If It Isn't One Thing It's Another

Every week I seem to have one kind of doctor or another I have to visit. It's either the dentist for me, or the vet for the kitten. Not to worry, the kitten is ok, we're just getting Oogie his shots and the "snip snip" operation.

Tonight is take the kitty to the vet night. Fun, with a capital "F." Thankfully the kitten stays in his carrier at night, so getting him there isn't going to be a problem.

The little guy is so like a typical kitten, full of energy. I hope the vet can keep him down. In the morning when I bring him out until I go to work, he's like hell on wheels, playing with everything and running back and forth across the room. If you're downstairs, it sounds like a train is coming through above your head.

He plays with anything and everything that isn't tied down.

Tonight's going to be fun.

Next week, I'm going to try to fit in an appointment with the eye doctor. I haven't been there in 5 years, which is way too long, but I never had the money. (Not that I do now) The following week is back to the dentist to see what the verdict is on my gums.

I think by April I'll be sick of all doctor's, regardless of who or what they treat.

The Game Show Mix

I found this at CD Of The Week community over at Live Journal. I posted it on Music Memoirs too, to see if anyone was creative. So far, no one is creative. So I'm going to have a go at it.

01. The Show's Title Elvis Costello - Fill In The Blanks
02. The Host's Name Olivia Newton-John - Sam
03. Contestant #1 The Monkees - Mr. Webster
04. Contestant #2 Nick Lowe - Switchboard Susan
05. Contestant #3 The Beatles - Lovely Rita
06. 1st Round Game Arcadia - Say The Word
07. Loser #1's Theme (Consolation Prize) Suzanne Vega - Book Of Dreams
08. Commercial Break Jimmy Buffett - Cheeseburger In Paradise
09. 2nd Round Game Squeeze - The Waiting Game
10. Loser #2's Theme (Consolation Prize) Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers - Even The Losers
11. Commercial Break #2 Semisonic - Sunshine and Chocolate
12. The Final Challenge The Hollies - Look Through Any Window
13. Grand Prize Winner's Theme/Big Loser's Theme Erasure - Yahoo
14. Grand Prize/Consolation Prize Traveling Wilbury's - End Of The Line
15. End Theme David Bowie - Survive

The Outside World Is A Cold Place To Be

I finally got to go somewhere this weekend. As luck would have it, the weather was artic, but I didn't care. I haven't been out and about to anyplace other than the mall since before Christmas.

My friend Mary, was home to visit her mum, this weekend, so we went to Wheeling Island, mostly to eat but also to gamble just a bit. After all, how can you resist the whirring of the slot machines? I tell you it's impossible, especially if you haven't had the opportunity to feed one of those beasts in months.

After we gorged ourselves on the Island Buffet, which was yummy, as usual. We took a walk around Wheeling. I don't feel right being in Wheeling without walking over to the Suspension Bridge that I love so much. Plus this gave me the opportunity to pull the camera out for the first time in ages.

I also found the dog track. Funny how I've been going to Wheeling now for a year, and I've finally found where the dogs run. I got to see a few of the doggies too. Totally beautiful animals, I wanted to liberate a few of them and bring them home with me!

On the way home we stopped a few places to take pictures of the covered bridges. (And a few farm animals). Getting a picture of the one bridge required a nice long walk over a small hill, because the road that the bridge is on is closed, because another bridge down the road was ripped out. But hey, anything for a nice picture, right?

I think it took me at least an hour or more to thaw out from the cold once I got home, but it was worth it. The day was fun. Probably the most fun I've had in months. YAY!

Random 10 - I Finally Left The House Edition

I actually got out of the house this weekend. It was so damn cold, but the sky was blue and the food at the Island Buffet was really yummy!

Feargal Sharkey - A Good Heart
Arcadia - Election Day
Ultravox - Vienna

These were a few of the songs on the New Wave DVD I watched.

Glass Tiger - Don't Forget Me When I'm Gone
The Moody Blues - Tuesday Afternoon
The Moody Blues - Words You Say

The Moody songs were from the Hall of Fame CD, which I listened to while making the trip to Wheeling. The Glass Tiger was played on the way home from Wheeling.

Terami Hirsch - Little Light
Bernie Barlow - My Man
Justin Hayward - It's Not Too Late
Elvis Costello - Egypt

These were on my winamp playlist this weekend.

I have all of these songs, so if there's anything you'd like, give a shout and I'll upload it for you.

My photo?

New Wave = Love

My lovely friend Jennifer (who really needs to call me soon) sent me some DVDs a year ago and erm....well, I finally got around to watching some of them yesterday.

That alone is proof positive of how little I watch my telly or use my DVD player. But anyway, there were two New Wave DVDs full of all kinds of Video goodness.

It was fantastic to see some of the videos and in other cases it was scary. The 80's were an odd time for fashion, but then again so were the 70's. The 60's however had the best fashion, but that's beside the point.

This brought back so many memories since one of the first videos I watched was for Feargal Sharkey's A Good Heart. Lordy, but I used to love that song. All the music is cheesy, but it's fun and the videos for most of the songs were so cheaply made.

It's a shame everything now is so overproduced and so like mini-movies. There's nothing fun about watching a video, if you can even find a station that plays them anymore.

Heck, even the early Duran Duran videos look cheap compared to more recent offerings.

But you know what? I don't care. I like the cheesy stuff. What's even better is the expensively made cheesy stuff. I never realized until yesterday that the video for Arcadia's Election Day was so bad. (But so good) Back in the day, I thought it was gothic and cutting edge. I guess it was in the mid-80's. Oye! I feel so old now, but I'm very amused.

Raging Mulch Fires and Other Random Things

~ Coming home from the trip to WalMart my nephew and I noticed some smoke. OK, a lot of smoke. Seriously I thought a house went up in Belle Vernon near my aunts, but when we got closer, we saw that the fire was further down, much further down. At the bottom of the hill the smoke was so thick it was almost like a fog. Cars were pulled off the road and cars were coming off the Interstate, because of the smoke. We drove on to find that this huge pile of mulch was burning. (I thought it was a coal pile) Anyway...it burned for hours. When I got home I quickly grabbed my camera and ran a block up the hill so I could get some pictures from our vantage point.

~ Cleaning stuff off the hard drive is not a fun task. I got rid of 2 GBs and I've still used 39.5 GB out of 80. I'd like to get rid of another 10 GB but I can't imagine getting rid of any more music from my computer right now. I was actually going to rip a few of the new discs I just got, but I'm not sure right now. I'm down to 4636 songs on this computer!

~ I never realized that Colin Moulding sang Making Plans For Nigel until I saw the XTC video today.

~ Making mix CDs is no longer fun for me. Especially now that I'm cleaning the hard drive. It's funny, doing this used to be one of the joys of my life a year or so ago. Now it's giving me a headache.

~ 80's videos are cheesy and fun. Why don't they make things that are cheesy and fun anymore?

~ I went to GNC to buy some vitamin C today. I think the guy working at the counter was flirting with me. That's funny, the last person to flirt with me was...oh never mind I don't want to talk about that, it was too weird a situation.

Must Get Things Done

Today is a "To Do" list day. Tomorrow come hell or high water (don't you love those old sayings) I'm getting out of this house and enjoying myself. I don't care!

But before I get around to the fun, I have to get some stuff done around home. It's stuff that I don't really want to do too.

1. Finish my local taxes, so I don't have to look at them anymore.

2. Clean out the closets.

3. Finish cleaning the hard drive. I'm doing a fairly large purge, moving stuff to CDRs and deleting what I don't need, it's been a long hard process.

4. Make 5 Mix CDs for MoodyMistress. I have the track list for one of the five almost done. Making mixes was never so hard.

5. Go to Walmart for necessities. (I hate doing that)

6. Laundry

It's a very short list I know, but all the tasks are a pain in the butt and things I don't like doing very much. I wonder if I'll even get half of them done.

Top 5 On Friday

From the ladies @ Music Memoirs

Top 5 "British" bands and a song by each

The Moody Blues! (Yeah, like you didn't think they'd make the list!)



The Land Of Make-Believe from the album Seventh Sojourn.

The Beatles (Another band that had to make the list)



And Your Bird Can Sing - from the album Revolver

Duran Duran (One of the 80's best and prettiest offerings from the UK in my book)



Salt In The Rainbow a demo from the Astronaut CD, that really should have made the album.

Erasure (Techno pop is good!)



Drama! from the album Wild

Elvis Costello and the Attractions



Beyond Belief from the album Imperial Bedroom (one of the best with the Attractions in my book)

Sometimes An Icon Says It All

In this case I have to say make it 10 minutes! Hell, make it a half hour.



Everyone needs love!

And again, these little icons I found are proof positive that I'm very easily amused.

Thursday Thirteen

1. My friend Mary is coming home this weekend, which means that I will finally get the hell out of this house this weekend. Allow me to dance for joy! The only problem is neither of us really knows where we want to go, we just know that we want to go somewhere.

2. I'm going back to the dentist for my followup appointment tonight. Basically I'm just getting my teeth cleaned. I'm actually looking forward to this, because I want to know how that horrible rinse is working and how much longer I'm going to have to use it.

3. I've been unbelievably tired this week. I've gone to sleep early in hopes of feeling better to no avail. I just want to curl up somewhere for several long hours and sleep and sleep and sleep.

4. My CDs from CDBaby came yesterday! Now I have to get them on my hard drive. If I weren't so sleepy, maybe I'd get something done.

5. I think I'm coming down with a cold, to make matters worse. Seriously this is not a good time to be sick. I want to leave the house. I don't want to be sick!

6. I've been reading Duran Duran message boards lately, which is a double edged sword. I discovered some demos that I hadn't heard. But lordy, more wackadoodles! Another good thing is that I find more lovely things there. Like this



7. I've heard conflicting things about the Moodies tour schedule this summer. Are they touring...aren't they. I want to know soon, because I want to try to figure out what my summer is going to be like. Honestly, as much as I love the band, I think I could live without a concert this year, if I could get enjoy Atlantic City without any worries, or if I could get to a few more places on my list of places to go list.

8. I've decided I'm going to buy a membership at Phipps Conservatory this year. I usually just use my sister's family membership, but I may actually have some extra cash so I'll be able to give them a donation.

9. Why is it that paying local taxes is so damn hard. Our local tax authority went to a privatized company to collect the local taxes and it's been a headache. I've got my state and federal taxes filed..I even have my return back from the federal gov't, but I just keep putting off the local.

10. I'm in a mix CD making kind of mood. I begged Moody Mistress for a few Elvis Costello bootlegs that I didn't have and in return I'm sending her some mixes. I haven't made a real mix cd since Christmas.

11. I just realized that the only photos I've taken recently were of a fish tank at my hair salon. My cameras are ready to run away from home if they don't get some use soon.

12. Elvis Costello's live CD is out next Tuesday (I think) I wonder if I'll be able to find it anywhere around my home or if I'll have to wait til I go to a mall.

13. My kitty is going for his first shots next Tuesday. After that I have to make an appointment to get him neutered. The thought of having a day without my Oogie leaves me filled with dread. I love my kitten.

Other Thursday Thirteeners!
Emily
Karen

A Little Bit Of Squee!

I've been trying to get this CD for ages, Keri Noble's Lullaby. A few week's ago it was listed as out of stock at her website, and I pretty much gave up hope of ever having a copy of it.

Today when I checked Keri's site, I got some good news and some bad news. The good news is that Lullaby is back in stock. (I quickly ordered a copy) The bad news is that she's signed with new management and will be working to get her new CD released, thus the spring tour, that I was anxiously waiting for, is cancelled.

I have a feeling that this is not going to be a good year for concerts for me. At least I'm getting the CD, as Keri is one of my favorite "new" artists. And the other plus is that I'm only paying $34 for the disc, which is better than $54, which is what I've seen it going for at Amazon Marketplace.

I guess that will have to tide me over until she finally does tour.

It's Hunk Day!

Erm, I mean Hump Day! And now it's time for the hotties to come out and play.



Ah, gotta love Simon, he's got a book in his pocket in case he gets bored while performing. Or maybe he's going to quote something profound. Nah! I think he's just going to look all scruffy and cute.



Nick Rhodes makes up for Simon's scruffy self even if he is pouting.




Hump Day wouldn't be the same without Justin Hayward and John Lodge. Both guys always manage to help me over the hump.

Life can go on as ususal now, the hunks are out!

Get Me Outta Here

Yesterday the weather was frigid but the sky was blue and the sun was shining. There's something totally wrong with that, but it put me in the frame of mind to start thinking of the road trips that I hope will come in a few short months.

My mind was focused on one place yesterday, Longwood Gardens.





These are just a few of the reasons why I love the place. Plus the east conservatory is finally open, which it hasn't been in years and years. All the renovations on it are done. I can't wait to see it.

So since money is always an issue with me I checked around to see if there was still a good package deal at one of the neighboring hotels.

Woot!

The Hilton Garden has a weekend package for $177. Initially that looks like a lot, but it includes 2 tickets to Longwood which run about $12 and it includes two full breakfasts.

Mmm, I'm getting hungry just thinking of it. So $177 plus whatever it would cost to rent a car and meals and turnpike fare. Not bad, especially since I'd likely be splitting the costs with the lucky person that would be going with me.

Now all I have to do is wait for spring, and it can't get here fast enough.

A Funny Thing Happened While I Was Reading...

I'm reading a cheesy romance novel. You know the kind where the heroine is in her mid-twenties and still a virgin. Where love prevails even through the weirdest circumstance...

The book is called Hot Under The Collar.



The story is adorable. But what amused me the most were the songs and artists that got mentioned in the book, because the heroine is a late night DJ. It seems Sondra Lane likes to spin Diana Krall, particularly songs from the Love Scenes CD and in her collection she had some Moody Blues CDs.

It was hard not to read these references without smiling to myself. It's not often that I find mentions of my favorite recording artists in the books I read.

It's the little things in life that bring me joy.

Random 10

10 songs that sum up your weekend...or were on your weekend playlist...and one picture that relates back. (oh, and if you feel like it, tell us why you picked the songs you did)

I listened to a lot of different music this weekend, so my playlist is going to be very ecclectic. As always if you'd like any of the songs I post, just give a shout and I'll upload them for you.

Duran Duran - Skin Trade
Duran Duran - Perfect Day
Midge Ure - Answers To Nothing
Caroline Lavelle - Sheherazade
George Harrison - Pisces Fish
Elvis Costello - Playboy To Man
Andy Bell - Electric Blue
The Moody Blues - Lovely To See You
Justin Hayward - Shame
Michael Buble & Jane Monheit - I Won't Dance

All the songs except the Costello were tossed out by my winamp this weekend. The Costello is on a mix CD that doesn't seem to want to leave my car CD player.

As for the picture, I was in a very Duran Duran kinda mood this weekend.

Aging Gracefully

Marisa posed an interesting question to me today. The question of how I feel about Duran Duran performing now that they are older (and all the good and the bad stuff that goes with that)

Rock musicians are just like the rest of us, they age, some better than others. The Moody Blues are all nearing or in their early sixties. Perhaps they aren't as energetic as they once were, (Excuse me while I laugh...I made a funny...the Moody Blues energetic!) but they still perform just as well as they did 20, 30 or 40 years ago. I've only seen them in the last 4 years, but I can say they put on a decent show, albeit a short one.

Duran Duran is another kettle of fish altogether. They've been together only half as long and they are a very visual band. So, sure, how they aged might affect their popularity. I know one thing, age didn't affect their perfoming. I've seen them twice; once when they had their comeback in 1993 with the Wedding Album and again when Pop Trash was released in 2000. Both times I saw them, they were fantastic in concert.

Simon Lebon looks better up close (and I've seen him from the 3rd row) than any photograph can capture.

Personally, I think Simon looks pretty good now. His weight has gone up and down over the years, including the years when the band was exceedingly popular, so any change there goes unnoticed by me. As for the rest of the band, I have to say they still look pretty good too. John Taylor particularly is still hot as hell and Nick Rhodes is prettily platinum as always, though he's looking more manly in his aging. (That's a good thing in my book)

I don't think how a band looks should be the driving force in a band's popularity. It's the quality of the performance that counts and Duran Duran is still delivering. Which says to me that they are more than just a bunch of pretty faces.

With the Moody Blues things are a bit different. They came from a time when the music mattered more. In which case, I go to a show expecting a bit more than just seeing a few pretty faces. Mind you, in my book, I still see some pretty faces. Justin, John and yes, even Graeme look well for their ages, plus we have the added beauty of Paul Bliss and Gordon Marshall, who are resident stud buckets in my book.

The thing that determines how well a performer is aging is how you feel at a concert. Do you leave the show giddy with excitement or do you feel sorry for the band, because they seem to be embarrassing themselves on stage? In the case of the Moodies and Duran, both bands still put on rocking shows and as for the image part, I think they've settled into their ages well. Neither band is anywhere near the first blush of youth, but both bands still look good on stage. Plus with their added experience in the industry both bands know that looks don't always matter. Being labeled "pretty boys" can be quite a hinderence. (Almost as much as being called pompous and bombastic) Duran has moved away from that label while still looking fashionable and the Moodies look comfortable and downright sexy in their casual concert attire. But again, it's not what's on or not on their backs that matter, it's how they sound, and both bands still sound great.

Recalling Old Favorites

Another typical Sunday, reading, listening to music and going out for a quick dinner. So I decided to vary my playlist a bit today to be different. I admit I go through spurts in what I listen to. But I have to admit listening to all of one band is pretty damn boring no matter how much I love them.

Today I'm taking a trip back to some of my 80's favorites.



Notorious was always one of my favorite Duran Duran discs. It's a little bit funky and a little bit poppy and Simon's voice is really at it's best. And from an eye candy perspective the guys looked great during this period too.

Let's face it, you can't talk about Duran Duran without mentioning image. For me they were one of the few bands with a career made almost entirely by the video medium that had the talent to back up the mania Mtv created.



I loved Ultravox so it's quite obvious that I'd be a fan of Midge Ure's solo work. Yesterday I was listening to a few of his CDs that I had ripped to my hard drive. Answers To Nothing was one of the albums I had on. I don't think there's a song on this CD that I don't like.

Midge has a distinctive voice as well as a writing style that allows you to think as well as enjoy a beautifully written song. Plus he's one half of the writing team of the classic song "Do They Know It's Christmas." It's a shame he doesn't get the credit he deserves for that one.

It's been a good walk down memory lane today. It's also been nice to have something different playing on my winamp player. All Moody Blues and Elvis Costello would make the Music Whore a dull girl, and we can't have that, can we?

CD Baby = No Money

I finally bought the CDs I had in my cart last weekend. I figured that since I've been sitting around doing mostly nothing for the last month or so, I deserve a treat or treat.

And while I was browsing the shop, I discovered another artist that I could really get into. The band is called Troublesome Blue and they are from South Jersey of all places. Grey Eye Glances are from that area too.

Hmm. Methinks I live on the wrong side of the state.

Anyway, this band recorded 2 CDs, both of which run about $10 bucks on CDBaby. The only problem is they don't seem to have a functioning website anymore. Which makes me wonder if I'm falling in love with 2 CDs rather than a band. I'd hate to think I had discovered a new band only to have them be broken up already.

Ah well, regardless this is another 20 bucks I've got to spend. It's funny, as I look at my list of CDs that I absolutely have to have, a good many of them are on this site. So the good people at CD Baby are going to be seeing a lot of my money this year.

Once Again It's Snowing

The weather is conspiring against me. There's a light coat of the white stuff on the ground outside and it's flippin' freezing as well.

All I want to do is leave the damn house for awhile, but the weather is out to get me.

This rant sounds like a broken record right now, I know, but I'm sick of the same four walls. It's either the four walls of my job or the four walls of my house. I've seen enough of both of them right now. I want to see something different.

I don't think I've ever had the winter blahs this badly before.

I mean my weekend excitement is going to consist of going to get my haircut, the grocery store, church and doing the laundry.

I need to escape this boredom soon or I'll go mad!

~apologies to everyone that commented on the post that was here before. Blogger ate the post when I edited another post! Grrr

Top 5 On Friday

From the ladies @ Music Memoirs.

Top 5 "Ecstasy Inspiring" Songs

The Moody Blues - Deep
Something about Justin Hayward singing that he wants to go deep that really gets the hormones charged up. Some people are embarrassed by this song. I personally think they are nuts. There's nothing wrong with sex and there's nothing wrong with a song about sex, either.

Elvis Costello - Inch By Inch
Usually when Elvis does this song, he makes it part of a medley with Fever. That's a thudworthy combination. But even without Fever, the studio version is enough to get me all bothered. Mind you, Elvis can get me bothered without saying a word.

Paul McCartney & Wings - Hi Hi Hi
I can't help but wonder if those sounds Paul makes at the end of this song are the same as the ones he makes in bed. THUD!

Cheap Trick - Take Me To The Top
Basically any Cheap Trick slow song will get to me. I've always been affected by this one though for some reason.

Oingo Boingo - Spider
OK, there are loads of Oingo Boingo songs that make me weak in the knees, but this one from their last album is a particular favorite. I guess Mr. Elfman is just one of those guys who has a voice that can make you melt, or at least make me melt.

I Hate Philadelphia

Apologies to anyone from Philly. It's not that I really hate Philly. OK, I do. I especially hate driving through the city, but my hatred is more from the fact that all the concerts I want to see are there and I'm about 5.5 hours away in Pittsburgh.

Grrr.

My hatred for Philly was renewed today because of this.

Grey Eye Glances are playing a gig at The World Cafe. AGAIN!

I shouldn't gripe to much about Grey Eye Glances, because they are pretty much an indie band, and I'm probably the only person in the Pittsburgh area that's heard of them. But still I'd really like the chance to see this band without having to shell out money for the turnpike, a hotel room and a rental car.

Grrr.

Why is it that the mountain range that separates the eastern side of the state from the western side has to inspire fear in the hearts of all the bands I like? Actually I think it's just that all of my favorite bands hate Pittsburgh as much as I hate Philadelphia.

Thursday Thirteen

This week's topic:

13 places I want to go this year

1. Blackwater Falls: I discovered this place in my WV travel guide. My favorite things in life are pretty lights and water. This place has water, so it would definitely amuse me, plus I love waterfalls!

2. Atlantic City: I love the gambling capital of the east coast. Not only does it have pretty lights and the Atlantic Ocean, it also has some of the best food on the east coast. I can't fail to mention that the shopping on the Boardwalk is quite fun too.

3. Erie, PA: I haven't been to this city since I was in college. My brother used to live there and we'd visit him once a year during the summer. I miss the lake and all the surrounding parks.

4. Pymatuming State Park: If you haven't seen the carp that attack for bread, you haven't lived. I have, but I think my nephews need to see this while they can still have an appreciation for the silly.

5. Canton, OH: I promised my brother I'd come out and visit him one weekend this summer, for two reasons. 1) There's an IHOP in Canton and we have none in Pittsburgh. 2) There's a chocolate factory you can tour not very far from where he lives.

6. Cincinnati, OH: I want to go back and actually see the city this time, as opposed to seeing a hotel and a concert.

7. Kennywood Park: I went to Idlewild Park twice last year, I never made it to Kennywood. I need an amusement park with more life! Plus I need to take pictures of Kennywood!

8. Hershey, PA: If I get my membership at Phipp's Conservatory, I can visit Hershey Gardens for free. Oh and there's a big amusement park there too.

9. Charles Town, WV: There's another casino there, plus its near Harper's Ferry. Casinos and places to take pictures!

10. Somerset, PA: Ok, there are windmills along the turnpike in this area. Every time I've driven the pike it's been raining, so I don't have any good photos of the windfarm. I think that's as good a reason as any to go somewhere, right?

11. Bedford, PA: About an hour from Somerset. There's a lovely little town and a great state park where you can swim. I haven't been there in ages, plus I wouldn't mind going to Old Bedford Village again.

12. The Mountaineer: I haven't been to this WV casino, plus the world's largest teapot is nearby and that's a piece of quirkyness I must see.

13. Longwood Gardens: The conservatory is supposed to be finished. I don't think I've ever been there when you could walk through the entire conservatory. Mind you there are acres and acres of ground to walk through, but I'm concerned about one wing of a building I've seen a zillion times.

Other Thursday Thirteeners

Karen
Emily
Emily from "The Sassy Lime"
Lady Starlight
Rashbre

Feeling Jazzy

While hunting new music at BMG, after the disasterous purchase I made, I discovered Jane Monheit. Her most recent album is a Christmas CD which naturally made me grumble. I hate discovering Christmas music after the holiday. But rest assured, a song or two from this disc will likely appear on next years Christmas mix CD. (Yes, I'm thinking about it already)

Jane's definitely up there with the likes of Diana Krall. Had I known of her before the holiday, her disc The Season may have gotten more airplay on my playlist than Diana's. (Maybe..there's still a matter of Count Your Blessings Instead Of Sheep) The only thing that's keeping me from ordering the disc now is that it's on Sony and it's one of those son-of-a-bitching protected discs. Frankly I'm not amused by Sony's ploy to stop file sharing.

At least her other discs are on another label, so that makes me feel a bit better. I hate that big corporations are trying to make it so I can't listen to my music when and where I want to, particularly on my damn computer.

I can't believe that I've taken to this kind of music. Jazz was never really a favorite genre of mine, but then again, Diana and Jane are more jazz/pop than jazz. Perhaps it's age that's mellowing my taste in music. Who knows. I certainly can't make any sense of it.

All I know is that I've really got a desire to sip some wine in a smokey club and listen to S'wonderful. Who wants to join me?

Hump Day Hottie

Baby's got back.

Ok, no he doesn't, but that doesn't mean I can't admire the tushie that's barely there.





Oh, leather!



Baby's got wedgies!

Nothing like a cute, barely there tushie to get the blood flowing early in the morning.

Valentine's Day

Blech!

I'm neither married nor otherwise attached, so this holiday brings out the snark in me.

Why?

Because I've always been screwed over around the time this holiday came around. Somehow all relationships cease for me around this time or worse yet the presents I'm given pretty much tell me of whats to come.

I remember being given carnations one year for Valentine's Day.

Carnations?!?!

Not exactly the appropriate flower to give someone you love or even like for that matter.

By the time I was in my late twenties I gave up on the whole relationship game. Couples annoy me. The cutsey things that some families do scare me even more, but that's another rant all together.

Thankfully today is Tuesday, so I won't have to witness all the lovey doveyness anywhere that I go. Yay! Public displays of affection are high on my list of annoying things too. I think that has to do with the fact that I hate people invading my space.

But anyway...for those of you that feel the love today, Happy Valentine's Day! For those of you that don't, Bah! Humbug!

I Want My CD

I'm a regular customer at BMG. It's been my music club of choice since I was in high school. The selection isn't always as I'd like it, but I do get some good deals there from time to time. They can count on my to order a disc or two everytime they have a half off/free shipping sale.

I ordered the Leona Naess CD along with Lamb's What Sound disc on the last sale. At least that one was in the box when I opened it today.

In the place of the Leona Naess CD was some horrid rap CD that I most definitely didn't order. The invoice said Leona Naess. When I went to the website the order there said Leona Naess. In my box? No Leona Naess, that's for sure.



I just want the damn CD I ordered. Is it not bad enough it takes 2 weeks to get the CDs, now God only knows when I'll get this one.

Random 10

10 songs that sum up your weekend...or were on your weekend playlist...and one picture that relates back. (oh, and if you feel like it, tell us why you picked the songs you did)

I listened to a wide variety of odd tracks this weekend, mostly because I didn't go anywhere, because of the snowstorm that didn't happen.

Here's how the weekend playlist played out.

Oingo Boingo - We Close Our Eyes
The Moody Blues - Sitting At The Wheel (Remix)

Both of these songs are on my Muvo's playlist.

Holly Cole - Tempation
I like Diana Krall's version better, but Holly's is great as well

Grey Eye Glances - Oh No
Have I mentioned that this is one of my favorite bands?

Justin Hayward - Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood
There's a reason Eric Burton didn't hire him. He doesn't know the lyrics!

Herman's Hermit's - Nights In White Satin
Herman's Hermit's - Daydream Believer

Peter Noone was feeling snarky on the DVD I watched. Lordy, I laughed so hard when he mocked Justin and Graeme on Nights. Oh and I must add, Peter looks pretty darn cute in leather pants!

Elvis Costello - Put Away Forbidden Playthings
Elvis Costello - Satellite

I had EC on random yesterday

Laura Burhenn - Tatoo

This was one of the songs that I downloaded off her website this weekend.

Oh and I didn't buy a single CD this weekend. Though the list of discs I want expanded by at least 10.

And the photo? Elvis Costello, because he was the prominent artist on my list this weekend.

When In Doubt Clean

Yeah, my weekend has been full of the big nothing. The snow that we were all worried about failed to do much of anything, except keep me inside. So what did I do? I cleaned my entertainment/computer room.

Remind me not to do that ever again, please.

I got some CDs organized and moved them around, in an effort to dog proof my room. Why dog proof? Well, since my parents dogsit my sister's yappy little mutt during the day, there's a lot of territorial wizzing going on. Why it has to be done in my room, I don't know. I'm sure it has to do with the cats preferring that room, but I don't really know. I'm just sick of finding presents in my room.

I still don't have everything back in place.

Why?

Because I got lazy and I wanted to watch some of the DVDs I got in the mail a few days ago.

A DVD of Herman's Hermit's is much more fun to watch then cleaning up a big ole mess I made. And let me tell you, it's a big ole mess. (Because those are the only kinds of messes that I make)

Hopefully by tomorrow morning I can find my way into the room without killing myself.

A Cloud Of Words

Yes, if my friends jumped off a bridge, I'd probably go with them. That's why, when I saw that Moody Mistress succumbed to the "word cloud" post, I knew I might as well do it.

I'm such a sheep!
BAA!



So who's going to be the next sheep? You can become the next sheep by clicking on this site and then start baa-ing.

CD Baby Will Be The Death Of Me

I went over to CD Baby to check on the prices of a few of the CDs on my list. Of course, I ended up browsing the online shop. Needless to say there are a few more artists on my "Need To Buy" list.

The first one is Laura Burhenn. There are some soundclips on the CD Baby page. If you go to her official site there are several downloads from the album Wanderlust. This lady has an incredible voice. I'm reminded of Jewel when I listen to her, but I think her lyrics are more mature than some of the things Jewel has done over the years. She's definitely an artist worth checking out and definitely and artist that I have put on my list. I'm particularly fond of the song Memory, which is one of the downloads available on her site. I had a few mp3s of hers before I found her on CD Baby. Thank God for CD Baby stocking all the best indie artists.

Dragana was one of the artists I discovered while perusing the $5 dollar discs. The secret to the $5 dollar deal is to buy 3 or more discs from the sale pages so you get the discount.

I have to say that I was intrigued by her name, so I clicked on her disc for more info. Check out the song Dance. It's quite pretty. I'm definitely getting this one. Again, if you're looking to compare her style to any popular artists, I'd say Diana Krall or Tierney Sutton.

Joshua Eden is the first male vocalist I've recommended in a good while. It only took a few songs to convince me that he was definitely someone I needed to hear more of. Check out the song, Something to Save. It's a George Michael cover and it's stunning. When I first played the clip I went nuts trying to figure out who did the song originally because I knew I heard it before.

So there you have it, 3 reasons why CD Baby is trying to suck all the money out of my bank account and three more discs for me to ponder, "to buy or not to buy."

To Buy Or Not To Buy

That's the question. I figure since I've not gone out much this month, except to have a bite at Redd Dawg's last night, I deserve a treat.

The problem is deciding which CD I want to buy.

The first one is Daughter Darling's Sweet Shadows.



I've wanted this one for a very long time. I've got a few tracks on my harddrive and it's a great disc.

Bridin Brennan - Eyes Of Innocence



A friend of mine uploaded this disc for me, so technically I have it already, but I really want copy of this one. Bridin is fantastic. Of course it was probably destined to be, since Enya and Maire (Moya) Brennan are her sisters.

Ah well, it looks like the third disc I was going to buy isn't to be. Keri Noble's Lullaby sold out and I'm not paying 55 dollars on Amazon for a copy. Crap! I guess making my choice this weekend has just gotten a bit easier, unless I end up at Half.com and then I can't guarantee I won't go crazy buying cheap stuff people are trying to get rid of.

Top 5 On Friday - Valentine's Day Edition

Top 5 " " Songs. (Heart songs, songs with heart in the title...or if ya like the band Heart songs)

Nick Lowe - Only A Fool Breaks His Own Heart

Elvis Costello & The Imposters - Heart Shaped Bruise

Olivia Newton John - Heart Attack

David Bowie - The Heart's Filthy Lesson

The Beatles - Devil In Her Heart

Thursday Thirteen

Thirteen things that always make me smile

1. Discovering that one of my favorite new artists is likely going to be playing a concert in Pittsburgh in April! Squee! Keri Noble has a Pittsburgh date on her spring tour. It's tentative right now, but I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

2. Getting packages full of musical goodness. A friend of mine sent me a bunch of DVDs of a few of my favorite bands including a DVD of The Moody Blues concert from 6/29/05. So far I've watched one of the DVDs, it was an Olivia Newton-John concert from Japan.

3. Hearing songs that I haven't heard in ages but love.

4. Silly pictures of my favorite men.



5. My kitten, Oogie, who is always managing to do something bad, but he does it in such a cute way that I always have to smile.

6. Discovering that a CD that I've long wanted is actually available, when I thought it was out of print, and actually having the cash to purchase it!

7. Finding a few dollars in my coat pocket or in an old purse.

8. Getting coupons for Dots in my email, and actually getting to use them.

9. Hearing the Moody Blues when I'm out and about.

10. Waterfalls



12. Atlantic City! Just the mention of this place makes me grin.



13. Wheeling Island. I love the little casino that's about an hour away from me. I especially love the buffet. That makes me smile too.

Other Thursday Thirteens

Emily
Karen