“Too Much and Not the Mood” by Durga Chew-Bose

I don’t usually read collections of essays, but this was recommended to me by a friend who showed me relatable passages, and there really isn’t a better word for this work. As a young female living in a city, it is inherently “relatable.”

Chew-Bose writes the way that I could wish that I could write, short, easily understood sentences, and yet it all seems very profound. Her thoughts weave between various related memories and shows a thread of interconnectedness through it all. She writes about hearts, about living alone, about being the daughter of immigrants, about being a daughter in general. She just seems to get it, it being contemporary life.

Most of her essays are rather short (the exception being the first one, which is 93 pages funnily enough) but I think the most memorable one is the one on sounds that she cannot forget. This includes passing sounds, like an athlete saying “practice,” and some more serious. It made me think of sounds that I cannot forget, because despite being a musician I actually have a hard time keeping sounds in my brain. The first note of “Day Tripper” maybe. Or a meme. Definitely nothing as cool and put together as what she has.

Really great memoir writers somehow find a way to make it not about themselves (because anyone can write about themselves). Here Chew-Bose finds a way to turn her writing on its head and make it all about the reader instead, which is quite a feat. In reading it you start to think about your life and your experiences, and how they relate to hers. It is a rare and heart opening experience indeed.

This Is Beautiful: Phone Calls

I know that no one these days likes to talk on the phone, but just hear me out on this one. The other day my friend called me up just because they were bored and wanted to talk. NO ONE DOES THAT ANYMORE it's all texting and messenger. Hearing someone else's voice is so important, you can pick up on emotion and emphasis and all of those crucial things that you misinterpret over text.

I think there's something beautiful about the human voice, that's why singing exists, heck that's why podcasts exist, there's something there that you can't get anywhere else and can hold a medium on its own. It's lovely and beautiful, and I wish we called each other more often. Not like marketing calls, but calling just to talk. We've lost that to text, and there's something there that we lost as well. I'm not sure what it is, but I challenge you this week to call someone, just to talk. See if you can understand what I mean.

“A Man Called Ove” by Fredrik Backman

Found this book through a local book club and thought that it looked interesting. It’s a real feel good story about an old man being ornery in his neighborhood in Sweden. As the book progresses we learn more about both his backstory and how a new family that just moved in fills his life again.

Ove is one of those characters where you kind of hate him at first, then are rather amused by him, then slowly learn to love him. He’s old and angry, but he accepts the immigrant woman across the street just fine. And he takes care of a boy thrown out of his father’s house for being gay (although he does insist on calling him “bent” instead of anything politically correct).

There isn’t a whole ton to this story, but the most interesting part I thought was the inclusion of color. We are repeatedly reminded that Ove’s wife Sonja was all of the color that he had. Yet when Ove meets the two little girls across the street, the three year old consistently draws him in vibrant colors, surrounded by black and white. I would say that colors here represent new beginnings, which is what Sonja gave to everyone she met, and what the family across the street is for Ove. Because his personality certainly hasn’t changed between then and now.

It's a quick read, and one that makes you smile. Would definitely recommend!

This Is Beautiful: Baking

There are many hobbies that I wish I had more free time to pursue, but one of my chief ones is baking! Cooking in general seems like a pretty sweet hobby to me because you get to eat what you make and eating is wonderful. And if you're good at it you can make tasty things and give them to your friends and it's a great time for everyone.

I've always been the sort of person who really only cooks because I have to eat, not because I enjoy it, and even then it's just a certain few recipes that I know really well by now. But we had a bake sale for this group that I'm in last weekend and it was nice to take some time out of my day to bake. Because it isn't that hard, you just follow the recipe, and it makes the place smell good and it looks good and you feel accomplished when you're done! It doesn't get much better than that.

So take some time out of your busy lives to bake a lil somethin somethin, I bet you'll enjoy it.

“Who’s in Charge?: Free Will and the Science of the Brain” by Michael S. Gazzaniga

I picked this up because I found a reference to Gazzaniga’s work in another neuroscience book that I was reading (I’ve been reading a lot of pop science books recently, in case you couldn’t tell). It seemed like Gazzaniga was getting to the heart of something that I had been feeling on my own for a while. Namely the conflict between free will and determinism. He takes this to the next level and examines its implications for the legal system as well. The argument that he is making in this work is that free will is an illusion, but we should still be held accountable for our actions.

The science behind this is spelled out incredibly clearly, I am not a quantum physicist, but I understood his discussion of those principles anyways. At odds here is neuroscience and how we make decisions before we are conscious of them (meaning that our brains construct a narrative after the fact to make sense of everything) versus physics principles like the uncertainty theorem (meaning that measuring one aspect of a subatomic particle influences other aspects, so you can never know everything about it accurately). Everything is pre-determined versus wiggle room. Where do our actions fall?

The heart of his argument lies in how our social interactions determine our actions. It may be impossible to determine who will do what accurately, but there are functions in the justice system that deter others from committing crimes. He examines all of the different functions of punishment (deterrence, rehabilitation, retribution) and comes to the conclusion that just because our lives may be predetermined, that does not mean that we should get rid of the justice system. Because our social interactions with it still have value through its intended purposes.

I thought this was a great discussion of the different arguments for these two views on life, and all explained incredibly well. I’m sure that as science progresses we will see whether he is correct or not (in fact, someone has probably already poked holes into his work) but for now I am fascinated by his thought process and ideas.

This Is Beautiful: Snow

Every kid knows that magical feeling where you wake up and there's a blanket of white all over everything outside. Despite the fact that I've lived in the northeast of the US my whole life I have never really lost that joy, that excitement, of seeing snow on the ground.

It just looks so pristine and full of possibilities out there. Snow that's been stomped all over definitely does not have the same quality that the even blanketing does. Even the air feels different, it's not so cold that it's frozen, just enough that you can feel it and it energizes you somehow. Not to mention the satisfying crunch that walking around outside makes from the boots and the snow being packed. Nothing else really makes a noise like that.

And then there's also the anticipation of playing in the snow and sledding and whatever, but just looking and being out in the snow? I could do that for days. It's gorgeous.

Variations on a Theme: Science

I mainly picked this theme because I am a scientist and wanted an excuse to look at science songs. Turns out that most songs about science are the same, it’s mostly that science explains a lot but can’t explain love and attraction yada yada. Or it’s silly songs about scientific concepts. So here’s a mix of both!

1. “Science is Real” by They Might Be Giants

How is this still relevant? Louder for the people in the back “SCIENCE IS REAL!”

2. “The Element Song” by Tom Lehrer

This is just silly, but here’s all of the elements of the periodic table in case you were curious.

3. “NaCl” by Kate and Anna McGariggle

The lyrics to this song are quite creative. Instead of using science to discuss human love, here they sing about the love between the two atoms within NaCl. It’s very cute, putting human emotions on the small particles of the universe.

4. “She Blinded Me With Science” by Thomas Dolby

Some good ol disco for you. It’s got a great beat for bopping your shoulders to, and it’s basically an anthem for any nerd who has tried to flirt and mostly confused the other person. SCIENCE!

5. “Science and Faith” by The Script

A classic example of the “science can’t explain love” trope. It contrasts science, where you only trust the facts, with faith, where you just have to believe sometimes. And that doesn’t mean that one is more real than the other! It’s also a good song, with a very singable melody and catchy chorus.

6. “Science Fiction” by the Arctic Monkeys

Fresh off of their most recent album, this is a bit of an odd song. I never quite feel like I “get” what it is. Which is an interesting sensation, usually you can place songs almost instantly. I think it’s worth a listen, and possibly a look at the lyrics.

7. “The Scientist” by Coldplay

Classic Coldplay, before they sold out and went to shit. I mostly remember everyone on American Idol performing this at some point, but it remains a good song and a good throwback. Again, it’s about a scientist trying to make sense of a relationship.

8. “Quantum Theory” by Jarvis Cocker

Here’s an interesting take on a scientific concept. No you won’t learn that much about quantum mechanics from it, but it’s got a good beat and the lingo it uses is accurate.

9. “Blinded by Science” by Foreigner

Hmm title is remarkably similar to an earlier song on the playlist… Similar theme here too funnily enough. Foreigner’s take on it though is less campy and less disco and more rock n roll.

10. The CRISPR/Cas-9 song by A Capella Science

This is probably my favorite science song. I just hope to someday make something this beautiful. CRISPR/Cas-9 technology rocked the genetics world when it dropped and it really hasn’t been the same since. The lyrics (a parody of “Mr. Sandman”) are genius and very accurate to what is actually happening, and the arrangement is beautiful. Show this to all of your science friends!

That’s all for this month folks! Stay tuned, next we will be covering Cover Songs! This will be an entire playlist of songs performed by people who did not originally put the song out! (I'm fascinated by covers, mainly because it pushes the boundaries of originality and brings up some cool questions, but this will just be fun songs to listen to.)

“Beyond Good and Evil” by Friedrich Nietzsche

For everyone, there will always be some writer or poet who articulates what they feel better than anyone else. It might be cliché, but for me that writer has always been Nietzsche. Reading The Birth of Tragedy during undergrad was an incredible experience, and even though I was not taking philosophy classes anymore, I wanted to try and dive into his later works.

Beyond Good and Evil is Nietzsche’s attempt to synthesize his worldview into a single volume. This is similar to Also Sprach Zarathustra but that volume was only comprehensible to those that knew the author well. This is his attempt to make a more layman-friendly version of his thoughts. I personally think that he succeeded, the volume is very readable for 19^th century philosophy. Sure there are parts you will want to reread and go back to later, but on the whole it is very amateur friendly.

Each of the nine sections covers a different aspect of Nietzsche’s thoughts on life. They seem independent, but actually build and grow on each other. Slightly different interpretations of the title are presented, but the main take away is that life is not black and white. There are actually many different shades of grey present. Similarly in morality there is no good and evil, only gradients thereof. This is what he means by “beyond good and evil,” these words do not actually exist in life. This means that some sections come of as contradictory since he is continually making conditional statements and examining different sides of arguments, but that is the point. Morality can be contradictory sometimes.

Obviously there are numerous things that date this work. His tedious comments on women for instance. I imagine that he would be appalled to find that many women in the 21^st century read and critique his work, which is the only redeeming factor that I can see. And other arguments that he makes about the mental state of Europe are a little odd, but I think that is more of an indication that I need to brush up on my history than anything else.

Nietzsche is still the philosopher for me. There are statements and arguments that he makes that resound within the depths of my brain, and getting this more holistic view of his later stages of thinking solidifies that, but also confirms that he was a product of his time. It is hard to sum up in a blog post the things that I adore about his work, but I think I will let you explore that on your own. He was a man ahead of his time, in many ways, but in others he is certainly a product of his times and demonstrates that remarkably well. If you are a fan of his philosophy, I would definitely pick this volume up.

This Is Beautiful: Thanksgiving

I live in the US and this past week was Thanksgiving for us. It's a great time, and one that reminds me every year the power of sharing a meal together. It's something that my Philosophy of Art professor would talk about all the time, there's something revolutionary in it. Taking what we pay money for and sharing it among everyone equally destroys these capitalist notions. It also shows compassion for others by taking care of the people around us. I don't know, there's something so powerful about it.

Hope you have something to be thankful for, whether or not you celebrated last week.

"The Secret Lives of Color" by Kassia St Clair

When you think of color, you think of the rainbow, color swaths, the color wheel, and all the various hues in between. You do not necessarily think of how these colors are made, or what the history behind the name is. In this book, St Clair does just that. She divides the rainbow into each of the basic colors (white, yellow, orange, red, green, blue, purple, brown, and black) and from there divides it further into the shades that she finds most interesting. Each entry could contain a variety of things from interesting stories about the color's use to the history behind our perception of this color to the chemical process required to make it. It is a really fascinating look at different cultures across time and space.

I loved the way that this book was structured, and how easy it was to read. Some installments did flow better than others, there were a few where I was reading the stories and had to go back and find the part that the color played in them. Which was annoying since the color is supposed to be the whole point, but I was never bored. There is also a great variety in the stories and colors presented, the author has clearly done a ton of work. There is even a list of further colors to look into if you are interested at the end!

I would highly recommend this for people who enjoy learning about the visual world, and the history behind it. This book combines chemistry, sociology, history, anthropology, and linguistics all together in its discussion, but presents it all in a user friendly way. A fascinating read, and a lot of fun too.

This Is Beautiful: Sunsets/Sunrises

Listen. I know it's overrated. But just make a minimal effort to see a sunset or a sunrise every once in a while. Don't do it all the time. Maybe once a week. But just try it out.

The sky really is gorgeous when the sun is near the horizon. Just the colors are amazing, but I find that even the streets and buildings look nicer at that time of day.

And I'm saying don't do it regularly because then it becomes a routine, and then you get jaded to it. I find it's nice to break up the monotony of life and take a moment to appreciate something that you don't usually see. Because I sure don't see the sunset every day, I'm usually working or stuck indoors. But to see if every once in a while and think "man life is amazing" is a beautiful thing.

"I Contain Multitudes" by Ed Yong

Started this book because people at work were reading it (I'm a working scientist) and thought that I would give it a go. It is wonderfully written, Yong has certainly done his research and knows how to communicate it. All of the stories are outlined with delightful stories that make them all accessible, even to non-scientists. There are even a ton of pictures to illustrate all of his stories!

The tagline to this book involves "a grader view of life" and Yong certainly delivers on that aspect of it. The way he describes it we are constantly covered in microbes, and coating everything we touch in clouds of it. We're like Pigpen from Peanuts, constantly exuding our own microbes everywhere. And the effects that these guys have on us is amazing, obviously they affect our digestive system but also our preferences for certain foods and have been shown to alter fly sexual activity. Where do we end and the microbes begin?

One thing that is probably important to mention is that not all microbes are bad, in fact many of them are very good for us. It is important to have a diverse microbiome, and in the age of hand sanitizer and antibiotics we are effectively killing off our microbiome. If we continue on this path, we will probably end up surrounded by bacteria resistant to antibiotics that ravage our bodies and the world. Yong calls for awareness of this, and to stop ourselves before this gets out of hand.

Probably the highest compliment that I can give this book is that it made me want to be a microbiologist. Reading this, you get the feeling that everything we do is caused by these tiny bacteria, and if we could only puzzle out what they are telling us then everything will be made clear. Obviously life is not really like that, but it is a testament to Yong's compelling writing that you feel that way as you read it. Whether you are an expert in the field or just an interested beginner, I don't think I can recommend this book enough! Hopefully Yong writes another book sometime soon.

This Is Beautiful: Birds

I just spent a weekend with a friend who has a bird, and these guys sure are fun! Very vocal and interesting to be around. He started yelling at 8 am, which is fine because I was already up, but as far as I can tell he doesn't need anything, he's just making noise. But not like unpleasant noise. And not exactly singing either. Honestly I think he's just talking.

Also the colors on him are gorgeous, this guy is white, grey, and some black which makes for a very pretty plumage. My friend has also got him trained to fly around the room to her hand when she has a treat, so it has been interesting being here and watching this. Something so small can move so fast!

So yeah, birds are great. Go see a bird.

“Behave: The Biology of Humans at Our Best and Worst” by Robert Sapolsky

This is a book that has been on my list for a while, and I am glad that I finally got around to reading it. Sapolsky’s writing style is very approachable, and he has included multiple appendices for those that need a quick recap on the basics of science. But you can also totally skip that if you want.

One of the aspects of this book that I liked the best was how the information was organized. Essentially, Sapolsky is looking backwards from the moment that an action has taken place. So the first section focuses on what happened seconds before, then minutes, then hours, then childhood, then culture, and so on. The radius of focus continually gets larger and larger throughout the book. It is a really great way to structure the information, since that also means that we move from the more concrete and accessible examples (as in hormones and the like) to the more abstract like cultural norms and childhood events. Each chapter investigates in depth what causes our actions and what influences our choices (if we have them, it gets philosophical towards the end as free will is discussed). This lends the information a logical flow and makes it readable.

Another aspect of this book that I really enjoyed was how Sapolsky includes all of the different viewpoints on a topic. In particular, a while ago I read Pinker’s The Better Angels of our Nature and really enjoyed it (post here). However, Sapolsky takes the time to really examine and present the critics of Pinker in order to show his limitations and points of controversy. As a result, I feel like I have a better understanding of both Pinker and Sapolsky. Many theories are given a similar treatment to show how little we still know about ourselves as species and our choices over time.

Having discussed all of that, there is an aspect of Sapolsky’s writing style that drives me up a friggin wall. He uses footnotes way too much and for objectively useless reasons. No joke, there’s a footnote that simply reads “I have no idea what this means” towards the end of one of the chapters. I get that he is trying to make his style more user-friendly and accessible no matter what your background is, but it is also annoying as hell when you have to continually break focus from the chapter to read an inane comment like that. Granted, not all of them are that irritating. Most are personal anecdotes that understandably do not contribute to the main passage. But still, so many of them are incredibly pointless and it irked me throughout the book.

So to summarize, this is a well thought-out book about science that could have been written better. It is still a fascinating read that synthesizes the available information well. Just do not expect too much from the author’s voice.

This is Beautiful: Fall Out Boy

You know what? Fall Out Boy is a great band for my generation because we grew up with them making rebellious music and they STILL deliver on the goods. 

Their latest album "M A  N   I    A" came out recently and I didn't get around to listening to it until about a week ago and that stuff is pretty solid man. They're still angry and yelling about things and somehow they manage to nail that perfect mix of retaining their original sound without every song sounding the same. I don't know how they do it.

Small high school me has fond memories of singing along to "Folie A Deux" and now adult me is digging their new records. Why can't every band do this? I bet that in 50 years or so Fall Out Boy will be the band of this generation, similar to Queen in the 80s or the Beatles in the 60s.

So give old or new Fall Out Boy a listen, they're great, all of their stuff's great, whether it's old or new.

“The Buried Giant” by Kazuo Ishiguro

I found this book through investigating what the local book club was reading, and it seemed interesting enough to add it to my list. But not interesting enough for me to get around to it right away, I think I had to leave it at the library like three times because I just could not be bothered to make the trip. I’m glad that I eventually did though, this is quite the interesting book.

The setting is a mythical spin on medieval England just after the fall of King Arthur. Ogres roam the land and a dragon prowls among the mountains. There’s also a buried giant, as you probably could have guessed. The Saxons and the Britons have been at odds but now is a time of relative peace. But something strange is going on with the people’s memories. It seems that they forget things at an alarming rate, but are unaware of doing so.

The main characters are Axl and Beatrice, an elderly couple from a Briton village. They decide to make a journey to their son’s village, since they haven’t seen him in years. Along the way they meet up with a Saxon warrior and his orphan boy, and an Arthurian knight tasked with slaying the dragon. Eventually an old monk reveals to them that the source of their forgetfulness is the dragon’s breath, it is she that causes the mist that covers their memories.

Meanwhile it comes to light that the old knight is not trying to slay the dragon, he is protecting her. King Arthur placed the dragon there with the help of Merlin to keep the peace. If the people cannot remember past wrongs, they have no reason to try and avenge them. This causes a dilemma for Axl and Beatrice, for they eventually want to journey to an island where one can wander around forever without meeting another person. However couples can walk arm in arm if their bond is strong enough. Beatrice worries though that if they cannot recall their past together, how can they prove that they love each other?

So this is much more than a whimsical fantasy story about the aftermath of King Arthur. It is also about how and why we love each other. Would we feel as though we love each other more if we couldn’t remember our past? Does that even count as love? How do we prove our love to other people if not through our memories?

Ultimately, the book ends with the dragon dying and characters realizing that there will now be conflict again. And that the buried giant must rise again now. For we do not live in a world where we cannot remember our past, outside of this book we face our past every day. Does this mean that we cannot love each other as fully with this knowledge of past wrongs?

I was also reminded of Watchmen quite a bit while reading this. King Arthur did not ask for anyone’s permission to cloud their memories. He did what he had to do to ensure peace would last. Naturally people would be upset to find out about this, because they never consented to that. But regardless, an entire generation grew up without war. Is that worth the price it took? It seems as though the book comes down lightly on the side that yes it was worth it. Axl believes that without this clouding of his memories, he wouldn’t have had the time required to forgive Beatrice for past mistakes. The knight sometimes contributes a chapter in his own stream-of-consciousness narration, wringing his hands about his past actions and asking what else he should have done.

What I think Ishiguro is trying to say is that yes we can remember past injustices, but it might be better to forget them. He highlights these benefits, without shying away from the wrongs committed, but the fact that the book is titled after the coming wars and not the lost memories seems very significant. It is as if he wants to warn us away from this rising giant by reminding us to forgive and forget. In all of our relationships there probably rests a buried giant that we do not want to rouse. And the best way to do that is to tiptoe around it quietly, and forget past actions.

Variations on a Theme: Outer Space

Excited for the space force? So am I. Listen to this playlist to get pumped for it!

1. “Ladies and Gentlemen We Are Floating in Space” by Spiritualized

This is a really interesting song. It starts as a round over Pachabel’s Canon, and I know that numerous artists have made fun of that, but this isn’t like the others. The Canon is very subtle, and there are instrumental lines that join in the round. Overall the effect is very psychedelic and smooth. Really glorious to listen to.

2. “Spaceman” by The Killers

Yeah a space playlist wouldn’t be complete without this. What I really enjoy is the song’s upbeat and peppy feel, so often we are saddened by looking at ourselves from afar, but this revels in it. It gets the sentiment that if we are so small, nothing we do matters, and therefore we can do whatever we want!

3. “Space Jam” by James Newton Howard

Space Jam is the best documentary out there. This song also spawned the meme of taking songs and mashing it with this one. There’s a list of the best ones here.

4. “Imperial March” by John Williams

Another classic, you can’t listen to this without thinking of space and sci-fi. Williams is a brilliant composer, and tunes like this that create such an atmosphere behind them demonstrate why.

5. “The Planets” by Holst

There’s a rule somewhere where if you are playing in a concert band you have to like Holst. This is basically the epitome of that. I know “Mars” and “Jupiter” fairly well by now, I’ve played in them multiple times. The others aren’t really practical for concert bands so they don’t get performed very often. “Neptune” though is really gorgeous (it involves a choir) so I would give that a listen. Apparently this was also the first piece to include a fade out at the end!

6. “Cecilia and the Satellite” by Andrew McMahon in the Wilderness

This is a gorgeous song, I think I heard somewhere that the lyrics are about the songwriter’s daughter. I’ve seen multiple people choreograph to it (one of them might have been me heh heh) because it has a great balance of melody and strong downbeats.

7. “Starman” by David Bowie

There was no way that I was not including this. This album was my first exposure to Bowie’s music, a very long time ago, and it still retains that mystical charm after all of these years. I can’t think about this song now without thinking of him and all the good that he brought into the world. I hope he’s waiting from the stars.

8. “The Commander Thinks Aloud” by The Long Winters

Ending on a bit of a downer here, this is a song about the Columbia shuttle crash. It was featured on an episode of the “Song Exploder” podcast if anyone’s interested in that. One of the most interesting bits that the artist shared on that podcast was how he repeats “the crew compartment’s breaking up” and it has this effect of becoming monotonous after 3 or 4 repeats, but then the meaning hits you all over again around the 8^th. Often he’ll start to cry during live performances at that point. I never think about the effect that artists are going for with repeats, and that was a really cool insight into what he was thinking with that. Sorry it’s a depressing end, but it’s a lovely song.

That’s it for this month, be on the lookout for next time, we’ll be covering SCIENCE!

This Is Beautiful: Mindfulness

I'm an overachiever. Or at least I try to be. That's why I always feel like I have to be working, have to be doing something, that's partly why this blog exists and these series posts exist. But I try to also make room for mindfulness.

Mindfulness to me can mean meditation, but it also just means stopping to smell the flowers and watch the world go by. Meditation helps with that, helps to make it easier to focus on your breath, but that's not all of it. It's also sometimes taking a second out of your busy day to reflect and think and observe.

The effects are really incredible, sure there's some science about it, but on a basic level I feel better when I'm more mindful. Less stressed, less rushed. There's something really beautiful about that.

“Games Wizards Play” by Diane Duane

This is a series that I hadn’t picked up in a while. I think I wrote about an earlier installment in this saga a while ago, but I haven’t touched anything by Duane since then. I don’t remember being thrilled with it, but this one made me remember just how much I love the series all over again. It made me strangely nostalgic for high school, seeing the close knit community that the characters have and how close they are with their families. And my high school experience was nothing like that!

This book centers around peacetime for the Wizards, or as peaceful as you can get. Every eleven years there’s a competition for young wizards, with only slightly older ones serving as their mentors. The idea is that you’ll learn more from someone close to your age. Nita, Kit, and Dairine all are nominated to serve as mentors to the next generation as they design spells and submit them to a competition. The winner works with the Planetary wizard for a year, which is quite the award since she’s the most powerful wizard on Earth.

What really struck me during this book was the intense amount of world building that Duane has done. To observe the competition, characters from all over come by, and they each reveal something new about themselves. Even characters that are mentioned in passing are usually revealed to be working on something new and exciting since the last time we saw them. And the main characters are continually having flashbacks to earlier memories that are so stunningly consistent with the way that I remember them. Of course, Duane has been doing this throughout the series, introducing something in passing in one book that then gets fleshed out in a later installment. It just never ceases to amaze me just how much information she has about this alternate reality that she has created.

There is also a greater amount of diversity introduced in this book. This series has always been diverse, with characters from different planets mentioned as much as people with different backgrounds, but this one seems to do that more than usual with its focus on Earth. Dairine’s mentee is Islamic, and Nita and Kit’s mentee is Chinese. One of the recurring characters is revealed to be gay, while another one is shown to be asexual. (Sidenote: as an asexual I appreciate this incredibly, representation matters to me so much. This character in particular is wonderful, one of her opening lines clarifies that it isn’t that she can’t have sex or hasn’t has sex, it’s that she doesn’t. And she very clearly isn’t aromantic as well, which is something that people easily confuse asexuality for. I love her and I love this.) The Planetary wizard for Earth has always been described as a woman with a baby at her hip, but the baby’s character is expanded on in this book, and revealed to have had leukemia. Imagine that: the most powerful wizard on Earth is a working mother with a sick baby! That’s incredible!

Duane is doing amazing things with the fantasy genre. We knew that from the beginning since Nita has always very firmly been the (female) main character, with relatable thoughts and ideas. But with this latest book she finally comes down to Earth and shows that all of the other humans are just as interesting as the mystical beings she creates from scratch.

This Is Beautiful: Opera

So I just got back from seeing "La Traviata" and I keep forgetting how gorgeous opera music is. People like to talk shit about it, and I get that there are definitely barriers and issues to it, but it is so powerful to listen to. Having the classical orchestra and impossibly high sopranos and smooth-as-silk tenors really captures emotions in a way that most musicals never could. And the entire show is set to music, giving you a pipeline into the character's thoughts at any given time.

Now I know that there are valid criticisms about opera. It has been historically something that rich snobs go to. It's in a different language. There are a slew of reasons to dislike it. But that doesn't mean we should write off the whole genre. Broadway wouldn't exist if it wasn't for opera, and so much other art is indebted to opera composers and other artists (ballet, forms of pop music, theater, etc.). If you have never heard any opera before, I would strongly consider giving it a chance. There is a lot of different opera out there, and somewhere there exists an opera that you are going to love.

“It Devours!” by Joseph Fink and Jeffery Cranor

Full confession: I’ve never listed to the “Welcome to Night Vale” podcast and this is actually my first exposure to the series. I think it’s amazing.

Night Vale is full of crazy stuff like vague yet menacing government agents, and helicopters circling the city. All of these descriptions are given in a completely serious tone, as though it is the most normal thing in the world for there to be someone farming invisible corn. Just the tone and the details themselves really draw you into the world and make you want to continue reading.

But there is much more to this story than that. This is about the interaction of religion and science, and about the limitations of both of them. In this day and age, we can often forget about how science does have limits, or how religion has numerous strengths to its name. I wish I could go into more detail, but that would completely spoil the ending.

Let’s just leave it at how the characters are super engaging, the world is quirky, and everything about it keeps you guessing and giggling. I would highly recommend this to anyone, and I think I’ll start listening to the podcast now, I wonder how it compares to the book.

This Is Beautiful: Community Bands

So I don't think I've mentioned this, but I am in a community band. Have been since I graduated. And it's wonderful honestly. I've been playing saxophone since middle school, and I definitely wanted to keep it as part of my life. I just wasn't sure how much of it I would be able to do outside of a school setting.

Then I found this wonderful group to play with, they have a concert band, swing band, and a marching band over the summer. And I just think that there's something so beautiful about a bunch of adults with day jobs coming together to make music. Because none of us are getting paid for this or are turning it into our career, we are all simply here because we like making music and it adds meaning to our lives.

Doing things just for the love of it is so underrated. People ooh and aah over the professionals, but I think it's the amateurs that need more love. They don't need to be doing what they're doing, they just want to learn and grow in a different way. And in my opinion everyone needs an outlet of some variety that they aren't getting paid to do. For me that's anything that lets me be more creative and create some form of art, specifically band mainly. I have a friend who designs t-shirts though, and another who is into pottery.

So support and fund your local community band. Go see their concerts, give them money. They are working their butts off to practice and put on these events, and they certainly don't have to be doing it. Go give them some love.

“Musicophilia: Tales of Music and the Brain” by Oliver Sacks

This book is pretty much exactly as advertised. Each chapter is a small tale about music and the brain, usually about what happens when things go wrong with the brain and its effect on music. Which leads into insights about how we perceive music while healthy as well.

As someone who loves both music and science, there was a lot that I really enjoyed about this. However, I will say that there are chapters where Sacks does not really explain what the name of the affliction is. He’ll just continue on about the effect of dystonia or whatever on his patient assuming that you know what that means. There are other chapters (like the one on William’s syndrome) where he does an excellent job of explaining what is happening biologically, but it is inconsistent.

Similarly, possibly because each chapter can function independently, I had a hard time pinning down his voice and tone throughout the book. As a result I wasn’t sure whether I liked it or not, which made the whole work rather disjointed.

Having said that, this is a really interesting overview of how little we really understand about ourselves and the effect that art has on us biologically. Scientists tend to get bogged down into exactly what molecule is doing what, which is so hard to pin down when it comes to something as pervasive as music. Hopefully the coming years will reveal new insights into this, because I find it all fascinating.

This Is Beautiful: Fire Spinning

When I was in college, I was part of a circus club. We had some acrobats and things like that, but it mostly consisted of prop manipulation. And a big part of that is lighting your prop on fire and spinning it.

Of course there are plenty of regulations to follow, you need proper fuel, toys, safety, everything. But nothing quite compares to that feeling of holding and controlling an enormous ball of fire. You feel strong, powerful. There's nothing like it in the world.

I recently went back to my old college to see some friends of mine spin fire, and it's so much fun to watch. The patterns that you can make with light and even sound (fire is very loud) are gorgeous. But I miss spinning it myself.

If you don't know what this looks like, just google it. You'll find some really cool videos! And remember that if you want to try it out yourself, do so in a safe manner, there have been some really bad accidents in the past.

“Mountains Beyond Mountains” by Tracy Kidder

At first I thought that this book was a work of fiction. It seemed incredible to me that someone like Dr. Paul Farmer could actually exist in real life. To be honest the best way to sum his character up comes up rather late in the book, he lived his life as it should be lived, but not the way we all ought to live.

Farmer essentially dedicated his life to the Haitian poor and treating them against all odds. He has a family but rarely sees them, he spends so much time travelling. Splitting his time between treating everyone in Haiti and seeing bigwigs to make policy decisions, he barely has time to sleep and eat. However he has an incredible passion for the work, that much is evident.

Kidder chronicles everything from Farmer’s early years and schooling into founding Partners in Health and all of his attempts to treat tuberculosis and AIDS. Despite his aging years, I’m willing to bet that he has more energy than me. He strongly believes in treating everyone correctly, and damn the price and the consequences.

Like I said, I hardly believed that this was a real person. I’d strongly recommend this book to anyone wanting to go into medicine, again because this is an example of what we should all be doing. This is the standard that we will be comparing ourselves to, and an impossible one at that. But it’s important, since we have to choose what battle we want to be fighting, and here is an example of someone who fought with an incredible amount of gusto and heart.

This Is Beautiful: The Birth of Tragedy

Now I knew pretty early on that I wanted to take philosophy classes during college. I had been a philosophy nut from pretty early on, stemming out on my interest in religion but continuing beyond that. I ended up minoring in the philosophy of art, but I didn't choose that until I read this work by Friedrich Nietzsche.

Something about it spoke to my soul, I felt as though he was articulating something that I could feel intimately but was incapable of putting into words. It was the same sort of feeling that I got when I read "The Lovesong of J. Alfred Prufrock" for the first time. Honestly I think most of my journey through reading is just looking for that feeling to hit once again.

This was also how I fell in love with Nietzsche in general. For those who don't know anything about his life, he essentially studied classics and the history of Ancient Greece until he wrote this book. And then "The Birth of Tragedy" drops and it has very little to do with actual history, it's mostly speculative, and talks a lot about German art and where it is going. So after that he was mostly seen as a philosopher who was also kind of an artsy guy. He was friends with Wagner and wrote music and poetry on the side (if I remember correctly Wagner never cared for his musical compositions haha). He had a break with Wagner after hearing his Ring cycle and reacting in a way that I think can be summed up as: WHAT ON EARTH WAS THAT (which is what a normal person should say in response to the Ring cycle). Eventually he died after seeing someone beat a horse in the middle of the street and throwing himself on the horse to save it. After that he went completely mad and died soon after. After his death his sister tried to take all of his works and make them more Nazi-like, but I think that idea has mostly died out now.

I've always kind of seen Nietzsche as this ultimate idealist. He died protecting a horse for starters. And his split with Wagner has always seemed "death of innocence" like to me. But that's probably me projecting. Point is that I like Nietzsche as a person (besides the fact that he hated women, which is why this post is only about "The Birth of Tragedy").

So to get into the actual work, this is about how in Ancient Greece there were two forces at play in art. There's the Apollonian which is very stately art, usually takes the form of poetry or statues. And there's the Dionysian, which is a drunken revelry of alcohol and food and orgies that cause you to lose your individuality and lose yourself in the masses. Unsurprisingly he elaborates more on the Dionysian because that is much more interesting. The idea is that the Dionysian man has seen into the very reality of the world, and in order to cope with it, he has to partake in these celebrations of mortality or be lost to despair.

The ultimate culmination of these two art forms together was in Ancient Greek tragedies. But this was not to last. Because then plays started popping up that reveled in individual suffering and killed the way that the Dionysian erased the individual. He talks smack about these plays for a very long time.

But there's hope, Nietszche believes, because German music and German culture will soon rise again. He believes that Wagner is the man to do this, and his book stops there. But we all know that in the end Wagner does no such thing, at least to Nietszche, so it is a bittersweet ending.

As you can imagine, there is plenty more in the book about the Dionysian man and Nietzsche's thoughts on music in general. I would highly encourage checking it out, it is wonderfully written and communicates some very important ideas, in my opinion.

Variations on a Theme: Film Scores

This month is film scores! I often think that these get overlooked as just something to listen to while studying or something, but the way that the composer takes the images and emotions on screen and translates them into music can be incredibly powerful. And it’s difficult, like taking the choreography from a dance and finding a song to fit it. The best ones are a seamless part of the finished movie and heighten the action in a way that is truly in a league of their own.

1. "How to Train Your Dragon" by John Powell

This movie has probably my favorite music that I’ve seen so far. The composer uses instruments that clearly set you in the land of the Vikings, such as bagpipes, to set the scene. During more emotional moments, the orchestration is a perfect representation of this. Take “Forbidden Friendship,” the scene where Hiccup and Toothless become pals. The melody starts so uncertain, but then builds and intensifies until the final moment where they settle into their relationship, and then it stops. Wonderful expression of getting to know someone.

2. "The Imitation Game" by Alexandre Desplat

The music for this movie I thought deserved so much more recognition than it got. The opening music in particular is very well written. It begins delicately, but also has a more mechanical undertone to reflect the movie’s focus on machines and cracking their codes. It also lightens up when Turing (the main character) sees a similar young boy/nerd, giving a great insight into his character. Throughout the whole movie, the music serves as a wonderful insight into the characters’ thoughts and feelings.

3. "Watchmen" by Tyler Bates

People can talk shit about this movie all that they want, I think it’s spectacular. The music situates you perfectly in the 80s right from that opening sequence with “The Times They Are A Changin’” by Bob Dylan. And that grounding stays there all through it with the certain instruments that are used, think synths, and the style, think big rock songs. It serves to place the viewer in this alternate reality that can be so hard to grasp at times.

4. "Sherlock Holmes" by Hans Zimmer

I thoroughly enjoyed the Sherlock Holmes movies. And the music is also incredible. Again it serves to immerse you in the world of 19^th century England by using primarily folk instruments like fiddles and accordions to conjure up a bustling world of the past. There’s a primary theme that runs through most of the songs, connecting them, but it goes through so many changes and permutations that it can hardly be noticed at points.

5. "Blues Brothers" by Ira Newborn

Another one of my favorite movies, this is a hilarious musical romp featuring several great actors. As you can probably tell from the title, the music is all blues and jazz, making it so wonderful. It’s also full of classics, making this movie still relevant in today’s day and age.

6. "Mishima" by Phillip Glass

This movie is about a Japanese author turned revolutionary. It alternates between his life and scenes from his most famous works. Phillip Glass did all of the music, and it masterfully navigates between the worlds of his books and 20^th century Japan. Wonderfully mesmerizing, it really brings you into the movie and doesn’t let you leave.

7. "Cloud Atlas" by Tom Tykwer, Johnny Klimek, Reinhold Heil

Finishing it out here with my favorite movie, “Cloud Atlas.” This movie is based on a book of the same name, and features 6 different story lines from different points in history that all interweave based on themes and character archetypes. Music also plays a heavy role in it as the group is referred to as a “sextet.” The composer here did not disappoint, the music is gorgeous and graceful. The main theme is often heard at piano recitals, in fact. There’s also an orchestrated sextet version that is just as lovely. Could not recommend this more.

So that’s all for this month, stay tuned for the next installment which is Outer Space!

Individualism and the Music World

Taking a rare break from all of these book reviews, recently I have been thinking about music and who is assigned the credit for a great work. In classical music, we tend to assign the credit to the composer. Which is completely opposite from the pop world where we credit the performer. Why is there this discrepancy?

I think this difference has to do with individualism. Especially in the United States and Western world in general, we have this idea subconsciously in our heads that most endeavors are piloted by a single individual. This individual has the idea, follows it through, and then is deserving of our praise. But that is not how most projects work. Most are a product of many people, each with different inputs, working together as a team.

Now think of music. When we want to credit someone for a work of art, we want it to be the most immediate person to the work. Therefore we default to the artist, the one who made it happen. For music that defaults to the performer, the person closest to the work. Which is what we see in pop music.

Then switch to classical. The problem here is that most classical works are done by a large symphony, a group composed of over 50 musicians usually. Way too many for our individual praise. There’s the conductor, the musicians, the soloists, who to pick? So it goes to the category that usually has a single name next to it. The composer. Our individualist minds cannot handle more than one name, so we look for that one.

Now obviously there’s some problems with this argument, but I think I am correct in saying that this plays a role in it. For more discussion on this idea though, I’d recommend checking out the podcast “Hi-Phi Nation,” there’s an episode that deals with this question, although it goes in a different direction than what I did here.

This Is Beautiful: Steven Universe

This is the next installment in the This is Beautiful series. This is where I talk about something that I think is beautiful and is helping to bring meaning into the world. And this week goes to the children's tv show from Cartoon Network, Steven Universe.

What I love the most about this show is how sincere it is. Steven knows next to nothing about his mom and the show chronicles what he's learning about her as he grows. Which involves discovering that she wasn't perfect and made some critical mistakes. But Steven never descends into despair or gives up on himself and his friends. Each time he comes up against a challenge he comes at it with friendship and love on his side. It also never goes so far as to become hokey, somehow it hits the sweet spot where it still deals with the loss of meaning in the world and affirms the aspects of it that can give meaning.

If I can be a bit of an annoying philosophy wank for a moment, I have a whole analysis of the show. It's a bit of a crack theory. But it's part of why I love the show. I think through a certain reading you could see Steven's mom as essentially his source of meaning, or his god. He sees his purpose in the Crystal Gems determined by his mother's previous role in the group. He also literally has a piece of her inside him. She created him and then left. Somehow sounds a lot like a god to me. And so the series is about Steven dealing with the death of his god. (Which makes it a pretty postmodern work really.)

And time and time again Steven confirms that even after the death of meaning we need to rely on the force of love and friendship. Another aspect of the show that I love is how many different kinds of love there are represented. There are passionate, realistic romantic relationships (see the wedding episode) but there is also Steven's relationship with Connie, an equally passionate friendship. And of course there's all of the maternal love that the Gems feel for Steven.

Honestly I can't think of a better show for anyone (kids or adults) to be watching. It affirms and describes realistic, loving relationships, all while dealing with the death of meaning. I get a kick out of it, and so should you.

“Invisibles” by David Zweig

Invisibles is a book about the people whose work you never see, never hear about, never read about, until something goes wrong. It’s not about those whose work never gets any attention, like the working class, rather it’s about professionals who become more invisible the better that they do their job. This includes a simultaneous interpreter for the UN, a fact checker for a magazine, the piano tuner for an orchestra, and a wayfinder for an airport, among others.

Unsurprisingly, all of these professions have several personality traits in common. All invisibles share the same three traits: ambivalence to recognition, devotion to meticulousness, and a savoring of responsibility. They are team players who sense of achievement lies in a job well done and the recognition of others rather than themselves.

In this day and age, everyone is trying to promote themselves and gain attention from the anonymous masses on the internet. The invisibles are a breath of fresh air after all of that, they choose to be and remain hidden from the spotlight. And to be honest, they seem happier for all of that. Zweig goes through how society regards invisibles and what we can learn from them throughout the book, and his commentary is invaluable.

Maybe we’d all be happier if we were more like the invisibles. Maybe we’d share more success. Who knows, but I think that I’ll be trying to incorporate their ideals into my life now as well.

This Is Beautiful: The World Ends With You

I discuss this game pretty heavily in these two blog posts, so this will mostly be an update on those. Just go back and read those first, I don't want to reiterate everything that's there.

So we are finally getting a kinda sorta sequel to TWEWY as a version is coming out for the Nintendo Switch this fall. I just pre-ordered it haha. And I can't really say how much this means to me, that we're getting another go at the game.

Back in middle school when I played this for the first time, it really affected me. It's message of reaching out to others and the philosophical undertones present and the humor found some part of me to latch on to, and it's been there ever since. I replayed it several times since then, and it's just as relevant as it was then.

I don't know why, I rarely get into video games this much. But the fact that the game is coming back as I am now an adult fills me with hope. Sometimes I feel as though I have lost track of the me just after playing the game who was so filled with the promise of getting to know others and expanding her world. That enthusiasm for life seems kind of far right now.

We're apparently being given a special ending with this new game, and while I have no idea what that entails, I'm just excited for new content. This game, from the graphics to the music, is really beautiful to me, and I'm just pumped to revisit it.

“Cutting for Stone” by Abraham Verghese

This is one of those classic books that people who want to go into medicine read. I honestly thought that I would hate it. But it is so much more than simply a narrative demonstrating the power of medicine and doctors and whatever. However, it has one tragic flaw, which I find difficult to overlook. I’ll get to that eventually, since there is a lot about this book that I really do love.

The book opens with the tale of a nun, Sister Mary Joseph Praise. She’s travelling to Africa with another one of her fellow sisters when she meets Dr. Thomas Stone. But where the plot actually thickens is when the two of them are working together in a hospital. That is, until Sister Mary is discovered pregnant with twins and dies in childbirth.

Stone is so astonished by this (by the way, no one has any idea how she got pregnant, but they all assume that the father is Stone) that he leaves and returns to America. The twins are cared for by Hema, the hospital’s gynecologist, and Ghosh, its internal medicine jack-of-all-trades. The twins are named Marion and Shiva, and they are born connected by a cord attached to their heads. Even though this cord is severed, they insist on sleeping with their heads touching for years, and even afterwards share a special connection. They aren’t two people, they’re one ShivaMarion.

The story of their lives is interwoven with Ethiopia and its political revolution, as well as with Genet, the girl who is raised in the same household. Marion falls madly in love with her, despite numerous rebuffs, and they end up nearly destroying each other. Because of her, Marion travels to New York and there runs into many figures from his past. In the end he returns to Ethiopia, but this time it is to stay.

Genet is where this story has its fatal flaw. She finds him in New York, and the night that she spends there ends with Marion having rough sex with her as she asks him to stop. Let me make one thing perfectly clear: THIS IS RAPE. This is not acceptable. Excusing this as revenge because she ruined his life or something is not okay and not allowed. Portraying everything as being Genet’s fault and taking the blame off of Marion, the guy raping someone because she didn’t wait for him as kids or something, is not something I can condone or agree with. I can’t state this enough: this is RAPE and this is NOT OKAY.

So it isn’t just a story about medicine. It’s also about love, and what we owe each other as humans and as family. It’s about travelling halfway around the world only to find what you grew up with. It’s about how love saves, but also kills. WHY DOES IT NEED THAT RAPE SCENE THEN IT’S SO UNNECESSARY.

Verghese is a masterful storyteller. All of his characters are so well written and fleshed out, even the minor ones practically jump off of the page. At the back of the book, within the “Acknowledgements” section, he reveals where he got much of his inspiration from. Not many authors do that, I kind of wish that they would now. I just really wish that he had the sense to know what consent it, and how to go about that.

Sex isn’t revenge. Sex isn’t something that you owe someone. Sex isn’t something that you can take, it is either given willingly or not at all. Nothing excuses forcing someone to have sex with you if they aren’t enthusiastically saying “yes! This is what I want.” Because of that one scene the rest of the book is just a little ruined for me, which is really too bad because I loved it other than that. We need books that demonstrate healthy relationships and don’t excuse this bullshit anymore, there’s enough of that in real life.

This is Beautiful: The Lovesong of J. Alfred Prufock

We're going to start something new this week.

So recently I've just been feeling down about all of the cynicism present in art and in the world in general. It just feels like no one is genuine anymore about what they think and what they feel, and while I think that you can get a valuable critique from being a cynic, I think that being earnest and being genuine also has it's place as well.

During my senior year of undergrad I took a Philosophy of Art and Aesthetics course, which was a great choice on my part. And every class would start with one of the students presenting something that they thought was beautiful and a short piece on why they thought it was beautiful. I thought that was the best, here's a piece of time carved out just for talking about something that's gorgeous and makes life better.

And that's what I'm going to be doing here, once a week I will be presenting something that I think is beautiful. And there's going to be no judgment, no need to defend it, no need to bring in philosophical arguments (but I may bring some in), just something beautiful and how it's keeping me going. Eventually I might expand and bring in other people's opinions on what it beautiful, but for now it's just me.

For this first installment in "This is Beautiful" is the poem that affected me a lot as a high schooler. It was the first time that I read something and really felt that it got me and my life on a profound level, and I've just been chasing that since then. And the poem is: "The Lovesong of J. Alfred Prufrock" by T.S. Eliot, which you can read here.

There's a couple different reasons why I fell head over heels in love with this poem. First of all, there's the rhyming of it. Each line flows easily into the next, I never felt like I was struggling to get through it (unlike many other poems from English class).

Then there's that kicker of a line "Do I dare/Disturb the universe?" which is at the heart of the meaning of the poem. Essentially Prufrock is scared to alter anything about his life, so scared that he does nothing, and in the end dies unfulfilled. If I had to pick one greatest fear that I had, it would be that. I'm terrified that I'll die and realize that I should have changed this, I should have done that. At the same time, I'm so scared of making any change. I'm nervous about what people will think, I'm concerned about my abilities. So I live with these two fears over me, constantly trying to strive above them and make a change in my life without having it be so radical that I upend my life.

I too sometimes wish that I was "a pair of ragged claws" so that I wouldn't have to deal with this. I'm not some prophet or attendant lord, I'm right at the intersection where I can see the option of change but I don't think I'm capable of it. It's maddening! I cannot "swell a progress, start a scene or two" when I am just a fool!

But then you grow old. And eventually die. Everyone does. And you can either do it knowing that you tried your hardest to carve a life that was "worth it, after all" or not.

So this is really a cautionary tale of what not to do. But the dilemma is so personal and nails it so well, down to the "it is impossible to say just what I mean!" line that probably every teen can relate to. I reread it when I'm sad, to remind myself that there is beauty out there, and that all I need to do is simple. I just have to screw up my courage and disturb the universe. It's as easy and as hard as that.

I'm hoping to continue this series on a weekly basis, so expect another "This is Beautiful" post next Wednesday!

“Selected Poems” by Frank O’Hara, edited by Mark Ford

I don’t usually read poetry, as you have probably noticed if you read this blog. But Frank O’Hara seemed different. His poetry seemed more alive, and more relatable than some others. He used simple words and phrases instead of the grandiose ones that pretentious poets seem to favor. So I thought that I’d check out his works with this anthology of poems.

The poems are all laid out in chronological order, pulling from all of his different collections. There is also some prose at the end, of O’Hara talking about his poems and his writings. There’s also a play, “Try! Try!”, that O’Hara wrote in with the poems which is interesting. All in all, it looks like a great selection of his work across his career.

O’Hara’s work is vibrant, as he later describes it, it is poetry that is between two people instead of between the poet and a sheet of paper. He writes a lot about his sexuality, there is even a poem titled “Homosexuality” in the book! My favorite is probably “Meditations in an Emergency” that contains a great passage about how he can’t enjoy anything green without knowing that there is a city nearby where people do not regret life. Because that’s what he’s writing about: people and life!

Reading poetry was nice for a change, especially with a poet that captures what he’s feeling so simply and vibrantly. I should look into his other works, maybe one of his original publications instead of just an anthology.

Variations on a Theme: Show Tunes

This month we are looking at show tunes! And since there are a lot of shows with tunes out there, this is heavily skewed to ones that I like, and therefore heavily skewed towards Cole Porter and the Gershwins. I tried to throw in a couple more obscure ones that I like as well, and didn’t pull twice from the same show. Start snappin your fingers and tappin your toes!

1. "I've Got Rhythm" from "Crazy For You" by George and Ira Gershwin

This is classic Gershwin, about love and about dancing at the same time. It’s the big dance number from “Crazy For You” which is why it goes on for so long, that’s all tap dancing. The beat is simply irresistible!

2. "Electricity" from "Billy Elliot" by Elton John

The musical “Billy Elliot” tells the story of a young working class boy who wants to become a dancer. The music is all done by Elton John, and I think it’s superb. This song comes at a part of the show when Billy is sitting for an interview, and the interviewer asks him why he dances. I just think that it captures so well the feeling of losing yourself in art, and why artists have to create, no matter what form of art it is.

3. "I’ve Got You Under My Skin" from "Born to Dance" by Cole Porter

This is such a good Cole Porter tune. It has been covered by everyone from Frank Sinatra to the Four Seasons. The lyrics are catchy, but at the same time get at the essential feeling of infatuation and having someone “under your skin” as it were.

4. "I'm Not That Smart" from "The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee" by William Finn

This is another contemporary musical, centered around a group of kids at a spelling bee. This song is sung by a student who isn’t the smartest, just happens to be good at spelling. His character is so innocent and endearing, while so amusing, that his song is one of my favorites from the show.

5. "Accident Waiting to Happen" from "The Drowsy Chaperone" by Lisa Lambert and Greg Morrison

“The Drowsy Chaperone” is basically what you would get if you made my life into a musical. It’s about this older man who loves jazzy musicals. He puts on a record of his favorite (“The Drowsy Chaperone” of course) and it comes to life on stage! It pokes fun of all of the tropes, from the dancing gangsters to the deus ex machina at the end. This song is sung by the leading man of the show, while blindfolded on roller skates. It’s very relatable.

6. "Nice Work if You Can Get It" from "A Damsel in Distress" by George and Ira Gershwin

This is one of my favorite Gershwin tunes, been covered by Frank Sinatra, Billie Holliday, a whole ton of people. I’m surprised that it isn’t more well known. It recently was the title of a new Broadway musical that took Gershwin songs from all different shows and put them to a different plot. Anyways, this song is great because it riffs off of the whole love being better than money idea by comparing dating to a job. Which has strange capitalist themes, but I’m ignoring that and focusing on how cute the song is.

7. "All I Ask Of You" from "The Phantom of the Opera" by Andrew Lloyd Weber

To be honest, I really don’t care for Andrew Lloyd Weber as a composer. He composes as though he’s throwing darts at a music staff, there’s no logic to his melody. And half of his songs sound the same (see: “Evita” everything sounds like freaking “Don’t Cry For Me Argentina”). Having said all that, there is a soft spot in my heart for this song. It’s simple, it’s melodic, and it sums up caring for someone very well.

8. “Hello, Dolly!” from “Hello, Dolly!” by Jerry Herman

Ah yes this is a classic show tune. Probably best known for the Louie Armstrong version. This show in general seems to be able to put a smile on anyone’s face, with its earnest characters. I enjoy the title track so much because that’s what we all want, to walk into a room and have other people greet us and say that this is where we belong.

9. "One Day More" from "Les Miserables" by Claude-Michel Schonberg

It’s the penultimate track, therefore it is time to bust this number out! “One Day More” is the song before intermission for “Les Mis” so it’s quite the show-stopper. All of the characters come together to sing about how the next day is going to change their lives. Which I think is a really cool theme to link them all. There’s a lot of overlapping melodies and counter-melodies, I just find it fun to try and pick them apart and recognize which characters are which.

10. "Blow Gabriel Blow" from "Anything Goes!" by Cole Porter

And we will end with one of my favorite musicals, “Anything Goes!” This is a classic Cole Porter show, but it has been revived multiple times with slightly different songs and plots. However, no body dares to touch this song. It’s sung by an evangelist nightclub entertainer (I find it hilarious that no one in the show finds that combination odd) and the whole cast gets whipped up into a frenzy. It’s just so fun!

That’s all we got this week for a very specific subset of show tunes, haha! Next month we will be having fun with Film Scores so stay tuned for that!

“The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August” by Claire North

I didn’t expect to like this book. The premise of it is that Harry August lives, dies, and is born again in exactly the same manner, life after life. He remembers all of the information that he learned in his past lives, including the people he met and the facts he learned. In fact, there’s a whole group of people like this, organized into the Cronus Club to take care of each other.

Now most stories that deal with this reincarnation type thing just go through all of the different paths this person’s life can take. At some point they assassinate Hitler. And all that jazz. This story is different.

A child one life comes to Harry as he is dying, saying that the world is ending (as it always does) but it has started ending sooner. And there’s only one possible explanation: another person who keeps reliving their life is affecting the course of history. So Harry starts to hunt them down.

The narrative structure in this book does take some getting used to. It’s not in chronological order, but presents anecdotes from Harry’s lives as they become relevant, and so it bops around from his third live to his seventh to his fourteenth quite a bit. I quite enjoyed it really, it’s all through Harry’s perspective so it all makes perfect sense, but if you want a chronological order you will be disappointed.

One aspect of this book that I absolutely loved though was how it portrayed intimate relationships. All of the closest relationships in this book are friendships. Sure they could turn into romances occasionally, but none of the characters have delusions that anyone is their true love. Those that reincarnate rarely seek out the same partner in the next life that they live.

Possibly the closest relationship in the book could better be described as a rivalry. These two characters are so in sync on a mental level, pushing each other intellectually to new heights. But in the end they end up on different sides of their consciences, and that sets them against each other. Numerous times in the narrative though they insist how much they like and care for each other despite this, which makes it so interesting to watch them destroy each other.

This story was definitely not what I was expecting, with a quirky narration and an unconventional story. North is clearly a wonderful storyteller, with great ideas to write about as well as how to portray them. I look forward to checking out her other works as well.

“Thinking, Fast and Slow” by Daniel Kahneman

This book combines psychology and economics in really interesting ways. Kahneman is a psychologist by training, and he talks you through all of his experiments. He also gives questions to the reader, so you can judge your own reaction, before explaining what is going on. The main question here is “do people have good intuitive statistical reasoning?” You probably won’t be surprised to hear that the answer is “uh no, we definitely don’t make rational statistical decisions.”

Kahneman starts by introducing the two systems at play here, what he calls System 1 and System 2. System 1 makes quick judgements and doesn’t like thinking, while System 2 ponders questions and weighs the options. System 2 also makes up arguments for the decisions that System 1 makes. Of course, there is no biological aspect to these, it’s just shorthand for how we think. Since System 1 is quick and System 2 is slower, here is where the title comes from.

From these observations on our thought processes, Kahneman broadens his view to various applications within economics and otherwise. He demonstrates that we often don’t make rational decisions and are instead drawn to whatever seems appealing in the moment. For example, we rarely choose options worded as a “loss” instead of a “gain” regardless of the numbers.

Overall this was a great read. Kahneman explains everything clearly and illustrates all of his points with examples or stories of when he made similarly bad decisions. He also ends every chapter with examples of how to use these concepts more conversationally, since his goal here is to change our casual conversations so that we are more aware of our shortcomings. Because another aspect of humans is that we tend to think that statistics apply to other people and not to us, but that’s really not true. And if we are more aware of our natural shortcomings, maybe we can get better at avoiding these pitfalls and make better decisions.

“Wishful Drinking” by Carrie Fisher

Despite the fact that Carrie Fisher is my princess/general/ruler, I have never actually read anything that she’s written. Mostly because I feel like it would have just made me sad that she deserved so much more from life than what she got.

Having said that, this book is full of sad happenings, but also humor and hilarity. It takes a certain type of person to live a life like hers and still find everything funny. It was also based on her “Wishful Drinking” show, a kind of standup that Fisher performed. So it ends up being very entertaining to read.

It is also very important to understand mental illness and the stigma that goes along with it. Celebrities like Fisher talking candidly about being bipolar and having addiction problems definitely helps, that way it is less of a taboo secret and more just another aspect of someone’s life. I can’t believe how long it has been since this was written, and yet there is still such a pervasive stigma about mental health.

Carrie Fisher, you were my queen and I’m so sorry about what you went through. But if it results in great works like this book, then I guess I won’t be too sad about it. I’m going to watch “Star Wars” and cry now.

“The Book of Human Emotions” by Tiffany Watt Smith

I first came across this author through her recent TED Talk on emotions. I was so fascinated by it that I decided to read the book as well!

Smith’s argument is that emotions vary across time and across cultures, therefore there are no basic emotions that we all universally feel. We are so much more complex than that. This book is not an attempt to categorize all of the emotions, but merely to highlight a select number of them and provide context for them. There are all of the major emotions like love, anger, and happiness, but also obscure ones such as ambiguphobia (the fear of being unclear) or l‘appel du vide (French for “the call of the void”). It’s a fascinating look at our psychology.

I absolutely loved the format of this book, the emotions are arranged alphabetically, with short essays about each one. Depending on the emotion, Smith will explain its etymology and history and how its meaning has changed over time. For example, people used to die of nostalgia. Soldiers would be flown back home when they caught a bout of it, to avoid an untimely fate. However, that ended at the beginning of the 20^th century, and no one has died of it since.

Smith also has a lot of fun with this, a great example is how the entry for “exasperation” redirects to “frustration.” “Frustration” then sends you back to “exasperation” creating a perfect example of the two emotions, as well as highlighting Smith’s sense of humor.

Truly, this book left me wanting only more information on what we feel and how that is determined. Which is great because she leaves you with plenty of suggestions for further reading at the end. I hope she continues to write about emotions as well though, I thoroughly enjoyed this book!

“Origin” by Dan Brown

Let me just start off by saying that I have a love/hate relationship with Dan Brown’s novels. He has so many cool ideas in them, and I love the intersection of religion and art and science that he is exploring. However, all of his female characters are shit. Langdon is like the nerd James Bond, he gets a new female partner every damn book and then just discards her at the end of it. And most of the time the female sidekick is a damsel in distress or some trope like that. Ugh.

Having said that, I’m going to keep this post about the ideas explored in this book. To be honest, I didn’t love this one as much as his other novels. It felt as though there was less of a mystery here, not as many codes and plots to be solved. The main mystery is what Langdon’s friend was going to claim about mankind’s origins and where we are headed as a species. Spoiler incoming.

Now the origins of humanity are simple, he designs a computer program to simulate the primordial soul and figures it out. No God involved. That’s fine. It’s a book, he can do whatever he wants, I’ll let the computer and physics geeks debate the reality of that.

His second claim is more interesting. He claims that eventually humans will be overtaken as the dominant species on Earth, and that we will be merged with another, equally powerful species. This species is, of course, technology.

I have several problems with this. First of all, technology cannot really be called a “species.” It’s not alive. It doesn’t breed. If it does, it’s because a human programmed it to be like that. AI is what we make of it, no more no less. It doesn’t count on a basic level as a form of life.

And then there’s the idea that it’ll merge with humanity. I mean… yeah of course that’s going to happen. That’s been happening since mankind first developed tools! Studies show that your brain reacts more to a tool that you’re holding than your hand when you are using it. We have already merged with our technology, many people have pacemakers or artificial limbs or other forms of tech inside of them. A significant percentage of the population wouldn’t be alive without modern medicine and science. This concept is really rather obvious. Man and tools have been linked for millennia, this is nothing new.

Finally there’s the plot itself and what it says about technology. There’s a supercomputer named Winston who orchestrates its master’s death because it believes that his master would have wanted that. (He was dying from cancer anyways.) I’m really not a fan of this. If someone could build a supercomputer that can create art and think logically rather similar to a human, then you could also program a computer to have limits to how far it will go, or to not do shit like this without explicit permission. It’s rather easy, this is just fueling the AI paranoia that is so in fashion these days.

There’s also the religious ramifications of these claims that man was created without a God. This book very much so sets up the two forces at odds with each other, saying that you must choose one. I wish that a combination was more explored here, since both have their benefits. What with Winston causing several deaths in the book, it looks as though Brown thinks that we will end up on the side of science. But that same science will become our undoing. Which I disagree with on a couple different levels, as illustrated above.

But as Langdon says in the book, “dialogue is always more important than consensus.” Brown is using this story to raise awareness for several ideas, and to get his readers thinking about the various ramifications of it. I personally don’t love all his ideas about the future (I think I agree more with Homo Deus which I discuss here) but he is still creating a discussion and forcing us to think about it. Which is always a noble endeavor.

Variations on a Theme: Classical Saxophone Pieces

Classical saxophone is a genre that is near and dear to my heart, but no one else seems to know that it exists! Lets give a little love to one of the lesser used classical instrument, because music on a well-played saxophone is gorgeous.

1. “Aria” by Eugene Bozza

This is a gorgeous piece of music. Written similarly to a vocal aria, it really lets the sax sing through the melodic line. Bozza clearly knew the instrument well because it is perfectly suited to the range and sounds beautiful.

2. "Rhapsody for Saxophone and Orchestra" by Claude Debussy

Debussy is best known for his piano works, but there are several pieces (such as this one) that he wrote for full orchestra with featured instruments. As part of the impressionist movement in music, the piece is more contemplative with some odd dissonance thrown in for color.

3. "Sonata for Alto Saxophone and Piano" by Paul Creston

This is a well known piece among classical saxophonists for being part of like every audition ever. Having said that, it is still a wonderfully surprising piece. The first movement is very exciting and technically difficult, but the second is a beautiful break right in the middle. The third then lights up the gas and brings the whole thing home. Stay through until the very end, you won’t regret it.

4. "Piece Breve for Solo Saxophone" by Eugene Bozza

Once again, Bozza shows that he really knows the sax. This piece goes all through its range of notes crazily, then bursts out with a melody that continually comes back through the chaos. I love this piece, it’s exciting but also melodic. A ton of fun to listen to.

5. "Alto Saxophone Concerto in Eb" by Alexander Glazunov

This is another quintessential saxophone piece with orchestra known for being part of auditions. It has the best of everything packed in there, from soaring melodies to incredibly fast sections. I just remember one part where when I played it I had to get it fast enough to do it all on one breath because it was impossible otherwise. It’s so fun to listen to though when you don’t have to play it.

6. "Concertino da Camera" by Jacques Ibert

I have always had a soft spot for this piece. I think it’s a lot of fun technically, and with some very catchy melodies. It tends to get left behind the others though.

7. “Saxema” by Rudy Wiedoeft

Wiefoeft is an interesting guy in that he was a very early saxophone player. He actually played the C melody saxophone, which is no longer in use, and usually just gets approximated to alto. His works usually hang out in that grey area between classical and jazz, and as a result they are just so much fun to play and listen to. Be sure to check out some of his other songs, he tends to really push the boundaries of what the saxophone can do, just because he was one of the first to play it professionally!

And that’s all we got for you this month with classical saxophone! Be sure to check back next month for a playlist on SHOW TUNES! Let's sing along to our favorite musicals!