so easy to look at, so hard to define
Ask me anything
December 27, 2011
December 20, 2011
December 14, 2011
December 9, 2011
October 27, 2011
October 1, 2011
September 21, 2011
September 19, 2011
Dear Conor…
My little brother – if you can really call someone six feet tall “little” – is heading off to his first college class tomorrow. As the wise older sibling, now seems like a proper time to dispense some advice, especially since he’s headed to my alma mater (Northwestern) just as I leave it. I would probably be classy to give all of this to him in a personal note, but as a journalism major, my goal in life is to make voyeurs of you all. Plus, my fellow former Wildcats (or just fellow college grads) can hopefully chime in with all the wisdom they accrued that I missed because I was busy playing Sporcle.
1.) Make friends with students from other majors. While you should get to know people as personalities, it’s also worthwhile to let them teach you a little bit about their area of study. Watch classic cinema with film majors, make unfunny jokes about “aural skills” with music majors, and cry into your frozen yogurt with print journalism majors.
2.) “You would be a 7 in the looks department at a state school, but you’re totally a 9 at Northwestern” is not an acceptable pick-up line.
3.) You will hear a lot of different rumors about getting into Deru, Northwestern’s secret society. They are all B.S. The real key to receiving an invitation is to go to Bennison’s every Friday, pick up a chocolate cake and mail it to your favorite older sibling.
4.) Realize that at this time in your life, more metaphorical doors are open to you than ever, so channel your passions into pursuing something meaningful. When you live in the dorms, a lot of literal doors will also be open to you. While you should take advantage of this, it’s still not a bad idea to knock and yell, “Put some clothes on!” before you walk inside.
5.) Don’t let seniors give you any crap about being a freshman. If they do, feel free to remind them that they too are younger than Pearl Jam, the Simpsons and unified Germany.
6.) Take Russian literature. But also realize that nearly everyone at NU will take Russian literature, so your attempts to woo potential partners by passing off Professor Morson’s thoughts on the Grand Inquisitor as your own will likely not work.
7.) When your friends return from study abroad, they will definitely come back with a few stories worth listening to. But it will inevitably reach the point where you need to send them this: http://www.theonion.com/articles/semester-abroad-spent-drinking-with-other-american,1498/
8.) Your big sister is always just a phone call away if you ever need any more advice or just someone to listen to you vent. And she promises to not make fun of you unless you do something truly stupid. I love you!
April 19, 2011
April 14, 2011
Should we keep vinyl alive?
Should We Keep Vinyl Alive?
Whether out of pure nostalgia or pure profit-making, many a musician has taken to his or her Facebook fan page to hype up April 16th’s Record Store Day. Alternative rock band Wilco was bold enough to declare that “Every time we lose another store it damages the culture.” (Some might be bold enough to declare that the bland dad-rock of Wilco’s recent album was damaging to the culture, but that’s a topic for another day.) As the music business changes, is hitting up your local record shop for vinyl a sound investment (first pun of the blog!) or simply another trendy exercise in retro for the hipster set?
The most basic cost-benefit analysis would obviously skew toward the newer technology: Vinyl is more expensive, more difficult to transport and harder to obtain than CDs or MP3s. And while twentysomething vinyl aficionados will often justify their obsessively large collections on the basis of the fullness or warmth of the sound, such a distinction is somewhat subjective. Without delving into the Nyquist theorem, loudness wars and digital vs. analog waveforms, a lack of appreciation for vinyl doesn’t necessitate a lack of appreciation for good sound quality.
The difference is less in the sound and more in the experience attached to it. The effort of putting on a record urges you to listen to the album as a whole and straight through, as an artist often intended. When we shuffle through music at our convenience, trying to fit our music to our mood, we are engaging in the overly fast-paced, just-give-me-what-satisfies-me mentality that prevents us from having genuine, transforming moments.
That, and interesting experiences always come from hitting up your local record store. Last time I walked into one, the owner immediately told me: “You want to know what’s cool this week?” and launched into a personalized, snarky spiel on all the new releases he thought I’d like. You won’t get that from iTunes.
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