instead of the DMB show every summer. The one that stands out to me cause I hadn't heard it in awhile, but then I heard a month ago and play it all the time now, is The Juliana Theory-If I Told You This Was Killing Me... I still remember the first time I heard it. When that first line comes blasting in, I was just floored. I was never the same. So thank you TJT, and Brand New, and TBS, and Alkaline Trio for making me the music junkie I am today. But also, thanks DMB for making me love music that wasn't on the radio for the first time.
"Watch your mouth, hold your tongue boy, because you're running out of breath, running out of time before every callous word that you utter, renders you utterly useless..."
JW
Maybe its because I didn't have my first serious relationship till I was 18 and a freshman in college, or maybe because by that time, I had created such a caricature of what I was looking for in a relationship that I couldn't help but be friends with who I was dating, regardless of the situation or outcome. Of the 4 significant relationships Ive been in (dating for 3+ months), I consider two of those ex's some of my closest friends. Now in both situations, it was not break-up and then... *poof*... we were homies.
One of the relationships was a long distance ordeal at the end so we had the, funny enough, benefit of not having to see or speak with each other except via phone or IM or whatever when someone really wanted to have something to say. It kind of eased the cooling off period and then allowed us to kind of test the proverbial friendship waters and enter at our own pace. Then it got to the point where we were talking a couple times a week and got past our history as an awkward point and realized we were invaluable to each other as friends as a result of the 9 month relationship and the transparency such a situation offered.
The second was completely different. Took place at school, break actually occurred just before school reconvened and we had tons of mutual friends and obligations which put us in contact almost daily. To say it was tense and awkward at times is an understatement. It was ugly at points, but again, once you approach the whole situation with the understanding that there is a transition period and it doesn't always have to be this ridiculous, then strangely enough, things improve greatly as the weeks pass. Rarely is one side completely vindicated of any "wrongdoing" (there was no cheating involved in either of these situations) and thus both parties are equal in blame for whatever fallouts occur. So while I felt I was handling everything with grace and poise and maturity, my inability to end a relationship properly at that time in my life probably caused most of the riffs that happened early in the school year. But then again, as in the previous situation, we realized our value as friends and that really helped get on and frankly, I couldn't be happier with how it turned out.
Now this whole little spiel isn't to seem all philosophical and it does seem awfully contrived with the talk of "friendship value" and such, but its more the idea that good friends are hard to come by, its something I value tremendously and deeply as anything, and to let one go for something as trivial, in the grand scheme, as you once dated, seems like a waste. Now extenuating circumstances are of course divorces, infidelity, breaking off of engagements. Thankfully I've never experienced those, so I don't feel qualified to comment for or against anything related to that. I just feel like if you are close enough to date someone for a period of time, you obviously like spending time with them and you have enough in common, it has to stretch past just the romance. You can't date someone you aren't friends with, am I wrong? Well, idk, you could, I dont want to get into that, haha.
But the whole reason I address the question is that Ive found it to be quite a point of contention. Some people either find it completely foreign and abnormal, or are completely turned off or threatened by it. For example, I had a relationship, about 6 months after the second break up I referenced, where the new gf was so completely against any friendship I had with my ex that it became a stressor on the relationship and was one of the reasons for the eventual dissolution of the relationship. And to clarify, at this point, we were both dating other people, and were still starting to explore the whole being good friends thing. It was not a BFF situation where we were going to dinner and spending tons of time 1 on 1. We were simply talking, being cordial, hanging out when mutual friends were together, etc... Well the new gf just couldn't take it. It was not a hatred of my ex, maybe it was jealousy (I don't know of what?), but she just was baffled as to why we were friends. I found nothing wrong with it, and her outrage to be strange, especially since I never put her second to the ex, but who knows. And then recently, this mentioned ex just got out of a pretty long (in college terms) relationship in which we didn't speak much unfortunately. However, upon their break-up, she called me and apologized for the recent distance between us and mentioned how her bf during that time really didn't like the thought of us talking and being friends, so she scaled it back for his sake, and then realized the utter stupidity of it all post break up. And for clarifications sake, this whole time they were dating, they were in Oxford, OH, at Miami...and I was living in Chicago. I wasn't even around?!!? Are people really this insecure and scared? Im not some Lothario who was making an impassioned attempt to get her back, just ridiculous. Add it to the list of relationship issues and problems I never will understand and hopefully can manage to dance around the rest of my romantic life...bah
Speaking of ridiculous, time for some CTA gems. I have compiled my top 5 from my recent blogging absence:
5) Girl on the train today actually:
"If a bitch wants to sell her p****y for cash, thats her damn choice. If a playa is gonna give me some green to tap this, then hell yeah."
Umm, seriously? This is why the Red Line frightens me, cause this shit is normal.
4) I have not been keeping stats, but I imagine I am batting about 85% in terms of winning the fucking "Being the first person chose to sit next to on the entire train, leading to an awkward ass ride home" lottery. I guess I have kind eyes or because I'm thin, but I have no idea. Without fail, whenever people get on the train and there are no open double seats, they make a beeline for me, its absurd...and uncomfortable cause sometimes when I have a rough trading day, the last thing I want is my bubble being awkwardly popped.
3) Couple on the Purple Line home last week. Probably around 19-20, most likely Depaul students. Managed to make out for about 10 min straight from Merchandise Mart to Fullerton. I almost wanted to give them a standing O as they left. I guess the smell of masses of people and flatulence turns some people on.
2) Older woman reading the paper. To her left and directly in front of me, a man of Middle Eastern descent was talking on his phone, probably in Arabic, at a low level, completely non-invasive. She remarks to nobody in particular, but quite audibly:
"Damn towel heads. Always blabbing in Hindu or some shit. Speak fucking English."
Hooray intolerance! This man wasn't wearing a turban or being obnoxious. What an old skank.
1) Finally, a similarly aged couple to the one mentioned below were talking about YouTube videos. The girl excitedly remembers one she had seen but can't remember the title:
Girl: "Have you seen the one about the city in Ohio? Its like talking about how bad it is. I don't know which one, its not Columbus. But its all dirty and broken down, like Gary."
Guy: "Cincinnati?"
Girl: "No, its way worse than that..."
I almost wet myself holding my laughter in. Of course she was talking about the brilliant Cleveland Tourism videos, but her frank and horrible comparison of Cleveland to Gary fucking Indiana was hilarious, only because of the tremendous amount of crap my friends from Cleveland get even before this video.
So Dave Matthews Band's new CD comes out tomorrow. The whole thing is streaming here www.pandora.com/davematthewsband . Give it a listen for sure if you are even a casual fan. Its awesome, but it got me thinking. They were my fav band in early HS and I listened to tons of other stuff in that genre. The Ben Harpers and the like. But then I heard a couple of songs that basically turned me into the pop-punk/emo kid fiend I am today. Like, people always joke about a song "changing your life" but these songs literally did. Turned me on to a completely different scene and got me going to concerts all the time, instead of the DMB show every summer. The one that stands out to me cause I hadn't heard it in awhile, but then I heard a month ago and play it all the time now, is The Juliana Theory-If I Told You This Was Killing Me... I still remember the first time I heard it. When that first line comes blasting in, I was just floored. I was never the same. So thank you TJT, and Brand New, and TBS, and Alkaline Trio for making me the music junkie I am today. But also, thanks DMB for making me love music that wasn't on the radio for the first time.
"Watch your mouth, hold your tongue boy, because you're running out of breath, running out of time before every callous word that you utter, renders you utterly useless..."
JW
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