By JoAnn Snavely

I’ve had my fair share of unhealthy obsessions with things; when I become fixated on different topics, I will literally access an astronomical amount of information regarding the topic. Many times this opens a pandora’s box of information you did not want to know because one second you’ll mention something I enjoy, and the next I’ll go on a 20-minute rant about it. My likes and dislikes evolve consistently, but there are certain things that I quite literally have too much knowledge about.

Woodstock

Woodstock was a music festival that took place in the summer of 1969 in New Bethel, New York. The music festival was discounted as a festival filled with hippies doing drugs, but it was so much more than that. Woodstock was symbolic in representing that their generation was so much more than uneducated kids, that they could survive three days without any violence. They did exactly that, fueling the pacifist inside of me. Woodstock really unlocked my inner-hippie, sparking my global-warming interest as I educated myself on what is really going on in the world. Woodstock has inspired me to channel the more peaceful and natural aspects of life by avoiding the violence and negativity in the world. 

Global Warming

My plethora of knowledge regarding global warming and world peace sparked over the summer break transitioning into high school. It really started after I wrote an essay about global warming in the beginning of my freshman year. Since then, almost every political piece I have written has been focused around global warming. I’ve written poems, short stories, and essays galore explaining my passion for the issue of global warming. Just the other day, my dad had to sit through a 45-minute tangent I went on about global warming. I’ve spent hundreds of dollars on eco-friendly backpacks, clothing, even shoes. I’m not even getting into global warming because that’s worth an article in and of itself.

Candles

Candles own my entire heart, bank account, and free space in my room. There is almost always a candle burning in my room; I literally have an unhealthy shopping obsession with candles. I could easily give you a list of candles for any of your likes and dislikes. Ask me about candles, and I will tell you about every single candle I’ve ever owned or plan to own. I can’t go a day without talking about candles, literally ask anyone. I love candles with everything inside of me and would easily drop my life savings on candles and not bat an eye.

A24 Films

Over quarantine, I became very infatuated with films, especially A24 films. I’ve watched almost every single A24 movie and could give a not-so brief synopsis of each film I’ve watched. Everything from their filming style to the topics they cover is truly a work of art. If you don’t know who A24 is, they are a company that has produced many notable films such as; Midsommar, Ladybird, Uncut Gems, Euphoria, Mid90s, and MANY more. My infatuation with A24 began with Midsommar. Midsommar was the first film I watched by them, and it is admittedly a very dark film as it follows Dani (Florence Pugh) in her spiral into insanity while spending the summer with a Swedish cult. I then fell into a rabbit hole making my friends and family watch many A24 films and then listen to me thoroughly explain the hidden meanings behind each of them.

Movies

If you thought my A24 obsession was concerning, wait until you hear my unnecessary knowledge on films in general. Some of my favorite (non A24 or Harry Potter) films being, Nightmare Before Christmas, House of 1000 Corpses, Dazed and Confused, Marriage Story, and Beautiful Boy. Each of these films alone I can write multiple page essays regarding each of them. The amount of serotonin certain films brings me is immaculate. Movies are something that, regardless of my current struggles, I can always turn to them to escape for an hour or two. I love all the hidden meanings in movies and deciphering or coming up with my individual opinions of the meaning behind them. Something that I find amazing is how films can often represent something so much bigger than itself.

Harry Potter

My poor dad; I have forced him to watch all of these movies, but, being the champ he is, he’s watched them all without complaint. Like, I’ve made him watch almost every A24 movie, many classics, older films, even chick flicks, and he’s sat through them all. But, I am most guilty of making him watch every single Harry Potter movie multiple times. Recently I’ve revisited the childhood nostalgia that is the Harry Potter phase, which I was sheltered from at a young age with my mom not letting me watch any “witch related” TV or movies. I wasn’t even allowed to watch Wizards of Waverly Place. Since I have sparked my obsession with Harry Potter, I’ve turned the film series into my comfort series; what I mean by that is with any minor inconvenience I will turn to Harry Potter and feel okay again. With 8 movies and 8 books (including Cursed Child) pertaining to the franchise, Harry Potter has built an empire. The films and books follow young Harry Potter’s battle with himself and his “demons” (Lord Voldemort) with a little bit of magic thrown in to bring an escape from reality.

My Spotify Playlists

Music is something that I most definitely pride my knowledge in. Since I downloaded Spotify in 2018 I have cycled through plenty of playlists and am continuously making new playlists everyday. One thing I pride myself in is my Spotify playlists. I tailor my playlists with many different moods and demographics in mind. Every playlist has a meaning behind it representing the feeling I receive when I hear specific songs. My most popular playlists are titled; “a girl can dream”, “i wanna commit arson”, and “idk something vibey”. I could give a very devoted explanation, and I would, but it would be so long. My playlist titled “idk something vibey” is the playlist I imagine driving down the highway in the middle of the night listening to these songs and feeling a sublime feeling of inner-peace.

Wallows

Wallows is a band composed of Braeden Lemasters, Cole Preston, and Dylan Minnette. My obsession with Wallows began in the 8th grade and since then a very long streak of me playing Wallows on the daily. With that I have dropped tons of money on their merch and buying all things Wallows. I could go through their discography and explain each song and proceed to recite the songs word for word. That might be a bit of a stretch but I sure love Wallows so much. One thing I am willing to drop everything for is any interview or music video that gets dropped. When their most recent EP titled “Remote” was dropped on October 23rd I made it a point to stay up until the Ep was released, even then I can still describe every song on the EP. Recently Wallows has gained traction with their songs “Are You Bored Yet?”, “OK”, and “Scrawny” bringing in over 320,000,000 streams.