Music from Lost Time

Tucked way in the very back of my upstairs hallway closet, there's a storage bin filled with pictures, maps, brochures, coins and other bits from the year I lived in Cardiff, Wales. I filled that bin when I returned to my parents house after the year studying abroad and have moved it from house to apartment to duplex to apartment to at least three more houses over the past 15 years.

My intent, of course, was to make a series of photo scrapbooks that would capture all the beautiful places I went and all the things I accomplished that year. I planned to have albums that I could flip through to treasure the memories or share stories with my children of the great adventure mommy had before they were even an idea.

And yet, more than a decade later, everything is still shoved into that same plastic bin -- much to my husband's chagrin.

Thankfully, treasured memories aren't dependent on neatly organized photo albums. Sometimes, a particular scent or sound -- or even a cartoon glass -- can be enough to conjure up the most vivid picture of a day long gone.

Today it was Spotify that served as my Proustian madeleine, courtesy of a playlist built around a mix tape that had been my sound track during that year in Cardiff. A fellow American scholar studying at Oxford became one of my favorite friends that year -- we visited each other and marveled that we, with our parallel lives and similar tastes, hadn't crossed paths sooner. The mix tape she made for me offered an entire Gravity's Pull album on one side, harkening back to the days when we didn't know each other at UNC, and a collection of tracks from Nancy Griffith, Nikki Meets the Hibachi, Shawn Colvin, Del Amitri, Shannon Worrell, Soul Miner's Daughter, Rebecca Riots and more on the other side.

I listened to that tape, my walkman tucked into the pocket of my weather-proof coat, every day for months as I walked to class, to the city centre, to a friend's flat, to the train station, to museums and galleries and castles and pubs. The songs rang of strength and friendship, searching and wonder. They were my constant partner as I found myself able to live so far from home, able to succeed on my own in a way I hadn't been sure was possible.

When I came back to the U.S., I was still listening to that same tape as I walked the halls again at UNC, where I found myself surprisingly ready to meet the man who would be my husband.

This morning, more than a decade gone by, I listened to Dave Matthews hum out his "Christmas Song" on the Spotify playlist that I finally built based on that mix tape. There's no tape deck in my car anymore, but I didn't want to give up the tape -- iPhone to the rescue.

Although I was driving roads in Raleigh, running ordinary errands on this ordinary day, I had the extraordinary sense of being transported through space and time I thought were lost. I felt the blessings of being known by a friend discovered in a moment when I needed that connection more than ever. I recalled the confidence borne out of finding my own way. I pictured the path I walked from my flat toward the capitol, the details of my room, the oceans of daffodils filling the gardens, the faces and voices of people I haven't seen since I returned home after we completed our degrees.

And I smiled to myself, holding the treasure of that year and that entire dusty storage bin in my mind.

Friday's 5: Pandora Stations

Among the reasons why I love our TiVo is the ability to stream Pandora through our television. Having music on in the house makes me happy, but we don't have a radio that works well downstairs and I'm generally too lazy to actually put a CD in the CD player -- yes, I still have CDs, so shut up.

Anyway, we have a long list of stations that we've compiled over time -- a little something for every occasion. What I've learned over much trial and error is that sometimes the best stations come not from artists or genres, but from specific songs.

You'll want to tweak them as you listen to steer them in the direction you like best, but here are five of our favorite stations:

1. Man or Muppet Radio: This station is my kids' favorite, not surprisingly. It includes a range of Disney movie songs from Mary Poppins to Tangled, but also most of the songs from the most recent Muppet movie. My personal favorite is the Spanish-language version of Gonzo's chickens singing "Forget You" (you know, because chickens clucking in Spanish is totally different than clucking in English).
2. The Girl from Impanema Radio: The summer before I got pregnant with Junius, my husband and I spent a few days in South Beach. Two nights in a row, we went to this great club and listened to a fantastic Latin jazz band. Now, on the rare occasion that we get our kids to bed early, this is the station we pick to bring back that same mood. Goes best with mojitos.
3. The Dog Days Are Over Radio: Strangely enough, I discovered this Florence + the Machine song via the spectacular Pentatonix on "The Sing-Off." Once I got accustomed to the original version, I found that it pulled together a station of some familiar songs and lots more I didn't know into a really interesting station.
4. This Must Be the Place Radio: I love 80s music and have more than one 80s-related station set in Pandora. But this one gets to a really nice mix of 80s that my husband enjoys listening to as well (translation: it's not all Bon Jovi and Tiffany).
5. Flashlight Radio: Sometimes my day just needs a little funk and Parliament is the way to get it. Ha da da dee da hada hada da da. That is all.

Leave a comment with your favorite Pandora station and share the good listening...

Pippi Wants You to Call Her, Maybe?

In the beginning there was Carly Rae Jepsen, bouncing and singing through my car stereo via my husband's iPhone. If you want to listen in, click the play button here: Call Me Maybe

Why had my husband downloaded this poppy tune onto his phone? I have no idea.

But there it was. And I mocked him a little. Okay, more than a little.

Then he showed me the video of Jimmy Fallon singing the song with Jepsen. With the Roots playing as their band. On elementary music classroom instruments.

And the whole family was hooked. We particularly like the man in the back left with the bongos on his shoulder -- I cannot make my head do that, but damn I wish I could.



We listened to the song about 847 times during our family road trip that weekend. So much so that for the past week and a half, I haven't been able to keep any other songs in my head.

Apparently I'm not alone.

On Friday, Pippi was sitting at her little table coloring and entertaining herself for a few glorious moments while I ate my lunch -- when suddenly I realized she was singing the same line from the song, over and over and over again.

When I asked her if I could make a movie for daddy, here's the performance I got:

So the video quality isn't exactly Jimmy Fallon -- but honestly, I didn't actually expect her to perform on command because she pretty much never ever does that. Ever. Which is why the video is vertical.

But you gotta love the gum smacking, sunglasses flipping, cheesy grinning four-year-old stuck on the line about how "all the other boys try to chase me." There's no coaching going on here, but clearly some quality pop culture parenting. And it places Pippi in the ranks of Colin Powell, as well.

Oh, and you're welcome. Now the song is stuck in your head, too.

Pippipalooza 2012: Preschool Musical

Pippi is now officially 4.

She's had her school-special-snack party, her family-goes-out-to-dinner party and her invite-too-many-friends-to-the-house-for-cake party. She loved every minute -- the rest of us are still recovering.

So while I collect myself enough to be able to write about the festivities and about our Princess Pip, you can entertain yourself with the playlist I used for her CD party favors.

 The Pippipalooza Dance Party Like a Rock Star Mix

1. Big Bang Boom (Part 1) – Big Bang Boom
2. High Five! – They Might Be Giants
3. Get Up and Go – The Biscuit Brothers
4. It Makes You Feel Good – Renee & Jeremy
5. Mahna Mahna – CAKE
6. Molly the Moose – Ira Marlowe
7. I Never Go to Work – They Might Be Giants
8. Stand Up Song – Big Bang Boom
9. The Hoppity Song – John Ondrasik
10. D Is for Drums – They Might Be Giants
11. Drawing – Barenaked Ladies
12. Dance Party – The Biscuit Brothers (Buttermilk)
13. C’mon – Renee & Jeremy
14. Ooh La! Ooh La! – They Might Be Giants
15. No Hands Band – Ray “Walrus” Laughran (on BBB)
16. Big Bang Book (Part 2) – Big Bang Boom

All of these songs (and the albums they came from) are technically kid songs, but they're ones that pass the parent test -- that is, kid songs that even the parents like.

You're welcome.

Note: Referencing this post title, if you haven't seen the Sesame Street "Preschool Musical" sketch, it's worth watching.

Catch up on Pippipalooza 2012:

- It's On
- Such a Big Girl
- The Party Plan

- Behind the Party Scenes
- Blog Post Retrospective

Singing along with "The Sing-off"

Reality TV has never been my thing. Unless you count HGTV or the occasional make-over show, I'm just not that into it. Although I will say that Storage Wars is pretty interesting -- but not enough to make me set the TiVo.

Survivor started while I was living overseas -- when I got back, I tuned in once to see what all the fuss was about and just couldn't catch on. Maybe because I didn't care about any of the people? Or possibly because I'm grossed out by the notion of eating bugs. I watched a few episodes of American Idol when a Raleigh contestant was in the finals, but that's about it. I have enough reality in my life -- when I turn on the TV, that's not what I'm looking for.

So imagine my surprise to discover that I am completely and totally sucked into a reality show this season: The Sing-off.

I stumbled onto it a few weeks ago when I was home by myself (translation: in control of the remote and looking for anything to watch other than Two and a Half Men). I started watching because I heart Ben Folds. After two songs, I was hooked.

Finally, a reality show I can enjoy. A capella groups of all shapes, styles and sizes singing and dancing their hearts out in front of judges who are genuinely talented and seem to honestly care about the performers.

If you're not already watching (and come on, admit it, some of you are), then you better start tonight -- it's the next-to-last episode and you WILL be sorry if you miss it.

And my prediction of the group to take it all? Pentatonix.

Here's a sampling why:



...and...



Think I'm wrong? Share your prediction in the comments. The show starts tonight at 8:00 on NBC.
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A Week in My Life: Tuesday

Yes, I know it's Wednesday. But Tuesday was very full and there was no time for blogging -- but lots to document. I'm participating in Adventuroo's "A Week in My Life" project. You can see my Monday here.

Tuesday started painfully early for a good cause. If I look a little blurry in that first picture, it's because I was volunteering at my polling station at 6:30 a.m. in the RAIN in the DARK and I wasn't totally awake yet. The kids joined me at 7:30, mostly playing in the car for my last half hour of greeting. (Translation of J's post-it: "Christine is are [our] school board.") And no, no one wanted my little candidate flier.

Once our shift was up, we headed home to play. Also to lay out the newspaper across the counter because it was somehow soaking wet inside the plastic bag.

At 9:00 we got ready for our friend Baby J, who hangs out with us on Tuesday mornings. That means dumping out an entire basket of toys and then confiscating all the tiny things he might try to eat. We also got our They Might Be Giants station playing on Pandora (via TiVo, which I LOVE). You can see here that we all love Baby J very much. He loves us too, although sometimes I think he'd like a little more personal space.

At 11:00, we loaded up Baby J and took Pippi to her gymnastics class. Baby J took a nap while Junius played games on my iPhone.

After we returned Baby J to his parents, we loaded back into the car with lunch and headed to Daddy's office for flu shots. Junius, apparently exhausted from the morning, gave out along the way. Pippi managed to keep herself awake by singing the entire time.

Junius and I were very brave for our shots (Pippi already got hers at the pediatrician). Then we argued over who would get to push the buttons in the elevator.

On the ride home, we rocked out to one of our most favorite CDs: the aptly-titled Songs Your Mom Will Like by Big Bang Boom. That's Pippi beatboxing and playing the air trumpet on track 14. Buy it now and thank me later.

After a little rest time (read: 30 minutes of TV) at home, we loaded back into the car (are you noticing a theme here?) for some play time at our friends' house. Pippi showed us how she can buckle her own seat belt (which can take up to 5 minutes, depending on the amount of whining involved). We admired our friends' fabulous Halloween decorations, debated the scientific names of toy dinosaurs and generally had a whirlwind of fun.

At 6:00, we picked up Daddy and went out for dinner at a local restaurant that was having a fundraising night for our arts school. Junius impressed his friends by reading all the signs on the way in (yes, first-graders are that cool). The kids played with wikistiks while we waited for our food (smart restaurant), then Pippi cleaned her plate and part of Junius' too. My girl loves some pasta. I had the yummiest bleu cheese mac-n-cheese with bacon -- comfort food on a rainy night.

Back at home, we filled milk cups (I don't know why, but that blue cup is THE ONLY WAY Junius will drink milk and he MUST have it at bedtime every night) and went upstairs for bed. Junius brushed his teeth and protested all the photography. I spray-treated Pippi's shirt (why oh why do I ever buy white shirts for her?) and pondered the need for gender-specific children's toothpaste. Then Daddy showed the kids pictures from his day touring cool Raleigh locations like the science museum and the RBC Center.

It was my turn to read to Pippi. She picked out "The Shy Little Girl," a book I somehow still have from my childhood. I love how much she loves the book, even though parts of it are really dated. The trick to getting Pippi to sleep is to get her to be still -- see how she fidgets with her hands to stay awake?

Finally at 8:00, with both kids asleep, my political junkie husband and I settled in on the couch for election returns. With two laptops, an iPad, an iPhone and the television between us, we stalked the results, read tweets aloud, flipped news channels and cheered for the victory. Who says you can't have champagne on a Tuesday?

And so my day ended where it began -- worn out, but happy to support a great candidate.
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One Great Day Plus Ten Amazing Years

The first time I went to an Eddie from Ohio show and heard lead singer Julie Murphy Wells belt out the band's a capella "Great Day," I leaned over to my date and whispered that the song would make a perfect wedding processional. 

Less than a year later, I married that date -- and although we didn't play the song during our wedding ceremony, we did use it to make our grand entrance into the reception.

Even with the red eye, this is one of my favorite wedding pictures. A candid photo from a friend, it captures how very happy we were in the moment. When our friend and emcee DSR introduced us as the song rang out through the room, it truly was a Great Day -- what a blessing to be together and to have so many wonderful friends and family there to celebrate with us.



And so today, on this Great Day ten years later, with blue skies, green grass and beauty surrounding us, I am counting my blessings. A lot has changed in the past decade -- and not all of the 3,650 days were easy ones -- but every day together will always be a Great Day.

Related anniversary posts:
- For My Husband (or, Our First Dance)
- A Decade of Dancing
- Happy 9th Anniversary
- Naming Conventions
- Tenth Anniversary of 9/11
- Thankful for Blue Skies
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A Band in the Neighborhood (from Kansas)

It's not every day that a neighbor invites us over to hear a band play at their house. So when Marty announced they were hosting Abandon Kansas in their over-the-garage music studio earlier this week, I strolled out my driveway and across the street to hear what the fuss was about.

Two hours later, I was making chat with Jeremy here like a little groupie and clutching two new CDs in my hand. And I've been listening to those songs ever since.

If you weren't lucky enough to get the invite to the show (meaning that you're not lucky enough to live close by), then just be glad that I'm here to introduce you. So here's what you need to do:

1. Go read Marty's post about how she met Abandon Kansas earlier this year. 
2. Go to the AK website and listen to their songs. Buy some music in your format of preference. Tell Jeremy that we sent you.
3. Sit there and be jealous that my neighbors are cooler than your neighbors.

Spring Fling

We all have our own signs of spring that we watch for -- warm breezes, trees in bloom, daffodils opening, violent allergic reactions to every little thing in the air.

This weekend, while temps were approaching 80 degrees in Raleigh (good-bye February!), I added a new favorite sign of spring to my list: The first Sunday of the year driving with the top down and all four of us in the car, the fresh scent of biscuits drifting up from our to-go bag, with everyone singing "Molly the Moose" at the top of our lungs.

Everybody wants
...to feel the grass between their toes
...to feel the sunshine on their nose
...to taste the rain, to sniff the breeze
...to live their life the way they please
Everybody wants to be free

A perfect Sunday for the Convertible Family -- and a perfect way to welcome spring!

Note: I couldn't find an audio clip to link to that actually plays this part of the song, but you can order the CD here. And you really should, because it's awesome.

photo credit to antaean
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Lovin' You Is Easy

Happy birthday, my love! And la la la la la...

Loving the Ladies in Lakemont

As if the ice cream parties, the babysitting co-op, the craft projects, the bunco evenings, the poker nights, the Third Friday Happy Hours, the fundraisers and the meal calendars weren't enough fabulousness, last weekend brought my Lakemont love to a whole new over-the-top level.

Yes, that's a drag queen. In my friend's kitchen during a break between sets. You know, cause that's how we roll over here in midtown.

S/he was there for my friend (who is also her/his friend) because said friend was in need of some cheering up. And how better to find your smile than with a house full of dancing girlfriends and gay men, a chilled pitcher of cosmojitos, and a gorgeous man wearing sequins and false eyelashes belting out lip-synched versions of Whitney Houston songs?

What? That's not what you do in your neighborhood? Well, too bad -- because it rocked. Even after an anonymous neighbor (who was understandably bothered by the decibel level from the backyard around midnight) called the police.

Guess we'll just have to start a little earlier next time so as not to violate the noise curfew. Because I'm sure there will be a next time.

Eye of the Tiger

If you're not watching Modern Family on Wednesday nights on ABC, you are seriously missing out. It has fantastic characters -- including the dad from Married with Children and Carol Vessey from Ed (who also played a skanky role in one season of Weeds) -- but more importantly, it is Hilarious. Yes, with a capital "H."

Anyway, the final punchline in last week's episode had me teary-eyed and cracking up at the same time -- and given my love of quirky cover songs used during closing scenes in TV shows, I just had share.

Here's a little something to enjoy on your Monday:


Who knew there was an acoustic ukulele version of "Eye of the Tiger"? (To really get the joke, you'll have to watch the whole episode, but the song is genius either way.)

Singing, Dancing and Learning

When we started classes with Music Together last fall, I had visions of discovering the musical genius in both of my children. They both love to sing, dance and pretend-play musical instruments (Junius prefers trombone, while Pippi tends toward the violin) -- plus I spent 14 years in piano lessons and my mom is a music teacher -- so it seemed a perfect fit.

Today we started our third round of classes with Music Together (fall, winter, now spring). And I'd love to be able to tell you that it's been everything I imagined it could be and more. But that wouldn't really tell the whole story. The truth is that it's been a huge success -- at least enough to make me enroll three times -- but it hasn't looked at all like I expected it would.

After our first class, my son announced that he didn't want me to sing along with the CD in the car -- despite what our class instructor had encouraged us to do. This hurt my feelings (and my confidence), but I got over it -- he's 4, what does he know about talent, right? Then after a few more more classes, I quickly realized that car-singing was the least of my worries.

We were That Family in music class.

You know what I'm talking about... the one whose kids run around the room seemingly oblivious to what the instructor is doing, whose kids take instruments from other (smaller) children, whose kids shout "wake up!" in the middle of the lullaby song, whose kids take off their own shoes and then try to wear the shoes of other children, whose kids sneak over to play the piano when it's clearly labeled "hands off." Meanwhile, the other children are all sitting sweetly with their mommies, tapping and bouncing along with Ms. Angela. Yes, we were definitely That Family.

After we finished the first set of 10 classes, I gave up. I was convinced that the kids weren't learning anything, and I was exhausted from wrangling them for 45 minutes. Despite all counseling from my mother to the contrary, I figured it was a waste of time.

Then one afternoon, I caught Pippi singing the welcome to class song all by herself, filling in the names of the other kids from class as well as words for things around her (as in, "Hello to potty... so glad to see you! Hello to blanket... so glad to see you!"). I was startled -- this is the child who never sits in class, takes off running down the hall and ignores Ms. Angela at every opportunity? Over the next few weeks, I realized that both of my kids were randomly singing different songs from the class without any prompting from me. Turns out that busy, crazy children are still soaking up all that music instruction when you least expect it.

So now we're back for Round 3. I'm still chasing Pippi down the hall and nudging Junius to sit up and sing during class -- and we're still That Family (honestly, you'd think by now we'd have someone new in the class who could take over that role). But at least now I know that they're getting something out of the class -- and most of the other families are used to us by now (and probably just glad that their kids are better behaved than mine are).

And when Pippi puts on Junius's train engineer hat and starts singing, "This train is bound for glory..." or when Junius taps his fork on the table while chanting, "Playing in the kitchen...," I'm reminded that my children are learning more than I can imagine every minute of every day. No wonder they can't sit still with such busy, busy brains.

Musiciancarnation: The Edge

In my next life, if I could come back as a member of U2, I'd be The Edge.

Thanks to my awesome husband, who splurged on two tickets for us, we got to see U2 perform on earlier this month at Carter-Finley Stadium (thankfully, we actually made it through the traffic, unlike some very disappointed fans). The band, which I first listened to in the mid-80s, thanks to my much cooler (and younger) brother, put on an amazing musical spectacle for a solid two hours. I don't know how they do it, night after night and year after year, but they really pulled it off.

I don't even need a Facebook quiz (I'm sure there is one) to tell me that I'd definitely want to be the guitarist/keyboardist/back-up vocalist, born David Howell Evans. So why, you're asking (I know you are), would you want to be The Edge? I'll tell you:

• He never has a bad hair day thanks to that hat (and apparently he doesn't have much hair left anyway).
• He plays guitar AND plays keyboard AND sings. Triple threat with a sexy guitar stance.
  
• He's been credited as defining the "U2 sound," even more so than Bono.
  
• He has the coolest stage name around, involving an article no less.
• He gets to run around stage, having a blast with his best friends from high school -- and he gets paid for it.
• He ate Cooper's BBQ after the Raleigh show. Okay, so they all did -- but I still think that is awesome.
  

So, who would you be if you were in U2?

Past "Musiciancarnation" posts:
China Forbes
Tift Merritt

Image from ctnews.com.

Making Music Together

When I was four years old, my mother took me to Kindermusik classes -- some of the first in the U.S. My mom then became my first piano teacher, starting me on lessons that would last through three other teachers until I graduated high school. I also studied flute and sang in school and church choirs. Later, my mom became a Musikgarten teacher, singing and dancing with other moms and babies.

Given that history, and the fact that my kids really love all sorts of music and dancing, I'm somewhat embarrassed to admit that I finally took Junius and Pippi to our first music class last week. But better late than never -- all three of us had a great time singing, playing, dancing and jumping along with Ms. Angela and the nine other mommies and 12 other children. In addition to being great fun in a musical learning environment, it's also one of the few activities I could take the kids to at the same time -- not a lot of kids programs are open to both a 4-year-old and a 19-month-old.

During the class, Ms. Angela encouraged all the mommies to sing regularly to their children. "No matter what you think your voice sounds like," she said, "your children will think it's the most beautiful sound they've ever heard." I liked that advice and decided this was a good time to stop listening to NPR in the car and start singing along with our new Music Together CD.

So on our way to Nanna and PopPop's house last week, I put in the disc -- the kids were smiling and clapping and trying to sing along. And I'm thinking what a great mommy I am that I can take them to this fun class and then sing with them in the car and how happy they must be to hear my beautiful voice.

Then Junius pipes up from the back seat. "Mommy," he says. "When you are singing...?"

And I'm waiting for him to say how much fun it is when I sing and he can sing and Pippi is learning to sing and how much he loves me...

"Mommy, when you are singing," he says, "I can't hear the music. Mommy, please don't sing."

His comment left me speechless, thus having the desired effect.

I'm just hoping he won't complain when I start singing even louder in class this week.

Image from Music Together.

For My Husband

As I walked down the aisle eight years ago today, arm-in-arm with my parents, my hands were shaking so badly that I thought I might drop my bouquet. It wasn't so much nerves as excitement and emotional overload.

When I got to the front of the church, I took my soon-to-be-husband's hand, kissed him on the mouth and promptly stopped shaking.

After the wedding, I got a lot of teasing about how I was supposed to wait until the end of the ceremony for the big kiss. But it was totally worth it.

We might have surprised a few people with our choice of song for our first dance, too -- although not our next door neighbor, who didn't realize he'd been listening to us practice our shag moves (no, not that kind of shag) every time it played.


Happy anniversary, my love. Only 42 more years until you get to renegotiate the contract.

Online Music Monday

We're having a beautiful time at the beach, although I'm grouchy this morning because apparently my daughter didn't get the memo about sleeping late and taking long naps on vacation.

Thankfully, I had a link to this video from a friend on Facebook to cheer me up:


As budgets shrink across the country, school districts are facing tough decisions about cutting teaching positions and eliminating courses. In some cases, that means getting "back to basics" by focusing on reading and math. I'm a former English teacher, so I appreciate attention to reading -- and numerous studies have shown that a student's future academic success is dependent on learning to read by third grade. But a focus on reading and math at the expense of science, social studies, foreign language and the arts comes at a price.

The following quote is from an article about how the P.S. 22 chorus became celebrities on the Internet and got to meet some of the artists whose songs they've covered (like Tori Amos, Stevie Nicks and Rhiannon):

"As for fame, aside from some local-hero treatment on Staten Island, getting spoiled by stardom isn’t an option, thanks to the bittersweet realities of P.S. 22, which runs only through fifth grade; most of the current group graduated from the school and the chorus last month. 'I’m devastated,' says Milagros Vega, whose daughter, Mariah Baez, is an alto. 'I want to hold her back.' Mariah typifies the benefits of working with Breinberg: Confidence skyrockets and grades improve. 'Mariah has more friends and is so much more expressive' Vega says."

"Confidence skyrockets and grades improve." The ability to sing songs by The Cure might not get tested by No Child Left Behind (NCLB), but the significance of being excited about learning and having opportunities for success can't be measured by standardized tests.


Gregg Breinberg (a.ka Mr. B), who started the chorus at P.S. 22 in 2000, has a blog about the group and their performances. Check it out -- more than 9 million people have already watched their videos. I just hope that, when it comes to supporting public schools through volunteer time or taxes and bonds, all those viewers will remember what our teachers and students can accomplish when given the support they need.

Photo from PS22 Chorus blog.

New Music Monday: Driving with Children

Okay, so it's not really Monday. But I composed this post in my head on Monday, so I think it still counts.

Will be spending a lot of time in the car with my children this week -- first, a quick trip to Nanna and PopPop's while I have work meetings, then an extra-long weekend at the beach with dear friends. All good travels, but Mommy has to do something to keep everyone entertained in the car since we won't have Daddy with us.

Here's what we'll be listening to while we cruise I-40:

• Rockin' the Suburbs by Ben Folds: Junius likes listening to "Chuck's brother" -- and I do, too, despite the fact that I have to sing loudly to edit over all the cussing. We'll probably have to stop listening to this one soon (Juni's ears are too good and I really don't need him dropping the f-bomb at his Baptist pre-school), but the drums and piano are really fun for now. Need to talk with Big Bang Boom about recording a kid-friendly version of this album.
  
  
• Greatest Hits by The Bangles: We have a lot of Manic Mondays at our house, so this just seems appropriate. And I figure this is a good opportunity to teach my children about the brilliance of the 80s. Or at least prepare them for karaoke.
  
  
• Quick by Eddie From Ohio: EFO makes great car music, so you just can't go wrong with them. Plus this album features a gorgeous a capella song called "Great Day" that we played as we entered our wedding reception, so it always makes me happy.
  
  
• Dear Mr. Sinatra by John Pizarelli: Junius refers to this one as the "Ring-a-Ding-Ding" song. Always need a little something jazzy in the car -- and I love watching their little baby heads bounce in the back seat while they pretend to play trumpet.
  
  
• Cry Cry Cry by Cry Cry Cry: One of my sweet neighbors brought me this CD over the weekend -- have only listened to the first few tracks so far, but they're some really good covers by Richard Shindell, Lucy Kaplansky and Dar Williams. I'm hoping by the time we get to this one, the kids will be snoozing and I can just listen and enjoy.

Friday's Five: Story Songs

Just in case you're missing New Music Mondays this summer, here's another musical Friday's Five to tide you over.

I really like "story-telling songs" -- the ones that might be a bit long, but reward you with the double-entertainment factor of an interesting tale and some good music. Whether funny or moving or powerful or all of the above, they're fun for singing along with in the car, plus you can amaze your friends and family by learning all the words and performing a capella. Okay, maybe not so much on that last part, but it's worth a try.

Often there's a turning point in the story, when you realize things aren't going to turn out quite like you thought or maybe when things finally start to work out just as you hoped they would. It's not the refrain, but it's the line that sticks, gives goosebumps, rings in your ears.

Here are five of my favorites -- what are yours? (Links take you to the lyrics)

1. "Johnny’s Camaro" by David Wilcox: The tale of Johnny's girlfriend, who discovers on a trip to Africa that she doesn't need a dude in a Camaro to be able to soar... "Man, she didn't know she could jump that high. Ah, but she does now."
   
   
2. "The Queen and the Soldier" by Suzanne Vega: An honest soldier boldly questions his queen about the wars he fights on her behalf, but she isn't ready to face the truth... "But the crown, it had fallen, and she thought she would break / And she stood there, ashamed of the way her heart ached."
   
   


3. "Shopping Cart of Love: The Play" by Christine Lavin: Her fiance ditches her for her roommate (and takes her car and her favorite sweater), but a disastrous trip through the grocery store's express lane turns out to be the best thing that ever happened to her... "So he grabbed me / And he dragged me / As as I was sobbing toward the door / When a soft voice whispered / 'I've got seven items, I'll take three of yours.'"
   
   
4. "A Christmas Song" by Dave Matthews: It's an old, familiar story, but this song brings new life to the important tale of a young couple, their new son and the love that he would share with the world... "I came to shed a little light on this darkening scene. Instead I fear I’ve spilled the blood of our children all around."
   
   
   
5. "Scenes from an Italian Restaurant" by Billy Joel: Okay, so this one is a little cheesy. But it holds such fun memories of my summer spent in Laurinburg. Follow along as Brenda and Eddie find out what happens when you peak too early... "They got an apartment with deep pile carpet / And a couple of paintings from Sears / A big waterbed that they bought with the bread / They had saved for a couple of years / They started to fight when the money got tight / And they just didn't count on the tears."
   

What would happen if I just put my hand here?

Last weekend we took Junius to see the N.C. Symphony's Summerfest concert with Cirque de la Symphonie. It was a big night out for the three of us -- we left Pippi at home with a friend from the babysitting co-op because we knew she'd a) never sit still for the concert and b) need to go to bed about the time the show was starting.

The amphitheater was packed when we arrived and got more crowded as the night went on. But despite the lack of space and lack of a clear view (more on that in another post), we had a nice time eating our picnic and watching the show.

If you're not familiar with Cirque de la Symphonie, it's kind of like Cirque de Soleil in front of a symphony -- acrobats, dancers, jugglers, and the like. The performers are mind-bogglingly (did I just invent an adverb?) strong and graceful, dangling from the ceiling on ribbons and hoops or balancing on tiny stools and each other.

So here are my questions: After you've done all the strength training and gymnastics training and so on, how do you make the leap to saying to your friend...

"Just hold still --
I'm going to do an upside-down one-armed push-up on your head."

Or "I think I can spin three *more* hoops..."


Or "I'm sure I could wrap these sheets
around my wrists and fly..."

For more photos and a video to get the full effect, go here. In the meantime, I'll be training with Junius and Pippi for the next tour. I'm pretty sure I can juggle both of them at the same time.