Tastes In Music

 

Yesterday I really enjoyed reading Laurie's Musings.  She wrote about her eclectic taste in music; how she grew up influenced by music from many generations.  That's the way it was for me, too.  Personally I think everyone should at least be exposed to lots of types and generations of music. You never know what you might have missed out on otherwise.

I am the youngest of seven, born in 1966.  My parents were in their forties when I was born.  My oldest sister was 18.  The sister closest to me in age was 6.  So I grew up listening to music from my parents' generation -- music of the thirties and forties, including big band music, The Andrew's Sisters, Bing Crosby, Gene Autry and Tex Ritter, and the list could go on........

But then I was also exposed to music from the fifties -- Elvis (although none of my siblings were huge Elvis fans my one and only sister-in-law was!), Fats Domino, Bill Haley and the Comets, The Sons of the Pioneers, Sonny James and that list could go on; music from the sixties -- The Beatles, The Beach Boys, The Byrds, The Hollies, The Kingston Trio, Peter, Paul and Mary, etc...........; then I was growing up in the seventies and eighties and liked a broad spectrum of music then, too.  I listen to a lot of the groups my 15 year old listens to, and sometimes it freaks out his friends!

I can remember an old victrola that my Dad had that played the old cylindar records.  I can't remember what we listened to on it, though.  I think some of them were recordings from old radio shows.  I remember a line from one of them that went: "I'll meet you at the train station.  If you get there first, draw a line in the dirt.  If I get there first, I'll rub it out!"  He also had a lot of old 78 records.  I remember one that he had that had polka music on it.  He taught me and my oldest niece (only three years younger than me) how to polka and we would dance around the living room to it.

I like most old country and western music and some new country; I like Bluegrass, folk, big band, show tunes, some blues, some classical, some jazz, old rock and roll, classic seventies rock, eighties music (especially from my high school years!), and quite a bit of nineties and contemporary music.  I guess the only music I don't really care for is most hip hop (rap) music.  If it's clean and catchy, then I can handle it.  But so much of it isn't clean, and I really don't like the hip hop lifestyle. 

Oh well, just thought I'd share my eclectic taste in music as well.  Thank you Laurie.  You made me think of some artists and songs that I hadn't thought of in awhile.

One Day At A Time

"I try to take one day at a time, but sometimes several days attack me at once." -- Ashleigh Brilliant

That's how I've felt all this week.  I am definitely behind on just about everything I should be doing and need to do here at the house!

I've been feeling all week that Eler Beth is needing some extra attention from me, so I thought Saturday afternoon maybe she and I could go do something together.  When I asked her what she'd like to do she said, "Go shopping!"  I didn't know it but Thomas had been thinking that she was acting like she needed a little more attention from him also, and he also wanted to get Andrew out to do something, so he asked them if they'd like to go night fishing Friday night.  They did, and I had the house to myself all Friday evening and night, but I didn't get too much done.  I had to work Saturday morning, so I knew I couldn't stay up too late without paying for it.

They got in Saturday morning about 4:30 with seven very large catfish!  They were Blue Cats -- good eatin'!  They dragged all their stuff in and collapsed into bed; except for Eler Beth!  She kept coming in our room to tell me that she couldn't sleep!  When I got up  to go to work she was still up and she had woke up Andrew so he and she could play a game.  Thomas got up too and was getting prepared to take pictures of the fish.  I'll try to post some here soon.  I went to work for four hours, grabbed some lunch and came home.  When I got home all three of them were asleep.  That sounded like a good idea to me, too, so I climbed into bed beside my hubby and took me a little nap, too!

When I got up they were cleaning the fish; then Eler Beth and I got cleaned up and went to the mall.  We hit Kay-B toys first, then Walden Books, then mosied along to all our other favorites.  I came out of it pretty good.  I don't think I spent quite a hundred!  I got this neat book at Walden Books that was on clearance: THE COMPLETE BOOK OF CREATIVE SCRAPBOOKING, like I really need another one!  But it has a nice section in it on "altering books", and I've been wanting to try that.  When I'll have the time is another question!

Everyone slept well last night, needless to say.  We made it to the meeting this morning, grabbed somelunch and came on home. I have done three loads of laundry, and that is about the extent of the housework I've done this weekend!  Thomas has cooked, Andrew has done the dishes, and Eler Beth keeps dragging things out of her room because she wants to rearrange things.  It's absolutely too hot and humid to go outside.  With the heat index it is 104* out there!  I'm going to clean my bathroom, and everything else can wait for tomorrow!  Too hot to walk, so it's crunches again tonight! 

Tags: Ashleigh Brilliant

Thursday Book Talk on Friday

POWDER AND PATCH

Powder and Patch was orginally published under the title THE TRANSFORMATION OF PHILLIP JETTAN, and I wish they'd kept the original name because that's exactly what the book is about.  This was published in 1923, and Heyer did so under the name Stella Martin. 

Powder and Patch is very warm, light and funny; there is nothing deep or serious about it, yet it does have a moral: the person within is more important than what you see on the outside.  Phillip is a very good, hard-working man and dutiful son. Yet his father wishes he could be just a little more like he had been in his own youth; a little wilder.  Phillip has been in love with Cleone, a neighbor, all his life.  She returns home all grown up and fashionable and is a little scornful of her "country bumpkin" friend of her childhood.  Actually, she cares for him, but has become accustomed to being flattered and sweet-talked and is a little piqued by Phillip's way with her.

Phillip, determined to find out if she could love him for who he really is or if she'd only be happy with a simpering, mincing exquisite, sets off to France to become said exquisite.  And man, what a transformation takes place!  There is the inevitable first meeting between Cleone and the transformed Phillip, rivalry between her suitors, a "villian" that you truly can sneer at, duels, bewildering multiple engagements and finally a satisfactory end. 

This is a good, light, "young" read, with witty characters and dialogue.  It is in my upper 25 list.  Phillip is a wonderful character and someone you would really like to know.  His father and uncle are also characters that you grow to love, as is Cleone's aunt, Lady Malmerstoke.  Everyone gets what he or she deserves in the end.

I have one paperback copy of this book and will be getting a hardcover also.  I would LOVE to find a copy under the original title and pseudonym.  If there is one out there I will try to find it.

I will continue with more on Georgian England tomorrow and sometime over the weekend will write about Heyer's third book, THE GREAT ROXHYTHE.  Thanks for joining me.

Okay, so I have to do this..........

I keep seeing this in other journals I read -- I mean a lot of other journals -- so here goes........   Please leave a one word comment that you think best describes me.

It can only be one word.  No more.

Then copy and paste this into your journal so that I may leave a word about you...

Stolen from Secret Garden.

Not much going on this week.  Our nice, cool weather extended through yesterday, but starting today the temperatures and the humidity are going up.  Today was an ozone action day, but I used my air conditioner on the way home from work.  I shouldn't have, but that's such a long drive, and in the hottest part of the day.  I was bad. *smacking myself on the hand*

I'm glad this week is almost over.  For some reason every day this week I've been counting down the hours and minutes.  That is not like me.  I guess the outsourcing thing is maybe still affecting me.  Everyone is supposed to find out around July 1 who will be staying with the part of document management that is remaining.  I don't expect to be one of them.  I haven't been with the company long enough.  I haven't yet decided whether I am going to be applying with "L" (the company taking over our doc. management duties) or not.  I may want to explore other options.  I did tell Debbie that I definitely do NOT want that position with FACETS.

My sinus infection is getting better, but the drainage is killing me.  I'm still on antibiotics.  Eler Beth is feeling good.  I had to re-schedule her appointment AGAIN, but at least now I have her seeing the doctor that her pediatrician really wanted her to see all along.  Hopefully we'll get this panic-attack issue taken care of before school in August.  I haven't written about this here yet, but basically, my nine-year old daughter has been having anxiety attacks for the past 9 months or so.  I suffer from panic attacks as well and take medication.  We haven't been able to identify anything that has happened at home or at school to trigger these; but I'm pretty sure that part of it is that she has not been able to grieve in the right way for my dad.  Her doctor agrees after talking with her about it.  Also, even though she is only nine she has had quite a growing spurt this past year and I think she is getting ready to go through puberty.  There are definite signs.  So if her  hormones are out of control right now that could contribute.

I've been letting Andrew get away with way too much inactivity so far this summer!  Staying up way too late and not doing enough during the day.  I plan for that to change next week.  I want them to enjoy their summer, especially at his age with graduation coming up in a few years, but staying up all night reading, on the computer, or playing games, and sleeping half the day is not acceptable.  I'm a little surprised that Thomas hasn't put his foot down already.  Well, sorry, son, but things are gonna be changin' real soon!

Thomas has been working a lot of overtime lately, and I may even be working Saturday.  (Didn't expect to work any more overtime this year, but we're swamped right now!) We can use the money, so I said I would if they needed me.  We're almost caught up on everything, though.  Our mortgage just went down a little, which is nice, and we've knocked out a couple other monthly bills.  Pretty soon I think we'll be debt free, barring any unforeseen occurrences, other than the mortgage, of course.

Well, I was unable to sleep and that's why I'm here online when I shouldn't be!  But I guess I should get to bed.  I took a nap when I first got home; that's why I'm up now.  Just wanted to update the journal a little and maybe write in my Book Talk journal a little.  Hope everyone out there is having a decent week.  More later.

Happy Anniversary

June 20, 2005

     Thomas and Lori Helms, 18 Years!

Letting Go of Prejudices

Weekend Assignment #64: Tell about a moment with your dad that serves as an example of one of his best qualities.

I have been wrestling with this assignment.  I knew what I wanted to write, but not how to go about doing it.  Today I know....

I am white and my husband is black.  When I met, became friends with, fell in love with and knew I would marry my future husband I knew that my father would have a hard time with it.  I had never dated anyone of another race, never even been interested in anyone of another race, although I had had friends of color.  When I met Thomas what attracted me to him was him, and it had nothing to do with color or features. I knew in my heart -- no, in my soul -- that if my dad gave Thomas a chance he would see what I saw.  And I knew them both well enough to know that they had so much in common that they would become friends.  But how to convince my Dad of that?  I knew I couldn't.  He would have to find that out for himself.

The moment I would describe in answer to the above question was a Sunday night, several months before my wedding, when I sat on the floor at my father's feet and he and I talked together about me, about Thomas, about my beliefs and my father's beliefs, about love and friendship and so many other things. 

I told my dad that when he decided to give Thomas a chance he would have a son-in-law who would show him the respect in word and in action that my father deserved to have from him. He would have a friend with whom he could fish and hunt and talk about things that had a place in my father's heart and about which his other sons-in-law could not converse with him. I knew this.  In return my father told me about how he was raised, the culture and environment that had taught him that it was wrong and immoral to marry outside of your race.  He told me about how his mother had been raised to be scared of black people and why.  And he told me that if he was left alone to come to terms with it on his own that in his own time he would probably come to feel the way I predicted he would.  But he didn't want anyone to push him.

I watched my father progress from listening to other people's good opinions about Thomas..., to deciding to give him a chance..., to becoming best friends with him!  They talked and laughed together.  My husband listened respectfully while my dad gave him advice on something or showed him how to do something (usually something Thomas already knew, but he listened anyway). They went fishing together, shared hunting stories, worked on family vehicles, did home repairs.  Thomas listened to stories about being in the Navy during World War II, about growing up in Kentucky during the Great Depression.  I listened with pride as my father called Thomas his "other son", his "favorite son-in-law", his "friend".  When our son was born two years after we were married, the 10th of my parents' grandchildren, I saw my father with the grandson of his old age, and saw how much they loved one another.  When our daughter was born six years later I saw the granddaughter of his heart.  I heard with my own ears my father say to my husband, "I love you, Thomas.  You're like a son to me."  And he thanked me and my husband for giving him those two grandchildren.  And two weeks before he died, when he knew the end was near but could still somewhat enjoy the time he had left, he took Thomas into his confidence and told him things that he probably wouldn't have been comfortable telling me, my mother or my sisters or brother.  Thomas has said that my father was more of a father to him than his own father, and that he loved him more.

The moment that I shared with my dad that described one of his best qualities happened on that Sunday night in 1986.  It was the moment he told me to give him time, that he'd come around.  It was a moment that stretched throughout my marriage until his death in 2002 at the age of 80.   I don't know if the quality has a name.  Perhaps you would call it depth of character.  His was deeper than even he knew.  He had the depth of character to realize that perhaps the way he'd been taught and raised wasn't the way he really felt about things; the depth of character to get to know a man on the inside, to know that secret person of the heart.  And in return for displaying that depth of character he gained a best friend in Thomas and two adoring, loving, smart grandchildren that helped to fill his last years on Earth with happiness and completeness.

My father has been gone for three years now, {at time of writing} but he is still with us.  My husband and I will celebrate our 18th wedding anniversary tomorrow, June 20.   You can bet that my father will be in our thoughts as we wish each other a happy anniversary. 

    Me with my Dad, Jeff Dowell, around 1972.

Tags: Weekend assignments, fathers and daughters, bi-racial marriage