Music Makes You Lose Control

I love music. There is never a day that goes by that I don't listen to music. I enjoy a wide variety of genres, acoustic, alternative, electro, dance, indie, rock, powerpop, folk, blues, experimental, etc... The only genre I don't really listen to a lot of is country, with the exception of the occasional Taylor Swift or Shania Twain song! (No offense to you country lovers!) 

Anyway, my point to all this is to say that music is a very essential part of my life. It helps get me through my studies by providing much needed background noise for me to focus, it always wakes me up in the morning by listening to a song that puts me in a good mood (and trust me, I NEED that sort of pick me up in the a.m. I am so NOT a morning person), and it has even helped me get through some of the toughest times in my life with lyrics that I could totally relate to. 

Since I have such a love for music, it is no surprise that one of my favorite pastimes is going to concerts. I have been to several in my life and have some of the best memories from them. I recall my first concert, with slight hesitation, being Enrique Iglesias when I was a lot younger. I say with slight hesitation because people used to make fun of me for being a fan of Mr. Iglesias! But hey, when I was a young girl he was a big hit, and he was cute! But since then, I have seen various bands from Cobra Starship to No Doubt to, most recently, Blink 182.
One of my favorite bands to see is Boys Like Girls. I have seen them live three times, once in San Diego about 4 years ago, once in Anaheim a couple years ago, and then again just last month in Ontario. I’ll be making it four times on October 24! I absolutely love this band, and have to admit that I have a slight crush on the lead singer. It’s hard for me to resist a guy why can play a guitar and sing a love song.
The last time I saw Boys Like Girls live, I actually even got a few pictures with the band members. The picture you see above is of me with Martin Johnson, the singer. I felt so silly when I met him because I was pretty much speechless, which is something that NEVER happens to me. It is rare that I am at a loss for words, so that should tell you how incredibly excited I was!
There are a lot of things I love about going to concerts, and dancing tops the list. Nothing gets me dancing more than good music with good people, and since I am always at concerts with my best friends, it is so much fun. 

Angelos Blog #1

WORDS:

1. i. don

ii. verb

iii. Define: put on (an item of clothing)

iv. Derivitaves: n/a

v. Origin: contraction of do on

2. i. lament

ii. noun/verb

iii. Define: noun 1 a passionate expression of grief. 2 a song, piece of music, or poem expressing grief or regret

verb 1 mourn (a person’s death). 2 lamented or late lamented a conventional way of referring to a dead person. 3 express regret or disappointment about

iv. DERIVATIVES: lamentation noun

v. ORIGIN: from Latin lamenta (plural) ‘weeping’

3. i. epic

ii. noun/adjective
iii. Define: noun 1 a long poem describing the deeds of heroic or legendary figures or the past history of a nation. 2 a long film, book, etc. portraying heroic deeds or covering an extended period of time.
adjective 1 relating to or characteristic of an epic. 2 heroic or grand in scale or character.
iv. DERIVATIVES: epical adjective epically adverb.
v. ORIGIN: from Greek epikos, from epos ‘word, song’.

4. i. sublime

ii. adjective/verb
iii. Define: adjective (sublimer, sublimest) 1 of such excellence, grandeur, or beauty as to inspire great admiration or awe. 2 extreme or unparalleled: sublime confidence.
verb Chemistry (with reference to a solid substance) change directly into vapour when heated, typically forming a solid deposit again on cooling.
iv. DERIVATIVES: sublimely adverb sublimity noun.
v. ORIGIN: Latin sublimis, from sub- ‘up to’ + a second element perhaps related to limen ‘threshold’ or limus ‘oblique’.

5. i. allude

ii. verb
iii. Define: 1 hint at. 2 mention in passing.
iv. Deravitives: n/a
v. ORIGIN Latin alludere, from ludere ‘to play’.

6. i. figment

ii. noun
iii. Define: a thing believed to be real but existing only in the imagination.
iv. Derivatives: n/a
v. ORIGIN: Latin figmentum, related to fingere ‘form, contrive.’

7. i. spectacle

ii. noun
iii. Define: a visually striking performance or display.
iv. Derivatives: n/a
v. ORIGIN: Latin spectaculum ‘public show’, from specere ‘to look’.

8. i. poise

ii. noun/verb
iii. noun 1 graceful and elegant bearing. 2 composure and dignity of manner.
verb 1 be or cause to be balanced or suspended. 2 poised composed and elegant or self-assured. 3 (be poised to do) be ready and prepared to do.
iv. Derivatives: n/a
v. ORIGIN: Old French pois, from Latin pensum ‘weight’

9. i. desperate

ii. adjective
iii. Define: 1 feeling, showing, or involving despair. 2 extremely bad or serious: a desperate shortage. 3 having a great need or desire for something: desperate for a cigarette. 4 violent or dangerous.
iv. DERIVATIVES: desperately adverb.
v. ORIGIN Latin desperatus ‘deprived of hope’, from desperare

10. i. construe

ii. verb
iii. Define: (construes, construed, construing) (often be construed) interpret in a particular way.
iv. DERIVATIVES: construable adjective construal noun.
v. ORIGIN: Latin construere ‘heap together, build’.

11. i. deviate

ii. verb
iii. diverge from an established course or from normal standards.
iv. Derivatives: n/a
v. ORIGIN: Latin deviare ‘turn out of the way’, from via ‘way’

12. i. ingratiate

 ii. verb
iii. Define: (ingratiate oneself) bring oneself into favour with someone by flattering or trying to please them.
iv. DERIVATIVES: ingratiating adjective ingratiation noun.
v. ORIGIN: from Latin in gratiam ‘into favour’

13. i. cantankerous

ii. adjective
iii. Define: bad-tempered, argumentative, and uncooperative.
iv. DERIVATIVES: cantankerously adverb cantankerousness noun.
v. ORIGIN: perhaps a blend of Anglo-Irish cant “auction” and rancorous.

14. i. serendipity

 ii. noun
iii. Define: the occurrence and development of events by chance in a happy or beneficial way.
iv. DERIVATIVES: serendipitous adjective serendipitously adverb.
v. ORIGIN: from Serendip (a former name for Sri Lanka): coined by the English politican and writer Horace Walpole (1717-97), after The Three Princes of Serendip, a fairy tale in which the heroes were always making fortunate discoveries.

15. i. intrigue

ii. verb 
iii. Define: (intrigues, intrigued, intriguing) 1 arouse the curiosity or interest of. 2 plot something illicit or harmful.
iv. DERIVATIVES: intriguer noun intriguing adjective.
v. ORIGIN: French intriguer ‘tangle, plot’, from Latin intricare ‘entangle’.

 STORY:

Once upon a time in the suburbs of Riverside lived a princess named Sarah. Sarah, with her sublime beauty and witty personality, was the most sought after woman in all of southern California. Men from all around came to her house, desperately wanting her hand in marriage.

One rainy morning, Sarah awoke to don a pair of jeans and a pale blue cardigan. She walked to her window, as she did every morning, to greet the gentlemen who have traveled from the surrounding cities to see her. However, this morning was different from any other. When the princess looked out her window, she witnessed an epic, and very wet, battle between two of her admirers.

With such poise, Sarah considered her options. She thought about letting them continue fighting, and perhaps marry the winner. She also thought about stopping the spectacle to inquire about the two men who were so passionate for her. After deciding on the latter, Sarah asked the men to deviate from their intense warfare and had them tell her their names.

One man cantankerously replied, “My name is Jasper.” The other kindly smiled and said, “My name is Jason, and I am here to marry you.”

Princess Sarah was immediately turned off by Jasper’s bad attitude, but hoped it was just a figment of her imagination. He was quite handsome, with California tanned skin and blonde messy hair. She construed him for a decent man, and would lament ever turning him away for his rude response.

But then there was Jason, dressed in a black shirt with dark jeans, who intrigued the princess. He was trying very hard to ingratiate himself by shouting sweet nothings across the yard for the whole neighborhood to hear. As Sarah listened, she heard him allude to his love for her, and she found him to he mysteriously romantic.

What a challenging decision Sarah faced. Yet as the men continued in their childish combating, she serendipitously realized that she didn’t need a man like either of them, and she lived happily ever after. 

A Whirl-Wind Trip to the Windy City

My summer consisted of several very fun memories, but there was one particular trip that stood out to me:

My trip to Chicago to see my friend john graduate from boot camp was long awaited, and when it finally came all my worries about his journey were put to rest.

The flight there was smooth, my only complaint is that it was open seating, so my mom (who I decided to bring along for moral support) and I were not able to sit together on the plane. My nerves grew when we had a layover in Nashville, as I was so anxious to finally see him again after three months of only communicating by snail mail.

I didn't know what to expect the next morning when I was sitting at his PIR. As soon as he got liberty I raced my way down the bleachers to find john, avoiding falling on my face since I was in heels. The sea of white-hatted sailors rushed towards the crowd and I was afraid I wasn't going to be able to get to john as fast as I wanted to. But then I saw his face.

I climbed down the remaining four bleachers and reached my arms for a hug. He looked healthy and happy, and I was so thrilled to see him that way. After we hugged I backed away, giving space for his mom and dad and grandparents to hug him as well. My head was spinning with joy, and with the commotion. There were so many things to be said, yet I stood there, absolutely speechless. I was just looking at him, smiling. 

The weather outside was awful; the sky was gray and rain poured down from the heavens. It was such a happy day with such miserable weather. The rest of the day was a blur, we were all exhausted from lack of sleep and we were all scrambling to get a word in edgewise. We mostly listened to stories that john had, but when there was a pause in his breath, everyone spoke up to fill the gaps. After 8 weeks of only writing letters, there was a lot to be said.

The day following John’s graduation was a much better day. We all went out to breakfast, and then spent the remaining part of the day at Six Flags Great America.

It was so funny how serious john was, and I suppose he has to be when he is in uniform. I suppose I would be, too. I think that is why he seemed so different, because he and I are usually big goofballs together.

We had to take john back early again that night, and only had a couple hours with him on Sunday morning. Before my mom and I had to fly back to California, we spent the time at the Navy Exchange store buying souvenirs to take home.

I stayed strong when I was saying goodbye to him, and we hugged for what seemed to be too short of a time, but was probably longer than I realized. I got into the taxi and we pulled away. I hate saying goodbye. Just hate it. 

Sadly, John wont be home until April 2010. I feel sad every time I think of that, but I hold on to hope that he will for sure come back to California. I pray for his safety and guidance while he is in a-school, and I look forward to the next time I get to see him.