Pandora Pandemonium - The NaBloPoMo is Over Edition

Well, I did it. It wasn't pretty but I successfullyish completed NaBloPoMo. WOOO HOOO!

Let's celebrate with some Pandora Pandemonium. Go go go Pandora!

Forget You by Cee-Lo Green - Meh...I like the original. This safe-for-radio one lack the oomph.

Get Together by The Youngbloods - Ha! I've been singing along to this song for years, I know all the words, but I thought it was called "Come On People Now"!

I Can't Tell You Why by The Eagles - *Love* this song! I'm trying to think if there's an Eagles song I don't like. Don't think there is.

Hips Don't Lie by Shakira - Wooo...this song makes me want to dance. Just like Shakira does in the video. But there's the whole I would throw a hip thing. Also, I don't look like Shakira. Still - great song and how gorgeous is she?

Ubi Caritas Et Amor-Gregorian Chant by Gary Robinson - Oh that wasn't sudden at all! I got whiplash from that progression Pandora!  I do love Gregorian chants though, and you gotta love the diversity.

Rhiannon by Fleetwood Mac - Classic! Fleetwood Mac is like The Eagles in that I'm hardpressed to fin a song I don't like.

Hey There Delilah by Plain White T's (sic) - How adorable is this song? No matter how crappy my mood, this song always makes me smile. He sonds so young, and the lyrics are so lovely. Ah...young love...

Son of a Son of a Sailor by Jimmy Buffett - JIMMY!!! Wow, Pandora is on fire tonight! I've lot count of how many times I've seen Jimmy Buffett in concert. His shows are fantastic!

Richman by 3Oh!3 - Hahahahaha...OK so this is definitely NOT the radio friendly version! These people are just so so wrong - but so fun! These guys are a guilty pleasure. Don't judge me!

Goodbye to Love by The Carpenters - Awww Pandora shuffle up a "goodbye" song for the last one. I've loved The Carpenters since I was a little girl - and this song is so beautifully gut wrenchingly sad. Karen Carpenter's voice was like smooth honey...

Have a happy and safe weekend - don't let the holiday craziness make you, well, crazy. 

No Steps Forward, 19 Steps Back

So...remember how the GOP was self-flagellating right after the election, and how they claimed to have learned their lesson and how they were going to be oh-so-more diverse? Well, they've announced their new House Committee Chairmen. Emphasis on MEN. Specifically ALL white, Anglo, straight men...

Fun Fact - The Foreign Relations Committee has been chaired for the last two years by Ileana Ros-Lehtinen - a Cuban-American woman (incidentally the mother of a transgender child and LGBT issue friendly). She has to step aside because of tenure limits on committees (waived for Paul Ryan...just because). So, you'd think they'd replace her with a woman, right?

Yeah - no.

More Nothing

image source

Today was a crazy day and night and I couldn't come up with anything about which to post. Hopefully Thursday will be less crazed and provide more fodder.

'Toon Tuesday

Look How Cute!

Virtual Reality...Real Caring

 
Tonight marked the end of a two-week fund raiser for a fellow Second Lifer who lost everything, including her home,  in Superstorm Sandy. Through a series of trivia events the SL trivia community of which I'm part raised over $1500 USD for her. That translates to several hundred thousand Linden Dollars (L$) garnered by trivia hosts donating tips, trivia players donating winnings and various challenges and matching opportunities. 

What's different about this philanthropy is that only a handful of those of us who contributed actually *know* the recipient in "real life". I only know her as a kitten - literally. Her avatar in SL is a cat. Not a humanoid cat, an actual cat. This is her...

I don't know her real name and only know she live(d) in the coastal New York City area. I'm not worried that we've been "had" as obviously, several people know her. But still, I think it's amazing that a community of "virtual friends" came together so naturally and without reservation to provide "real life" help out a "friend" most of us will never meet.

I'm proud of us. Obviously $1500 is a mere drop in the bucket when faced with her losses, but it's something. Most importantly I hope it lets her know that he has a bunch of people who without knowing her, care about her, have been thinking about her and working to help her. I think after having been what she's been through, that may be the true value of this endeavor.

5 Things

image source


Meme...meme...get your meme here! Yes, I am resorting to a meme yet again. Shameful, I know...

So here we go:

Here Are 5 Things:

I've Always Wanted To Do:

• Publish a book
• Go to Greece
• Ride in a hot air balloon - preferably over vineyards
• Drive across the US
• Travel through Europe by train

In My Purse Right Now:

• Wallet
• Keys
• Manicure Kit
• Corkscrew
• Kindle Fire

Found In My Wallet:

• $16 and change
• State ID
• MetroRail Roundtrip Pass
• Credit cards
• Doctor Appointment Card

I'm Currently Into:

• Second Life
• Watching BBC Shows on Netflix Streaming
• Ciders
• World of Warcraft
• Getting Back to Reading

How about you? Do you have 5 things?
 

The Lola Shuffle - The Black Friday Edition

image source


Moonglow by Rod Stewart - I love that he decided to perform American standards. Those clasic songs with his unique voice are a great combination. "Moonglow" has always been a favorite of mine since I was a little girl - there was a lot of big band music in my house growing up.  

Crazy by Patsy Cline - What can be said about this song and this rendition that hasn't already been said? Perfection. I mean it's a great song regrdles of who sings it Willy Nelson's lyrics are poetry, and his version is great. But Patsy  captures the wistful resignation that the lyrics talk about.

(Where Do I Begin) Love Story by Tony Bennett - Hmmm...I love Tony Bennett, and I really like the love Sotry theme. However, although Bennett's voice is as always wonderful, I prefer Andy Williams' version. Maybe it's because that's the one I heard first. But,come on! It's still Tony Bennett!

Still Crazy After All These Years by Paul Simon - Well, Lola decided to move up a decade or two. And what a great choice. Honestly, does Paul Simon have any *bad* songs? I mean - there may be some I like less than others, but still - his worst are still good.

Suavecito by Septeto Nacional de Ignacio Piñeiro (from he "Lost City" soundtrack) - Love, love, love this song! Written in 1925 by Cuban gem Ignacio Piñeiro, this is a classic in the Cuban "son" canon.

I'll Fly Away by Alison Kraus and Gilliam Welch  (from the "Brother Where Art Thou?" soundtrack) - Both of these women have beautiful voices, but when they sing together it's a little bit of magic. 

Just The Way You Are by Billy Joel - Doesn't everyone in love want to hear this from the one they love? And obviously it works best when it's a long time relationship.

Good Riddance (Time of You Life) by Green Day - definitely one of my favorite songs. There are so many apt moments or this song. I included the lyrics in the high school graduation cards for all of my friends' kids. I really do hope they have the time of their lives!

The Girl From Yesterday by The Eagles - Heartbreaking song! Kills me!
"The light's on in the window; she's waiting by the phone
Talking to a memory that's never coming home
She dreams of his returning 
and the things that he might say
But she'll always be the girl from yesterday"
OMG - sob!  

Luck Be a Lady by Frank Sinatra - Another classic! And no one sings this like Sinatra...that vocal swagger - perfect.

It seems Lola is in a nostalgic mood, she didn't shuffle up *any* songs from this century! Haha! That's OK - nostalgia's good.

I hope your Black Friday was sane and that the rest o the weekend is fantastic. 

Thanksgiving Day

image source
 
Happy Thanksgiving!  I'm Blogging later than usual because I waited till after getting home from Thanksgiving dinner. 

It was a great day. I woke up and had some fruit cake - yes fruit cake, don't judge me! - and coffee while watching the Macy's parade. It never gets old, that moment when Santa Claus appears, still gives me chills! 

Afterwards  I futzed around online and I watched the latest two episodes of American Horror Story. Lovely holiday fare - not.

We went to our friends' house for a fantastic Thanksgiving feast. We ate outside because the weather was glorious. 

After the difficulties so many have gone through this year, I know how blessed I am - and I don't take any of those blessings for granted. First and foremost as always for the last 15 years, my husband, the love of my life. I'm thankful for my wonderful friends and family - I wouldn't be who I am without them and the joy they bring me.

I hope everyone had the happiest of Thanksgivings and that all of you have a lot for which to be thankful. 

I Got Nuthin'

 image source


 So, I'll share a song I  love about giving thanks...

By the way, are you cooking tonight? What are you making?  Hubby is preparing the stuffing batter tonight and will bake it tomorrow...yummy!

'Toon Tuesday

To Counteract Sunday Night's Post

This made me smile! Nice to remember - there's still kindness and love out there.

Meh...One of Those Nights

I'm in a crappy mood. So...here are some songs I *really* don't like!

Don't Worry Be Happy - Bobby McFerrin

Barbie Girl - Aqua

We Are Family - Sister Sledge

PSY Gangnam Style 

Hey Jude

Stairway to Heaven - Led Zeppelin

Maybe tomorrow will be better, but tomorrow is Monday - so don't bet on it.

Bah.

 

Miami Book Fair!

It's the most wonderful tiiiiime...of the yeeearrrr....No! Not Christmas - the Miami Book Fair! Today was the first day of the street fair and I was there! And I'll be there tomorrow.

The weather was gorgeous, it wasn't unreasonably crowded and there were some intereting author presentations.

Among the presentations I saw were Dave Barry and two guys from The Onion. It was a great start to the festivities - they were hilarious. They were followed by Naomi Wolf, who talked about her latest  book Vagina: A New Biography - lots of interesting information about new studies that show there's a very important connection between women's brains and sexual satisfaction. Very cool. 

I also *word-geeked* out completely and went to see a presenttion on a book called Is That a Word? From AA to ZZZ, The Weird and Wonderful Language of Scrabble! It was great!

And the food was great - I had Thai for lunch, with French macaroons for dessert. Yummy!

Let's see what Sunday's Fair holds... 

 

Pandora Pandemonium!

Let's see what we get today!

The Water is Wide by Eva Cassidy - I love her voice! And this is such a beautiful song. Acoustic guitar and angelic voice.

Heartache Tonight by The Eagles - One of my favorite Eagles songs!  Big time sing-along-at-the-top-of-my-lungs-much-to-Hubby's-chagrin songs. I sing in the key of Me!

Soul Kitchen by Patti Smith - LOVE HER!!!  Not familiar with this one, but I like it! Her voice is strong and tortured and all Patti Smithy.  

Hotel Room Service by Pitbull - Pitbuuuuuuuullll...cubanito from Miami, representin' for the 305! Pitbull is a blast - most of his songs are wholly inappropriate, but fun as hell.

Angel Band by Anonymous 4 - Wow! Now that's a shift in gears Pandora! From the ridiculous to the sublime! If you haven't heard Anonymous 4 - do so. Absolutely beautiful.  

Come Fly With Me by Frank Sinatra - Can you taste the Martinis? This is sooo Don Draper. Frank in great voice. I never tire of this music.

Ho Hey by The Lumineers - These guys are new to me, but the little I've heard I've liked. Folk acoustic goodness.

Don't You Worry Child by Swedish House Mafia - Uh...whut? Never heard of these people. They're OK, they sound like all the other alternative whatevers out there. Actually the more I hear this the more I like it. Funky little groove.

Blue Skies by Tom Waits - Speaking of voices, how awesome is his? This must be young Tom, his vice is much smoother than I'm used to. Still very cool.

Sea of Love by Phil Phillips - Ha! I never knew who sang this. The first time I ever heard this song was in the movie of the same name with Al Pacino. 

That's it for this week, good job Pandora! Next week, Lola is back.

Have a great weekend and stay safe.

Christmas Shopping

So tonight I finished like 85% of my Christmas shopping! All online! YAY!

Actually I've finished shopping for "the kids" - the kids are my 6 nieces and nephews. Two boys and 4 girls ranging in ages from a few month old to 12.  

I always get each of them an ornament commemorating a significant event or something special for the  year, a book, and a gift. It's a lot. And it's difficult because they live in PA and TX - so it' hard to know what they're into. Thankfully their moms helped!

So now I only have a handful of adults to shop for and I'll be done!

Have you started holiday shopping?  
 

Our 15th Wedding Anniversary - a few days late

So, on November 1, Hubby and I celebrated our 15th anniversary! Can you believe it? 

Our "big gift" was a trip to Orlando - where he proposed 16 years ago, but we went a couple of weeks before the actual anniversary. On our "anniversary anniversary" we went out to dinner at one of our favorite restaurants and then came home and did our anniversary tradition. Yeah, yeah...a little sappy but it work for us!

Happy anniversary again baby!

'Toon Tuesday

image source

Because...really? We still don't know whether it's illegal - but it sure as hell is stupid.

SEX SCANDALS! How much is too much?

Today while I was watching the news there were THREE stories in a row about sex scandals.  

Of course there was the Petraeus debacle, something having to do with BBC, and the Elmo guy. REALLY? The Elmo guy has a sex scandal?  

You know I'm all about freedom of the press, and an informed public and stuff, but really, sometimes I just don't want to know. I don't need to know about General Petraeus' indiscretions. If there wasn't a security breach, it's none of my business.

Blah...it's just so disheartening. Here we are on the brink of a new four year term for President Obama, there appears to be  the possibility of maybe the Republicans working with the Democrats to get stuff done - yet the news networks are dedicating HOURS to the sex.

I miss Walter Cronkite and Peter Jennings and the "dinner hour" news. Maybe 24/7 news is too much news.

Fall TV Season

Remember when Fall meant a bunch of new shows or the return of old favorites that had been on reruns throughout the summer? I used to love the "New Fall Season" issue of the TV Guide. Like this one from the 1972-1973 season:

They were longer than the regular TV Guide because they had a page introducing every new show as well as recaps and scoops on the returning shows. They also predicted which of the new show were going to do well. I was such a TV geek that I would save the fall issue until the end of the season and compare their predictions to how the favored shows did.

It's all different now. Shows debut and return throughout the year. There's a semblance of a fall season but, not really. Now there are at least three "new and returning show seasons" - Septemberish, Januaryish and Summerish. Not nearly as exciting. 

Yes we have many more channels, both cable and premium, and there are some fantastic shows - but I miss the three network season premieres. I miss the anticipation.