Thursday, June 16, 2005
Music Lessons.
The trip to Ann Arbor and back forced me to spend six hours in a car with two people who love popular country music. I finally allowed them to play an album, with the stipulation that I could play the game where I guess the next lyric. I forget who the artist was, but one of the songs was about being "itty-bitty". I got creative on that one.
So the thing about country music is that it's perfect for driving. Especially in Northern Ohio with its flat surfaces, big skies, endless farms and semi-trucks. I once listened to a photojournalist from Bowling Green wax poetic about the horizontal line that exists halfway between the top edge of the sky and the bottom edge of the ground. I saw that on the drive. Add the soundtrack and I had the epitome of Americana.
I turned on a country music station today on the way to work, out of curiosity. There were four songs that stuck out during my commute. Below are the lessons that I learned today from K 95.5. (Which is actually something like 103.7 on the dial. Confusing but not worth looking into.)
1. Loving someone is great, but you shouldn't just love them at night. She needs to be loved in the day, too.
2. You should thank God for kids, because without kids, we wouldn't have Big Bird or Mickey Mouse. (Perhaps you can forget the kids prayer and thank God for PBS and Disney.)
3. If your dad doesn't like the boy that you're in love with, chances are your mom's dad didn't like you dad. But they got married anyway, and your dad just needs to chill out. (This song made me cry. No kidding.)
4. Proposing to your girl is kind of like being Jimmy Buffet.
The trip to Ann Arbor and back forced me to spend six hours in a car with two people who love popular country music. I finally allowed them to play an album, with the stipulation that I could play the game where I guess the next lyric. I forget who the artist was, but one of the songs was about being "itty-bitty". I got creative on that one.
So the thing about country music is that it's perfect for driving. Especially in Northern Ohio with its flat surfaces, big skies, endless farms and semi-trucks. I once listened to a photojournalist from Bowling Green wax poetic about the horizontal line that exists halfway between the top edge of the sky and the bottom edge of the ground. I saw that on the drive. Add the soundtrack and I had the epitome of Americana.
I turned on a country music station today on the way to work, out of curiosity. There were four songs that stuck out during my commute. Below are the lessons that I learned today from K 95.5. (Which is actually something like 103.7 on the dial. Confusing but not worth looking into.)
1. Loving someone is great, but you shouldn't just love them at night. She needs to be loved in the day, too.
2. You should thank God for kids, because without kids, we wouldn't have Big Bird or Mickey Mouse. (Perhaps you can forget the kids prayer and thank God for PBS and Disney.)
3. If your dad doesn't like the boy that you're in love with, chances are your mom's dad didn't like you dad. But they got married anyway, and your dad just needs to chill out. (This song made me cry. No kidding.)
4. Proposing to your girl is kind of like being Jimmy Buffet.
Monday, June 13, 2005
Food, Folks and Fun.
I've been prompted to update my blog.
Here are a few thoughts that I've been doodling on the sketchpad that is my brain.
Vegetarians are really vocal about how awesome their food tastes. Think about it. How many times have you heard a vegetarian bragging about "how awesome these garbanzo beans taste" or how "trail mix is the best I've ever had." It's like they're trying to show others how wonderful eating could be if they just gave up meat. It's as if the lack of animal in a person's diet increases the productivity of his or her tastebuds. Come to think of it, I can't really think of a time that I've exclaimed, "this double cheeseburger from Wendy's is really fantastic!"
Speaking of meat, I tried ham salad for the first time today. It looks disgusting. It really does. For those of you who don't live in the midwest, ham salad is usually found at potlucks, funerals and church gatherings. (Which, in many cases, can be a single event.) Ham salad is also, curiously, very popular at my store. It looks like pink jello with lots of little chunks. In actuality, it's ham ground through a meat processor and mixed with pickle relish and maybe a little mayo. The ingredients shouldn't naturally come together. But they do. And. Well, it's kind of good. I ate all of my ham salad today at lunch, and I just might buy some again in the future. But not this week.
I'm going to Iron & Wine tonight, and I paid too much for a ticket. I really hope they do "Jesus The Mexican Boy."
Tomorrow I'm going to Ann Arbor to be a spy. And to eat lunch.
I'm not kidding.
I've been prompted to update my blog.
Here are a few thoughts that I've been doodling on the sketchpad that is my brain.
Vegetarians are really vocal about how awesome their food tastes. Think about it. How many times have you heard a vegetarian bragging about "how awesome these garbanzo beans taste" or how "trail mix is the best I've ever had." It's like they're trying to show others how wonderful eating could be if they just gave up meat. It's as if the lack of animal in a person's diet increases the productivity of his or her tastebuds. Come to think of it, I can't really think of a time that I've exclaimed, "this double cheeseburger from Wendy's is really fantastic!"
Speaking of meat, I tried ham salad for the first time today. It looks disgusting. It really does. For those of you who don't live in the midwest, ham salad is usually found at potlucks, funerals and church gatherings. (Which, in many cases, can be a single event.) Ham salad is also, curiously, very popular at my store. It looks like pink jello with lots of little chunks. In actuality, it's ham ground through a meat processor and mixed with pickle relish and maybe a little mayo. The ingredients shouldn't naturally come together. But they do. And. Well, it's kind of good. I ate all of my ham salad today at lunch, and I just might buy some again in the future. But not this week.
I'm going to Iron & Wine tonight, and I paid too much for a ticket. I really hope they do "Jesus The Mexican Boy."
Tomorrow I'm going to Ann Arbor to be a spy. And to eat lunch.
I'm not kidding.
Wednesday, June 08, 2005
Summer Days.
I spent my days either riding my bike and going to the pool. My clothes were handed down from my second cousin. I reenacted the log scene from Dirty Dancing over a creekbed and my favorite song was by Irene Cara. I'd stay outside until it was dark, collecting fireflies and watching the neighbor kids smash them on to the street.
During sticky August evenings, Lakeview Drive had streaks of neon decorating her surface.
The boys down the street had an Ewok-themed party. I was invited, but I didn't want to go. Their mom grew marijuana in the backyard, underneath the Buckeye tree. And Maricia once told me that she found drugs in the closet when she was babysitting. I once caught the boys smoking cigarettes back in the woods. They chased me back to my yard, where I was safe. An embassy.
I told their mom, anyway, and from then on, they'd punch me in the stomach whenever they saw me.
I spent my days either riding my bike and going to the pool. My clothes were handed down from my second cousin. I reenacted the log scene from Dirty Dancing over a creekbed and my favorite song was by Irene Cara. I'd stay outside until it was dark, collecting fireflies and watching the neighbor kids smash them on to the street.
During sticky August evenings, Lakeview Drive had streaks of neon decorating her surface.
The boys down the street had an Ewok-themed party. I was invited, but I didn't want to go. Their mom grew marijuana in the backyard, underneath the Buckeye tree. And Maricia once told me that she found drugs in the closet when she was babysitting. I once caught the boys smoking cigarettes back in the woods. They chased me back to my yard, where I was safe. An embassy.
I told their mom, anyway, and from then on, they'd punch me in the stomach whenever they saw me.
