Album Review: Insomniac by Green Day

Insomniac is the fourth studio album to be released by punk rock band Green Day, and it is one of my personal favorites. When you compare it to other albums by Green Day (I.E. Dookie), Insomniac contains darker lyrics and a more aggressive tone to the instrumentals. You really feel Billy Joe Armstrong portraying an Insomniac (badum tss), and the reason he does it so well is because quite frankly, he was one. He's able to put such a personal feel into the songs, like the lyrics are his first hand stories. My favorite song on this album is Brain Stew, because even though I'm definitely not on the hard drugs, this song is so relatable to anyone who hasn't been able to sleep, just waiting to sleep. Laying there, aware yet exhausted. I think the main guitar riff is meant to resemble your heart beat, and it creates a familiar sensation of constant pounding in my head. It's interesting because if I'm having trouble sleeping, I put on this song, and I'm able to go to sleep with this song running around my brain.

As always, there are stand out bass riffs, loud guitar, and the pounding beat of the drums. It all comes together in a way that you really don't see a lot in modern music. There's a big difference in between music 20 years ago to music today, and it's really sad to see that. There are some bands, like Fall Out Boy, that started out with a strong rock aspect, but now are really just a part of pop music. It's not all lost though, because new bands are slowly taking root in the genre, like FIDLAR and more. The Punk Rock genre may never have such stand out and inspirational bands like Blink 182 or Green Day, but we can still hopefully expect great things in the future.

Insomniac was one of many albums that I had to choose from to make this. Some of my other favorite albums are Too and Fidlar by FIDLAR, Abbey Road by The Beatles, Enema of the State by Blink 182, Mothership by Led Zeppelin, ...And Justice for All and Master of Puppets by Metallica, Demon Days by Gorillaz, and the Green and Blue albums from Weezer. As you can see, there was a lot to choose from, from a lot of different genres, and I would suggest these albums to anyone who asks.

A Principle to Keep

Normally I'd do something about "Not eating people." But apparently that should be common sense. So I wrote about another moral.

Throughout The Road the idea of principles and the disappearance of them along the same level as society, with the most central and core beliefs breaking down years after the initial collapse. I think that if one principle could be maintained in an apocalypse, it would be family. In The Road, the mother kills herself. This is a large influence on the fathers beliefs, and the child's wishes. I believe the mother did more than just kill herself, she killed part of the boy and dad. If the mother had not done what she did, family would not have been treasured as much by the child and his father, because she would be there with them. After everything they knew was destroyed, their family was the one thing left. Loyalty within the family assures you're not alone in a world full of evil. Being alone in this world is the equivalent of being dead.

Thankful for a Classmate

I'd like to start by saying that it's been an enjoyable year overall, because even though I hate most of my decisions all throughout what we've done so far, there have been people there for the whole time who weren't going to let me stray too far away.

This year has been tough, because I always thought that the frackies would stay together, even in the cloud of new freshmen and the sophomores in their classes. Then I realized that it was so much different than what I expected. I see bonds weaken and break between friends as they hang out with new people more than those whom they've known longer. I've been a part of that too, seeing as I've been to more freshie houses than frackie houses this year. That's tough. I've seen my closest friend switch the tables on me, with them being the connection to the "Game Night Group" instead of me.

I'm  thankful to the frackies nearby me in this class. Rashmi, Sydney, and Ayanna (and I guess Makenzie, Marta, and Dorothy too), because even though you may decide not to listen to my sometimes daft sometimes clever ideas, you are all still familiar faces and that reminds me that I'm in good company.

I'm thankful for new friends, like Emilio and Rodrigo. I've got 7th period with, and it's always better to walk in company than by yourself.

My one regret is not making more bonds with the people in this class, and I hope to know all of you by name soon, because I can't keep going on like this. It's really a problem.

Forgetting the homework that all of us have been given for a second, just try to spend some time relaxing and enjoying yourselves this weekend. Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!

What Did Margot Macomber Do?

In one of Ernest Hemingway's short stories, The Short Happy Life of Francis Macomber, the story has quite the shocking ending. Francis Macomber's life is ended while he is right in front of a charging bull. He did not die from the bull, but instead his wife, Margot/Margaret Macomber, shot him in the back of the head. The question is, did she mean it, or was it an accident?

Some people argue that it was an accident, while others argue that she truly meant to kill her husband.
My argument is somewhere in between, however, it does lean towards accidental murder.

Margot Macomber shot her husband. That is fact. Also, by her words at the end of the story, she quite clearly regretted her decision. Repeating "no" and "stop it, please" over and over again shows how distraught Margot is at that moment when her husband is now dead.

Margot's attitude towards Francis for the majority of the story was that of a superior. She would always talk down of him and even kissed and flirted with Wilson, who was the guide of the safari. When Francis loses his fear of the lion and all other things that he could encounter, he begins to rupture the stable control that Margot has on him. This possibly angered Margot, or at least made her think. We see in one scene where Francis wakes up in the middle of the night to find Margot not in their tent. When she comes back, she states she was in Wilson's tent and they were playing games. (Very naughty games I can assume) Margot was gone for a very long time, and yes, she could have been having an affair with Wilson, but he could also have been teaching her to...

Wait For It...

How to shoot a gun.

Now Margot has the skills to kill her husband, and the anger to create a motive. However, lets fast-forward to the kill. Margot hits her husband "two inches up and a little to the side of the base of his skull. Hemingway mentions the base of the scull as a focal point because it is most likely where Margot was aiming. Why did she miss then? It could have been from the recoil and bad aim of the 6.5 Mannlicher she was using; but I think she had a doubt. That may be the reason why she did not hit dead on: because she tried to pull away. Sadly, guns are much faster and more powerful than human reactions, meaning Mr. Francis Macomber was dead once Margot began to carry out her plan.

R.I.P. Francis Macomber

Six Word Stories

This is a neat little assignment I'm supposed to do, which instructs us to make six six-worded stories.

1. The grave stands outside time, alone.

2. The widow wears black, and weeps.

3. The flowers lay wilting, forgotten forever.

4. She silently whispers, "Goodbye my love."

5. A child born, a mother lost.

6. The dust collects, and never leaves.

Edit: I thought of some more.

Bonus:

Thousands of graves, all brand new.

Baby in a basket, left abandoned.

John Proctor: Hero or Stooge?

I would just like to begin by defining both the words hero and stooge.

Hero: (noun) a person, typically a man, who is admired or idealized for courage, outstanding achievements, or noble qualities. Synonyms: Brave, Courageous, etc.

Stooge: (noun) a person who serves merely to support or assist others, particularly in doing unpleasant work. Synonyms: Underling, Minion, Lackey, etc.

When reading through the three acts of The Crucible, John Proctor's character portrays aspects of both hero and stooge. However, as the play gets closer to its end, John Proctor's attitude becomes more heroic, which shocks the reader as they see this "change of heart."

John Proctor at the beginning of this play is shown to have cheated on his wife with Abigail, and would do anything in his power to stop that secret from ever seeing the light of day. As the play progresses, he still can be seen as a stooge, but his actions are repainting him as the hero.

His biggest sacrifice is admitting all of his wrongs in front of the court, as long as it means that he can take down Abigail and save the accused witches.

At times he can be a stooge for only defending his wife, who is still a very personal aspect to him, but at others he defends all the accused witches, which shows his heroic aspects.

In conclusion John Proctor is both a stooge and hero but his hero characteristics outweigh his stooge ways.

A Bit About Me

Hello, I'm Emiliano. Some people call me Milly or Em, but that's not my name. I'm a pretty average person, and the only thing pretty abnormal about me is the incredibly large chance that I will do something that will end up hurting me. [Edit] Just this morning, I was calmly walking down the school hallway, when my foot slipped and I fell. It was seriously something out of a bad high school drama. [End of Edit] Another instance of where I was hurt by a ridiculous way was in 6th grade in my elementary school's library. I wasn't the tallest of the class, and I needed help reaching some of the higher-up books. The school had just purchased new stools, and these ones had wheels so they could roll around. So there I was, calmly rolling the stool across the library, when the stool's rim caught on a loose string from the rug. It held the stool back and tilted it over, where the rim was level with my shin. Now, the old stools couldn't roll, so the school put rubber rims on them to keep from slipping. These new ones however, didn't have that rubber seal. The rim made a clean cut about halfway down my shin, and I didn't really know how to react, so I just stood there, leg bleeding and all. That was an interesting day, but a recognizable experience. There was another time when I broke my wrist on the sidewalk, but that's a story for another time.