Today I smashed the CD. It was pretty anti-climatic, to tell you the truth. I took a hammer to it. It's a burnt CD...no, I didn't steal it! I should have. But I actually downloaded it off iTunes. So, it's a burnt CD, and I think it would've been better if I had the actual CD they released, but I didn't. Also, I'm kind of a wimp because I have this irrational fear of glass and didn't want to get any CD shards in my eyes, so I wore big, huge sunglasses and didn't pound as hard as I wanted to. It still felt good, though. I wish I could do this to every Nickelback CD. Maybe break them all, or put them in a paper shredder. But I can't. So this works for now. In other news, my sister and I spent an hour just listening to music today. It was really fantastic. And someone at my organization meeting tonight asked me how the "Honk if You Hate Nickelback" thing went, so I got to tell every curious person in the group about it. Even though the whole experience was really terrible, I'm glad I did it. I never do anything interesting, so at least now I have stories to tell. And being able to listen to whatever I want still feels so awesome. You have no idea.
I just have to accept it. Nickelback is, and will be, everywhere I go. Always. Tonight at work, "Photograph" came on the radio. I looked toward it and said, "Are you kidding me?" I'm just never getting away. Anyway, tomorrow I have the day off from everything, and nothing to do, and LOST is a re-run, so I'm definitely going to smash this CD. Just wait. There will be pictures.
So, somehow, Nickelback still seems to haunt me. But in good ways this time. I talked to my old roommate today, and she told me that her friend saw me out there with my Honk if You Hate Nickelback sign. He didn't realize it was me! So, he told her about it, without knowing who it was, just like, "Do you know what I saw?" Just liked I'd hoped. Awesome! A lasting impression. Then, just now, I was in my room folding clothes with the TV on in the living room. It was on The Soup and Joel McHale was talking about Tiger Woods. All of a sudden, I heard, "Seriously? Nickelback? This is the worst thing you've ever done." Then he went on about it for awhile, and then said, "Nickelback sucks." I love you, Joel McHale. Even more now than ever before. So if you get a chance, try looking it up on Youtube. Because it's funny.In other news, my life hasn't gotten entirely better since ending the whole Nickelback thing. My computer power cord is broken, so it just beeps at me constantly as it becomes unplugged, without me moving the computer at all. It also has stopped doing anything most of the time. And the "A" key doesn't work half the time, so this post is getting very annoying to type. I never realized how many words had the letter "A" in them.I didn't get a chance to wreck the CD yet. I know, I know, it should be my first priority. But it wasn't. But soon, maybe tomorrow, I'm gonna smash that thing.
Well, tonight, as we were driving back from home, my best friend found a mix CD of mine, which I thought I'd lost like 3 years ago. So that was beyond fantastic. I almost cried, I was so happy.In other, more fantastic news, she also found out the Backstreet Boys are playing in Detroit in June, and we can get lawn tickets for $8!!!! EIGHT DOLLARS TO SEE THE BACKSTREET BOYS??!! I'm so there!When my sister and my cousin and I were younger, we used to be OBSESSED with them. I mean, completely, creepily, obsessed! We used to pretend they were our boyfriends and stuff. Ok, well, we were like 8 years old, so that's fine. But anyway, we always said, all throughout our adolescence, that if they ever did a reunion tour, we'd go. And now we can! So I'm really, really hoping it works out! BSB Forever!!
I just got back from the Pat Benetar concert. It was AWESOME! Her voice is just SO incredible. She's 57 years old, and she sounds the same as she did when she was in her twenties. Her high notes are unbelievable, and her voice is just raspy and wonderful. I also think it's awesome that she's been making a living doing this for so long, straight through her whole life. Props to you, Pat. Also, she and her husband/guitarist Neil Giraldo are adorable together. Speaking of Neil Giraldo, he threw about a dozen picks out into the crowd, and one happened to land on the ground by my foot! So, I picked it up...haha, no pun intended! Crap, I do that all the time!...and I gave it to my friend Sarah! Because she was about dying, she loves Pat Benetar so much. So it was far more appreciated.My favorite song she played was "Love is a Battlefield." This isn't usually my favorite Pat Benetar song, but it was great in concert. She also played, "Hell is For Children," which is actually one of my favorite songs by her of all time. I learned that since the day she wrote that in 1980 or 1981, she said she was going to play it at every show until there was no child abuse left. And I think it's awesome that she's still doing that. So, tonight was very fun! I had a concert high and talked the whole way home. My sister almost killed me. The other two were too nice to do so. Tomorrow is a two hour ride I'm actually looking forward to, because I can roll the windows down and crank some tunes. Tomorrow is also the planned day to trash the Nickelback CD. So stay tuned.
I didn't get to listen to as much music as I would've liked to today. But it was a great day anyway. My organization, NAE, finally got our funding back! Which means, now we will hopefully be able to get some awesome acts, without missing out on them. So, Michael, if you're reading this, THANK YOU!!! Also, my friend sent me a bunch of new bands he thinks I'll like, so I added all of their songs to a special playlist on my Grooveshark. By the way, that's an awesome way to listen to music online for free. And you can share playlists with people, which is awesome.So, as I said last night, I stayed up late listening to music. But the funny thing was, I was doing my literature paper during that time. I wasn't able to finish this paper at all. It was crappy, and I just couldn't get into it. But when I started listening to the songs I love again, I actually finished the paper, made some really good points, and was able to hand it in, a day early! And here I thought I was just turning into a procrastinator. Really, it was just Nickelback! Glad that's over! Anyway, tomorrow night's the Pat Benetar concert, which is a great way to celebrate my completing this challenge. I'll be rocking out with a bunch of middle-agers tomorrow night! But it should be awesome. And Saturday, I'm taking the good ol' trip home, so I'll be able to speed (only 55, don't worry!) down the highway to some amazing tunes. Also, my friend, sister, boyfriend, and I are going to figure out the best way to destroy the Nickelback CD. It should be great.
I just finished listening to "PAPERTHIN HYMN" by ANBERLIN!!!!!!!!!!! It was everything I hoped for!!!!! I was sitting here, grinning, laughing, even! I just feel genuinely happy. It's so, so, so, so, so wonderful!!!!!!!!!! I was nervous! My stomach had butterflies because I was so excited. And now, I'm listening to "*Fin" by Anberlin, and it's just making me really, really happy. I even have chills running down my body. If you've never heard Stephen Christian sing, please do. Honestly, this moment right now, I want to live it over and over. And it sounds so cliche, but it's true. I'm glad something this small can still make me so happy. So here it is, the What to Listen to When You've Been Listening to Nickelback for 85 Days Playlist*:"Paperthin Hymn" - Anberlin"*Fin" - Anberlin"Paperthin Hymn" - Again. Ok, so it just happened to be after *Fin on my playlist, and it replayed. I couldn't change it! Come on! "Dethbed" - Alkaline Trio - This one just popped into my head awhile ago. It doesn't sound so happy, but it is a good song."You Found Me" - The Fray - A classic. I fell completely in love with this song when it was on the Season 5 LOST trailer. So beautiful. "Thoughts Before Me" - Amber Pacific - I just belted this out in my car on the way to work for some strange reason, and had to listen to it. "Right Na" - Akon - We need some dance music up in here. "The Unwinding Cable Car (Remix)" - Anberlin"The Resistance" - Anberlin"Change" - Good Charlotte"When You Were Young" - The Killers"All Downhill From Here" - New Found Glory "Girl's Not Grey" - AFI"Hello Alone" - Anberlin"Alexithymia" - Anberlin*Can also be referred to as the Disregard the Fact Your Neighbors May be Sleeping and Belt it Out playlist or Stay up 'Til All Hours of the Night Drowning in Good Music, While You Should be Finishing Your Paper playlist. Well, I guess that's it for tonight. Not because I want it to be, but because my iPod stopped doing anything, and my iTunes stopped working. Until tomorrow...Wait! A miraculous thing happened! The music came back on! My computer wanted me to listen to "Reclusion" by Anberlin! Rock and roll!!!!!!Next is, "Forget What You Came For" by the Myriad.And now, it's time for bed. I have to wake up by 8.
...It's a celebration! I've done enough reflecting on this challenge, every single day, and I'm over it! I'm so sick of complaining about Nickelback, about going on about how they make my days suck. Well, in just 2 hours, that's all over! Pop open the champagne, everybody! At approximately 12:01, I will be cranking "Paperthin Hymn." And I don't even care if my neighbors are trying to sleep.I've been thinking lately that I wish I would have done this for a whole year. Can you even imagine how exciting it would be to listen to my favorite music again, with 365 days without it? I know, I know, that's insane. I think that if I DID try to do it for a year, I would most certainly cheat. Which totally ruins the whole thing anyway. But I wish I were strong enough to do it and to not cheat and to not, ever, listen to anything else. But I'm not. And that's just too bad. Today, since it is my last day and all, I wanted to make sure I had the CD playing constantly. It played over at least twice in my car, and looped back three times as I was just sitting in my apartment surfing the internet. I wanted to get a real big dose of the stuff before I quit it. So I did. In fact, I'm listening to it at this very moment. And let me tell you, it's just SO BAD! Or should I say, "Too Bad?" I put a bunch of my old music on my laptop, and I will soon be loading it to my iPod. Great, great, great times. I just can't wait! I don't even think you understand how excited I am for this! Oh, and I have one thing to add about this CD. There's this one song on it, "Money Bought," which says, "Never pleasure from the treasure in the garbage can." And that is just disguting to me. I don't know what it means, but since I first heard it, all I could think of was like a baby fetus in a garbage can! I know, I know! It's so terrible! But imagine thinking of that EVERY TIME you have to listen to it! So, garbage babies aside, I'm actually really glad I did this. I mean, I think I'm really going to appreciate my favorite music. I've been wanting to listen to CDs I listened to years ago, that I never would've even put in again if it weren't for this challenge. So, thank you, Chad Kroeger and Cronies, for letting me appreciate GOOD, GREAT, FANTASTIC, LIFE-ALTERING music! I'll never forget you! But, like I said, this isn't a reflection. So let's party!
Don't get excited. I haven't gotten my blog published. But I did decide to self-publish it. I have a bunch of blank notebooks, and I think I'm going to hand-write each blog post on each page, and draw some really awesome little stick figures corresponding with each day of my project. I'm going to call it, "My Lesson in Self-Control or: How I Listened to Nickelback for 85 Days Straight and Lived to Tell About It."Something like this little book I'm making used to be called a journal. But now it's a self-published blog book. That'll be my project for the summer, which is quickly approaching.Right now, there isn't much to talk about about Nickelback. I'm still on my high from yesterday, and if you still haven't seen the post, you have to read it and watch the videos. Please do me that favor. I'm not joking when I say it's the best thing ever. I didn't even want to cover it up with this new post. Anyway, tomorrow is my FINAL day of this project, and I couldn't be more excited! It seriously feels like Christmas. Better than Christmas! Christmas when I was five years old! Alright, so I had this post up and everything, but then I saw this crazy article. Alright, not so crazy. But anyway, I went to tmz.com for, like, the first time in my life, because I was bored, and already checked the latest H'Wood news on people.com. So, right there, the first headline I see is this: Tiger Woods Parties at Nickelback Concert.ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!?! I mean, Tiger Woods is allowed to party anywhere he wants. But, Tiger, you're FILTHY RICH! A NICKELBACK concert? Well, I guess he's really fallen off the edge. Anyway...One. More. Day!
Awhile ago, I came up with the idea to make a huge sign that says, "Honk if You Hate Nickelback" and stand out on the road with it. I was going to do it last week, but my plan was destroyed by an enemy in the form of a large rain cloud.But I wasn't going to let that ruin my plan. It was too good to not do. So today, at around noon, my sister (the videographer) and I went out to the corner of Lincoln and Wright, and I held up my sign.
Let me just say, this was the best thing I've ever done in my life. Ever. Not ten seconds after I held my sign up for the first time, somebody honked. Right then, I knew it was going to be a great time. I was afraid no one would honk. I was also afraid what I was doing might be illegal, though I have no idea what kind of law I would be breaking. As far as I know, there are no laws against picketing terrible bands. Anyhow, we saw a county police car, a state police car, and two public safety cars in less than an hour! So, just so that I didn't get ticketed for disturbing the peace or distracting drivers or anything, every time I saw a cop coming, I would say, "Police!" and put my sign down. I felt pretty rebellious. Needless to say, I got a ton of honks. Now, it wasn't like there was a constant stream of honking, but it did sound like a wedding at some points. In addition to honks, I also got a bunch of thumbs ups from drivers, and someone even flashed me a peace sign! When I could, I gave them thumbs up back. Once, a guy was stopped at the stop sign, and we were very close to him, so I said, "Yeah!" There was a maroon car that went past on Wright Street, and he laid on his horn. When he turned onto Lincoln, he laid on it again. He must've really hated Nickelback. It was really funny when a company vehicle in the form of a white truck honked at us. The best part, though, was when a school bus pulled up to the stop sign. I stepped back, because I wanted the bus to be able to see cars coming. I wasn't planning on being responsible for a distracted driver and the death of dozens of kids. Before it pulled away from the stop sign, though, a teenage boy stuck his head out the window, started fist pumping, and said, "Yeah! Nickelback sucks!" Of course, we didn't get this on tape. Every time we put the camera down, something great happened, and this just happened to be the greatest. It was really incredible to see how happy I made people. They would drive by and look at me, and just smile. I can't help but thinking they went to their class, or to their friends, and said, "I just saw the weirdest thing..." It made me very happy, too. I feel accomplished in life now. Oh, there was one guy, though, who wasn't happy. He was in a big, rusty truck, and when he saw my sign, he revved his truck up so it was really loud and took off. He was the stereotypical Nickelback fan I've been talking about.Overall, it was a fantastic, marvelous time, and is really hard to put into words. If anyone saw me out there, let me know. We had a great time guessing who would honk and who wouldn't, and which people were Nickelback fans. Anyway, since writing doesn't really do this experience justice, here are a few videos. Please ignore my sister and I talking throughout them. We tried not to, but it was so exciting! And we're Italian, so, I mean, we talk. Oh, and please ignore the parts where it looks like I'm having a sudden seizure. That's just me laughing. I hope you enjoy this as much as I did! Ok, so this one is the wrong way, but this was the first honk I got! I was excited! Oh, yeah, my battery picked a great time to run out of juice.Oh, the end of this last one was when I saw the state police car. See how fast I moved? So that's that. Lots of people hate Nickelback. Or they just like honking. Either way, it was great.2 days left!!!!!!!!!!!!
Today, I was watching the Stanley Cup Playoff game between the Red Wings and the Phoenix Coyotes. I cheer for the Red Wings. Well, this game was in Detroit, and the hockey DJ thought it would be a good idea to play a Nickelback song or two. Talk about pump-up music! Yeah! Luckily, I was in the bathroom, and I didn't have to hear it. The Red Wings ended up losing, and I blame it all on that DJ. And Nickelback, of course.In better news, I'm currently ripping the Warped Tour '03 compilation my boyfriend gave me to my iTunes. My sister had this CD, but we listened to it constantly, and now I'm pretty sure it's so scratched, it skips constantly. So now I have all these good songs in perfect condition, all ready for my eager ears in just 3 days!
I drove home today, two hours, and listened to Nickelback. It was my final, long term of torture before this thing ends. And the ride home. But I'll get to that when the time comes. It played over and over, three or four times again, seeing as how the ride didn't get any shorter since last time. But to be perfectly honest, I think I tuned it out most of the way, and the ride actually seemed pretty short. Anyway, when I got home, my boyfriend was in his storage room, looking for some of his old gangster rap CDs from, like, the '90s. So I walk in there, and he goes, "Here's a CD for you." Guess who it was?It wasn't Silver Side Up, but I'm sure it was just as bad. It had a child or something on the cover, I think. Or maybe I'm just mixing that up with Nirvana. Either way, I never knew he was a closet Nickelback fan. Don't worry, was is the key word. He isn't anymore. At least, I don't think so. That's the whole point of being in the closet, isn't it? Four...what's that? Four...days left! I never would have guessed this would come.
So, it was raining today, which made me think of "Singing in the Rain," which made me think, wouldn't it be crazy if there was a Nickelback musical? I mean, it would open with "Never Again" or "Too Bad," and there would be an abusive husband, and a broken family, and it would be really, really depressing, but might possibly win a Tony, because sometimes depressing plays are the best, or so they say. But anyway, this play would progress along, bit by awful bit, with this little boy watching his family fall apart, and then, all of a sudden, Chad Kroger himself would appear at center stage and sing "Hangnail." Alright, so I'm not high or anything like that, but going back and reading what I just wrote, I wouldn't be mad if someone thought I was. Maybe I should write this musical. I mean, even though it seems like everyone and their brother hates Nickelback, they're clearly selling a TON of CDs. So, this musical would be bound to sell some tickets, wouldn't it? Maybe that should be my first project, my claim-to-fame. I could hire a really great musician, who could change all of the songs into a capella, or opera harmonies (I really know nothing about music), and it could be just like that Green Day musical. Only worse. Anyway, I'm watching the most intense Red Wings game ever...which just so happened to be experiencing technical difficulties...oh, good, it's back. As I was saying, since this game is so exciting, I should probably stop writing about my musical, and watch it. 85, 84, 83, 82, 81, 80, 79, 78, 77, 76, 75, 74, 73, 72, 71, 70, 69, 68, 67, 66, 65, 64, 63, 62, 61, 60, 59, 58, 57, 56, 55, 54, 53, 52, 51, 50, 49, 48, 47, 46, 45, 44, 43, 42, 41, 40, 39, 38, 37, 36, 35, 34, 33, 32, 31, 30, 29, 28, 27, 26, 25, 24, 23, 22, 21, 20, 19, 18, 17, 16, 15, 14, 13, 12, 11, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5!!!!
So I had plans for my super-secret Nickelback extravaganza activity today, but it was hindered (haha, Hinder, like that other band that sucks) by the rain! Don't get me wrong, I love rain, and thunderstorms, so I'm not that upset. I'll just have to plan this for another day. :( But it started raining just as I was preparing for it. Dang. Couldn't you just have held off for a half hour, rain? Couldn't you? So anyway, I'm all set for when I choose to do it. Maybe tomorrow.But this is weird. When I got out of my car this morning, and I shut my car off and opened the door, Nickelback was still playing. Usually, when I shut my car off the music will stay on for like 10 minutes, as long as the driver's door isn't open. But when it opens, it's supposed to turn off. Not today, though. It did the same thing later in the day, and I had to hit the button to just shut it off, because it was freaking me out. Apparently, Nickelback knows I'll be leaving them soon, and they really don't want that to happen. It would probably be very disheartening for them to know that the only person who listens to their music this much really isn't a fan at all. Exactly the opposite, actually. 6 days, fools!
ONE WEEK! ONE WEEK! ONE WEEK! ONE WEEK! ONE WEEK! ONE WEEK! ONE WEEK! ONE WEEK! ONE WEEK! ONE WEEK! ONE WEEK! ONE WEEK! ONE WEEK! ONE WEEK! ONE WEEK! ONE WEEK! ONE WEEK! ONE WEEK! ONE WEEK! ONE WEEK! ONE WEEK! ONE WEEK! ONE WEEK! ONE WEEK! ONE WEEK! ONE WEEK! ONE WEEK! ONE WEEK! ONE WEEK! ONE WEEK! ONE WEEK! ONE WEEK! ONE WEEK! ONE WEEK! ONE WEEK! ONE WEEK! ONE WEEK! ONE WEEK! ONE WEEK! ONE WEEK! ONE WEEK! ONE WEEK! ONE WEEK! ONE WEEK! ONE WEEK! ONE WEEK! ONE WEEK! ONE WEEK! ONE WEEK! Wow, this look really strange after you see it so much. Weird words. Anyway, there's only A WEEK LEFT of this terrible, terrible torture! I'm so excited! Unbelievably excited! Even my sister and my friends are excited, so that they won't have to listen to this crap music in my car anymore! So, everyone's excited, and it's great. In just seven days, I'll be able to listen to music to calm down, instead of getting more angry and worked up. I'll be able to run outside and listen to my Workout Playlist. I'll be able to...well...the possibilities are endless! Anyway, so there's only seven days left, but I got quite a tease earlier. I was sitting outside on my stoop, reading Through the Looking-glass, since it's so nice out, and I try to take advantage of the very few warm days I'm gifted with, and this car went past, windows down, music blaring. Music that just so happened to be by Senses Fail. I only heard a couple of words and the background music, but I knew it was Senses Fail because I really, really like that band. I couldn't remember which song it was by them, but it was on the tip of my tongue. So now, that's driving me crazy. It was just a little tiny taste of what I'll be able to listen to again before I know it. But I still wanted to run into the road and shout, "Come back! You don't know what I've been through!" But, despite that tease, it feels great to be at this point. Before I started this, I hid my visor CD holder, and all the CDs in it (my favorites), inside my glove box. I opened it for the first time yesterday. I stared at them, and I swear my mouth was watering. I was thinking about starting on a list of what I'm going to listen to when I'm done, but I'm finished with structured music listening. I want to listen to whatever the heck I want, whenever the heck I want to listen to it! And, I'll tell you right now, the first song is going to be "Paperthin Hymn" by Aberlin. Woo-ee. I CANNOT WAIT! So, instead of making a list, I think I'll focus on putting every single song on every single CD I own onto my iPod. And planning the damage I'm going to do to this Nickelback CD come next Wednesday.
I have to be honest. There is one Nickelback song that has grown on me. Despite its cryptic lyrics, "How You Remind Me" really isn't...gulp...THAT BAD! Oh my gosh, you have no idea how much will power that took to type that. Whew. That was bad. But, really, that song isn't horrible. I mean, it's still really, really stupid, but it's Nickelback's turn at emotional, nice music. I think. But anyway, throughout all of this, that's the one that came out on top. I just thank God it wasn't the whole CD...
Tonight, when I was driving home from work, I was listening to my favorite song, "Never Again." There was one guy in the car in front of me, and I swear he was swaying back and forth to the exact music of "Never Again." Maybe it was because I was really hungry, or because I've just had way too much brain disintegration from these past 76 days. Or maybe it really was because the guy in front of me was rocking out to the same song I was, reluctantly, listening to. Either way, it was a very strange sight. The countdown begins. Only 9 more days! And I have one more Nickelback-related, real-life adventure planned. It's gonna be legend....wait for it......dary!
There are only 10 DAYS LEFT of this project!!! 10 DAYS!!! I can't even believe it. Good thing days seem to go by much faster these days. Although I do have a feeling these are going to feel like the slowest 10 days of my life. It's really incredible I've held on for this long. Now is the time when I should start making CDs and ripping all of my CDs I've ever owned to my iPod. I'm ready for it. 10 days, you've got nothing on me. Lets bring it on.
Long ago, when I started this project, my boyfriend had an idea. He said we should go to Stucko's and play every Nickelback song on the jukebox. I thought it was a great idea, but I never got a chance to do it. Until now.Tonight, my boyfriend, my friend, and I went to Stucko's. We waited awhile and played some trivia. Then we jumped on the juke box. There were three songs in the queue, but I put in my dollar, ready to see what would happen. Instead of picking every song, I thought I'd spare everyone, and only play a few by them. I expected to get four songs or so for my dollar, but instead, I got 7 credits! So, I went through and picked all the classics: "Photograph," "Something in Your Mouth," and four others. Then, just for good measure, I scrolled up and picked a random medley by Neil Diamond. Not five minutes after my boyfriend and I went back to our seats at the table, a girl went over to the jukebox and said, "NICKELBACK?!" She was shocked, and obviously disgusted. Her mouth was hanging open. Anyway, this girl started calling her friends over to look at the jukebox, complaining to all of them. "Somebody picked eight Nickelback songs!" she said. Actually, I wanted to tell her, it's six. But I tried to stay discrete, because I was afraid she, or someone else, really might beat me up.So this girl keeps whining about the Nickelback songs, and Danielle of Monster Care, came over to me, and said, "I heard someone say that someone picked eight Nickelback songs." I told her that was me. She said she saw me walk in, and thought it might have been me. She was right, but we tried to keep it on the downlow. After this girl complained for awhile more, and had some employees over there looking at the jukebox, the last song in the queue before mine were to start, began to play. It was "Sweet Caroline." But soon after that, they shut the jukebox off completely! I MADE THEM RESET THE JUKEBOX! I felt so powerful. We left right after this, and as we were leaving, I heard the girl say to her friend, "You'd rather listen to eight Nickelback songs?!" She really hated it. So, in conclusion, I'm really glad that girl was there, because she made this experience really, really great. So, anyway, it turned out to be better than I expected. I thought that maybe Nickelback would start playing and people would be like, "What the heck is this?" But I never, EVER thought that they would just shut off the entire jukebox and restart it. Ultimate power. Awesome. I hope Chad Kroeger and Co. knows the effect their music has on people in a bar.
While sitting here trying to think about what to blog about tonight, my friend came up with an idea. My boyfriend just got a new car, a Jetta. And my friend said, "You can blog about the Jetta!"So then my boyfriend said, "We can drive around in the Jetta and listen to Nickelback!" There was a moment of silence, during which we all started at each other, with strange looks on our faces. "No," he said. "We can't disgrace the Jetta!" That's right. I'll keep the poison OUT of the new car.
So apparently, when I added all those Nickelback love and hate groups on Facebook, I added one called Nickelband- The Ultimate Tribute to Nickelback. It's this Nickelback tribute band, apparently, the ULTIMATE one, and the only reason I know that I added them, is because it came up on my newsfeed the other day saying they're looking for a guitarist. Maybe I should apply. I just might suck enough to play their music.I did some further research, and Nickelband was apparently formed in 2009 "on request by a booking agent representing a radio station in Trinidad for a Halloween concert." I still have no idea what that means.Anyway, I went to their website to check out more about what I think might be the most pathetic idea ever, and on the homepage, I saw a picture of them. I was like, "Oh my gosh, this guy looks just like Chad Kroeger!" and I thought it was crazy that he would make himself try to look like him for this tribute band. And then I realized that some photoshop magic was done, and each member of Nickelback's hair was just photoshopped onto the Nickelband members' bodies. Or something like that. Check it out. It's pretty freaky.
Here's some more about my new friends. The members are also in bands called Aeromyth, Disco Freaks, and Monsters of Rock. One of the guys from the band does their booking, and they're currently scheduled for a motorcycle rally in California. Figures. After that, they have two shows scheduled in Oregon. I think I'll stay away from the West Coast for awhile.Ok, so I'm just being biased. Maybe they aren't that bad. There's no place on the internet I could find to listen to them, though, so that might be a little hint right there...But anyway, here you have them. Nickelband! Possibly the second worst band the world has ever heard. Or, hasn't heard...
So, with all this Nickelback, and all the whining and complaining I do, you'll be happy to know, I'm having a GREAT week so far. Well, maybe you really won't care. But I do. My life is finally in balance again. It only took 71 days to get there. I walked around work singing "Time and Confusion" by Anberlin, which was great, because the guitar solo popped into my head. It's great to know that this music is still embedded in my brain, when I haven't even heard a snippet of it in over two months. Why is my week so good? First off, I only work 3 days this week, when usually I work 5. At first, I was kind of disappointed. But I finally learned to enjoy my days off work. And here's why.My sister and I used to play this computer game, Titanic: Adventure Out of Time. And I kid you not, it was the BEST game ever created. But it only works on Windows 95. Or so it SAYS. We got it when I was probably 8 and she was 11, and we tried installing it on all of our computers since we got rid of our Windows 95. It never worked. It always said "Bad Star File," or didn't do anything at all. I got to talking to a guy I know from high school one day, and he had the same game. So he tried it on his NMU lap top, and IT WORKED! Stoked beyond belief, I tried it on mine. Nothing happened. But today, TODAY, we tried it on my sister's desktop she has had since she graduated high school 6 years ago. Why had we never tried it before? Who knows? Maybe we did, but it just wasn't the right time yet.BECAUSE TODAY IT WORKED! And we played it, and at first we couldn't see anything except a black screen, and we had to uncover the graphics by clicking, and it was like some kind of crazy puzzle. And then, we got it all uncovered, and it was like a quarter screen image. But then, when the atom bomb crashed through the window and we had to insert disk 2, it worked, and it wasn't half screen, but full screen! And it was WONDERFUL!If anyone knows what I'm talking about, please, PLEASE let me know. I have to share this excitement with somebody else.So, yeah, the week's great. And now I say to Chad Kroeger, "Thank you!" Because he let me realize that even though I can't always have what I want, and maybe I can't listen to the music I want, and maybe I can't work all the days I want to work, I can still have a fabulous time. Aww.
Just a little bit ago, there were these two guys outside my window playing catch, who later turned out to be my neighbors. I can't help it; I don't really know what they look like. I've only seen them each a handful of times, and when we both leave our apartments at the same time, it's so awkward, I can't even look. So anyway, these guys had to be out there playing catch for a good ten minutes or so. My window was open, so I could hear everything they said. It sounded like they were having a great time. And then I thought, "I wonder what would happen if I turned Nickelback on?" Since I could here them, I was sure they would be able to hear what I was playing in my apartment. I wanted to try to get a rise out of them; to see if they would say anything about the music. That plan kind of backfired, since I was on my laptop, and the music was coming from my laptop, and it just drowned out anything the guys were saying at all. So I would just stop it periodically or turn it down, to see if I could hear anything.I didn't. Apparently, they weren't bothered by Nickelback. At least, that was my theory. And then they got really quiet. So quiet, in fact, that I couldn't hear a thing. Then, like two minutes later, I heard them outside my door, going into their own apartment. And it was either just my ears hearing things, or they threw their baseball at my door. Had I forced them inside with Nickelback? Who knows. Incredible things can happen when music like that is forced out into the once-peaceful universe. In other news, I was watching 30 Rock last night, and Tina Fey's loser boyfriend called her at work from a payphone and said, "Can you get on Ticketmaster? Nickelback just added another date to their tour!" And right there, that's the type of people who care if Nickelback adds another date. If you watch 30 Rock, it was Dennis who said that. I'm not the only one who's onto the type of people that listen to Nickelback. Tina Fey and I must share the same mind. Or, so I wish.
As I said before, I usually hate silence. It's awkward and when I'm in silent situations, I just pray that the other person will say something. But there's nothing better than the silence that occurs after the Nickelback CD is finished playing. Of course, right after that, I have to loop it back to the beginning again. But for those few seconds, it's incredible. Today I went super crazy with the Nickelback. I rode my bike to and from class and listened to my iPod during that, and then I worked out for around an hour and listened to my iPod all through that, too. Plus, I was in my car for awhile running errands. So today was definitely a day when I could appreciate that silence. I was riding my bike back home from school, and I got into my parking lot, and the last song of the CD had just finished up. All I could hear were chirping birds and my bike spokes turning around. It was so relaxing. I was actually tempted to go for a longer ride, without the music, just to chill out. But I didn't. If this project is teaching me anything, maybe it's that silence isn't really that bad sometimes. Maybe I should stop talking, or listening to whatever it is I'm listening to, and just enjoy those chirping birds.
There was no Easter break from Nickelback tonight. However, I did eat a ton of food and candy. I listened to Nickelback while I did the dishes this morning. I have to confess, I had it down pretty low. At first, it was so low that when I turned the water on, I couldn't even hear it. But I'm so dedicated to this project, I actually turned the water off, wiped off my hands, and went out in the living room to turn the music up. That's right. When I said I was amping it up, I meant it. I'm gonna finish this thing hard. Only 17 more days!
Last night at work, a guy I work with gave me a high-five because I said I hated Nickelback more than any other band on the planet. It was nice. It's always nice to know I'm not alone. Then, another co-worker and I proceeded to laugh about the time Nickelback got rocks thrown at them while on stage. I still think this is really sad, but it's them, and I've honestly stopped caring about their feelings. After all, they're ruining my life.Ok, so that might be a tiny bit my fault. But still. The last two nights I've worked, some song by Nickelback has come on the radio. It's inescapable. It really is. So, on my "It Could be Worse" post, I forgot to mention Creed. Creed may possibly be the worst band ever. Worse than...dare I say...Nickelback? It's a close one. I have to say, though, Creed is more fun to mock-sing to. Just clench your teeth together and sing like a ventriloquist, and that's Scott Stapp. Also, about that post, I'm sorry if I offended anyone by saying I hate Nirvana. But I do. I feel like if I had to listen to them for 3 months, I'd get really depressed. Their music just depresses the hell out of me, and I'd rather not listen to anything by them. Ever. On the topic of Nirvana, I read something the other day where Miley Cyrus said she doesn't listen to Justin Bieber because she doesn't listen to "that kind of music." She sings that kind of music! But that wasn't the most ridiculous part of what she said. She also said that her dream boyfriend is Kurt Cobain. KURT COBAIN?! Let me just say, there is NO WAY that girl listens to Nirvana. Plus, I'm sorry, Miley, but I think he's a little unobtainable at the moment.
Today, I made a point of listening to Nickelback more than usual, just as I said I would. I find, though, that when I listen to them in close range, like inside my apartment or inside my ears, I physically cringe. I played them in iTunes this morning while I was on my laptop, and I thought I might puke. But I did it, and that's all that matters. I took a bike ride, listening to them. It was strange, as I was taking that bike ride, because it seemed as if no cars wanted to wait for me to cross the crosswalk before turning. Instead, they just wanted to turn right into me. I think this Nickelback stuff is bad luck. I made it all the way home, though, without getting hit. I think it's getting a lot harder to keep this up. I know there are only 19 days left. 19 days! That's less than 20 now! I'm getting down into the sassy adolescent age of this project. But it's so hard to keep it up. I always get like this toward the end of doing things. Especially writing. I once wrote 85 pages of a screenplay, and couldn't, for the life of me, write 15 more. After 85, you'd think 15 would be simple. But not for me. Just like this. After two months, you'd think 19 days would be NOTHING. But I have a feeling these last 19 days are going to feel like the longest of my life.
So, now that I'm going to be listening to Nickelback hardcore for the next 20 days, as in more hardcore than usual, I got to thinking: there are worse things I could listen to. For example:Metallica. I hate them. I understand some people like them, but I think they're hardcore d-bags. Really. And not to mention, their music sucks, and is depressing, and just terrible in general. Boo, Metallica.Nirvana. Kurt Cobain. Enough said.Godsmack, Disturbed, any other metal band. I prefer growling from dogs, lions, tigers, and bears. Not long-haired, goteed men. Thanks. Radio static. I've done it before. Trust me, it sucks. Talk about ears bleeding.So, now that I think about it, things could be worse. Right? Optimism. The glass is half full. With Nickelback. Drink up.
