How long have I been waiting to attend this concert? George Winston at Orchestra Hall. No mics, no CD scratches, no speakers between us and the music … simply a wooden soundboard vibrating and filling a holiday concert hall. Years. Mykala and I went the Monday before Christmas, parked in the cold parking garage and proceeded to the elevator to get to the skyway. There was a small group waiting, and one member of it hit the down button. The doors opened, but the group simply stared. I advanced a bit, looked in the empty elevator doors, and hesitated, not wanting to violate the laws of common courtesy. Then, with a lazy “ding” the doors slid shut again. I scratched my head and turned around to a Mykala who was beside herself laughing. It must have been an odd sight, to see the door open, and me peer in, only to become confused as the doors shut again. Eventually, though, we made it into the concert hall and took our seats in the 24th row.
My sister Katy was waiting to catch the campus connector yesterday, wearing her red purse and red backpack, when she was approached by an elderly women. “We both have red purses” the women commented, quite out of the blue. Rather nonplussed, Katy replied, “Why yes, we do - great minds think alike!” The woman thought for a moment and replied, “Well, I was thinking that I never had a red purse until I was old.” Some random old people give the rest a bad name.
Well. I might as well list the media I am consuming/will consume in the future, the recent things I have bought, and things I have given lately. I am currently listening to “Glasgow Love Theme” from the movie Love Actually. It’s making me rather sad, but it is on repeat for a reason I can not really articulate. And by “can’t” I mean I am both unable and unwilling to delve that deeply into my head. I’d rather return to reading Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. Alternatively, I would like to watch a movie and cry over it. Or simply cry. You know? I think you do.
Ummmmmmmmmmmm. Umm. Ummm! Ummm? Ummmmmm. Hum. Erm. Barrrrgh. Edet. Deeee bop. Burrrrr? These are the sounds of me debating whether to start a hidden version of this site, one where I share everything that is on my mind in a completely straightforward no-nonsense manner. In reality, it would not be that hard, I would take the current “life” posts and any future ones, and password-protect their viewing. Any hard-core hackers who really did want my personal logs could probably force their way in, and that wouldn’t particularly bother me; I wouldn’t post social security numbers or my current location via GPS coordinates. But really, Erin made a great argument for journals: they help you clarify your thoughts and realize what you are really thinking. Thing is, the front page of this site really used to be traffic-free: no one visited. Now, traffic has certainly increased, but it’s more that people I know visit. One possible option could be to wait for the people I know to get bored with visiting and then I could resume personal details. However, I do feel I could be more honest about my life if I knew that everything I said would not escape the confines of the digital realm.
Time out for two musical recommendations. I heard these both on Drive 105 recently, and was impressed in spite of myself (radio really is not that good for listening to real music). Since there is only a tape player in the car in which I commute, I do occasionally turn off the limited number of albums I have and scan the dial for something of worth.
Asterisk - D. Keith Robinson’s site has one of my favorite color schemes. Beyond that, he opens up some excellent topics for discussion in addition to his wonderful musical recommendations. One of the best use of Google AdWords (a necessary evil for some of the bigger sites) I have seen.
This will be the first album recommendation I have made based on … almost no exposure to an album. This little disc, Everyone Is Here, has a single called “Won’t Give In,” which is available on iTunes as a part of a three-song download. Unfortunately, I do not have iTunes and do not have the time to grab it, so I am sitting here hoping Cities 97 will play this song again for New Music Monday. It was just one of those songs that grabbed me. Traveling 70 miles an hour eastbound on I94 with the windows open, some subtle nuance of the tune grabbed my eardrums and told them “this is something special.” Then again, I am suggesting you buy a compact disc based on 30 seconds of hearing bits and pieces of one song from it. This means either the song is so amazing that 30 seconds of it filtered through traffic causes melodic brain convulsions, or I am utterly misguided and should be doing better things during the driving task.
We all want a home. We all want a place to come home to. We all need a place where we are loved and where we are safe. We all cry. We all laugh. We all love.
The why’s the when’s the where’s and the how’s don’t matter anymore. Can you see that? Can you peer through the muck that this world throws on your windshield and see the truth? If you find out how, please tell me.
Girls can wear jeans
And cut their hair short
Wear shirts and boots
‘Cause it’s OK to be a boy
But for a boy to look like a girl is degrading
‘Cause you think that being a girl is degrading
But secretly you’d love to know what it’s like
Wouldn’t you
What it feels like for a girl
Silky smooth
Lips as sweet as candy, baby
Tight blue jeans
Skin that shows in patches
Strong inside but you don’t know it
Good little girls they never show it
When you open up your mouth to speak
Could you be a little weak
Do you know what it feels like for a girl
Do you know what it feels like in this world
For a girl
Hair that twirls on fingertips so gently, baby
Hands that rest on jutting hips repenting
Hurt that’s not supposed to show
And tears that fall when no one knows
When you’re trying hard to be your best
Could you be a little less
Do you know what it feels like for a girl
Do you know what it feels like in this world
For a girl
Do you know what it feels like for a girl
Do you know what it feels like in this world
What it feels like for a girl
Strong inside but you don’t know it
Good little girls they never show it
When you open up your mouth to speak
Could you be a little weak
Do you know what it feels like for a girl
Do you know what it feels like in this world
For a girl
In this world
Do you know
Do you know
Do you know what it feels like for a girl
What it feels like in this world
This is the “new” Elvis song. A DJ with the interesting name of JXL has remixed the Elvis song “Little Less Conversation.” It’s really catchy; apparently number one on some chart in Europe. These Euro people seem to write, produce, and perform far better electronic and dance tracks than the US ever does. Europeans simply know what sounds good on a dance floor and thus their club music exceeds most US offerings. But the real focus is this song:
I’m writing this article as I am listening to RealAudio clips of George Winston’s newest CD. Having heard a lot of his work, I am happy to say this album lives up to the high quality of Winston’s piano playing. I’ll let Windham Hill do the talking: