A Day at the Cafe

It's 5:00 PM and I find myself packing my things once again. Calculator, check. Lap-top, check. Number two pencil thats been vigorously gnawed by a pair of angry teeth, check!
I take a sweeping glace over desk to see if there is something I have missed. For once you leave, there is no turning back. My work will not take place at home, where eventually, I will fall victim to one of the gazillion enticing objects that lie all around my room. My guitar, for one thing, is not conducive to my studies. Before you know it, I will be strumming away, leaving my essays and math problems for later.

So, I mercilessly close the door of my room and set out. Where am I leaving for you ask? Café Pascucci. Second floor. Red round table by the window. I position myself on the chair, let the books and papers fall in their place. I begin my work.

Now, I have grown accostumed to working with chatter and music playing around me. It really depends on the person; if you let yourself be distracted by the group of highschool kids chatting away on the couch, or the seductive woman in the skimpy blouse smoking away on the balcony, or Sinatra's snazzy trumpet solos flowing out from the speakers all around, you might as well stay home. But these things do not bother me. Once I am here, I am able to concentrate on what I am doing; frequent sips of my vanilla latte will be the only thing that distracts me from my task.

6:14PM. I shift my eyes away from the computer screen and let them readjust to reality. I take time to observe the things that are going around me. There are many interesting things that your eyes may indulge on in a place like this.

Just then, a dashing young man walks in. He is followed by a woman, who, judging by the lines on her face, is not happy. They don't bother to order, and take a seat in the far corner of the room. The woman sits with her arms crossed, back against the chair. She looks down at her feet. Her lips are smugly sealed. They refuse to open.

The man, on the other hand, sits on the edge of his seat, his whole body leaning over the table. His arms are outstretched. His eyes, moist, are begging for the womans' to meet them. But the woman, sitting across from him, effortlessly deflects them. The man opens his mouth and begins to talk. The woman takes no interest. His hands clench to form fists, and they strike the table. Wham! He demands her to listen, the veins on his forehead pulsing with frustration.

But the woman does not comply. The man's arms now lie limp on the table. He slumps back in his seat. He lets his eyes wander. Nat King Cole's 'Autumn Leaves' plays on the background.

As amusing as this situation may seem, I look away. I glance back at my computer screen.
I take another sip from my vanilla latte.
I press 'publish post.'

Taylor Swift - country music sensation

At age nineteen, she is one of the most eminent and successful country music artist of all time.
Her Madison Square Garden show was completely sold out in 59 seconds.
Her album Fearless has one four platinum labels
She has made country music palatable to the ears of people all over the world
She is Taylor Swift.
All this, for a girl who learned how to play guitar on her computer.
I am awestruck. I have liked a few of her catchy songs, but I had never fully realized the extent of her fame until now.
Being an avid guitar player myself, it surprises me how musicians find themselves on the pedestal of fame in a blink of an eye. How it must feel to have millions of people listen to the songs that you wrote, and be on tour performing on the stage infront of thousands of people!
It is something that I can only dream about.
Another interesting fact about Swift; she is the only country musician to have won the VMA video music award. It was one fretful night; while she was making her acceptance speech, she was rudely interrupted by rap artist Kanye West, who, begged to differ on the decision.
This unexpected and snobbish intervention only meant good news for Swift; her sales only accelerated after the incident.
So, its been all sunny and blue skies for this young musician.
Her talents have been recognized all over the world, and she reminds us once again that America is the land of opportunity.

Battle Studies. JM still gots the stuff.

John Mayer released his new album 'Battle Studies' yesterday.
I've been following up on his new stuff for some time now(being an avid fan of his), and
I have to say that this album is as genuine and John Mayer as it gets.
After a dizzying period of big bucks, fickle love, and grammys, John has finally come back
to his deep, songwriting side.

He's all about business, and this resolve really shows in his songs.
Some of my favorites are 'Heartbreak Warfare' and 'Edge of Desire'.
They are really mellow, although less bluesy than his previous songs, they inspire a feeling
of moist, lonely, autumn rain-shower kind of sensation in your heart.
His lyrics are still imbued with meaning, which I really like about this artist. JM is truely a poet.
But his new album, has definitely sought some criticism.
Many accuse him of being a sell-out artist--especially after Continuum.
Detractors say that his new music has lost 'soul' and demand that he go back to his blues.
I beg to differ; if he really were a sell-out artist, he would safely pitch tent with his old Continuum stuff. But, he has developed as a songwriter, and as a muscian. With that said, his new songs reflect that improvement.
I would agree that Battle Studies has shed some of the bluesiness found in his previous album. But his new songs definitely has soul and gravity. He has put a lot of care and thought in writing his songs, and that is what I value in him as an artist.