Jeannie Marie – Page 4

Watching TV Together

October 23, 2015October 23, 2015 Jeannie Marie Leave a comment

Despite all its perks (and yes, it had quite a few, I will admit), growing up an only child was difficult. From very early on I was an outgoing, happy child – nothing’s really changed on that front – and I loved making friends. I loved talking, I loved getting to know people, and again, not much has changed. But after school, when I got home, I didn’t really have anyone to talk to. My dad was gone a lot of the time, working to support me and my mom, and I thank him every day for that, and my mom was there but she also had her own life, which of course I don’t fault her for. She didn’t spend every waking moment with me, and that’s okay – but it was hard. Sometimes I’d go outside and talk to my dog, wishing that she’d talk back, or maybe that she’d bring me a little sister to play with (I would have taken a little brother too, but a sister would be preferred).

Which is why, when I got a bit older, I always looked forward to about 7 or 8 pm. Why? Because that’s when me and my mom would watch TV together. My mom always tells me I wasn’t like other kids – they would get up and walk around about 30 minutes into watching Cinderella. Not me. I’d sit in front of the TV, staring at it as though all my wishes could come true. I loved the TV. I didn’t have to sit and think about how bored or lonely I was – the kids on the screen would entertain me, tell me stories. I was best friends with Lizzie Mcguire and went to the same crazy school as Raven. But things got even better when my mom started letting me watch the adult shows with her.

I remember it, the nights when we’d go sit on the couch, maybe with popcorn or ice cream, snuggle in with a blanket and watch Heroes together. I think Heroes was our first, though I could be wrong. She wouldn’t let me watch Lost, because it might scare me, but Heroes was our show. I think we even watched The Bachelor together at some point. Watching TV with my mom has always been comforting, which may be why, now that I have an apartment with a TV, I’ve been turning to it more and more.

This week was a pretty stressful one for me (ugh, midterms), but what did I do? Marathoned seven straight episodes of Jane the Virgin of course. My roommate came and joined me around episode 4 and ended up staying through episode 8 – mostly ignoring her work, but also doing some reading too. Whereas I just laid on the couch and let Jane make me forget about all my stress. Sure, my work didn’t go away, but in some small part of me I remembered what it was like, at home with my mom, snuggled up to watch a show.

There’s no doubt about it; TV is obviously changing. Netflix is coming out with original (fantastic) television shows, and HBO has an online service separate from their television package. More and more people are turning into themselves to watch their favorite shows. When I told my friend that for one of my film classes I had to go to a movie screening every week she said “it’s on Netflix right? Then why go – you could just watch it here in your pjs?” And don’t get me wrong – I love my pjs, and I love my Perry the Platypus pillow pet (thanks Sarah) – but my professors aren’t wrong to make us all watch the movie together. It’s the same thing as when my roommates gathered to watch the premiere of Scream Queens.

There’s just something magical about watching TV together.

Lessons Learned From The Middle

October 16, 2015October 16, 2015 Jeannie Marie Leave a comment

So last night I watched an episode of the ABC sitcom The Middle where everyone in the family seemed to forget something at the end of the school year. Axl, the oldest, forgot to do his community service; Sue, the middle child, didn’t receive perfect attendance because everyone in the school forgot her; and Brick forgot to write in a daily journal for the entire school year. In order to move to the fourth grade, he had to write down everything that happened during the entire year, and his mom, bless her heart, was going to write down every single page so that he could move on.

The entire time, though, I felt myself sympathizing with the mom, Frankie, the most (as I often do). She stayed busy the entire three days until the end of school, helping her kids do what they had forgotten, and yet the entire time she kept asking her husband questions – “Where’s my phone?” she asked at one point, talking to him from her silver cell phone in her hand. “I must have left it in Brick’s classroom, hold on I have to turn back.”

This doesn’t feel uncommon to me. Not to brag, but I have a pretty good memory – I owe it to my theatre and piano years, where I had to memorize lines and music seemingly every week. But there’s always that one time, that one day, where I lose my head and forget everything.

It seems to me, though, that this is a trait that might be somewhat common in artists/creative people. Or rather, perhaps it’s a stereotype. We’ve got so much going on in our heads, from stories we wanna write to drawings that have to get on the page. Our grand vision is way more important than that lunch date, right?

Which is all to say, of course, that little did I know when I was watching that ironic episode last night, that I myself forgot to write my column, when it was supposed to be posted last night. I’m only what – 11 hours shy of being on time?

But I have to say – if that episode of The Middle taught me anything at least, it taught me that everything works out in the end, am I right?

Ah me. Let’s hope next week in the midst of these crazy midterms, I won’t forget again. No promises though.

Chasing Starkid

October 9, 2015October 9, 2015 Jeannie Marie Leave a comment

Ah. The sweet smell of disappointment.

On the morning of October 8th, I woke up, bound and determined to meet Starkid. My plan was this: get up, eat (since I probably wouldn’t get another chance for a while), get dressed, put on make-up/straighten my hair if I so desired (this dependent on the whole waking up thing), and go to class. After class, I’d book it to my apartment, maybe apply more make-up, then take the first bus to the Walgreen Drama Center. Starkid was holding a panel from 2-3, and I had to be there. I even emailed my professor ahead of time; I’d be missing class for this; this is important, duh.

My plan went flawlessly. I wanted to leave my apartment around 1:30, and that I did, right on the nose. On the bus to North, I pulled up the event on my phone to double check the location.

12:30-1:30, the website proclaimed. I could almost read the Ha! You fool! underneath it.

Whether it was a change in time or I had read it wrong (thought my mind rebels against this idea; I couldn’t be wrong, how could I?), as I walked towards the Walgreen Drama Center I saw Starkid shimmer before me, going up into smoke before my very eyes.

I wondered to myself if this was fate putting pieces together. Hearing no word back after getting a polite “We’ll see” about an interview, I’d been stressing, almost panicking about when and where I needed to be to get a golden 30 minutes to conduct my interview. Maybe this would be serendipity, and Darren Criss would walk out, laughing at something incredibly funny, then stop, pointing me out.

“You’re that girl, right? Who wants to interview Starkid, yeah?”

I’d bat my eyes coquettishly.

“What gave me away?” I wouldn’t be hyperventilating; cool as a cucumber.

“I just knew. Hey, come to rehearsal with us – we’ll be done in 30. Then we can chat.” (I’m not sure what my fascination with 30 is; just a solid number I guess).

A younger me would have been mad crying screaming – whatever made me feel slightly vindicated for being stupid and missing this. But senior year Jeannie decided to just sit and write. So I did.

I continued my day waiting for the email that never came. I think some small part of me is still waiting, like I’ll get the email tomorrow or Saturday and I’ll leave the football game to interview Starkid.

But finally, the time came – showtime. I had my ticket in hand, and me and my friend dressed to the nines. I felt good. Maybe not amazing – I didn’t get that interview, but good.

I won’t spoil the concert (review forthcoming by yours truly), but I had a blast – we went back to Hogwarts, but more importantly I went back to Starkid. Nostalgia had a big part of it, but in reality my memory had failed me – I had forgotten how fun Starkid was. The concert ended, and my friends begged me to try and get an interview somehow, someway with the Theatre 100 press pass I had.

Tyler Brunsman, bless his heart, was in the reception room talking to his parents. I waited a good distance away; I wanted to talk to him but I wasn’t about to be so pushy that I interrupt.

After he finished, I stopped him, introduced myself. I was slightly shaking – I’d only ever seen him on screens and now here he was in front of me. Maybe he noticed, but hopefully he didn’t.

The conversation? Well….

Me: *oh gosh oh gosh be cool* How was it to come back to Michigan? *good job Jeannie you got this*

Tyler: It was, like, out of this world…everywhere you walk on campus is, there’s so many memories associated with this campus, so coming back here, it’s really been a magical couple of days. It was like second nature, just being back home.

hoMe. I know the feeling. We kept talking, I asked about his favorite memories, and got an amazing anecdote involving ranch, Pizza House, and a late night mix up (moral of the story – always buy Pizza House. Always.).

For a moment, I slipped back into my old days – I used to be big in the Starkid fandom, talking to girls thousands of miles away from me who bonded over this silly, fantastic group of people. Embarrassingly, I told Tyler that he responded to a Facebook post of mine one time, and little high-school Jeannie died. High School Jeannie died again, shaking hands with Tyler, hearing him say he would stop and talk to me when I thought the closest I’d get to Starkid was the view from Row K in the Power Center.

Even though it was embarrassing, even though it was super unprofessional, in that moment, it was okay. Everything was okay. I left the show, two friends beside me, one freaking out over taking a picture with Eric Kahn Gale, the other begging to stalk Darren Criss (sorry Darren – I tried to curb them as much as possible).

All that mattered right then was I was fresh off the high of an amazing concert, and I had my friends beside me. And I’m sure, walking off the Power Center stage tonight, Starkid felt the exact same way.

Game-Tube-Thing: It’s A Thing

October 1, 2015October 1, 2015 Jeannie Marie Leave a comment

Yes, okay. I’ll admit it. I’ve been keeping a secret from you.

I, Jeannie Marie, am a game tuber.

Or…game tuber watcher. Game tuber-er? I don’t know what we’re called, but I watch GameTube. *gasp*

Thanks to Jimmy Kimmel, there’s a large percentage of people who know what game tube is. But for those of you that don’t know, which I’m still assuming is a large percentage of people, GameTube is the new Youtube website specifically devoted to gaming. Or rather, watching people game. And I mean game as in video games (like people actually play football anymore. Pshhhhhhhhh).

And yes, you can laugh. The thing I found the funniest about Jimmy Kimmel’s segment is that yeah…it’s stupid. I will be the first one to admit that. Watching people play video games is kind of weird and silly. So I’m not here to defend people who watch them, or even defend myself. I’m here to think. To wonder.

Is game-watching a new form of entertainment? And if so…can it be art?

Well let’s think about this. Art, of course, has to be defined before game-watching can be put in this category. And I have no clue how to define art. If you have a nice handy dandy definition, please share, because this is something I’ve been struggling with since coming to this university.

In one sense, I guess game-watching is art. I mean, it’s entertainment, and it’s on a platform where people can view it and share it. I know there are plenty of things on YouTube right now that I’d consider art, mostly of the audio/visual kind, for obvious reasons. There’s adaptations of novels, music videos, original short series, and everything in between. I don’t think you can call YouTube art, but it’s pretty dang close, especially when art is closely aligned (but not defined as) entertainment. So yes, game-watching is entertainment. Part of the reason why people watch other people play video games is because of the people, not because of the game itself.

But what is the game itself? Is that art too, or is that something completely separate from the personalities playing the games?

This, I think, is a bit clearer. Yes, video games are art – commercial art, yes, but art nonetheless. It isn’t fair to call the latest Pixar/Miyazaki/Dreamworks movie “art” and not call video game design art. There’s some dang beautiful video games out there, both in visuals and specs. Ever heard of Limbo? There’s also a lot to be said about the storytelling aspect. I mean, open-world games like Destiny or Grand Theft Auto might not really float your boat, but if you play a game with a really good story, you’re mesmerized.

So there’s the video game side. But then there’s people…some comedians for all intents and purposes. Are they art? Certainly entertaining…but art?

Hmmm. The world may never know.

About Art

April 15, 2015September 27, 2016 Jeannie Marie Leave a comment

I gotta be honest here, even though this is my last post, I’m so tired that I could probably pass out right here and now. But I’m not going to do that. Because this is my very last post.

What does that mean? Well, unidentified, detached voice, I’ll tell you what that means.

It means absolutely nothing. I will keep writing and I will keep seeing shows. I will keep listening to music and I will keep having opinions on said music. I will keep trying to convince my friends to go see movies and I will (probably) keep getting rejected. I will still dance in my room with music blaring, and I will still sing loudly in the shower. I will still curl up before I go to bed and try and watch the next episode of my show until I absolutely cannot keep my eyes open any more.

Sometimes I wonder why I write this column. Not that I’m suggesting that I don’t like it, because it’s probably one of the best things that has happened to me on this campus. But I wonder how this column fits into the grander scheme of things.

If I’m being perfectly honest, not many people read my writing. I’m lucky if I get even a few clicks on my page.

But then, I remember what I feel like when I listen to Walk the Moon’s new album. Or how I feel when I realize that Rabbit Hole (2010) is on Hulu to watch for free. Or how I’m going to have hours of free time this summer to catch up on New Girl or to watch The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt. And then I realize that this column isn’t about me, as cheesy as that sounds. Its about bringing awareness to something I love. It’s about adding my voice to the echoing din that already exists on the internet. It’s about shaping my skills as a writer, and pushing myself to write something new, something different, or to maybe look at writing in a way I never did before.

In short, it’s about the art, and how the art makes me feel. And it always will be.

Concert Culture

April 8, 2015September 27, 2016 Jeannie Marie Leave a comment

Name: Jeannie Marie

Codename: “Blondie”

Mission: Your mission is to infiltrate the crowd gathered at the Fillmore, Detroit on 4/7/2015. You must get as close to the stage as possible. You must not fail.

Mission Results: FAILED

So, last night I got to see one of my favorite bands, Walk The Moon, live in concert. Not gonna lie, it was kind of a dream come true for me – I haven’t been to a concert in a really long time, and I haven’t really been to any while I’ve been in Michigan (Houston native, in case you’ve forgotten). So when I found out that someone from [arts]seen was driving to Detroit for the Walk The Moon concert, I knew I had to go.

Now, since she’s reviewing the concert on [arts]seen, I won’t do that here, but on my way to the concert and even during the concert, I started to think about live concerts and how they’ve shaped music history.

I’m sure everyone who reads these articles knows about the famous ones, Woodstock and the like, and the current resurgence of the music festival has it’s roots way back into the 60s. Concerts have been a staple in music practically as far back as music has been around. I mean how else would you get to listen to Beethoven in the 1800s if you didn’t go see him live? But rock concerts specifically have a really interesting place in music history.

I say this because rock concerts have a specific connotation to them. It was a lot harder back in the 60s and 70s to spread music; it was a slower process using the radio rather than the internet in order to garner popularity. In the same way, concerts were a lot different back then. You couldn’t just go to YouTube and look up your favorite band singing a Queen cover live. Thus, if you went to a show, you had bragging rights. I got to see the Rolling Stones live. Suck on that.

And I’d argue that it’s much the same today, perhaps even more so. Concerts lend an aura of authenticity to someone claiming that they like a band. They show dedication and love for a band; you aren’t a lukewarm fan that just listens to them on the radio, you actually go see them live. This might also come from the fact that concerts typically cost between $50-$100, and that’s for a cheap ticket, gas, parking, and a t-shirt. Your expenses can reach even higher if it’s a high-ticket act like Beyonce.

But even so, when I got to the venue in Detroit, and made my way towards the massive crowd of people, I realized something else. I in no way could make it anywhere near the front of the stage. And I was kind of annoyed.

Why did I even come? I spent (well, my dad spent, thanks daddy) $30 + fees to see the back of some tall dudes head for the duration of the concert? If I was in Houston, I probably would have done some slipping around, gave a couple of “excuse me”s, and pushed my way to at least the middle of the crowd, perhaps even in the front half of the crowd. But I’m unfamiliar with the concert culture in Detroit, and seeing how this was my first concert I really didn’t want to do anything stupid. So I stuck it out in the back.

But then, as time went on, the songs just got louder and louder, the people around me jumped higher and higher, and I jumped with them. I remember looking around me and seeing a guy completely drenched in sweat, grin plastered on his face, never faltering. People around me were dancing and screaming and clapping, and even though I could only see the singers face every other second when I jumped, I could hear him singing, I could hear the guitarist playing, and I would give anything to relive the memories I have.

So was I in the front? No. But did I have an amazing time? Of course. And to me, that’s where the true richness of going to a concert lies. It’s not whether you get the t-shirt or if you put on face paint (though I wish I had some, it was kind of epic looking). It’s about how you feel in the moment. And even if you’re not that big of a fan or you didn’t know every word to all the songs, you’re still welcome. Because a concert welcomes everyone. You don’t know anyone around you besides maybe your friends, and that’s okay. Because that means you’re all equal. For better or worse, you’re all in this hot, sweaty, probably dehydrated crowd together.

Concerts aren’t about authenticity. They’re about togetherness.

Random side note: This piece of writing doesn’t encompass even half of how I feel about concerts, so expect a part 2 sometime not soon. Concerts are crazy man. But I love them so much.