My life is modal

The ancient Greeks used a modal system of harmony, i.e. a system based on different sets of scales. This is in opposition to the classical western theory of harmony, in which music could be understood via progressions of triads - simple chords. The ancient Greeks believed that each mode evokes certain emotions and it was through emotion that sense could be made of music. While modal music fell out of use during the baroque era, it has re-emerged in modern music from Debussy, to jazz, and even some of modern rock music. That is not to say modal music was not extinct for some several hundred years - folk music has always been based on modes. Today, I finally sat down and played every mode in every key on the piano, and I realized that what has ended up being the biggest discriminator for my enjoyment of music is how many modal harmonies it uses. Pop tunes with canned ever-fresh harmonies are typically more classically based. Classical harmony is smooth and easy to listen to (particularly that in major tonalities). If you were going to make a song that was agreeable to the most number of people possible, why stray from classical western harmonies?

But the ancient Greeks, they had it right. Modal harmonies couples music to emotion. When you listen to "Impressions" by Coltrane - in the Dorian mode, you feel unbridled freedom. When you listen to "L.A. Woman" by the Doors, in A mixolydian, you can feel the restlessness and playfulness so much so that you don't even need to know the lyrics to figure out what kind of energy is being conveyed, although "driving down your freeway" is pretty clear. For me, there is no other reason to listen to music. I've recently run into a problem where I cannot hardly listen to any of my favorite songs anymore. Many of them are so strongly correlated with particular periods in my life, that I fear that over listening to them will destroy this correlation. For instance, when I listen the the Talking Heads' Once in a Lifetime, memories of Fall of 2009 come to my head so strongly, I feel transported back to that time in an instant. I can remember watching "stop making sense" with Jordan in the shed on midterm movie night, I can remember Ed and I working on Stat Mech sets in the afternoon a few hours before they were due, I can remember doing laps at Central Park for 3 on- 2 off workouts, and for some reason, driving down a stretch of Western Del Mar Ave. with the most distinct and bright autumn-in-Pasadena smell in the air. When I listen to Dancing Days by Led Zeppelin, I am transported back to a fall of my senior year of high school, while if I listen to Radiohead's lucky, I can feel my life falling to pieces just as it felt on the afternoon of one June 12th 2010. As far as I can tell, the only solution is to simply find more music to listen to so that I can associate this radically different period of time in my life with something a bit more concrete. In the mean time:

9/2/2010 - Last day of the heat wave. I give up, it's too hot to run. You win this one Boston.
Miles: 0

9/3/2010 - Hurricane Earl moving in, to not much effect. Ran to Fresh Pond and around Danehy Park with Rosen (!! :) :) ). Started at 8:00 pace and down to 7:30 pace at times, feeling pretty good. What was I saying about feeling distant from being in shape?? Rather taxing but felt great.
Miles: 6

9/4/2010 - Various wanderings around the Charles with Jeff Lee and Kevin Ma (downstairs). Started slow, felt great at the end. Finally did 2 barefoot laps around the grass field next to my dorm - Conant. Had dim sum in downtown Boston today none other than 8 tech alums, followed by exploring a bit of downtown Boston and Boston commons.
Miles: 4.5

9/5/2010 - A bit tired. An easy 3 miles up to and past Porter square on Mass Ave. A nice day, although the sun seemed worryingly low in the sky for this time of year. Watched Dr. Stangelove for the first time. Great movie!
Miles: 3

Weekly Miles: 25

9/6/2010 - Lost my ID and was locked out of everything all day. No run. IT band felt a bit tweaked near the knee. "It is atoms and stars. It is the nakedness of earth before the first human being, and the burnt cinder after that last." Any guesses to what this beautiful poem is describing?
Miles: 0

9/7/2010 - Relaxed nighttime run to the Charles and west. Nagging static contraction in my right Soleus, but still felt ok. Ran in progression with slow early pace and finished around 8 flat pace. Also, I used "via orthochronality" in a proof today. My life is pretty much complete.
Miles: 4.5