catching up!

I am still here! Last week got a little hectic at work with graduation on Friday, and since my home computer has quit on me, work is the only place I have to update. Graduation was nice--beautiful (if not hot) day on the football field, I got to catch up with some old friends who had siblings graduating and eat good food. That's the wonderful part of this job--I get invited to all the good parties, so I get all the good food.

Anyway, I also headed home this weekend. Really quiet and boring weekend there, but it was just what I needed. Good things happen when I go home--my dad takes my car for an oil change, a wash, and fills the gas tank. Dads are so useful!

Now I'm back at work. This weekend is my 5th reunion so lots of old friends are coming to town. I'm excited for it--excited to catch up and hear about everyone's adventures in life.

Here's my overdue Friday Shuffle:
NO APRON WRINGING!

1. i am what i am (broadway, my way)--linda eder
2. tripping the light fantastic (66 hoxsey street)--the nields
3. x-ray eyes (goldfly)--guster
4. ticket to ride (1)--the beatles
5. kittery tide (little star)--girlyman
6. walkaways (recovering the satellites)--counting crows
7. easy people (live from northampton)--the nields
8. one song glory (original broadway recording)--rent
9. for good (wicked)--wicked
10. arrival (the honesty room)--dar williams

Seen live: Linda Eder, The Nields, Guster, Girlyman, Rent, Dar Williams

Favorite Song: The standby is Easy People, of course. But I *love* I Am What I Am from La Cage Aux Folles. And in Linda Eder's voice, it just becomes magic. It's a great driving song.

Least Favorite Song: There really isn't a bad one on here, but I'll go with Walkaways because it isn't long enough, IMO.

Favorite Album: Tough one, but I'll say Goldfly. It's full of great memories and I love pretty much every song on it!

Memory Trigger: Rent songs always bring me back to the first time I saw it, sitting in the balcony of the Nederlander Theatre in NYC. I went with a few friends, one of whom had just lost a good friend to lupus. The first time you see Rent, it's a powerful experience, but I still love the songs just as much the zillionth time I hear them!

october tease

And, because I'm feeling nostalgic for Big Yellow, here's a preview of that story I'm saving for the October retreat!
********************
Araminta May Spooner's feet hit the floor before her eyes were even open. It was the first day of school and this year was going to be the best ever. Second grade was for big kids--instead of sharing a table with her classmates like she had in kindergarten and first grade, second grade meant a desk all her own. Last week, she'd taken her mother school supply shopping and picked out her own crayons, ruler, scissors and pencils--real pencils! She could get yellow skinny kind, not the fat, blue, baby pencils anymore.

"Mom! Mom! Are you awake?" she yelled as she ran down the hall towards her parents' room. "We can't be late! GEEEET UUUU--"

She had not been looking where she was going and ran straight into her father's long legs.

"What's this about a big day, Miss Minty May?" he asked, pulling on Minty's hair.

"Daddy! It's the first day of school," she said, laughing.

random tunes for a rainy friday

The good weather was too good to last. Back to rain in the drenched state of MA.

You know the drill, Kids. Set that iPod a-shufflin' and report back the first ten songs it spits out.Here are the goods:

1. stupid (afterglow)--sarah mclachlan
2. easy people (live from northampton)--the nields
3. photograph (all the right reasons)--nickelback
4. the saga begins (weird al live)--weird al yankovic
5. total eclipse of the heart (faster than the speed of night)--bonnie tyler
6. i'll cover you-reprise (original broadway soundtrack)--rent
7. just like that (remembering rachel)--dar williams
8. as cool as i am (mortal city)--dar williams
9. fallen (afterglow)--sarah mclachlan
10. santa fe (original broadway soundtrack)--rent

Bonus Track for KJ (11): thank god i'm a country boy (greatest hits)--john denver

General Thoughts: good mix. i really do like all of these when i'm in the mood for them.

Seen Live: the nields, dar, rent cast

Favorite Song: easy people is the easy and obvious answer, but i really love just like that. though it's a rachel bissex song, the first time i heard dar sing it at frff, i thought it had been written for her to sing. it's beautiful.

Least Favorite Song: santa fe is not my favorite on the rent soundtrack. though i love the staging of it in the movie version!

Memory Trigger: the saga begins (an american pie spoof on star wars...or a star wars spoof on american pie!) reminds me of the summers i spent working with teenagers in PA when i was in college. some of the greatest summers of my life.

almost the weekend

This has been a crazy week. HC is having an event in NYC this week, so I've spent the week trying to keep up with my boss and help her out. Lots of nametags and seating charts. The joy of it all ;) But I do feel like I'm learning...when we were looking at a few seating dilemmas, I made 2 suggestions and she went with both of them!

Last night, I got a little mushy and nostalgic about the whole teaching life last night. First, I headed to a meeting for a potential babysitting job. 3 kids (7,8,9)...dad was just shipped off to Iraq (he's 40...and has been in the reserves for 20 years--but we're running out of people to send!) and mom is an ER doc. She works 2 night shifts a week and needs someone to stay with the kids. The kids seem sweet and adorable...the 7 year old was rolling around with velcro darts on his socks, which cracked me up. Apparently, it sorta freaked out the last person...the mom was amazed that I wasn't phased. He was being 7! No trouble there--I had 35 7-year olds for 7 hours a day. This job requires me to play with the 3 kids for 2 hours before they go to bed...and mom gets home before they wake up! I think I'll be doing this job as often as I can.

Then I headed over to the Worcester Nativity school. All boys middle school...sweetest boys, so darn funny. I'm hoping to get involved over there in my "spare" time.

That's it from me for now.

friday shuffle: about to go home edition

You know the deal. Put your digital music players on shuffle and report back the first ten songs. No apron-wringing!
Here's the stuff:

1. Best Black Dress (Gotta Get Over Greta)--The Nields
2. Merry Christmas, Mr. Jones (Bob on the Ceiling)--The Nields
3. Only the Good Die Young (Essential Collection)--Billy Joel
4. When I Was a Boy (The Honesty Room)--Dar Williams
5. Backyard (Keep It Together)--Guster
6. Travel Onward (66 Hoxsey Street)--The Nields
7. Julia (not Julia) ('Mousse)--The Nields
8. If I Had My Way (Gold)--Linda Eder
9. Ticket to My House (Love and China)--Nerissa and Katryna Nields
10. Black Boys on Mopeds (Bob on the Ceiling)--The Nields

General Thoughts: My iPod has a serious crush on the Nields, apparently. But this is my favorite list so far...it covers the 6 people/groups/voices I love most. Not necessarily my favorite songs by each, but that's ok.

Song that Most Makes Me Laugh: Only the Good Die Young holds a lot of memories and is always good for a smile.

Song that Most Makes Me Cry: If I Had My Way was written for 9-11, and I remember the first few times I heard it (and the first time I saw her perform it live), I cried. if i had my way, things would be different, danger wouldn't come from a sky of blue...

i'm back

Hello all. Ya miss me?

I'm just catching up (physically and mentally) from my days away. Weekend kicked off well with a visit to Brighton to have dinner with AL and her bf. It was the bf's birthday, so we headed to a pub for dinner and beer. Much fun. The week had been crazy stressful leading up to my Board luncheon on Friday. It went well though--I thought I talked too fast (I am a NYer--born and in the blood), but I've gotten nothing but good feedback--esp. from the VP, so that's good!

At 5 am on Saturday, AL and her really-good-sport bf drove me to the airport. I got to L.A. around noon. Enterprise wouldn't have a compact car for about another hour, so would I mind taking the Chrysler convertible? Ugh...the thing is like 6 inches off the ground. I hated it. Drove over to my old roommate's house. BB and I headed to Huntington Beach (AFTER a trip to In n Out for lunch...I do miss that) for a few hours...wandered in and out of shops, ate Coldstone on the beach. BB wanted to see a movie, so I agreed. Then, she started looking up showtimes for United 93. LAST MOVIE on earth I wanted to see, but being me, I said nothing and went along with it. Objectively, I'll say that the movie was incredibly well done...so weird to realize and remember that people had no clue that day as to what was happening, as to how the world was changing. Incredibly powerful movie. However, it's just not what I wanted to ever see...memories from that day are still pretty raw for me and I didn't need to relive it. I actually ducked out to throw up, I was so disturbed by the whole thing. My own fault, though. Should have said something. I did get update calls from S and A on the newest resident of Big Yellow--so that was exciting!

Sunday morning, BB and I grabbed bagels for breakfast and I headed to CC's house for a quick visit. CC is getting married this Saturday and her whole Filipino family was in town. A little crazy in that house, but good to lay eyes on CC and spend a little time chatting. Then, it was time to head up to L.A. (man, I am so boring! I don't tell stories well!) I called my friend MB on my way up to double check that I could crash at her place Sunday and Monday nights.

Quick aside about MB...she was the asst. director of my teaching program when I moved to L.A. She and her kids quickly became like family to me (kids were 15, 12 and 10 at the time). MB went through an awful divorce while I was out there--her ex is a royal asshole. Anyway, kids are like my siblings (they actually started introducing me as their big sister while I lived out there) and I adore them. They've been roughed up by the whole divorce...to the point that the now 17 year old middle boy is now at a rehab school out in UT. But, they are my family, broken bits and all.

So, MB and I agreed to meet up after her massage and go shopping (a ritual of ours, though I hate to shop...but food is involved!). I slowly made my way to her place in order to avoid having to deal with her boyfriend (a guy I really don't like) until I was sure she'd be there too. The 2 of us hit Ross to shop and ate fish tacos at Wahoo's (so damn good!) She and her bf had 'date night' that night--bleh--so I headed to an internet cafe to catch up with my friend SR. We chatted while I ate dinner and then it was home to crash in MB's son's bed (as he was with his dad that night). The pet mouse was in my room, so I proceeded to have nightmares that my laundry was full of mice. Ew!

Monday was kind of a slow day, I had to replace my phone battery as it died during a call with BB. BB's sister had TRIPLETS on Monday, so she was calling to update me. Monday night got better though, as I had dinner with T! It was really nice to catch up and hear about Hawaii...I'm looking forward to a Big Yellow reunion at FRFF.

Tuesday, I headed down to my old school. Got there at recess and was immediately mobbed with about 30 kids. They are all getting so big! The 2nd recess was full of more reunions, then I toured the new pre-K/K building and saw some munchkins who were just babies when I taught there. I spent 45 minutes in the 2nd grade classroom helping with times tables. Hung out a bit more with kids--I really do miss them, but not L.A.!--before heading to lunch with SJ and JP. SJ and JP had a baby girl in January who is just the most beautiful creature! She was pretty much all smiles til she got REALLY hungry and REALLY mad towards the end of lunch. Big blue eyes and gorgeous reddish curls. I could have stared at her all day!

My flight back was fine, though really short (we had good wind pushing us, I guess) and I didn't get much sleep b/c of the drunken Bostonians popping can after can of beer next to me. I got to my car, which I'd left in Brighton at 5:30. Came home, showered, watched Tuesday night's GG finale, then went to work. Left work at 3:00 though, because my boss is the best and dozed on and off til about 9 when I went to bed.

Can I get any more boring?!

friday take-off

Packing for Los Angeles--check
Presentation before the Board--check
Caffeine consumption--check
Friday shuffle--check

You know the rules. Put your digital music player on shuffle and report back the first ten songs it spits out. No "apron wringing" allowed.

Here goes:
1. Kid (Cry Cry Cry)--Cry, Cry, Cry
2. Bitter Root (Become You)--Indigo Girls
3. As the River Runs (Linda Eder)--Linda Eder
4. I Want To Hold Your Hand (1)--The Beatles
5. All My Pretty Horses (Live from Baltimore)--Nerissa and Katryna Nields
6. Save a Horse, Ride a Cowboy (Mix CD)--Big and Rich
7. What Was I Thinking? (Sometimes Mother Really Does Know Best)--Christine Lavin
8. Leaving on a Jet Plane (The Very Best of PPM)--Peter, Paul and Mary
9. Traveling Again (The Honesty Room)--Dar Williams
10. I'll Cover You (Rent Soundtrack)--Original Broadway Cast

General Thoughts: Pretty eclectic list! Very few that I have strong feelings about this week.

Seen Live: Indigo Girls, Linda Eder, Nields, Dar, Rent

Particularly enjoying right now: The Rent Soundtrack is such fun. Esp. after getting the movie on DVD (which my boss has borrowed--need to remember to get that back!), I just love the music...I can sing along to it, dance to it and it's all so powerful.

Memory Trigger: Leaving on a Jet Plane is my mom and dad's song. So that makes me think of them.

I'll be back on Wednesday. Be good...and A, since I won't be on email, call me if you hear anything!

perfect

That's the one word I'd use to describe this weekend. I am in the greatest mood today and I can only attribute it to a weekend filled with people and a place I adore.

Friday night, I drove out to Noho and was hanging out in town a little before I headed to kj's--then my phone rang. A certain Philadelphian forgot her directions at home...so I swung by Big Yellow, then A and I both headed to kj's. It was more fun than I'd anticipated. kj and J were fantabulous hostesses and we talked almost non-stop for the better part of 3 hours. And their new hot tub is quite enjoyable under a canopy of stars and budding/blooming trees.

Saturday morning, I dropped A off at Yellow and did a little shopping. Met up with A, T and some other retreaters for lunch. I spent the afternoon feeling like a real Northampton-ite...I wandered town taking pictures of the churches and parks, lay out on the grassy islands in the middle of the sidewalk and did some writing (a NEW story, folks...I think I just might start to work on it for real at the October retreat, so you all better be there!). At about 5:15, I hopped in line at the Iron Horse for the Tracy Grammer show. Snatched a great table in the balcony for myself, A and 2 other retreatants. Brooks Williams played first and he's pretty darn great with a guitar...but I was there for TG and she did not disappoint! She played a good mix of older stuff and tracks off Flower of Avalon plus a couple of covers.

Speaking of covers, apparently Maureen McCormick (internationally famous as Marcia Brady) is now in a country band. And she is covering Crocodile Man. I can't even begin to tell the story as well as Tracy did (maybe A can help me!) but let's just say that Tracy has tried to contact Maureen, musician to musician and the response included information about how to get your very own 8x10 glossy signed by Maureen. Here's the website.

Sunday was another laid back morning, then a fabulous lunch and shopping excursion with the one and only A. All in all, a wonderful weekend...as close to a retreat without actually being on retreat. Can't wait for October though!!

OK, time to work.

what came before you is so tragic, lorraine, sweet lorraine--patty griffin (thanks, A!!)

friday, people, party time!

Ahhhhhhhhhh, Friday at last. Since I do believe our friend *A* is motoring her way from Philly to the great town of Northampton, MA, I'll kick off our Friday shuffle this week. Let's have a little fun!

OK, on with the show. You know the rules: put the old digitial music player on shuffle. Report back the first ten songs it spits out. NO APRON WRINGING! Here goes...

1. goodnight, l.a. (hard candy)--counting crows
2. say goodbye to hollywood (essential collection)--billy joel
3. easy people (live from northampton)--the nields
4. fall on me (cry cry cry)--cry, cry, cry
5. the one who knows (beauty of the rain)--dar williams
6. before i fall (linda eder)--linda eder
7. seven years (come away with me)--norah jones
8. love me one more time (love and china)--nerissa and katryna nields
9. sarah maria (gorilla)--james taylor
10. someone like me (jekyll and hyde soundtrack)--linda eder
bonus track: this town is wrong (live from northampton)--the nields

General Thoughts: a lot of my favorite artists. clearly, my iPod agrees with me about L.A.! it's also a relatively mellow list...nothing too rockin'

Seen Live: billy joel, the nields, the pieces of cry, cry, cry, dar williams, linda eder

Favorite Song: i can't possibly leave out easy people as i said last week. but someone like you is a favorite as well.

Least Favorite Song: love me one more time is just a little too twangy for my liking.

Favorite Album(s): live from northampton has a crazy mix of songs. i really love it

Memory Trigger: my friend sara was named after the song sarah maria (her middle name is also maria), so i always think of her when i hear it. i just love the song.

Best Song for a Long Car Ride: for the sheer fun of it, i'll go with this town is wrong because i love to sing along with it. however, someone like you lets me cut loose and belt a little, so that's a fave as well!

midweek musings

After a fabulous, if not exhausting, weekend and a work-week that is trying my patience and sanity (but in a "good" way), I am looking forward to a great weekend in western MA. I'm thrilled to hang out with *A* after months of an internet friendship ;) , and it'll be great to hang out with kj as well! But that isn't the only reason that I'm looking forward to being out of my house this weekend.

My landlord/roommate (the one with the grill from last week) has had our stove removed...but hasn't replaced it. I'm a little annoyed and AWP suggested this weekend that I take food $$ off my next rent payment since I've had to eat out. LC (the landlord/roommate) has been just fine to live with and around for the last 10 months. More and more, though, she is living up to those blonde locks of hers. She's just superficial and ditzy and irritating more and more.

Our other roommate CB, who is 21 and a lot of fun, is moving out. She is still in undergrad and is itching to travel and see more of the world. She is going to live with her aunt in CO this summer and will return to MA in the fall, but hopes to study abroad in the next year/year and a half. Anyway, her plan was to move out on May 15. She decided to ask LC if she could just pay 1/2 rent for the month of May (we're talking a difference of $300 here). After thinking about it overnight, LC said that, due to the fact that she'd just bought another property (to fix up and rent), she had really been counting on CB's May rent. But...if it was going to ruin their friendship, create hard feelings or REALLY be financially difficult for CB, then she could take the 1/2 rent.

Either you need the $$ or you don't. And you haven't replaced our stove yet! And it's not our fault that you just over extended yourself by buying another property. So, CB informed me last night that she'll be moving out this weekend. Thereby screwing LC out of the whole month of May's rent. While I agree with CB, I really don't feel like being around. She's going to try to pack up and move out Saturday while LC is at work.

So yeah, sleeping in Noho sounds like a much better plan.

recap

Ahhhhh..."spring" in New England. 80 degrees last week, 40s and rain today and all weekend long. Real nice.

While AWP missed her plane, and every Southwest flight to Hartford, Providence AND Manchester was oversold for the ENTIRE weekend, she did take the overnight Amtrak in the end (I do appreciate my friends). I picked her up at 7 AM on Saturday morning (ouch) and we proceeded with our weekend. Saturday morning was shot, b/c she needed to get some sleep, but the rest of the weekend went as planned. Life does work out in the end.

The show on Saturday night was, of course, fabulous. Some good fun and I look forward to Falcon Ridge even more now. Plus, they played Cool in the Backseat which is just FUN. And Easy People off-mic--is there anything prettier?

OK, back to work...I'm still a little exhausted from the craziness of the weekend, but I'll bounce back. If only the weather would bail me out a little bit!

how quickly things change

It appears AWP missed her flight. Now who comes to the show with me?

finally friday

Before I get started, can I just say that a sucky, stressful, annoying week (where to top it off, your computer dies!) can be fixed with wonderful friends? Between cake and the company of coworkers I truly enjoy and who make feel cared for and my friend AWP arriving this evening for a weekend of celebration, good company and a little bit of Nields, I am having a lovely Friday.

(Gross sidebar: I arrived home yesterday to find my roommate cooking for 2 guys. These 2 guys have been around a lot this week. Said roommate (also the landlord) hasn't been wearing much clothing during their visits. Anyway, this is the same roommate/landlord who broke the stove 3 weeks ago and still hasn't replaced it, so we can't cook. Apparently, she pulled the grill out of the shed (where it's been since Oct.) to cook dinner. In the grill was living a family of mice. MICE, people. Some alive some not so much alive. They removed the mice, fired up the grill and COOKED ON IT. Without cleaning the grill. And were surprised when I passed on the burgers and steak.)

OK, on with the show. You know the rules: put the old digitial music player on shuffle. Report back the first ten songs it spits out. No skipping, apologizing or rationalizing.Here goes... let the record show that blogger ate my first playlist. So I'm taking it as a sign.

1. Easy People off-mic (Live from Baltimore)--Nerissa and Katryna Nields
2. It's Only Love (Help!)--The Beatles
3. Here Comes the Sun (Gold)--Linda Eder
4. As Cool As I Am (Mortal City)--Dar Williams
5. New Frontier (Hard Candy)--Counting Crows
6. Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah (Disney's Greatest Hits 3)--Song of the South
7. A New Life (Jekyll and Hyde)--Linda Eder
8. Badlands (Live 1975-1985)--Bruce Springsteen
9. Don't Rain on My Parade (Broadway, My Way)--Linda Eder
10. It Happens Everyday (Green World)--Dar Williams

General Thoughts: Really REALLY eclectic list. I see that my iPod is showing my inner Broadway ballad loving-self today.

Seen Live: Nerissa and Katryna, Linda Eder, Dar Williams, Jekyll and Hyde (btw, A, I just bought tickets for the May 2 spring concert...guster!!!!)

Favorite Song: Can't possibly choose between Easy People (which is probably on my top 5 favorite songs of all-time list) and It Happens Everyday.

Least Favorite Song: Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah!

Favorite Album(s): I think I have to go with Broadway, My Way. Linda Eder's voice is amazing and incredible. She gives such life to her songs and performaces.

Memory Trigger: Jekyll and Hyde was the first Broadway show that *I* chose to see. For a few years, my family would go to a show as a way to celebrate my dad's birthday and mine, since we're a day apart. Everyone moaned and groaned about my choice, until we got to the theater. To this day, it's my favorite "traditional" Broadway show...it's breathtaking and powerful and amazing.

is it friday yet?

This week has been NUTS...I don't feel like I've caught up on any aspect of life since going home for Easter. To top it off, my laptop is having a meltdown...I'll be spending some time on the phone with Dell support tonight. Work has been crazy busy and Friday can't come fast enough. Plus, I have a doctor's appointment tomorrow with a doctor I've never met. Always a little nerve-wracking.

Nerissa asked me the other night how much I'd written altogether of Sara's (my) story. So I typed it up, in official 12 pt., double spaced font, as she instructed. 23 pages. And I think I'm missing a piece or 2. Pretty weird to see it all in one place. It's a bit disjointed and I wasn't sure about the order of some of it, but whatever. Also, some pieces are decidedly stronger than others (hey, I'm not in Big Yellow, so it's not apron-wringing).

hear me, heathens and wizards and serpents of sin, all your dasterdly doings are past (man of la mancha, linda eder)

monday shuffle?

I'm exhausted and off to Noho (we had 30 for Easter dinner and people didn't leave until midnight), but I missed Friday, so here we go, kids!

Okay, you know the rules. But here they are again just in case: Put your digital music player on shuffle and report back the first ten tracks it plays. No skipping, apologizing or rationalizing (even if "We Built this City" comes up. Phew. I'm off the hook again today...).

Here's the jig:

1. Facade: Reprise (Jekyll and Hyde Soundtrack) -- Cast
2. My Friends (End of Summer)--Dar Williams
3. Jeremy Newborn Street (If You Lived Here, You'd Be Home Now) -- The Nields
4. Just Like Christopher Columbus (Bob on the Ceiling) -- The Nields
5. Gentle Soldier of My Soul (Drum, Hat, Buddha) -- Dave Carter and Tracy Grammer
6. Omaha (August and Everything After) -- Counting Crows
7. Uptown Girl (Essential Collection) -- Billy Joel
8. Heading Home (Love & China) -- Nerissa and Katryna Nields
9. What Was I Thinking? (Live at the Cactus Cafe) -- Christine Lavin
10. Spirit In The Night (Live 1975-1985) -- Bruce Springsteen

General Thoughts: My iPod still likes the Nields, but not as much this week. It's a list that's a little more eclectic, more reflective of my musical taste.

Seen Live: Jekyll and Hyde, Dar, The Nields, Tracy Grammer, Billy Joel (Christine Lavin will be added at FRFF!)

Favorite Song: Hmmm...What Was I Thinking? is always good for a laugh. Gentle Soldier of My Soul is just beautiful.

Least Favorite Song: Probably Spirit by Bruce.

Favorite Album: Billy Joel's Essential Collection has it all...my faves from Piano Man to You're My Home to Miami 2017 and Captain Jack.

weekend review

Even though my plans for today fell through, it's been a delightful weekend.

Friday I headed into Boston after work. AL, S and I went out for AL's birthday dinner. Back to AL's for the night to play with the puppy, watch some TLC and laugh a lot.

Yesterday we went for lunch and ice cream and played with the dog. Our friend AT had invited us over for dinner with a group of friends from college. It was so nice to catch up and be surrounded by people who, though we hadn't all been together in years, could still make you laugh and smile and feel completely at home. Birthday party for a coworker late last night at a bar in downtown Boston...really crowded, really loud, but had fun for the hour or 2 that I was there.

And as for today? Well, I was up at 8, showered and went to 9 AM mass. Then, my trip to CT was called off. Maybe I'll do laundry?

chowder day! (and tunes)

I love Friday. Friday is the end of the week, Friday is for random tunes, and Friday, at HC, is chowder day. A big cup of clam chowder makes everything better!

It's time for a Random Friday once again. Here are a couple of rules: Get out your digital music player and hit shuffle. Report back the first ten songs it spits out. No skipping or rationalizing or "apron-wringing."

Here are the tunes:
1. Be Nice to Me (Bob on the Ceiling)--The Nields
2. Spring Street (Dar Williams)--Out There Live
3. Cowards (Abigail)--The Nields
4. Caroline Dreams (If You Lived Here, You'd Be Home Now)--The Nields
5. Love Me One More Time (Love and China)--Nerissa and Katryna Nields
6. As Cool As I Am (Mortal City)--Dar Williams (with n&k as backup!)
7. Friday at the Circle K (Play)--The Nields
8. Yield (Become You)--Indigo Girls
9. Angels of the Silences (Recovering the Satellites)--Counting Crows
10. Living It Up in the Garden with Shortest Day intro (FRFF '01)--The Nields

General Thoughts: Clearly, my iPod is trying to tell me something. Draw your own conclusions...but I'm a little disturbed.

Seen Live: The Nields, Dar Williams, Nerissa and Katryna Nields, Indigo Girls

Favorite Song: Hmmm...maybe As Cool As I Am since it's just so much fun. "I am the other!"

Least Favorite Song: Love Me One More Time. No contest...I can get behind many of Nerissa's alt-country tunes, but this just isn't one of them.

Favorite Album: Tough choice, but I'm going to say the Nields' HOME album. It's such a balanced mix of rock/pop/folk/country with only one song I consistently skip. It kicks off well with JNS and ends on the right note with the laughter of I Still Believe in My Friends.

grumpy, grouchy, grey tuesday

The weather reflects my foul mood. New Gilmore Girls tonight, though (my only long-term appointment television). Also, I look at the next few weekends and see that I won't be taking a breath for a LONG time, but in a good way. This weekend, I'll be celebrating the birthdays of 2 good friends. Next weekend, it's home for Easter (and home cooking!). The following weekend, we celebrate my birth with a weekend-long visit from a D.C. friend and the last Nields show before maternity leave. The last weekend in April brings WIUITG friends to town--possibly *N* and definitely *A*! Plus, Tracy Grammer at the Iron Horse! The first weekend in May, I fly to L.A. for 4 days. Whew! However, it does brighten my grumpy day a bit to know how many fabulous friends are in the immediate future.

(Edit at 6:17 PM--now it's SNOWING!)

But, yesterday was Monday. So y'all know what that means! This one is short b/c I couldn't get it going (no, that's NOT apron wringing!), but it did get a good laugh from the group, so I guess it's a to be continued...
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When she left New York, Sara's parents stood at the gate, waving until she disappeared into the crowd. When she landed in California, her eyes searched frantically for the strangers who were meeting her there. Fairly quickly, she spotted a girl holding a piece of paper that read "Sara McGee." Sara was not a shy person, but in that moment, she wanted to turn tail and run. Instead, she took a deep breath, plastered a smile on her face and walked over to the girl with the sign.

Her name was Alex and she introduced Sara to her parents. They collected Sara's luggage and piled into the car. Sara would be spending the night at Alex's house and the next day, the 2 of them would head out to a kick-off retreat with the rest of the teaching program. As they approached Alex's house, her mother asked if Sara liked cats. Sara tried to hide her apprehension and said, honestly, that she was allergic--she did not add that she really, strongly, totally disliked cats. She was reassured that they would simply keep their 10 cats out of the guest room that night.

i have a green collar round my neck and ears that are pur-pale! (amelia's little red dog, live from baltimore)

weekend wind-up

Why do Tuesday and Wednesday last FOREVER, while Saturday and Sunday are gone in the blink of an eye? No fun.

Friday night, I chatted with *A*, did some laundry and cleaned a bit (all with an open window--welcome, Spring!). Not the most exciting evening ever, but low-key was just perfect with me.

Saturday was a bit more fun. My friend B and I headed out to Northampton in the early afternoon, grabbed a slice on the way out and then hit Webs at the suggestion of *N*. I was a bit overwhelmed, but eventually wound up with some yarn and needles (in the round?)...this baby blanket might just be a disaster. B and I parked in the lot in downtown Northampton (after noting that there was ALREADY a guy in line at the IH at 2:30!) for 45 cents and wandered around the town for a while. Spent a good chunk of time in Broadside Books before heading over to the IH at about 5:30. There was a bit of a line, we hopped on and it started moving fairly soon. I love this club--only my 2nd time there, but I love it. We were up in the balcony again, but no pole to block our view of the stage this time! We ate (the IH has amazing food!) and the girls hit the stage at about 7:15. Dave C joined them for the whole set, adding acoustic, 12-string, banjo and bass to various tunes. There is nothing like a Nields show at the IH. The place is packed and the energy from N&K is so different. The last few months, N has used a stool for the whole show...makes sense as baby NieldsDuffy grows bigger by the day. Last night, though, while there was a stool on stage, N was standing from the Tailspin opening until the Easy People acoustic encore from the balcony. I can't wait to see TG there in a month!

My friend B spent the night and today consisted of sleeping a little late, church, enjoying the sunroom (best room in the house, but pretty much un-usable from October til April) and laughing. She left a couple of hours ago and I watched the Final 4 games that I'd taped last night. I managed to avoid hearing who won, watched most of it on FF and I'm a little disappointed in the final game, but what a great tournament.

Our stovetop CRACKED this morning. And I was planning to cook dinner tonight...I guess I'll be calling our pizza place for a chicken parm sub instead. And maybe some mozz sticks too just for fun.

it was improvised for the camera's eye, it was made up in the ring, back when bob hope was king (on the air, girlyman)

the road signs point us adrift

This is my Monday night writing. For the record, there were NO "signs" pointing me to this job in Massachusetts. It was a REALLY hard decision and one that I went back and forth on every hour or 2. And it's the best decision I ever made--at least the experience recorded here taught me a lesson!
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Senior year in college was a crazy, tilt-a-whirl of emotions. Good friends and lots of laughter made all the papers, exams and presentations bearable. For the first time in a long time, maybe for the first time ever, Sara felt in control of her life. There was a rhythm to her days--predictability amid the chaos of class, meetings and meals. Her four years on the Hill had gifted her with life-changing experiences, lasting memories and treasured friends. Even in the struggles, there was a safety and security in knowing that someone would be there to pull her up, under or through.

But there was a finish line looming. Graduation was a flashing neon sign in the distance. Every day, professors, family and even friends (mostly the pre-med/pre-law "we know what WE'RE doing with the rest of OUR lives" types) asked Sara what she was going to do next. Usually she laughed them off, saying there was plenty of time left or leveled them with an, "I don't know--is that bad?" On the inside, though, there was more than a hint of panic. The truth was, it wasn't that Sara saw an empty page with a blinking cursor when she thought about the future. Instead, what froze her up inside was that she saw about a dozen options--and all of them looked good. She was going to have to choose.

Calendar days flew by and spring break was approaching. Sara was still staring down all her options, weighing an endless list of pros and cons. Finally, she decided that eventually, there would be a sign. She had gone to church practically every Sunday for more than 21 years--and every priest she had ever met talked about signs...some divine plan. Maybe God would bail her out.

On the day before spring break--February 28--an email appeared in Sara's inbox. It announced the creation of a 2 year teacher service corps in Los Angeles. Young college grads would commit 2 years of their lives to teaching in the inner city, living with other teachers in the program and earning their Masters degree at a local university. It sounded intriguing to Sara--and teaching was one of the options she had been considering. Then she noticed the due date for applications--March 1. That would be a problem. Sara decided to send an email off to the coordinator in L.A., saying that she was interested in the program, but clearly couldn't complete an application she didn't have by tomorrow. Less than an hour later, there was a response. The due date was being extended for out of state applicants. A packet would be dropped in the mail and Sara could complete it after spring break. Sign #1.

More signs would follow in the coming weeks. When a close friend lost his twin brother in a drunk driving accident and Sara's life was turned upside down for a week, a reassuring email arrived telling her to take care of herself and her friends. The application could wait a week. The final nail in the coffin was a phone call from a principal in Los Angeles. She introduced herself to Sara, said that she'd received Sara's resume, application and recommendations. Everything looked great, just one thing was holding her back--Sara had attended Holy Angels for high school. Sara was confused--how exactly did a woman 3,000 miles away know anything about Sara's tiny, all-girls high school in suburban NJ? There was a laugh from the CA end of the telephone line--this woman had grown up 10 minutes down the road from Sara and had attended the other all-girls high school in the area. Last sign.

Graduation was a few weeks away and, finally, Sara had an answer to the horrible "what are YOU doing with the rest of your life?" question. She enjoyed her last days on the Hill, surrounded by good friends. Less than a month later, she climbed on a plane to being what she knew would be a great adventure. It would take less than 7 months for her to realize that all those signs were someone's idea of a bad joke.