Muse Workshop

I attended a Muse Workshop about studying abroad and found it to be very interesting. I've always wanted to go out of the country but my parents never gave me the chance to because it is very expensive. I learned at the meeting that the price is not anywhere close to what I imagined. Of course you have to pay for personal spending and airfare but everything else is the same. You still pay the same amount in tuition which means you are basically a SJSu student with the same costs but you are living in another country. Also some areas are more expensive to live in than others. About 220,000 college students study abroad which is less than 1% of every college student in America. I am really participating in this program but there are a lot of things I need to do to prepare for it. Since they recommend you go your junior year, that means I have about two years to save my money, learn a language, and convince my parents. We will see what happens.

Tip #3

I believe that staying up to date with your work will keep you from spending long nights finishing something you could have completed the day before. I know how important this is because it has happened to me before and it still happens to me. When I see that there is an assignment I will look at the due date, and I will most likely wait until about 10pm the night before it is due to start. This is not the way to go. First you will be tired and thinking about going to sleep the whole time that you probably won't even put in a good effort. Second you will realize you had much more homework than you thought, which will result in a trip to 7-11 to purchase some energy drinks and 4 hours of wishing you had finished all of this sooner. Third you will wake up feeling like crap but hopefully you will feel bad enough to the point where you never want to procrastinate again. Hopefully this is a wake up call and you will choose to buy a planner or something to keep track of your workload. I plan on getting one soon.

Chapter 4 and 5 Response

I found the it humorous that grades in school were being blamed on the music kids listened to at that time. Kids who listened to Elvis were said to get about a C grade while the kids who listened to Pat Boone got at lease a B. I've heard of parents having their babies listen to Beethoven to get smarter but I think this is even more ridiculous. Also when I'm reading I hear a lot of the same terms I hear in my Sociology class such as norms, authoritarian style parenting, and generational conflict. Obviously the 50's and 60's were going through elaborate sociological changes, but I think it's cool that I am taking a Sociology class while learning about a very important events that pertain to society and how times were changing based on new norms and lifestyles. These kids were part of a counterculture that seemed to be getting more popular year by year and that scared parents everywhere because they were not used to these new ways to view sexuality and expression. I'm also surprised how big of a role DJ's had during this era since today there are not very many huge superstars in that profession. Radio today is so widespread today that not many stand out aside from our local disc jockeys and I think this is because music genres are accepted basically everywhere. DJ's in the 50's and 60's were obviously taking chances by playing new music and faced pressures that could lose them their jobs and their reputation. It was also interesting that a movie that brought in 2.3 million dollars was considered successful while today that wouldn't even cover the cost to make it.

Fever Chapter 1 Response

The more I read about rock and roll history I'm amazed how things were the way they were. Self expression was basically non existent until artists and actors started showing people it was okay to express yourself. People looked up to these people and they changed how the generation viewed sex, drugs, and life in general. This is something that was explained in the first chapter when Riley was comparing John Wayne and Elvis. Both men were similar in ways but different in many other ways. Women loved Wayne because of his old fashioned and composed style while women loved Elvis because of his raw sexuality and extensive shows of expression on stage. Both these men shaped the generation and began a trend that has lasted for over 50 years.

All Shook Up Chapter 3 Review

I thought it was extremely interesting that parents didn't want their children listening to black artists such as Little Richard singing suggestive lyrics, but they were perfectly fine if Pat Boone sang the same thing. Although it may be cleaned up a little bit it is still almost the same thing. I don't see how a black man singing about sex is any different than a white man singing about sex. I think it would be extremely interesting if parents from the 50's and 60's heard the music kids are listening to today. They would probably have a heart attack. I feel like these early rockers had a huge affect on expressing sexuality that eventually lead to the way we look at sex now. They wanted to explain how it was fine to have sex especially since safe sex now was an option. Also I think American Bandstand was sort of a counter attack against these kind of rockers and was created to 'clean things up'.

Music List #2

1.) Master of Puppets- Metallica- This song is about how drugs can take a hold on an individual and control them, much like a puppet master. I've always loved the energy of the song but I constantly forget what it is actually about because I'm too busy listening to the instruments as apposed to the lyrics. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_z-hEyVQDRA)

2.) Slow and Easy- Whitesnake (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WnoAFLbZYqk)

3.) Under the Bridge- Red Hot Chili Peppers (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lwlogyj7nFE&ob=av3e)

4.) Purple Haze- Jimi Hendrix (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5lVU2NRCIQk&ob=av3n)

5.) Sex Type Thing- Stone Temple Pilots (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8hhu-
OyHqZM&ob=av3e)

6.) Lucy in the Sky With Diamonds- The Beatles (I just recently found out that this song is said to be about LSD which I thought was interesting)

Tip #2

Sleep. Plain and simple. The difference between getting 9 hours of sleep and 4 has an incredible affect on your concentration and mental sharpness. I know from experience that going to sleep at 3:30am when you have to wake up at 7am is not going to be an easy thing to do. All you can think about in class when you're exhausted is going to sleep and if that happens you most likely will not be listening to your teacher which will then lead to you not knowing what the hell is going on. This is what you want to avoid, and the best and most effective solution to this problem is the realization that you have no reason to stay up until 3:30 doing absolutely nothing. Getting more sleep is much more productive than anything else at that hour. I feel like if I had gotten more rest during high school I would have gotten at least a 3.6 GPA. All in all it is definitely something you might want to consider if you want to succeed academically.

Music Memories #1

When I was 5 i don't think I had any musical preferences besides radio Disney. I had no idea what I was listening to and honestly I think I just listened to the station because between songs they had contests. I also recall my Mom playing Simon and Garfunkel in the car all of the time and i picked out a couple of songs that I would want to hear whenever I was in the car. When I was around the age of 10 I think I started listening to more and more of my Dad's CD's. Oingo Boingo, The Smiths, and Chris Isaak were among the many artists I started listening to at that time. Summer days weren't the same without Chris Isaak's Heart Shaped World CD playing on the outside speakers. Good times. By the time I was 15 I went from liking 80's pop to Rock and Heavy Metal. My friends from hockey introduced me to AC/DC and Metallica and I've been listening to them ever since. I remember Metallica's cover of Bob Seger's Turn The Page being one of my favorite songs and it still is to this day. As the years went on I have basically been open to a wide variety of music but I can't deny that bands like Pantera and Metallica are usually the first songs playing to start off my day.

Google Results

The only results I got after searching my name was my Facebook page. Since I have my profile set as private nobody can view my pictures or information. The only things they can see are my friends, my favorite movies, music, television shows, and books. So if an employer wanted to get to know some things about me and what I do I think the only thing they can look at are those things and those things only. I don't feel like that is enough information to form a solid idea on what my character might be like. Being able to see what I say, what others say to me, and the pictures I choose to show to my friends would be much more revealing and would help them paint a picture of the kind of person I am.

Chapter 1 Response

After reading this chapter I realized Elvis Presley had an even bigger effect on the transition from crooner music to Rock 'n Roll than I thought. He brought a type a music that was being predominately controlled by African Americans into white culture and paved the way for an entirely different genre of music. I find it very strange that most of society in the 50's were against this new type of music mainly because in todays world we welcome any type of new genres into our culture with open arms. I was also interested in learning that Aaron "T-Bone" Walker started using his guitar as a prop and instrument simultaneously. Instead of merely playing the guitar he would whip it behind his head and point it at the fans. This was probably what influenced Jimi Hendrix to burn his guitar and Pete Townsend to smash it. Musicians began putting on dramatic performances to get the fans more involved which eventually lead to the success of some bands such as KISS, The Who, and Iggy Pop who were known for their wild and crazy antics.

My Top 10 Songs

1.) Cowboys From Hell (Pantera)- I love how the beginning of the song starts off slow and kinda quiet but then the drums kick in and it gets really loud.

2.) Sweet Home Alabama (Lynyrd Skynyrd)- Pretty self explanatory. Great chorus and extremely catchy.

3.) Walk (Pantera)- Perfect song to help you get pumped up.

4.) Toxicity (System of a Down)- This song just never gets old no matter how many times i listen to it. The chorus has everything I like; heavy guitar, fast drumming, and loud lyrics.

5.) Give it Away (Red Hot Chili Peppers)- Cool Funk sound with a bass line that really stands out and gets your attention.

6.) Hangar 18 (Megadeth)- This song really appeals to me because i play guitar and the last three quarters of the song are just solos and heavy interludes.

7.) Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da (The Beatles)- This song is too happy not to like. Enough said.

8.) Would (Alice in Chains)- This song has one of those chorus' that you just know and want to sing along with.

9.) Wicked Game (Chris Isaak)- This song may seem out of place on the list but I grew up listening to Chris Isaak because my Dad had all of his CDs and this song has always been one of my favorites.

10.) Master of Puppets (Metallica)- This song is eight and a half minutes of pure insanity. The good kind. It also has one of my favorite guitar riffs of all time. It starts at 6:19 if you want to check it out.

TIP#1

Doing things in moderation is an important tip when it comes to being successful in college. You can have fun and participate in social activities as long as you don't overdue it. Realizing that your main priority is to be successful academically will help keep everything balanced. For instance, getting in the habit of cramming in your homework so you can go out with your friends will only negatively affect the outcome of why you came to college in the first place.  You will have more than enough free time to calmly and collectively complete whatever it is that needs to be completed. Keeping an agenda that keeps track of homework and projects will help allow you to find time to include everything else you want to do. It might also be a good idea to get friends to help let you know when you are getting off track. Nobody says you cant have the time of your life but it should be your responsibility to handle your time wisely and to realize which activities deserve more of your focus.