Marianne...goes to the gym?!

Even though this body of mine is 21 years old it certainly doesn't feel like it at the moment. I mean, I should be at the prime years of my life right now! And I don't want to feel lethargic and tired all the time anymore. So, I decided to put my bitterness of the trend aside and try to be a little more open minded about the whole gym craze that everyone (and by everyone I mean a few people on Instagram and Tumblr) loves so much that it's become pretty much a lifestyle for some (or at least appears that way). Because you know, even though some people come off as conceited and aggressive..ly determined with their attitude towards it you have to admit that they seem to have a shitload of energy.

Okay okay, the title of this post is not entirely true since I haven't actually stepped foot in an actual gym area but I've taken a few group exercise classes to motivate me to push harder. I mean, avoiding the public humiliation of looking unfit and being singled out by your instructor in front of a bunch of strangers is a great motivator.

But then there are shitty things about the setup of of these classes such as not getting the moves while everyone else does so it feels like you've just accidentally walked into a dance rehearsal, bumping into people, limited space, the fear of accidentally punching someone, the fear of accidentally punching yourself, standing next to a person who sweats so much you're afraid that you'll slip on it, the smell of that sweat etc. And that's just the cardio classes. The yoga/pilates ones are killer because everyone looks like the type of people who can bend themselves into a pretzel while I can't even touch my toes or keep my legs straight. But you know, I'm glad I decided to try something new and I kind of like it too. I feel bad that I judged people on it.

The way the universe works

Why is it that when I decide to leave the house for five minutes in my home clothes teamed up with something like my thongs or my old daggy sneakers to run a quick errand like buying some milk in the middle of the night or getting some takeaway I always have to bump into someone I know?

Food Talk

A friend of mine were talking when they said that at her restaurant they sometimes add chicken stock to their vegetarian rice. I thought this was sort of disturbing and told them that it was unethical to do that. The reason I thought this is if something claimed on a menu as vegetarian, I would expect that everything in that dish would contain absolutely no meat products. They disagreed saying that not every detail can't be mentioned in a menu and that it was the responsibility of the customer to ask about everything they order about their diet concerns and at a Chinese restaurant customers should expect that they use meat in everything. I guess if someone had a nut allergy they would ask about every dish they order but I don't know if this is the same issue or not. Either way it makes me think of all the vegetarians that left that restaurant thinking that they had a meal that aligned with their ethics when really they unknowingly just had a sauce that came from stewed chicken bones because like me, they assumed 'vegetarian' means no meat. I don't know, am I just being too PC?

The tale of the four eyed freak

Back in primary to high school I really hated having to wear glasses all the time since I felt like they pigeonholed me into the Asian nerd category. But in a way I kind of liked my face to be defined by the thick ass plastic frames I wore since it was nice to be able to hide behind them looking like my friends and not have my face exposed. Come university I decided it needed to shed from this loser nerd/looking like a fob identity that was probably all in my head and try light thin frames that didn't take over my face and wear contacts as much as possible.
And now eyeglasses are more than ever become a trendy fashion accessory, a choice to wear for people blessed with 20/20 vision and for some reason that really annoys me. You know, that hot-but-quirky-nerd look started by Zooey Dechaneslelleal. What really annoys me is I've changed back to the black frames and I can't bloody pull off the hot-but-quirky look. I JUST LOOK LIKE THE NERD I HAVE ALWAYS BEEN ONLY EMPHASIZED BECAUSE THESE LENSES ARE MASSIVE.

Spoiled

So there I was enjoying Masterchef when the flames appear on the screen and the usual ads such as the one with the winner of Masterchef Professionals with about zero tv charisma talking about how he can't live without his 'Stickmaster' (which when he pronounces it sounds like dickmaster hawhaw) and Curtis Stone with his next uncomfortable-looking guest start rolling as expected. And then (THANK YOU CHANNEL TEN) an ad for the tv show Elementary (which I am a couple of episodes behind in) springs up with that breathy horny lady voiceover reading out the big ass text plastering the biggest spoiler of the series. Not only that but they did the same thing again the next week with an even bigger spoiler.

Can't a lil ol' simpleton gal watch her reality cooking tv shows without having to fear her experience for another tv show is ruined?! I mean, aside from the News, Masterchef is the only tv show I actually watch in real-time tv and this is how they treat meh?? I know they want to rope in more viewers but (not to be dramatic) I mean come on guys, at least wait a few weeks before you DEMOLISH ABSOLUTELY EVERYTHING I EXIST FOR YOU MONSTERS HOW DO YOU SLEEP AT NIGHT

Update on me

This past week I have cleaned my room, sorted my closet out and even cleaned out my inbox (3000+ useless unread emails!). And I feel like my life is coming together just from that. I'm also going to try to be more healthy. No no, I'm not jumping into that whole gym trend. But I will be working on getting fitter in my own way. And I'm also taking more time on improving my skin care routine and maybe work on a new everyday makeup look.

Anyway, all these things I'm working on is really to distract me from my real problems which is MARIANNE WHAT THE FUCK DO YOU WANT TO DO WITH YOUR LIFE?!

So I have to have a title now?

You've changed blogger/blogspot. You've changed.

It is 5:16am

I like to think of myself as the typical uni student. That is, I leave things to the last minute and have been doing so for my entire life. It's not the ideal kind of approach to life but hey, whatever gets you to the destination right? I've come to the conclusion that there are two kinds of people. So imagine all of us students in a race and the flare goes off. We have

1. The Marathon Runners: These people start the race when the flare goes off. They pace themselves over the 3km distance. They give more time to relax and think about their strategy. They give themselves time to take breaks to sip a cup of Gatorade on the side and check out the scenery. They might even finish the race early and take the time to retrace their footsteps. 

Time taken to finish the race: 

 ~30 minutes (look okay, I've never run a marathon before so I have no idea what the average jogging distance is. Actually I don't know why I even included an analogy of a race since I'm allergic to running but all well, I've gone this far.)

Result: Good
Well done, you will probably succeed in life you son of a bitch.

2. The Sprinters: So the flare goes off, you choke the marathon runners' dust. No biggie, you have plenty of time to finish the race. You make it a priority to lie down at the starting line and bask in the sun's rays. It's all rainbows and ponies until you check your watch. OH CRAP WHERE DID THE TIME GO. The adrenaline rush kicks in. You drink the crap out of your four-pack of energy drink and run. Run like you have never run before. Got a cramp in your leg? Too bad, you gotta keep running. You have no time to look back (although for some reason you still think that watching the latest episode of Game of Thrones is a priority). You have to finish that 3km race buddy, no matter how much blood, sweat and tears is dripping. You make it to end of the race on time. Just.

Time taken to finish the race: 

~1-2 minutes

Result: Can range from disastrous to good
But probably could have been so much better if you put in the time and effort the marathon runners did. You now need the ambos to help you recover from the trauma you did to yourself and you swear you will never repeat your life's mistakes again (but you will). But hey, some people produce the best kind of work under the pressure (no sources, or examples, pulling this fact out of my butt). 

Anyway, I should probably get back to my lecture. And yeah, I took the time in the middle of my race to write this blog. 

Lasts

Right now I'm pretty fascinated by reading up on what people on death row pick as their last meal. It kinda shows that they were human once who enjoyed human things. I mean food is something everyone has in common that even the most evil of people at one point of their lives enjoyed or even have sentimentality towards. It's kind of creepy. And eating their last meal, knowing it's their last is kind of like accepting their fate that they're going to die and will probably be the last choice they'll ever make. Some interesting ones include a man who requested 2 pints of mint choc chip ice cream, a meal that included watching The Lord of the Rings trilogy, a packet of jolly ranchers, an unpitted olive (who was then buried with the pit), birthday cake with candles, and a cup of coffee.

Anyway, if I knowingly knew it was my last meal I'd have the following:
A large slice of Hawaiian pizza with mushroom topping
My mum's bun rieu
A slice of Victoria sponge cake with pistachio ice cream
A choc peanut butter and caramel shake
Green tea

What about you?

Delaying things

I know, imaginative title of the post I have here. Peaked your curiosity with it didn't I? Be kind, I am a little rusty with the whole blogging thing. Anyway, I tolds you all I'd be blogging again! I tolds ya, I tolds ya I did! I went against the odds and proved you all wrong motherflippers!! *flips the table over* Sorry, sorry got a little too excited there.
So right now I am currently on house/library lockdown for exam time and been eating chocolate and coffee as my main energy source. I've also been finding more creative ways to avoid studying within the confines in my room such as: googling what kinda fruit can I slap on my face to improve my skin, using Paint to work out the best kind of shape for my brows, going online shopping to figure out what I want to reward myself with for studying before I even begin studying , reading plots of movies/tv shows I'm not interested in watching and learning song lyrics. And then when I realise it's 12am I surrender, plan on an early start the next day, go to bed and turn on an episode of Bizarre Foods with Andrew Zimmern to sleep to, but leads to me wanting to watch other episodes and next thing I know it's 2am and I'm looking up where all the kids from School of Rock are now. Good movie.

Marianne Makes a Comeback

I decided I will start blogging again...mostly because I'm supposed to be studying for my exam that's in a week. Anyway, imma start with a fresh new look here and get this ball a rollin'.

Stay tuned non-existent followers.

The Temper Trap, a concert review

I'm quite proud of this review for a concert I wrote for one of my subjects so thought I'd share it with ya here. Also the aim of the review is to tie it to the characteristics of rock and other genres we learnt in the subject, audience, song structure and stuff like that so if you're wondering why I get all specific about certain things that's why. Even though I stayed up till 4am trying to edit/cut it down to the word limit I actually did enjoy this assignment since I really love The Temper Trap and trying to analyze their music really helped me appreciate what great musicians they are. I mean, I know I love music but trying to understand the root of it all really strengthened my relationship with it. It also helped me brush up on my writing skills and creativity since me no do proper writing anymo coz science.

Concert Review: The Temper Trap

written by Marianne Nguyen

When a band that has toured the world arrives back home to perform in the humble city of which they began, there is an apparent gratitude and enthusiasm that exudes from the musicians’ performance that makes for a momentous experience. Such was the case for the rock band The Temper Trap when they performed at Festival Hall on the 24^th of April. This Melbourne band comprises of four key members assigned to typical instruments involved in the rock genre; drums, bass guitar, guitar, and vocals (with occasional keyboard). Together they played a combination of tracks to achieve atmospheric music distinct to the band’s sound. This partly goes to the lead singer, Dougy Mandagi’s, unique virtuosic falsetto, a signature trademark attributing to the band’s success.

The atmospheric sound was established from the first note of the opening song ‘Love Lost,’ played from the echoing organ sound of the keyboard filling the room, comparable to a gospel song. Building upon this allusion, the congregation of music-lovers united in a participation of syncopated claps to provide the backbeat. The ecclesiastical lead singer preached in his ethereal voice messages of hope and love in his lyrics, a universal relevance especially among the youth. The song then erupted into a polyphonic symphony of rock instruments bringing in the guitar, bass and drums entering the chorus. This pattern was repeated until the layering of guitar and drums built-up to the bridge where the pattern was broken with increasing crescendo of vocals and faster paced rhythm provided by the instruments. Most songs followed a similar trend of a verse- chorus -bridge structure. The night reached its pinnacle from the encore, the fan favourite “Sweet Disposition.” The loudest reaction came as soon as the recognizable guitar line echoed. The audience sang along to the well known short-phrased lyrics like an anthem as Mandagi directed his microphone back and forth to the crowd, a connection between the performers and listeners established in call and response.

The guitar drove the melody for most of the songs, as heard in the song ‘Soldier On,’ whose haunting repetitive rhythm of the guitar complemented Mandagi’s equivalently eerily sung lyrics. This, coupled with Mandagi’s vast vocal range laced in powerful emotions expressed in high pitch florid vocals was reminiscent of the moaning and wailing often heard in country blues music. Other uptempo songs with a cheerful melody were juxtaposed with bleak lyrics, which gave greater depth to the songs. The drums played an important role in many songs giving powerful energy by providing a pounding backbeat, an attribute of rock music.  Guitar solos were also a common feature in the songs. Differing from the classic rock genre, the band occasionally played synthesizers from the keyboard recognizable in the pop genre. This added another layer to achieving the atmospheric sound and allowed songs to become more appeasable to the wider younger audiences who grew up listening to popular synthesized music.

I thoroughly enjoyed The Temper Trap’s concert and was impressed by their stage presence by their ability to express heartfelt emotion. I was reminded by how much I enjoy the beaming energy of live music that cannot be encapsulated in a recording.

As I was more attentive than usual at this concert, I became more appreciative of the attention to detail that musicians have in creating a song; from the lyrical musings to the thoughtful melody in order to convey a story or evoke an emotion. This appreciation was felt unanimously, as I looked around a venue filled with gleaming strangers singing, dancing and jumping with one another united by the euphoric atmosphere created by the music. It was then that I was reminded by how powerful a connection with music could be. 

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First book (kind of) review on here

So it has been a very long while since I've read a book. I'm ashamed to say how long, but coming exam time naturally leaves me wanting to revisit old hobbies and other creative outlets that have been repressed since uni. My favourite kind of books during these dark times are them apocalyptic, end-of-the-world kinda stories where there are no exams, assessments no careers to worry about. Nope just plain survival (lucky bastards). It's a great escape from the just-as-grim reality of having to study.

So I read the synopsis for Warm Bodies (no it's not an erotic novel, geez) by Isaac Marion. Human civilisation coming to its end, check. An unlikely romance, check. And most importantly, zombies. Check. It was the perfect book. Long story short zombie (named R) falls in love with a girl (forgot her name already) whose boyfriend he just ate and they go through trying to survive in first his then her world etc etc. It's gory at some bits but I've definitely read worse. Example, Cell by Stephen King. Got up to page 10 and then threw it across the room and was left traumatized and in shock for a good 5 minutes. Anyway, somehow the author managed to pull it off. I mean, upon first time reading the premise for the novel you'd think it was either a) hilarious. Sounds so bad it must be good or b) Twilight but with zombies.
It was neither. It was well written, thought provoking and touching. Only thing that annoyed me was the main chick. She was alright at times but other times she was so preachy and borderline hipster and just went on about The Beatles. We get it, you have good taste in music even in this desolate world. Good for you.

If you're looking for a bit of horror, a bit of romance and above all something to distract you from studying for exams, this is the book for you. There's also a movie coming out next year starring Nicholas Hoult (from Skins) as our hero 'R'. Exciting stuff.

Oh bloody 'ell

I accidentally deleted all my photos on my blog. I know no one is over here nowadays but still :'(
RIP the picture Amanda made for me that was a love heart outta my name and the photo of the rubber and pencil. R.I.P.

It was fun. (Alright, alright I will try to avoid the puns)

I think every few years or so a band comes along and turns my world upside down with kick ass lyrics and sound. So last night at the Hi-Fi Bar I saw the band fun. which are most well known from We Are Young thanks to Glee. And it makes me so happy how much success they've had since. Fun. is similar to my love Jack's Mannequin with the whole former band on hiatus/practically broken up thing and the whole indie pop thing going on. They even supported Jack's a few years ago! If you haven't heard of them I'd suggest having a listen to their albums. They have so much variation that no song sounds the same and are so special for different reasons but are interconnected at the same time.

Lead singer Nate jumped in dancing and jumping in his suspenders like a kid. Oh man he is just nothing short of awesome. And being a Mark Wahlberg/Matt Damon/Kevin Bacon fan that I am the fact that Nate's a look-a-like I kinda do find him attractive hehe. The songs they played was a good balance of the first and second album. They sound amazing live, energetic and connected with the crowd really well. They sound exactly as they do in the album :) The other band members also are amazing vocalists. The audience were brilliant and knew the songs and were really enthusiastic which is always a plus. I've decided that the Hi-Fi bar is my favourite concert venue because it is so small that it feels like a bunch of friends getting together to celebrate good music (I've probably written that in a past blog somewhere but really, it is an awesome venue and everyone gets to see the stage from where they're standing all concert venues should be like that). 

Highlights: 

Some of my favourite songs: Stars, Walking the Dog, The Gambler, Some Nights, Carry On, All the Pretty Girls (it's just the cutest song!), Take Your Time. I could go on. They were all so good!

-Nate struggling to take his shoes off

-The little jamming bits between the bassist and guitar

It was pretty much the perfect night of entertainment. And now I feel sad because all the dates within the next 3-4 months on my calendar are assessment due dates :( 

...but at least I can have some 'fun' in between. OKAY I COULDN'T HELP MYSELF. I KNOW IT WASN'T EVEN GOOD.

Marianne goes to see The Temper Trap

So it has been a while since my last concert (Andrew McMahon which was last February...). Too long actually that it felt like I was experiencing everything for the first time again when I saw The Temper Trap last night. But there were some things I had learnt from the last time I was at the Forum that I knew for next time. For one: Arrive reasonably early. Do not at any cost be late. Two: wear comfy ass shoes. Three: There is a ledge by the barrier. Do not trip on the ledge and fall on the lesbians (refer to the Tegan and Sara post if you don't know what I'm talking about).

(Edit: Whoops I realised I hadn't mentioned about the lesbians. Well everyone at the concert had the same haircut as Tegan and Sara if you get me...anyway we were rushing to the front row that I didn't see the ledge by the barrier that my foot got left behind by the ledge as I fell face first onto a bunch of lesbians at the front and grabbed their whole bodies to break my fall. They just turned around looking pissed off and went 'There's always one'.)

With these pieces of advice that I left on a little post-it somewhere in my mind last time I was all set to go for a perfect night with The Temper Trap. It went by so perfectly that we were second in line with the perfect view right at the front middle:

Photo courtesy of my band buddy Jade

Alright so I'll try to make this short.
Things I noticed:
-Dougy's shirt had little love hearts.
-The warm up band Seekae?'s drummer/vocalist looks and dresses like Andrew McMahon (he was pretty good looking hehe). Besides that, I didn't like their performance not my cup o' tea.

Highlights:
-Everytime Dougy picked up an instrument; tambourine, guitar, drums
-Everytime Dougy danced. So unique and trancing
-The bassist who got so into it
-Love Lost, Down River, Science of Fear, The Drum Song, Soldier On. Okay, pretty much every song.
- The moment I heard the intro to Sweet Disposition. Just hearing it that moment that's been part of my life that is so familiar being played live in front of me...really unexplainable experience.

Lowlights:
The guys behind us were really annoying. They rested their hands on my shoulder, used my back as drums and just got up against me like every inch of their body against mine which normally I don't mind at concerts but it just wasn't the right kinda mood to do it.

Anyway, to sum it up The Temper Trap are an awesome band live. Dougy's voice is absolutely one of a kind. So freaking insanely unbelievably etc etc good. And he performed so comfortably with or without an instrument. Just wow. There were some awkward parts where I didn't know some songs from the new album that all I could do was bop around hoping they weren't looking at me not knowing the words. Also I would've liked a little more interaction from the band like a bit of talking between songs or maybe a funny story or something. But it felt like a special show because they are Melbourne boys and apparently The Forum is one of their favourite places to perform (according to Jade) :P The lighting, instruments and incredible vocals make for a surreal performance that is so amazing that you totally forget you have exams in a couple of weeks and are meant to be studying but it doesn't matter because it is so totally worth it.

My thoughts on God

I think my attitude towards Catholicism has changed a lot in the last few years. Back in high school I was more dedicated, I would pray every night for about 10 minutes before bed and go to church because I felt like I had to and those that claimed that they were Catholic but didn't go to church every week I would wonder why they even bothered calling themselves that.

Now I admit my views on religions is not as black and white. It used to be 'Hey, follow these specific set of rules and I'll guarantee you'll get a spot in heaven.' Now the rules seem less significant. I'm not talking about the Golden Rule but the kind that tell you to go to church every week, confess your sins to the priest and you'll be absolved, even something as mandatory as making the sign of the cross before prayer. It all seems more trivial to me now. And there are so many views the Catholic Church has I do not agree with, and I just find the reasoning so stupid that I feel like if God could speak he'd agree that yeah, they are stupid and find it embarrassing they'd use his name behind it.

My relationship with God has changed. I don't fear him anymore, I talk to him more often in my head throughout the day like a friend than I did reciting prayers to what felt like distant being who was watching and judging my every move. When I feel like I've done something wrong I ask Him straight up to forgive me. Even when I pass the altar when people kneel respectfully, I'd instead give it a wink or a knowing nod or my signature pointing with two hands move (subtly of course haha). During church I'd just blank out and be bored, and I'd imagine God sitting there next to me thinking how much the organ drags out and also hoping the pointless mass would end sooner. He's the kind of cool guy who just wants you to be happy and make others happy. Yeah, this could be a phase, it may not be the kind of God that I'm told to worship but it's the God that I feel is in my heart.

Wow, this turned into a serious kinda blog. Sorry I bored you with this topic.

Marianne's back to blogging

My mum was telling me of this story of my dad's that I thought was pretty cool so I've decided to write it out to share...if anyone still reads this blog. I KNOW I KNOW I'm terrible at committing to things. And if there are people who care I'M SORRY. I love you, and thank each and every one of you who have taken even just 30 seconds to skim over anything that I've even written on here about me, my thoughts and my less than average life. 

 So anyway, years ago back when my older sister was still in primary school, my dad woke up in the middle of the night startled by the dream he just had. So much that he woke up my mum who was asleep next to him. To give a bit of context my dad went to military school in Vietnam where they slept in bunk beds and all that. The guy that slept above my dad on the top bunk, let's call him John, became good friends with my dad. John was one of the few people my dad actually liked, being humble and kind and an overall top bloke. But when he left Vietnam to Australia with my mum and his family, he hadn't heard from him again, not knowing where he was going or if he was even still alive.

Dad: I've just had the weirdest dream. I was back in my bed in military school sleeping when John starts peeing on the top bunk so much that it starts seeping through the mattress and falling on me like rain. 

Mum mumbling into her pillow: That's great.

Dad: Weird thing is I haven't thought about John in years!

Mum: yep. *falls back asleep*

The next morning my dad dropped off my sister at school and went into a bakery, having a craving for those Vietnamese bread rolls. Next to him he saw a man that looked somewhat familiar. He wasn't sure but he had to ask.

Dad: Excuse me, does your name happen to be John?

The man turn towards my dad with a look of absolute astonishment. 

John: TIEN?! (that's my dad's name by the way)

Dad: This is unbelievable. I just had a dream about you last night and now here you are!

So it turned out, that of all the countries in the world they ended up at, of all the cities, and of all the bakeries and the exact time the universe was able to unite two old friends back together several years later. 

That's pretty amazing.

Things I ponder about during church

I’ve always wondered about this invisible counter that’s existed throughout my life. One that was counting the number of people that I’ve talked to, number of people I’ve been attracted to, number of people who’ve passed by and thought I was pretty (which seriously would probably be under 2 where they’re totally drunk at the time), number of people who’ve been to my facebook page, number of people who’ve noticed one of my eyes being rounder than the other, number of times i’ve looked in the mirror and thought I looked decent (which would again, probably be less than a handful), number of hours I've done exams, number of hours I've spent waiting for the train and so on. It'd just be cool to see a counter that knew the exact number. Well, to me anyway. No point to this blog. Just being bored while I wait for my nails to dry.