MORE is here

Hey, check  back to www.myspace.com/victoriautah.

All of the tracks we recorded in the studio are up and ready to be critiqued. Let me know what you think!!

-Zac

My Band’s Myspace

Hey, check out my band’s new Myspace page. Its quite primitive because I just set it up today, but if you check back every week or two there should be more stuff. Let me know what you think!

www.myspace.com/victoriautah

Pushing Forward

So it’s been a couple months, I admit I’m really bad at this whole blog thing. 

Update on my bands EP: We have everything tracked and recorded, we are just waiting for it to be mixed and for the final touches, and then I should be able to produce something for you all. Hope you all like it! Its been a fun couple of weeks in the recording studio. I can’t explain the rush I get when laying down the drum tracks. I literally couldn’t sit still after I played each song. The sound quality is amazing! I’m used to hearing recordings from my garage through crappy equipment, so playing in a real sound studio with professional equipment really is awesome. 

School has started again for the first time since the Fall 2007 semester. I have to say, its good to be back. I’m only taking two classes (biology 1010 and weight training) but its ok because I still wanted to work just as much and i needed to leave some time for my music projects as well. School is definitely a good thing. Keeps me busy, and there are A LOT of girls at UVU. Thats pretty much my favorite part! I’m looking forward to lifting weights as well because I am ridiculously scrawny. It’ll be nice to have some definition for once. 

I’m in pursuit of a certain girl at the current time… so far my efforts have gone unnoticed but I have not given up yet. I will post further updates as things progress (or digress). I guess I’ve been waiting for her to make the first move but that strategy is failing, I suppose I’ll have to be the one to get the boulder rolling.

Chaotic Psychos

This mornings blog is dedicated to the Christmas shoppers. Being a mall employee I see hundreds of people a day, all with one objective. For some reason the people of this nation find pleasure in packing the streets with their cars, cramming into one big building of advertisements, false sales and marketing techniques (AKA University Mall), and spending thousands of dollars on gifts for their second cousins, great uncles, siblings friends and their dog. I do admit I like buying gifts for people, but I honestly don’t see the logic in buying christmas gifts for everyone you know as an acquaintance. 

Alright, I’m being harsh and exaggerative I suppose. Or maybe I’m just cheap, or maybe I don’t get the “true meaning of christmas” that it seems everyone around here knows so damn well. All I know is it takes twice as long to get anywhere in Utah County between the hours of 8:00 A.M. and 11:00 P.M. and I’m more than a little busy at work keeping every snooty piano teacher, stressed out ward choir director, potential guitar player and wannabe punky-emo-screamo kid satisfied. Not to mention keeping the store in any type of logical order and keeping my eyes out for shoplifters. Its outrageous how many more cars are on the street halfway through November until new years. My favorite part of Christmas it seems has been lost in a tornado of shopping, shopping, oh and did I mention shopping?

Let us all join company with our close ones and eat lots of food, reflect on the good times and forget about buying everyone we know silly gifts. Keep the gift buying to the people you care about most, and save your money for a rainy day, local charity, or recording time (cough!). 

Anyways, I’m a bit bitter I guess but I wish Christmas wasn’t so commercial. Maybe its not such a big deal and I’m whining for nothing, but hey thats what a blog is for. Hope I didn’t offend anyone!

-Zac

Whew..

Alright Ali I’ll update my blog. I’m pretty horrible at this whole thing. I don’t even know where to begin. I haven’t posted in such a long time and there really isn’t any way to connect my last entry to this one, since basically everything in the last one is no longer relevant to my life. 

Since my last entry…

I’m still single. I still work at Best in Music, and plan to continue working there since my last raise was significant and I have opportunity to move up in the small company I’ve began to adore. My interest in two certain girls has been lost, one of which got engaged a month after I kissed her. I wrecked my 4Runner once (already??). I bought a rifle. I ended up NOT going to school in the fall, but will start in January. I changed my career interest away from anything math oriented. I turned 20, and realized I couldn’t blame my stupidity on being a teenager anymore. I’ve played a lot of drums and guitar and am currently playing in three bands, one of which will start recording at a professional studio in a couple weeks….

Anyway, the last six months in a nutshell.

As for the future, I’ve got a pretty good idea of where I’m going. My old band Victoria is reuniting completely in May of next year, and the guitarist and I have been actively practicing new and improved material and will be recording an EP starting in a couple weeks. We plan to push the music far and hope to go a long way in the music industry. In a month or two when that is complete I will post a link to a band website of sorts, probably myspace. I still plan to earn a degree of sorts, possibly in audio recording or something close to that. I’m much more of a ‘do it with your hands’ type of guy than anything else and there is good money in it. 

Still looking for the one that I will hold dearest to my heart, but so far I’m still in quite a drought. I’m confident she will appear soon enough though. I’ve changed a lot this year and I feel like I’m quite ready for a few more changes that will settle me into a groove with a good, positive direction. I’ve been through a lot of personal hell in the last few months, but am working through it all, and feel like something big is in store for me soon.

Anyway, I’m real tired so I won’t write anymore for now, but thanks Ali for the interest. I do admit I’ve been quite a hermit to my family lately. I am excited to see many of you next week in Loa.

-Zac

Oh, yeah. Rockin’

Alright, alright. I know I said I would post more. Still getting used to this thing.

Well, went on my date with Camille, as well as two others and two mountain biking adventures. Things are looking great, so far. Turns out we’ve got a bunch of stuff in common, one thing being mountain biking. And the best part… SHE IS FAST!!!! One of the only people I’ve ever biked with that I don’t have to wait for, in fact she’s led the way both times. It’s been awesome. I’m excited to continue hanging out with her. I think she likes me. (Knock on wood)

I signed up for an independent study course… the sub-level 100 math course Math 97. Intermediate algebra. I took that class as a junior in high school, but I’m taking it again. Some math related fields have been interesting me lately so I’ve decided to start at the beginning so I don’t miss any important concepts and to get comfortable with it. Can you imagine me as an engineer of sorts?

Anyway, just living life to the fullest right now. I’m loving my new truck, I’m working on getting that Bluehost job, I’m excited for school this fall, and its raining women. I couldn’t be happier at the moment, although I’m prepared for a slump in my mood. Unfortunately those are always unavoidable, but I’m prepared to deal with anything that comes up. I’ll let you know if I do anything completely and outrageously exciting. 

 

-Zac

New Car, and other news

Hi Everyone,

So, I finally buckled down and bought a new car to replace my old decrepit Volkswagen. Its a 1995 4Runner, and it is absolutely glorious. It has been my dream car for the longest time, and now I can call it my own! So, if anyone knows somebody with the need of an old beater car, let me know. I took it off-road for the first time a couple nights ago and I cannot believe how well it climbs, descends and crawls over things. I’m looking forward to many camping, hiking, biking trips and fun memories in my dream car.

I’m still feeling very relaxed right now, and with exception to the new car payment, and the ongoing drought in my dating life, I’m doing OK. I’ve started to look at some classes down at UVU that I might be interested in taking this fall. For the moment, I think I’m going to stick with generals for just a little while to allow me to get my bearings and work on getting good grades, before I try and start worrying about what I’m going to major in.  I guess doing things one step at a time has worked for me in the past, so I figure it should now as well. 

There’s a girl I’m interested in now as well, and if we keep our plans active and go out tomorrow night, I’m going to be very happy. She’s a drummer like me, and has a lot of interests that match mine as well. The thought of going out with her tomorrow night is making me very hopeful. My goal is to try and make really good friends with her so that I have another person to hang out with. I’ve been chillin’ at home a lot lately, and I’m starting to get tired of it. Maybe I’ll take her digging in my new truck… she was saying that would be fun.

Anyway, as of right now I’m still working at Best In Music. I don’t know why I’m still there, but for some reason I just can’t seem to break away from it. I’m still debating about whether or not I want to go to work for Bluehost. Its intimidating me right now. I think its because I’m quite inept at the whole computer thing, and the scheduling is also scaring me a bit. I’ll work through it though, and make (hopefully) the right decision. 

I promise I’ll start posting more. Its getting to be that time where its warm enough to do interesting things, so I should be able to give some stories soon. 

-Zac

 

 

Away from home

Hey Everyone,

I’m writing this from the most southern part of Utah. Yeah, St. George, and I drove here in my 1990 VW Golf hatchback. Well, as you can imagine with a car that old, its been quite an adventure. I began my trip this morning at around 10:00 am. I filled up with gas (I don’t know if I’ll ever re-grow the leg I had to give for it) and left for Utah’s dixie. Well, everything was fine and dandy, the whole way down. I didn’t dare stop my car anywhere because I was worried about it breaking, and if it did, I don’t know what I would have done. So, I drove the entire way without stopping and four hours later, I ended up here in St. George. This is where the fun begins.

First of all, St. George has more traffic at midday than Utah County has at rush hour. Meanwhile, my car is having a difficult time staying awake. It’s a very delicate process… let me explain. When my car decides it doesn’t want to idle at a light it shuts off. To prevent this, one has to push the brake pedal as well as the gas pedal, in order to keep the momentum of the engine up so it won’t shut off. Let’s just say I’ve gotten freaking good at braking with my left foot. Well, I hear a “knocking” sound in my motor so I pull off to a Sinclair gas station to put some higher octane fuel in the tank. I park it, and wait for a friend to meet me. By the way her name is Cassie, and I haven’t seen her for three years so that was the second reason for me coming down here besides going mountain biking. We talk for a little while and then she leaves. I go to start my car, and immediately I know something is wrong. My alternator light thingy in my dash is lit up, and I’m confused and stressing out like the worlds gonna end. I open up my hood and sure enough, I’ve thrown the alternator belt. OK, now what! 

Well, I think for a minute and ultimately decide I have to get my car to a mechanic before the shops close, so I run in to the gas station and ask if there is a mechanic nearby. They two ladies at the counter aren’t sure, and out of nowhere the man at the counter asks me what I need done to it. This guy looks like a serial killer… he’s a complete redneck, buying a twelve pack of beer and cigarettes. I tell him I threw the alternator belt and he asks if he can take a look at my car. Desperate, I agree and he takes a look and starts analyzing my problem. After a minute or two he tells me he’ll fix it for 25 bucks (versus $65 for an hour at a shop. He says I could follow him to his house and he’ll fix it for me no problem. Again in desperation, I agree and follow him to his home or rather, trailer, and he began working on it with his friend. The whole time I’m extremely skeptical and wondering whether or not this is such a good idea, but something kept telling me that this is the only way my car was gonna get fixed. I needed a belt to replace the old one, so he drove me to Checker Auto and and to the bank so I could get some cash out to pay him for his work. So, back to the trailer home. These two guys, Eric (the man I met first) and Chris, must be some of the nicest and funniest guys I’ve met in my life. The whole time they worked on my car they were cracking jokes about each other, drinking beer and smoking cigarettes, but I could tell they knew their way around a car. They had the necessary tools and within a half hour of some grunt work, they put the new belt on. Sure enough, it worked great after that. I thanked them many times, and gave them a bit more than they asked for, for which they were happy about. It was the only way I could think of to repay them for their kindness and willingness to help a young 19-year-old all by himself hundreds of miles from home. 

I thought back on this after I left their home with a now running vehicle that will get me home. If I hadn’t stopped at that exact gas station, met Cassie at that time, and waited to start my car until after we talked, I would have never met Eric, and would probably be stranded down here. I mentioned to Eric how I noticed some cracks a couple days ago in the belt and thought I should probably replace it, but I ignored it and came down here anyway. He said something very interesting to me that I won’t forget, and I don’t remember exactly how he worded it but he said, “Sometimes you have to look a little deeper into things you notice and try to realize why you noticed it.” This same thing happened when I got in the car accident in the Grand Prix two winters ago. I kept noticing a car on the freeway for some reason. There were tons of cars on the road that night but for some reason I kept noticing that car. Well, that ended up being the car that I crashed into that night. 

I have no doubt that Eric was placed in my path for a reason, and that I was supposed to meet him. I am very grateful that I got a chance to meet him as well as Chris, and will always remember what they did to help me on my little trip to St. George. A couple of guys that looked like raging drunks and wife beaters ended up being some of the most kind people I’ve ever met. I will never look at a redneck the same way again.

-(a very humble) Zac

Part Two

Hey everyone, 

I know its been a while since my last post (longer than a month, actually), so here you go. I guess you could say this is an update from my last two posts. 

I have officially decided that I absolutely love this break from school I’m taking. I don’t think I’ve been this relaxed since… well, high school. I went to school then about as much as I do now, and I have almost no stress. I still have no clue what I want to do for a degree, but I have progressed in so many ways since January. I can’t believe what a confidence boost I’ve had. I can talk to girls (yes I know, quite shocking, isn’t it) without screwing up a sentence and I’ve gained many new friends. I feel like I’m top of the world! I’ve been exercising, my upper body is starting to get some tone again, and I can run a half mile without dying now. Oh, and on a final note, I’ve only had one, yes ONE Dr. Pepper since last Saturday. That is quite impressive if you ask me.

Its been a very interesting couple of months as I have learned more life lessons than I have learned in the last few years. I owe this all to my dad, for suggesting the fact that I actually didn’t have to go to school. I was so sucked into thinking school is the best thing no matter what, when actually it was probably the worst thing I could be doing at that point in time. He was able to open my mind to that idea, and I cannot thank him enough for suggesting that to me. I’ve still got a whole summer to play, but I am determined to start school again in the fall. Whatever I go into, whether it be music, engineering, aviation, or whatever, I’m excited. 

For those wondering about the touring situation with my band, its pretty much screwed. Our singer just got engaged to be married on August 6th, so that dream is dead, despite what he or anyone else in the band says. On the bright side, I’ve still got two other prospective music projects. Neither will ever do a world tour, but they are very creative projects that I love being involved in. For anyone that is interested, email me and I’ll let you know when we end up playing shows, recording tracks, and the like. 

One of the most important things I’ve learned is that time can fix just about anything. I was so unsure about my decision to break up with my girlfriend, but now I can see why it was so important at that time, and also the benefits I have reaped from doing so. Both of us have grown in ways we never could have if we were still together and although it has taken a little bit of time, I can see the lasting benefits that both of us have been able to take advantage of. Unfortunately, I think she is still a tad bitter about the whole thing, and is taking a much longer time to get back into the bead of things. Its not my problem, though. Its she who is restricting herself to that hole she’s in, and sooner or later I know she’ll realize what she needs to do to get out of it. (Don’t ask me about it. I don’t want to try to explain the psyche of Kelsey, and frankly, I get a bit heated when I have to try to explain it, because I can’t.)

Anyway, I want to thank everyone for their comments and concern about my well being. I am still a teenager after all, and I’m still just as moody as anyone. I still have bad days, but I know better how to control myself and work through the tough times. I’ll try to post more about more interesting subjects. 

-Zac

Loser

It is an interesting thing breaking up with somebody. Especially breaking up with somebody you’ve dated for over two years. I’m such a loser. It is so freaking hard to fill up my time now. Before, I relied on Kelsey to occupy my time. Hanging out after work, watching movies, playing games, even just talking. Now its gone, and I have literally three friends that I can kind of hang out with. All three have their own groups of friends and it takes more than a little effort to actually get around to doing something. Its hard to realize that I have to start at the bottom and build up my “friend base” (sorry I stole that from fan base.. a term commonly used in the music business in regards to how many and what kind of fans follow your band) awkwardly and slowly. So far I’ve been handling it ok, but you know, sometimes I really just want someone to hold. Its cool though, I don’t have to feel bad about thinking about other girls and it actually has motivated me to eat better, lose weight, etc. etc. because now I have to compete. Male dominance… yeah. Pretty ridiculous if you think about it. Anyway, Its the most odd feeling being single after being in a relationship. Suddenly I feel like I’m invincible and like I could do anything, and sometimes I really feel like I can. Anyway.. I understand that this is probably putting whoever is reading this into a coma because of how boring it is. Nobody wants to hear a sap story about a breakup.  But basically, I’m mostly happy about where I am right now. I’m excited to meet new people and I’m motivated to get back into shape, as well as a few other things. In retrospect, I may not have gone about it in the right way, and I hope she can forgive me for hurting her feelings, but I feel that it is for the better and that everything will work out in the end. If we are really meant to be together, then I am confident that there will be another opportunity for that to happen.