I feel like going home

I've been thinking a lot about genre writing and the cultural consumption of pop culture writing. The cultural narrative created by the linking of fragments of thoughts (across blogs), combined with the nature of pop culture writing itself (as a consumptive genre, as a swift method of communication and the creation of cultural values etc. etc. etc.) make me wonder what my part is in the interpretation of the objects I consume. What does it mean to insert myself in between an mp3 file and a reader? What does it mean to pass judgement on something that will shift in and out of cultural consumption so easily?

My academic writing is rarely consumed. Most of it will never be published, make it into my thesis, or find readers beyond my professors. This is upsetting, because I spend so much more time formulating those ideas, reading, references, footnoting, using Endnote, and performing a variety of other tasks just to produce a 10, maybe 12 page paper that will eventually end up in a trashcan, covered in red ink, never to be thought about again. Why do I bother? Because I am addicted to knowledge, to ideas, and articulating ideas that are my own. I really wish I knew what to do with the rest of my life.

I am incredibly busy nowadays and haven't written in awhile, but after this weekend [and presumably after Thanksgiving break], I can finish a few things that have been in progress for awhile.

Here's a preview:

-My brother sent me Nina Nastasia's new album, On Leaving, awhile ago. I've been making time to listen to it instead of watching TV, baking, knitting, and other random things I usually do to pass the time/avoid working/break out of delirium. It feels very different than her other albums, and is much more reminiscent of some of my other old favorites, like Hope Sandoval and Jesse Sykes.

-The new Yo La Tengo album (I am not afraid of you and I will beat your ass) is a bit underwhelming, despite the title. I've tried to let it grow on me a bit.

-The new Joanna Newsom, Y's, which I've had bits of for a few months, is really awesome, but weird to listen to because all of other versions I had were live. It's incredibly sweet, as usual, especially given my huge crush on harps.

-A few book reviews. I've been reading Anne Carson, Amy Bloom, and Eli Clare.

A good friend of mine and I did a music swap a few weeks ago. My half was a sampler of my favorite plan-it-x albums, and a couple of other newer things I've been listening to. He gave me a range of stuff from a bunch of artists,, including the autumn leaf, bell orchestre, bit shifter, cornelius, deerhoof, manu chao, and spoon. More on that probably when winter break starts and I have time to let it all in.