Violin in C Sharp

     A friend of mine recently reached out to me and told me she was interested in checking out BTS.  She approached me since she knew that I liked their music and wondered if I could suggest which songs she should listen to first.  Excited at the idea of being able to share their music with someone unfamiliar with the group, I offered to put together a playlist for her.  Little did I know what I was getting myself into.     I should have known better.  I am from the era of mix-tapes after all.  I remember the stress of putting together mix-tapes for friends in my early years.  The pressure of what song should lead off, which song could both follow the initial track AND stand up to the pressure of being the sophomore track on an album, to remember not to follow any one song with another that had too similar a feel, to include both hard hitting songs as well as tracks that could serve as rests, and always to keep in mind with every s...

I dabbled slightly in K-Pop before the Quarantine started, but I didn't self-identify as a K-Pop fan.  Now?  Now things are different.  Now I self-identify as ARMY, CARAT, MOA, ENGENE, and starting to even work into becoming STAY as well. For those of you not up to speed on the K-Pop lingo, that was a list of band fandom names.  BTS fans are ARMY, Seventeen fans are CARAT, Tomorrow x Together (TxT) fans are MOA, Enhypen fans are ENGENE, and Stray Kids fans are STAY. I don't have a long history of being a devoted fan to many bands.  I tend to chose my music by song and not by any sense of loyalty to an artist or group.  Over the years, there have been a few exceptions - The Corrs, N'Sync, anything by Cirque du Soleil - but I never followed any of those artists to the degree that I've started following these K-Pop bands during Quarantine. I listen to songs from these bands EVERY DAY.  I watch videos of their performances, their interviews, their variety ...

 I don't remember a time when I didn't understand what death is. Isn't that strange?  I'm sure there must have been a time when I didn't understand - after all, none of us are born with an understanding of the concept that we too must one day die.  Still, I can't remember when the moment was that such understanding came to me.  Nor do I remember any point in my life when death wasn't with me fully. When I forgot to give my pet hamster water too many times and he died of dehydration, I knew fully the scope of what I had done to him.  I knew with certainty that my negligence was the cause of his demise, that I was entirely at fault and that he was thus gone forever.  I still feel guilty over it even over 30 years later. When my grandmother gave me her ring and explained that she was doing it because she was going to die soon - I had no confusion over what the moment meant.  Nor did I believe for a second that she wasn't telling me the full truth.  I...

 Recently, I friend of mine asked on his Facebook for the opinions from his circle on whether or not it is possible to continue to be a fan of someone's art even if you learn something about the artist that makes you despise them as a person.  J.K. Rowling, Orsen Scott Card, Bill Cosby, and Kevin Spacey were all used as examples. This was my response: I understand taking a social stand to boycott an artist in order to voice your displeasure against their behavior or opinions or what have you - but I think my perspective as an Art History student skews my view on the issue far more than it does for others. I know from my studies that if the art is quality enough, than regardless of how hated or despicable the artist may be or have been in their own time, their art will continue to resonate across the ages. The literary works of the monsters of humanity still cause ripples in society generations after their deeds are forgotten. Because I have learned this truth, I refuse to depr...