When I first joined myspace (about 3 years ago ) I wrote a couple of blogs that I loved. I've since deleted the blogs (and stopped blogging there althogher) from my page, but I saved them on my harddrive. I thought I'd bring them back out today and post them here. Enjoy!Rob's Philosophy
As I was looking around on myspace today, I was reminded of Rob's philosophy from High Fidelity. This is a place for you to meet new folks... relationships, friendships, networking... whatever. How do you draw these potential new folks? By listing what you like... For example, I made a new friend just b/c I like Napoleon Dynamite. Sweet!
Rob's philosophy is:
"What really matters is WHAT you like not what you ARE like. Books, records, films...these things matter. Call me shallow - it's the effin truth."
So, you see...Rob's philosphy is what this whole myspace thing is built on!
More from Rob...
"What came first, the music or the misery? People worry about kids playing with guns, or watching violent videos, that some sort of culture of violence will take them over. Nobody worries about kids listening to thousands, literally thousands of songs about heartbreak, rejection, pain, misery and loss. Did I listen to pop music because I was miserable? Or was I miserable because I listened to pop music?"
Okay. The whole idea of organizing your records autobiographically... GENIUS! I don't have any records to organize (I wish I had that collection!), but I can without a doubt categorize my life into different music phases. See Below:
The Top 40 Phase: I was pretty much a Top 40 girl when I was a kid. I loved just about anything on the radio. Anyone remember Zoo 98? Yes! Anyway, before middle school, the only two musicians that stand out in my memory are Michael Jackson and Reba McEntire. I know...total opposites, but my brain is a little fuzzy (see Grateful Dead phase).
The New Kids on the Block Phase: Yes, it's true...and I'm darn proud of it! I was OBSESSED with NKOTB. I had every album, book, etc... that they made. My bedroom walls were literally papered in their posters. I was the coolest! My mom took me and my cousin, Shelly, to camp out for tickets to one of the concerts on the Hangin' Tough Tour. OMG! I still get chills just thinking about it. He he. And, yes I still know every song by heart.
The Big Hair Band Phase: Shortly after NKOTB, I made a drastic change from pop to heavy metal. Poison was my fave! Sadly, I never got to see them in concert. I also loved G-N-R and Skid Row, etc...
The Return to Top 40 Phase: In Junior High...nothing stands out. I was focused more on socializing during those days. You know...the whole Drill Team thing, etc. In those days, I listened to whatever was on the radio.
The Beatles Phase (High School Part 1): In the 10th grade, my friend, Angie, turned me on to the Beatles. I was instantly OBSESSED. I gobbled up anything and everything I could about the Beatles. Fun times... Also, Samantha got me interested in all things 60's and 70's rock and roll. I remember many nights zoning out to Pink Floyd. Nice...and this was b/f drugs. See, you don't have to do drugs to experience and appreciate good music. LOL.
The Alice in Chains Phase (High School Part 2 and Beyond): After the Beatles phase I went straight in to grungeville. I loved Pearl Jam, Soundgarden, STP, etc... But my absolute fave was Alice in Chains. OMG! 1995 was a great year for grunge rock! Another one who stands out during that time is Alanis Morrisette. She rocks! This music brings back great memories from working at Hastings. I'll never forget that group of people that I worked with. It was amazing and awful at the same time. That was where I met James...GRRR! The bane of my existance. That relationship screwed me up royally. The James relationship was directly responsible for the next phase.
The Grateful Dead Phase: OMG! How can I even begin to describe this phase? Well...after some unfortunate business w/ James, I decided to move to Arkadelphia and live with my friend Samantha. Oh yeah...and to go to college, but I wasn't very good at that. Anyway, the first thing Samantha said to me was, "Beer's your friend. You'll drink a lot of it." (quote from PCU) I wasn't much of a drinker b/f that, but it only took one night to really break me in. I was ready to forget about James. So, I drowned my sorrows for 3 whole years. I was drunk and/or high almost every day! No wonder I can't remember anything! What I do remember is going to lots of cool shows (Phish, Leftover Salmon and other jam bands) and hanging with my beautiful friends. We would move around to different houses switching roommates. We were like gypsies or a commune...crazy. We were always broke, but always had money for some smoke (Heh! I'm a poet). And we were always up for organizing a kegger. Back then, it was all about the tunes. I could lose myself for hours listening and dancing to the GD. We loved the GD cover band The Schwag. FUN TIMES! Acid parties w/ different "mood" rooms. Day trips w/ sidewalk chalk. Awesome. I could talk for hours about the good times I had during these years, but there was also a lot of bad times. Eventually, the bad won out and my mom rescued me. On to the next phase...
The Christian Music Phase: So, after a while I got sick of the drugs and started thinking about life. I would look around at all of us- high and stupid. I would think, "Is this how it's going to be for the rest of my life?" I was homeless, jobless... My car wasn't running and I hadn't really spoken to my family in 6 months (can you imagine?!)... I felt cut off from the world and didn't see any way out of the hell hole I had dug for myself. Then I got really sick and finally swallowed my pride and called my mom. Hence the rescue. She said, "That's it! You're coming home. Pack your bags. I'll be there in an hour." And that's what happened. She took me home and I turned my life over to God.
And that brings us to the real story of the Christian Music Phase (finally!) After that life changing move back home, I just wanted to listen to music that helped me grow as a Christian. Music that glorified God. So, I quit listening to secular music. It wasn't that I thought that secualr music was bad (sinful, whatever). It just wasn't what I needed at the time.
The Return to Secular Music Phase: This is my current phase. For the past year or so, I've gotten back into "secular" music. I'm trying to discover all of the great bands that I've missed the last 5 years! And of course, I'm still digging the groups listed above... EVEN NKOTB! I still listen to their Christmas album every year. LOL. Don't judge!
Okay, so that's some highlights from my musical life. Hope you enjoyed.
Later!
p.s. In this post or any future posts...if there are spelling/grammatical errors...blame it on the Grateful Dead phase. Lots of brain cells lost then!