Switchfoot- Hello Hurricane

I am loving Switchfoot's latest CD Hello Hurricane. I have long been a fan but this is truly their best music to date. I can't say there is a song that I dislike on the entire album, which is rare for any band! Switchfoot has always been lyrically varied and spiritually deep but this time their musical creativity matches up. From 60's psychedelic influence on "Mess of Me", to tender God lullaby "Always", and U2 inspired guitar and vocals on the title track, this is one not to miss!

New (to us) Piano

Recently my MIL generously bought us a piano on Craig's List! She is a piano teacher so she had the expertise to know a good deal when she saw one! We are so thankful and I am looking forward to years of making music in our home.
Joel claims to be forever mentally scarred from being forced to listen to his mom's students play piano all day, every day (poor baby!) but I feel so blessed to be able to provide this opportunity for my own children. I was able to take piano lessons for only a few months as a child and then because of my family's financial difficulties and a move to a new town, I was not able to take lessons again. My eight year old little heart was terribly sad but I tried not to let on since things were so hard for my parents already. I know that they both worked very hard to provide a home and our basic necessities and I am grateful for that. My childhood experiences make the addition of this piano to our home that much sweeter! What a joy it is to know that our children will have a chance to learn music at such a young age.

R U Ready to ROCK!!!!

We went to the Skillet concert for Joel's birthday and they were amazing. Skillet puts on such a good show! Inspiring, passionate music that freakin' ROCKS! The only downside was putting up with the obnoxious moshers on the floor. Perhaps I'm a bit too old for the mosh pit you say? Nah, it was totally worth it to get up close!

And thanks to our dear friend Becky, we had an awesome, kid-free date night!

Because we are super special (and paid lots of extra money) we earned the dubious title of "VIP" and as such were herded like cattle onto the floor to participate in the Q&A session. Interesting, but hardly worth the extra cash, not to mention the 45 minute loooong wait outside in the cold. I felt a bit like a NSVIP (not so very important person)! Joel and Zach actually got some face time with the band on Friday morning at a meet n' greet at the Red Letter Book and Cafe. Zach got a t-shirt signed by the band and Joel said they were quite impressed with Z's curly locks. I just asked Z what he liked most about meeting Skillet and after a thoughtful pause, his response was, "They gave me a high-five!".
This girl was an incredible drummer!
And this guy rocked the violin!
Who are these crazed Skillet fans???? Our friends, Rhonda & Rob! Rob is a maniac when it comes to getting the best seat in the house! They were right up front and center against the rail. You crazy kids! Thanks for all the great pictures guys!

Here's a little taste of what's cookin' in the Skillet!

Dance or Die

That's not a threat, just a suggestion (okay, it's the name of a song)!

If this endless winter and talk of economic woes on every news channel is getting you down, then crank this song up and have a dance party with your kids! Your husband too if he'll do it (mine has mad dance skills).

Enjoy and as always, pause my playlist first.

Baby It's Cold Inside

With this week's cold, foggy inversion we have made an unpleasant discovery.

To preface this, we knew that the new heat pump system, that was installed during our remodel, would have difficulty "keeping up" during cold weather.

We knew that an auxiliary heat source was recommended.

We thought that meant the heat pump would just have to work more to attempt to heat the house and the auxiliary heat source was optional.

What we somehow did not realize was that it wouldn't function at all when the temperature dipped below 35 degrees or so.

Yes, you are marveling at our brilliance right now.

This morning we woke up to a temperature of 54 degrees, inside our house.

So, we have invested in a couple of space heaters and are trying to figure out our best options for the "auxiliary" source. We have a fireplace that needs a lot of work and we have an old oil heat system, that needs a lot of work. Note "lots of work" = "lots of money".

In the meantime, I am sipping hot tea while curled up in my big green chair in front of our new "Heat Dish" and opting for denial. I'm rather comfy right here.

Here's a song to warm you up (remember to pause my playlist at the bottom of the page):

Baby It's Cold Outside

Wanna Dance?

If you grew up in the 80's and have a thing for vocoders and electronic dance mixes then you're gonna be all over this. This song makes me want to get off my butt and onto the elliptical machine. Or tackle that giant pile of laundry that needs folding. It's definitely going on my ipod! Remember to pause my playlist at the bottom of the page before you listen. Enjoy!

Oh, you've got to check out the hair in this picture. Reminiscent of Flock of Seagulls? The 80's are baaaaaack. Scary.

Life Half-Lived

A few months ago I read a post by Big Mama about letting go of the fear in her life and truly giving it to God. I wrote this poem in response:

The Fear of Letting Go

The fear of letting go grips my heart.

I long to run, I yearn to fly, I need to create.

My heart turns cold.

I fear being nothing.

I fear losing everything.

I don't want to waste my life.

I'm tired of trying to please everyone.

I'm tired of falling short.

I'm falling apart at the seams.

I long to feel the warmth of the sun.

To stand on a hill with the wind in my face.

Holding nothing back.

I am released from this half-life of fear.

I will let myself be shattered.

Free me and make me whole again.

3/1/08

I am generally a very private person but in my quest to become more of the person God made me to be, I have chosen to process my thoughts and feelings out loud. Perhaps to give myself some sort of accountability or just to be more open and known to others? Maybe some of these ramblings will help someone else? Maybe this is some form of therapy for me? Whatever it is, bear with me!

I have been told before that I am too serious and that I think about things too much but as I expressed in my poem, I'm so tired of trying to please others and not be myself. I don't want to worry about being too much for some and not being enough for others. I am who I am and it's time for me to accept this and stop hiding the real me. I grew up hiding my true thoughts and feelings and I have found that the habit has stuck. It's time for me to realize that God loves me and accepts me "just as I am" as the old hymn goes. That is enough for me. I don't have to hide anymore.

The song Unbreakable by Fireflight perfectly expresses what I am trying to say, "God I want to dream again, take me where I've never been. I want to go there, this time I'm not scared!".

Jen

Loving This Song

Give Me Your Eyes-- Brandon Heath

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OihvG607W-c

Random Tired Thoughts Borne of Too Little Sleep and Too Much to Do

When I was a little girl I loved unicorns, faeries, and Princess Leia. I loved to draw fluffy cloud creatures, sing at the top of my lungs and hang upside down on the monkey bars.

What happened to me?

I'm now dependable and solid and responsible. At work I'm organized, energetic and busy.

These are not bad things.

I just miss the girl who used to sing along to the Sound of Music Soundtrack "I flit, I float, I fleetly flee, I fly..." or sing Kermit the Frog's "Rainbow Connection".

This is all sounding hopelessly sappy and saccharine but I don't care. It's my blog and I can be a dork if I want to (remember the 60's song, "It's my party and I can cry if I want to"? It's like that).

So my point? Don't really know except that I wish I were more fun, more creative, more everything... I'm in a tired, work induced funk. Gotta go get me some more contentment and joy from Jesus. Acceptance for who I am and what I'm doing.

Jen

American Idol This Week

Well folks, I'm a day late and a dollar short (one of my dad's favorite sayings) to give you my take on AI. I did think that Brooke was going home this week but I was WRONG again. My AI radar is way off lately. Instead of giving you my expert opinion I'm going to to link you to the most creative AI blog post I have encountered so far right here. I'm a regular lurker on this girl's blog cause she's so stinkin' funny. Her husband even has his own blog with AI posts. Enjoy!

Jen

American Idol This Week

AI list of the week... Most to least favorite and why:

Kristi Lee Cook: I can't believe she's at the top of my list but that performance gave me shivers up and down my arms that wouldn't quit. I love that song and she did a great job.

David Archuleta: His voice is "like butter" (think "Coffee Talk with Linda Richman", you know, Mike Myers, SNL skit, etc., I hope someone remembers this or I'm going to start feeling my age, ugh.).

Jason Castro: My favorite version of that song ever. I have it on my iPod. If you have never heard it sung by Israel Kamakawiwo'ole (do not ask me how to say it) you are missing out.

Michael Johns: He rocked that song. I love me some Aerosmith!

Brooke White: Very good but not her best. She was also rather fashion-challenged tonight, but Paula wasn't as much so it all evened-out.

Carly Smithson: The judges were right, she did seem a bit disconnected, angry even. But you can hardly blame her after last weeks criticism.

David Cook: Weird.

Syesha Mercado: Boring. She is on her way out.

The End.

Now you can go to bed because I know you were waiting up for me to finish this.

Jen

American Idol This Week

Okay, I'm about to watch the results show tonight and I just had to get my two cents worth in before I do. I predict Ramiele will leave tonight. Performances that ROCKED last night: David Cook (of course! I think someone is coaching him on how to look more humble, don't you?), David Archuleta (his voice just hits me in the gut, he literally brought me to tears and as some of you know it takes a lot to do that), Michael Johns (very cool customer), and Carly Smithson (as I've said before I swear she is going to be the next Celine Dion). One more thing, what in the heck is Simon smoking? He was just a little difficult to please. In fact all the judges have somehow intensified their "act". It's almost as if the producers have instructed them, "Hey yo dawg, Randy you gotta be kick it up a notch, you're not mean enough. Tell 'em it's pitchy a few more times and that it wasn't great for you", "Paula dear you need to be as spacy and ditzy as possible because you are like a shining star and and you're just YOU, you know and you're in your element and you're so unique and you look just beautiful tonight and you're just staying true to who you are" (ad nauseam ad infinitum), and finally "Simon, we think you need to be extra cranky tonight and we don't think you are using your catch phrases often enough. Really Simon, it's all a bit cabaret, I mean we just don't get it, SORRY, you're going to have to do better than that! Where do you think you are on a cruise ship or in some seedy lounge? Really, Simon tsk, tsk!".
I don't know, maybe it's just me!

**Post Results Show**
Things I fastforwarded through: the group performance (double blech), the viewer call-in portion, and Dolly Parton's song (Joel couldn't handle it anymore), and I wanted to fast forward whoever the band was that sang "This Little Light of Mine" but Joel liked it and he had the remote (I plugged my ears).
Things I watched: The results of course, Idol Gives Back promo (absolutely heartwrenching), the silly Ford commercial, AI alumni (I forgot how much I liked Phil Stacey last year), and Ramiele's final performance (she sounded better tonight but Joel thought she looked like an Ewok from Return of the Jedi).
Things I wish I could erase from my memory: Paula's shirt. Enough said.
Best thing about the show tonight: Jesus got some serious air time!

Jen

American Idol This Week

I enjoyed tonight's show so much more than last week!

David Cook, you ROCK and I am going to buy your album someday. The judges were right about his bravery. He completely changed Billie Jean by Michael Jackson into a cool rock song. I was totally impressed.

I also loved:

Carly Smithson--The judges were out to lunch with that one! I love "Total Eclipse of the Heart". It is an incredible song and she sang it perfectly. She is going to be a star.

Michael Johns--Wow, he finally did it! Queen songs are sooooo hard to sing and he nailed it! He has such a big voice.

Kristy Lee Cook--I can't believe I'm saying this but I really liked "country girl" this week. Last week I was saying "off with her head" and this week I think she deserves to stay. She sang "God Bless the USA" very convincingly. Her voice was very sweet and pretty.

Brooke White-- I still love her, mistakes and all. She must get really nervous up there and she sabotages herself. I think she's great though not to mention the fact that she looks and sings like an angel. She is luminous.

Who I did not like this week:

David Archuleta-- He has the most incredible voice and he wasted it on a cheesy, weird song that no one had ever heard before. I think I understand his heart in singing it though because he has sung several other songs about peace and making a difference in the world. I really admire that but there must have been a better song in 1990 to express it. Maybe not. I don't remember 1990 being the year of the deep and thoughtful song. I remember the Pretty Woman soundtrack and not much else. Here is a list of the top 100 songs of 1990. What song do you think he should have chosen? (Check it out! My link button actually worked!!!). Perhaps "Unskinny Bop" by Poison or "Ice Ice Baby" by Vanilla Ice. Those are deep songs, like for sure, right? Just so I maintain some shred of credibility here, I always hated those songs. Well, to be perfectly honest, Ice Ice Baby had it's moment in the sun for me but it was very short lived, I promise.

Jason Castro--like they said, good but not great.

Who will be voted off the show? It's a toss up between Chickezie, Ramiele and Syesha.

I wish I could voice my opinion as freely about the important things in life as I do about a TV show! Somehow I find it very difficult to express the things close to my heart.

Ah well! C'est la vie. I guess I'll save the depths of my soul for another day. ;)

Jen

What???

What the heck was going on with AI this week? It felt like the show that would never end. Is it just me or was the whole thing really weird? I love the Beatles but I think it was a mistake to have the singers perform Beatles songs two weeks in a row. I think everyone was out of steam and out of inspiration. Obviously, David Archuleta stole the show and Syesha Mercado sang "Yesterday" beautifully. David Cook's performance was rockin' until the weird "vocorder" thing, I have to agree with Simon. My favorites, Brooke & Jason, just didn't have it this week.
I don't know what else to say! I hope next week is better. Final verdict: country girl has got to go.

American Idol Top 12!

Wow, some of the contestants were really good tonight and some were really BAD (don't you love my articulate expert opinion? I have reached new heights of oratorical fireworks, I know.) Poor, poor David Archuleta, I can't believe he forgot the lyrics and the unfortunate country version of "8 Days a Week" by Kristi Lee Cook was disastrous! I don't think David is in any danger of leaving because he has an amazing voice but I think Kristi may be outta there. I can't decide on a favorite so here are the ones I love, love, loved from tonight:

Carli Smithson (is she the next Celine Dion?)

Brooke White (Beautiful artistry and such a lovely person)

Jason Castro (I could say the same exact thing I said about Brooke. Just lovely.)

David Cook (Green Day meets the Beatles, that was cool!)

Michael Johns (Sigh...)

Amanda Overmyer (The chick still rocks! I was glad to see her make a comeback.)

Well, that's what I think, how about you?

Jen

I have to admit...I like American Idol

Yes, it's true. Do you still like me? If not that's okay, I gotta be me! ;0)

Truth be told, I have been thinking about this post since Tuesday night after the top 12 guys performed but I finally had time and courage to write it tonight. My friend Becky is to be blamed for all of this! She got me into it in the first place! (Check out her American Idol post at http://avellafamily.blogspot.com/). I have not always been a fan. In fact, during the first few seasons I viewed the show with a certain amount of disdain. I did not understand the schedule (What? It's on three days in a row?) and when I did manage to watch it was always the results show which is absolutely no fun if you haven't seen the performances. I also thought it was way too cheesy. As Simon would say, "It was all a bit cabaret" for my taste. During my "I'm too good for American Idol" phase, Becky would tell me how fun and entertaining the show was but to no avail. Then I got Tivo and everything changed. I became an American Idol devotee overnight. But I was still "too good" to vote until last season. I liked Blake Lewis, the Seattle beatboxer, so much that I voted for him almost every week!

There should be an AA group for this.

Hello, my name is Jennifer and I voted on American Idol.

So, are there any other secret American Idol lovers out there? It's time to come out! And it's time for me to watch some Tivo!

Oh, I almost forgot! These are the contestants I like so far. Hopefully they weren't voted off tonight!

THE GIRLS

Fave girl so far. This chick seriously rocks. Love it!

What can I say? Totally adorable and WOW what a voice!

This girl was a great entertainer! She was so fun in a "like totally to the max" 1980's sort of way.

She is so sweet and has a beautiful voice but someone needs to tell her not to dance. Or move at all for that matter. Just sing.

THE GUYS

I think he's the best guy so far but a tad overconfident.

He was such a natural and just seemed like a sweet, mellow guy. I really liked his performance.

Too cute for words (like a little puppy) and waaaaaay talented.

I should probably put their names on here but I'm too lazy!

Signing out,

Jen

**Addendum**

I still don't like the results show. Talk about cheesy! Blech.

Childhood Music Memories

I think that everyone must have a “soundtrack” to their life. For me it’s the music that makes up my earliest childhood memories, the backdrop to my first kiss and my first breakup, long summer afternoons with my best friend, and many hours spent alone in my room suffering from teen angst. Amazingly, I remember the lyrics to most of these songs when I can hardly remember what I had for lunch yesterday or what time my next meeting is tomorrow. These songs have become a permanent fixture in my mind.

I grew up with a variety of music, a little bit country and little bit rock n’ roll, as the saying goes. My dad liked old time country western music like Don Williams, Merle Haggard, and Emmy Lou Harris. My mom on the other hand was firmly entrenched in 1960’s-1970’s pop-rock. She taught me to do “the twist” to the Beach Boys and we listened to her Herman’s Hermits record over and over again. I remember swinging on the school playground singing at the top of my lungs that song by Barry Manilow, “I write the songs that make the whole world sing…” and belting out the Roy Clark version of “Your Cheatin’ Heart” (at my parent’s request) when I was 8 years old.

I went through a Beatles obsession when I was in high school. I even had Beatles posters hanging up on my closet door and I would jump around my room lip-synching “Can’t Buy Me Love” into my hairbrush. My favorite teenage pastime, besides reading geeky sci-fi fantasy books, was sitting next to my stereo with a finger on the record button of the cassette player, creating mix-tapes from Casey Kasem’s Top 40 countdown.

Whenever I hear a Jimi Hendrix or Bob Marley song I think of my first kiss with a boy named Josh and the song “It Must Have been Love” by Roxette brings back my first heartbreak. To this day almost any song from the 1980’s brings on a serious case of nostalgia! Who couldn’t love “Rock Me Amadeus” by Falco or “Take on Me” by Aha? I’m only slightly kidding! I currently have many of these songs on my iPod (I love my iPod by the way)!

Joel and I have a dating soundtrack all our own. We used to go for long drives in his 1973 Ford Maverick (okay, 1971 Maverick--I stand corrected, Joel) listening to Steve Miller Band, Creedence Clearwater Revival and The Eagles. We had a little “retro” thing going, before retro was cool. Joel was also into the Christian “hair-bands” like Stryper and Holy Soldier (oh my). We also loved U2 and The Violet Burning.

So enough about me! I’m curious about you! What are your favorite songs from childhood? What memories do they bring back? I really want to know! Tell me, tell me tell me! Please? Remember, I just shared my really embarrassing list of music with you. Pretty please?

Jen