ugh. sorry.

i know its been awhile. i was able to wade through the hell that is finals week and come out on the other side unscathed. and with three A's no less. not that i'm bragging : )

anywho...i'm now back in Mankato for the week. actually over a week. and its strange not having anything to do. what i really would like is to just veg out for a few days. however, i know that there are certain people i need to see. things i need to do. all in good time. lol.

i follow this "branding guru" on Twitter. his name is Dan Schwabel. i think he really knows his stuff. he must be a consultant or something. i found out about him from other business guru. anyway, i think he's good. he has a blog about student branding that i find helpful. i think i'll only find it more helpful as the real hardcore job hunt ensues. so anyway, on his Twitter a couple of days ago he had a link to this article called "The spoiled millennials are about to get served a big slice of humble pie." so if you wish...you may go and read the article since i will now be discussing it. haha.


first...i can't decided if i'm super offended. the writer goes on and on about how people my age are spoiled. we think everyone's a winner. but at the same time, i know that growing up i was so frustrated by the kids who got everything handed to them. new cars. new clothes. new cell phones. and i remember being in classes where there wasn't a definite winner. everybody won. so i understand how the perception of my generation has become this way. which really sucks. and i'm hoping thats something i can overcome when i go out an apply.

the statistics in the article were startling too. i'm nervous enough as it is to try to find a job when i graduate. and i'm more nervous because as i've been told many times now the key to getting a job is networking. which i can't figure out how to do since every place i want to work is across the country from where i am.

momentary break from this rant to tell you that my dad is now giving my cat snoopy a bath. i can hear him yowling in my room. poor guy. he shouldn't have gotten so dirty.

anywho, i thought the article was interesting. wanted to share it. and went on a little about my own situation. ha. maybe there'll be more from Mankato soon since i have time on my hands. until next time...

momentary break in the madness

if you'll notice i've been gone for a while. its been...shall we say, stressful? i think i've poorly planned this semester. i just kept thinking i had all this time. and then i didn't. haha. although this week is halfway over and i'm doing okay. i had a bunch of stuff due this week because next week is finals. a number of projects and such. i'd say i'm about half done.

i still need to create a final version of my literary journalism piece and write all the files to a DVD disc. that's due on friday. and i got my 13 page paper deadline moved back. thankfully. so i'll have the weekend to work on that.

i was thinking last night that the only comparison i can make to how i feel during this week is apparation. that's via Harry Potter. like i'm being squeezed through a very small hole. pressure on every side. stress is bad for your health, but i don't think i've ever figured out how to combat it.

another thought crossed my mind today on the way to school...how worth it was going to college? which is a funny question. the obviously answer is it was definitely worth it. and then i think about how far in debt i've gone coming here. multiply $14,000 by 4. was my education really worth that money? i think i grew up a lot while i was here. i think my job was worth me coming here. but when i stop and assess all the knowledge that its my head it doesn't feel like its worth $50,000. i don't even remember all of it. i do think italy was worth it. i don't know. now that it's coming the end i'm not surprised i'm analyzing things like this. i think i'm on the fence. i feel like i really paid for the classes and the place to live and the food. so that's what i want to measure. in actuality there are all these extra pluses that came with paying that money, new friends, freedom, a job, confidence, learning to cook, learning to live on my own, learning a tons of other life skills.

we'll see how i feel in the spring when i'm actually graduating. i spose if i land a huge job that i'm going to love i'll think it was totally worth it. lol.

your turn: how would you measure your own college experience?

proof that my professor is a fountain of knowledge

"do you know who simon cowell is? he is the highest paid person. he's making more money that donald trump. more than 50 million."

again i say...why do i come to this class?

this is a diagram of my week. enough said.

a recap of the last decade

got this off of a twitter i subscribe too. it was pretty interesting. what happened in the last ten years. it so weird to me how much time has passed. i remembered almost everything.

click here to view the video.

Hello Hurricane (by switchfoot) review in a hurry

"Hello Hurricane acknowledges the storms that tear through our

lives...this album is an attempt to respond to those storms with an

element of hope, trying to understand what it means to be hopeful in a

world that keeps on spinning." - Switchfoot

okay, this is only kind of a review. in all honesty, i haven't gotten through the whole album yet. i just got it yesterday. but i can tell its fantastic. what i've heard of it. (8 of 12 songs). i was kind of nervous because i think sometimes when people have high expectations, there's a higher chance for let down. and so i will say that i am not in love with this album as much as some of their others. i mean i really liked Oh Gravity (the cd before this one). but i've found that my relationship with their music grows over time. i need to listen a number of times to discover the great melodies. that awesome guitar line. the twisted and poetic lyric. what the songs are really about.

i bought the deluxe version of the cd which comes with a dvd. it has a "making of" the cd and a behind the scenes look at a photoshoot and then something else...i haven't watched them all. i was just telling sam 2 that i watched a few minutes of the making of and i was sort of surprised. i was hoping for this awesome, funny, and gooofy look into making a record. sort of like the podcasts that came with Oh Gravity. that's not what this was. it was gritty. it was really honest. and super serious. i mean, i understand that making music is their livelyhood. so obviously its important to them. but i heard the phrase "the deconstruction of switchfoot" like three times. and i thought it was a little much. jon (foreman, the lead singer) is such a thinker. lol. so i think i'll have to finish that later, when i'm in the mood to stomach all that important talk and reflection. back to the songs...

track 1: needle in a haystack life - this is sort of the quintessential switchfoot song. the great message clouded in beautiful lyric. a building verse to chorus melody.
track 2: mess of me - the single from the album. its more hardcore than some of their other songs. i've noticed a pattern with the first single off the last three albums. all more rock. i'm not sure why this is. anyway mess of me is awesome. another one of their songs that starts off with a fantastically-distorted guitar line. amazing lyrics. go listen to it. (link on track name takes you to the youtube vid)
track 3: your love is as song - switchfoot slows it down. they do it well all the time. i don't like this slow song as much as song of the others they've had.
track : the sound (john m. perkins blues) - your basic anthem/hard rock song. this is hard rock for switchfoot at least. the building up the chorus is awesome. this song is featured on the blackberry commercial out right now too. jamming guitars + gritty jon singing + echoing background vocals = amazing sound (no pun intended)
track 5: enough to let me know - haven't listened to this one enough to have a very good opinion. just relistening now...seems like it could be good. simple. clean.
track 6: free - i was rocking out to this one in the shower. another sort of signature switchfoot. i love the emphasis on the word free. seems like that obviously happen. anyway, its an imploring song which i will interpret to be about the belief in a higher power at work. plus its always good when jon takes the vocals without the instruments for emphasis.
track 7: hello hurricane - title track. i don't feel like moved by it. i mean, i like it enough. enough said.
track 8: always - was listening to this one when i started writing the post. i was really getting into it. again, another building song. starts of without much behind jon's vocals and grows.
track 9: bullet soul - a little bit edgy. there's some interesting harmonies. this sounds a little more commercial to me. sort of like a typical song on the radio.
track 10: yet - great beat. another slow down. sort of. jon keeps singing "you haven't lost me yet."
track 11: sing it out - i can see this one being a sing along for the crowd. another slower one. it almost has an imogen heap feel. which is strange. sort of haunting harmony. and strings...yay!
track 12: red eyes - an melodic uplifter. a downer on the lyrics. as in the lyrics are about sad stuff...not that they're bad.

okay...that's my initial reaction. if you feel so inclined you can check out Drew's (the guitar player) youtube channel. he calls it thedrewcast. i think its hilarious.

live from the Paramore concert

sort of...

haha. i took this vid during the concert. 2nd song of the night "I Caught Myself" which is one of my favorite songs of theirs. it is actually the lesser known of the two songs they had on the Twilight soundtrack. happy listening!