magic man

Saturday night was the very definition of gorgeousness. Beautiful music. Lovely people. The unity of so many different people in moments of pure delight. Just pure joy.

I've loved Josh Ritter for a long time (thanks to my friend Doug!). But at his concert, I suddenly felt a new connection to the man behind the music. The man whose music could fill a room with awe and wonder. Whose joyous love of his craft was apparent in every aspect of his performance. Whose gratitude for his listeners and whose enjoyment of being in that moment, on that stage was palpable. Who brought every voice in the room together in a chorus that filled the Rialto Theater with a little piece of love. Because no one there could have helped but love this incredible music man. It felt a little bit like magic. Or heaven.

So enjoy....

a new one,

and another new one,

and an oldy, but a goody :)

The opening band was also breathtaking. The lead singer's voice is out of this world powerful!

Have a listen to Lake Street Dive:

mix 'n' match

what do you get when you combine one of your favorite singers with lyrics about your favorite home town?

must be losing my mind...



i love this too



and this



and everything brett dennen sings.
i'm obsessed.

myheart

There is so much more
brett dennen

Avoiding. But not giving up.

Every few days I look at my blog, as if to see if by some miracle something has been mysteriously posted there without my knowledge. (hope hope hope)

But alas, nothing new has appeared. And while I have felt increasingly guilty for my neglectfulness (why? how? I am accountable to no one for this blog... and yet...), I have been avoiding it. The truth is, every time I consider writing I either feel suddenly void of anything worthwhile (SPELLING WORD!!.. for my 4th graders) or have too many half-developed, unconnected semi-thoughts running through my mind to decide what I should actually put into a post. My last few (and far between) posts have reflected this dearth of inspiration and I am really quite ready to replace them with something more interesting, thoughtful and important. There are unlimited possibilities to solve this dilemma, but I am either too lazy or too dull to make them work of late.

I am trying to do better.

For now I will just share this:

'Cause even the stars they burn 
Some even fall to the earth 
We've got a lot to learn 
God knows we're worth it 
No, I won't give up 

I don't wanna be someone who walks away so easily 
I'm here to stay and make the difference that I can make 
Our differences they do a lot to teach us how to use 
The tools and gifts we got yeah, we got a lot at stake 
And in the end, you're still my friend at least we did intend 
For us to work we didn't break, we didn't burn 
We had to learn how to bend without the world caving in 
I had to learn what I've got, and what I'm not 
And who I am 

I won't give up on us 
Even if the skies get rough 
I'm giving you all my love 
I'm still looking up 
Still looking up.

Gorgeous words. Beautiful. I am feeling the need to get up and get moving. To do more. To be more. This song reminds me of the hope there is in the world. The never-ending supply of loveliness. The strength and depth of the human spirit. And I can always use that.

Enjoy.

When my students asked me

the definition of foster I excitedly told them that to foster is to...

encourage or promote the development of (something, typically something regarded as good). To cherish, raise up, nurture...*

thinking they were extra engaged in the article we were reading and interested in learning some new vocabulary. Yay for English! They actually care!

Then one of them said "Oh cool. I was just wondering because there's this band called Foster the People."

Yeah, really? Too bad, "foster the minds of Spanish youth learning English" doesn't have quite the same ring to it. Then maybe they'd listen to me too. Maybe.**

It's okay though, because Foster the People really does make good music. And now my students are practically guaranteed to remember at least one word we learned this year! Success!

Anyway, I haven't been as diligent about posting music this week as I originally intended (shocking I know). But I ran into this lovely song, "Ruby," by, have you guessed?? Why yes, that one group.. something akin to Encourage the Human Race, or was it, oh yeah! Foster the People. Yeah, them. Anyway, I love the song. And I thought I'd also add an acoustic version of some FosterthePeople favorites from NPR's Tiny Desk Concert series. If you're anything like my students (and me), you'll love it!






What else should I be listening to friends? I need your expertise!

*well, I'm sure I said something like that

because when you're an English teacher you're expected to know the exact definition of 

EVERY ENGLISH WORD

at any given moment.

And if you don't, you make one up.

Definition via

**Also, that class are actually excellent students,

 the little smarties!

Soundtrack only, please

Florence + the Machine. 

Yep. Not much to say. I love her voice, her sound, her spunk and her dance moves. I also like this new song.



As for the movie.... well, I'm not completely sold*. But the music? YES PLEASE!

*To be fair

I'm kind of a movie skeptic.

It's just that so many mainstream movies these days are

well, mediocre.

Or just plain crappy.

And that from someone who really 

LOVES movies

(when they're good)!

Something beautiful

I've been listening to some new (to me) music lately that I really enjoy. So this week I'll share a few songs/artists with you, my dear friends. Maybe you already know them, maybe not. Either way I hope you enjoy listening! Also, please feel free to share some of your own favorites too (new or old, really)!!! I'm in a new music mode. I'm bored of my current tunes and looking for something fresh. So, first up:

 Paloma Faith

The other day I randomly came across the Paloma Faith's single "Picking up the Pieces" from her album "Fall to Grace" coming out next week. She's rather quirky, and has a strong, unique voice. Her songs are fairly upbeat but also soulful. I like the retro feel of the music and her voice (and her costumes/hair/makeup). In all, I quite enjoy her and her songs. Hope you do too!!  Here are a couple to try out...

It takes me back

I don't quite remember how I stumbled upon the video of Bon Iver performing a cover of Bonníe Raitt's "I can't make you love me." His version is beautiful in its own right, but in the end I had to go back to the original. Gorgeous! (Adele's version is pretty too, by the way.)

The thing is, listening to this song takes me back in time. For some reason I was suddenly overcome by a memory of sitting in the backseat of my grandparent's car with my sister. We were driving to a swimming pool in Albuquerque while there on a visit. Maybe I was 8. The truth is, it's fuzzy and hazy and unfinished. I don't know if the song was playing on the radio, or a CD, or goodness, probably a cassette tape! while were driving. Or maybe some other Bonnie Raitt song. I can't say, but it's strange the way a lost memory can submerge like that, for no apparent reason. But beautiful too. I love it.

And it made me think about other favorite songs we used to listen to in the car when I was little. There were many-- but here are few songs that really stand out in my memory from ages 3-6 or so, when we used to drive half an hour across town to visit my (other) grandparents. At the moment I remember these specifically...

The Judds...

And Eric Clapton.. this is still one of my favorite songs..

Plus a Disney cassette
with "Zip-i-dee doo dah" and "We are Siamese if you please," etc. , etc.
that we must have played 3 million times! 

It will forever remind me of winding roads and fields of flowers

 from summer visits to the White Mountains.

But I'll spare you....

Thanks for indulging me in this blast from the past. Does anyone else have any songs that just can't be separated from your childhood?

I'll turn it off!

Just as soon as I get these few pending "things" out of the way, I will turn off my computer, finally.

• First, this graduation speech. I guess it is a bit outdated (from 2008), but I saw someone post it, and the message is relevant now... whether you're a recent graduate or not. It's insightful, funny and basically an admonition to live life fully and meaningfully.
• Next: food. I was reading about brilliant ways people are bringing fresh produce and other healthy food options to "food deserts." Food deserts aren't literal deserts, but instead locations (such as in urban areas or very rural settings) that are devoid of supermarkets and thus lack adequate access to healthy foods and fresh produce. With the many issues facing Americans health-wise (obesity, heart problems, etc.) many people are working hard to make fresh food accessible in these areas. I think it is fantastic. My one qualm is that food habits also need to be broken--selling the food is the first and most important step, but if people have lived their whole lives without healthy options, chances are they might also lack some knowledge about what the best choices are and how to prepare these food items. Maybe a thought for the future.
• While I was reading the article about food deserts, I also happened across this article about ways we can make food production safer, healthier and more sustainable. It has some great ideas! (Can you tell I LOVE FOOD!)
• Also, this is our President:

• And this is a pretty amazing way to get a sense of the grandeur of the universe!
• Finally, please enjoy this song. I first heard it when watching the film "Innocent Voices" about the civil war in El Salvador. I love the movie, and from time to time this song comes back to me. I hope you enjoy 

Right now

I can't stop listening...

I don't love you....

but I always will.

WICKED in London

I melted.

(Just a taste... not from the show I saw.. obviously I guess....)

I have been listening to the Wicked soundtrack since my friend Jessica gave it to me my freshman year of college. Seeing the show in person, in the front row, in London was almost unbearably amazing! I cried.

I don't think my life will ever be the same.

Hope for the hopeless

I just can't stop listening to this song.

Happy Christmas

Love, peace and joy to one and all. And another favorite...

I

John Lennon!

The best promise

"Truly He taught us to love one another,

His Law is love, and His Gospel is peace.

Chains shall He break for the slave is our brother,

And in His name all oppression shall cease."

I love this version of "O Holy Night" sung in two sweet voices. Though I love most Christmas music, this has to be one of my all time favorites. The message of hope, love and peace; of praise and rejoicing; of brotherhood and unity--it is gorgeous! Every time I hear the lines "Chains shall He break, for the slave is our brother, and in His name all oppression shall cease" my heart swells with joy and hope. I am reminded of the great promise that the Savior Jesus Christ lived, died and was resurrected for each and every person to be born on this earth; that He loves us all; and that through the infinite power of His atonement He will redeem, comfort and save us. The Savior will bring peace and through Him we will be freed from the inequality, the hatred and the destruction that is so prevalent in the world we live in. He has overcome all things, and through Him we can too.

But I also love the first lines, that remind us of the part we play in His plan: we must be good to one another; we must love and care for all people; for "His law is love, and His gospel is peace." I believe that the Savior will free all humankind from pain, suffering and death, but to do so He will use us and teach us to be holy, to love and to forsake all of our hatreds, prejudices, selfishness and pride.

Listening to this song makes me want to love a bit more deeply and do my best to spread peace in any and every way that i can. And I love it!

Tangents

When I was in Oporto I heard a great Portuguese song, the subsequent search for which led me to this song, which I am now obsessed with.

It is actually Brazilian. Which reminds me that I drank some delicious Maracuyá juice yesterday at a Turkish Kebab place. Maracuyá grows in Brazil, as do many delicious fruits. And I now want nothing more than to move to Brazil, eat delicious tropical fruit, explore the rain forest, soak up some sun at the beach and listen to good music!!

But Spain is okay too, I guess ;)

We're Going Home

For some reason I was thinking about the song "Two of Us" the other day, and it brings me so much joy to listen to it! I think this is my favorite Beatles song! And lets be honest, that's saying something :)

It is a random connection, but this song reminds me of Christmas last year. I would listen to this song in the car sometimes as I drove all over Utah County for my job. I was always busy often hurrying from one place to another, bringing name cards for the Angel Trees, meeting with organizers and volunteers, picking up gifts, delivering materials, helping at the warehouse. There were so many different things to do for Sub for Santa and Angel Tree. I LOVED those days, even though they were long and tiring and there were a million problems to deal with (and it was cold outside), because I really felt like I was accomplishing something that would make life a little happier for children and families during Christmas. I think those few months will always stand out to me as one of the best experiences of my life. I am so glad to be reminded of it now as we're entering into that lovely holiday season once again (can you believe it's already here??!?!?!), living somewhere far away and doing something quite different. It's strange how quickly things change!

And so, a seemingly unassociated song that I love and will always remind me of my long drives around Utah County last year for United Way!

On my little heart

I can't stop listening to this song. Because every time I do, I feel like my heart is breaking, but only so that it can be rebuilt, stronger and more full of love than ever before.

Everything about it makes me want to be better. Not only is it a gorgeous song with a beautiful message, but the fact that it is a tribute to Martin Luther King, Jr., one of my greatest heroes, makes it all the more powerful. It stirs in me a desire to be the best I can be and to give to the world, and to the Lord, everything I have. I love it!

coming soon...

Listen Adele's new album, 21, on NPR. Her voice is amazing- it sounds like it's pouring straight out of her soul. so so gorgeous.

photo via..

oh oh oh

I'm kind of obsessed with this song right now.

mistakes

I'm easily embarrassed. and I embarrass myself often.

Today I sat down at a computer at school with no intention whatsoever of doing something productive or in any way related to my education. Rather, I just wanted to listen to music on before my class and I've misplaced my iPod (a usual dilemma, as the girls who work in the lost and found could probably attest to, though I try to hit it up at different times of day whenever I go so no one will realize its me, again). So I sat down and put on these headphones that were sitting next to the computer conveniently. In my delight I began playing some tunes and I found this song on another blog and was happily listening along, flipping back to my emails and checking out other blogs when I removed the headphones momentarily to adjust them.

That's when I realized...

I wasn't hearing the music coming from the headphones. I was hearing the music through the headphones which was actually playing quite loudly from the computer itself. Ooops.

Face flushing with heat I quickly stopped old Billy and looked around to see how many people I had been disrupting. Then with a slightly abashed grin I pulled up my blog to document the incident at the very scene of the crime (accidentally restarting the song twice before getting the headphones properly attached to the computer... what can I say. I'm not tech savvy).

Just another day in the life...

And just a suggestion to the BYU computer labs: don't leave headphones lying uselessly next to computers with the volume turned way up on the computer speakers. Unless you are trying to get funny footage for one of those hidden camera shows that is. Then you're probably on the right track. You might get more for your buck if you just followed me around for a day though!