Peter’s Neighborhood

Kevin

Life is Wonderful

Jason Mraz - Life is wonderful (Live)

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Kevin

It's raining...

And I can already feel my nose clearing up from the water washing away the ragweed...


Oh, how my sinuses are celebrating right now...

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Kevin

If you are not there, Lord, I will not go

"The difference between John Adam's post-minimalism and the minimalism that arose in the early 60's is the fact that minimalist music was written with only the process in mind (the process of remaining minimal).  Heck, there was one piece where someone just took a violin bow and beat it against a stand for twenty minutes.  Post-minimalist composers however, decided to write music using some ideas and methods from the minimalist artists."  -My Composition Teacher


Huh, that seems to make a bit more sense.  Ever since Francis A. Schaeffer really messed up my view on modernism, post-modernism, and art, I have always wondered what made some "minimalist/post-minimalist" pieces so intriguing to my ears and yet other pieces so repulsive.  I guess it's the idea of making music for the sake of making something beautiful rather than making music out of the intrigue or a "process."  

Here's what I don't like about art nowadays:  much of it is all about the process - the methodology, and not the "art."  And when I say "art," I mean our humanity.  I believe art is meant to be beautiful, not just to be analyzed critically.  That's not to say that works that have been created through hard and complex processes and "rules" can't be artful, but if I am brought a "work of art," then it must connect with me first on a human level.  If the first thing that I think of when I am presented a work is, "Oh, this is great because the process in which it was created is incredibly complex and worthy of more analysis," then it is not art.    

Take minimalist music for example.  Is banging a bow on a stand for 20 minutes really music or art?  Really?  Is playing a cello with a carrot really music?  Really?  Is listening to two piano lines phase in and out of each other really artful?  I say no.  Schaeffer explains that it is man's attempt to create his own "universal" through art and reject the ultimate reality of his createdness from the one and true God, who is there and is not silent.  Maybe, but all I know is this:  those things are not artful in my book.  

How about 12-tone and atonal tonality?  For those who don't know, a 12-tone "row" is a complete set of all 12 pitches in a piano without repeating itself.  So many pieces of music I have listened to employing these techniques sound chaotic.  And yet how is Copland and Hindemith able to take polytonality and make something beautiful out of that?

So God, what am I to do?  I feel like giving up again.  I see this world around me - these people creating new methodologies and new techniques - and I wonder Lord, how am I supposed to be salt and light there?  I can't even find my own "voice" anymore, so then how am I supposed to share your truth to the world?  How will your Word reach people through pitch and rhythm?  How will I survive a world that doesn't look for art, but for methodology?  

Father, if you are not there, I will not go.

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Kevin

It's as I've Feared...

It doesn't help that the my biology teacher simultaneously gives us new concepts to understand and complex "scienc-y" words at the same time, expecting all of us to instantly understand.  But it's especially hard because of Welch.  Ah, Welch, how I can always depend on you to condense water on your door windows on humid days.  Dearest Welsh, how you make me bring heavy jackets to class (and AACM).  Oh Welch, your seats should not be so cushioned, especially when I have a heavy and comfortable jacket on.  


I swear, I have only fallen asleep in class once in my whole life (in 7th grade), and I haven't done so yet at Welch, but dang, it's hard to pay attention.  

So I have a test in that class tomorrow, and thankfully, the professor explained that the test would be off "notes" only.  Unfortunately, 30% of the practice questions have information that aren't anywhere to be found in my notes or her power points.  

This pleases me...

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Kevin

New Viola :D

New Viola and CaseNew ViolaNew Viola
Switched from a 16.5" viola to a much nicer, much fuller-sounding 17" viola.  My arms are so freakn' long that only a 17" viola fits me, but 17" violas aren't considered a "standard" size (usually from 14"-16") so finding one was really hard.  She sounds really good :D.  I think I might name her "Lady."  
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Kevin

Wikipedia...

Wikipedia
Wikipedia
I guess I've done my part in contributing to the wikipedia...

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Kevin

Let your love be strong

Let the wars begin; let my strength wear thin.  Let my fingers crack; let my world fall apart...


Let your love be strong, and I don't care what goes down

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Kevin

Flickr Uploader Killer?

http://www.apple.com/downloads/macosx/internet_utilities/flickrexportforiphoto.html


perhaps this could help vanquish all my flickr uploader woes.  i haven't tried it yet, but i'm having high hopes.  

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Kevin

Lady

Lady
Lady
We'll see you soon
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Kevin

The Dark Ages

So for the past two days, our DSL modem broke down.  I realized that our internet was down not because there was no signal for my wireless access, but because I came home from school to find my mom watching TV.  My mom never watches TV.  


So after two days of no internet + going to Daniel Chang's house just to mooch off his internet, I said, "Enough!  I will go and figure out what is wrong."  After calling SBC Yahoo! several times, to get our problem diagnosed, I learned that the modem we had was broken.  After spending ~$100 at frys for a modem-and-router-in-one, I went home and tried to hook everything up.  After hours of trying to figure out why the modem couldn't recognize our SBC Yahoo! internet, I gave up, went to work, and hoped that my dad would figure things out when he got home.  

My dad didn't get very far either.

Finally we called SBC one last time to see if they can help us establish a connection.  With their help, we got the modem to work.    

Hey, Jie.  Our wireless doesn't suck anymore either.  Since the modem was also a wireless router, the new router lets us browse all the different sites we want without choking up.  

I guess it's a sign of our times:  When I proudly announced to my mom and dad that our internet and wireless was working again, all three of us huddled around our computers in the living room madly checking our emails.

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