it's coming back!

So I decided that blogging is probably a good thing for me -- it's going to help keep up my writing skills (ha! as if I have any to begin with), and it's something semi-productive to do while I'm bored, which happens frequently at school (I'm pretty sure that I have moderate to severe ADD). Anyway, to update you on the past 6/7 months that I have been totally absent.... School

is driving me nuts. That pretty much sums up everything. It's been a tough school year, and this last part we just finished was our toughest. But it's over now (thank god)! But of course that cycle starts all over again on Monday. Eh. It's not something I really want to think about now.

So today was the last full day of my spring break. It's been nice to be at home, though I have basically gone to work with my dad every single day of the week, but that's ok -- I don't mind it so much. Today we had dinner at my dad's office and watched "Fantastic Mr. Fox." And it was good. But it seems that every time I walk away from a Wes Anderson movie, I always feel the same. I'm not sure how to describe it -- satisfied but curiously craving more? Whatever that feeling is, I felt it again after watching "Fantastic Mr. Fox." You know what? It might have been

because of their prolific use of the word "cuss." That charmed the pants off me (as did Ash, the token Jason Schwartzman character). I think I just love movies where there is a character who just can't win because I can totally relate. Though, now that I think about it, there are always movies about losers, but I'm not really sure there is ever a clear moral or conclusion at the end. People will always be better, but try your best anyway or settle? Whatever. I'll just stick with: I'm different/unique/special/awesome.

And this is totally off topic, but for some reason, I keep thinking about Dash Snow. Maybe because he just died? Or maybe because everywhere I go in NY, I see his tag or a spray-painted obituaries by his admirers and friends. But I always think about this one polaroid he took. It's nothing spectacular, but it's just stuck in my head:

When I'm always driving at night, I always get a weird chuckle out of broken down signs. Like today, instead of saying "Memorial Hermann," the sign lit up as "Memorial He mann," which I thought was hilarious for some reason. It's probably because I like those kinds of mistakes. Maybe it's the subconscious of the business speaking. I don't know. But it gives things character. The world seems less perfect. It's such a small thing, and you're probably rolling your eyes as you are reading this. But whatever, it's the little things that get to me.

I had another stupid thought, but now I can't remember what it was.

I'm excited about the summer, though. Not the heat part or getting to wear jorts part. But this summer I get to work with a pediatric oncologist. And hopefully (hopefully), I won't screw it up. We'll see.

OH! And I just discovered the UK based Soundway Records. I remember going into a record shop in Charlotte and laying eyes on the raddest cover that I have seen in awhile. And the title was even more appetizing: "Nigerian Disco Funk Special." I WANT TO LISTEN! Fortunately, my sister works for her college radio station, so I got a copy of the "Ghana Special" record. It's pretty fantastic. I don't know -- lately I've been really fascinated by rhythms. I've been perusing whatever bossa nova, afro-pop, and hip-hop I have in my collection. Got to keep the morale up, I suppose.

Anyway, I think that's probably all I have to say for now. Until the next time I get bored, I guess.

Movies galore!

Ok, so my summer is pretty much been obliterated by my sluggishness and fatigue. I have been unusually tired these past two months, but I guess there's also a plus side -- lots of quality time catching up with movies and books, which has been quite satisfying. I recently watched Black Orpheus (Orfeu Negro), which is just beautiful and rhythmically addictive. The bossa nova beats structurally complements and drives the straightforward plot, which is a modern reconstruction of the Orpheus and Eurydice myth in Rio de Janeiro during Carnaval. It's an easy film to get into because the dialogue isn't complicated and you already know the plot, so it's nice to just be along for the ride and the clever twists on the myth.

Strangely enough, I think Black Orpheus may have been my only foreign film so far. Lately, I've been watching a lot of American films from the 1970s, which are interesting because the sixties was such a fascinating decade for me and I really never had thought to look into films from the 1970s. I thought they would be cheesy and too much of a predecessor for soap operas and the terrible 80s films that I grew up with. But much to my surprise, they are well constructed and are creative in their own right.

It started with Roman Polanski's Rosemary's Baby, which was surprisingly convincing in both plot and production. You would think that a plot about a woman carrying the devil's child would be ridiculous, but both the actors and director seem to try and put it into a more realistic context by playing with the psychology of the human mind. Like in one scene, Rosemary seems to be going crazy and so she seeks her old doctor for solace, but unfortunately he, who seems to represent a society that she has been isolated from, does not believe her. This sort of isolation is also explored in other 70s horror films, like The Omen, which stars Gregory Peck. However, it seems to explore the isolation between the world of politics and religion. Of course, having watched these two films, I also watched The Exorcist, though it was a bit harder to believe for me -- a girl's head turning 360 degrees and constantly throwing up? The level of grotesqueness was a bit much for me. But Ellen Burstyn, who was in Requiem for a Dream and Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore, was excellent. Then... Harold and Maude, which is such an enjoyable film, even though a 19 year old sleeps with an 80 year old (the film made even that a lovely thing). And again themes of isolation come about, but this time they are resolved. Unlike the horror films, Harold and Maude make a more optimistic attempt at resolving these feelings. Though considering when it was made, it is a statement to the younger audiences to live more freely and with purpose. It is a film with a lot of things to say, but still it is so charming. Ruth Gordon is simply delightful and hilarious as the jubilant Maude, and Bud Cort with his boyish face is her perfect opposite -- young and obsessed with death.

There have been some other films, but this entry is long enough! I'll update some more stuff later.

summer is going good!

i did it! i'm going somewhere this fall! now to get a job to pay off all the future debts!

Warning: LONG entry...

Apologies for not writing in about a month... Things were busy and then got really busy, particularly in the past two weeks: shows, surprises, interviews -- all of which equals exhaustion. And I still have a ton to do before graduation, which sucks.

Anyway, it seems like these past two weeks have been the most exciting of my senior semester, and I'm kind of bummed that they didn't happen throughout the semester. But nevertheless, I'm thankful they happened.

It starts...

THURSDAY (4.9): Brian Jonestown Massacre show at the Exit/In
Amazing. The band was awesome, the distortions were awesome, the songs were awesome. But the fact that I had a big Latin test the next day and a paper due was not so awesome, and also the crowd was not so awesome... Well just the sucker, who was humping the stereo, and some near-blackout girl, who was also trying to grind the speakers. But seriously that show was awesome, and I can't stop talking about it.

FRIDAY (4.10): FotC & more
Then the next day, there was suppose to be the Flight of the Conchords concert at the Ryman, which since February I had lost all hope in, since tickets were $40 and sold out within like 15 minutes. But then SubPop emails me and says that there are a couple of spots open, and I squeal for like an hour, trying to frantically call everyone I know who are big FotC fans. But at the end of the day, there was really only one spot, so I had to make the phone call and tell everyone that they couldn't go, which sucked. And I ended going to another concert, given by Rene Flemming, which was good, but the five or so encores she gave and the five or so standing ovations the audience gave was not entirely deserved. But I guess I don't regret missing the FotC show. I heard from the scene that the crowd was waaaay too into them, so they were shouting out stuff from the HBO series and other random stuff.

SUNDAY (4.12): Interview
Then that weekend it was off to NY for my (probably) last interview. It was a nice place, but being stuck in a hotel room by yourself with two beds is kind of lonely, and also 2 whole days of traveling sucked a lot. I was so exhausted when I came back on campus.

TUESDAY (4.14): Awkward Award Ceremony
It was uncomfortable hearing how great the student media was, when clearly out newspaper is disorganized and hardly readable due to poor grammar, and the "entertainment magazine" has no idea what is going on culturally.

FRIDAY (4.17): Booksale & beginning of Rites
The library had an awesome sale. I got some interesting books, such as a book called "Aberration of Sexual Life," which was written in 1937. I mainly picked it up to see what the repercussions were of the Victorian Age as well as finding humor in it. I would post one up, but they are pretty dirty...

Then a surprise scholarship (what?!). Then a surprise visit from the Music Director from 2000-2002. He was really nice and had some great advice.

And eventually it was time for some more shows. First up was Okkervil River, which was good overall, but the second half of their set kind of sucked -- I think the energy was gone after awhile. I'm not really sure what happened. I caught the tail end of the Santigold set, which was pretty good -- she was a charismatic performer and her show was fun to watch. Though standing next to the speakers during that set was not a good idea -- the bass was so strong that my internal organs are still rattling around. And then Hugh started grinding on some girl, which was the grossest thing in the world. But then Q-Tip came on stage, and that set was really amazing. He pulled out stuff from his own solo stuff as well as a couple of A Tribe's songs, like Scenario and Bonita Applebaum. It was a really fun set and there was a crazy fan next to me, who was spitting out the lyrics. Then T.I. came out, which I originally was going to see, but I was way too exhausted from the Q-Tip show.

SATURDAY (4.18): Grimeys, DJing, & Rites continued
So the day started early at 9:30, so that we could set up the station's merch booth. We sold a couple of t-shirts then stuck around until about 12:30ish to catch the Avett Brothers' set, which was pretty good. The crowd was really into it and Grimey's was seriously packed from the ground up. Then after being slightly scorched by the sun, Sam and I prepared for our DJing sets at Rites, which was right after Sara Watkins and Black Joe Lewis. Though we were next to the stage and couldn't see the artists, the Black Joe Lewis set seemed to be pretty entertaining and they had a couple of pretty good, down-and-dirty soul songs. It was nice to see that there are still people who take stuff from that era to heart and continue to keep it alive. Then I DJed and played some Queen, Madonna, Blondie, and David Bowie -- it was a pretty 80s set -- then it was Grand Ole Party, which was a lot less interesting than I expected, though the singer was also the drummer, which I guess is rare. Then it was time for N.E.R.D. -- which was a crazy show. They played a great set, but the crowd got really out of control. And considering that Rites is an excuse for Frats and Soros to get totally smashed, it is probably not a good idea to instigate 3 mosh-pits, crowd surfing, and fist fights. It was a crazy show, and after being elbowed quite hard in the sternum by some jerk in front of us, Sam had to pull us out of the crowd. But we stayed safe from a distance and when it finally came time to the Flaming Lips, we snuck our way up a little ways. And although it started raining midway, the Flaming Lips show was still really great -- bright lights, confetti, streamers, a huge projection of Wayne Coyne's nostrils, a proposal, Teletubbies, a Madonna cover, sing-a-longs to Yoshimi, She Don't Use Jelly, and Do You Realize? Yup, it was pretty magical...



All in all, everything has been going great these past two weeks, but now the work has caught up, and I have so many papers to write and presentations to give... I can't wait for graduation when my undergrad crap can be left behind...

good things --

The 'real' world is soon approaching. None of this jam-band frat mentality will ever draw contempt from my heart ever again (!!!) -- hooray! Anyway, since I've been whining so much in my other entries, this one will be dedicated to the good things I got from my four years here -- and in no particular order...

1. Music/WRVU: I love the station, and I guess the reason why I'm so angry (see previous entry) about things is that I really want it to do well, and I really want it to uphold its services to listeners, that is letting good music that hardly ever gets heard get heard. I mean, that's what college radio is all about, isn't it? A lot of bands are really wonderful and they should be heard! I'm sad that I only have like 10 or so shows left. I don't know what I'll do every week now...

2. Classical stuffz: Classics is awesome. I just wish I got started on my major sooner. I regret not being able to take all the classes that our department here offers, like Akkadian, which was supposed to be offered this semester, but I guess not enough interest was generated. Anyway, it's a subject that I think is important to understand a lot of things -- I mean the culture of the Greeks, Romans, Egyptians, Babylonians, and their neighbors has ultimately informed our own. It's so INTERESTING. And I guess I'll just have to continue translating random stuff from school like Horace's Odes and the Ars Amatoria, which I suggest everybody to read because it's hilarious!

3. Concerts: I'm just really excited about the Flaming Lips (!!!!) -- whoa!!! And it just almost makes up for the fact we didn't get to go to SXSW, though I totally missed the Flight of the Conchords concert (tickets sold out so quickly -- ARG!!)

4. HBO: I won't have HBO at home or ever, probably. But I like watching the aforementioned Flight of the Conchords, and of course, Sam is addicted to Big Love. Also they have some pretty good movies on -- Channel 27 introduced me to Waiting for Guffman, which I still find hilarious...

5. Nashville (specifics): Thank God for Grimey's, the Great Escape, the Belcourt, Pancake Pantry, Bookman/Bookwoman, Fido's, Korea House, Trader Joe's, the Downtown Presbyterian Church ('cuz it looks like the temple at Karnak), the music venues, JJ's, etc.... I only wish I brought I bike so I could go even further, instead of having to ride the bus.

6. The University's Library: It's given me a chance to catch up on my list of books/films/music, which is endless, but still -- I made a dent (kind of). Now that I'm about to graduate, I might have to spend some money on netflix or start buying the movies...

7. Never become an alcoholic/skank: I learned way too much in my first week as a freshman -- and I mean from others. Man, they sure acted like fools. It was ridiculous...

8. New Words to my Vocabulary: It's mostly 'sexual' slang, but now I understand a lot of Chris Rock jokes and most of the dirty jokes on the Daily Show! And that's thanks to Sam, the pervert. Just kidding. He's not a pervert -- he just grew up around them. Just kidding again. You just learn these words as middle schoolers, though clearly I didn't because I grew up around other Asian kids.

9. Ma friendz: I like them very much and am very glad I met them, though I'm sad they are mostly all gone now, scattered around various parts of the country. But we shall meet once again!! (once Bethany marries some boy -- so hurry up, Bethany!).

10. Sam: I'm just very glad to have met him. He's funny, and I like him a lot.

11. Book Learnin': I like to learn, and I hope to continue learning (?!?!!) next year. We'll see...

I hope I'm not forgetting anything. I'll talk more about the things that have been on my mind, but I feel like, at the moment, I should talk about something good.

Hope all is well!

Oh, Radio...

So as some of you (Bethany + Kristie, my sole & faithful readers) may know, I work at a radio station .... for 'fun,' or at least I thought so at the beginning. Now, don't get me wrong, I don't dislike it -- in fact, the reason why I got into it was because I like music [A LOT] and the idea of getting to explore/share different genres/bands/songs/etc with listeners and meeting people, who were equally excited about music as me, was the ultimate lure. And I love DJing: the people at the station know what they are doing (Kels, Randy, and Pete are the nicest fellows ever, and Ken Berryhill is so charming) and the listeners (usually) are great.

But the music director thing, I'm more ambivalent towards, particularly this past year. It was mostly personal issues like with the media board. They took away SXSW from me, and after Sam told me, I just started crying (I had been looking forward/working hard towards the trip for 2 years). And then things started looking quite dismal on the indie musical frontier -- I was looking for a good records and only few came my way. It was, admittedly, disappointing in that music for me (perhaps from being jaded by listening to so many bands that are trying to sound like the Franz Ferdinand, who in turn sound like the Fire Engines, or the Arctic Monkeys, who in turn take a lot from the Strokes) was starting to become predictable and unsatisfying as an art and general enjoyment -- I guess, that's why my show is so schizophrenic, as Pete had once told me. I'm always trying to search for something new and interesting. I also reckon that's why I like modern art so much because it's so immediately and directly different. Anyway, I'm starting to ramble...

Getting back to the point -- As the months of being in this position dwindle, I'm starting to think about all the things I have done here and my experiences. Did listeners discover new bands from us? Do they even still tune into our station like they used to -- do we still have that credibility? And most of all does music now truly lack depth, which brings up even more complicated questions that I'm not even going to get into? For now, I guess, I'll just continue to sift through bins filled with music submissions and new arrivals, and hope for the best.

Art-ttttt

It's awesome. Here's a few that I'm particularly interested in right now.

Francis Bacon: A tortured soul, who doesn't believe in God. He was a very interesting person, and I remember the first time I heard of him was from a oncologist, who really admired the tormented souls in his work. Anyway, this website (courtesy of Tate Online) has a really neat interactive room with his works. It has explanations as well, so it is a great introduction to Francis Bacon.

Hy Hirsch: Avant-garde filmmaker/cinematographer and does wonderful electronic work with shapes and colors in his videos. Though because he didn't like much of his own work, it's difficult to know and understand the true breadth of his art and style. Here is a sample (courtesy of Ubu).

Dan Flavin: He is an installation artist that works primarily with fluorescent lights in a very minimal way. He utilizes (and sometimes enhances) shapes of rooms and the colors (and limitations) of the lights to create beautiful pieces. However, it's much better to see it in person than on a computer screen or a photograph -- for instance....
Jeff Koons: He's always kind of been a favorite of mine, though I don't exactly agree with his 'Made in Heaven' series (if you are curious, by all means, look it up -- but I have to warn you, if sexually explicit images offend you, DON'T GO!). I was lucky enough to see 'Pink Panther' at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Chicago. I like his work because a lot of it incorporates Pop Culture, familiar shapes/objects, and kitsch in a charming way, but his pieces still say a lot. He can be considered mainstream, but he still manages to remain on the outside of things. And I think he just had a couple of pieces installed on the roof of the Met:

There are a ton of other artists that are on my list, but I'll save those for another day....