Just the other day, I decided to head on over to a book sale which the local library holds at this time of year. Not only was this a perfect opportunity to pick up some great reads at a major discount price but my time at the book sale was meant for another good cause: supporting the library from a financial standpoint as well.
I don't know if some people truly understand how important their trip to a library-sponsored book sale can be. But it's important for the following reasons:
(1) the dinero you end up spending at the booksale is (however slight it might be) a financial boost which the library could use in their favor;
(2) the funding which comes from the book sale gets channeled into a variety of projects & events connected to the library/which the library is promoting;
(3) it also goes to show much you support not solely your local library but also proves that your gift, small though it is, means a whole lot just by showing up to buy some used books.
I grabbed several books while I was there; I expected some of last year's energy in finding all these awesome books to snatch up to carry over into this year's extravaganza. But it took just one stop to find some classic works worth getting...not three or four stops before I was done finding all the reading material I could ever want. Aw well though; you can't win them all.
And I'm a pretty happy man right now...
Tuesday, July 29, 2008
Tuesday, July 22, 2008
My favorite post-rock albums. Ever.
Tortoise, TNT.
Tortoise, Standards.
pretty much any album by Stereolab (check my last post)
Jim O'Rourke, Eureka.
Mogwai, Happy Songs for Happy People.
any album by Explosions In The Sky, enough said.
Godspeed You Black Emperor - F#a#.
Godspeed You Black Emperor - Lift Your Skinny Fists Like Antennas to Heaven.
Labradford - Mi Media Naranja, E Luxo So.
Sigur Ros - ( ).
Tortoise, Standards.
pretty much any album by Stereolab (check my last post)
Jim O'Rourke, Eureka.
Mogwai, Happy Songs for Happy People.
any album by Explosions In The Sky, enough said.
Godspeed You Black Emperor - F#a#.
Godspeed You Black Emperor - Lift Your Skinny Fists Like Antennas to Heaven.
Labradford - Mi Media Naranja, E Luxo So.
Sigur Ros - ( ).
My fave Stereolab albums
If I had a list of favorite Stereolab albums to share with you all. they would be the following:
(1) Dots and Loops.
(2) Emperor Tomato Ketchup.
(3) Cobra & Phases Group...
(4) Margerine Eclipse.
(5) Sound-Dust.
(6) Mars Audiac Quintet.
(1) Dots and Loops.
(2) Emperor Tomato Ketchup.
(3) Cobra & Phases Group...
(4) Margerine Eclipse.
(5) Sound-Dust.
(6) Mars Audiac Quintet.
chemical reaction
Just under a month from now, Stereolab will be releasing its latest platter of goodies, Chemical Chords. Not only is this the first album since the 2004 effort Margerine Eclipse (FYI: the 2006 release Fab Four Suture wasn't an album per se; it was a compilation of singles, a sidebar release of sorts); it's also a breath of fresh musical air. Not only are the songs shorter & more compact from what I've heard; it's also a little throwback to 1996's Emperor Tomato Ketchup. Add (High Llamas frontman) Sean O'Hagan's horn & string arrangements into the mix & we might have another winner on our hands. The first & foremost download off Chemical Chords, "Three Women," is perfect proof that the groop is still good at what it does best - quirky songcraft, quirky instrumentation... - & that my predictions of them releasing another awesome album might be right on the money after all.
Saturday, July 19, 2008
Rushing around
True, it's midsummer but when it comes to Fraternity recruitment, no recruitment chairman should go on vacation.
But why is that? you may ask.
Fraternity Recruitment is a big deal, especially with incoming freshmen shopping around for the right house to join as well as to delve into the whole truth about Greek life in general. The worst we could do is go to sleep & not give these duders a point of reference which they can turn to when it comes to making a wise, valuable decision on accepting a bid from Sigma Chi or Delts, etc.
For those recruitment chairs who have Fall 08 Rush Week groups up on Facebook, I commend them for their efforts since they've got some of their groundwork done in advance. Not only can incoming freshmen (as well as other undergraduates) get a chance to do their research about our chapter & the accomplishments it has achieved but if we stop to think about it we're giving them an opportunity to look at what makes Sigs/Fiji/SigEp such an awesome fraternity to begin with. And if our chapter has an impressive track record (not only in its social aspect or in intramurals but especially from an academic perspective), duders will be convinced, duders will want to ask questions, duders will sincerely want to consider going Greek. True, the Activity Fair & Rush Week are perfect occasions for incoming freshmen to delve into Greek life & what makes it so amazing but when we've got Facebook groups which are dedicated to Fall Rush 2008 & duders should happen to stumble across them, we've made our work a bit easier (if not exponentially) & all this by planning ahead.
This isn't to say that we should discount the old-fashioned way of finding duders to go Greek; we shouldn't BTW. If we know of any duder whom we went to high school with who is quality material for this house or that, we should let them know about not only Rush Week & the events associated with this whole timeframe but also the Facebook groups devoted to Fall Rush while we're at it. If we know of men who want to rush, but are a bit uncertain or leery about taking that major step into going Greek, we should give them a firsthand experience on why we went Greek to begin with as well as other points of reference to turn to (e.g. our fraternity's main website, not just our chapter's!!).
Either way we look at it, recruitment is a yearly process. And what time we should devote to vacay is time where we should be laying the groundwork, making formulations for Fall Rush '08. For those who have got their work ready to go or at least well underway, God bless them, because they know what's up.
As anyone worth their salt knows, recruitment doesn't happen once a semester; it's all year long.
But why is that? you may ask.
Fraternity Recruitment is a big deal, especially with incoming freshmen shopping around for the right house to join as well as to delve into the whole truth about Greek life in general. The worst we could do is go to sleep & not give these duders a point of reference which they can turn to when it comes to making a wise, valuable decision on accepting a bid from Sigma Chi or Delts, etc.
For those recruitment chairs who have Fall 08 Rush Week groups up on Facebook, I commend them for their efforts since they've got some of their groundwork done in advance. Not only can incoming freshmen (as well as other undergraduates) get a chance to do their research about our chapter & the accomplishments it has achieved but if we stop to think about it we're giving them an opportunity to look at what makes Sigs/Fiji/SigEp such an awesome fraternity to begin with. And if our chapter has an impressive track record (not only in its social aspect or in intramurals but especially from an academic perspective), duders will be convinced, duders will want to ask questions, duders will sincerely want to consider going Greek. True, the Activity Fair & Rush Week are perfect occasions for incoming freshmen to delve into Greek life & what makes it so amazing but when we've got Facebook groups which are dedicated to Fall Rush 2008 & duders should happen to stumble across them, we've made our work a bit easier (if not exponentially) & all this by planning ahead.
This isn't to say that we should discount the old-fashioned way of finding duders to go Greek; we shouldn't BTW. If we know of any duder whom we went to high school with who is quality material for this house or that, we should let them know about not only Rush Week & the events associated with this whole timeframe but also the Facebook groups devoted to Fall Rush while we're at it. If we know of men who want to rush, but are a bit uncertain or leery about taking that major step into going Greek, we should give them a firsthand experience on why we went Greek to begin with as well as other points of reference to turn to (e.g. our fraternity's main website, not just our chapter's!!).
Either way we look at it, recruitment is a yearly process. And what time we should devote to vacay is time where we should be laying the groundwork, making formulations for Fall Rush '08. For those who have got their work ready to go or at least well underway, God bless them, because they know what's up.
As anyone worth their salt knows, recruitment doesn't happen once a semester; it's all year long.
#41
Two days ago, we marked the 41st anniversary of John Coltrane's passing. Even now, I'm wondering about the musical directions which Trane could have taken had he not left this earth so soon; up to his death, the man was on a mission as if he still had so much to say, so much unexpressed emotion which needed to get delivered to us through his tenor saxophone.
At this point in his career - & in the august of his life - Trane was moving into a freer vibe with his playing & his bandmates in the Quintet were the perfect fit for his undertakings. Not only was the music more intense, more passionate, more calm, more turbulent - & each of those four adjectives have always been perfect ways to describe John Coltrane's style of play - but it was starting to find focus as well, as the recordings on Stellar Regions point out so vividly. If JC had lived a while longer, this is what his music would have sounded like for sure.
The next question is, if Trane were still alive, would he have gone the route his role models did & made music which was pleasing to the ear or made smooth jazz elevator music (think Miles Davis in the 1980s) or would he have been the same fearless man as always, relentlessly plotting new musical ground for us to take note of, taking his music to previously unchartered turf? In my own personal opinion, I feel that he would have chose the latter route. At a time when record companies wanted their artists to sound more commercial, more accessible (& therefore help sell more albums), Trane stuck to his guns & the powers that be couldn't stop him from staking claims to freer, more celestial musical realms.
Had Trane not left us so soon, who knows what his music would have sounded like. But we can be grateful for the body of work he left behind for us to listen to, to take note of, to appreciate after multiple listens & most of all to love.
At this point in his career - & in the august of his life - Trane was moving into a freer vibe with his playing & his bandmates in the Quintet were the perfect fit for his undertakings. Not only was the music more intense, more passionate, more calm, more turbulent - & each of those four adjectives have always been perfect ways to describe John Coltrane's style of play - but it was starting to find focus as well, as the recordings on Stellar Regions point out so vividly. If JC had lived a while longer, this is what his music would have sounded like for sure.
The next question is, if Trane were still alive, would he have gone the route his role models did & made music which was pleasing to the ear or made smooth jazz elevator music (think Miles Davis in the 1980s) or would he have been the same fearless man as always, relentlessly plotting new musical ground for us to take note of, taking his music to previously unchartered turf? In my own personal opinion, I feel that he would have chose the latter route. At a time when record companies wanted their artists to sound more commercial, more accessible (& therefore help sell more albums), Trane stuck to his guns & the powers that be couldn't stop him from staking claims to freer, more celestial musical realms.
Had Trane not left us so soon, who knows what his music would have sounded like. But we can be grateful for the body of work he left behind for us to listen to, to take note of, to appreciate after multiple listens & most of all to love.
Wednesday, July 16, 2008
Current playlist #10
The Mars Volta, "Eriatarka," De-Loused in the Comatorium
The Mars Volta, "L'Via L'Viaquez," Frances The Mute
Can, "Future Days," Future Days
Can, "Chain Reaction > Quantum Physics," Soon Over Babaluma
Isis, "Dulcinea," In The Absence Of Truth
Isis, "Backlit," Panopticon
Yes, "Yours Is No Disgrace," The Yes Album
Yes, "Heart of the Sunrise," Fragile
The Mars Volta, "L'Via L'Viaquez," Frances The Mute
Can, "Future Days," Future Days
Can, "Chain Reaction > Quantum Physics," Soon Over Babaluma
Isis, "Dulcinea," In The Absence Of Truth
Isis, "Backlit," Panopticon
Yes, "Yours Is No Disgrace," The Yes Album
Yes, "Heart of the Sunrise," Fragile
Tuesday, July 15, 2008
Quotes of the day
Secret Thoughts of The Ritual
by Edward M. King
There are many of us around. Some of us are very informal and loosely structured, others are very formal and precisely worded. Whether you are aware of it or not, your whole life is based on certain ritualistic patterns. The way you get up in the morning, the way you study, the way you organize your social life, the way you speak and write, these are all based on certain habits or routines that you develop and are performed, by and large, in an informal ritualistic way.
Today I would like to share with you some thoughts on another kind of ritual. One that is considered very private and is often esoteric. I am the fraternity ritual. One that you will find locked in a file in the corner of some dark office. Because I don't get used or opened up very often, I have a lot of time to think and I'd like to share with you some of my thoughts. Sometimes, I go through a real identity crises. Who am I? What am I? Why am I? In order to know what a thing is, you must first know what it is for. You tell what a thing is for by the way it is used.
Although there are some exceptions in the way I am used, let me tell you how the majority of fraternity chapters use me. The vast amount of my time is spent in a dark cabinet, locked up and gathering dust. About once a semester there comes a mad rush for my existence, people literally scrambling, and all of a sudden I become very important. It's really funny because many times they can't find me. They forget where I was placed and a mild panic sets in until finally they dig me out from under the stacks of constitutions, by-laws, and chapter minutes. Once I am found, I am under 24-hour surveillance. It's almost as if I'm being digested, but that's not really it; what's happening is that I'm being memorized. I'm literally studied word for word, phrase for phrase, with, "Well let me just copy my part," then the argument gets hotter because somebody says, "No, it's not legal to copy anything out of the ritual." Some people, however, go ahead and fudge a bit and copy their part and then pass me on.
After being up almost all day and all night for a week, I am taken to a dimly lighted room where a number of people are gathered. There I am presented with much feeling and serious drama. It is obviously a moment of great climax for some of the people, for they are seeing and hearing me for the very first time. Shortly after the ceremony, I am brought back to the dark room and placed in the locked file drawer and I am not seen or heard of until the end of the next semester. In this case, as a ritual, what am I? Well, as I see it, I am a perfunctory service that must be performed in order to get new members into an organization. Once the initiation is over, I'm pretty much pigeonholed until the next class is to be initiated.
However, in some fraternity houses I exist in quite a different fashion. Shortly after the initiation the brothers come in one by one, get me out of the drawer and look me over carefully. Some just like to read me, others try to memorize me. Whatever the case, I like it when they use me. Sometimes they even argue over me, and this gets exciting because you see that's what I'm about. I'm meant to be read carefully, discussed and even argued about. Yes, in fact, I can even be changed. I'm really a very human document, one that was written down some time ago after a great deal of thought of one or two men and I have been reworded, rephrased and re-evaluated many, many times.
In order to know what I'm really about, I need to be perpetually used and studied. (Too often the members mention me only at initiation time and I'm really meant for much more than that.) In fact, one of my most important missions is to help the chapter at its weekly meetings. If I am understood and used properly at these weekly meetings, I can use really hel the chapter get things together. There are always a few men who don't like to use me and put up a bit argument about having an informal chapter meeting. What a joke that usually turns out to be. Most informal chapter meetings last a heck of a lot longer than formal chapter meetings where I'm used. As I've listened to people and watched how they use me, a couple of important thoughts have crossed my mind. First, the fraternities have done an excellent job in keeping me an esoteric document that is, basically a secret document and therein is much of the problem. Not only am I a secret document to the outside, I am a secret to most of the members as well. They really don't know or understand me because they've never reallt studied me. Some people, I suspect, would like to keep me very, very secret because if non-members found out what I stood for, they might expect the members to live by it and that would be very difficult. Therefore, they keep me secret and they won't have to change their lifestyle.
Although I can be used in different ways and for different things, when you boil me down to my fundamental essence, I'm essentially one thing, a system of values. I don't change very much because I am the product of history and the spirit of man and how he relates to his fellow man and to his God. The relationship between man and man, and man and God, has never been a static one. It is confusing and illuminating, painful and exciting, a separation and a reunion and although I appear to be a contradiction, I am really no more of a contradiction than man himself. Too frequently we forget that man is both animal and spiritual in nature, and to reconcile the two can often be painful, confusing and frightening. And that is why it is so critical that man understands who I am and what I am for.
Because I am a system of values, I am therefore an instrument of self-evaluation. My values are clear and absolute and yet difficult to emulate. To state a few, I am honor, courage, integrity, fidelity, courtesy and I demand self-control as well as ambition and humility. What your Founders did is take the idea of friendship and move it a significant step forward to the concept of commitment.
Those of you who are leaders in your fraternity chapter - leaders both formal and informal - must continue to ask yourselves how you can improve in articulating to your members the message of your fraternity. Why is that some of the members get it and others do not? To some the message goes deep and becomes a part of their very being, while for others it never scratches the surface. Ask yourself the question when you attend your regional meetings, your workshops, retreats, leadership schools, how much time do you spend discussing and sharing with each other what personal effect I have had on your lives? Do you, as so many chapters do, use me to start the meetings and close the meetings and become so involved in your day to day business that you forget I am there to be reflected upon? For those of you who do understand and use me, are you afraid or ashamed to share those experiences and thoughts with your fellow brothers? Those of you who are fraternity leaders, and are not using me in this way are very derelict in your responsibilities, your duties, and the very oath that you took when you became a member and an officer in your fraternity. For, you see, as written in your esoteric manuals, I am really of very little value unless you and the other brothers come and through your mutual sharing begin to experience the essence and the depth of my message. Then you and I are activated by the real charge into your spiritual and moral fiber that is possible for all men but achieved by too few. The effectiveness of my message is in direct proportion to your knowledge and belief in my values.
If there is something about me that you do not like, then ask the convention of your fraternity to change me, but for God's sake do not ignore me. It is the indifference to and the ignorance of my essential message that continues the stifle the growth of the fraternity system. Never has the time been so ripe as this period in our history when the young people of today on our college campuses are crying out for the kind of message, guidance, value, and leadership that has been so long hidden in my pages.
If you would just realize that by better knowing and understanding me, many of your day-to-day problems, housing, collections, and apathy, would simply fade away and not exist.
Basically I am a road map to help a person along his journey of life and assist him in his communion with his fellow travelers. Who am I? Your ritual. What am I? A system of values. What am I for? My purpose is not to make you just a better fraternity man, but more importantly, a better human being.
-Edward M. King
Bradley 1954
Sigma Chi Fraternity
by Edward M. King
There are many of us around. Some of us are very informal and loosely structured, others are very formal and precisely worded. Whether you are aware of it or not, your whole life is based on certain ritualistic patterns. The way you get up in the morning, the way you study, the way you organize your social life, the way you speak and write, these are all based on certain habits or routines that you develop and are performed, by and large, in an informal ritualistic way.
Today I would like to share with you some thoughts on another kind of ritual. One that is considered very private and is often esoteric. I am the fraternity ritual. One that you will find locked in a file in the corner of some dark office. Because I don't get used or opened up very often, I have a lot of time to think and I'd like to share with you some of my thoughts. Sometimes, I go through a real identity crises. Who am I? What am I? Why am I? In order to know what a thing is, you must first know what it is for. You tell what a thing is for by the way it is used.
Although there are some exceptions in the way I am used, let me tell you how the majority of fraternity chapters use me. The vast amount of my time is spent in a dark cabinet, locked up and gathering dust. About once a semester there comes a mad rush for my existence, people literally scrambling, and all of a sudden I become very important. It's really funny because many times they can't find me. They forget where I was placed and a mild panic sets in until finally they dig me out from under the stacks of constitutions, by-laws, and chapter minutes. Once I am found, I am under 24-hour surveillance. It's almost as if I'm being digested, but that's not really it; what's happening is that I'm being memorized. I'm literally studied word for word, phrase for phrase, with, "Well let me just copy my part," then the argument gets hotter because somebody says, "No, it's not legal to copy anything out of the ritual." Some people, however, go ahead and fudge a bit and copy their part and then pass me on.
After being up almost all day and all night for a week, I am taken to a dimly lighted room where a number of people are gathered. There I am presented with much feeling and serious drama. It is obviously a moment of great climax for some of the people, for they are seeing and hearing me for the very first time. Shortly after the ceremony, I am brought back to the dark room and placed in the locked file drawer and I am not seen or heard of until the end of the next semester. In this case, as a ritual, what am I? Well, as I see it, I am a perfunctory service that must be performed in order to get new members into an organization. Once the initiation is over, I'm pretty much pigeonholed until the next class is to be initiated.
However, in some fraternity houses I exist in quite a different fashion. Shortly after the initiation the brothers come in one by one, get me out of the drawer and look me over carefully. Some just like to read me, others try to memorize me. Whatever the case, I like it when they use me. Sometimes they even argue over me, and this gets exciting because you see that's what I'm about. I'm meant to be read carefully, discussed and even argued about. Yes, in fact, I can even be changed. I'm really a very human document, one that was written down some time ago after a great deal of thought of one or two men and I have been reworded, rephrased and re-evaluated many, many times.
In order to know what I'm really about, I need to be perpetually used and studied. (Too often the members mention me only at initiation time and I'm really meant for much more than that.) In fact, one of my most important missions is to help the chapter at its weekly meetings. If I am understood and used properly at these weekly meetings, I can use really hel the chapter get things together. There are always a few men who don't like to use me and put up a bit argument about having an informal chapter meeting. What a joke that usually turns out to be. Most informal chapter meetings last a heck of a lot longer than formal chapter meetings where I'm used. As I've listened to people and watched how they use me, a couple of important thoughts have crossed my mind. First, the fraternities have done an excellent job in keeping me an esoteric document that is, basically a secret document and therein is much of the problem. Not only am I a secret document to the outside, I am a secret to most of the members as well. They really don't know or understand me because they've never reallt studied me. Some people, I suspect, would like to keep me very, very secret because if non-members found out what I stood for, they might expect the members to live by it and that would be very difficult. Therefore, they keep me secret and they won't have to change their lifestyle.
Although I can be used in different ways and for different things, when you boil me down to my fundamental essence, I'm essentially one thing, a system of values. I don't change very much because I am the product of history and the spirit of man and how he relates to his fellow man and to his God. The relationship between man and man, and man and God, has never been a static one. It is confusing and illuminating, painful and exciting, a separation and a reunion and although I appear to be a contradiction, I am really no more of a contradiction than man himself. Too frequently we forget that man is both animal and spiritual in nature, and to reconcile the two can often be painful, confusing and frightening. And that is why it is so critical that man understands who I am and what I am for.
Because I am a system of values, I am therefore an instrument of self-evaluation. My values are clear and absolute and yet difficult to emulate. To state a few, I am honor, courage, integrity, fidelity, courtesy and I demand self-control as well as ambition and humility. What your Founders did is take the idea of friendship and move it a significant step forward to the concept of commitment.
Those of you who are leaders in your fraternity chapter - leaders both formal and informal - must continue to ask yourselves how you can improve in articulating to your members the message of your fraternity. Why is that some of the members get it and others do not? To some the message goes deep and becomes a part of their very being, while for others it never scratches the surface. Ask yourself the question when you attend your regional meetings, your workshops, retreats, leadership schools, how much time do you spend discussing and sharing with each other what personal effect I have had on your lives? Do you, as so many chapters do, use me to start the meetings and close the meetings and become so involved in your day to day business that you forget I am there to be reflected upon? For those of you who do understand and use me, are you afraid or ashamed to share those experiences and thoughts with your fellow brothers? Those of you who are fraternity leaders, and are not using me in this way are very derelict in your responsibilities, your duties, and the very oath that you took when you became a member and an officer in your fraternity. For, you see, as written in your esoteric manuals, I am really of very little value unless you and the other brothers come and through your mutual sharing begin to experience the essence and the depth of my message. Then you and I are activated by the real charge into your spiritual and moral fiber that is possible for all men but achieved by too few. The effectiveness of my message is in direct proportion to your knowledge and belief in my values.
If there is something about me that you do not like, then ask the convention of your fraternity to change me, but for God's sake do not ignore me. It is the indifference to and the ignorance of my essential message that continues the stifle the growth of the fraternity system. Never has the time been so ripe as this period in our history when the young people of today on our college campuses are crying out for the kind of message, guidance, value, and leadership that has been so long hidden in my pages.
If you would just realize that by better knowing and understanding me, many of your day-to-day problems, housing, collections, and apathy, would simply fade away and not exist.
Basically I am a road map to help a person along his journey of life and assist him in his communion with his fellow travelers. Who am I? Your ritual. What am I? A system of values. What am I for? My purpose is not to make you just a better fraternity man, but more importantly, a better human being.
-Edward M. King
Bradley 1954
Sigma Chi Fraternity
Wednesday, July 9, 2008
Out, in need of support
The following was written by a straight man, aka yours truly.
In the distant past (& not so distant), being a member of the Greek community was something to take great pride & joy in - still is, BTW. But when it came to fraternity members revealing their sexual orientation to their fellow brothers, more often than not, for fear of ostracism, they would resort to the following: a) keep their sexual preference a secret for the longest time, then decide to come out sometime during the new millennium; b) have a "girlfriend" on the side, as some sort of prop or facade to convince their brothers that they were one of the guys (i.e. straight as can be); c) launching into every denial & rationalization they could think of if the issue of their sexual orientation arose...among other coping mechanisms at their disposal to keep their gay status out of the picture.
Many men who wore letters & who were closeted somehow braved the elements & came out later on, once the undergraduate baggage was put behind them; others weren't so lucky, facing scorn & ostracism from every sector, who felt that being both Greek & gay didn't mix & was a travesty to every principle their fraternities' respective founders stood by. Nowadays, however, the tide has turned: it seems acceptable to be a part of the Greek system as well as gay & live up to the billing of men of good character, balanced men, men of integrity.
Take the tale of Travis Shumake as a case in point. (He was a Sigma Chi @ Northern Arizona University - the same fraternity I am an alumni of.) He was an out cheerleader & freshman class president. Upon meeting the men of Sigma Chi initially, most of them were won over right away - in fact, he was a perfect fit for Sigs, being a legacy - that is to say, Travis' father was a Sig so that credential alone essentially gave him a bid to join Sigma Chi.
Catch is, he didn't get a bid. Some seniors decided Shumake wasn't the right dude to join their chapter, for fear that their chapter might become known as the "gay" fraternity & they didn't want to earn that label. So Travis rushed Phi Delta Theta, this time getting a bid & he entered the process of pledgeship. But again, fate had other plans for Travis: one of the senior brothers gave the chapter an ultimatum, fearing the worst if a gay man were initiated into Phi Delt & it could be best summarized like so - "Either he goes or I go." Since Shumake wasn't even initiated yet, the active Phi Delts had no choice but to carry out their chaptermate's ultimatum & booted Travis from the chapter.
After such an ordeal, you'd think that Travis would've cleansed his hands of all things Greek, which he did - only momentarily, though. By the time Sigma Chi re-entered the picture, all the duders who were against Brother Shumake becoming a member of their chapter had graduated & so the remainder who stayed on hoping to make amends by giving him another bid. This time around, he accepted the offer & look at how far he's come since then.
As Travis Shumake's story indicates, & countless other Greek fraternity members will echo his sentiments (e.g. Andrew Goldstein), telling your chapter you're not only one of their own, but also that you're gay - now that can be a struggle as well as a fight. But somehow, instead of becoming resistant or standoffish once the truth comes out, more fraternity members are willing to lend their support, to stand by their out brothers through thick & thin. This isn't to say that the majority of straight Greek men will automatically give a newly out brother a warm reception & life will go on as usual; life does go on but it's different from the very moment one of their own tells them, "I'm gay," at the next chapter meeting.
And yet there's hope, even more so than ever. To be both gay & a member of the Greek community is not only acceptable & becoming more apparent; to be both of the above is also a testament to knowing oneself, finding one's place in this world as well as the chapter house.
At the same time, it's a challenge. Just ask Travis or Andrew about that.
In the distant past (& not so distant), being a member of the Greek community was something to take great pride & joy in - still is, BTW. But when it came to fraternity members revealing their sexual orientation to their fellow brothers, more often than not, for fear of ostracism, they would resort to the following: a) keep their sexual preference a secret for the longest time, then decide to come out sometime during the new millennium; b) have a "girlfriend" on the side, as some sort of prop or facade to convince their brothers that they were one of the guys (i.e. straight as can be); c) launching into every denial & rationalization they could think of if the issue of their sexual orientation arose...among other coping mechanisms at their disposal to keep their gay status out of the picture.
Many men who wore letters & who were closeted somehow braved the elements & came out later on, once the undergraduate baggage was put behind them; others weren't so lucky, facing scorn & ostracism from every sector, who felt that being both Greek & gay didn't mix & was a travesty to every principle their fraternities' respective founders stood by. Nowadays, however, the tide has turned: it seems acceptable to be a part of the Greek system as well as gay & live up to the billing of men of good character, balanced men, men of integrity.
Take the tale of Travis Shumake as a case in point. (He was a Sigma Chi @ Northern Arizona University - the same fraternity I am an alumni of.) He was an out cheerleader & freshman class president. Upon meeting the men of Sigma Chi initially, most of them were won over right away - in fact, he was a perfect fit for Sigs, being a legacy - that is to say, Travis' father was a Sig so that credential alone essentially gave him a bid to join Sigma Chi.
Catch is, he didn't get a bid. Some seniors decided Shumake wasn't the right dude to join their chapter, for fear that their chapter might become known as the "gay" fraternity & they didn't want to earn that label. So Travis rushed Phi Delta Theta, this time getting a bid & he entered the process of pledgeship. But again, fate had other plans for Travis: one of the senior brothers gave the chapter an ultimatum, fearing the worst if a gay man were initiated into Phi Delt & it could be best summarized like so - "Either he goes or I go." Since Shumake wasn't even initiated yet, the active Phi Delts had no choice but to carry out their chaptermate's ultimatum & booted Travis from the chapter.
After such an ordeal, you'd think that Travis would've cleansed his hands of all things Greek, which he did - only momentarily, though. By the time Sigma Chi re-entered the picture, all the duders who were against Brother Shumake becoming a member of their chapter had graduated & so the remainder who stayed on hoping to make amends by giving him another bid. This time around, he accepted the offer & look at how far he's come since then.
As Travis Shumake's story indicates, & countless other Greek fraternity members will echo his sentiments (e.g. Andrew Goldstein), telling your chapter you're not only one of their own, but also that you're gay - now that can be a struggle as well as a fight. But somehow, instead of becoming resistant or standoffish once the truth comes out, more fraternity members are willing to lend their support, to stand by their out brothers through thick & thin. This isn't to say that the majority of straight Greek men will automatically give a newly out brother a warm reception & life will go on as usual; life does go on but it's different from the very moment one of their own tells them, "I'm gay," at the next chapter meeting.
And yet there's hope, even more so than ever. To be both gay & a member of the Greek community is not only acceptable & becoming more apparent; to be both of the above is also a testament to knowing oneself, finding one's place in this world as well as the chapter house.
At the same time, it's a challenge. Just ask Travis or Andrew about that.
Monday, July 7, 2008
Ringing The Alarm
Chi-town's fab four of indie rock, The Sea and Cake, have got a new album coming out in late October called Car Alarm. Sure beats waiting 2-3 years between TSAC efforts; the successor to last year's awesome Everybody, Car Alarm should be another breath of musical fresh air once it comes out three months from now. Could this be another rush of inspired album-making from TSAC since their 1995 trio of indie-rock bliss (their self-titled debut, Nassau, The Biz)? We shall see, we shall see. Until 10/21/08, brace yourselves. Seriously, brace yourselves.
Re-loaded, expanded, deluxe!!
It kind of amazes me when this record company or that, in an effort to exponentially boost the sales of their best selling albums (I'm only talking about releases which came out during the past two years or so), decide to re-release them in an expanded/deluxe edition. It's like WTF? I mean, the original releases are selling enough already all by their lonesome & without those loathed bonus tracks, so why push the envelope & add a few more tunes at the 11th hour? (Hello...) Which brings me to the next question: couldn't these record labels save the hit of the day (which more often than not is the only additional song worth checking out on any expanded/deluxe CD) for another release? What were they thinking anyways? The artists in question could have at least recorded it for their original efforts to begin with or saved the hit of the day for a soundtrack. But for Sony or Universal to decide to say to certain performers on their payroll, "Hey, let's add a few more songs onto this album or that to boost our sales," well, in my own personal opinion, is a bit much.
When it comes to leaving a work of art well enough alone, I'm a firm believer that it shouldn't have to be tampered with to still be enduring & have a lasting impact. Unless it's a classic album by awesome performers (Ramones, Joy Division, The Pogues, among others), it shouldn't have to be remodified to keep the money flowing into the cash registers. Just leave it like so, for crying out loud!!
What's next? The Beatles' Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band re-reloaded, revisited? Let's hope not. For once, let's hope not.
When it comes to leaving a work of art well enough alone, I'm a firm believer that it shouldn't have to be tampered with to still be enduring & have a lasting impact. Unless it's a classic album by awesome performers (Ramones, Joy Division, The Pogues, among others), it shouldn't have to be remodified to keep the money flowing into the cash registers. Just leave it like so, for crying out loud!!
What's next? The Beatles' Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band re-reloaded, revisited? Let's hope not. For once, let's hope not.
Wednesday, July 2, 2008
A Thousand Times Over
In the eyes of Zimbabwe dictator Robert Mugabe, we as Westerners are seen as outsiders with no grasp on what's going on in this southern African country. If that's not enough, he feels that our criticism of the way he's been running the show of late is illegitimate and has no basis whatsoever in reality, that we have no right to point our finger at him & say that he needs to step down off his cloud of a throne (one which he has held sway over for almost three decades).
Just the other day, his official spokesman carried over much of Mugabe's chagrin over the West's take on situations in Zimbabwe in a nutshell: that Western governments have no moral authority to verbally scald Mugabe for the hurt he's put on his nation & that the West can "go hang a thousand times." This hasn't been the first grand act of defiance Bobby & his cohorts have launched at our faces & won't be the last either, I'm afraid. And rather than have Mugabe step up & say his thing to the media, his official spokesman decided to speak his mind instead.
How cowardly, letting your spokesperson say the words you were intending to say to us all along, Robert.
And here's the thing. We in the West do have a right to launch into criticisms & judgments over how badly & out of hand the political situation has become over the past couple months or so & what better way to vent our frustration by pinning the blame on the man who made all this possible to begin with. In a nation where one can forget about voting fairly (if at all), Mugabe deserves to be a man scorned, a man rightly vilified for his actions. To tell us to "go hang" is the verbal equivalent of telling us, "Hey, Zimbabwe isn't your problem, so back off & mind your own business."
Sorry to burst Mugabe's bubble, but we do care & we do show a great degree of empathy for the thousands of Zimbabweans who are in suffering, in despair, cowered back into place because they want no part of ZANU-PF. We do have an insight & understanding on the crisis going on & need to make our voices heard. We need to bring Mugabe's horrid track record into the spotlight to tell others, "This man needs to go, even if it means having to do so forcefully." When his spokesman gave us the "go hang" kiss-off, what he meant to tell us was, "Do nothing. Watch Zimbabwe self-destruct more & more. This nation is none of your concern & never was."
But in times like these, we can ill afford to sit by & watch Zimbabwe fall into an even deeper quagmire of suffering. We must do something; we must step up & give this nation a ray of hope which has been denied it for far too long.
Just the other day, his official spokesman carried over much of Mugabe's chagrin over the West's take on situations in Zimbabwe in a nutshell: that Western governments have no moral authority to verbally scald Mugabe for the hurt he's put on his nation & that the West can "go hang a thousand times." This hasn't been the first grand act of defiance Bobby & his cohorts have launched at our faces & won't be the last either, I'm afraid. And rather than have Mugabe step up & say his thing to the media, his official spokesman decided to speak his mind instead.
How cowardly, letting your spokesperson say the words you were intending to say to us all along, Robert.
And here's the thing. We in the West do have a right to launch into criticisms & judgments over how badly & out of hand the political situation has become over the past couple months or so & what better way to vent our frustration by pinning the blame on the man who made all this possible to begin with. In a nation where one can forget about voting fairly (if at all), Mugabe deserves to be a man scorned, a man rightly vilified for his actions. To tell us to "go hang" is the verbal equivalent of telling us, "Hey, Zimbabwe isn't your problem, so back off & mind your own business."
Sorry to burst Mugabe's bubble, but we do care & we do show a great degree of empathy for the thousands of Zimbabweans who are in suffering, in despair, cowered back into place because they want no part of ZANU-PF. We do have an insight & understanding on the crisis going on & need to make our voices heard. We need to bring Mugabe's horrid track record into the spotlight to tell others, "This man needs to go, even if it means having to do so forcefully." When his spokesman gave us the "go hang" kiss-off, what he meant to tell us was, "Do nothing. Watch Zimbabwe self-destruct more & more. This nation is none of your concern & never was."
But in times like these, we can ill afford to sit by & watch Zimbabwe fall into an even deeper quagmire of suffering. We must do something; we must step up & give this nation a ray of hope which has been denied it for far too long.
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