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I'm 21 and don't feel too different

 When someone turns 21, they end their day at the bar with their, hopefully, first drink.  It's one of the unwritten rites of passage in human life.  I turned 21 on the 22nd of September.  At first, I felt giddy as I opened up presents from my family: a pair of converse weapons, a frightening t-shirt, and a MTG deck box.  I felt the love from afar as various extended family members and friends called me or texted me.  But my birthday felt slightly virtual.   My roommates offhandedly wished me a happy birthday and implied taking me out or buying me a cake, both of which didn't happen.  It's not as if I've been flaunting my birthday, but hardly anyone at college even knew the special Tuesday.  I never want people to treat me special, but a little part of me hopes I will be treated special.  I hope that somebody will surprise me with something small but thoughtful.   I attended class from 8am-2pm, tutored from 2-4, coached ba...

Behind the Lyrics: A Little Piece of Heaven

 Have you ever watched someone perform music and just felt connected to them?  Maybe it was a high school talent show or a concert.  For me, I consistently have these feelings.  I remember my college freshmen talent show vividly.  I thought about performing but decided I didn't have the necessary equipment and preparation to put together a decent performance.  One of my friends, however, did perform.  And she got second place.  I cannot help but marvel at the beauty of music.  I feel more alive whenever I play music.  When I listen, though, I feel the gates of heaven open.  This song is all about the experience of performing music and listening to someone perform their heart out.  Heaven is a mystery, but deep in my heart, I believe music will play a significant role in eternal life.  If performing were that easy, then everyone would do it.  There are times I daydream about performing daily; I contemplate making a liv...

Behind the Lyrics: The Secret Place

 When I'm home in Washington, I serve as a youth leader for my church's youth group.  Due to covid, I was home, and youth group was online.  Nick Rosas, the youth pastor of my church, taught on the Lord's prayer for a number of weeks over Zoom.  I will never forget when he referred to the act of prayer as a secret place where heaven and earth combine.  He portrayed prayer as larger than life; it is a privilege.  No longer are prophets or priests needed to communicate with God.  I found myself challenged to look at prayer as something greater than just a symbolic ritual.  During this time, my fear of the dark and night heightened.  I would not characterize this fear as nyctophobia, but it definitely was real and affected my mental health.  Yes, even a 6'3' twenty year old college student can be afraid of the dark.  I first remember experiencing this fear the night before my first day as a high school senior.  For some reason, I ...

Behind the Lyrics: Propinquity (Instrumental)

  Propinquity (Instrumental)     There are no lyrics in instrumental songs, but there is still plenty of inspiration.  Propinquity, the title of this instrumental song, is one of my favorite words.  I first heard it in a musical titled Bright Star.  One of the characters used it in a story he was attempting to get published, and the word reflects the boy's journey of finding his parents.  Propinquity is the state of being close to someone or searching for intimacy.  As the boy searches for his mother, he fails to realize that he is growing closer to her without even knowing.  Perhaps, the people of the world need propinquity more than ever before.  Six feet, masks and other restrictions limit interaction as people once remembered; and things may go back to normal sooner or later, but it is not as if all sense of propinquity is lost.  I created this song when I had questions regarding life.  The individual plucking of each strin...

Behind the Lyrics: Bedroom Musings and Only a Few Days

       I consistently sleep 8-10 hours a night, depending on the context of my life.   I have found that is pretty good for a busy college student.   Even though I value my sleep and rather early bedtime, my habit of songwriting precedes it.   It could be (and has been) midnight after a long day of writing papers, coaching basketball, and reading books, but if I come upon a song, then I must write it.   Mostly, it takes me a couple days to flesh out the melody and guitar parts while refining the lyrics; occasionally, the song is done in thirty minutes or so.   Most of my thoughts regarding my songs come in bed while I attempt to fall asleep, hence the name Bedroom Musings.   A very fitting title for a first album that was written during quarantine and recorded in a bedroom and bathroom.   I know that I will never be famous or make the top charts; that isn’t the goal.   But if I’m able to challenge even a few people and ble...

The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly: Backlash and a Great Wrestling Match

I am back with a new Good, Bad, and Ugly segment after WWE's Backlash PPV.  In this article, we will go from ugly to good (let's end on a good note), primarily because Backlash 2020, a consistently underwhelming PPV, gave viewers emotional stories backed by physical, athletic, and innovative wrestling.  In a year filled by more ugly than good, Backlash provided some hope for the future and brought its audience away from the overwhelming aspects of life. The Ugly  I always love myself a good complaining, but Backlash did not deliver as much material as other recent PPVs.  But it started ugly.  It's hard to know how many people actually watch the pre-show, but the Women's tag team championship match belonged on it.  Smackdown's women division has lagged behind Raw's ever since the draft.  Alexa Bliss is not the wrestler she used to be (hence the pairing with Nikki Cross); Bayley and Sasha Banks may be, quite possibly, the two most overrated wrestler...

WWE MITB: The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly

The Good 2020 Money in the Bank was advertised as "The Most Unique Money in the Bank" in WWE history.  Curiosity loomed over the the men's and women's MITB matches (which would be held simultaneously), but what delivered on one of WWE's more popular annual PPV's was some more old fashioned wrestling.   Drew McCintyre vs Seth Rollins:  This match was a blast.  It combined strength with athleticism and was backed by strong storytelling.  McCintyre, the newly crowned champion at Wrestlemania, was not a leader according to Seth Rollins.  This title was the cross for The Monday Night Messiah to bear.  New messianic esque music accompanied Rollins down to the ring, but there were no disciples to be seen.  The match featured a ton of highlights: a superplex into a falcon arrow; a German suplex off a reversal from the top rope; Rollins was thrown over the announce table; McCintyre survived a stomp; and the finish was classic high pace wrestlin...