The Appeal of Vinyl Albums

I’m a big fan of vinyl records ever since my girlfriend’s father gave us his old turntable. I knew that records were popular back in the day and even gained a resurgence as of late with more hip crowds, but I never quite understood why until I owned one and bought my first few albums from the local record store.

If anything, it all takes me back to collecting CDs when I was in high school and early college. There was something real about purchasing one of my favorite bands’ new albums on CD and playing it in my truck while driving around. The whole experience had a meaning to it. It had weight. It became an experience.

Nowadays, if I want to listen to something new by someone, I can hop on Spotify and go to their new album right away to quickly cycle through different tracks until I like what I hear. It’s definitely convenient and faster than anything else out there, but it also doesn’t carry the same sort of weight as making a trip to buy a new album and then listening to it on the way home.

The only problem I seem to have with getting a new album, though, is that my first few were of records I had already known inside and out. Now, is this a bad thing? Well not at all. I wanted my first three or four albums to be of artists I already love, and I wanted those records to be of absolutely complete albums from the first to last track.

What I’m saying is I was predispositioned on the first few albums I got. I wanted what I already liked because I wanted to make those first few records special.

From here on, however, I think I want to do it differently. I want to still purchase records from my favorite artists, but I want to listen to their new music on record first. No more hopping into Spotify immediately to make sure I like the new stuff. If it’s an artist I highly support and follow closely, there’s a reason for that. Their past stuff is already amazing, so there’s no doubt the new stuff would be too.

And if anything, the whole point of records back in the day was to listen to the next great record as soon as it drops and experience that music for yourself. To listen to it before anyone else could and then own that record for good.

To me, that’s what I’m looking forward to. I have such an expansive taste in music lately that anything goes, so all sorts of artists will be dropping new music year in and year out for me to like. While going after new music all the time will likely mean my two cardboard boxes of old albums will grow to four cardboard boxes, it’s all worth it simply because they are timeless so long as turntables are still considered vintage and can be repaired or bought like new.

Valentine’s Day for Single People

It’s officially February, marking the dead center of winter (didn’t mean for that to rhyme) and the onset of heartache, butterflies in the stomach, and all things lovey dovey.

That’s right. It’s the month of the groundhog, Valentine’s Day, and leap days. February is, to put it simply, one weird month. There’s no longer that rejuvenated feeling that January gives you at the beginning of the year, but it’s not quite March, which brings excitement of warmer weather and signs of life. February is kind of just . . . there on the calendar.

So, it comes as no surprise to hear more people commit self harm during February than any other month. This is a sort of depressing statistic, but don’t let the mid-winter blues get you down. February is home to Valentine’s Day, and that’s a day to look forward to even if you’re single. Celebrate the holiday as a reminder of self love even if you don’t have a partner to celebrate it with. The road to finding love begins after you’ve learned to love yourself, after all.

Speaking of V-Day, so many stores and businesses love to welcome it in, because it means extra sales thanks to all the sappy couples who feel the need to overspend on items for their significant other. You should be expecting to see plenty of pink and red, a lot of candy boxes, and tons of stuffed animals the next time you’re walking through the store.

As for what you should do for yourself, though, that’s up to you. A local arcade bar near me is hosting a blind speed dating event for all those people out there who don’t have a partner. I, myself, think it’s a wonderful idea to include those who are typically excluded on Valentine’s Day.

Just as well, a lot of places have meal deals for any couples going out for dinner on the big day. Well, why not seize the moment and take a friend to dinner so that you can both capitalize on savings. (It’s not like the restaurant will know if you’re dating or just friends, no matter your friend’s gender, so what are they gonna do?)

There’s also the prospect of getting a few of those aforementioned candy boxes from the store and chowing down on them with a bottle of wine on the 14th. I mean, what beats chocolate, wine, and Netflix? Nothing, that’s what.

Ultimately, you should do something on Valentine’s Day, whether you’re single or not. If you’re in a relationship, do something with your partner to show you really do care. If you are single, well, hopefully we’ve given you a few ideas on how to enjoy the day with friends or even by yourself!

The Abundance of Commonplace Items

Sometimes I find it funny how often something shows up, yet I’d never really notice the frequency of such items without actually paying attention to them.

I mean, the number one culprit of this is technology. It’s truly astounding how much of it is around us without actually being visible. There are smart phones is practically every single pocket around the world. Computers are in every building. Speakers and monitors riddle every room. And this list doesn’t even go to include the numerous and random pieces of tech around kitchens, offices, and so forth.

But something that really sticks out to me on the daily is cardboard boxes. For something so simple, cheap, and easily destructible, cardboard is quite honestly everywhere. I see it at work. I see it in my home. I see it in restaurants, outside along roads, and in stores wherever I shop.

One of the places I recently saw it was at a concert. The venue was quite small but the headlining band was actually a rather popular group. I was quite surprised that the venue was the size it was for the name of the band performing, but that wasn’t something I’d ever be upset about. The show lasted around 3 hours considering there was an opening act, too.

But the cardboard I saw around the place was just interesting to me. I saw a few boxes sitting up on the stage behind the bands’ gear, first off. This was something I don’t usually see at concerts, but it was interesting nonetheless.

Also, one place I saw other cardboard boxes that wasn’t surprising was at the merch table. There were at least 20 different boxes containing shirts, stickers, albums, hats, and an assortment of other gear.

It’s just funny to me how often these sorts of things show up in your everyday life, yet half of the time or more you don’t actually pay attention to those everyday items. It’s not necessarily to say that you need to consider all sorts of commonplace things on the daily, but from time to time, it’s worth stopping and taking the time to appreciate the things that go unnoticed yet are used more than so many other things. Another one is plastic. Whether it’s containers, bottles, pens and other office supplies, or random things around your work office or home, plastic is absolutely everywhere.

Just take the time to realize how abundant certain things are. Because, honestly, that’s how things are taken for granted. Without appreciation for how handy things can be, you may grow too content with everything you have and not learn to realize how useful they are and how dependent you may be upon them.

Surprising Sugary Drinks

When it comes to dental health, so often we hear to stay away from candies. Why is it that candy of all things seems to be the “big bad guy” of the dental world? Well, one of the main reasons is how sugary they are. The more sugar you consume, the more likely that sugar is to take hold on your teeth and cause plaque to build up and eat away at your teeth’s enamel.

The thing is, there are other food and drinks out there that have far more sugar than candy boxes contain; you just don’t ever hear about it.

So, we’ve come up with a list of those drinks that are pretty common yet have tons of sugar. Whether you’re trying to stay hydrated playing sports or want to enjoy juice at home, you should definitely keep an eye on drink labels if you want to keep your teeth healthy.

Grape juice.

Tooth decay can often occur because of the various “healthy” fruit juices you may have at home. But were you aware that grape juice contains more sugar than almost any other type of juice? A twelve ounce glass of grape juice contains more than 58 grams of sugar. That’s 2 full ounces of pure sugar in the twelve ounce glass and around 20 grams more than a can of soda.


Vitamin water.

Drinks with “vitamin” in their names aren’t always as healthy as they may advertise. While they may be packed with specific vitamins, be sure to check the label for what all is within. So before you grab yourself a vitamin water, you should know that a regular twenty ounce bottle has 31 grams of sugar. For comparison, a regular size candy bar has around 27 grams.

Assorted Organic Craft Sodas with Cane Sugar

Gatorade.

This is another common go-to drink for people who are active in sports and exercising. Unfortunately, it may not be the best choice for post-exercise rehydration. While it can vary between flavors, a typical twenty ounce bottle of Gatorade averages 34 grams of sugar. Wow.

We want you to be able to enjoy some sugary treats just as much as you want it. Just make sure to brush your teeth after meals, after plowing through a few candy boxes, and after drinking sugary drinks to keep your teeth and dental gear in great shape. It’s the things you’re least suspecting that will creep up on your oral health.

Bettering Yourself for Life

Getting back on track in life can be a particularly tough thing to accomplish. Sure, the new year helps to motivate you some since everyone seems to love sharing their new year’s resolutions with one another on social media.

The thing is, how often do those people actually stick to their newly made routines? How often do they stick to it through a month? Half a year? For life?

Well, not often, I’m sure you could’ve guessed. A lot of resolutions on lists are life-changing goals that simply remain unaccomplished because, well, they’re pretty tough to do. To accomplish a life-changing goal, you’ve got to have a life-altering shift of mindset. It’s not all as simple as throwing your junk food in a few cardboard boxes lying around your house and then taking those cardboard boxes out and dumping everything within in the dumpster.

No, it takes a new way of thinking about your everyday life. You can’t simply expect to just get up off the couch every single day and go workout simply because your to-do list remains untouched. Rather, you’ve got to show yourself why it’s important to do, how it’ll change you, and remain tough on yourself at first. It takes over two months of something to make it a routine part of your life, and here we find ourselves just two weeks into the new year.

So, what does it take, then, to shift your outlook on everything?

It takes work. And on that note, let’s compare these resolutions, these healthy changes in your mind and body, to your career.

Why do you go to your job everyday? Well, because you have to. Why do you have to? You absolutely have to make money to pay bills and eat and live, right?

Well, look at your body and your mental health as a necessity, not an option. Look at working out and eating better and budgeting as a necessity because you absolutely have to, not because you can or should or may want to. Because you have to.

Once you shift this perspective to one of necessity rather than want, you’ll begin your path to routine. That’s the first step.

Once you’ve accomplished two or three months of steady exercising, cooking your own meals, saving money, whatever it is that you deem life changing, you’ll be in a very good routine. All you have to remember, though, is that it doesn’t stop here. You’ve got to keep at it every single day. For yourself.