 |
| me in my VW Rabbit- 1990s yes, I already shared this photo, so what? |
Back in 2015, someone challenged me to post seven songs on seven days on Facebook, and I posted it to my blog.
I actually posted eight songs, but one was a two for one.
Though I have category for this, I wanted to gather them all in a blog. These are some of the best songs I know.
Thanks for reading.
1. Peter Gabriel - "Washing of the Water"
2. Everything but the Girl - "We Walk the Same Line"
3. Indigo Girls - "Wood Song"
4. U2 - "One"
5. Beth Orton - "Feel to Believe"
6. David Bowie - "Five Years"
7. (a two fer) Katie Melua - "Just Like Heaven" and the Pixies "Veloruia"
https://sensedoubt.blogspot.com/2015/10/hey-mom-talking-to-my-mother-112.html
Hey, Mom! Talking to My Mother #112 - Singing in the car
Hi Mom,
I have not been singing in the car much in the last two decades and as such I listen to less music per week. I switched to audio books around 1999-2000. I don't have an accurate measure of exactly when I started listening to audio books but that's probably close. In fact, I have taken to listening to audio books when doing chores around the house or in the yard, doing dishes and kitchen clean up, walking the dog, on bike rides, and while driving. Pretty much, any time I can fill the void with an audio book, I do so.
But when you were actively dying, Mom, I abandoned my audio books and resumed my old habit of singing in the car as therapy to get me through the most intense grief as I was watching you die.
I used to sing in the car all the time. I remember when I first drove to Kalamazoo College for freshman orientation listening to Pink Floyd's The Wall on my brand new remote cassette player, as in it sat on the floor under the dash.
I used to keep a constant of stream of music going in my life, not just in the car. But in the 1990s, I found that I was obsessing a great deal about stupid crap. I was not singing along so much anymore, and I was not using the time in the car for something productive like thinking through story elements, characters, and content for the novel on which I was working. So, I discovered audio books. There was a little bit of a learning curve to train my mind to focus, and I still find my mind wanders from time to time (the paper copy of the book helps with this and I always keep it on hand to consult, review, and mark my place). As such, singing in the car became a rare thing. In the last few years, I have only really done it while traveling with Liesel.
But when you were dying, Mom, I took a two (maybe three) week hiatus from audio books, not that I could have concentrated anyway. I did a lot of singing. It was cathartic.
So, yesterday, my head was full of work stuff and I need emotional release. My current audio book is hardly gripping, so I decided to sing in the car on the way to teach in Benton Harbor. I sang for an hour, and it felt really good.
This reminded me of something my friend Glenn Codere proposed: seven songs in seven days and a description of what they mean to you. So, here goes.
I love Peter Gabriel. Many Peter Gabriel songs have helped me over the years, and I have sung them proudly, even dancing around my room as I cranked the volume. "The Washing of the Water" from his 1992 album Us quickly became one of my top five Peter Gabriel songs after its release.
I have used this song to navigate the deep trenches of many painful times in my life, but there's been no time more painful than your death, Mom. None of my break ups matches this pain, and so this song takes on new relevance and significance, especially the last line "bring me something to take this pain away."
Peter Gabriel ~ Washing of the Water (New Blood Version)
Readers who are here, if you have never read the lyrics, READ THEM as you listen to the song. Let me share all that with you, Mom. So beautiful...
Peter Gabriel's "Washing of the Water" Lyrics
River, river, carry me on
Living river, carry me on
River, river, carry me on
To the place where I come from
So deep, so wide, will you take me on your back for a ride
If I should fall, would you swallow me deep inside
River, show me how to float, I feel like I'm sinking down
Thought that I could get along
But here in this water, my feet won't touch the ground
I need something to turn myself around
Going away, away toward the sea
River deep, can you lift up and carry me
Oh roll on through the heartland
'Til the sun has left the sky
River, river, carry me high
'Til the washing of the water, make it all alright
Let your waters reach me, like she reached me tonight
Letting go, it's so hard, the way it's hurting now
To get this love untied
So tough to stay with this thing, cos if I follow through
I face what I denied
I'll get those hooks out of me
And I'll take out the hooks that I sunk deep in your side
Kill that fear of emptiness, that loneliness I hide
River, oh river, river running deep
Bring me something that will let me get to sleep
In the washing of the water will you take it all away
Bring me something to take this pain away
Have someone give you a kiss, and tell you that I love you.
Talk to you tomorrow, Mom.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
- Days ago = 114 days ago
- Bloggery committed by chris tower - 1510.26 - 20:10
and again - 1510.27 - 8:55
https://sensedoubt.blogspot.com/2015/10/hey-mom-talking-to-my-mother-113-seven.html
Hey, Mom! Talking to My Mother #113 - Seven Songs: "We Walk the Same Line"
Hi Mom,
Remember this, Mom?
I actually played this one for you because it's so beautiful and so applicable.
And how could it not be applicable?
So this:
This song was written solely (at least credited solely to) by Tracey Thorne, and it deals with the diagnosis and struggle that her partner (Ben Watt) went through with regards to Churg-Strauss syndrome, a disease that would nearly take his life. Read his autobiography / memoir (Patient, 1997) for more e room. Your back aches from lying and your head aches from crying.")
This is a touching song of support, a public airing of undying love from one partner (Thorn) to another (Watt) - and it couldn't be more beautiful if it tried. If you lose your faith, you can have (read: SHARE) mine - we walk the same line.on that itself, but at the time this album was recorded and released (1993/1994) it wasn't quite common knowledge.
Listen to this song again, but look at it not from Thorn's perspective (offering support to her partner (now husband)) but from the perspective of the patient. Up all night, unable to sleep, sick with worry. ("I don't have to tell you how slow the night can go. I know you've watched for the light. And I bet you could tell me how slowly four follows three, and you're most forlorn just before dawn")
Or the agony of waiting for some news or prognosis, knowing that it could be your last. ("And I don't need reminding how loud the phone can ring when you're waiting for news. And that big old moon lights every corner of th
From "beeawwb" on song meanings - 9-05-2013
This song saw me through many tough times prior to your meningitis, Mom, but in 2000, it became linked with that illness and our experience with your recovery.
As the analysis above outlines, the song works from either side of the bed: the one in the bed or the one next to the bed.
If you lose your faith, babe, you can have mine,
and if you're lost I'm right behind,
cause we walk the same line.
Says it all.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
EVERYTHING BUT THE GIRL - "WE WALK THE SAME LINE" - FROM Amplified Heart - 1994
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
"We Walk the Same Line" - Everything but the Girl
If you lose your faith, babe, you can have mine,
and if you're lost I'm right behind,
cause we walk the same line.
Now I don't have to tell you
how slow the night can go,
I know you've watched for the light.
And I bet you could tell me
how slowly four follows three,
and you're most forlorn just before dawn.
So if you lose your faith babe,
you can have mine,
and if you're lost, I'm right behind,
cause we walk the same line.
When it's dark baby,
there's a light I'll shine,
and if you're lost, I'm right behind,
cause we walk the same line.
And I don't need reminding
how loud the phone can ring
when you're waiting for news.
And that big old moon
lights every corner of the room.
Your back aches from lying
and your head aches from crying
So if you lose your faith babe,
you can have mine,
and if you're lost, I'm right behind,
cause we walk the same line.
When it's dark baby,
there's a light I'll shine,
and if you're lost, I'm right behind,
cause we walk the same line.
And if these troubles
should vanish like rain on midday,
well I've no doubt there'll be more.
And we can't run and we can't cheat,
cause babe when we meet
what we're afraid of,
we find out what we're made of.
So if you lose your faith babe,
you can have mine,
and if you're lost, I'm right behind,
cause we walk the same line.
When it's dark baby,
there's a light I'll shine,
and if you're lost, I'm right behind,
cause we walk the same line
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Have someone give you a kiss, and tell you that I love you.
Talk to you tomorrow, Mom.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
- Days ago = 115 days ago
- Bloggery committed by chris tower - 1510.27 - time
https://sensedoubt.blogspot.com/2015/10/hey-mom-talking-to-my-mother-114-seven.html
 |
| Long Lake, Traverse City, 1971 |
Hi Mom,
Time for another song because I am really doing this seven songs in seven days thing. Today's song is about a boat, and see? We're in a boat. Yeah. That was planned.
All these songs this week were ones I played as I drove out to see you as you were dying. In fact, one day, I made a larger loop out around Gull Lake and past the old house just to get in more time with this music, that day I was heavy on Erykah Badu, who, though wonderful, is not making this list of seven, which is a shame. In fact, I am a bit ashamed of how "white" my list is, even though the next one will feature Mary J. Blige, though it did not originally. But it can't be helped. It is what it is.
Today's song is "The Wood Song" by the Indigo Girls from their 1994 album Swamp Ophelia. Here's two versions, live and in studio (the second is near the end of the post).
"The Wood Song" - The Indigo Girls - live
Toronto Pride, 2007
Like all of these songs in my selection, this song has seen me through tough times, which I think is the point of the song. This song helped me to persevere.
As I read the lyrics, this song I see that it is about a group of friends ("my friends and I have had a hard time"). One one level, as the song has many possible interpretations and can fit so many situations, I have always felt that this song is about being gay in America and how difficult that has been up to 1992-4-ish when it was written. Maybe that's too simplistic and only my association because I know the sexual identity of the two women in the Indigo Girls, and yet, I always think about that situation when I hear the song and more besides.
The song speaks of a change ("bruising our brains hard up against change all the old dogs and the magician") that's been resisted but now they ("my friends") are all together for the journey.
I have text from the Internet that I will share, but I think some miss the point of the point. The song mentions a point ("the prize is always worth the rocky ride but the wood is tired and the wood is old and we'll make it fine if the weather holds but if the weather holds then we'll have missed the point that's where i need to go"). One chap claimed it was a literal point in the story of Noah's Ark that is invoked by the song. True, the song uses Noah's Ark as a metaphor, but it's not ABOUT Noah's Ark (if even...). The point is the process. If the good weather holds, then there are no storms. In storms, we grow, so if we don't have storms we will miss the process that helps us to grow and change and evolve, hence: "the prize is always worth the rocky ride." It's just a tough ride, the wood is tired and old. I feel that way a lot. But we must go into the storm. It's the only way to evolve. After all, there's the other side of the storm, the change, the better world, but we only reach it going through the storm. If we stay put, we don't change, then there is no storm and thus no "prize" as there has been no "rocky ride."
Keep reading. The song basically re-iterates what I just shared in analysis. No one gets to miss the storm, they sing.
But the song is about love, courage, going on, keeping on, weathering storms, and, well, LIFE.
I am so thankful to have had the Indigo Girls in my life for nearly 30 years. Thank you Emily and Amy for such great joy.
"The Wood Song" by The Indigo Girls - lyrics
the thin horizon of a plan is almost clear my friends and I have had a hard time bruising our brains hard up against change all the old dogs and the magician now I see we're in the boat in two by twos only the heart that we have for a tool we could use and the very close quarters are hard to get used to love weighs the hull down with its weight but the wood is tired and the wood is old and we'll make it fine if the weather holds but if the weather holds then we'll have missed the point that's were i need to go no way construction of this tricky plan was built by other than a greater hand with a love that passes all our understanding watching closely over the journey yeah but what it takes to cross the great divide seems more than all the courage i can muster up inside but we get to have some answers when we reach the other side the prize is always worth the rocky ride but the wood is tired and the wood is old and we'll make it fine if the weather holds but if the weather holds then we'll have missed the point that's where i need to go sometimes i ask to sneak a closer look skip to the final chapter of the book and maybe steer us clear from some of the pain that it took to get us where we are this far but the question drowns in its futility and even i have got to laugh at me cause no one gets to miss the storm of what will be just holding on for the ride the wood is tired the wood is old and we'll make it fine if the weather holds but if the weather holds then we'll have missed the point that's where i need to go
Stuff by others.
"My boss recently gave a speech about commitment and weathering the storm, at the end of the year banquet. He used a favorite Indigo Girls ballad called "The Wood Song" to illustrate his point.
"As it so happens, this particular song has greater meaning to me than meets they eye. Now I believe that everything takes place for a reason...good and bad... painful and joyful. And so I leave you with the lyrics of this beautiful song to tie together the strings and even find the missing link of how it might bring wonder into our own life."
above from - http://ginkogal.blogspot.com/2008/05/new-england-life.html
from the you tube page with this video
namahe27 6 years ago: I really like this song; especially now, as I am struggling finding the right thing to do. I dont seem to have the courage that it takes to go this way and instead of being with the one I love I rather play safe and might make a big mistake just because I am too concerned what other people would think. When I told my love that I just cant do it, she asked me to listen to this song.
kolipokinho 6 years ago in reply to namahe27: It's the story of Noah's ark, as seen from the perspective of an animal on board. "Now see we're in the boat in two by twos" gives it away. "Wood" here refers to the wood that the ark is made of. The old dogs are probably Noah's pets (or family, I don't know...) and the Magician I'm guessing, is Noah. If the weather holds, and the flood continues, they would have missed the Point, which is probably Mount Ararat, where the ark ends up. At least that's how I understand the song.
kywomanlml 4 years ago: I played this song to my mom in November of 1995 to help her understand why I was marrying my now husband. She was concerned our road would not be easy together. It hasn't been easy. But, years and years later, we're still weathering the storms of life and continuously learning to enjoy the ride.
Anne Mooney 9 months ago: if one looks up the word harmony in the dictionary, it should have but one defenition: indigo girls. they've seen me through some horrible times in my life, for 25 years now. damn! that's a long ass time.
And this whole blog entry (which I will not reprint without permission here)
http://optimisticvoices.blogspot.com/2007/10/wood-song-indigo-girls.html
And - from - http://www.wbur.org/npr/9009196/two-decades-later-indigo-girls-voices-still-strong
I was wondering how difficult it is to maintain an interest in performing songs that have been around for 20 years. Do they begin to take on different meanings as time passes or is it difficult to keep an interest? I'm getting married next month and I lobbied the priest to allow me to walk down the aisle to a secular song - yours - "The Wood Song." "The Wood Song" has meant different, very precious things to me over the years, especially in my relationship. Do the meanings change for you as well? Thanks.
Ms. SALIERS: That's a good question. They do change sometimes. Sometimes I write a song and I think I'm writing it about somebody else or other people, and then I realize that I'm writing it about me. Or depending on what I'm going through in life, you know.
"The Wood Song" - The Indigo Girls
Have someone give you a kiss, and tell you that I love you.
Talk to you tomorrow, Mom.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
- Days ago = 116 days ago
- Bloggery committed by chris tower - 1510.28 - 19:32
https://sensedoubt.blogspot.com/2015/10/hey-mom-talking-to-my-mother-115-one.html
Hey, Mom! Talking to My Mother #115 - One - Seven Songs
Hi Mom,
As with all these songs, they do not match my experience. They are chosen for different reasons. The main reason is that they are great singing songs. This one starts with amazing lyrics that nail the feelings swirling around me and through me: "Is it getting better? Or do you feel the same?"
The chorus about "One love" is very powerful and uplifting.
And yet, when I first heard Achtung Baby, I hated it. Then again, I also hated Unforgettable Fire when I first heard it. I have come to love both in different ways. Maybe if "One" had been the first song on Achtung Baby, my initial reaction would not have been strong distaste.
Much of the lyrical content in this song does not strike home in my experience with you, Mom. in fact, it's an angry song, and I have used it to express anger in the past.
But there's great ideas in it, especially this idea of "One Love" for every one, "sisters, brothers." The final chorus really hits home: "One love, One blood, One life, You got to do what you should..."
All the songs I will share with this seven songs in seven days activity will feature strong lyrical content.
And this: "One love, We get to share it, Leaves you baby if you, Don't care for it."
Truly a remarkable song, which is why U2 is one of my favorite bands.
Two videos for this one, Mom. First the amazing version with Mary J. Blige, and then the studio version, which has a completely different quality but is the version that originally inspired me.
Enjoy.
Mary J. Blige - U2 - "One"
U2 - "One" from Achtung Baby - 1991
Is it getting better?
Or do you feel the same?
Will it make it easier on you now?
You got someone to blame
You say
One love
One life
When it's one need
In the night
One love
We get to share it
Leaves you baby if you
Don't care for it
Did I disappoint you?
Or leave a bad taste in your mouth?
You act like you never had love
And you want me to go without
Well it's
Too late
Tonight
To drag the past out into the light
We're one, but we're not the same
We get to
Carry each other
Carry each other
One
Have you come here for forgiveness?
Have you come to raise the dead?
Have you come here to play Jesus?
To the lepers in your head
Did I ask too much?
More than a lot.
You gave me nothing,
Now it's all I got
We're one
But we're not the same
Well we
Hurt each other
Then we do it again
You say
Love is a temple
Love a higher law
Love is a temple
Love the higher law
You ask me to enter
But then you make me crawl
And I can't be holding on
To what you got
When all you got is hurt
One love
One blood
One life
You got to do what you should
One life
With each other
Sisters
Brothers
One life
But we're not the same
We get to
Carry each other
Carry each other
U2 - "One"
Have someone give you a kiss, and tell you that I love you.
Talk to you tomorrow, Mom.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
- Days ago = 117 days ago
- Bloggery committed by chris tower - 1510.29 - 22:01
and again 1510.31 - 7:14
https://sensedoubt.blogspot.com/2015/11/hey-mom-talking-to-my-mother-118-feel.html
Hey, Mom! Talking to My Mother #118 - "Feel to Believe" - Seven Songs
Hi Mom,
I return to the seven songs thing. No one said they had to be seven songs in seven consecutive days, right?
I love this song.
It's a great singing song.
I have used it as an anthem in many ways, but there was even a connection to you, Mom, and your passing.
Beth Orton - "Feel to Believe"
I have seen Beth Orton twice. The first time I saw her in Irving Place in New York and I was watching the warm up band as she walked up behind me with her dress for the show slung over shoulder. Other people mobbed her, so I left her alone, but we exchanged smiles.
Beth Orton is one of my favorite all time singer-songwriters PERIOD. I discovered her quite by chance, when I decided to buy some new music, two new CDs, based on reviews in Details magazine. Both artists (the other is Lori Carson) have become two of my favorites.
This song has been an anthem to me. A healing balm. A passionate, angry, tortured testament to some love lost, found, found again, whatever.
It's just a great fucking song
I had an argument with some wanker online over the lyrics. I say she's singing
And I won't waste a single second
Living in hell as an idea of heaven
And if one truth leads you to five
I still don't believe in your reasons why
But this bloke, and many of the lyrics sites have
And I won't waste a single second
Living in hell as a nadir of heaven
And if one truth leads you to five
I still don't believe in your reasons why
I say that since Beth is British, her "an idea of" comes out like "nadir of." If I ever get a chance to meet or correspond with Beth, I am going to ask her. But, really, I am pretty sure I'm right.
I have written about Beth Orton and this song before. I write about this song in all three of the following posts (the purple text features links), but I specifically write about "Feel to Believe" in T-shirt #357.
T-shirt #263 - KUDL 2009 - Red - Cotton
T-shirt #360 - Ani DiFranco & My Top Ten Women in Music
T-shirt #357 - The Pixies - Long-Sleeve
Lyrics to "Feel to Believe" by Beth Orton - From the album Central Reservation - 1999
You lose it just to find it
And as you walk right by it
You forget how you got there
And why you never meant to stay
And I won't watch you waste away
And I won't fake another day
And if one truth leads you to five
I still don't believe in your reasons why
I just don't believe in why
You love her, you need her
To feel is to believe her
You know it, you want it
You just can't believe you've got it
And I can't watch you waste away
And I won't beg you still to stay
And if one truth leads you to five
I still don't believe in your reasons why
I just don't believe in why, just don't believe in why
I couldn't watch you walk away
And not forget it
I couldn't watch you turn to stone
And just regret it a single day
Not a single day, not a single day, not a single day
If I lose you, could you find me
Or would you walk right by me?
The soul and the spirit
Each have got their own limit
And I can't waste another second
Living in hell like it's some kind of heaven
And if one truth leads to another
Then isn't there one I can uncover?
But there isn't one that I will not discover
It's the right time, it's my time
It's the right time, it's my time
It's my turn to discover
And I won't waste a single second
Living in hell as a nadir of heaven**
And if one truth leads you to five
I still don't believe in your reasons why
And if one truth leads to another
Isn't there one we can uncover?
If there isn't one that we cannot discover
It's right time, it's our time to discover
** = see comments above for what I think of this lyric.
Have someone give you a kiss, and tell you that I love you.
Talk to you tomorrow, Mom.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
- Days ago = 120 days ago
- Bloggery committed by chris tower - 1511.01 - time
https://sensedoubt.blogspot.com/2015/11/hey-mom-talking-to-my-mother-122-five.html
 |
| Mom at Richland Art Fair 1007.17 |
Hi Mom,
Here's the next of the seven songs. No one said that they had to be over consecutive days.
I wanted to choose a picture from five years ago to go with the song "Five Years," and I found one almost to the day. July 17th, 2010 is only off by two weeks from the date of your death five years later. I remember this art fair well. I took you there, and you bought a blue bowl and a photo of a cat for yourself. The rest of what you bought was all for Liesel, including a water bottle that she just used the other day and a photo of a Buddha in a yard that we have hanging on our wall. It was a nice afternoon at the art fair, and you had a lot of fun. It may have been the last of the Richland art fairs that I took you to. I am sorry about that.
As I wrote all before, these songs in my seven songs list are all chosen because they were songs I sang around the time of your death. They are not all songs with direct meaning to your death or our relationship, but this one actually fits in a weird way. Had I known in 2010 that we had five years left, I would have done a lot more. I am not in any way suffocated by regret because I did a lot with you, Mom, especially in the last three years since we learned of the degenerative palsy that ended up being what killed you. But of course, we could always do more. I could have done more.
DAVID BOWIE - "Five Years"
Filmed at BBC Television Studios in London
for the BBC 2 programme Old Grey Whistle Test
and broadcast on February 8, 1972.
- here, courtesy of BBC Television
The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars
Studio album by David Bowie
"The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars is the fifth studio album by English musician David Bowie, which is loosely based on a story of a fictional rock star named Ziggy Stardust" (Wikipedia).
Release date: June 6, 1972
Artist: David Bowie
Label: RCA Victor
Genre: Rock music, Glam rock
Awards: Grammy Hall of Fame
Anyone who has ever spent some time with me knows how huge a David Bowie fan I am,
I have written about David Bowie a lot on my blogs, though not as much yet on this one.
Here's my biggest and main tribute to BOWIE:
T-shirt #269.
However, when I searched the T-shirts blog, I found several posts with Bowie content, and this one jumped out at me:
T-shirt #312.
I don't know if you can check out links where you are, Mom. Actually, you probably see all time and space at once, so links are not real to you. But to other readers they may be. Check those links. You will be glad you did.
Last two things, I am grateful for the person who brought David Bowie into my life. I may not spell her name right, but as best I can remember, it's Janiki Kuppuru.
Here's the details. I first remember encountering David Bowie during a cast party following a show my senior year of High School. He was on SNL, and I remember criticizing him because what he was doing was so weird. Now, it's strange that I would criticize him because I liked weird (I still do). However, I was trying to fit in and so I was keying into the vibe in the room, which was judgy and dismissive. Later that same year, on a whim, I bought David Bowie's latest album, Scary Monsters, and I hated it. It was too weird, which again was strange because I liked weird. But mind was not yet fully open and willing to accept difference.
Then I met Janiki Kuppuru in my first quarter at K. She was British, she had been born in Sri Lanka, but she was most recently from California. We stayed up all night one time, and when I told her that I did not like David Bowie, she insisted that I sit and listen to his album The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars in its entirety and without speaking. I loved it. (Incidentally, I really liked her, too. She refused to wear shoes and was a free spirit.) She knew I would love it since I liked science fiction and aliens and creative, cool things. I went back and listened again to Scary Monsters, and this time I had a new attitude: I loved it. Though Low has eclipsed it as the Bowie album I find that I listen to most often, Scary Monsters may be my favorite album by David Bowie. I closed my senior theatre project show, Raw, with a singalong by the entire cast and audience of David Bowie's "It's no Game, Part Two," which closes that album. It remains a shining and culminating moment in my memory.
Wherever you are Janiki Kuppuru... Thank you.
As for you, Mom, wouldn't it have been nice to know that we had five years left in July of 2010?
My brain hurts a lot.
"Five Years"
by David Bowie
from The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spider from Mars - 1972
Pushing through the market square,
So many mothers sighing
News had just come over,
We had five years left to cry in
News guy wept and told us,
Earth was really dying
Cried so much his face was wet,
Then I knew he was not lying
I heard telephones, opera house, favorite melodies
I saw boys, toys, electric irons and T.V.'s
My brain hurt like a warehouse, it had no room to spare
I had to cram so many things to store everything in there
And all the fat-skinny people, and all the tall-short people
And all the nobody people, and all the somebody people
I never thought I'd need so many people
A girl my age went off her head,
Hit some tiny children
If the black hadn't a-pulled her off,
I think she would have killed them
A soldier with a broken arm,
Fixed his stare to the wheels of a Cadillac
A cop knelt and kissed the feet of a priest,
And a queer threw up at the sight of that
I think I saw you in an ice-cream parlor,
Drinking milk shakes cold and long
Smiling and waving and looking so fine,
Don't think you knew you were in this song
And it was cold and it rained so I felt like an actor
And I thought of Ma and I wanted to get back there
Your face, your race, the way that you talk
I kiss you, you're beautiful, I want you to walk
We've got five years, stuck on my eyes
Five years, what a surprise
We've got five years, my brain hurts a lot
Five years, that's all we've got
We've got five years, what a surprise
Five years, stuck on my eyes
We've got five years, my brain hurts a lot
Five years, that's all we've got
We've got five years, stuck on my eyes
Five years, what a surprise
We've got five years, my brain hurts a lot
Five years, that's all we've got
We've got five years, what a surprise
Five years, stuck on my eyes
We've got five years, my brain hurts a lot
Five years, that's all we've got
Five years
Five years
Five years
Five years
Have someone give you a kiss, and tell you that I love you.
Talk to you tomorrow, Mom.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
- Days ago = 125 days ago
- Bloggery committed by chris tower - 1511.05 - 20:02
and again 1511.07 - 7:51
https://sensedoubt.blogspot.com/2015/11/hey-mom-talking-to-my-mother-134-two.html
Hey, Mom! Talking to My Mother #138 - Two for Liesel - Seven Songs - "Just Like Heaven" and "Veloruia"
Hi Mom, This is my last in the seven songs in seven days series but not on consecutive days because I am slow. It's a bit of a cheat as this entry features two songs, but
Liesel earned her master's degree, and we celebrated with a dinner at the Park Club. I know you know this, Mom, because I sensed you sitting right there with us.
 |
| Piper and Adam at the dinner |
I thought this would be an ideal occasion to write a few words about my amazing wife and to share our songs (as we have two).
My wife saved my life, as you know well, Mom, as you were there. Not literally but in a figurative sense. She opened a world to me (love and marriage) that I thought was closed to me. I can never thank her enough for loving me, and marrying me, and I never forget what a special blessing and privilege this relationship is for me.
But Liesel also inspires me. She went back to school in the way she does everything, with a spirit of curiosity and a passion for learning. We are both life-long learners; we share the passion for learning.
There were times of intense anxiety. She threatened to quit many times. There were long hours and hardships, but in the end, my wife Liesel finished a master's degree in nursing, officially a Master's of Science in Nursing, and she did so really, pretty easily, because she is smart, capable, disciplined, and an extremely hard worker. She's also funny as Hell.
She wrote this poem to commemorate her graduation:
A little graduation humor based upon Langston Hughes' Harlem (What Happens to a Dream Deferred?)
What happens to a degree conferred?
Does it get hung on the wall
like an insect behind glass?
Or stifle in a box-
a relic of the past?
Does it fade in sunlight?
Or turn brown and decay-
like an old photo might?
Maybe it just crumples
like a forgotten receipt.
Or does it simply look sweet?
 |
| Ivan and Olivia at the dinner |
Also, my wife and I share musical tastes. I knew both these songs prior to meeting her, but I had not examined the lyrics too closely. Also, I had not heard Katie Melua's cover of the Cure song, which is actually the version I now prefer.
 |
| BG, my Dad, at Liesel's dinner |
But also, this, which is a bit less optimistic but no less beautiful or meaningful: "And found myself alone, alone, Alone above a raging sea, That stole the only girl I loved, And drowned her deep inside of me."
We are not much one for songs that perfectly mirror our own lives and experiences.
Liesel and I danced our first dance to this song and this version at our wedding.
"Just Like Heaven" by the Cure covered by Katie Melua
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
"JUST LIKE HEAVEN" - The Cure
Show me, show me, show me how you do that trick
The one that makes me scream" she said
"The one that makes me laugh" she said
And threw her arms around my neck
"Show me how you do it
And I promise you I promise that
I'll run away with you
I'll run away with you"
Spinning on that dizzy edge
I kissed her face and kissed her head
And dreamed of all the different ways I had
To make her glow
"Why are you so far away?" she said
"Why won't you ever know that I'm in love with you
That I'm in love with you"
You
Soft and only
You
Lost and lonely
You
Strange as angels
Dancing in the deepest oceans
Twisting in the water
 |
| Mike and Sue Creager at the dinner |
You're just like a dream
Daylight licked me into shape
I must have been asleep for days
And moving lips to breathe her name
I opened up my eyes
And found myself alone, alone
Alone above a raging sea
That stole the only girl I loved
And drowned her deep inside of me
You
Soft and lonely
You
Lost and lonely
You
Just like heaven
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
"Velouria" is a different kind of love song but no less beautiful. We played this at our wedding, but we also used it in our invitations:
"We will wade in the shine of the ever."
These expressionistic and imagistic lyrics capture the spirit of our love, Liesel's and mine: "Hold my head, we'll trampoline, Finally through the roof onto somewhere near and far in time, Velouria, her covering, traveling career, She can really move, oh, Velveteen."
I will never take my wife for granted.
I am so proud of Liesel, for finishing her master's degree.
Congratulations, Liesel, my Shastasheen.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
"Velouria" - The Pixies
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
"Velouria" - Pixies
Hold my head, we'll trampoline
Finally through the roof onto somewhere near and far in time
Velouria, her covering, traveling career
She can really move, oh, Velveteen
My Velouria, my Velouria
Even I'll adore you, my Velouria
Even I'll adore you, my Velouria
Say to me, where have you been?
Finally through the roof
And how does lemur skin reflect the sea?
We will wade in the shine of the ever
We will wade in the shine of the ever
We will wade in the tides of the summer, every summer
Every my Velouria, my Velouria
Forevergreen, I know she's here in California
I can see the tears of Shastasheen
My Velouria, my Velouria
Even I'll adore you, my Velouria
Even I'll adore you, my Velouria
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Mom, I am glad you survived long enough to see both Lori and I get married.
Thank you for loving my wife, Liesel, as I do.
I teared up at the dinner because I had done what you would have done, Mom. I gave Liesel a fine wooden box with an engraved plate that reads: "Liesel Tower: MSN degree 2015." Actually, the people engraved a semi-colon and not a colon, even though I said colon three times and described it as two dots, one atop the other. But most people are not as smart as my wife, who knows the difference between a colon and a semi-colon, and now, as an MSN degreed nurse, she knows more about colons in your body, too.
Anyway, thinking of you, Mom, and how you would celebrate this event made me weepy.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Talk to you tomorrow, Mom.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
- Days ago = 140 days ago
- Bloggery committed by chris tower - 1511.21 - 22:10
and again 1511.23 - 7:53
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
- Bloggery committed by chris tower - 1906.10 - 10:10
- Days ago = 1437 days ago
- New note - On 1807.06, I ceased daily transmission of my Hey Mom feature after three years of daily conversations. I plan to continue Hey Mom posts at least twice per week but will continue to post the days since ("Days Ago") count on my blog each day. The blog entry numbering in the title has changed to reflect total Sense of Doubt posts since I began the blog on 0705.04, which include Hey Mom posts, Daily Bowie posts, and Sense of Doubt posts. Hey Mom posts will still be numbered sequentially. New Hey Mom posts will use the same format as all the other Hey Mom posts; all other posts will feature this format seen here.
No comments:
Post a Comment