A Road Not Taken

I've been watching the reruns of Glee ever since Lost ended. It's goofy and cheesy, yes, but it's also very entertaining, and the musical numbers are really well done.

I was in swing and jazz choirs* from eighth grade through my senior year, so I can identify with parts of the show, though it definitely takes a lot of artistic license with what being in and performing in a such a group is actually like. But that's fine; it can do that.

It has also made me think about why I stopped doing it too. I had been in these kinds of groups for five years straight when I finished high school, and of course was in the concert choir on top of that. And then there was the occasional school musical, to say nothing of church youth choir and the summer musicals for that as well. So yeah, singing was a big part of my life, but when I reached college I needed a break from it. I didn't audition for any groups my freshman year, though I thought I might by the time my sophomore year rolled around. However, life and school got in the way, and I never did get involved with vocal music again. The closest I get nowadays is the occasional game of Rock Band at a party. And I can still do great on Expert, too, which shows I still have some ability, I guess.

I do wonder what would have happened if I had stuck with music. I certainly wasn't going to become a professional or anything, but maybe I would still be doing the occasional community theater gig, or not be too shy to get up and do karaoke at a bar. But then, I don't think it's too late for me to get back into it if I really wanted to. Just a good training montage or two, and I'd be ready to go.

* A note on the hierarchy of school music groups. At least when I was in high school, there was definitely a ranking amongst the different types of ensembles. Back then, show choirs were at the bottom, as they were seen as being about flash more than musical susbtance (I don't and didn't agree, of course). Jazz choirs were the next rung up due to the higher need for technical ability and the perceived greater academic legitimacy of the music compared to pop standards and show tunes. At the top were the pure a capella groups, since there's no such thing as an okay a capella group -- if you're not good, you can't do it. Like I said, these aren't my opinions, but it was the consensus at the time.

Lost No More (No Spoilers)

Last night we had a mini-marathon of the last four episodes of Lost, as well as the two-hour special that aired right before the finale. We had them sitting on our Tivo for a while and had never gotten around to watching them, due to being pretty busy, so with the series ending, it seemed like the right time to finish it off. Plus, I figured I could only stay unspoiled for so long.

I know people were quite divided on whether or not the show ended well. I don't want to get into a big discussion of its merits or flaws -- there are certainly enough of those elsewhere on the Web already -- but overall we were both very pleased with it. Yes, there were a few plot threads and elements they didn't address, but in terms of character development and their personal stories, they reached a highly satisfying conclusion.

Eventually, I want to go back and watch the series from the beginning; the special and certain moments of the finale reminded me of a lot of awesome scenes from earlier on. And I'm also looking forward to being able to finally watch Glee in real-time next season too.