This blog post came about last night, when I working on one of my novellas. Currently I am reading a Stephen King booked entitled Lisey's Story. The book is about a world-renowned author and his obscure, nobody cares who she is, wife. His name is Scott and her name is Lisey. King explains Scott's writing procedure as him sitting down at his desk and blasting old country music to deafening levels. This struck my curiosity, even though yes, Scott Landon is a fictional character, I wondered how I would do with the music blasting while I tried to write.
It didn't work. I kept getting distracted by the music, and even with it turned down low my mind still kept coming back to it like the tongue invariably travels to that one raw spot in your mouth. That's a line from Lisey's Story by the way. So turned off the music, partially shut my door and scooted up close to my laptop...and typed away. In a way I knew the whole blasting the music while I write thing wasn't going to work for me, but hey, what was the harm in trying? After all, I need music as a background noise for almost every thing else I do: washing dishes, volunteering at the library, waiting for the bus to come, waiting between classes, doing my Saturday cleaning...etc. Why not have music as a staple for background noise when I'm writing? But as it turns out, where with everything else I do music aids not as a distraction but as a way for me to more easily perform my tasks and make them more enjoyable...it's exactly the opposite when I sit down to write and find music playing in the background. I can even read with music in the background, sometimes prefer it that way. Ironic isn't it? How my penchant for music constantly flowing around me hasn't been able to penetrate the writing part of me.
With that said, while I was thinking of all this, I was also thinking about the different types of silence that occur in the world around us. Now, the first I could think of was the silence I prefer when I'm writing. Granted, since I write in my bedroom and don't have that blessedly secluded, sound-proofed office space I would love to have, I have to deal with the normal household noises, including those of my parents and brother. Which, I know, is something many other writer's have to deal with, and with them I sympathize. But I'll be honest, I haven't completely mastered the art of tuning everything else but the constant whirring of my thoughts onto paper out of my head. Those outside noises still creep in like invisible gas through cracks in a door. Sometimes in the summer I choose to take my laptop outside, where I'll sit on our porch attached to the garage. This too has its own benefits but downfalls as well. We live in the middle of the city, as well as in the middle of the block thus...we're in the middle of the noise! But once my fingers start moving of their own accord, channeling idea after idea onto the paper while my eyes and mind simply follow the words appearing on the screen, I commit myself only to what I see on the screen and nothing else.
So what type of silence would you call that? That silence that I yearn for when writing? I think it could be referred to as a silence you yearn for so you can pull haphazard thoughts together and form a story. It's the type of silence that allows you to reach into that far away pool within you, that pool that constantly calls to you, slowly pulling you inward until you give in and wade into it's depths. It's the type of silence that wishes the world and all its tumult would just fall away, so its only you and the paper, you and the words. Its the type of silence that come us thrive on when writing, but others dispel like King's fictional character, Scott Landon.
What about other types of silence? Because most of my writing is so inevitably tied to the American countryside, I could talk about the silence that permeates the rolling fields and the hollowed crook of the valleys. This silence is something I breathe deep within my soul and conscious mind like air every time I step out of the car and onto flattened, open earth. It's the type of silence that brings a sort of inexplicable comfort to me, a stilling of the mind, a gentle touch against the heart. It's a silence that removes me from the city's chaotic pace. It's the silence that reminds me of relatives homes and places I don't get to visit very often. It's a silence that is as strongly familiar as my own face, yet is one I rarely taste and feel. It's the silence of long abandoned homes succumbed to nature, now resting peacefully. It's the silence of horses grazing in fields, with golden sunlight highlighting their withers, tails billowing in the wind like the trailing veil of a blushing bride. It's the silence of an unhurried, uncomplicated lifestyle. It's the silence that permeates my every word in my stories, a silence that my fictional characters thrive on, and know more intimately than I do. It's a silence that I long for, and a silence I am determined to one day live amongst.
What about other types of silence? Another thought that came to me was the silence of unspoken words that pass between a husband and wife fighting, or even a boyfriend and girlfriend. I know after my parents have a fight that escalates into screaming and punching, they'll just sit in their usual chairs in the living room, saying nothing, going on with their lives as if nothing has happened, but yet just below the surface the crass words they had spat at one another, and the seething ones still writhing in their mouths, boil like hot oil from a cracked valve cover on a car. Or it doesn't even have to be a couple that fights, it can be best friends, or even a total stranger who's car you wrecked or someone who cut in front of you in line at the grocery store. Sometimes, when the arguments become intense, silence can be the best thing. Other times, like with my parents, it can only add more logs to the fire, to use a cliche. Instead of relieving the pressure of wounded pride and feelings, this type of silence only adds to it. Think of the argument as a thick, low-hanging humidity rising up in the morning and intensifying as the day goes on. Then suddenly it breaks into a huge, summer storm, leaving the earth dripping wet and breathless afterwards. The beginning of the argument is like the early humidity. All day your clothes are clinging to your skin, every time you breath you feel like the air is a physical thing, instead of merely a vapor. Then something tips you off or you feel like today's the day you're going to confront this person about something...and the storm comes. Or it could also be the way everything falls silent before a tornado comes. The sky is boiling black and blue like its been punched until it bruised, and you're holding your breath, feeling the air climb high around you, seeming to want to crush you from the outside in, the birds halt their songs, the trees stand still...and then the tornado comes. Once it's gone everything returns to normal. If you're lucky, no damage was done, but sometimes you're not. Sometimes there's aftermath to clean up. The silence that passes between two people after an argument is a silence burdened with unspoken words and with spoken ones, it's a silence that permeates like the weight of the atmosphere before a tornado. It's a silence you yearn to break, but don't dare for fear of what the skies may bring.
It wasn't my intention to end this blog post on such a sardonic note, but I ran out of time! I intended to talk about the silence of a library to close it off. Of which I know very well because for one of the best summers of my life, I worked at Sheboygan's local library. That silence is similar to that which I yearn for when writing. A silence that forms an intimate relationship between you and your thoughts, or you, your thoughts and the paper! But, perhaps that's for another time. Right now I have to go to my Creative Writing class. Speaking writing, right?
Wednesday, March 31, 2010
Wednesday, March 17, 2010
Not Forgotten
I was sitting here, trying to come up with a better title for this week's blog post but...I couldn't it. I don't know why it is but, whenever it comes time to think of a title - be it for a poem, novella, short story or blog post that I'm writing - I somehow convince myself that it had to be unique, and snappy. It can't just be something bland like "Not Forgotten." Also, I think that stems from what my professor for my Creative Writing class said: "don't' underestimate the power and influence of a title." Sometimes we just overlook them, but often enough, they are what draws us to a book in the first place. I'm a visual person, so titles - along with covers - are a huge draw for me. So I guess that's why I'm still bothered by the title for today's blog post but, who knows? Maybe by the end of it I'll think of something more creative!
Anyway, that's not what I wanted to talk about. Today's title refers to the many artists - invariably country because that's what I primarily listen to - that have fallen by the wayside over of the years and eventually been completely forgotten. You know when you're driving or just sitting at home and all of a sudden a song comes on the radio that you haven't heard in years? It gives you a jolt of excitement doesn't it? You think: oh yeah! I remember this song! and find yourself taken back to when you first heard it, or perhaps a memory entwined with it. Then, a string of new songs is played and you forget all about it. Thus the cycle occurs over and over again, with new songs dominating air time.
Take Brooks & Dunn for example. Just last year I believe they announced that they were disbanding and pursuing solo careers. Of course I was disappointed. I love a lot of their songs, but at the same time I can understand their move. I don't recall where I heard either of them say it, but Brooks & Dunn explained that "country music is changing, and we can't match that sound anymore." I admit, it wasn't exactly like that but, do you see a common theme here? The sound of country is changing so rapidly and blatantly that Brooks & Dunn know they can't compete with the younger artists taking the music industry by storm. How they think they'll be able to accomplish this with solo careers I'm not sure. But I do hope to hear more from them in the future.
Like many artists that have fallen out of popularity, I keep their image and sound alive on my iPod. I'm sure it's no secret that I've discovered a lot of 90's country artists thanks in part to Pandora, an Internet radio site. And like I've said before, there's no way I would have discovered all of the music I love know without Pandora because radio station's today are biased and only play the new stuff. I never even knew all of this great, older music was just lying undiscovered underneath the thick layer of dust time had placed there. Imagine how many other people are being robbed of this music, just because they're being fed songs that don't hold a candle to original country.
And yes, I'm biased too, because 90's country is my favorite era in the genre but, anyone - whether you're a country fan or not - knows that the music industry in general is taking a turn for a worst. Which is why so many honorable and talented artists are being pushed aside to make room for the red carpet to roll out. To give you a few examples I'll mention my favorite country artist, Patty Loveless. Having discovered her roughly last year sometime I already own three of her albums and consider her one of the best country singers of the 90's...and even today. Still putting out albums, Loveless doesn't enjoy the fame and airplay like she did in the 90's. Why? Because in the 90's country music was still true, even if artists like Shania Twain and Faith Hill were already paving a yellow-brick road for country pop. Radio's seemed to know what real music was, and real country music at that. Loveless even performed on the ACM's and picked up awards. I was shocked at this! Patty Loveless on the ACM's? It makes me wish I had heard about her back then so I could have seen her perform, rather than watch what the ACM's puts on display nowadays.
Loveless's last album, Mountain Soul II, was a follow up to 2001's Mountain Soul. the latter was a tribute to her coal mining father and her hometown in Eastern, Kentucky. I'll admit, I was skeptical when I heard that Loveless had modeled the album after mountain music, hence the name. But after borrowing it from my local library and giving it a listen I was hooked. A few days later I found the second Mountain Soul at Wal-Mart and bought it. Now I have both of them! Unfortunately I had to buy the first Mountain Soul off of the Internet because no store around her carried it, or any of her albums for that matter. Which is another thing isn't it? Not only are some artists no longer played on the radio but they're albums are also no longer occupying the shelves at popular stores like Wal-Mart or Best Buy. Now, I know I can't shift all the blame on the new artists raiding the radios and charts, it also has something to do with that artist perhaps no longer able to put good material. Which is a shame isn't it? Take Belinda Carlisle for example. She was with the GoGo's originally and then went off on her own, only she didn't do so good so rejoined the GoGo's again, who had banded back together. They fell apart again, she tried a solo career, went back to the GoGo's...and you get the picture right? It's sad when an artist puts out a few good songs here and there then a decade or more later - maybe less - tries to come back with a new song only...no one likes it. That's the case of Jamie O'Neal, a one-time popular country singer from the 90's. I have one song on my iPod from her called Somebody's Hero. It's a great song about the trials - and invariable rewards - of a single mother raising her daughter. O'Neal also had other great hits like the catchy Trying To Find Atlantis in which O'Neal talked about how at times it seems nearly impossible to find a good, decent man. A third popular, stand-out hit she had was entitled When I Think About Heaven in which O'Neal states that everything she thinks about reminds her of her boyfriend/husband. All of these songs are great, and I regret that I only have the first on my iPod but my point is, at one time - by which I mean the 90's - Jamie O'Neal was a great artist and although, yes, she was more pop than country, I still consider it better than what passes for country-pop today. Why did she fade away like old ink of a piece of paper? Why couldn't she keep on writing that story, instead of placing it on a dusty shelf and forgetting about it? Like Brooks & Dunn, perhaps her sound just wasn't selling anymore or, perhaps she couldn't put forth marketable material.
Another artist which has suffered this same fate is Suzy Bogguss. Now, like with Patty Loveless, if it wasn't for Pandora I would have stumbled across her, and again, I blame mainly radio. But even without the radio to provide me with a medium of sorts to all of this discarded music, they have to be other ways of discovering it can't there? I'm trying to be more open minded when it comes to music but I'll admit...it's hard! Once I find an artist I like I tend to explore songs by them, rather than someone different. And even when I do step outside of my musical interests, its usually to listen to artists that are similar to ones I already listen to. Perhaps these discarded artists, so to speak, simply need people to remember them. To keep listening to their songs, because many of these forgotten artists - both one's I've mentioned and others I haven't - have some of the best songs out there, songs that reflect a time when people didn't compromise quality for quantity when it comes to music. A time when record companies didn't just pluck anyone off of the street who showed a decent amount of talent, but rather choose people who had true talent and could produce unique music, not the mass marketed stuff of today.
I had originally intended to post a poem I had written yesterday, but this idea sprung in my head like the first reaching's of plants in the spring time and...I had to pour water on it! The poem will come next week, unless some other idea intercepts it first! For now, I ask that you think about artists that you listen to which have been discarded by the music industry and even sometimes fans. And if you can, turn off your radio and go exploring. Find those artists whom you know are out there, but know you'll never discover through radio. Like that abandoned farmhouse in the woods, music which has been buried by time and changing interests, still clings to an inimitable charm and timeless beauty.
Anyway, that's not what I wanted to talk about. Today's title refers to the many artists - invariably country because that's what I primarily listen to - that have fallen by the wayside over of the years and eventually been completely forgotten. You know when you're driving or just sitting at home and all of a sudden a song comes on the radio that you haven't heard in years? It gives you a jolt of excitement doesn't it? You think: oh yeah! I remember this song! and find yourself taken back to when you first heard it, or perhaps a memory entwined with it. Then, a string of new songs is played and you forget all about it. Thus the cycle occurs over and over again, with new songs dominating air time.
Take Brooks & Dunn for example. Just last year I believe they announced that they were disbanding and pursuing solo careers. Of course I was disappointed. I love a lot of their songs, but at the same time I can understand their move. I don't recall where I heard either of them say it, but Brooks & Dunn explained that "country music is changing, and we can't match that sound anymore." I admit, it wasn't exactly like that but, do you see a common theme here? The sound of country is changing so rapidly and blatantly that Brooks & Dunn know they can't compete with the younger artists taking the music industry by storm. How they think they'll be able to accomplish this with solo careers I'm not sure. But I do hope to hear more from them in the future.
Like many artists that have fallen out of popularity, I keep their image and sound alive on my iPod. I'm sure it's no secret that I've discovered a lot of 90's country artists thanks in part to Pandora, an Internet radio site. And like I've said before, there's no way I would have discovered all of the music I love know without Pandora because radio station's today are biased and only play the new stuff. I never even knew all of this great, older music was just lying undiscovered underneath the thick layer of dust time had placed there. Imagine how many other people are being robbed of this music, just because they're being fed songs that don't hold a candle to original country.
And yes, I'm biased too, because 90's country is my favorite era in the genre but, anyone - whether you're a country fan or not - knows that the music industry in general is taking a turn for a worst. Which is why so many honorable and talented artists are being pushed aside to make room for the red carpet to roll out. To give you a few examples I'll mention my favorite country artist, Patty Loveless. Having discovered her roughly last year sometime I already own three of her albums and consider her one of the best country singers of the 90's...and even today. Still putting out albums, Loveless doesn't enjoy the fame and airplay like she did in the 90's. Why? Because in the 90's country music was still true, even if artists like Shania Twain and Faith Hill were already paving a yellow-brick road for country pop. Radio's seemed to know what real music was, and real country music at that. Loveless even performed on the ACM's and picked up awards. I was shocked at this! Patty Loveless on the ACM's? It makes me wish I had heard about her back then so I could have seen her perform, rather than watch what the ACM's puts on display nowadays.
Loveless's last album, Mountain Soul II, was a follow up to 2001's Mountain Soul. the latter was a tribute to her coal mining father and her hometown in Eastern, Kentucky. I'll admit, I was skeptical when I heard that Loveless had modeled the album after mountain music, hence the name. But after borrowing it from my local library and giving it a listen I was hooked. A few days later I found the second Mountain Soul at Wal-Mart and bought it. Now I have both of them! Unfortunately I had to buy the first Mountain Soul off of the Internet because no store around her carried it, or any of her albums for that matter. Which is another thing isn't it? Not only are some artists no longer played on the radio but they're albums are also no longer occupying the shelves at popular stores like Wal-Mart or Best Buy. Now, I know I can't shift all the blame on the new artists raiding the radios and charts, it also has something to do with that artist perhaps no longer able to put good material. Which is a shame isn't it? Take Belinda Carlisle for example. She was with the GoGo's originally and then went off on her own, only she didn't do so good so rejoined the GoGo's again, who had banded back together. They fell apart again, she tried a solo career, went back to the GoGo's...and you get the picture right? It's sad when an artist puts out a few good songs here and there then a decade or more later - maybe less - tries to come back with a new song only...no one likes it. That's the case of Jamie O'Neal, a one-time popular country singer from the 90's. I have one song on my iPod from her called Somebody's Hero. It's a great song about the trials - and invariable rewards - of a single mother raising her daughter. O'Neal also had other great hits like the catchy Trying To Find Atlantis in which O'Neal talked about how at times it seems nearly impossible to find a good, decent man. A third popular, stand-out hit she had was entitled When I Think About Heaven in which O'Neal states that everything she thinks about reminds her of her boyfriend/husband. All of these songs are great, and I regret that I only have the first on my iPod but my point is, at one time - by which I mean the 90's - Jamie O'Neal was a great artist and although, yes, she was more pop than country, I still consider it better than what passes for country-pop today. Why did she fade away like old ink of a piece of paper? Why couldn't she keep on writing that story, instead of placing it on a dusty shelf and forgetting about it? Like Brooks & Dunn, perhaps her sound just wasn't selling anymore or, perhaps she couldn't put forth marketable material.
Another artist which has suffered this same fate is Suzy Bogguss. Now, like with Patty Loveless, if it wasn't for Pandora I would have stumbled across her, and again, I blame mainly radio. But even without the radio to provide me with a medium of sorts to all of this discarded music, they have to be other ways of discovering it can't there? I'm trying to be more open minded when it comes to music but I'll admit...it's hard! Once I find an artist I like I tend to explore songs by them, rather than someone different. And even when I do step outside of my musical interests, its usually to listen to artists that are similar to ones I already listen to. Perhaps these discarded artists, so to speak, simply need people to remember them. To keep listening to their songs, because many of these forgotten artists - both one's I've mentioned and others I haven't - have some of the best songs out there, songs that reflect a time when people didn't compromise quality for quantity when it comes to music. A time when record companies didn't just pluck anyone off of the street who showed a decent amount of talent, but rather choose people who had true talent and could produce unique music, not the mass marketed stuff of today.
I had originally intended to post a poem I had written yesterday, but this idea sprung in my head like the first reaching's of plants in the spring time and...I had to pour water on it! The poem will come next week, unless some other idea intercepts it first! For now, I ask that you think about artists that you listen to which have been discarded by the music industry and even sometimes fans. And if you can, turn off your radio and go exploring. Find those artists whom you know are out there, but know you'll never discover through radio. Like that abandoned farmhouse in the woods, music which has been buried by time and changing interests, still clings to an inimitable charm and timeless beauty.
Wednesday, March 10, 2010
A Rant About the Food Industry
Maybe this blog post came to be because I live in a city with two Wal-Marts, or perhaps its because the current state of the economy has hit locally and torn many jobs out from underneath people but...I've realized people like things on the cheap, more so than ever.
Making sacrifices to save a few dollars here and there never hurt anyone, and I'll admit, my family has the same mentality. The problem I have is...when we go into grocery stores with such a mindset we end up compromising our health because - as I'm sure it's no secret - the organic, and healthier food is invariably more expensive than say Great Value or Food Club.
Why the hell is this? Why would manufactures consciously make their food more expensive when they know its worlds better than the other brands on the shelf? Sure, you pay for quality but...should you have to pay more just to put healthy food on your table? When I see people buying the cheapest food they can buy, I cringe. Now, obviously everyone has a different economic status, budget and preferences and I've eaten my fair share of cheaper brands as well, I just think they - and my family as well - can do better! This is just my mentality but, when I bypass the organic, healthier brand in lieu of the cheaper, most often less healthier brand I feel guilty. Guilty for putting stuff into my body that's no good and packed with things that are even worse, guilty for not seeing the payout of buying that more expensive brand and compensating for that higher price in good health.
Because that's how it works isn't it? You pay the higher price for better food and in the long run find yourself free of all those incredulous additives cheap manufactures put in food and finally gain the mentality that yeah, I've paid for that higher price ten fold because I'm eating healthier. Of course, eating healthy is one step to the plateau of living a better life, another component is exercise. Whenever I hear that word I think of jogging, or running. Both of which I happen to like. This is going to sound like an excuse but I'll say it anyway. I've never actually gone jogging or running as part of an exercise plan, in fact I never really developed a plan at all. Not only do I not have anyone to jog with but, I live in the middle of the city. Which yes, some would view as an ideal place to jog but not me. With all of these things pitted against me I've turned to riding my bike. Last summer I rode it almost every day. Granted I view my bike as a piece of junk and it makes a clunking noise in 3rd gear...at least I'm getting some exercise!
Last night I went for a walk with my parents around our neighborhood. The nighttime air and chilled wind energized me. I've always said that running, jogging or walking in cold weather is a lot more effective than doing so in warmer weather. I find that mind set humorous because in general, my body wasn't built for the cold! When the 40+ weather rolled around sometime last week I gladly shed my jacket in favor of elbow-length sweaters. I could literally feel my bones sigh with relief. Of course, it's not over yet, but...let the fantasy last as long as possible for all of us.
See? I mention exercise and this is what happens! Luckily I caught myself before I completely derailed from the track I was initially on. Back to healthy food vs. cheap food. Am I saying that all cheap food is unhealthy? Definitely not, but I'm sure you've walked the aisles of Wal-Mart or whatever grocery store you have in your area and noticed a trend. Most food items and brands associated with organic principles or healthier ingredients have a higher price tacked onto them. It almost feels like you're being mocked for choosing the healthier food. As if all of Wal-Mart points a finger at you and says "I know you'll be lured in by that low price! So why don't you just pay it? Feed your family for next to nothing! Who cares if it's stuffed with preservatives and things you don't need?" I'll admit, I'm a label reader, but so is my Mom. It all started when I first began regularly volunteering at a horse rescue farm in Reedsville, which is a town roughly forty-five minutes away from where I live in Sheboygan.
The owner, Mary Ellen, eats all organic food and doesn't compromise on anything. Of course, she finds way to get such food on the cheap but here's the headline...she doesn't compromise the quality of the food by getting that low price! Wouldn't it be a dream for all of us to find that? I know I'd feel like I'd struck the equivalent of black gold like Jed in Beverly Hillbilly's. Every time I visit Target or Wal-Mart I find myself skimming the cheaper brands but am almost subconsciously pulled towards the healthier foods. Overtime as I started volunteering on Mary Ellen's farm her eating habits wore off on me. I began checking the labels of what I ate and found...the ingredients she warned about were in literally everything! Even in products you'd never think they'd be like canned pickles, ketchup and syrup. It was ridiculous. I became furious with the food industry for unnecessarily sticking these ingredients in food to act as cheap fillers. As if some foods aren't bad enough as they are.
Of course, this could lead to the whole watch what you eat mentality, which all of us should anyway. Now, obviously, some of us are more discerning than others when it comes to what sits on our plate every meal but, on some level or another, aren't we all concerned? I mean,whether or not you're an up bright an early, every day twenty mile jogger or the type of person who walking back and forth to your car or the fridge constitutes exercise, we're all conscious on some level as to what we eat, and how it affects us.
Take my brother for example, he takes after my Dad in the fact that - there's no way to put this nicely - he's overweight. Unlike my Dad, who keeps dropping the pounds, he seems hellbent on doing absolutely nothing about it. Of course, he'd much rather sit before his video games or drive around in his car than hop on his bike and join me for a ride. In fact, ever since he got his car little over a year ago, he's all but abandoned his bike in our garage. Now I'm hard pressed to get him to join me and often times end up riding alone, which suits me fine but, everyone likes some company now and then right? Anyway, my point of bringing this up is, roughly yesterday or a couple of days ago my brother was gripping on my Mom and I for buying the healthier, more expensive brands. His reason? The price, just like everyone else in Sheboygan. Well, okay, not everyone but the fact that we have two Wal-Marts and an Aldi's - which is even cheaper than Wal-Mart if you can believe it - says volumes more than people's buying habits. To him, compromising the quality of food and accepting all those fillers into your body all in the name of the all mighty lower price...doesn't strike him as wrong in any way.
In fact, just a few hours ago, when I went to our local grocery store with him and My mom and she had to get some linguine for dinner tonight my brother immediately pointed to the Food Club brand, whereas my mom was reaching for the brand she normally used, which was a higher quality and thus...more expensive. While I convinced my Mom to choose the latter a lady approached us and told my brother indirectly that the Food Club brand of linguine tasted pasty and the brand my mom was choosing was the better buy. I'd like to say I didn't fix my brother with a I told you so look but I did. Because all along I knew that just because there's that lower price that shines out across the rocky, treacherous waters of grocery store brands and competition, doesn't mean that when you follow that light you'll be brought safely to shore.
Where that came from I don't know, and if your mind links the image to the story I told above then kudos to you! You've partially tackled my sometimes odd mental images that come to me when I'm writing. Maybe someday I will too.
In closing, I hope you don't read this and think "So, Corrina looks down on anyone who buys cheap brands?" Of course I don't! I simply want people to look beyond the low price to what that food is really offering you. More often than not it's just that...a lower price. Anything else like nutritional value, healthy ingredients and less fillers are tossed over the shoulder and abandoned like a car that's run out of gas on the side of the road and never returned for. I guess you could tie this into the whole quality vs. quantity thing. Just the other day in Wal-Mart when I was shopping with my Mom she noticed a four pack of soda for only a dollar. Of course, when she relayed this to my brother he was ecstatic. I just rolled my eyes. I've never hemmed soda out of life, because frankly I know I don't have to say it, it's bad for you anyway you look at it. But every once in a while I'll break down and drink a can and yes, I do enjoy it but again! That whole guilt factor kicks in and I listen to its persistent, nagging voice in my head. What that voice is and where it comes from is anyone guess. Perhaps its that fitness-minded person within me that's been buried all these years and is still struggling to claw its way out. Or maybe it's just that voice we all have inside of us, whereas we stuff ourselves with Dorritos and ice cream is saying should you be eating these? until we either put down whatever we're eating or drown it out with the sound of chips crunching in your mouth.
Am I also then suggesting you read the label of everything you buy? Sure, why not? I've sure learned a hell of a lot by doing just that. After all, how would I have known that one of the most ubiquitous sugar-substitutes out there, High Fructose Corn Syrup, was nearly in everything I looked at? It's ridiculous really, how many times it's cropped up unsuspectingly. I've even taken offense when I've seen it on the label of my favorite crackers and cereal. And another irony of it is, is that had I not met Mary Ellen and subsequently learned about all of these unhealthy fillers and substitutes, I would be none the wiser and continue filling my body with stuff that doesn't have any right to be there. It's obvious manufacturers are pulling a fast one on clueless consumers, and its wrong. They're tantalizing them with lower prices while stabbing them in back with quality-compromised food.
Not to say that an educated consumer would automatically shy away from the cheaper brands just because they knew about these filler ingredients, but word spreads quickly as we all know, and I truly believe that a public who knows about the compromised quality of the supposedly justified purchases they're making by buying cheaper brands, wouldn't see it as justified anymore. I know I feel angered enough to write this much, even though when I first started this post I doubted the substance I would be able to put forth. Obviously I didn't have a problem with that!
The next time you're at Wal-Mart take it upon yourself to perform a cursory check of the label, and see for yourself if some or most of the ingredients are filler. Or perhaps take a closer look at some of the organic brands, even if the price sends a jolt of pain through your reasonable side. I realize the economy is bearing down on the lot of us, and those cheaper brands are looking more and more appealing but...just because the sticker price is good, doesn't mean the car is going to be the best one you've purchased. Make sure you know how much quality you're compromising in favor of quantity.
Making sacrifices to save a few dollars here and there never hurt anyone, and I'll admit, my family has the same mentality. The problem I have is...when we go into grocery stores with such a mindset we end up compromising our health because - as I'm sure it's no secret - the organic, and healthier food is invariably more expensive than say Great Value or Food Club.
Why the hell is this? Why would manufactures consciously make their food more expensive when they know its worlds better than the other brands on the shelf? Sure, you pay for quality but...should you have to pay more just to put healthy food on your table? When I see people buying the cheapest food they can buy, I cringe. Now, obviously everyone has a different economic status, budget and preferences and I've eaten my fair share of cheaper brands as well, I just think they - and my family as well - can do better! This is just my mentality but, when I bypass the organic, healthier brand in lieu of the cheaper, most often less healthier brand I feel guilty. Guilty for putting stuff into my body that's no good and packed with things that are even worse, guilty for not seeing the payout of buying that more expensive brand and compensating for that higher price in good health.
Because that's how it works isn't it? You pay the higher price for better food and in the long run find yourself free of all those incredulous additives cheap manufactures put in food and finally gain the mentality that yeah, I've paid for that higher price ten fold because I'm eating healthier. Of course, eating healthy is one step to the plateau of living a better life, another component is exercise. Whenever I hear that word I think of jogging, or running. Both of which I happen to like. This is going to sound like an excuse but I'll say it anyway. I've never actually gone jogging or running as part of an exercise plan, in fact I never really developed a plan at all. Not only do I not have anyone to jog with but, I live in the middle of the city. Which yes, some would view as an ideal place to jog but not me. With all of these things pitted against me I've turned to riding my bike. Last summer I rode it almost every day. Granted I view my bike as a piece of junk and it makes a clunking noise in 3rd gear...at least I'm getting some exercise!
Last night I went for a walk with my parents around our neighborhood. The nighttime air and chilled wind energized me. I've always said that running, jogging or walking in cold weather is a lot more effective than doing so in warmer weather. I find that mind set humorous because in general, my body wasn't built for the cold! When the 40+ weather rolled around sometime last week I gladly shed my jacket in favor of elbow-length sweaters. I could literally feel my bones sigh with relief. Of course, it's not over yet, but...let the fantasy last as long as possible for all of us.
See? I mention exercise and this is what happens! Luckily I caught myself before I completely derailed from the track I was initially on. Back to healthy food vs. cheap food. Am I saying that all cheap food is unhealthy? Definitely not, but I'm sure you've walked the aisles of Wal-Mart or whatever grocery store you have in your area and noticed a trend. Most food items and brands associated with organic principles or healthier ingredients have a higher price tacked onto them. It almost feels like you're being mocked for choosing the healthier food. As if all of Wal-Mart points a finger at you and says "I know you'll be lured in by that low price! So why don't you just pay it? Feed your family for next to nothing! Who cares if it's stuffed with preservatives and things you don't need?" I'll admit, I'm a label reader, but so is my Mom. It all started when I first began regularly volunteering at a horse rescue farm in Reedsville, which is a town roughly forty-five minutes away from where I live in Sheboygan.
The owner, Mary Ellen, eats all organic food and doesn't compromise on anything. Of course, she finds way to get such food on the cheap but here's the headline...she doesn't compromise the quality of the food by getting that low price! Wouldn't it be a dream for all of us to find that? I know I'd feel like I'd struck the equivalent of black gold like Jed in Beverly Hillbilly's. Every time I visit Target or Wal-Mart I find myself skimming the cheaper brands but am almost subconsciously pulled towards the healthier foods. Overtime as I started volunteering on Mary Ellen's farm her eating habits wore off on me. I began checking the labels of what I ate and found...the ingredients she warned about were in literally everything! Even in products you'd never think they'd be like canned pickles, ketchup and syrup. It was ridiculous. I became furious with the food industry for unnecessarily sticking these ingredients in food to act as cheap fillers. As if some foods aren't bad enough as they are.
Of course, this could lead to the whole watch what you eat mentality, which all of us should anyway. Now, obviously, some of us are more discerning than others when it comes to what sits on our plate every meal but, on some level or another, aren't we all concerned? I mean,whether or not you're an up bright an early, every day twenty mile jogger or the type of person who walking back and forth to your car or the fridge constitutes exercise, we're all conscious on some level as to what we eat, and how it affects us.
Take my brother for example, he takes after my Dad in the fact that - there's no way to put this nicely - he's overweight. Unlike my Dad, who keeps dropping the pounds, he seems hellbent on doing absolutely nothing about it. Of course, he'd much rather sit before his video games or drive around in his car than hop on his bike and join me for a ride. In fact, ever since he got his car little over a year ago, he's all but abandoned his bike in our garage. Now I'm hard pressed to get him to join me and often times end up riding alone, which suits me fine but, everyone likes some company now and then right? Anyway, my point of bringing this up is, roughly yesterday or a couple of days ago my brother was gripping on my Mom and I for buying the healthier, more expensive brands. His reason? The price, just like everyone else in Sheboygan. Well, okay, not everyone but the fact that we have two Wal-Marts and an Aldi's - which is even cheaper than Wal-Mart if you can believe it - says volumes more than people's buying habits. To him, compromising the quality of food and accepting all those fillers into your body all in the name of the all mighty lower price...doesn't strike him as wrong in any way.
In fact, just a few hours ago, when I went to our local grocery store with him and My mom and she had to get some linguine for dinner tonight my brother immediately pointed to the Food Club brand, whereas my mom was reaching for the brand she normally used, which was a higher quality and thus...more expensive. While I convinced my Mom to choose the latter a lady approached us and told my brother indirectly that the Food Club brand of linguine tasted pasty and the brand my mom was choosing was the better buy. I'd like to say I didn't fix my brother with a I told you so look but I did. Because all along I knew that just because there's that lower price that shines out across the rocky, treacherous waters of grocery store brands and competition, doesn't mean that when you follow that light you'll be brought safely to shore.
Where that came from I don't know, and if your mind links the image to the story I told above then kudos to you! You've partially tackled my sometimes odd mental images that come to me when I'm writing. Maybe someday I will too.
In closing, I hope you don't read this and think "So, Corrina looks down on anyone who buys cheap brands?" Of course I don't! I simply want people to look beyond the low price to what that food is really offering you. More often than not it's just that...a lower price. Anything else like nutritional value, healthy ingredients and less fillers are tossed over the shoulder and abandoned like a car that's run out of gas on the side of the road and never returned for. I guess you could tie this into the whole quality vs. quantity thing. Just the other day in Wal-Mart when I was shopping with my Mom she noticed a four pack of soda for only a dollar. Of course, when she relayed this to my brother he was ecstatic. I just rolled my eyes. I've never hemmed soda out of life, because frankly I know I don't have to say it, it's bad for you anyway you look at it. But every once in a while I'll break down and drink a can and yes, I do enjoy it but again! That whole guilt factor kicks in and I listen to its persistent, nagging voice in my head. What that voice is and where it comes from is anyone guess. Perhaps its that fitness-minded person within me that's been buried all these years and is still struggling to claw its way out. Or maybe it's just that voice we all have inside of us, whereas we stuff ourselves with Dorritos and ice cream is saying should you be eating these? until we either put down whatever we're eating or drown it out with the sound of chips crunching in your mouth.
Am I also then suggesting you read the label of everything you buy? Sure, why not? I've sure learned a hell of a lot by doing just that. After all, how would I have known that one of the most ubiquitous sugar-substitutes out there, High Fructose Corn Syrup, was nearly in everything I looked at? It's ridiculous really, how many times it's cropped up unsuspectingly. I've even taken offense when I've seen it on the label of my favorite crackers and cereal. And another irony of it is, is that had I not met Mary Ellen and subsequently learned about all of these unhealthy fillers and substitutes, I would be none the wiser and continue filling my body with stuff that doesn't have any right to be there. It's obvious manufacturers are pulling a fast one on clueless consumers, and its wrong. They're tantalizing them with lower prices while stabbing them in back with quality-compromised food.
Not to say that an educated consumer would automatically shy away from the cheaper brands just because they knew about these filler ingredients, but word spreads quickly as we all know, and I truly believe that a public who knows about the compromised quality of the supposedly justified purchases they're making by buying cheaper brands, wouldn't see it as justified anymore. I know I feel angered enough to write this much, even though when I first started this post I doubted the substance I would be able to put forth. Obviously I didn't have a problem with that!
The next time you're at Wal-Mart take it upon yourself to perform a cursory check of the label, and see for yourself if some or most of the ingredients are filler. Or perhaps take a closer look at some of the organic brands, even if the price sends a jolt of pain through your reasonable side. I realize the economy is bearing down on the lot of us, and those cheaper brands are looking more and more appealing but...just because the sticker price is good, doesn't mean the car is going to be the best one you've purchased. Make sure you know how much quality you're compromising in favor of quantity.
Wednesday, March 3, 2010
Things of Old
This blog post came to be after I had a conversation with my brother during the customary dish washing after supper. For all the house's I've grown up in we have never had a dishwasher.
The conversation started off innocently enough with me asking my brother who was the band that performed the song Hold On Loosely. You see, while waiting for my Mom to finish up in the post office I heard it come on the radio. As I've mentioned before I'm getting back into old rock music from the 70's to 90's. But apparently my question wasn't so innocent because my brother answered with "38 Special does it. Why you like that gay song anyway?"
Now I'm sure I don't have to say it, but in any family musical tastes are probably as varied as the choice of pizza toppings. And there's nothing wrong with that! It's just another thing that makes us unique as individuals. But it can also create friction can't it? Especially on a long road trip. In my family my brother listens to current rock music, rap and pop while I listen to 90's country and old rock and my parents? They listen to Christian music. I cured this clash of music with my iPod turns to full volume a long time ago but...there's still that inevitable time when your musical choices and someone else's meet a cross roads and one of you crashes into the other.
Getting back to my conversation with my brother, after I asked him why he thought the song was gay his response was "because it's old." Obviously that isn't much of an argument, hell I was about ready to give up myself! But I couldn't. Personally, I can't stand the stuff he listens to - I'll admit, I don't even know the name for it! - so why should he criticize my musical tastes? So I asked him...what's wrong with old songs? And he countered with that because I'm not old - I'll be twenty this month - I should listen to music from my time. Well apparently he didn't get the memo because most of the music that is from my time...is mass-marketed, media-flavored, substance-less junk. In fact, if it wasn't for a musical savior called Pandora, I wouldn't have stumbled upon the plethora of artists I've encountered over a years time. Artists are being buried alive beneath the high gloss and plastic covers of media-touted artists who are all flash on the outside but don't have anything to offer as far as talent. Ironic isn't it? Those with actual talent to speak of are shoved out of the limelight while less deserving artists are escorted on stage where they can bask in the glory. Whatever, I'm done trying to fix radio. You know what my fix is? Shut the damn thing off, that's what it is.
Anyway, I sort of derailed myself there but the trains on the right track now. So moving on! After I told my brother all this, at least the part of today's music - mainly country music - being substance-less, talentless garbage fed like rotten food to the birds he asked me why I like old music then. So I explained to him how the think the 90's was one of the most brilliant times in country music. Some of the greatest songs and artists were at their all time peak where they could sing hallelujah from the mountain tops and people would listen! Some of my favorite artists thrived in the 90's, before Nashville gouged its eyes out and reached down into the troughs of the talent pool and dug up the slime stuck to the bottom and called it talent. Although most of those artists have long ago faded like the once red siding on a barn now bleached to a silvery gray, I still remember them. Why? Because unlike most of the world - at least that's how it seems to me - has fallen prey to the old adage quantity over quality. Why? I know for a fact I'm not the only one still listening to old music, but sometimes it sure feels that way. Also, as I pointed out to my brother, it's not really that old. So what if most of the stuff on my iPod is as old as I am? It just goes to show how pathetic the music industry really is, when I have to dig that far back to find the good stuff.
I could talk all day about music, as I'm sure those of you who read my blog have come to realize. I'm still not sure why I have such a penchant to do so. Maybe there's some clandestine passion there that I only partially realize. Or maybe I have more frustration to vent than I realized!
Anyway, now that I've talked about music, how about something different? Just as I love old music, so do I names. Yes, you heard me right. I said old names. There is nothing I love more than creating a story and inserting character names such as Lorna, Elynor, Harriet, Marlene, Leland, Luella...etc. Maybe some would argue that my name is old itself, I know it's not exactly one of those you hear all the time. But I just like old names for their uniqueness factor. My brother, of course, pokes fun at this as well. In my defense, with all these Stephanie's, Brittany's, Meagan's and Madison's running around...don't you want something that stands out? Wouldn't you rather have a name like Tempest or Lenora than something that's everyday? Maybe it's just me with that mentality but, when I create a character in a story, I invariably make them have this one unique quality that sets them apart. It could be a name, a personality trait, a physical attribute...whatever. But names are something I've always been fascinated with. So just remember, years down the road, when you pick up a book and notice the character has a strange, old-fashioned name...I probably wrote it.
Lastly, and this will come as no surprise to those who have been reading my blog long enough or know me well enough...I absolutely love old houses! I'm not just talking those built in the 1920's, because to me those are vintage, not really old. The old I'm thinking about are houses built in the 16 to 1800's. Salem, Massachusetts has long been a vacation dream of mine. After I learned that Salem has the largest concentration of 17th century homes. I can't even fathom walking through a house that was built three hundred plus years ago! History would be so close in every room. If those houses could talk there would be worlds to write about.
And some old houses do talk! It's called their character. You know, the doors that stick in humidity, the floorboards that sag, the pipes that groan, the wavy windowpanes, the scuffed baseboards...and so on. They're the little things that make an old house unique. The way I see it, there would nothing more boring than owning a new - or relatively new - house where everything works right and nothing squeaks, groans, slopes, leans, sags, sticks or at least every once in a while malfunctions. For some ludicrous reason I brought up this topic with my brother. Why you ask? I don' t know. It wasn't like I was expecting to win him over. He of the modern style furniture and newer homes because they're not as much work.
Please! Not as much work? That's what makes an old house interesting! Sure they're a lot of work, you have to paint, seal, level, replace, tighten, repaint, reseal, re level...you get the idea. But to me that would be so much more interesting than living in a house where everything functions perfectly. Give me the drafty wooden windows, the cold, sagging floors, the wooden siding needing painting, the patched roof that leaks. Give it all to me! Whenever I stumble upon a blog in which a couple - or anyone really - is restoring the house they're currently living in I think to myself man! They're living the dream! I have long since harbored a very special place in my heart for abandoned homes and historic homes in need of repair. To me they're like homeless animals. They just need that special person to love them and take care of them! Every time I see a house in disrepair I feel a fierce longing inside. A yearning to strip the pain from the woodwork, to save the rotten siding, to bring life back into its blatantly empty rooms. It would be extremely fulfilling to me if I could restore a house back to its original grandeur because I don't see it as just a house, but in fact I see it an empty vessel waiting for time to return to its doorstep once again.
I know, I know, you can picture me can't you? Sitting on the porch of my dilapidated, old house, listening to old music, sitting on antique Victorian furniture, working on a story where the main character's name is Agnus - I actually have a story like that - with my '69 Mustang sitting in the driveway. Well you know what? I don't have any problem with that picture! Because that's exactly what I want. The things of old...are who I am. I always tell people I was born a decade too late.
Whether you share one or all of my passions for things of old, I'd like to hear your story! As always I enjoy reading comments. Thanks for reading!
The conversation started off innocently enough with me asking my brother who was the band that performed the song Hold On Loosely. You see, while waiting for my Mom to finish up in the post office I heard it come on the radio. As I've mentioned before I'm getting back into old rock music from the 70's to 90's. But apparently my question wasn't so innocent because my brother answered with "38 Special does it. Why you like that gay song anyway?"
Now I'm sure I don't have to say it, but in any family musical tastes are probably as varied as the choice of pizza toppings. And there's nothing wrong with that! It's just another thing that makes us unique as individuals. But it can also create friction can't it? Especially on a long road trip. In my family my brother listens to current rock music, rap and pop while I listen to 90's country and old rock and my parents? They listen to Christian music. I cured this clash of music with my iPod turns to full volume a long time ago but...there's still that inevitable time when your musical choices and someone else's meet a cross roads and one of you crashes into the other.
Getting back to my conversation with my brother, after I asked him why he thought the song was gay his response was "because it's old." Obviously that isn't much of an argument, hell I was about ready to give up myself! But I couldn't. Personally, I can't stand the stuff he listens to - I'll admit, I don't even know the name for it! - so why should he criticize my musical tastes? So I asked him...what's wrong with old songs? And he countered with that because I'm not old - I'll be twenty this month - I should listen to music from my time. Well apparently he didn't get the memo because most of the music that is from my time...is mass-marketed, media-flavored, substance-less junk. In fact, if it wasn't for a musical savior called Pandora, I wouldn't have stumbled upon the plethora of artists I've encountered over a years time. Artists are being buried alive beneath the high gloss and plastic covers of media-touted artists who are all flash on the outside but don't have anything to offer as far as talent. Ironic isn't it? Those with actual talent to speak of are shoved out of the limelight while less deserving artists are escorted on stage where they can bask in the glory. Whatever, I'm done trying to fix radio. You know what my fix is? Shut the damn thing off, that's what it is.
Anyway, I sort of derailed myself there but the trains on the right track now. So moving on! After I told my brother all this, at least the part of today's music - mainly country music - being substance-less, talentless garbage fed like rotten food to the birds he asked me why I like old music then. So I explained to him how the think the 90's was one of the most brilliant times in country music. Some of the greatest songs and artists were at their all time peak where they could sing hallelujah from the mountain tops and people would listen! Some of my favorite artists thrived in the 90's, before Nashville gouged its eyes out and reached down into the troughs of the talent pool and dug up the slime stuck to the bottom and called it talent. Although most of those artists have long ago faded like the once red siding on a barn now bleached to a silvery gray, I still remember them. Why? Because unlike most of the world - at least that's how it seems to me - has fallen prey to the old adage quantity over quality. Why? I know for a fact I'm not the only one still listening to old music, but sometimes it sure feels that way. Also, as I pointed out to my brother, it's not really that old. So what if most of the stuff on my iPod is as old as I am? It just goes to show how pathetic the music industry really is, when I have to dig that far back to find the good stuff.
I could talk all day about music, as I'm sure those of you who read my blog have come to realize. I'm still not sure why I have such a penchant to do so. Maybe there's some clandestine passion there that I only partially realize. Or maybe I have more frustration to vent than I realized!
Anyway, now that I've talked about music, how about something different? Just as I love old music, so do I names. Yes, you heard me right. I said old names. There is nothing I love more than creating a story and inserting character names such as Lorna, Elynor, Harriet, Marlene, Leland, Luella...etc. Maybe some would argue that my name is old itself, I know it's not exactly one of those you hear all the time. But I just like old names for their uniqueness factor. My brother, of course, pokes fun at this as well. In my defense, with all these Stephanie's, Brittany's, Meagan's and Madison's running around...don't you want something that stands out? Wouldn't you rather have a name like Tempest or Lenora than something that's everyday? Maybe it's just me with that mentality but, when I create a character in a story, I invariably make them have this one unique quality that sets them apart. It could be a name, a personality trait, a physical attribute...whatever. But names are something I've always been fascinated with. So just remember, years down the road, when you pick up a book and notice the character has a strange, old-fashioned name...I probably wrote it.
Lastly, and this will come as no surprise to those who have been reading my blog long enough or know me well enough...I absolutely love old houses! I'm not just talking those built in the 1920's, because to me those are vintage, not really old. The old I'm thinking about are houses built in the 16 to 1800's. Salem, Massachusetts has long been a vacation dream of mine. After I learned that Salem has the largest concentration of 17th century homes. I can't even fathom walking through a house that was built three hundred plus years ago! History would be so close in every room. If those houses could talk there would be worlds to write about.
And some old houses do talk! It's called their character. You know, the doors that stick in humidity, the floorboards that sag, the pipes that groan, the wavy windowpanes, the scuffed baseboards...and so on. They're the little things that make an old house unique. The way I see it, there would nothing more boring than owning a new - or relatively new - house where everything works right and nothing squeaks, groans, slopes, leans, sags, sticks or at least every once in a while malfunctions. For some ludicrous reason I brought up this topic with my brother. Why you ask? I don' t know. It wasn't like I was expecting to win him over. He of the modern style furniture and newer homes because they're not as much work.
Please! Not as much work? That's what makes an old house interesting! Sure they're a lot of work, you have to paint, seal, level, replace, tighten, repaint, reseal, re level...you get the idea. But to me that would be so much more interesting than living in a house where everything functions perfectly. Give me the drafty wooden windows, the cold, sagging floors, the wooden siding needing painting, the patched roof that leaks. Give it all to me! Whenever I stumble upon a blog in which a couple - or anyone really - is restoring the house they're currently living in I think to myself man! They're living the dream! I have long since harbored a very special place in my heart for abandoned homes and historic homes in need of repair. To me they're like homeless animals. They just need that special person to love them and take care of them! Every time I see a house in disrepair I feel a fierce longing inside. A yearning to strip the pain from the woodwork, to save the rotten siding, to bring life back into its blatantly empty rooms. It would be extremely fulfilling to me if I could restore a house back to its original grandeur because I don't see it as just a house, but in fact I see it an empty vessel waiting for time to return to its doorstep once again.
I know, I know, you can picture me can't you? Sitting on the porch of my dilapidated, old house, listening to old music, sitting on antique Victorian furniture, working on a story where the main character's name is Agnus - I actually have a story like that - with my '69 Mustang sitting in the driveway. Well you know what? I don't have any problem with that picture! Because that's exactly what I want. The things of old...are who I am. I always tell people I was born a decade too late.
Whether you share one or all of my passions for things of old, I'd like to hear your story! As always I enjoy reading comments. Thanks for reading!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)