All the World's a Stage for Disappointment

Okay, so...Now that you've read my promising title, I thought I'd explain. I was never a huge advocate of 'Going Green.' But, recently-today actually- I discovered that the Bush Administration is going behind our backs to sell land in a NATIONAL PARK for that scudsy stuff called oil. It's a bit ridiculous if you ask me. In fact, I'm pretty pissed about it. The land is going to oil and gas companies, and it's not like they need it. Everyone whines about not having enough oil and all this other crap, but in reality, I'm sure we have PLENTY left over. Yes, I agree we should look for alternative energies, but we have oil left. Just look at how much the stupid oil companies have made in the last year. Exxon Mobile was right the top, followed by another oil company and I dunno...Google or something. It's this kind of blatant arrogance I can't stand!!! It's almost like they think the American people are too stupid to realize what's going on. God- it makes me grind my teeth, this kind of thing.
It's the fact that they're auctioning off land in the Utah National Park. They're just giving it away to the highest bidder without even stopping to think about what it all means. What else can this administration do to us before we boot their worthless butts out of the White House?!!!!! (Boy, did I want to use a swear so bad...) It seriously makes me soooo freaking mad! This first came to my attention-and I know how stupid this sounds- off of the Myspace of NDRC+Green Day. Go ahead and roll your eyes, but this is serious business. The administration didn't even ask permission until just recently, after everything was already set in motion. God- Isn't it sickening? Doesn't that leave a bad taste in your mouth? Is anyone else pissed off about this?!!!
Most of my information came from a letter written to NRDC's website by Robert Redford. He makes some pretty good points as to why we shouldn't let this happen. He requests that we should all send in letters protesting the move, and I'm seriously thinking about doing it.
If anyone's interested, here's the link: http://www.nrdconline.org/campaign/stop_wilderness_giveaway_nsb
The auction is on December 19th, and that scares the hell out of me. I don't know if my letter will make it in time.... I hope it does.
This needs to stop.

Little Sammy Was a Punk Rocker

Another picture crusade led me to find this. It was on Flickr.com, after I searched 'mohawk.' I love images with punks in them, mainly because I like how they look almost like dreams in real life. In other words, they just look so different from the rest of the people, that they automatically stand out- they almost look like cartoons that came to life. I always loved the punk style, because it was so outlandish in most cases; mohawks are often a stereotype, but if someone has one, it brings this 'don't mess with me vibe' that many obey. I don't picture too many mohawk-sporting guys toting babies, do you? This particular picture struck me as different from all the rest. It's at once intimate and out-of-ordinary. The caption of this picture had said that the photographer had taken it at Disney World. How funny is that? I love it. To me, it's a great image, just because it humanizes a group that would otherwise sneer at something so sweet.

Writing Woes

A new assignment of mine is to write about what it's like to write a short story. Without getting into the 'colorful' language I might use to describe it, I will say that it can be very...frustrating at times. I have a problem with deadlines- hate them. They always make me stress out way more than I have to and I fret about finishing everything in time. Often I'll rush to get it done, which is a bad thing; I end up leaving out good details that I would have put in if I just took my time. I have to give myself the time and everything turns out better when I do that.
Another thing about writing a short story is the fact that I have to keep it short. I am notorious for expounding a bit too much on minor details. I want the reader to understand what it's like to be in certain places, but then I end up describing things that no one cares about, like how dirty some one's shoes are or how dusty the floor is or something trivial like that. I like doing those things, but I have to bear in mind that I'm writing a short story and not a novella. I have trouble keeping things concise and to the point. I like to expand on what I write, get as detailed as I can, and even a bit melodramatic in some cases. I like to write about places other than what I'm used to, and if it's some place far off, I'll research it a little to get a feel for the place.
I like to have at least three characters that I work with in a story; that way it's not completely over-the-top and convoluted. I no longer restrict myself to writing from one character's point of view, or writing from a girl's perspective.
It can get crazy sometimes, and I'll go through the editing process numerous times, chopping out what I don't need or no longer like. I definitely avoid cliches as often as I can; nobody likes to read a story and figure out what's going to happen in the first three chapters.
With short stories, it's a little more difficult, because you have to conform to some of the 'writing rules.' It can't be too long, because the reader might get bored, but it can't be too short, because then it's like 'what just happened?' You have to find a comfortable medium between the two, and that's always a pain in the butt.....

Scattered Pictures

I love to collect pictures. It's this weird little thing I do. I'm not exactly sure why I do it, but I love looking at all these images and imagining what it was like for the photographer, or what meaning it has behind it. I like to look at pictures and wonder what was going on at the time; what was it that made the photographer take the picture. Sometimes I put the pictures in my scrapbook, sometimes I use them as my desktop, sometimes I just like to look for stuff. My favorite ones are music ones and some of the ones from World War Two actually look pretty cool. The above picture is one of my faves; the guitarist looks so tiny compared to his audience. The one at the bottom is also a fave. I love the way he was captured and everything. I tend to favor black and white pictures too, just because of how dramatic and 'gentle' they tend to look. I'm not saying that color pictures can never be like that, but black and white has a more classic feel to it than most modern pictures. The image at right comes from World War Two, and I thought it was a good way to show what was going on during those times. The kids had to fight the war as much as the men did, and here they are just acting like they should. I thought the photographer captured them in a good way. You may not look at pictures the same way I do, but that's okay. Whatever. It's what I like to do....

Good Grief!

It's the holiday season, of course; everyone knows that. With this knowledge comes tradition. We all have our own little ways of celebrating the holidays. One of the 'traditions' that come around the holiday season for me, is that every year, we find some way to watch How the Grinch Stole Christmas (the cartoon one- the good one) and A Charlie Brown Christmas. I like watching these, because it reminds me of being a kid and how I used to get so excited about Christmas. Santa was coming and all that. Now, I'm definitely not that excited anymore, but I still like the holidays. It's a good time for everyone and I like seeing the members of my family all gathered together. Now that I'm older, those movies I mentioned are more like things to remind me of being younger rather than hanging on to every word. What's fun about them now is that I can share them with my three young nieces, and have them enjoy what I did when I was their age. Of course, sometime they'll sit with me on the couch and ask questions about nearly every thing, but that's okay. I don't mind it.

What gets me every time, though, is A Charlie Brown Christmas. When you think about it, that poor kid takes a lot of crap. And for what? He has the nerve to get a real Christmas tree instead of a fake one that everyone else has? He gets ridiculed for being different. Seriously, if you watch again being all 'grown up,' you realize that those kids are mean. Even Snoopy is liked more than Charlie is. Linus is the only one who seems to understand him, too. It's so weird. The kids are all so terrible to him. "Boy are you stupid Charlie Brown," one girl tells him when he bring in the tree. "Rats," is all he replies. And this is after enduring the derisive laughter of the people he had previously considered friends. Call me crazy, but who wanted this poor kid to go through all of this just to learn the meaning of Christmas? It's a little insane. In the end though, Charlie Brown realizes that he does have friends and all that; that it's okay to be different and he learns what Christmas is all about, thanks to Linus. But still. He always gets put down. This is a kid who gets rocks for Halloween.

What kind of kid would he be nowadays? Would he be in therapy or something like that? Or would there be no Charlie Brown at all today? He'd probably be like, Emo or something. Wouldn't that be nice?

I've just realized... maybe Charlie Brown himself is the correct one, and all the others are wrong. Maybe he's been right this whole time. Who knows? But he always 'triumphs' in the end, which is inspiring, I guess. It does teach kids a good lesson: don't give up on yourself.

As long as Charlie Brown doesn't give up, then I guess he can go on being mopey. At least we know he'll come out victorious in the end.

Drummer Boy

Today, at the risk of sounding stupid, I'm going to write about a drummer. I actually am. But this guy isn't just any old drummer that I randomly picked from some where.

He's Tre Cool.

I mean, honestly. What can I say about him that already hasn't been said in his name? The man is a great drummer. He's no Neil Peart or John Bonham, but he doesn't have to be. Tre is the everyman's kind of drummer. But what's so great about him is his sheer energy. The guy is an enigma or something. Anything and everything he does has some kind of unstoppable energy to it. He almost demands your attention in a way, and I think every drummer should have that kind of attitude. It gets him noticed, that's for sure. This is a guy who sets his drum kit on fire and still plays the stupid thing! How crazy is that? I'm sure there's probably some other dude out there who does the exact same thing, but Tre is just someone you don't see every day. Rarely are there drummers out there who have the ability and the stamina to play as long as he does, and play what he does. He can go from punk rock, to some weird jazz, to whatever else. He's an all around great drummer.

Why am I inspired to write about him, you might ask? I was recently listening to Green Day, and the song "Hitchin' a Ride" came on. Not only that, but I was talking about him with a friend today. But the song is more important. It's one of my favorite songs, but the drums are what carry it. I think that's part of the reason why I like the song; the drums and the basslines get in my head, and I end up singing it the rest of the day. I think it's such a great song, both to sing and have in your head...I owe part of that to Tre. It's a great sound, I guess. 'cymbal-snare-base-cymbal-snare-base.' It's really cool; it gives the song a great staccato feel and the sensation of spinning out of control- but I'm not doing the song any justice at all. It was my fave for awhile.

...I think drummers may get ignored a little bit. That isn't fair. They tend to be the most talented of people, and, in Tre's case, secretly crazy. 'They say' that a drummer's crazy because his brain gets rattled around in his head all the time....who knows if that's true?

But the best thing about Tre is his craziness. He brings a great attitude to the band. He usually lightens up the mood. No matter how serious the band gets, he's always there to make fun of something. I can't sit here and describe how strange this guy can be some times. It makes me sound kind of silly, doesn't it?

I think what I'm trying to say is, Tre speaks for all drummers, in a way. I'm sure there are people out there who follow his example. I just hope they don't hurt themselves trying to be like him. Not only does he set a good example for future drummers, but he's one that can carry a song; make or break it. Songs like "Hitchin' a Ride," "Minority," and "Give Me Novocaine" are all drum-heavy, and they're better for it. I guess I'm just trying to explain how all the musicians in a favorite band shouldn't be ignored. Next time, watch for the face behind the drum kit. There's most likely another kooky personality flailing behind it.