Happy Birthday, Mom! ...and a Weekly Check-In

I love you!! Hope you celebrate with wine and something non-compliant and delicious!

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

I think we're caught up after going out on the town Sunday night. ;) We saw The Church again. We met the band!! It was pretty awesome, walking into that room behind the stage to the VIP Meet and Greet, seeing them all sitting in there, waiting for us. Surreal. There were only about a dozen of us with passes. We got to know some other super-fans and even exchanged phone numbers (weird)! The whole thing was amazing... but it made us TIRED. Guess what? 43 and 48 are not so young anymore, haha! Sunday night didn't end until 2:00 am. Yes, we went to work the next day. Yes, at the normal time in the early morning. It's just what you have to do, you know? Or, it's what you have to do when you don't have an "unlimited" vacation-days policy, a la all the new Millennial-run companies. (SO UNFAIR.) We put ourselves to bed at 9:30 Monday night.

Anyway, we've been sleeping HARD since then and feeling pretty much back to normal, although I have been taking it suuuuuper easy on the dinner menu for the week. I feel kinda ashamed.

M - hot dogs with chili, and frozen tots. 3 hours sleep, don't bother me.

T - chili with rice, and rotel cheese dip with chips. so I cooked, and actually there were tomatoes in both the chili and the rotel, so there's vegetables. maybe I don't feel so bad after all.

W - tonight is Shawn's night to cook and I planned frozen Fish Sticks/Fish Tacos. I made some jalepeno tartar sauce this morning. What to go with it....? probably Kraft mac and cheese and maybe a little salad (you up for that, dear husband?)

TH - yeah, that's going to be a fast food night in between piano and choir.

F - I have some chicken breasts, and maybe I can pull something amazing out of my hat. Funnily, Friday has become a big cooking night this semester, since Thursdays are nuts and I can relax the schedule on Fridays. I kinda like the challenge of seeing what I have in the pantry. (Reminds me: I need to restock pantry staples garlic salt and PB/grape jelly. Not for dinner, just for stocking.)  

S - dropping Alex off at a co-ed party (still surprising: he's 13!) and going out to dinner without him. The mom who's hosting his party said adults can stay if they like, she'd have drinks and snacks for parents. But I asked Alex what he wanted me to do, and he said, "Hmmm. You can drop me off." Knowing that the host-mom is one of my best friends! Ha! Thanks a lot, kid! But I'll skip it for his sake.

Next week, I promise to cook some balanced meals. Hidden spinach, coming to a casserole near you.

-----

I've been reading non-fiction lately. Two memoirs. The first was The Glass Castle, which Mom pointed out in Barnes & Noble a few weeks ago, and reminded me there's a movie coming out. I really didn't know a thing about it, but wow, was it interesting. About a family with what I would call negligent, irresponsible parents, and how their kids survived their very odd, unmoored, poverty-stricken upbringing. It was an eye-opener, and I want Alex and Kate both to read it. I think it will make them much more appreciative of their nothing-short-of-amazing lifestyle. (In comparison, I mean.)

And next, I downloaded Wild from the e-library, by Cheryl Strayed. I love it. About her hike on the Pacific Coast Trail. Strangely, I've read a lot of hiking memoirs. Well, this is the third but it feels like a lot. Into Thin Air was the first, by Jon Krakauer, and then A Walk in the Woods by Bill Bryson. Loved them both. This one's the first I've read by a woman, and it's awesome as well. I do not understand why someone would do a months-long hike like that by him or herself. Ever. I cannot fathom. I've almost finished it, and now I want to re-read the other two. 

Reading, I think, is my preferred way to party on a Sunday night (even though our last Sunday really WAS epic, thank you, honey, for the tickets and for sharing your favorite music with me all these years). 

You Are Young

We saw Keane in concert last week and it was wonderful, amazing - so moving. They're an incredible band. Strangeland, their latest CD, arrived in our mail 2 days ago and I've been listening to it this morning. They opened with this song last week, and I liked it a lot. I thought of it as a song for young lovers. Very sweet.

Today it hit me as a song from parent to child, and my breath caught in my throat and the tears fell unexpectedly. A wish for our kids.

Very jumbled and at peace

Lots of things swirling around in my head today, not many of which are very interesting to anyone but me. We had a great week and weekend celebrating KT's birthday. She didn't get pinkeye (thank you for your good vibes!), all the grandparents were here, we cooked, we went out, we let them babysit, she dressed up in all her princess and fairy stuff and was just the epitome of cute, and now they're gone and we're getting settled back into the rhythm of our collective daily life. I need that rhythm. I really missed it, as much as I love having everyone to visit - and I really do, having people to cook for and serve is very satisfying in its own way.

My son continues to delight me -- as the older brother, he was a star at the birthday party of 8 little 2- and 3-year old girls. He let KT be the center of attention, played his role just right, and helps "take care" of her so well on a daily basis. I watched him, this morning, as she whined and fussed for THE FAIRY ONE, an episode of Dora that he couldn't translate to the actual title, to find for her. He wanted to help her so badly, but she kept screaming at him, THE FAIRY ONE THEFAIRYONE, like a 3-year-old does, and he was very patient, up to the point he got tears in his eyes because he couldn't Figure Her Out. Poor thing. He's a great brother. He also READS constantly which is another topic altogether, obviously. This morning I was thinking of a few books I'm anxious for him to read soon: Little House in the Big Woods, Superfudge, Choose Your Own Adventure. Such fun.

DH and I got to attend another concert by our favorite band on Tuesday night. I've seen them 4 times now, more than I've seen any other band (besides a local one I followed in college). It was an amazing night, starting with the spring weather, a just-the-two-of-us chips and salsa, dinner and margaritas... then a pleasant meeting of new "friends" in line before the concert, or at least 2 dudes who also love the music as much as we do (they drove up from Florida)... getting great seats, enjoying the music so much... tweeting about it like a complete dork during the show (me)... taking pictures and just feeling very graced by the art and talent of 4 old-ish guys who can still very much rock the house. I used to not like when the guitars would soar and crash SO LOUDLY, but over the years I've come to really love the dissonance and the roar -- not to mention, I know so many more of the melodies now -- and just marveling at how the musicians are so capable, and clearly love what they do. It's a joy to watch, really. I tweeted, too, that I do love a man playing a bass guitar. I don't know - I prefer watching it to the acoustic, which surprises me because I LOVE the acoustic guitar's sound. Something very intense about the bass, though. Maybe because it's the deep beating heart, sometimes unnoticed, of the song, and that seems romantic to me. I love bass singing voices, too, and very low notes. The lead singer of The Church is a bass baritone for sure.

I laugh because, when I was pregnant with AJ, a suggestion for a name came from DH -- Kilbey, the last name of the very same lead singer. I was pretty sure he was joking, but at any rate, was firmly against it at the time. And still am... but now I at least have a healthy appreciation of WHY he would suggest it for his firstborn son. I respect the inspiration, where before I didn't have a clue. :) I love that we're able to share this years-long music experience as a couple.

Lastly, I've been trying to be more consistent about exercising and so far it's going well. I've logged 3 entire days in a row. Wooo. I will report more on that if and when there is something to report, but I'm feeling good about it.

Day 25, T-ball, and The Church band

It's at the point now where I have to keep Shredding (hate it as a Verb) because THANK GOD it's nearly over. Not that I'm planning to quit exercising, but I think most people who do this particular workout for the full 30 days get SICK OF IT after a while, amiright? (Please say I'm right.) I am jonesing for my Yoga/Pilates DVD. On the other hand, I am scared that I won't keep up the momentum, will fall right back onto my spot on the couch, with a handful of M&Ms to fill the Jillian void. I don't WANT that, but that's what has traditionally happened, so I expect it to. I'll do my best to fight it, but that'll be new for me. I am really grateful that DH has kept up his workouts since January. 4 days a week, without fail. It's been impressive.

So far I'm not noticing a great physical difference in the place I want to see a difference. My shoulders seem to be getting slight definition (be still my heart, if I someday get to see my collarbones for the first time in my life!), but the post-babies tummy is still a post-babies tummy. Oh well, I suppose I'll have to pretend to feel good about my heart health. HA. Everyone knows that deep down we just want to look nice in a tankini. Okay, enough of this nonsense.

* * *

T-ball tonight. It's the second game in our tournament series. We lost the first 22-0, did I tell you? It was a sad situation.... for the crazy parents/coaches who think this is IMPORTANT or something. DH and I are of the opinion that if the kids are having fun and learning the basic rules, it's ALL GOOD. In contrast, the head coach went to the ballpark last night and the night before, when we had off-nights, to SCOUT the COMPETITION.

Kee-razy. I think I mostly like T-ball because it means I don't have to plan dinner on those nights.

* * *

We had Date Night last weekend. Went to hear one of DH's all-time favorite bands, The Church. It was the last stop on their 30th Anniversary tour. Thirty. Years. OfRockandRoll. Pretty amazing. Maybe you don't remember the Church; they only really had 1 hit in the U.S., "Under the Milky Way," which I'm sure you'd know if you heard it. My only memory of that song from high school is being about 15, and at a party where all the lights were low, and I knew someone was drinking beer and shouldn't be, and I felt uncomfortable and unsure. So I just stared quietly at VH-1, where the blue, watery-looking video was playing.

I never knew anything about their other music until I met DH, but when he put one of their songs on a mix CD for me early in our relationship (a mix CD! how quaint!), called 'Almost With You,' I was hooked. I've seen them twice before, and we both agreed it was one of -- if not the -- best show(s) we've ever seen. Not just of The Church, but of any band. (I feel like I say that after every concert I've seen in the last 10 years. Bon Jovi, U2, Billy Idol...) It was a small venue, and they chatted with the audience -- literally bantering with people between songs -- and there was this enormous mutual respect going on. Because they've been around so long, the band members have come to this profound gratitude for their fans, I think -- who've stuck by them through the requisite breakups, overdoses, and comebacks. And the fans... well, the type of music they play has a lot to do with fan loyalty, I think. It's deep, thought-provoking, with intelligent lyrics and memorable, but complicated and sometimes dark melodies. I think it just grabs hold on a deeper emotional level than a lot of music, so the fans are much more connected.

One thing we loved was the audience. Someone commented to me before the show started that "the guys have all gotten so OLD!" meaning the band. But I looked around at the fellow concert-goers... uh, yeah. If you give a flip about this band, you're pretty much old. The show started exactly at 8:30, as promised (OLD). They did 3 encores, but we were home before midnight the way God intended.

It was really great, and we're both still on concert-high, where all we want to listen to is The Church. I love that. What's the latest show you've seen?

This I believe

On Saturday, we went to the U2 concert. I have had a hard time, since then, describing it to people who've asked, "how was it?" because it was, without a doubt, indescribable. Unforgettable. Unexpected. And unbelieveable. That's the word I've used most often. Unbelieveable.

Of course, we expected a fantastic show. But not the feeling of gratitute. Not the CALM that seemed to be part of the whole thing, even amidst the crazy loud WONDERFUL loud that is rock-and-roll music. It was calm. It was peaceful. It was Good.

It's interesting, because as much as U2 is the world's biggest band, and as grateful and happy that I am to have seen them during the height of their fame and talent and glory -- when they appeared onstage I didn't scream and shake like so many Beatles fans, with the thrill of seeing them in the Same Room. I just felt...um... content. Concrete. It was Right, the way I felt about them being there. Maybe it's because they have so many performance videos, or because I've watched Rattle and Hum about six (or ten) times. But I felt kind-of a sense of completeness -- like, here is this band that I've seen so many times before, and all it is, is perfect.

Each one of them, Bono, Edge, Larry, and Adam, is just so solid -- they're... pillars, so incredibly strong in their talents. (We heard Larry last night on 60 minutes, and when Ed Bradley asked him why doesn't he do big drum solos, he responded, "Because I'm not that good and I have to concentrate pretty hard." Hahahahahahaha. That made me laugh. Not that good. Yeah.) The way their show is set up, there's a camera on each of the performers, and of course the requisite huge video screens. I thought that was perfect. Each of them deserves -- and gets -- equal amounts of respect as musicians. Without one of them, there's no band. So it was good to be able to watch them all as individuals.

The opening was the most gorgeous display, maybe even "enactment," of a song that I've ever witnessed. Surprisingly, they've opened most of their shows on this tour with "City of Blinding Lights." Which is a great song, but not the one you hear all over the radio. It caught me off-guard. But it couldn't have been more perfect. The set had these huge panels of lightbulbs -- strung together and hanging down from the rafters, not on boards like the old days. Those panels served both as light apparatus and as video screens, which was simply amazing. During "Lights," obviously, they became bright lights stretching out over the crowd, showcasing the glitter confetti that was released to fall over us. It was magnificent -- such a celebration! (And, I'll admit somewhat greedily, it felt like U2 was celebrating US, the fans. Actually that's not greedy, I think they were. Bono said at one point during the show, "You've given us a great life." I love when stars thank their fans. He followed it with, "And in return.... we don't make crap music." !! All that he is, and he's also a comedian. So funny.)

They sang "Sunday Bloody Sunday," and Bono said "This is your song now, America." Touched my heart, made me so, so sad. They sang, "Where the Streets Have No Name," which I've never really understood 'til hearing it live. They sang, "Bullet the Blue Sky," which probably isn't everyone's favorite, but it is one of mine since I discovered them with that album. They sang "Mysterious Ways" and pulled one lucky fan onstage to dance, and we all hated her loved her. We sang "Pride/In the Name of Love" and "Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For," and I absolutely had tears spilling over. This is what the world needs more of, my friends -- thousands of people standing, singing about LOVE and kindness, together, at the tops of our lungs. It's simply amazing to join together like that -- it's what the world should be.

Forgive me for being SUCH a sap about this event. At one point I thought to myself, "Is this, like, a defining moment in my adult life?" And you know what? I think it was. Not that all of a sudden I'm going to go out and save the world with my activism, or start following the band around like an uber-fan, but it just made me aware. Bono's always spoken out about world issues, but it's not just his schtick -- it's the right thing for him to do. He is a good person. And we all ought to be part of that. Not for him, but for each other. I think my warm feelings about the concert are also becuase U2 has been important at every stage of my life. At age 12, it was "With or Without You," and I didn't even know or care who sang it. But I knew it. In 9th grade, I really became a fan and bought some albums, and my best friend and I cooed over her date with a Senior who took her to see Rattle and Hum, the first "concert" movie of its kind. I was just starting college with "Actung Baby," and played that CD over and over and over in my dorm room. The songs are just part of all of us.

U2, the Vertigo tour, was for me like one big enjoyable sermon, with Bono preaching his gospel of tolerance and human rights and One-ness. The concert ended with everyone singing "People... Have the Power...People... Have the Power..." Power to what? -- to change lives. To help each other. To be together. To love. That's what I felt we got out of it. A great reminder -- along with an enormous helping of all our favorite life-songs -- to love each other. I believe this is what Bono intends for us to get from his life, and from their music. (I sort-of believe he's reached demi-god status in my generation, or at least prophet-status.) I believe this is going to stay with me a long time (I still haven't been able to listen to music other than U2 yet.) And I believe it's nothing short of God's own work that they do.

I GOT U2 TICKETS!!

All's right with the world.