Of life and rollercoasters (drain the blood)

Right now there's this feeling in my stomach. It's like the kind that you get at the top of a rollercoaster. Just as you go over the highest point, but just before you actually begin to fall. There's the anticipation, the waiting, and then there's the fear, the fear that tells you that it's all over, you're definitely going to crash and burn. But there's also hope and faith, you are pretty sure that you'll stay on the track, buckled down into your seat. So because of that reassurance, you decide what the hell, I'll lift my hands up in the air and enjoy the ride.

I don't know how many times a rollercoaster has been compared to life. Probably enough times to make it one of the most trite metaphors that has ever made it's way out of my mouth, or in this case, from my fingertips. But this is how I feel. For some reason it hit me today that this is the rest of my life, this is just before my freefall. I can either let go and enjoy the ride, or I can close my eyes and scream the whole time. And even if I crash, the restraints break, at least I know I got on and tried.

So here's to lifting my hands to the air, and to not letting anyone hold me back.

Revolution for the hell of it?? Not even that.

Our generation (those born between about 1985-1990, specifically) SUCKS.

Honestly, what have we done? Have we had any huge political movements that incited FEAR into our leaders? Fear that we might change the minds of some people? Have we let them know that we've wised up to the fact that they're wrong? Have we let anyone know that we aren't happy about where this country is going?

I have heard MANY of you bitch and moan about "Bush sucks! Mehhhh!"

Well....What are you doing about it? Nothing. It's easy for you all to run at your mouths, but do you care enough to put down that bottle of hairspray and DO something? No. We sit.We complain.

NOTHING is done.

At least in the 1960's people had the novel idea of taking drugs to open up their minds. It was a tool to HELP them make a difference.

Now, people don't even pretend to care.

Selfish. We're all selfish.

We're even selfish with the little things that we can do to make a difference. A lot of you are going to be able to vote for the first time in 2008. Will you? Maybe a few of you. But most of you no. And all you people who have been able to vote, and didn't, why? Did you have something better to do for those 15 minutes on that ONE day?

Sorry, I have to go put on makeup, so I can't stand up for what I believe in.

The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test and Ralph Waldo Emerson

Why is it that children are to bee seen and not heard?
Why do we chastise a child for telling someone they had a big nose? They are just being honest. I wish I had that kind of blunt honesty.
When I was little I wanted to be a painter. But as I grew up, I realized I couldn’t paint. So I decided not to be a painter.
Society trains every ounce of originality out of you as you get older. It tells you what is right, what is wrong, and how you are supposed to act.
Society sets its standards, and then we are told that we must live by them.
Society says my paintings are bad, so I stop painting, and peruse something else.
How do we know that everything we thought as a child isn't true? How do we know that our imaginary friend that had purple wings and three arms wasn't real? What if as children we are untainted, untouched enough to be able to communicate with another dimension, another realm?
Again, I ask, why are children thought as naive, unintelligent things that are to me molded to fit what we think they should be?

"Remember to Remember Me"

So I made a mix today for someone, and I love it. There isn't really a set theme, but it has a nice flow to it, I think. The Arcade Fire shows up twice, because they are incredible, and I just bought tickets to see them in Berkeley in June. Devendra Banhart's here twice as well because he just is. I don't have links to MP3's, but still, here it is.

1. "Hey Mama Wolf" -Devendra Banhart

2. "Think Long" -Mates of State

3. "My Moon, My Man" -Feist

4. "Ambulance" -TV On the Radio

5. "Wicked Game" -Bassboosa

6. "Hummingbird" -Wilco

7. "Santa Maria Da Feira" -Devendra Banhart

8. "Labor" -Aesop Rock

9. "Bad Days" -The Flaming Lips

10. "Neighborhood #2" -The Arcade Fire

11. "Super Sexy Woman" -Sufjan Stevens

12. "Hussy" -The Crystal Skulls

13. "Turn On Me" -The Shins

14. "You Fuck Like My Dad" -Giant Drag

15. "Miss Fat Booty" -Mos Def

16. "Poster of a Girl" -Metric

17. "Lovers in Captivity" -Ima Robot

18. "Keep the Car Running" -The Arcade Fire

I got a flask inside my pocket, we can share it on the train.

You know what I hate? People who think that any music that is popular or mainstream is bad. And if I said right now "Hey I want to listen to some Beyonce." Well you know what most of my little "indie" friends would say? They'd say I was lame. But you know what, I like Beyonce. She's an incredible singer, so why can't I appreciate her for it? The only way I could "get away with" listening to Beyonce is if I were to refer to her as my "guilty pleasure." Why do I have to feel "guilty" about the music I like?
This thing about losing all cred if you like mainstream music is also true of bands that used to be obscure, but are now very popular. Case in point, Bright Eyes. I love Bright Eyes, and I know a lot of people who liked them too. Those same people now claim to hate them just because they have been getting airtime on the radio.
This is absurd to me because it just doesn't make any sense, no matter how you look at it. On one hand, they may now be undesirable because they are "popular" or they "sold out." but c'mon, they are still the SAME BAND. Bright Eyes hasn't changed their style, they have just experienced success. And I think liking a band simply because no one knows who they are is really ridiculous. How can you honestly base a band's merit upon whether or not you can get their cd at Best Buy? Do people really feel cooler because their favorite band's new album can only be bought at the small hole in the wall record store in a hidden alley on 5th Street?


Oh, and by the way, I want to get into Alex from Ima Robot's white MC Hammer pants. Bad.