Though It's Easy To Pretend

I'm officially old.

No, I haven't turned 40--yet, but it's probably fair to say we're bumping hips.

No, it's not that I found my first gray hair. L'Oreal already sends me an annual thank you card.

And no, it's not because I can no longer tell you who half the people are in my high school yearbook who promised they LYLAS and wanted to KIT.

Nope.

The reason I'm officially old is that I rode the elevator today, and during my ride down 15 floors, wafting through the mysterious speakers that fill the space with ambient noise (where are those speakers anyway? and is do they play that music so I won't feel so alone while I'm in there?) were the soothing sounds of George Michael--set to MUZAK!

At first I didn't recognize the ditty, but something felt familiar. My mind kept wanting to make sense of the hypnotizing tones that seeped into my ears like alien life forms in their liquid state.

Then all of the sudden it hit me.

"Do do do da da da dada...Somebody tell me (won't you tell me) why I work so hard for you."

NOOOOOOOOO!!!!

Images of crooning along with the pre-bathroom-hole-poking-George as I rode down 4th St. with my BFFs are crystal clear in my head.

But I have to face it. It's time to grow up. When the music from your youth is set to a Casio keyboard, some strings and a bass guitar it's time to admit it.

I'm old.

"My God. I don't even think that I love you!"

Intervention Needed STAT!

Blogging friends, if ever there was a time I needed you it is now.

I had Live with Regis and Kelly on this morning as I was getting ready (Anderson Cooper was sitting in for Regis--he's funny and I'll admit here I've watched Kelly since she was on Dance Party USA) and Michael Bolton was on singing some Christmas tunes.

Here's the problem.

When he was chatting with Kelly and AC at the end, I actually thought to myself, "Hmmm. He's kinda cute. I can finally see what makes the girls swoon."

OMFG!!!

I've hit a new low.

Kris and Kim--my girls--come hit me over the head now before I set up my own fan page.

I'm Not Breaking In, I'm Just Dancing

I'm pretty sure I was the only 37 year old mom in my neighborhood standing in her driveway this morning at 3:10 a.m. with her reading glasses on her head, waving a dish towel and channeling Christina Aguilera through her iPod.

There may have been one other, but I think she's only 35.

Ain't no other man
on the planet
knows what you do...

The Day My Music Died

The radio was on in the car as we drove down the driveway, on our way to where I don't remember anymore. I was in the front passenger seat unable to see over the dashboard of our maroon, two-door Ford LTD. I probably wasn't wearing a seatbelt not because my mom didn't care about me but because it was 1977.

My mom brought the car to a stop at the bottom of the driveway before she pulled out to make a left hand turn. That I remember.

The radio was tuned to an AM station, most likely AM1240 out of Waterbury, CT. I remember because we had to change our phone number not long before because it ended in those same four numbers--1-2-4-0. We were forever answering calls for song requests. After a weeks of apologizing to the callers and letting them know they had the wrong number, we just said we'd get the song right on and hang up the phone.

As she nudged the car forward to see beyond the hedges that lined our front lawn, the announcement came through the speakers.

"Elvis Presley is dead."

Her foot went back on the brake.

"Elvis Pretzel is dead Mom?" I never could get his name right.

"Yeah," she said, and we were both quiet for a moment--both of us processing the information in our own way. Me contemplating the finality of death; wrapping my seven year-old mind around such a horrific thought; worried that if he could die so too could the person I loved most in the world--the woman sitting next to me. And suddenly I was afraid. He couldn't be dead! He couldn't be gone!

"Isn't there something someone can do?! Can't they turn back the clock?" I asked. "No," she said as she explained that if he was dead it was already too late. She was a nurse, and my mother, so I took her at her word letting the information sink in.

I wonder now what she was thinking when she heard the news. Elvis was the icon she grew up with. She had watched him on the Ed Sullivan Show with her family--my grandparents not understanding the draw. The cameras focused in on just his upper body. She watched over the years as he aged. She saw how he had become bloated. She saw too his comeback. But now he was gone.

Was part of her childhood gone too on that day?

Once again she inched the car forward and then turned left down the road. To where, I don't remember.

It was just a moment in the car, at the end of the driveway, on a warm August day in 1977, but it has stayed with me for thirty years.

Reason #4,368,724 for Why I'm So Uncool

First, because I just used the word "uncool." Second, because I've been tagged for this meme by Karrie and Lotta, but if I fulfill the request well...you'll see.

Guidelines: List seven songs you are into right now. No matter what they are. They must be songs you are presently enjoying. Then tag seven other people to see what they’re listening to.

So here it goes. I just hope you'll still respect me in the morning.

Extra Ordinary by Better Than Ezra-Fun tune, they're from Louisiana and Kevin Griffin is just plain hot! You should see him move when he croons. Mmmmm.

Joey by Concrete Blonde-Don't know what it is about this song. Brings me back.

Take It Out on Me (third song down) by Fred LeBlanc-The drummer/vocalist from Cowboy Mouth and Dash Rip Rock has done some solo albums. Another Louisiana boy. An old boyfriend turned me onto this song and I've loved it ever since.

Grace Kelly by Mika-I have Kevin Charnas to thank for this one. It's just so darn catchy.

Photograph by Nickelback-I've been a bit nostalgic for home lately. This song makes me think of...well it just makes me think.

Feeling Good by Nina Simone-Yeah the video here is from the promo for Six Feet Under, but I couldn't find a better one. Talk about sultry.

Baby Girl by Sugarland-Sorry, there's a brief ad in the beginning of this, but it's worth it!! If I could sing, I might like to have this woman's voice. Plus wait until you hear how she talks to her parents...a mother's dream.

So that's it. I've exposed you to a smattering of my musical taste. I really like almost all music. My iPod would make most people assume I suffered from a split personality. Come to think of it Shakey probably thinks I do.

I tag Canape as she's a musician and all, MamaLee since she always has good songs anyway, Kevin because I know he'll give us some nifty tunes, Slackermommy because there's a shark in her photo, my british friend--let's see if he can do it in 100 words or less, Dorky Dad just because I like tagging him and last but not least Mitch McDad because he might talk about vibrators.

Have fun!! Can't wait to see your lists.

His Royal Purpleness

The powers that be that put on the Super Bowl need to offer Prince whatever he wants to perform at the halftime show FOREVER!!

Despite not being a Minnesoooootan, I'm a big fan! And he did not disappoint tonight!

Billy who?

The little man rocked!!

Did you catch the part with the big white sheet and the silhouette? It's probably the tallest Prince has ever been. Shakey wondered aloud if the same trick would work to make one's penis look bigger. Just as he uttered it, Prince turned sideways and proved the hypothesis true--oh wait that was his guitar.

Billy! What Was That?

I love Billy Joel. I'm so glad he's getting back into making rock and roll. But what the hell was that version of the national anthem?

Are you watching the game? I'm sorry. You need someone who's going to belt it out.

The Death of Merit Badge Day?

Day 19
Mood: ?

Don't know what my mood is today. I sat here and contemplated it for a bit and then realized, hey it's my freakin' blog and if I don't know what my mood is well then I don't have to tell you what it is.

Upon second thought it should probably be "pissy."

As a matter of fact, I've noticed the same mood among some of my other fellow NaBloPoMo colleagues. Is it that the "forced" daily posting is starting to wear thin? Would I feel the same way if it weren't NaBloPoMo? I've actually enjoyed the structure of the daily post, though at some times it's been a race against the clock to get it in on time. I get most of my quiet time in the evening so it's often difficult to get it in before midnight. I'm hoping the powers that be will let a 12:00 a.m. post slide.

Okay, back to Merit Badge Day...

As some of you more faithful readers (all two of you) will remember Sunday is Merit Badge Day here at Mamma Loves. Now I don't know if folks are too busy shopping for their turkeys or just feeling pretty damn good about themselves this week, but we had NOT ONE nomination this week. After three weeks of enthusiastic responses...nothing. Now I'm a fairly optimistic person (despite that my mother's nickname for me growing up was Eeyore) so I'm not ready to declare Merit Badge Day dead, but I'm going to need some nominations this week to stay hopeful.

My badge the week:

I awarded myself a badge for having the courage to admit to my husband (a big country music fan) that I liked a country band. Yes, Sugarland. I'm loving their stuff! You must understand, as a native New Englander I've always had a certain predjudice against country music. Four years in New Orleans only softened it enough to open up musicians like Lyle Lovett who I consider borderline. A few year's of Shakey's influence did wear me down to accept my full-fledged love of Garth Brooks--it was actually watching his concert in Central Park while I was recording it for him while he was at school that changed my mind. But going out and buying a country album without some sort of prodding or nagging exposure? It's nothing short of a miracle! And I've listened to the newest album probably five times in the last 24 hours. There are also a number of good songs off of their debut album. Check 'em out. See what you think.

Please make Mamma happy. Tell me what award you earned this week. I'll be waiting...

And So It Begins

So today is the day. Thirty consecutive days of posts. I think I'm up to the challenge, though I can't promise any level of quality for thirty days in a row.

The two big hurdles I see are Thanksgiving (can you say turkey coma?) and the business trip I have in a couple of weeks. Business trips of course mean cocktails. So here's a question (or three)...is it better to miss a day during NaBloPoMo or to engage in drunk blogging? Is it possible to booty blog? Maybe more likely to booty comment, huh? If you get comments from me on your blog any time between the 15th and the 17th and I'm telling you how hot your posts are, just copy and paste it back to me so I can die a thousand deaths of embarrasment. Cause I would understand and expect it. What good is a drunk person if you can't make fun of them?

Please excuse me while I step into the other room to turn off the Little Einsteins DVD that seems to be stuck on the menu screen--playing that blasted song over and over and over again.

Ahh, relative quiet.

While the Little Einsteins are in theory great, and not so bad when you have to sit through them, I can't help but be pissed every time I think about how much money that Julie what's her toes made off of some badly filmed sock puppets. How the HELL did she convince Disney to buy her little fiefdom? And why the HELL did every mother my age (myself included) feel compelled to buy those tapes/DVDs for their children?

Because it kept them quiet for twenty minutes in a row!

Mr. 4 first exhibited his Y gene trait of TV tunnel vision at six weeks whenever Baby Mozart was slipped into the VCR (yeah we were late to get on the DVD train). Just enough time to shove a plate full of dinner into my face before it was time to feed him once again.

Okay, so maybe that woman deserves a Nobel prize.

Uncool is so HOT!

I had the shuffle set to random, I fired up the iPod and I listened for four and half hours straight. Below is the result of my second experiment with the randomness of the iPod shuffle setting.

Before you look, I still swear I have somewhat better taste in music than what appears on the list below. Believe it or not there actually is music on my iPod that was written and produced in this century.

I believe the next logical entry will be to analyze how I became so old so fast.

Swingtown-- Steve Miller Band (freshman year college)
Our Lips Are Sealed-- The Go-Go’s
You Were Only Joking-- The Indigo Girls
Cherry Cherry-- Neil Diamond
AllStar-- Smash Mouth
A Fine Romance-- Ella Fitzgerald
Real Love-- Mary J. Blige (Luh-uv this song! I want to sing like Mary J.)
Cream-- Prince
My City Was Gone-- The Pretenders
When Love Comes To Town-- BB King & U2
Shadows of the Night-- Pat Benatar
The Joker-- The Steve Miller Band
Diggin’ Your Scene -- Smash Mouth
That’s Life-- Frank Sinatra
Cowboy Take Me Away-- Dixie Chicks
My Guy-- Mary Wells
Open Your Heart*-- Madonna
Can’t Help Falling In Love-- Elvis Presley
Crash Into Me-- Dave Matthews Band
Tripping Billies-- Dave Matthews (is this thing really on shuffle?)
Breakdown-- Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers
Travelin’ Soldier-- Dixie Chicks
A Pirate Looks At Forty-- Jimmy Buffett
Midnight Train to Georgia-- Gladys Knight & The Pips (I don’t think I’d want to be a pip)
Mamma Mia-- ABBA
Wouldn’t It Be Good-- Danny Hutton Hitters (teenage angst)
Lazy River-- Pete Fountain
Don’t Cry-- Seal (a certain boy)
Stomp-- The Brothers Johnson (Jazzercise—7th grade)
Just When I Needed You Most*-- Randy VanWarmer
Destination Anywhere-- The Commitments (the ultimate need my freedom song)
Hang-- Matchbox Twenty
My Way*-- Frank Sinatra (song ruined for me by idiot old boss)
Callin’ Baton Rouge-- Garth Brooks (I didn’t know I liked some country until I heard this song)
Evenflow-- Pearl Jam
Southern Girl-- Better Than Ezra
Slow Ride-- Foghat
Sweet Dreams (Of You)-- Patsy Cline
One Of These Nights*-- The Eagles
Sexual Healing-- Marvin Gaye (also Jazzercise—my dancing girls—good cover by someone)
Dreaming-- Blondie
Walking in Memphis-- Marc Cohn
Your Love Is King-- Sade
When I Look To The Sky-- Train (live version)
Wishing Well-- Terence Trent D’Arby
Good Day Sunshine-- The Beatles
Cecilia-- Simon & Garfunkel
Cowboy-- Kid Rock
Mr. Big Stuff-- Jean Knight (Gladys’ sister?)
In The Wee Small Hours Of The Morning-- Carly Simon
Son Of A Son Of A Sailor-- Jimmy Buffett
Stardust-- Nat King Cole (the voice of velvet)
With This Ring-- The Platters
The Power of Love*-- Huey Lewis & The News (I really have to delete this song)
I Feel The Earth Move Carole King
So Little Kindness*-- Huey Lewis & The News
She’s Crafty-- The Beastie Boys (how can you NOT love them?)
Over The Rainbow-- Ray Charles & Johnny Mathis
Never Tear Us Apart-- INXS
They Can’t Take That Away From Me-- Billie Holiday
The Winner Takes It All-- ABBA
Crazy For You-- Madonna (oh how I wanted to slow dance w/Matthew Modine)
Jack And Diane-- John Mellencamp
Fire And Ice-- Pat Benatar
Purple Rain* Prince (needed more upbeat tunes at 5:20 p.m.)
Ultraviolet (Light My Way)-- U2
Like A Song…*-- U2 (don’t want to hear two songs by the same band in a row while on shuffle)
I Need Love-- Sam Phillips
Unforgettable*-- Nat King Cole
Hammer And A Nail-- Indigo Girls (such a happy song)
I Got You Under My Skin*-- Frank Sinatra (too much Frank today—is that possible?)
All You Zombies*-- Hooters (heard in earlier experiment this morning)
Twice As Hard-- The Black Crowes
Take The Money And Run-- The Steve Miller Band (I don’t have that much SMB on my iPod)*
Let My Love Open The Door-- Pete Townshend
Diamond Girl*-- Seals And Croft (too mellow for today)
Hey Ya!-- Outkast (OMG! A song from this century!)

*Song I forwarded though. I’m typically a playlist kind of gal.

Blogging To The Oldies

Mamma's sending out a little love to a new "computer friend." Because how could a mamma not love a boy who says he's "down with your demographic?" You can read the interaction that took place over at Psalm A Day--a great concept with with introductions to a deeper vault of music then the one I obviously have the key to. Though I wish they'd post a little more often...

Always hoping to share my random thoughts with a larger audience (come on in, it's only a little scary), I thought I'd check out my new friend's other blog ShuffleLog. This too is an interesting experiment to look at the randomness of the shuffle setting on an iPod. The problem for me is that I only recognized one song in twenty on this fine gentleman's list. Now we know he's down with our demographic, so I continued reading but man it got me feeling old.

Lovely Clarence invited me to join in his experiment with a thirty minute trial run on my own iPod. The results--which can be seen here--were thoroughly embarrassing...so much so that I'm currently running another test. Unfortunately, I think I just really am that uncool. Who needs to wait until I have teenagers to figure that out.

PS--I'm not buying this whole "shuffle" thing. In less than one hour I've heard duplicate selections by the same band three times. And I maxed out the drive on my little music friend.