30 at 30, Uncategorized

19. Coldplay

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In honor of me turning 30, I’m making mix CDs of my favorite songs from each of my 30 favorite musical artists/groups. Read the introductory post for more background information on my 30 at 30 project. Reminder: there is no scientific rationale for this list. They’re simply my personal favorites. Coming in at number 19 is Coldplay.

Coldplay30at30

They’re not quite at the Nickelback level. But somewhere betweem 2000’s Parachutes and 2014’s Ghost Stories, Coldplay became one of the definitive bands to agree to hate among people who “know” things about music. In 2011, after Coldplay released Mylo Xyloto, Grantland ran a piece that began with this sentence: “Coldplay is the band that everyone allegedly hates, but nevertheless is still one of the most popular in the world.” This year, Grantland published a more in depth article titled “Overrated, Underrated, or Properly Rated: Coldplay” with the subtitle “The most insufferable band of the millennium or a misunderstood group of talented young men?”

Whatever it is that causes people to love to hate Coldplay, I never caught the bug. Although none of the tracks from Ghost Stories resonated strongly enough to get fast-tracked onto my compilation, I’ve enjoyed the full spectrum of Coldplay’s catalog and unabashedly proclaim them as my 19th favorite musical act of all-time.

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30 at 30

30 at 30 List #3: TV Shows

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 In honor of me turning 30, I’m compiling 30 different top-30 lists on a wide variety of topics ranging from trivial interests of mine to meaningful life moments. Read the introductory post for more background information on my 30 at 30 project. Reminder: there is no scientific rationale for these lists. They were composed by a panel of one—me.

I probably watch too much television. It’s relaxing, entertaining, and nowadays it’s easier than ever to tune in. When I was growing up, I had to watch what was on one of the 60 or so channels we had from our cable provider. And unless I wanted to set up a VCR timed recording, I had to watch it when it was broadcast or else miss it entirely.

watching TV

Today, the number of channels has ballooned into the thousands. Recording multiple shows can be done with the push of a button using the DVR. On-demand services like HBO Go, Netflix, the Watch ESPN app, the WWE Network, etc., put TV viewing on my schedule. Plus, mobile devices like my iPad or iPhone give me the ability to watch TV on the go. On the track “BBC” from his Magna Carta Holy Grail album, Jay-Z raps “my whole life is leisure.” With the TV technology available to me today, sometimes I feel that way, especially during the summer, prime time for a teacher to catch up on some of the TV missed during the hustle and bustle of the school year.

My list of all-time favorite TV shows includes some current chart-toppers as well as some childhood classics. My list clearly shows my preference for comedies, and it also has some noticeable absentees. Sorry, fans of Game of Thrones, The Wire, The Sopranos, Breaking Bad, and INSERT YOUR BEST TELEVISION SERIES EVER THAT I CAN’T BELIEVE YOU HAVEN’T SEEN HERE. I haven’t watched any of them, at least not yet. For what it’s worth, I came up with more than 20 honorable mentions in compiling this list, so kudos to the programs that did make the final cut.

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30 at 30

20. Eminem

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In honor of me turning 30, I’m making mix CDs of my favorite songs from each of my 30 favorite musical artists/groups. Read the introductory post for more background information on my 30 at 30 project. Reminder: there is no scientific rationale for this list. They’re simply my personal favorites. Coming in at number 20 is Eminem.

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Marshall Mathers. Slim Shady. Eminem. Whatever you want to call him, he is certainly the most controversial inclusion on my countdown so far and arguably will be the most polarizing selection on the entire list.

When I first heard Eminem I was 14 years old and in 8th grade. It was around that time that I convinced my parents to allow me to purchase CDs with the parental advisory: explicit lyrics sticker on them. Eminem’s lyrics earned that label and then some. However, I never adopted the foul-mouthed act that Eminem and most of my peers did. To this day, my curse words are few and far between.

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21. The Farewell Drifters

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In honor of me turning 30, I’m making mix CDs of my favorite songs from each of my 30 favorite musical artists/groups. Read the introductory post for more background information on my 30 at 30 project. Reminder: there is no scientific rationale for this list. They’re simply my personal favorites. Coming in at number 21 is The Farewell Drifters.

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I feel like I have a personal connection with every band/artist on my 30 at 30 countdown, but even more so with The Farewell Drifters. When I first discovered The Farewell Drifters, my high school classmate (Cathedral Prep Class of 2003!) Christian Sedelmyer was playing fiddle in the band.

In addition to purchasing their 2010 album Yellow Tag Mondays, we were fortunate enough to see the band play live in Erie. Yellow Tag Mondays landed six tracks on my compilation. From a sweet love song like “Love Me Good & Plain” to the storytelling of “Sunnyside Drive” to the feel-good “River Song” featuring a trademark Sedelmyer solo at the 1:50 mark, there is a lot to love about Yellow Tag Mondays.

Yet as good as Yellow Tag Mondays was, the band’s 2011 follow-up Echo Boom was even better. In my opinion, Echo Boom was the group at its absolute best. With tight vocal harmonies and amazing musicianship, the Farewell Drifters blended elements of folk, bluegrass, and melodic pop to create a masterpiece of an album—one of my all-time favorites. Getting the opportunity to see them showcase songs off the album in Erie and Buffalo further cemented its and their legacy.

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22. Gavin DeGraw

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In honor of me turning 30, I’m making mix CDs of my favorite songs from each of my 30 favorite musical artists/groups. Read the introductory post for more background information on my 30 at 30 project. Reminder: there is no scientific rationale for this list. They’re simply my personal favorites. Coming in at number 22 is Gavin DeGraw.

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Gavin DeGraw released his debut album Chariot in 2003. That was an influential year for me. I graduated high school and began college in 2003. I attended my first ever concert (Counting Crows) in 2003. I also met my future wife in 2003.  We worked together at Giant Eagle. Discussing our musical interests was one of the first connections we ever made.

In 2004, DeGraw re-released Chariot with a bonus disc called Chariot Stripped, featuring “stripped-down” studio recordings of all of the original songs. When I purchased Stripped, I was left with an extra copy of Chariot, which I gave to Jessie. Even before we had romantic chemistry, we shared a friendship built, at least in part, over a shared love for music. That Gavin DeGraw CD was one of the first of many musical gifts we would exchange over the years. 

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30 at 30

23. Howie Day

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In honor of me turning 30, I’m making mix CDs of my favorite songs from each of my 30 favorite musical artists/groups. Read the introductory post for more background information on my 30 at 30 project. Reminder: there is no scientific rationale for this list. They’re simply my personal favorites. Coming in at number 23 is Howie Day.

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Howie Day hasn’t released any music since his 2011 Ceasefire EP, and 2009’s Sound the Alarm offers the most recent of his music to make the cut for my compilation. However, his early work, 2002’s Australia and 2004’s Stop All the World Now, was influential enough to earn him this spot on the countdown.

Day fits comfortably into the singer/songwriter mold. Aside from the live rendition of “Ghost” there is not a whole lot that stands out musically, but lyrically his songs resonated. If I could make singability a word, the tracks listed at the bottom of would rate very high in terms of being singable.  That’s important to me.

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30 at 30

30 at 30 List #2: Places I’ve Played Basketball

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In honor of me turning 30, I’m compiling 30 different top-30 lists on a wide variety of topics ranging from trivial interests of mine to meaningful life moments. Read the introductory post for more background information on my 30 at 30 project. Reminder: there is no scientific rationale for these lists. They were composed by a panel of one—me.

Basketball has been part of my life since about the time I could walk.

As a kid, I watched my cousin Keith Nies and the Cathedral Prep Ramblers compete in three state championships, including the 1996 showdown with Lower Merion and Kobe Bryant. I had dreams of following in his footsteps, lacing up my sneakers for the orange and black, earning a Division I scholarship, and playing in the NBA. I never realized any of those dreams. After playing freshmen and junior varsity basketball for Prep, I was cut from the varsity team as a junior, steering my basketball career into another direction playing in the local CYO league for my home parish of St. Jude.

Although my basketball career fell a few steps short of a Hall of Fame enshrinement, I’ve had more than my fair share of shining moments. They may not have been ESPN or even Erie Times-News headline worthy, but they stand out in my memory just the same. To this day, basketball is entangled in my identity—player, coach, fan, student of the game. My relationship with the game changes and evolves depending on my role in it, but I cannot imagine my life without basketball being a part of it.

As I approach age 30, it’s pretty clear that my best basketball-playing days are behind me. Still, I plan to continue to find opportunities to play as long as my body will still allow it. Whether it’s a game of H-O-R-S-E or P-I-G at a family bonfire or a student-faculty game at Prep, if there’s a court calling my name, I’m going to answer.

In my life, I’ve had the pleasure of playing basketball in a variety of different places and in different contexts. Click to read the full  list counting down the top 30 places I’ve played.

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30 at 30

24. Ben Gibbard

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In honor of me turning 30, I’m making mix CDs of my favorite songs from each of my 30 favorite musical artists/groups. Read the introductory post for more background information on my 30 at 30 project. Reminder: there is no scientific rationale for this list. They’re simply my personal favorites. Coming in at number 24 is Ben Gibbard.

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If you only know Ben Gibbard as the ex-husband of Zooey Deschanel, you’re missing out. Musically, Gibbard is best known as the lead man of Death Cab For Cutie, although he has been associated with other groups including The Postal Service. I had to cheat the system a bit and combined Gibbard’s acts to compile the ultimate 30 at 30 compilation. Seventeen tracks come from Death Cab For Cute, three come from The Postal Service, and one comes from his 2012 Former Lives album simply released as Benjamin Gibbard. The tracks are all united by Gibbard’s unique voice.

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25. Jill Scott

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In honor of me turning 30, I’m making mix CDs of my favorite songs from each of my 30 favorite musical artists/groups. Read the introductory post for more background information on my 30 at 30 project. Reminder: there is no scientific rationale for this list. They’re simply my personal favorites. Coming in at number 25 is Jill Scott.

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Although modern day R&B is probably the most fitting category for Jill Scott, any one classification of her musical style is an oversimplification. She borrows from and incorporates elements of jazz, hip hop, soul, spoken word poetry, and more into her music.

Scott actually first began performing as a spoken word poet. In addition to the stylistic carryover into some of her music, the title of her first album reflected this facet of her career. Her 2000 debut album was titled Who Is Jill Scott? Words and Sounds Vol. 1. Three tracks from that album made it onto my 30 at 30 compilation. Her follow-up was 2004’s Beautifully Human: Words and Sounds Vol. 2, which had six tracks make the cut. In 2007, Scott released both Collaborations (six tracks on my compilation) and The Real Thing: Words and Sounds Vol. 3 (three tracks). Her most recent album was 2011’s The Light of the Sun, which landed two tracks on the compilation.

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30 at 30

30 at 30 List #1: Student Responses to Mr. Hubert’s End-of-Year Survey

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In honor of me turning 30, I’m compiling 30 different top-30 lists on a wide variety of topics ranging from trivial interests of mine to meaningful life moments. Read the introductory post for more background information on my 30 at 30 project. Reminder: there is no scientific rationale for these lists. They were composed by a panel of one—me.

Mr. Hubert

This week marked the end of another school year, my third as an English and journalism teacher at Cathedral Prep.  It was also the first year I was charged with teaching AP Language and Composition—to three sections totaling nearly 70 sophomores. It was a challenging task for me as a teacher, but it quickly became my favorite class to teach. It was also (and rightfully so) a very demanding class for my students, but I’m proud to say that the vast majority of them really learned a lot over the course of the year.

Their development as readers, writers, speakers, listeners, and critical thinkers was evident to me in regular class discussions and frequent writing assignments, but cherry on my teaching sundae came after reading what they wrote about the class and my teaching.

Dating back to my student teaching, one of the things I’ve done each year right before summer break is to survey the students. The survey is completely voluntary and anonymous. I preface the survey with a heartfelt plea to my students to be honest and sincere (knowing that I’ll still get the occasional goofball responses). For the most part, though, students take it to heart when you tell—and show—them that you care what they think. So I try to make my case quite clear. Logistically, principals and assistant principals are only able to observe on an occasional basis. My students see me every day at work. They see me at my best, my worst, and everywhere in between. So I ask them to be candid and spend 10-15 minutes responding to a survey that I put together. I read through every single response and take time to reflect on what it all means to me as a teacher.

The first several questions ask the students to assess on a 1-5 scale (from strongly disagree to strongly agree) several statements about the class, my teaching, and their performance in the class. Then, there are a handful of open response questions that ask the following things:

  • How did this class compare to other English classes you have taken in the past?
  • How did this class compare to the other classes you took this year?
  • What did you like most about this class? Why? Be as specific as possible, and list as many aspects as you feel are appropriate.
  • What did you like least about this class? Why? Again, be as specific as possible, and list as many aspects as you feel are appropriate.
  • What do you feel are the best aspects/qualities of my teaching? Why?
  • What do you feel I need to work on to become a better teacher? Please be as specific as possible.
  • What are you taking away from this course that you didn’t have/know/think about/realize before?
  • In 10 years, what are you most likely to remember from or about this class?
  • If you have any other thoughts/comments/feedback about the year in my class, about me as a teacher, or about my teaching style, please include them below.

When I read the responses this year, specifically those from the students who took my AP Language and Composition class, I was blown away. As a teacher, these comments are the fuel that power me to show up early, stay late, and work nights and weekends lesson-planning and reading essays even when it’s not always easy, convenient, or fun. For them, it’s worth it. The end of the school year was the perfect time to be reminded of that.

My first attempt to comb through the students’ responses resulted in more than 100 results. I tried to include a few of the good constructive criticisms in addition to the complimentary comments. There’s really no logical way to rank all these comments in comparison to one another, but this project is about a series of lists, so what follows is my best effort to narrow those down to a top-30 list.

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The first key to writing is to write.