Tags of the week - June 9, 2010

As with everything else around here, it's been over a week since I last posted some tags, but it's been a little hectic around these parts lately.  There are so many songs tagged in my phone right now, it was like narrowing it all down and weeding out the most relevant this time around.  I'm not sure I'll ever be short on tags to post.  Now that May and my 30 day challenge is over, it's like I forgot how fun it was to blog (almost) every day.  Anyway, without further ado, here's five songs that are hitting me this week, and why.

1) Fanfarlo - Harold T. Wilkins, or How to Wait for a Very Long Time.

I love this song. Part of why this made the list this week is because Fanfarlo is playing a free outdoor show in Providence this Friday evening. Waterplace Park, 7:30 pm. I'll be there, will you?

2) The Temper Trap - Sweet Disposition

Okay, I confess that I didn't actually tag this song, but I love it, and my friend M just sent me a text about it, so it's fresh in my head. You can thank M if you're into the tune.

3) Against Me! - I was a Teenage Anarchist

This should have been in the last round of tags, it's been in my phone for so long, and it's been tagged more than twice. It has just the right mix of fun and angst. I love it.

4) Coheed & Cambria - Here We Are Juggernaut

Love. I know C&C aren't anyone new, and I don't know how new this song is, but I'm really into it. It's a little more harsh than some of the other stuff I've been listening to lately, but awesome nonetheless. We were stupid we got caught . . .

5) Bushwalla - I Raise Up

OMG. BW is playing house shows on the east coast this month, and I can't afford to get him at my house. Nor can I count on enough people coming through to chip in to be able to afford to front the money myself. And he's available when I am and everything; I already checked. I could totally do it if I could only justify the cash outlay. BUMMA. B-U-M-M-A. I absolutely hate that I have this opportunity, and can't take advantage. I love his style and his music SO much, and I really and truly want to introduce him to more people that I know would feel the same way. He's also playing a show in MA (an hour and a half away) at the end of the month, and I need to go to that. Seriously, you guys, he's so awesome. New album came out this week, and even though it's not on the radio and capable of being tagged, this is the first single. I couldn't not promote my boy. Check. Him. OUT!

Atonement - the movie

I was SO pleasantly surprised with this movie!  When I posted before about how amazing the book was, I commented about how I didn't this it would translate well to film, but wow.  And it's honestly not just because I love both actors, but the longer I watched, the more and more perfect James McAvoy and Kiera Knightly became for the roles of Robbie and Cecelia.  Even the unknowns who played Briony as a 13 year old and a 17 year old were both perfect, and the longer I watched, the more perfect they became.  The film was obviously missing a lot of the beautiful inner turmoil and misunderstanding, but the important parts of that were very well done with music and quick, fleeting shots to really convey the feeling.  Robbie and Cecelia's love scene in the library was brilliantly done, as was Briony's discovery of them.  The ending was slightly different than I remember, with Briony being interviewed about her final book for a television talk show (I remember the ending being her exiting the Imperial War Museum before attending a birthday party at her old home, etc.), but with the same ultimate conclusion regarding Cee and Robbie.  The end of the film was as captivating as the end of the book, though, even as it was played out through Briony's discussion of it, rather than in her head.  I missed some of the detail that was included in the second part of the book, between Briony's nurses' training and Robbie's war stories, but both were conveyed efficiently and accurately, despite the missing details, which were mostly internal.  J hated the movie and quit on it after about 20 minutes.  I think that if he had sat and watched the whole thing, he'd have gotten something out of it, but to each his own.  I was impressed, at any rate, and I stand corrected about McEwan's work making for a good movie.  The film was true to the book, was well-scripted, well-acted, well-directed, and overall just very well done.  I enjoyed it immensely.

30 Day Music Challenge - Days 28, 29 & 30 - The End.

This is the end!  I was bad about it the last couple of days, but at least I'm finishing on day 30!  I think I'm going to create a page up at the top for this challenge, and put all my answers in one place.  I'm not doing that today, though.  Okay, on to the last three songs, and then some more info.

Day 28 - A song that makes you feel guilty:  I'm not even sure what to do with this.  Why would a song make you feel guilty?  Guilty like how?  All that comes to mind when I read this question is that song Guilty, by Gravity Kills, but honestly, it's not that it makes me feel guilty about anything, it's just the name of the song.  I give up.


Day 29 - A song from your childhood:  Ohhh!  In The Summertime by Mungo Jerry totally reminds me of doing yard work or going out with my dad when I was a kid.  I feel like every single time I got in his truck to go to the hardware store (which was A LOT), that song would be on the oldies station on the radio.  I still love the song, to this day.

Day 30 - Your favorite song at this time last year:  At this time last year, I think I had just bought my tickets  to see Jason Mraz at Mohegan, and I was pretty sufficiently all-consumed with Mr. A-Z.  If It Kills Me, Butterfly, and You and I Both were all strong contenders for the position of favorite, but You and I Both helped inspire me to get the end of my first novel written, so I think I have to go with that one.  Also on heavy rotation in my car, though, was The Nate Mott Band, and here's a link back to my post about them, which contains links to their website and MySpace page.  These guys are great - they're local, my former intern used to play bass for them, but I'm not even plugging them because of that - they're just a really great band, and I want to introduce everyone I can to them.  Check them out.

Wow - the 30 Day Music Challenge is over!  And I think it worked to get me blogging a little more, even if my blog has been completely music-centered for the last month.  Whatever.  I have a whole bunch of other post ideas saved, it's just a matter of finding the time to get them written.  Stay tuned.

I started working on my "about" page this weekend.  It's at the top of the blog, under the heading "Who's Susie."  It's going to be an ever-growing collection of quick ones about me.  A little insight into my head, I guess.  So that's a step in the right direction, too.

So this weekend is memorial Day weekend, and I've been taking full advantage of the beautiful weather and extra free time.  Friday afternoon was a few hours of outside 2-on-2 volleyball, and that was a great way to kick off my weekend, as exhausting as it was.  Dinner was grilled chicken with homemade marinade and salad dressing, made from the herbs I'm growing around the deck - delicious!  Saturday morning, I took Murphster for a looooong walk on the Blackstone River Bikeway, which is beautiful, then did a little yard work and went to a 30th birthday party last night.  Today we took Murphster to my parents' house for a little barbeque, including a venture to Gaspee Arts & Crafts.  Tomorrow will hopefully be some more gardening, and some around the house chores.  I'm looking forward to a relaxing, around the house kind of day.

Happy Memooooooooorial Day!

Stop and smell the flowers

I'm having a wonderful day today so far (knock on wood, I guess).  I don't just mean relative to the shitshow that was my day yesterday, but in the overall, grand scheme of things, today is a good day. 

I found a skirt and top that I haven't worn in a while, and that made me feel a little better about how I've been hating my whole wardrobe lately, plus, neither item needed to be ironed, which is a total bonus, especially considering I haven't worn them since last summer. 

Then I made it out of the house on time this morning, which hasn't been happening much lately. 

When I started my car, I heard the DJ finish a sentence and then Lay Me Down by the Dirty Heads came on.  That's unquestionably my favorite song this week.  When that ended, I put on my iPod and listened to a bunch of other sunshiny music on the way to work with the windows open, so glad this week's thunderstorms limited themselves to just overnight last night and were gone by this morning.

And despite the windows being open, I kind of like my hair today, messy and pulled back half-way as it is.

Everyone I've encountered today has been refreshingly polite and friendly.

I ran out to the post office to mail my In2Books class gift, which I'm SO excited about, so that felt good.  On the way out, I got within about 10 yards of my car before I realized that I had left my keys back in my office.  But since it was a nice day, it didn't even matter.  I laughed and went back in to get my keys.  While I was out, I ran to Whole Foods to pick up something for lunch, and my falafel is delicious.  I stopped to admire the flowers and plants on my way out - they had these beautiful roses, so you almost couldn't help but stop to smell them.  Roses are so fragrant.  In my living room the other day, I could smell the rose bush outside, so I went and looked at it, and there were only 2 flowers open.  But I could smell them inside!

I've gotten a few old, stagnant things finished and out the door at work, I feel surprisingly not tired today, for a change, the new poison ivy stuff I bought works like a dream and I'm not all itchy anymore, my phone and email have been pleasantly quiet all day; it's been a lovely, lovely day so far.  I hope it keeps up!

30 Day Music Challenge - Day 27

Day 27 - A song that you wish you could play:  Higher Ground by the Red Hot Chili Peppers, on bass.  Flea is a god.  I'm SUCH a huge fan of him and everything that he does.  The man has been playing bass in an amazing rock band for two decades, making millions along the way, and during their recent hiatus, he decided to go back to school to study music theory.  He runs a music conservatory in LA, called the Silverlake Conservatory of Music, and they do a great thing.  J bought a bass for his birthday last year, and I was SO excited - then I actually tried to learn to play it once.  Once.  It's hard!  I keep telling myself that I will try again, but I sort of doubt that I will.

30 Day Music Challenge - Days 25 & 26

I'm starting to wonder whether I'm going to be able to finish the month on time.  I'm making it my goal to actually post the Day 30 response on May 30th.  Although, there are 31 days in May, so I guess I'd still be within the month if I posted it a day late . . .

Day 25 - A song that makes you laugh: TOAST! by Heywood Banks.  This is hilarious.  I can almost guarantee that no one has ever heard of it, but you should all look it up in iTunes, and at least listen to the 30 second snippit.  It's hilarious.  There is a story behind my love for it.  I play indoor volleyball in the winter in a league that is about 40 minutes from home.  I carpool with my friend M, who has an iPhone.  Somehow, we started playing "the iPhone game" on the way to and from volleyball, wherein the driver picks a random word, the passenger looks it up in iTunes and we enjoy the 30 second snippits of whatever comes up.  It's more fun than you might imagine.  One night the word was "toast," and this song came up.  M downloaded it immediately.  Unfortunately, the rest of Heywood Banks' songs are not nearly this entertaining.


Day 26 - A song that you can play on an instrument:  Does used to be able to play count?  Yikes, I don't play any instruments anymore.  I'm trying to learn When the Saints Go Marching In on piano (keyboard, actually) right now.  I think I can still play Heart and Soul on piano, too.  At one time I could play the Cheers! theme song on clarinet.  Eesh - for someone who loves music so much, you'd hope I had a little more talent, huh?  Nope, not at all.

Music Lover's Award!

Thanks you Christiejolu at Tales From My Head for giving me the Music Lover's Award!

For this award I have to:

1. List your top 10 favorite songs on your iPod

2. State what color your iPod is

3. Give this award to 11 music loving bloggers

Here we go:

1)  Top 10 iPod songs:

My tastes change like the wind, but here's a list for now, in no particular order 

(this was WICKED hard, by the way):

  Empire State of Mind, Jay-Z

  Nobody's Listening, Linkin Park

  Don't Follow, AIC

  High Road, Fort Minor

  New Fang, Them Crooked Vultures

  Fall Through Glass, Bushwalla

  Missing My Baby, G. Love

  You and Your Heart, Jack Johnson

  You and I Both, Jason Mraz

  Uprising, Muse

2)  The color of my iPod(s):

I have two.  I have a pink 4G Nano (I don't know what generation it is, but it's the first generation they made in color), and I have an old-school 30G video iPod.  I think it's the first generation they put out with video.  It's OLD.  I used to just have my pink one, but it filled up, and I was having to delete songs to put more on, and that REALLY sucked, so I took over J's old 30G, since he uses his phone for all his music now anyway.  I still use my Nano when I run (Ha!  I can't even tell you the last time I ran) because it has Nike+.

3)  Pick 11 music loving bloggers:

I think this is even more difficult than picking my 10 favorite songs.  I can't come up with 11, I know I can't, especially without giving it back to where I got it from.  ;)  Most of the music blogs I read are based off of commercial sites, and as far as I know, that doesn't count.  A few of my book and writing blogger friends are totally into music, but I don't really expect them to participate because their blogs have cohesive themes (unlike mine) that are not music related, so I'm stealing Christiejolu's idea, and I'm cheating by not passing this on, but others should feel free to yoink this award and pass it on.  You book and writing ladies know who you are, and should take this and post it for yourselves if you are so inclined.