Waking up at the start of the end of the world,
But it’s feeling just like every other morning before,
Now I wonder what my life is going to mean if it’s gone,
The cars are moving like a half a mile an hour
And I started staring at the passengers who’re waving goodbye
Can you tell me what was ever really special about me all this time?
I believe the world is burning to the ground
Oh well I guess we’re gonna find out
Let’s see how far we’ve come
– Matchbox Twenty
From the very first time I blessed my eyes on you, girl
My heart says follow t’rough
But I know, now, that I’m way down on your line
But the waitin’ feel is fine
So don’t treat me like a puppet on a string
Cause I know I have to do my thing
Don’t talk to me as if you think I’m dumb
I wanna know when you’re gonna come – soon
I don’t wanna wait in vain for your love
I don’t wanna wait in vain for your love
-Bob Marley
This kid is so talented then I could ever be at guitar even with years and years of practice. Amazing.
So I suck at the game rockband. But for some reason, despite it sounding crappy, I am able to rock the microphone. Check out this score I got last night, and the level! Granted, it was on a song (So Whatcha Want) that didnt require much pitch, but still, on expert level.
And since The Beastie Boys are the topic of conversation, 2 other tidbits:
1. In 5th grade at a school “talent” show, Myself, Guy Cline, Jeff Glover and Mike Margeson did an airband to the beastie song “slow and low” (only after paul revere and girls and practically every song on that album got rejected for different reasons by the teachers). We used tennis raquets that we covered in black electrical tape, as our guitars, and we looked pretty foolish. Craig Markley and his crew won the event when they did an airband to a Poison song -that somehow made it thru the censors (Talk Dirty To Me)- but using real electric guitars that they had rented. By the way, if anyone has a video of that event, that would be sweet to see.
2. One of the best music videos ever (and awesome running song I might add), sabotage, is below for your viewing pleasure. A college friend of mine, Matt “pickles” Pelascini once did a recreation of this video which was pretty sweet. Matt, if by chance you ever read this, I would love to see that video again.
Celebrate we will
Because life is short but sweet for certain
-Dave Matthews Band
There’s no combination of words I can put on the back of a postcard
no song that i can sing, but I can try for your heart.
Our dreams and they are made out of real things,
like a shoebox of photographs, some sepia tone loving.
love is the answer at least, to most of the questions in my heart,
why are we here and where do we go and how come its so hard.
Its not always easy as sometimes life can be deceiving,
ill tell you one thing its always better when we’re together.
-Jack Johnson
Starting in October 2008, there will be a more difficult test for people who want to become U.S.citizens. From a list of 100 questions, 10 will be asked at random to help determine a person’s knowledge of U.S. history and government and whether he or she is allowed to become a U.S.citizen.
The following 10 questions are featured as part of the new test. How many can you answer correctly? The answers will be posted in the comments section. While taking the test, please enjoy the great music video at the bottom of this post.
I have been thinking a lot lately, with the help of Coldplay, about the concept of “Viva La Vida.” The Horace idea of Carpe Diem has been a popular saying for a long time, and even more famous since the movie The Dead Poet’s Society. I am not a fan of overused and trite sayings, so I never did latch on very well to carpe diem. But I have been latching on to the coldplay thought. And even more, as you can see in the image, the idea of I Viva. I live.
I want to live. I want to live the life. Long Live the Life.
How is that being applied to my life? Nowhere yet. haha. I am still really determining what it means to me. Does it mean to just have no worries and do whatever makes me feel good? Or does it mean to be more focused and determined and goal oriented. I think it applies to both. I think its more of a idea that comes into my head at any moment and encourages me and inspires me.
One area where it has definetly been a theme to me, is to take advantage of each day of life. The older I get, I have been getting sad. It used to be because I was sad on the life I was missing, that I was leaving behind, that i could never get back. But more and more now, I get a little sad at getting older, mainly because that means everyone else is getting older too. I don’t want to lose those that I love. And so in taking advantage of each day, I want to tell someone I love them, I want to tell someone I think they are good at something, i want to encourage someone. And even more, I want to see or just be with someone–spending time with and soaking up memories with loved ones.
How many years do I have left in “youth.” How many years do grandparents have left? The answer for both, sadly, is less then 10. I just recently went to my 10 year college reunion. As I was there, it really felt like old times, and I felt so grateful for my relationships and my experiences. But also, as you 
could imagine, people would often say “i can’t believe its been 10 years already. It feels like yesterday.” Time moves quickly. I will be losing many loved ones over the next 10 years. To steal a line from a cheesy aerosmith song, another lyric I have been thinking about, “and i don’t wanna miss a thing.” I dont want to miss out on people on life on new adventures, on finding joy in the mundane. I want to live the life. Viva la vida. And even more specifically, VIVA (I live).
One minute I held the key
Next the walls were closed on me
And I discovered that my castles stand
Upon pillars of salt, and pillars of sand…(Ohhhhh Ohhh Ohhh)
I’m alive
I’m being born
I just arrived, I’m at the door
Of the place I started out from
And I want back inside
-U2