The Tech Savvy Admin
This morning this tweet dropped into my feed:
I grew up with Mr. Diamond’s music. My mother had many of his albums. I was saddened when he retired. So this video filled me with joy. It’s a bit sad, too, as I can see some of the impacts of Parkinsons. But, man, such grace and courage.
Oh, and here’s a link to the video on YouTube for those not engaged with Twitter, or in case the Twitter dumpster fire finally takes that site down.
If you’ve read my blog for a while, you’re probably aware I think highly of Wil Wheaton. If not, I have written about him a number of times. Well, today he penned another post that got my nostalgia going: “sweet and tender hooligan“. One element of this essay that really struck me was about a young woman, who is named “Kara”. First loves, when it’s love and not just lust, are powerful things in lives. And, as Wil’s, Kara holds the place well. In a beautifully written way, Mr. Wheaton shows how she expanded his world in so many rich, deep ways. The kind of person we all want in our lives and should strive to be in the lives of others. Anyway, give it a read: it’s well worth it.
I didn’t have a “Kara”, exactly. I had several elements, though. There was a girl when I was in high school, a senior when I was a sophomore, who was much the same for me. I didn’t have a crush on her but thought she was massively cool. Very goth, quite radical for my little suburb of Seattle. She didn’t shave her legs! Another alien notion to me at that point. Though not a one-on-one relationship, she invited me to hang out with her senior friends. This crew introduced me to Rocky Horror, and bands like Roxy Music, The Jam, The Clash…and that’s only what I remember. There had to be more, but sadly the brain cells holding those memories have evaporated. Up to this point in my life, I had limited musical exposure. Top 40, that’s it. And that mostly meant disco (though I’ve developed an appreciation now, it was not really my…um…favorite back then). These folks opened my eyes in ways that dramatically changed me, some in ways that I’m still working on understanding. And, for that, I’m grateful. Like Wil is to Kara.
The playlist below features a few songs that this post brought to mind. These are some key songs by some key bands. I hope you enjoy!
I loved this song back in the early 90s (I probably still have this CD somewhere in my “stuff”). I remember the video. I don’t remember Keanu Reeves in it, though. Someone else shared this today, which is when I noticed him.
Who would’ve guessed, looking at Keanu Reeve’s early work (yes, that’s Keanu in this video), that he would become the powerhouse that he is now? I certainly didn’t.
Pretty much every morning I wake with a song in my mind. Sometimes it’s simply my latest auditory obsession. Sometimes I think it’s my subconscious “telling me something”. This morning I woke with Kate Bush’s “Running Up That Hill” on earworm. I’m not sure if my brain has a message for me or this just a song I’ve long loved popping back into my awareness. But it’s not unwelcome.
Now this this would be a Zoom meeting I’d enjoy deeply.
I discovered Balmorhea a few years ago but only came across “Masollan” recently (earlier this year). I’ve become very fond of it. The instrumentation is exquisite. Electric guitar and bass with drums, violin, cello, and upright bass? I find it delightful. The ethereal way the melody floats above the harmony vibrates within my soul.
Featured image created with Adobe Spark, font: AcuminPro-Thin. I wanted a sepia styled, warm summer’s day vibe. I hope I pulled that off.
Looking like it will be a damp and dreary day. A lovely day for ducks, methinks. Which often makes me think of this song by the British electro-pop duo, Lemon Jelly.
I do find the song delightfully charming. I’m deeply grateful to John Richards at KEXP for introducing me to this song, along with so many other great ones.
Music, a deeply critical part of my life. I use it to reflect my mood or change it. It gives me energy, focus, feeds sadness. Such a powerful thread interweaving my whole life.
I’ve been streaming Kaki King the past few days. Her music covers such a wide range of topics and styles. She has plenty of pieces that give me energy and focus, important things since my studies are demanding plenty of both lately.
Pieces like this have been today’s loops:
Explore more about my relationship with music here.
Here’s my daily playlist built on my current interests and foci.
This is part of my morning musical focus. Ambient, triphop, and such are styles I’ve long delighted in. From back in the early days of electronic music. I find the graphics accompanying this to be cool, too.
I discovered Tom Ashbrook this week (Spotify’s algorithms can do good work) and wanted to share this with you all.
bodies in motion
light moving across my ears
seducing my soul