From D-town back to D-town

I'm such an infrequent blogger, and when I do write I tend to produce analytical articles detailing the sustainability of symphony orchestras or the mental processes behind musical performance. It's difficult for me to separate my passions from my daily life; even the simplest logic will thus lead you to conclude that I am, indeed, a pretty big dork (+1 for using a semicolon!). But obviously, life isn't all about Baumol's Cost-Disease, and for those of you who care to follow up with me, I know that these Additional Pylons have been a bit of a disappointment.

To that end, I've decided that I Must Construct Additional Pylons into a more personal space. Of course I'll have plenty to write about music, as you would probably expect, and of course I'll talk about things like organizational strategy and education management (it is my job after all!). But since you are presumably reading this blog to keep up with me, Yi (Ethan) Xiang, you'll get what you want - plenty more of me (in a non-pornographic way).

So what's been going on here in the humid confines of Duluth, Georgia? Not too much. My daytime consists of long exercise routines at (much too) sunny Pickneyville Park or in the ultra-modern, renovated YMCA weight room. That is usually followed with some reading and GMAT studying. At night, I might go out for a drink or a mini-adventure with Matt, and of course, there's lounging around with the guys in channel scu. I've been on some interesting expeditions since graduation, however, from learning to ride a trotting horse in south Georgia to gathering 60 pounds of old, unused clothing in my attic for the local donation center (my, have I grown. and shrank. and grown again).

A few more events of note:

1. The Blattella asahinai has found its way to Georgia! The Asian Cockroach, that is. Has wings, can fly, attracted to light. Most of the time, you have to look out for roaches - they run away from light and hide under cracks. But the Asian Cockroach finds YOU! As you may be the only source of light in your otherwise energy-saving household, this guy will nonchalantly hover into your office room and select your laptop as its landing pad. Asian roaches also have higher armor upgrades than their American counterparts and are resistant to concus- er, chemcal damage. Not that my house is a roach lounge or anything; these things just happen more often when you live near the forest.

2. Been working on some video game music. The biggest challenge, to me at least, is that game music is more catchy than interesting. An interesting harmony is full of surprises and leads to a musical conclusion in unexpected ways. Example: "I Dreamed a Dream" from Les Miserables, when the tune modulates from Eb Major to F minor! ("But the tigers come at night...") In contrast, a "catchy" tune is almost always, in musical theory language, I-VI(IV6)-IV(II6)-V-I (ex. "Bleeding Love") or I-V-VI-III-VI-I-IV-V (canon in D). Although less frequent, there are of course other patterns, and I ultimately went with something a little jazzier. Stay tuned for more news on the product.