Means of Seeing what the eye brings

Tonight’s pick is The Sounds. i’ve been listening to a mix of The Sounds and The Cars all night (shuffle, repeat, shuffle, repeat). After trying to decribe Interpol in a previous post (and failing miserably), i was holding off on discussing The Sounds until i could adequately describe them.
It just now came to me, so i’ll try… Think of The Cardigan’s more swingy backbeat-driven tunes, but with a nicely coarser euro-rock edge to the guitars and vocals. Groovy Swedish rock. i like, and maybe you’ll like too.

Confession: i’m an anxious hyperlexic. i’ve read (and seemingly memorized) too much for my own good. i use words like there’s no tomorrow, and when a particularly good one pops out of me, it’s usually with no knowledge of the exact and proper definition. This scares me.
I tend to define words by the context in which i initially perceived them to be. However, my own perception is a little skewed. While i typically use most words correctly, i am pressed to provide an actual definition. There’s always this background paranoia that i’ve misused a word, and that i’ll be found out. Lately, in light of certain revelations, i’ve begun to look up words at the slightest sense of apprehension.
One word that had been setting me to wonder was “akimbo”. Now, those of you “in the know” might say that i’ve an ulterior reason for this particular word fascination; set that aside, if you will.
The word to me has always suggested a sense of loose limbs and confident, open posture. I hear “akimbo”, and i visualize the rolling gait of a sailor or cowpoke, knees out, elbows askew. But, in the spirit of my self-appointed task, i turned to research to supply a proper definition.
The Word Detective supplied this vivid definition, courtesy of the late John Ciardi:

“With hands on hips and elbows sharply bent outwards, a body posture indicating impatience, hostility or contempt.”

Well, for those “in the know”, this is a curious turn of phrase! For those not in on the joke, i ask: What words have you been using without having the exact definition at hand? Is it fair, given English’s malleability, that the proper definition be set aside when all parties share the same sense of what they expect the word to mean?

Today is my parent’s 21st wedding anniversary. i must admit, that scale of time and commitment gets to me. Earlier this summer, i asked my mother why she’d stayed with my stepfather so long, when clearly the first 10 years of their marriage were… “Constant hell?”, snorted my mother, sarcasm being the favoured communication mode in this family.
She went on to say that She and He had come to the point where they wanted that life-long commitment. They saw in one another that person who they knew would complement them in life. Myself, i can hardly name two other folks so apparently dissimilar! Still, the biggest thing that they shared was a desire for commitment, and despite all the anger and sorrow, they both knew that they were an unassailable team. Indeed, over the years, it seems unimagineable to picture them apart, though they still move in different social circles, and have wildly differing hobbies, jobs, and opinions.
Only recently have i really come to see how this steadfast example has affected me. i’ve grown up to believe in the powerful synergy of a commited relationship, and i’ve found myself pursuing that same ideal for myself. i supose that i’ve become more relentless than neccesary in this, my desire for partnership. Is this really what i want, or a holdover from my childhood conditioning? I’ve seen how parents can inflict horrible values upon their children, like distrust and anger; have i had some innapropriate values thrust upon me as well? Will i always believe that relationships are born out of struggle, and that peaceful love can only be the fruit of years of commitment, often in the face of much sorrow?
Lately, i’ve had some heady discussions with my friends Serious and Professica about social activism and revolution. It’s made me begin to rethink my own life-goals, and the way in which i value myself as a member of a global community. Serious and Professica are pretty different from each other too, with vastly different ways of expressing their views, but when they come together, it’s nigh impossible to win an argument with them!
All in all, on this day of anniversary, i’m given to thoughts of commitment and responsibility, both to myself, my friends & family, the world, and to that one true partner of mine, wherever she is. What’s a promise worth? i’m still finding out…

Okay, i’ll admit it: punk rock music is too loud. At least at live concerts. Sure, i’ve listened to (and enjoyed!) it plenty enough, but in all honesty, i’ve bought very little of it for personal consumption. It always seems like my pals have some sort of decent punk playing in their cars/on their stereos/blaring out of their PowerBook, and over the years i’ve gained some appreciation for it. And yes, a few ripped copies have made their way onto my minidiscs.
And, okay, i’ll admit it: i personally know all the members of The Rebel Spell. Still (in the spirit of all this honesty), i really actually totally dig their latest album, Expression In Layman’s Terms. It’s street-punk, pure and simple, but well-played, with intelligent socially-active lyrics. Todd Serious and the band put on a good live show, but it sounds better at lower volumes, like, say, “5” on the walkman. If, like me, you can’t understand all those words sung at 9000 mph, there’s reprints in the CD cover, and info on the website.