Wednesday, March 12, 2008

I have a random question for you

One of my students sent that in an IM to me last night. In my head, I was pretty psyched, since random questions are often the most fun.

"Of course," I replied.

She ended up asking if I'd make a mixtape for her. Answer there is obvious. I find myself extremely excited by this challenge. I'm not sure what songs I'm going to choose. My gut right now is telling me to go with a mix of songs of my high school life and college life primarily—Pearl Jam, R.E.M., Spirit of the West, older Sarah McLachlan, Single Gun Theory, Curve, Belly, The Tragically Hip, The Sundays, Black 47, Juliana Hatfield, The Cranberries, 10,000 Maniacs. Most of my students know the adult me, but as I'm always trying to tell them to chill I think that they should get to know the Type A me who took a Tums almost every night in high school. I think I need to shut down the computer soon, or I'm going to start it now.

Today was a good day for music a former student and I got to talking about what makes the way you listen to music as a teen different than other times in your life.

As an adult I listen to music prepared to have reservations and in some ways fighting the urge to be the so-cool-he-dislikes-it-first guy. I also am less willing to unapologetically love a CD. For some reason I think I've felt a need to appear more intellectual with how I evaluate songs and albums. When I was younger, I felt like these songs, like Nightswimming by R.E.M. and All I Want Is You by U2, were written for me and now I rarely feel that way. But Rilo Kiley and Stars and to some extent Arcade Fire and Bright Eyes have resurrected that.

So on that note raising a glass to now ...



To the past ...



And to the future ...

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