Month: December 2012

The Top Things I Will and Will Not Miss About College

Posted on by kevinthemusicguy

Sing the Alma Matter, sign the degree, get out your funny hats, and let’s party. I’ve graduated college with a bachelor of science in Journalism and a minor in Music. So what that means is hopefully I can find a job before the debt collector comes a knock knock knockin’ on my door. Pray for me folks, I’ll need all the help I can get. But, since this the final days of me being an Undergrad are here I think I will take the time to come up with a list to acknowledge the things I will and will not miss after I’m gone from campus.

What I will miss: 

1. My friends and professors- Of course I may come up to visit occasionally since I don’t intend to burn any bridges, but I will miss seeing my friends old and new. From my bros and platonic girlfriends in the freshman residence halls to my closest allies in my final years at school. You guys have been there for me through thick and thin, and though some turned out to be bad eggs, I’m glad to have met you all. These last four years have been an interesting Journey. Also, my professors in both departments are excellent at their jobs, even if some of my opinions vary from theirs radically.

2. Having my own independent thinking space- it was nice to have my own rooms despite moving often because I could focus my thoughts and listen to my favorite music at loud volumes. Of course the loud volume has gotten me noise complaints in the past, but I just wanted to live while I was young and enjoy my music at substantial volume. I know I will have to be more respectful in the future with my neighbors and such.

3. Yoga Pants- I’m going to off on a limb here and say that girls check out guys, guys check out girls, some people check out the same gender, and others don’t look at all. It’s human nature, but so often what we (guys especially) forget about that the person is more than just a nice butt or a good pair of… eyes. Personally when I see a women, I see a person and a human being who also happens to have amazing physical features. Which leads me to state that Salem State is the Yoga Pants capital of Massachusetts and it was fun to behold it for so many years and even coin the acronym GWYP (Girls Wearing Yoga Pants) with my roommate Sean this past semester. That being said, I’ve stared too much over the years, especially for a man who has been engaged for three years (my fiancee Annie is fine with it, but still). So for this ladies of Salem State, I truly apologize: just know you look fantastic in those pants!

4. My Jobs- Some jobs were a nightmare to work that never fit with me, but I found a good niche in with the Music Department and IT as well as the Salem State Log. The amounts of crap people give me and IT for “sucking at your job” is unbelievable. We are hard-working and intelligent people. I’ve had my fair share of disagreements with a past boss and I hated the hour cuts via a bad budget, but my bosses still treated me better than my old bosses at McDonald’s ever did (I am still mad at McArches, but also happy to not be in fast food anymore). I am glad to have worked with the fine folks of the Music Department and IT at Salem State, and with luck these jobs shall lead me to find a REAL job rather than just fast food.

What I Won’t Miss (no offense meant to anyone): 

1. The Shuttle- I mean no disrespect to the drivers and phone people, but the student shuttle has proven to be unreliable too many times. From taking too long to pick some one from going way over the estimated time of arrival to not taking people to the mall on weekends, it’s been a bit of a pain. I wish the shuttle more luck and better funding in the future, just know I’d rather own a car instead if I had the money for it (same goes the MBTA).

2. Navigator- I don’t want to look like a hypocrite for my comments about IT earlier, but I just I never enjoyed using the website it’s self for it’s design and the difficulty of access. I am glad I only have to log into it a few more times to see my grades, and then I am just done with it. Forever.

3. Residence Life Purists- Now let me please clarify, I have not hatred towards the department of Residence Life and the people who work for it. They are just people doing their jobs to the letter, and doing said job very well. What I dislike are the people who happen to just let the job go to their heads by enforcing the rules like a hall monitor in a Catholic elementary school. Getting deeply offended when people use the term “dorm” isn’t worth the frustration. I know a dorm is where a person sleeps, and the residence halls are a community with many activities, but the way the residence halls are set up, they are hot beds for drama. I know where you guys are coming from since I used to be the same way; I play bass guitar player (not regular guitar), and it used to offend me deeply when people called my instrument a “guitar”. People (even trained musicians) still call my instrument a guitar and for me it just wasn’t worth being offended over, and the same rule should apply to you guys because people will keep saying “dorm” as the term is more widely used by the average person.

4. Room Mate Drama- Excluding my friends on Facebook and elsewhere, I’ve just had way too much crap go down the last few years that it’s probably left me permanently scarred and mentally aged by ten years. I’ve dealt with hoarders, neat freaks, and people extremely envious of the love that Annie and I share. The latter category is the one that bothers me the most; from being threatened online through a 20 paragraph Facebook message, to dealing with false rumors that Annie was pregnant. It’s been a real fun time dealing with immature and stupid people. I’m glad to be done with bad eggs and all of the drama they cause since I will be back with my family and eventually move into my own place with Annie. I know that tomorrow will be brighter than yesterday, and that living well is truly the best revenge.

I hope my views have not upset anyone, but as a Journalist I suppose that comes with the territory. Have a Merry Christmas, Happy Hanuka, and may all of the other holidays be good too. Congrats to my self for completing a major obstacle in life. Now let’s hope the world DOESN’T end on the 21st, and that 2013 turns out to be a good year for us all.

Tatteybye,

Kevin James Card.

P.S. To any Grammar Nazi reading this, I know I crossed active and passive voice and didn’t use AP format at all. Deal with it. I structure my personal pros the way I want too.

A Quick Update on my Blog: Redesign and My Old Blog Posts Scheduled for January

Posted on by kevinthemusicguy

Hello everyone, I am (hopefully) going to get through my finals soon. Once I graduate and get some down time I intend to re-post all of my blog entries from my Blogger and Tumblr accounts. I intend to go back and correct all of the grammar and make my Tumblr entries styled more like my old Blogger posts (longer, detailed, clearly structured). 

I would like to thank all of my loyal readers for staying with me for the last two years and helping me get through the harshest times of nonconstructive criticism from my haters. 

Tatteybye, 

Kevin.

A Psychotic Amount of Fun: “Seven Psychopaths”

Posted on by kevinthemusicguy

 

 

                As a comedic crime drama “Seven Psychopaths” delivers the goods plus much more. This film blends aspects of comedy, tragedy, violence, nudity, and friendship all together in an unforgettable way, from a scene of the tragic murder of Maya (Linda Bright Clay) to a scene of the Mafia Boss’s head exploding.

Written and directed by Martin McDonagh and set in LA, the storyline follows a struggling Irish screen writer named Marty (Collin Farrell) creating a movie about seven psychopaths. Marty’s best friend Billy (Sam Rockwell) has teamed up with a con-artist named Hans (Christopher Walken) that steals dogs to make a living, and Billy stole the favorite Shih Tzu of LA based Mafia boss Charlie (Woody Harrelson) to teach him a lesson on how Harrelson treats his girlfriend.

What makes this movie so great is that it captures the feel of films such as “Reservoir Dogs” but in a different way due to the writing and the performance of its great cast. Walken as Hans is unforgettable for how he can switch from seriousness, sadness, and the classic Walken childlike innocence and charm despite being a con-artist. Rockwell experiences interesting character developments albeit backwards in his sanity. Rockwell’s character is the funniest character for the reason that his sanity starts off as normal, then he’s later revealed to be one of the main psychopaths in the film. Harrelson is lovably despicable when executing people in a heartless manner, but also pitiful in a relatable way when thinking about his lost dog Bonny.

McDonagh made sure to blend many elements of storytelling, but also to poke fun at the job of being a serious writer in Hollywood through use of Farrell’s character Marty. The dialogue between Marty, Billy, and Hans helps Marty develop his story which he only thought of the tittle for. The awful thing about the fictional film in “Seven Psychopaths” is that the film is based off the deaths and killings going on around Farell. In the movie there are separate sub plots that come in contact with each other at pivotal points like where Harrelson murders Clay, who is Han’s wife. The film culminates in a final fantastic showdown that has to be seen to be believed.

                 The cinematography and sets were shot in different locations around Los Angeles, and were noticeably very real looking. The camera work was steady and professionally done, unlike “The Hunger Games” which left one feeling queasy. The soundtrack comprises some classical music such as “Strophes ‘Premiers transports que nui n’oblie…” from “Roméo et Juliette, Op 17” by Hector Berlios played during a dramatic flashback of two lovers, and 70s tracks such Cat Steven’s “The First Cut Is the Deepest” being performed by the P.P. Arnold. The tracks are used quite effectively scene by scene and will tickle the senses of even the most cold hearted cinema snob, even as the credits roll by. Are there any complaints about the film? Some here and there with how the plot unfurls.

                The biggest thing to notice is the amount of violence present in the film, beyond the obvious executions there is a scene with body mutilation where one of the characters slits their own throat. There were small amounts of racism throughout the film towards the African American characters, but only because the racism was coming the mafia most of the time. In other parts there are amounts of upper body nudity on some of the actresses likely to bother some more puritan members of society and foul language, but with an R rating and a title like “Seven Psychopaths” those people are bound to not like the film from the start.     

This film is one of the best of the year by far up there with “Batman: The Dark Knight Rises” and “The Avengers.” 2012 has been a pretty slow year for films and music, but it’s always very reassuring to know that Hollywood will occasionally let quality triumph overused gimmicks and let someone poke fun at said gimmicks like the way McDonagh did with “Seven Psychopaths”

Blast from the Past: A Night of Poetry at Salem State (September 2012)

Posted on by kevinthemusicguy

September 20th  – Professors Ann Taylor and Kevin Carey recited the poetry of themselves and their students. The Martin Luther King Room quickly filled up with a crowd eager for verse and prose. The reading was kicked off by host Rod Kessler, Head of the Creative Writing Department at Salem State Univeristy. Kessler opened with some general humor saying “it is fine if people sit on the tables. Here! This is how you do it.” After the remark Kessler sat down on the table behind him. Professor Carey took up the first half of the reading.

Carey is a creative writer influenced by his life events and has recently published his book of poetry titled “The One-Fifteen to Penn Station.”Kessler pointed out that Carey also won the best screen play at the 2009 NH Film Fest for “Peter’s Song” (co-written with Ed Boyle). While doing his readings, Carey read with a sense of recollection and calmness as most of his poems were anecdotes. Carey read aloud seven poems, for instance his poem “Uncle Paul” recalled how his uncle “could roll a rubber tire thirty feet and make it come back to him, before the cancer, not once, but twice” while in the Navy. Another poem that really got people thinking was “White Mountains” about how he recalls being in the mountains at the same moment 9/11 happened and traveling back to the same location six years later and the sense of mortality it gives. Professor Taylor came after Carey deferring “I have a tough act to follow.”

Professor Taylor is an author of poetry highly influenced by the great authors in British Literature; she has published “The River Within” which won the Cathlamet Prizefor poetry by the Ravenna Press. Taylor’s poetry sometimes reflected a strong rhyming scheme with references to historical figures and trips taken to different locals. Taylor also read aloud several poems, including “Let There Be Moose” and a student written poem called “Spectral.” Taylor’s imagery descried a scene in Moosehead, Maine, “Near the paved lot, in evening shadow of the public-works sign forbidding moose-watching, the last lingers, this day done.” The poem “Spectral” is written about how the memory of school work on poetry can remain in students’ heads; “I am, I hope, their life long reading ghost.”

After the readings were done the crowd asked the poets questions with subjects like their influences and why they enjoy writing. Writing is lonely,” shared Carey on how writing is a very solitary action and how he enjoys getting advice from others. Carey explaining how he often reads aloud his poems while editing them to hear how they sound “writing to ear can be very hard in this Revere accent.” Professor Taylor said that she often thinks of the great authors in British Literature stating that one of her poems “echoed Wardsworth’s Tintern Abbey.”

The crowd responded very warmly to the poems, even breaking etiquette to clap in-between poetry reading. Host Kessler later reminded them not too. “I loved them, despite the distracting echoes,” shared Salem Writers Council member Joe McGurne, commenting on the reverberation of the sound system. “Ann Taylor’s writing is very funny, [and] Carey can make observations that not many can pick up on. Both were great,” said McGurne.

Student Via Perkins felt both poets had their own unique styles, “Both were very powerful in their own way, and very emotive.” Another student, John Toothaker, shared his feelings on both poets saying “I liked Kevin Carey for his voice since it was very moving. It was based off aesthetics. His demeanor, working class, was contradicted by his voice.” In regards to Taylor, Toothaker finished by saying, “I loved that she was very witty and used her traveling and observations. She seemed to employ quite strong witticism centered around the historical facts which she studied.”