My Day by Pictures.

First I woke up this morning. Then, as I headed to class, I remembered it was a Thursday. Vamp Dars tonight (yikes... that's very embarrassing). Hahaha ^^That's Ian Somerhalder, animal lover and actor on Vampire Diaries. ...He's the reason I watch the show... CUTEEEEE. 

Here he is again...

Then I proceeded (back to my day) to do everything I needed to do today (except buy some awesome smelling stuff): 

...So that stinks (HAH). My spelldorm smells a bit funky. It's an (undistinguishable) problem, but I'll cure   it sooooooon.

And by the way... I went to the gym today (HURRAH!)... for 15 minutes, and then starting dying (mile and a half, and mucho pain... I think I'm starting to feel healthy, though, because I thought I had a cold the past few days. But I'll soon work my way back up to 6 miles. 

And now I have rehearsal at 6 (aka about 1/2 hour). That's all! :)

Thanks for feeding my ego. 

My Valentine's Day Tale.

Woke up to pounding on the door. It was a delivery man with flowers. "Ohh hoo-- looks like I woke her up," he calls to the crowd of people watching in the hallway (my spellbuddies). I stare blankly. He coughs. "These beautiful flowers must be for you," he continues, pulling out a vase of roses, along with chocolates and a bunch of other things. Flustered, I am speechless. "You're ____, right?" No... I am not my spellroomie. I put the flowers sleepily on a desk in the room, falling back asleep quickly. My other spellroomie wakes up, shocked and smiling. "Oh my! What?!" ...Wrong desk.

In honor of the superman coffee mug my spelldaddyoo awesomely sent me (love ya, spelldaddyoooo)!

Gave everyone I knew some Valentines gifts. And I received... well... ...I would've loved some leaves. 

Then my spellbuddy accidentally stood me up because we were going to get coffee at 9pm at rehash the tough day, haha. 

Rough, rough day (but hey, I didn't complain yesterday)!

Thanks for feeding my ego.

LOOK-- another scheme to avoid a story

Happy Valentine's Day!

Get it? It's a Heart....

Here's another Laurentian Magazine story:

Title: 'What am I? I Am My Art.'

Piece: "Artist Jackson Pollock once said, “Every good painter paints what he is.” Coming from Jackson Pollock, that basically means he was a crazy yet organized disaster, and seeing as he was an angry drunk, I guess the theory is arguable.

Going off this theory (and going off the idea–let’s just say–that we are all “good” painters/artists), what does your art say about you?

Personally, as a writer, I’ve been told my writing is quirky. Which is good, because I’m kind of a quirky cat. But I’ve also heard my writing is serious when it’s supposed to be funny, and funny when it’s supposed to be serious. This got me thinking: if this is the flaw in my work–some of my best work–, perhaps it’s not a flaw within the design but rather a crack in the character. If so, it would suggest that, perhaps, Every good painter first knows who he or she is, and then paints it.

I know it’s working off the cliche, but I’m really starting to believe that an artist must know him or herself before he or she can truly paint or create in any measure. To paint who you are, you need to know yourself. You don’t need to psychoanalyze yourself, but you need to be frank with yourself and understand that you are imperfect. You are human. And as art imitates life, and vice versa, your art must, thus, suggest imperfection in order to reach its full potential. It’s twisted, but that’s the conclusion I’m coming to understand.

“Every good painter paints what he is.” (Or she is). If you are a disaster (like Pollock), perhaps you could get lucky. But I know plenty of people that don’t “get” Pollock’s work. They say it’s just a bunch of splatter.

But maybe, just maybe, if you start to really understand yourself, and craft yourself into who you want to be (without losing yourself; I’m not supporting falsity), you can start to make art that imitates the awesomeness that is You. Don’t change, but enhance. Don’t lose, but gain. Don’t feel down, just feel like you can be better. This shouldn’t be a negative idea; this should inspire both growth in yourself and growth in your work. And with any expansion, there will only be more to work with, not less, if you try to figure yourself out and paint the real you.

But these are just thoughts, and they could be wrong. I’m just trying to regard Pollock as an inspiration and someone, incidentally, who knows ‘what’s up.’ Again, I could be wrong.

Number 8, 1949- Jackson Pollock"

Potential new tagline: "Thanks for feeding my ego." 

OK GO - "Of the Blue Colour of the Sky"

This is my blog post from the Laurentian Magazine's arts blog (all us editors have to post some artsy stuff, so this was mine... not totally on point, but I figured it was artsy enough--)

“Of the Blue Colour of the Sky” Music Videos

"In January 2010, the band, OK Go (you know, the tredmill music video band) came out with their latest, and in my opinion their best, CD thus far. Their past two CDs, ‘OK Go’ and ‘Oh No,’ were both fantastic, but this CD stands out from the others because of the risks the band takes and because of the unique recording styles featured on the record. For example, the song ‘Last Leaf’ was recorded outside on the porch, allowing for natural sounds to seep in and give the entire track an earthy, unperfected yet still awesome sound. Also, numerous songs on the record crank up the bass, making the CD sound like it’s playing from the next room over at times–this was just one other unique, artistic choice made by the alternative rock band.

HOWEVER, this post isn’t solely about plugging the CD (plug, plug, plug). It’s also about the music videos directely related to some of the songs on this CD: “Needing/Getting;” “End Love;” “WTF?;” “This Too Shall Pass;” and “White Knuckles.”

As aforementioned, OK Go is known for their music videos. Not only are they famous for their tredmill-dancing video, but also their video for thier older song, “A Million Ways,” as well as their unique videos for two lesser-known (but still awesome) tracks, “Get Over It” and “Don’t Ask Me.” Now, as the band continues to grow as music artists, they also continue to grow as music video artists.

In the music video for “Needing/Getting,” the band drives a car through a off-roading track lined with bells and pianos. By sticking things out the windows of the car and gunning it through the track, the music is made by the strangest means possible.

In “End Love,” the band plays in the park. But seriously. This one is incredible, and much harder to explain than the other videos. This one simply does a really bizarre video in fast forward, and it’s worth seeing just to begin understanding it. Plus, there’s a goose that comes in at one point and it’s hilarious. It’s truly a mark of OK Go to poke fun at themselves, and I think that’s what the goose represents in this video (to put all those Creative Methods analytical skills to work).

The song, “WTF?,” is basically an acid trip, but it’s worth seeing. The song itself is very high-pitched and awkward, just like the video, which makes both of them likeable in some weird way. OK Go’s Lead singer and song writer Damien Kulash is not afraid to put himself out there (this whole CD proves this, since it openly delves into the destruction of Kulash’s marriage and the torment of his recent divorce), and even in the weirdness and awkwardness of this music video, there is still something likeable about it as an art form. Watch it, and you’ll understand what I mean (I hope).

“This Too Shall Pass” has two music videos. The first is a marching band. The second is a Rube Goldberg machine. Niether really makes sense, if you ask me, but again, both are entertaining, and both are worth watching (especially the latter because it reminded me of “I Spy” books).

And last video (but certainly not the least video) is “White Knuckles.” This video is the cutest. Why? Not just because it features Damien Kulash (he’s no longer married, as already noted, so that’s a plus for us female listeners), but the video also has a bunch of adorable dogs doing fun tricks. Again, one of those videos you just need to watch to appreciate.

OK Go is not only a band, but also akin to a music video directing company. They create some of the most interesting music videos I’ve seen in a while (time and time again), and so as they are musicians, they are furthermore video artists, and that’s what I highly praise them this week. Check ‘em out!

-Riley Spellman

P.S. Here are the links:

“Needing/Getting”- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MejbOFk7H6c

“End Love”- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V2fpgpanZAw

“WTF?”- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=12zJw9varYE

“This Too Shall Pass” 1- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UJKythlXAIY

“This Too Shall Pass” 2- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qybUFnY7Y8w

“White Knuckles”- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nHlJODYBLKs"

(Thanks for reading !!--"Something Wicked This Way Comes")

I'll post soon.

Sorry, ya'll.

sattttt

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