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Sounds travel through space long after their wave patterns have ceased to be detectable by the human ear; some cut right through the ionosphere and barrel on out into the cosmic heartland, while others bounce around, eventually being absorbed into the vibratory fields of earthly barriers, but in neither case does the energy succumb; it goes on forever — which is why we, each of us, should take pains to make sweet notes.
– from Even Cowgirls Get the Blues, by Tom Robbins
Dear Young Man Beside Me on the Metro This Afternoon:
If I can hear your music, with my processor turned all the way down, over the noise of the train, and seeping out from your headphones, you may be listening to your music a tad too loud. Just sayin’.
Love,
Mel
“If you enter this world knowing you are loved, and you leave this world knowing the same, then everything that happens in between can be dealt with.”
– Michael Jackson
I’m not a fan girl, but anybody who grew up in the eighties lived through this phenomenon, and today is a sad day, I think.
I remember creating dance routines with neighborhood friends to this album and charging our parents (and anyone else we could con into coughing up the dough) a quarter each to see us perform one late summer afternoon. I also remember being terrified of the Thriller video, especially at the end when his eyes turn green and creepy.
He certainly defied the norm, to put it mildly, particularly in the last 15 years or so, but life could not have been easy for him, even before that. I hope he’s at peace now, and I wish his children and family solace in what is sure to be an incredibly difficult and trying time.
A live concert to me is exciting because of all the electricity that is generated in the crowd and on stage. It’s my favorite part of the business, live concerts.
– Elvis Presley
It’s hard to remember what I did before the iPod. iPod is more than just a music player, it’s an extension of your personality.
– Mary J. Blige
This morning at 11:43, Apple Genius Adam declared my iPod Mini dead. Mini was almost four-and-a-half, and he served his purpose dutifully and well. May he rest in peace.
Sometimes the questions are complicated and the answers are simple.
– Dr. Seuss
Here, at long last (I’m sure), are the answers to last week’s first line Musical Meme:
1. I will follow (I Will Follow, U2)
2. This is what you do (You Make Me Wanna, Usher)
3. Steve walks warily down the street (Another One Bites the Dust, Queen)
4. Naked lovers feel the blood beneath their veins (They Stood Up for Love, Live)
5. Cuantas veces he pensada ya (El Mundo Que Soñe, Laura Pausini)
6. What’s the matter, Mary Jane, you had a hard day (Mary Jane, Alanis Morrisette)
7. No, I would not sleep in this bed of lies (Bed of Lies, Matchbox Twenty)
8. Somewhere deep inside (Better Be Home Soon, Crowded House)
9. I think it’s time we give it up (Lies, Glen Hansard, from the soundtrack to Once)
10. In my mind I’m goin’ to Carolina (Carolina In My Mind, James Taylor)
11. How dare you say that my behavior is unacceptable (Harder to Breathe, Maroon 5)
12. Well, I’m a steamroller, baby (Steamroller, James Taylor)
13. She says it’s cold outside and she hands me a raincoat (3AM, Matchbox Twenty)
14. I can’t fight this feeling any longer (I Can’t Fight This Feeling, REO Speedwagon)
15. Seven-thirty-seven comin’ out of the sky (Travelin’ Band, John Fogerty/Creedence Clearwater Revival)
16. I hear a wind (Roam, B-52s – the version on my iPod was of my college a cappella group)
17. I don’t know what, what I’m gonna do (Crazy, K-Ci and JoJo)
18. So tired of broken hearts (Cherish, Madonna)
19. I laid a red rose (I Saw the Light, Wynonna)
20. He left me cryin’ late one Sunday night outside of Boulder (Stand Beside Me, JoDee Messina)
21. You take Sally and I’ll take Sue (Cocaine, Jackson Browne)
22. We met as soul mates (Goodnight Saigon, Billy Joel)
23. I’m laying it on the line to show you (On the Line, the On the Line All-Stars, from the soundtrack to – you guessed it – On the Line)
24. I heard the door slam and I just couldn’t tell (What Kind of Gone, Chris Cagle)
25. One man come in the name of love (Pride (In the Name of Love), U2)
Thanks to those of you who played!
One difference between poetry and lyrics is that lyrics sort of fade into the background. They fade on the page and live on the stage when set to music.
– Stephen Sondheim
I know a lot of you who read are music aficionados, so in an attempt to encourage commenting, I borrowed this from Low Resolution, one of my favorite, catch-all pop culture blogs. Here’s the directions:
1. Put your music player on shuffle.
2. Post the first line of each of the first 25 songs, no matter how embarassing.
3. Strikethrough an entry once someone in the comments guesses both the artist and the song correctly.
4. For those who are guessing, googling or otherwise searching for the lyrics is CHEATING (we use the honor system around here).
5. If you like the game, feel free to post your own.
I’ve got some real fluff on my iPod currently, so I hope I don’t get wildly embarassed doing this. Let’s roll the dice, shall we?
1. I will follow [ok, that sucked]
2. This is what you do
3. Steve walks warily down the street
4. Naked lovers feel the blood beneath their veins
5. Cuantas veces he pensada ya [oooh, I forgot I had Spanish music on there!]
6. What’s the matter, Mary Jane, you had a hard day Mary Jane, Alanis Morrisette
7. No, I would not sleep in this bed of lies
8. Somewhere deep inside
9. I think it’s time we give it up
10. In my mind I’m goin’ to Carolina Carolina In My Mind, James Taylor
11. How dare you say that my behavior is unacceptable
12. Well, I’m a steamroller, baby Steamroller, James Taylor
13. She says it’s cold outside and she hands me a raincoat 3AM, Matchbox Twenty
14. I can’t fight this feeling any longer I Can’t Fight This Feeling, REO Speedwagon
15. Seven-thirty-seven comin’ out of the sky Travelin’ Band, John Fogerty/Creedence Clearwater Revival
16. I hear a wind [I'm going to give credit for the original artist on this one, because none of you would ever guess what version is on my iPod]
17. I don’t know what, what I’m gonna do
18. So tired of broken hearts Cherish, Madonna
19. I laid a red rose
20. He left me cryin’ late one Sunday night outside of Boulder Stand Beside Me, JoDee Messina
21. You take Sally and I’ll take Sue
22. We met as soul mates
23. I’m laying it on the line to show you
24. I heard the door slam and I just couldn’t tell
25. One man come in the name of love Pride (In the Name of Love), U2
Ok, that wasn’t too bad at all. Have at it – some of them are super easy and there’s at least one I bet no one will get without cheating – and have fun!
We may never find our reason to shine
But here and now this is our time
And I may never find the meaning of life
But for this moment I am fine
– Rob Thomas, Streetcorner Symphony
I don’t think I’ve ever posted twice in one day, but I feel happier right now than I have in some time, and I wanted to share it with you:
- The weather, which started out cool, foggy, and drizzly, turned out to be warm, sunny, and gorgeous – it made the walk to the Metro and home from the bus a pleasure.
- The weather also vindicated my choice to wear my favorite dress today with bare legs, and I felt great.
- I realized The Office is back with a new episode tonight.
- I’m on day 2 of what I’ve decided is going to be a “no sweets” week (because I kind of need to detox), and it’s not giving me any trouble at all.
- I finished Jane Eyre on the bus home tonight, and I just loved it. And now, I get to start a new book!
- I was going to run last night, but when I got to the gym, all the treadmills were taken, so I did the elliptical instead and switched my running day til tonight – and when I got home from work today, the piece I’d ordered to hook my processor up to my iPod was here, and this time it was exactly the piece I needed, so I had music for my run again!
- In the last three minutes of my run, a song by my dad’s band came on, and it turns out to be the perfect beat to run to.
- Then, just as my cool down started, Streetcorner Symphony by Rob Thomas came on, and I love that song so much and after all the rest of the goodness of the day, I actually teared up with happiness.
- I’m sitting in my apartment with all the windows open, smelling Virginia in the spring, which is one of my favorite things in the world.
But here’s the news that made my day the most:
- J emailed me to say that he and his wife are moving back to the east coast, and they’ll only be about an hour from me! He’d told me when I was in Texas that it was a possibility, but I didn’t want to get my hopes up. It’s a gift to have such an old friend be just up the road from me again.
I hope all of you had good days too!
“I’m just a musical prostitute, my dear.”
– Freddy Mercury
I got this computer two months after the Princess was born almost four years ago. In that time, the only pictures ever to be my desktop wallpaper have been of her, and once the Conductor was born, of the two of them together. My favorite of the Princess was this one:
After the Conductor was born, I only ever used pictures of them together, because in my head, I hated “choosing” between them, and I always wanted to have both of them in sight. It took this picture of the Conductor to get me to break that rule:
But Saturday, I was catching up on some news from Friday, watching video of something I missed live Friday morning, and I was transported back to, oh, let’s say 1991 or so, and I came across a picture that I just knew immediately I had to have where I could see it all the time (the computer desktop is the bedroom wall of a 30-something, I think), and so I replaced this picture of the Princess and the Conductor (in all their princessy finery)
with this (only bigger):
I promise, I feel appropriately guilty.
Courage is the discovery that you may not win, and trying when you know you can lose.
– Tom Krause
Ok, if Marlee Matlin can dance on TV in front of millions of people, surely I can sing karaoke in a bar in front of 30 drunk people, right? (Which would, hopefully, be a prelude to something more official and public.)
In all seriousness, I’ve never watched much of Dancing With the Stars, and I forgot to watch last night, even though I meant to, but I saw this video today, and it actually brought tears to my eyes. I was so proud of her.
And leaving aside the deafness issue, how hot does she look? She’s in her 40s and has 4 kids; I’m 31 and childless, and I wouldn’t look half that good in that dress. Good for her!
The heart must speak, and its search for the perfect outlet is the premise of all artistic expression. When words are insufficient or impossible, and physical gestures fall short, music is a language by which the soul can be heard. But when music itself is unattainable, the silence can be more than one spirit can stand.
– from Music to My Ears, by Timothy White
I was watching Once last weekend – have you seen it? It’s amazing. It’s a love story about an Irish street performer and a Czech musician, and it’s told largely through the music they write and perform in their roles. If you haven’t seen it, you are really missing something wonderful.
The day after their first meeting, she takes him to the music store where the owner lets her play the piano for an hour at lunchtime. He gives her the music to his song, Falling Slowly (the Academy Award winner for best song this year, by the way). He teaches her the basic parts of the song, then he begins to play on his guitar, and she joins him on the piano. He sings the first verse, and she comes in on the chorus, and it was at that point that I started to cry. I just sat there watching in the dark, listening, with tears streaming down my face. The thing was this: I could tell that the song was gorgeous and full and beautiful, but I knew I wasn’t hearing it all, if that makes any sense.
Ever since I lost my hearing, music isn’t as rich of an experience for me as it used to be, and that makes me unspeakably, and sometimes unbearably, sad. Most days, I’m good – this is just how I go through life now, you know? It is what it is, and it doesn’t do any good to lament what I lost. But there are moments every once in a while where I just get blindsided by the heartache of growing up as a hearing person – someone whose life was enveloped in music, who used to play instruments and dance, and more than anything else, sing – and being reduced to this.
I haven’t sung in public since I lost my hearing because I’m afraid that I won’t be on key and I’ll embarrass myself.* Some days I’m sure I could do it, after almost 5 years with my implant, but I never take steps to try, because if I fail, I’ll be devastated. Once, about 9 months after I lost my hearing, a friend asked me what I wanted to do for my birthday. I told her I really wanted to get people together and go do karaoke, but that I was afraid because I was never sure if I was on pitch when I sang along with the radio. She looked at me sadly and said, “You aren’t.” She said it gently, and she meant well, but it broke my heart then, and it’s always in the back of my mind when I think about trying now. I still sing – my nephew has his own theme song that I made up for him, the Princess loves to hear “Winnie the Pooh” (House at Pooh Corner, by Kenny Loggins), and I sing out loud to myself when I’m alone – but singing for yourself is a distinct experience from singing for an audience, and I miss that so much.
And I can’t just turn on the radio anymore, because without context – the title of the song on my iPod screen, for instance, or knowing the order of tracks on a CD that I’ve owned since before I lost my hearing – new (meaning post-2002) music is mostly just noise to me. I’m am very much out of the loop when it comes to whatever’s hot these days. I’ve downloaded a fair number of songs I didn’t know before I lost my hearing, but to recognize them without cues requires finding the lyrics online and listening along multiple times. Even then I’m never sure if the melody I hear is the true melody of the song.
So this, you see, is the great sadness of my life. There’s nothing like music, is there? I read The Heart is a Lonely Hunter, by Carson McCullers, several years before I lost my hearing, and looking back over some of the quotes I copied from it makes my spirit ache a little bit:
She had just drawn whatever came into her head without reason – and in her heart it didn’t give her near the same feeling that music did. Nothing was really as good as music.
I’ll say.
But all the time – no matter what she was doing – there was music. Sometimes she hummed to herself as she walked, and other times she listened quietly to the songs inside her. There were all kinds of music in her thoughts. Some she heard over the radios, and some was in her mind already without her ever having heard it anywhere.
I copied that down when I read it because I think it describes me to a tee, even now. And I do still have music – anything I knew before I lost my hearing is mostly readily available in my memory, and when I hook my implant up to my iPod, the music fills my head and I can still hear that opening guitar riff from Boys of Summer or the organ on Hear Me in the Harmony, the clarity of Celine Dion’s voice (shut up; I’m a sucker for a power ballad) or David Gray’s wavering tenor, the perfect harmony on the chorus of When I Said I Do or the gorgeous piano melody of Mandolin Rain. It makes me cry and uplifts me all at the same time, because just knowing that music even exists at all is really something, isn’t it?
* Edited to add: I just remembered that I have done karaoke once since I lost my hearing, in law school, but I didn’t sing by myself, so I don’t count it.
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