Musical Memories :: "More Than a Feeling" by Boston

Almost every summer of my teen years, I vacationed in Southern California with my extended family.  My aunt and uncle graciously hosted me for roughly two months straight and treated me as one of their own.  Quite a gesture if you consider they had three young, rambunctious kids of their own.  Regardless, they took me in and I was one of the family.

Summer was an endless schedule of Little League baseball games and we spent a good chunk of our time traveling between baseball fields and pizza parlors.  As you can imagine, we got in a quite a bit of quality time crammed in the car, a minimum of four kids and two adults... and a radio.

We were particularly fond of "More Than a Feeling" by Boston.  Partially because it's a timeless classic rock song.  Partially because my aunt's name is Marianne.  Honestly, you don't really need a good reason to love this song.  It's okay - just let it happen.

Five of the six usual passengers really enjoyed singing along - very loudly.  My uncle would bang out the drum solos on the steering wheel.  My cousin would rock out on the air guitar.  However, one, who shall remain nameless, would shake their head at us in embarrassment, whining, "Guys!  Stoooop!", occasionally ducking down out of sight of the windows at a red light or as we pulled into a parking lot.  I mean, really, our voices weren't thaaat bad.  I don't think.  Well, maybe they were.  Who knows.

This song came on in the car during my commute today and I was immediately transported to a time over ten years ago.  As I belted it out, I missed my family band.  I even missed the whining from the backseat trying to get me to shut up.  Whenever this song comes on, I can immediately feel the summer heat, the anticipation of seeing friends or looking forward to an important game, and I have a sense of home.  Summertime really isn't complete without it.  

Ja'mie Private School Girl

I first read about the HBO show Ja'mie Private School Girl (pronounced juh-may) in Elle magazine.  I was intrigued by its catty comparison to Mean Girls.  Honestly, who wouldn't be?  That movie was hilarious.  I was also looking for new, interesting shows to watch.  So, what the heck?  Why not?

The show revolves around Ja'mie (Chris Lilley) and her friends who attend Hilford private school in Sydney, Australia.  Shot reality show style, the episodes are full of awkward camera angles and strange confessionals/narration.  Designed to satirize teenage girl life, the show deals with drama on a whole new level.  Frankly, I wasn't prepared for what I was about to experience.

Ja'mie is wealthy, foul-mouthed, vulgar... and completely unlikeable.  First, it's important to note if you don't know who comedian Chris Lilley is... he's a dude.  Yes, it's a grown man dressed as a teenage girl.  That fact alone takes some reconciling while watching.

Every problem s(he) has fits fully within the category "Rich White Girl Problems", like reinventing her image to get over a break-up.  S(he) decides to be a rebel by wearing a pile of bracelets, hoop earrings, knee-highs and hair extensions.  Ooo, so rebellious.

Like every mean girl, s(he) has her clan of minions - known as the Prefects.  They verbally assault nearly everyone who offends their senses and take it upon themselves to solve the world's problems (like people showing up to events uninvited).  Worse yet - s(he) pretends it's all altruistic.  Barf.

In addition to ridiculously overblown incidents, the dialogue includes some seriously offensive terms (read: racist) and foul language.  The "F" word is spoken every 10 words.

I watched three 30-minute episodes.  I'm surprised I made it through so many.  I would love to use the "track wreck" analogy, but it was worse than that.  Let's equate it to watching two dogs fight.  I know it's bad for everyone involved.  It was sad and painful to watch.  I had the power to stop it.  But I wanted to see how it would end up.

I will never get that hour and half back in my life and I so desperately want it.  Maybe Chris Lilley's humor isn't for me.  Maybe I don't understand why life is sooo haaard for an Australian Private School girl... who is also a man.  Whatever it may have been, my hope is this saves you from making the same mistake I did.

You're welcome.

The Simpsons - Best. Lego. Set. Ever.

I make no effort in my daily life to hide that I am a Simpsons fan.  I was a born a Simpsons fan.  I will die a Simpsons fan.  Daily, I play The Simpsons Tapped Out on my iPhone (friend me! jeneevans109).  I'm not a creepy fan - I just like what I like.  I like ridiculously sarcastic cultural humor.  The Simpsooooooons.

So!  You can imagine my sheer bliss then when I heard that Lego was releasing a Simpsons Lego set.  I literally squealed with excitement.  Yesterday, Gizmodo released the Official Photos of the Lego Simpsons House.  I about died!

 See more photos here

What an amazing set to bring joy to your household!!!  Yes, I am a grown ass adult and I will be buying this set.  Don't judge me.  This is 25 years in the making and I will indulge.

Are you excited for The Simpsons set?

Disney's Frozen - Olaf sings "In Summer"

This morning I was watching my usual morning tv programming, which, for those who don't know, includes Phineas and Ferb on the Disney Channel.  During one of the commercial breaks, the full music video of a song from Frozen came on and I could not stop laughing.  It's cute, clever and catchy - exactly what every song should be.

Check out Olaf, the snowman, sing "In Summer" here:

Have you seen Disney's Frozen yet?  What did you think?

A Case for Books

In my house, I have a library.  It is five IKEA Billy Bookcases long and is constantly growing.  The existence and size of my library seems to be a very polarizing subject.  The reactions usually fall into two buckets:

"Oh my god, I'm so jealous!"

or 

"Oh my god, get a Kindle."  

Those who fall into the first bucket are usually women who still wish to live out a Beauty and the Beast fantasy.  Those who fall into the second bucket simply don't get it.  From their perspective, if I love books so much, naturally, I would want to have a novel at my fingertips at any given moment.  Plus, I can have volumes upon volumes without taking up space in my house.

Again, they don't seem to get it.

For me, reading a book is an experience.  The tactile side of me embraces the weight of the book and the smell of the pages.  The historian in me loves so much more.

Case Study: A copy of A Christmas Carol inherited from my grandfather.

I love A Christmas Carol.  I read it every year at Christmas time.  While mildly dark and creepy, it's a traditional tale of learning what the meaning of Christmas truly is.  However, this particular edition is very special to me.

To start, the book was published in 1910.  It's a 103 year old book.  Think about that for a moment.  103 years old.  The book has outlived the person who published and distributed it.  How many hands have held it?  How many have received joy from scanning its pages?

When I open the inside cover, my grandfather's signature is scrolled across the top of the page.  Because he is no longer with us, this simple stroke of the pen will forever tug at my heart strings.  Below his signature is the address he lived at, I'm guessing, when he received the book.  Based on the location, a rough estimation brings into light that my grandfather had this book for over 50 years of his life.  How many times did he read it?  Did he read it to my mother and her siblings at Christmas time?  My grandparents don't keep many books around their house unless they are special or new... why this one?  Maybe he read it every Christmas, like I do now.

Reading the book brings me even closer to him.  Much as I do with my books, my grandfather marked passages that struck him in a particular way and made pronunciation marks on words he was unfamiliar with.  As I read, I not only get to experience the wonderful world of Charles Dickens but also the world of my grandfather.  Knowing that he struggled with the word "residuary" the first time he read the book (as I did) and he was touched by a certain thought in the middle of the book helps draw me closer to understanding and appreciating his intellect and him as a person.

Something I would not have experienced in such a candid way without the passing of a book.

Not everyone reads books the way I do - I understand this.  However, when I pass my books to my future hypothetical children, they will not only get the added element of my notations but of those who read the book before me.  What a rich and intimate experience!

So take a look at my library again.  We know the tales and stories... but think of what added secrets each book holds inside.  A Kindle can pass these secrets along.  Only a book with a pen handy can.  I'll take that over convenience any day!