...and after all that, I have nothing to say.
I felt the lights turn green on my eyelids
Rendering me The Wicked Witch of the West
there is a tapeworm in my labyrinth
that is what I have to give
give
give
give
Thursday, December 8, 2011
response to a post on John Lennon web board
I went to art school for both undergrad and grad school... and I am a Catholic. I got ridiculed and made fun of for being Christian, especially by atheists who considered themselves to be really open-minded. One of my friends calls this art school type of mentality against religion "being so open-minded you're closed-minded." I think people should believe what they want, but I think atheists need to realize (and some of them do) that NOT believing in a Higher Power takes just as much of a leap of faith as believing. There are so many things other than the existence of God that can't be explained rationally or quantified... for example, falling in love, or the artistic impulse.
I would posit that as you are correct that we shouldn't label all atheists as "bad" based on my experiences at art school (which, by the way, I'm sorry if that is how I came across) not all Christians should be blamed for wrong done in the name of Christianity. I see myself as someone who understands the church as flawed, and is working to change it, for example by being a member of groups like Catholics For a Free Choice (ie pro-choice Catholics) and the Rape Abuse and Incest National Network. Basically, what I'm trying to say is, don't blame me and my relationship with God for the Spanish Inquisition, ya know? Here is one of my favorite quotes: "I like your Christ, but I do not like your Christians. They are not at all like Christ." Gandhi said that, and I couldn't agree more. Here's another quote: "Women are not better than men, just less corrupted by power." I think that could apply here, too.
John Lennon web board
I would posit that as you are correct that we shouldn't label all atheists as "bad" based on my experiences at art school (which, by the way, I'm sorry if that is how I came across) not all Christians should be blamed for wrong done in the name of Christianity. I see myself as someone who understands the church as flawed, and is working to change it, for example by being a member of groups like Catholics For a Free Choice (ie pro-choice Catholics) and the Rape Abuse and Incest National Network. Basically, what I'm trying to say is, don't blame me and my relationship with God for the Spanish Inquisition, ya know? Here is one of my favorite quotes: "I like your Christ, but I do not like your Christians. They are not at all like Christ." Gandhi said that, and I couldn't agree more. Here's another quote: "Women are not better than men, just less corrupted by power." I think that could apply here, too.
John Lennon web board
my attempt at being Oprah
in answer to the question: do you think marriages where there's a big age difference can work out?
I have been happily married for almost two years now to a man who is three years older than me. So I don't know about age difference, but I do know a thing or two about love: it kicks you flat on your ass and makes you do things and say things you never thought you would, and the whole thing often comes as a big surprise. True love challenges you. True love makes you challenge yourself. It makes you surprise yourself. I guess, as related to the question about significant age difference is concerned, you don't really know what's what until you find yourself in the situation. There's no book or no amount of feminist theory that can prepare you for it. Because here's the thing about falling in love when it's real: it's the most natural thing in the world, but it's also a big leap of faith.
I have been happily married for almost two years now to a man who is three years older than me. So I don't know about age difference, but I do know a thing or two about love: it kicks you flat on your ass and makes you do things and say things you never thought you would, and the whole thing often comes as a big surprise. True love challenges you. True love makes you challenge yourself. It makes you surprise yourself. I guess, as related to the question about significant age difference is concerned, you don't really know what's what until you find yourself in the situation. There's no book or no amount of feminist theory that can prepare you for it. Because here's the thing about falling in love when it's real: it's the most natural thing in the world, but it's also a big leap of faith.
When I was Born
Do you remember the hippies from the late '80s and pre-grunge '90s? Even though those were my tween years, I was one of them. We snubbed our noses at Paula Abdul, The New Kids On the Block, and listened to the Beatles, the Stones, and Janis Joplin. But now, for some reason, whenever I hear '80s U2 or '80s Edie Brickell I think of what it was like to be a hippie in those years. In an odd way, it was really liberating: it was like, I don't have to follow all these lame trends because I should've been alive in the '60's, I'm just displaced, an alien, and proud of it.
Now, I mentioned I was a tween. I was not a member of my generation who did drugs and had sex before high school. I was simply a remarkably free-spirited (if only I could get that back), dreamy, artistic budding adolescent who liked to wear her mom's clothes from college. It was a pretty sweet deal: how many budding adolescent girls do you know who are free-spirited? If I had been into punk, I probably would've been a riot grrrl, because I was a feminist, but I didn't get into punk and thusly riot grrrl until kind of after the fact.
When I was a hippie tween, I was the only hippie I knew or was friends with. My friends were mostly quite preppy. I was confident that in high school, I'd find people exactly like me. When that didn't happen, I thought it would happen in college. That didn't happen either. Oh, of course I met hippies. But I've found over the years that I just don't fit in with crowds. I deeply cherish my few close friends as well as my many and diverse not-so-close friends, even though I don't have a crew of people who all dress, act, and think the same way I do. I never have had a crew like that, and to tell you the truth I don't think I want one. Does anyone have a group like that, outside of bad teenage movies? You can answer that-- it's a real question.
Right now I'm feeling pretty damn near content. I know it's because of my husband. We're both two square pegs who found each other. It was a hard pill to swallow when I found out there wasn't going to be that magical place filled with people "just like me," and maybe I was naive for thinking that would happen in the first place, but once I accepted it-- with the help of real friendships not based on what music we listen to or where we buy clothes or even what books we read-- a whole new world opened for me. You could say it was then that I was born.
Now, I mentioned I was a tween. I was not a member of my generation who did drugs and had sex before high school. I was simply a remarkably free-spirited (if only I could get that back), dreamy, artistic budding adolescent who liked to wear her mom's clothes from college. It was a pretty sweet deal: how many budding adolescent girls do you know who are free-spirited? If I had been into punk, I probably would've been a riot grrrl, because I was a feminist, but I didn't get into punk and thusly riot grrrl until kind of after the fact.
When I was a hippie tween, I was the only hippie I knew or was friends with. My friends were mostly quite preppy. I was confident that in high school, I'd find people exactly like me. When that didn't happen, I thought it would happen in college. That didn't happen either. Oh, of course I met hippies. But I've found over the years that I just don't fit in with crowds. I deeply cherish my few close friends as well as my many and diverse not-so-close friends, even though I don't have a crew of people who all dress, act, and think the same way I do. I never have had a crew like that, and to tell you the truth I don't think I want one. Does anyone have a group like that, outside of bad teenage movies? You can answer that-- it's a real question.
Right now I'm feeling pretty damn near content. I know it's because of my husband. We're both two square pegs who found each other. It was a hard pill to swallow when I found out there wasn't going to be that magical place filled with people "just like me," and maybe I was naive for thinking that would happen in the first place, but once I accepted it-- with the help of real friendships not based on what music we listen to or where we buy clothes or even what books we read-- a whole new world opened for me. You could say it was then that I was born.
Sunday, December 4, 2011
soundtrack to 2011
Very early this year, I posted a what was at the time the soundtrack to 2011 so far. So now, it's December, and here's the complete soundtrack to 2011:
Small Blue Thing-- Suzanne Vega
Fast Car-- Tracy Chapman
Black Hole Sun-- Soundgarden (if you follow the above link and scroll down, you'l find the awesome video for this song.)
Landslide-- Fleetwood Mac
Bette Davis Eyes-- Kim Carnes
Dirty Girls (Pop Version)-- Courtney Love
Text Message Breakup-- Kelly (it's an inside joke between T and I)
Map of the World-- Monsters of Folk
You Oughtta Know-- Alanis Morissette
the theme song to "Scrubs"
the theme song to "Family Guy"
something from the Bible: "And, yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil, for thou art with me".... I know it's not officially a song, but if someone read it out loud it could be spoken word, which is sort of like music. I know it's a stretch, but even if I don't have the exact words right that passage has gotten me through a lot of tough times.
Where the Streets Have No Name-- U2
Be OK-- Ingrid Michaelson
The Way I Am-- Ingrid Michaelson (it reminds me of me and T)
Folsom Prison Blues-- Johnny Cash
Shattering Sea-- Tori Amos
Job's Coffin-- Tori Amos
Crucify-- Tori Amos
Letter to God-- Courtney Love
Jesus-- Velvet Underground
Sappy-- Nirvana
People Are Still Having Sex-- LaTour
Anyone Else But You-- The Moldy Peaches
Mrs. Butterworth (Rehearsal)-- Nirvana
Fire Snakes-- Laura Veirs
What I'd Say Parts 1 & 2-- Ray Charles
Don't Stop Believin'-- Journey
Past the Mission-- Tori Amos
Suede-- Tori Amos ("everybody knows you can conjure anything by the dark of the moon")
Baby Got Back-- Sir Mix-A-Lot
Don't You (Forget About Me)-- Simple Minds
Fidelity-- Regina Spektor
Mr. Sandman-- The Puppini Sisters
Greenback Dollar-- The Kingston Trio
Hurt-- Johnny Cash
Walk Hard--John C. Reilly
Fortunate Son-- Creedence Clearwater Revival
another prayer/possible spoken word piece: "God, Grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference"
Bookends Theme-- Simon and Garfunkel
Hungry Eyes-- Eric Carmen
(I've Had) The Time of My Life-- Bill Medley and Jennifer Warnes
I Got You Babe-- Sonny and Cher
Fallin' and Flyin'-- Jeff Bridges
Wandering Kind-- Laura Veirs "the sun's been known to shine on our wandering kind"
To the Country-- Laura Veirs "I'm gonna move to the country so I can see the stars"
Sun is King-- Laura Veirs
Pennyroyal Tea-- Nirvana
Shine a Light-- Rolling Stones
Let it Be-- The Beatles ("Mother Mary comes to me..." I know Paul McCartney was talking about his own dead mother who was named Mary, but he said he didn't mind if people interpreted it as Mary the Mother of God)
The Man Comes Around-- Johnny Cash
Paint It, Black-- The Rolling Stones
Sparks-- The Who
God Bless the Child-- Billie Holiday
Unchained Melody-- Righteous Brothers
the theme song to "Two and a Half Men"
Your Racist Friend-- They Might Be Giants
Bound-- Suzanne Vega
Cherry Bomb-- Runaways
song at beginning credits of "Thank You for Smoking"
Snowblind-- Tori Amos "How do you free your mind so that you're not confined by our concept of what we call Time?"
Pull A U-- The Kills
Black Balloon-- The Kills
I Won't Back Down-- Johnny Cash
Small Blue Thing-- Suzanne Vega
Fast Car-- Tracy Chapman
Black Hole Sun-- Soundgarden (if you follow the above link and scroll down, you'l find the awesome video for this song.)
Landslide-- Fleetwood Mac
Bette Davis Eyes-- Kim Carnes
Dirty Girls (Pop Version)-- Courtney Love
Text Message Breakup-- Kelly (it's an inside joke between T and I)
Map of the World-- Monsters of Folk
You Oughtta Know-- Alanis Morissette
the theme song to "Scrubs"
the theme song to "Family Guy"
something from the Bible: "And, yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil, for thou art with me".... I know it's not officially a song, but if someone read it out loud it could be spoken word, which is sort of like music. I know it's a stretch, but even if I don't have the exact words right that passage has gotten me through a lot of tough times.
Where the Streets Have No Name-- U2
Be OK-- Ingrid Michaelson
The Way I Am-- Ingrid Michaelson (it reminds me of me and T)
Folsom Prison Blues-- Johnny Cash
Shattering Sea-- Tori Amos
Job's Coffin-- Tori Amos
Crucify-- Tori Amos
Letter to God-- Courtney Love
Jesus-- Velvet Underground
Sappy-- Nirvana
People Are Still Having Sex-- LaTour
Anyone Else But You-- The Moldy Peaches
Mrs. Butterworth (Rehearsal)-- Nirvana
Fire Snakes-- Laura Veirs
What I'd Say Parts 1 & 2-- Ray Charles
Don't Stop Believin'-- Journey
Past the Mission-- Tori Amos
Suede-- Tori Amos ("everybody knows you can conjure anything by the dark of the moon")
Baby Got Back-- Sir Mix-A-Lot
Don't You (Forget About Me)-- Simple Minds
Fidelity-- Regina Spektor
Mr. Sandman-- The Puppini Sisters
Greenback Dollar-- The Kingston Trio
Hurt-- Johnny Cash
Walk Hard--John C. Reilly
Fortunate Son-- Creedence Clearwater Revival
another prayer/possible spoken word piece: "God, Grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference"
Bookends Theme-- Simon and Garfunkel
Hungry Eyes-- Eric Carmen
(I've Had) The Time of My Life-- Bill Medley and Jennifer Warnes
I Got You Babe-- Sonny and Cher
Fallin' and Flyin'-- Jeff Bridges
Wandering Kind-- Laura Veirs "the sun's been known to shine on our wandering kind"
To the Country-- Laura Veirs "I'm gonna move to the country so I can see the stars"
Sun is King-- Laura Veirs
Pennyroyal Tea-- Nirvana
Shine a Light-- Rolling Stones
Let it Be-- The Beatles ("Mother Mary comes to me..." I know Paul McCartney was talking about his own dead mother who was named Mary, but he said he didn't mind if people interpreted it as Mary the Mother of God)
The Man Comes Around-- Johnny Cash
Paint It, Black-- The Rolling Stones
Sparks-- The Who
God Bless the Child-- Billie Holiday
Unchained Melody-- Righteous Brothers
the theme song to "Two and a Half Men"
Your Racist Friend-- They Might Be Giants
Bound-- Suzanne Vega
Cherry Bomb-- Runaways
song at beginning credits of "Thank You for Smoking"
Snowblind-- Tori Amos "How do you free your mind so that you're not confined by our concept of what we call Time?"
Pull A U-- The Kills
Black Balloon-- The Kills
I Won't Back Down-- Johnny Cash
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