Hiatus Halt

Ok we are back.
Sorry y'all, I know you guys have missed the blog content. I was ultra busy. 
All my senior (and high school graduate) buddies know the stress of college apps. Man. I died. This is what I felt like:
Photo from Seans: hommage á Antonin Artaud (1977)

But now early decision and early action is done. Can breathe a tad, but not for long because REGULAR DECISION is coming up. Slowly crawling, scampering, creeping up on me and everyone applying to college. September felt like 4 months, October was stress filled, and now that those two have passed I have my eyes set on January. Every time I get stressed out thinking about CSS, how one of my teachers still hasn't submitted his rec, having to write unending supplemental essays, and all that, I just think about how free I'm going to feel in January. Second semester is going to be so nice, I'm already fantasizing about it.

I'm going to talk some more about college stuff cuz obvi it's been on my mind. 
  • I wanted to include this blog on my application but my activities list filled up and it wasn't worth it to switch something out to include this blog because 1) it's informal, but y'know the content is good so whatevs 2) I don't have that many posts. If I posted during the summer then maybe I would have more reason to add it to my list, but it's a tad late now, can't rescind my early applications. 
  • I waited until super last minute to do everything. DO NOT RECCOMEND. If you are any grade below senior reading this PLEASE LEARN FROM MY MISTAKES AND I BEG YOU START DOING EVERYTHING OVER THE SUMMER. Now I know you're reading that all casual, no care in the world, thinking "ok... sure... totally" and summer comes and you don't do anything. Cuz that was my brain in junior year. SUBMIT EVERTHING EARLY SO YOU  CAN ENJOY HALLOWEEKEND. I will not be repeating the same mistake for regular decision. I am getting on that shitttt.

    • Speaking of halloweekend. I stayed inside both days. I had to work on college apps. I was out and about on actual halloween day, but I don't regret it because I had so much fun in my mime costume. Photos below, format is best on laptop.

  • ALSO NEWS: IF UR HOUSEHOLD INCOME IS BELOW 100K THEN NYU IS GIVING FREE TUITION. There's some limitations, something about assets, not sure, but check it out: https://www.nyu.edu/admissions/financial-aid-and-scholarships/full-tuition-scholarship-program.html 
I realize I should also update about what happened over the summer, because I left you guys in the dark with that. 
  • So in the last blog post I was in Athens with Sophia Mueller. 
  • I said "I'll tell y'all about Chios when I get there. I don't wanna spoil it" but I never wrote an update in Chios and I'll tell you why. The wifi was so horrible and my laptop is so unbearably slow that I could not reasonably use it to type anything. Couldn't watch movies on it, nothing. Everything on my phone, my screen time was horrible.  
    • This is also why I didn't work on college stuff over the summer. I didn't want to type up my personal statement on my PHONE. But I was brainstorming and by the end of the summer I had decided on the idea that I ultimately used for the essay. 
  • I was back on instagram over the summer because it was my only connection to the NYC world, I stayed up late always cuz I wanted to be able to communicate in real time with buds back in the states.
  • OK the schedule in Chios was as follows: Wake up around noon-ish, eat breakfast quick (some biscuits, cookies, paximadia, whatever), go to the beach. Ideally leave the house around 3pm and leave the beach lateeeee. Get back from the beach maybe around like 8pm, shower, go upstairs  and chill, eventually assemble with the group of buds for the night, and wander around the village. NOTES: 
    • I love leaving the beach late. Everytime we went to the beach early as a group (family and friends and such) it was always too hot and crowded and blehh. The only reason to go to the beach early is to tan, and tan I did a lot of. 
    • When I showers I usually didn't wash my hair cuz it looks good after the beach. I only washed my hair with actual soap maybe like once a week, and that's only because the salt buildup became too much to handle.
    • The third floor is the only floor with wifi or any sort of signal in the entire house, which is why I specified I go upstairs to chill. The house is tall but not wide. There are no actual rooms besides the bathrooms. The entire house is an open floor plan. 
      • The first floor is kitchen and living room with a bathroom in the corner and a washing machine under the stairs. 
      • Second floor is a half floor where you can look over and see what's goin on on the first floor. Second floor is where my bed is but I migrated to the third floor last year, sleeping with my mom cuz the bed is more comfortable and I get wifi. 
      • Third floor is the "bedroom" but not really because again, no doors. There's a janky walk in closet we added  next to the bathroom which is wayyy smaller than the one on the first floor. First floor has a nice bathroom. Third floor has the big bed, an antique dresser that used to belong to my grandma and is made out of wood. The third floor also has the doors to the balcony.
      • Balcony is really nice. A nice view of the ocean, mountains, and the village. It's also really good for eavesdropping on conversations people have while walking below my house. It's got a jasmine tree my mom is trying to grow, it's struggling, and my succulent which has grown HUGEEEE. Also balcony has a really nice table. 
    • I listen to a lot of podcasts in Chios because I can download them quick and easy, perfect for living in a house with no signal 2/3 of the time. I listened to a lot of Podcast But Outside and, this is a long title, Deep Dives and Deep Cuts: the History of Punk, Post-punk and New Wave (1976-1986). The guys in the second one talk UNBEARABLY SLOW so I have it on 2x speed, but the thing is, since they play music clips in the podcast, I have to go back and revert the speed to 1x every time they play a song, which is very often. So it's just inconvenient to listen to it, but I like it cuz it's super in depth.
    • I finished reading Politics as Sound: The Washington, DC, Hardcore Scene, 1978-1983 at the start of the summer when I got to Chios. I was also reading Queen Lucia & Miss Mapp: The Mapp & Lucia Novels and The Homosexualization of America in Chios. Beach reading is so nice. 
Back to my typical blog content: 
UPDATESSSSS
  • Mags started a blog, inspired by meeeeee, idk if they want it to be shared publicly so I'll keep the link on the down low for the time being. 
  • I had a roll of film from september that was finally developed s few days ago, I'm really happy with the results. The ratio of good flics:duds is soo high in favor of good flics. I had photos from the holiem show at some brewery when Liana came down from Boston. I used 400 TMAX film which was only $1 more than the regular 400TX. It's so nice and crisp. In the camera now I've got some regular 400TX so I can see a clear difference between the two. Generally I think the 400TX is grainier, and I'm ehhhh about grain. 
    • I've been trying to take at least one photo every day because I want to get rolls going. Not having my camera for two weeks (due to complications in getting it back from Mey) gave me camera withdrawals. Currently have 21 shots left on the cam. 
  • Been having a lot of fun with my friends, but I haven't been going to a lot of shows. I haven't gone to a teen nyc show since before the summer. That's partially because of college apps and partially because the bands that are playing are... just... not punk. Its all indie rock and boring, it all kids rock for kids type bands. Metropole and hardly fits are gone/done, holiem doesn't play shows anymore cuz its only Roman and Diego (Jack and Liana are up at college and they (Roman and Diego) still haven't found anyone to replace them), and many more hatred filled comments I would like to add but can't because this blog is public. 
    • After regular decisions in January I will be free to go to as many shows as I please.
    • I need to get back into my show groove. I went to a show at... an undisclosed location... and mann I was not feeling it. I need to get comfortable with it again. This always happens when I come back from the summer. I'll get into my groove eventually, now it's just that awkward adjusting time. 
Movies
  • I'm gonna be honest, the only movies I've watched recently have been for class. Watched La Jetée, french new wave, and 2001: A Space Odyssey during my video production class. And then in Jewish history we watched Kidnapped, the story of Edgardo Mortara this one Jewish boy who was kidnapped by the catholic church in the 1850s because he was secretly baptized by some catholic maid they hired. 
    • Ja Jetée has some crazy visuals though. It was a short film composed of entirely still photographs except for one short moment where there's moving image. Here are some of my favorite shots from the film. The format is fugly on laptop but on phone its fine... This website kills me.


















Haven't been watching movies because of the college grind. Oops 😬

Music
  • On the music repeat has been Connie Converse. My queen. Listen to "Talkin’ Like You (Two Tall Mountains)" first to fall in love, then listen to "Down This Road" and "We Lived Alone" on the album How Sad, How Lovely. THEN GO TO THE EP Sad Lady AND LISTEN TO THE DOUBLETRACKED VERSION OF THOSE SONGS. mmmm the doubletracked versions are sooo gooddddd.
  • I've got a new main playlist, check it out if you dare. https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5MRkd3qvKbyRbWFMBxyC70?si=d77a001f843f4c39
  • Other favorites at the moment gotta be the EP by Zig Zag It Gets Worse. Whenever I want to get happy quick I play the EP from bottom to top (my fav order) cuz the entire thing is only 11 minutes 37 seconds long. Zig Zag by Zig Zag is sooo goooddd.
  • Mind by the Talking Heads is fun song, especially the part where he goes "whats a matter with you" I love the way that's delivered. 
  • Public Opinion by Urban Waste. I love the lyrics. They fuck heavyyyyy. "if you really want to find out / you'll ask me what I'm about / really I'm just crazy and / don't want to be figured out / figured out" SOOO GOODDDD. That song has been added to my bible: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1C5ovsoaXbiy789Jhk4L3C?si=edd380cbee7d4c5d 
  • I found this one band, Blatz. They're 90s LA punk ish. They've got a girl and a dude singer, they switch out, sing together, whatever. I only like the songs with the girl singing most of the time. My favorites from the one album they have are: nausea, cockroach cafe, and lullabye.
  • What the fuck is up with skramz. That's all I'm saying.

Ok I think that's been enough for my blog update. Here's my favorite photo of Jello Biafra for compensation. FUNNIEST FLIC EVERRRR


Until next time.