Sunday, December 20, 2009

Woody's Monthly "Things You Should Listen To But Probably Aren't An- WHY WOULD YOU NAME A BAND THAT?!"

Welcome to the first installment of WMTYSLTBPAAWWYNABT. Er, on second thought we'll just call it Woody's Indie Rock Blog. WIRB is so much easier to type. Yeah. Anyway, I figured this is probably the easiest way to get the word out on some bands I think people of The Circle would enjoy. Those of you already into Indie may feel like your intelligence is being insulted by some of the suggestions ("Brah, Cage the Elephant is SO old hat."), but bear with me, I'll be pulling some weird shit out of the bag as well.

Since this is the first of many to come, I figured for those not heavily into the Indie genre, I'd throw out a few of what I personally feel are bands that represent the Indie genre well as a whole. While they aren't necessarily the best of the best, they do lay down the foundations of Indie music. For example, you'd be hard pressed to find a modern Indie band that doesn't cite Neutral Milk Hotel as a influence on their work:

Neutral Milk Hotel
Cage The Elephant
Devendra Banhart
Guided By Voices
Iron & Wine
The Flaming Lips

The following list of songs is a compilation of my favorite discoveries from the bowels of the Indie internet-underworld (Interworld? Undernet? I like undernet!). Give them a spin and let me know what you liked most!

Song: Dance the Way I Feel
Artist: Ou Est Le Swimming Pool
Highlights: The perfect fusion of house rhythms and indie vocals.

Song: Concaves
Artist: Glorytellers
Highlights: The American counterpart to The Kooks. And a fondness for the harmonica.

Song: The Echoes of Time
Artist: The Smiles and Frowns
Highlights: Proves that less can indeed be more. Simple lyrics and minimalistic guitar manage to tell a complex story. Damn this duo for making it look so effortless.

Song: Baby Boomer
Artist: Monsters of Folk
Highlights: More like Masters of Folk. Takes Indie-Folk to the edge and beyond. Pure excellence.

Song: The '59 Sound
Artist: The Gaslight Anthem
Highlights: Your shampoo bottle will be hearing this chorus for weeks as you sing it in the shower. I hope mine likes my imitation of a gravelly man-voice. I sure don't.

Song: Are You Sure
Artist: Tutankamon
Highlights: The guitar riff is the ultimate earworm. I hope you like competition.

Song (Two recommendations this time): Anna, Simple Stones
Artist: Jupiter One
Highlights: Simple Stones is simply 80s funk gone Indie. It's brilliant.

Song: Waste Time
Artist: The Fire Theft
Highlights: A very chill song, makes the best impression though if it is immediately followed by Heaven by the same band - its more upbeat counterpart.

Song: The Indie Queens Are Waiting
Artist: Dan Mangan
Highlights: The guitar and piano are so soft the singers might as well deliver this one a capella - this might sound like a backhanded compliment, but it isn't. An emotional performance driven almost solely by voice alone isn't something one stumbles on often, and should be given special note when it is.

Song: You're In Love With The Sun
Artist: The Very Most
Highlights: Update The Beatles by 40 years and give them a surf rock twist. And there you have it.

Song: Come Out, Come Out
Artist: I Was Totally Destroying It
Highlights: Your steering wheel-drum kit will be slamming out this beat for weeks. I sure hope that if you're a foot tapper you don't drive a manual.

Song: New Theory
Artist: Washed Out
Highlights: A sort of low-fi ballad with heavy techno undertones. An interesting combination, but it really works.

Song: Tear Down the Opera House
Artist: The Scotland Yard Gospel Choir
Highlights: Oh, whoop-di-do. Another punk-rock influenced song about taking down the establishment. Ohhh, so clever. Wait for the Chuck Berry-style guitar solo. And then proceed to shit bricks.

I'll end with The Bravery's new album, Stir The Blood. Not quite as good as their previous The Sun and The Moon, but definitely worth checking out. And with that, I'll leave you to your own assessments of my choices, and to discoveries of your own.

Listen well!
Your Friendly Neighborhood Indie Music Guru

Sunday, September 27, 2009

Interesting Things Nikki And I Talk About Late At Night:

Woody: "Do you think Tony Stark put a urine capture device in the Iron Man suit so he can pee in flight?"
Nikki: "Probably."
Woody: "...What if he has to shit?"
Nikki: "He can't shit in flight."
Woody: "Sometimes he's in that suit for over 24 hours! It's either take it off or shit in the suit."
Nikki: "Well maybe he's like a bear and eats a lot of moss to plug up his ass."
Woody: "That could be why he was drinking that green stuff in the movie. High fiber diet and all."

Woody: "Why would Bella and Edward think it's a good idea to have a fucking baby?"
Nikki: "Why would they think it's a good idea to be fucking?"
Woody: "I mean, vampire baby, shit's dangerous. If I were her, I woulda been like: 'Whoa, why didn;t you tell me this child would try to eat my uterus.' And then it would've been whisk time."
Nikki: "Like Emeril? *mimes whisking motion* KICK IT UP A NOTCH."

(Talking about the sex scene between Dan and Laurie)
Nikki: "At first he's like: SEX. YEEEAAAAAAHHHH! But then he has E.D. so he's like: NOOOOOO!"

Wednesday, September 23, 2009

A Little Slice Of The College Life

As I begin classes tomorrow, I figure now is a good time to reflect on what the past few days of living in a dorm room has taught me about college life:

-Never go to dinner at 6:00 pm.
-Never try to shower at 7:00pm.
-When swearing loudly over video games/WoW, make sure no one is standing out in the hall that can hear you, lest you offend them.
-Always know where the closest ATM, comic book store, and drug store are.
-All the men on our floor are chill, efficient, and decent human beings in general. The women are bitches.
-Only leave your door open if you want people running in at 10:30 at night wanting to play Rock Band. No matter how hot it is.
-There is no such thing as too many posters.
-Bring plenty of munchies.
-Telling the story where I say "I feel like every liquid currently in my body is piss" is not a good way to make new friends.
-Don't get on your RA's bad side.
-And finally: disregard bitches, acquire currency.

Thursday, August 20, 2009

UPDATE!

NO ONE GIVES A SHIT! (No, really, I don't know if anyone even reads this anymore so it is a logical assumption.)

Anyway, on to business.

Currently playing: The Minstrel's Prayer by Cartel

Days until I move into my shiny new dorm room: 29
Days until I start fucking up things in my shiny new dorm room: 30
Days until FUUUUUUU- (read: first class I will ever have is Chem lecture at 7:30 am): 34

Art projects finished: 1
Art projects not finished: 12

iTunes library status since grey-screen of DOOM: 4, 203 songs, 22.14 gb
Indie-fied: Very much so.

On a scale of "Nah" to "OH MY GO-AUBSIYVAYAV", how much my room needs to be cleaned: "I think that pile of laundry is trying to communicate through pantomime. That or my dog is stuck under it."

Things purchased in the last week: 
-Time Capsule
-Post-it Notes
-Socks
-Earplugs

Things I have in my room that don't belong in my house: 12
Number of people that need to be given their shit back: 2

WoW Accomplishments:
80 Death Knight (Saintmurder)
80 Mage (Oddity)
79 Warrior (Stimpak)
73 Druid (Chemo)
68 Rogue (Radium)
36 Shaman (Ectoplasm)
29 Paladin (Acumen)
20 Hunter (Acehigh)

Man-Harem Additions:
Craig Parker (NOT in Haldir costume. He looks retarded. Zap the wig though, and nnngghh. Pretty.)
Sam Neill
Paul Bettany
Ethan Hawke
Alejandro Manzano (Lead singer of Boyce Avenue. Check 'em out on YouTube.)

Current music obsessions:
The Bravery
The Dead 60s
Eisley
Keane
Locksley
The Real Tuesday Weld
TV on the Radio

To-Do List:
Finish packing
Clean room
Finish Packing
Clean out mini-fridge
Finish packing
Baby-proof house
Finish packing
Wash car
Finish packing
Explore phenomena called "sunlight"
Finish packing
FINISH PACKING!
...
Oh, I need new jeans too.

Care level: I_I

("Ahem, Thisby."
"Aye, Cap'n. Quite."
"Thisby, it appears that the lass's care cup is still rather empty."
"Indeed, Cap'n. Most remarkable."
"...Well, do something about it, Thisby!"
"Erm, what do you propose, Cap'n?"
"Well, first things first, those pants are going to have to come off."
"C-Cap'n?")

Tuesday, July 21, 2009

"Trent?" "Yeah?" "I think I just came. I'm standing 15 feet away from Chris Martin."

So, Coldplay in concert...holy shit. Like, I knew they were good, but they were a million times better live then I ever expected. And it was more than just the fact that these are four very talented guys bouncing around on stage and having so much fun doing it, you're having fun just WATCHING them...it was the whole event. The lights, smoke, acoustics, balloons, GLOW IN THE DARK BUTTERFLIES. It was just...magical. I know that sounds corny, but for two and a half hours I wasn't in Irvine, California. I was in a completely different world. And the population was 20,000 screaming fans and 4 very talented musicians.

The Breakdown:

7:00 - The first opening band starts, a very odd swing/pop/country/blues compilation band hailing from the UK. The male singer was very good, but the female drummer kept throwing me off. She used her entire body whilst drumming. Very strange.

8:00 - Second opening band begins, even weirder than the first. Sort of a African choir meets Techno meets Blues. Very bizarre combination, but it kinda sorta (not-really) worked. Either way, opening bands are supposed to be mediocre anyway.

8:50 - Roadies begin setting up for Coldplay. I squee at the sight of Chris Martin's signature acoustic guitar.

9:10 - The show kicks off with a blast - lights, color, and sound - to the tune of Life in Technicolor. Chris Martin is bouncing around the stage like he's walked every inch of it since he was born. It's hard to describe how happy I was that they opened the show with my favorite song from Viva La Vida.

From there the set followed thusly:
Violet Hill (My second favorite song off the album, who'da thunkit?)
In My Place
Viva La Vida (I shouted myself hoarse on this one. You couldn't NOT sing along.)
Yellow (Here they had giant yellow balloons out in the crowd.)
Glass of Water
Cemeteries of London
42
Fix You (Imagine 20,000 people singing along with this. EVERYONE was on their feet.)
Strawberry Swing (One of the best performances of the night.)
God Put a Smile On Your Face (This is the song where they played on a stage in the middle of the crowd and I was 15 feet away from them. It was insane how close I was. I - just - it was amazing.)
Talk
Lost
Green Eyes (Again, they went and played in a different part of the crowd, but this is my favorite Coldplay song of all time. I was very surprised that they played it. In fact, I bet Trent before the concert that they WOULDN'T play it, heh.)
Billy Jean (Yes, they did an acoustic version of this song. Also, my favorite Michael Jackson song. Funny, innit?)
Death Will Never Conquer (Much to my surprise, the drummer really could sing.)
Politik
Lovers In Japan (Here they launched thousands of thin plastic butterflies that glowed in the dark into the crowed. NEON RAIN!)
Death and All of His Friends
Reprise of Viva La Vida
The Scientist
Life In Technicolor ii (A nice way to wrap up the show with this one.)

The show ended around 11:15, and I called Trent right after it was over to ask him what he thought. Most of the phone call was silence because we couldn't put how it felt to be there into words. I still can't. 

I honestly think the best part about the whole thing was that you could see how much fun the band members were having. I've seen many shows where the band looks like they can't wait to get offstage. Their whole performance says "Damn, I have to do this 100 more times." During this show, there wasn't even a hint of that. Either the members of Coldplay are very good actors, or they genuinely enjoyed what they were doing. It was impossible not to have fun.

Simply put, Coldplay in concert was one of the most amazing things I've ever seen. I've stood inside St. Peter's Cathedral in Rome. I've seen the Panama Canal. I've stood at the highest point in the continental United States, and seeing them play live is right up there with all those.

...And the only thing that could top it would be seeing Bowie in concert.

Sunday, June 14, 2009

Blink

So I finally did it. Fuck.

I started writing the epic story about time travel that I've had stuck in my head for three years now. It's been rattling around up there because I've always been too terrified to try and put it down, like trying to capture a waft of smoke - reach for it and it's gone.

The Players:
Evan Hoffling - Called 'Hoff' by most people but can't stand it.
Fadir Mittal - Evan's best friend who is convinced he can travel in time.
Juliet Fenwick - I don't know how she fits yet or what she does, but holy shit that's too cool a name to waste.

The Problem:
Okay, now me actually telling you how Fadir thinks he could travel in time would defeat the point of me even writing, yes? Just so you know, it has to do with strings and paradoxes and the constant movement of molecules. Oh, and blinking.

I'm certain this will turn out to be yet another one of my partially-finished, hair-brained schemes that never see fruition, but here I go anyway.

Wednesday, May 27, 2009

On The Proper Use of Leverage

"Give me but one firm spot of land on which to stand, and I will move the world." - Archimedes

So says the man that was the first to discover the properties of buoyancy, to give practical uses for mirrors and levers, to calculate the volume of a sphere. Archimedes was hailed as the one of the greatest polymaths ever to live by taking theory from the abstracted mind, and giving it a practical use. Archimedes stood on the library and museum at Alexandria, and from there he changed the world.

I have Lancaster. And I will have UC Davis. Certainly they are no match for the birth place of modern thought and reason, but maybe - just maybe - they're firm enough that I can change the world too. 

Archimedes changed the world with a lever and fulcrum, what will you change the world with?

(I blame illness on this post. I have been reading "The Rise and Fall of Alexandria" while I've been bedridden...blasted philosophers.)

Friday, May 15, 2009

The Nature of Wind

It isn't often that I read something and feel like the author is speaking personally to me. More often that not, books are an entertainment - a distraction. Complete immersion in a book is one of my favorite diversions since it's so simple for me to get lost in the lives and infinite intricacies of another person's life, but rarely do I ever feel any personal connection to the characters. Most of the time I feel like I'm treated at best as an observer (at worst an intruder) to the book.

But every once in a great while, I read something, and I can't help but feel that either I've known the author or they've known me, because they know exactly what I need to hear at that exact moment. It's an odd thing, that, and it makes you wonder if things like that are always there, but you just don't notice. Because you need someone to tell you those exact words, but when no one does, you go looking for them...and sometimes you do find them.

I didn't make valedictorian this year, nor did I make CSF. I will be one of the few IB seniors to not be a valedictorian or graduate in gold. I don't blame anyone but myself though. Every decision I've made for the past four years was mine and mine alone, and this is where they've left me. Am I angry? Yes. Will I stay angry? No, there isn't any point. So I'll have a different colored robe. So I won't sit next to my friends. There's no point in fighting something that I can't change, and I needed a piece of fiction to tell me the truth of that:

"That's the nature of wind. You can work with it or you can fight against it... but no matter how much you might not like it, you can't change it."

I have two choices: I can get angry about my own failures, or I can enjoy my last two weeks of high school. Staying angry might feel good now, but I will regret the time wasted later. I certainly won't like it, but I'll do what I can to work with it.

Tuesday, April 21, 2009

Like Clockwork

In gearing up for the release of the new Star trek movie, I've once again immersed myself in the escapist fantasy that is inherently the normal state of being for a Trekkie. Instead of caring about what clothes to wear or what new fad to buy, we ponder the universe and the future and everything in between.

This has led me to consider the one topic that has always fascinated me: alternate universes. The idea of an alternate universe is that for every major decision we make, there is an equal and opposite decision, and by making a choice we split our fate one way or another. This would imply that there are points in life that are distinctly more important than others, and the question is: If such moments do exist, how do we go about recognizing them? Or, are they recognizable at all?

The Star Trek episode City On The Edge Of Forever put forth a situation where a woman that was well liked, well respected, and totally innocent had to die in order for the universe to continue the way it was intended to. If the life of one person can so radically affect the future, then how are we to justify anything we do? A harsh word could accidently turn the tide of a kind person into a hateful bigot, a piece of trash casually tossed aside could prove to be the extinction of an entire species. 

Causation: this is the dilemma of all questions involving alternate universes. If each alternate universe is born of an important decision made by a single person, then the number of possible universes out there is, well...astronomical.

So, for example, this Fall I will be attending UC Davis, but (going back to last November), I may have decided not to join Mock Trial which caused problems with me getting CAS hours and I didn't get the leadership experience, so I didn't get into UC Davis. In another universe, I went to AVC for two years. Maybe I transferred out, maybe I met someone and decided to stay, maybe I died in a car accident on my way home. One decision, whether or not to join Mock Trial could have affected the future of my life to that extent. Of course we'll never know if Mock Trial was the ultimate reason why I got into UC Davis, but the possibility is still there, and for an alternate universe, possibility is all it needs.

I recognize joining Mock Trial as an important point in my life, possibly one that affected my future. McCoy in the Star Trek episode attempted to save Edith Keeler, but was stopped by Kirk and Spock. Because of her pacifist tendencies, Keeler would have delayed the US's entrance into WWII, to the point where Hitler nearly took over the world. Starfleet never existed in that timeline. For McCoy, trying to save Keeler wasn't a conscious choice. He never considered the repercussions of her living when it was clear she was meant to die. It was an action, not a decision. 

So that leaves the bigger question: Are we in charge of our own fate?

I would say no, based solely on the fact that even if we were able to accurately recognize every important moment of our lives, there is no way that is humanly possible to extrapolate all of the possible outcomes of a particular decision. Our lives are like clocks, with a infinite number of cogs and wheels and little machines that drive everything that we do, but if one falls out of place our lives are derailed instantly. However, by carefully weighing decisions instead of hasty choices, we can make them run like clockwork.

All right. Enough philosophical ranting. 


Tuesday, April 7, 2009

Emoetry

I'm sick of everyone else's emoetry, so I'm gonna show y'all how it's done, haiku style:

Normally life sucks.
But cryptic phrases say zilch.
So get over it.

Goddamn. If you're going to say something, then just say it already. Pfft.

Tuesday, March 31, 2009

I Know I Need To Start Sleeping Again When:

1. I spend three hours designing an apparatus that would fit inside my backpack and give me a constant supply of Mountain Dew with minimum effort.
2. I cry over movies and things I've never cried over before.
3. The word 'faloffle' induces unreasonably long periods of hysteria and laughter.
4. Sleeping with my eyes closed is harder than sleeping with my eyes open.
5. I become convinced that because of lack of sleep I will either:
A) Spontaneously combust
B) Evolve into a high being that has no need for sleep
C) Fold inward on myself, thusly creating a black hole and defying the laws of physics.
D) Become a chocolate chip muffin.
6. I actually start paying attention in class.
7. I feel like a stranger in my own house because I wander around in it at 3 AM.
8. It takes me at least 10 minutes to figure out what day it is, let alone what I'm supposed to be doing other than breathing.
9. Suddenly, I completely and utterly understand The Wall without ingesting any recreational or prescription drugs.
10. I read interesting stories about men dying from ingesting alcohol with their anus and Canadian trappers snapping off their man-logs with a bear trap.

I should go to bed. Note: should. 

Problem: Can't.

FML.

FML

Fate
Upholds
Carnivorous
Kites

Meanwhile
You

Live
Implicitly
For 
Everything






That is all.

Saturday, March 28, 2009

Update!

Phobias:
Spiders
Dust Motes
Choking on Pop Rocks
Statues (10 wig-out points if it's weeping)
Clowns
Hobos
Telephone booths
Mold
Olive-loaf
Jury duty
Cannibalism
Piranas

Insomnia: Still here, and in full force.

Man-Harem Additions: 
Gary Oldman
Ed Norton
Matthew Goode
Paul McGillion
David Hewlett
Alan Rickman

Current Thoughts:
"Why am I blogging at two in the morning?"
"Does anyone care?"
"Mmm, cheez-its."
"Why do we talk about distance in minutes or hours instead of miles?"
"Fucking cats fighting outside my window."

WoW Accomplishments:
Saintmurder - 80 Death Knight
Oddity - 78 Mage
Chemo - 65 Druid
Coffinated - 64 Warlock

School: Balls

College: UC Davis! Wewt!

Times I've left the house in the last two weeks outside of school: 4
Conclusion: The subject has no life.

Days since I cleaned my room: 13

To-Do List:
Buy new jeans
Buy new shoes
Buy David Bowie
Clean room
Wash car
Get mage to 80
Finish CAS hour sheets
Stoke up motivation to study Bio/Math
...
...
...
Do something productive

Care Level: I_I

("Captain, it appears that her care collection container is bereft of any care whatsoever."
"Very astute, Lieutenant. Her 'care cup' is empty, indeed."
"'Care cup'! Splendid, sir.")

In other words: I have no life. Go me.

Wednesday, March 18, 2009

All Great Things...

Well, you all know how the saying goes.

Everyone's sort of doing these "the end is coming, let's all reflect on the good times" blogs, and if there's anyone I'm going to conform to, I'm glad it's with the Circle.

Everyone has a block in their life called high school, and ours is nearly at an end. Two months, and that part of our life is over forever and we get to move on somewhere new. And I can't make up my mind about how I feel (truth be told though, that's how I've felt for most of my life; never knowing the difference between how I feel and how I'm supposed to feel). Part of me is chomping at the bit to get out of here, not to anyplace in particular, just to be somewhere different, somewhere new. And the other half can only think about how I'm going to miss seeing all of you everyday. The internet can only do so much y'know. 

So, I'm stuck in the rut of leaving and staying, and I've only got two months to sort all this shit out.

But, anyway, back to happier times. Let's do this chronologically, shall we? Perfectly logical for a Circle member, so I suppose it's fitting.

Freshman Year: Shit, I hated QHHS. I didn't like the friends I had because they were mostly comprised of people I didn't like and didn't hang out with in middle school, but it was them or alone, and someone is better than no one. About halfway through the year Aged LeBeau (Pre-IB Geometry: Sucked balls) rearranged the seats so that I was sitting next to Michelle Mercer. I didn't know her, didn't much care to get to know her, but we had to share a book so some communication was required between us. And I'll be damned if three weeks later I wasn't hanging out with her, Sara Daniel and Nikki Hooper, blowing off homework and gettin' into trouble. 

The Circle Mark 1: Woody, Sara, Paige, Nikki, Chelle, Autumn, Jew, Smity

Important Notes: Paige marked for death, Sara has long hair, I have long hair, hanging out on the grass, The Penny.

Sophomore Year: Things were looking pretty good. Last year I pulled all A's, made some great new friends, and my parents were happy. And then Lenaway happened. To be honest, I don't remember too much of what happened that year beyond my father being constantly hovering over my every grade and the constant disappointment that was second period. I know that sounds very emo and exaggerated, but that class seriously sucked. I mean, it made the whole year bad. I'm sure there were great Circle moments of awesome and epic win, but for the life of me I can't think of any.

The Circle Mark II: Woody, Sara, Paige, Nikki, Chelle, Jew, Autumn, Smity, Kraut, Trent, Brendan, Prances, Grace

Important Notes: Kraut moves, Paige is still going to die, Sara cuts hair, I keep mine, still hanging out on the grass but move indoors when it becomes too cold (beginning of possible migration theory), The Hilarious Incident of the Gnome in the Nighttime.

Junior Year: Ah, the year of change. Coming into eleventh grade, every illusion I had about my invincibility to a grade below a B completely and utterly vanished. And so did all of my work ethic. I think all of us went through some pretty radical changes, physically or mentally, sometimes both, at least in my case. I lost the hair, and according to most of the Circle a lot of my annoying douchebag traits. I'm still a douchebag, just a slightly more lovable one. Also, I become addicted to coffee and begin driving.

The Circle Mark III: Woody, Sara, Paige, Nikki, Jew, Autumn, Chelle, Prances, Brendan, Grace

Important Notes: I still will be the end of Paige (eventually), Sara cuts hair (shorter), I finally get rid of mine, now spending most lunches in DeGroff's room, mornings in LeBeau the Younger's. 

Senior Year: The year of: "I should...oh, fuck it." I can understand why Parks calls out class the Year of Apathy. Due to California budget constraints and national economic problems, our entire class knew that getting into the colleges we wanted to go to was very slim from the start. At least that's what I'm blaming my apathy on. That and a combination of Reti's class making me averse to any conversations that involve politics, morality, or philosophy (things I actually used to enjoy pursuing in my own time). Between Mock Trial, IB, and the stress of getting into a good college, I feel tired. And sick. And sort of angry. But I can't afford to be any of those things because senior year is supposed to be one of the best years of my entire life and I can't afford to waste it on being pissed off. But, between the epic Circle parties, coffee in the mornings, and Nikki's always amazing food, I've done it. 

We've done it. 

The Circle Mark IV: Woody, Nikki, Sara, Paige, Chelle, Autumn, Jew, Webster, Mariah, Brendan, Jeff, Prances, Dakota, Caitlin, Grace

Shit, nearly four years, and even though we've had our bumps and our spinouts and our bitchy little arguments, we're still friends, and that's a lot more than most people can say.

And there will be parts of my high school career that I'll look back on and wince, maybe mutter a "probably not the smartest idea", but as a whole I won't look back and remember the teachers most, or the tests, or the field trips or the fights or prom...it'll be you guys. Four years is a hell of a long time to know someone for people our age, to see them and talk with them nearly everyday. I doubt I'll ever understand all of you, get what makes you tick, but that's all right because where's the fun in talking with someone when you know them down to their last inch? 

So, yes, all good things must come to an end, and forgive me for being blunt but I do fear that college will be the end of The Circle. We can keep in contact over the internet and phone, but you lose something when you don't see someone everyday. 

It had to end eventually, but I'll tell you one thing, I wouldn't've traded you guys for the world.