Hello everyone! Garrett here speaking. So, it’s near the middle of April as I’m writing this post, and let me tell you this: time flies so fast. Yes, it’s a very cliche statement, but I still feel compelled to say that because we have Galen in our family. He’s about to become 12 months old and his growth’s so obvious when we look back at our old pictures of him. His July 2020 self was definitely balder than his March 2021 self!
In terms of my academic life, I can say I’ve achieved some milestones. I’ve finished my SCALE activities around December, and it was in January this year that I was considered complete. Johannes and I did our final defense for our research this school year, and it passed! We’re now just focusing on getting it printed and published in our school library in order to graduate. I’ll put a picture of the electronic poster Johannes and I collaborated on in this post if you’re curious. Our research was about creating a computer game that could be used for making online classes fun and engaging for students. I still haven’t become a DL yet but honestly I don’t mind as much because I still survived what Pisay threw at me anyway.
This year was also wild for me in terms of my music taste. We know Lil Nas X became controversial for his latest song MONTERO (Call Me By Your Name), but as a Lady Gaga fan, I ended up being obsessed with Judas because that song was so controversial back in 2011. I’ll be honest, I only listened to that song this year because I was scared off that masterpiece thanks to the Christians who protested against her concert in the Philippines. Now, I can confidently say that she wasn’t saying she was in love with the literal Judas. Her song used Judas as a metaphor for her ex-love who betrayed her. (Also, Norman Readus as Judas was something I didn’t know I needed to watch but I’m thankful I did.)
I also started listening to Physical by Dua Lipa this year .(Yes, I know I’m really late in appreciating bops!) In my defense, some of Dua Lipa’s recent hits were not my cup of tea, so I was surprised to find a song I loved from her discography. The music video was absolutely mesmerizing), and I do encourage you to appreciate its choreography, camera work, and color palette.
My most recent obsession now is with Taylor’s newest album Fearless (Taylor’s Version). Re-recording her classic country hits as well as releasing some songs from her vault was a great move for her career since her old label didn’t want to give her ownership over her old songs. I loved listening to her current voice sing the songs I was blasting back when I was still a child. (My life will be complete if she ever decides to re-record Back To December, I swear.)
I also started listening to Ashley Tisdale’s Headstrong album. (Garrett, that’ so 2007.) I knew one song from that album, which was He Said, She Said. I decided it would be cool to explore her other hits from that album, and to my surprise, I enjoyed practically all songs from that album. (I believe in Be Good To Me supremacy!)
Lastly, I’ve downloaded some of Louie Zong‘s albums as well as his singles. You may know him as the one who made Ghost Duet, Ghost Choir, Ghost Janitor, and Asymptotic. MoAs (basically fans of TXT) recently started streaming Ghost Duet after Beomgyu, a member of TXT, recommended that song for relaxation. (I have them all on my phone too, don’t worry.) I do encourage you to listen to his albums called Levels: DLC, Sights, and Beats – EP. (If I recall correctly, Sights is the only album I listed where Louie Zong actually sings; the rest are instrumentals.) The best way I can describe Sights and Beats is: it’s the perfect album to play when you’re lying down on grass in a park during a sunny day. (If you’re in quarantine, I encourage you to listen to this song while staring out a window with a grey cardigan wrapped around you while holding a hot beverage.)
So I got side-tracked with describing my music taste this year, lol. Maybe in my next post I’ll write about what’s happening in my country as of 2021. (Sadly, I’m still disappointed in my government’s actions, but what else is new?) At least music helped me cope with how terrible the pandemic has been for me. Sure, I’m sad about my online graduation, but at least I’m alive to hear Taylor Swift’s re-recordings of her classic country hits. I can’t move around like how I want to, but at least Louie Zong’s instrumental hits help me have fun while I clean my room every Saturday. Do share some artist recommendations with me soon; I’m dying to know what else I can listen to aside from my trustworthy Kpop playlist! Thanks for reading.
Chatterbox 