31 Oct
I wrote a column for the newspaper I work for that I am particularly proud of and I stand by my opinion whole heartedly. Check it out and keep it in mind when putting on your Halloween costumes this year!!!
Keep this in mind tonight and tomorrow LADIES (or men?): http://shortlink.info/?381c8799
4 Jun
Would anyone who has seen it be willing to submit a review of it?? I won’t be able to get to a movie theater until 10 days from now. Thoughts?? Thanks.
Alex
2 Jun
Jaime Thietten wins $5,000 Grand Prize voted on by her fans on OurStage.com
Check it out here.
(Picture coming soon, possible video!!)
Jaime’s Web site here.
She’s amazing. She’s like my 4th sister and a great friend of the family. I highly recommend her music. If you’re interested in buying a CD or video of “My Chance,” you can order one off her Web site or if you know me, ask me and I will try to get one for you (if you pay, of course). She’s been singing for 10 years and definitely deserves everything she is getting now. She’s been singing at some major churches inside St. Louis and was on a major radio station a few weeks back with my Mom!! Ugh. Amazing. I hope she goes far.
1 Jun
http://vids.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&videoid=58185785
I’ll try to get the actual video, so you don’t have to follow a link. Stay tuned, but there it is!!
22 May
Guest Reviewer
Cast of Glee, courtesy of Fox Flash
So, I realize that this show doesn’t really come out until this fall and that it’s not really fair to judge a show on the merits of just one episode, but when it’s the pilot episode and, more importantly, a pilot episode for a show that is being pimped out as hard-core as any show I’ve seen in the last ten years, I think those rules get chucked. Let me back up. For those of you that have some deathly fear that you are going to catch swine flu from the germs on the power button on your T.V. and remote control, the show I refer to is “Glee”, the new comedy from Fox. To start, I’ve got to admit that I’m a little confused as to Fox’s strategy here. I get the idea behind giving this pilot the money slot behind Part One of the American Idol finale. That is the recipe that made Fox’s other big new hit, “Lie to Me” as successful as it has been. I also get their plan to shove their promo for the show in your face on every channel, regardless of whether it is a part of Rupert Murdoch’s evil empire or not. It had just enough comedy to it to make you interested. Add to that a soundtrack that has everyone’s favorite Karaoke tune and Journey power-ballad “Don’t Stop Believing”. (Though, come to think of it, aren’t all of Journey’s hits power-ballads?) What I don’t get is the fact that they are going to put this out there, and then sit on it for a good 2-3 months before they do anything with it. Are the song rights that expensive that this show seemed like a financial risk? Maybe the Powers That Be just like to watch what happens with the bloggers and crappy reviewers like myself do with such fodder. But anyway, I digress. On to more pressing matters – namely, the show itself. As we open up, we are introduced to the key (or perhaps, off-key) players. For some reason, unbeknownst to me, every show or movie has to start with the cheerleading squad. Set to the backdrop of the squads super-peppy beats (note the hint of sarcasm?), we meet Will Schuester (Matthew Morrison). Judging by his car, which is dragging a muffler bad enough to catch the attention of any cop, and his longing look at some old dead fat lady’s picture in the school’s trophy case, it is made painfully apparent that Will’s life sucks. A lot. We also meet Finn (Cory Monteith) and his posse of football jocks picking on Kurt (Chris Colfer), who we get to know better down the road. Finn, we learn, either has an appreciation for mid-level fashion or a conscience when he allows the already-highly effeminate to take off his designer jacket before being pitched into the dumpster. By this time, we finally make our way into the school, where the head of the Glee club is inappropriately touching a student. We later find out that he is not above dealing out his medicinal marijuana, making him the paragon of morally upright behavior. Apparently, the script writers want to make it clear that only people that can be involved in the Glee club are either girls or gay. Let me just take this chance to state that I am trying to take a cheap shot at the homosexual community here. In fact, I feel like it is the total opposite. I think that perpetuating stereotypes of the homosexual community only leads to poor understanding and relations. Stereotypes like gay men’s undeniable attraction to show tunes, evidenced by Kurt’s rendition of “Mr. Celophane” from “Chicago”. Even when the characters are straight, they can only be so many degrees removed from someone who is gay. Like Tina, who sings about making out with another girl for her audition in “I Kissed a Girl”, or Rachel Berry (Lea Michele) who is the genetic creation of two gay men and serugates chosen specifically for their physical beauty and IQ. But enough with that rant. Because there is a vast ocean of stereotypes that “Glee” dives head-first into with reckless abandon. The most heavy-handed would have to be the general high school hierarchy. Between the constant berratement from the head of the “Cheerios” or her menacing pose with cheerleader cronies in tow as they watch the final number from some random scaffolding, it is made almost too clear that the cheerleaders are “The Enemy”. We also get the “silhouetted in the back of the auditorium” pose from Finn’s football buddy, Puck in the same scene, giving much of the same vibe. I am going to go out on a limb and say that somewhere down the road, it these writers are as into the stereotypes as this pilot suggests, we are going to see a
The Glee Club
“How can we help each other to bring them down” scene between the two powers. And that is unfortunate because if I wanted to see that, I would duct tape my eyelids open long enough to torture myself through a viewing of “High School Musical”. With all of these rants, you would think that there are no redeeming qualities for “Glee”, and if you leave this review thinking that, then I have done the show a disservice. You might actually crap yourself when you read this, but I actually am looking forward to the future episodes of this show. One reason, right off the bat, that this show is appealing is because of the broad spectrum of colors from the musical pallet that “Glee” lays at the viewer’s feet. You get everything from the Broadway standards like Chicago and Les Miserables to contemporary pop like Drunky McDrunkerson’s … I mean Amy Winehouse’s “Rehab” and rock classics like the aforementioned “Don’t Stop Believing” and REO Speedwagon’s “I Can’t Fight This Feeling”. And whoever is doing the arrangements for these songs to glee-ify them needs to be given whatever they damn well want, right down to the producer’s first born child. These songs sound fresh, alive and exciting coming out of the mouths of these high schoolers. From the commercial advertising the show’s return in the fall, we find out that they are even willing to take on Kanye West’s “Gold Digger” and other such oddities in the glee club circuit. Also, given the show’s apparent propensity for going with rock classics, the music promises to be the best part of the show. And there is redeeming quality in the acting and it comes in the person of Matthew Morrison. Everyone he interacts with, even the stereotypical high schoolers, all seem to go to a better place, artistically, when he interacts with them. And there is one point in the episode where his character has to make a pivotal decision (Don’t want to ruin too much for you). But in that moment, I truly believed that this group and the kids involved really meant something to him and the actor truly disappeared into the character. So let’s recap the score here. Steroetypes = bad. Matthew Morrison = good. Classic rock ballads = AMAZING! With a little more character development and a little less heavy-handedness in telling the audience who we should like and who we shouldn’t, this show might just be a hit.
For this and all of my reviews, I shall sign, Unfriendly Fool
19 May
So, I definitely have been having a great time while back in St. Louis for a brief spot of summer break. Why did I come home? Well, seems like the foot I had to have surgery on last September is still broken…screw intact, so I have to get a cast on Thursday. Oh well. Life will go on. BUT I have gone to a concert in the meantime and LOVED it and would like to share my experience with my loyal readers.
Who I saw::
Opening: Cory Chisel and the Wandering Sons — http://www.myspace.com/thewanderingsons
Headlining: Meiko –http://www.myspace.com/meiko
Overall sound:: Indie-rock, folk, acoustic heaven!
Venue:: Blueberry Hill Duck Room off Delmar in the Loop — St. Louis, MO
Concert rating: 5 out of 5 stars BY FAR
Thoughts::
If you want to listen to some good music, I HIGHLY recommend checking these two bands out. Corey Chisel and the Wandering Sons feature a male lead singer, but the definitely not overbearing female vocals in the background are phenomenal! You will NOT be disappointed. There is definitely a down-home folk-y sound to them, but when it comes to raw talent, they’ve got it and they deserve to be recognized.
Now, Meiko. She is a cross between a smart ass tomboy and the funny friend you keep around for cheap laughs. She was amazing at keeping the Duck Room focused on her. I’m pretty positive that she writes all her songs and she provided the stories behind them. I highly recommend “Boys with Girlfriends.” It pretty much depicts my life and all it’s insanity while I was in middle and high school…anyway. lol She encompasses the indie-rock genre to a T and she’s good at it. Her sound reminds me of a rougher/more bad ass Colbie Caillat and it’s definitely worth checking out. Her band is non-traditional with her on the acoustic, a really tall guy on the bass (not the guitar, the jazz-y one), a middle-aged man on the ukulele/keyboard and a drummer.
The concert itself was pretty amazing. It was my very FIRST 21+ show and I had a overly-strong Long Island Ice Tea that took me almost the whole, what, 3 hours, to drink it. Ew. I like the sugary drinks where you can barely tell the alcohol is added. My dad was the one who took me to dinner at Blueberry Hill and then wanted to see a live show afterward, so we ventured on down to the Duck Room and it wasn’t packed exactly, but there were quite a few people there. I think the two bands deserved more people to be there. They deserved a bigger venue. Shit, I would have seen them at the Pageant. Anyway, here’s a link to a video I took of Meiko singing “Under my Bed” http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bGFOOtxk5OM&feature=channel_page
I think you’ll like it, so check it out. 
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bGFOOtxk5OM&feature=channel_page
20 Apr
Sorry I’ve been slacking on the movie and entertainment news. End of the semesters usually leave college students’ pockets pretty dry, so as soon as the summer rolls around, I will get you all the goods! No worries. For now, you can visit another site that I constantly am updating:: http://unwrittenlettersproject.wordpress.com/
Submit a letter & enjoy.
Book I’m reading now: “Eclipse” — Stephenie Meyer
16 Apr
http://unwrittenlettersproject.wordpress.com/
Please visit the blog above to participate in the Unwritten Letters Project. It’s a way for everyone to come out with anything they’ve always wanted to say to someone, alive or deceased, but never had the chance or courage to say. SPEAK UP NOW. It’ll be like self-induced therapy.
Thanks,
-Alex-
9 Apr
Catchin' my dreamz
Every morning for the last week or so I have woken up and remembered almost every detail of my dream. I’ve had one about someone being pregnant, one about people dying, one about someone getting married and a few about me being in love. ALL in one week! It’s pretty intense. I have been waking up feeling the strong emotions I was feeling in the dream and it’s freaking me out. Usually you remember a dream vaguely in the morning and forget about it by the time you brush your teeth, but I could at least describe 5 to you right now if you asked, and I mean 5 that have happened in the last week, not in my entire life. We could be here for hours with that one.
I’m not complaining, though. I like dreams. I had a “falling” dream last night. I hate those. I can’t remember what someone told me those mean, but I don’t think it was anything good. Also, I have reoccurring dreams. I have a reoccurring nightmare that actually really scares me and makes me afraid to spend the night at my grandma’s house. I have dreams that I am running away from things or just running in general a lot. I always have dreams where I start running and can’t stop because of how amazing it feels. (That’s how I feel on the elliptical when I work out — I can go for like an hour+ because it’s awesome).
What are some of your thoughts on what I’ve said about dreams? Do you believe that you dream about the last thing you thought about before you fall asleep, what was bothering you most that day, what you’re most passionate about, who you miss, who you don’t miss, what you wish you could be doing/should be doing? Dreams are weird to me. I don’t understand how you can close your eyes, fall into a deep slumber and see pictures in your mind and not be considered crazy. haha. You know? Fascinating, really. Tell me what you think.
In other campus news: JoEllen Flannigan won Student Senate president.
Community news: ONLY 10 students voted in the city elections. Shame on you (& me). That really sucks, though. I’m voting more often.
National news: Somali pirates captured Americans today.
Movie news: Summer releases will be — Hugh Jackman prequel X-Men Origins: Wolverine, the Ben Stiller sequel Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian, the 3D animated threequel Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs, Hayden Panettiere’s new comedy I Love You, Beth Cooper and the adventure-comedy They Came From Upstairs, with Ashley Tisdale.
Robert Pattinson news: He’s still amazing!
Harry Potter News: One of the actors busted for drug use and possible growth!!
That’s it for now, check back later!
XoXo
- Alex -
