ANSWERS!!!Some serious props to the professor for digging in deep and really asking some good questions. Some of these questions were tough to confront, so I hope I've done enough to satisfy your curiosity. Hit me with some follow-ups if I didn't! Happy reading!
1. You are just 22 but have quite the dating history. What is the most romantic date you have ever had? Do you believe in romance? You said you dated an older woman- tell us about her and that relationship. Tell us about C. You also said you had a long distance romance that last 1 1/2 years but didn't end over distance- what did it end over? At such a young age, it seems you have almost a "need" for a serious relationship- is that true? As you reflect on Relationships Past, what is it that you yearn for in Relationships Future?Haha, I guess I do have quite the dating history when I look back on it...
My most romantic date? There are two that come to mind.
One was with the first love, around four years ago. She lived about 7 hours away, so I had driven to see her for the weekend. We spent the day together and had a blast. The really romantic part came that evening. It was cold outside, so we brought jackets so we could take a walk through the park. There was no one around for miles, and we ended up laying on the grass for hours, talking, looking at the stars.. and keeping each other warm. I still remember the way she looked that night, the pale colors of the park, moonlit and covered in frost. It's a bittersweet memory.
The other? Would be last Thursday (with K, I'm going to call her). Yep, I know, that sounds a little crazy, but allow me to run you through the date again. And I quote (myself)
"We went to the cheesecake factory for some food... ended up playing in the fountain outside (really)... walked to a field behind the place that was completely secluded... sat in the grass, holding hands, as we watched the thunder storm roll in... walked back to my car in the pouring rain... sat in my car and talked until 1:30 in the morning... drove her back to her car and had an amazing good night kiss."
Another image that is going to stay with me for a long time is what she looked like sitting in my passenger seat, with the street light behind her and the rain beating down on the windows.
When it comes to relationships, I believe in a lot of things, and romance is absoloutely one of those. What is a serious relationship that has no romance? A friendship with sex, that's what. I'm not saying that things are always going to be flowers and chocolates, but it's important for that person to know that you care about them and that they're special to you. It's really the little things that matter. Not a big, fancy, uppity date, but little things. Leaving a note on her car that says you were just thinking about her, a phone call in the morning to wish her a good day, flowers when she least expects it, breakfast in bed. As a man, you should want to do these things for the person you care about. If you don't, then that's probably a good sign that your feelings don't go that deep. ...Of course, romance in the bedroom is important too.
Ah... older women. What can I say, they've been there, done that, and aren't opposed to getting a little freaky *coughcoughfingerinthebuttcough*. In the last 6 months I've dated quite a wide age range. The youngest being 18, oldest being 30, the in betweens were 19, 19, 21, 22, 23, 25. It's funny, but the most immature out of all of those women was the 30 year old. She had NO idea what she wanted, no plan for life, and no drive or ambition... BLECH! The 25 year old, also known as the ex, was a far more worthwhile relationship, but she had some serious self-confidence issues, which created a lot of other problems. Everyone has those issues on some level, but this was ridiculous. I still deemed some of the younger women to be more mature than she. C was my age, and actually had things quite together, which initially attracted me to her (plus the fact that she is a really hot, tiny, 4' 10" asian (easy to throw around the bedroom)). The problem with C? She just couldn't keep up a conversation. ...let me rephrase that, she was FUCKING DULL. In my mind, no ammounts of hotness can make up for a woman who can't hold a conversation.... unfortunately. Damn me and my standards, it keeps me from getting a lot of ass.
The year and a half long relationship was my first love. We lived about 3 hours apart, and when we went to college that became 7 hours. Why did it end? She didn't love me. And I knew it. I knew for a while towards the end that she just never felt as strongly for me as I did for her. That's why I never told her that I loved her.... but I know that she knew. So, one day she called me up and said that she thought we should try being friends. I still remember that day. I went back to my dorm room and tried to fight off the tears, because I KNEW that our friendship would eventually fade away, I don't know how, but I just knew. And it did. She recently got married, and I wasn't even invited. ...and there's the sad story.
Your next question made me think. Do I have a need for a serious relationship? Not exactly... but, I DO have a need to always be dating someone or to have the option... which is still not really healthy. I find that when I don't even have a "prospect on the horizon" that I tend to get ...depressed. Not good. I find though, that, thankfully, I'm quite picky about who I enter into serious relationships with. As far as relationships that have lasted over a few months, I really only have 3, to date.
Dating around, as I have, has taught me a lot about what I want, and what makes me want to enter into a relationship. There are a lot of important things, but the one thing I seek most is genuine, easy, and fun conversation. If I can have fun with a woman while doing nothing at all, then THAT is someone I could spend a lot of time with. I look for someone who makes me laugh, who doesn't mind telling me all about her day, who interests me, fascinates me, excites me, and makes me want to be a better person.... and that's pretty rare!
DAMN professor, that took a long time!
2. Several times your temper flared to the point where you wanted to express your anger through physical violence, but didn't- the most recent example of the little bitch with the "shock gum." Have you ever resorted to violence? If so, what caused this and how was it resolved after punches flew? If not, what keeps your temper in check? What outlets do you use to channel your anger?Yeah, the way I've written about things probably made me sound a little violent, huh? Would I have really hit the girl with the shock gum? ...maybe, that bitch deserved it, but more likely, if I had gotten close enough to her, I would have just taken the gum from her and called security.
I've only been in one real fight in my entire life. Other than that, I've been in countless sparring matches with friends and other martial arts students (more on that in a moment). The real fight, as you might recall from my old blog, resulted when a friend got jumped at a party and sent to the hospital with broken ribs and teeth knocked out. I was upset, but not livid. I wouldn't have gone to hunt those guys down, but another good friend of mine did, and I didn't want him to do it alone. Once we got there and started fighting them, I really wasn't angry (even though random people were taking swings at me), I just put myself in a zone and focused on making sure my friends didn't get hurt. Looking back, I wish there had been another way, but my friends might have been seriously hurt if I hadn't gone.
That fight, by the way, didn't resolve a damn thing (of course), just a few people on both sides came out with bloody noses and black eyes.
As a teen, I had a lot more anger issues than I do now. I'm not sure where it really stemmed from, but I'm sure it was mostly from being a teen. Back then I was much more involved in martial arts, and would go to class and practice nearly constantly. Hitting the bag and participating in sparring really helped me channel my anger, and more than anything, taught me that I was CAPABLE of channeling my anger. In a lot of ways, martial arts really started me out on a path to being a better person.
Nowadays, I lift weights and/or run every day. It's hard to be angry about anything when you're focusing all of your physical and mental energy into bench pressing 315 lbs. or running 5 miles. Trust me, both of those acts take just as much mental energy as it does physical ability! In any case, working out works very well for me.
3. You are a music person. What is your favorite type of music of all times and why? List ten of your favorite "rock/rap/country/pop" music bands/singers. If you could assemble any five bands/ music artists, living or dead, past or present, regardless of genre of music, to appear in a concert together, who would you pick? What instruments do you play and which is your favorite?(Composer's note: I plan to answer this question again later with some really good romantic, neo-classical, modern, and film music - but it's going to take me a bit longer to find downloads for that music)Oh my, my favorite type of music of all time? I really have two that tie for first place, and I listen to both equally, they are - modern rock (including punk/emo) - and modern orchestra works (including film scoring) - Of course, I have a lot of other music that I like, but I really gravitate to music with a serious, emotional feel... and when it comes to rock, I like it a little harder (sorry classic rock, you just ain't my thing).
Since you said rock/rap/country/pop, I'll try to actually include someone from each of those genres... In no particular order! These are CURRENT favorites, followed by style, and best song on their page.
Taking Back Sunday (indie rock) (Liar, it takes one to know one)
Green Day ((new) punk rock) (American Idiot (suck it Bush!))
Saves The Day ((newer) punk rock) (At Your Funeral (they have better stuff))
Ben Folds (pop/pop rock) (Landed) (check out his rendition of Dr. Dre's "Bitches Ain't Shit" - if you dare)
Kanye West (hip hop) (Heard Em Say)
Snow Patrol (rock/emo rock) (Chasing Cars)
Dashboard Confessional (emo rock) (It's All Pretty Good, try Dusk And Summer)
Brand New (indie rock) (Sic Transit Gloria (Glory Fades))
Karate Explosion (emo rock) - this is one of my former bands (that's right bitches, I'm a rocker!), listen for the piano! (Half Empty Waterbed)
Sigur Ros (experimental) (Saeglopur)
Well, it looks like country didn't make it on the list... too bad Garth, maybe next year!
As far as my all time top 5, for a show... this is tough. I'm going to say,
Ben Folds - This guy is the reason I took up the piano!
Saves The Day - Everything these guys write is gold.
Michael Jackson (before he went bat shit crazy) - I listened to "smooth criminal" about 10 times a day when I was in the third grade.
Elton John - The man. The legend.
Sigur Ros - Hear it's a damn good show.
Currently, I play the piano, the trumpet, and I sing (in a fine, piercing soprano). I also play the Horn in F (French horn) with less skill than the trumpet, and the trombone with virtually no skill at all. Which is too bad, because it is a great horn. My favorite, though, is still the piano. I can (and often do) sit at the piano for hours out of a day and just play anything and everything as it comes to me. It's a wonderful way to relax or gain inspiration to compose.
4. Tell us a little bit about your background: family, siblings, where you grew up, what started your interest in music, who musically inspired you, a bit of childhood background.My family... is awesome! I'm blessed to have 2 full sets of grandparents still with us, and in decently good health. My parents are phenomenal people. My dad is a police officer, and quite high ranking (he was the chief of police for about 2 years, while the department searched for a new chief), which is GREAT for getting out of speeding tickets. My mom is a bit more of a wandering soul. She does a little bit of anything and everything, she's had many jobs, but has seemed to finally settle into a job selling commercial real estate. They still love each other a lot, and they really inspire me for what I'd like in a marriage.
My sister is two years older than me. She graduated from the same school as me with a degree in software engineering, and currently makes mega bucks along with her husband at a big place in town. She got married two years ago. She and I are really simmilar in a lot of ways... we have a very simmilar sense of humor, and we both really wear our hearts on our sleeves, especially when it comes to relationships. She was my hero growing up, but now we're just good friends, which is really nice.
My childhood was... lazy. I didn't do much, except play video games, until I got into high school. I took up the trumpet in the sixth grade, but I was never very good. I actually didn't start playing the piano until my senior year of high school. I took a high school music theory course and gained a very basic understanding of how chords and melodies worked.
One day, I was listening to a recording by a band named
Student Rick, called "meet you halfway there" (third one down), and I thought, "I can figure that out". So I sat down at the piano, for the first time ever, and started playing until I could play the whole thing and sing it. It opened a whole new world for me. With my rudimentary knowledge of music theory, and my rudimentary knowledge of the piano, I started playing... for hours and hours a day. Within weeks I was writing songs I would have never thought possible. Before the summer was over, I had recorded a CD of solo piano works, and about a year later, I wrote my first orchestra piece.
It's so crazy that it all comes back to that one song, and I just thought, "I can do that."
Other than that, I was an overacheiver in high school, with a 4.0 grade average, tennis team captain, Student Council VP, and about a billion other things... it kind of burnt me out, and so when I got to college, I really focused on music.
5. You are embarking upon a journey to leave home again. What excites you about going to Baltimore? How does leaving home feel? What challenges give you pause or cause a bit of worry as you head to the coast? Do you like to travel?-answer in detailed format.Certainly, this new woman, K, has made quite an impact on me. It's such a strange situation to have such strong feelings for someone in such a short ammount of time. I am genuinely concerned to be leaving such a good thing. I'm not sure I could deal with another huge heartbreak in my life, especially if it's because I moved too far away.
Besides that, I have little qualms about going away. I will miss my family deeply, but two years apart from them will not kill me. I am excited beyond words of the prospect of attending one of the top music institutions in the country. I'm excited about living in a downtown area, and living a block away from the school. That means it's a lot easier to go to campus for concerts, and that means exposure to a lot more music, and performers. I'm excited about a different atmosphere, especially within the composition department at the school. The department in my undergraduate was less than supportive. I'm excited about studying with one particular composer who is MY FUCKING HERO.
I also WOULD be excited about a new dating pool.. but if she is willing to do long distance, then I'm willing to not look at one hot ass while I'm up there. ...well, maybe one or two.
Traveling... hmm... double edged sword. I crave some regularity in my life. I have to exercise at least 6 days a week. I have to play the piano at least every other day or so. I have to compose often. I have to eat healthy food - all the time. If I don't do those things, I don't feel human, and I'm just not happy. SO, when I go traveling, I have to take all of those things into consideration. I know that sounds a little crazy, but it's the truth.
I also loathe traveling with my parents, especially since my sister (my ear to bitch to) is married now and rarely comes with us. I love 'em, but can spend only limited ammounts of time with them... especially my mom. She and I are too much alike, and end up butting heads often. Don't even get me started about our trip to Baltimore to find an apartment, just she and I. *shudders* .... my dad is better, but is an adventure freak and likes to go do anything and everything on a vacation, even if that means getting up at 5 in the morning (Pearl Harbor is NOT worth getting up at 5 in the fucking morning). So, I get dragged to do all day adventures when I would much rather lay by the pool all day and then go to a nice dinner.
What 7 things do you like do for fun- other than music related things?1. Getting naked. Love it, and I'm not going to lie about it.
2. Working out!
3. Movies. I'm a huge fan, and I LOVE observing how the scores interact with the film. I also enjoy musicals - to a lesser extent.
4. Chess. I used to kick ass at it back in the day, but I'm no longer the threat I once was. I still love a good game, and it's been a while since I've lost.
5. Cleaning, while blasting music throughout the house. It takes my mind off of everything.
6. Cooking. I'm learning as I go, but let me tell you that I make a mean chicken parmesean, shrimp pasta (in a homemade red sauce), blackened chicken salad... and of course, steak! I also love breakfast.
7. Driving fast things. It's a well kept secret, I am a speed demon! I've gotten out of it for safety's sake, but if you ask me to take your ninja bike for a test ride, you'd better believe I'm going to break the speedometer!
Well there it is professy. I hope it didn't take you as long to read those answers as it did for me to write them! I have nothing but love for you!
