Elegiac Repetition

Sometimes I enjoy it when life decides to steamroll onward without me. It gives me some time to reflect on things and think about my place in the universe... and other things like that.

Gods, I'd hate to be that poor bastard right now. (*BETRAYAL!*)

However, it's not fun when I'm in front of life when it decides to steamroll onward. *winces*





CURRENT MUSIC:
Bear McCreary - "Elegy"
Battlestar Galactica: Season 4 Original Soundtrack

The traditional definition of the word "elegy" (according to dictionary.reference.com) is "a mournful, melancholy, or plaintive poem, especially a funeral song or a lament for the dead." When used to define a musical piece, it carries the same aural connotation - "a sad or mournful musical composition."

For this particular Battlestar Galactica piece, it takes the musical definition, incorporates elements of the original meaning, and is thrust into the keys of an out-of-tune baby grand piano (at least I think it's a baby grand).

"I have an observation for you: you want to be an immortal composer, you better learn how to play that thing first."
- Kara "Starbuck" Thrace (Battlestar Galactica S4E17: "Someone to Watch Over Me")

"Elegy" plays in the opening part of the Season 4 episode "Someone to Watch Over Me" as Kara "Starbuck" Thrace goes through her new daily routine: wake up, organize the pilots and brief them on their missions to find a habitable planet for the fleet to live in, paperwork, multiple shots at the bar, sleep, repeat. It becomes monotonous and melancholic in a way as it's the only thing anyone can do after finding a nuked and devastated Earth. Throughout the opening sequence, you can see the disillusion and fatigue etched on everyone's faces (especially Starbuck's) as this repeated process slowly takes it psychiatric toll on the fleet.

In a way, I can connect to this piece. My life has turned into near-monotony after I came to the grim realization that I'm practically in a rut. Most days now: I wake up, do whatever errands or "errands" I have to do, (try to) write something for my blog, go to work and work, go home, (play video games,) and sleep. On my off days I do what I can to socialize and hang out with people, but every once in a while the cards never play out the way I expect them to. (That's not to say that I don't enjoy my days off or the people I choose to be with that day.) Suffice to say: life's been pretty much the same for me every frakking day now. It's honestly getting a little tiring.

"Elegy" seems to hammer that dull and throbbing repetition down into my neruoses with the out-of-tune piano, played for us in-camera by Roark Critchlow. As Starbuck says during the repetitive mission briefings: "Our mission is the same this week... as it was the week before that and the week before that." And to be honest, right now, life feels like it's doing the exact same thing this week... as it was the week before that and the week before that...

It's a beautiful (if somewhat dreary) composition. Bear included the piece in the piano solo book I purchased a few days back. While it looks like something I'd like to learn someday, I'm not sure if I'd play it often - without the unique sound the piece has on an out-of-tune piano, I honestly think it loses its original tone and feel and picks up something... else. (That's not to say that it doesn't sound lovely on a tuned piano, though...) For you people looking for a track to help set the tone for monotony or something subtly tragic, try using "Elegy" as background music - it should do the trick.





Good afternoon, everyone! Today's a Monday, and I have it off. (What.) You know what that means, right? No? Well, counting today, there's only four more days until my vacation and I'm super-excited to go on it!

But first comes four days of things that may or may not make the time fly by fast. I've usually noted that the week before a vacation is the one week where you're most likely to have the "longest" days ever before the break starts. It's like time just slows down for you and only you during that period (sometimes it looks like it drags on to forever).

This is how I feel right now. Too many things to do. Too much to juggle and lift.

Unfortunately for right now, three of these four days will involve me being at work, and wouldn't you know it? Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday are those days! Isn't that just insane and ridiculous? Essentially it's the same this week... as it was the week before that... and the week before that. Life just likes to pile things on sometimes, and right now, it's "sometimes."

Today, however, seems to be more promising. As a day off, I can relax for a bit and enjoy myself. And maybe I can use this time to recharge my batteries one final time before these next three days threaten to deplete my energy stores.

H-How do you not see that in my counter? It's, like, the one red thing on the black counter with a touch screen on it!

Because when this vacation is over, the Back to School season will be in full swing... and shortly afterwards, Halloween and Christmas. Fourth Quarter is coming soon in a matter of months, and I'm going to need every ounce of energy and sanity I can get if I want to survive this year.

That's why I'm taking this vacation. I'm enjoying the time I have here before I descend into madness and become enveloped by a lifestyle that almost cries out for some kind of elegy. (And I don't just mean the Battlestar Galactica piece, either.) When that time comes, we'd all best be prepared. I know I'm going to use this time to do so.

Oh, Imperial Light Tanks... how easy you are to destroy. Much like my sanity... or Hollywood weddings.

But enough on that. I'm here to get myself psyched and ready for the rest of the day. I got things planned and people to see, and I must get prepared for all of that. I must be ready to roll out and accidentally run over an ally who got shot in the leg and happened to fall right in front of my tank's path conquer the Americans Gallia the Empire!

So, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go off and enjoy today. Until the 'morrow, everyone! *gets prepared by slaughtering numerous Imps*