MJ in my life

I always used look through the stacks of cds my parents had by the stereo in the living room.

Plopped down, kneeling in front of the hundreds of cases, I'd take out a handful and marvel at the cover artwork. I specifically always being intrigued by one particular album, Dangerous.
It was one of those covers where one simple glance did not cut it. There was so much to the picture, so many pieces that drew you in closer for extended investigation of detail and portrait.

His music was just as enticing.

I had plenty of cassettes with "Rockin Robin" and "ABC" as a kid, which made for the perfect youngster sing-a-long dance party. As a tween, Michael's music sneaked his way into the movies I watched (Free Willy's "Will You Be There") and soft rock radio waves I listened to while in the car with my parents ("Black or White").



As a teenager, it was just common place to know all about MJ, from his early hits with as lead of the Jackson 5 to the "Thriller" dance. If you did not know how to moonwalk, you envied anyone would could, and you wish you could learn. It was not as easy as Michael made it seem.

And Michael still has a presence in my present life today. There is always a new song out that uses a MJ sample or draws upon inspiration from MJ's dancing or music videos. I think I am safe to say that a Michael Jackson song played at every single dance, party and bar that I go to.

Today the Michael Jackson memorial was held at the Staples Center. I was able to watch most of it, breaking away from the TV for about 20 minutes to run errands for my parents. Luckily, radio stations were broadcasting a live feed too.

I thought the whole thing was well done, which great speeches and performances that highlighted the greatness of Michael Jackson, his contribution to the world and unparalleled talent.

I thought Brooke Shield and Reverend Al Sharpton's speeches really showcased that, as much as Michael may have been misrepresented in the media, he was a loving, caring and extremely compassionate musical entertainer at his core.

"I want his children to know there was nothing strange about your daddy, it was strange what your daddy had to deal with," Sharpton said.

And so true. After Jackson's death, it came to light that all the accusations against Jackson of abuse were in fact false. It is heartbreaking to think that Michael's reputation was so wrongfully tainted. I have to admit that my image of Jackson definitely waivered in the past decade, with all of his odd behavior plastered across the media.

I found it sad that even today I saw plenty of people still bashing Michael on twitter. If you do not like him or do not think he is as influential as others believe he was, that is fine. I guess I am just blown that there are still so many haters out there despite how obvious it is that MJ had a huge and positive impact on the world.

But thanks to the BET awards and today's memorial, I once again remember the Michael Jackson that made me smile, made us all smile. The MJ that had the power to bring together everyone, regardless of race, religion or difference. And above all, the MJ that was a true gift to this world, creating music that brightens our day within the first few notes and his first few lyrics.





Rest in peace, Michael. You will be missed.

On the other hand

Now, everything I love, in one video.

Soccer, German, ginger, humor.

I'm pretty sure the Devil had a hand in this

All that I despise in life, in one video:

See more funny videos and TBT Videos at Today's Big Thing.

I don't know why, but..

My stride was careful as I walked down Broadway with Chelsea.

"Chels, have I ever told you my absurd fear that I'm going to randomly fall in such an awkward way that my bones will just snap?"

It's true. I usually walk with caution anytime I'm in a pair of heels, but lately I have this luring fear that I'm going to fall in such a way that would cause my ankle/knee/whole leg to snap in half.

I have never seen this actually happen and I have never broken a bone in my body (knock on wood), so I am not sure what has generated this gruesome phobia.

And apparently, I am not alone.

"Well, I don't know why and don't judge me but I have this terrifying fear that someone is going to throw acid in my face," Chelsea said.

My god. I thought my bone-breaking fear was bad, but Chelsea's living nightmare was much more delibitating, and hopefully unlikely to happen.

Phobias form based on three factors: genetics, culture and experience, according to About.com. Genetics can be hit or miss, sometimes affecting twins but not always affecting family members in the same bloodline.

I think Chelsea and I have phobias that have been shaped by culture. I have seen people break bones on TV and Chelsea said she read about acid attacks in a magazine. I wonder what ignited within us to bring these random stories to be legitimate fears that rest in our subconscious.

What are your odd phobias?

Sizzle or fizzle?

I randomly have the urge to do a hot and not list. This is so SocrGirl circa 1999.

Hot
Bourbon Street in NYC
This is my second time visiting Chelsea and she took me to this fantastic bar/restaurant last night on the upper westside called Bourbon Street (Amsterdam & 97th). The decor is fantastic, with chandeliers and deep colors to make you feel like you're in New Orleans. Tuesdays are Chubby Tuesdays (like "Fat Tuesday" I presume) and there was a live band that played some upbeat jazz (Herbie Hancock's "Watermelon Man") but with some cajun flavor. $5 Hurricanes. Fleet week. It was a good night.

Billy Reid
Southern charm meets city fashion via Billy Reid. His line is primarily for men, but there is a small collection of women's digs (mostly menswear style, but with softer fabrics). He has a shop in NoHo (54 Bond Street) decked out to make you feel like you're an urban cowboy, think saloon & Western meets kitch & trendy youth.

Not
Celebrifeed
A lot of people do not get why Twitter is so popular or useful. I think it's a great tool for sharing interesting content, real-time coverage and short glimpses into places/events. But there are a lot of people who clog the tweetline with nonsense. I guess MSN's Wonderwall wanted to make an example by collecting all the useless and pretentious twitter users out there and streaming their tweets in one page. And so Celebrifeed was created; a one-stop shop to read about all the posh parties you'll never get to go to (and they're AWESOME. her tweets says so), how fantastic he or she looked on their guest appearance and random and out of context @replies to random fans/people/stalkers. HOORAY!

I'm trying to think of another not but things are great right now and I can't think of anything else that's crucially negative. Mean people suck, but that's pretty standard and not worth ranting about. Maybe I wish there were more hours in the day? What do you think is "not" right now?

hello sweet summer

My fello Marylander Leland blogged about her summer plans, so I thought I'd do somewhat of the same since I have reached some what of a writer's block in blog topics.

• Start audiocandy+. I've already got the blog registered (http://audiocandyradio.blogspot.com), so it's only a matter of figuring out NiceCast. Anyone know how to set it up? I think I'm going to buy the full version soon.
• Grizzly Bear in Philly! I've never been to Philly or seen Grizzly Bear, both things I've always wanted to do. Plus, Tuan is going/hosting! It should be a fun little short road trip. I was pure chance that I was scheduled off on the needed days!
  ps babies dancing to "two weeks" is the cutest thing ever.
  that's how you know it's truly good music.
  
• Bonnaroooooo! Second time going, first as a volunteer. Heading down with Kitcat, Michael B. & tuaniffer! Ready for Tennessee sunshine, live music & meeting cool people.
• Visiting Chelsea in New York City. I'm trying for at least once a month. I'd love to do it more, while she's there for the summer. Bolt bus is so easy/fast/cheap. Plus I'd love to go dancing with Mariel, see Julio & everyone else in the Tri-State area.
• Wildwood Beach ultimate tournment. I'm hoping Katie and Chip can be on our team. It's a co-ed 4vs4 ultimate frisbee tournmanet in late July, where you can either play 3 men & 1 girl or 2 men & 2 girls. I think we'll go with the former, just because I think me and Katie will be the only girls on our team. But let me know if anyone is interested! I think some doomers and Maryland friends are going to be on the team!

So those are some plans. I'll be sure to blog about each of them as they come up. I'd love take more road trips, see cool things, so comment any suggestions!

Hey World

I am ashamed at how much I have neglected to update pa(i)gewithwords. My deepest apologizes to those who frequent my blog.

The last few weeks have been a whirlwind: losing my internet service thanks to the boys who lived in the apartment below Katie and me, getting an iPhone for graduation (but at the price of being without cellphone service for about three days when goodbyes were being exchanged), graduating Syracuse University, packing up my entire apartment/life while still dedicating ample time to hanging out with my best friends, making the trek back to Maryland, unpacking, job interviewing, soaking up all the memories and making plans for new ones in the near future (NYC, Brendan's birthday, Bonnaroo).

I am still in the process of unpacking all of my things, but I oddly do not feel overwhelmed.

Maybe a rarity among the class of 2009, I have been glowing with optimism ever since graduation.

I feel like my life is really starting, and all the things that I have so longed to do, I can. I am so fortunate to have a well-paying job at Nordstrom, with benefits, that affords me the opportunity to shop around for a job until I find the perfect one to begin my career track. I also have the chance to take hobbies to the next level and see if I can cultivate them into something.

I thought for so long that I would be freaking out right now after graduation because I would not have a path to follow, like I had been doing for the past 16 years. There has always an assumed progression of life, from elementary school to middle school to high school to college. Sure, some was left to chance--what I would participate in after-school, who I'd meet in classes, what I'd choose to focus on both in and out of the classroom-- but there was always some form of certainty of what I would be doing and where I would be.

Now, there is nothing but the open road. Maybe not even a road; that is too direct and formulated. More like the open sea, an open pasture.

I finally have that piece of paper--a college degree--that can prove, and legitimize, to the world what I have known for so long: I am ready to do something of value, and I can.

I have a lot of projects I want to work on, a lot of growing to do, a lot of passion to invest.

But, I am young. I have ideas. I want to meet people. I want to live life to the fullest.

And I am planning to do just that.