The Official "Total Randomness" Thread

[anguyen92]

At Hollywood Bowl for Incubus.

[maximzub]

AC/DC is back!

[maximzub]

TABNers rejoice.

After almost 20 years of constant girl problems, I finally went on my first date today.

[Schulzy]

TABNers rejoice.

After almost 20 years of constant girl problems, I finally went on my first date today.

I'm a little late on this...so how did it go?

[anguyen92]

At FivePoint Amphitheater for Spiritbox, Papa Roach and Shinedown. I’m wearing the Shinedown hockey jersey in 85 degree California weather.

[maximzub]

At FivePoint Amphitheater for Spiritbox, Papa Roach and Shinedown. I’m wearing the Shinedown hockey jersey in 85 degree California weather.

Wish I could be where you are and not in 30 degrees Wisconsin.

TABNers rejoice.

After almost 20 years of constant girl problems, I finally went on my first date today.

I'm a little late on this...so how did it go?

Glad someone finally noticed! I guess it's time to tell y'all what's been going on lately.

I like a girl in my Interpersonal Communication class. She's always contributing the most insight to class discussions, she has a very interesting background from what I'd heard before our date, and she's really pretty, of course. We'd texted a couple times before, but last Saturday I found the courage to ask her if she wanted to practice together for the in-class interviews that were coming up. (For context, we have this project in that class where we interview our classmates about their career goals. We would be assigned to interview one classmate and then be interviewed by a different classmate, and all the interviews would be recorded on video so that we could reflect on what went well and what didn't. The girl and I were both interviewers on Wednesday, and tomorrow (Monday) we're both interviewees.) She said yes, and we agreed on Tuesday from 11 to 12. I had severe anxiety leading up to it, but when it actually happened, it was so great that I don't regret a single bit of it. We tried following the rules of the interviewing process, but eventually threw them out and just talked for over an hour. We learned a lot about each other, including some deep stuff that I didn't even expect we would share. We even took a selfie together at the end, and I can't stop looking at it because we look so cute together.

Anyway, we've talked a couple times since then. I did casually mention at the end of our date that if she wanted to meet up for dinner sometime, I'm always at Bridgeway at 6:00. (A reminder...it's a dorm that also includes the biggest cafeteria on campus. She lives there, and we both go there for meals a lot.) On Friday, she surprised me by asking if I wanted to join her and her friends there for dinner. Unfortunately, I was already home for the weekend and I couldn't join them, but I said I would love to next time.

However, I do also plan to ask her if we can have dinner together sometime without any friends present. That would be more of a date. I mean, she's clearly interested in me, but I don't know if it's just friendly or romantic, and I want to give off the impression that I'm not just being friendly. Of course, over the last week I've been driving myself crazy wondering whether she likes me back or not. And I'm struggling with getting myself into the mindset that I should just continue interacting with her and see where it leads.

I think that's enough of an update for now. Probably the next time I come over here, I'll have bigger news to share. Either she won't like me back and my eternal girl problems will continue, or she will like me back and I'll finally have my first girlfriend!

[maximzub]

I'm gonna try to keep this short. No promises, though.

After yet another nice conversation after class with the girl from my Interpersonal Communication class, she promised that she would let me know when she's available to have dinner at Bridgeway together. Neither of us specified whether it would be alone or with her friends. I trusted her to follow through with her promise. In the meantime, I turned to my friends for advice on how to subtly let her know that I'm romantically interested in her. By mid-day today, I was ready for exactly that, and all I had left to do was wait for her to let me know when she's available.

Well, she did live up to her promise. But instead of her text being everything I dreamed of, with her saying that she's available and it would be just us, it turned out to be even worse than I had dreaded. She said that she, her friends, and her boyfriend would be meeting up at Bridgeway tomorrow and asked if I would like to join. Now through all of our interactions, I was under the impression that she was single. So you can imagine my shock when I read her text. I cried for about an hour after that. It felt almost as bad as when Addison ended our friendship due to all the complications from my romantic feelings for her.

After taking some time to collect myself and accept that what was happening is real, I took a shower, left my room to get dinner at a different place from my typical Bridgeway, put in my headphones and shuffled my playlist like always. The mix of songs it gave me was so therapeutic. I bet a lot of you have had some experience like that with music before. Anyway, I somehow managed to feel happy despite the emotional shock I had just experienced.

When I got back to my dorm, I finished a lab report that was due in a couple hours, and then went to work on a message to the girl. I had no choice but to tell her the truth. I confessed my feelings for her; expressed that I would need time and space to move on, but that I would like to be just friends in the future if she wants to; respectfully declined her invitation to dinner with her; and thanked her for helping me take steps to overcome my anxiety over talking to girls. It ended up being almost 1000 words. What? Did y'all expect any less?

After working on more homework for a couple hours, I got a response. She appreciated my honesty and agreed that she wants to be friends down the line, but expressed that she respects my need for space. It was certainly a very mature response, and definitely the best response I've gotten from a girl after a romantic rejection. I can start healing now, and although I do not plan to pursue any other girls for the time being, I think that I will be better prepared for when I do.

Now back to working on boring circuits homework and listening to more therapeutic music.

So much for keeping this short.

[MaraCarr]

It was certainly a very mature response, and definitely the best response I've gotten from a girl after a romantic rejection.

Goodness... I've missed a lot of conversations. I guess "I have" been away for a good while. I've had lots of medical appointments and testing that has taken up a lot of my time lately. I am thankful to be down to one follow up visit on Tuesday. AMEN

[maximzub]

News of the century.

The Beatles are finally releasing a new song.

[maximzub]

At The Rave in Milwaukee for Mammoth WVH.

[maximzub]

Great show last night. I got to see the live debuts of Right?, Optimist, and Waiting. Very special. Definitely would go see them again.

[anguyen92]

In line at BMO Stadium in LA, for Queen and Adam Lambert.

[zazthespaz]

About 10 years ago, the hotel I worked at had a locker room right outside of the HR department and bathrooms where people could store stuff securely during their shift. For some reason, because there were lockers in a “room”, one of my employees thought it was a locker room and decided to fully change clothes in it, right outside of the women’s bathroom (men’s too, but female’s was closer). HR saw and was like, WTF, and for some reason, that story just popped in my head and made me laugh and I felt like sharing. We ended up firing him due to an exhaustive list of write ups for various reasons of incompetence, but that story of him obliviously changing in full view of everyone makes me smile.

[Mr. Slash]

About 10 years ago,

two bands had massive influence on my musical taste: Alter Bridge and Stone Sour. Right now I'm relistening some Stone Sour songs and I'm really sad that this band will probably never come back together. 2 weeks ago I went to the 10 year anniversary of my graduating class (in Germany it's called Abitur, we were around 18-20 years old, so it's comparable to American high school) and I really miss those days.

Stone Sour is still party of my every day life. Every time I go for a run I listen to some of their songs. My workout playlist is composed of Tremonti and Stone Sour songs. I remember that Bleed it Dry was also part of that playlist as well, but I removed this song eventually. Even though some AB songs are really energetic, they really aren't that suitable for cardio workouts.

[TenaciousBe]

About 10 years ago,

two bands had massive influence on my musical taste: Alter Bridge and Stone Sour. Right now I'm relistening some Stone Sour songs and I'm really sad that this band will probably never come back together. 2 weeks ago I went to the 10 year anniversary of my graduating class (in Germany it's called Abitur, we were around 18-20 years old, so it's comparable to American high school) and I really miss those days.

Stone Sour is still party of my every day life. Every time I go for a run I listen to some of their songs. My workout playlist is composed of Tremonti and Stone Sour songs. I remember that Bleed it Dry was also part of that playlist as well, but I removed this song eventually. Even though some AB songs are really energetic, they really aren't that suitable for cardio workouts.

Wait, what's up with Stone Sour not getting back together? I must confess I don't really keep that up to date on the inner workings of Corey's bands, but I do love his music in its various outlets (in fact I just relistened to his Live in London acoustic show on Youtube the other night at work). I know he just did another CMFT album, but... what up with SS? Is there some drama happening there preventing them from doing another album? I thought they were just on a roundabout cycle of Slipknot / SS / CMFT stuff like AB / Tremonti / Slash / Myles projects. That really sucks if there's not going to be any more Stone Sour.

[Mr. Slash]

About 10 years ago,

two bands had massive influence on my musical taste: Alter Bridge and Stone Sour. Right now I'm relistening some Stone Sour songs and I'm really sad that this band will probably never come back together. 2 weeks ago I went to the 10 year anniversary of my graduating class (in Germany it's called Abitur, we were around 18-20 years old, so it's comparable to American high school) and I really miss those days.

Stone Sour is still party of my every day life. Every time I go for a run I listen to some of their songs. My workout playlist is composed of Tremonti and Stone Sour songs. I remember that Bleed it Dry was also part of that playlist as well, but I removed this song eventually. Even though some AB songs are really energetic, they really aren't that suitable for cardio workouts.

Wait, what's up with Stone Sour not getting back together? I must confess I don't really keep that up to date on the inner workings of Corey's bands, but I do love his music in its various outlets (in fact I just relistened to his Live in London acoustic show on Youtube the other night at work). I know he just did another CMFT album, but... what up with SS? Is there some drama happening there preventing them from doing another album? I thought they were just on a roundabout cycle of Slipknot / SS / CMFT stuff like AB / Tremonti / Slash / Myles projects. That really sucks if there's not going to be any more Stone Sour.

I mean, there hasn't been an official statement about the end of Stone Sour but if your read through Corey's opinion about this band it seems more than unlikely that we will get another Stone Sour record.

„To me, I’ve done the time doing stuff in a — for lack of a better term — band situation. And the reason I stick with SLIPKNOT is because that, to me, is the one that kind of started everything. But STONE SOUR, there’s still so much drama and issues [between the members]. To me, it’s just not something I desire to do. And songs in STONE SOUR that I want to play are the ones that I wrote in the first place. So to me, I would rather go out with a group of dudes who I’ve known forever and have a great time playing these songs and have the audience enjoy it because they see a bunch of dudes up there enjoying it than try to force issues on an audience that nobody really wants to be a part of, let’s put it that way.“

and

„It’s been a bitter pill to swallow, but I’ve also reached an age where I refuse to waste any time with people who I don’t enjoy being with, let’s put it that way. And that’s saying more than I actually should be saying.“

https://blabbermouth.net/news/corey-tay ... ing-hiatus

[maximzub]

It has been a while since I last posted on here. I've been keeping up to date on all the discussions that have been going on, but I've avoided saying anything. I don't think I've ever lasted 20 days without posting on here at least once.

With that said, I'd like to give some updates on my life lately. Let's pick up where we left off.

The last time I posted something personal on here, I had just found out that the girl I liked already has a boyfriend. In the meantime, it's been a roller coaster of emotions regarding her. The next day in Interpersonal Communication class, I was basically frozen due to the shock I had experienced the day before. I told our professor about everything that happened, and expressed that if being in class ever became too overwhelming for me, I might have to leave for a few minutes to collect myself. That's what happened two days later, when I suffered an anxiety attack in the middle of class that left me in tears.

The girl noticed this, and did something I never would have expected. In an effort to find help for me, she sent in a report to our university's coordinator for Student Case Management stating that she had concerns for my well-being. A couple days later, the coordinator emailed me asking if I wanted to meet up with her. She did not yet specify the identity of the concerned student. Nevertheless, I scheduled a meeting with her for the next Tuesday, and it was very helpful. However, the most flattering moment was when she revealed that it was indeed the girl that I liked that sent in the report.

Naturally, I had to thank her for trying to help me. This was probably the catalyst for what happened next. I scheduled myself a counseling appointment for the next week. The main purpose of it was to learn how to cope with my feelings and see her as just a friend. It was very productive, and I left it feeling ready to approach a friendship with the girl. I texted her later that day asking if she wanted to hear about what I'd learned in my counseling. She responded by saying that I could tell her, but she likely wouldn't understand why it helped me because she wasn't aware of my feelings at that point. I then suggested that we meet up in person to discuss our feelings first, which she agreed to.

The next day, we met up after Interpersonal Communication class. This was our first in-person interaction since before I found out that she has a boyfriend. Leading up to it, my anxiety levels were through the roof, but somehow I managed to calm them before she showed up. After some small talk, we finally got to the pressing topics that we needed to discuss. To my surprise, she was extremely comfortable with me the whole time, and she expressed that she had never experienced any negative feelings for me. I likewise explained to her how I felt, complete with detailed descriptions of my old romantic feelings. She empathized with me through everything.

Luckily, there were not many boundaries to be set. At this point, we've reached a mutual understanding that many of the things that ride the line between friendly and flirty are purely friendly in our case. So after spending about 4 hours together that day, we finally split up. I was so happy that we'd expressed all our feelings regarding each other, I'd lost my romantic feelings for her, and we'd learned stuff about each other that made us realize we had even more in common than we previously knew, which was already a lot.

Since then, we've hung out many times, usually at dinner with various combinations of my friends and her friends present. Our friendship is completely normal at this point. I've also met her boyfriend a couple times, and we get along really well. Hanging out with her has helped me become more comfortable with interacting with attractive girls in general. I'm so glad I've gained a new close friend despite the conditions in which it happened, and I look forward to being friends with her for a long time.

Since we're friends now, I likely will bring her up in future posts of mine on this board, so I'll just get this out of the way and tell you all that her name is Kelly.

[maximzub]

I thought I would give this update in a separate post, since it's a little sadder than the previous update.

I feel like I've grown out of playing music with my dad, and that I would be much better off pursuing my musical interests separate from him in the future. In addition, it's highly likely that I won't be able to meet up with Carson anytime during this school year, and Dylan will not be in Platteville next semester due to his participation in a co-op.

Therefore, I've made the hard decision to quit all my bands for the time being.

I started my first band on June 24, 2014. 9 1/2 years and 26 bands later, I am amazed at how far I've come. This is the first time since then that I haven't been in at least one band at any given time. However, I have my reasons for this that I listed above, and also I haven't had time to play much music lately due to college. That's why I think this is the right decision for me right now.

I played my last show with Six Speed on Thursday. Danny was with us, and he played a set by himself, in addition to us joining forces for the last set. It was amazing and I couldn't have asked for a better show to be my last. Nevertheless, I'm tired of playing the same kind of shows for the same people in the same places, and I will instead take a break to write and record some stuff by myself. I look forward to coming back from this break armed with new skills, new songs, and in a new band that I find more fulfilling and productive.

[Schulzy]

I feel like I've grown

Good to see some posts from you max. You've had some significant experiences this year between girls, school, and bands. I clipped out the part where you said you feel like you've grown. That's important. It's part of maturing into an adult. Our lives are full of opportunities and encounters. Learning how to deal with disappointment, failure, and rejection is difficult...and it hurts. How you emerge from that is a journey and can take a while to sort through your emotions. I'm glad you are feeling better about communicating with members of the opposite sex and realizing there's a lot more to people than their appearance. Close friendships are a wonderful thing and I encourage you to develop them.

As far as music goes you've had a good run for a long while. But I think you have arrived at the burnout point that many musicians come to. I watched an interview with Mike Shinoda and he talks about not wanting to constantly pump out his own music or revisit too much of Linkin Park at this stage of his career. He's enjoying listening to new artists, collaborating with them on production, and exploring musical soundtrack production for games. My point is that it's okay to take a break...maybe even a long term one. I have not done much artwork over the last 20 years and that is what my college degree is in. When I decide to create it comes in a flurry and then dies out quickly. I just have too much other stuff going on between jobs and family. Prioritization is also a key component to growing up and will help you make internal decisions regarding what/who is most important to you. Keep moving forward!

[maximzub]

So the day after Six Speed's last show, I jumped straight into the solo recording stuff that I said I planned to do. I had a song that I really wanted to record before Thanksgiving break was over. I ended up finishing it in two nights.

Last night, I had dinner with a large group of friends. Dylan was there, as were three of my Interpersonal Communication classmates, including Kelly. Some of her friends also came. As time passed, one by one members of the group left, until it was just me, Kelly, and Eric from our class. We then decided to head over to the Bridgeway lobby to talk more. And that ended up lasting almost 5 hours. I guess I've learned that when I talk to either Kelly or Eric, the conversation is bound to last for hours. When it's both of them...it's almost impossible to end it. It's all really enjoyable, though.

Anyways, during the conversation at dinner, I brought up that I had recorded a song over Thanksgiving break. My friends were intrigued, and I promised to show it to them, but I said that I wanted Kelly to hear it first before anyone else. Once everybody except her and Eric had left, I explained that I wanted her to hear it first because the song is about her.

This surprised her, but also made her more excited to hear it. She'd already heard three of my original songs and liked them, but this was more special because it was personal to her. We agreed on meeting up the next day in the afternoon and going to her car to listen to it and review it.

Long story short, she is very flattered that I wrote an entire song for her, and really likes it. We spent some time reviewing the song, and that ended up being much longer of a conversation than I thought, because we again diverged off topic so much.

So after two hours, she asked to listen to the song again, and then we decided to go to dinner together. One of her friends joined us, and it's really so fun hanging out with the two of them. He and I have one very important thing in common in that we both liked her romantically before becoming friends with her. This, of course, leads to a lot of teasing between the three of us. It's all really fun, and I look forward to building my friendships with the two of them.

But I digress. Now that Kelly has heard my song for her, I can share it with others. Here you go. I hope you all enjoy it.