Post-Rock: Savior Of My Soul

I don't know why but suddenly I feel tired. Lethargic. Fatigue.

I walk everyday to class.
I take care of what I eat.
I have enough sleep.

But at the end of the day, I feel nonchalant and melancholic. I feel that there is nothing to look forward to during the weekends. The only thing to be excited for would be the upcoming tests and assignments in the next couple of weeks. Life is like a clockwork: it resets when the clock strikes 12. I have had this experience before during a certain point in the semester when I felt that my vigor and enthusiasm abandoning me, my energy dissipating to the cosmos & my passion being blunted by the sharp knives of boredom.

This is where post-rock comes in. You might dismiss it as a mere four or five-piece band playing pointless instrumental music for 5-10 minutes without any vocals but it is more than that. Simon Reynolds, the person responsible in coining this genre, defines post-rock as "using rock instrumentation for non-rock purposes, using guitars as facilitators of timbre and textures rather than riffs and power chords." In layman's term, post-rock is magic.

The difference between this genre with other genres is that it enters deep down into your soul and connects with your feelings. If you are in emotional turmoil, rather than playing other genres of music I'd rather you give post-rock a chance. For example, if you put on Kelly Clarkson's Behind These Hazel Eyes it is YOU who has to listen to what the singer wants to express meaning that you don't really have an outlet to pour your anger, frustration or disappointment. She doesn't really care about what's going on in your mind. On the other hand, if you press play on your iPod to Explosion In The Sky's First Breath After Coma you can just take a deep breathe and THE SONG will be the one listening to your problems, nodding along to what you have to express.

It helps you to step back and think about what you have done or what happened. It helps you calm down and not to react harshly without thinking. It helps you to vent your pent-up anger which you are dying to release. It helps you to shed your tears which you held back for so long. It gives you time and space for you to work out a solution. It gives you hope and strength to weather the storm ahead. It gives you back your real self.

I am currently listening to Deepset's Every Instance Of Time Is A Journey Through Hope. As the title suggests, hopefully by the end of this weekend I will be rejuvenated and raring to go battle through the coming winter which will be dark, long and cold.

Literally Taking It To The Streets

There it was. Penn State's corner back Lydell Sargeant intercepted Tyrell Pryor's long pass with seconds to spare and it was game over. We let the clock wind down & game, set and match! We finally beat Ohio State 13-6 at their own stadium, breaking the 7 year duck of not winning there. My friend, Brendan & I went out to see if anyone went mental but we ended up at a street party on Shortlidge Rd in front of McLanahans. Upon exiting the dorms, we saw people running towards downtown so we blindly followed them. For all you know, there already was a group of people jumping and singing along Penn State songs!

As more and more people joined in the fun, we managed to block the whole junction singing, shouting and jigging until the mean ol' police asked us to move. So, we did a mini-parade to the junction of Locust Lane and saw another bunch of revelers at the apartments on Beaver Ave & what the heck, we decided to join in! People we banging cymbals, playing the trombone, throwing paper towels and shouted WE ARE...PENN STATE!!! countless times. The police with full riot gear had to control the streets and I even got maced which was very sickening to my nose and mouth but managed to get away quickly.

After hanging out around there while trying to find my snow cap (I think some punk grabbed it from my head) and aborting my decision to party at the Beaver Stadium I finally decided to head home. This event shows that we are pretty feckin' passionate in our alma mater and nothing beats winning against Ohio State at their homeground and storming up the ranks in the National Standings. LET'S GO PSU!

Finally, Encounter With Drunk Americans!

It was one of my mini-goals to accomplish when I came to the United States of America: observe the drunken culture of people over there! Here is a brief encounter of me and my friend Naim, with three Mat Sallehs while walking back home from campus (oh, we went to watch an improv comedy group!) around midnight:

Drunk 1: (Saw Naim with pizza boxes in his hand) Hey, looks like you have more than one pizza over there.

Naim: Yeah, but both are for my friends back home.

Drunk 2: That's alright, man. By the way, do you guys know where Hamilton Avenue is?

Danial: Yeah, it's just down this road.

Drunk 1: I'll take your word for that man. We'll just follow them while they drop bits and pieces of pizza to us.

Everyone: Hahahahahahahaha...

Then, Naim asked me "Ko tau ke jalan ke Hamilton Avenue ni?" and I replied "Tak salah aku kat depan ni je. Kalau salah, cabut lah!" We then proceeded to walk our usual fast pace leaving the group of three drunkards behind and fortunately for us there was a group of girls walking towards us. They passed us but got stopped by the gang of three. Then, we never looked backed again...

The Forces Of Nature Are Against Me

I am baffled. Amazed. Bewildered. It is as if I have done some injustice in this world and by karma, I get punished by it. As they say, "What goes around comes around." Have I made enemies among my friends? Have I deliberately kicked a dog or cut down a tree? Have I thought about any ill intentions in doing something despicable towards mankind?

Why is it that everytime when I am walking to campus the pedestrian "WALK" sign turns to "STOP"? There are two junctions on the way to campus: South Allen St-Beaver Avenue cross junction & South Allen St-College Avenue T-junction whereby every day, every SINGLE day I approach these two junctions I am halted by the "red" man. Usually, when I am in sight of the junction the "WALK" sign will suddenly flash. Thinking that I could make it across the road, I walked with my usual pace. However, when I was halfway through to the traffic lights the countdown timer began starting from 7, 6, 5, 4, 3...

And whaddya know when I arrived exactly under the traffic lights at the cross junction, the countdown was over and I had to stop or else I would get run down by one of those solid, monstrous Ford Heavy Duty pick-up trucks. And same goes when I arrived at the second junction. It's as if these traffic lights are playing around with me; they are mocking and laughing at me when I huffed & puffed towards them and in the end I'll just end up waiting for the "red" man to go away. You may call me paranoid but this is a REAL LIFE event. I'll get my revenge. Wait till I get my chainsaw and we'll see the "red" man turn to "yellow." Hehehe.

First Ramadhan In America

As I have completed 30 days of fasting during the holy month of Ramadhan in America, I feel somewhat rejuvenated rather than feeling relieved that it was over. Probably it was due to some of my American & international friends who was amazed that I could NOT eat or drink anything from dawn till dusk for 30 straight days!

"I don't know how you guys can do it; if it was me I'll probably die!"
- Angelos Nicolaou

Words of bewilderment from my Greek classmate who knows what it's like to fast as he lived in Saudi Arabia before. My American friends whom I met through The Asylum (gig organizers under Penn State) were also surprised about how tight the restrictions during fasting was but they were really supportive. I would say that their reactions gave me the impetus to fast as I feel these people really appreciate those who have the mental strength to go through this yearly ritual whereas in Malaysia it is like a normal, obligatory thing to do.

Another interesting observation is that the Eid Mubarak celebrations here are low-key although we have a considerable numbers of Muslims in the area. On the first day of Syawal, we all head to the Pasquerilla Spiritual Center which is on-campus to perform our Eid prayers and listen to the khutbah. After that, we would all wish each other a happy Eid Mubarak and have a light breakfast. I do not know how grand Eid is celebrated back in their home country but as I see it here, they don't seem to emphasize on making it a "big" thing unlike in Malaysia.

The justification by Malaysians that Eid must be celebrated 30 days since fasting in Ramadhan was observed for 30 days is unfounded. It is as if that Malaysians feel that Ramadhan is more of a burden than a blessing whereby we are released from our "shackles" come Syawal; although the choice of word I used sounds offensive it is what I have experienced too every year back in Malaysia: I somehow felt glad that Ramadhan is over and done with. However, this year I have gained a new, different perspective on the significance of Ramadhan. It is the month where we have to sacrifice a lot of things to get Allah's blessings and don't expect to get anything in return when Eid comes because we shall be rewarded in the hereafter.

One bad habit prevailing among Malaysians during Eid is that more and more of us are jumping into the "open-house" bandwagon. I know that the niat of doing an open-house is always good i.e. to strengthen the bonds of friendship and family but if people start competing on making grand open-houses, these good intentions won't be accepted by Allah. Another habit the hosts would do is to always provide a lot of or even too much food for his guests. It is good to show goodwill towards your guests but providing them with a long buffet table of local dishes which will eventually won't finish is just wrong. Coupled that with 10-20 open houses invitations we get and the amount of food being thrown away is enormous! We have to remember that there are thousands, millions perhaps of Muslims around the world celebrating Eid in poverty i.e. without food or shelter.

Thus, in sharing their burden, I decided to take the optional six days of fasting from the 2nd day of Syawal till the 7th; it is just a small token compared to what they are going through. I hope that you would take up this chance being offered by Allah so as to cleanse your mind, body and soul. This past month in America has opened my eyes on the true meaning of Ramadhan which is about self-sacrificing yourself for the hereafter and restraining yourself from self-indulgence when this holy month has passed.