Raining in Baltimore:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gEnCxGh8kBg
Source: Counting Crows: Album: August and Everything (1993)
This song is meaningful to me as it uses the city of Baltimore as its reference. Because I grew up in Baltimore, this song has a lot of meaning for me. I love how the Counting Crows use the idea of a raining city to show emotions. There are noises and conversations going on but the singer doesn’t have anything to say or contribute. He feels alone and lost, wanting a “phone call,” “plane ride.” I particularly love how he says he would like a sun-burn as it is used in a metaphorical sense, meaning he would like a change in atmosphere, a change in life. I feel a connection with this song as it evokes certain emotions, not only through the lyrics but the overall tempo. For example, this is not a type of song that I would blare with my sunroof and windows down. Rather, this song creates a certain mood and is fit to play at certain points of my life, when correlating emotions exist within myself.
When I looked for sources for this project I thought about the place at which I am at now. I am at a place, currently, that I have been at for four years, a place of comfort. However, emerging around the corner is a time of decision and question. I ask myself, do I want to move to Baltimore, and do what is comfortable? Or, would I feel similar emotions to this artist and wish for a change from the comfort, long for a “sunburn.” Will I feel a sense of rain or loneliness if I am missing the “big world” as the singer states that is outside the comfort zone (Baltimore) of what I have known for 21 years. What places will feel like home to me? Through this song I think about the literal place of where I want to live and I think about the “place” that I am in within my life as I am faced with these new decisions.
Source #2
(This picture is not uploading, from my computer and there is no link because it is my own personal copy)
Jaco, Costa Rica Painting
Source: Friend’s Painting (Fall 2009)
When I studied in Costa Rica in Fall of 2009, I met amazing people from all over the country and had the opportunity to travel with them. On one trip, I traveled with two friends to a beach called Jaco. When we arrived to the small town and got off the bus it was the time of sunset and the three of us ran to the beach to get a glimpse. The site was beautiful and the colors illuminating from the sun were indescribable. That particular weekend and my entire trip in Costa Rica was a time of personal growth and knowledge. This trip opened my eyes to the opportunities in the world, outside the state of Maryland and even the country. Before the trip ended my friend painted one of the sunsets from our trip to Jaco. She was able, in my opinion, to capture, to a great degree, the beautiful colors and feeling behind the sun. From the painting, I am brought back to that particular sunset and moment in time.
From the brilliant colors within the painting and the sunset, I correlate my future. I see a brilliant yellow, which signifies opportunity, idealism, and promise in my future. The Blue, to me, means the tranquility, peace and calmness that I hope to acquire throughout life. The reds and pinks throughout the painting signify the love and beauty from friendships, relationships, etc., that I hope to have throughout my life by keeping an open heart. Though I believe this is a beautiful painting in general, it holds a particular significance for me, of growth and experience. As I look at the painting, I think about the place that I was at, the literal place, Jaco, Costa Rica. I also think about the place that I am at in life where I am looking into my future and hope to have these brilliant colors that are reflected in the sunset.
Source #3:
Google Images Photo:
Source: Google Images-Screen Savers “Energy”
https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijh_BhXIALoXt4GjPhUc71DHtKv-VS4hSWY7GHYL_fXxrShIucysXKGg3KuBx7e3VPLgLVOlhEUBTEZq6Bqva-NDR5WDlIpBYZ5_Ehl6lOlqmOOQPDlsB4hxUnbnWK32RKpr4GRn4O3Rg/s1600-h/Positive_Energy_1920+x+1200+widescreen.jpg
I found this image by simply searching the google engine site. When I stumbled across the digitally created image, I could not believe how much it expressed the emotions I am feeling in one piece. In this picture there is a girl standing across the grasses, smaller than anything else in the picture. Above the girl is an image of the earth in the clouds. Therefore, when she stands up and looks around her, she would most likely feel small, but appreciate the colors around her. For example, there is beautiful almost “too perfect” grass around her. To me, this represents the truth, ease, that will come from this journey she is about to embark upon. Within the photo there is a tree and a flower that stand out with vibrant reds and oranges. Related to the sunset that I picked for source two, these colors signify the love, courage, power, the girl will obtain along her journey. Also, her journey in general, seems to by endless with opportunity. There is no designated path that she must take, there are endless greens, and some that meet rivers she may have to cross, others leading to other places. However, from where the girl is standing, the fields are open and the direction is not preselected.
When I look at this picture, I see myself, especially at the place I am at in life right now. The girl seems to have the world at her fingertips, with endless opportunity (shown through the brilliant colors that fill the image). I see a representation of myself, the colors and opportunities I will come across, as well as the decisions I will have to make about which path and direction to take as I transition into the real world.
Source #4: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Am7EI5tdaX4
Song: Feels like Home. Artist: Chanal Kreviazuk: Under These Rocks and Stones: 1996
This song uses the place of home as its inspiration and reference. However, the artist does not use the literal place of home. Rather, she is discussing the feeling of home. Rather than being actually home, she gains the feeling of home through a relationship. This artwork holds a similar meaning for me as the previous three. As I mentioned, I am approaching a time in my life of uncertainty. I am about to enter the real world. I do not know what city I will call home for the next few years. I am unsure about where I will end up, will it be Baltimore, where I have called home for 21 years or will it be somewhere else? However, I hope to seek the feeling of home in my journey, through relationships.
This song also reminds me of my abroad experience to Costa Rica. During my stay, I lived with a Costa-Rican family. Throughout the time I lived there, I gained familiar relationships that made me feel at home. When I had to leave, I cried because I felt I was leaving home, (though I was actually headed toward home). Additionally, because my studies are mainly based on Culture and Language, I really appreciate this work because it compares relationships and “people” to the feeling of being home, in a physical “place.”
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