Anyway, last year I started a secondary ritual of keeping the old responses to the questions as well as adding the new ones, for the sake of comparison and contrast. We'll see how 2006 stacked up against 2005.
[Finished: 1AM 01 January 2007, Taipei time. Baltimore-bound tomorrow and a day on the road (air). I'm flying in full of promises and I'll do my best to keep them. But I pack no certainty. Does anything change on New Year's Day?]
1. What did you do in 2006 that you'd never done before?
(2005) Worked in a lab--a genetics lab, to be precise. Lived in an apartment on my own, cooking and cleaning for myself. Started playing bass. Urban exploration (maintenance tunneling). Genuinely fell in love with and went serious with a girl, seven months. Slept not alone, etc. Started my own radio show.
(2006) Gigged! Crazy, I know, but there were two, not counting open mics (also two). Playing venues is much different from playing half-assed school functions. Tried hookah. I suppose technically I tried weed, once, but it didn't do anything but make me cough for two weeks, so I don't suppose it counts. Moved off of school-owned property. It doesn't seem 2006 was the healthiest year, or the most revolutionary; I'll forgive myself this time.
2. Did you keep your New Years' resolutions, and will you make more for next year?
(2005) Well, I got a job (paid in credits instead of cash) and fell in love. Holy shit. I am actually verifiably two steps ahead of where I was a year ago. Unbelievable. Learn to deal with people. Learn to deal with myself.
(2006) Did I learn to deal with other people, and myself? To a large extent, I think I was successful. Only from the second half onward, though. The first half was still a wreck. For 2007, let's try: exercise more! Learn double thumb! Learn how to make music in Live! Learn how to use Pd! Maybe get something published/presented by the end of the year? Apply to grad school! Well, if I don't, I'm forfeit anyway.
3. Did anyone close to you give birth?
(2005) No.
(2006) Nope!
4. Did anyone close to you die?
(2005) Three people at my college died in separate incidents. Murder, suicide, meningitis. I didn't know any of them though. Though I met the suicide kid with my ex-roommate Jack when we were drunk and they were getting a smoke together.
(2006) Someone died at my school again--an art history teacher, meningitis again. I swear, someone dies at Johns Hopkins every year. Closer, my uncle died of liver cancer less than a week ago. See earlier entry.
5. What countries did you visit?
(2005) Same. [TW +USA] I must make my way to Europe somehow.
(2006) Same. Not much money or time for traveling anymore. I need a new location, soon.
6. What would you like to have in 2006 that you lacked in 2005?
(2005) There is a girl who loves me and whom I love. I quit my lab job, but I will find another. I still lack direction and motivation, but I'm on the lookout for something I can follow. I would also like a nice bass amp setup (Ashdown/Avatar, most likely) and a new computer. Some peace of mind would also be nice. And maybe some exercise too. I've never had a fake ID. I could also use an iRiver. You should not get me started on these lists.
(2006) I actually got most of the things from last year's list. A bass that's fully functional. An ID that says I'm 21 (I'll have a real one in August). Having someone I could be alone with would be nice, but I'll hang.
7. What date from 2006 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?
(2005) February 19. How could I ever forget February 19? That was the date Patrice and I started going out. The date we stopped is far less significant, because I doubt a relationship like that ever truly ends, no more than Sartre and de Beauvoir could tear themselves away from each other. And: March 19 was the Slint concert (I've got to start watching out for those 19ths), March 24 was the Interpol concert. I'm not quite sure why I remember those dates. October 17 was the Rocktoberfest show which, of course, was completely half-assed, but it's worth something. I hope.
(2006) October 17. Debut Trafalgar gig at the 8x10 + the encounter with Sarah; pretty memorable, I think. November 17. Second Trafalgar gig at the Charm City Art Space.
8. What was your biggest achievement of the year?
(2005) She says I changed her life. I got into a genetics lab (although I quit at the end of the summer). Those are both pretty big, I think.
(2006) Gigged! Got into another lab--and managed to stick with it. Fall 2006 saw my highest GPA since I got into college. A fairly pragmatic year, as far as years with me go.
9. What was your biggest failure?
(2005) Well, I guess I can stop bitching now, right? My biggest failure was, in Fiona's words, "to keep [my] pants on and be happy with it." I'm glad my friends are honest to me when I'm not.
(2006) Still not too happy with the pants thing. I must've passed up 4 different lab position offers before I got into Dr. Hristova's lab; bad timing on my part.
10. Did you suffer illness or injury?
(2005) While we were drunk (lots of my stories start like this), Oren convinced me it would be a good idea to jump into a bush. I acquired a two-inch scar on my left palm. This was a month and a half ago. If you look carefully, you can still see it.
(2006) Might've had a cold back in the beginning of the year. But I got by relatively unscathed.
11. What was the best thing you bought?
(2005) My bass. Cheap, but infinitely useful. My auxiliary sound card. That Circulon pan I cook everything in. Definitely not the damn Sunn head with the fucked transformer.
(2006) The Avatar 410. The Gallien-Krueger 800RB. They'll stick around for a long time. My iRiver. My Thinkpad...it was a good year for consumerism. I'm sorry to say.
(2006) The Avatar 410. The Gallien-Krueger 800RB. They'll stick around for a long time. My iRiver. My Thinkpad...it was a good year for consumerism. I'm sorry to say.
12. Whose behavior merited celebration?
(2005) "All of us's. For staying alive." More specifically: Patrice's, for changing my life and my person. Miguel's, for starting the band with me, lots of beer and gin, and being a sage. Sterling's, for lending me bass amps, fixing the innumerable pieces of equipment that I broke and broke again, free beer (though it was all shitty beer) and sodas (good sodas).
(2006) Lindsay was there for me quite a few times when I had meltdowns. Thank you. Yuli , many times, kept me awake and talking way too long after I was supposed to have slept and stopped knowing what I was talking about. Sterling still helped me and the band out way more than we deserved.
13. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed?
(2005) My damn own, for the most part. My roommates don't help much, either.
(2006) I was somewhat distressed when P. started leaving me out of her life, but I deserved it. That aside, we all know which people messed with my head at the most inconvenient times. So let's not name them. They might be listening in. As a final addendum, few things are more traumatizing than finding porn on your little brother's (14) computer.
14. Where did most of your money go?
(2005) A 1970s Sunn bass amp with a fucked up transformer and an Ampeg 810 cab that is awesome but too massive to move around. God, I'm stupid.
(2006) Bass Rig MK II. (GK800RB + Avatar 410NEO) Hey, it works now!
15. What did you get really, really, really excited about?
(2005) Slint concert, Interpol concert, Bloc Party concert, Dinosaur Jr concert. Rocktoberfest. That was overrated. The Baltimore defense of summer '05. That was a worthwhile experience--although it, too, was slightly overrated.
(2006) For the third time--gigging. Not as many awesome shows, but I was psyched for Mission of Burma and Radiohead. Really psyched.
16. What song will always remind you of 2004?
(2005) Guided by Voices - "The Goldheart Mountaintop Queen Directory" and Bloc Party - "Blue Light": these are the two songs I was listening to a lot when Patrice and I started dating, and since 2005 will forever be the Year of Patrice, these will forever be the songs of 2005. Also check: Pavement - "Trigger Cut" (and the rest of Slanted & Enchanted); for some reason, I can't stop thinking about taking the bus through Mount Vernon this summer while listening to that album. The Joggers - "White Madam." Dinosaur Jr - "Little Fury Things" (and the rest of You're Living All Over Me). Maybe: Can - "Paperhouse."
(2006) These lists just keep getting better and better. Peter, Bjorn & John, "Young Folks" (and the rest of Writer's Block, really); Squarepusher, "Iambic 5 Poetry"; Aphex Twin, "Girlboy Song"; Venetian Snares, "Hajnal"; "Mission of Burma, "Careening with Conviction" (and the rest of The Obliterati); Slowdive, "Alison"; Bloc Party, "Two More Years"; Autolux, "Turnstile Blues"; The Hold Steady, (choose one) "Cattle and the Creeping Things" "Chillout Tent"; TV on the Radio, "Wolf Like Me"; The Knife, "Forest Families"; Jose Gonzales, "Heartbeats" (Knife cover); Mew, (choose one) "Apocalypso" "She Came Home for Christmas"; Joy Division, "New Dawn Fades"; Forget Cassettes, "Quiero, Quieres"; Mogwai, "Travel is Dangerous"
17. Compared to this time last year, are you:
i. happier or sadder?
(2005) Happier, since I know more about what happiness means.
(2006) First of all, a revision to last year's response: the Sophomore Slump of 2004-05 was definitively one of the most miserable periods of my life. December 2004 couldn't even compare. That said, I'm fairly confident right now that, whatever the specifics, I'm in a better place than I was in a year ago.
ii. thinner or fatter?
(2005) Much the same. 103 pounds is not enough pounds.
(2006) I weigh the exact same as I did last year.
iii. richer or poorer?
(2005) Poorer, now that I'm slowly stopping my bad habit of leeching off home money. Richer in wisdom, perhaps?
(2006) Richer. I saved up a bit.
18. What do you wish you'd done more of?
(2005) The same, plus exercise, and less thinking. I think I did quite enough thinking for--damn. I did it again.
(2006) Exercise. Gig (can't get enough of that). Study and study. Write entries (serious dereliction of duty after the fall semester started). Lab work.
19. What do you wish you'd done less of?
(2005) That's still a drag [being unable to talk with people]. Also, I guess getting drunk virtually every weekend the entire semester was a bit over the top.
(2006) Drink, sulk, sit and do nothing.
20. How will you be spending Christmas?
(2005) Ditto [spent it with my family]. We are boring.
(2006) Ditto. Got a couple nice jackets.
22. Did you fall in love in 2005?
(2005) Undeniably.
(2006) No. I'm simply no longer able to just fall in love with people I don't know will love me back. I wanted to, though, and almost did, once.
23. How many one-night stands?
(2005) Same [none]. Next time I'll try harder. Jest.
(2006) Katelyn doesn't count. We didn't do anything.
24. What was your favorite TV program?
(2005) I still don't watch TV. Maybe I should start. But that would require paying for it.
(2006) CNN News during the one week that I didn't have a computer. Then it was back to Google News for me.
25. Do you hate anyone now that you didn't hate this time last year?
(2005) I can't stand Garrett. I can barely tolerate Esteban. I think this is because I live with them now. I still try to stay away from hatred.
(2006) Amazingly, I can deal with both of them now, and even share an apartment with the latter. I still don't hate anyone, because I don't think it's worth my time, but there's a certain person I wouldn't mind never associating with again. Again, they might be listening in.
26. What was the best book you read?
(2005) Sputnik Sweetheart and The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle, both by Haruki Murakami. What's the Matter with Kansas?: How Conservatives Won the Heart of America by Thomas Frank. Our Band Could be Your Life: Scenes from the American Indie Underground 1981-1991 by Michael Azerrad. Untimely Meditations by Nietzsche (the parts I did read of it). I read a lot this year.
(2006) Kazuo Ichiguro, Never Let Me Go. Mark Z. Danielewski, Only Revolutions (I liked it because it confused me). Haruki Murakami, Kafka On the Shore. Theodor Adorno/Max Horkheimer, The Dialectic of Enlightenment.
27. What was your greatest musical discovery?
(2005) Undoubtedly Guided by Voices. My entire freshman spring was a massive Guided by Voices kick, as Andrew put it. Bloc Party. Can. Autechre. Pavement. Dinosaur Jr. Gang of Four. Wilderness. Various trip-hop bands with heartmelting female vocalists. Mogwai. The Minutemen. Husker Du. Mission of Burma. MF Doom.
(2006) Mew, The Knife, Peter Bjorn & John, Squarepusher, Aphex Twin, Board of Canada, and the other IDM stuff I listen to, The Hold Steady, William Basinski, Fennesz, Slowdive, Pinback, Boris, Gyorgy Ligeti, Bela Bartok, various dub and D'n'B stuff (as genres, not artist-specific yet).
28. What did you want and get?
(2005) A bass. A girl. A lab job. A nice apartment. I really shouldn't complain, eh?
(2006) Working bass rig! A paying job(s). MP3 player. Laptop. A new lab position. Uni West apartment (ideal residence since freshman year). A halfway decent GPA (3.48--best GPA and first A- in a science course since freshman spring). Year of down-to-earth achievements?
29. What did you want and not get?
(2005) Forget about Columbia. The album will drop eventually. I have love. The others I still do not have.
(2006) Laid, but there's only so much you can do. New bass on which everything doesn't break on me.
30. What was your favorite film of this year?
(2005) Wasn't a good year for movies. The Aviator was good. Hotel Rwanda was good.
(2006) The Science of Sleep, hands down. Babel a close second. A History of Violence a close second if you count DVDs. Sorry Snakes On a Plane, none for you.
31. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?
(2005) 19. I believe that I, once again, ate cake.
(2006) 20. Got kicked out for underage drinking of the Ted Leo show at the Ottobar that ended up being the awesome power-out fiesta that got coverage on Pitchforkmedia! Fucking go me.
32.What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?
(2005) You know. Also, if I'd gotten good grades (I attribute my academic slump to manic depression).
(2006) Going steady. Everything else has been pretty hard to complain about.
33. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2004?
(2005) Lots of band shirts. 6-month-long hair. Still the button-down shirts, short-sleeve and long. More blazers. My dad's old long black coat in the winter and a black scarf. Tightish jeans. Towards the end: black suede Converse and black jeans.
(2006) Pretty much the exact same thing, plus a pair of Doc Martens from time to time. Better jeans though.
34. What kept you sane?
(2005) Patrice, my mates, the music I listened to, the music I played. My family actually didn't help much.
(2006) Self-restraint of perverse magnitude. Except, you know, those days when I wasn't quite so sane.
35. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most?
(2005) Scarlett Johansson and Elizabeth, the bassist from Psychic Ills. How's that for a leap?
(2006) Beth Cameron, singer-guitarist of Forget Cassettes. And how.
36. What political issue stirred you the most?
(2005) Patrice talked to me a lot about the Darfur genocide. Of course, I'm just dissatisfied with society in general.
(2006) The war between Israel and Palestine. Also, I believe my general outrage against capitalist domination has reached a new peak after my Marx, Freud and Modern Critical Theory class.
37. Who did you miss?
(2005) Again, Lawrentians. I don't have many more people I could possibly miss.
(2006) I missed myself as I used to be (more naive). Patrice, in a figurative way. Maura and Steph...they'll be back though, soon enough.
38. Who was the best new person you met?
(2005) Patrice. I guess technically I met her last year. Stephanie and Stephanie. Sid. Miguel, goes without saying. Sterling and Diamond have been a hit. I have new friends; now, how about that?
(2006) Lindsay and Yuli. Edit: Sarah K. Credit where credit is due.
39. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2005:
(2005) Death is very real in all the ways that most people don't understand, and I am not as flawless a person as I once thought.
(2006) Love drains you and shouldn't be as freely given as it used to be for me.
40. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year:
(2005) This is far more difficult than I imagine it was last year. There's nothing obvious; I can think of songs that I loved, but not sure they mean anything in the context. I suppose I'll go with: "In the first case it's probably just paranoia, but there's a ghost in my room and he says I'd better run. It's a thing I know, it's a thing I believe in--won't you tell it to go away?" (Guided by Voices, "Tractor Rape Chain")
(2006) This is still hard, and would be better answered by a medley of song lyrics, but it's the last question, so I'll try not to cheat: "We cannot wait for much longer. We want happiness back. We want control of our bodies, everything we've lacked." (The Knife, "From Off to On")
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