Claire (MusicIsCool) is, relatively speaking, fairly new around here at Buzznet. But she’s quickly impressed us with her photography, her passion for the music, and her penchant for sending us mixtapes compiled by the Buzznet community. (No, really.) We dug beneath her bubbly surface and found out how much her mom has influenced her, why she’s so attached to music, and learned of her quest to travel the globe.

Buzznet: Ok, so your username obviously suggests your deep love of music. Why is music such a big part of your life?

Claire: Well, I never really was good at sports, which seem to be the big thing around where I live, and I never found anything else I liked that was mega-time-consuming, so when I was 10, I joined school band. It was way rad, and I'm still in it. I play flute, saxophone, and piano. Total nerd status, but I love it.

When I was around 13 or 14 and in the eighth grade, I got my first iPod and handed it over to my sister to put all of the music on it, since at that point I had never downloaded a single music file to my computer. She had introduced me to a ton of alternative bands outside of what I had been hearing on the radio, such as Something Corporate, Aqualung, Less Than Jake, and so many others that I can't ever remember, honestly. I basically forgot about pop music and the radio for a while and just listened to my iPod all the time, and fell in love with all of the melodies, and trying to dissect the lyrics of all the songs.

What really makes music a big part of my life is that, (and I hate saying this, because I think it makes me sound super snobby) I have perfect pitch. Basically, if you were to sing a note, without even thinking about it, I would know it. The french fry machine at McDonalds — that's usually a concert F. I'm pretty sure. I always tell the priest at my church what key signature he sings the prayers in, which gives us a good laugh.

(But honestly, I totally created my Buzznet on a whim last summer and wanted the simplest name possible that still described my feelings toward music, since this is a music website.)

Buzznet: So it's this love that's inspired you to create the physical mixtapes for trading on Buzznet?

Claire: Haha, yes! I was really bored one day, and I always love knowing what other people who love music as much as I do are into, artist/genre/song/etc wise, and instead of just posting a blog asking what everyone's favorite song of the moment was (and trust me, I've done that plenty of times before) I decided to be creative and take that to the next level :-)

Buzznet: You mentioned you only joined Buzznet last summer. In such a relatively short time, did you find it easy to assimilate into the community or was it tough to make new friends?

Claire: I remember being so freakin' scared. Every time I got a note or a comment, I would like, be shaking with nervousness (or excitement, maybe?), because I was afraid of what people would say about what I posted. It felt weird because I've never had or wanted a MySpace, and I've only been on Facebook and been super careful about adding only the people I know. I remember the first person I talked to was from Ireland (shout out to xxxmichelle4gerardxxx, yo.), which I thought was the coolest thing ever, because there are so many people on Buzznet from all over the world that are all into music and stuff.

I definitely tried writing stories, and was super self-conscious about it. I ended up talking to people about my stories, and reading other people's stories. I had talked to some people regularly, but I wasn't like, at the stage of ~interwebz BFFs~ yet. Eventually, I talked to xxmusicislife and 30secondstopaija often enough that we now regularly talk on AIM, write each other letters and give each other shout-outs through journals, comments, notes, and even photos and videos. We refer to ourselves as "The Tripod," simply because we're like, three friends on Buzznet.

Buzznet: So do you think your photography, which is a big part of your identity on Buzznet, provides the same satisfaction as music?

Claire:My mom has always had photography as one of her hobbies, and she got me my first camera last Christmas. I never made much of it and would always complain when my mom would stop to take a picture of a fence or a street sign on vacation, because I never realized the significance.

[Once] I was taking a nature walk and tripped and fell, taking my camera with me. This forced me to go camera-less for several months, and be mega-rebellious and steal my mom's Nikon D80 whenever she wasn't looking She eventually found out after I came squealing towards her upon receiving my first featured photo [on Buzznet] without thinking about how I would explain myself. We eventually came to terms with me being allowed to borrow her camera from time to time (which by her standards was basically, um, never.) And the following Christmas, my parents offered to match whatever I was willing to pay for a new camera.

I think I have to be in a certain mood to take pictures, and a lot of times, photography hasn't come nearly as easy to me as music has. I can take so many photos on a given day, and end up not liking any of the ones I've taken. I'm can be super-critical of the photos I take, and Holy Batman, I get so nervous to post photos on Buzznet, even now, because I have no idea what people will say about it. Again, lack of confidence in the things I do: I haz it.

Buzznet: So what do you hope to do from here on out with your photography?

Claire: Right now, I see it as a only a hobby. I always have these wacky fantasies of being that really awesome person that gets to photograph all of these sweet bands ~coughryanrussellcough~ and have a total blast doing so. Maybe even something like getting to photograph live shows.

Buzznet: You recently visited Italy. Tell us how it felt to really explore a foreign country.

Claire: I was so scared. Total freak-out status. It was weird and terrifying to be in a place surrounded by people that didn't speak English as their main language. I felt that I stuck out majorly, and I didn't want that to be the case. My sister (who is living there at the moment, studying abroad) went around most places with us, speaking in Italian for us (she speaks Italian really well, and I'm very jealous) so it helped.

I definitely want to make myself clear on my favorite part, ever. THE FOOD. AH, THE FOOD! I think I can remember what I ate every single day. I can almost, taste it again. When I was in Verenna, near Lake Como, we went to a cooking class, which was in this really intimate setting in a family owned restaurant, and we watched this chef prepare a meal and explain it, while some took notes and observed closely. (I think I just sat there, borderline drooling. So. Much. Cheese. So. Freaking. Delicious. I am from WI, well known as the dairy state, and I love my cheese. That is all.) We ended up getting to eat the food — ghnocci in this super rich cheese sauce (again, cheese, my weakness) and risoto, this super cheesy rice stuff. My sister put it best as we were eating: "THERE IS A GOD, AND ITS NAME IS GHNOCCI."

But off of the food subject, I think one of my other favorite parts was visiting Ferrara and Florence. Ferrara is where my sister currently lives, and it was such a great experience, because it's not a tourist attraction. Pretty positive we were the only American family there, and it was unusual for us to be there. But really, it was kind of like a hidden gem of sorts, because I got to experience the Italian culture at its best, without being watered down or Americanized in any way. I also enjoyed Florence, because (despite the crowds) I have family there. I did post a video on my page somewhere of [my cousin] babbling in Italian in his little sing-songy voice with my sister.

Buzznet: Ok, last question: Your mom seems to be a big influence on you, at least what I could tell from your Mother's Day journal. How has your mom affected who you are and what you've done?

Claire: ♥ my Mommy. Well, she's always gotten me into doing a lot of things I wouldn't normally do. She's encouraged me to do a lot, and we do a lot of things together. Every summer (although, I fear this will be our last) we go on a 1 to 2 week road-trip somewhere, and we always plan the trip together.

She always makes sure that I'll get to do stuff I enjoy (within reason) and be 100% happy spending time with her. My mom (but I must give creds to my Dad, too) has gotten me to travel all across the country (I've been in 47 states!) and I've done so much crazy stuff with her. I can't even think of it all. She always encourages me to step outside of my comfort zone to do something, and she's always very supportive. We're doing a habitat build in Louisiana this summer! But, on a funnier note, she doesn't have a musical bone in her body, leaving the both of us completely stumped as to how I am so musically inclined.