Friday, September 28, 2012
My iPod is happy it is Friday too!
I think my iPod knows when it is Friday and knows just how glorious of a thing Friday is. It always plays the best, most chipper music on Fridays and I smile and sing all the way to work. That's a great way to start preparing for the weekend.
Tuesday, September 25, 2012
"My Name is Sue. How Do You Do? Now You're Gonna DIE!"
I just made my own day! (With the help of the interweb, I guess)
I have to admit that I had never heard anything about “A Boy Named Sue” until spring of 2000. I was in college and was sitting on a couch in a common area reading a book when a friend of mine (who I also had a teensy crush on) came up and randomly just started reading to me the words to “A Boy Named Sue” off of a piece of paper. When he finished I said “What was that? A Shel Silverstein poem?” and he said “No, it’s Johnny Cash!”
Well, it sounds like it could have been a Shel Silverstein poem.
Guess what I just now found out, more than 12 years later? IT WAS WRITTEN BY SHEL SILVERSTEIN! I KNEW it!
I’ve told that story to a couple of people, and none of them ever said to me “well, it was written by Shel Silverstein.” Everyone just assumes it was Johnny Cash.
I am a huge fan of Mr. Silverstein. I love reading his books to Roman and I’ve read them all so many times myself. When you hear him sing, you can tell that he is a Johnny Cash fan, so I love that they seemed to have a mutual admiration for one another.
I’m so happy right now :)
I have to admit that I had never heard anything about “A Boy Named Sue” until spring of 2000. I was in college and was sitting on a couch in a common area reading a book when a friend of mine (who I also had a teensy crush on) came up and randomly just started reading to me the words to “A Boy Named Sue” off of a piece of paper. When he finished I said “What was that? A Shel Silverstein poem?” and he said “No, it’s Johnny Cash!”
Well, it sounds like it could have been a Shel Silverstein poem.
Guess what I just now found out, more than 12 years later? IT WAS WRITTEN BY SHEL SILVERSTEIN! I KNEW it!
I’ve told that story to a couple of people, and none of them ever said to me “well, it was written by Shel Silverstein.” Everyone just assumes it was Johnny Cash.
I am a huge fan of Mr. Silverstein. I love reading his books to Roman and I’ve read them all so many times myself. When you hear him sing, you can tell that he is a Johnny Cash fan, so I love that they seemed to have a mutual admiration for one another.
I’m so happy right now :)
Wednesday, August 8, 2012
What the hell kind of music lover am I?
One thing in my life I have always prided myself on is my taste in and appreciation for music. I can differientate good music versus run-of-the-mill junk from a mile away. I think it comes off as snobbery to some people, and it's a fine line between ignorance and pretentiousness when I say I don't listen to Top 40 or know who certain A-Listers are. I'm sorry I didn't know who Justin Bieber was for a long time. I'm sorry I thought Lady Gaga was just Christina Aguilera going by a different name.
So anyway, I love music. LOVE it. I have it on all the time. I love going to concerts and buying records and CDs as opposed to downloading music. I'd spend hours in a record store if I could. A big thrill for me is getting these artifacts signed by the musicians at concerts, and since the music I like is generally under the radar, it is pretty easy to meet the bands becuase the venues are small. I always want to raise awareness to everyone that there is WAY better stuff out there than what you are hearing on the radio. One thing I really long for is more friends who love music like I do and want to go to concerts and talk about awesome bands. But I don't think most people care about it as much as I do.
So on to the point. As much as I love music, I have always been a big hater of the 80s culture and most 80s music. However, one CRAZY pregnancy craving (not really, but maybe!) I had a week or two ago was to hear "Don't You (Forget About Me)" by Simple Minds - 80s to the core. I wanted to listen to it so bad I thought I'd burst. So I went on Pandora and typed in The Clash (why didn't I just type in Simple Minds? Who knows, but it's good I didn't).
OH HOLY SHA-MOLY! Have my ears been up my ass all this time?!?! I knew The Ramones and the Clash and The Cure and The Pixie were good bands and I've always appreciated them more or less from afar, I just never gave them the time of day to really listen to them because I didn't want to hear 80s music. Boy have I been missing out all this time! And I have been listening to it almost non-stop lately, like I am trying to make up for lost time. I'm kind of embarrassed that I wasn't into this stuff all along. I feel like the people who "discover" bands years after people like me had already been listening to them (basically, the whole world) (and that's usually about the time I stop listening to those bands, sadly. I don't know why. It's stupid.)
I feel that my loverage of music is now completely legitimized. It has even renewed my vigor for some of the music that has kind of become dusty in my collection, like Modest Mouse and T-Rex and the Doves.
Dear 80s music, I love you*
*restrictions apply
So anyway, I love music. LOVE it. I have it on all the time. I love going to concerts and buying records and CDs as opposed to downloading music. I'd spend hours in a record store if I could. A big thrill for me is getting these artifacts signed by the musicians at concerts, and since the music I like is generally under the radar, it is pretty easy to meet the bands becuase the venues are small. I always want to raise awareness to everyone that there is WAY better stuff out there than what you are hearing on the radio. One thing I really long for is more friends who love music like I do and want to go to concerts and talk about awesome bands. But I don't think most people care about it as much as I do.
So on to the point. As much as I love music, I have always been a big hater of the 80s culture and most 80s music. However, one CRAZY pregnancy craving (not really, but maybe!) I had a week or two ago was to hear "Don't You (Forget About Me)" by Simple Minds - 80s to the core. I wanted to listen to it so bad I thought I'd burst. So I went on Pandora and typed in The Clash (why didn't I just type in Simple Minds? Who knows, but it's good I didn't).
OH HOLY SHA-MOLY! Have my ears been up my ass all this time?!?! I knew The Ramones and the Clash and The Cure and The Pixie were good bands and I've always appreciated them more or less from afar, I just never gave them the time of day to really listen to them because I didn't want to hear 80s music. Boy have I been missing out all this time! And I have been listening to it almost non-stop lately, like I am trying to make up for lost time. I'm kind of embarrassed that I wasn't into this stuff all along. I feel like the people who "discover" bands years after people like me had already been listening to them (basically, the whole world) (and that's usually about the time I stop listening to those bands, sadly. I don't know why. It's stupid.)
I feel that my loverage of music is now completely legitimized. It has even renewed my vigor for some of the music that has kind of become dusty in my collection, like Modest Mouse and T-Rex and the Doves.
Dear 80s music, I love you*
*restrictions apply
Tuesday, July 17, 2012
Round II
So the time has come for us to start considering our next move in family planning. For most of my adult life, I was not sold on the idea of having kids. I was really enjoying life as just Jacob and Sally. We could go to shows during the week and stay out as late as we wanted and it was no issue (this is probably the one and only thing I miss about pre-baby life). We could get out of the house quickly and easily and without much fuss. We could sleep in on weekends! But then the ripe old age of 29 rolled around and we had a decision to make. We weren't getting any younger and we needed to figure out if later on down the road we might feel regret at not raising children. That same year, our baby boy, Roman, was born.
What an amazing joy he is. I cannot believe how lucky we are with him. He is so happy and funny and full of character and is an incredible blessing. (Almost) everything he does or says puts a smile on my face. And I stop to think from time to time about how if we had decided to have children any earlier, we'd have someone totally and completely different from Roman. If I hadn't called Jacob in from gardening that very second on that early spring day for a little romp in the hay, well, again, we'd have someone totally different making joyful noises around our house. It's almost too much to think about. And I wouldn't want anyone other than Roman. That God sure knows what He's doing! Wait for it....wait for it.............perfection! What a nice thought.
But I'm not really here to talk about Roman. As I mentioned at the start, we're talking about child number two.
The above excerpt is the first half of a blog I wrote more than a month ago and then saved as a draft until I felt the time was right to send it out into the world wide interweb. Below is the second half of the same blog.
And I really want to adopt.
Even when I didn't want kids, I always thought adoption was an amazing thing. At that point it was something that, should I ever decide I wanted kids, that's how I would do it. Obviously, and thankfully, Round One didn't go that route. But now I am starting to do some research. Tomorrow, I will go to the library to pick up my reserved copy of Adoption for Dummies, and I will read it, and I will prayerfully consider if adoption really is the next step in increasing the Wright Family. If it isn't, that is fine too. I am happy to have my own babies. I just think about how many children are already out there, waiting to be adopted and welcomed into a family of their own for the rest of their lives!!
Again, if this doesn't work out for us, I will be okay with that. For now, I am just excited to really start researching the process. It's always nice to have something to look forward to.
I put a lot of consideration into that blog post and took quite a bit of time to write it. The very next day, I found out that our family is, in fact, expanding. Three tests confirm that I am pregnant. Three because I just couldn't possibly believe the first two could be accurate. I was on birth control. (Side note, I take back every time I opened my big mouth to say that I thought people who got pregnant while on birth control just weren't using it right. Because believe me, I was using it right).
I felt such shock the first several weeks that it was hard for me to get excited about it. It wasn't until last Friday, when I had my first prenatal appointment and they brought in a portable ultrasound machine and I saw the blob that is our baby and its little heart beating that I felt real joy about this turn of events. It was a big lesson for me about how our timing for ourselves isn't always God's timing for us, and he pretty much wins every time.
I'm excited for Roman to be a brother :)
What an amazing joy he is. I cannot believe how lucky we are with him. He is so happy and funny and full of character and is an incredible blessing. (Almost) everything he does or says puts a smile on my face. And I stop to think from time to time about how if we had decided to have children any earlier, we'd have someone totally and completely different from Roman. If I hadn't called Jacob in from gardening that very second on that early spring day for a little romp in the hay, well, again, we'd have someone totally different making joyful noises around our house. It's almost too much to think about. And I wouldn't want anyone other than Roman. That God sure knows what He's doing! Wait for it....wait for it.............perfection! What a nice thought.
But I'm not really here to talk about Roman. As I mentioned at the start, we're talking about child number two.
The above excerpt is the first half of a blog I wrote more than a month ago and then saved as a draft until I felt the time was right to send it out into the world wide interweb. Below is the second half of the same blog.
And I really want to adopt.
Even when I didn't want kids, I always thought adoption was an amazing thing. At that point it was something that, should I ever decide I wanted kids, that's how I would do it. Obviously, and thankfully, Round One didn't go that route. But now I am starting to do some research. Tomorrow, I will go to the library to pick up my reserved copy of Adoption for Dummies, and I will read it, and I will prayerfully consider if adoption really is the next step in increasing the Wright Family. If it isn't, that is fine too. I am happy to have my own babies. I just think about how many children are already out there, waiting to be adopted and welcomed into a family of their own for the rest of their lives!!
Again, if this doesn't work out for us, I will be okay with that. For now, I am just excited to really start researching the process. It's always nice to have something to look forward to.
I put a lot of consideration into that blog post and took quite a bit of time to write it. The very next day, I found out that our family is, in fact, expanding. Three tests confirm that I am pregnant. Three because I just couldn't possibly believe the first two could be accurate. I was on birth control. (Side note, I take back every time I opened my big mouth to say that I thought people who got pregnant while on birth control just weren't using it right. Because believe me, I was using it right).
I felt such shock the first several weeks that it was hard for me to get excited about it. It wasn't until last Friday, when I had my first prenatal appointment and they brought in a portable ultrasound machine and I saw the blob that is our baby and its little heart beating that I felt real joy about this turn of events. It was a big lesson for me about how our timing for ourselves isn't always God's timing for us, and he pretty much wins every time.
I'm excited for Roman to be a brother :)
Friday, June 1, 2012
Heroes are my hero.
"Then he worked his way up the bar, calmly taking life after life from the people seated there or scrambling for cover. One man tried to stop him.
Grabbing the only weapons at hand — bar stools — he tossed them at the gunman, even as the man aimed at him, Seattle Assistant Police Chief Jim Pugel said Thursday after reviewing harrowing surveillance video of the massacre. The tactic created enough of a delay in the shooting that two or three other customers were able to bolt out the door to safety.
"My brother died in the World Trade Center," the man later told Seattle police, who did not release his name but provided an account of the interview. After his brother's death, he said, he resolved that if something like this ever happened, "I would never hide under a table."
The Seattle Times late Thursday identified the man as Lawrence Adams, 56."
I read this in an article this morning regarding the shooting in Seattle earlier this week. Then I read it again. And again. It brought tears to my eyes. I've been following this story pretty closely since it happend relatively nearby to us, and I have so many friends and family members up there. The whole thing is horrible and it has again made me stop and wonder why people are so screwed up today (and then I have to remind myself that NOTHING is new under the sun. This stuff has been going on since the dawn of time, but, once again, because of the combined forces of the media and the interweb, it seems like there is so much more going on becuse we hear about it quickly and more frequently than we did in the "dark ages." I kind of miss those days).
ANYWAY, That last paragraph got me. What an amazing resolution. What a great way to live and, in turn, probably help others to live has this man did here! Can you imagine what things would be like if we were all this brave? I am such a coward about so many things that I'm afraid I'd be one of the ones hiding under the table. But you never know your own strength until you are tested, I guess (I hope I'm never tested like that, though).
Lawrence Adams, thank you for being a hero. You make me, and I'm sure others, want to be a stronger, better person.
Grabbing the only weapons at hand — bar stools — he tossed them at the gunman, even as the man aimed at him, Seattle Assistant Police Chief Jim Pugel said Thursday after reviewing harrowing surveillance video of the massacre. The tactic created enough of a delay in the shooting that two or three other customers were able to bolt out the door to safety.
"My brother died in the World Trade Center," the man later told Seattle police, who did not release his name but provided an account of the interview. After his brother's death, he said, he resolved that if something like this ever happened, "I would never hide under a table."
The Seattle Times late Thursday identified the man as Lawrence Adams, 56."
I read this in an article this morning regarding the shooting in Seattle earlier this week. Then I read it again. And again. It brought tears to my eyes. I've been following this story pretty closely since it happend relatively nearby to us, and I have so many friends and family members up there. The whole thing is horrible and it has again made me stop and wonder why people are so screwed up today (and then I have to remind myself that NOTHING is new under the sun. This stuff has been going on since the dawn of time, but, once again, because of the combined forces of the media and the interweb, it seems like there is so much more going on becuse we hear about it quickly and more frequently than we did in the "dark ages." I kind of miss those days).
ANYWAY, That last paragraph got me. What an amazing resolution. What a great way to live and, in turn, probably help others to live has this man did here! Can you imagine what things would be like if we were all this brave? I am such a coward about so many things that I'm afraid I'd be one of the ones hiding under the table. But you never know your own strength until you are tested, I guess (I hope I'm never tested like that, though).
Lawrence Adams, thank you for being a hero. You make me, and I'm sure others, want to be a stronger, better person.
Wednesday, May 23, 2012
Shooting at a Mountain of Dirt - Great Song Lyrics for your Ponderation
"We were shooting at a mountain of dirt / well nothing was broken and nothing was hurt / but I probably really should have been at work / but when my free time's gone / will you promise me this / that you'll please bury me with it." Bury Me With It by Modest Mouse. - I love the imagery of wasting your time, doing something you want to do (doing something like shooting at a mountain of dirt!) instead of doing something you should be doing. We all need to waste more time. Which leads me to one of my favorite quotes (who said it, I don't know): 'You don't truly get to know someone until you deliberately waste time with them.'
"Everybody knows that somethings wrong, but nobody knows what's going on" - Lonely Day by Phantom Planet. - I think that pretty much sums up our world as we know it right now.
"I'm amazed at the lack of evolution. I'm amazed at the lack of faith. I'm amazed at the love we're rejecting. I'm amazed that we accepted this place" - I'm Amazed by My Morning Jacket. I love all of the lyrics to this song. It really is amazing what we are willing to settle for instead of reaching for what we really deserve and really want and doing things that could really make life awesome.
"He is jealous for me / loves like a hurricane / I am a tree/bending beneath the weight of His wind and mercy.....if grace is an ocean we're all sinking" - How He Loves by David Crowder. I love these images of God and the amount of his love and grace for us. I'm not a big Christian music fan, but this song give me the chills every time I hear it. His grace is so amazing and abundant (which is why I struggle with the concept of Hell, which is another story for later).
"There's nothing else / just remember to fall in love / there's nothing else." Swoon by The Chemical Brothers. Yep.
"What's the point of knocking me down? Everyone knows I'm already good on the ground." Bird Flu by M.I.A. I don't know a woman who is tougher than M.I.A., and I think these lyrics are a great demonstration of that. I'm of the assumption it the second part of the quote has dual meaning, too. :)
"....just as I'm thinking about repairing it some little friends come along with some two-string, one-string, no-string guitars (hey guys, wanna jam?)...." Back Porch by The Presidents of the United States of America. This might just be my all-time favorite song lyric.
"Do you realize that you have the most beautiful face/do you realize we're floating in space / do you realize that happiness makes you cry / do you realize that everyone you know someday will die / and instead of saying all of your goodbyes let them know you realize that life goes fast, it's hard to make the good things last / you realize the sun doesn't go down / it's just an illusion caused by the world spinning 'round." Do You Realize? by The Flaming Lips. This song is always a good reminder to me to not waste my time worrying about death....it's going to happen no matter how much I may fret about it, so I should stop worrying and make the very best of life while my loved ones and I are all still here! Also, this is mine and Jacob's song.
Something's coming, sky is purple / dogs are hounding to themselves / Days are changing with the weather / like a riptide come rip us away. Earthquake Weather by Beck. I love Beck. He's one of my favorite musicians. This song (as well as the entire Sea Change album of his) however, make me feel nervous and uncomfortable. I love the title Earthquake Weather, but as soon as the song starts I get anxious. I can't not listen to it, though, because I love the song just the same.
We like you / This is a game already won / the time has come / stop trying. Stop Trying by Sia. Basically, anyone worth having in your life will like you just as you are. It shouldn't be a lot of work to be friends with someone....they should like you, and you should like them, without having to try.
"Everybody knows that somethings wrong, but nobody knows what's going on" - Lonely Day by Phantom Planet. - I think that pretty much sums up our world as we know it right now.
"I'm amazed at the lack of evolution. I'm amazed at the lack of faith. I'm amazed at the love we're rejecting. I'm amazed that we accepted this place" - I'm Amazed by My Morning Jacket. I love all of the lyrics to this song. It really is amazing what we are willing to settle for instead of reaching for what we really deserve and really want and doing things that could really make life awesome.
"He is jealous for me / loves like a hurricane / I am a tree/bending beneath the weight of His wind and mercy.....if grace is an ocean we're all sinking" - How He Loves by David Crowder. I love these images of God and the amount of his love and grace for us. I'm not a big Christian music fan, but this song give me the chills every time I hear it. His grace is so amazing and abundant (which is why I struggle with the concept of Hell, which is another story for later).
"There's nothing else / just remember to fall in love / there's nothing else." Swoon by The Chemical Brothers. Yep.
"What's the point of knocking me down? Everyone knows I'm already good on the ground." Bird Flu by M.I.A. I don't know a woman who is tougher than M.I.A., and I think these lyrics are a great demonstration of that. I'm of the assumption it the second part of the quote has dual meaning, too. :)
"....just as I'm thinking about repairing it some little friends come along with some two-string, one-string, no-string guitars (hey guys, wanna jam?)...." Back Porch by The Presidents of the United States of America. This might just be my all-time favorite song lyric.
"Do you realize that you have the most beautiful face/do you realize we're floating in space / do you realize that happiness makes you cry / do you realize that everyone you know someday will die / and instead of saying all of your goodbyes let them know you realize that life goes fast, it's hard to make the good things last / you realize the sun doesn't go down / it's just an illusion caused by the world spinning 'round." Do You Realize? by The Flaming Lips. This song is always a good reminder to me to not waste my time worrying about death....it's going to happen no matter how much I may fret about it, so I should stop worrying and make the very best of life while my loved ones and I are all still here! Also, this is mine and Jacob's song.
Something's coming, sky is purple / dogs are hounding to themselves / Days are changing with the weather / like a riptide come rip us away. Earthquake Weather by Beck. I love Beck. He's one of my favorite musicians. This song (as well as the entire Sea Change album of his) however, make me feel nervous and uncomfortable. I love the title Earthquake Weather, but as soon as the song starts I get anxious. I can't not listen to it, though, because I love the song just the same.
We like you / This is a game already won / the time has come / stop trying. Stop Trying by Sia. Basically, anyone worth having in your life will like you just as you are. It shouldn't be a lot of work to be friends with someone....they should like you, and you should like them, without having to try.
Monday, May 21, 2012
I Love Lists! 10 Celebrities I Should Be Friends With! Annnnnd....GO!
1. Parker Posey! Because what one sassy bitch needs is another sassy bitch for some sassy-bitch competition. Plus, she’s who I’d have play me in a movie.
2. Jason Schwartzman! Not only is he a great actor, but he’s also a drummer! Yes please!
3. Jeremy Clarkson! Who in the whole wide world is cooler than this guy (except for Steve McQueen, probably)?
4. Jim James! He is an amazing musician and is crazy in his cape-coat.
5. Gael Garcia Bernal! For obvious reasons.
6. Kristin Wiig! Because she’s a freekin’ hoot! And everyone could use more laughter in their lives.
7. John Goodman! Probably the one I’d most want to have as a friend. I adore John Goodman.
8. Steve Buscemi! The best actor of our time.
9. Christopher Walken! Say what you will about him being creepy. The man is brilliant.
10. Anthony Bourdain! See my comments regarding Parker Posey.
2. Jason Schwartzman! Not only is he a great actor, but he’s also a drummer! Yes please!
3. Jeremy Clarkson! Who in the whole wide world is cooler than this guy (except for Steve McQueen, probably)?
4. Jim James! He is an amazing musician and is crazy in his cape-coat.
5. Gael Garcia Bernal! For obvious reasons.
6. Kristin Wiig! Because she’s a freekin’ hoot! And everyone could use more laughter in their lives.
7. John Goodman! Probably the one I’d most want to have as a friend. I adore John Goodman.
8. Steve Buscemi! The best actor of our time.
9. Christopher Walken! Say what you will about him being creepy. The man is brilliant.
10. Anthony Bourdain! See my comments regarding Parker Posey.
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