Dearest readers, my apologies for not posting, especially considering my promise at the end of the last post. As I mentioned, last weekend was pretty awesome. This most recent weekend wasn't too shoddy, either.
Starting with the Friday after my last post, we had a really great last football game. The seniors in marching band got recognized in a big ceremony thing, and it was quite impressive. We also did well on our new entrance to the show.
The following morning, we had our big regional marching competition. On the way there we took two school buses, divided by "Freshman-Sophomore" and "Junior-Senior". Now, I'm a sophomore, putting me on the first bus, but Gabby is a Junior, putting her on the second. I'm not too big on the people in my grade or the freshman class anyway, so I decided I really didn't want to ride the first bus. I went to Geurbe and said, "My class and the freshman class both kind of suck. Can I ride the other bus?" She rolled her eyes, sighed, and said, "Fine, Drew." Yet again, it's proven that asking for things often gets them for you.
We did pretty well with our actual performance, getting an overall rating of 2, with the best possible being 1 and the worst 4. Our showmanship was amazing, and my nearby friends and I really rocked the dance moves on the song "Born To Hand Jive". The audience went crazy during that song, and it was great to hear them start cheering and applauding.
After I got home from the competition, I lazed around the house for a while. That night, my mom's friend Joe was taking me to a haunted house. It's a tradition for us to go to them each year around this time, because I think they're really fun but my mother starts to hyperventilate as soon as she gets inside of one. We went to the same one as last year, because it was very well-made and quite terrifying. However, upon arriving at the farm where it was, we discovered the barn it was in had burned down last December. The owners were still doing a hay ride, and had built a makeshift "fog maze" for those who didn't want to go on the hay ride. it was impossible to just walk away, especially after the lady told us that all the profits were going towards getting a new barn built. The fog maze was OK, considering the circumstances. It was really just a maze, that three teens in costumes followed you through. It wasn't terribly scary, as you were mostly left to your own devices.
Actually, getting through the exit was terrifying. Joe saw the doorway leading out and walked right out. When I tried to follow, however, a girl in costume jumped in my way and started screaming, "Wrong way, Morgan!!!" (In retrospect, it was a mistake to wear my varsity jacket with my name on the back in glowing white letters). I tried to explain that Joe had the keys to the car, but somehow that didn't sink into her zombie brain. Eventually, I gave up and said, "OK, I'll just stay in the maze. Can I have a costume and work here?" She just stared at me like I was the crazy one. I headed back into the maze, but my path was blocked by another dude in costume. There was really loud music playing outside of the maze, and the guy started dancing to it. The girl appeared on my other side and began dancing as well. I figured, "Eh, might as well have fun," and began dancing myself. When I did, the girl shrieked, "GET OUT!!" and finally moved out of my way. Perhaps they knew dancing among peers was one of my worst fears?
The next day, Gabby and I went to see Easy A. It was pretty good, although a bit cliche. I still really enjoyed it, partly because Emma Stone played the lead role. We had the theater almost to ourselves, with only one other group of teens in it. I had a lot of fun, and it was Gabby and my first "date" that had nothing to do with school.
Well, I hate to say this, but it doesn't look like I have the room or the time to blog about this most recent weekend. Rest assured, I intend to, because the events that occurred were of epic proportions. I got in a fight that resulted in a bloody lip and fear of lost teeth! Don't judge me yet, however, because you haven't yet heard the full story. Bet you can't wait!
Monday, October 25, 2010
Wednesday, October 13, 2010
Sunday In Chicago
Hey everyone - sorry about not getting this one up sooner. We didn't get home until 11:30 on Sunday, and since then I haven't been able to go through the pics from the trip. However, I'm stuck in a B&N Starbucks for an hour and a half, so nothing can stop me now!
On Sunday, we woke up super-early to go watch the race. It started at 7:30, and we were by the 20th mile. I was amazed at how soon the wheelchair racers went by - they were super fast! The elite runners weren't far behind, either. After them, everyone was looking worn out. The 19th, 20th mile area is where most people hit the wall, and you could tell. Some of the runners were sobbing as they walked by, and most of them were limping. It was really hot that day, which only made things worse.
After we watched the race for a while, my mom decided she was hungry. We were in a very Mexican neighborhood, and a church nearby was running a concession stand. I had to go get my mom food, which just didn't turn out well. Doing something like that in a city, where everything moves really fast, would have been hard enough if everyone was speaking English. At first I couldn't place my order right, then I couldn't tell which order was mine. The lady taking the money spoke English pretty well, but the cook serving the food spoke nothing but Spanish. I tried to take someone else's order on accident, then had to go back and figure out where the forks were. All in all, it was just super-duper stressful.
After watching the race for a while longer, we went to brunch. The place we went was a hipster haven, but they had really good food. I got a potato and corn scramble, with tots and toast. Their tater tots weren't Napoleon Dynamite style cylinders; they were huge fried spheres, that you practically had to eat with a fork and knife! We watched more of the race from the front window of the restaurant, and were glad not to be out there.
We went to a bakery to pick up cupcakes, which was sweet because it was a 'punk-rock bakery". They had screen prints of famous album covers, millions of band stickers, etc. So far, I've had those same cupcakes for breakfast every day. They're quite delicious, so it's all good.
That was pretty much the end of the trip. Unfortunately, most of the pictures I had planned on posting aren't on the computer yet, so those will have to wait.
In other news, I got my varsity jacket! It's pretty sweet, even though my friends have all told me it goes against almost everything I stand for. I don't really care, because it's sweet.
This weekend is going to be jam-packed with fun, so you can definitely expect a post! Football game Friday, marching competition Saturday followed by haunted housing, and then a trip to the movies with Gabby. Going to be an awesome weekend!
On Sunday, we woke up super-early to go watch the race. It started at 7:30, and we were by the 20th mile. I was amazed at how soon the wheelchair racers went by - they were super fast! The elite runners weren't far behind, either. After them, everyone was looking worn out. The 19th, 20th mile area is where most people hit the wall, and you could tell. Some of the runners were sobbing as they walked by, and most of them were limping. It was really hot that day, which only made things worse.
After we watched the race for a while, my mom decided she was hungry. We were in a very Mexican neighborhood, and a church nearby was running a concession stand. I had to go get my mom food, which just didn't turn out well. Doing something like that in a city, where everything moves really fast, would have been hard enough if everyone was speaking English. At first I couldn't place my order right, then I couldn't tell which order was mine. The lady taking the money spoke English pretty well, but the cook serving the food spoke nothing but Spanish. I tried to take someone else's order on accident, then had to go back and figure out where the forks were. All in all, it was just super-duper stressful.
After watching the race for a while longer, we went to brunch. The place we went was a hipster haven, but they had really good food. I got a potato and corn scramble, with tots and toast. Their tater tots weren't Napoleon Dynamite style cylinders; they were huge fried spheres, that you practically had to eat with a fork and knife! We watched more of the race from the front window of the restaurant, and were glad not to be out there.
We went to a bakery to pick up cupcakes, which was sweet because it was a 'punk-rock bakery". They had screen prints of famous album covers, millions of band stickers, etc. So far, I've had those same cupcakes for breakfast every day. They're quite delicious, so it's all good.
That was pretty much the end of the trip. Unfortunately, most of the pictures I had planned on posting aren't on the computer yet, so those will have to wait.
In other news, I got my varsity jacket! It's pretty sweet, even though my friends have all told me it goes against almost everything I stand for. I don't really care, because it's sweet.
This weekend is going to be jam-packed with fun, so you can definitely expect a post! Football game Friday, marching competition Saturday followed by haunted housing, and then a trip to the movies with Gabby. Going to be an awesome weekend!
Saturday, October 9, 2010
Chicago: Day Two
Day 2 of being in Chicago! To start off the day, I got up around 7:30 in the morning (way too early for a Saturday, especially when no one is forcing me to get up). Christ made chocolate chip pancakes for breakfast, which were awesome. Who's that, you're asking? Oh, just a friend. Yeah, I'm friends with Christ. Pretty cool, huh?
My mother, her friend Rachel, Rachel's infant and I went downtown for a while, which was fun. We went for a walk through Millennium and Grant Parks, and narrowly avoided being trapped in a country music festival. Fortunately, all we had to hear was the drummer and bassist warming up.
My mom and I went into the "Fine Arts' building on State St., mostly because it looked cool. There was a sign out front advertising a used book store on the second floor, but it was closed when we checked it out. The building seemed to be full of music students heading to and from various symphonic instrument lessons. While we were waiting for a herd of them to clear out of the stairwell, one of the kids slipped on the bottom step and landed on the neck of his cello. It was in a case, but from the way the neck of the instrument looked, he definitely broke it. My mom now thinks I'm a curse to classical instruments everywhere.
We went to Old Navy, which was quite an experience. This particular establishment was three stories, and the bottom floor (women's) was a total feeding frenzy. They had a big $16 sale going on, which we totally took advantage of. My mom, the infant and I abandoned Rachel in the chaos downstairs, and went to look for cool clothes for me. I found a really nice looking pair of black corduroy skinny jeans, for the crazy price of $16. Buying clothing at that store for full price would just be foolish, they have such insane markdowns sometimes.
We headed to a place my mom found on her Blackberry that had Chicago-style hotdogs. It was in this nasty cafeteria, but the food itself was awesome. I got a gyro, and shared some chili fries with everyone (except the infant). After we finished eating, my mom pointed out a lady changing a baby on a table. I felt a bit queasy after seeing that, trust me.
We picked up some Chicago popcorn, then took the El home. A little while later, we swung by a huge, supermarket size liquor store, then stopped by a Mexican party store. I got a glass bottle of Pepsi imported straight from Mexico there! Now I'll never be able to drink regular Pepsi again...
The rest of the evening is going to be pretty low-key. The Michigan vs. State game is on TV, and my mom is making some kind of soup meal for dinner. tomorrow, we'll be watching the marathon and cheering people on, then driving home. Of course, you can expect a post about that when it happens!
My mother, her friend Rachel, Rachel's infant and I went downtown for a while, which was fun. We went for a walk through Millennium and Grant Parks, and narrowly avoided being trapped in a country music festival. Fortunately, all we had to hear was the drummer and bassist warming up.
My mom and I went into the "Fine Arts' building on State St., mostly because it looked cool. There was a sign out front advertising a used book store on the second floor, but it was closed when we checked it out. The building seemed to be full of music students heading to and from various symphonic instrument lessons. While we were waiting for a herd of them to clear out of the stairwell, one of the kids slipped on the bottom step and landed on the neck of his cello. It was in a case, but from the way the neck of the instrument looked, he definitely broke it. My mom now thinks I'm a curse to classical instruments everywhere.
We went to Old Navy, which was quite an experience. This particular establishment was three stories, and the bottom floor (women's) was a total feeding frenzy. They had a big $16 sale going on, which we totally took advantage of. My mom, the infant and I abandoned Rachel in the chaos downstairs, and went to look for cool clothes for me. I found a really nice looking pair of black corduroy skinny jeans, for the crazy price of $16. Buying clothing at that store for full price would just be foolish, they have such insane markdowns sometimes.
We headed to a place my mom found on her Blackberry that had Chicago-style hotdogs. It was in this nasty cafeteria, but the food itself was awesome. I got a gyro, and shared some chili fries with everyone (except the infant). After we finished eating, my mom pointed out a lady changing a baby on a table. I felt a bit queasy after seeing that, trust me.
We picked up some Chicago popcorn, then took the El home. A little while later, we swung by a huge, supermarket size liquor store, then stopped by a Mexican party store. I got a glass bottle of Pepsi imported straight from Mexico there! Now I'll never be able to drink regular Pepsi again...
The rest of the evening is going to be pretty low-key. The Michigan vs. State game is on TV, and my mom is making some kind of soup meal for dinner. tomorrow, we'll be watching the marathon and cheering people on, then driving home. Of course, you can expect a post about that when it happens!
Friday, October 8, 2010
A Well Earned Trip
I'm blogging from Chicago! Pretty sweet, huh? I totally skipped school to drive down this morning and spend the weekend. Of course, this weekend is the Chicago Marathon, which is how my mom "justifies" this trip. Marathon or not, this city is awesome!
The drive here was fun, considering it was five hours on the road. We arrived around 1:30 (Chicago time) and dropped our bags off at my mom's friends' house where we're staying. After that was all taken care of, we hopped on the city bus and headed to the convention center where the race expo is. Even though we aren't running it, expos are always fun to go to. Lots of free food, and good deals on running stuff like clothes.
After taking the bus back home, I came to the conclusion that I'll never be able to depend on public transportation on a regular basis. Waiting for the bus, we actually witnessed a gang-related thing of some kind. I'm not totally sure what was going down, but two thugs were met by a third thug in a car (that parked right in front of the freaking bus stop!) and they flashed each other gang signs. Fortunately, the bus showed up quickly. The ride back home was interesting, and not in a good way. The bus was totally packed, and I had to stand for a while. I don't mind giving up my seat for someone, but it is pretty tough to stay upright while in motion. Then this tool with a cell phone got on, and proceeded to give parents on the bus plenty of reason to cover their children's ears. I was really glad to get off the bus, is what I'm pretty much saying.
We hung out at my mom's friends' place for a while, watching their new infant play. I read most of that time, and was totally zoned out of any conversation that occurred. Apparently, it was decided that we would go to eat at an Italian/organic restaurant near Wicker Park called Crust. The place was full of hipsters, but the food was awesome. Actually, we ate in an enclosed outdoor area, which was nice. The table next to us had a dog sitting at it, which I found pretty weird. We ordered a bunch of thin-crust pizzas, and I had a very tasty root beer. The pizza was incredibly delicious, and it was really high quality.
Well, I think I'm getting up early-ish tomorrow, so I'm finishing up this post. No clue what we're doing with our day, but since it's in Chicago, it will definitely be fun!
The drive here was fun, considering it was five hours on the road. We arrived around 1:30 (Chicago time) and dropped our bags off at my mom's friends' house where we're staying. After that was all taken care of, we hopped on the city bus and headed to the convention center where the race expo is. Even though we aren't running it, expos are always fun to go to. Lots of free food, and good deals on running stuff like clothes.
After taking the bus back home, I came to the conclusion that I'll never be able to depend on public transportation on a regular basis. Waiting for the bus, we actually witnessed a gang-related thing of some kind. I'm not totally sure what was going down, but two thugs were met by a third thug in a car (that parked right in front of the freaking bus stop!) and they flashed each other gang signs. Fortunately, the bus showed up quickly. The ride back home was interesting, and not in a good way. The bus was totally packed, and I had to stand for a while. I don't mind giving up my seat for someone, but it is pretty tough to stay upright while in motion. Then this tool with a cell phone got on, and proceeded to give parents on the bus plenty of reason to cover their children's ears. I was really glad to get off the bus, is what I'm pretty much saying.
We hung out at my mom's friends' place for a while, watching their new infant play. I read most of that time, and was totally zoned out of any conversation that occurred. Apparently, it was decided that we would go to eat at an Italian/organic restaurant near Wicker Park called Crust. The place was full of hipsters, but the food was awesome. Actually, we ate in an enclosed outdoor area, which was nice. The table next to us had a dog sitting at it, which I found pretty weird. We ordered a bunch of thin-crust pizzas, and I had a very tasty root beer. The pizza was incredibly delicious, and it was really high quality.
Well, I think I'm getting up early-ish tomorrow, so I'm finishing up this post. No clue what we're doing with our day, but since it's in Chicago, it will definitely be fun!
Saturday, October 2, 2010
Homecoming & The Dance!
Go Bulldogs! Yesterday was homecoming for our school, and today was the dance. Pretty awesome weekend!
First, the actual day of homecoming and the football game. We did almost no learning in school yesterday, because we had no 5th or 6th hours and teachers didn't want to screw up their schedules. Also, everyone was absolutely insane and impossible to teach. After 1st hour, some geniuses on student council decided to dump about 20 trash bags of balloons in the hallways, which went just about as well as you'd think. I felt like I had to duck and cover, because balloons were exploding left and right. I saved one from the melee, which we later used to play hacky-sack during 5th hour. About halfway through 5th, we had our pep assembly. The pep assembly is pretty sweet because the entire school walks to the city park across the street, with the band leading the "parade". From that point in the day on, anyone in marching band was total property of Guerbe (band director).
We had practice for the show right after the buses left, and then we just hung around the high school until the parade started. Then we had to uniform-up, start walking through the streets of town, and make total fools of ourselves in front of everyone not cool enough to be in band. Good times.
The football game was great. The first play our school made resulted in a touchdown, and half the band was still getting into the bleachers when we started the fight song. The final score of the game was 58-14, with us the victors. Our show went pretty well too, even though we had to change it around a lot for the homecoming court announcements. We cut two songs from the show, and then made a tunnel for the court and stood there playing "My Heart Will Go On" over and over again. Still, musically it was nice. At least I didn't completely blow my voice out by screaming, like I did last year.
Then we get to today, the dance. I'm normally not nervous before dances, but I actually was today. I went to work at my grandparents' shop in the morning, and I couldn't concentrate I was so excited. I spent forever getting ready, and I think it was totally worth it. I met my date, Gabby, at her house before the dance for pictures, of which there were many. That was super, super awkward for some reason; I think it had to do with going to her house for the first time, and having a camera in my face, and being all dressed up. Still, we got some nice pictures.
The self-caused awkwardness at her house was over eventually, though, and we got to the dance. It...was...AWESOME! I had an incredible time. Even though they didn't play "Pour Some Sugar On Me"....I didn't realize they hadn't until it was too late to request it. I did dance; it was a bit awkward and geeky, but in a charming way - like Michael Cera. Having a good time was made a lot easier by having an amazing date, of course.
All in all, I've had a really great weekend. I hope everyone had one as good or better than mine...did you?
First, the actual day of homecoming and the football game. We did almost no learning in school yesterday, because we had no 5th or 6th hours and teachers didn't want to screw up their schedules. Also, everyone was absolutely insane and impossible to teach. After 1st hour, some geniuses on student council decided to dump about 20 trash bags of balloons in the hallways, which went just about as well as you'd think. I felt like I had to duck and cover, because balloons were exploding left and right. I saved one from the melee, which we later used to play hacky-sack during 5th hour. About halfway through 5th, we had our pep assembly. The pep assembly is pretty sweet because the entire school walks to the city park across the street, with the band leading the "parade". From that point in the day on, anyone in marching band was total property of Guerbe (band director).
We had practice for the show right after the buses left, and then we just hung around the high school until the parade started. Then we had to uniform-up, start walking through the streets of town, and make total fools of ourselves in front of everyone not cool enough to be in band. Good times.
The football game was great. The first play our school made resulted in a touchdown, and half the band was still getting into the bleachers when we started the fight song. The final score of the game was 58-14, with us the victors. Our show went pretty well too, even though we had to change it around a lot for the homecoming court announcements. We cut two songs from the show, and then made a tunnel for the court and stood there playing "My Heart Will Go On" over and over again. Still, musically it was nice. At least I didn't completely blow my voice out by screaming, like I did last year.
Then we get to today, the dance. I'm normally not nervous before dances, but I actually was today. I went to work at my grandparents' shop in the morning, and I couldn't concentrate I was so excited. I spent forever getting ready, and I think it was totally worth it. I met my date, Gabby, at her house before the dance for pictures, of which there were many. That was super, super awkward for some reason; I think it had to do with going to her house for the first time, and having a camera in my face, and being all dressed up. Still, we got some nice pictures.
The self-caused awkwardness at her house was over eventually, though, and we got to the dance. It...was...AWESOME! I had an incredible time. Even though they didn't play "Pour Some Sugar On Me"....I didn't realize they hadn't until it was too late to request it. I did dance; it was a bit awkward and geeky, but in a charming way - like Michael Cera. Having a good time was made a lot easier by having an amazing date, of course.
All in all, I've had a really great weekend. I hope everyone had one as good or better than mine...did you?
Monday, September 27, 2010
Woohoo!
Just a quick update! I asked the girl I wanted to go to homecoming with, and she said yes! Later that day, she made me clarify if we were going as friends or a couple, and I took a chance and said couple. I have a girlfriend! Her name is Gabby, by the way.
Also, Crush Of Society's facebook page has some new songs posted. We had a practice yesterday, and worked for almost the entire four hours. It was pretty intense, but we still didn't get half of what I planned done. Still, the demos sound pretty good. My computer's soundcard is finally fixed, after almost a year of being broken. That means I was finally able to use my fancy music editing software to cut out all the extra noises at the beginning and end of each song, and put in some minor effects.
That's pretty much all I had to post for right now...I have to head on over to school in a minute or two. Have a super day!
Also, Crush Of Society's facebook page has some new songs posted. We had a practice yesterday, and worked for almost the entire four hours. It was pretty intense, but we still didn't get half of what I planned done. Still, the demos sound pretty good. My computer's soundcard is finally fixed, after almost a year of being broken. That means I was finally able to use my fancy music editing software to cut out all the extra noises at the beginning and end of each song, and put in some minor effects.
That's pretty much all I had to post for right now...I have to head on over to school in a minute or two. Have a super day!
Wednesday, September 22, 2010
Western Band Days!
Hey! guess what last weekend was? Western Michigan University's annual band day! They invite high school bands to come out to their school, learn an entire show in one day, and play it during halftime of a game that night. I went last year, and it was one of the most epic trips I've ever been on. I met quite a few people there that would turn out to be great friends, and it felt like my true induction into high school. This year I knew the trip wouldn't be as awesome as it was last year, but it was still amazing.
Actually, everything but the band days part was awesome. That kind of sucked. My Bronco Buddy (the college student they pair you with) was really crazy, and not in a good way. I also think she thought I was a bit slow, because she treated me like an idiot and was constantly checking up on me. "Are you OK?" Honestly, I might have brought a bit of that onto myself, because I answered everything she asked in short, "yes" or "no" type responses. Oh well, it's not like I'll ever see her again. Next year, I'm going with a trumpet, regardless of the fact I can barely play one anymore.
Next Friday (not this one) is homecoming. Saturday is the dance, which I'm actually a bit nervous about. Last year, I already had a girlfriend, so finding a date wasn't a problem. This year, I've got to actually ask someone. Actually, I have my eye on someone, and I'm asking her today. Until recently (at Western, actually) I'd never hung out with her before, but all of a sudden I've got a major crush on her. Weird, huh? I'll let you know how that goes.
Homecoming is also looking really expensive. This year, I plan to go to dinner with a group of friends before the dance, which is going to cost a lot more money than I have. Also, tickets are $20. I'm not sure if I should be expected to get my date a ticket, so there's that doubt too.
Well, you can expect another post pretty soon. I'm planning a COS practice this Sunday, so I'll make sure to keep you updated on that.
Actually, everything but the band days part was awesome. That kind of sucked. My Bronco Buddy (the college student they pair you with) was really crazy, and not in a good way. I also think she thought I was a bit slow, because she treated me like an idiot and was constantly checking up on me. "Are you OK?" Honestly, I might have brought a bit of that onto myself, because I answered everything she asked in short, "yes" or "no" type responses. Oh well, it's not like I'll ever see her again. Next year, I'm going with a trumpet, regardless of the fact I can barely play one anymore.
Next Friday (not this one) is homecoming. Saturday is the dance, which I'm actually a bit nervous about. Last year, I already had a girlfriend, so finding a date wasn't a problem. This year, I've got to actually ask someone. Actually, I have my eye on someone, and I'm asking her today. Until recently (at Western, actually) I'd never hung out with her before, but all of a sudden I've got a major crush on her. Weird, huh? I'll let you know how that goes.
Homecoming is also looking really expensive. This year, I plan to go to dinner with a group of friends before the dance, which is going to cost a lot more money than I have. Also, tickets are $20. I'm not sure if I should be expected to get my date a ticket, so there's that doubt too.
Well, you can expect another post pretty soon. I'm planning a COS practice this Sunday, so I'll make sure to keep you updated on that.
Saturday, September 11, 2010
First Week Of School
School is back in session. Being a geek, this naturally makes me happy. However, having insanely bad allergies that always are at their worst this time of year makes me unhappy. At the beginning of each school year, I manage to set the first impression of "got up 20 times in 5 minutes to blow his nose...how weird." instead of "Wow, he seems like a pretty awesome student!" I was fine the first three days, but Friday was absolutely horrible. I almost wanted to go home early, but since there was no one who could pick me up it seemed pointless to ask. Also, we had a football game that night that I planned on having fun at.
Trust me, no illness could possibly prevent that. The game was really fun, as always, and our team won for the first time this season. I don't really care much about football, but it still seems like a statistic I should be proud of. Our half-time show sucked, mostly because no one had practiced at all in two weeks. I doubt the crowd noticed anyway, so it doesn't matter much.
So far, all my classes are going well. In my 1st hour, Government, we took a citizenship test on the second day, as a way for the teacher to illustrate why the class is necessary. If you had a 70% or better (the requirement for U.S. citizenship), you'd get extra credit. I was the only person in the class to pass the test, with a 84%. I suppose that means I already know most of what the course teaches, and therefore don't have to pay attention.
2nd hour is English II, a class that should be a breeze for me. The teacher made us write 5 paragraph essays about ourselves, which was harder than one would think. Still, I'm pretty sure my essay is well written enough for the teacher to get a good idea of how I write.
3rd hour is Chemistry, a course that looks like it might actually be difficult. However, teachers always up-play the difficulty of the class to get us to pay attention, so that's probably what's going on.
After that I have 1st lunch, which I kind of like and kind of don't. I like it being earlier, so I'm not starving through 4th hour. I was initially bummed that not many of my friends are in that lunch, but at the same time, it seems like a really good reason to hang out with other people. I certainly need to get back into being social, after an entire summer of being a downer and not liking people. So far, I'm falling back into school and getting along with people quite well.
4th hour is French, which is the only class I don't have too much of an advantage with. I know almost nothing about foreign languages, so it's a bit more of a challenge. However, I'm pretty quick to catching on to the main idea of what people are saying in other languages, so that might help. it's the speaking that could present a problem.
5th hour is Algebra IIa. I'm good with math, so the actual class shouldn't be a problem. However, the teacher is a quizbowl coach who's known for being difficult to deal with. She likes me, which helps, but I'm used to a far different kind of math class. For the last three years, I've had guy math teachers, with very laid-back classrooms. Her classroom is so silent I'm afraid to move, and I really dislike not being able to work with someone else on math.
Of course, my final subject is band. I got the double bass back from the repair shop on Thursday, and the teacher is starting our concert band music Monday. I didn't get a bow for the instrument, because they were quite a bit more expensive than the budget Guerbe gave me. I'm looking forward to playing it in class, but not transporting it to and from the school. It's pretty heavy and awkward.
If you made it this far into the post, congratulations. Looking at what I've typed, this post is absolutely massive. There's some really fun stuff coming up in the near future, so I'll be sure to blog about it!
Trust me, no illness could possibly prevent that. The game was really fun, as always, and our team won for the first time this season. I don't really care much about football, but it still seems like a statistic I should be proud of. Our half-time show sucked, mostly because no one had practiced at all in two weeks. I doubt the crowd noticed anyway, so it doesn't matter much.
So far, all my classes are going well. In my 1st hour, Government, we took a citizenship test on the second day, as a way for the teacher to illustrate why the class is necessary. If you had a 70% or better (the requirement for U.S. citizenship), you'd get extra credit. I was the only person in the class to pass the test, with a 84%. I suppose that means I already know most of what the course teaches, and therefore don't have to pay attention.
2nd hour is English II, a class that should be a breeze for me. The teacher made us write 5 paragraph essays about ourselves, which was harder than one would think. Still, I'm pretty sure my essay is well written enough for the teacher to get a good idea of how I write.
3rd hour is Chemistry, a course that looks like it might actually be difficult. However, teachers always up-play the difficulty of the class to get us to pay attention, so that's probably what's going on.
After that I have 1st lunch, which I kind of like and kind of don't. I like it being earlier, so I'm not starving through 4th hour. I was initially bummed that not many of my friends are in that lunch, but at the same time, it seems like a really good reason to hang out with other people. I certainly need to get back into being social, after an entire summer of being a downer and not liking people. So far, I'm falling back into school and getting along with people quite well.
4th hour is French, which is the only class I don't have too much of an advantage with. I know almost nothing about foreign languages, so it's a bit more of a challenge. However, I'm pretty quick to catching on to the main idea of what people are saying in other languages, so that might help. it's the speaking that could present a problem.
5th hour is Algebra IIa. I'm good with math, so the actual class shouldn't be a problem. However, the teacher is a quizbowl coach who's known for being difficult to deal with. She likes me, which helps, but I'm used to a far different kind of math class. For the last three years, I've had guy math teachers, with very laid-back classrooms. Her classroom is so silent I'm afraid to move, and I really dislike not being able to work with someone else on math.
Of course, my final subject is band. I got the double bass back from the repair shop on Thursday, and the teacher is starting our concert band music Monday. I didn't get a bow for the instrument, because they were quite a bit more expensive than the budget Guerbe gave me. I'm looking forward to playing it in class, but not transporting it to and from the school. It's pretty heavy and awkward.
If you made it this far into the post, congratulations. Looking at what I've typed, this post is absolutely massive. There's some really fun stuff coming up in the near future, so I'll be sure to blog about it!
Monday, September 6, 2010
School Tomorrow, And COS Facebook Page!
In about ten hours, I'll be sitting in my first class of the year, tired as all get-out. I'm sort of looking forward to it, and sort of not. It's going to suck getting up early, but it'll be nice seeing friends again. I've haven't done very much hanging out this summer, which is a bummer. I can blame some of it on being busy with work, but a good portion of it is just me being anti-social.
The only reason I'm still online instead of sleeping is because I finally got around to making a Facebook page for my band. Bobby has been bugging me to do that for only what, 6 months?
The only reason I'm still online instead of sleeping is because I finally got around to making a Facebook page for my band. Bobby has been bugging me to do that for only what, 6 months?
Crush Of Society
I'm not sure if that link works for anyone but me, so let me know. I'm working on getting songs uploaded, which is proving to be difficult because of file types. I have to upload the files to a file-conversion website, wait for them to do the converting, and then upload them to Facebook.
Well, I have to go to bed, so I'm not a complete zombie tomorrow morning. Please add us on FB!
Well, I have to go to bed, so I'm not a complete zombie tomorrow morning. Please add us on FB!
Sunday, September 5, 2010
The Double Bass, And How Band Camp Went
Hello! All apologies about the lack of posting - I've been working non-stop on painting my grandparents' house to try and pay for repairs on my bass. Sadly, I've only just started putting color on it, and the front isn't even done...At this point, it looks like it's going to take a couple weekends of marathon-painting, with some help.
Speaking of my bass, the repairs were supposed to be done last Tuesday. I called Wilson (the repair guy) to confirm and he said he was just finishing it up, and to come on in whenever to pick it up. A few hours later, however, I got a call from him. Apparently, while restringing it, he discovered a new problem; something called the bass bar was coming loose inside the instrument, and the only way to repair it was to take the entire instrument apart (a very expensive procedure). He said he would try and think of another solution, and that I should come in so he could explain it better.
When I got there the next day, he showed me the problem. Basically, the bridge of the instrument (what the strings sit on) would punch a hole in the body if we tried to ignore it. A normal, conventional solution would cost somewhere around $1,000, which would be worth less than the instrument. Fortunately, Wilson had another idea: he would drill holes in the front of the bass, use some wood screws to get the bass bar back in place, and epoxy the crap out of it. It'll look ugly as all get-out, and he's never done it before, but it's only $100. He told me the repair would be done by this Friday, but when I called on Friday to confirm, he told me he was going to try the repair on another instrument before he did it to mine.
So...Band Camp! It went great. The bass section sounds way better than last year, because we got rid of all the people who can't actually play (and there were a lot of them). Our section leader was a trombone player from the Western Marching Band, and he really knew what he was doing. At times, Guerbe (our band teacher) just let him take charge of the band. Hey, he actually knew how to teach a band, which is better than her.
While I was there, I asked Guerbe if I could play the double bass in band and she got super-excited about having one. Somehow, I also convinced her to get the school to buy a bow for it, even though they won't need one once I graduate (I'll probably offer to buy it from them at a lower price...clever, right?)
Although I have a lot more stuff to include in this update of my life, I'm going to have to refrain, because this post is already dangerously long and approaching unreadable. Perhaps if I blog more often, this wouldn't be an issue...
Speaking of my bass, the repairs were supposed to be done last Tuesday. I called Wilson (the repair guy) to confirm and he said he was just finishing it up, and to come on in whenever to pick it up. A few hours later, however, I got a call from him. Apparently, while restringing it, he discovered a new problem; something called the bass bar was coming loose inside the instrument, and the only way to repair it was to take the entire instrument apart (a very expensive procedure). He said he would try and think of another solution, and that I should come in so he could explain it better.
When I got there the next day, he showed me the problem. Basically, the bridge of the instrument (what the strings sit on) would punch a hole in the body if we tried to ignore it. A normal, conventional solution would cost somewhere around $1,000, which would be worth less than the instrument. Fortunately, Wilson had another idea: he would drill holes in the front of the bass, use some wood screws to get the bass bar back in place, and epoxy the crap out of it. It'll look ugly as all get-out, and he's never done it before, but it's only $100. He told me the repair would be done by this Friday, but when I called on Friday to confirm, he told me he was going to try the repair on another instrument before he did it to mine.
So...Band Camp! It went great. The bass section sounds way better than last year, because we got rid of all the people who can't actually play (and there were a lot of them). Our section leader was a trombone player from the Western Marching Band, and he really knew what he was doing. At times, Guerbe (our band teacher) just let him take charge of the band. Hey, he actually knew how to teach a band, which is better than her.
While I was there, I asked Guerbe if I could play the double bass in band and she got super-excited about having one. Somehow, I also convinced her to get the school to buy a bow for it, even though they won't need one once I graduate (I'll probably offer to buy it from them at a lower price...clever, right?)
Although I have a lot more stuff to include in this update of my life, I'm going to have to refrain, because this post is already dangerously long and approaching unreadable. Perhaps if I blog more often, this wouldn't be an issue...
Saturday, August 14, 2010
Just A Bit Of An Update
My apologies about the downer post concerning my bass. I took it to a shop and they're fixing it, and it will be done in a few weeks. The damage is $300, which I'm working my butt off to pay off, in addition to the money I already owe my grandparents for buying the instrument.
Somewhat related to that topic, I've discovered I'm addicted to guitars. Despite being $700 dollars in the hole currently, I almost bought a new electric bass today. It was very cool, and I had it all justified in my mind, but I had a bad feeling in my gut about it. Maybe it will still be for sale in six months or so, and I'll get it when finances aren't as bad. It was in an antique store anyway, and a bit of a fixer-upper, so it shouldn't sell too fast.
Tomorrow, I'm going to see Paramore with the environmental organization Reverb. I'm taking a friend who really likes Paramore, but I'm starting to regret it. She's been really, really irritating and negative about the whole thing from the second I asked her. She complained about the lawn seats, which made me want to say, "You know what? Buy your own tickets, and don't forget to pay for the $40 pavilion ones!" But, I'm just keeping a smile on my face and looking at the bright side.
Anyway...just wanted to give you a bit of an update. Next week is band camp, which will be *awesome*! See you then...
Somewhat related to that topic, I've discovered I'm addicted to guitars. Despite being $700 dollars in the hole currently, I almost bought a new electric bass today. It was very cool, and I had it all justified in my mind, but I had a bad feeling in my gut about it. Maybe it will still be for sale in six months or so, and I'll get it when finances aren't as bad. It was in an antique store anyway, and a bit of a fixer-upper, so it shouldn't sell too fast.
Tomorrow, I'm going to see Paramore with the environmental organization Reverb. I'm taking a friend who really likes Paramore, but I'm starting to regret it. She's been really, really irritating and negative about the whole thing from the second I asked her. She complained about the lawn seats, which made me want to say, "You know what? Buy your own tickets, and don't forget to pay for the $40 pavilion ones!" But, I'm just keeping a smile on my face and looking at the bright side.
Anyway...just wanted to give you a bit of an update. Next week is band camp, which will be *awesome*! See you then...
Monday, August 9, 2010
Double Bass
You will never guess what I got yesterday! Oh...yeah, it does say it in the title of the post. I got a double bass yesterday! Pretty sweet, eh? And it was only $350, a total steal!
Since I got it, I've learned a ton about them already. For example: did you know the neck is designed to snap off from the body when you drop them? Neither did I until I leaned it against a box and turned my back on it.
Seriously, when I heard it start to fall, I felt like someone had punched me in the gut while burning $350 in my face. Once I got it all secure and out of the way of more harm, I just wanted to curl up in a ball and not get up.
We're taking it to a luthier tomorrow, who will hopefully not completely screw us on repair prices. Once it's fixed, I'll post a happier post about it and why it's awesome, but for the moment I'm pretty upset and don't really want to talk about it until it's working again.
Since I got it, I've learned a ton about them already. For example: did you know the neck is designed to snap off from the body when you drop them? Neither did I until I leaned it against a box and turned my back on it. Seriously, when I heard it start to fall, I felt like someone had punched me in the gut while burning $350 in my face. Once I got it all secure and out of the way of more harm, I just wanted to curl up in a ball and not get up.
We're taking it to a luthier tomorrow, who will hopefully not completely screw us on repair prices. Once it's fixed, I'll post a happier post about it and why it's awesome, but for the moment I'm pretty upset and don't really want to talk about it until it's working again.
Saturday, July 24, 2010
While I Was Absent
Gaaarrr, I haven't posted in over a month!! Well, we'll just have to pick up where we left off.
Since my last post...
Since my last post...
- Bobby and I had a great band practice, and I got to use my new bass amp in a recording for the first time!
- Leah and I went to the mall, and I got Golden Harvest by Beck and Rust Never Sleeps (the movie) by Neil Young. Both are totally awesome! Although the Beck CD is seriously creepy...
- I started my summer job of painting my grandparents' house. After three weeks of working, I still haven't touched a paint brush.
- I got a keyboard! I've been wanting one for a while, mostly so I can learn to play the song "Sam's Town (Abbey Road Version)" by The Killers. I totally can already, although not exactly well.
- I went and saw 34bliss again, this time with my parental unit and her friends. They were part of a 4th of July festival, but they played at the same theatre. The show was way more packed, and they played very well.
- This weekend is our town's "Bologna Festival". As my friend pointed out, how odd is it our town celebrates processed meat with a weekend festival? All I know is that Yale Bologna is manufactured by C. Roy's Inc., a company owned by my great-aunt.
- Next week is our county fair, in which I'll be taking three trophies for shooting. More on that once it actually happens.
Saturday, June 19, 2010
34Bliss Concert!
Does anyone remember me mentioning I would be going to a concert by my friend Jared's band 34Bliss? Well, tonight was that concert! They played at the Emerald Theater, in Mt. Clements, MI. It was a really amazing show, and I had tons of fun.
Jared had me go as his "bass technician", which is a fancy word for "roadie that carries my amps". Hey, I got in to a $10 concert for free! Plus, I got to go onstage to set up his amps, which was sweet. I'd love to do it again (at the concerts without a minimum age), but some circumstances I'll mention further on might keep that from happening. It's nice because it's a chance to network a bit, and get to know some people that could help me with my own music. A bunch of my friends went as well, including Jared's sister and our mutual friend Leah (who I'm sure I've mentioned on here before).
34bliss...played...amazingly. I have their E.P., which consists of 5 tracks, 4 of them original and the fifth a cover of some Alice Cooper song I don't know. The E.P. (Scream) is pretty good, but live they are exponentially better. Their singer, who has had 5 years of opera singing lessons, was much more intense and passionate onstage than in the studio. The guitarist had a bunch of great solos, as did Jared. They also played a cover of a blues song that isn't on Scream, and it is definitely my favourite song of theirs.
They were opening for another local band, Steven Who?. They were not great. They should have opened for 34Bliss, not the other way around. They had two bassists, one guitar and one drummer, and were a (very sloppy) cover band. Actually, I probably wouldn't have minded them too much, except for the fact the main bassist dissed Jared's soloing, saying "Anyone could do that...". Trust me, he couldn't have. Jared's an awesome bassist, while the guy who criticized him looked more like he was going to accidentally stab himself with his ridiculously pointy guitar than play anything exceptional. They were also very young, around my age - and the singer might have been younger.
So, although it was an awesome concert and an awesome night, one thing did go quite poorly. I rode over there in Jared's car, with Jared driving. I had promised my mom his parents would drive, but I opted to ride with him so I could show up at the same time as the equipment. I made a really bad choice, and I regret upsetting my mother's trust. I wouldn't have done it if there had been even the slightest chance of danger, because I'm very cautious and good at worrying, but doing the exact opposite of what I said would happen was wrong. As it is, I'm grounded, and there's a good chance I won't be able to go to another show for a while.
All in all, a great concert, with a bunch of good friends and some great music. I'm glad I went, and I had a lot of fun.
Jared had me go as his "bass technician", which is a fancy word for "roadie that carries my amps". Hey, I got in to a $10 concert for free! Plus, I got to go onstage to set up his amps, which was sweet. I'd love to do it again (at the concerts without a minimum age), but some circumstances I'll mention further on might keep that from happening. It's nice because it's a chance to network a bit, and get to know some people that could help me with my own music. A bunch of my friends went as well, including Jared's sister and our mutual friend Leah (who I'm sure I've mentioned on here before).
34bliss...played...amazingly. I have their E.P., which consists of 5 tracks, 4 of them original and the fifth a cover of some Alice Cooper song I don't know. The E.P. (Scream) is pretty good, but live they are exponentially better. Their singer, who has had 5 years of opera singing lessons, was much more intense and passionate onstage than in the studio. The guitarist had a bunch of great solos, as did Jared. They also played a cover of a blues song that isn't on Scream, and it is definitely my favourite song of theirs.
They were opening for another local band, Steven Who?. They were not great. They should have opened for 34Bliss, not the other way around. They had two bassists, one guitar and one drummer, and were a (very sloppy) cover band. Actually, I probably wouldn't have minded them too much, except for the fact the main bassist dissed Jared's soloing, saying "Anyone could do that...". Trust me, he couldn't have. Jared's an awesome bassist, while the guy who criticized him looked more like he was going to accidentally stab himself with his ridiculously pointy guitar than play anything exceptional. They were also very young, around my age - and the singer might have been younger.
So, although it was an awesome concert and an awesome night, one thing did go quite poorly. I rode over there in Jared's car, with Jared driving. I had promised my mom his parents would drive, but I opted to ride with him so I could show up at the same time as the equipment. I made a really bad choice, and I regret upsetting my mother's trust. I wouldn't have done it if there had been even the slightest chance of danger, because I'm very cautious and good at worrying, but doing the exact opposite of what I said would happen was wrong. As it is, I'm grounded, and there's a good chance I won't be able to go to another show for a while.
All in all, a great concert, with a bunch of good friends and some great music. I'm glad I went, and I had a lot of fun.
Thursday, June 10, 2010
Fear Not, I Remember You
All apologies for the lack of posting. Really, nothing very fascinating has been going on around here lately.
Studying for exams, basically. School gets out next Thursday, but in pretty much all my classes we're doing nothing important anymore. Studying...Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday next week are the actual exam days, with an hour and a half period for each class, meaning two classes per half day.
I've got lots of partying to do for the next little while, though. Tomorrow, I'm going to a dude's house for an end of the year party. Next Friday my friend Tia is having a pool party, followed by the band lock-in. Th Saturday after, I'll sleep off the lock-in, then go to a 34bliss concert (my friend's band). On the topic of 34bliss, the aforementioned friend is going to have some of his CDs for sale at school tomorrow, $5 each. I'm totally getting one!
And now, I must head over to the High School to start six hours of glorified study hall. Have a super day!
Studying for exams, basically. School gets out next Thursday, but in pretty much all my classes we're doing nothing important anymore. Studying...Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday next week are the actual exam days, with an hour and a half period for each class, meaning two classes per half day.
I've got lots of partying to do for the next little while, though. Tomorrow, I'm going to a dude's house for an end of the year party. Next Friday my friend Tia is having a pool party, followed by the band lock-in. Th Saturday after, I'll sleep off the lock-in, then go to a 34bliss concert (my friend's band). On the topic of 34bliss, the aforementioned friend is going to have some of his CDs for sale at school tomorrow, $5 each. I'm totally getting one!
And now, I must head over to the High School to start six hours of glorified study hall. Have a super day!
Saturday, May 29, 2010
Epic Rave Birthday Party
I went to an amazing party this evening! You may recall (but probably not) a bassist friend of mine named Jared. He's only a Junior, but he's in a band, 34Bliss, who are already playing paid gigs. Anyway, his birthday was yesterday, and he threw a sweet party today.
Now, Jared's a bit of a frightening character. It's not that he's a bad guy or anything, he's just a very hardcore metal fan and dresses that way. I wasn't too worried about his party though, because he has a sister in my grade who is semi-preppie and quite nice. She invited friends as well, so she wouldn't have to hang out with her brother's friends all night. Also, Jared hangs out with some "normal" (because who really is?) people, and a lot of them would be there. In the end, both he and his sister's friends mingled and hung out together.
When I got to his place, I headed out to his shed (featuring an all-out studio for his band), where there was some intense guitar hero playing was going on. Some of my friends were there, and one whom I hadn't seen since he graduated. For a while, we just hung out and drank a ton of soda and listened to metal at insane volumes (did I mention he has most, if not all, of his band's stage speakers?). After a bit of time, some pretty awesome people showed up that I got to meet.
Lets see...there was Izzie (I assume that's how it was spelled), who was a guitar player. When he showed up, he was wearing a skeleton face-mask and a duster jacket with flame embroidery, complemented by his waist length hair. I knew he'd be a cool dude right away, because anyone who can wear that and have a sense of humour about it has to be pretty sweet. There were also some people from school I'd seen before at the party, and it was nice to get to know them.
Before the sun went down, the party was pretty mellow. They have a pond in their front yard, where most of his sister's friends were, and one of my good friends (Leah). They begged me to come in, even though I had no bathing suit or a change of clothes. Eventually, I decided to go out to the platform they were on in a paddle boat. To make a long story short, Jared's sister (Taylor) cannon-balled into the water right next to me, getting my clothes soaked. I had to walk around the rest of the night with no shoes, my flannel shirt off, and my pant legs rolled up like a hipster. It was refreshing, though.
After the sun went down, the real fun started. You see, Jared has a lot of money (did you pick up on that yet?) and he had his shed completely decked out for a rave. There were 8+ strobe lights, the huge speakers I mentioned before, a smoke machine, and 68 glow sticks. Everyone grabbed a ton of glow sticks, the lights went out and the strobes went on, and we started dancing. Let me tell you, rave-dancing is my kind of dancing. At school dances, you're always goofy looking when you jump around like crazy and flail your arms about. Not at a rave, with a glow stick in each hand and music made to jump to. I was full of insane energy, and probably danced the most.
After one song, Jared turned down the music and said, "[so-and-so] requested we moshed to this song. If you don't want to, go outside." Well, I wanted to, despite the fact I was barefoot. Moshing is...intense. It was totally fun, too. Everyone was slamming into each other, bouncing off the person next to them and knocking each other over. All my fellow mosh-ers had to pause a few times to catch their breath, but I kept on jumping and waving my glow sticks around. I knew doing it barefoot would be a horrible idea, but I felt nothing the entire time I was dancing. Afterward...well, let's just say I had to use a flashlight to make sure my feet weren't bleeding. Still, it was amazing.
In between rave-sessions we went and hung out by the fire. Jared played some of his band's songs, which were awesome. They're a great sound, which is really hard to compare to another band. The best I can do is say they have semi-mellow, almost acoustic sounding verses, with punk or grunge-ish sounding choruses. I was a bit surprised, because they sounded nothing like what I would imagine Jared playing. Anyway, I'm going to see them next month, on the 19th, with Leah and a few other people who were at the party.
All in all, it was an awesome party, possibly the best I've ever been to. I had a ton of fun, and for those whom I wish to inspire, all this fun was created purely through my own mind and no "chemical influences". I think it was a great way to spend a Saturday night, and I really enjoyed hanging out with new people, as well as my tried and true friends.
Now, Jared's a bit of a frightening character. It's not that he's a bad guy or anything, he's just a very hardcore metal fan and dresses that way. I wasn't too worried about his party though, because he has a sister in my grade who is semi-preppie and quite nice. She invited friends as well, so she wouldn't have to hang out with her brother's friends all night. Also, Jared hangs out with some "normal" (because who really is?) people, and a lot of them would be there. In the end, both he and his sister's friends mingled and hung out together.
When I got to his place, I headed out to his shed (featuring an all-out studio for his band), where there was some intense guitar hero playing was going on. Some of my friends were there, and one whom I hadn't seen since he graduated. For a while, we just hung out and drank a ton of soda and listened to metal at insane volumes (did I mention he has most, if not all, of his band's stage speakers?). After a bit of time, some pretty awesome people showed up that I got to meet.
Lets see...there was Izzie (I assume that's how it was spelled), who was a guitar player. When he showed up, he was wearing a skeleton face-mask and a duster jacket with flame embroidery, complemented by his waist length hair. I knew he'd be a cool dude right away, because anyone who can wear that and have a sense of humour about it has to be pretty sweet. There were also some people from school I'd seen before at the party, and it was nice to get to know them.
Before the sun went down, the party was pretty mellow. They have a pond in their front yard, where most of his sister's friends were, and one of my good friends (Leah). They begged me to come in, even though I had no bathing suit or a change of clothes. Eventually, I decided to go out to the platform they were on in a paddle boat. To make a long story short, Jared's sister (Taylor) cannon-balled into the water right next to me, getting my clothes soaked. I had to walk around the rest of the night with no shoes, my flannel shirt off, and my pant legs rolled up like a hipster. It was refreshing, though.
After the sun went down, the real fun started. You see, Jared has a lot of money (did you pick up on that yet?) and he had his shed completely decked out for a rave. There were 8+ strobe lights, the huge speakers I mentioned before, a smoke machine, and 68 glow sticks. Everyone grabbed a ton of glow sticks, the lights went out and the strobes went on, and we started dancing. Let me tell you, rave-dancing is my kind of dancing. At school dances, you're always goofy looking when you jump around like crazy and flail your arms about. Not at a rave, with a glow stick in each hand and music made to jump to. I was full of insane energy, and probably danced the most.
After one song, Jared turned down the music and said, "[so-and-so] requested we moshed to this song. If you don't want to, go outside." Well, I wanted to, despite the fact I was barefoot. Moshing is...intense. It was totally fun, too. Everyone was slamming into each other, bouncing off the person next to them and knocking each other over. All my fellow mosh-ers had to pause a few times to catch their breath, but I kept on jumping and waving my glow sticks around. I knew doing it barefoot would be a horrible idea, but I felt nothing the entire time I was dancing. Afterward...well, let's just say I had to use a flashlight to make sure my feet weren't bleeding. Still, it was amazing.
In between rave-sessions we went and hung out by the fire. Jared played some of his band's songs, which were awesome. They're a great sound, which is really hard to compare to another band. The best I can do is say they have semi-mellow, almost acoustic sounding verses, with punk or grunge-ish sounding choruses. I was a bit surprised, because they sounded nothing like what I would imagine Jared playing. Anyway, I'm going to see them next month, on the 19th, with Leah and a few other people who were at the party.
All in all, it was an awesome party, possibly the best I've ever been to. I had a ton of fun, and for those whom I wish to inspire, all this fun was created purely through my own mind and no "chemical influences". I think it was a great way to spend a Saturday night, and I really enjoyed hanging out with new people, as well as my tried and true friends.
Friday, May 21, 2010
Shopping Trip
Today after school I went to Utica and went shopping! If you'll recall, Utica is the odd city made up completely of suburb-hell and retail stores. Despite the suburbs, it's a great place to go shopping. Shopping may not seem like a huge event to some, but it's been quite a while since I've been. Trust me, I'm not a bubble-head who's obsessed.We went so we could visit Dick's Sporting Goods and see if they had any roller skates. Notice the emphasis; I want nothing but the most vintage of items. Long story short, they didn't have them. It looks like we'll have to order them online...hey, what's one more week?
However, there was a huge thrift store right next door. We headed in, and spent about an hour and a half just looking around. Apparently, my pant-size is very uncommon (30-32). Furthermore, those that are in my size are never in any style I like (boot cut or skinny). They did have a few Oasis CDs, a band I've wanted to get into for a while now. I also got something else very awesome: non-prescription glasses! They look totally real, too.
The only problem is the fact that they pinch my head after a while. Oh well...it's not like I can wear them to school anyway. Why, you ask? People would constantly say, "Oh Drew, I didn't know you wore glasses." I'd say, "I don't," and be all witty and sarcastic and whatnot. Then the person who asked would continue asking stupid questions, like "Wait...so why are you wearing them then?". What isn't clear about the first answer? People don't think enough and talk too much sometimes.
After we left the thrift shop, we headed to dinner at a cool Italian restaurant who's name I know I cannot spell. We had a thin crust pizza, which was delicious. Their cannoli was really expensive, so we went to a local grocery store and got some bakery cannoli.
Eventually, we headed to our final destination: Old Navy. I needed a new pair of jeans (my reason for looking at the thrift store) and I figured they would have what I needed. They did, and more. I got a sweet pair of boot-cut jeans, as well as a button-up shirt that's made of corduroy.
All in all, I'm happy with today's trip. We didn't actually spend too much, which was nice, but it was fun. Someday, perhaps I'll even post a picture with me wearing any of the three items I got today! (Of course, I'll be playing guitar in it.) Did you have an awesome Friday? Please, do share!
However, there was a huge thrift store right next door. We headed in, and spent about an hour and a half just looking around. Apparently, my pant-size is very uncommon (30-32). Furthermore, those that are in my size are never in any style I like (boot cut or skinny). They did have a few Oasis CDs, a band I've wanted to get into for a while now. I also got something else very awesome: non-prescription glasses! They look totally real, too.
The only problem is the fact that they pinch my head after a while. Oh well...it's not like I can wear them to school anyway. Why, you ask? People would constantly say, "Oh Drew, I didn't know you wore glasses." I'd say, "I don't," and be all witty and sarcastic and whatnot. Then the person who asked would continue asking stupid questions, like "Wait...so why are you wearing them then?". What isn't clear about the first answer? People don't think enough and talk too much sometimes.
After we left the thrift shop, we headed to dinner at a cool Italian restaurant who's name I know I cannot spell. We had a thin crust pizza, which was delicious. Their cannoli was really expensive, so we went to a local grocery store and got some bakery cannoli.
Eventually, we headed to our final destination: Old Navy. I needed a new pair of jeans (my reason for looking at the thrift store) and I figured they would have what I needed. They did, and more. I got a sweet pair of boot-cut jeans, as well as a button-up shirt that's made of corduroy.
All in all, I'm happy with today's trip. We didn't actually spend too much, which was nice, but it was fun. Someday, perhaps I'll even post a picture with me wearing any of the three items I got today! (Of course, I'll be playing guitar in it.) Did you have an awesome Friday? Please, do share!
Monday, May 17, 2010
Trip To Cleveland
As many of you know, I've been training for yet another half marathon - since the last one, actually. Well, it was yesterday, in Cleveland. We drove down on Friday with my mom's friend Juliet and wandered around on Saturday.
When we got to Cleveland, we set up in our respective hotels and then walked down to the House of Blues for dinner. Our waiter was a really cool dude, who took his time conversing with us. He approved of my Velvet Underground T-shirt, and supplied an anecdote about seeing Lou Reed in concert recently. The food was pretty good, as well. I got one of my standards, a bacon cheeseburger. After dinner we visited their store, which, despite having a cool denim jacket, held no special appeal to me.
During dinner, I had approximately five diet cokes. I visited the bathroom once or twice while we were there, but obviously didn't take care of the liquids in their entirety. My foolishness quickly became apparent while walking about the town, which seemed to close down around 7 P.M. I could find no open stores with public restrooms for me to use. I became very agitated, and was probably a pain to be around. We finally made it back to the hotel, and just in time. I was very angsty/depressive for about ten minutes after, lamenting my stupidity and complaining that "I'll never be as awesome as I could be because I'm such a stupid idiot and have such a small bladder." I stopped after my mom started crying, because she was upset to see me upset with myself.
The next day we went to the race expo, where we got lots of free goodies and listened to an inspirational speaker. After the expo, we checked out a cool submarine tour, which featured the USS Cod, a WWII sub. It was shockingly tiny, but it supposedly housed 97 men. Crazy...
Sunday was, of course, the marathon. I had a goal for my time, which was 2 hrs 10 min. My actual time, measured by the chip located in my bib, was 2:07:45. Basically, that means I rock. I ran the entire race, only stopping at a few water stations because I'm unable to drink and run at the same time. I had a great run up until about the sixth mile, and after that it was just mildly uncomfortable. The worst were the last three miles, because they were on a freeway. I saw the tenth mile marker and thought, "Great, only 30 minutes left!" After 30 minutes passed (or so it felt), the eleventh mile arrived. Yes, they were very long.
After I finished, I was able to head back to our hotel that was a block away and take a shower. My mom texted me at the twelfth mile, and I had just enough time to limp back to the finish line and take her picture. A bit after that, I got a terrible, splitting headache and was forced to head back to the hotel for a long, long nap. When I woke up and my headache was gone, we went to eat at Fat Fish Blues, a great Cajun restaurant that let us sit right next to the sweet blues band that was performing.
Today, we visited the best part of Ohio - The Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame. I actually got to see props from The Wall concert!! We also saw U2 3D, which was sweet. Walking around hurt (a lot), but it was worth suffering through. I also got to see cool stuff like Jim Morrison's Cub Scout uniform, and one of Kurt Cobain's custom guitars. At the gift shop, I got the CD Rust Never Sleeps, by Neil Young. I've started to really get into his music for some reason, probably because it's fun to play on guitar. I also got a sweet poster of Kurt Cobain playing guitar, which will look great in my room.
All in all, it was a really great weekend. I'm proud of myself for running the entire 13.1 miles, and I had a lot of fun doing tourist-type things. Now I have one question: when's the next one?
When we got to Cleveland, we set up in our respective hotels and then walked down to the House of Blues for dinner. Our waiter was a really cool dude, who took his time conversing with us. He approved of my Velvet Underground T-shirt, and supplied an anecdote about seeing Lou Reed in concert recently. The food was pretty good, as well. I got one of my standards, a bacon cheeseburger. After dinner we visited their store, which, despite having a cool denim jacket, held no special appeal to me.
During dinner, I had approximately five diet cokes. I visited the bathroom once or twice while we were there, but obviously didn't take care of the liquids in their entirety. My foolishness quickly became apparent while walking about the town, which seemed to close down around 7 P.M. I could find no open stores with public restrooms for me to use. I became very agitated, and was probably a pain to be around. We finally made it back to the hotel, and just in time. I was very angsty/depressive for about ten minutes after, lamenting my stupidity and complaining that "I'll never be as awesome as I could be because I'm such a stupid idiot and have such a small bladder." I stopped after my mom started crying, because she was upset to see me upset with myself.
The next day we went to the race expo, where we got lots of free goodies and listened to an inspirational speaker. After the expo, we checked out a cool submarine tour, which featured the USS Cod, a WWII sub. It was shockingly tiny, but it supposedly housed 97 men. Crazy...
Sunday was, of course, the marathon. I had a goal for my time, which was 2 hrs 10 min. My actual time, measured by the chip located in my bib, was 2:07:45. Basically, that means I rock. I ran the entire race, only stopping at a few water stations because I'm unable to drink and run at the same time. I had a great run up until about the sixth mile, and after that it was just mildly uncomfortable. The worst were the last three miles, because they were on a freeway. I saw the tenth mile marker and thought, "Great, only 30 minutes left!" After 30 minutes passed (or so it felt), the eleventh mile arrived. Yes, they were very long.
After I finished, I was able to head back to our hotel that was a block away and take a shower. My mom texted me at the twelfth mile, and I had just enough time to limp back to the finish line and take her picture. A bit after that, I got a terrible, splitting headache and was forced to head back to the hotel for a long, long nap. When I woke up and my headache was gone, we went to eat at Fat Fish Blues, a great Cajun restaurant that let us sit right next to the sweet blues band that was performing.
Today, we visited the best part of Ohio - The Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame. I actually got to see props from The Wall concert!! We also saw U2 3D, which was sweet. Walking around hurt (a lot), but it was worth suffering through. I also got to see cool stuff like Jim Morrison's Cub Scout uniform, and one of Kurt Cobain's custom guitars. At the gift shop, I got the CD Rust Never Sleeps, by Neil Young. I've started to really get into his music for some reason, probably because it's fun to play on guitar. I also got a sweet poster of Kurt Cobain playing guitar, which will look great in my room.
All in all, it was a really great weekend. I'm proud of myself for running the entire 13.1 miles, and I had a lot of fun doing tourist-type things. Now I have one question: when's the next one?
Wednesday, May 12, 2010
COS Show, And My Party
The party was great! Bobby and I played a show, I dominated at pool, and we rocked out to records and told jokes the whole night.
Obviously, the show is the main thing I want to talk about. Okkayyy, maybe it was more like us saying "Hey, we're playing a song, so shut up!" in the middle of a much larger and longer jam session. Five of the eight people there play guitar, and we were all making tons of noise and banging on the drums and what-not. Fortunately, my awesome bass amp totally overpowered everything else, so I could be star of the show whenever I wanted. Don't worry, I wasn't too much of an attention whore.
The songs we played were "Basement Song" and "I Don't Know", plus an as-of-yet unnamed acoustic song by Bobby. The first two, despite having lyrics, were sans-vocals. The third did, but they were almost impossible to hear if you didn't know they were there (Bobby sang them). "Basement Song", which Bobby wrote and I penned lyrics for, went OK-ish. We've never played it 100% perfectly, because we both seem to have slightly different mental concepts of how the rhythm should go.
"I Don't Know", which I wrote in its entirety, was a bit better. I was on guitar and Bobby was on drums, and we put on a good performance. We actually had to play it the whole way through twice, because during the first time through someone else had a guitar plugged in and they were standing right in front of their amp, causing terrible feedback towards the middle of the song. We were recording the show, otherwise I wouldn't have cared. The recording is our first "official" one, because we played the entire song through without stopping for mistakes and we were in front of real people.
The rest of the night was pretty chill. We sat around and told funny stories while listening to "Hunky Dory" by David Bowie, then a live album by the Dropkick Murphys. After all the funny stuff we could think of was exhausted, we employed George Carlin's "Class Clown" to keep us amused.
All in all, it was a great party. I had a ton of fun, and I think everyone else had a great time too. In fact - let's do it again real soon.
Obviously, the show is the main thing I want to talk about. Okkayyy, maybe it was more like us saying "Hey, we're playing a song, so shut up!" in the middle of a much larger and longer jam session. Five of the eight people there play guitar, and we were all making tons of noise and banging on the drums and what-not. Fortunately, my awesome bass amp totally overpowered everything else, so I could be star of the show whenever I wanted. Don't worry, I wasn't too much of an attention whore.
The songs we played were "Basement Song" and "I Don't Know", plus an as-of-yet unnamed acoustic song by Bobby. The first two, despite having lyrics, were sans-vocals. The third did, but they were almost impossible to hear if you didn't know they were there (Bobby sang them). "Basement Song", which Bobby wrote and I penned lyrics for, went OK-ish. We've never played it 100% perfectly, because we both seem to have slightly different mental concepts of how the rhythm should go.
"I Don't Know", which I wrote in its entirety, was a bit better. I was on guitar and Bobby was on drums, and we put on a good performance. We actually had to play it the whole way through twice, because during the first time through someone else had a guitar plugged in and they were standing right in front of their amp, causing terrible feedback towards the middle of the song. We were recording the show, otherwise I wouldn't have cared. The recording is our first "official" one, because we played the entire song through without stopping for mistakes and we were in front of real people.
The rest of the night was pretty chill. We sat around and told funny stories while listening to "Hunky Dory" by David Bowie, then a live album by the Dropkick Murphys. After all the funny stuff we could think of was exhausted, we employed George Carlin's "Class Clown" to keep us amused.
All in all, it was a great party. I had a ton of fun, and I think everyone else had a great time too. In fact - let's do it again real soon.
Thursday, May 6, 2010
Daily Anecdotes
So, interesting anecdotes from my day.
My mom and I went running today, because the half marathon is in nine days. I came home from school, changed into my running shorts and crappy T-shirt, and packed clothes to put on after (because I wanted to go to Barnes & Noble). I knew my mom wanted to go pick up some new shoes, but I thought she would go to a stand-alone sporting goods shop. Turns out, she intended to go to the mall.
"What are we doing here?" I asked, somewhat panicked. I did NOT want to go into a mall full of my peers while wearing shorts that come up to the middle of my thighs and act nonchalant. However, she was very insistent. I swallowed my pride, got out of the car, and headed in. It was pretty early in the afternoon, fortunately, so there weren't too many teens yet. Still... To make matters worse, my shorts had severe static cling and were sticking to my legs, accentuating my odd-looking quadricep muscles.
I managed to make it out alive, thankfully. The run went pretty well, and my mom's new shoes worked great. I changed into my casual, not obnoxiously short clothing, and got all excited about going to B&N. Sadly...as we went down the main road, my mother observed a lack of working traffic signals. The power was out all across town, and the store was closed. We had to go out of our way to get gas for the car, but were fortunate in that our house (25 min. out of town) had power.
Although these stories seemed much more relevant in my head, they don't look it written out. Still, it's my opinion that a crappy post is better than none at all. And who knows? Perhaps you, the reader, will find relevance in my day-to-day activities.
My mom and I went running today, because the half marathon is in nine days. I came home from school, changed into my running shorts and crappy T-shirt, and packed clothes to put on after (because I wanted to go to Barnes & Noble). I knew my mom wanted to go pick up some new shoes, but I thought she would go to a stand-alone sporting goods shop. Turns out, she intended to go to the mall.
"What are we doing here?" I asked, somewhat panicked. I did NOT want to go into a mall full of my peers while wearing shorts that come up to the middle of my thighs and act nonchalant. However, she was very insistent. I swallowed my pride, got out of the car, and headed in. It was pretty early in the afternoon, fortunately, so there weren't too many teens yet. Still... To make matters worse, my shorts had severe static cling and were sticking to my legs, accentuating my odd-looking quadricep muscles.
I managed to make it out alive, thankfully. The run went pretty well, and my mom's new shoes worked great. I changed into my casual, not obnoxiously short clothing, and got all excited about going to B&N. Sadly...as we went down the main road, my mother observed a lack of working traffic signals. The power was out all across town, and the store was closed. We had to go out of our way to get gas for the car, but were fortunate in that our house (25 min. out of town) had power.
Although these stories seemed much more relevant in my head, they don't look it written out. Still, it's my opinion that a crappy post is better than none at all. And who knows? Perhaps you, the reader, will find relevance in my day-to-day activities.
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About Me
- Boyd
- Well, for starters, I'm a teen who thinks it would be fun to write about every little thing that pops into my head to be read by everyone on the internet every single day. Doesn't that tell you enough about who I am?
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