....because I think that we are all gamblers.
Anyway, this post is not about The Gambler. I love that song but I currently don't have the energy to dedicate a blog post explaining why I love that song and why I think anyone should give it a try. What I am enthusiastic to write about today are the following:
LISTENING
Sleepy me on a Monday morning chose to listen to JFK's speeches on my way to work. This week was the first time I really listened to any of JFK's speeches because it was only this time that I became curious about speeches. I used to think speeches don't matter, but now I understand how powerful well-written speeches could be.
The Rice University Speech, in particular, surprised me because I didn't know Space Race was really big during the Cold War. When I hear news about space explorations and satellite photos from the outer space, it never came to me that all these advancements we see now are results of the space race, and that people 60 years ago were just dreaming to do these whole space exploration thing. It makes one realise how far we've achieved since the 1950s and 1960s. It's cool and scary at the same time.
So because I was already listening to JFK's speeches, I thought I should go and listen to Bob Dylan's Murder Most Foul. The song was released 4 years ago– during the early days of the lockdown– and it's about the JFK assassination. As someone who discovered JFK through Bob Dylan, I remember feeling really happy when Bob first released Murder Most Foul. It was like this unexpected cross-over I didn't know I needed during the lockdown. But as much as I enjoy Dylan songs, Murder Most Foul didn't hit me right away 4 years ago. I found it confusing and out of my depth. It was also 16 mins long, probably Bob's longest song ever, and the last thing I wanted to do during the lockdown was to listen to a long sombre song about JFK.
Fast forward to 2024, I now appreciate this song and its length. I still don't consider it as a favourite, but I enjoy the way it was written. The changing narrators is really cool because there's a part in the song where the narrator is JFK himself. As a listener, it's a delight to see how this writing style can also be used in songwriting.
I remember one book from years ago I saw at a secondhand bookshop, it's called Berlin by Rory MacLean. The book is about the history of the city and unlike other history books, I remember how its chapters were written in different styles.One particular chapter, the one about JFK's visit to Berlin, was written like it was a script from a movie. The changing writing style is a great way to tell a story, and I appreciate writers who try to experiment with that.
WRITING
I just want to write and write because I'm about to empty my first ever Diamine fountain pen ink. It's one of the inks I bought 3 years ago, back when I thought it would only take 2 weeks of daily writing to empty a 50ml bootle of ink. Joke's on me.
1 bottle down, 11 more to go.
READING
I started reading Graham Greene's The End of the Affair but I stopped when I reached the third part because things got confusing. These days I don't pressure myself to try to understand confusing storylines and dialogues. I used to challenge myself with trying to make sense of everything , but now I give myself time and space to do other things, and continue the novel once my mind's a little more clear and accommodating to confusing and challenging ideas. So far the strategy is really helpful. Less pressure= happier life.
To end this post, Kenny Rogers in The Gambler said we should know when to walk away, and with that I'll end this post. Thanks, Kenny!
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