#clare posts

I really didn’t care for Bohemian Rhapsody in college; I can still see my friends all gathered around in the living room singing it at the top of their lungs. I just looked at them incredulously, like they weren’t even of this earth.

I had stood directly in front of the Dominion Theatre in London only a year or so earlier, where his golden statue overlooks the city streets and demands the attention of even the most uninterested pedestrian. It’s flashy and grandiose, just like the subject matter’s public persona. I looked up and felt nothing.

But that was college. This is now. I was unenlightened and blind. Now I see and understand with the utmost clarity.

I can’t recall the exact moment when I started growing fond of Queen, other than it was 4-5 years ago and long after I had laid eyes on that statue in London.

I read a lot about Freddie and watched several of his interviews, making note of the eccentricities that undoubtedly rose to the surface no matter how mundane the conversation. I liked that he was different. I liked that he wasn’t nice all the time and that his wit was even sharper than his accent.

Freddie was a misfit and as unique as they come. I decided to listen to Bohemian Rhapsody again after making those trivial realizations and it couldn’t have been clearer that I had listened to it all wrong the first million times. Just like the creator, it is bold and unconcerned with the rules. That song is 6+ minutes of pure, unadulterated cacophony and I couldn’t relate more if I tried.

2. It will always surprise you.

I remember hearing the news that Richard III’s*** remains were discovered in England in 2012, just 4 months after I visited the country. Legend had it that his bones had been thrown into the river, but in reality, he was hastily buried on the grounds of what was then a Friary. Needless to say, the Friary is long gone and at the time of the discovery, its grounds were serving as a parking lot. King Richard III of England was found under a parking lot, you guys. A former ruler of an entire country. If that isn’t surprising, then I don’t know what is.

History will always happen as long as we exist on this earth, which means there will always be surprises to uncover all across the globe. One of my favorite historic surprises is the discovery of a new dinosaur. You’ve got an excavation team that is over the moon, paleontologists who just fulfilled their wildest dreams, and details about a dinosaur that just yesterday, couldn’t be found anywhere on Google. I will never get tired of those.

Everyone has their own criteria when determining whether or not they had a good year. Mine is pretty standard, I think:

1. No one in my immediate family/friend group received a terminal diagnosis or passed away

2. No unexpected major expense occurred that we were unprepared for, putting us in financial distress

3. No one in my house lost their source of income

In addition to those things, I married the love of my life this year, honeymooned in French Polynesia, and saw the remaining members of Queen in concert.

Please please PLEASE don’t take this post the wrong way; I am not saying these things to brag or try and make someone else feel bad.

I am simply thankful and humbled, for nothing in this life is permanent. I am constantly reminding myself not to take anything or anyone for granted.

Martin, meet the internet.

Martin, Internet. Internet, Martin.

Martin, it has my been my utmost pleasure capturing your complexity this evening. Your look will define a generation. Enjoy your cyber fame. God knows you earned it, you camera-ready bastard you.

5. I’m good at it, and I know that sounds funny.

How can you be good at something that isn’t technically a skill? I can’t go and perform

“history” on something. Basically, to be good at history, you must have a good memory. When it comes to dates, I am a freak of nature, and that is not an exaggeration. One time my roommate in college was eating a Popsicle and after she finished, she asked me the question on the stick: 

“In what year did George Washington die?” 

“1799,” I said, almost immediately. She was stunned. 

“Wow, you really are a nerd.”