Religion has remained relatively empty for me, so far. Play on. If you give a performance, let myself or Ezra know, and that reminds me that I need to speak to him soon, have you meet him, etc. etc.
Religion is... well; I prefer not to discuss it because it's so rarely able to be discussed without wounding someone. Rational debate is one thing, but I prefer not to tread on anyone's toes if I can help it.
I consider myself agnostic, although I come from a deeply spiritual Greek Orthodox family. I find the premise of ritual and well-anchored tradition comforting but often constraining, and I chafe under the restrictions. So I do my own thing and my grandmother gives her slightly-despairing blessing to it.
I don't generally give formal performances- not unless I'm affiliated with some organisation- but it's easy enough to find me playing in the music department, and I'll happily give an impromptu display. I do enjoy playing for others: music is meant to be shared, and it finds its truest expression somewhere between the player's hands and the listener's ears. I would love to play for you and Ezra.
No, please! Do not be hesitant to air your views on the subject; I'm sincere when I say I wish to know and will not be offended. I am very difficult to offend. ;)
I can't speak for anyone else, of course, but the way I see it: this is my journal, my space, and so my rules apply, and I insist on candor. Anyone who dislikes what they read here of course has the prerogative to close the page.
And I would truly like to hear more views on the matter. I know my own, of course, but I can learn little from them. Tell me?
Furthermore, I would be delighted to play for you. :) What instrument do you play? I've mastered the essentials of the piano and I adore all things stringed of that nature (harpsichord, virginal, et al), and I am learning the violin- a difficult endeavour, as I am discovering. Fellow musicians are always welcome here.
I would say this: submit to whomever you want to. In fact, I would say submit your writing to everyone, because it's just a good idea, if you want to write, to learn to take rejection as well as acceptance, and to remember that if you want to make your living at a profession, you must go ahead and be ready to submit your work. Also, (a minor reminder to some people that I love,) editors are frequently dicks.
As far as music, I play piano, indifferently, and guitar, rather better. I also sing, act, and dance a little, I am, in fact, a drama major with a music minor. I'm Jane, and it's nice to meet you.
I'm Sappheire-- although some have taken to calling me Sappho, and that doesn't upset me in the slightest- and it is indeed good to meet you. :)
And yes-- editors are frequently dicks xD I shall, I suspect, gradually begin submitting more and more of my work to more and more publications. One toe in the water at a time.
I admit, the thought of someone reading my pitiful writings, beyond my school-required journal, makes me quake. I can audition, I can perform, but writing worries me.
If you think you have something that should be submitted to a certain magazine, submit it.
If you don't, then you will disappoint. I reserve the right to express my opinions loudly and offensively. I also reserve the right not to judge people for disagreeing with me.
I am not afraid to disagree with people-- were I afraid to disagree with you, or with Byron, or countless others who think little of the venture in question, I'd have kept my thoughts private on the matter.
Still... it's good to have validation for that, however unnecessary it might logically be. I know you won't think poorly of me for my opinion, but it's good to hear it, nevertheless.
How is the Mozart piece coming? I admit it might be a bit more difficult than I'd assign my other beginning students, but I have high hopes for you. :)
There's a difficult bridge on that page. I'm glad to see you managed to find your way through it. :) Will you be ready, do you think, to tackle the next intermediate piece after your upcoming lesson?
I work on the sad competition, Quill and Parchment. And it's fair to say we'll never shake the world up; we're a big departmental tool. Agreed. But in this world of shrinking budgets, I think it's more than fair to say these editors had better show the proof in pudding; else it's likely if they fail that we'll fall with them, since most money for these projects comes from a communal pool.
That rhymed more than I intended. Dammit. Do I think their plan should fail? No. Am I happy how it's gone? Well, no, again. It's hard enough to get submissions to our quite generic vision. Is it great you have a venue for unconventional submission? That's the one point that I say a 'yes'.
Please- I regret the unintentional implication, through having agreed to submit work to Bough, that I agree with its editors' assessment of the competition. The simple truth is that I've not yet read any of the campus publications, so I can't give any kind of judgment.
I am, however recently or loosely, friends with Mr Eliot, however, and his project came up in conversation. It intrigued me enough to agree to submit something of my own work. It doesn't preclude me doing so to other publications, however.
I think I was unclear, because the people I agree with that Q&P lacks something are the editors, not yourself. It does. The seniors who started it have since graduated and those who followed have no ownership of it; we have more interference than independence when it comes to departments; and there's only so much money. What's kind of galling is not that someone has the energy to birth something else, but the constant worry that the college will look at two foundering publications (should theirs be no more successful than what's here) and pull the plug on lit mag to save a dime for the dozens of other organizations on campus.
More to the point, if they struggle while we're fighting just to get something out quarterly, but look more alive, it's not their necks on the chopping block.
This isn't me being personal, and I'm sorry if it comes off that way because that's not my meaning. It's providing some context, now that I'm not having that sinking feeling. Much.
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I am not nearly Christian enough to be concerned by such a thing, and so I will call it pride, and play for whosoever asks me, and be pleased with it.
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I consider myself agnostic, although I come from a deeply spiritual Greek Orthodox family. I find the premise of ritual and well-anchored tradition comforting but often constraining, and I chafe under the restrictions. So I do my own thing and my grandmother gives her slightly-despairing blessing to it.
I don't generally give formal performances- not unless I'm affiliated with some organisation- but it's easy enough to find me playing in the music department, and I'll happily give an impromptu display. I do enjoy playing for others: music is meant to be shared, and it finds its truest expression somewhere between the player's hands and the listener's ears. I would love to play for you and Ezra.
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However, as a fellow musician, I'd love for you to play for me, sometime!
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I can't speak for anyone else, of course, but the way I see it: this is my journal, my space, and so my rules apply, and I insist on candor. Anyone who dislikes what they read here of course has the prerogative to close the page.
And I would truly like to hear more views on the matter. I know my own, of course, but I can learn little from them. Tell me?
Furthermore, I would be delighted to play for you. :) What instrument do you play? I've mastered the essentials of the piano and I adore all things stringed of that nature (harpsichord, virginal, et al), and I am learning the violin- a difficult endeavour, as I am discovering. Fellow musicians are always welcome here.
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As far as music, I play piano, indifferently, and guitar, rather better. I also sing, act, and dance a little, I am, in fact, a drama major with a music minor. I'm Jane, and it's nice to meet you.
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And yes-- editors are frequently dicks xD I shall, I suspect, gradually begin submitting more and more of my work to more and more publications. One toe in the water at a time.
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I admit, the thought of someone reading my pitiful writings, beyond my school-required journal, makes me quake. I can audition, I can perform, but writing worries me.
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If you don't, then you will disappoint. I reserve the right to express my opinions loudly and offensively. I also reserve the right not to judge people for disagreeing with me.
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I am not afraid to disagree with people-- were I afraid to disagree with you, or with Byron, or countless others who think little of the venture in question, I'd have kept my thoughts private on the matter.
Still... it's good to have validation for that, however unnecessary it might logically be. I know you won't think poorly of me for my opinion, but it's good to hear it, nevertheless.
How is the Mozart piece coming? I admit it might be a bit more difficult than I'd assign my other beginning students, but I have high hopes for you. :)
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The piece is going fine; I was having some trouble with the third page, but I think I got it.
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We can go through it once together, if you like.
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That rhymed more than I intended. Dammit. Do I think their plan should fail? No. Am I happy how it's gone? Well, no, again. It's hard enough to get submissions to our quite generic vision. Is it great you have a venue for unconventional submission? That's the one point that I say a 'yes'.
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I am, however recently or loosely, friends with Mr Eliot, however, and his project came up in conversation. It intrigued me enough to agree to submit something of my own work. It doesn't preclude me doing so to other publications, however.
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More to the point, if they struggle while we're fighting just to get something out quarterly, but look more alive, it's not their necks on the chopping block.
This isn't me being personal, and I'm sorry if it comes off that way because that's not my meaning. It's providing some context, now that I'm not having that sinking feeling. Much.
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We should meet and discuss this, you and I.
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