Saturday Songspiration

Behind every name, there lies a story.

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So, for today's post, kick back and enjoy the story of how my blog got its name.

I may be more than stating the obvious for those of you who know me, but for those of you who do not, there is one thing you need to know about me:  I was once a Muse fanatic (and still am to some extent).  If you ask me who Muse are, I will most likely shoot you a look of shock that says, "I am so sorry your life has been so empty up until this point!"  And then, I will promptly go on to share with you more than you would ever like to know about the English band (like I am about to do).

I was introduced to the band Muse by my sister Carly.  When she made me listen to some samples of their musical genius, I swore I had heard the song ("Starlight") elsewhere and just could not place where or how, but regardless of whether or not I had heard of them up until that point in my life, this simple sentence spoken by my sister would change my life forever:  "Kate, you have to check out this band!  You'll like them!  And the lead singer is kind of scrawny, so you'll really like him!"

((Side note:  I have an inexplicably strange affinity for scrawny and/or nerdy men... muscular men have never been my type... strange, perhaps, but  you will learn sooner rather than later, if you haven't already, that I am anything but predictable!))

Here is the music video for the song "Starlight."  If you've never heard it, you should listen.  It's one of my favorites.

Copyright 2006 by Muse, "Starlight" from Black Holes & Revelations

I went on to see Muse in concert three times after this.  Once when they opened for U2, and twice when they were the headliners.  All three times were EPIC, an adjective that Muse fans use quite liberally.  They seriously put on some of the best shows I have ever seen (they have received 43 nominations and won 16 different honors from the NME Awards, including Best Live Band and Best Live Event).

These days, I'm still a huge Muse fan, but I have downgraded myself from utter fanatic to huge-time admirer.  I blame their newest album The Second Law (released October 2012).  This is going to make me sound like a huge music snob, but this album just sounds so commercialized and cheesy, and not at all like their old stuff.  Matthew Bellamy, the lead singer and primary writer of most of the lyrics and music, is an absolute musical genius.  Many of their songs feature classical instruments (violins, cellos, piano, etc. ) for which Bellamy composes all of the music, and their album The Resistance (2009) even features a three part symphony called "Exogenesis," which Bellamy composed in its entirety.  You can listen to this symphony below if you'd like.  It is 13 minutes from start to finish.  My favorite is Part III, "Redemption," if you're short for time and only want to listen to a sample.

Copyright 2009 by Muse, "Exogenesis Symphony" Parts I, II, & II from The Resistance

Bellamy is insane on the guitar and piano, and his voice is what I like to call Freddy-Mercurial (he can hit falsetto like it's his job... which I guess it kind of is).  Enough cannot be said of his musical genius, and the lyrics that he writes are pure poetry... or at least they were... till The Second Law was released and we went from this,

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this,

(Even though it is kind of a Shakespeare rip-off--or homage, depending how you look at it)

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and this

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to this

Copyright 2012 by Muse, "Survival" from The Second Law

WTH, Matthew?  Seriously... W... T... H...*

When I first heard that a Muse song would be the official song of the 2012 Olympics, I was so pumped thinking about how Muse would finally get the recognition they deserved.  The whole world would be watching.  Everybody would finally know who Muse were!  Then, I heard "Survival," and it... was... awful!

To make matters worse, stupid NBC cut Muse's performance from the televised broadcast of the closing ceremonies of the Olympics.  Let me repeat that... NBC CUT THE OFFICIAL SONG OF THE 2012 OLYMPICS FROM THE BROADCAST OF THE CLOSING CEREMONIES!

WTH, NBC?!  Seriously, W... T... H...

I'm not bitter or anything...

Currently Muse are working on a new album to be released sometime this year.  It appears to be called (at least tentatively) Drones.  Let's hope that it is a vast improvement and a return to their roots.  Okay... so maybe I am a bit of a music snob... sometimes...

So, anyway, at the time I began my blog, I was in the thick of my Muse obsession.  Plus, the idea of a writer and his/her muse goes together like peanut butter and chocolate, peas and carrots, wine and... well... everything.  So, I decided that titling my Blog "Musings of a Second Rate Poet" would not only accurately reflect upon the origin of my passion for writing [in my first blog post (found here), I kind of explained where the "Second-Rate Poet" part came from] and the general ramblings... er... musings that I planned to compose and share on the blog, but it would also give a slight nod to one of my favorite bands... who are still one of my favorites... despite their [hopefully] temporary hiatus from the number one spot on my list.  Who is my number one currently, you might ask... Let's save that for another blog post. ;-)  Bonus points to anyone who can guess correctly...

So, there you have it!  The origins of my blog's name... as well as more information than you probably ever hoped to learn about Muse... You're welcome...

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*My dearest Matthew Bellamy, if you ever read this blog post, I still love you and think Muse is nothing short of epic.  I blame the awfulness of The Second Law on Kate Hudson.  Although your relationship produced a beautiful, beautiful child, it did not produce beautiful, beautiful music, and for that, I forgive you.

What I am Giving up for Lent this Year...

(Hint:  Not a thing...)

Two years ago, I wrote this post about Lent.  It was 2013, and it had been my second year giving up Facebook for Lent (and also the second year I attempted to breathe life into this blog).  So, after three years of suspending my social media addiction, this year,  I decided not to.

It's not because I can't and not even that I don't want to; I just needed something different.  To be perfectly honest, I even temporarily forgot that today was Ash Wednesday until a kid at school asked me when Easter was.  That's when I realized that I had no clue what I planned to give up.  As stated in my original post on the topic, I do not feel it is a necessity to give anything up for Lent; it is just something I try to do for my spiritual, emotional, and mental well-being:  proof that I can make positive changes in my life... even if only for forty days or so... it's a start.

So, I thought about all the things I could or should give up, and I kept talking myself out of every suggestion.  I have been so frustrated lately about things that are beyond my control that I am in no shape whatsoever to be giving up the usual Lenten go-to sacrifices of sweets, ice cream, wine, or other edible/drinkable coping mechanisms.  So, those were NOT viable options.

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And, I'm just not feeling the whole Facebook thing.  I'm not really on it as much as I used to be anyway, and when I am, it's usually on my phone while I'm a passenger in a car, or while I'm cooking, cleaning, paying bills, multi-tasking, waiting for the microwave, trying to fall asleep, or something like that.  I never just sit down and do nothing but stare at Facebook for hours on end anymore (parenthood, a job, and life in general will do that to a person). So, since I was at a total loss as to what to sacrifice anyway, I decided that, instead of giving something up for Lent, why not add stuff!  For the next forty days, my goal will be to add pieces to the puzzle of my life that have been missing.  So, it's kind of like a Lenten sacrifice... in reverse.

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So, basically, for Lent this year, I am giving up... nothing.  At least, not in the traditional sense.  However, by doing more of the things I should be doing and/or want to be doing, I will be giving up more of the things that do not matter, yet seem to bog me down on a daily basis, by default.  That is the plan anyway...  One thing in particular I'm hoping to have less and less time for:  people who do not add anything positive to my life.

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One of the things I hope to add to my life is... MORE WRITING!  I briefly thought about making a grand proposal of 40 days of blog posting (HA!) during the Lenten season, but decided that I was only kidding myself.  A good friend told me that my "blog cries itself to sleep every night" because of my lack of regular posts.  I joked that I didn't think anybody actually read it or cared, but I'd be willing to bet that he will be reading this (if he hasn't already).  It feels good to have one loyal blog reader haha.  Just kidding... I know there are more of you out there... right?  RIGHT?!

So, anyway, I WILL write (or read) something every day, but it might not always be in the form of a post.  However, I will slowly get better at this blogging thing... I must...

It is pretty sad, I must say, that I started this blog three years ago, and this is only my ninth post #bloggershame.

So, this Lent, rather than thinking about giving up on things (I do that enough already),

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I want to focus on adding things that enrich my life... and naturally, those other things will fall away and take care of themselves.  One can hope...