Mixtapes May 31, 2008

My formative years were spent with cassettes, but by the time I reached adolescence, CDs were firmly established. That said, I missed out on the true art of the mixtape. I like to make sure my mixes flow, but I never learned the art of smoothly mixing on my home tape deck. Most of my mixing experience has been gained at my computer, with headphones and CDs. However, I love making mixes, and I think that the art carries something special that sets music lovers apart. We really listen. We try not to just hum along. We’re constantly on the look out for music that truly expresses what we hope to say. Perhaps, then, this search is the true (he)art of the mix.

Links galore!
Art of the Mix (My Mixes)
Mourning the Mix Tape: Digital Age Doomed a Musical Rite of Passage
Mourning the Mix Tape: Readers’ Tales of Life-Changing Mix Tapes
The Tape Hasn’t Run Out on Cassette Mixes Just Yet
Mix Tape Song Hall of Fame
A Cassette Valediction: Part 1 of 2
A Cassette Valediction: Part 2 of 2

Catchy! May 28, 2008

I completely blame Olivia for this, by the way.

Apparently, Ben Barnes, a.k.a. Prince Caspian, used to be in a boy band. And that boy band sang a damn catchy tune. Listen. It’s stuck in my head, and I felt it was only right to share the love.

Crafty: Etsy May 26, 2008

I’m constantly searching Etsy for the next best thing. If it can be crafted, you can probably buy it. I’ve bought everything from gorgeous sock yarn and breathtaking handspun to massive glass pendants to magnets of the world. The number of talented artisans out there is absolutely incredible, and it’s nice to have a place where a lot of them have congregated and their goods can be seen. It’s horrible for my wallet, though.

What brings this up is a recent article from SFGate: Etsy Lets Art Sales Take Wing

It’s just nice to see a place like this get coverage, especially for all of those artists out there whose work deserves all the coverage it can get. Anyway, this was the crafty update of the day, so because I’ve no time for much else in the way of being crafty, it will have to do for now.

Goals May 26, 2008

I’m so fickle about my blogging. I’m always thinking there’s a better site, or a better way — a better anything. However, I’ve come to separating my life into parts, and that’s been bothering me a bit. My guess is that this blog will attempt to be more professional, but I make no guarantees. Perhaps it will end up that I consolidate my life here. Wouldn’t that be fitting.

Archives: What Is Up? I Am! (09/29/2006) May 26, 2008

Holy cow. I am turning into a morning person. I have had to leave the house by around 8 AM for the past four days, and today, after my silly phone alarm rang twice, I climbed down the ladder, turned it off, and stayed down. I suppose I am just a creature of habit, and as such, have gotten into the groove. I am excited by this prospect. Maybe I will lead a normal adult life after all!

Archives: Trains to Anywhere (09/25/2006) May 26, 2008

My week away from Rome was a crazy adventure in many senses. It started out all right. We (my two travel buddies and I) went to Siena first, for the day, where it rained. The rain, however, was not to bad. Just a pain in the butt. Then, we decided to take an earlier train into Venice. The night train was a bad idea, but this might have been slightly worst. We met two random boys at the Venice Train Station (St. Lucia), which was actually the best part. Then, while trying to find their hostel, we got lost in Venice. Then, because we had no hostel (since we had planned to sleep on the night train), we slept in a tunnel in the rain. Record setting rain, in fact. Needless to say, we were soaked. We arrived in Milan on one piece, but someone’s money got stolen, so she had to head home with my other travel buddy. So I headed alone to Florence. It was absolutely stunning.

Now, I am back in Rome, and it is raining again. Seriously, what a let down. Let’s hope that my next trip works out better. Knock on wood.

Archives: Rome (08/25/2006) May 26, 2008

Ciao! I made it to Rome around 18.15 local time on Wednesday. It took longer than I expected, but I have tried the gelato and the tortellini and the white wine. I do not have much time to write now, but perhaps when the internet at the Residence is fixed, I can write from there instead of from the Study Center.

Archives: Say What? (08/03/2006) May 26, 2008

In the midst of the world around me seemingly falling to pieces, perhaps from the outside in, I thought for a moment. How do we help the world? If we were truly altruistic, taking care of the world would be our main priority. However, from experience, few people are truly altruistic, so, why is it that we cannot be so? Is it because we need to know and love ourselves before we can know and love others? If that is the case, will we ever be able to love ourselves, and will we ever be able to reach out and love a world that has so much hate in it.

This has been a confusing and hopefully deep message of the day. Thank you.

Archives: Youth (07/22/2006) May 26, 2008

“Our answer is the world’s hope; it is to rely on youth. The cruelties and obstacles of this swiftly changing planet will not yield to obsolete dogmas and outworn slogans. It cannot be moved by those who cling to a present which is already dying, who perfer the illusion of security to the excitement of danger. It demands the qualities of youth: not a time of life but a state of mind, a temper of the will, a quality of the imagination, a predominance of courage over timidity, of the appetite for adventure over the love of ease.”
Robert F. Kennedy, Cape Town, South Africa, June 6, 1966

“Youth is the engine of the world”
Matisyahu, “Youth”, Youth

“Youth is happy because it has the ability to see beauty. Anyone who keeps the ability to see beauty never grows old.”
Franz Kafka

Archives: Reminiscent (07/22/2006) May 26, 2008

God, I love to reminisce. I wonder why my family has been doing that a lot lately, over dinner, during drives, while watching television. I think that my parents will miss my sister and myself, when she’s in Boston and I’m in Rome. It’s a strange feeling, to know that she’s going away. I mean, I know that I am leaving, too, but I feel like this is no longer my real home anyway. I’ve been going down to San Diego for two years now, and yes, Rome will be a completely new experience, but nothing has been permanent in my life for a while. I always get a little choked-up when we start putting things in boxes, because that means it’s time to move on. And as much as I embrace change, I resist it. The secret to change is coping. I know that I got into UCSD because they thought I could cope … and succeed. The same with Rome. I wouldn’t have gotten into the program if they didn’t like what I brought to the table.

I’m coping with life … and I’m loving every minute.