Song of the Day: Rush - Time Stand Still

Final song in my nostalgic series this week.  Thanks for indulging me, my seven* readers.  This song is a classic, of course, for a reason.   I think the lyrics are simply brilliant.  Nostalgia, and appreciation of the moment.  This song captures the essence of that feeling, for me anyway.

Rush - Time Stand Still (Official Music Video)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dMSFqXGZ5TQ

I let my past go too fast

No time to pause

If I could slow it all down

Like some captain, whose ship runs aground

I can wait until the tide comes around

https://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/rush/timestandstill.html

"Time Stand Still"

I turn my back to the wind

To catch my breath

Before I start off again

Driven on without a moment to spend

To pass an evening with a drink and a friend

I let my skin get too thin

I'd like to pause

No matter what I pretend

Like some pilgrim

Who learns to transcend

Learns to live as if each step was the end

(Time stand still)

I'm not looking back

But I want to look around me now

(Time stand still)

See more of the people and the places that surround me now

Time stand still

Freeze this moment a little bit longer

Make each sensation a little bit stronger

Experience slips away

Experience slips away

Time stand still

I turn my face to the sun

Close my eyes

Let my defenses down

All those wounds that I can't get unwound

I let my past go too fast

No time to pause

If I could slow it all down

Like some captain, whose ship runs aground

I can wait until the tide comes around

(Time stand still)

I'm not looking back

But I want to look around me now

(Time stand still)

See more of the people and the places that surround me now

Freeze this moment a little bit longer

Make each sensation a little bit stronger

Make each impression a little bit stronger

Freeze this motion a little bit longer

The innocence slips away

The innocence slips away

Time stand still

Time stand still

I'm not looking back

But I want to look around me now

See more of the people and the places that surround me now

Time stand still

Summer's going fast, nights growing colder

Children growing up, old friends growing older

Freeze this moment a little bit longer

Make each sensation a little bit stronger

Experience slips away

Experience slips away

The innocence slips away

* estimated

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

 Even more reflection.  This song certainly captures that vibe!

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

I wanna go back

And do it all over again

But I can't go back I know

I wanna go back

Cause I'm feeling so much older

But I can't go back I know

https://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/eddiemoney/iwannagoback.html

"I Wanna Go Back"

I was listening to the radio

I heard a song reminded me of long ago

Back then I thought that things were never gonna change

It used to be that I never had to feel the pain

I know that things will never be the same now

I wanna go back

And do it all over again

But I can't go back I know

I wanna go back

Cause I'm feeling so much older

But I can't go back I know

I recall hanging out on Friday night

The first slow dance

Hoping that I'll get it right

Back then I thought I'd never ever stand alone

It used to be that a lonely heart was never shown

I know that things will never be the same

I wanna go back

And do it all over again

But I can't go back I know

I wanna go back

Cause I'm feeling so much older

But I can't go back I know

Can't go back

I can't go back

I know now that things will never be the same

I said

I wanna go back

And do it all over again

But I can't go back I know

I wanna go back

Cause I'm feeling so much older

But I can't go back I know

I wanna go back

And do it all over again

But I can't go back I know

I wanna go back

Cause I'm feeling so much older

But I can't go back I know

I wanna go back

And do it all over again

But I can't go back I know

I wanna go back

Cause I'm feeling so much older

But I can't go back I know

No, No

And do it all over...

Song of the Day: U2 - Stuck In A Moment You Can't Get Out Of (Acoustic Version / Lyric Video)

 Continuing in a reflective mood...

U2 - Stuck In A Moment You Can't Get Out Of (Acoustic Version / Lyric Video)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QRzKFPUJvbw

https://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/u2band/stuckinamomentyoucantgetoutof.html

"Stuck In A Moment You Can't Get Out Of"

I'm not afraid

Of anything in this world

There's nothing you can throw at me

That I haven't already heard

I'm just trying to find

A decent melody

A song that I can sing

In my own company

I never thought you were a fool

But darling look at you

You gotta stand up straight

Carry your own weight

These tears are going nowhere baby

You've got to get yourself together

You've got stuck in a moment

And now you can't get out of it

Don't say that later will be better

Now you're stuck in a moment

And you can't get out of it

I will not forsake

The colors that you bring

The nights you filled with fireworks

They left you with nothing

I am still enchanted

By the light you brought to me

I listen through your ears

Through your eyes I can see

And you are such a fool

To worry like you do

I know it's tough

And you can never get enough

Of what you don't really need now

My, oh my

You've got to get yourself together

You've got stuck in a moment

And you can't get out of it

Oh love, look at you now

You've got yourself stuck in a moment

And you can't get out of it

I was unconscious, half asleep

The water is warm 'til you discover how deep

I wasn't jumping, for me it was a fall

It's a long way down to nothing at all

You've got to get yourself together

You've got stuck in a moment

And you can't get out of it

Don't say that later will be better

Now you're stuck in a moment

And you can't get out of it

And if the night runs over

And if the day won't last

And if our way should falter

Along the stony pass

And if the night runs over

And if the day won't last

And if your way should falter

Along this stony pass

It's just a moment

This time will pass

Song of the Day: Sinead O'Connor - The Emperor's New Clothes

Sometimes you hit a milestone in life, and it causes you to reflect.  Happened to me recently.  I'll post a few songs that caused me to pause and reflect.  Maybe it was the vibe, maybe it was something in the lyrics.

Sinead O'Connor - The Emperor's New Clothes
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yhfATC9baPo

I will live by my own policies
I will sleep with a clear conscience
I will sleep in peace

https://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/sineadoconnor/theemperorsnewclothes.html

"The Emperor's New Clothes"

It seems like years since you held the baby

While I wrecked the bedroom

You said it was dangerous after Sunday

And I knew you loved me

He thinks I just became famous

And that's what messed me up

But he's wrong

How could I possibly know what I want

When I was only twenty-one?

And there's millions of people

To offer advice and say how I should be

But they're twisted

And they will never be any influence on me

But you will always be

You will always be

If I treated you mean

I really didn't mean to

But you know how it is

And how a pregnancy can change you

I see plenty of clothes that I like

But I won't go anywhere nice for a while

All I want to do is just sit here

And write it all down and rest for a while

I can't bear to be in another city

One where you are not

I would return to nothing without you

If I'm your girlfriend or not

Maybe I was mean

But I really don't think so

You asked if I'm scared

And I said so

Everyone can see what's going on

They laugh `cause they know they're untouchable

Not because what I said was wrong

Whatever it may bring

I will live by my own policies

I will sleep with a clear conscience

I will sleep in peace

Maybe it sounds mean

But I really don't think so

You asked for the truth and I told you

Through their own words

They will be exposed

They've got a severe case of

The emperor's new clothes

The emperor's new clothes

The emperor's new clothes

A Poem for These Times

I was reminded of a poem, in an RFK speech, during these troubled times.

First the speech:

RFK Speaks After MLK Killed | Flashback | History

https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=220&v=_bDlET_gK68&feature=emb_logo

And now the very short poem.  It's by Aeschylus, a Greek playwright, who lived 525 BC – 456 BC, "often recognized as the father or the founder of tragedy."

https://www.goodreads.com/quotes/481415-even-in-our-sleep-pain-which-cannot-forget-falls-drop

“Even in our sleep, pain which cannot forget

falls drop by drop upon the heart

until, in our own despair, against our will,

comes wisdom through the awful grace of God.”

― Aeschylus

As RFK says, in his speech, "...to tame the savageness of man, and make gentle the life of this world.  Let us dedicate ourselves to that."

Song of the Day: Caroline Spence - The Middle

Yeah, that's right, this is not the version of the song you recognize.  But I love it, and I love Caroline Spence's music as a whole.  And I love the vibe of this song, this version.  Wow.

Caroline Spence - The Middle Acoustic (Official Audio)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yl92mPcy0Uw

I should probably include a link the original version of the song.  Also great ... but I like Caroline's version better.  :)

Jimmy Eat World - The Middle (Official Music Video)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oKsxPW6i3pM

What do executives do, anyway?

Here is one of the better business articles I've seen in a while.  It's not new, but it was new to me.  It helped explain why I've been so frustrated at work lately.

What do executives do, anyway?
https://apenwarr.ca/log/20190926

As you might expect, this is more an article about what executives should do, as opposed to what many actually do.

TL;DR: Set values, not strategy.  It's critical to the long term health of a company.