Karaoke and Impact.

I started following this guy on Twitter. His name is Juan and he does karaoke covers of various rock and metal songs. If that's your thing, I highly recommend checking his stuff out.

One of the songs he covers is Iron Maiden's Run to the Hills. It's a back and forth perspective of their interpretation of Native and government interactions al la conquest and war. Also, one of my favorite songs. :)

Now I mention all of this for a reason (aside from sharing the awesome-ness of a singer); there is a part in a verse that always got me thinking about impact. One of the lines of the song has the original version, as well as a radio edit. The third verse talks about how the soldiers think that "the only good injuns are tame." I've heard the version where the last word of that line is "dead," rather than "tame." I don't know which is the original and which is the edit, but the changing in either case fascinates me.

Which word has more impact? Which version illustrates the point of the work best? Yeah, dead could be argued to be the ultimate in impact. After all, there's nothing with quite as much omph as death. But, in the confines of the piece, is it really the worst thing? To me, at least, it isn't. The usage of tame gives me the idea of domestication and loss of freedom. Taken into consideration with the story the song sings, a much more powerful sentiment than death.

Of course, that may just be my background talking.

I wonder if the songwriter meant to evoke this thought process? Hell, maybe they were only looking for a decent rhyme. I'd like to think that the construction of the verse a little more complicated than that.

No Excuses.

I've fallen out of a lot of good habits. By a lot, I mean nearly every damned one of them.

Writing everyday has fallen by the wayside.

The weekly blog took a bit hit.

Online community participation? Ha!

My attempts at being tidy and organized have imploded and created a rather amazing chaos across the house (think interior design by a category 3 hurricane).

Anything remotely artistic has gathered so much dust that it's not funny.

I can't even remember where my workout clothes have managed to hide, let alone what they look like anymore.

And has anyone seen the dog? We had four, right? Why am I only finding three? (Okay, that last bit about the dogs isn't true, but still.)

It's so easy to let things slip away from you. Especially when it concerns the daily grind of a writing project. Even to the most devoted of writers, when faced with the necessities of daily living, getting that extra hour, or even that extra hundred words, can be a monumental difficulty.

Seeing everything listed helps map out what I need to work on. Posting it for you all to see gives me extra incentive to work harder (NaNo mindset much?).

I have plenty of excuses for my bad habits, my goal is to have none.

:D