Friday, June 26, 2009

but all the while, you feel a creature creeping up behind.

Currently Listening To: World Spins Madly On by The Weepies
Best Lines I Read This Week: Accordingly I sat and said nothing: "If he expects me to talk for the mere sake of talking and showing off, he will find he as addressed himself to the wrong person," I thought. - from Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte


So I was at my bff Sarah’s house and we were sitting on her porch. Her porch is screened in, which is a necessity, as her lake is often full of ducks. Ducks, in case you don’t know, are wicked. Sarah called a few weeks ago to tell me there were 94 geese/ducks/feathered water vermin on the lake. (Please note: this lake is not huge.) Yesterday, she showed me the aftermath of the duck invasion: approximately a billion feathers scattered about. We think there was some sort of turf war between the ducks. Can you imagine them snapping their feathers a la West Side Story? That would be fantastic. So we’re sitting on the screened in porch, chatting about singing/dueling ducks, and watching for turtles in the water when this lady walks down the side walk.
And Sarah whispers, “look what’s in her hand.”

She had feathers. Lots of them. I imagine she wanted to use them for decorative purposes. Also, I imagine those feathers are full of mites, bugs, bird poo, and nasty. Hobby Lobby has fake feathers, know what I mean? It was entertaining though, in a creepy way.

Then we watched Crossroads. Sarah DVR’d this particular Crossroads because it was a match up between Taylor Swift (whom we both love dearly) and Def Leopard (who we do not love … but the thought of Def Leopard singing “Love Song” made us all kinds of happy). Quite honestly, I thought it might be a little comical watching the concert unfold. It was actually kind of awesome. Not only did Def Leopard seem to really enjoy her songs, but they all sounded good together:

I think that song sounds really good as a duet! And then, in one of their songs, Taylor played an electric and then THEN she threw it to her stage manager on the other side of the stage and stomped back up to the microphone like a total rockstar.

Sarah said: We have got to learn to play an instrument! Ask your brother what’s easy … and tell him no when he says the recorder.

Speaking of music, it seems like every child of the 80’s is coming together today to share an MJ story. Here is mine: as a kid, I really liked his music. I have a CD in my car of his early stuff – Billie Jean, Thriller, Man in the Mirror, Beat It (which, as a kid, I used to sing as “Veeta!”). I haven't felt particularly moved over this event, but it has certainly made me nostalgic. No matter how different we 20/30somethings are we all watched Masters of the Universe and Rainbow Brite and tried to moonwalk*, ya know? My bff Melanies' husband, Ben, was writing about why people react to celebrity deaths in such a profound way (it’s a really good post, click here to read). He said he thinks it has something to do with nostalgia, and realizing you aren’t infinite. When a celebrity you idolized, or crushed on, as a kid dies, it dumps you back into reality in a rather brutal way. I think there’s some real truth to that. I will say, however, neither celebrity death this week really got to me. When Heath Ledger died that was weird (why is that?) but this one didn't feel the same.

Of all the art forms out there, music is most likely to make me feeling something instantly. When it comes to visual art, or theater, or even literature, sometimes it takes awhile for the force of the project to hit me. Whether immediate or delayed, that rush good art brings along with it is always worth it. But music is different. Sometimes I hear a song and there's an instant connection. Everything I want to say, but can’t, is wrapped up in a sound or a lyric. You don’t have to say it then; You can just experience it. Coldplay does that to me (and I know it’s cliche to like Coldplay blah blah blah**). Nickel Creek does/did*** that to me. David Crowder’s music does it. I listen to all those bands now enough to talk about songs I like but, initially, I was drawn to them for the way they made me feel. Even if they didn’t make me feel happy, they gave me a way to work through sludgy days. Michael Jackson made music that resonated too. I bet even non fans, who grew up in the 80's, can sing along with some of his songs. As an adult, I wasn’t much of a fan, but as a kid his music made me happy, made me want to dance. Everybody needs an excuse to dance once in a while.

Happy Weekending :)
* And we all developed massive crushes on Bo Duke. (Or was that just me?)
**Before you throw out the Radiohead argument; I have listened to Radiohead. I don't think they sound the same. I still like Coldplay better.
*** I know Nickel Creek no longer functions as a unit, but I'm having trouble coming to terms with this. .

8 comments:

  1. I've still yet to acknowledte the Nickel Creek "hiatus" as valid. However, Sean Watkins' new stuff with Jon Foreman is awesome (check out Fiction Family). As is Sara Watkins' new solo cd. I haven't listened to Punch Brothers yet, but I firmly believe that Chris Thile can do no wrong. (Toxic? I mean really. Really.)

    I don't have any MJ stories. I'm pretty sure I'm alone in my MJ principles. (There he goes, off to write his new hit single, "Alone in my Principles.")

    Also, I really do love Taylor Swift. I'm pretty sure we'd be BFF IRL. And I think that every girl, once in her life, should get away with wearing a dress entirely made of sequins. Just once. And it should be on video. Well, maybe.

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  2. Okay, I know I'm in the minority here but playing the recorder was NOT easy. Especially since we had to brave the elements just to get to the lesson. And that's not even counting the asthmatic effects of recorder playing.
    Sorry, rant over;)
    Moving on, it's getting redundant but I heart Taylor Swift. We're totally bffs. With a friendship as strong as ours, you don't even need to meet (or be aware of your bff's existence).

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  3. Ashley, comments like this affirm we were meant to be friends :) I'm with you on the gold. For like every girl but me. I'm pretty sure I would look like a dufus but I agree every girl deserves a moment to rock out. I've heard Fiction Family, and I liked it a lot, but I haven't listened to Sara Watkins music. I need to get on iTunes pronto and get some new stuff. I really like her voice (love the way she sings "Anthony" :). I have a live concert I downloaded as an NPR podcast - thus it was FREE - and it is fabulous. Sara sings a Jackson 5 song :) And Chris Thile is a doll. I'm still jealous you got to hug him and eat Panera with him. (That was you wasn't it?)

    Sarah, I'm pretty confident my friend Sarah actually did try to play a recorder once. She would testify to it's difficulty, I am positive (and she meant it in a "he better not suggest a recorder" sort of way..). I also believe you because I can't play anything. In music classes in school, I always had to play those rhythm sticks that looked like Twix and I couldn't even do that right. My brother is ridiculously musically inclined but I got nothing in that department :) I can play three chords on a guitar and that's it. So rant all you want! You musicians blow my mind with your brand of awesome.

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  4. I read the first Spellman book and mostly liked it. (re: on your shelf) And you should join me in my breakup with Diet Coke. Strength in numbers and withdrawals and all that.

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  5. Oh, also caught the Def Lepard/TS Crossroads some time ago and also liked it! But I also like "Pour Some Sugar On Me" Def Lepard. That song would make anyone a rock star.

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  6. A new Crossroads came on Friday with Jason Aldean and Bryan Adams. It looked awesome! Mom dvr(ed) it for me, so I'll let you know just how awesome it is. I do love me some Bryan Adams, though! Takes me back to middle school dances every time. :)

    And the feather lady...perhaps she is making Sarah a wedding gift? A feather hat? A feather boa? A feather lingerie item, perhaps? I see a prank gift in her future, for sure.

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  7. That wasn't me that ate Panera with him (wow... way jealous now that I've heard that rumor, though). But my friend Rachel and I did see him jogging before a concert once and totally freaked out. He looked at us when he heard her accidentally blurt out an unsavory four-letter word.

    That night (this is awesome.) after the concert, my friends and I were hanging out by the tour bus to get autographs (and hugs, which yes, I did get) and when they came out, Rachel was trying to act all suave, telling us to "be cool, guys, just be cool. Don't act like we're actually here because they're famous." (And I'm thinking, "We're not here because they're famous, we're here because they're awesome and they'll sign my ticket stub. What's wrong with that?")

    Anyway, once Chris Thile was about 6 feet away, Rachel started having trouble breathing properly. She has a deviated septum, so she frequently snorts when she laughs... and she started snorting. And could. Not. Stop. Snorting. At all. Of course he noticed, grinned, finished taking a picture and signing an autograph, then walked over to us and was like "are you okay?" Which of course, only envoked more snorting. The only word she could choke out was "sorry" to which he responded, "Oh no, it's okay. It's cute. I like it."

    So for the next few days, she wasn't horrified because she just had an all-out snortfest in front of her favorite living musician, but she was on cloud nine because he said "it was cute."

    So that's my Chris Thile story. And I bet he remembers it, too. Oh, and we got a picture. http://tinyurl.com/m2elwr

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  8. I'm sure playing a recorder would be difficult. I don't want Chase to suggest it because I don't think I could rock out with a recorder. Imagine if I threw the recorder to my stage manager in the middle of the show...not so much the rock star vibe I'm going for. Maybe the triangle...:)
    Melanie. I can SEE your comment. No No No to all of your suggestions. Those geese are disgusting.

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