Category: Tunes

Highlights from the soundtrack of my life.

Benny-Bear

I first met Ben in the spring or the summer after my first year teaching. We were still living in our first apartment. He was the new security guard in our guard shack of our gated community. I was still pretty new there and since he was new, I stopped my car to introduce myself and Sean and tell him where we lived.

I remember one evening, Sean and I went to get Slurpee‘s and it was a really warm night. I offered to bring him back one when we came back home. That was when Ben and I became friends. He is slightly younger than me and he worked there for a number of years. We were living in our second apartment when he left. He came by to see our house when we first moved in and he doesn’t even live in Michigan anymore but we text.

It wasn’t until after I saw the movie, How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days that I started calling him, “Benny-Bear.” I don’t know that I have called him that to his face but he is saved in my phone as, “Benny” so I probably did! Well, last night I put Gavin DeGraw on shuffle and I heard this song:

It made me think of Benny and our first apartment. More Gavin DeGraw songs played and I thought vividly about cleaning the kitchen or the fridge and doing laundry when Sean slept. This morning, I still was thinking about those times and I texted Ben this picture:

I told him that I was thinking of him yesterday and in our texting conversation, realized that I have known him for some 15 years now. That’s kind of crazy!

ALMOST Forgotten Tune #85

I first heard my Mom humming this song a few days ago. I recognizes that song but it wasn’t until last night that I asked her to play it as she took the patches off of my knee. This song came out in 1986 when I was four years old. I am having a vivid memory of being outside Father Yagley Hall after a Girl Scouts meeting, so I must have been in fifth grade.

My friend and I were outside waiting for her mom to wrap things up inside so we could go home. She was the troop leader and my friend and I lived roughly a block away from each other, on the same street. I don’t recall what we were talking about but somehow our conversation led us to begin singing this song:

We both knew the words and because it was out when we were so young, the only reason we knew the words was because of our parents listening to this song on the radio stations when we were driving in the car with them. My friend and I didn’t see anything wrong with knowing this song but we both were just belting it out in the parking lot. I really had forgotten about this song until my Mom was humming it.

Tune #61 & #62 Inspired by GMFB

Regretfully, I was not able to watch much of GMFB yesterday. I missed hearing the breakfast table talk about the Lions and the draft pick and reasoning behind it. I caught the show about an hour late this morning so I watched the re-broadcast.

During the first broadcast, Kyle was talking about the first picks in this year‘s draft. The Giants are in at #5 and before Kyle started talking, he begin to sing. He sang, “Dave Gettleman” (New York Giants GM)

to this tune:

which got me to laugh! I absolutely love that song!

At the beginning of the second broadcast, Nate introduced the show and they begin talking about artist trilogies. They went around the table and asked for everyone’s favorite Group of three. Jane Slater was sitting in for Kay and she chose En Vogue but I remember them being a group of five. I think it was safe for Nate to choose The Chipmunks and I’m not ashamed to say that I was like 12 before I realized that it wasn’t real people singing like them.

I was hoping to hear Run DMC or Cypress Hill but the chipmunks was a solid choice. Kyle chose TLC and they specifically talked about this song:

That was also a solid choice that I can’t argue with. I ABSOLUTELY love this show and I am excited for what the off-season will hold!!!

March 2020 Faves

I am currently on season three, episode two of The Last Kingdom On Netflix. It was suggested to me by my brother, Dave. It’s about Vikings in 800s A.D. it’s pretty brutal but I loved the first two seasons! My brother told me that the third season is a nailbiter until the end but I needed to take a break because of the events happening in season three, episode two. As I am watching the show, I am reminded of is song that a friend shared with me during my first year teaching. I hear it playing in my head as soldiers it going into battle:

I’ve heard it playing in my head so many times and I’m a little nervous for the end of the show but I still have 6 1/2 episodes to go. I just needed a breather for a moment.

I am hard-core binging this show and can’t have other songs playing in my head at all until the show is finished. I think it’s crazy that it was in 2005 when I was first told about the song and I bought the CD that has it, but I hear it the entire time watching that show!

“The Best Day of my Life!”

OK, let me break down for you why last night was, “The Best day of my life!” I need to begin my explanation probably somewhere in the late summer when Sean and I were both sitting in the kitchen eating breakfast. I was wearing my newly purchased/received Georgia football T-shirt:

I really liked it because every T-shirt I get from Fanatics is really comfortable! This fact is really important to me because having MS makes you more sensitive to fabrics among other things. I did none on a university of Georgia T-shirt and I liked this one. Because I am a Michigan fan, OF COOURSE I had to see if they had a comparable shirt.

I had just found out the night before that they do. I asked Sean if he would rather have a gray Michigan shirt with blue writing shirt, like the one I was wearing, or a Navy Michigan shirt with yellow writing. He thought for a moment and told me that he would prefer the navy T-shirt. I nodded thinking that I’ll take the gray one! So, for Christmas, I bought him this shirt:

And therefore, I bought this shirt for myself:

As Sean opened his present, I told him that we will coordinate days of wearing the shirts so that we could be, “Matchers.” and he smiled as I laughed! Well, fast forward to last night. My Mom had arrived to my house late to get me ready for bed. She needs to come over to take the patches for my tens unit off of my knee so my skin doesn’t break down during the night.

Because she had come over late, we were just finishing up as Sean came home from being out with his friends. We decided it would be easier for Sean just to put me into bed because he is taller and stronger than my Mom. Sean took his jacket off as I was sitting in my wheelchair beside my bed. Wouldn’t you know?! He was wearing his Michigan football T-shirt at the same time I was wearing my Michigan football T-shirt!!!

I grabbed my shirt and pointed to his shirt, smiled, and begin to laugh! I told him that this was the best day of my life! He kind of chuckled at my extreme excitement for us to wear the same shirt. As he put me into bed, I told him that I have been waiting since Christmas for this day! He kind of shook his head and chuckled.

what can I say?! Simple pleasures man! I thought about writing a blog post recounting last night and I thought of that American Authors song.

This song came out in 2013 so when I was working at Barwis with Adam (Phil) it was common for the song to come on the radio. When I heard it one day, I said to Phil that, “I like this song!” Phil told me that I didn’t know this song and I corrected him by saying that I teach middle school and my son likes this song as well. For good measure, I counted along with the music, the part where they say, “2,3,4.” I only thought of this instance because I told Sean last night that sing us wear the same shirt on the same day was, “The Best day of my life!”

Tune #60 Inspired by GMFB

Just an update: I have worn my GMFB shirt twice since the debacle with the bleach! Go figure, the stain did NOT wash out!

I was really excited that the table came back from vacay but I was not wearing my shirt. I absolutely love this show! I heard random song soundbites that both Kyle and Nate made. I thought I would choose a different Tune #60 Inspied by GMFB. But then, Melissa Etheridge was on for two segments!

Now, I cannot get out of my mind seeing and hearing Peter Schrager belt out, “I’m the Only One”! It was golden! As I was thinking about writing this post, I thought about a former colleague. He played guitar and he brought it in and played some songs after school in my classroom. I told him that I wish I played the guitar and I told him how much I really wanted to play and wished I could because I would be able to play and belt out a song.

He asked me what song I would sing and I told him without hesitation that I would sing a Melissa Etheridge song because I love the emotion she put into her songs S she belted it out!

well, as things have worked out, I do NOT play the guitar and I no longer am able to sing. ##MSsucks! But I surely watched this video a number of times to make this my Tune #60 Inspired by GMFB:

For the Birds

This morning, as I waited for my mom to come over to help me and burn, I put my U2 playlist on shuffle. This is the song that I heard:

A flood of memories in an instant came rushing to my mind. The album came out during my first few years of teaching. I was semi-able-bodied back then. The most vivid memory is of a comedy show that we saw at the Fox theater. I had decided to be in my wheelchair because there was a long line wrapped around the building. We took our places at the end of the line and I will never forget a young man came up to me and asked me if I was going to the show.

I nodded and he motioned for me to follow him. I looked at the rest of my group and we all followed. He took us past the front of the line and to better seats than we had bought tickets for. I looked at my friend unsure of what was happening and I looked at the guys we went with and told them that, “I guess this walking stuff is for the birds.“

One of the guys clarified and told me that it actually isn’t but we got really good seats and another guy in my group brought me a beer. We heard this song on our way to a bar. It seems like a lifetime ago!

Hawkmoon 269

I stayed in my bed when Sean left for school this morning. He was running late and I did not sleep so well. I knew that my Mom was coming very shortly so I rolled onto my stomach (thanks Michael Rhoades!) and played, “Kite” that I posted yesterday. I clicked on a mix I guess because the second song I heard was:

I was immediately taken back to my first year teaching, when we used to have to administer the MEAP. (that really dates me!). I’m sure that I still have my, “Road Runner” poster that I made with the speech bubble, “MEAP, MEAP!” A friend and former colleague made a bunch of teachers a mixed CD to get us through administering the aMEAP. He is a fellow U2 lover and he was in the group I went to the U2 concert with.

My Mom doesn’t really like that song because she said it is very, “Yell-y.” Well, it is but I absolutely love it still! As I laid in my bed and waited for my Mom to get here, I thought of my first year teaching and my heart was warmed from all of the teachers I taught with!

Kite

Sean got me out of bed this morning and kissed me on my forehead when he left for school. I was feeling rather nostalgic and decided to listen to my U2 playlist on shuffle as I brushed my teeth. That playlist is so good!

Ny phone gave me the alert that it was on low battery so I went into my kitchen where my charger is plugged in and plugged it in while various u2 songs were still playing. My clean Yeti was on the counter so I decided to fill it with water.

Last Mother’s Day, my Mom purchased a 30 ounce Yeti cup with a handle for me. I use it every day. That’s for me to stay hydrated. I need to drink at least 30 ounces of water each day so my kidneys don’t hurt. I choose to drink it in the morning before I get ready for the day.

So, this morning, as I filled my cup in the kitchen sink and added the lemon essential oils to it, it was nice sitting in my house all by myself. I decided to sit in the kitchen because the sun had started to rise in such a way and I could see it through my kitchen window that faces my backyard. It was kind of gray but the sun was peeking out from behind my neighbor behind me’s really large pine tree. As I sipped my water, it glinted off the lid to my cup.

Because my playlist was on shuffle, I thought of everything from my first year teaching, to being in college, to going to the concert with my brother and some colleagues, and so many other memories for each song. I really enjoyed listening to it as I watched the sunrise in my backyard and slowly sipped my water.

I know all of the words to u2 songs but I can no longer sing them so I occasionally would mouth them along with the music. I enjoyed the silence and listening to songs as I was by myself in my house. I heard many of my favorite songs to start my day off well but there was one song I did not hear and I have not heard in a very long time.

It is this song that I played for the kids I student taught on my final day there. I think my commencements were that following weekend. I think I saw one student who was getting her bachelor’s degree at the commencement where I received my masters degree. I haven’t thought about this song for a while but I really wish it was one of the songs I heard this morning well I stared at the sunrise in the silence of my house. Since it was not, I am sharing it here: