Art. Featuring my rambling ruminations, as usual.

What exactly art is is a question I've been pondering lately. At first, I had been thinking that art is pleasant to look at, but in many cases that doesn't hold true. In addition, 'pleasant' is subjective regarding art and basically everything else in the world. At the moment, I would say that a tentative definition of art is that it makes you think. Perhaps those are thoughts of appreciation for its aesthetic beauty, or thoughts about what is portrayed by the art, or thoughts of distaste with the art, etc. A friend says that art is created to express something, which is also a valid point regarding what exactly it is. Trying to precisely define art is perhaps impossible, but at least some general statements about its nature can be made.
I am not quite sure what exactly got me thinking about the definition of art, but perhaps it has something to do with how I have begun to keep a written log of theoretical art ideas. It is rather unlikely that I'll actually enact most of these ideas as it is, but they're there, just for the sake of making sure I remember them in case I ever feel like actualizing them.
As a final note, some people argue that modern art is not art, but I say that it is art, regardless if other people are disdainful towards it. Some modern art is quite thought provoking despite how it may seem strange and unconventional/unusual, etc. Just because one disapproves of/disdains certain art (such as modern art) does not necessarily mean it isn't art.
The end.
(I do realize I have neglected this blog. Sometimes that happens. It's a character flaw, I suppose. But here is a short selection of my recent thoughts for your perusal.)

Things I appreciate in people - laudable traits

In fancy language we can call these things 'laudable traits.' This is the first in what may be a series of posts. 

• a firm handshake. These are essential in making a good impression on people you meet. 
• not being an awful person (again, use your imagination here). The logic behind this should be obvious.
• if you have or decide to start a band, for the love of god don't name it something ridiculous and laughable. So, bands without ridiculous and laughable names. (I realize this doesn't exactly apply to people, but it's still a laudable trait.)
• fingernails that are clean and even in length. Personally, I think cleanliness is more important but my mother also insists that they should be even in length as well.
• jeans that are rolled up evenly, if they're rolled up. It pains me to see uneven cuffs on people's jeans.
• nice hair: this is subjective. But use your imagination.

This may be quite similar to the sometimes trivial things I complain about, but... I'd like to think that perhaps these suggestions regarding laudable traits can be useful in some way or another. 

Why I hate that horrible thing

Here is the "People I hate" part. Or at least something that fits in that category. Obviously this isn't all of it. There's certainly more. So, on to my reasons...
Have you ever been pursued by an overbearing suitor? If you haven't, trust me, you don't want to be. It's truly awful. At least when this 'suitor' (I hesitate to even grant that title to this horrible thing) is a creepy person. Creepy as in constantly staring, following around the object of his affections, attempting awkward conversations... all the things you don't want to be subjected as you try to go about your daily life. What compounds this is that (and I will say this unabashedly) this horrible thing (as I mentioned before, that's a euphemism. It makes things easier for me and is also a convenient protection of privacy) is... horribly ugly. Before you call me shallow, consider this. Imagine if you had a creepy ugly person after you. I don't think you would enjoy that unless you were truly desperate for attention. Since I'm not truly desperate for attention, I (obviously) don't enjoy having this creepy ugly thing after me. It's not fun. It plagues my existence. 

On the sociology side of things, the concepts of beauty and ugliness are rather fascinating to me. So there'll be some pondering of that as well on this blog. Expect it in the future. 

The second post.

On the suggestion of a friend I created this blog - I had mentioned how "People I hate and other stories" would be a fitting title for a theoretical autobiography of mine. Because I spend perhaps what is more time than usual complaining about people I... dislike (to put it more softly).
This blog will feature people I hate and other stories as mentioned in the (what I think is clever and witty) title. Hopefully this doesn't make me come across as some kind of (insert unsavory adjectives here) idiot. I have a tendency to complain. (so says my mother) Sometimes the things I complain about are trivial and other times they're less so. I complain about people I hate, for one thing. A person I particularly specifically hate is known as "that horrible thing." It's a euphemism for their name.

For a quick change of subject I will mention a person I don't hate. This person, among other things, has very nice teeth. If you don't think that having nice teeth is significant, you are sadly mistaken. There are tons of people in this world who have awful ugly teeth. This person isn't like that. His name is Dan*. He is a musician. He's very lovely. And not ugly. (which is important, mind you.) And not an awful person. (which is also important. On principle I try not to support awful people.) And again, he has nice teeth. Hopefully these aren't statements I'll have to take back later - in the event that he gets punched in the mouth which would ruin his teeth, or that he suddenly does something that would make him an awful person (use your imagination here). I dearly hope those things don't happen.

Another person I don't hate is Flowers**. That is what I call him. He is also a musician (don't worry, there are non-musician people who I don't hate); he has a band and he's a Mormon. He used to wear eyeliner. He is from and is fond of the city of (fabulous) Las Vegas.

This is (hopefully obviously) the "other stories" part of this blog. Because these two people are some of the ones I don't hate. Maybe you should strive to be more like them. Although let me tell you there are definitely people I do hate. I will get to those people eventually. But for now, let's leave it at this.

P.S.: (perhaps the abbreviation is something different when it's a blog post and not a letter? Who knows.) I also don't hate the friend who suggested this blog. At least not yet. Although I don't think I will in the future either.

*Dan Layus, of the band Augustana. They have a song called Boston that you might know.
**Brandon Flowers, of The Killers.

An introduction.

(since those things are necessary, you know,)
This blog is going to consist of my ramblings, etc. Obviously, some content will reflect the title of this blog - "People I hate and other stories." I don't find myself particularly interesting yet in an act of... boredom and possible vanity I have started this blog. Perhaps you will think otherwise (regarding my interestingness or lack thereof) after reading what tales I have to offer. Hopefully this was sufficient for an introduction. Let the real blogging commence.