What I took from Nathaniel Hawthorne’s “The Minister’s Black Veil.”

The Minister’s Black Veil provided a question that stood out to me. “How can we judge others for our sins if we can’t face our own?”

In Nathaniel’s short story where he uses a minister to play on the condemnation of human conditions, I saw that he used the reactions of the townspeople to show how humanity gets uncomfortable when others’ faults reflect our insecurity. The people’s opinions contributed to the reality of society and that helped deepen my understanding.

For context, I’ll give a brief summary of what the story is about.

The Minister’s Black Veil takes place in a small town where gossip travels quickly, and the people use each other’s imperfections to place themselves on a higher pedestal. Mr. Hooper is the presenting character, and he is also the town’s reverend. Which was pointed out to be quite remarkable as “Mr. Hooper, a gentlemanly person of about thirty, though still a bachelor…” which was intriguing in the eyes of the people.

In the story Mr. Hooper goes to be the priest at a funeral, which he very first reveals his new identity with the veil. This is also where I first see some of the answers to the question I focused on earlier.

At this funeral the narrator points out the opinions the people have about Mr. Hooper as a reverend. Some felt uncomfortable, for example one person said, “I can’t really feel as if good, Mr. Hooper’s face was behind that piece of crape.”

Then there was a woman who expressed that Mr. Hooper making the choice of wearing the veil was inappropriate by saying “I don’t like it,” muttered an old woman, as she hobbled into the meetinghouse. “He has changed himself into something awful, only by hiding his face.” There were more of these opinions, a lot of the people in the church saying that Mr. Hooper has basically gone crazy.

To me, that statement was ironic in spite of the fact that the people were having these dramatic reactions because a man just decided to wear a veil. But what if that’s it? What if their reactions were normal? Maybe we would have all felt the same if we started seeing ghosts the day Mr. Hooper walked in with a statement.

During that funeral there were just comments of disdain and disappointment. Everyone just speculated about Mr. Hooper, but none of them said anything to his face. They didn’t ask him why he was wearing the veil. I believed it was because they couldn’t see his face. From that whole scene there was a reflection of society in reality when things are questioned, and gossip is stirred. The townsfolk were like gossiping schoolgirls, they didn’t even attempt to ask about his intentions, since they couldn’t see his face, I think that meant he had no right to reflect on his own purpose with them.

People’s faces and minds can be considered as veils. They hide our inner thoughts and our inner intentions. For some, those could be things that could be distasteful to others. But we also use our facial expressions to conceal our judgment. I mean, there are people who can smile in the face of their enemy. “But can some people interpret a face? You may ask. And that answer is, “Well, of course!” And with that in mind, there’s some people who raise their eyebrows when people cry. When someone reflects your inner pain, you may find yourself uncomfortable too.

There was a woman who said that she saw Mr. Hooper in hands with the spirit of a deceased girl at the wedding which came after the funeral. It wasn’t true. He most definitely wasn’t prancing around with a deceased girl. That point in the plot though was showing what the people were judging him for. And spoiler, it was just speculation!

Mr. Hooper was just doing his sad preaching, but the woman started a rumor which spread. And I guess by that point, they just had a collective delusion. That delusion was disguising their own faults, as long as they focused on Mr. Hooper’s.

The day after that, people everywhere talked about the veil. Which to all the mothers, pastors, and children was more than just a piece of cloth hanging down his face, but instead a symbol from his heart that resembled a fearful secret between him and them.

That secret, to me, has to deal with their own personal self – struggle and now it feels like their reverend is mourning their soul because their personal self-guilt is eating them up inside. I know that just got dark, but I mean-

Listen! This is how bad this got! (Mr. Hooper and his self-reflecting veil.)

In the middle of the short story Mr. Hooper went back to his home to his wife, Elizabeth. After some commentary they basically have this discussion about the veil of course. She told him that she thinks that if he must wear that mask then he shouldn’t wear it in public then she asked if she could see his face and he explain how it all started.

He didn’t take it off, but he did hint that one of the reasons he was wearing a veil was because everyone wears a veil every day. His veil was just visible.

Elizabeth didn’t think that was a good enough reason, so with a sorrowful farewell.
She left Mr. Hooper hidden under his dark veil.

To sum up what happened after that, I’m going to provide this statement from the story,

“In this manner Mr. Hooper spent a long life, irreproachable in outward act, yet shrouded in dismal suspicions; kind and loving, though unloved, and dimly feared; a man apart from men, shunned in their health and joy, but ever summoned to their aid in mortal anguish. As years wore on, shedding their snows above his sable veil, he acquired a name throughout the New England churches, and they called him Father Hooper. Nearly all his parishioners, who were of mature age when he was settled, had been borne away by many a funeral: He had one congregation in the church, and a more crowded one in the churchyard; and having wrought so late into the evening, and done his work so well, it was now good Father Hooper’s turn to rest”

Mr. Hooper passed while still wearing that veil. Before he died though, he gave a monologue with his final breaths that basically called out everyone who made him as if he’s a monster all because he wears his sins on his face. But there will be a day when everyone has to take off their visage.

So, yea, what I got from this short story is that basically judging others so we wouldn’t have to judge ourselves is a big thing in the world. It’s so bad we even make each other seem as if we’re monsters, but we are all monsters deep down.

I read this story in ninth grade, and didn’t fully understand it at first. So, it was interesting getting this refresher after I just randomly thought about this while looking out the window one day.

Beneath The Bridge of Aberdeen

The 90s was an incredible decade for music. Dozens of albums were made that will certainly outlast the test of time. Grace, Adrenaline, In Utero, The Color And The Shape, The Bends, OK Computer, Mellon Collie And The Infinite Sadness, Siamese Dream, Either/Or, In The Aeroplane Over The Sea, and countless others. All these magnificent albums were made within the span of a few years, each one sure to outlast all of us through the course of time and musical history. The most amazing part about these albums is that even though they were made over two decades ago, generations from then and now can both relate to them. Newer generations are falling in love with music that their parents fell in love with. It shows that bonding over music can’t be held to the laws of time. For instance, Nirvana is now a disbanded group after the tragic death of Kurt Cobain. Even now, decades after their last tour, they still have millions of monthly listeners from both newer and older generations.

_______________________________________________

Nirvana quickly took the world by storm. With their debut album BLEACH, released in 1989. BLEACH is one of Nirvana’s lesser-known albums. It shows more of their hard-rock side. With more grungy and distorted songs.

Most people know Dave Grohl to be Nirvana’s drummer, however, this was not case for this album. Throughout Nirvana’s earlier years, they had a hard time keeping one drummer. Bob McFadden, their first drummer, only played for about a month. Then Aaron Burkhard, then their most regrettable, Chad Channing.

Kurt had said that Chad Channing had severe anger issues. He was hot-headed and just didn’t fit in with the other members.

Nevermind was recorded in 1991 with the help of Butch Vig as the producer.
Butch Vig has been a major help for famous artists like The Smashing Pumpkins and Sonic Youth. From interviews and articles, it is easy to tell he’s a master at his craft. Although Butch wasn’t the biggest fan of Kurt’s perfectionism, they appreciated each other’s hard work.

On September 24th, 1991, Nirvana released their sophomore album Nevermind. One of the most successful albums ever released. A severe lack of stock caused the album to be held in high demand. You would be lucky if you even found a copy months after its release. Everyone wanted it.

The Album held thirteen total tracks, one of which, was “Something In The Way” one of Nirvana’s slowest and softest songs. “Something In The Way” contains a quiet guitar, slow vocals, deep yet soft drums, and most surprising of all, a cello. The hit grunge band had shown that their talent far exceeded anyone’s expectations and proved they couldn’t be held to just one standard.

The lyrics behind this song talk about a boy, who lives beneath a bridge, traps animals, tames them, and makes them his pets. It talks about how he lives off the drippings from his ceiling and the grass that surrounds him. It also mentions that “It’s okay to eat fish, ‘cause they don’t have any feelings.” which could be assumed to mean that this boy might be against eating other kinds of animals.

Conflicting rumors have said that this song takes inspiration from Kurt Cobain’s personal life as
a young adult. He was kicked out of his house in 1983 for quitting high school two weeks before his graduation and wanting to pursue his passion for music. Contrary to what the rumors say, on multiple accounts, it’s been said that he often stayed with his friends, sleeping on their couches. It wasn’t until three years later, in 1986, that he got his first apartment.

During the recording of “Something In The Way” Kurt Cobain had been adamant about making this song perfect. Butch Vig said,

“‘Something In The Way’ was definitely the hardest track to record on Nevermind. After three or four takes on trying to cut it live in the main room, it just wasn’t happening. Kurt came into the control room out of frustration, sat on the couch and basically said it needed to sound like this. He laid on his back, he played his guitar, and he was barely singing. It was coming out at almost a whisper.”

He stopped Kurt, turned off all the fans in the room, put a microphone in front of him, and told him to just do what he had to do, and after three takes, they had the base of the song. Kurt had wanted a cello’ in the song. However, it was the last day that they rented the studio. They began calling friends, asking if anyone could play the cello. Thankfully, one of their friends, Kirk Canning, who lived in LA at the time, was able to help them produce the last parts of the song. Contrary to how Butch felt, Kurt talked about how thankful he was for how easy the recording of “Something In The Way” had been. He compared it to Dominos, everything just fell into place.
Despite their personal beliefs and differences, they came together and created one of history’s most successful albums of all time. Forever to be remembered.

Mao Mao: Heroes of Pure Heart is a Really Good Show

I’m gonna throw myself off the Empire State Building.

You ever find a show that like fully encompasses your person, like who you are as a character and a belief system? Well, I haven’t yet, but I got pretty close with the Cartoon Network show, Mao Mao: Heroes of Pure Heart.

Mao Mao: Heroes of Pure Heart is a pseudo-action/anime/cartoon about the adventures of Mao Mao Mao, an aspiring “Hero” who has to protect the town of Pure Heart Valley. Because he crashed in to the Ruby Pure Heart, basically a magical force field for the kingdom that is now broken, monsters and villains threaten the kingdom on the daily as he fights alongside his “co-heroes” Adorabat and Badgerclops.

This show isn’t very complex at all—no more complex than season 1 Gravity falls! You don’t need a bible to understand it’s lore. But even if it’s not, it’s still surprising. I could talk on and on about what I want to follow in this show and all the things that impress me but man.

For one, the main characters are absolutely standout. You can tell they’re such strong reflections of real life, mixed with the absolute absurdity of just this world, like. There’s the Sweetie Pies which are basically glorified Muppets and then you have Badgerclops and Mao Mao, just sort of two normal guys?? And Adorabat’s an absolute freak of nature, it’s amazing. There’s compilations of her character where all she does is scream, she is genuinely unhinged in the most inhuman ways possible, and at the same time, she’s just a regular nine-year-old (but the show states that’s she’s five. So.)

We’ll get to Mao Mao and what I like about him, but I’ve edited this multiple times, I’m on my third, and I haven’t talked about Badgerclops once. It’s a little surprising if I’m honest. He’s a pretty swell character and perfect for a “straight man” archetype, but in the same way, he’s also undeniably batshit. Like if you don’t know what it is, I’d recommend looking into what a straight man in comedy is, but he’s so funny. Like if Mao Mao’s unfriendly, he’s an absolute asshole. It’s fantastic.

This show also blends comedy and sincerity in such a captivating way. Like bear with me here, but it’s reminiscent of LEGO Batman. Have you seen how that movie uses comedy? It fully engrosses you in the scene with just how bizarre and weird it is and then gutpunches you with lore. They play their cards right because it’s not in your face, it’s really sparingly used. But when this show does lore, it can get really beautiful. And with the animation to accompany it? Holy hell man. I can point to several scenes that absolutely make me lose my mind, but my chest would hurt to describe them. Shout out to Small.

And back onto the characters, I mentioned the Sweetie Pies, but there are some real of side characters here, some of the funniest I’ve seen on television. The Sky Pirates? Changed the game. I see them on screen, and I think, Oh Man, This is Gonna Be Good. Even if the episode isn’t that funny, they still shine 9/10 (even more than that, probably.) In fact, most of the unfunny episodes they Elevate. Pinky is a similar monster of just being a disgusting mess of a creature, who shouldn’t even get to call himself an animal, a really good use of absurd comedy.

This show has some kickass themes by the way, absolutely stellar storytelling.

There’s a big theme of identity in the show—who you are to other people, to who you want to be, and yourself as a whole. God, it’s so good! Mao Mao struggles a lot with the person he is and the person he wants to be. Who are you without these things, who do people think you are? Who do you want to be? Do you love themes of self-relationship which a character who needs to constantly relearn it? Well, they got it!

Another massive theme of the show is family: specifically between Mao Mao, his old family, and his new family. Mentoring and “fathering” overlap in stories like these, but Adorabat is fundamental to his character and his growth across the story. Mao Mao adopts a fatherly dynamic with Adorabat by like the second episode they know each other. Hilarious. (Shout out episode: “Adoradad” for unrelated reasons.)

And you can tell through his dynamic with her, he’s trying to be a good influence on her. The thing is, he’s not perfect at it. They want the same thing: to become a HERO. But being a “hero” as much as it is a storytelling device as it is a metaphor. Because what Mao Mao believed he needed to be a hero, isn’t the same as what applies to Adorabat. And that changes things. And Mao Mao is wrong about a lot of things.

How Mao Mao was raised affects him greatly—it’s pretty much hammered into you throughout the show. He’s crazy paranoid; chases glory, fame, and attention; and cannot admit failure or defeat no matter the obstacle in his path. He goes to therapy! Really! And he still turns out wrong 90% which I think is pretty good. A lot of the things he believes are wrong as much as they are right. But teaching Adorabat, he realizes he needs to challenge these things about himself and maybe what it means to be a hero altogether.

I can’t look you in the eyes and tell you this is some of the best on television because that’s subjective. But it’s funny, heartwarming, action-packed, and has a great story to tell. So if you’re looking for something to sit down with and have some fun with, I can’t recommend it enough.

Unfortunately, this show only got one season. And I’m forever going to be as bitter as probably a [joke redacted] but I’m glad it got a chance where it did.

And with even more unfortunate news, is not on any streaming services! Or network channels! The story is messy and convoluted as it always is, but you cannot find it on MAX or Netflix, and Amazon Prime does have it, but I don’t know if you want to pay $120 for 40 episodes of television but hey. So, I can’t recommend you to sail the seven seas, but I will emphasize to you that the only place you can watch this show makes you pay $2.99 per individual episode. 🦜🏴‍☠️

Oh my God, the entire show is a pun on the phrase, “My dad is my hero.” I’m gonna go get a drink.

Foods that are in my dorm (part two I think)

After having so many things to do the last couple of weeks. I have found that food, especially snacking is something that I have been doing a lot more of lately. Even while writing this there is a KIND bar wrapper sitting next to my keyboard. I think, at least from what I remember, I did a blog similar to this last year talking about my favorite dorm snacks, however now that I am a senior a lot has changed. The workload, the stress, and most of all, the food. So to begin this list I would say that I need to start off with something that does in fact remind me of last year. Whether or not I put it on last year’s list is something that I am not sure as well as something that I have decided I am not willing to figure out. But without further ado I think I am going to get going. Also a quick disclaimer that none of these foods are in any particular order.

First off I have to go with this Ramen. It is a veggie Udon Ramen and oh my god it is so good, there’s chives, mushrooms, carrots, etc in it and I just don’t know. It has a level of spice which is good but it also has a really good taste as well so I would ten out of ten recommend it for your dorm ramen. I know that the title veggie ramen can put some people off but I say give it a try.

Second has to be these fig bars, I know they give off like whole foods crunchy vibes but they really just go so hard for no reason. The most excitement that I have gotten out of the last couple of my grocery store trips is that I get a different flavor each week, they are all fig bars but they each have their own respective flavor and I think that it just adds another layer of things about these bars I like, the one I chose this week was strawberry which has been my least favorite however I still enjoy them nevertheless. The first time that I ever got them was when I was looking for food to bring with me to the Mcmullens Young Writers Workshop, and ever since I just can’t stop, I lub them.

For the third spot I’m going to have to go with these Arizona ice tea gummies. I had no idea that these existed until like June and I wish that I had found them sooner. What I like most about these gummies is that they aren’t super sweet. I mean they are sweet, but some of these gummy brands make me feel sick after I eat them because they are so sweet. What I enjoy about them as well is some of the unique flavors like mango and green tea.

Next up is grapes, but when I say grapes they have to be the white ones. Or the green ones, I don’t know why they were called white grapes because I hate having to try to talk to people about them and explain “how much more I like the white ones.” If you get what I mean. But anyway I got off topic,one of my favorite aspects of these grapes is how refreshing they feel even after eating almost an entire bag. I find myself snacking on these for hours at a time, and I don’t even have to really feel bad about it because, you know, they’re grapes. I try to get these as much as I can because I really love fruit, but as of lately fruit has seemed to be getting really expensive so I have been trying more to get grapes because they are more affordable.

The next choice that I have is one that I just recently discovered. Even last year I have been trying to buy some form of vegetable just to eat on its own, most of the time that would turn into a bag of baby carrots, but those bags of carrots would do nothing but just sit in my fridge until they started to smell so I knew that I had to try something new. So, In decided to get one of those small veggie boards with some ranch, and do not ask me what the difference is because I could not tell you. But I feel like every time I am eating just a piece of cheese and some vegetables I am eating like Balkan breakfast and no I am not going to explain what that is but you should absolutely go watch one of those mukbangs because it is really interesting to watch.

Words on Journaling

I open up to a blank page, document, note, and begin to write. My typing is faster than my mind and my mind is faster than my typing, but there are still words, and I’m still writing. My handwriting is messy and overly spaced, but so is my mind, and I’m still writing. Even if I may loathe the outcome, at the end of the day, it’s still writing.

Journaling, though at times a battle to start, is entirely worthwhile. I am no expert at it, but if there is an expert at something as personal as journaling, I think I’d furrow my brow. The entire point of journaling is to write, well or not, about anything you want. A journal for you and you only, so you can really make it whatever you want. I use mine with no theme involved. The pages hold whatever is on my mind. Still, even with how free a journal is, I have found some advice and collected some experience that helps, because ironically the hardest part of writing a journal is the writing part. You can know it’s supposed to be messy and whatever you want, but it’s difficult to stay true to something so undefined. Freedom in messiness lets you discover more things about yourself, and that’s daunting, but immensely helpful. You can think more clearly once your thoughts are on the page instead of on the brain.

One piece of advice I have found helpful is to write notes anywhere, everywhere, and on anything. Take that napkin from a restaurant and turn it into a notepad, then copy it down in your journal if you feel like it. You can also cut out bits from notepads, worksheets, sketchbook pages, etc., and glue them into your journal. Heck, stick entire sticky notes in there. It’s fun. The more chaotic your journal is, the easier it is to write chaotically in it.

Telling yourself to write chaotically and messily can still leave you with the itchy feeling that you’re performing a task wrong. You become all too aware of every sentence you can reword, every punctuation mark you should put, the reading speed of your words. I find it helps to turn this into a more solid challenge. Challenge yourself to write with absolutely no punctuation, making the lack of punctuation undeniably the point, and only cast a glance at the last word you wrote if you must. Messiness goes from something you feel like you should be doing to something more fun with a mysterious outcome.

Don’t confine your journal to only words. For me, my journal serves the purpose of writing every day, but I still draw in it. Journals are creative outlets where any urge you can fit on a page goes. You don’t even have to be good at drawing or writing if you think you aren’t. From the stone age to the day you’re reading this, humans from early ages have indulged in finger painting and writing and warbling tunes. It is human nature to create, and nobody has the right to say you must be good at it to do it. You, Picasso, and the people who drew on cavern walls are all united in the act of creation. That is good. Things can be good, messy, and upsetting. Go wild.

Journaling, though at times a battle to start, is entirely worthwhile. I hope this helps you with your journaling joys and endeavors. There are still many ways to journal, and experimenting with different methods reveals different results for everyone. Even if these methods don’t spark a fire for you, keep messing around with all sorts of things. You’ll get there.

Another Buffy vlog(FINALLY!)

I figured given the new word limit for blogs I ought to dive back into my routes, yapping endlessly about a TV show no one else has seen that ended over twenty years ago. Buffy The Vampire Slayer.

I am shocked I haven’t written a blog about Willow Rosenberg yet. So guess what this blog is about.

Willow Rosenberg played by Alyson Hannigan was introduced as Buffy’s goody two shoes best friend. Shy and socially awkward she had very few friends before Buffy, the only one truly being Xander. The comedic relief character for lack of a better word. Throughout the course of the show, Willow discovered her connection to witchcraft which she mixed with her existing knowledge of science. This brought her more out of her shell, and she started to gain a stronger personality away from simply being the nerdy friend. Willow’s first love interest aside from her brief stunt with Xander, was Oz, a short ginger werewolf. I believe he also helped draw out more of Willow’s personality and independence.

Skipping ahead to season four Willow and Oz had broken up, and she was entering college. This is where she meant her second love interest. Tara, the complete opposite of Oz earnestly mirroring an early Willow with a socially awkward and shy attitude. They quickly grew closer with the help of their shared status as witches.

Willow’s relationship with Tara grew as it did with magic. After she brings back Buffy from the dead, which we later find out ripped her out of heaven. Her relationship with magic revealed itself in an unhealthy light. We start to see her dependence on it for the first time. Giles confronts her after finding out what she did and she is defiant in taking his warnings, a trait never seen before within Willow. Her dependency on magic quickly wedges a gap between her and Tara. Ultimately leading to the end of their relationship when she uses magic to manipulate Tara’s mind into forgetting an argument.

Speaking of Willow’s relationship with magic it was evident to me that it was an allegory for substance abuse even before hearing the writer of the show confirm this.

After their break up and almost losing her friendship with Buffy after nearly killing her little sister Dawn, Willow begins to try and get clean from magic. We follow her struggles with not using magic. Eventually she is able to completely stop using magic, being given a very minimal amount of scrutiny at one point but Tara is right there to back her up.

They end up getting back together but soon after Tara gets shot and killed by Warren. Willow attempts to bring Tara back but is unable to because her death was inherently human and not by supernatural forces the same way Buffy’s was. This catapults Willow back into her magic addiction. Turning her into Dark Willow. She seeks revenge against Tara’s killers. Killing and skinning Warren, she attempts to kill the other two after not being able to and draining the magic from Giles. She sets out to end the world but is deterred by her friendship with Xander. Giles takes her away and helps her try and heal her relationship with magic. After this she doesn’t use magic for a while, except when her and Kennedy get together but it was her underlying guilt for moving on from Tara and killing Warren that caused her to subconsciously cast a spell that turned her into Warren.

It was great to see Willow deal with that anger and guilt. Tara was a huge part of Willow’s story and it was great to see that she still meant something even after she was gone. As well as confronting Jonah and Andrew (the other men Willow tried to kill) with the role that they played, not letting them be blindly redeemed but seeing them show remorse.

Seeing the actress for Warren mirror the Actress for Willow’s mannerisms was phenomenal to watch, as well as the way the camera was played with or the moments when they chose to switch out the actors. It was clearly a well thought out decision.

This experience does scare Willow away from magic but this time she couldn’t run for long. Due to the circumstances her magic was needed to essentially save the world.

The ending scene of Willow using magic perfectly contrasts the first appearance of Dark Willow. From pitch black hair with soulless pupils to pristine white hair and her regular eyes. I love the incorporation of her eye color. It almost feels like a symbol of how the magic is not overtaking her, she’s still there behind it.

Willow’s character ark was very interesting to me. Because to put a character so widely beloved through so much and shine her in a sort of antagonistic light is so interesting.

Good Listens

Guess who’s back. Back at it again with another K-pop music playlist Dump. It’s a new year but not much has really changed over here besides

ATE- Stray Kids

This isn’t just one song this is a whole album because I can’t really pick one song out of the whole album. And a certain person would probably attack me if I gave my actually rating of the songs.

Superbowl- Stray Kids

This song has been my current obsession lately along with another song that’s going to be in this list. I don’t know why but I guess it’s the music video or something else, but I’m just really obsessed with this song.

TOPLINE (Feat. Tiger JK)- Stray Kids

This is my other obsession. Even though most of the lyrics are in Korean it stills amazes me how each of their voices sound

Stray Kids-Stray Kids

This song right here brings tears right to my eyes whenever I hear it, and I know some of y’all might not get it, but this song really just pokes at my heart so much.

One and Only- Boy Next Door

Now this group is totally different from the first three, but they still hold a special place in my heart. Again, everyone reading this might think it’s a little weird but music especially K-pop

Baggy Jeans- NCT U

So, I don’t really listen to a lot of songs from this, but this is the song that I always listen to from them whenever I go on a random binge of K-pop artist

Criminal Love- Enhypen

This song is for all those girlies who wants to fall in love with that one criminal in their fantasy *Cough Ciara Jones *Cough. Anyways This is a really good song if you want to try listening to more mature K-pop songs.

Who- Jimin

Now some of y’all might know BTS and I won’t be having any type of comments about them on this blog. They were my decent into this K-pop crazed that I’ve been in since sixth -seventh grade. They were the group that really made me. Me. So, on that note while this song wasn’t sung by BTS it was sang by Jimin who a member of BTS is. Jimin in the past few years has become one of my favorite solo artists. This song is my favorite song by him, and I really recommend that if you are every interested to go and give him a listen

Work- ATEEZ

Now this group right here scares me. If I ever wanted to go to one of their concerts, I would have to go by myself or with a friend (She knows who she is). ATEEZ is a group that I recently started listening to thanks to said friend that I mentioned before. That being said their songs are really great.

Chk Chk Boom-Stray

Now I’m probably going to get killed by a certain literary, but this isn’t a ranking blog just me talking about my favorite songs as they come to me. So Chk Chk Boom was a part of Stray Kids new Album ATE but this song is also their newest single that’s really popular. I would recommend watch the music video it has Deadpool and wolverine in it because Strays kids was supposed to be in the new movie that came out, but their schedule didn’t match up.

Lose My Breath-Stray

This song makes me lose my breath. Jk guys (not really) but anyway this song would be my favorite if I wasn’t so indecisive and could pick something, but I can’t hence why this list right here exist. Where I’m not ranking but talking about each song a bit loosely.

Well, that’s it. If you made it to the end thank you for reading this list of craziness. I hope you found some type of entertain from this and will come back next month when I post a new blog.

This is Crislyn Signing out. And you have a magical day.

Who else has heard of Beowulf?

If you haven’t, it’s okay, I just recently read this epic tale myself. Also to note, Epics are long literary poems that tell tales of heroes and legends. It’s literally an Epic.

This was an interesting read. A long one, but it still eventually caught my attention. I wouldn’t have read this story on my own though. I read this for a class assignment and for it to be a learning experience for my test. This story was kind of wild.

For some context, Beowulf is a 3,182-line Old English poem about a Scandinavian warrior who helps this king defeat this monster. Then he goes to defeat some more monsters. The warrior of course is Beowulf, and he’s described to have the traits of loyalty, courageousness, and wiseness. He is super strong and can even hold his breath for hours. So, you know, what you would expect a classic hero to be like. The monster he went to get rid of is named Grendel. He’s described to be a giant monster with clawed hands and feet and jagged fangs. But his appearance has been depicted in different ways, but this is what is in the poem.

Beowulf did end up finding Grendel and the battle ended with Beowulf cutting off Grendel’s limbs. This is where the journey starts

After killing Grendel, Beowulf was awarded with land and some titles. He became a notorious hero, and since his fame grew big, more people requested his heroic help.

So, the next person he ended up battling was Grendel’s mother. Yup, she was like, “I’m about to avenge my son and no one is going to stop me”.

Beowulf’s battle with her though was kind of tougher to beat. To point out, she was a sea-creature monster that lived in a black lake that was boiling and filled with monsters.

She was biting his shoulder, trying to gash out his eyes, and some more stuff. From what I remember reading, at some point it seemed as if the monster defeated Beowulf. Which was a bad thing that led to a bigger bad thing. The first bad thing was it leading to some of Beowulf’s army betraying him by abandoning him without checking if he was actually gone first. Which led to him getting revenge, but back to the battle. Beowulf did defeat the sea monster. He killed her by slicing her head off. The poem itself got really descriptive about it.

Like I said, Beowulf was out here doing some things. Heroic things as they call it, but for it to be a poem it was some real serious actions and descriptions.

Before the next battle Beowulf had to teach his people a little lesson about loyalty. So, he did what most heroes in epics would do and threw the severed head of the monster he defeated onto the dinner table while everyone was eating. Yep. Just tossed it while they were enjoying their mead.

It doesn’t stop their y’all. But at this point I had gotten kind of tired while reading and missed a big plot which I’ll eventually get back to, but I did read the last battle.

It was against a dragon. Yes! You heard it folks, he battled the huge reptile that steals everyone’s jewels and things like that. Now, this battle was huge, and usually I would tell you how it ended.

But! I’m not going to do that this time.

Use this as your motivation to read this Epic and experience the journey along with me.

On a new note, I’ve found out that the battles had some symbolism in them.

Jeff Buckley

Jeff Buckley: The Son Also Rises

Who was Jeff Buckley?

Jeffery Scott Buckley, A pioneer in the Alternative rock genre. Most people either know him for his immensely famous cover of Leonard Cohen’s Hallelujah or his most popular song “Lover, You Should’ve Comer Over” who has written over 230 total songs. His most popular album, Grace (1994) was his debut record album. He had previously released recordings of his performances at Sin-é. Sin-é Was a cafe that Jeff had worked in for some years, a cafe in which he also played in frequently.

Tim Buckley Dead at 28
Tim Buckley – Jeff Buckley’s Father.

Right after his shift, he would take off his apron, pick up his guitar, and play a multitude of songs. Mostly covers, however he would sometimes play his own songs on stage. He released these recordings as an album called “Live at Sin-é” This album was actually one of the first accepted by my hometown radio station. As thanks, Jeff sent a signed poster to one of my managers where I work now, who ran the radio station in the 90’s.

Shortly after Jeff Buckley’s release of Grace (1994) Jeff Buckley got to work on his sophomore album, My Sweetheart The Drunk (1998). This album, in my personal opinion, had a different personality. It was more explicit, yet filled with the same passion. It was still Jeff Buckley but in a different font. However, this album was released posthumously. Jeff Buckley had written the majority of the album, but his life was tragically cut short.

How Did Jeff Buckley Die?

On May 29th, 1997 Jeff Buckley was waiting for his gig, he decided to swim into the Wolf river in Memphis TN, and Go for a swim fully clothed. With his boots on… There was only one person who witnessed the events of what happened Keith Foti. They found Jeff’s body on June 4th, his hands and face mangled by water. Only identifiable by the golden ring on his belly button.

It was labeled an “Accidental Death” He had been known to disappear for short amounts of time, so his friends weren’t all that worried about him missing for a few days. Until they heard that they had found his body in the river. Keith Foti was with him before he died, he said that he had heard Jeff Singing “Whole Lotta Love” By Led Zepplin.

What Did Jeff Buckley Accomplish?

Jeff Buckley was a pioneer in the field of alternative rock. His vocal range and guitar skills far outmatched a lot of others at the time. To many, he was known for his outstanding cover of Hallelujah. He brought an entirely different perspective to the song with his vocals alone. Over Jeff Buckley’s entire career, he released one studio album. Which was Grace. He died before he could finish his next album, sketches for My Sweetheart the Drunk. But even still, with only one album, he made an immense impact on the world.He won dozens of awards and nominations. I put a list below with the website that posted the list. Most of which are from RollingStone for his album Grace being as outstanding as it was.

2023: Rolling Stone’s 200 Greatest Singers of All Time: #131 Jeff Buckley

2022: Rolling Stone 500 Greatest Albums Of All Time: #147 Jeff Buckley, ‘Grace’

2022: Rolling Stone 100 Best Debut Albums of All Time: #67 Jeff Buckley, ‘Grace’

2021: Rolling Stone Australia – The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time: #394 Jeff Buckley, ‘Grace’

2021: Rolling Stone 40 Greatest One-Album Wonders: #4 Jeff Buckley, ‘Grace’

2020: #147 on Rolling Stone’s 500 Greatest Albums of All Time

2016: Consequence of Sound listed Jeff Buckley as #26 of the 100 Greatest Singers Of All Time

2014: Jeff Buckley’s masterful version of Hallelujah was inducted into the Library of Congress’ National Recording Registry as a culturally, historically and aesthetically significant recording

2014: Listed as one of ’20 Artists Eligible for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Next.’ Jeff became officially eligible in 2019.

2014: #4 on Rolling Stone’s list of “1994: The 40 Best Records From Mainstream Alternative’s Greatest Year”

2013: Rolling Stone listed Grace as #43 of the 100 Best Debut Albums of All Time.

2012: Rolling Stone listed Grace as #304 of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.

2011: Rolling Stone names Grace #22 of 100 Best Albums of the 90’s.

2011: Rolling Stone named Jeff Buckley’s version of Hallelujah #264 of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.

2010: #39 Rolling Stone 100 greatest singers of all time.

NME lists Mystery White Boy as #22 of the 50 Greatest Live Albums Ever.

2010: Morrissey listed Grace as one of his 13 favorite albums of all time.

2010: Buckley’s Live at Siné was listed as #37 on Spin Magazine’s list of 100 Moments that Rocked Our World.

2009: On the Triple J Radio (UK) Hottest 100 of All Time, Buckley’s version of “Hallelujah” was voted in 3rd place, “Last Goodbye” was 7th, “Lover, You Should’ve Come Over” was 56th and “Grace” came in 69th.

2008: Rolling Stone Magazine ranked Buckley #39 in its list: The 100 Greatest Singers of All Time.

2004: Buckley’s cover of “Hallelujah” was ranked #259 of the 500 Greatest Songs by Rolling Stone Magazine

2004: Mojo Magazine Ranked Buckley #71 on its list of Icons: The Greatest Music Stars of All Time

2003: “Grace” was ranked #303 of the Rolling Stone 500 Greatest Albums by Rolling Stone Magazine

1998: Grammy Award nomination for Best Male Rock Vocal Performance for “Everybody Here Wants You”

1995: Triple J Radio (UK) Hottest 100 awarded #14 best song of the year in the world’s largest voting competition for “Last Goodbye”

1995: Rolling Stone Magazine nomination for Best New Artist

1995: MTV Video Music Award nomination for Best New Artist in a Video for “Last Goodbye”

1995: L’Académie Charles Cros awarded Buckley the “Grand Prix International Du Disque” on April 13, 1995 in honor of his debut album Grace

1994: Rolling Stone Magazine Ranked Jeff Buckley #49 on its list: Generation Next: The Future Of Rock

https://jeffbuckley.com/awards-and-nominations/

And with that, this blog has come to an abrupt close. I don’t think any blog could sum up my love for Scottie my beloved, and how much he’s done in my life. But I hope this sliver of information does justice.

An Essay About Holden Caulfield

I think I need to be put down. Like maybe do the thing they do in Canada where they choose to euthanize you instead of giving you healthcare ← Something Holden Caulfield would say, probably.

The Catcher in the Rye is a… Confusing book? Yeah. See, when I first heard about it, no one would tell me what it was about. I just heard the name over and over again. And then I got older, and it made even less sense. How was it a banned book and just another teen indie film and also, “Oh my God Don’t Mention Catcher in the Rye To Me”? Then I read it. And what people said about the book versus what the book actually is is so far out of left field it’s picking trees in another plot of land.

I mean what was going on half the time? It’s one of the most banned books in the country, it’s a bunch of gibberish, it’s one of the most important texts of our generation, it’s enough to kill John Lennon?? It’s an indescribable book about a spoiled teenager who thinks the world is phony while coming to grips with growing older (maybe that one’s true.)

And well, it’s actually pretty good. I would in fact call it overhyped. Like I would say it deserves an adequate amount of hype. It’s pretty good! I just think people oversell it. It’s not the communist manifesto, and I mean, Holden’s pretty messed up, but I think it’s pretty rude to say he’d kill John Lennon (I mean I just don’t think he would do that.)

So then. What is The Catcher in the Rye?

…Slightly complex with a straightforward narrative. but I really like it so I’m gonna talk about it!

Holden is deeply traumatized. I don’t think that’s very hard to say. His narrating style dissuades you from thinking he is when he talks very by-the-breeze. He is incredibly sardonic, judgemental, and rude, making comments on people’s looks and habits just because he can. But when you peel back the layers, you notice how… Scary, the aspects of his story are.

He handwaves all of these aspects and frequently lies to you about how they affect him, but the passing mentions are deeply disturbing. He recounts witnessing another student kill himself from the fifth story, describes how his body looked on the pavement and how gruesome it was. He brings up death constantly, writing about it for the most part, on accident. This could very easily be attributed to his dead brother, and yeah, having a dead younger brother who died when you were children is. Disquieting. Not easy. In fact, when the end of the book comes, there Holden is, begging Allie not to let him die.

I don’t think I have to spell it out that someone’s who’s mentally well. wouldn’t do that. Holden basically has a severe mental breakdown at the end of the book (and you can really see it coming if you read the book close enough.) JD Salinger himself pointed to the traumas of war when writing this story, and you know what? A story about an adolescent approaching adulthood slowly coming to terms with the horrors of grief, death of companions, and an apparent feeling of being cut off with the world? Searching for understanding while condemning the world? Yeah.

Holden is in constant search of companionship. Every chance he gets, he thinks about calling someone, his friend Jane Gallagher, an author he’s never met who “seems friendly”, and even people he doesn’t like, just for someone to talk to. After he leaves Pencey, he hires a prostitute just to talk to her, even asking that she doesn’t take her dress off.

The first taste of Holden’s loneliness really starts at Pencey. Not even the two people he talks to there really connect with him. When it comes to Stradlater and Ackley, it comes off they only really talk to Holden because he’s there. But it’s also almost the only companionship Holden really finds at Pencey, making them the closest thing he has to friends at the moment. And he’s not even very good at keeping them.

One of the best written relationships in the novel is his relationship with his little sister, Phoebe. It’s very loving and adoring, and I think humanizes Holden the most. She’s the most real thing to him. He spends pages talking about her: “You would love her.” As soon as he gets home, she immediately starts talking about school—And he listens. Fully pays attention to the conversation, rather than just having it for small talk.

And then loses it when she finds out why he’s home early.

Holden does a very-many stupid things across the novel. In fact, when he wakes up Phoebe, he plans to take more money from his parents after burning through the money he had at the beginning. Finding out he’s home practically drives Phoebe crazy. She’s furious.

He brushes it off, in a way that he genuinely believes It’s None of Her Concern. This is interesting to me about Holden Caulfield. It’s a very familiar response: his actions don’t involve others because they’re his actions. When other people are worried for him or mad at him, it’s not their problem because he faces the consequences for it. He doesn’t really understand what consequences are or what they might be, which is where most of the accusations of him being spoiled come from. And you know what? Yeah. It makes for a really good use of the first-person narrative.

It’s not enough that Holden doesn’t understand consequences, he’s also. Just a bit of a mess otherwise. He’s a very emotional type. He loses his mind whenever he finds out Stradlater might’ve had sex with Jane Gallagher, a girl from his town he likes, and gets into a fight with Stradlater about it within seconds. Then goes into his neighbor’s room, still bloody, to get some company. He does a lot of crying too, bursts into tears at multiple points. He doesn’t mention it much after or describe it in the way a third-person structure would, but it’s also hard not to notice. As soon as he starts to lose the fight with Stradlater, he’s in tears. He’s in tears when the prostitute’s pimp threatens him, and pretty much through most of the story. I think noticing the crying is where it changes the perspective of the novel for me.

Edit after the fact, Allie is dead. Allie is Holden’s dead younger brother. It’s important to note how close in age Allie and Holden are, while Holden is six years older than his little sister, Allie was eleven when he died making him eleven when he died. Like.. The amount of stuff to cover with that is mental. To be two years older than your brother and spend eleven years with him to end up with leukemia—and then miss the funeral. There’s no analysis there, that’s just. Sombering. He calls out to him at the end of the novel. Jesus Christ.

Holden tells you absolutely nothing about his mental health, but it’s. Depressing? Fascinating? To realize what’s going on? He never really thinks too hard about it, so it’s more of you putting those pieces together. Or more of me putting those pieces together because I wrote this goddamn neverending thing.

The word count is at almost 1400. and I’m not done discussing it. The modern interpretation of The Catcher in the Rye is gonna put ME in a sanatorium. How did it kill three people? How did it nearly kill Ronald Reagan? You wanna hear the baseball glove? The carousel? I’m still not done!! How am I still not done?!

No wonder there’s so many interpretations of this book. No wonder. Maybe the only solution to this problem is to read the book yourself. Or don’t. Or finish the book if you only got through half of it. I don’t know. 1400 words..