Words of Wisdom

Look both ways before crossing the street, don’t talk to strangers, and don’t eat the yellow snow are just a few things parents have taught us.  A parent’s job is to teach their child all that they know so the child is equipped to handle the world.  Parents potty-train their toddlers, teach their teens about money, and discuss investments and insurance with their young adults.  At all stages in life, a parent has some form of knowledge to pass down, having been in the same or similar scenario as their offspring.  Of course my parents taught me the usual, but I feel like there were a couple bits of information I was taught that maybe not every child learns from ma and pa.

1.  Train back then chest, and then work the smaller muscles.  Since my dad was a bodybuilder, he’s well equipped with knowledge about training.  And when I began going to the gym, he showed me how to properly do workouts and explained why you start with the larger muscles first and save the smaller muscles for last (because the larger muscles, like back and chest and quads, can hang in there longer because there’s more to them than say your triceps).  So I get the most out of my workout thanks to my father!

 

2.  Organic food or all natural food tastes differently than processed “food.”  This idea seems simple enough and obvious, but until you’ve been raised on 100% pure maple syrup, organic chocolate bars, and home-made popcorn, you won’t understand how true and glaring the difference in taste is.  When my friends tell me that Aunt Jemima’s syrup tastes the same as pure maple syrup, I merely shake my head.

 

3.  Real soccer players don’t wear pants.  This may seem insane, but in the 14 years I played soccer, I only wore shorts, and to this day if it’s below freezing, you will never see me running in pants.  I get a lot of weird looks, but I was taught you bundle up on your upper body, and now I can’t run in pants.  This was specific to baggier pants, but those tight under armor leggings, I only wear them if I won’t be doing any physical activity outside.

 

4.  Always be polite.  This lesson may be pretty universal, but thank you is now a reflex along with hi, how are you, and have a nice day.  Whenever my mom encountered a disgruntled, unhappy cashier, she’d kill them with kindness.  Her smile never wavered, and the cashier’s rude behavior never proved to be a problem.

 

5.  The classic bands and musicians from back in the day are still talked about today for a reason.  Billy Joel, Aerosmith, Nirvana, Guns N’ Roses, Queen, Van Halen, The Beatles, etc are legendary, and not to be compared to other artists of this day and age, and it’s blasphemous to disrespect them.  Not liking those artists is fine because it may not be your taste in music, but to compare One Direction to the Beatles or downplay the significance of Guns N’ Roses is unheard of.

 

6.  In your purse, ladies, you should always carry a pen.  My mom never leaves the house without her large purse, and there’s always a pen in there.  It comes in handy, I’ve needed to grab the pen from my purse countless times, and anyone who is in need of a pen is always grateful.

 

7.  How to properly shuffle cards is a must needed skill.  I know so many people who just move the cards around on a table, or they can’t do the bridge when shuffling.  Shuffling cards can be calming, but it comes in handy when your friends want to play poker.  It also means you’re automatically the one who shuffles the deck.

 

8.  Any gambling game, you should know how to play.  Texas Hold’em, blackjack, spades, 5 card draw, spoons, you name it, I most likely was taught the rules and I know how to play.  I’m equipped so if  money is ever at stake, I know what I’m doing.  I won’t be clueless, and if necessary I could hustle anyone.

 

9.  Flossing is so important.  After about every meal, my dad flosses, my mom flosses every night, my dad carries floss around with him, hence, I floss about twice a day.  Clean teeth are essential, and no one likes to have food caught between their pearly whites.

 

10.  Bigger or bulk can be better.  When I shop, I check how much of an item I’m getting and how much it costs, and, for the most part, I try to get the most bang for my buck.  For example, when I was purchasing items for college after winter break, it was between one bottle of Axe for $3 dollars, or a pack of two bottles along with a tiny bottle of face wash for about $5.  Obviously I bought the two pack.

 

Myths About Art School: BUSTED

Today my brother and I were arguing over which subject is more important in life: art or math?  Of course we both recognize that the world needs both mathematical people and artsy people.  We’re siblings so we were partly fighting just to fight.  However, some of the points my brother brought up were the stereotypical, untrue notions people have about artists and art school.  I should have written this blog post last year, but I’d like to stand up for my school and my craft and debunk those myths.

The number one comment I hear is that art school is easy.  Those that make that statement have certainly never been to art school.  Art is about problem solving and creating a drawing or a painting or a comic or a logo or a jacket requires so much time.  Artists create pieces that represent what is happening and important in our life, so each project requires research, and plenty of work sketching out the idea beforehand.  And artists are putting themselves into each and every piece they create and then they’re critiqued, which is a unique experience to art school.  Someone’s Physics homework or French exam isn’t being critiqued and questioned about every decision made.  Artists make something out of nothing, pure invention, and not everyone can do that.  So next time someone says art school is easy, draw a still life, create a website, and put together a 3D piece that shows the passage of time, and then we’ll talk.

People also assume that artists are stupid.  Artists aren’t just holed up in their studios creating whatever they feel like.  Artists have to know about culture to create something that reflects it.  Artists need to know about history, psychology, philosophy, music, literature, and much more.  The more you know as an artist the more versatile you are.

A friend told me a joke once that was highly offensive.  I don’t remember the joke verbatim but the gist of it encompassed an artist after college, working and the artist saying, “Would you like fries with that?”  Most people don’t seem to grasp that everything around you is art, and artists are needed everywhere.  For example, the house you’re living in was designed by an architect.  The chair you’re sitting in right now, a furniture designer created it.  The clothes you’re wearing were created by someone in the fashion market.  The logo on every product you purchase was thought up by a graphic designer.  This blog post was written by a writing student.  Art is everywhere and artists are in high demand.

One of my favorite myths is that everyone at art school is a hipster.  Yes, indeed, we all sit around and talk about indie singers no one has ever heard of, drinking our local coffee, whilst wearing our beanies and plaid and skinny jeans, and then once we’re finished we’ll ride off on our bicycles.  Yeah, that’s exactly every person at art school.  Art school, like any other college, has a plethora of different people with varying social backgrounds, sexual orientations, religions, economic statuses, political views, ethnicities, opinions, likes, dislikes, styles, etc.

Art Student Owl Meme

I’ve Got You Covered

In my opinion, covers are terrible.  For instance, Punk Goes 90’s, it makes me gag.  A ska band doing a cover of Alanis Morissette’s famous song, You Oughta Know, is blasphemy.  Nothing can compete with the original, and sure, Alanis should be flattered that her song is timeless; however, if she were to listen to the cover, she’d probably regret giving them rights to her masterpiece.  There’s just some songs that are done perfectly the first time.  HOWEVER, when good bands redo pop laden commercialized crap and make it memorable, that is a testament to the band.  I’ve been obsessed with certain covers, but they’re well done.  So here’s the list:

1.  Sleeping With Sirens’ cover of Cee Lo Green’s song F*** You.  Now the original was a hit, it’s got a nice bluesy-jazz feel to it, but let’s be honest, add some screamo, thrashing guitars, and an F’ you attitude, this song has become gold.  I’ve got it on repeat.

2.  Her Bright Skies’ cover of Usher’s DJ Got Us Fallin’ In Love.  I’m a fan of the original to be honest, it’s great to dance to and good club music with a pulsing energy.  But, I love the cover much more.  The addition of drums and a faster pace, I think, was a good decision.

3.  We Came As Romans’ cover of The Wanted’s song, Glad You Came.  The catchy, upbeat club-esque with Spanish hints is eh.  It’s something everyone’s heard before, and its fame was short lived (for obvious reasons).  Somehow this screamo, hardcore band made this song magical, keeping with the beat but adding their own spin, complete with a badass breakdown.  Again, I’ve got this song on repeat.

4.  Issues’ cover of Justin Bieber’s Boyfriend song.  Let’s be honest, that song is garbage to begin with, but when a hardcore band screams the lyrics, makes fun of the kid, and has a line that goes, “Bitch I ain’t your Boyfriend, ’cause you’re underage/Call me in a couple years and we will f****** rage,” how can this band not have nailed it?  It’s hilariously fantastic, and I adore it.

5.  Speaking of terribly done songs, Miley Cyrus’s See You Again now rocks because of Breathe Carolina’s magic touch.  Breathe Carolina added a new dimension of laser sounds and a mystical atmosphere, plus some screamed lyrics never hurt anybody.  Notches, no yards, how about galaxies above the original.

6.  A Day To Remember’s cover of Since U Been Gone originally done by Kelly Clarkson.  First, kudos to Kelly for creating a breakup anthem for all girls.  But, Jeremy McKinnon’s scratchy, desperate, and sometimes raging voice is no match for Kelly’s clean vocals; A Day to Remember simply breathed more life into the song.

7.  The Ready Set’s cover of Airplanes, originally by B.o.B.  The original rap song featuring Hayley Williams is only bearable because of William’s amazing voice.  The Ready Set brought their A game, and basically owned the song and gave it a much needed pop twist.

8.  The Downtown Fiction’s cover of Nicki Minaj’s Super Bass is to die for.  The Downtown Fiction are not a band I like nor do I think highly of Nicki Minaj, but poorly done female rap plus a throw away pop band equals pure musical bliss.  I cannot explain it.

9.  Because I can’t help it, For All Those Sleeping’s cover of Taylor Swift’s pop jam, You Belong With Me.  Taylor Swift is so sweet and her original song is equally cute.  But, when a screamo band sings her lyrics and gives the song a metal theme, I can’t not enjoy it  The juxtaposition is immaculate.

10.  Memphis May Fire’s cover of Bruno Mars’ hit, Grenade.  The original is all right, quite similar to Just The Way You Are, his signature song.  But, I’ve gotta give credit where credit is due, Memphis May Fire bring the heat, they sing the lyrics wonderfully and add some needed breakdowns and a few screamo parts, really showcasing the emotions Bruno Mars failed to present.  The chick he’s singing about stole the breaks from his car and the song is still upbeat and happy; Memphis May Fire got pissed.

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