I’m thinking of lots right now, but too many of the things I’m thinking of annoy me. Here’s something a bit fresher than the rest.
I hear you on the radio
You permeate my screen.
It’s unkind but…
If I met you in a scissor fight
I’d cut off both your wings on principle alone
On principle alone.
Hey megalomaniac
You’re no Jesus
Yeah, you’re no f***ing Elvis
Wash your hands clean of yourself, baby, and
Step down
Step down
Step down
If I were your appendages
I’d hold open your eyes
So you would see
That all of us are heaven sent (There was never meant to be only one)
And there was never meant to be only one
To be only one
Hey megalomaniac
You’re no Jesus
Yeah, you’re no f***ing Elvis
Wash your hands clean of yourself, baby, and
Step down
Step down
Step down
Incubus wrote this song about George Bush, back in 2004. I really can’t believe how relevant it’s become. George Bush has NOTHING on Barack Obama, when it comes to being a megalomaniac. I’m left dumbfounded every time I watch him speak on TV. It’s absolutely unbelievable how full of himself he is. As a matter of fact, most politicians are full of themselves. If there is a way to separate myself completely from it all, I will do that thing.
Oh yeah, why is the song relevant? A quote from our fearless leader:
I’m watching a Town Hall on Fox News with the infamous Arlen Specter. Arlen Specter is a Republican senator from Pennsylvania, who has been known as of late to vote for liberal bills, including the stimulus bill, cap and trade, among others… These town halls are filled with hardcore right-wing conservatives who are really just mad that things aren’t going their way. There are some legitimate attendees to these events, but there are a lot of people asking questions who really don’t know what they’re talking about.
The problem here, is everything. I’m a caucasian male, which puts me in a (currently) majority group in the USA. I say this to preface my next comment. Some of the people screaming at Specter and Obama in these town halls are so biased that I feel almost sure that if a black conservative stood up to ask a question, everyone would boo him or her because of his or her race. They seem very one-sided. There’s a guy now talking about how he can’t support people of the Islam religion because the Qur’an says “non-believers shall be killed.” Really? Not really does it say that, but really you have to ask this question?
This is why I’ve made the following decision. Politicians all have too much power. No matter how many town halls are held, no matter how many revolts or tea parties are held, and no matter how loud people scream, it’s not going to change. They will always have too much power, and they will always make decisions that not everyone likes. That’s the beauty of a democracy. But as a wise man recently told me, no matter how bad our current situation is, we still have the best government in the world. It might not always stay that way, but right now it’s the best.
I’m going to stay as far out of it as possible. I’ve already started running my own business. My business can be run from anywhere with a computer – freedom of location. In this business, I can make as much or as little money as I want – freedom of income. This is the first step. The second step – I’m never going to borrow a single dollar for the rest of my life. I will always be completely independent from everyone and every bank. The goal of these two steps is to be able to move about the country and maintain a self-sustaining lifestyle. My gardens will always be filled with fresh fruits and vegetables – I will not have to purchase them from a store. My house will get its energy from the sun and the wind – the way it should be. And the water supply will be the rain. How simple is that?
The best part about this is that there is no political affiliation required. It may be considered a “hippie” lifestyle, but it’s definitely not a liberal lifestyle. And it doesn’t have to be labeled a conservative one, either. I will attempt to stay out of political rings as best I can. This way, no matter what the government is doing, they won’t have control of my food, my water, or my power. If things get too bad, I’ll also add some guns to the mix. Thank you Amendment 2.
I hope more people realize that this goal is achievable. Some may see it as an apathetic lifestyle, but I couldn’t care more about the well-being of my loved ones and friends. I am going to make sure that my family is always well provided for and that I help those who are truly in need.
When the news gets you down, turn off the TV and plan out your solar panel grid.
I sometimes judge how much I like a music artist/song by how high my play count is in iTunes. Right now, the most played song in my iTunes library is “On a Day Like Today,” by Keane. I often move my iTunes library around, from hard drive to hard drive, so the play count unfortunately gets reset a lot. I’d really like to know what my overall listening habits have been since I made the switch to OSX in December of 2006. The old number one was “Your Eyes Open,” by Keane. I think of it as my favorite song of all time, but with the plays adding up for “On a Day Like Today,” I’m not so sure…
The song starts off with an electronic snare/bass drum combo, and then Tom comes in, along with an ethereal synth. After a bit of playing around, the keyboard comes in. The buildup is masterful. Each added instrument adds just one bit of a degree of intensity.
When the chorus first comes in, the keyboard starts beating on chords. Repeated chords, but used for anticipation and modulation. The chord progression is classic pop music (as are almost all pop songs), but it’s done so well that there seems to be a thin black arrow, pointing forward for the entire duration of the song. It presses on.
The end of the first chorus, and Tom uses falsetto to hit the top note – key in the progression of the piece. A synth that sounds almost like wind blowing through the piece pushes through a recapitulation of sorts, and then chorus #2 comes in. It sounds as if Tom’s voice is being sent through some sort of synth now… but there’s something even more fantastic coming. A few of the chords are flipped with his singing, and he reaches the top note again, no falsetto this time. The apex of the song is so obvious.
The critical points during the song are as follows: ”sick and tired” is falsetto the first run through. The second time, it’s Tom’s full voice. ”Never find the words to say” is falsetto for the apex of the first half of the song. The final run-through, it’s not falsetto, and it’s absolutely breathtaking.
There is then a boomerang effect, where the consistent chords are repeated to calm down the intensity before the song ends. The “wind synth” comes in again to “blow away” anything that’s left of the fiery melodic chords, and the song ends.
It’s perfect in its complexity. Tom Chaplin is the only singer I know to completely master the art of falsetto. Sure, Chris Martin is good at it, but he uses it as a tool, where Chaplin molds it into something that is his own.
I can’t believe it. I feel like I’m not even ready yet, and I’m already going to be meeting with a possible client. This is fantastic. I’m really pumped to keep things going now. I’m trying to improve my design skills in all areas, but I really just need to focus on learning the important things, and the other fancy stuff will come with time.
I went to the shooting range today. What a liberating feeling, firing a 40-cal weapon. It had some serious kick. Speaking with my friend about gun-safety and the overall view of the media on guns, it really gave me a new perspective. I don’t want to get into all of that now, but I’ll just say that I hope to go back to the shooting range again soon. I even got a photo ID for the place! It definitely got my adrenaline up, but I postulate that with practice, it could be a stress-reliever.
I’m now working on my Flash skillz. I can’t wait to get good at this stuff. I already have ideas – I just need to tools to realize these goals. After the Flash learning session, it’s Bourne Supremacy time. Not my favorite of the three, but fantastic, nonetheless.
Would you give up the comfort of stability to achieve the world and more? I would.
