In my asides (those little mini-posts up top there), I asked about music. I also asked on my LJ. I’ve now got a huge list of new stuff…or at least stuff that’s new to me. But that’s not the point of this post. (Yes, it does have a point for a change. So there.)
In answering a comment to Debbie, I started thinking about my list of must-have music, music that’s been with me for most of my life (or at least most of my adult life). Music that is in a stack of stuff to get uploaded to a new PC right away. Music that I can identify in two notes or less and in those two notes be instantly transported to another time and place in my head.
All of this got me to thinking about how big a part of my life music has always been. While the smell of Juicy Fruit gum makes me think of my grampy (God rest him) and grammy, hearing anything by Benny Goodman or Glenn Miller will make me a seven year old sitting in the back room of my grandparents’ house building with Legos or Lincoln Logs. (We didn’t have any of those fancy-schmancy video games back then. Shoot, we didn’t even have VCRs back then. TV was only good on Saturday mornings back then, kids. Really.)
But there is other music that takes me on a trip through high school to today. The Indigo Girls’ self-titled album can do that. I remember the very first time I heard “Closer to Fine.” I remember my BFF at the time (oh, how blithely we use that last F when we’re young) and I trying our damnedest to be able to harmonize like that. I remember us feeling a sense of…of longing. For what, we didn’t know. We just knew that there was more to the world than what we’d seen of it. We knew that we were somehow, someday going to find that “more”. We knew that sometimes, it would hurt, but we also knew that we’d live through it and become stronger for that pain. Amy and Emily were telling us these things, and since they laid down Truth (note that capital T), we believed.
Over 15 years later (I think I just had a minor stroke typing that), I’ve found that Emily and Amy were laying down Truth. Life is more than I knew back then. Life is more than I know now. And sometimes, it does hurt. Sometimes, it hurts like a sonuvabitch. But just like they promised, I’ve lived through it. I’ve come out stronger for it. And best of all, I’ve had one bitchin’ soundtrack through all of it.
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5 responses so far ↓
1 amy // Mar 8, 2008 at 11:19 am
Great post!! I have music that affects me like that too. Like somehow certain memories are stored in a CD in my head and when I hit “play” the music and the assiciated memories all come on like a mental music video. I have smells that are like that too.
I’m going to up my offer to $20 for that cookie recipe. Sirriously — girlfriend I have to have it. Member that Steph? Lemon iced chocolate spice drops? Your friend D has the cookie part of my life in her hands (and it’s a rather large part I might add).
2 d // Mar 8, 2008 at 1:28 pm
Amen to that dude. I can gauge my life and where I was by the music I was listening to at the time. It’s like “lets see…Pearl Jam’s 10 had just come out so I was in my senior year of high school.
Bon Jovi “I’ll be there for you” I danced to in 8th grade with my longtime crush, John Zarvos.
Music helps me keep track of time dude. And it brings me back to places and people.
Word.
3 Steph // Mar 8, 2008 at 9:38 pm
Amy - LOL. That’s D’s recipe. I will point out your request post-haste.
Also? Yes! There are some videos I’m glad were never made (or at least I’ve never seen) because for me, there’s already a video in my head, and the “real” video would just ruin it.
d - Hey, dude? Amy’s jonesing for your cooooookies. The really faboo spiced chocolate ones? Yeah, she’s ready to shiv a bitch for that recipe. Hook her up, please? :grin:
Gawd. I feel all old and stuff now. LOL. My 8th grade Bon Jovi? “You Give Love a Bad Name”. :dies:
4 d // Mar 8, 2008 at 9:42 pm
Steph Consider it done!
Amy The Holy Grail of Spiced Chocolate Balls:
Spiced Chocolate Balls
1 1/2 c. Crisco (melted)
3 eggs
1 tsp. orange juice and grated rind
1 tsp. vanilla
4 c. sifted flour
1 1/2 tbsp. liquid coffee
4 tsp. baking powder
5 tbsp. Hershey’s cocoa
2 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
2 tsp. cloves
2 tsp. nutmeg
1/2 c. chopped walnuts
1 ½ c. of sugar
4tbs of milk (if your mixture still looks dry, keep adding a tbs of milk at a time until the dough comes together. I use nonfat milk, so sometimes it takes more than 4).
Sift all dry ingredients (except nuts) together. Add shortening, coffee, orange juice, grated rind, vanilla and eggs (slightly beaten). Add nuts and mix well. Roll into balls (about 3/4 size of a golf ball). Bake on ungreased pan until toothpick comes out clean. Bake at 375 for 20 minutes.
After they’ve cooled, dip them in icing and let them drain on a rack.
Icing:
1lb of powdered sugar
¼ cup of milk (keep adding milk until it gets thin)
1/3 cup of softened butter
¼ tsp of lemon extract
5 Steph // Mar 8, 2008 at 9:59 pm
d - Thank you. Also? YUM!! If these weren’t “Christmas” cookies in my head, I might make them tomorrow. LOL