Nostalgic Musical Interlude

The summer before my junior year of college was one of those great times that I look back at nostalgically. I was living alone at the time, working to pay my own bills by cleaning apartments. I would wake up at 5 each morning, clean apartments until 2, then go home and write until nearly 11 or midnight. It was the most productive time in my life. And I loved it.

The soundtrack for that time in my life was Natalie Merchant's Tigerlily, Violent Femmes, the music from the film Evita, and Indigo Girls. I think I wore most of those cassettes out (remember those?). I would pop a tape in and listen while I cleaned. When I got rid of most of my tapes, those were the ones I kept. They were just too special to me.

This afternoon, as part of my desire to get back to myself, I've set my Pandora radio streaming to Natalie Merchant. And it's been so energizing. Pandora (seriously I love this service) offers me not just Natalie, but Sarah McLaughlin, Jewel, Dido, The Cranberries, Fleetwood Mac, and The Sundays to name a few. It is the soundtrack of my college years. I'm reminded not only of the songs I loved that I'd forgotten about, but about those years of my life.

No matter what happens in my life, music has always been an energizing force. I have songs that make me think of middle school, high school, college, my early years of dating and marriage, and my more recent days. A single song can take me back. You can tell my mood by what song I'm singing. And if I'm alone, I'm always singing. Today it's Life is Sweet by Natalie Merchant.

Yes I Am That Geeky

I was sorting through some old pictures recently when I came across this gem of a picture and thought I'd share. This was my college dorm room. I was living there alone so all the pictures are exclusively my taste. Yes, I am that much of a geek. Original Star Wars poster. The poster right below is for The Professional with Jean Reno, a very young Natalie Portman, and Gary Oldman. Blade Runner is a sure sign of a geek. What you can only barely see in the mirror was my Raider of the Lost Ark poster. The other images came from magazines and mostly I just liked the image or the idea behind them. I remember all of them fondly. I still to this day pull out images that interest me. This room was totally me. And totally geeky. I just had to share.

College Memories and Braceless Walking

This is a quick post tonight. I planned to write something earlier but the library was calling and after picking up over a dozen children's books, I no longer had any real desire for writing. Instead I sat on the couch and drank endless cups of coffee and read children's books. It was a good day.

I figured I had a nice quiet evening to work up some children's book posts for the other blog, when Jeff came down the stairs and made me an offer I couldn't refuse. He had his final in night class tonight and asked me if I wanted to have dinner with him. Like I'm ever going to turn down dinner out. Ha! The catch was that we would either have to drive separately or I would have to go down to Drake with him and sit down there for a half hour or so while he took his exam. I opted to go with. I haven't been down to Drake in years and wanted to show him a secret section of the library that I'd discovered (ah the privileges of a librarian).

So after a tasty fast food Chinese dinner we headed down to Drake. He headed to the exam and I found myself a quiet table up by the library to sit and write. At first it seemed like any other place I sit and write but after a while I began to remember things. It's been over ten years since I graduated from Drake. And the memories just came flooding back. It was odd to sit there on campus and think about how young the women and men (and I use those terms loosely) were who walked by. I could almost be their mother. And I thought about how things had changed for me since I was a young college student. I've lost days, weeks, years that I know are not coming back. I've lost a bit of my innocence from that time and I've definitely become a bit more cynical. But I've gained a lot too. I have a new perspective on life and love and work. I've grown to understand a bit more about how the world works and what my place within it is. I've gained experience and knowledge and a bit more calm. And all this came to me as I sat at a table at my alma mater watching the college kids walk past.

It was a good experience and although I felt old sitting there, I was still a bit disappointed when it was time to go. I miss college (I'm an academic at heart) but I think more than anything I miss the freedom and innocence I had back then.

On a completely different note I'm on my second day of brace-free walking and am so incredibly happy that I'm glowing. I spent all yesterday with bare feet enjoying the sensation of carpet under my toes. It's something that has been missing from my life for the last four months. I went to therapy this morning (yes I apparently wasn't finished) and am finally starting to feel normal again. I don't have a lot of pain and so far my walking doesn't seem much different. I've even been walking on grass quite a bit today. So far no issue. I don't think I'll miss this brace.

Poetry Sunday

I know it's supposed to be Poetry Friday but I was going through some old files and found an old poem of mine. I wrote this back in college and was pretty proud of it then. I'm not sure what I think about it now. But thought I'd share some older work.

Conversation

Half a minute

of stagnant silence

becomes an eternity

of waiting.

Rustling nervously,

you toy with the menu

and a nearly empty coffee cup.

Thoughts race
through my mind.

What should I mention?

What should I say?

Just two strangers,

waiting for a train,

of thought.

You flip open the menu

for the fiftieth time,

and comment

on the Eggs Benedict,

hoping to catch a spark.

I hate eggs I say,

and you laugh.

We’re here

for breakfast you know.

I drop my eyes

and the topic dies.

You pour sugar

into another cup of coffee.

And finally,

you grow bored

of drinking.

Stand,

sigh

and leave.