In life we are often told to rely on The Network. The Network is a large entity, filled with a variety of people displaying various traits, most of which are maddening to this writer. There are those who siphon the resources of The Network without giving back. They are free-riders, the ones who hope to use this tool only to their advantage. They are leaches, the worst kind of parasites. The very language they use is so disgusting, their word means nothing. They don’t talk down to you, they talk away to you. They stop to get the information they need, but their eyes are never focused on the person. The eyes are shifting instead, looking for the next gold-plated name tag with a powerful title. Names mean nothing in this context. Names only become important when used to namedrop. These are the worst. Their presence in The Network is never earned.
It is disgusting to me that people could get to this point. It is perhaps why I shun the life of the corporate businessman or politician. But The Network has a shiny facade. It’s about who you know, we’re told, and The Network puts the “who” in that phrase. I’d rather get by on my innate and learned skills and abilities, and meet and develop relationships with people based on a common interest, passion, or desire. The day I attempt to get to know someone because of their job title or position in life, and not who they are and what they did to achieve that title or position, will be a sad day. But I promise I’ll be fighting to ensure that day never comes.
elgatostrikesagain:
Got A Man Crush: Jay-Z
It seems like I go through musical infatuations. In High School it was The Shins for a little while. That transitioned into liking a trashier sound found in Kings of Leon. That one was HUGE, and I hate to jump on the Kings of Leon Are Sellouts Bandwagon!, but I am, even though they deserve the success they have found. But no matter what, I will never hit next on an older song. After that the Music Crush Top Spot wasn’t held by anyone/group in particular. That emotional void was filled by various mix CD’s with bands that go by Dear & The Headlights, Midlake, Maps & Atlases, Portugal. The Man, Look Mexico, and Brand New.
Then came the year 2009 with some incredible music/album releases! Groups with the names of Animal Collective, Grizzly Bear, Phoenix, Dirty Projectors, and Andrew Bird made the soundtrack of my summer. In that mix, you may notice how there isn’t much Hip-Hop.
Don’t get me wrong, I love some good Hip-Hop. Rappers from Jay-Z to Talib Kweli to Lupe Fiasco. Pe’s Food & Liquour is a personal favorite album, and Jay-Z is just the man.
This leads into the topic of this post, HOVA himself. Not only is this man an incredibly smart and gifted lyricist, but he’s just an all around great guy. He’s in a great marriage to another one of my favorites, Beyonce! They keep their business out of the eyes of the public, they handle themselves well, and you can tell they really care for each other. And Jay-Z knows a thing or two about music, and the direction it’s heading. He was recently spotted at a Grizzly Bear concert in Williamsburg, and in the before posted video, he knows (along with the rest of us) that the reason “Indie” music is gaining popularity is because of the uniqueness each group can have. Indie bands are pushing the boundaries and changing things up. But back to Mr. J. To conclude, the man sure knows how to dress! Just look at him, that’s one sharp lookin’ fellow, right there.
He’s also big into the NBA, and has become the center of any deal likely to happen involving moving LeBron from Cleveland to Brooklyn during the summer of 2010. To do that takes a man, which Jay-Z surely is.
Going to see this fella play tonight. He plays for the team formerly known as the Supersonics, which in the past I might not have forgiven. However, they have a great nucleus developing, including my man James Harden. Can’t wait.
Another cbb blogger profiled Indiana University today. In their preview, they said:
Indiana: The Sequel will be built on the backs of four-year “Band of Brothers”-style classes.
I really like this sentence just like the prior one I posted. First, calling it “The Sequel” and utilizing the capital ‘S’ indicates a rebuilding process. Secondly, using “Band of Brothers” in tandem with “four-year” players really lets me know that these will be special years at IU. They won’t be winning any national championships, but these young recruits understand that this is bigger than themselves. This is about tradition, about being the guys who got the program back on track. While they surely want to accomplish winning seasons and championships, they know their time here will likely spur greater progress and eventually success.
I like this way of thinking and can apply it to a recent experience. As I leave behind my undergraduate university next spring, I can feel good about what I have accomplished while knowing full well there is a lot of room for continued success, growth and improvement. My only wish is that I can leave behind a block in the bigger picture that will be strong enough to support those who strive to build beyond the contributions of me and those who came before. This is truly the single most important thing I care about in terms of leaving behind my institution.
A quote from Dana O’Neil’s latest piece on IU’s rebuilding program:
But when Hoosiers coach Tom Crean went out to find the pieces to begin rebuilding his roundball phoenix,
I love it. What beautiful use of words. I can picture a phoenix, not unlike Fawkes, rising from the ashes of Assembly Hall with Tom Crean on its shoulders signaling the resurrection of a once-storied program that fell hard. Future school?
Man, college basketball season is right around the corner. All of my favorite writers are surfacing again to offer their thoughts and insights on the coming months of action. The deeper I get, the more I realize that the college basketball blog-and-website writers are quite interconnected. This guy references that guy, these folks link to those folks, and those people collaborate with these people. It is quite amazing and not unlike the respect-laden world of punk rock webzines. I miss those days - working with competing websites to give the fans a better glimpse into a world we were fortunate enough to have access to. With the exception of AP.net, all of us worked together; we linked to stories and reviews, we e-mailed each other to give props for a particularly awesome piece, and we picked each other up after our various ventures would fail or need revitalization. Most importantly, we came together as a community on a message board which still lives today, but in a largely different state with a lot of the old-timers nothing more than lurking in the distance. I long for those days and often wonder if I could ever again find the time to try to break into this group of writers, perhaps with something I’ve been sitting on for far too long. I know the readers are out there (heck, all it takes is a simple link), but I don’t want to start something without being entirely committed. And, let’s face it, there’s no heaping pile of CDs or concert tickets waiting to compensate me like in the glory days of music reviewing (2002-2006, roughly). No, I sit here with a dream of getting to know the RTC masters, the Katz’s, the Eamonn Brennan’s, the Winn’s and Goodman’s, and, alas, the Whelliston’s.
With the experience in punk rock, I have little doubt that it could happen with the right amount of work, but as you grow older priorities change. When I was a 15 year-old runt writing about bands in my living room, I fooled the upper-echelon of twentysomething punk writers into thinking I was a seasoned vet, well worn on the punk show circuit, a handful of Warped Tour memories under my belt…when in fact I had not once been to a show. I so often concealed my age and spent tons of money “catching up” with all of the early punk and emo acts I had missed out on on the account of still being a kid because you can’t get free CDs from labels if the CDs came out five years ago.
With basketball, I have that frame of reference, but it was not until last year that I truly delved into the depths of the game and its intricacies. The nature of college hoops truly reveals itself during the summer, where one can learn about off-season programs, recruiting, and…the NBA Draft. The summer is where the legend of John Wall was born; and perhaps now, with his eligibility in question, is where his legend will fall a bit. It was a pleasure following along in the summer months for the first time, but it only increased my desire to get in on the action myself. But in order to standout, you have to work hard. And have time. Neither of which I can say I am willing to do at this moment. Oh well, at least I got a brief essay out of the idea.
A dream three years in the making was realized today thanks to this man. To you, I am eternally grateful for the hardball efforts you employed in convincing the cellar gatekeepers to relinquish their authoritarian hold over the precious commodity I have longed for all these nights. The cat truly struck again.
