A few reviews, a little update, and what the hell do they pay you for?

Hi Everyone! So the new template has been implemented and looks pretty damn good. I have yet to see the sitemeter go up but there's no worries by my standards. I like my pretty template. Thanks go to Pat and Jordan for all their hard work (you can check out their sites by clicking the links on the left - Ends of the Earth and Random Streams of Disjointed Consciousness).

Either my taste in music has gone downhill, or some well known pop people are making a turn for the better. I recently downloaded Justin Timberlake's "Justified" and Christina Aguilera's "Stripped". I should give you a little background information and formally state that I have in the past hated Christina as she would over-sing her songs to the point of nails down a chalk board. She has a powerful voice and needed to learn to control it. I have also never really been an N*sync fan, and still am not. But! Both of these artists (er.. vocalists) have wow'd me with their maturity.

Justin managed to put together an album that 'sorta' gave us the story on him and Britney (admit it, you all followed the stories) through song lyrics and an interview Barbara Walters. Christina showed that she has learned to control her voice, as well as expand the dimensions of it. Both of them were co-writers on their albums and made sure that their input was implemented. For Justin, some of the high points (other than Like I Love You) are with "Senorita" and "Cry me a River" as well as "Still on my Brain" and "Take it from Here". Those are just SOME of the songs that will get stuck in your head. Now I know that we all have biases against Justin (he is a boy band member after all) but in all honesty, he really shows a side of himself in this album that N*sync would never be able to achieve.

On the Christina side, she bears it all, and it's great. The best song on the album is called "Lovin me 4 me" and it is in this song that she sounds the sweetest, with a nice jazzy overtone. "Walk Away," "Cruz," and "Soar" are also ballads that are not over done - contrary to "I turn to you". There are some other choice cutz, but really, the album just flows very well. Consider downloading it for a listen - from start to finish. She has grown - and it shows. I have to say that I have learned to appreciate her more (I always thought she had talent) because of her new found control and her exceptional showing of her vocal range.

Both of these albums are worth a listen, if not a buy (personally, I don't feel the need to further line their pockets, Christina recently bought a new home, and already had one that she never even bothered to move into).

So I am hoping that with this new template, the errors should be minimal, and of course, I am hoping that I will be able to keep blogging. School keeps me busy, so posts wont occur on a daily basis, but they will occur when I have the urge to write. I used to write all the time. I used to have many inspirations. I even used to keep a journal (I still do, but rarely find the time to write). I noticed that I write the most when there is more crisis in my life. Thankfully, there hasn't been many crisises lately.

Except one. Which doesn't even qualify as a crisis, rather it is a directional issue.

Unlike the streets we drive our cars on, the road of life is not so clear. There are no lines, or turning lanes, and you can't possibly know your way around town, so to speak. As I come upon graduation from the marketing management diploma, I come upon a new chapter in my life - whether it be educational or career wise. Because I was unsure where to take my life, I consulted a career advisor at my school. It is at the end of this meeting that I have to ask "What the hell do they pay you for?"

My options were as follows: a) graduate from the General Business Diploma, go onto the BBA b) graduate from the Marketing Management Diploma, go onto the BBA or c) Graduate from either of them - and don't go on just yet.

My ultimate goal in life is to achieve my MBA. To get an MBA you need a BBA. But what is the timeline for completion? Must I be done my BBA by the time I am 27 or can it be a little later? Do I really want to be at Kwantlen for an additional 3 years or shall I spread my wings and fly? Will I be living at home with Moms and Pops or will I be out the fuck?

So the career advisor said "It's really up to you!"

Thanks. Remind me to contact you with any other life altering decsions.

So Darren, the non-educated-in-career-advising-boyfriend said the smart thing....

Keep your options open and do what feels right.

Hmmm.. why didn't I think of that? Mainly because you don't think for yourself - you think for others. Sometimes you just need SOMEONE, ANYONE to be master of the obvious (which is never obvoius to you) and thats exactlky what I needed. I would have told anyone the same advice. I know this. But its always good to have some reinforcement.