Category: music

High School Parking Lot Slow Roll, explained.

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I intended on posting this at the end of the school year, which came very unexpectedly early. This was the backbone of our mornings these last four years and I couldn’t let my girl’s high school career end without one last word on the High School Parking Lot Slow Roll Facebook posts that have been a regular occurrence for the duration.

A portion of the graffiti wall at CHS, which stretches along side a length of the parking lot

I’m pretty sure it started with Freebird.

I’ve long been That Mom rolling through the carpool line at school with the music just a little too loud. I’m the sort of person who thinks that life is indeed a musical, that there is a proper soundtrack for everything, that people walking down the street are liable to break into a dance at any moment, that music should always be on in the background and yes, it’s probably a little too loud for some people’s taste.

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January Adventure.

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I woke up Sunday morning a week ago to a message from Andrea, inviting me to come out to Northern California and go to a concert with her the following Monday.  I immediately thought of at least a dozen sound, responsible adult-type reasons as to why I shouldn’t just take off to the other side of the country at a moment’s notice, particularly the third week in January, which also pointed out exactly why I should drop everything and go. Continue reading →

Books (so far) of 2016

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flower

This has absolutely nothing to do with this post, but isn’t it a rather lovely shot of a hellebore from my garden?

Inspired by all of you who keep track of what you read (and manage to share it on the interwebs), I thought I might give keeping track of what I read in a year a try. It’s February and already I feel like I’m not doing so good at that, although I did manage to make a list the other day. However, given my tendency to have lists stuck all over the house on random scraps of paper as well as my complete ability to read a book and then either completely forget I’ve read it OR remember the book itself but forget the name and the author, I’m decided I’m going to try and keep track here.  According to what I remember, this is what I’ve read thus far this year: Continue reading →

Spring Insanity

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It has been an absolute whirlwind here lately.  I mean, really.  Yesterday was our first unscheduled day in at least two weeks, which is slightly misleading because by ‘unscheduled’ I mean, we’ve got loads of things to do, we just didn’t have any solid commitments before we hopped back on that busy bus  for the next few weeks.

The large, glorious rhododendron bush.
Horse Chestnut bloom.
Rhododendron
Close up of the horse chestnut blooms

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Really very random.

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IMG_9031 (1024x683)I’m getting over a nasty little bug going around that a friend of mine described as making you feel as if you got punched in the gut.  Personally, I think it felt more like I did way too many crunches at the gym and therefore I am hopeful that when I am finally at 100%, I am going to wake up to discover fabulous six-pack abs as a result.

A girl can dream, can’t she? Continue reading →

All that, with shooting stars and rainbows.

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IMG_4656There was this music festival down the road in Nelson County called Lockn’ this past weekend. Across the street from where the festival is held is a church, Trinity Episcopal.  A small but rather sweet church, they host Sober Lockn’ as well as Waterlockn‘, embracing the festival as their neighbor. Pat’s employer, James River Association,  was assisting with Waterlockn’, which offered rides to a private, local swimming hole on the Tye River, just a few minutes away from the festival site, with proceeds benefitting Kid Care.  (The Tye is a tributary of the James River.) Continue reading →

Well hello there!

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It’s been a while, hasn’t it?  True to form, May has kicked my ass on every level imaginable once again this year.  How is it Memorial Day weekend already?  I’m still not done getting the gardens in, the only batch of strawberry jam I made was at last night’s Happy Cook class and when people ask what our summer plans are, I have no answer.  None. Continue reading →

That would explain the weather.

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The other day as I was puttering about, listening to music via Pandora on my ipod, a song came on that I didn’t quite recognize.  It sounded an awful lot like The Police, but the chorus was too poppy to be them.  Pat called down, inquiring what was I listening to.  I checked the artist name and called back.
“Bruno Mars”
“What?”
“Bruno Mars”
“You listening to Edie’s station?”
“Apparently so.”

I’m not sure what threw me more – the fact that my child had just inadvertently introduced me to new music or the fact that our music tastes have become similar enough that I can tolerate listening (albeit unknowingly) to her music for a lengthy period of time.

We have long prided ourselves on Edie’s musical education.  I steadfastly refuse to listen to her music in the car or over any sort of speakers that belong to me.  When we created the den and moved the entertainment unit into the back bedroom, she was finally allowed to play her music on the big stereo.  Up until that point, her music stayed in her room, on her boombox.  I played her Sonic Youth as lullabies, she has tolerated Smiths marathons on the part of her father & myself, our neverending debate as to which was the better Pink Floyd album, Dark Side or The Wall, was what taught Edie to just go put herself to bed already to avoid having to listen to that One.More.Time.  She came home from second grade, rapturous about a song her friend played, “Crazy Train”, had we ever heard it? prompting Pat to reach into the CD drawers and hand her the Ozzy Osbourne Randy Rhodes tribute CD to listen to. She can recognize The Clash as Muzak at the grocery store.  She can recognize The Grateful Dead playing both Bob Dylan AND Pink Floyd songs. You can never play “Won’t Get Fooled Again” too loud for her ears.

We thought we were raising her right, but there came the day where she wanted to listen to what her friends were listening to.  She’s developed quite an appreciation for Taylor Swift.  Pat is kind and humors her in this.  He’ll even listen to her music in the car. Okay, that happened because as they were driving somewhere one day, sitting there with her headphones on, singing along to her music, she sang louder than he could play Slayer.  Eventually, he gave it up and caved.  (And I’m sure that as he reads this, he’s thinking I’ve misrepresented him.  I’m sure he would say something along the lines of he’s listening along with her as to not entirely turn her towards the crap (okay, he wouldn’t call it the crap either.  He’d be much nicer about it, but since I’m the one writing this, you get my synopsis.), and it while it gives him a chance to check out what she’s listening to, it also allows him to show interest in what she’s interested in.  Yes, he’s a great dad.)

I’m not at sure how I feel about her introducing me to new music.  Really, it’s not bad, after all, I thought it was The Police.  Follow this link and watch his SNL performance last fall. That’s good shit.  That band is tight.  And full of energy and clearly having a good time doing it.  This may replace Justin Timberlake as my favorite guilty pleasure. 

However, I’m pretty sure me taking Edie up on her offer to borrow her ipod for tunes is exactly why it was 74 degrees two days ago and snow is forecast tonight.