so this is the new year, and i don't feel any different.

The new year is surprising anticlimactic. Even when I’m counting down…5, 4, 3, 2, 1: Happy New Year! I obviously don’t feel any different. There’s no inside or outwardly change. And I’m in just the same position I was in a few seconds ago, when I was living in 2007. But now, the seven morphs into an eight and I must deal with endless minutes of frustration every time I write the date as 1/6/07 or something of that sort. But other than that, what’s to say something will be different? Yet I continue to write New Year’s Resolutions. This year I have more than twenty to fulfill, which seems like absolutely horrendous, except for the fact that they all seem to follow under the categories of a) be nicer and more respectful b) be more confident and open c) be more productive and less lazy. Yes, somehow I managed to write that in 20+ different sentences.

I’m listening to Coconut Records’ Nighttiming. First off, why would anyone name his or her band, or solo act, _____ Records?! Did Jason Schwartzman want to giggle at all those people who would inevitably be really confused? Would he ever name a record label Coconut Band?! Fuck, dude. Anyway, this album is quite beautiful. Kristen Dunst was on the last song that I don’t remember the name to, and Zooey Deschanel’s on “Mama”. Dear, I love Zooey’s voice especially on “Baby, It’s Cold Outside.” Might I mention, Leon Redbone has the deepest voice that I have ever heard. You know, I feel 2008 is going to be a really good music year. I hadn’t really anticipated anything in 2007, and anything I did anticipate really blew (except Envy On The Coast and Paramore). I’m not anticipating anything in 2008 either (except Bat For Lashes, Gym Class Heroes, and something else I know I’m forgetting), but I’ve got my Hype Machine and Death + Taxes to fill me in with new artists I’ve never heard. On yet another tangent, I’m really excited to do What’s On My iPod? soon (hopefully, it’ll happen). I’m thinking The Brunettes, Bat For Lashes (obviously), Brand New (maybe), T-Pain (just to round it all out), and...well, I’ll have to think about the last album. But still, I’m really pumped for some reason.

I’ve been doing a lot of thinking lately, and really considering if I want to be going to Northwestern, using $40,000+ of my parents’ money on a journalism degree that probably would bring me no further than a English, or whatever it is, degree from Berkeley for just $15,000 (or however much it is nowadays). And I’m thinking if I want to pursue journalism in the first place. Journalism is absolutely fascinating: the pursuit of truth, the presentation of news to the masses with no bias (is that even possible?), and so on. But is it really for me? I detest interviewing, and I don’t get as much satisfaction in finishing an article as I do when I finish writing a narrative essay or a column-type of thing. I want to do journalism because I want my own column, and because I love editorial (which, I learned, is really difficult). But I really do not need a degree in journalism, nor do I need to spend four years learning about the ethics of journalism, etc. to write a column. And if I was looking at it from a pragmatic point of view, writing just a column is not going to get me any money whatsoever. I would love to be in an editor post, but there is that caveat of having to be a journalist before, which brings me back to square one. What’s more, those editors-in-chief of most magazines most likely did not have journalism degrees. But, the bigger problem is, if I don’t major in journalism, what do I major in? And as much as I want to try Chicago, the Bay Area doesn’t sound that bad either (and obviously, neither does New York or any major East Coast city). I remember saying that I wanted to go to a college where no one else from CHS was going. If I was to go to Berkeley that plan would totally go to shit, but just because a couple of friends are also going with me doesn’t mean I won’t branch out and make new friends. But I don’t really prefer Berkeley, as I might have to come down every single holiday...or my parents could make a surprise visit. Oh dear. Anyway, maybe it’s too soon to be thinking so much about this, and spending a really long paragraph rambling about it. After all, I do have...little less than a year to ponder about it. Wait...this is hurtling toward me too fast. Fuck. Well, all I know for sure is that I want a career that somehow involves writing, and I don’t mean writing bank statements or anything remotely resembling that.