Music Monday: As Real As You Need Me To Be

After ConGregate, I started really thinking about my World of Arcstone series...and I may have come up with a third book. I mean, I already have a third book idea but it's starting to take up space in my mind on the daily. This song jumped into the middle of that and while it was made for a movie that I've used as a comp title for Rift and Storm before, it was just one of those moments...like the time that I almost had to pull over to write a scene for Red because of a song that came up on the playlist. Anyway...enjoy. I mean, it's NIN after all.

Music Monday: I try to think about...well, not Elvis.

ConGregate 2025 is in the books and I'm knackered. But before I go sleep, let me leave you with one of the best songs to sing along to in the car on I-85 in SO MUCH TRAFFIC... (lyrics below)




I try to think about Elvisby Patty Loveless
Oh, I'm sorry, I forgot where I was
One, two, three, fourI try to think about Elvis, MemphisOprah in the afternoonI try to think about palm trees, fig leavesThe creature from the Black LagoonI try to think about high heels and good dealsAnything to get me throughI just can't concentrateYou're all I think about these days
I try to contemplate the cosmosAnd what goes 'round and 'round the sky at nightI try to think about the champagne, freight trainsSlowly rolling out of sightI try to focus on the headlines, the street crimesEvery time I think I mightI just can't concentrateYou're all I think about these days
My mind wanders where it willAnd when it settles right on youI forget what I should sayI forget what I should do
My mind wanders where it willAnd when it settles right on youI forget what I should sayI forget what I should do
Come on, Patty, get it together
I try to think about Shakespeare, leap yearThe Beatles or the Rolling StonesI try to think about hair-do's, tattoosSushi bars and saxophonesI try to think about the talk shows, new clothesBut I guess I should have knownI just can't concentrateYou're all I think about these daysYou're all I think about these days

Music Monday: My Friend...

For today's Music Monday, I'm doing something a little different. The disastrous flooding in Texas that caused campers, counselors, and staff at Camp Mystic to lose their lives has hit close to home for me, and this blog post will be a bit more personal than most of my Music Mondays.
One thing about me that probably seems strange to those that only know me as an adult is that I was a camper from the time I was a rising third grader (8 years old) until I was a rising senior in high school (17) and then worked at the same summer camp for five years after that. Camp was my life, and as a child of a clergy family (Preacher's Kid or PK), it was even more so. We moved about every four years until I was in 8th grade (13) and then after seven years so that I could graduate from high school. They then moved again with my sister having only one year in my high school and three at the school from which she graduated. I went to work at camp that summer, leaving from one home and returning at the end of the season to another one. 

Me and a camper, summer of 1992 (?)

For these girls and the staff, Camp Mystic was home just like Camp Glisson in North Georgia was for me, and while I can't begin to fathom the horror, the fear, and the loss felt by families involved, one quote stands out. Parents of a camper lost in the flooding said that for them, their child would be forever living her best life at the camp she loved. May all kids have such a safe place where they are covered up with love like Mystic and, in my experience, Glisson. The song for today is one I sang all those years on Fridays when, as a camper, I had to go back home with my parents or, as a counselor/section leader, I watched these precious campers that I'd folded into my heart leave for their homes. It's a lot more upbeat in the video below than it was when I was a camper, and I like that change. 
Please, if you are able, find ways to help and support the Camp Mystic families. At the time of this writing there are still 10 campers unaccounted for--and loads of ways to help them in this horrible time. From my camp home, via Facebook: "To offer support beyond prayer, consider contributing to the United Methodist response coordinated through the Rio Texas Conference: Advance #2050 Guadalupe River Flood."
To my Glisson family, I'll see you in the sky, if not before... (lyrics below)

My Friendsung by Camp Glisson Staff, summer of 2012
My friend, I think of you dailyBecause I care, and it's trueThat though we've shared a lot togetherIt's very rare that I see you
And I want you to know that God loves youAnd that I love you tooAnd that even if we're hardly ever nearI'm talking to him about you
And I'll be praying for you every morningAs I start of the day with the LordAnd I'll be praying that you're walking with JesusAnd abiding in His word
For you see, this Jesus of NazarethHe means everything to meFor He has taken my life and He has freed my soulAnd He's calmed an angry sea
And I want you to know that God loves youAnd that I love you tooAnd that even if we're hardly ever nearI'm talking to him about you
And I'll be praying for you every morningAs I start of the day with the LordAnd I'll be praying that you're walking with JesusAnd abiding in His word
Well, I don't know when I'll see you againA month, a year, or maybe moreBut if your heart belongs to the SaviorI'll see you in the sky if not before
And I want you to know that God loves youAnd that I love you tooAnd that even if we're hardly ever nearI'm talking to him about you
And I'll be praying for you every morningAs I start of the day with the LordAnd I'll be praying that you're walking with JesusAnd abiding in His word

Music Monday: Absolutely Bonkers

I think I've mentioned before that I'm working on a project with my adopted older brother, Tony. While I read vampire fiction (Black Dagger Brotherhood, anyone?), I've always wanted to write it and even have several manuscripts languishing in the deep freeze of my laptop. So I did what I always do when I'm starting a new project and come up with a playlist that speaks to the worldbuilding or the characters or just keeps me interested while I'm writing.
This version is from the opening ceremonies from the London Olympics and reminds me of our male main character. He is absolutely bonkers in the best way, and I can't wait to share this story with all of you! 



BonkersDizzie Rascal and Armand Van Helden
I wake up everyday, it's a daydreamEverything in my life ain't what it seemsI wake up just to go back to sleepI act real shallow but I'm in too deepAnd all I care about is sex and violenceA heavy bass line is my kind of silenceEverybody says that I gotta get a gripBut I let sanity give me the slip

Some people think I'm bonkersBut I just think I'm freeMan, I'm just living my lifeThere's nothing crazy about meSome people pay for thrillsBut I get mine for freeMan, I'm just living my lifeThere's nothing crazy about me
Bonkers
I wake up everyday, it's a daydreamEverything in my life ain't what it seemsI wake up just to go back to sleepI act real shallow but I'm in too deepAnd all I care about is sex and violenceA heavy bass line is my kind of silenceEverybody says that I got to get a gripBut I let sanity give me the slip (Bonkers!)
Some people think I'm bonkersBut I just think I'm freeMan, I'm just living my lifeThere's nothing crazy about meSome people pay for thrillsBut I get mine for freeMan, I'm just living my lifeThere's nothing crazy about me

Music Monday: I'm Back!

 Wow, a lot of things have happened since I last posted. I am done with my active cancer treatments and reconstruction surgeries. I managed to survive Satan's Spanx (don't ask). I've been to three shows to sell and sign books. And since January, the world has blown up over and over again.

I chose Ordinary World for today because of this line: "Where is the life that I recognise? Gone away." In a lot of ways, personal and professional, this line resonates. But in terms of my writing, I'm closing in on publishing a novella (I know! I had no idea I could write a short book either!) that covers Taeben's back story or, as the kids say nowadays, his villain origin story. I have a reader who felt that he was a bit two dimensional and basically a few clicks away from tying Gin to the train tracks and twisting his moustache. So I started exploring how he got to be who he was in the trilogy and Darkness, and this novella became my last ever NaNoWriMo. 

Ah, yet another thing that has changed. I'm pretty mad about that whole thing but that is a topic for another day. Anyway, Taeben's origin story deals with a lot of frustration over plans that were never realized or not realized in the way he wanted...and so this song seems perfect. "But I won't cry for yesterday, there's an ordinary world somehow I have to find..."

(Lyrics in the video.)

Music Monday: Of Throwbacks and Tiktoks

So here's the point when I become a grumpy old lady.

 

Okay, fine! I've been all of those things for awhile. But after swooping back into the clock app, I have noticed a lot of youngin's (theatre kids, but still) claiming clout because they can sing along with every word of various Hamilton songs. Granted, some of those are challenging (see: Lafayette in act one), but then the inevitable generational war kicked in and older creators pointed out that they knew the words to "La Vie Boheme" from Rent.

 

Ahhhh here we go, this is my jam. But wait. "You may have grown up with Hamilton but I grew up with RENT!"

Grew up with? GREW UP WITH?

LISTEN. I saw the original cast at the Nederlander as a Grown Ass Adult, thank you very much. 

I don't know if that is defensive or just sad. Anyway, enjoy...can you sing all the words like the TikTok kids who...GREW UP WITH IT? Oh my days...

(This one has lyrics included in case you need them...)

Music Monday: Back Where Gin Belongs

So when I can't sleep, I often have my Alexa read my own novels to me. I know how that sounds, and I'm not saying that my books are so boring that they put me to sleep. I'm saying that they are familiar and that is soothing to me...like the fact that I watch The Big Bang Theory over and over. Lately I listen to them in order...and wish that I was at the point where I can offer professional HUMAN-read audio books. 

Anyway, this song is, for reasons I can't fully explain, The Nature Walker Trilogy. This is a video with lyrics on the screen, so no need to put them below. Enjoy.

Music Monday: Abracadabra

They say that when we need Mother Monster, she returns in full force. This song is no exception. For lovers of old school Gaga, enjoy. (captions on video)

Music Monday: Tell me ma (and not that I won't be home for tea)

Happy St. Patrick's Day! I've posted Rattlin Bog before, and with that one, right now, all I can think of is my sweet Bryn wagging her tail in time to that song, so it is on hold for a bit. Enjoy this one, which every time my Simon hears it he says he used to hear it in the club back in Keighley. 

Bet he can't river dance, though. Enjoy! Happy St. Patrick's Day!

,

Music Monday: SOMETHING DIFFERENT ++, THIS.

Okay, I know. Carrie Underwood is problematic because of choices she or her representation made about performing at the current president's inauguration festivities. However, I maintain I fell in love with this song not for her, but after I saw this translation. I mean, the lyrics speak to me of Gin leaving Taeben, but also of Tairn at the end of Red, dealing with Eh'soi and the labyrinth, don't get me wrong. But Rosa Lee is amazing at what she does and this song is no different. I'm a fan and I hope you will be too, even if you don't sign. Enjoy.

A special Music Monday

Bryn at CRF, photo courtesy of
Lisa Margolis.

Our Bryndled Beastie, CGC    

"Bryn"

2013-06-16 - 2025-02-21

She started working at the Carolina Renaissance Festival the Sunday after Anne and I picked her up. "How old is she?" patrons would ask. I would say 5 months. "Oh, how long have you had her?" I would look at my arm like I was wearing a watch and say, "About 36 hours."

She was the queen of the Georgia Renaissance Festival, stealing sandwiches from under patron's noses and barking like crazy during the joust.

She even put up with me when we dressed up as Vikings at the Enchanted Chalice Faire.

She loved her brother from another mother, Bo, as much as her real brother Barley. But she was also madly in love with Barley's roommate, Charley, according to her Aunt Tamara.

She fell in love with Kathleen E. Lazenby  and  Robin Willoughby's Duke, so she laid on top of him to keep an eye on him. He wasn't a fan...

She got to pretend to be a Beezer at Auntie Shannon and Uncle Justin's house, but that didn't last long. They had far more energy.

Her first best friend was Anne and Damian's Boston, Millie. I bet when she got to the Bridge, Millie grabbed onto Bryn's underside (true story) and they went for a run.

She was a fairy dog ​​who far outlived her usual lifespan, beating pneumonia when she was 9. And I hope she found our Daisy Mei Mei, who she loved more than anyone, Ciaragh, the epitome of enemies becoming best friends, my dad who probably laughed that deep laugh and clapped his hands, and Miss Heather, who helped me discover a wider world of Bryn's family, including her big sister, the Other Kiera as we called her here and her other Auntie Stacie.

Brynka Boo, being your Mama has been the honor of my life, as they say. Don't rush, but don't wait too long before sending us another breeze block noggin to love, eh?

Go maire tú chomh fada agus is mian leat, agus gan aon ní a bheith uait mar a mhaireann tú. Is breá liom tú, mo chailín lúide.  Go raibh maith agat as a bheith linn. 

The Rattlin Bog, as performed by the Craic - Bryn and I listened to this on the way to Faire and she'd wag her tail IN TIME to the music, no matter how fast it got. My rattlin (splendid) Irish Fae Girl...
Rattling Bog - The Craic
Ho, ro, the rattlin' bog,The bog down in the valley-o.Real Bog, the rattlin' bog,The bog down in the valley-o.Well in the bog there was a hole,A rare hole and a rattlin' hole,And the hole in the bog,And the bog down in the valley-o.Ho, ro, the rattlin' bog,The bog down in the valley-o.Real Bog, the rattlin' bog,The bog down in the valley-o.Well in that hole there was a tree,A rare tree and a rattlin' tree,And the tree in the hole,And the hole in the bog,And the bog down in the valley-o.Ho, ro, the rattlin' bog,The bog down in the valley-o.Real Bog, the rattlin' bog,The bog down in the valley-o.on that tree there was a branch,A rare branch and a rattlin' branch,And the branch on the tree,And the tree in the hole,And the hole in the bog,And the bog down in the valley-o.Ho, ro, the rattlin' bog,The bog down in the valley-o.Ho, ro, the rattlin' bog,The bog down in the valley-o.on that branch there was a limb,A rare limb and a rattlin' limb,And the limb on the branch,And the branch on the tree,And the tree in the hole,And the hole in the bog,And the bog down in the valley-o.Ho, ro, the rattlin' bog,The bog down in the valley-o.Real bog, the rattlin' bog,The bog down in the valley-o.Well on that limb there was a nest,A rare nest and a rattlin' nest,And the nest on the limb,And the limb on the branch,And the branch on the tree,And the tree in the hole,And the hole in the bog,And the bog down in the valley-o.Ho, ro, the rattlin' bog,The bog down in the valley-o.Real bog, the rattlin' bog,The bog down in the valley-o.Now in that nest there was a bird,A rare bird and a rattlin' bird,And the bird in the nest,And the nest on the limb,And the limb on the branch,And the branch on the tree,And the tree in the hole,And the hole in the bog,down in the valley-o.Ho, ho, the rattlin' bog,The bog down in the valley-o.Real bog, the rattlin' bog,The bog down in the valley-o.In that bird there was an egg,A rare egg and a rattlin' egg,And the egg on the bird,And the bird in the nest,And the nest on the limb,And the limb on the branch,And the branch on the tree,And the tree in the bog,And the hole in the bog,And the bog down in the valley-o.Ho, ro, the rattlin' bog,The bog down in the valley-o.Real bog, the rattlin' bog,The bog down in the valley-o.In that egg there was a bird,A rare bird and a rattlin' bird,And the bird on the egg,And the egg on the bird,And the bird in the nest,And the nest on the limb,And the limb on the branch,And the branch on the tree,And the tree in the bog,And the hole in the bog,And the bog down in the valley-o.Ho, ro, the rattlin' bog,The bog down in the valley-o.Real bog, the rattlin' bog,The bog down in the valley-o.

Music Monday: Another Day In Paradise

Let me first acknowledge that my big brother Tony (Tony Daniels, Return to Sender: From the Files of Pyramid Investigations), and turned me on to this show on Hulu, Paradise. I'm not regretting watching it for one second. It isn't really my normal tv fare - usually if there isn't a creature or ghost running around somewhere I lose interest fast. But this one...and that twist...holy moly. ANYWAY, I'm going to stop talking about the show because I cannot keep spoilers out of my mouth (or keyboard in this case). Just watch it if you have Hulu. The music... y'all. This is just one example from the first episode, but... soooo good. Again. Spoilers. Hush, Nancy. The lyrics are in the captions on the video.

Music Monday: One Month Later

So, we got back from our trip to the UK and one day later I had another surgery in the long line of procedures that will eventually render me cancer free and back to whatever normal looks like now. I just took the rest of December off for healing time and while I'm not exactly done with that, I'm ready to get back to normal.

Today's Music Monday is one that I've heard a lot over my winter break and one that means a lot in relation to the writing project I'm working on now with my writing partner, Tony Daniel. Any time I need to connect with the character I'm responsible for, I just put this song on and there's Lark, sashaying out of the dark corners of my mind with a wineglass in her hand. She has what she considers a guilty pleasure as far as music is concerned - she likes heavy metal like Ozzy and others of that ilk. So here's some Ozzy that makes her (and me) very happy. Enjoy. (lyrics available in video)