SO, as the title entails, I watched I watched the latest episode of Glee. My favorite part was Quinn telling Rachel "how the story ends" because from the previews, it sounded like she was going to be a complete not-nice person about it. In reality though, Quinn was saying that Rachel was too talented to be stuck in Ohio for the rest of her life. Was she trying to be honest and caring, or was she just trying to be blunt and rude? Guess we'll have to find out.
Since I'm in school right now (on a break, mind you) I'm not listening to any music, although I do have a Josh Groban song in my head, "Voce Existe Em Mim", which I've blogged about before. All I knew was the song made me want to move. Now, I'm more appreciative of the Carnival theme that Josh and his other collaborators came up with. The drums in the song are AMAAAZING, and I definitely recommend listening to it on YouTube with the lyrics for you (it's in Portuguese so having them there as he sings them is really helpful, plus one of the comments has the translation).
So Glee last night, as I said was pretty awesome, and out of the show came some pretty awesome songs (can you tell it was pretty awesome yet??) My favorite song though, wasn't on iTunes: Trouty Mouth. Santana's jazzy ballad to her boyfriend Sam, was utterly high-sterical. Cue lyrics, please:
Guppy Face, Trouty Mouth
Is that how people's lips look where you come from in the South
Grouper Mouth, Froggy Lips
I love suckin' on those salamander lips
Wanna put a fish hook in those lips so cherry red
If you tried hard enough you could suck a baby's head
Wooh!
Well written, is it not?
Okay, so on to the actual stuff I downloaded (All from Glee). The first, "When I Get You Alone", originally done by Robin Thicke (which REALLY surprised me when I found out because all I've heard of his stuff is slow, sex, "I'm about to get some" songs) was actually done a while ago, but I've just been dragging my heels to download it. When the actual song came out, Jake actually made me listen to it cause he loved it; I liked it, but I forgot about it and when Glee did the cover, I found that the a capella performance of the song changed the way I looked at the harmonies that I couldn't hear before it came out.
The next two are just cause they were really well written for the show: "Loser Like Me" and "Get It Right." Loser was a good explanation of the attitudes that the characters as a whole found in themselves over the show's run. Get It Right explained Rachel's situation completely and totally. I'm really hoping that each of the characters gets a song like that; explaining who they are and what they care about. It would be really cool to see that happen.
"Sing", originally done by My Chemical Romance was on the anthem-themed show a few weeks ago, and it rocked. I hadn't heard the song before, but it didn't surprise me because I'm not really into My Chemical Romance that much. I do have "I Write Sins, Not Tragedies" on my iPod, but other than that, they kind of blipped off the radar for me. Since it's been on the show, I've caught it on the radio a few times, so I'm thinking that it either became a single before the show and the show hyped it up, or it wasn't released until after the show was aired. Glee vs. My Chemical Romance? I think that the song definitely needed vocal harmonies to fill it out more, but the supports of guitars/drums/bass kind of lacks in the Glee version, so I think it's all about what you're in the mood for.
And finally, "Raise Your Glass" originally by Pink, became an a capella song. I mainly bought the song for the background vocals saying one of my favorite games "jenga jenga jenga, jeng, je, je jeng, je je je jenga...." I have the original on my iPod so I know the song, but the energy the Warblers brought to the song is a different vibe.
A little note about a capella music: I believe that it either hurts or helps a song. Seriously, I've heard some songs that are great with music that absolutely inhale vigorously as an a capella song. An example would be "When I Fall in Love" By Celene Dion and [insert name that I have totally blanked on and can't google right now]. But then, Katy Perry's Teenage Dream gets covered by Glee and it's changed into a better song for it (plus Katy Perry gets not only royalties from iTunes for her version, but from the Glee version as well, plus she said that she loved the song even more when Glee had done it).
Besides, anyone who can sing on pitch without any help from the backup band is awesome in my book. It's one of the hardest things to do. Think about this: when singers audition, most of the time it's without any music (think American Idol or any other singing competition). People who sing a capella sing without any music ALL THE TIME. Plus, because the human voice is most of the time more recognizable then say, a full band behind you, it's easier to hear the harmonies to different songs.
Okay, so any suggestions of what songs I should download/listen to?
Thursday, March 17, 2011
Saturday, March 12, 2011
Hmmmmmm....
So I'm thinking that I need to really have a purpose to blog, and I need to come up with not only things to talk about (let's be safe and say that my life is pretty bland at the moment), but things that interest other people. OH AND BTW: You can comment now even if you don't have a blog on blogger....I didn't know that was a setting, so GO AHEAD AND COMMENT PLEASE! <3 Thank you.
In this instance, I am thinking of changing things around the blog a bit, and making my posts be about not only what's going on in my life, but posting on some interests of mine. The first change? Posting about the music I'm buying/listening to/being exposed to/liking (lot of slashes there, huh?). I feel like the music I listen to tells stories about my life and maybe I can explain why I listen to what I do.
The whole goal of this is to get some more readers, mainly because I have nothing else to do, lol. But seriously, I'd like to get people to like what I write and to comment on some of the things I'm interested in too.
So, I'm thinking that because I usually blog at home, listening to music as I type, I'll probably be putting the song that I'm listening to first and commenting on it. THen I am thinking about putting what music I've bought on iTunes lately and critiquing that, and if I haven't bought anything in a while, put in something that I've heard on the radio lately or what I've been listening to a lot. Sound okay?
So, right now I am listening to "Right in Front of You" by Celine Dion. Yes, I do like Celine Dion, but this song wouldn't really be on my iPod or anywhere else if it wasn't for ECHO and my cousin's experience at ECHO (go to their website to find out more about ECHO). "Right in Front of You" was her theme song for her first weekend, and when she told me this, the song took on a faith aspect, and the song's more like a prayer than anything for me. She's actually on a weekend right now, and I pray that she will be a model of faith for all the other girls there.
Recently, I've been downloading a bunch of new stuff to listen to. The last four songs I downloaded were "Little Lion Man" by Mumford and Sons, "Never Had a Dream Come True" by S Club 7 (I know the GALL I have...), "Born This Way" from GaaaaaGaaaaa herself, and "Stereo Love" by Edward Mya and Vika Jigulina
"Little Lion Man" is a good "let's go drink and sing along at our loudest volumes but still be civilized doing it" kind of song. It's a two for one deal in that you can have it loud and jump around to it, OR you can put it on a low volume and have it as background music as you do work or surf the net. Plus they're CUTE Irish men who can sing and play instruments...that's kind of an amazing combination and always gets me (Sorry, hunny!)
"Never Had a Dream Come True" was a combination of things: The fact that I had 49 cents left on my account that I wanted to spend, and S Club 7, sadly to admit was royalty to a 12-aged Aimee. I adored them (Jon was my favorite). Every Saturday I would watch Fox Family (before ABC took it over and screwed it all up) to see what all seven members would do that week (and I think secretly, I was seeing who would be good together, when in reality they all probably hated Jo cause she would get all the solos and they'd hate each other cause they were actors for kids in the States). Now as I listen, I am reminded of 00's pop that should stay in that decade and be reminisced only when I'm with Nikki or Erin. That's it.
"Born This Way" : Okay, so for those who are sensitive to the issue of homosexuality hear this now: I did not download this song because it's a song about gay rights. I downloaded the song cause it's an awesome song... saying that God makes no mistakes and that He made me perfect the way I am? I'll take it. Lady Gaga only mentions gays once in the song, and the rest of the time it's about being okay with who you are as a person. Although I have to say that video is SCA-REWED UP!!! Don't watch it, I was kinda traumatized.
Okay, so the last song is "Stereo Love" and it reminded me of a French accordian to dance music and it was too interesting to pass up and you know what? It's the first dance song that I've downloaded in a while. It makes me want to find a dance place somewhere, turn off all the lights and rave it up. Yeah.
Soooo any music I should download/check out? Now that you can, comment please. :-)
In this instance, I am thinking of changing things around the blog a bit, and making my posts be about not only what's going on in my life, but posting on some interests of mine. The first change? Posting about the music I'm buying/listening to/being exposed to/liking (lot of slashes there, huh?). I feel like the music I listen to tells stories about my life and maybe I can explain why I listen to what I do.
The whole goal of this is to get some more readers, mainly because I have nothing else to do, lol. But seriously, I'd like to get people to like what I write and to comment on some of the things I'm interested in too.
So, I'm thinking that because I usually blog at home, listening to music as I type, I'll probably be putting the song that I'm listening to first and commenting on it. THen I am thinking about putting what music I've bought on iTunes lately and critiquing that, and if I haven't bought anything in a while, put in something that I've heard on the radio lately or what I've been listening to a lot. Sound okay?
So, right now I am listening to "Right in Front of You" by Celine Dion. Yes, I do like Celine Dion, but this song wouldn't really be on my iPod or anywhere else if it wasn't for ECHO and my cousin's experience at ECHO (go to their website to find out more about ECHO). "Right in Front of You" was her theme song for her first weekend, and when she told me this, the song took on a faith aspect, and the song's more like a prayer than anything for me. She's actually on a weekend right now, and I pray that she will be a model of faith for all the other girls there.
Recently, I've been downloading a bunch of new stuff to listen to. The last four songs I downloaded were "Little Lion Man" by Mumford and Sons, "Never Had a Dream Come True" by S Club 7 (I know the GALL I have...), "Born This Way" from GaaaaaGaaaaa herself, and "Stereo Love" by Edward Mya and Vika Jigulina
"Little Lion Man" is a good "let's go drink and sing along at our loudest volumes but still be civilized doing it" kind of song. It's a two for one deal in that you can have it loud and jump around to it, OR you can put it on a low volume and have it as background music as you do work or surf the net. Plus they're CUTE Irish men who can sing and play instruments...that's kind of an amazing combination and always gets me (Sorry, hunny!)
"Never Had a Dream Come True" was a combination of things: The fact that I had 49 cents left on my account that I wanted to spend, and S Club 7, sadly to admit was royalty to a 12-aged Aimee. I adored them (Jon was my favorite). Every Saturday I would watch Fox Family (before ABC took it over and screwed it all up) to see what all seven members would do that week (and I think secretly, I was seeing who would be good together, when in reality they all probably hated Jo cause she would get all the solos and they'd hate each other cause they were actors for kids in the States). Now as I listen, I am reminded of 00's pop that should stay in that decade and be reminisced only when I'm with Nikki or Erin. That's it.
"Born This Way" : Okay, so for those who are sensitive to the issue of homosexuality hear this now: I did not download this song because it's a song about gay rights. I downloaded the song cause it's an awesome song... saying that God makes no mistakes and that He made me perfect the way I am? I'll take it. Lady Gaga only mentions gays once in the song, and the rest of the time it's about being okay with who you are as a person. Although I have to say that video is SCA-REWED UP!!! Don't watch it, I was kinda traumatized.
Okay, so the last song is "Stereo Love" and it reminded me of a French accordian to dance music and it was too interesting to pass up and you know what? It's the first dance song that I've downloaded in a while. It makes me want to find a dance place somewhere, turn off all the lights and rave it up. Yeah.
Soooo any music I should download/check out? Now that you can, comment please. :-)
Tuesday, February 15, 2011
Life Sometimes Inhales Vigorously
Hey everyone! Happy Sunday! Sorry for the rushed greeting, but I'm just coming off of vacation, and I realized some things that I had been kind of too busy to just stop and feel.
So I went to see Cassie on her birthday. It was wicked fun, and I got to see a lot of people I hadn't seen in a while. While there was a lull in the celebration, I got to talking with Andrew, one of the only friends I have that was an elementary ed major and who came from a similar background (only child, raised completely Catholic, lol). He was telling me about his life and how he doesn't see much of the people at Saint Joe's because he's wicked busy and it costs a lot to drive up to see everyone. Andy said something that summed up what I was feeling like and what actually happens after college that no one thinks will happen.
Now, when I say this, I am making a generalization; I know that others have different experiences. At this point, I am speaking about what happened to me; how I coped with post college life. I feel though, that this is what happens to a lot of people, so I would like to share this as advice, and maybe if it happened to you, you could share it as well . . . you ready for this?
After college (especially in this economy), you isolate yourself until you have two feet planted in a career or feel like you are in a good place financially. Seriously, it's true. The minute I graduated, I felt like I had to figure out my life before I saw my friends again. I became anti-social; not calling anyone, not seeing anyone (except for a few), but keeping to myself and trying to figure out where I was going in life and what was in store for me.
I think I'm still in this "stage" as I see it, but at the same time I find myself opening up a bit.
This brings me to the second thing I realized this week. Now, to understand this realization, you all need to know that my biggest fear since I was young is that my parents would pass away. Now, I know that will happen some day, and my mind knows that it won't happen soon; that said, my heart feels like it could happen tomorrow, and I will not be ready.
My second realization (and this will sound reeeeaaally awful, especially to my mother) is that I am 23 years old, I have to take care of my father. My dad is getting older, as we all do/will, and he's slowing down especially in these cold New Hampshire winters. On top of that, his cerebral palsy effected how his legs grew, and with old age, it's getting a lot harder for him to move around. My father is a stubborn, proud man, and yes there are things that can help him, but it's tough when he knows that those things that can help him will also brand him as an elderly man who is pitied by strangers who see him and don't know that he has CP and has not had a stroke of some kind (I've gotten that little question a lot lately).
I don't mean this as bad or unwanted; I want to be there for my dad and mom as they get older. I feel that they raised me and cared for me, and I need to return the favor and care for them as well. It's not that I don't want to care for my parents, it's just I thought that I would do so when I was a bit older and had a family of my own. In my head, that's when I'll be ready; when I have a husband and kids.
I find myself wondering if he'll be okay during the day when Mum and I leave for Cornish.
Inside, I know that God will not and has not given me anything that I can't handle, but I am really wondering if I'm ready to do this. What will happen when I move out? Is my mom going to be okay being by herself helping him? What if something happens to her and my dad can't help her and can't get to the phone? How long will it take me to get to them if either of them are in trouble? These aren't questions that I thought I would be asking myself at this point in my life.
Then I think about when they both are gone and I have this house; how to I get rid of my parents' things? How can I do what I saw them do with my grandparents? Sell the house, give away those memories I have of their belongings? It seems so wrong . . . I know I'm not that strong and yet I feel like that part is looming somewhere in the near future.
I honestly think this wouldn't be an issue that I would be thinking about if I had a brother or sister. Both my parents had siblings to help with all of this, but I think that's what I'm most afraid of: I don't have brothers or sisters to help me. I will be the sole person who will have responsibility of their care, who'll have to figure out what to do after they're gone . . . it's really scary.
So where does that leave me?
So I went to see Cassie on her birthday. It was wicked fun, and I got to see a lot of people I hadn't seen in a while. While there was a lull in the celebration, I got to talking with Andrew, one of the only friends I have that was an elementary ed major and who came from a similar background (only child, raised completely Catholic, lol). He was telling me about his life and how he doesn't see much of the people at Saint Joe's because he's wicked busy and it costs a lot to drive up to see everyone. Andy said something that summed up what I was feeling like and what actually happens after college that no one thinks will happen.
Now, when I say this, I am making a generalization; I know that others have different experiences. At this point, I am speaking about what happened to me; how I coped with post college life. I feel though, that this is what happens to a lot of people, so I would like to share this as advice, and maybe if it happened to you, you could share it as well . . . you ready for this?
After college (especially in this economy), you isolate yourself until you have two feet planted in a career or feel like you are in a good place financially. Seriously, it's true. The minute I graduated, I felt like I had to figure out my life before I saw my friends again. I became anti-social; not calling anyone, not seeing anyone (except for a few), but keeping to myself and trying to figure out where I was going in life and what was in store for me.
I think I'm still in this "stage" as I see it, but at the same time I find myself opening up a bit.
This brings me to the second thing I realized this week. Now, to understand this realization, you all need to know that my biggest fear since I was young is that my parents would pass away. Now, I know that will happen some day, and my mind knows that it won't happen soon; that said, my heart feels like it could happen tomorrow, and I will not be ready.
My second realization (and this will sound reeeeaaally awful, especially to my mother) is that I am 23 years old, I have to take care of my father. My dad is getting older, as we all do/will, and he's slowing down especially in these cold New Hampshire winters. On top of that, his cerebral palsy effected how his legs grew, and with old age, it's getting a lot harder for him to move around. My father is a stubborn, proud man, and yes there are things that can help him, but it's tough when he knows that those things that can help him will also brand him as an elderly man who is pitied by strangers who see him and don't know that he has CP and has not had a stroke of some kind (I've gotten that little question a lot lately).
I don't mean this as bad or unwanted; I want to be there for my dad and mom as they get older. I feel that they raised me and cared for me, and I need to return the favor and care for them as well. It's not that I don't want to care for my parents, it's just I thought that I would do so when I was a bit older and had a family of my own. In my head, that's when I'll be ready; when I have a husband and kids.
I find myself wondering if he'll be okay during the day when Mum and I leave for Cornish.
Inside, I know that God will not and has not given me anything that I can't handle, but I am really wondering if I'm ready to do this. What will happen when I move out? Is my mom going to be okay being by herself helping him? What if something happens to her and my dad can't help her and can't get to the phone? How long will it take me to get to them if either of them are in trouble? These aren't questions that I thought I would be asking myself at this point in my life.
Then I think about when they both are gone and I have this house; how to I get rid of my parents' things? How can I do what I saw them do with my grandparents? Sell the house, give away those memories I have of their belongings? It seems so wrong . . . I know I'm not that strong and yet I feel like that part is looming somewhere in the near future.
I honestly think this wouldn't be an issue that I would be thinking about if I had a brother or sister. Both my parents had siblings to help with all of this, but I think that's what I'm most afraid of: I don't have brothers or sisters to help me. I will be the sole person who will have responsibility of their care, who'll have to figure out what to do after they're gone . . . it's really scary.
So where does that leave me?
Thursday, January 13, 2011
Untitled {for now}
Hey everyone! Happy New Year! I know I'm late with the new year thing, but hey, it's still January so I'm still safe.
I was thinking about what I would do to for resolutions this year. Since it IS a new year and all, I was going to be SO into making resolutions, but honestly, I don't think anyone I know has made one publicly yet.
Everyone chooses losing weight as a resolution, and that's definitely is on the list for me. Before I just wanted to get healthy, and I still do, but before, I didn't care if I didn't lose any weight because I was still me, and I had things to distract me (such as college, friends, etc.). But now, I want to LOOK better in clothes, and feel better about myself. I didn't realize how low my self esteem really was. Yes. I am happy with who I am, but everyone feels low about themselves more than they admit.
I also want to try and be more honest with people about how I'm feeling. 2010 was a pretty emotional roller coaster ride, and I tried to keep myself in check emotionally, but it didn't really work and it ended up with me spilling over and overreacting to a lot of things.
I think that's pretty much all I want to do right now to help my life get a bit better. Sure, there are things that I could fix about myself, but I have to start somewhere, and I know that I wont get anything done unless I do one thing at a time. If I do more than that, I'll blow up, panic, or both, and get overwhelmed (honesty, right?)
So, let's have an update, shall we? Things aren't busy as much as time consuming. For example, the only real busy day I have nowadays is Monday (Get up BEFORE the crack of dawn, get to school, come back to the gym to work out for like 20 mins, get dinner, choir, sleep). I'm not doing a lot the other days, but when I get home, there's so much for me to do, like, laundry, showering, dinner, trying to get onto the computer to check email and Facebook so I can at least keep up with what's going on...then it's time for bed to start all over again.
School's okay; not great. I love the teacher I'm working with, but sometimes I just wish there was more that I was doing in the classroom. I did more while I was an intern than I do now. What I am taking with me is the fact that I am definitely NOT a middle school teacher; the students I have are pretty disrespectful, and I don't think I could handle that year after year. I have good days and bad days, but it's pretty much day to day at this point.
So this thing about me being honest? I have some things I need to say just to get them out in the open so they're not so bottled up anymore(Jake, stop reading cause I know you've heard this a million times...I know, if I've told you then they're not bottled up, but I am my mother's daughter and I need to get it out to someone else too).
I really wish I had Jake with me a bit more than what I have right now just because when I see him and I'm with him, I can breathe a lot easier and I'm not as stressed when he's around. That might be due to the fact that I see him during vacations, but I honestly don't think so. When I was looking for a job down in Indiana, my reactions were more dramatic when I was back in New Hampshire than when I was with him in Indiana. Maybe it's just me missing him just after he came up for my birthday (we have a great time, btw), but it's getting a lot harder for me to say goodbye to him. Actually leaving the airport is getting harder. I literally want to just run to the ticket counter and buy a ticket to get on the plane with him. It's so completely crazy, right? I mean, it totally and completely makes sense to me. Does that make me sick in the head; to want that?
Anyway, I think that's all for now. Thanks the 4.2 people who read this.
I was thinking about what I would do to for resolutions this year. Since it IS a new year and all, I was going to be SO into making resolutions, but honestly, I don't think anyone I know has made one publicly yet.
Everyone chooses losing weight as a resolution, and that's definitely is on the list for me. Before I just wanted to get healthy, and I still do, but before, I didn't care if I didn't lose any weight because I was still me, and I had things to distract me (such as college, friends, etc.). But now, I want to LOOK better in clothes, and feel better about myself. I didn't realize how low my self esteem really was. Yes. I am happy with who I am, but everyone feels low about themselves more than they admit.
I also want to try and be more honest with people about how I'm feeling. 2010 was a pretty emotional roller coaster ride, and I tried to keep myself in check emotionally, but it didn't really work and it ended up with me spilling over and overreacting to a lot of things.
I think that's pretty much all I want to do right now to help my life get a bit better. Sure, there are things that I could fix about myself, but I have to start somewhere, and I know that I wont get anything done unless I do one thing at a time. If I do more than that, I'll blow up, panic, or both, and get overwhelmed (honesty, right?)
So, let's have an update, shall we? Things aren't busy as much as time consuming. For example, the only real busy day I have nowadays is Monday (Get up BEFORE the crack of dawn, get to school, come back to the gym to work out for like 20 mins, get dinner, choir, sleep). I'm not doing a lot the other days, but when I get home, there's so much for me to do, like, laundry, showering, dinner, trying to get onto the computer to check email and Facebook so I can at least keep up with what's going on...then it's time for bed to start all over again.
School's okay; not great. I love the teacher I'm working with, but sometimes I just wish there was more that I was doing in the classroom. I did more while I was an intern than I do now. What I am taking with me is the fact that I am definitely NOT a middle school teacher; the students I have are pretty disrespectful, and I don't think I could handle that year after year. I have good days and bad days, but it's pretty much day to day at this point.
So this thing about me being honest? I have some things I need to say just to get them out in the open so they're not so bottled up anymore(Jake, stop reading cause I know you've heard this a million times...I know, if I've told you then they're not bottled up, but I am my mother's daughter and I need to get it out to someone else too).
I really wish I had Jake with me a bit more than what I have right now just because when I see him and I'm with him, I can breathe a lot easier and I'm not as stressed when he's around. That might be due to the fact that I see him during vacations, but I honestly don't think so. When I was looking for a job down in Indiana, my reactions were more dramatic when I was back in New Hampshire than when I was with him in Indiana. Maybe it's just me missing him just after he came up for my birthday (we have a great time, btw), but it's getting a lot harder for me to say goodbye to him. Actually leaving the airport is getting harder. I literally want to just run to the ticket counter and buy a ticket to get on the plane with him. It's so completely crazy, right? I mean, it totally and completely makes sense to me. Does that make me sick in the head; to want that?
Anyway, I think that's all for now. Thanks the 4.2 people who read this.
Wednesday, November 17, 2010
Illuminations
This is kind of new for me, but I really felt that I had to write about Josh Groban's Illuminations and what I really thought of it. I wouldn't call this a review, but just what I feel about the album itself. Jus to let you know, I bought the deluxe version with the extra bonus track (need to know that for later :-P).
Right off the bat, I'd like to say that I like the album a lot. It's something that Josh has never ventured into before, or at least the stuff that I have of his doesn't sound like the album.
Judging on just the music and not lyrics, Illuminations is not something to listen to if you are, say, a special ed teacher who has to drive 65 miles to work and you got out of bed an hour earlier and are still tired and it's so early it's still dark out. For me, the sound is very mellow (for most of the songs on the album, there are a few exceptions), and not something to get you going. On the other hand, if you are in the mood for something soothing and quiet, the music is great, and easy to listen to. It's definitely something that I would put on if I was just hanging out or if I needed background music. Oh, and by the way, I am NOT saying that the album is bad because I may use it as background music. That's a good thing! It means that I can put it on, and not have to worry about changing the song to another because I don't want to listen to the next plethora of music choices.
The lyrics of the songs are 100% fantastic; completely pulls you in. Even if I can't translate the language (Italian, Portuguese...I know the French song...), I can tell by the emotion in Josh's voice what the song conveys. If I had only one question to ask Josh Groban about this album, I would ask if he wrote the lyrics before the music was written because, seriously, the whole album's lyrics are really poetic and beautiful.
Now, if you don't want to get the whole album, that's fine. These are the ones that I feel work the best for me:
The Wandering Kind-- It's the first song and an instrumental, but it's a good song to kind of get you focused and in a certain mindset (for the album most likely).
Higher Window--Just beautiful. Period.
Voce Existe Em Mim-- The music is amazing on this track--the drums just make you want to get up and do something; doesn't matter what, but you just want to get up. Very powerful.
War At Home-- Heartbreaking, but completely true.
Straight To You-- I don't know what to say; the song just spoke to me.
Feels Like Home-- Now this song speaks to me the most. This is the bonus track that came with the deluxe version.
Thanks for listening! I know this is new, but I figured I would put it out there.
Right off the bat, I'd like to say that I like the album a lot. It's something that Josh has never ventured into before, or at least the stuff that I have of his doesn't sound like the album.
Judging on just the music and not lyrics, Illuminations is not something to listen to if you are, say, a special ed teacher who has to drive 65 miles to work and you got out of bed an hour earlier and are still tired and it's so early it's still dark out. For me, the sound is very mellow (for most of the songs on the album, there are a few exceptions), and not something to get you going. On the other hand, if you are in the mood for something soothing and quiet, the music is great, and easy to listen to. It's definitely something that I would put on if I was just hanging out or if I needed background music. Oh, and by the way, I am NOT saying that the album is bad because I may use it as background music. That's a good thing! It means that I can put it on, and not have to worry about changing the song to another because I don't want to listen to the next plethora of music choices.
The lyrics of the songs are 100% fantastic; completely pulls you in. Even if I can't translate the language (Italian, Portuguese...I know the French song...), I can tell by the emotion in Josh's voice what the song conveys. If I had only one question to ask Josh Groban about this album, I would ask if he wrote the lyrics before the music was written because, seriously, the whole album's lyrics are really poetic and beautiful.
Now, if you don't want to get the whole album, that's fine. These are the ones that I feel work the best for me:
The Wandering Kind-- It's the first song and an instrumental, but it's a good song to kind of get you focused and in a certain mindset (for the album most likely).
Higher Window--Just beautiful. Period.
Voce Existe Em Mim-- The music is amazing on this track--the drums just make you want to get up and do something; doesn't matter what, but you just want to get up. Very powerful.
War At Home-- Heartbreaking, but completely true.
Straight To You-- I don't know what to say; the song just spoke to me.
Feels Like Home-- Now this song speaks to me the most. This is the bonus track that came with the deluxe version.
Thanks for listening! I know this is new, but I figured I would put it out there.
The Update of the Teacher You All Know and Love!
Oh. My. Goodness. I haven't been updating and it's killing me because I missed all of my readers! Hello; it's nice to see you. :-) Anyway, I've been okay; trudging along through school and the Village, and everything in between. I'm thinking this blog will be more of a reflection, than anything about what I'm doing (things pretty much haven't changed).
School is settling down a bit; my student is doing great, and I'm getting a lot more done now that he is (planning and such). Life in Cornish, NH is chilly and sometimes wet, but it seems like it's the best fit for me in my life right now. Honestly, it's the perfect first job; it's something that is preparing me for when I have my own classroom. Looking back, if I did have my own classroom right off it would have been a bigger struggle than what I'm doing now; but I could have done it. At the same time, though, I'm kind of glad that I don't just yet because I'm looking at this year as another year of preparation for that classroom. It's hard for me to admit, but I thought I was ready for it; I thought I was ready and prepared. The reality is I wasn't ready, and it's not that SJC didn't prepare me well enough, but it was the fact that I wasn't emotionally or mentally ready for twenty-five screaming kids who all need individual attention.
At the end of the day, I truly and honestly feel drained, but it was worse in the beginning of the year. I'm drained of patience, time, and energy. Please don't take this as me complaining; I'm not. I love what I'm doing and I wouldn't change anything going on right now. I'm just saying that doing what I love takes a lot out of me. That's the big drawback of teaching because it really does suck the life out of you. I knew that going into teaching, but it doesn't change the fact that I am tired and a bit annoyed at the end of the day.
The Village is a good break from using every ounce of patience that I have. I know normally I'm not a patient person with the people closest to me (Sorry, Mom), but when I'm helping customers, it's natural for me to be patient with them; it's completely different from what I do at school. Imagination Village is a breath of fresh air. The people I work with are great; they really are (I'm truly not trying to butter up my boss who might be reading! :-p ). Plus, I get to help out parents and other teachers find things that will help their children/students grow to be better than they were before, whether it be just a toy to play with or a poster to help students stay focused.
Singing helps me too. Yes, yes, I sing all the time, but it's what I do as a stress reliever. When I sing (it doesn't really matter if I have a good voice or not), it's as if all the bottled up emotions just got uncorked (is that a word? I think so...) and they're flowing out so I don't have all that extra "stuff". I think what happens when I sing is that I have a certain feeling of greatness; it's the one thing that I can do really, really well. Singing is my link to God, and it feels like singing is the only truly and completely constant thing in my life; it never changes.
What's really bugging me, actually, is the fact that I didn't think my life after college would be like this; it never occurred to me that I wouldn't be able to talk to my friends on a regular basis, or that I would have to schedule a block of time to eat dinner with my parents; it's kind of nuts, I have to say.
I just hope that this part of my life doesn't go by too quickly.
School is settling down a bit; my student is doing great, and I'm getting a lot more done now that he is (planning and such). Life in Cornish, NH is chilly and sometimes wet, but it seems like it's the best fit for me in my life right now. Honestly, it's the perfect first job; it's something that is preparing me for when I have my own classroom. Looking back, if I did have my own classroom right off it would have been a bigger struggle than what I'm doing now; but I could have done it. At the same time, though, I'm kind of glad that I don't just yet because I'm looking at this year as another year of preparation for that classroom. It's hard for me to admit, but I thought I was ready for it; I thought I was ready and prepared. The reality is I wasn't ready, and it's not that SJC didn't prepare me well enough, but it was the fact that I wasn't emotionally or mentally ready for twenty-five screaming kids who all need individual attention.
At the end of the day, I truly and honestly feel drained, but it was worse in the beginning of the year. I'm drained of patience, time, and energy. Please don't take this as me complaining; I'm not. I love what I'm doing and I wouldn't change anything going on right now. I'm just saying that doing what I love takes a lot out of me. That's the big drawback of teaching because it really does suck the life out of you. I knew that going into teaching, but it doesn't change the fact that I am tired and a bit annoyed at the end of the day.
The Village is a good break from using every ounce of patience that I have. I know normally I'm not a patient person with the people closest to me (Sorry, Mom), but when I'm helping customers, it's natural for me to be patient with them; it's completely different from what I do at school. Imagination Village is a breath of fresh air. The people I work with are great; they really are (I'm truly not trying to butter up my boss who might be reading! :-p ). Plus, I get to help out parents and other teachers find things that will help their children/students grow to be better than they were before, whether it be just a toy to play with or a poster to help students stay focused.
Singing helps me too. Yes, yes, I sing all the time, but it's what I do as a stress reliever. When I sing (it doesn't really matter if I have a good voice or not), it's as if all the bottled up emotions just got uncorked (is that a word? I think so...) and they're flowing out so I don't have all that extra "stuff". I think what happens when I sing is that I have a certain feeling of greatness; it's the one thing that I can do really, really well. Singing is my link to God, and it feels like singing is the only truly and completely constant thing in my life; it never changes.
What's really bugging me, actually, is the fact that I didn't think my life after college would be like this; it never occurred to me that I wouldn't be able to talk to my friends on a regular basis, or that I would have to schedule a block of time to eat dinner with my parents; it's kind of nuts, I have to say.
I just hope that this part of my life doesn't go by too quickly.
Monday, September 27, 2010
Settling In
Hey everyone! Hope everything's good with you.
Right now I'm just settling into my new life. It's wicked busy, actually. What's keeping me busy? I've got two jobs (yes, TWO jobs, which I thank God for constantly) that keeps me working about 6-7 hours six days a week, and then I'm teaching religious education (1st grade)on Sundays, so really, I'm working seven days a week.
So yeah, I am busy. I think being busy is a good thing for me, though. It keeps me focused on things that matter. When I have nothing to do, I literally just sit in front of the TV or the computer (thank you, twenty first century), which is a) not productive and b) unhealthy.
It's hard to have time for anything else but work and rest (meaning sleep and down time). I'm hoping things will get better, and a lot easier to handle, but I think I'm doing okay so far; as long as I don't add anything else to my already stuffed schedule, I think I'll be good.
Right now I'm just settling into my new life. It's wicked busy, actually. What's keeping me busy? I've got two jobs (yes, TWO jobs, which I thank God for constantly) that keeps me working about 6-7 hours six days a week, and then I'm teaching religious education (1st grade)on Sundays, so really, I'm working seven days a week.
So yeah, I am busy. I think being busy is a good thing for me, though. It keeps me focused on things that matter. When I have nothing to do, I literally just sit in front of the TV or the computer (thank you, twenty first century), which is a) not productive and b) unhealthy.
It's hard to have time for anything else but work and rest (meaning sleep and down time). I'm hoping things will get better, and a lot easier to handle, but I think I'm doing okay so far; as long as I don't add anything else to my already stuffed schedule, I think I'll be good.
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