I haven't posted anything on here for a while. One thing that this journal hasn't had enough of is my lovely girlfriend Connie. We've been going out for about a year and a half now and I love her. A lot.

But yeah, I guess I'm no longer the angst, depressed and overly cynical kid I was once. I'm actually pretty happy.

I love you Connie.

K thx bai.

I awake Monday morning at 7 a.m, dust covering my body and hair slick with grease. I have school in an hour. I attempt to compose myself as well as I can to prepare for seven hours of concentration, something I had not done in a while. I had just gotten home from The Echo Project the previous night; three days of music, environmental awareness, and above all, lack of any form of concentration.

For everything who is not aware, the Echo Project was an outdoor music festival held from October 12 to 14 for the first time in Fairburn, Georgia. The purpose was to promote more eco-friendly ways of living through camping out, cleaning up around oneself, and enjoying nature, but it seems to me that it accomplished exactly the opposite. Picture it for a second: Thousands of music-lovers flocking across the Southeast to spend three days doing absolutely nothing but eating, drinking, and listening to music. I am sorry to make it clear, but that does not have an eco-friendly ring to it at all.

That is beside the point, though. Being in its infancy, The Echo Project was incredibly successful at being a great place to relax and indulge in musical pleasures. The crowds were not too large, the temperature was not too extreme (except the first night; it was downright freezing), and a there was plethora of musical talent. Imagine, if you will, being able to listen to the throbbing beats of Common at one stage and then turning around to experience the “folk-punk” of the Avett Brothers at another. From the Flaming Lips to Cypress Hill to Perpetual Groove, there was definitely no lack of musical diversity to speak of.

Although it was only the first year of operation, there was always something to see and do. With three main stages, I was always able to find a show that interested me. Vendors selling various goods were aplenty, and the food was not overly expensive, something that saved my group, as we only brought snack foods to eat for three days. One concern I did have was the safety of the porta-potties, however. Sure, they may look docile, but I assume that you have probably not seen one explode. After seeing one emanate a cloud of noxious green gas following a large bang, I was certain to steer clear from these for the remainder of the festival.

Beyond the festivities, the Echo Project contained a wide variety of cultures and characters to interact with. From the free-spirited, dreadlocked hippies to the more conservative frat boys, people of all walks of life were there. I was unable to venture far without being approached by any number of individuals, and I was always astonished at the level of friendliness that radiated there. It truly felt as if everyone was united in his or her cause to enjoy a superb time (and maybe save the environment or whatever).

Aside from the somewhat questionable purpose of the Echo Project, I would definitely say that it was a success. The organizers of the festival hope that it will gain enough distinction over the years to fit with the ranks of other, more prominent events, such as Bonnaroo and Lollapalooza. The Echo Project is guaranteed to run for the next two years at the same time, same place. So pack up your sleeping bags and tents for the musical extravaganza next year and please, for the love of your stomach, bring more than just Cheez-its and Doritos to subsist on.

Theater lights dim and the projectors begin rolling. On screen, a lone man sits on a desolate beach in contemplation and begins singing the Beatles classic, “Girl.” I sit still for a minute, basking in the melodic rays emanating from the theater’s sound system, but I’m confused. “Wait, is this a musical?” I turn and ask my sister. She turns towards me and simply responds, “Yes,” quickly returning to the film at hand.

But wait– I normally despise musicals. No offense to all you drama kids out there, but all the singing and dancing can be a little ridiculous. “Across the Universe” is a musical, yes, but it is also much more than that. It is a creative concoction of psychedelic images and effects, lively choreography and superb acting. It is a testament to an entire generation of American youth and their struggle for recognition. Most importantly, it is an ambitious ode to the forerunners of this entire counter-culture movement: The Beatles.

From the very start, the not-so-subtle references start to flow. We are introduced to protagonists, Jude (Jim Strurgess), a hard-working Liverpool man who bears a strange resemblance to Paul McCartney, and Lucy (Evan Rachel Wood), a well-off American girl. Though a combination of luck and chance, Lucy and Jude meet one another in the U.S and get involved.

In between musical numbers, which are covers of The Beatles material performed by the cast, Jude and Lucy journey through this turbulent era of America’s history, along with their companions Maxwell (Joe Anderson), Sadie (Dana Fuchs), Jo-Jo (Martin Luther McCoy) and Prudence (T.V. Carpio). While the events and people portrayed in the film are probably not up to historians’ standards, they at least succeed in putting the characters into their setting. A thin love story is veiled across this tumultuous decade, making for an intriguing, if somewhat clichéd plot.

Although there are flaws in her storytelling, director Julie Taymor does an incredible job using The Beatles’ music to its full potential. The melodic pop songs of McCartney are balanced with the more introspective ones of Lennon, making for a constant shift of the film’s mood. The musical numbers do far more than determine the mood of the film, however, as they are a major factor in progressing the storyline.

The musical movements are also used in some very clever ways, such as “I Want You” being performed by Uncle Sam as Max is drafted into the army. Montage sequences like this one accompany many of the numbers, adding a highly energetic and visually engrossing dimension to the film. The most incredible and memorable moments are those that juxtapose the lyrics of songs and the actions of the characters into one seamless piece.

Coming from a Beatles-obsessed family and being named after one of the frontrunners of the band, I can whole-heartedly say that I am a fan of their music. For me, this connection with their music is quite close, being borderline spiritual. So, I may have a small bias when considering the true nature of this film. In my eyes, “Across the Universe” definitely succeeds in reproducing The Beatles’ varied creative spirit and the capturing the energy of this era, even though it is somewhat flawed. Beatles fanatics will no doubt revel in the majesty that is this film, and everyone else should give “Across the Universe” a chance.

After four deliberating years, Radiohead have finally released a new album, titled “In Rainbows.” Although much of the gloomy sound from previous albums is retained, this release has a far more melodic, lighthearted feel to it. For example, gritty beats are juxtaposed with children’s cheers in the album’s explosive opener, “15 Step.” Radiohead songs are well known for being quite poignant, and this album contains no surprises with the beautiful “Nude” and “Faust Arp”. The best part about “In Rainbows” could very well be its price tag; it costs absolutely no dollars and cents. All one has to do is go to http://www.inrainbows.com/, enter a price (it can be $0), download and everything will be in its right place

Because there's nothing else going on in my life, I'll start posting my Oracle articles...

Have fun.

Want to start using Livejournal again?

I suppose it's due time I write about something. As most of you know, I've been absent from Atlanta for roughly the entire summer. After my 4 week European trek, which deserves a separate post, here I am once again at NCSA, sitting two doors down from the room I occupied last year.

My room looks pretty much identical to my old one, but matters at the campus are radically different. For one, my RA this year isn't all that interesting, compared to the glory of Alex Taylor from yesteryear. Secondly, my hall consists mostly of drama kids, opposed to being almost entirely film kids last year. I don't have anything against meeting new people, but I honestly cannot handle drama students. I socialize as much as I can with my hall mates, but there really isn't much we have in common.

The main result of the change in the hall situation has been to force me to get out of the hall and meet new people. While this is a good thing in itself, I still don't feel entirely situated here. I'm hoping that I don't retreat into a shell like I did last year, but I'm confident that I can hold up.

My idea for my short film is also much less ambitious and more realistic than the one I had last year. One of the main reasons I became so asocial at specific times last year was to force myself to work on my project, which really didn't happen that much.

With my renewed outlook (and different circumstances) I have at NCSA, I think I'll have a much more memorable and meaningful time this go around.

I'll update when I get around to it.

So, who's going to help me in my quest to market a new brand of vegan cheese? It'll be called "No Whey!"

It's infallible, I know.

Move this along, seriously: http://www.studentprintz.com/home/index.cfm?event=displayArticlePrinterFriendly&uStory_id=c7794f20-dfb1-4494-892d-b529895da103

As of right now, I'm quite skeptical of dichloroacetate's supposed status of 'miracle drug.' I'm doing research on this, and if it is truly is as good as it sounds, we could see a large shift in our current health care system. Sure, pharmaceutical companies would loose a (major) asset, but we need to respect life, not the dollar.

B T dubs, when I read dichloroacetate, I immediately thought "Cl2CH3OO!" This gives me a bit of hope for the AP Chem exam tomorrow...