Times change, don't they?

I'm sure you are all familiar with the song Living on a Prayer by Bon Jovi. Who isn't?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aEvTOdqqVD4 (here's a link for you)

so what's this song about? two people who are young and in love, and in very difficult circumstances. Tommy lost his job, and Gina's working her tail off at the diner. They don't know how they're going to get through, but they know that all they need is each other's love to get through. As long as they have each other, they can live on nothing but a prayer to get them through.

So compare that (awesome) message with the one displayed in this video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yyl24HRGgSU

It's the music video for No Surprises by Daughtry. a good song to be sure, but I don't like the video. In it, a young couple are in a very similar circumstance as in Living on a Prayer: the young man has no work and is looking for a job. The young lady works in a diner (where she gets fired). They have bills piling up, both looking for work, etc. But instead of saying "we'll get through because we have each other", the guy decides to leave. He leaves her. she goes chasing after him, but the video ends with them separated.

The frustrating thing is, there was no indication of any problems in their relationship (marriage?) aside from monetary issues. And they split over that. That is the absolute antithesis of what is being said in Prayer. instead of "we can make it, because we're all we need", it says "we can't stay together because it's just too hard". I guess I don't need to tell you which I prefer. The funny thing is, the song doesn't fit the music video at all. They don't say the same thing. I don't like it.

I suppose my biggest complaint here is this: Why are 98% of the songs on the radio about love, and why are over half of those about loss of love or break ups or mistrust or being hurt? Why do so many people sing about lost relationships and bad relationships? Isn't there a happier side of love to sing about? aren't there better things to sing about than just love?

I just get tired of the monotony of the subject matter, and also the lack of sincerity in music. How many pop/rock albums do you hear with beautiful love songs followed by venomous break up songs?

A perfect example of everything I'm talking about is the man whom I just posted: Daughtry. a perfect blend of relationship songs, not much creativity, all on top of talent. Yes, his songs are all very catchy and he has a great voice. But that's where it ends. Almost all of his songs that i've heard were in the key of Eb. Most use the same chord progressions, too. and they are all about relationships. The frustrating thing is, he has songs that aren't about that, and probably ones that aren't in the same key, too. BUT THOSE AREN'T EVER ON THE RADIO. The only ones you hear are the ones that are all about break ups and make ups. That's it. That's all there ever is. and i'm sick of hearing so many songs that are shallow about love.

Love is not something you trade quickly and easily for something else. Love is not sex. Love is not shallow. But so often, this message is the one conveyed through all the media around us. I hope we can all learn to turn off the radio and the television and turn on good books, songs, or people.

I challenge everyone to evaluate the influences in their lives and decide if they're worth keeping. Do they help you grow and love people more, or do they bring you down and encourage angry feelings and distrust?

grah

So I've been reading lately about this trend in television shows that basically involves the main character never ever ever being happy (for very long). I must say, it is incredibly frustrating. I currently follow NBC's Chuck (fantastic show, btw), as well as the BBC long time running sci fi show, Doctor Who.

I am currently most frustrated at Chuck. For the first 2 or so seasons, he was chasing and longing after this girl, Sarah. He was madly in love with her, and she loved him too. Despite that, they could never get together for whatever reason that the writers decided would get in the way. After many seasons of this, they finally revealed their love to each other and got together. It was a very satisfying moment in the show for me.

But, naturally, this couldn't last. Ironically, the many episodes where they were a happy couple together were the least exciting and tense of the series as a whole. It's like television needs the emotional tension of two people in love tragically torn apart in order to keep going. Last monday, Chuck was finally going to propose to Sarah. Right as he asked the question, he was cut off by the CIA arresting Sarah to set up a false cover (long story). She now is far away from him, and emotionally separate as well, and all signs point to it being a long term sort of thing. Except the trailer for next week implied a climax to the current arc, but it's not a season finale so it could go on for longer. We'll just have to wait and see.

I will commend the writers, however, on a truly and magnificently heart-wrenching two episodes coming back from the Thanksgiving/Christmas/New Year's break.

The other television show I mentioned was Doctor Who. This is the most maddening of all. All through the first season, the Doctor was traveling with a partner named Rose. The two of them developed a strong relationship, and you could see they meant a lot to each other. But then the Doctor has to go and get himself killed and regenerate. He's the same person, but everything is different about him (body, personality, appearance, everything). She has to relearn who he is and develops a whole new relationship with him. She eventually falls in love with him all over again, and he with her. Then the inevitable happens: she gets trapped in a parallel dimension that he can never visit and she can never return from.

The moment when she gets stuck on the other side of the wall, when she is crying and screaming to go back to him and he is just staring blankly at the wall, is horribly heart-wrenching. it's awful. it's beautifully done. but i hate it.

and then he goes and burns up an entire star so he has enough energy to communicate with her in the parallel world. He appears as a hologram and they talk for a few minutes, and RIGHT AS HE IS ABOUT TO TELL HER HE LOVES HER, he loses power and vanishes. it is horrible.

and then he goes on to mope about her for the entire next season, to the frustration and pain of the girl he is now traveling with, Martha. She loves him but he can only think about Rose and eventually she leaves because it's too hard to be with him and love him while he doesn't see her the same.

and then he meets a new partner, Donna. They aren't in love or anything, just good friends. And they're going to travel together for the forseeable future. see where this is going? She eventually has to (for reasons that would take forever to explain) have her memory erased and be left at home. She can't ever remember him or her brain will explode. He's left alone again.

I am beginning to wonder why this keeps happening. These are just two examples of television shows where the main character can't ever be happy. Can anybody explain this phenomenon to me? Sure it generates drama and more emotion in the show, but I don't like the constant feeling of sadness and loss when I watch a show. Sometimes I want to come away from it just feeling good. Not many tv shows supply that anymore.

why?

How do you do it?

Okay, this week (month) my problem is time management skills. I don't know how people do it. I have too much to do and not enough time to do it.
I am literally involved in at least a dozen different things. A short list:

-Jazz band, where we have three competitions coming up in the next month and a half. This takes two nights a week for rehearsal, as well as twice a week early morning rehearsal.

-Show Choir, one night a week rehearsal, once during school, and one early morning rehearsal a week.

-University of Iowa Honor Choir, which is next weekend. I literally spend most of my seminar (study hall) time rehearsing for this. as well as some after school time.

-concert band and concert choir, which I should practice for outside of school so I can perform my best.

-St. Ambrose University honor band, which is in one month. I landed first part on trombone, and I need to practice a LOT to perform as best as I possibly can for that concert.

and this is all on top of my family, girlfriend, school, and church demands that I am not necessarily meeting. Long story short, I'm full.
Why is it that we can't fit in everything we want to do? If we really, really love doing stuff, why can't it be easier to work in?
I declare that it is NOT FAIR.
Yes, I realize that I sound like a whiny teenager right now. Sorry for that. I'm just really frustrated realizing that I can't do everything I want. I love music, I love performing, I love my family, I love my girlfriend, I love my church. Why can't I balance all of the things I want to do?

I suppose it's God's way of requiring us to prioritize and decide what is most important to us. We have to be willing to let go of some things if we can't handle everything.
But I can't stand letting people down. If people are asking it of me, I want to do it for them.
So how can I manage to make everyone happy, and not explode at the same time?

I suppose that's my problem, I want to make everyone happy, and I also want to do too much. I need to learn to pass up on things that I can't handle, and also to accept the fact that I can't make everyone happy.
This is really, really hard to do. I think the only way I'm going to get through this next month is with a lot of assistance from God. Pray for me, if you're so inclined. I'm going to need the extra help. :)

God Bless You All.

Cody

Honestly

I had the opportunity today to perform in my local district honor band. It was an intense audition process for me, and I was very blessed to make it in. The concert was today, and it went truly spectacular. The music was amazing, the execution was beautiful, and I could feel the music running through my veins.

The music was so beautiful, I felt it move my very soul. The tubas with their rumbling pedal tones, harmonizing spectacularly with the brassy french horns and baritones. The woodwinds with their orchestra-esque trills and fast moving melodies. The trumpets with their prominent, bright, and incredible tones. The percussion with their rhythms that make your body dance whether you choose to or not. The concert was truly amazing.

I can't possibly conceive of music like that, of a concert like that, of such soul-touching brilliance, and NOT believe in God. Only He could inspire someone to write music like that, and only someone with a divine, all seeing hand could have inspired men to create such means of making music as that.

May you all have the opportunity to experience what I experienced tonight.

God Bless.

-Cody

if you want

to stop violence and gun crimes, then cut it off at its source instead of needless bickering about gun laws.

Stop producing and showing violent television shows, movies, video games, etc. THAT is where people get the ideas they get. Stop with 24, with Jack Bauer using extreme torture methods to get what he wants. No more vigilantes taking the law into their own hands and killing dozens of people because the government won't do it for them. No more violence. THEN people will stop having violent impulses, and there will be less killing.

Mama always told me that "you are what you eat". The same is true in this case. If you spend your time consuming violent media, it's what fills your mind. It affects you. Negatively.

Face it: violent media spawns violent crimes in the real world.

This week...

I spoke this past wednesday with my Branch President at church about my mission, which I will be serving after my 19th birthday (in August) (For those of you unaware, I am a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints).

Anyway, we spoke about what I need to do to prepare. It feels a long way away from now, but I know that nine months will pass in no time. In light of this revelation, I have decided I need to spend everyday bringing myself closer to God, and preparing myself for my mission. Today, the fact that I am very unready was made very apparent to me. One part of a missionary's life involves getting up early every morning. I set an alarm for 8:30 (which is NOT early by any means), and I didn't get up until after 10. Then, I went to exercise (another thing missionaries do, but they also need to already be in good shape for all the walking and bike riding they'll be doing). After about 10 minutes of exercising, I was sore and exhausted. There are so many more things I need to do to get myself prepared, and these are just the simple, physical aspects of a mission.

A long story short, I realized today that I really need to work a lot to get to a place where I can feel ready for a mission. If you're reading this and happen to be religious, pray for me so that I can be successful in my daily strive for mission-readiness. This is going to take every bit of dedication and strength I have to accomplish, and I cherish the opportunity.

Anyway, have a great day.

-Cody

One small thing...

Real quickly, I want to share a song with everyone (everyone that reads this, that is...).

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KmkNDnJtw4M&feature=related

it's called Life Must Go On, by Alter Bridge.

I just want to share that song, because it has such an amazing feel to it, and it's inspiring in a lot of ways. If you so desire, listen to it and enjoy.

"Cause the sun always sets, and the moon always falls. It feels like the end, just pay no mind at all. Keep rolling, life must go on."