This...Isn't...the End!!!

This is actually saying quite a bit for me (and by no means am I trying to be pompous about this), but for the first time in a while, I actually felt like I learned something out of an English course! The improvements in my writing came from the fact that this was all played on a ground that I find so incredibly comfortable. There are quite a few things that I'll be taking away from this course and I'd like to share what they are.

In my post, Asking the Right Questions , I was trying to address, not only why it's consequential to brainstorm, but also what to think about when it comes to your role as a writer. All of the questions in that post were things that I definitely needed to ask myself at the time. Audience consideration constantly pokes about my brain while I write, so this subject is awfully timely.

When I made the post about Drum Corps International, I was essentially trying to connect with my audience through passion. It's so much easier for me to organize my thoughts when I actually feel strongly about something. Yet, this where I applied the whole "media" aspect for the first time. I was never really one for it to begin with (mainly because I'm naturally lazy and felt like that was too much work for a simple blog post), but
this is a subject that REQUIRES media in order to understand.

The Stuffy Language post was simply me trying to convey the fact that you can still gain accreditation from your audience without the use of five-syllable words every 2 seconds. Overall, it was still pointing to my consideration for the audience. I honestly don't feel like that will ever be something I through by the wayside.

Something that can hold everyone back as a writer is bias. That's why the post, Bye Bye, Bias was created, really: In order to demonstrate how to be objective and that I can be as well (I try, at least).

Though, there are quite a few things that I'm still working on. One of those things is really how to document ideas in my writing; I tend to forget those things fairly often. While on the same hand, I have integrated quite a few ideas into my writing but, I still need to learn where to give credit where credit is due. The 5 Albums post was a post where I incorporated an idea from a friend in order to make it an assignment and while the assignment is of my design, I wasn't sure how to document the fact that it originated from a random discussion that I had with a friend while I was drunk.
In the end, I suppose I'm still trying to figure out my role as a writer. I'm not sure if personal blogging is really my forte, or if I could go into something where I need to write educationally. Well, there's honestly only one way to find out, and that's to keep on writing.  

5 of the Most Influential Albums in My Life (Thusfar)

(Disclaimer: This is a blog post that I've been trying to post for about the past three weeks now. I just wanted to get this out there, so bare with me.)

Growing up, I had my mother's taste in music, which simply came from the fact that whenever I was listening to music back then, it'd be something that she put on. However, as the times moved forward, I started branching out and listening to newer(well, I should honestly say different; they weren't actually "new") music and it was at this point in my life that I felt like I started developing my own taste in music. Yet still, I remember the albums that've stuck with me for all of this time.

Tonight The Stars Revolt by Powerman 5000

The Battle of Los Angeles by Rage Against the Machine

Mer de Noms by A Perfect Circle

By the Way by Red Hot Chili Peppers

Seal by...well, Seal.

1. Tonight the Stars Revolt--They say that you never forget your first, right? That's certainly what this album is for me. As the story goes, it was year 2000 and I was fairly fresh to the state of Alabama; I'd also just switched schools for the 11th time and its location called for me to ride a transfer bus. At the time, there was only one other student who rode this bus aside from me--a high school kid by the name of Jeff. He took notice to the fact that I owned a CD player and handed me his album book and said, "You're free to listen to anything in this book, however, there are two rules that you've gotta abide by. Rule #1: If you pick a CD, you must listen to it ALL the way through. Rule #2: No skipping tracks. Enjoy." Guess which CD I picked first? I remember how awesome it felt to listen to alternative rock for the first time, or rather, alternative rock music that I picked. All I know is that, after that point, I just wanted to find more great rock.
2. The Battle of Los Angeles--Remember that same kid that I mentioned above? Guess which CD I picked to listen to on the way back? (Don't worry; I PROMISE that the rest of this post isn't like this.)
3. Mer de Noms--This album is literally what got me through the rough part of high school - the part of high school where I started dating. I still can't really explain why this album helped me so much, but it would be the first thing I'd put on after a break-up or a crush-gone-wrong-in-some-unexplainable-way-that-I-certainly-didn't-take-into-consideration. I also still have a habit of listening to this album all of the way through every time I played a track.
4. By the Way--Ever had a significant other that you just had WAY too much of? I mean, this is past the point where you've neglected your school work, your job, your other friends, and even your family; you see them all of the time, right? They wouldn't miss you that much, and besides, you'd miss him/her the moment you walked out the door. Yeah...it was like that, but 10 times worse. I literally didn't listen to any other music for over a month. This album HOOKED me and I couldn't even tell you why it's so good. I had to stay away from in for a while; I needed some...space. We were getting to much of each other and it was...well, let's just say that it was better for the both of us, okay??? I miss it...(Okay, FINE! I'm not actually over this album yet, alright??? Look, we're just GOOD for each other! I'm going to finish this post after I finish listening to this album 12 times through...)
5. Seal--The reason why this album holds a special place in my heart is simply because it was the first album I ever bought with money that I'd earned. It was an old favorite of mine, since my mother owned it on cassette and used to frequent that album whenever she got in a cleaning mood. I loved the memories that were attached to Seal's music, so I bought the album almost impulsively. 

There are hundreds of albums and artists that I could thank for shaping my musical tastes, but then this post would just turn into a novel of sorts, so I'll just leave it at these five. I still adore all of these albums and what they did for me.

May I Take Your Order?

Here's a link to the post since I had to use Tumblr in order to post the mp3 file:

DS106: May I Take Your Order?