Music Autobiography

I have spent my whole life listening to country music. People like Alabama, Shania Twain, Reba to name a few. The majority of my itunes library is made up of country music. I also listen to things that my parents listened to as teenagers. People like billy Joel, The Beatles, and ABBA. People say that I'm weird because I haven't listened to all the different types of music that they listen to but what they don't understand is that I'm not like everyone else. I am simple so I listen to simple things. Country music has gotten more complicated over the years but in the core of it all, it's still the same. Country music for me is comforting. It makes me feel like everything is going to be fine. Country music takes me back to my childhood and makes things fade to a sepia almost black and white color. It reminds me of old movies that are black and white. Country music can be just about any emotion but the emotion that people associate with it it sadness. Country music can be any emotion that you want it to be. The emotions that I put with country music are hopeful, comfort, sadness, love, and happy. Those are just a few. Country music has taught me to enjoy the simple things in life because when it's gone, it's not going to come back. Country, in my opinion, is relaxing. It helps me forget my troubles and makes me happy. It also makes me want to dance and that is not something that anyone wants to see. The newest people to country have given it more of a pop feel than a country feel. Some people like Jake Owen have brought in a rock feel. Some artists have also brought in a Latin feel to some of their songs like Brooks and Dunn with their song “My Heat is Lost to You.” Some artists have also brought in a “redneck” feel to their songs like Jason Aldean in his song “Hick Town.” They also bring in personal experiences to their songs. I think that is the reason why I like country music so much. The personal experiences show that they are just like the rest of us. They also bring in a laid back, beach sound like Kenny Chesney. My recent favorite artist is Josh Turner and he brings his deep soulful voice and shares his religion in his music.

My Life

I want to start by saying that it is very hard for me to talk about myself but here goes. Before I came to Converse, I was always in the background. I was never nor did I wish to be the center of attention. Yes, I am a vocal performance major, but I'm shy which is a VERY big contradiction. I always did what my parents told me to do because that is the way that I was raised. I never talked back to them. I had a few close friends that knew how big of a kid I really am. And no, none of you have seen how big of a kid I am....yet. If you haven't noticed, it takes a while to find out who I really am. Most of you still don't know. Since I have been here, I have learned that it's okay to act stupid in front of people because there is always someone to be stupid with you. I have learned to be more confident in my singing. I hope to be a country singer someday. I know it's very different from my personality what with having a very big case of stage fright. It's the one thing that I have always wanted to do. It's the only “things I want to do when I grow up” that has stayed the same throughout the years. Don't ask me why that is because I don't have an answer for you.

New Traditions

A new tradition could be to have music in Gee dining hall everyday. I have noticed that every Friday we all seem happier. That is because it's Friday but a bit of that is because of the music. People always seem happier with music playing. I think that we would all be happier if music was playing everyday. Not that we aren't happy now, I was just thinking that we would be happier if it was playing everyday. We are all stressed and music would be a way to take that all the stress away. I know that this would not be a BIG tradition but it would be something to alleviate the stress. Every single one of us is stressed in one way of another. As we have seen in past blogs, music is a great stress reliever. There is also a very wide variety of music and there could be a different genre everyday. We could also continue with the themes. That could remain the Friday tradition and have the different genre every other day of the week. Those are my thoughts on a new tradition. Can't wait to see what everyone else has in store for traditions.

Music to Sooth the Stress

When I am stressed, I go to whatever country artist is in my head at the time. Some of my favorites are Josh Turner, Love and Theft, and Keith Urban. My favorite Josh Turner for now song is “Why don't we just dance.” It's my favorite because of the beat and the lyrics just lift me up and make me want to dance. I can't help but to get caught up in the moment when country music is playing. My favorite Love and Theft song at this point in time is “Runaway.” It's my favorite of theirs because it gives me a sense of freedom. I have no particular favorite song for Keith Urban. Whenever I hear his voice I just melt. There are many songs by him that I love. Some of them include “Only you can love me this way,” “Where the blacktop ends,” and “Better Life” to name a few. I really have no explanation for how country music takes the stress away. The only thing that I can think of is that it takes me back to my childhood when I didn't have to worry about anything. There are many other artists that I love listening to, but these are my current favorites.

Drinking Age

I think the drinking age should not be lowered because there are already too many dead teens because of drinking and driving. Lowering the age would just would just add fuel to the fire for teen drinkers. People should start thinking about their children instead of themselves. They need to start taking part of their teen's lives. I'm not saying to control their every move, just don't let them drink until they are of age. People need to learn to grow up and take responsibility for people's lives other than their own. They need to teach their children to be respectful of the rules they make. Another reason why the drinking age shouldn't be lowered is because kids and teens don't know the lasting long term effects of what drinking can do to a person. Drinking is a privilege not a right. Teens need to earn the right to drink, meaning they need to wait until they are twenty-one. Teens also need to learn that waiting for what they want will make the relief when they get what they want that much sweeter. Those are some reasons that the drinking age should not be lowered. That is my reasoning for not having the drinking age lowered.

flock of the future

When I arrived, I was surprised to how much freedom college students actually have. I knew that college students get more freedom than they have ever had before but I didn't really understand. I have had a lot of challenges since I have been here. The wost challenge was keeping track of all of my assignments. I overcame that challenge by clipping a pad of sticky notes to my planner. When I get back to my room, I would put the sticky notes under my loft bed so I could easily find them. I have learned many things since being here. I have learned how to manage my time better. I have learned how to handle stress with classes and dorm life. I have learned how to play the piano. I have also learned that I sway when I sing. Some advice that I would give to the first year students would be to keep up with their homework. I would also encourage them to make a schedule and keep to it. When doing their homework stay away from anything that they would consider distracting. They also need to get plenty of sleep especially if they are an athlete or a musician. If they are having trouble in a class, they need to talk to the professor. The last piece of advice would be to take a break from homework if they are stressed out. Not a long break but about thirty minutes to an hour long.

Student Sucess Seminar: Time Managment

       My biggest time management problem is a combination of things. I am either spending time on Facebook, deciding when to do homework, staring off into space, watching TV, or spending time with friends in there rooms without my homework when I should be doing homework.

       It's really weird that I used to have the TV on all the time when I was doing my homework in high school, but when I have either of them on in my door room, I pay more attention to the radio or TV. In high school, when I had the TV on, I would get distracted by the TV for a few seconds but go right back to my homework and I can't seem to do that here. It's a very disorienting experience.

       When I was at home I had a very strict routine that I can never seem to find. Every day when I came home from school, I would watch TV while I ate a snack and after I was done I would start my homework with the TV still on. I really need to find the routine that I was on in high school because it helped me to get through my homework faster.