June 14, 2009
Lyrical Explanations
"That's why I am unlikely to agree." (Dave Matthews Band - Why I Am.)
What a great line.
Which led to pondring other favorites.
"If there's an answer, it's just that it's just that way, when you're looking for space." (John Denver - Looking for Space.)
"Is this just vulgar electricity, is this the edifying fire." (Joni Mitchell - Come in From the Cold.)
"We've all gone crazy, mourning all day and mourning all night, falling over ourselves to get all of the misery right." (Andrew Lloyd Webber - Oh! What a Circus from Evita.)
"Jane doesn't think a man can ever be faithful." (Barenaked Ladies - Jane.)
"Oh, how I hate to see October go." (Barry Manilow - When October Goes.)
"Control has left me, and I can't feel another thing." (Hootie & the Blowfish - Sad Caper.)
"Don't know where you're going. Don't know what you're doing. Hell, it might be the highway to heaven. And it might be the road to ruin." (Marc Cohn - Strangers in a Car.)
"I said to myself it's time for me release my vicious rhyme I call my masterpiece. Now people in the house this is just for you..." (Sugarhill Gang - Rapper's Delight.)
That last one is funny for me. I recall, vividly, standing at my locker in 1979. The girl next to me was named Jackie. Jackie was singing this song. It intrigued me. Still does. It's my fifteen-minute project song.
And sometimes if my head is busy before I go to sleep, I think of this song. It immediately distracts me. Always has. I'm usually asleep by the time the fly fly girl with the sexy lean goes into the party.
Posted by Angela Tanner at 08:05 AM | Comments (0)
February 22, 2009
At the Intersection of Meat Loaf and Dave Matthews
I have rightly, previously, blamed one Mr. Dave Matthews for putting the idea of New Orleans in my head. Now I'm going to blame one Mr. Addy for making my head go round and round.
Meat Loaf for breakfast.
It's all coming back to me now.
Posted by Angela Tanner at 10:54 AM | Comments (0)
January 14, 2009
Y Otra Vez Damas y Mujeres, Deje su Mensaje
Shea had part of a school project due today. Her school has a web portal where she gets and saves her homework. Just as she was finishing up last night, my DSL decided it wasn't going to work.
It's gone off sporadically in the past for seconds or even minutes, but it always comes back. Well, last night it didn't come back. I put her to bed and said when it came back I would finish the saving and printing of her paper for her. I waited two hours and nothing, so I called customer service. They did their over the phone diagnostics and that didn't solve it, so I had to make an appointment for someone to come out.
I wavered between hopeful and cynical that they would get an appointment quickly for me. (But they did, for this morning, between 8:00 and 12:00.) Then one wonders whether the person they send out will be on time, call beforehand like you ask them to, then know how to fix the issue, etc.
Well at 8:02 AM I got a call. I told the guy I was dropping my daughter at school and would be at home in 15 minutes. He was here when I got home, knew exactly what he was doing, was friendly, and changed two phone jacks that he didn't even have to. Took him about an hour and everything is done and I've got my internet back.
Now I can finish my (daughter's) homework. Mommy is learning a whole lot about electromagnets. I had to send a note with Shea for her teacher explaining that Shea did have the work done, and once my DSL was fixed I'd print it out and bring it to school today.
It used to be "my dog ate my homework." Now it's "the DSL line at my house went down."
The problem here at home was two wires that had lost their pairing, just due to age, and an open connection on one of the phone jacks inside the house. If I actually had a home phone plugged in, I probably would have noticed the problem sooner. I have the line, I just don't use it. It came with the DSL. Maybe now that everything is properly filtered I'll be able to have a home phone again. So the telemarketers have something to do.
The phone that I do have to plug in has an answering machine that can answer in English or Spanish. I used to turn it on Spanish just to hear the reactions of the callers. Anyone that knew me knew it was my phone, but strangers never thought they had the right number. Kind of funny.
And now that I think of it some more, it's very likely I will set it to answer in Spanish again.
Posted by Angela Tanner at 10:53 AM | Comments (0)
January 10, 2009
No Place Like Home
But I have to say, seeing Mount Fuji from the air was nothing short of breathtaking.
Three on-time flights. Well two on-time and one early, thanks to a 176 mile an hour tailwind from Nagoya to Detroit.
The flight from Guam to Japan was nearly empty. I had the entire first-class cabin to myself. (And all the fresh fruit, coffee, and raisin bread I wanted for breakfast.) The hotel in Guam left me a little basket on the first day I was there, along with a plate of fruit and some bottled water. The little basket was the perfect size for a small and highly fragile trinket I brought back for Shea. I had the basket in my hand or near me the entire trip home. On the flight from Guam the basket got its own seat. (It didn't want any breakfast.)
It was this trip's turtle.
Which will require some explanation.
Several years ago, Bill, Shea and I went to Cozumel. Shea found a small glass turtle on a thin glass rod that she had to have. The turtle got hand-carried by me or Bill the entire trip home. We found ourselves saying, "where's the turtle," all the way back.
Last summer when we went to Bonaire, I put all three of our passports and other important stuff into a zippered case designed for such, and right before we left for the airport, I held out the case to Bill and Shea and said, "this is the turtle." And they both understood without my saying anything else.
And like before, "turtle" was part of our vocabulary. Where's the turtle. It's in the turtle. Did you put it back in the turtle.
So the basket was my turtle this trip.
When I got home, I was comforted to find an alleged recent wind storm didn't do any damage at my house. Also comforted by the get-home routine.
I walk in the back door, put my (two) bags down, and immediately go change all my clothes, brush my teeth, and put my hair up. Then I unpack the suitcase and backpack.
Much the same as usual except this time I have several souvenirs to unpack, and Yen in my wallet when I dump out all my change.
And tattoo maintenance to do. I went back Friday evening. The artist had made three sketches, all of which exceeded my wildest expectations. But one spoke to me right away, and so it was done, to perfection, about an hour later.
He also filled in a small spot on my firedancer that, once all healed, was a little lighter than the rest. It was unfortunate that the light spot was at her crotch. Otherwise I probably would have left it.
When I showed it to him he said, "that's going to take me all day," then laughed really loud. He and the other guy that worked there were both very nice.
Everyone there was nice. And if you ever go to Guam, I highly recommend the Hilton. It was spotless. The elevators were fast. They had great food, a coffee shop in the lobby, lots of stores, a great pool and pool bar, nightly entertainment, and some seriously comfortable beds. With perhaps the greatest pillows EVER, and the smoothest writing hotel pens I have ever encountered.
When I checked out this morning I asked for an extra one, and came home with a whole handful.
So what I brought back that I didn't take with me.
Seven t-shirts.
Two magnets.
Shea's prize.
Plus the turtle.
My prize - a large red Swarovski pendant.
Two airline amenity kits.
One tiny jar of sand from Asan Beach.
Eleven hotel pens.
Five coasters.
Three rocks.
One book.
Fifteen hotel-turn-down-service pieces of chocolate.
(Now fourteen.)
The usual papers - hotel receipt, car receipt, boarding passes.
And one unusual - half a piece of blue paper with the name, phone number, and email address of the very handsome guy on the second floor of the plane on the flight back from Japan.
All of which fit in the same two bags I took with me.
Posted by Angela Tanner at 05:30 PM | Comments (0)
December 31, 2008
Dropping the Ball
I've had my sloppy sweats on for hours, and am surprised to find myself vertical at this late hour of 10:26 PM. I could actually make it to midnight.
This year finished up way too busy for my tastes, with far too many west coast trips. So when they were finally done, I skidded to a halt for the two weeks left in the year.
Well, mentally anyway. For a bit. I had shopping and wrapping and decorating to do. Somehow it got done.
Then I had a house to clean to host Shea and eight of her friends for a birthday ice skating party and sleepover.
(I stayed in the den of the garage for most of the night. I was called upon for food preparation and turning on the DVD player, but otherwise they did a fine job amusing themselves, as I suspected they would.)
They also actually slept, which I did not think they would. Shea said they ran out of things to do, which I find hysterical. But it was pretty funny to walk through the house to the coffee pot the next morning through all the bodies and blankets.
On Christmas Eve at my parent's house, my niece was sitting at the kitchen table, with many of us standing around her. She says to me, "hey Aunt Angie, I was online the other night and I saw the dancer you have on your tattoo on a Dave Matthews album."
"Noooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo," I said back to her.
My sister later told the story of the towel that my Mom would put over Dave's picture when she came to my house. (That was after I put the picture on the wall. When it was sitting on the piano, she would turn it over, or turn it around. Also very funny. But I tell her that until I have one of me and Dave to replace the one of just Dave, it's staying put.)
It's been a good year. A busy year. With many stories to tell, and too little time that wasn't spoken for by higher priorities.
Soon come.
Posted by Angela Tanner at 10:26 PM | Comments (0)