When people tell you your plate is too full

I’ve been told a lot, especially recently, to be careful about putting too much on my plate. And I’m not talking about Thanksgiving.

I have a habit, see. It can be a bad habit if I let it get out of control. I like to stay busy. Really busy. The kind of busy that makes me forget to eat breakfast in the morning and wonder what it’s like to have a social life.

I like that kind of busy. I like doing things that I enjoy. When it comes to those things – writing, Hypable, editing, blogging, etc. – I have trouble saying no. But you know what?

I don’t care.

I’m not going to say no. Sure, I might be a little too busy. I might be a little stressed. I might have too much on my plate. But those are all good things in my eyes.

It’s hard for me to explain, so I’m going to let someone else do it for me. Basically, this guy takes the words right out of my mouth and makes them funnier than I ever could. (He sort of throws some other stuff in there that won’t make sense if you don’t keep up with his YouTube channel, but he comes back around to the point again throughout the video.)

 
I have found something I want to spend all of my time doing. I literally work all day – from the time I get up to the time I go back to bed – seven days a week. Whether it be for my paying job, my editing, my column writing, my own writing, working on other people’s stories as a favor, etc. I’m always doing something and I rarely (never?) spend a whole evening just doing nothing.

I’m not saying that to complain. And I’m not saying that to brag. I’m saying it because it’s fact, and because I know a lot of you do the same thing.

We’re writers and we’re totally content to just write every day, all day. Sure, we need breaks and relaxation and vacations, but so many of us have found the one thing we actually want to work on day in and day out. And that is a beautiful, beautiful thing. We should never apologize for that.

I’m certainly not going to.

Write your hearts out, guys. <3

Rising Stars: Epic Rap Battles of History

In this series, I like to tell you about an artist or group that has caught my attention. They’re not mainstream, but they have the potential to become pretty well-known given their extraordinary level of talent. I blogged about Karmin before they hit it big, and now they’re signed with L.A. Reid and have had smash hits on the radio.

I don’t have a particularly good ear for music that is well crafted or inventive. I just know what I like. I can’t promise that any of these artists will ever make it off YouTube, but I can say that I think they should. This is just my way of spreading the word about how amazing they are.

You guys seemed pretty impressed when I posted about George Watsky, the famed “Pale Kid Raps Fast” artist. Well, I’ve got another one for you. This is a web series called Epic Rap Battles of History. They take two fictional or historical figures and pit them against each other in a rap battle. Viewers get to decide who wins and who will be featured in the next one.

The guys who put this together (their internet personas are Nice Peter and EpicLLOYD) have a slew of talented people they can call on to dress up as these famous figures. They often play the parts themselves, but when a different person is better suited, they hand the reins over with no problems. (It just so happens that George Watsky has appeared in their videos twice, as well!)

It sounds silly and farfetched (and it IS), but these are well constructed raps that are intelligently written. They take facts and phrases from these people’s lives, give the characters larger than life personalities, and pit them against each other. Not to mention all the videos are hilarious.

(It’s come to my attention that I have, uh, a very specific sense of humor. These videos are completely ridiculous and a little rude, to put it lightly. The actors swear and make fun of the people they’re playing, just FYI.)

One of the best examples to see how they incorporate language and facts about these people into a rap can be seen in this video Shakespeare versus Dr. Seuss.

 
Crazy, right!? Some of them are a little more farfetched than others (Genghis Khan versus the Easter Bunny, anyone?), but they’re all so well written that you can’t help but just sit at your computer and laugh.

Another favorite one of mine is Barack Obama versus Mitt Romney, which is hilarious no matter which candidate you supported.

 
The thing I really enjoy about ERB is that they had a random idea and went with it. They didn’t let fear or money hold them back. In fact, their first rap battle was funded on just $50. They have more money now, but the principles are still the same. They do it because they love it, and that shows.

It’s a strange comparison, I know, but I draw inspiration from these guys. Their talent and passion is obvious and that has translated into their success. (And I mean SUCCESS – most of their videos have 30+ million views.) I can only hope that one day my passion will do the same for me.

You can check out season 1 and season 2, as well as behind-the-scenes for season 1 and season 2.

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So, tell me honestly – what do you guys think? Am I just really weird, or do you find these as funny as I do?