THERE IS NO THERE.

Waiting for this to be fun

es — 2008-06-21T22:23:30-07:00

A lot of things happened in the last a month or so.

I was elected as next year's ISA co-director, I struggled a bit with ISA business already, I failed info hell, I went to Seattle with my friends, I got a cold, my dad came over to see me, and, well, now I have to pack up my stuff for moving. Everything makes me rush even when I don't need to.

Where are the days that I thought of nothing and just lived by my wits? Strange as it seems, I still believe I'm 21 years old or younger sometimes. If something is wrong with me, that has something to do with my past. The days when I was proud of being an asshole. In other words, high school days. Everyone carried on. Everyone moved to the next phase. Some already got the job. I, on the other hand, don't even know why I often dream of my junior year when I believe things were nearly perfect. Nothing can be perfect, and I'm satisfied with what I'm doing here. But still, why the same dream over and over again? I wish Freud was still alive.

I'll be heading to Hawaii for internship in mid-July. I'm excited to do the teamwork with other college interns and high-schoolers. I hope I wouldn't screw up by being too bossy. Leadership is all about a balance. If you're too bossy, teammates would most likely lose interest and thus do the horrible job. If you do nothing, they would disrespect you and thus the teamwork is torn apart. Neither is good. My leadership is a bit abnormal, so I'll just wait and see whether it would still work or not. Screw the books about leadership. Screw the leadership seminars.

Life is a highway and I'm gonna ride it
Every day's a winding road yeah
My rollercoaster's got the biggest ups and downs
As long as it keeps goin' round its unbelievable

My Rollercoaster / Kimya Dawson

Yeah, I obviously need to calm down. Maybe some drinks?

My Music History 101

es — 2008-05-05T11:01:40-07:00

I must admit that I really have a tricky taste in music. I always have this awkward moment when I talk to my friends about my favorite bands or groups. And, I've wanted to write about it for a long time so that people can understand how I get here.

It all started with my parents' CD collection. Jazz and folk music. Well, I bet you think there's nothing wrong with it. I was an innocent middle-schooler, and I didn't really listen to music at that time. One day, I suddenly started to hunt out CDs in living room with no reason. Maybe just to kill time. Then, I found out that I particularly liked a piano jazz tune by Herbie Hancock, named Watermelon Man. The track was in a compilation album, and that was the only track of him. I wanted more.

Of course, I knew virtually nothing about Herbie Hancock. Without the Internet connection, the only thing I could do was to go to a record store and find more of his CDs. I should have bought "Takin' Off" that was recorded in 1962 and includes Watermelon Man. What I got instead was "Future 2 Future", his newest album at that time. I had no doubt that was a Jazz album even though the cover design clearly shows it's not. I got home with beaming smile and listened to the CD right away. I was SHOCKED.

"Future 2 Future" is not exactly "jazz" music. It's a mixture of Jazz, Hip-Hop, African music, Electronica, Techno, and Drum'n Bass. This genre-straddling type of music is now called Club Jazz or Future Jazz. And that CD was something made me take the wrong path for next 10 years of my music life. Continued...

Watermelon Man
Silvan Zingg

This is pretty close to the original version I love. Yes, Hancock arranged this tune in funk style in 70's, but that's another story. Anyway, imagine how stunned I was when I first listened to next clip.

The Essence
Herbie Hancock

Here's what I found out.

es — 2008-04-25T23:27:50-07:00

I happened to do the video editing yet again for International Night, the cultural event that takes place at University of Oregon tomorrow. I didn't have much resources, so I decided to use a classic editing style that I used to do in high school. In the ISG (International Student Group) office, alone, I spent about 5 hours editing the video. It was a quality time indeed. Even though I haven't done any editing lately except the one for International Night trailer, I was stunned that I still remember all the techniques or theories that I thought I already washed out from my mind. It was amazing. I should've done more.

What you're interested in is not necessarily what you're good at. That makes our lives hard yet challenging. I've seen many people who cannot figure out what they're interested in. Some of them don't even know where to start. Once this not-so-close friend of mine asked me how he can be like me, be interested in so many things. Well, what could I say? I just advised him to take his camera everywhere he goes, and takes a bunch of photos when he finds "something". I don't know if it worked with him, but that's what I've done for the last 3 years.

After the event is done tomorrow, I'll let myself loose for sure. I'll drink tons of booze. I'll forget all these things that tie me up. I'm not so stressed out, but definitely in need of "medication".

Though, I've still got a job to do tonight.

Seven / The Long Winters

And, yeah, I still miss you sometimes.

Something I just love

es — 2008-04-16T23:25:16-07:00

Devil's A-Go-Go / Blitzen Trapper

I just bought their album "Wild Mountain Nation" because of this clip. It's so awesome. Rock + Folk + Country + some Electronica = Instant win. I love the fact that they're from Portland, OR. I can tell by their sounds, looks, and whatever they express. They gotta have a live performance in Eugene some time.

Well I never thought I'd hear you say so.

es — 2008-04-10T16:57:00-07:00

CLICK THE PHOTO TO ENLARGE

So, yeah, I have a lot to do. And I suck at multitasking.

There is a time when you start to worry about details. Details you never thought about. Details you just passed over before. They are nothing by themselves, but as you're getting busier, they're suddenly starting to bother you. What should I do? I haven't figure it out yet. For now, I just hang on the quote by Charles M. Schulz, that is, “There is no problem so big it cannot be run away from”. Ahem.

B&B (Birthday and Busyness)

es — 2008-04-04T11:13:05-07:00

Now I'm 22 years old. 22. No big deal.

I still feel like I just graduated from high school, but maybe it's about time to cut out such an out-dated (yes, out-dated) idea. Some people say that my mental age is finally getting close to my actual age and I have to admit that I'm fully convinced by it. Anyway, I hope it's gonna be a great year.

And, yes, Chicago trip. That was just awesome. We really liked 51 hrs Amtrak trip, and we really loved the city of Chicago. I didn't take many photos in Chicago somehow. Maybe I was too busy enjoying wandering around town. Millennium Park and Magnificent Mile are my best favorites. Not to mention the Boredoms' live performance at Congress Theater. That was the best show I've ever seen, and the worst venue I've ever been at the same time. The only thing I regret is now what's called "Threadless Incident" among my friends. I wouldn't write about this, but the key fact is: I was screwed up, big time.

Spring term. As the only Japanese Int'l student in legendary J202 Info Hell, I'm at the entrance of the hell right now. Insanely large amounts of ahead. As a starter, I'll have my topic fixed by lottery at discussion session today. You never know what might happen there. Plus, International Week and Night is coming in 2 wks. I'm so excited whether I could hold up during IWN. Sticking to PR head is what I decided by myself, so that's me who has to uphold the responsibility. I'll try my best.

OK, I gotta go to class now.

HELLO.

es — 2008-03-19T17:34:09-07:00

Finally. Now that I'm done for the Spring term, I have a plenty of time to spend on whatever I want, hence I finally decided to build a blog in English. I tried WordPress first, but didn't really like it. Maybe too complicated for me. Then, I came back to Serene Bach, my all-time favorite blogware. It's simple, clean, and fast. Too bad it hasn't been released in English.

Anyways.

On Saturday, I'm leaving for Chicago with my friends. Yes, I'm gonna spend my Spring break in the Windy City. How exciting! But, why Chicago? Well, there's an epic movie called "The Darjeeling Limited" that main characters travel in India by sleeping car. This movie just made me and my friends want to do the same thing. But India's kinda too far, so we sought somewhere accessible, then we found an Amtrak train named Empire Builder. This sleeper train connects Portland and Chicago in 45 hrs. It perfectly fits our needs.

Some say it's better to get there by airplane, but the whole point of this trip is to feel what it's like to travel a few days by train. I do hope it's worth it. I'm pretty sure that our "beloved" Amtrak would be delayed for hours, though that's also a fun aspect of the trip. I guess.

I'm really really really excited already so I bet I can't sleep on Friday night...