"Hump Day"

I don't like the term "hump day"
but hey-
it's hump day.

Name Recognition

Yesterday my name was a fixture in the blogosphere.http://www.blogger.com/img/gl.link.gif

Okay, not exactly. But allow me to explain.

1) Iconia

Iconia is a blog on religion and art, and every day they have a "daily roundup" of arts and religion on the web. They include highlights from reputable newspapers from around the world such as The Statesman, The Sydney Morning Herald, The Independent... and my URGO research blog?!

I guess so, because in yesterday's daily roundup post they featured the following selection from on my blog:

"The notion of a 'religious' artist bears many connotations that are immediately off-putting for many … I’ve found that I have often been forced to explain away their religiosity and defend them in light of these deep criticisms against religious art, especially in our contemporary context that forces a conservative reading of most texts."

I wonder how they came across my blog, but I'm very excited that it is being read! It makes sense that people are reading it, but I guess I just forget that sometimes.

While it is great to recognized in academia, something even more exciting occurred yesterday that appealed to a more base level interest of mine: music.

2) Pitchfork

Check it out: I was namechecked in a Pitchfork article after giving them a news tip (even if they did misspell my last name). For those who don't know- Pitchfork is the ultimate authority on all matters of music that matters (ie what is often termed "indie" versus "popular music").

Let me give you the inside scoop--over the weekend I came across a purported press release regarding a new song by my favorite singer, Sufjan Stevens, on a Purevolume page (screen capture of the page with the now-removed song and press release). I sent the link to Pitchfork after doing some research of my own and finding an interview with The Guardian that seemed to potentially affirm the validity of this release. The head news editor and I exchanged e-mails and they checked with the label and soon all involved realized it was a big joke. Check out the news article for more information.

In any case, I'm happy about this for a number of reasons. 1) I suddenly find myself an authority to the news website that has always been my authority when it comes to good new music (I find out about most of my new favorite bands through their website), and 2) I'm not just an authority to the site, I'm an authority on my favorite recording artist.

Okay, so this is all a bit nerdy/fanboy-esque, but it is exciting to me anyway. Stevens is much more than a singer to me because I find his work to be more than just good music- its relevant, engaging, immensly intelligent and important, and it is art, not a contrived formula to make money.

Anyway.

The news editor hinted in an e-mail to me that this could lead to a writing gig with them, but that might be dreaming a little too big. Still, as 'they' say: dare to dream, eh?

Oh, Weekend

I had an alright weekend- did some research, went to the beach(!), spent a little time with family and friends... all in all, not a total wash, eh?

My research is moving along (I've been doing it all weekend), and my life is fine. Nothing terribly exciting to report in this moment, but hopefully soon that will change.

wowee

Whew- it has been a busy week of research.

I don't know what else to say. I'll update more on my research in my next post.

What's Another Day?

For starters- The National was incredible.

Second- I had a pretty fun weekend.

Today has been fine, too. I ran in the morning and have been researching all day in the Augsburg library.

My research is chugging along. Check out my research blog a couple posts down to check it out for yourself.

I'm feeling very even-keel, all things considered.

Tonight: "The National" in the Neighborhood!

Right now I'm at home doing my independent study and helping my family with the move. They're moving, and today's the garage sale. I'm heading back to Minneapolis tonight, though, because I'm going to a concert just blocks from Augsburg's campus at the 400 Bar. One of the my favorite bands, The National, is playing with another great group, Shapes & Sizes, opening up. I'm really excited, and am reminded again of Augsburg's great location in the city-- just blocks to this great gig!

The Enduring Chill

I'm working on setting up a blog to track the progress of my summer research. You too can follow along at The Enduring Chill!

101

This is post no. 101. I just thought that was worth acknowledging.

Mostly moved in!

I've been moving into my new place all weekend- I painted the walls (woah, orange) and moved a lot of my stuff in. Its been a lot of work but it looks amazing so far. I'll try to post some pictures soon if I can. I still need to get my bed, but then everything will finally be in place.

Right now, I'm home for my brother's graduation open house- I should go help set up.