Like a Sickness (Jazz)

I think I've been infected, but I like this sickness. I wish it would have happened earlier--much earlier. Sure, I was exposed to the stuff for a while, but only recently has it really had an effect. As a kid, my parents would play a little for me. They'd try to explain how wonderful it was, but it didn't sound like any of the stuff I wanted to hear. After all, did any of those old folks have a hand in creating Thriller? I doubt that! Who wants to listen to all those trumpets anyway?


But now I can't get enough of Duke Ellington, Louis Armstrong, Wes Montgomery, Billy Holiday, Sydney Bechet, Dizzy Gillespie, Django Reinhardt, and whomever else I happen to stumble upon.

Of course there are a lot of contemporary artists that fascinate me. In fact, they are the reason why I started checking out the guys that I mentioned above. Still, it's like there's a century's worth of music I can check out before I have to complain about a lack of good music on the radio. I'd love to listen to some good hip-hop. But until something catches my ear, I'll be sampling a little of this and a little of that.

quite a day

quite a day
Originally uploaded by misfiredpixels

After months of growing and caring for that dissertation, I have released it into the world. Now, I get to spend some of my time doing things that I like. I haven't turned my camera on for months, but the last few days have been an exception. feels like I can get my stride back. I can't help but want some new toys though. You know, something like another flash.

That will have to wait. But for the moment, I'm going to have fun with the stuff I already got here with me.

Oh, and just to give a little contrast, Here's the image that I got out of the camera.  I felt like I had to battle the dull colors and flat image.  Give me contrast or give me... never mind.

Lessons in Self-Promotion

It's kind of a big deal, you know? Diddy is going to change our lives. He'll allow us to understand the greatness of Micheal Jordan, Ali, and that fast-ass Usain Bolt. Maybe we wont understand any of this well enough to actually replicate their greatness, but that's not important. You should still be motivated to check out this forthcoming and revolutionary blog. If you're lucky, you won't even have to read it. There's a chance that the fashionably grainy video in the clip will be used quite often. It's hard to say exactly what the blog will do for you, but it will likely result in a new national holiday.

Get ready.


How to Overhype Your Blog, Diddy Edition [Celebrity Computer Science]: "

Diddy made this trailer video for his forthcoming blog, proving it will be as big as Martin Luther King Jr. plus Barack Obama plus the 9/11 firefighters plus the troops, minus Will Smith. The most inspirational anything ever, in fact. More »

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Stupidity has no logic

I'm not exactly sure what this woman's poster is supposed to mean. What do benefits and amnesty have to do with speaking English? I know that I'm a little brain-dead after the general exhaustion and apathy following graduate school, but am I missing something here?

One of the funny things is that the story from the gawker link that the photo came from mentions how there were lots of speeches about liberty and colorblindness. Of course, speaking English isn't racist. That's just a way to communicate. I just assume that this woman's reference to language has racist undertones.

Well, at least she didn't say "We Speak American," right?