(the) Jebbica

photo credit: jelene

The Stream of Un is a weekly segment where I play a five-ish minute-long song and write constantly on one topic throughout the duration. Then I leave the passage as is, warts and all.

Song: Beirut: “Elephant Gun”

Topic: People who are famous for no reason

In 1999, we didn’t really know what to think.  A lot of people thought the world would end in the year 2000.  It didn’t, and look how we’ve been thankful.  We’ve turned into a society of self-important, dull, non-accomplished people.  Sure, everyone wants to make their mark upon the world and be remembered for something, be well-known and well-liked, and not feel like life was for nothing.

People used to become famous for their accomplishments.  School text books are riddled with names of famous scientists and inventors.  Can you even name a famous scientist from today’s time?  Probably not. But I bet you can name at least five members from The Hills.  The Hills is the absolute bain of my existence, I swear.  It just feels like everything that’s wrong with today.  We glorify the rich. The rich get richer for nothing.  I am an advocate of getting rich, if you’re talented and have something to offer the world, but I don’t think crotch shots were exactly what Ayn Rand meant.  Ugh, I can name every Kardashian sister, but I can’t remember who invented Google.  That’s really pathetic. I think it’s time for a change.

Check out my intro Stream of Un here.

PS:  The song above…I’ve listened to it about 10 times today now.  I definitely recommend it!

Credit: C-Shot

My e-friend and one of my favorite bloggers ever, Chris Illuminati, had to perform an exercise with his wife before they got married where they had five minutes where they did nothing but write a letter to each other.  They were not allowed to stop writing no matter what.

The  …thing I learned was a new process of writing. The last exercise of the day was a ’stream of consciousness’ writing assignment. Couples were split up and given a pad and pen. They were timed for five minutes and told to write a love letter to their significant other. The only rule was that for the entire five minutes you could not stop writing. Whatever thoughts about my wife that came to mind had to be written on the paper.

Chris has turned this into a regular writing exercise where he turns a song on, picks a topic, and writes on the topic throughout the duration of the song. He calls this the “Stream of Un“.  Anyway, I thought it was a neat idea and could be something that other people might like to try out, too (Cameron and Nick, I’m thinking of you while I write this!).

The rules:

I’ll pick a topic and just write whatever comes to mind for about five minutes. No editing (except typos, I will be fixing them as I go along) no changing words or thoughts, no filters. Just incoherent babbling about a chosen topic. Basically just like my typical blog except this time I am being timed.

However, I’m guessing that what’s going to wind up in my situation is my fingers singing along to the song instead of my brain actually being able to focus on my topic.  And that’s precisely why I think this could be a helpful exercise for me!

So, here goes.  The song this week is “How It Ends” by Devotchka.  The topic is “Why I Love Kanye West”

And…go!

Kanye West. Arrogant, cocky, self-important, and talented as hell. He’s definitely a love him or hate him kind of guy.  I just happen to be on the “I love him” side.  He’s rude. He taunts the press. He punches paparazzi. He blogs in ALL CAPS.  He says it’s not because he’s angry, but because he’s so busy he has to type with one hand.  Let me try that.

HERE I AM TYPING WITH ONE HAND.

Okay, that really sucks.  Kanye, you have waaaaayyyy more money than I do or will ever see. You might want to invest in a bluetooth headset. Or how about speaker phone?  Typing with one hand blows chunks.

Regardless, when it counts, Kanye is arrogant and cocky for one reason.  Because he knows how to bring it.  He continues to wow with his collaborations, videos, and mixes.  Kanye can be as late as he wants to for a concert, badmouth MTV all he wants for all I care. It’s part of his shtick. It’s a marketing scheme.  Which is brilliant.  Take something you know people will talk about, and sell records with it.  Run with it.  Turn that rudeness into a brand.  I respect that.

So Kanye, who are you really?  Are you a reserved, introspective bookworm?  What is beyond the shit talk?  I think there is an entire well, a giant iceberg, and we’ve just begun to see the surface.  Kanye’s new album comes out today, and I really hope I don’t have to eat my words because, I’m putting my faith in the West, and I know he is going to bring it.  You better bring it, Kanye.  WITH ALL CAPS.

…And, Done!

Thanks Chris, for letting me steal this from you!