Creeping

"Creeping" is what we teenagers call Facebook stalking. We all do it and know it exists. You see someone you've just met or someone you think is cute and you immediately go on Facebook to look at their pictures. Now this is just satisfying our natural curiosity, but to the outsider or the object of your creeping, it comes of as just that- really creepy. But we all do it, whether we want to admit it or not. It's some sort of compulsion to find out more about people but at the same time, do we want people creeping on us? The answer- no, not really. This phenomenon has become so common that it has been given a term that is recognized and used everywhere.

COLLEGE IS NOT REAL LIFE.

http://kcarroll-family.blogspot.com/

First of all, I agree, that title was definitely eye catching. I also agree that it's important for college students to meet as many people as they can and try new things. However, since my schedule is so full and busy, I find that it's somewhat difficult to get involved in other areas of the college. She was correct in discussing the diversity of this university- I have met people from all over the country who have different ideas and customs and it's fascinating to get to know them and compare and share lifestyles. I differ from the writer when she claims she has less freedom here than at home. Now I love my family to no end, but I definitely have more freedom here. I'm on my own, making my own decisions, no one's here taking care of me. Although this college is wonderful and has several programs to aid and support students, it's up to the students to seek these programs out. I disagree with both this blog and the original blog on the statement, "we don't have to clean". False. Yes, the public areas are cleaned for us, as well they should be. I still clean my own room which I consider my home so to me, it's just the same as if I were home. I still have to clean here. Also, not to hate on the cleaning lady, but our bathroom is NASTY. My suitemates and I eventually took it upon ourselves to start cleaning the bathroom and we created a system for removing the trash daily. We don't like gross bathrooms, so we clean it. Cleeeaaaannn. Now I don't work like this girl does or pay bills. I'm fortunate enough to have parents who are willing and able to support me. However, I still have very little free time. Being a music major requires a ridiculous amount of practice and performance time. Top that off with everyday homework and you've got one exhausted college student. I do understand that a lot of other majors aren't as demanding as my own or they are in a different way and therefore a vast number of college students do have ample free time. I, like this blogger, am sadly not one of them. I do agree that we get to try out being on our own along with a million other students doing the same thing. We are on our own, yet we still have each other to lean on and go through this experience with. I do agree that college is not real life though. We do have several advantages that we wouldn't if we were living in an apartment in the city by ourselves. We have security, prepared meals, and several other on campus amenities to aid and comfort us. The ant farm analogy though... What???

COLLEGE IS NOT REAL LIFE.

http://kcarroll-family.blogspot.com/

First of all, I agree, that title was definitely eye catching. I also agree that it's important for college students to meet as many people as they can and try new things. However, since my schedule is so full and busy, I find that it's somewhat difficult to get involved in other areas of the college. She was correct in discussing the diversity of this university- I have met people from all over the country who have different ideas and customs and it's fascinating to get to know them and compare and share lifestyles. I differ from the writer when she claims she has less freedom here than at home. Now I love my family to no end, but I definitely have more freedom here. I'm on my own, making my own decisions, no one's here taking care of me. Although this college is wonderful and has several programs to aid and support students, it's up to the students to seek these programs out. I disagree with both this blog and the original blog on the statement, "we don't have to clean". False. Yes, the public areas are cleaned for us, as well they should be. I still clean my own room which I consider my home so to me, it's just the same as if I were home. I still have to clean here. Also, not to hate on the cleaning lady, but our bathroom is NASTY. My suitemates and I eventually took it upon ourselves to start cleaning the bathroom and we created a system for removing the trash daily. We don't like gross bathrooms, so we clean it. Cleeeaaaannn. Now I don't work like this girl does or pay bills. I'm fortunate enough to have parents who are willing and able to support me. However, I still have very little free time. Being a music major requires a ridiculous amount of practice and performance time. Top that off with everyday homework and you've got one exhausted college student. I do understand that a lot of other majors aren't as demanding as my own or they are in a different way and therefore a vast number of college students do have ample free time. I, like this blogger, am sadly not one of them. I do agree that we get to try out being on our own along with a million other students doing the same thing. We are on our own, yet we still have each other to lean on and go through this experience with. I do agree that college is not real life though. We do have several advantages that we wouldn't if we were living in an apartment in the city by ourselves. We have security, prepared meals, and several other on campus amenities to aid and comfort us. The ant farm analogy though... What???

Do You Take Any Real Classes?

As a student of the Hartt School, I get asked this question frequently. A vast number of people seem to think that majoring in music is a cakewalk. To these people I'd say, "Can you write me a four part chorale in e minor, in 9/8 time,using a passing 6/4 progression, and a deceptive cadence?" The average person would probably look at me like I was speaking a different language. What people don't seem to realize is that being a music major takes a severe amount of time, energy, patience, focus, perseverance, and hard work. As a vocalist in particular, we get even more of a bad reputation from instrumentalists for being unable to sight read or our lack of the ability to count a piece of music. Now these stereotypes do have some truth to them, but in our defense, we haven't necessarily been taught to read music ever since we started singing. Singing is something that's just natural for everyone. An average 10 year old wouldn't be given a brand new piece of music and asked to sing it through without ever hearing the song before. Also, our instrument is our body, which as we all know, doesn't always function the way we want it to. Along with this unpredictable factor that is the human body, vocalists have to be able to hear a pitch in their head before they sing it which isn't really necessary for an instrumentalist who can see a note on a page, press down a key and voila; music. I, myself, think that vocalists have to work harder to learn these skills and beat the stereotypes we've been given. Getting back to the route question, "Do you take any real classes?" my answer would be that I consider all of my classes "real". To be a musician there are several skills and subjects that are imperative to be studied. For example, my schedule consists of Music Theory (where we learn how music works and study the language and notation of all music), Ear Training (where we work on our ability to read and sing a piece of music on sight, and our ability to hear and sing intervals), Piano (learning basic piano skills), Diction (where we learn how to sing properly in languages such as English, Italian, German, and French), Choir, Opera Stagecraft (where we learn the ins and outs of opera, develop acting skills and stage presence, and learn how to tech. a show), RPW (standard English requirement), weekly Voice Lessons (where we work on vocal technique and work one on one with a private teacher who coaches us through new pieces), Paranov Performance Hour (where we get to see and participate in various performances by all sects of the Hartt School), and Vocal Seminar (where we work as a class with a mentor to talk about the music business, technique, and work on a class recital). This schedule of classes, albeit extensive and overwhelming, is not all we have to do in order to succeed. Classes such as Piano and Ear Training require hours of practice. On top of all this, we also have to practice voice every day. There is so much that goes into being a music major that it's just mind boggling to hear someone say "So do you just sing all day?". No. No, I do not 'just sing all day'. This major is not just what I do for school, it's my career path and my lifestyle. To be in this major takes a lot of work and resilience. I didn't choose it for the easy grades, because they're not easy in the slightest. I choose to be involved in music because it's my passion, my desired career path, and it's what I want my life to be about. So the next time you hear someone say that musicians are lazy or they don't do any work, take some time to think about all of the things you read here and just how much effort we put into our majors.

Also, this link is hilarious and it sums up exactly what I'm trying to say:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ib2prWo49Sc

Rainbow Trees?

http://www.darkroastedblend.com/2011/02/painted-trees-in-mountains-of-colorado.html

The blog above features an artist named Curtis Killom. According to this post, Killom has been traversing the Colorado mountains in search of dead trees. He uses these trees as the medium for his art. He takes something once dead and lifeless, infuses it with color and creativity, and breathes life into it yet again. Killom has been painting the dead trees the colors of the rainbow. These trees have become so popular that the artist has received requests to paint trees on private property. When asked of his intention with this tree painting art, Curtis stated, "the intention is to bring out the beauty which is already there." He then goes on to talk about how trees and humans are related and the connection and symbolism that is apparent in his art work. He says, "It is the rebirth which I want to impart to the participants. We as humans all have dreams, visions, and ideas which for most of us are what makes us uniquely who we are. It is those dreams, visions, and ideas that we are to see in each other and breathe back to life, no longer dead- and blending in with the other dead dreams we have stored in our lives." To be completely honest, I don't really know what he's talking about. I guess it could be taken as he takes the dead trees and gives them new life and as humans, we have been known (in a way) to do this to ourselves. If we have dreams or ideas that we let fade, they become similar to the tree? Dead? I say this with uncertainty because 1) I don't fully understand it and 2) I don't really agree with it, if that is, in fact, what the artist means. I don't think if we give up on some dreams or ideas it makes us quitters or any less vibrant and passionate. I don't think our dreams are what makes us "alive". Plus, people constantly develop new dreams as we are forever changing our minds and opinions. I think what makes us "alive" is how we choose to pursue those dreams, or not. However, I do understand and like the idea of rebirth with the rainbow trees. I think it's a positive, yet slightly unclear, message and a fun public display of art.

The Bingley to my Darcy, The Cheesy Dinosaur to my Dancing Noodle: AKA My Best.

My best friend and I have many names for each other. Partially because we just like nicknames, but more importantly, she's more than just my best friend. She's my partner in crime, my confidant, and my sister. We consider ourselves quite the dynamic duo and therefore, we have names for each other referring to some of our favorite fictional characters. The Bingley- Darcy reference is fairly easy to understand. Pride and Prejudice is a classic and one of our favorite books/ movies. The dinosaur- noodle thing is a little on the eccentric side of our friendship, but hey. It's just what we do. You know those Kraft mac n' cheese commercials with the cheesy dinosaur and the dancing noodles? Yup. That's us.

You may be wondering, "Who is this awesome, super cool person you speak of?" My best's name is Elena and surprisingly, I've only known her for a little over a year. We had been in my high school's chorale together for a year and back then, we weren't even close to friends. In fact, we both recall her poking fun at me on several occasions before we really got to know each other. However, during my senior year of high school we started spending more and more time together due to play rehearsal. I remember thinking that this girl was so sweet and down to earth and just plain pleasant to be around. She was like the sun; you just felt good being in her presence and you couldn't help but smile at the positive, upbeat attitude she always projected. The more time we spent together, the closer we became. I shared things with her that I hadn't shared with anyone before. She helped me through the darkest time of my life and for that, I will be forever grateful towards her. Not only was she an incredible friend to me, but the more we got to know each other, we found we had so many things in common.

Elena and I have always bonded over our love for music whether it be actually singing a piece or listening to some crazy 90's pop song. Music was how we first met and bonded and it has been one of the biggest influences on the forming and development of our friendship. As we spent more time together, we found that we also share a love of disney movies, vintage clothing, breakfast, adventuring, dresses with pockets, makeup, Ingrid Michaelson... the list goes on and on.

What's even more important than the things we have in common is what we don't. Elena continually broadens my horizons and introduces me to new things or ideas every day. I love that we can share things with each other and be able to appreciate them just because the other one already does. I am constantly learning and growing from her words and thoughts. I don't think she realizes just how influential she is to me, but it's a pretty big deal. Elena truly knows me through and through. She knows my strengths, my weaknesses, my past, my present, my hopes, my dreams, and my failures, and she, being the exceptional human being that she is, accepts me and loves me for who I am. She can read my very mood from one look at my face or one word that I speak. To me, that is a connection that runs deeper than just "best friends". I believe that there are people in our lives that we're just meant to meet and who will really have an impact on you and stay in your life forever. To me, Elena is one of those people and I know it's the same for her. We're almost the same person. We're loud, exuberant, goofy, emotional, spontaneous, funny (well we think so), and just plain crazy. Yet I still say almost the same. We definitely have our differences and from my experience, it has not been a hindrance to our friendship, but a blessing. If we were exactly the same, we'd get sick of each other in an instant. However, we are different and therefore we continue to learn, bond, and grow from the different perspectives and ideas we can present to each other.

 From the moment I met her, our friendship has been a wild roller coaster ride of ups and downs. The most important thing though, is that through whatever happens, we know we'll always have each other. There's no one that can compare to my crazy, adorable, lovable, kind, clever, witty, patient, thoughtful, smart, eccentric, passionate, and just all around amazing best friend. Elena, this is for you. You're my best, forever and always.

Love, 

Meghan