chucky
My Trusted MOGs' Top Songs This Week
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I can't remember the last time I posted twice in one night, oh those glory days.
However, I had to, had to share this. Joxley, bless his little heart for this, did a post on a band - Shocking Pinks. It went in my notebook and I decided to see if they were on emusic. They weren't but my search brought up a "artist names matching" list and Pink Floyd was on it. I was surprized to see Pink Floyd on emusic so I followed the link down the rabbit hole.
The link was two Pink Floyd singles, but below that was a compliation. Follow the link, it was electronic covers of Brick in the Wall. Over to the left was a playlist of Pink Floyd covers - further down the rabbit hole.
And what do my wondering eyes see but bossa nova covers, bluegrass covers, classic rock covers, even lullaby covers for the way under-aged Pink Floyd fan.
Haha, I love life.
Now, don’t laugh. Or laugh, it’s all the same to me. Hrmphf.
Like a lot of people that feel the power of music, I’ve always wanted to be able to play a musical instrument. I played the cello in 6th grade very briefly, but that’s the only time I’ve been near an instrument.
Earlier this year I got offered a piano for free, all I had to do was pick it up and take it with me when I moved, but come moving day I realized it just wasn’t going to happen. Everything was too rushed and too hectic and I regretted it every damn day. I had fantasies of being the next Billy Joel.
Fast forward a bit and I was watching some reality show, similar to American Idol, except it had bands instead of singers. I think it was America’s Next Greatest Band, or some such shit. A handful of bands had an instrument that I wasn’t actually familiar with. This is no surprise, because I’m not big on details – if it sounds good, I’ll listen to it. But, this happened right at a time when I was pretty down and needed some sort of goal to perk me back up. Michael, bless his heart, looked up the instrument because I was talking about how cool it was. It was a mandolin. So, of course, I bought myself a mandolin. That’s how I roll.
The night it came in I spent two hours playing with it without a plectrum (fancy word for pick that I learned when I got my mandolin, heh) and got a fantabulous blister on my thumb. I’ve been practicing now for a little over a month and, good god, I suck balls.
A mandolin is a double stringed instrument – so it has 8 strings. You have to hit the double strings at the same time and I can’t do it. Also, my fingers are not so nimble, so I’m having a hard time switching between the notes fast enough to play any songs in a recognizable kind of way. Luckily, I’m teaching myself with an Irish folk song book (post title being the song I'm working on now), so no one knows that I’m playing the songs at a third of their normal speed. Haha.
Anyways, I suck and I’m having the time of my life. I totally should have decided to do this ten years ago. Now, if any of you know how to play the fricking mandolin, will you tell me how to hit the stupid strings at the same time?
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Wow, a MANDOLIN ? Are you sure it's not a MADolin? haha. I can't picture you playing a mandolin but hey, stranger things have happened here in mogland. I'll give you a bit of advice: practice, practice, practice & DON 'T give up. You may not be able to play it now but eventually you will. It takes patience, determination & oh, did I say PRACTICE ? Daily practice in fact, like set aside an hour a day or maybe 1/2 hr at first to get into a groove. Trust me, I played piano for 5 yrs.(had lessons) when I was growing up, cello for the same & a bit of violin. And you can also just pick it up & play when the mood strikes you apart from your set practice times of course.
Go Charles, get funky!
Oh I'll get funky...just as soon as I can master getting folky. (Get it? Hee Hee, I crack me up.)
Wow, rock on Ashley! I couldn't help you one bit, but if it makes you feel any better, I'm trying to play guitar for the fifth time, and I was just barely able to pick out a lousy rendition of "Jingle Bells". I'm learning songs from the same book as my 10 year old, who's learning trumpet.
Just as I was despairing that Mog Santa wasn’t going to visit me this year for being such a bad mogger, I got two packages Christmas Eve. I figure I must’ve gotten some good mog karma for the shoe pic (not to mention the delightful art deco cd – ha) I sent Amber.
And not only did I get two packages but they were both overfilled with awesomeness!
Torch was my mog secret santa and he gifted me with two mixes. A lot of the songs on his mixes were songs that I knew and loved but didn’t own – so that was spectacularly cool. I took a nice trip down a musical memory lane. A small selection of what he sent: The Diary of Jane by Breaking Benjamin, Away by the Toadies, Not the Doctor by Alanis Morrisette, Desperately Wanting by Better than Ezra, and Clumsy by Our Lady Peace. He also had a few on there I’d never heard but am really digging like Angry Situation by Save Ferris and Crushcrushcrush by Paramore.
A couple things really tickled me. The first is that the first song on the first cd was the song I walked down the aisle to – Christmas Canon by Trans Siberian Orchestra. The second was he included What a Good Boy by Barenaked Ladies. I mentioned a few times here that I have a collection of songs for whenever I need to have a good cry. A handful of songs that are guaranteed to release the torrent of agony that builds up inside sometimes. What a Good Boy is the second best song for this purpose. The song wasn’t even in my itunes so that I have to purposely get the cd to listen to it. So, basically, Torch made me cry. Thanks Torch. Haha…I jest. I am super excited about the mixes. I am currently rocking out to Huey Lewis & the News courtesy of Torch.
The second package I got wasn’t Christmas related, I don’t think – but since it came on Christmas Eve I am counting it as such. Fairportfan sent me three movies: Dark Star, Get Crazy, and The 5000 Fingers of Doctor T (Dr. Suess for the win!). Those I plan to thoroughly enjoy this weekend.
So thank you both!
And on the family tip, my lovely husband got me an 80 gig ipod and a wii. I love my life sometimes. :)
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MOG Meter
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oh pink floyd.
i bought vinyl
Vinyl, the crackly goodness. Why do I miss that? Sheesh.
Classic rock covers? But but but ... Pink Floyd IS classic rock! Wouldn't that just be a retread? My brain hurts.