Ridin' Solo

I'm putting this on a shirt tomorrow.

Thesis

If you haven't been able to wear your jean shorts in 10 days, it's okay if you wear them around in your room on a freezing cold day.

What a terribly busy week. Had to knock out a paper and read lots of pages of lots of books. Luckily, after such a busy week, I was able to unwind last night. This included the one-two punch of watching some excellent improvised comedy and winning the gold medal at the Urban Dictionary Spellin' Bee. The improv was performed by Awkward Silence Comedy. The spelling bee was created by Drew and Burger for their Q-Project, and hosted by the comedy duo Will and Stone. Fun stuff.

After a record-breaking (for this week) nine hours of sleep last night, I'm feeling all better.

Proposal

> On any given day, I will spend no more than one hour online.

- Blogging can extend past the one hour mark, but does count toward the day's total.

- I am still allowed unlimited tweets from my phone.

- Online research for class does not count toward the day's total.

I've come to some weird conclusion that I should severely limit the amount of time I'm online. It just occurred to me that I could probably be doing much more constructive things. And, as Lil B said, "The internet has ruined the human race." So, in accordance with my based lifestyle, I'm changing things up. Kill your laptop!

Stretching Yr Performance

I apologize to everyone living on this floor. The amount of singing I do in the shower is absurd, and the content is probably even moreso. I understand that no one but myself is enjoying these daily thirty-minute suites. I must point out, though, that there is nothing more affirmative and refreshing than acting ridiculously or witnessing someone act ridiculously.

For instance, today my floor heard Panda Bear's "Last Night At The Jetty," Ennio Morricone's "Il Trio," Weezy's "A Milli," and The Knife's "Still Light" strung together in a virtuoso a cappella medley. If you had to hear it, maybe you'd get a kick out of it! This is my hope. Whether or not I'm actually altering the course of my floormate's day, I'm at least enjoying the cuss out of myself.

Another great example - I just performed a seven-minute long (and naked) interpretive dance to Avey Tare's "Laughing Hieroglyphic." It was spontaneous, dramatic, emotional, and rewarding. So cathartic!

Perhaps more practical and effective for y'all is another new practice of mine. And that, fam, is stretching. Stretching is like the best thing that's ever happened to me. And this isn't some variant of yoga, or something that doesn't sound exactly like what it is. It's just touching your toes and stuff. Great! I do it when I wake up and I do it before I fall asleep. If you ever have trouble falling asleep, stretch! You feel like a million dollars. It allows me to get inside my headspace and chill, get an awesome endorphin rush, and get cooled down.

Why in the world didn't I figure this out sooner? It should be noted that stretching is a lot easier - and infinitely more fulfilling - when you're not surrounded by classmates in PE.

Art & Me

Yesterday I watched two great films. Each movie was Great in one of the two ways that a piece of art can be Great. Great Art, according to #METASWAG, can only be measured in terms of its effect on the objective individual. This is how I came to these two principles.

Great Art Makes Me Want To Either/Or

1) Sit somewhere alone and dive deep into myself (maybe without ever returning)

2) Go talk to someone (or better yet, You) about Big Life Stuff

Grave Of The Fireflies

Here is a movie that falls squarely under the first principle of Great Art. This one hits hard. The film tells the story of a brother and sister who are orphaned in the firebombing of Tokyo in 1945. Yeah. Prepare to cry a lot. It's a road movie in the vain of Badlands, but with an added dose of historical gravity and emotional bleakness. What it does really well is capture the emotion and behavior of children facing such difficult circumstances. It shows the simple joys of sibling relationships, and the huge love therein. There are moments of human relief amidst the overwhelming tragedy of the thing. Then again, there's almost no escaping the devastating conclusion of the film. The ending here is probably the most a film has emotionally affected me. Well, that might not be true. I've been made happier by some movies than I was made sad by this one. So, I can say that this movie made me more sad than any other move I've seen. And I've seen sad movies, fam. It's what I do. Also, it must be said that the animation is on par with the writing and music and performances.

Or, this movie is perfect - I'll crawl into my headspace now.

Before Sunrise

Richard Linklater has a track record up there with David Cronenberg, David Lynch, Wes Anderson, and Terrence Malick. Here's a movie that perfectly falls under principle #2 of Great Art. This movie also follows a male-female pair, but the subject matter is a lot less daunting. The setup is hella cliche romance. There's a meet-cute and everything. But it doesn't matter, because the movie avoids almost every convention. The dialogue is hella believable and interesting. This is something Linklater nailed in his other masterpiece (Slacker), and inspires the sort of thought you'd wanna share with others. The couple's chemistry comes across as authentic and isn't contrived through plot. The lack of a plot is in itself a relief. It does not follow the usual Boy-Must-Conquer-Heart-Of-Girl routine. It's first and foremost a human flick, and explores all kinds of territory that a romance doesn't usually (but should) cover. And the ending! Hella well done. There's one sequence following the film's denouement that I'd love to discuss on #METASWAG, but I don't want to spoil it for anyone who hasn't seen the movie.

Or, this movie is perfect - let's talk about it!

Big Time

Not only is this a phrase oft-employed by my dear friend Drew, but it also serves as a quantitative descriptor of exactly how excited I am about April 12th. For those of you unawares, April 12th contains several amazing events [all of which, weirdly enough, are tied to music (this is Not a music blog)]:

> Tomboy is released

> The new TV On The Radio record is released

> The new Ponytail record is released

> It is Record Store Day

> Weezy, Nicki, & Rick Ross are performing at IU's Assembly Hall

Thank You Based God! What a day that will be.

Conclusions

Well, before I leave y'all, I'd like to introduce a couple blogs worth checking out. In other words, some more friends have entered the blogosphere! Excellent.

Blog Name Pending by Jacob

> A stellar and swagged-out collection of thoughts. Usually examines movies and music.

Reckless Ramblings by Will 1

> Not to be confused with Will 2's vegan blog, this is a space to read entertaining reviews of movies.

Oh! Another thing. The Oscar telecast is this Sunday! I'm going home for that one. There's this fun family tradition where errbody fills out their predictions and then the winner gets something or something. Anyway, it's nice. And, as I've noted, I haven't seen the Bro in like three weeks. That's not at all cool. So, this is going to be the week! And thanks to my newfound dedication to my studies, I won't have to stress out on Sunday night. I'll just be chill.

Another another thing - I will be going to California in like two weeks. SWAG. That most remarkable of persons who I will be visiting just blogged again. Check it out.

That's it for me, fam. Keep it real!

S-O-L-O

Or, how I happily spent some of last night

fa, la, la, ra, da, &tc.,

"Look Your Best" © 2011 Hamz Photography

Thesis

If you're hungry and tired, you shouldn't eat or sleep - you should blog. This one is gonna be all about my headspace. Which is to say, it's a Classic #METASWAG Piece. None of the cohesive nonsense I was trying to roll with in the past few posts. Nay, this post shall be disjointed and ineffectually rambling.

Beginning with

Some thoughts on the new Radiohead record, The King Of Limbs. It's a bad place to start, because I haven't formed any real opinion of it, other than some mixed feelings about how chill it is. For one, it's probably their best produced album. For two, the songs are among the most well-written and -arranged. For three, there's just something not entirely here. I guess it's the sort of mythic quality that pervaded their previous releases. A Radiohead album is supposed to turn heads, whereas The King Of Limbs is pretty polite. It isn't as likable and digestible as In Rainbows, and it's not nearly as revolutionary as OK Computer and Kid A, or even as divisive as Hail To The Thief.

What it is, is an album that's "okay" with not making a ton of noise. The impact this record makes is a tastefully minor one. I really hate the concept of a "grower" album, but TKOL displays the classic symptoms of such a release. The fact that I'm sorta coming around to its quality is almost entirely due to the album's final three songs.

06. "Codex" [heartache-worthy, dense ballad]

07. "Give Up The Ghost" [such a mellow feel]

08. "Separator" [slow-building android-angel jam]

Those tracks just slay. They harness that weird power in Thom's voice, most effectively blur the line between organic and artificial music, and probably contain the best melodies in Radiohead's catalog. Which is to say, they stand head and shoulders above the rest of the material on this record, of which the first five songs comprise a suite of "Songs That Sound Like They Were Written By Latter-Day Radiohead." It's perhaps the twisted genius of the album that its brevity and strong finish convince me to relisten to the whole dang thing, despite its bland opening. I'm pretty sure I'll eventually be persuaded that it's an indispensable masterpiece.

So, it looks like I did have a few things to say about this one. Anyway, check it out.

Continuing with

A panic attack - in which our Hero realizes that it's 3:20 AM, and he has class in under seven hours (and with several chapters of Langston Hughes poetry to read). He continues to write with reckless abandon, unsure of what to pursue and why he should even go on.

For the time being, allow me to indulge you with my Top 10 Releases Of The Year So Far:

10| Higher Learning, Vol 2 - Fashawn

09| Unlearn - Fergus & Geronimo

08| The One... Cohesive - G-Side

07| Angels Exodus - Lil B, "The Based God"

06| The Magic Place - Julianna Barwick

05| The King Of Limbs - Radiohead [ed. note - alright, dangit, I guess I like it a lot]

04| James Blake - James Blake

03| Ravedeath, 1972 - Tim Hecker

02| Angels Of Darkness, Demons Of Light 1 - Earth

01| Kaputt - Destroyer

What am I doing? Turning this into a straightup music blog (which, I must say, is totally boring). Let me also rant here about how excited I am to go to California in three weeks. There, I plan on talking with my best friend TIL THE BREAK OF DAWN every night, and spread basedness and swag. I'm also excited about Akron/Family on Wednesday, and the potential for Lil Wayne/Nicki Minaj/Rick Ross to blow up my ears in a few months.

Right now, I'm also sorta freaking out about my first real (read: English) paper of the year. It's due on Thursday and I ain't got a clue, fam. However, I've appealed to my basedness, and recalled the wise words of Lil B, The Based God, in the opening of His spiritual "Im Heem":

I Don't Care

Ah, bliss. That's the sort of attitude you could go to bed with.

Concluding with

My based dreams. Yessir. Riding this coffee wave into a stellar wipeout into the blue calm of my jersey sheets. I dream of a world in which I have a roommate for Spring 2012. These dreams may have been realized in a certain pelirroja friend. One can only hope that the apartment is a shoebox big enough for two big personalities [it is (the personalities are compatible)].

On another note, my favorite music blog (which shall remain unnamed; keep it secret, keep it safe) has totally begun the backlash against Odd Future Wolf Gang Kill Them All. Not cool, bros. I plan on writing for your zine before I get my BA, and I can't have y'all hating on Lil B and Odd Future. Anyway, I'm sure you'll get over it once Goblin comes out.

It should also be recorded that I continue to miss my bro, and cannot wait to Oscar out with him on Sunday. Fam, fam.

Conclusions

Maybe that went a lot better than expected. Props to the sustained greatness over at WaffelHaus. And to the sustained likability of the GF. Can't wait for this weekend, y'all. Before that, I can't wait to sleep. Swag out, fam. zzzZZzzzZzzz

Sometimes I Feel Like This And It's Great

On Topic

OFWGKTA's stated goal was to "Scare White America."

The most attention-grabbing televised musical performance

since the debut of "Runaway."

Thesis

If you put your mind to it, you can accomplish great things. In keeping with a minor trend I'm trying to establish for #METASWAG, this will be a focused post. A post so focused, it'll be written almost entirely on Odd Future Wolf Gang Kill Them All and tonight's swagged out performance on Late Night With Jimmy Fallon.

"Sandwitches"

Tyler and Hodgy destroyed it. It went from 0-60 in the weirdest way. The pair started off nearly immobile (flanked by a hospitalized zombie female?), and then erupted into movement. They were furious. It was a raw performance, unhinged and violent. Pretty amazing. Tyler busted out of the confines of the music stage and jumped around Jimmy's desk and walked over the guests' couches. He then returned to the stage and chanted "WOLF! GANG!" with Hodgy until the music (as performed by The Roots) ended. The two then immediately exited the stage, leaving Jimmy awkwardly alone on camera for a few seconds. Tyler and Hodgy returned to the stage, but didn't exactly shake hands. Tyler put his hat on the host and then mounted him for a #JimmyBackRide. Still on Jimmy's back, he then starting shouting at the camera with his tongue out while Fallon tried to conclude the show. Mos Def (who was there?) then put his whole face up in the camera and shouted "SWAG" while the credits rolled. [ed note -- written before the video was available]

Rock 'n Roll

That performance is how you make a statement.

Hype

Coupled with Tyler's "Yonkers" video, this is going to blow Odd Future up big on the web. I can't imagine the video of this performance not getting major hype tomorrow. Like, Pitchfork front page level hype. Tonight captured the Gang's swag perfectly, putting their chaos and energy up front.

Conclusions

Of course, I'm mired in the excitement of the moment. But, as Donna Haraway describes, this fanboy-hyped situated perspective provides a more objective view on Odd Future's swag than that of the removed observer. So, I'm proud to say that that performance was objectively exciting and amazing.

Anyway, this post was an attempt at posting something focused and relevant. I promise some more traditionally #METASWAG posts shortly. Y'know, ramblings about art and my life and my stress and my love. For now, I'll just close this post with an irrelevant video.

UPDATE

LOLOLOL I was totally right about Pitchfork AND I beat them by an hour. They used the same picture, too. I think they're on the forum. #SWAG

For Allison

Flossing

Second Best Neil Ever

Thesis

If you read for five hours straight, the rest of your day is going to be spent braindead (even if, or especially if, you still have hours of readings left). That's right, we're approaching the typical pre-midterms madness. This happens to me every semester. After five weeks of absolute inactivity, each class unleashes a perfect storm of work. O, Spring Break - you cannot come too soon. At least there was a huge event tonight to distract me from my harrowing night.

2011 GRAMMY Awards

Totally forget to tune in. Lame. Don't worry, fam, I won't be so quick to miss the Oscars. Anyway, I heard Biebs didn't get some award. Too bad. I love that kid (to the point of rocking his haircut). The only sights I managed to see were on the Red Carpet:

> Katy Perry's grandma

> Lady Gaga in an egg

So. I... Uh...

Worst Thing Ever

Tried flossing again. It doesn't work. Thanks to my "permanent" retainers (are they really going to the grave with me?), flossing is really difficult. Like, I can't get it to work for any of my incisors. Not that my canines are doing much better. My teeth were big to begin with, but now they look scary. Luckily, it's not really noticeable when I smile. My lack of flossing is also the cause of one of my greatest fears - that my gums are going to recede away and my mouth will just be filled with bone. Freaky, right? It happened in a nightmare.

Anyway, I had the pleasure of undergoing periodontal surgery two years ago. Homeboy cut a piece of gum from the roof of my mouth and stitched it under one of my lower incisors, thus restoring the previously-recessive gumline down there. This whole ordeal was hella terrible.

What I don't want is for this to happen again. So, I've got to conquer my dentophobia and get myself taken care of. Any day now. Before that happens, I'll probably get a haircut and do other things.

The Dark Side

In last week's post, I blogged about Lil B, The Based God. He's still great. I no longer declare him "The Greatest Rapper Ever," but that's because I only bestow that label upon my latest rap obsession. Well, lucky for y'all, I've got a new one.

His name is Tyler, The Creator (notice a pattern?). He's getting a lot of hipster attention at the moment, and I'm not going to pretend I didn't jump on his bandwagon because of that one video.* Anyway, Tyler is like the vilest dude around. The terrifying part is that I don't think it's an act. And it's not some "Hard In The Paint" vile, it's like... Actually evil. Well, that's a dumb way to look at it. More aptly, he releases challenging work. He seemingly condones rape and murder, and the subject of almost every song is either a "faggot" or "bitch." The result of this is that it's not fun. Or it shouldn't be, but is.

He is a supremely talented rapper, and just as good of a producer. He applies his technical skill to painting a portrait of today's screwed world. The power and honesty behind the music is captivating. It's undeniable. Despite this, the only way to really stand the lyrical content is to confront it. There's no ignoring the themes. To be sure, all of this was being discussed when Eminem was shocking folks so many years ago. Em is no longer relevant though, because his success has reduced him to formula - he can't really provoke anymore.

So, again, Tyler is so effective because he seems to be rapping from a real, self-aware and self-critical place. The absurdism with which he infuses his nihilism is refreshing, if only because you can see some sort of crack in his possible facade. The music is downright incendiary and gorgeous too. If you're interested in looking through someone else's headspace (and subsequently your own), here's some territory to consider.

Tyler's a part of the greater collective ODD FUTURE WOLF GANG KILL THEM ALL - or OFWGKTA or Odd Future. This troupe has the potential to be our generation's Wu. They're insanely smart, dedicated to their music, and desperate to get to the top. All of their music is available on their website for free. They're not quite Lil B prolific, but they've got as much swag. Check it out (with the aforementioned reservations).

But, aren't you...

Yeah, I'm still a feminist. Listening to Tyler and OFWGKTA has been a difficult exercise, for as much as the passion and reality is awe-inspiring, the lyrical content is deplorable. I can sorta justify it on the grounds that it's inspiring deep reflection about rap and sexuality. But still, they're embodying a sickening emblem. Do they consider what this means? How much is fantasy? Does it matter? I just read Catherine MacKinnon's "Sexuality," in which she bluntly states, "Men often rape women, it turns out, because they want to and enjoy it." Is it admirable for Tyler and OFWGKTA to so unabashedly affirm this truth? Rather than explaining away or denying this tragic reality, they confront it head-on and do not allow the listener to ignore it. Odd Future denaturalizes the rapist figure, which MacKinnon asserts society has labeled "a separate species." In this, they're holding themselves and embodied men accountable for the crime. Not exactly noble, but maybe useful if properly assessed. Or maybe this is just all-too typical, despicable, and misogynistic music that valorizes an unglamorous human crisis.

Um, let's not talk about rap for a second.

Personally, I'm still very much in love with feminism and its subsequent possibilities. My self-declared feminism has gotten a largely negative reaction out of folks and has been the cause of much self-entitled frustration. Even so, this has allowed me to examine what kind of feminism I actually understand and can enact, and what I'm not yet qualified to argue. Folks are helping me discover who I am as a feminist.

CONCERNING MUSIC THAT ISN'T DIVISIVE CALIFORNIA RAP

I'm still listening to it.

As of late, lots of:

> Erik Satie

> Talking Heads (specifically, "This Must Be The Place (Naive Melody)"

> Panda Bear

> Tim Hecker

> James Blake

I assure you, I'm not always listening to tunes that make me sad. Though, the other night I did have an emotionally-resonant encounter with Joanna Newsom's "Does Not Suffice." Dang. She hits hard, fam. So does Katy Perry, though, if we're to provide a conversely effective female artist.

Valentine's Day

The girlfriend and I celebrated early this year. We re-enacted last year's (First) Date at Siam House. I got my usual 26, and she got a new dish, 76. Our server was quite amazing and hella funny. We were seated beside an adorable baby. Altogether, it was the best meal I've had in this young year. We then stopped by Campus Candy, where the GF got some candy (duh). After giving up on a too-delayed bus ride, we walked back to Collins, finished Freaks & Geeks and ate lots of junk food. Bliss.

A side note, I teared up or cried in each and every one of those final three Freaks & Geeks episodes. That's some good stuff right there. If it weren't for Arrested Development, this would be my favorite show.

Another side note, the GF is great.

Conclusions

I went all over the place with this post. Forgive me.

It's okay that I spent an hour blogging rather than doing homework. I've spent enough time freaking out, and some reflection did me good. Balanced out my humours. I'll be sleeping soon. That'll be great. I'm totally triumphing over this hectic week, fam. Love y'all.

* THAT ONE VIDEO

Oh yeah, I forgot to mention that he's 19.

Late Night With Lil B[eauvoir]

Pajama Party Patrick's Potential Profile Picture

Thesis

If you're feeling down, explore the waters! Well, I wasn't exactly feeling down, but I was feeling a little out. This is a month ago now, but I was sorta just floating on - generally happy, but lowkey not really enthused about anything that wasn't my girlfriend, Ros, or Destroyer. Since then, I've been feeling hella wonderful, thanks mostly to some self-reflection and family and friends. But it's also due to the acquisition of a few new identities. These identities are totally worth blogging about:

BASED

Let's start off with a totally fresh mentality - Doing What You Wanna Do. This was originally the mission statement of #METASWAG (and of everyone ever), but I've found it most fanatically, and often adorably, posited by one Lil B, "The Based God."

Now, being Based covers a lot more territory than just doing what you wanna do (though this is a prerequisite), but I cannot at all begin to comprehend it. Basedness is flatout complicated, folks. Maybe the best way to understand Based life is by examining The Based God Himself, Lil B.

I'm going to preemptively ask you, fam, to forgive the following burlesque description. Lil B is an emblem of our times, thus making him the perfect candidate for The Future Of Rap. Simply put, he's a uniquely populist, absurdist (Post-Lil Wayne) West Coast rapper. But he also defines himself in terms of his fanbase - he exists on and through the internet, for the internet. Of the so-called mixtape rappers, he rose to fame and fortune not only through prolificness (3,000 songs in 3 years), but also through his pretty bizarre personality.

He presents a non-normative portrayal of the typical misogynist rapper identity, sometimes referring to himself as a "pretty bitch" and "faggot." I mean, yeah - this is still awful, but at least it's something different. Also, he often compares himself to and temporarily adopts the personalities of wholly dissimilar celebrities, like Miley Cyrus, Mel Gibson, Ellen Degeneres, and most recently, Justin Bieber. His music is largely based on New Age synths, and he released an ambient/rap album that was downright Wrong.

Lil B is Perfect for the future of rap, because he's strange, fascinated with himself and the culture that allows this fascination, and he's Real. Now, authenticity in rap is a pretty dumb discussion, but it's the way that Lil B reveals himself that's worth talking about. In a single mixtape, he declares both "I'm God" and "I'm the Devil," and occupies all sorts of identities in between. He can spend 12 songs pondering the essence of his livelihood in an emo-Drake manner, before pulling a 180 and repeating the "Fuck bitches / Smoke weed" aphorism for a dozen more songs. That he doesn't seem to fully embody any mentality is exciting.

It's this weird dichotomy of self that Lil B has established in his work (in an always playful way) that makes him so fascinating and so personable and so Right for Now. It's also what makes Based Life so appealing - a playground for the exploration of the self's plasticity. Do what you wanna do, whoever you are.

Swag.

FEMINIST

Well, I'll tell ya, it's been some time before I've felt so jazzed about something like this. Or over which I've been so willing to subject myself to hours of reading. But it's paying off... I'm figuring stuff out about Me! Now, what I'm about to say is not intended to be a misappropriation of feminism as religion, but rather an example of how substantial feminism can be as a practiced ideology.

Feminism contains some of the core precepts of some Western religions (without the terrible misogyny), or happily offers better alternatives. It encourages - through its assertion of personal, political, and sexual equality - a lifestyle of deliberate consideration for oneself and (O)thers. In its supposition that one's gender is mutable, as is one's identity, it is the basis of helpful and affirmative existential evaluation. So, it gives us the Golden Rule, with an added element of metaphysicality. Its practice means self-improvement, in that one seeks further understanding of oneself and (O)thers, and hopes to inspire a positive change in (or deconstruction of) society.

This is a description of a watered-down, depoliticized, and desexualized feminism. Of course, it's about a lot more than all this writing would suggest, but again, I'm just trying to get at how a feminist identity has proved fruitful for me as a perspective, not giving you a view of the fundamental concepts of feminism. It's enlightening and humanist. And the more radical you get, the more interesting it all becomes.

Really the reason for all this hellabaloo is my History Of Feminist Theory course, which has inspired more thought than I've known what to do with. Hella exciting!

This also explains my recent infatuation with sexuality and power dynamics, and why I started that hour long discussion at 3 AM in Noodles about the dissolution of gender. Sorry, y'all - I couldn't help myself! Anyway, I think it was okay, because we were having some trill arguments! Illuminating! Besides, being a Based Feminist means doing what you wanna do. Swag.

So...

Less heady stuff

Drew and I watched the first Wayne's World movie on Saturday night (unawares that it served as the cold open for "SNL" later that night - what a crazy coincidence). It was excellent! Earlier that night, with the equipment, guidance, and expertise of Bron, we set out to shoot a short film in the freezing cold. We slipped and fell more often than we captured adequate footage, but I must say that the experience was happy and memorable. Since then, it's been mostly reading and writing, with all sorts of stresses and crazies going on. Despite this, I'm wearing a big smile.

Anyway, it's really late, and I just celebrated a full day of hard work and hard-earned fun. The reason for both?

Happy 20th Birthday, Rachel

My girlfriend of more than a year has finally shed the title of teenager, and thus has escaped being the subject of "Teenage Dream." Luckily, the song still rocks. And so does she! I managed to procure some groovy gifts:

> An over-the-top cute "coupon" book

> A romantic mix CD, assembled from the perspective of myself as a middle-schooler

> One pair of turquoise-looking earrings from Thailand
> The best birthday card ever made for anybody ever

To celebrate, we (with the gang, of course) went to Ami for some 30%-off sushi. Yummy! I ate some 007 rolls and spicy California rolls (the pun in Ros' blog just reoccurred to me for probably the fifth time). They tasted great! We followed our dinner with a movie - Steel Magnolias. This is a favorite of Rachel's, and nearly everyone in the room was moved to tears (or moved to another room, as was Bron's case). It seemed a bit melodramatic to me, but I was for the most part nose-deep in some class readings. Nevertheless, Dolly Parton charmed my socks off.

Conclusions

A good day.

Bonus List Of People To Whom I Owe Stuff

~~~~~~

HAYLEY - A LETTER

JAY - $5

RZA - A FONECALL

LANIE - A SKYPE SESH

CAMPUSWALK - SECURITY DEPOSIT

Bow Chicka Wow Wow & The Bonus Post

This would definitely be my desktop...

... If it weren't for this ridiculous screenshot of Clova

from G-Side's new "Inner Circle" video.

Thesis

Everyone loves bonus posts! Two posts in one night! Above is evidence of one of the many joys of a bonus post, like double the usual amount of pictures to kick off our thought process for the post.

Yes, the blog is influenced by the image at the beginning of every post (sink your brain teeth into the connection between the above images and the content of this post). Also coming into play is whatever music happens to be playing while I'm writing.

At present, the music is Mike Posner and Lil Wayne's "Bow Chicka Wow Wow." It's a deliriously catchy and harmless song. The production, musical arrangement, and lyrical content are operating in perfect harmony to create a Cute Radio Song. And what's better - or more listenable - than a Cute Radio Song? Nothing! It's times like these when I sometimes feel that a harmless song is as powerful and useful as a harmful song.

Harmful Songs

You know, like stuff that's abrasive or challenging. The Psychic Paramount (what I'm now listening to) is abrasive in its energy and drive. It's powerhouse noise rock, propellant and exciting. Except, now that I think of it, this album isn't very harmful. And it's certainly not challenging. Except to your neck - as it does promote head-banging. Um.

Anyway, #METASWAG is Not A Music Blog.

Motivation

But that begs the question, What is #METASWAG all about? In a confluence of readings (de Beauvoir, Butler, some evolutionary theory stuff, and the effect of realism on literature), my mind has become super preoccupied with the nature of my reality and purpose. Heady stuff for head-banging, no?

Check it out: if life itself has no purpose (which for all purposes, it doesn't really really), what purpose does blogging serve? This isn't a nihilist rant. I'm seriously feeling cheery, fam. And the life not mattering thing - that's not true. Like, I don't really believe that, I just needed to throw out an extreme with which to contrast the total silliness of blogging. Because like, Life is Good because you can form connections with other Human Beings and have Experiences that Mean Something. Okay, the meaning is hella tricky, but the experiences themselves are worthwhile (I would argue, if arguing weren't so tiring).

Oh yeah, blogging. So - blogging is tired, too. And how can it Mean Something? It's the result of a culture of self-indulgence that allows for us to think our writing (life) is worthwhile. A similar shift took place centuries ago, when the individual first became important enough to write about as an individual - Kant, Enlightenment, the birth of the Novel, swag, etc.

I guess the origins and meanings aren't really that important, because it's just psuedo-intellectual mumbling. What I'm really trying to get at is The Thesis behind #METASWAG. Because when I made that list of shout outs to friends' blogs, I noticed that all of their blogs were written with some expressed goal in mind. To communicate desires, to share recipes, to exhibit creative output, to tell stories - all of these things are Cool and Interesting.

#METASWAG is, among the blogosphere of my friends, distinctly without a Thesis. I dreamed it up as some sort of Space for my low and highbrow musings on daily happenings. Or maybe as a place for lists. Here, I could even demonstrate that I like music as diverse as noise, Southern rap, and black metal (thus proving my Hipsterdom). I'd be able to communicate with a fictional set of readers.

When I first began, I was so convinced that I was shouting into the void that I treated the blog more as a diary than a column. How things have changed, and delusions of grandeur have set in.

But what's the point?

Well, the point here seems to be that #METASWAG (like all blogs?) is pointless. Without direction. There are some overarching trends - lists, music, rambling - but there are no ends. Or none in sight. A possible point is that I get to exorcise my demons in a place where people can choose to witness the spectacle or not. Because I already have valuable friends to take care of the heavy stuff, I can dump the less important Stuff of my mind onto the Internet. And if people read it, I get to feel Doubly Accomplished.

SWAG

Feeling Based. Feeling like I accomplished something just now.

To keep this blog exciting for me, I might try out some more lists (like, the really big ones - BEST MOVIES EVER, BEST ALBUMS EVER - that sort of thing). Or maybe incorporate record and movie reviews more regularly. I guess that would be a Thesis. A directive.

For now, the directive is keeping my swag on.

Conclusions

It's hard not to capitalize a lot of Nouns when you're reading 18th century writing. Though we've essentially had two snow days in a row on the IU campus, I've managed to sleep in for neither. To reward myself for this lack of sleep, I'm going to sleep-in tomorrow.

And that, fam, is cause for (sleepy) celebration.

Go to sleep

&

Think about This:

Those are human beings;

Isn't That silly?

Dream

Shout Outs & Snow Days

One last look at the old header. How it will be missed, I do not know.

Thesis

Winter is the cruelest season (thanks, TS). Though, if you look out my window right now, the ice-covered branches in the courtyard resemble giant spiderwebs lined with dew. Today is the first anniversary of my and Rachel's relationship! Dating, fam. We celebrated with some pizza (old couples are allowed to indulge on cravings - who needs reservations?). Of course, over the year there have been a few reservations, but you're looking at a healthy and dedicated relationship at present - and future, one (I) would would hope. And it goes on and on and on, and it goes on and on and on. . . . . . . . . . . . .

Sometimes
I throw my hands up in the air. It was a splendid anniversary, fam -

> Mother Bear's
> Freaks & Geeks

Well, sure, it doesn't sound like much. You should've been there, though!

What's Going On

Well, it's been snowing and icing and raining and everything in between. A lot. Classes have been cancelled. The sidewalks are treacherous. It's a veritable winter wonderland out there! I've been digging it, insomuch as smiling in the cold is digging. I've managed to capitalize on these extra hours by watching movies and reading a lot.

Also, I'm listening to way too much music for my own good.

2011 (in descending order of greatness):

Destroyer, Earth, James Blake, G-Side, Fergus & Geronimo, Lil B "The Based God," Akron/Family, Burzum, Smith Westerns, Braids, Minutiae, Yuck, Iron & Wine

Other Things: My recovery from a dastardly sinus infection. DISJOINTED THOUGHTS right now.

I've also discovered that I have a lot of extracurricular reading with which to keep up, which is to say: FAM! You're all blogging on the regular now!

Required Reading

> Indiana Rock On A California Roll by RZA

The joys and difficulties of a Hoosierlicious babe becoming a California Gurl. It's undeniable, and sometimes includes pictures of me.

> Tarsty by Will & Fran

Two gay dudes set out to find the perfect recipe for vegan mac 'n cheese. Hilarity ensues.

> Across The Pond by Lanie

The Life and Strange surprizing Adventures of an American ex-pat in London. Includes comical illustrations and witty writing.

> Cambron's by Cambron

Personal and political cartoons and ruminations from a bearded Telecom major.

> The Depths by Bubbz

The striking words of a published poet and quadruplet. Stuff has the roll and swag of Cormac McCarthy's prose.

> Waffelhaus by Stoner

The snarky work of an aspiring Jezebel writer. Mostly examines stuff she hates.

REDESIGN

#METASWAG looks totally different. Fear not, the writing will remain sloppy.

Conclusions

I should probably pack up. I still have to read Jean Toomer's Cane and Watt's essay on "Realism and the Novel Form." What can ya do? Thanks for reading, y'all.

"I Owe Hayley A Letter"

SONIC BOOM

is Supposedly

on the Forum

& Yet & Yet

it's hard to believe he Is

Whether Or not

He Is

TOMBOY approaches

like a Hurricane

or a Revolution

Drone On and on

Go