Song of the Day: Joshua Radin - Winter

This song captures my mood at the moment, just captures a vibe.

"Joshua Radin - Winter"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cHlf08yTPiU


Lyrics, from AZLyrics.com:
http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/joshuaradin/winter.html

"Winter"

I should know
Who I am by now
I walk
The record stands somehow
Thinking of winter

Your name is the splinter inside me
While I wait

And I remember the sound
Of your November downtown
And I remember the truth
A warm December with you
But I don't have to make this mistake
And I don't have to stay this way
If only I would wait

The walk has all been cleared by now
Your voice is all I hear somehow
Calling out Winter

Your voice is the splinter inside me
While I wait

I remember the sound
Of your November downtown
And I remember the truth
A warm December with you
But I don't have to make this mistake
And I don't have to stay this way
If only I would wait

I could have lost myself
In rough blue waters in your eyes
And I miss you still

I remember the sound
Of your November downtown
And I remember the truth
A warm December with you
But I don't have to make this mistake
And I don't have to stay this way
If only I would wait

Quote of the Day: Stanley Kubrick, on Meaning and Fulfillment

“The most terrifying fact about the universe is not that it is hostile but that it is indifferent; but if we can come to terms with this indifference and accept the challenges of life within the boundaries of death — however mutable man may be able to make them — our existence as a species can have genuine meaning and fulfillment. However vast the darkness, we must supply our own light.”
- Stanley Kubrick, interviewed by Eric Nordern, Playboy (September 1968)

"However vast the darkness, we must supply our own light."  So true.

Song of the Day: Marina and the Diamonds - Happy

This is a song from one of my favorite artists.  It touches me deeply, for reasons too personal to post.  Enjoy.  And may you, my seven readers*, also find a way to be happy.

MARINA AND THE DIAMONDS | "HAPPY"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DCB_MbYyCYQ

And an accoustic version, which I think is simply amazing:
MARINA AND THE DIAMONDS | "HAPPY" ACOUSTIC BAND VIDEO
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s6AHxF0s764

Lyrics from LyricsMania:
http://www.lyricsmania.com/happy_lyrics_marina_and_the_diamonds.html

Lyrics to Happy

Couldn't relax, couldn't sit back
And let the sunlight, in my lap
I sang a hymn
To bring me peace
And then it came, a melody

It felt so sweet
It felt so strong
It made me feel like
I belonged
And all the sadness inside me
Melted away
Like I was free

I found what I'd been looking for in myself
Found a life worth living for someone else
Never thought that I could be
Happy, happy

Don't go out
Much at all
I've never been
The type to call
I realize to be happy
Maybe I need
A little company

So now you know
You know it all
That I've been
Desperately alone
I haven't found the one for me
But I believe in divinity

I found what I'd been looking for in myself
Found a life worth living for someone else
Never thought that I could be
Happy, happy
I believe in possibility
I believe someone's watching over me
And finally I have found a way to be
Happy, happy

From the concrete to the coast
I was looking for a holy ghost
Like the land joining the sea
Happiness it followed me
I believe in possibility
I believe someone's watching over me
And finally I have found a way to be
Happy, happy



* estimated readership    :)

Song of the Day: "Brandi Carlile - The Eye (Official Video)" on YouTube

It's been a long time since I've posted a song from Brandi.  Too long.  Just heard this amazing song a few days ago and needed to share it with you, my seven readers*.

"Brandi Carlile - The Eye (Official Video)"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wl_eNu4NUVI

* estimated readership

Building monuments to waste

Ever wonder if our government is too big?  Don't.  There is plenty of proof that it is.

From the Washington Post:

"NASA’s $349 million monument to its drift"

http://www.washingtonpost.com/sf/national/2014/12/15/nasas-349-million-monument-to-its-drift/

I don't even know what to say.  What a fucking joke.

Song of the Day: Alt-J - Every Other Freckle

Tell me this song isn't hot.

"Every Other Freckle - Alt J (∆) | Official Audio & Lyrics"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QUZBFLPRUUM

The official version:
"alt-J - Every Other Freckle (Official Video - Girl)"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-mhgfXgwdls


And the delicious, precise, descriptive lyrics, from AZLyrics.com:
http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/altj/everyotherfreckle.html

"Every Other Freckle"

Aaah
I want to share your mouthful
I want to do all the things your lungs do so well
I’m gonna bed into you like a cat beds into a beanbag
Turn you inside out and lick you like a crisp packet

Hey!
Hey!
Hey!
Hey!
Hey!
Hey!

You’re the first and last of your kind
(Pull me like an animal out of a hole!)
I wanna be every lever you pull
And all showers that shower you
Gonna paw paw at you
Like a cat paws at my woolen jumper
Be your Minpin
And borrower of handsome trivia

Hey!

Ooh, devour me
Aaah
Lou Lou, let the cover girls sing
Hey!

Do, do do do, do do do do
Do do do, do do do, do do do do, do do
Do, do do do, do do, do do, do do
Do do do, do do

All hand claps
You will clap
(Let me be the wallpaper that papers up your room)
I want to be every button you press
And all mouths that surround you
Yes, I’m gonna roll around you
Like a cat rolls around saw-dusted patios
I’m gonna kiss you like the sun browns you

Hey!

Oh oh oh oh oh devour me
Oh oh oh oh oh oh devour me
Oh oh oh oh oh (Oh oh oh oh oh)
Oh oh oh oh oh
Oh oh oh oh oh (Oh oh oh oh oh)
If you really think that you can stomach me

Hey hey!

Hey!
Hey!
Hey!

I want every other freckle
I want every other freckle
I want every other freckle
I want every other freckle
I want every other freckle
I want every other freckle
I want every other freckle
I want every other freckle
Freckle

Just how segregated we really are...

You know I love the clever use of maps, particularly Google Maps, and have featured maps many time on this blog (although it's been a while).

Here's a great map showing demographic information across the United States.  Zoom in and see just how segregated we really are.  All communities, really, if you zoom in far enough.  I don't think this is a good or bad thing, in and of itself.  Anyway, look at the map and see for yourself.

The map was created by Dustin Cable, of the Weldon Cooper Center at the University of Virginia.
"The Racial Dot Map"
"One Dot Per Person for the Entire United States"

Full screen map:
http://demographics.coopercenter.org/DotMap/index.html
Note: I prefer to click the "Add Map Labels" button on the left to better see what I'm looking at.

Explanation of what the map is showing you:
http://www.coopercenter.org/demographics/Racial-Dot-Map

Look at Milwaukee in the image below.  Amazing to see the clear lines between groups.

Two-Line Jokes

Some of these are really funny!

From Tickld:

"The 25 Best Two-Line Jokes Ever. #14 Is Priceless."
http://www.tickld.com/x/the-25-best-two-line-jokes-ever-14-is-priceless

Just in case the link goes stale, here are the jokes:



 

Song of the Day: Maria Taylor (ft. Michael Stipe) - Cartoons and Forever Plans

Love this song.  Great lyrics, great melody, great harmonization.  Great on every level.

"Maria Taylor (ft. Michael Stipe) - Cartoons and Forever Plans [Official Music Video]"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cTlsu7QcxRg

Lyrics on AZLyrics.com:
http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/mariataylor/cartoonsandforeverplans.html

"Cartoons And Forever Plans"

Did you know the first time you were in my sights
And did you know that look that I threw at you
And did you know my love will never die

And did you know I can't do this without laughing
And did you know no matter where it takes us now
And did you know our love will never die

The pretend season that we filled
With cartoons and forever plans
I've seen it in your eyes
I will be satisfied

And did you know electricity favors us
And did you know I'm not reading into anything
And did you know our love will never die

I will run away, I will run away, I will run
I will run away, I will run away, I will run
Our love will never die
I will be satisfied

And did you know my glass was never empty
And did you know I'm not as fragile as I thought
And did you know my love will never die

Our love will never die

Song of the Day: Jhené Aiko - The Worst

Saw this artist in an article in USA Today, about Grammy-nominated artists, while traveling last week.  Goes to show that you just never know where you'll find great music!  I love the intimate and direct/open/raw vibe of this song.


Jhené Aiko - The Worst (Explicit)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oEm3lY3trRU

Lyrics from AZLyrics.com:
http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/jheneaiko/theworst.html

"The Worst"

Tell me what you say now?
Tell me what you say
Come again?

If you cannot stay down
Then you do not have to pretend
Like there is no way out
I shoulda never let you in
Cause you got me face down

And don't take this personal
But you're the worst
You know what you've done to me
And although it hurts I know
I just can't keep runnin' away

[Hook:]
I don't need you [x4]
But I want you
I don't mean to [x4]
But I love you

Tell me what you say now
Tell me what you say?
You said that you would come again
You (said) that we would remain friends but
You know that I do not depend on
Nothing or no one
So why would you show up
So uninvited then
Just change my mind like that

Please don't take this personal
But you ain't shit
And you weren't special
Til I made you so
You better act like you know
That I've been through worse than you
I just can't keep running away
(But I don't need you)

[Hook]

Everybody's like
He's no item
Please don't like em
He don't wife em
He one nights em
I never listened
No
I shoulda figured though
All that shit you was spittin'
So unoriginal
But it was you
So I was with it
Then tell you the truth
Wish we never did it

Cause I usually do
Stick to the business
But you came out the blue
And then you just flipped it
God damn baby
My mind's blown
Be forgettin'
You live in a different time zone
Think I know what this is
It's just the time's wrong
Yeah I know what you did
But baby I'm grown
And my love is patient
And kind, and shit
This is real we can build
Through different types of shit
If you was really the realest
Wouldn't be fightin' it
I think your pride is just
In the way
Funny how everything changed
Once you got all that you wanted
Nothing was ever the same

[Hook:]
And though
I don't need you [x4]
I still want you
I don't mean to [x4]
But I love you

I don't need you [x4]
But I want you
I don't mean to [x4]
But I love you

Quote of the Day: Ralph Waldo Emerson on Fear and Action

“Always do what you are afraid to do.”  - Ralph Waldo Emerson

Sometimes the fact that we're afraid to do something is an indication of what we need to do.  Certainly has been true in my life.

Song of the Day: Maria Taylor - Song Beneath the Song

Great mood in this song.

"Maria Taylor - Song Beneath the Song"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jDF-AXOEaBw

Lyrics, from AZLyrics.com:

http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/mariataylor/songbeneaththesong.html

"Song Beneath The Song"

Cryptic words meander
Now there is a song beneath the song
One day you'll learn
You'll soon discern its true meaning
An interesting detachment
A listless poem of love sincere
Desire, despair
Overlapping melodies

And it's not a love, it's not a love
It's not a love, it's not a love song
It's not a love, it's not a love, it's not a love song
It's not a love, it's not a love, it's not a love song

And now the loops are reminiscing
Recurring dreams of minor chords
Metered time
Muted chimes find the beat

And in the pulse there lies conviction
A steady push and pull routine
Till cymbals swelled
High notes fell into reach

And it's not a love, it's not a love
It's not a love, it's not a love song
It's not a love, it's not a love, it's not a love song
It's not a love, it's not a love, it's not a love song

It's not a love, it's not a love,
It's not a love, it's not a love song
It's not a love, it's not a love, it's not a love song
It's not a love, it's not a love, it's not a love song

The night the Stars came out

"We're the Stars, we come out at night!"  That's what Torquil Campbell said as the Stars took the stage at the Loft, in Atlanta, Saturday night, November 15, 2014.

Some of the memorable songs of the night, at least to me, many of which I hadn't heard before.  These are the songs that touched me.


"Stars - Turn It Up"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5UJU6grLq9g

Lyrics, from AZLyrics.com:
http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/stars/turnitup.html


This next song is amazing.  I had never heard it before.  And it blew me away when they played it live.  Just blew me away.

"Stars - Hold On When You Get Love And Let Go When You Give It"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I6sjlZdGCpw

Lyrics, from AZLyrics.com:
http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/stars/holdonwhenyougetloveandletgowhenyougiveit.html

Take the weakest thing in you
And then beat the bastards with it
And always hold on when you get love,
So you can let go when you give it... give it... give it.

Reminds me of this quote:

"Being deeply loved by someone gives you strength, while loving someone deeply gives you courage."  - Lao Tzu

THESE lyrics in THIS song are what I'm talking about, why I love music.  The songs I really like are the ones that express some emotion, maybe some emotion that I'd have trouble expressing in other ways.

The world won't listen to this song
And the radio won't play it
But if you like it sing along
Sing 'cause you don't know how to say it

"Stars - Look Away (Live)"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nhAHi6wF_Hw

Lyrics, from AZLyrics.com:
http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/stars/lookaway.html


"Stars - Dead Hearts"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OQT2HVfxJu4

Lyrics, from AZLyrics.com:
http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/stars/deadhearts.html


And then two classics from 2004's Set Yourself on Fire:

"One More Night - Stars"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1hZ7fgT0CBU


For this next one they did explicitly acknowledge that they knew what their fans came to hear.  This one is a classic.
"Stars - Your Ex-Lover Is Dead"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r5Or6-HOveg


And the encore:

"What Is to Be Done?"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CUTrvHVRf0Q

Lyrics, from AZLyrics.com:
http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/stars/whatistobedone.html

What do we do about that?

Tha'ts what she said!

Love this!

From BuzzFeed:

"22 Times That’s What She Said"

http://www.buzzfeed.com/awesomer/thats-what-she-said

Song of the Day: Rachael Yamagata - Duet, featuring Ray LaMontagne

I saw Rachael Yamaga play Thursday, November 6, at the Workplay theater in Birmingham, Alabama.  Great concert, only about 50 people or less there.  Very intimate, very moving.

I have to say, though, that this song was the best.

"Rachael Yamagata ft. Ray Lamontagne - Duet"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2EO0w9i5wmA

She sang it alone, just Rachael and her guitar--Ray wasn't there.  Doesn't matter.  Still fabulous.

Rachael said that she wrote it based on her experience as a touring musician.  Always on the road.  Finding it easier  to make connections with other musicians who understand how that feels, but not being able to be in the same place long enough, yet always intending to cross paths again.  Bittersweet.  Wonderful to find a connection, but so sad to not be able to hold onto it, despite all intentions.  Very touching and sad.

Song of the Day: Ray LaMontagne - Empty

Just a beautiful song.  With some deep truths in it, I think.

"Ray LaMontagne - Empty (lyrics)"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SY1V0Y7hscw

Well, I looked my demons in the eyes
laid bare my chest, said "Do your best, destroy me.
You see, I've been to hell and back so many times,
I must admit you kind of bore me."

Lyrics, from AZLyrics.com:
http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/raylamontagne/empty.html

"Empty"

She lifts her skirt up to her knees
Walks through the garden rows with her bare feet, laughing
And I never learned to count my blessings
I choose instead to dwell in my disasters

Walk on down the hill
Through grass grown tall and brown
And still it's hard somehow to let go of my pain
On past the busted back
of that old and rusted Cadillac
That sinks into this field collecting rain

Will I always feel this way ‒
So empty, so estranged?

And of these cut-throat busted sunsets,
these cold and damp white mornings
I have grown weary
If through my cracked and dusted dime-store lips
I spoke these words out loud would no one hear me?
Lay your blouse across the chair,
Let fall the flowers from your hair
And kiss me with that country mouth so plain.
Outside the rain is tapping on the leaves
To me it sounds like they're applauding us,
The quiet love we've made.

Will I always feel this way
So empty, so estranged?

Well, I looked my demons in the eyes
laid bare my chest, said "Do your best, destroy me.
You see, I've been to hell and back so many times,
I must admit you kind of bore me."
There's a lot of things that can kill a man
There's a lot of ways to die
Yes, and some already dead that walk beside me
There's a lot of things I don't understand
Why so many people lie
Well, it's the hurt I hide that fuels the fires inside me

Will I always feel this way
So empty, so estranged?

Song of the Day: First Aid Kit - Shattered & Hollow

Another song that lifts me up, great vibe.

"Shattered & Hollow - First Aid Kit"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YRX6ZQJfBgY

I am in love and I am lost
But I'd rather be
Broken than empty
Oh, I'd rather be
Shattered than hollow
Oh, I'd rather be
By your side

Now I am tired but resolute
That I'd rather be
Striving than settled
Oh, I'd rather be
Moving than static
Oh, I'd rather be
By your side

Lyrics, from AZLyrics.com:
http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/firstaidkit/shatteredhollow.html

"Shattered & Hollow"

I am in love and I am lost
But I'd rather be
Broken than empty
Oh, I'd rather be
Shattered than hollow
Oh, I'd rather be
By your side

Now I can't believe that it's been five years
Since we both stood here, looking out at this city
With minds so bold and hearts so clear
We said, we are going to get out of here
We said, we are going to get out of here

We are going to get out of here
Run from all the fears
Follow what we once held dear
When will we get out of here?

Now I am tired but resolute
That I'd rather be
Striving than settled
Oh, I'd rather be
Moving than static
Oh, I'd rather be
By your side

Now I can't believe that it will be so long
Till we both are here, looking out at this city
Knowing all we ever wanted is gone

We are going to get out of here
Run from all the fears
Follow what we once held dear
When will we get out of here?

Time, time is a fickle thing
Let's see what it can bring
I cannot leave you behind
Time, time's running out
My hands, oh give me your hands
I cannot leave you behind

We are going to get out of here
Run from all the fears
Follow what we once held dear
When will we get out of here?

We said, we are going to get out of here
We said, we are going to get out of here

Quote of the Day: Ben Franklin on Life and Time

About a month ago I posted a Bruce Lee quote.  Looks like he copied an old Ben Franklin quote.  Doesn't matter, it (unlike our lives) is timeless.

“Dost thou love life?  Then do not squander time; for that's the stuff life is made of.”  - Benjamin Franklin, Poor Richard's Almanac, 1746

Song of the Day: Broods - Sleep Baby Sleep

Another one from Broods.  Great vibe to this song.

"Broods - Sleep Baby Sleep"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BhQD8e60ja4

Sleep baby sleep
What are you waiting for?
The morning's on its way
You know it's only just a dream
Oh sleep baby sleep
I lie next to you
The beauty of this mess is that it brings me close to you

Song of the Day: The Drums - Down By The Water

What can I say, this song grew on me.  Love the vibe of this song.  So simple and direct.

The Drums - Down By The Water (Lyrics)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hp0erODWCBI

Song of the Day: U2 - 40

I would like to dedicate this song to those of you who have mustered up the courage to sing a new song in your lives.  Or to those of you who might be 40 years old today.  Or both.   :)

As for me, I think of this song as a promise I'm making.  I am making changes in my life.  Although it has taken me a long time, I WILL sing a new song.

"U2 40 Live from Red Rocks"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AjtpplE39_g


The song came from Psalm 40.  From @U2:
http://www.atu2.com/lyrics/songinfo.src?SID=82

The portion of Psalm 40 that inspired Bono's lyrics:
I waited patiently for the Lord
And He inclined to me and heard my cry
He brought me up out of the pit of destruction
Out of the miry clay
And He set my feet upon a rock, making my footsteps firm
He put a new song in my mouth
A song of praise to our God
Many will see and fear and will trust in the Lord

More from Wikipedia:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/40_%28song%29


Some other facts about the song, from Songfacts.com:
http://www.songfacts.com/detail.php?id=897

The last song on War, it invokes the first track, "Sunday Bloody Sunday," with the refrain "How long must we sing this song."

At a concert in Chicago on April 29, 1987, Bono said: "This is a song that when we were being thrown out of the studio... we spent ten minutes writing this next song, ten minutes recording it, ten minutes mixing it, ten minutes playing it back, and that's nothing to do with why it's called '40.'"

From AZLyrics.com:
http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/u2/40.html

I waited patiently for the Lord
He inclined and heard my cry
He brought me up out of the pit
Out of the miry clay

I will sing, sing a new song
I will sing, sing a new song

How long to sing this song
How long to sing this song
How long...how long...how long...
How long...to sing this song

He set my feet upon a rock
And made my footsteps firm
Many will see
Many will see and fear

I will sing, sing a new song
I will sing, sing a new song
I will sing, sing a new song
I will sing, sing a new song

How long to sing this song
How long to sing this song
How long...how long...how long...
How long...to sing this song

Song of the Day: Liz Phair - Everything To Me

Great song.

Liz Phair - Everything To Me
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qK3FTmxnP2k

Quote of the Day: Kafka on Obsessions

“Don't bend; don't water it down; don't try to make it logical; don't edit your own soul according to the fashion. Rather, follow your most intense obsessions mercilessly.”  - Franz Kafka

In related news...  This past Saturday I skated the Carolina Century for the 7th time.  102+ miles.  7:38.  Lots of pain.  Conversation during the skate: "What the hell is wrong with us?"   :)

Song of the Day: Broods - Four Walls

I love this song, just beautiful.

Have you found a place, four walls, where you can "breathe out," where you can "feel"?  If not, I hope you find it.  Knowing full well that "four walls" is not a place defined by four particular walls, but by who is within those walls, together, in every sense of the word.

You told me, "Babe I only think of you."
And I said, "All I've got is a bunch of sad stories."
And I told them all before the night was through
And we cried, oh, but we're here now

I wanna make you feel how I feel when I'm listening to love songs
I wanna take you to the peak of everything that you are
You're everything I need tonight

"Broods - Four Walls"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VpyQ43nH24g

Lyrics, from AZLyrics.com:
http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/broods/fourwalls.html

"Four Walls"

You walked in and said, "I've got some news
I didn't say all I wanted to
You know I told you that I wasn't scared. Well, I lied."
You told me, "Babe I only think of you."
And I said, "All I've got is a bunch of sad stories."
And I told them all before the night was through
And we cried, oh, but we're here now
And I'm trying hard to make you love me but I don't wanna try too hard
And I'm trying hard to take it lightly but we're here now

Those four walls now are the only place that I can breathe out
And those four walls now are home
Those four walls now are the only place that I can feel
Those four walls now are home

I wanna make you feel how I feel when I'm listening to love songs
I wanna take you to the peak of everything that you are
You're everything I need tonight
And I'm trying hard to make you want me
But I don't wanna try too hard
I was thinking you got what you came for
But you're here now

Those four walls now are the only place that I can breathe out
Those four walls now are home
Those four walls now are the only place that I can feel
Those four walls now are home

Falling at the hand of a perfect man
Falling at the hand of a perfect man

Those four walls now are the only place that I can breathe out
Those four walls now are home
Those three words now are the only thing that came to save me
Those three words now are home

Falling at the hand of a perfect man

Song of the Day: Banks - Waiting Game

This song is both scorchingly hot and hauntingly sad at the same time.  So much love and intensity, but also fear and doubt.  So many "what-if's".

What if you meet someone who amazes you, but the timing or circumstances are not right?

What if you're afraid you can only go downhill from where you're at?

What if you find that one-in-a-million person, and you screw it up?

What do you do, so you wait until you're certain?  Will you ever be?

Will you get a second chance?

I wish I was in love but I don't wanna cause any pain
And if I'm feeling like I'm evil, we've got nothing to gain

What if I never even see you cuz we're both on a stage
Don't tell me listen to your song because it isn't the same
I don't wanna say your love is a waiting game

What if the way we started made it something cursed from the startWhat if it only gets colder
Would you still wrap me up and tell me that you think this was smart
Cuz lately I've been scared of even thinking 'bout where we are

I think, in the end, that waiting will drive you crazy.  But maybe acting prematurely is a huge mistake.  Such is life.  I don't have the answers.


"BANKS - WAITING GAME (OFFICIAL VIDEO)"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IaI5JCxOCdw

 

I guess I already posted most of these, but just to get them all here are the lyrics from AZLyrics.com:
http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/banks/waitinggame.html

"Waiting Game"

I'm thinking it over
The way you make me feel all sexy but it's causing me shame
I wanna lean on your shoulder
I wish I was in love but I don't wanna cause any pain
And if I'm feeling like I'm evil, we've got nothing to gain

[Chorus:]
What if I never even see you cuz we're both on a stage
Don't tell me listen to your song because it isn't the same
I don't wanna say your love is a waiting game

[Verse 2:]
Baby I'm thinking it over
What if the way we started made it something cursed from the start
What if it only gets colder
Would you still wrap me up and tell me that you think this was smart
Cuz lately I've been scared of even thinking 'bout where we are

Song of the Day: Mr. Little Jeans - Oh Sailor

One of the best feelings in the world is knowing that someone is out there thinking of you, watching over you.  You appreciate the support and love, and want to keep going, not only for your own sake but at least in part to not let that person down.  This song captures that emotion for me.

"Mr Little Jeans - Oh Sailor ( Feat. The Silverlake Conservatory of Music Youth Chorale)"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b88da_W9U7o



From SongMeanings.com:
http://songmeanings.com/songs/view/3530822107859456410/

Mr. Little Jeans – Oh Sailor

Cold night, strange dreams
Memory stuck like glue
Her face, her voice
Sail across the seas with you
Can you hear all the angels?

When you feel like you're out there on your own
Know there is someone watching over you
When out at sea, feels love can let go
Oh sailor, we will blow the wind right
But if you die out there, tearing you into two
I hope you know that you could sail right on
I hope you know you got the ocean blue

No sound worse than silence
A curse that grows
Big words kept in
Whispers of dreams untold
Just don't fight all the angels

When you feel like you're out there on your own
Know there is someone watching over you
When out at sea, feels love can let go
Oh sailor, we will blow the wind right
But if you die out there, tearing you into two
I hope you know that you could sail right on
I hope you know you got the ocean blue

When you feel like you're out there on your own
Know there is someone watching over you
When out at sea, feels love can let go
Oh sailor, we will blow the wind right
But if you die out there, tearing you into two
I hope you know that you could sail right on
I hope you know you got the ocean blue

When you feel like you're out there on your own
Know there is someone watching over you
When out at sea, feels love can let go
Oh sailor, we will blow the wind right
But if you die out there, breaking you into two
I hope you know that you could sail right on
I hope you know you got the ocean blue

Song of the Day: Frente! - Bizarre Love Triangle

Really nice cover of an old song, much better than the original in my opinion.

Frente! - Bizarre Love Triangle
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IJ1c9ErCn7w

Quote of the Day: Knowing You Matter

"One of the best feelings in the world is knowing your presence and absence both mean something to someone."  - Unknown

That's what I'd like in my life, and I'm sure I'm not alone.  Both to have someone like that, and to be that someone for another person.

Here's the Internet's response to 'Thank a Police Officer Day'

I'm not happy that September 20th is "thank an officer day."  But I am happy to know that the Internet has my back.  Love this article!

From the Daily Dot:

"Police Officer Day"

http://www.dailydot.com/politics/thank-a-police-officer-day-backfires-on-twitter/

Quote of the Day: Bruce Lee on Life and Time

“If you love life, don't waste time, for time is what life is made up of.”  - Bruce Lee

Quote of the Day: John Green on Love

"I'm in love with you, and I'm not in the business of denying myself the simple pleasure of saying true things.  I'm in love with you, and I know that love is just a shout into the void, and that oblivion is inevitable, and that we're all doomed and that there will come a day when all our labor has been returned to dust, and I know the sun will swallow the only earth we'll ever have, and I am in love with you.”  - John Green, The Fault in Our Stars

Song of the Day: Rachael Yamagata - Quiet

Yet another artist that makes me wonder how I never heard of her before.  And why I should bother with ever turning on the radio.

"Quiet - Rachael Yamagata"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tcSM0v9XcWA


The whole album is simply fabulous.
Rachael Yamagata - Happenstance (album)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_VfIER91d_U&list=PLF0BEAC6FDCE7D664&index=1

Lyrics, from AZLyrics.com:
http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/rachaelyamagata/quiet.html

"Quiet"

Baby says I can't come with him
And I had read all of this in his eyes
Long before he even said so
Why go, I asked
You know and I know why
And it'll be just as quiet when I leave
As it was when I first got here
I don't expect anything
I don't expect anything

Take care
I've been hurt before
Too much time spent on closing doors
You may hate me, but I'll remember to love you
Goodbye
Don't cry
You know why
And it'll be just as quiet when I leave
As it was when I first got here
I don't expect anything
I don't expect anything

All the waves of blame arrange as broken scenery
As they steal your best memories away
What if I was someone different in your only history?
Would you feel the same
As I walk out the door
Never to see your face again
Never to see your face again

And it'll be just as quiet when I leave
As it was when I first got here
It'll be just as quiet when I leave
As it was when I first got here
I don't expect anything
I don't expect anything
I don't expect anything
I don't expect anything
I don't expect anything
I don't expect anything to change when I leave

Song of the Day: Rhye - Open

Great tender song.  Love it, love the mood, love the vibe.

Official video:
"Rhye - Open"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sng_CdAAw8M

And another version on YouTube, love this video:
"Rhye - Open with lyrics"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r4sHpWOJSU8


Lyrics, from AZLyrics.com:
http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/rhye/open.html

"Open"

I'm a fool for that shake in your thighs
I'm a fool for that sound in your sighs
I'm a fool for your barely
I'm a fool for your love

I wanna make this play
Oh, I know you're faded
Hmm, but stay, don't close your hands
I wanna make this play
Oh, I know you're faded
Hmm, but stay, don't close your hands

Caught in this pool held in your eyes
Caught like a fool without a line
We're in a natural spring
With this gentle sting between us

I wanna make this play
Oh, I know you're faded
Hmm, but stay, don't close your hands
I wanna make this play
Oh, I know you're faded
Hmm, but stay, don't close your hands

Ooh, stay open
Ooh, stay open

Stay open
Stay open

I wanna make this play
Oh, I know you're faded
Hmm, but stay, don't close your hands
I wanna make this play
Oh, I know you're faded
Hmm, but stay, don't close your hands

Stay open
Stay open
Stay open

Hmm, stay open

Song of the Day: Tori Amos - Northern Lad

Okay, I don't know what it is, but I've never really gotten into Tori.  Even though on paper I should really like her.  Female, emotional, pick some other adjectives.  She's the kind of artist I normally like.  But for whatever reason I've never quite been on the same wavelength as her music.

Having said all that, I really like this song.  How had I never heard it before? Seriously, I really like this song.  Maybe I'm vain enough to have given it a little longer listen, a deeper listen, just because of the subject of the song!

"Tori Amos - Northern Lad"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qYVpY8EqsKI


Lyrics, from AZLyrics.com:
http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/toriamos/northernlad.html

"Northern Lad"

Had a northern lad
Well not exactly had
He moved like the sunset
God who painted that
First he love my accent
How his knees could bend
I thought we'd be ok
Me and my molasses
But I feel someting is wrong
But I fell this cake just isn't done
Don't say that you Don't
And if you could see me now
Said if you could see me now
Girls you've got to know
When it's time to turn the page
When you're only wet
Because of the rain
He don't show much these days
It's gets so fucking cold
I loved his secret places
But I can't go anymore
"you change like sugar cane"
Says me northern lad
I guess you go too far
When pianos try to be guitars
I feel the west in you
And I feel it falling apart too
Don't say that you Don't
And if you could see me now
Said if you could see me now
Girls you've got to know
When it's time to turn the page
When you're only wet
Because of the rain
When you're only wet
Because of the rain

Field Day!

They say losers never win.  Except sometimes they do!  Skipping ahead to the conclusion of this post: WE WON!!!  Okay, had to get that off my chest.  Now, enjoy the rest of the blog post.  :)

There was a local "Field Day" here in Atlanta this past Saturday.
http://www.atlfieldday.com/

Events, according to the website, included:

• Bubble Soccer (watch the video if you don't know what this is--I didn't until I played it)
• Dodge Ball
• Tug-O-War
• Balloon Toss
• Blindfold Wheelbarrow Race
• Soggy Sweat Pants Relay
• 3D Relay
• 3-Legged Race (didn't see this on their website, but we did it)

The gym I go to, Crossfit West Cobb (aka "CWC"), fielded two teams.  The "A" Team, if you listen to the hype, called themselves "The Winners."  So our captain chose "The Losers" as our team name (I think--actually, I have no idea who chose our team name).  Yes, we were "The Losers."   All day.  Until the very end.  :)

Here is a shot of most of the members of both teams (including one gym member not on either team and one photo-bombing baby):

As best as I can remember, this is how our day went.  No guarantees that we did these events in this order or that any details are correct.


Event 1: Tug-O-War (all team members)
Good way for us to start.  We went up against a team called Cat's Meow or something like that.  I noticed that one side of the field was a little less soggy than the other side, so I told our team to congregate on the dry side so that when we lined up we'd get that side.  Not sure it made any difference, but you take every advantage you can.

Anyway, we lined up, got ready, and started pulling.  Initially we got a little pull, things seemed to be going our way.  Then, wow, there was fierce resistance and the rope starting going the wrong way!  Maybe we thought it was going to be easy or something.  Not the case.  Anyway, at that point it got serious.  We really dug in and stopped the other team's progress.  Gradually we got the rope moving our way and steadily made progress.

Bottom line: We won.  The whole thing couldn't have lasted more than 30 seconds.  Yet walking away, we were all breathing pretty heavily.  Quite an effort for such a short event.


Event 2: Bubble Soccer (five team members at a time, two women on field at all times)
One of our big disappointments.  Went against Cat's Meow again, I think.  We had two Italians on our team, soccer is in their blood, so we thought we had this in the bag.  Never pays to be overconfident, though.  Game was 7 minutes long.  The bubbles were suffocatingly hot, and you couldn't easily see or hear.  I started on the bench but subbed in halfway through the game.

Didn't seem like we stuck to our strategy once the game started.  I had advocated having a couple of our players destroy opponents in the middle of the field, to give our Italians some room to do their thing (one at midfield and one hanging back to defend our net and take long shots on goal).  We weren't doing enough destroying, in my opinion.  So, naturally, when I got out there I did a fair amount of that.

Unfortunately we gave up a goal mid-game.  The other team had a girl short enough to just set her bubble down in front of their net, to completely block it.  So ... I went around to her side, got a running start, and just blasted her.  Sent her flying, cleared the net wide open.  I must have done a good job because she eventually got up and yelled at me, and I quote: "Was that fucking necessary?!"  Yes, apparently it was, sadly, based on the score.  One of my teammates later heard her in the beer line still griping about it.  Hey, what can I say?  I guess that's what happens when you put a hockey player on a soccer field. Unfortunately for us we didn't get a shot during that time and lost 1-0.

A word about points: I believe I remember hearing that a win was worth 30 points and the loser still got 5 points.  Probably the same for Tug-O-War.


Event 3: Balloon Toss (two pairs of team members)
This is where we made real progress, this was the key to our victory.  Scoring was the sum of the distances each pair completed.

Bjorn and I completed an 80' toss.  Mike and Ben completed a 70' toss.  That gave us 150 points--way more valuable than a win in soccer!  Shoot, if the soccer event was scored the same way it might take 200+ soccer games to accumulate 150 goals between both teams combined!   :)

I'm sure CWC Team "A" (mistakenly named "The Winners") regrets this event.  I thought they were in great shape in the second heat because they got a balloon with a small leak in it.  They were thinking about requesting a better balloon, but I and others thought that this might be an advantage as the event proceeded because it would gradually lose water.  As a result of losing water, it might have less internal pressure and be less likely to rupture.

As for me, I regret not catching Bjorn's 90' toss, we really could have done better.  It was a great toss, a soft easy arc.  I caught it and greatly exaggerated cradling it--pulling my hands down as I caught it so it hit my hands with less pressure.  But as I did so, I pulled my hands down too fast down the right side of my body and the balloon rolled off the back side of my right hand, hit the ground, and broke.  Totally my fault.

We didn't know it at the time, but this event would ultimately provide 150 of our 401 (I think that's what I heard) total points.


Event 4: Dodge Ball (all team members)
Another disappointment.  I ran out to grab a ball in the middle of the field, didn't get there in time, and got hit in the first 10 seconds of the game.  Based on the number of our players left standing, this must have happened to others, too.  We might have had 4 players left against 8 or 9.  The other team gradually whittled us down, and ultimately it was just Karla against the world--the world in this case consisting of 7 or 8 members of the other team.  Karla hung in there all alone for a long time, getting several of their players out.  But their advantage was just too great for her to overcome.  We sucked at dodge ball.


Event 5: 3-Legged Race (all team members)

Solid event.  This was a timed event, run against multiple teams.  I don't think we won our heat but we did pretty well, above average I think.  We practiced beforehand and worked

All team members participated, relay race with five pairs of people, each running one length of the field.  I think it was Mike who suggested that we skip.  Ben and I were a pair.  We ultimately decided to start with our inside feet together, single step, then go into a skip on the outside feet.  Ran the whole distance that way, single step with inside feet, skip with outside feed.  We got the rhythm early in our run, then sped up as we got the hang of it, not starting too fast and falling on our faces.


Event 6: Blindfold Wheelbarrow Race (all team members)

Again, five pairs of team members, relay race, five lengths of the field.  Walter said that he'd keep his arms moving but I needed to push him forward so that his arms didn't have to do that portion of the work.  I also noticed Walter's sweaty legs.  I told him to tie bandanas (from those used to tie people's legs together for the three-legged race) around his ankles.  That way, I could grab something dry and not worry about slipping.

The field was also somewhat sloped.  I figured we should put our strongest upper body "wheelbarrows" on the low end, and have them do the uphill legs.  Worked like a charm, we did very well in this event.


By the way, this was the only event where we went head to head with "The Winners", the CWC "A" team.  For the record, we beat them in this event.  Oh, did I mention that we also beat them in the final standings?  As well as the rest of the field?   :)


Event 7: Soggy Sweat Pants Relay (all team members)

This event was strange.  We had to run ten lengths of the field, and everyone had to wear the same pair of soggy sweat pants.  Run, dip sweat pants in water every second length of field (water bucket on only one end of the field.  That means we had to quickly take the sweat pants off of one person and put it on the next person--not easy when floppy sweat pants are all wet.

So, we had a good plan on one end, on the end where we did not have water.  Next person laid down on his back, and the runner coming in would slide it so he would be foot-to-foot, feet in the air.  Then other team members would peel the sweat pants from the previous runner to the next runner, just rolling them inside out onto the next person.  Worked great.

But it didn't work so well on the end with the water.  Because we couldn't go directly person-to-person.  Had to take them off, then dip, then onto the next person.  On at least two of the changes we rushed things too much and ended up with one leg right side out and the other leg inside out, making the change very difficult.  Oh well, we still ended up with a decent time, better than average, I think, but we didn't win our heat.


Event 8: 3D Relay (all team members)

Timed event with extra points.  Four team members did the mini tricycle race. Three each doing dizzy bat and dumpster diving.  Dumpster diving was running into a storage pod filled with boxes of crap to find bonus items.

Tricycle race, dizzy bat, dumpster diving ... repeat the cycle, and finish with a fourth round of tricycle racing.

Since I hadn't had a beer yet all day, I figured I'd do the dumpster diving.  And I volunteered to go first, to tell the other "divers" what to expect when they went in.  The key was to remember what items gave the most points.  Well, I memorized those fucking things, I memorized them well!  Several days later, I still remember those damn items:

• 30 points: Creative Loafing t-shirt
• 20 points: Atlanta Sport & Social Club - Champs
• 10 points: Atlanta Sport & Social Club - Purple tye dye
• 15 points: Atlanta Sport & Social Club beer koozy
• 10 points: Creative Loafing flyer for this event
• 5 points: Ping pong ball

Mike did the first round of dizzy bat, and he came running back unable to run in a straight line.  I ran sideways to meet him.  I yelled to to him to just make it back, I'd run sideways to wherever he ended up!

One of our competitors was in the storage pod when I got there.  I just went straight to the back, dove below boxes, and came up with a 20-point shirt immediately.  Good enough, I ran back with that, and told Jen and Bjorn what to expect.  I think our time was good, and Jen and Bjorn both ended up with purple tye dye shirts, so there was 40 points of our final score right there, another good chunk!


We thought we did well, but were completely shocked, at least I was, when we heard we won.  We got a bag with some stuff in it.

From the website:
Top scoring team ("King of the Field") will receive:
    Team Trophy
    Champs Ts
    Team Pic in Creative Loafing
    Major Sponsor Swag

Well.  I didn't see any trophy.  Didn't get those t-shirts.  "Major sponsor swag" included two match books.  A cheap bag (cool, but cheap).  Two ticket vouchers for the High Museum of Art.  And two ticket vouchers to an Atlanta Hawks game--except listen to this fine print: "Bearer of this Certificate is Entitled to 2 seat [sic] for an Atlanta Hawks 2014 Pre-Season Game .[sic]  ** Tickets are subject to availability and excludes all marquee games."  Wow, pre-season tickets but only if they have seats available.  And is ANY pre-season game a "marquee game"??  We'll have to see if our picture gets in CL or not.

Anyway, here we are, the Kings of the Field.  Karla and Carlos had already left.  And I heard that Mike and Bjorn had gone to grab a smoke or something.  So just the six of us on stage for our moment of glory!  :)

No, I'm not trying to show off with my shirt off (as a couple friends accused me of doing).  I'm a northern boy, and it was HOT out, simple as that.




Completely off the subject, I had never heard of this park before, Old Fourth Ward Park.  Late in the day somebody pointed out The Masquerade right next to the park.  I had no idea!  The last time I went to The Masquerade for a show this "park" was an abandoned lot or a parking lot or something!  Amazing how the neighborhood has COMPLETELY changed.

Song of the Day: Sinead O'Connor - Take Me To Church (and Streetcars)

It's been a while since I posted a Sinead O'Connor song (Song of the Day: Sinéad O'Connor - Troy, from June 9, 2010).  But she just came out with a new album.  Two songs that caught my ear...

Sinead O'Connor - Take Me To Church [Official Music Video]
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jMzY_KQIKjU

Lyrics, from AZLyrics.com:
http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/sineadoconnor/takemetochurch.html

Oh, Take me to church,
I've done so many bad things it hurts
yeah, Take me to church
but not the ones that hurt
'Cause that ain't the truth
And that's not what it's worth

Sinead O'Connor Streetcars Live Roundhouse 12 August 2014
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eA1TUXpg9OA

Lyrics, from AZLyrics.com:
http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/sineadoconnor/streetcars.html

I have chosen, I have chosen
To become the love I'm longing
Love was never something beyond me
Underneath me or above me

And I will, I must and so I will
Dwell beneath the desert still
For there's no safety to be acquired
Riding streetcars named desire

Song of the Day: Lily Allen - Somewhere Only We Know (Keane cover)

You, my seven readers* know that I love a song that is great not only when sung by the original artist but perhaps even better when covered by someone else.  So, with that in mind...

"Lily Allen - Somewhere Only We Know"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mer6X7nOY_o

Oh simple thing where have you gone?
I'm getting old and I need something to rely on
So tell me when you're gonna let me in
I'm getting tired and I need somewhere to begin

The original artist:
"Keane - Somewhere Only We Know"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Oextk-If8HQ


The original artist, acoustic version:
"Keane - Somewhere Only We Know (Acoustic from Best of Keane)"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bndf5HBylj8


And just for fun, for the first, and likely only, time you'll see this on this blog, the Glee version!
"GLEE - Somewhere Only We Know (Full Performance) (Official Music Video) HD"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wa532g6PwqY


Lyrics by AZLyrics.com:
http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/keane/somewhereonlyweknow.html

"Somewhere Only We Know"

I walked across an empty land
I knew the pathway like the back of my hand
I felt the earth beneath my feet
Sat by the river and it made me complete

Oh simple thing where have you gone?
I'm getting old and I need something to rely on
So tell me when you're gonna let me in
I'm getting tired and I need somewhere to begin

I came across a fallen tree
I felt the branches of it looking at me
Is this the place we used to love?
Is this the place that I've been dreaming of?

Oh simple thing where have you gone?
I'm getting old and I need something to rely on
So tell me when you're gonna let me in
I'm getting tired and I need somewhere to begin

And if you have a minute why don't we go
Talk about it somewhere only we know?
This could be the end of everything
So why don't we go
Somewhere only we know?
Somewhere only we know?

Oh simple thing where have you gone?
I'm getting old and I need something to rely on
So tell me when you're gonna let me in
I'm getting tired and I need somewhere to begin

And if you have a minute why don't we go
Talk about it somewhere only we know?
This could be the end of everything
So why don't we go?
So why don't we go?

Ah-ah-ah
Ah-ah-ah

This could be the end of everything
So why don't we go
Somewhere only we know?
Somewhere only we know?
Somewhere only we know?

Quote of the Day: The Miracle, Life

I was reminded of the following quote when listening to the song of the day yesterday.

    We spend a whole life searching for a miracle
    and what we fail to realize is
    that life is the miracle.
    All of it.

-Anonymous

Song of the Day: Metric - Help, I'm Alive

Great song by Metric.  Two versions.

Help I'm Alive by Metric
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KtA7YIFapnY

Help I'm Alive - Acoustic
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-1pCOR9Rv9M

If we're still alive
My regrets are few
If my life is mine
What shouldn't I do?
I get wherever I'm going
I get whatever I need
While my blood's still flowing
And my heart's still
Beating like a hammer

From AZLyrics.com:
http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/metric/helpimalive.html

"Help, I'm Alive"

I tremble
They're gonna eat me alive
If I stumble
They're gonna eat me alive
Can you hear my heart
Beating like a hammer
Beating like a hammer

Help I'm alive
My heart keeps beating like a hammer
Hard to be soft
Tough to be tender
Come take my pulse the pace is on a runaway train
Help I'm alive
My heart keeps beating like a hammer
Beating like a hammer

If we're still alive
My regrets are few
If my life is mine
What shouldn't I do?
I get wherever I'm going
I get whatever I need
While my blood's still flowing
And my heart's still
Beating like a hammer
Beating like a hammer

Help I'm alive
My heart keeps beating like a hammer
Hard to be soft
Tough to be tender
Come take my pulse the pace is on a runaway train
Help I'm alive
My heart keeps beating like a hammer
Beating like a hammer

If we're still alive
My regrets are few
If my life is mine
What shouldn't I do?
I get wherever I'm going
I get whatever I need
While my blood's still flowing
And my heart's still
Beating like a hammer
Beating like a hammer
Beating like a hammer
Beating like a hammer

Help I'm alive
My heart keeps beating like a hammer

Song of the Day: Shivaree - Mexican Boyfriend

Here's another Shivaree song, just because it's hot.  And sad.  We've all been there, loved and lost.  This song captures the emotion so well.

"Shivaree - Mexican Boyfriend"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D8_XUXR840M

Lyrics, from A-Z Lyrics:http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/shivaree/mexicanboyfriend.html

"Mexican Boyfriend"

I wore the dress that you liked almost everyday
Boxed up all my baby dolls and gave them away
I wrote your name on the wall next to my bed
Any day that I saw you at all was circled in red

What they said was a man drifted over the line
Drove you away and a little girl out of her mind
And the rain fell down and washed off your face
Washed you away, left carnations and stone in your place

My first cigarette and my first pill
My first cup of coffee and my first chill
Now you'll never know my first kiss
Somebody else will
Cause you were the first one I saw
Holding that still


There were some non-English lyrics in the song.  Spanish starting at about 2:12.  More information here:
http://shivaree.forumbuild.com/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=12

From FranciscoParsley:

In the song "mexican boyfriend" she sings in Spanish at minute 2:12 - 2:27

"Yo me besaba la mano imaginando que eras tu"... which translates to "i would kiss my (own) hand imagining it was you"

Song of the Day: Shivaree - Goodnight Moon

Love this song, going back before it was used in Kill Bill, by the way.  Very hot, love her voice.

"Shivaree Goodnight Moon ( Lyrics )"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E_8gUI-Y5HQ

Lyrics, from A-Z Lyrics:
http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/shivaree/goodnightmoon.html

"Goodnight Moon"

There's a nail in the door
And there's glass on the lawn
Tacks on the floor
And the TV is on
And I always sleep with my guns
When you're gone

There's a blade by the bed
And a phone in my hand
A dog on the floor
And some cash on the nightstand
When I'm all alone the dreaming stops
And I just can't stand

What should I do I'm just a little baby
What if the lights go out and maybe
And then the wind just starts to moan
Outside the door he followed me home

Well goodnight moon
I want the sun
If it's not here soon
I might be done
No it won't be too soon 'til I say
Goodnight moon

There's a shark in the pool
And a witch in the tree
A crazy old neighbour and he's been watching me
And there's footsteps loud and strong coming down the hall
Something's under the bed
Now it's out in the hedge
There's a big black crow sitting on my window ledge
And I hear something scratching through the wall

Oh what should I do I'm just a little baby
What if the lights go out and maybe
I just hate to be all alone
Outside the door he followed me home
Now goodnight moon
I want the sun
If it's not here soon
I might be done
No it won't be too soon 'til I say
Goodnight moon

Well you're up so high
How can you save me
When the dark comes here
Tonight to take me up
To my front walk
And into bed where it kisses my face
And eats my head

Oh what should I do I'm just a little baby
What if the lights go out and maybe
And then the wind just starts to moan
Outside the door he followed me home
Now goodnight moon
I want the sun
If it's not here soon
I might be done
No it won't be too soon 'til I say
Goodnight moon
No it won't be too soon 'til I say
Goodnight moon

Song of the Day: Public Image Ltd. - Rise

Gem of a song, apparently about Apartheid and Mandela.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rise_(Public_Image_Ltd_song)

PIL Rise
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OmVSXGuMoGI

Song of the Day: Cutting Crew - (I Just) Died in Your Arms

Wow, here's a song that takes me back.  Not the greatest song in the history of the world, but I associate this so strongly with my youth that I just had to post it.  I remember vividly playing this song from a boombox on the deck while picking/raking/throwing apples in my dad's yard, prior to mowing the grass. Yes, I had (and still have somewhere) the cassette tape of this album!

"Just Died in your arms Lyrics"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lqqVgXPclsE

Quote of the Day: Marcel Proust on Discovery

"The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes, but in having new eyes."
  - Marcel Proust

This is similar to a past blog post of mine: Quote of the Day: T.S. Eliot on Exploration and Knowing, from March 10, 2012.  I guess the reason I'm posting this idea again is because I'm seeing just how true it is.

Tom's Poems - The Complete Collection

I'm not a big poetry fan.  But there are times when poetry can express things so simply and succinctly, and beautifully, that it is stunning.  Here are a couple examples, from past posts on this blog:

• Quote of the Day: TS Eliot on Exploration and Knowing, March 10, 2012
• There's a hole in my sidewalk, September 20, 2010

But there is something missing!  I don't think I've shared with you, my seven* readers, my poetry.  So here it is, the complete collection of Tom's poems!  Note that all of these poems share a common structure.  All poems follow a 1-3-3 syllable structure, and all lines rhyme.  Yes, difficult to pull off, but somehow I managed to do this with ALL the poems I've written!

So, without further delay, here they are:

Cat
Cat
Rhymes with splat
And that's that.

Joe
Joe
Rhymes with blow
So let's go!


Yes sir, that's my complete collection!

Okay, so there's a story behind these poems.  No, no cats were harmed in the writing of these poems, by the way.  Not sure if Joe got blown or not...

Both were written in either the summer of 1988 or 1989, the two summers where I worked at Ehrich's Bavarian Inn in Manitowish Waters, Wisconsin.  I've talked about working there before, for an amazing woman, in these posts.

• Rita, 54545, USA, June 22, 2010  (One of my very best posts, by the way.  Read it now.)
• Labels, July 13, 2010

We had a dishwasher, named Mary Ellen, working with us.  She was the kind of person you might feel sorry for--until you got to know her.  Maybe around 40 years old, I didn't know much about her or anything close to her full story.  But she had apparently had some money in the past, even owning horses, but had fallen on hard times.  Sounded to me like she really squandered a good chunk of money.

For the first poem, some of us got a little tired of Mary Ellen talking about her cat all the time.  So I ended up writing "Cat" in response.  I wrote it up on the back of a paper placemat and hung it up on the wall in the kitchen.  Mary Ellen went to take it down, but Rita LOVED it!  And so it stayed.

Then later in the summer, Mary Ellen made the grave mistake of mentioning that she was seeing a guy named Joe.  Well, we all started teasing her about that.  And it didn't take me long to come up with "Joe."  Again, it hung on the kitchen wall for the remainder of the summer.

Yes, you never know where inspiration will strike.  You just never know.

I often say, when I come up with a crazy joke that applies to a certain situation, that "the jokes, they write themselves."  These poems are an early example of this, for me.


Oh wait, I forgot one.  Here it is, previously posted on this blog:
Ode to the North Georgia Mountains, from May 9, 2010.

Ode to the North Georgia Mountains

Tar snakes, how they squirm.
Life is too short to be stuck
Behind a Camry. 

* estimated

Quote of the Day: Shunryu Suzuki on Life's Problems

From Theendlessfurther.com:
http://theendlessfurther.com/tag/shunryu-suzuki/ *
"When your life is always a part of your surroundings–in other words, when you are called back to yourself, in the present moment–then there is no problem. When you start to wander about in some delusion which is something apart from you yourself, then your surroundings are not real anymore, and your mind is not real anymore. If you yourself are deluded, then your surroundings are also a misty, foggy delusion. Once you are in the midst of delusion, there is no end to delusion. You will be involved in deluded ideas one after another. Most people live in delusion, involved in their problem, trying to solve their problem. But just to live is actually to live in problems. And to solve the problem is to be a part of it, to be one with it."
  - Shunryu Suzuki, Zen Mind, Beginner’s Mind, 1970

So often we think that if only we could solve our problems, the problems we have today, that we'll be all set and life will be good.  But then you hear that rich people, or other people that you think have things "figured out," still have a lot of stress in their lives.

I think that this quote has it exactly right.  Life is problems.  You'll never solve them all, and if you do you'll just find more.  You have to embrace them.  No, you don't like having problems, of course, nobody does.  But maybe you learn to accept that you'll always have an endless to-do list or you'll never be as fit as you like or you'll never achieve all you want at work.  Fight the battles and savor the small victories, the precious moments.  I wish I had figured this out earlier.


* There were other pages that had this quote, of course.  But this page had a Calvin and Hobbes cartoon!

Quote of the Day: Ralph Waldo Emerson on Instinct

"Trust the instinct to the end, though you can render no reason."

  - Ralph Waldo Emerson

Song of the Day: Gabrielle Aplin - Please Don't Say You Love Me

Very tender song.

"Gabrielle Aplin - Please Don't Say You Love Me"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PxNYvk_0Onw

Heavy words are hard to take
Under pressure precious things can break
And how we feel is hard to fake
So let's not give the game away

And how about this version, from an X-Factor contestant?  Amazing!
"Rachael Thompson - The X Factor Australia 2014 - AUDITION [FULL]"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=58-as-joCfU


Lyrics from AZLyrics.com:
http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/gabrielleaplin/pleasedontsayyouloveme.html

"Please Don't Say You Love Me"

Summer comes, winter fades
Here we are just the same
Don't need pressure, don't need change
Let's not give the game away

There used to be an empty space
A photograph without a face
But with your presence, and your grace
Everything falls into place

Just please don't say you love me
'Cause I might not say it back
Doesn't mean my heart stops skipping when you look at me like that
There's no need to worry when you see just where we're at
Just please don't say you love me
'Cause I might not say it back

Heavy words are hard to take
Under pressure precious things can break
And how we feel is hard to fake
So let's not give the game away

Just please don't say you love me
'Cause I might not say it back
Doesn't mean my heart stops skipping when you look at me like that
There's no need to worry when you see just where we're at
Just please don't say you love me
'Cause I might not say it back

And fools rush in
And I've been the fool before
This time I'm gonna slow it down
'Cause I think this could be more
The thing I'm looking for

Just please don't say you love me
'Cause I might not say it back
Doesn't mean my heart stops skipping when you look at me like that
There's no need to worry when you see just where we're at
Just please don't say you love me
'Cause I might not say it back

Please don't say you love me
'Cause I might not say it back
Doesn't mean my heart stops skipping when you look at me like that
There's no need to worry when you see just where we're at
Just please don't say you love me
'Cause I might not say it back

Just please don't say you love me
'Cause I might not say it back

Quote of the Day: Christopher Columbus on Courage

Not sure if this is historically accurate.  Nevertheless...

"You can never cross the ocean until you have the courage to lose sight of the shore."  - Christopher Columbus

http://www.goodreads.com/quotes/192564-you-can-never-cross-the-ocean-until-you-have-the

Song of the Day: Spoon - The Ghost of You Lingers

Such a great vibe in this song.  Beautiful.  Haunting.  Just a hint of hope.  Yes, I've used those adjectives before.  Yes, this is my favorite type of song.  Listen to it a couple times.  Or ten.  :)

"Spoon's The Ghost of You Lingers"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NKmgUdRAzxQ

My life
So light
Would you settle this part?

If you were here
Would you calm me down?

The ghost of you lingers
And leaves
I always think about it
Oh, would you calm me down?

Lyrics from AZLyrics:
http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/spoon/theghostofyoulingers.html

"The Ghost Of You Lingers"

If you were here
Would you calm me down?
You settled this part
Feelings I fight (all the strangers in town)
Feeling so bright (would know if you were here)
The feelings I fight (would you ease my mind?)
Yeah (Come on!)

The sleep fled from my eyes
And I, I know that I need some
Give a thought to the one that you know

Or would you calm me down
When the night gets shadowed
We fast

We put on the clinic
If you were here
It felt good to me
(would you calm me down)
Can't see I'm losing it
Must have set up the scene
(The man asleep knockup)
Put on a clinic
(I see it) But I will need to write
(we settled this part) They're all alive

Oh, would you ease my mind?
Yeah

(The ghost of you lingers)
Put on a clinic till we hit the wall
(And leaves)
Just like a sailor with his wools beat soft
Come on

I had a light bad noon that could be put back together

My life
So light
Would you settle this part?

If you were here
Would you calm me down?

The ghost of you lingers
And leaves
I always think about it
Oh, would you calm me down?

Song of the Day: RAC - Let Go (featuring Kele, MNDR)

Light vibe to this one.  And something I need to do more of.  Let go.  Sometimes it's not giving up, it's letting go.  There is a difference.

"RAC - Let Go ft. Kele, MNDR"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SeXBiXcEBkY

So let go, let go of your fire
Let it go, let go of your fire
Live it up till we crash
In the smoke and the ash
let it go, let go of your fire

Don’t be so rough with me
You are a gem
And they ask how i can love you when all they see is this
But i see things that you cant contain
And what it does to you
You’re pure…

Lyrics from AZLyrics:
http://alyrics.ucoz.com/load/r/rac_let_go_feat_kele_and_mndr/4-1-0-45262

"Rac - Let go feat. Kele and MNDR lyrics"
 
You are golden
You are pure
You are golden, boy

Tell me
Your problems
I’m here for you
Just try to stay sober
It’s eating you
And they say you are a monster
But what I see is a child
Your eyes are glowing red
And your tongue has caught on fire

You’re pure
You are golden
You are pure boy
You are golden

So let go, let go of your fire
Let it go, let go of your fire
Live it up till we crash
In the smoke and the ash
let it go, let go of your fire

You play up to them
But they’re not around
Don’t be so rough with me
You are a gem

And they ask how i can love you when all they see is this
But i see things that you cant contain
And what it does to you

You’re pure…

Song of the Day: John (Cougar) Mellencamp - Small Town

Continuing with the retro vibe.  I love this song.  Yes, I'm from a small town and, yes, this song speaks to me.  Another boring romantic, that's me.   :)

"John Mellencamp - Small Town"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0CVLVaBECuc

This is home.  I planted a lot of those trees.  We used to plant several thousand every spring.  (Not kidding.)

Song of the Day: Eddie Money - I Wanna Go Back" on YouTube

As long as I got into the retro vibe, with Billy Joel yesterday, here's a blast from the past that expresses how I feel sometimes.  How I'm feeling lately, for what it's worth.

"Eddie Money - I Wanna Go Back"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o0JqC2UDpoE

 

And for a change of pace, here are two Eddie Money songs that I would prefer to be thinking about!  :)

"Eddie Money-take me home tonight"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NbhXmSBlS_U

"Eddie Money - Think I'm In Love"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MJbBSIFN36k

Song of the Day: Billy Joel - Allentown

Here's a little blast from the past, from one of my favorite singers.

"Billy Joel - Allentown"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BHnJp0oyOxs

Why this song, why now?  Well, I don't need any excuse to post any song I feel like, of course.  But in this case, the song is prompted by a recent visit to ... Allentown, Pennsylvania!

I had a trip to western New Jersey to visit a vendor (everything has to be made somewhere!), and I really didn't want to fly into Newark or La Guardia.  It turns out that flying to Allentown was just as cheap and just as close, and a lot simpler.  So that's what I did.

Initial reaction driving from the airport was that it was a typical, old, northeastern town.  Hilly, narrow roads not in the best of shape.  Then I drove to my meetings in New Jersey.

On the way back, due to flight schedules, I had an early morning return flight the following day, so I stayed a night in Allentown.  Booked a hotel downtown, with the intention of checking out the city a bit, do a little walking, see what it was all about.

Well, Allentown is a dump.  At least that is my impression.  Not even a cool downtown area with some good bars and restaurants.  Basically, the Billy Joel song paints a bleak picture of Allentown, and my opinion is that the city doesn't even live up to that bleak picture.

I asked about restaurants at the front desk, and was told about a brew pub, a Jamaican place, a Thai place, and a soul food place.  The brew pub was described as 150 steps in that direction, and the other restaurants were described similarly--all very close.  Why the mention of steps?  Well, not 1/4 of a block outside of the hotel a panhandler came up to me.  I think the hotel staff wanted to emphasize that the restaurants were very close.  Just fight through the riff-raff, you'll be there soon!

Anyway, I didn't feel like walking the city at all after seeing it.  The brew pub, Allentown Brew Works, was both very nice and very close, so that's where I ate.  It was Friday night, and the place was half empty.  Not a lively downtown.

Back at the hotel, I had a drink at the hotel bar.  The guy next to me strikes up a conversation.  He's wearing a suit, wearing some jewelry/bracelets, doing okay for himself it seems.  Turns out he's from Venezuela.  I've been to Venezuela and know a little about it so we had a decent conversation.

He came to the U.S., to Allentown, in 1999.  And he LOVES Allentown!  Cheap place to live, money to be made (he's in banking, he said), close to New York and Philadelphia.  He leaves his door open during the day, he claimed, so he must be in a nice neighborhood.

So you never know.  I could be completely wrong about Allentown.

On the other hand, he said that he voted for Chavez in Venezuela before he left for the U.S., back when he was 19.  So this guy may be completely and totally full of shit.

I repeat.  You just never know.