Have you ever stopped to think about how many outside influences you have on your life? Specifically, how many people do you interact with in one day? Some people will have higher numbers than others (as, I can imagine, a banker would have a higher number than me, a couch potato). How much of those people rub off on us with their contact? What do we take away from our everyday interactions that we carry with us for the rest of the day, or possibly longer?

I realize that this is sort of an abstract post, but it’s something I’ve been thinking about quite a bit over the past couple of weeks. I have been riding the bus lately, and, though I try my hardest to keep to myself and avoid making eye contact with the strangers and hobos alike, I’ve found that one comes into contact with quite a few people. When one gets into a routine like riding the bus everyday or going on a bi-weekly grocery excursion, you may run into many of the same people. You might see the same bus driver on your route on certain days, or the same passengers waiting in line for the bus at your stop.

When I took my car to work, I was shielded from such observations. Aside from the people I met at work and at home, I didn’t pay a whole lot of attention to what was going on outside me and maybe a ten-foot radius around myself. But sometimes it can be truly fascinating to open your eyes and observe the flurries of activity around you when you think everything is quiet and normal.

A few instances lately:

• There is always a man waiting for the bus on certain days on the corner across from my apartment building. He is of average height and has a very distinctive walk. The reason why I remember him so vividly is because he walks back and forth in front of the shops, looking out at the road as if he was waiting for the bus, limping severely as he paces… but when the bus shows up, he rounds the corner and walks away. This is a ritual that happens often, I’ve found.
• When I transfer buses in the University District, the 30 to Sandpoint always rounds the corner near me while I wait for my 72. A kid with a blue knit snow cap, blue backpack and heavy blue coat runs off the bus toward Brooklyn Ave., then runs across the crosswalk northwards as if he’s late for something. He has a distinctive pace as he runs towards 45th street, seemingly late for something.

I often find myself making mental notes of these people and what they do, and expecting them in the course of my daily commute, like a bus passing a landmark or something. It’s interesting to think that they will likely never know me but they have become fixtures in my morning commute, things I notice while I listen to my music in my own obscurity.

Even more than these obscure acquaintances, what do we take away from the people that we deal with at work or school? A difficult customer may ‘ruin our day’ or cause us to lash out in anger at a loved one over a seemingly innocent provocation. Accordingly, an old lady at work or a friendly classmate may remark, “I like your hair today!” or “You have such a nice smile!” and it may cause us to be a little nicer or more gentle to everyone we ‘brush’ past in brief socialization that day. But do we ever ascribe those things in the long run? What sort of butterfly effect occurs here? The people we aren’t even acquaintances with, but still notice and recognize. How could they have changed our lives in minute ways we will never know?

AIR – Sex Born Poison

Beach House – Heart of Chambers

DANGER – 4h30

ITS ALMOST HERE ITS ALMOST HERE ITS ALMOST HERE ITS ALMOST HERE!!!! The musical highlight of my month (aside from the Phoenix concert, obviously, blogged about here) was this track, preceding the full EP that comes out on digital download 1st February. I’m quite enthused.

Frankmusik – Confusion Girl (Russ Chimes Remix)

The landmark trial currently before the United States District Court for the Northern District of California has huge potential. The constitutional challenge to California’s anti-gay marriage statute passed by referendum in 2008 (a.k.a “Proposition 8″) started this past Monday, and is easily the most anticipated court challenge in the past few years. Everything is on the table and being discussed, from gay marriage to adoption, civil rights to biological science, Loving v. Virginia to Jones v. Hallahan. Many gay rights groups believe the trial is likely to have a positive impact on precedence for gay marriage laws; not just in California, but for other states as well.

The religious right’s strategy in these hearings? Go big or go home. The defendants have threatened to appeal to the United States Supreme Court if the trial isn’t decided in their favor. But is such a strategy really prudent for them?

One of the crowning achievements of our democracy is our system of justice. The United States Supreme Court is at the end of the road for any legal proceeding possible. It hears cases that can (and sometimes do) change the very framework that our nation is built on. Any decision by the court is binding and sets legal precedent that influences the direction of policy and legal decisions for years. The Supreme Court is the head of the household, if you will, and the underlings are the lower appellate courts that constitutional challenges and important appeals go to first. If the losing party appeals, they then move up the chain of courts until they finally get the case in front of the Supreme Court.

Right now, the Prop 8 constitutional challenge is currently in front of one of those subordinate appellate courts – the District Court for the Northern District of California. According to press reports and liveblogs inside the trial, it seems to be quite an interesting ride so far. Everything is on the table with Judge Vaughn Walker, and the plaintiffs are making a tremendous case. The defendants are, well, on the defensive, with news breaking recently of issues inside the defense team and members trying desperately to distance themselves from the trial. Not the best outlook for the State of California’s last hope at keeping traditional ‘opposite’ marriage. (Gasp!) A press release from the National Organization for Marriage [link is NSFYS: not safe for your sanity!] details their strategy if their case doesn’t go as hoped: “We’re in for a real fight to save traditional marriage. The trial court proceedings are expected to last for weeks. The case will then be appealed and, ultimately, will end up before the United States Supreme Court.” I find this to be an interesting strategy. Push the case to the highest court in the land – y’know, the court that has the potential to strike down laws across the country – and hope for a victory?

Let’s look at the numbers first. Nearly every national poll on gay marriage support is inconclusive – it’s up one year and down the next, and many polls have different numbers for the same topics. But let’s look at the OTHER numbers, the ones that can actually help us project the likelihood of gay marriage existing in most states within, say, my parents’ lifetimes. Firstly, gay marriage is vastly more popular with young people than it is amongst people of older generations. Gallup says that among people aged 65 and older, 32% are for gay marriage, with 66% against. Moving through the generations, there is a visible progression. People of 50-64 years are 37% for gay marriage, and 30-to-49-year-olds are 40% in favor. But in the country’s youngest age bracket of 18-29 years of age (i.e. the one that will be calling the shots in about 10-15 years), 59% are for, and 37% against (margin of sampling error +/- 3%). The Pew Forum has different numbers (a bit lower in favor for each age bracket) but that same progression of strong support in the younger age bracket is still evident. So it’s clear that the youth and Generation X are much more in favor of gay marriage then their older counterparts. And we all know what happens with new generations – they move in to replace the older ones. That will, without a doubt, make these polls show more support for gay marriage nationally over the next few years. As FiveThirtyEight’s Nate Silver says:

Civil unions have already achieved the support of an outright majority of Americans, and as those older voters are replaced by younger ones, the smart money is that gay marriage will reach majority status too at some point in the 2010’s.

Furthermore, there are even more not-so-good numbers for NOM. As the levels of religious influence in the general population fall, and the levels of atheists/agnostics/non-fundamentalists rise, numbers in favor of gay marriage will likely increase at a faster rate.

It seems that under these circumstances, NOM’s best bet for having their gay marriage-free world would be to stand still and do nothing. Seriously. The best bet for stalling a gay marriage bill is to leave it up to our always-adept lawmakers to legislate it. Everybody knows that the fastest way to kill something is to leave it to a State House (or, worse yet, the national Congress). So what if they lose California? They are taking on much bigger risks by sending the case to the Supreme Court, given the possible outcome. It would likely be irreversible at that point. You’d think they would want to sacrifice that, if it meant saving the rest of the nation. (The pro-America parts only, of course.) Perhaps their only saving grace is that the Supreme Court is composed entirely of oldness and Antonin Scalia’s gigantic head. The last thing they should want would be a repeal of DOMA, and sending this case to the Supreme Court could lead to that!

(Seriously though, why is there a National Organization for Marriage? Isn’t gay marriage inevitable already?)

Passion Pit – To Kingdom Come (Grum Vocal Mix)

I found this song on DÖDSELECTRO. They listed it as their number 5 favourite remix of 2009, and for good good reason. LOVE the vocals, love the beat, love it all around. I will definitely be checking out more of Grum’s remixes.

Annie – Anthonio (Designer Drugs Remix)

This was number 10 on DÖDSELECTRO’s same list above. Female vocals here but it’s nice and soft with a nice steady beat.

(Maybe I will do 2 a week all the time. I don’t know. Alls I know is that this week, I LOVE LOVE LOVE these songs to death.)

Sirkka – Fear of Tigers (electro/dance)

The band’s MySpace page, billing them as a fusion of “Japanese Pop/Shoegaze/Powerpop” is distributing their album for free. Check it out: http://www.myspace.com/fearoftigers

Yelle – Qui Est Cette Fille (French pop/electro/dance)

I like Yelle, and I like pretty electro songs. This one runs the gammut. It came out back in June apparently, but it’s new to me, so there. This is one of the songs that makes me wish I was fully bilingual.