Notice: It has come to my attention that Substack is not doing a great job of being a good and trustworthy platform so I am migrating over to beehiiv. Thanks for making the switch with me.
It feels ambitious and premature but hey, what’s the worst that could happen? No one reads it? Everyone reads it? (yikes!). Maybe I get too busy to write it? Whatever happens, I am aiming for this to be a year of embracing vulnerability and embarrassment. A wise and inquisitive friend shared this idea with me recently:
“Embarrassment is an under-explored emotion. Many of the things you want live over a wall of perceived cringe.”
So get ready to nerd-out with me about melody and harmony and tradition and innovation! I won’t even try to pretend that it’s not nerdy af. And get ready perhaps to hear about the less glamorous side of being a grad student, which I guess is what I am now, at least until I complete my studies or decide not to be one. I’m leaving room for that, for choosing not to continue. Aside from having some general hesitation about stepping into academia once again (coupled with a serious case of homesickness), it seems wise to guard against the stealthy yet all too common fallacy of sunken costs. And to guard against the inertia of having put into motion a plan that has a built-in beginning, middle, and end. There is something to be said for the “decide once” strategy - it’s a good way to get things done. But I would like to feel like I am choosing on the daily instead of just getting swept along. I’ll take the stairs instead of the escalator.
And off I go! With my doubts and hopes, securities and insecurities.
I’m happy you’re along for the ride :)
Found it!
The park near my house
The bridge I’ll cross on my way to school
A classroom in the music building
The Quad
