Find the Magic

There can be all kinds of magic around us, if you're open to it, watching for it. Sometimes its in the little things, a baby's smile, a butterfly that floats past, a beautiful sunrise or even a tree.

And sometimes you behave to dig to find the magic.  A two hour solo road trip can feel daunting.  But the best way around it, for me, is to load up old music on the mp3 player. And then singing along. Loudly!!  The miles just fly by!

I attach memories to music, that's just how I'm wired.  "Come a little bit closer you're my kind of man, so big and so strong.. ." (Ron)  or "This much I know is true that God bless the broken road and led me straight to you" (Chuck).  Another song by an artist I hadn't heard of, Joshua Kadison, "You will always be beautiful in my eyes and the passing years will show that you will always grow evermore beautiful in my eyes." (JavaJoe). 

Even the old 60s country hits by great singers like Johnny Cash, Tammy Wynette or Buck Owens....  That's some good tunes!

We all get busy doing "stuff". I'm guilty of just that with Mom stuff. I needed this trip to remind me to find the magic!  Don't forget to find your own!

Dinner Theater

Silver Star Theater in Mesa is a place where you can have dinner and some theater in the same evening.  Dinner is buffet style, with a hot bar and a salad bar.  

My mom and I attended last night. Cousin Karen and mom both have birthdays in Feb so that's their thing. This time I went along.  The show was called "True Country" and was quite entertaining. ( I know,,,  some don't like country music.)

There are several shows to choose from, including 50/60s, 70/80s, and Elvis.  The singers and band are talented.  And while I'm always rooting for the keyboard player in a band, last night it was the steel guitar player.  He played with Glen Cambell for 20 years and is SO talented!! 

We heard old school country tunes, some George Strait, Dolly Parton, and the show ended with Devil Went Down to Georgia.  The little fiddle player was a dream to listen to. She played with such joy!

They definitely play to the older crowd, but it was still fun, enjoyable. If you're out in the Valley of the Sun, the experience is worth it!

Write Peace

Its Mom day again for grocery shopping. Picking up Mr Z from school. Baseball practice this evening.  For being retired, I'm not getting much rest! Haha

But one thing has been weighing on my mind.  There's a new song by Leanna Crawford. The opening verse is:

"Great Aunt Maurine said at a hundred and three:  Write scripture on your heart for when you need it, Cause anxiety hates Psalm 23. So just say it to yourself ‘til you believe it. And I’m feeling like I’m needing it right now."

Psalm 23 is well known.  I know that it's written on my own heart, and has given me comfort through all my hard times.  I find myself wishing it for mom.  She has attended church all her life. And yet she has so much anxiety over ... things.

I guess in the end, we all find our own peace.  Much of mine comes from music!

Listen to Your Soul

Let your soul be your pilot, let your soul guide you......

That's the song I heard during my gym time. I know it's sung by Sting, but I'm not sure its his version on my MP3 player  .... 

Either way the message is a good one.  We all have a tendency to look to others for advice.  But in the end, we have to own that each choice is ours.  Good. Bad. Or ugly.   I've made plenty of all kinds!

But most of my good ones come from when I listen to that little voice inside, my intuition, my soul. 

What's even better is when we make a bad or ugly decision, what we learn from it, or what we can gain from it, can still be good.

I thought I was making a good decision when I married husband #3 and moved from Cali to Ohio.  Turns out that wasn't a good one for me, but in the long run, it turned out to be good for my kids.  They were able to get school provided services for their disabilities.  My daughter was taught sign language and had an interpreter. My son had a teacher devoted to helping him with his vision needs.  While the marriage didn't work, my kids benefited.  So some good from the bad.

When things are going wrong, look inside yourself.  Listen to your intuition. 

Sunday Music

I was raised in the Lutheran Church.  Every Sunday was spent going to church. It was a small church, everyone knew everyone.  And I was raised singing old hymns, which I never minded.   I'm musically inclined and enjoyed that much more than the rest of it.

I'm watching Seventh Heaven and a tune came on and I immediately knew the words and sang along:

Blest be the tie that binds Our hearts in Christian love; The fellowship of kindred minds Is like to that above.

While that's a lot of old fashioned words, its a simple message. Which wasn't my point.  How we are raised is ingrained in us, no matter how far from the original path we might stray.  I stopped attending St John's (where mom attended for 50 years)  in 1990.  I joined another church, but after I left Cali, church was more in the background.  

It's comforting to know that the simple things we learn in our childhood stick with us, and that music pulls memories out that we thought we had long forgotten. 

If you have a chance, pull out some old music and let the memories wash over you.

Country Music

Dear Brian,

Raising you, it wasn't an actual goal that I set regarding the type of music that would appeal to you.  That you liked 70s and 80s hair bands was great!  .... well, maybe it's what you grew up on.  But country music also held an appeal, I know.  For me, the older I get, the more I feel like I need and want to get back to my "roots".  I grew up on country music - Johnny Cash, Tammy Wynette and George Jones, Dolly Parton and Porter Wagoner - too many to name here, but the 60s and 70s stick in my mind.

A new comer to country music is Craig Morgan.  His 19 year old son died it a boating accident, and he wrote a beautiful song that really fits:

I've been beat up

I been pushed and shoved

But never ever really knocked down

Between mom and dad, Uncle Sam and friends

I somehow always pulled out

But the pain of this was more

Than I'd ever felt before, yeah I was broke

I cried and cried and cried

Until I passed out on the floor

Then I prayed and prayed and prayed

Till I thought I couldn't pray anymore

And minute by minute, day by day

My God, He gave me hope

I know my boy ain't here but he ain't gone

In the mornings I wake up, pet the dog, head to the kitchen

Pour a cup of wake-me-up and try to rouse up some ambition

Go outside, sit by myself but I ain't alone

See, I've got the Father, my son, and the Holy Ghost

I hope, I love, I pray, I cry

I heal a little more each day inside

I won't completely heal till I go home

In the mornings I wake up, pet the dog, head to the kitchen

Pour a cup of wake-me-up and try to rouse up some ambition

Go outside, sit by myself but I ain't alone

I've got the Father, my son, and the Holy Ghost

One day I'll wake up and I'll be home

With the Father, my son, and the Holy Ghost

When I'm here at home, I can feel you
Sometimes I turn and expect to find you there
Other times I find myself telling you to "c'mere"
and give me a hand.
How I miss you.
For some reason, even more today.

One day, I'll wake up and be home.
With you.

Love,
Mom

It's Not a Surprise Party

Dear Brian:

I sat at my computer today, selecting photos and music to create a DVD that represents you, and your life.  It wasn't easy, but it sure was fun.  Looking at all the photos I have -- thousands!! -- and remembering all our adventures, home projects, just having fun with family;  it was fun to see all those, and makes me glad I like taking pix!  But it was sad as well.

Struggled a bit with the music -- some of your fav songs, well, the lyrics aren't so appropriate.  So I did the next best thing:  selected the intros from a bunch of your fav songs and slung them all together.  It should make for a very ..... interesting reaction!  :)

Here I am, making plans for a celebration of life -- it's like planning a surprise party ....
only you won't be there to be surprised.

Each day I'm putting one foot in front of the other, to cope.  Sometimes it's having to cope hour to hour.  I can tell when it becomes too much, and I have to go sit down, take a break.  It's like my mind can only hold so much information before it needs to reboot.  Sleeping is the same way for me.  I can sleep about 90 minutes, then I'm awake.  Sometimes I'll walk Sadie into the living room and back before I crawl into bed, turn on some Netflix show, and try to sleep some more.  Last night must have been rougher than most, Sadie let me sleep in til 6am!!

I was putzing around in the garage storage; a shelf fell and one of the bottle shattered all over.  I cleaned that up today with the vacuum to get the itty bitty pieces, and did the rest of the garage as well.  It was still full of styrofoam pieces from the piece you cut a couple weeks ago.  We took that out of the window temporarily because there wasn't enough light in your room to clean things up, gather up the laundry and get it all washed.

My days are broken into bits and pieces.
Time has become "before" and "after".

Love,
Mom

Feel Good Music

I wanted one of my "things" that I accomplish this summer to be being more positive in my outlook on life  Granted, it's not easy when there are factors out of your control.  It's not easy to be thinking positively when work changes affect how you think and feel about your workplace, or when your family issues weigh on your mind more than they should. 

It's more about changing your thinking to the little things that make a difference in your life:  a flower, a kind word, a hug from a friend.  Each morning on my way to work, I try to find good tunes to help make a good start to my day.  I would pay for SiriusXM if my commute were more than 20 minutes.  So maybe I should consider putting the really mood altering tunes on an MP3 player for the drive to work. 

The top of the list would include Uncle Kracker's "Smile" ; Kenny Chesney's "Everything's Gonna Be All Right" ; and Autograph's "Turn Up the Radio".  There's nothing like a good tune to  put you in the right frame of mind for work!  I get a kick out of hearing "Highway to Hell" ... but that has quite the opposite effect!!!!  heheheh Although John Pardi's "Head Over Boots" is an awesome feel good song as well. 

So today, if you're feeling a bit blue or out of sorts, grab yourself some good tunes to lift your spirits!
It works for me!

get along on down the road

we've got a long long way to go

scared to live, scared to die

we ain't perfect but we try

get along while we can

always give love the upper hand

paint a wall

learn to dance

call your ma

buy a boat

drink a beer

sing a song

make a friend

c'ain't we all

get along.

Hammer Time and Car Tunes

On my drive to work today, I was listening to SiriusXM - it's a free week, and that's always fun for a change of pace!  So I flipped over to the 90s station and there's MC Hammer rocking out "U Can't Touch This". 

I don't usually crank up the volume because regular radio is a bit on the treble side when it comes to broadcasting, no matter how I set my radio.  But SirisuXM ... wow!  With the volume cranked up so I could sing along, my speakers were vibratin' and thumpin' with the tune!

Break it down.   Oh oh oh Ohh OHhh!

Yep, I was "chair dancin'" all the way to work!

Isn't it funny how something on the radio can affect your mood as you're heading in to work?  I usually listen to the local classic rock station, and get a kick out of hearing "Highway to Hell" as I'm heading in to my job .... and for anyone who works retail, you know just how much "hell" there can be!  So yes, that song gets turned up and I sing loud and proud "I'm on a highwaaaaay to hell!" 

But my all time favorite song that really gets me into a good mood is "Turn up the Radio" by Autograph.  Very old school, they didn't have a lot of hits, but for me, it's the best.  "I'm working hard, you're working too, we do it every day.  For every minute of work, I need a minute of play. Day in Day out, all week long, things go better with rock. The only time I turn it down is when I'm sleeping it off." 

Yes, music is a wonderful influence in our lives.  We all have different tastes when it comes to music.  My own collection is very eclectic, but every musical choice moves my soul in some way.  I'm betting your choices do too!

Planet Fitness

I'm a member of Planet Fitness.  I chose this gym because it's 2 minutes from work, I can dash over on my lunch hour to get a bit of cardio in.  Today, because I was done with work at 10am, I headed over to the gym and hopped on the treadmill.  I purposefully covered the digital display so I wouldn't be distracted with numbers, or more specifically ... how much time has gone? and is it enough time that I can stop?!!!   I set the parameters for 55 minutes and just let it go.  The first time I got the urge to check the time, I was past 30 minutes.

And that's where the I hit "the exercise high".  I felt like I could keep on going ... and going ... and going.    I added another 5 minutes to make it an even 60, and to make sure I got past the 3 mile mark.   The Beach Boys came over the headset and I cranked up the speed so that my running pace would match the beat of the music.

With a mix of 80s head bangin' stuff, to some country tunes, one of the last ones was Jason Aldean's "The Only Way I Know".   Really strikes a chord with me, because I was raised on country music and that's just how it's always been for me:

"That’s the only way I know

Don’t stop 'til everything’s gone

Straight ahead, never turn round

Don’t back up, don’t back down

Full throttle, wide open

You get tired and you don’t show it

Dig a little deeper when you think you can’t dig no more

That’s the only way I know"

And it spurred me on, finished it out at 65 minutes, 3.25 miles.
Then I hit the machines for some more leg work.
If work hadn't called and interrupted me, I might have done even more!


As I get older, I have come to find that losing weight is a very real struggle.  Because it is, about two weeks ago, I decided that weight loss wasn't going to be my thing, and put it out of my head.  I changed my thoughts toward staying healthy.  And amazingly enough, I've now lost 8 lbs in the past two weeks!   So was I stressing about it so much that I was hindering progress?  Don't know, don't care.  I just keep going so that I'll maintain some muscle, some balance, and some good health.

The Man in Black

I sat down, ready to relax before bed, flipped on the TV and booted up my Kindle, intent on finishing the book I've been reading.   But PBS was the last station I watched .... and there on my TV is the Man in Black -- and the Highwaymen!   Willie Nelson, Waylon Jennings and Kris Kristofferson.  Ohhh boy was my day totally complete!    So much for reading, I'm totally watching this instead!

Yes, I know it's an old repeat, but who cares?!?

Ring of Fire
Me and Bobby McGee
Mammas Don't let Your Babies Grow Up to be Cowboys
Folsum Prison Blues
Always on My Mind
.... damn, what great music!

The Highwaymen:  Frequently referred to as “the Mount Rushmore of country music,” The Highwaymen – Willie Nelson, Waylon Jennings, Johnny Cash, and Kris Kristofferson – were American country music’s first bona fide supergroup, an epic quartet comprised of the outlaw country genre’s pioneering stars. An essential musical and cultural influence, the Grammy-winning group was active from 1985 – 1995.

Oh how I miss the music they made - thank goodness for PBS bringing back an old classic!

I saw Johnny Cash in the 90s, and it was the BEST concert I've ever been to.  He was the ultimate performer, but that's just my opinion.

His music is poignant, thought provoking, and moving.  Even his songs with a hint of humor are my favs, from "Boy Named Sue" to "One Piece at a Time".   On his album, American IV, he sings "In My Life", another one of my favs!  Take a moment, find a YouTube version and listen to some Johnny!  

I Want You

This was totally random.... What are the odds?



I was driving home from work scanning through channels, tuned in heard Savage Garden's "I want You".

Me being me, I had to look it up when I got home and found myself surprised that it was released in 1997 in America; somehow, I was thinking it was a late 80's song.  Savage Garden is an Australian pop group, and I always liked their hits.   Of course, "Truly, Madly, Deeply" was the hit I liked the BEST!

Anytime I need to see your face, 

I just close my eyes 

And I am taken to a place where 

your crystal mind and 

Magenta feelings take up shelter 

in the base of my spine 

Sweet like a chic-a-cherry cola 

Ooh, I want you 

I don't know if I need you 

But, ooh, I'd die to find out 

My younger self came over me as I cranked the volume and belted it out right along with the band!  

But what was totally random was getting in the car the next morning, and this same song was on the radio!  Now, it's nearly 20 years later, and this wasn't a huge hit for them;  in 1997 it was #22 on the Top 100 Hits list.  It's not often played on the local "oldies" stations, so how random was it that it played -- and I heard it -- twice in a row?   You can hear it here on Vevo. 

I like little random-ness things like this! 

Holiday Music in OITNB

Orange is the New Black holiday episode entitled "Can't Fix Crazy" is terrific.  I am addicted to this show and find it amazing that this diverse group of women with their own problems and plenty of drama can come together, set differences aside, and create a holiday program for the rest of the inmates at Litchfield Prison.

Among the many diverse characters, there is one woman named Norma who doesn't speak because of a crippling stuttering problem.  There is another woman called Crazy Eyes who was scheduled to sing at her high school graduation and froze up, unable to sing.  Her current fear is having the same thing happen during the Christmas Pageant, which of course, happens.  There is a small miracle of joy that happens when Norma closes her eyes and sings so beautifully the verse to "I Saw the Light"

Just like a blind man I wandered along

Worries and fears I claimed for my own

Then like the blind man that God gave back his sight

Praise the Lord I saw the light.

I saw the light I saw the light

No more darkness no more night

Now I'm so happy no sorrow in sight

Praise the Lord I saw the light.

This scene is well touted on the 'net and is quite moving if you're a follower of mute Norma.  But in my opinion Samira Wiley, who plays Poussey Washington, sings in trio with Cindy and Taystee, "Joy to the World".  When they get done with their performance and take their bows, Poussey bursts into a solo of "Amazing Grace".  To me, it is just beautiful.  I've seen it many, many times and it still brings tears to my eyes.  

This drama is one of the best I've seen in a long time.  There are diverse characters, there are opportunities to learn backgrounds on the women who are incarcerated, and with every episode I find a new reason to like or dislike the many characters.

What will season 4 hold???

I can't wait to find out!!

on the Pontoon

Brand new country song just reached number one -- Pontoon ! 
Love listening to this at work.  It's like a three minute mini vacation in my head!

Its amazing how a song can evoke a feeling, a memory, take you from your current reality.  This one does it for me.  When I hear it, I can just feel myself out on a lake, floating along.  When I lived in Ohio, we'd head to Hueston Woods and rent a couple of canoes for a couple hours.  There's nothing like floating.  Maybe its something magical about being on the water. 

Have a listen, see where the song takes you:

Concert!

We live in a great community here in the Valley of the Sun; several times throughout the year, there's a free Concert in the Park at Freestone Park.  Tonight's band:  Rondavous -- a high-energy country band that is fronted by a talented, energetic, female singer along with strong male vocals.  ( link to their website here)  They played lots of country fav's, even did some Johnny Cash and Patsy Cline!



 

There were a lot of people in the audience.  The kids danced up a storm, and even some of the adults.  It was a great evening, warm with a slight breeze.  After the sun set, there's something magical about a concert ... lights ... sharing music under the stars. 

Music washes away from the soul the dust of everyday life.  

~Berthold Auerbach

 Music is love in search of a word.  ~Sidney Lanier

Keep the Music Playing?

Robert Browning writes: Who hears music, feels his solitude peopled at once.

Listening to your favorite music is an easy way to carve out a private interlude. Music is one of the most sensuous ways in which Life flirts with us. Enjoying music that makes us feel good, or feel better, is an important way to pamper ourselves. How easy it is at the end of the day to think "I've had enough people, enough noise, I just want quiet." But what are you missing? Have you taken the time to actually revel in this sensory pleasure?

I was reading about a woman who was alone again in her life. And she began sorting out all the 'love songs' in her collection, since there was no one to share those with anymore. And she asked herself why? Those are all tunes she loves to listen to; not allowing herself to hear them because there was no one to share them with wasn't an acceptable reason to weed them out of her collection.

It's funny, when we're in love and we hear the word ~you~ in the chorus, we immediately associate the song with that person. On the other hand, its hard to hear those songs and not feel the emptiness of not having someone in our life. But maybe the answer is a little more simple than that. Try thinking of the song as Life serenading it to YOU! Take some time today to indulge, to love yourself, with some of your favorite tunes; feel the power music has over us, let it take you to places you haven't been in a while.

For me, music has always been a powerful part of my life. I'm been collecting CD's for years, and have a strangely eclectic collection. A friend of mine started an internet radio station, and invited me to try DJ'ing (here) and I found out [after the trial and error period], that I really enjoy it! If you have some free time, pop in and give a listen (Thanks, David!)

Musical HUGS to everyone!