I recently purchased "Easy Wonderful" the new album by Guster, one of my favorite indie rock bands. Okay, maybe they aren't as "indie" as they once used to be. You have probably heard a few Guster songs on the radio, either knowingly or unknowingly. The one thing about Guster albums is that I can always count on them to be works of art. Guster masterfully weave chords together very intricately, and have great hooks that grab you, and the harmonizing vocals are great as well! So I have never been disappointed by a Guster album. Until now. Don't get me wrong. "Easy Wonderful" is still a very listenable album. But there is something missing. Their music doesn't grab me nearly as much as in previous efforts. Ryan Miller, the lead vocalist, is the only voice you hear prominently in most of the tracks. Adam Gardner is now mostly a backup vocalist. So it's difficult for me to say I LOVE this album. I just like it. And it does include on of the best songs I think they have ever written, "On the Ocean", the chorus to which goes "On the ocean, I think we're taking on water. A storm is on the way. But I will hold anyways." That song, and a couple others on the album, definitely temper my disappointment with the album a bit. And Guster is the kind of band that will lift your spirits. They are a happy band, for the most part. Definitely a departure from the usual grim outlook on life professed by the many heavy metal bands to whom I listen.
It's important to have positivity in your life, especially living in a world where there is so much negativity. For instance, yesterday I read a story on CBSNEWS.com about a 7-year old girl named Kathleen Edward, who has Huntington's disease, and is being cyberbullied by a 33-year old neighbor. Here is a link to the article:
http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-504763_162-20019377-10391704.html?tag=mncol;lst;5
Kathleen, whose mother died from Huntington's disease, has been constantly harrassed by Jennifer Petkov, the neighbor across the street solely because the woman and her husband had an ongoing feud with Kathleen's family:
"Petkov admitted to WJBK News in Detroit that she had posted ghoulish art work of the child on her Facebook page. The picture showed the Kathleen's face - eyes closed and tongue lolling out - with a pair of crossed bones beneath it. More recently, neighbors in Trenton, Mich., told the local news station that Petkov and her husband decorated their pickup to look like a hearse, strapped a homemade coffin on top, and drove it back and forth in front of the home Kathleen shares with her father and step mother. Petkov said it was just a Halloween prank."
I literally felt nauseous when I read this article. It's bad enough that Petkov is cyberbullying a 7-year old, let alone one that has a debilitating disease. And she's a cute kid with a beautiful smile. What on earth would possess someone to do this to a sick child? Okay, I get it. Petkov and Kathleen's mother hated each other. Fine. So be it. Not everyone gets along with everyone. But have a heart. Now that mom has passed away, why project your negative feelings toward her onto an innocent child? Why make her life more painful than it already is. She has no mother now, and she has a life-threatening illness.
And I try to use sports to try to escape the negativity. But even that is impossible these days. ESPN and other sports medium focus on steroid use in baseball, agents giving money to college players, and the latest NFL star to get suspended under the League's Personal Conduct Policy. The latest story involves Brett Favre, who allegedly sent pictures of his private area to Jenn Sterger, a New York Jets staff member, when he played for the Jets in the 2008-09 season. Deadspin.com broke the story, and now the league is investigating. I saw the story on Deadspin's website, which, unbeknownst to me, included the pictures of Favre's Little Brett. If those are truly Favre's private parts, based on what I saw, I now know that the number 4 represents more than just his jersey number, if you catch my meaning. If you don't, his Jersey should now read "4 in." This is a story that needs to go away fast. So the easiest way to resolve the issue is to show the pictures to Favre's wife, Deanna. I would think that most women would be able to identify their spouse's equipment without a problem. So have her look at them. Or have John Madden look at them. Either way. Side note: for those of you who don't get the John Madden thing, Google "John Madden's man crush on Brett Favre".
My point is, no matter where you turn there will be something negative going on. The newscast thrive on the negative. Recently, however, we have gotten a respite from the negative news. Today, the last Chilean miner was rescued from the rubble. All 33 miners are safe and sound. But even in that story, there is scandal. One of the rescued miners, Yonni Barrios, probably wishes he was still in the mine. Waiting for him on the surface were his wife...and his mistress. The two found out about each other when they both showed up to a candlelight vigil on the mine site. So I guess the lesson here is "Don't cheat on your wife, cuz you don't want to risk being in some sort of catastrophic event and have your wife and your lover wind up finding out about each other at a vigil".
But Barrios's story aside, the story of the Chilean miners is the sort of breath of fresh air the world needed. Forget politics, forget the world economy, forget religious differences. The world was united in hope as we followed the rescue efforts for these miners.
So the key in life is to look for the positive things in your life, and cling to those. Brianne and I will celebrate our 5-year anniversary tomorrow. We have been through a lot in those five years, primarily from a financial standpoint. We have felt like things were starting to look up, only to be kicked swiftly in the teeth. And sometimes that roller coaster ride causes occasional friction between Brianne and I. However, I remind myself of how lucky I am to have her in my life, and how empty I would feel if she were not in my world. So Guster is right. A storm is on the way. There's always a storm. That is what life is about. But with the storm comes the hope that the sun will shine again, and all will be okay. Sometimes, it just takes a sappy Guster song to remind me of that!
