KELSEY'S PAGE

Reminiscent of the summertime

Kelsey — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 00:43:52 +0000

I think there are two songs that really remind me of this past summer a lot. They are:

The Henney Buggy Band –Sufjan Stevens

Casimir Pulaski Day –Sufjan Stevens

I am not particularly sure why either of these songs brings back the summer so much. It’s not as though I listened to either of these excessively. In fact, I listened to Bon Iver’s Bon Iver a ton more times than I did either of these songs. Although I did really get into Sufjan for a while in the summer, I don’t quite think that’s it either.

Maybe it’s more the feelings that these songs bring me. The Henney Buggy Band makes me feel so carefree; I can just do whatever I want with great people pretty much anytime because that’s what the summer is for. You go have fun all the time, and this song just feels fun. This song just tells me, “Go out and be happy, because why shouldn’t you?” Casimir Pulaski Day strikes a different tone with me, though. Maybe this one reminds me so much of summer because there is a sort of wistful yet happy remembrance that accompanies it. It’s the kind of feeling you get when you are thinking back on memories that you are so very fond of, but that still make you tear up a little bit when you’re thinking about them right before you go to sleep.

I’m almost positive that this song should be subtitled “Yeah, I have an attitude, so deal with it.”

Kelsey — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 19:40:21 +0000

Re: Perspective Changes and Simplicity

Kelsey — Sun, 22 Jan 2012 22:17:10 +0000

Over the past week or so, my blog stats have dropped off the face of the earth. (Specifically, in the past 48 hours, I have had 2 blog views. Two (2). And none of them have been today.) Along with the mention to me (with particularly odd timing) of the fact that I haven’t posted in a while, I decided to quickly write up a post before I began my homework. This week has been somewhat life-changing; however, I will only talk about a couple of (somewhat) life-changing incidents.

Firstly, I watched an absolutely amazing movie this week. It is called Everything is Illuminated. And seriously, if you are reading this, you should go watch it right now. (It streams for free with Amazon Prime.) It was the perfect combination of comical and sentimental, fun and touching, knowing and not knowing. All around, a very well-done movie. I was seriously impressed and am now more inspired than ever to tell my family that I love them.

Secondly, I had an interesting experience the other day that kind of put life into a new perspective for me. This event sort of made me think about my priorities and what I maybe should be doing differently. I feel like it shouldn’t take some drastic event like this for me to make sure my priorities are straight, but I guess this was just a clear sign that I need to kick it into gear. My suggestion to any of my blog-readers is this: Take a minute and think about what’s important to you and what your ultimate goal is (I’m talking really long term here) and then just do a quick reality check to make sure the things you are doing align you with that goal. When you’re doing what you value most (again, extremely long term), everything else will fall into place. I feel blessed to be where I am today; however, be that as it may, there is always something I can work on, and now’s a better time than any to start working on those things.

So, please be grateful for the life you have. Oftentimes we take the simplicity of life for granted and it only takes a minor curve ball to upset us, but when it comes down to it, we’ve all been very blessed. Don’t forget that you have a lot going for you, and that you should do your best to maximize that potential at all times. Don’t let the simple beautiful everyday moments pass you by without notice. Those can be the most valuable. And, most of all, don’t forget to be happy about what you have. Good will always triumph in the end.

A most excellent decision

Kelsey — Tue, 10 Jan 2012 20:15:01 +0000

Sometimes, it’s the best thing ever to just go home for lunch. Today, I decided that I would work later rather than sooner and I came home. I ate my peanut butter & jam sandwich and drank some hot cocoa and ate a salted caramel with macadamia nuts. And then I just sat in the peaceful living room with Kouta or Shlohmo or Sufjan Stevens or Bon Iver playing quietly in the background. And I loved it.

Kelsey — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 01:00:04 +0000

Lately I have been questioning more and more my writing a blog. I’m not entirely sure why. I just feel like I have been blogging too much. Now don’t get me wrong, I love it. But I think that it’s just been a lot. So I’m not sure what to think/do. Should I put blogging on hold indefinitely? Should I continue my low-key short and rather pointless blog posts? Should I revamp my blogging completely? (I’m not even sure what that would entail.)

But anyway. If my blog is valuable to you, maybe you should tell me. If it’s invaluable, maybe you should also tell me. If you think I ought to stop, you should tell me that too. Or whatever.

[If I were in Iceland with only a rotary phone to sustain me technology-wise, I wouldn't be in this predicament.]

Kelsey — Mon, 02 Jan 2012 00:53:55 +0000

Last night I was listening to Svo Hljótt by Sigur Rós and I was reminded of how wonderful it would be to learn minimal Icelandic — just enough so I could pick up and move to Iceland for a few months, where the only technology I have is a rotary-dial phone and I could just ride my bicycle around the gorgeous countryside to my heart’s content with my newly found local friends.

Perfection.

Music?

Kelsey — Wed, 28 Dec 2011 04:24:03 +0000

You know, I’m not really feeling one of those “best of 2011″ lists at present, so we’ll just go with a “My Musical Year In Review.” Keep in mind while reading that my music taste surely goes through phases; deal with it. Also, I don’t dislike any of these now; however, they may or may not be in the present “phase.” So,

My Musical Year In Review: A Brief Sketch

Started the year out strong with a deep appreciation for The Morning Benders and Two Door Cinema Club. Probably toss some Beach House and Vampire Weekend in there too.
Enter Chromeo. Love that for a while. And Lo-Fi-Fnk.
Here we reach Arcade Fire. I was super stuck on these guys for a long time. Probably four months of undying AF love. [The concert was fantastic amid this love.]
During my Arcade Fire time, I also enjoyed greatly Owen Pallet (Final Fantasy), Jenny and Johnny, Fanfarlo, Miike Snow, Faded Paper Figures, Mumford & Sons, etc.
Hello, Sufjan Stevens. Def got some Sufjan love during the summer.
Welcome Bon Iver to the picture. Bought Bon Iver and was totally in love. Couldn’t stop listening to it for a month.
Add in some Donovan Frankenreiter and Radiohead here.
Now we get to the Europop phase: Yelle. Robyn. Need I say more?
Welcome to The Welcome Wagon. (punny.) On repeat all day every day for a while.
Here is Caribou. And Architecture in Helsinki.
Along comes Kye Kye.
Then we reach Youth Lagoon. Love it. Concert: so good.
Now I’ve hit Sigur Rós.

So I think I’ve got pretty much everything here. Now you can go listen to these kids, or not, whatever. Now I’m almost regretting writing this, because who’s even going to read this? But I guess that is the point of a blog, to write stuff, so whatevs. Maybe I’ll take up music blogging. Later.

Sometimes, I don’t know what my hair thinks it’s trying to look like

Kelsey — Thu, 22 Dec 2011 21:25:34 +0000

but I let it do its thing anyway.

Then there are the days when I want my hair to look like this:

Or like this:

Or, on more rare occasions, like this:

Because wouldn’t it just be cool to be able to do that?

If hair was magic, I would likely do this every other day:

But unfortunately, not everyone can have hair like this, so for now we’ll just leave it to Vic. Maybe someday I’ll rig it.

(I’ve got something going for European pop stars today. I don’t hold a candle to them. Unashamed.)

Heima means at home.

Kelsey — Sun, 18 Dec 2011 22:44:28 +0000

If there was only one good movie in the world, it would be Heima.

[In the summer of 2006, Sigur Rós returned home to play a series of free, unannounced concerts for the people of Iceland. This film documents their already legendary tour with intimate reflections from the band and a handful of new acoustic performances. (IMDb)]

I viewed Heima for my first time on Thursday. I was done for the semester, and we decided to watch Heima. I don’t think I’ve ever made such a good decision in my life.

Sigur Rós uplifts. I knew that already. You listen to Sigur Rós and you feel good about life. Heima was even more than that.

As I was watching Heima with some of my favorite people in the world (one loyal Sigur Rós lover and two Sigur Rós novices) and drinking wassail, I was filled with somewhat inexplicable joy. I watched these wonderful people playing wonderful music and just bettering the lives of so many people.

It made me want to go do good in the world.

I watched a record of these small-scale performances that everyone from young children to grandparents attended and enjoyed, and it just renewed my faith in humanity. There are good people out there who care about other people, who love their families and want simplicity in their lives.

(I won’t even mention how much it made me want to go live in Iceland for a while. Stunning scenery, people with beautiful hearts. What else do you need?)

And then you add in the fact that the members of the band are just good people too. They love their families and friends; they love playing music because they love music.

That sounds like the best life anyone could have.

I don’t doubt that there are some people who watch Heima and don’t have quite the same appreciation that I have found. (For example, my roommate: “Uhm, I liked the one with the violins [Starálfur] and the one with the people walking [Hoppípolla].” ) But for me, Heima was just that: home.

Eyeliner makes short hair cool.

Kelsey — Wed, 14 Dec 2011 19:14:50 +0000

And did I decide to somewhat rock the double wing today?

Yes, I did.

Maybe someday soon, I’ll bring back this look:

Regarding the makeup only, of course. Love Cyndi Lauper.