Have you heard that song?

Last Wednesday, I picked up a copy of the (free) varsity newspaper on my way to Chemometrics class. This newspaper is the kind of thing that I might have a quick look at during class and read a couple of day later when I really really am bored. My friend, sitting next to me in class, was, however extremely excited about me having this newspaper in class and proceeded to read it in detail. This week’s newspaper contained an extra section on books and writing, and in this section was included a list entitled “Top ten best Lyrics”. When my friend saw this list, she exclaimed to me, “Oh my word, have you ever heard about that band called Coldplay. This song of their, the Scientist, is really awesome.”

I mumbled something along the lines of “Yeah, I’ve heard of them…”

The thing is, I head about Coldplay in 2000, when I was fifteen Parachutes had come out, and Parachutes happened to be the first album that I purchased when I stated to like what I would term “real music”. And I was uncontainably excited about the release of A Rush of Blood to the Head, but was a little bit disappointed by the album, but loved The Scientist and hoped that the band would not release this song as a single. But they did. I remember the music video and the fact that the girl who died in it wore red converse sneakers (which i thought at the time was the coolest thing ever). After this song, Chris Martin became a rockstar, released the extremely disappointing X&Y, and lost most of my respect.

So yes, I have heard about The Scientist. And thinking about it makes me just a little bit sad.

(Update: This whole business reminds me a bit of this Vanity Fair ‘Stuff white people like’ article.)

Following my own advice

I have this philosophy about life that if you really want to change something about your life, the best (and only) way to go about it is by changing your habits. Move your house, stop smoking, start drinking more, or less, start drinking hot chocolate, walk instead of drive, install a new browser. Anything, really, related or unrelated to what you want to change. Apart from having proved the theory to myself over and over, I believe it works because changing one’s habits causes one’s daily neuron firings to change, which causes thoughts to changes, and which causes life to change. Not always exactly in the way expected, but any change is good, because it’s often the absence of change that is the problem.

The ‘problem’ wit my life was that things have been feeling, well, bleh. Partly because of the winter, but it’s been there all year, although it’s worse now. I think it has a lot to do with my MSc project not getting of the ground, and also doing too much sitting around doing theoretical work. The awesome thing is that I didn’t even sit down and think about a habit that I should change, it just happened.

I was here, at my flat, last night, trying to mail my supervisors to get this damn Brettanomyces wine show on the road, whilst listening to Jamie Lidell. And It happened. I started dancing. And I danced and danced and danced. See, the thing is, I love dancing. More than lots of things. But, for some reason, I’ve not really done that in a while. Perhaps because I’ve been too unfit to enjoy it, perhaps because my friend who I always used to dance with hasn’t been feeling like it, perhaps because the DJ at the club we always go to has been sucking, and perhaps because the living situation hasn’t been as conducive to listening to weird music and doing a random boogie. But wow. It felt so so so good. i know, it was a little exercise-endorphin trip, but it was also more than that. And I thought, damn! I need to do this more. So i’ve resolved to do it more or less every day.

By the way, it’s working already…

Almost Grownup

One of my friends (who I would thank profusely in this post if they actually spent any time on the internet) gave me the Almost Famous extended cut DVD (called Untitled) for my birthday. I haven’t seen this movie in years, but I remember loving it, so I started watching it earlier this evening. The movie is better than I remember, because the way the music works with the movie is absolutely awesome, and it reminded me of how I used to feel about music when I was a teenager. I love music more now, I think, but I loved it in a different and novel way then. And i found the weirdest thing happening. In fact, it is something I thought would never ever happen. Not in a million years. I missed being a teenager. Let me repeat that. I missed being a teenager. In spite of all the awkwardness, the stupidness, the angst, the acne, and all that. The thing is, the movie made me remember something of what I used to be. It captures that one awesome thing about being a teenager so well; the possibility of being ale to become whatever and whoever you want. Because you can. Which is awesome. When you’re that age, you start to get to know what you like and who you’d like to be, but you’re still wildly idealistic, which makes it awesome. Being 23 is suddenly different. I almost feel I’m a grownup, because the people around me are starting to act like grownups, and I suppose so am I. I’ve sortof decided what career I’m going to follow for the rest of my life (sortof because things always change…) and I may even have already met the person I’m supposed to spend the rest of my life with. (It always creeps me out when I think about the fact that my parents were already married at 23.)

The awesome thing about being this age, though, is the fact that I am still young enough to dream and dream and dream, but the tools to make those dreams happen are there now. I’m not an idiot just out of high school anymore! Regardless of how big my dreams were; I was just an idiot with big dreams… And another cool thing is the fact that some of my small , almost stupid dreams of how my life would be are already true. These are things like being able to cook and bake for other people without having to ask for permission first. Not feeling guilty about anything I do. Having a bakery right next to my house that makes awesome croissants. And being a small part of a pretty damn awesome branch of science. Life is good.

P. S.  A final thought on the movie… It has Zooey Deschanel in it, who happens to be one of my favourite actresses now…

What should my next blog post be about?

I’ve actually had too many ideas for a next blog post to actually settle on one (and writing several seems like too much work), so I would like to propose a poll. I shall list several ideas I had, and should I get a positive response regarding one of these topics, I may (or may not) write this blogpost. Here goes:

1) Annoyances with undergrads (general)

2 ) Annoyances with undergrads (slow-moving, traffic jamming)

3) Renting two bad movies on Saturday night

4) My new copy of Nylon Magazine

5) Mounting excitement for Cokefest

6) My deadline that has moved to today

Please vote now to avoid disappointment!

I started a Blog, which Nobody read

I Started A Blog Nobody Read lyrics (By The Sprites)

I started a blog which nobody read
When I went to work
I blogged there instead

I started a blog which nobody viewed
It might be in cache
The topics include:

“George Bush is an evil moron”
“What’s the story with revolving doors?”
“I’m in love with a girl who doesn’t notice me”
“Nobody hates preppies anymore”

I started a blog but nobody came
No issues were raised
No comments were made

I started a blog which nobody read
I’ll admit it wasn’t that great
But if you must know here’s what it said:

“100 of my favorite albums”
“200 people I can’t stand”
“400 movies you must see soon”
“10 celebrities (4 of whom I might assasinate)”

I started a blog, I sent you the link
I wanted the world (and you) to know what I think

I started a blog, but when I read yours
It made me forget
what I had started mine for

(I’ve been threatening to post these lyrics for ages, because the are so apt wonderfully written… and arb. Gotta love it!)