Update:
Spiderman 3 is coming out next Friday! (not Saturday)
I have some pretty high expectations for this third installment of Spiderman. I must confess however, that I was not entirely thrilled with the first two movies.... but they seem to be getting progressively better. I am hoping this trend will continue. And from some of the trailers I've seen, it promises to be a good one!! Check out this exclusive trailer and let me know what you think!
Saturday, April 28, 2007
Wednesday, April 25, 2007
Music and Me Part I
Just the other day while I was on campus, a friend of mine was going to be playing a couple piano pieces for a music class and asked if I wanted to come. Being a big fan of music (especially classical) I couldn't refuse.
Music is a funny thing. The effects of music on my emotions and often times on my thoughts can sometimes be very subtle or outright grueling! I will attempt to describe some of the experiences I had that day.
As she played through her first piece by Chopin, I felt as if I were in a fairy world. Not a cheesy fairy world that inevitably pops up into every ones mind when the word is mentioned, but a far more interesting world. In fact, I think that "interesting" is the only word which describes the experience. It didn't seem to be good or bad....just interesting. Much like the fairy world George MacDonald talks about in "Phantastes" (although not quite so dark).
This all changed as soon as she began her Rachmaninoff piece. The disturbance of Rachmaninoff's soul translated so tangibly through his music it even makes the listener begin to feel his anger and strife. It felt as if my insides were being torn to shreds! I wanted to stand up and shout and run around like a mad man! This of course was a good feeling because it meant that she was playing the song well....weird, but true! :~)
And then finally there was Bach. The man who was forced to play by all the rules. When I listen to Bach, I often feel as though I should be sitting up straight and controlling my breaths for fear of being heard. It is like the feeling one reads in stories about school children who attended the old boarding schools. They have to wear the stiff collars, itchy jackets and uncomfortable trousers while sitting up straight in a hard back chair for hours on end. This is not to say that all of Bach's pieces are so hard to listen too (i.e. Jesu, Joy of a Man's Desire) but the majority does tend to be difficult at times.
This analysis seems to beg the question, "what then is the importance of music and should it be taken lightly?". As of late, I have literally gone on a fast from music. I have not been listening to it while in the car or on my ipod while doing school. Everywhere I look people have headphones in their ears. And it has begun to annoy me!! For example, one day while at school I was in the book store waiting to pay for some scantron forms. The person in front of me had his head phones in and was pretty much dead to the world. I began to watch him as we came closer to the front of the line and wondered if he would take them off. Although I was not surprised, but still just as shocked, he went through the whole purchasing process with his head phones in; never making eye contact with the cashier! Needless to say I was terribly annoyed and was tempted to reach out and pluck the head phones from his ears. (fear not, I was able to restrain myself!)
Music appears to have become such a noise maker for our society that I wonder if we have forgotten what it sounds like. Much less forgotten how to listen to it.
Thus, partly out of spite and partly because I want to relearn how to listen to music, I have been taking a fast from it. And until you actually try it, you won't realize how hard that is! I find myself suffering from withdrawals as I itch so habitually to turn on a CD and make some noise in order to distract myself from myself.
"Distracted from distraction by distraction" ~T.S. Eliot
(That still doesn't make sense, but it sounded like it fit! :~)
What I have learned from this I will explain in the next part of this two part series.
Music is a funny thing. The effects of music on my emotions and often times on my thoughts can sometimes be very subtle or outright grueling! I will attempt to describe some of the experiences I had that day.
As she played through her first piece by Chopin, I felt as if I were in a fairy world. Not a cheesy fairy world that inevitably pops up into every ones mind when the word is mentioned, but a far more interesting world. In fact, I think that "interesting" is the only word which describes the experience. It didn't seem to be good or bad....just interesting. Much like the fairy world George MacDonald talks about in "Phantastes" (although not quite so dark).
This all changed as soon as she began her Rachmaninoff piece. The disturbance of Rachmaninoff's soul translated so tangibly through his music it even makes the listener begin to feel his anger and strife. It felt as if my insides were being torn to shreds! I wanted to stand up and shout and run around like a mad man! This of course was a good feeling because it meant that she was playing the song well....weird, but true! :~)
And then finally there was Bach. The man who was forced to play by all the rules. When I listen to Bach, I often feel as though I should be sitting up straight and controlling my breaths for fear of being heard. It is like the feeling one reads in stories about school children who attended the old boarding schools. They have to wear the stiff collars, itchy jackets and uncomfortable trousers while sitting up straight in a hard back chair for hours on end. This is not to say that all of Bach's pieces are so hard to listen too (i.e. Jesu, Joy of a Man's Desire) but the majority does tend to be difficult at times.
This analysis seems to beg the question, "what then is the importance of music and should it be taken lightly?". As of late, I have literally gone on a fast from music. I have not been listening to it while in the car or on my ipod while doing school. Everywhere I look people have headphones in their ears. And it has begun to annoy me!! For example, one day while at school I was in the book store waiting to pay for some scantron forms. The person in front of me had his head phones in and was pretty much dead to the world. I began to watch him as we came closer to the front of the line and wondered if he would take them off. Although I was not surprised, but still just as shocked, he went through the whole purchasing process with his head phones in; never making eye contact with the cashier! Needless to say I was terribly annoyed and was tempted to reach out and pluck the head phones from his ears. (fear not, I was able to restrain myself!)
Music appears to have become such a noise maker for our society that I wonder if we have forgotten what it sounds like. Much less forgotten how to listen to it.
Thus, partly out of spite and partly because I want to relearn how to listen to music, I have been taking a fast from it. And until you actually try it, you won't realize how hard that is! I find myself suffering from withdrawals as I itch so habitually to turn on a CD and make some noise in order to distract myself from myself.
"Distracted from distraction by distraction" ~T.S. Eliot
(That still doesn't make sense, but it sounded like it fit! :~)
What I have learned from this I will explain in the next part of this two part series.
Tuesday, April 24, 2007
First of Many
Update:
I am offically putting up my first post from my new laptop! It came in the mail the other day while I was at school! Needless to say I was excited to get home and play with it. It is the perfect size and weight for when I am carrying it around school! And what is even better...my neighbor was able to load up Microsoft word and Excel so I do not have to use Microsoft works!
....now if only I could figure out how to use the new Windows Vista!!
I am offically putting up my first post from my new laptop! It came in the mail the other day while I was at school! Needless to say I was excited to get home and play with it. It is the perfect size and weight for when I am carrying it around school! And what is even better...my neighbor was able to load up Microsoft word and Excel so I do not have to use Microsoft works!
....now if only I could figure out how to use the new Windows Vista!!
Wednesday, April 18, 2007
Bomb Drop!
Last night I went to spanish class feeling fine...and perhaps a little excited about going. However, that was not the case as I was heading for the parking lot on my way out!!
My teacher had mentioned earlier this semester that there was going to be an oral exam..she even put it in the syllabus (which is saying a lot compared to my other teachers!). I wasn't so appalled at the idea.... because I assumed I was allowed to read from a paper I would write.
Little did I know....
She decided to unveil all of the gory details that night! Caught off my guard, she said that the oral would be strictly an oral! There is no reading from a paper or even notes...she just wants us to get up in front of the class and ramble on about a subject concerning the spanish culture for 5 minutes!
ME! A gringo! She said she doesn't mind mistakes as long as we are up there for 5 minutes...my question is whether or not she minds a weird awkward silence for 5 minutes. :~)
Hopefully it won't be so bad....seeing as I have a wonderful friend who helps me in my time of need! The saviour for all gringos who dare to delve into the spanish language! And perhaps, once more she will save me from such a terrible predicament (possibly the worst yet!).
Gracias Señora Cuqui! Soy agradecido para su ayuda todos!
My teacher had mentioned earlier this semester that there was going to be an oral exam..she even put it in the syllabus (which is saying a lot compared to my other teachers!). I wasn't so appalled at the idea.... because I assumed I was allowed to read from a paper I would write.
Little did I know....
She decided to unveil all of the gory details that night! Caught off my guard, she said that the oral would be strictly an oral! There is no reading from a paper or even notes...she just wants us to get up in front of the class and ramble on about a subject concerning the spanish culture for 5 minutes!
ME! A gringo! She said she doesn't mind mistakes as long as we are up there for 5 minutes...my question is whether or not she minds a weird awkward silence for 5 minutes. :~)
Hopefully it won't be so bad....seeing as I have a wonderful friend who helps me in my time of need! The saviour for all gringos who dare to delve into the spanish language! And perhaps, once more she will save me from such a terrible predicament (possibly the worst yet!).
Gracias Señora Cuqui! Soy agradecido para su ayuda todos!
Tuesday, April 17, 2007
Finally!
I have finally ordered my first, very own computer!! It is a dell 1405 Lap top with an extra long battery upgrade!! To view the specifics click here. I can't wait to get my hands on it and organize it all! In fact, I might even organize myself.........or not (as if a new computer will improve my lack of time management!)
It is amazing how fast the money I saved for the computer left....immediately after I pushed the "buy" button I went to my bank account and saw that the transaction had happened automatically. It was a little scary to see how instantaneous it all happened. One minute I had the money, the next I did not!
Perhaps now that I am an official owner of a computer, I will be more motivated to blog *laughs to himself*!
It is amazing how fast the money I saved for the computer left....immediately after I pushed the "buy" button I went to my bank account and saw that the transaction had happened automatically. It was a little scary to see how instantaneous it all happened. One minute I had the money, the next I did not!
Perhaps now that I am an official owner of a computer, I will be more motivated to blog *laughs to himself*!
Saturday, April 07, 2007
Update
I would like to take this time to apologize for not putting up any serious posts lately....blogging about real serious issues is a lot of work! However, I do feel an idea brewing that perhaps will one day make it to the blog! In the meantime, check out this blog about leading discussions.
Friday, April 06, 2007
Jack Bauer
Here are 26 reasons why Jack Bauer is so cool!!
1) If you wake up in the morning, it's because Jack Bauer spared your life.
2) Upon hearing that he was played by Kiefer Sutherland, Jack Bauerkilled Sutherland. Jack Bauer gets played by no man.
3) Jack Bauer's favorite color is severe terror alert red. His secondfavorite color is violet, but just because it sounds like violent.
4) Jack Bauer once forgot where he put his keys. He then spent thenext half-hour torturing himself until he gave up the location of thekeys.
5) Jack Bauer got Helen Keller to talk.
6) Jack Bauer killed 93 people in just 4 days time. Wait, that is a real fact.
7) Jack Bauer was never addicted to heroin. Heroin was addicted to Jack Bauer.
8) 1.6 billion Chinese are angry with Jack Bauer. Sounds like a fair fight.
9) Superman wears Jack Bauer pajamas.
10) Jack Bauer doesn't miss. If he didn't hit you it's because hewas shooting at another terrorist twelve miles away.
11) Lets get one thing straight, the only reason you are consciousright now is because Jack Bauer does not feel like carrying you.
12) When you open a can of whoop ass, Jack Bauer jumps out.
13) If Jack says "I just want to talk to him" and that him is you…well amigo, you're screwed.
14) Killing Jack Bauer doesn't make him dead. It just makes him angry.
15) When life gave Jack Bauer lemons, he used them to kill terrorists.Jack Bauer hates lemonade.
16) In grade school, a little boy punched Kimberly Bauer, and Kimberlyran home to tell her dad. That little boy's name? Stephen Hawking.
17) Jack Bauer does not sleep. The only rest he needs is what he getswhen he's knocked out or temporarily killed.
18) No man has ever used the phrase, "Jack Bauer is a sissy" in asentence and lived to tell
19) In kindergarten, Jack Bauer killed a terrorist for Show and Tell.
20) Jack Bauer literally died for his country, and lived to tell about it.
21) As a child, Jack Bauer's first words were "There's no time!"
22) Jack Bauer's family threw him a surprise birthday party when hewas a child. Once.
23) Guns don't kill people, Jack Bauer kills people.
24) Everytime Jack Bauer yells "NOW!" at the end of a sentence, aterrorist dies.
25) If you send someone to kill Jack Bauer, the only thing youaccomplish is supplying him a fresh set of weapons to kill you with.
26) Jack Bauer could get off the Lost island in 24 hours.
(....I really should start watching this show!)
1) If you wake up in the morning, it's because Jack Bauer spared your life.
2) Upon hearing that he was played by Kiefer Sutherland, Jack Bauerkilled Sutherland. Jack Bauer gets played by no man.
3) Jack Bauer's favorite color is severe terror alert red. His secondfavorite color is violet, but just because it sounds like violent.
4) Jack Bauer once forgot where he put his keys. He then spent thenext half-hour torturing himself until he gave up the location of thekeys.
5) Jack Bauer got Helen Keller to talk.
6) Jack Bauer killed 93 people in just 4 days time. Wait, that is a real fact.
7) Jack Bauer was never addicted to heroin. Heroin was addicted to Jack Bauer.
8) 1.6 billion Chinese are angry with Jack Bauer. Sounds like a fair fight.
9) Superman wears Jack Bauer pajamas.
10) Jack Bauer doesn't miss. If he didn't hit you it's because hewas shooting at another terrorist twelve miles away.
11) Lets get one thing straight, the only reason you are consciousright now is because Jack Bauer does not feel like carrying you.
12) When you open a can of whoop ass, Jack Bauer jumps out.
13) If Jack says "I just want to talk to him" and that him is you…well amigo, you're screwed.
14) Killing Jack Bauer doesn't make him dead. It just makes him angry.
15) When life gave Jack Bauer lemons, he used them to kill terrorists.Jack Bauer hates lemonade.
16) In grade school, a little boy punched Kimberly Bauer, and Kimberlyran home to tell her dad. That little boy's name? Stephen Hawking.
17) Jack Bauer does not sleep. The only rest he needs is what he getswhen he's knocked out or temporarily killed.
18) No man has ever used the phrase, "Jack Bauer is a sissy" in asentence and lived to tell
19) In kindergarten, Jack Bauer killed a terrorist for Show and Tell.
20) Jack Bauer literally died for his country, and lived to tell about it.
21) As a child, Jack Bauer's first words were "There's no time!"
22) Jack Bauer's family threw him a surprise birthday party when hewas a child. Once.
23) Guns don't kill people, Jack Bauer kills people.
24) Everytime Jack Bauer yells "NOW!" at the end of a sentence, aterrorist dies.
25) If you send someone to kill Jack Bauer, the only thing youaccomplish is supplying him a fresh set of weapons to kill you with.
26) Jack Bauer could get off the Lost island in 24 hours.
(....I really should start watching this show!)
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