in which i think little kids shouldn't be running around in adult footwear

so, i know i only have boys, but i still feel the need to discuss the following issue about moms and their little girls.

okay. maybe it's just ONE mom and her little girl. but katie (kate?) holmes (cruise?), i cannot believe you let your three year old run around in heels.

women of the world - you know the power of a good pair of heels. they will hurt like hell, but they do these amazing things for how your legs look. and they make you taller, which is good, especially when your significant other is much taller than you are.

little girls like high heels, too. and thus, some costumes come with them - and i get that little girls will wear them during playtime. or maybe even on halloween.

but on a regular day? as regular footwear?

no. no. no.

s it me, or is this just wrong on every level? i read some absurd quote from holmes today that said there's nothing wrong with her daughter wearing them - that the kid likes them.

yeah, my kids love sugar, too, but that doesn't mean that's all they get to eat.

mom up, katie (er...kate?). sometimes it's okay to say no.

in which a band with a horrible name produces a brilliant, beautiful song

so, dear friends, i want to share with you a song that i have long, long loved. before i do so, i wanted to talk about one of my idiosyncrasies: an intense dislike and/or avoidance of bands simply due to their names.

i know, i know. i even wrote a post about judging books (literally) by their covers. but i freely admit i do that to music, too. band names are big to me - they represent, in a way, what a band is all about. stupid name? stupid band is my logic.

i was pleased recently when my bff admitted to the same stereotyping. we were talking about how much we dislike passion pit (of which i tolerate only one song), and she told me, "they've got pit in their name. like armpit. i don't like that." and i thought to myself - good point. even more of a reason to not like them. right? (well - my true reason is that, despite being a huge lover of cheesy 80's music, passion pit is just abysmally overloaded on synths, pretentiously so!).

case in point - ...and you will know us by the trail of dead. honestly, people. WTH?! what kind of name is that? i'll admit i can't name a single one of their songs, nor have i ever listened to them - and this is simply because of their name. it just freaks. me. out. ew!

another case in point - lady gaga. the name gaga just gets me, not to mention the woman is a bizarre caricature who spouts she's avant garde in fashion (ahem. no.). i finally heard a song of hers last week (sorry - don't remember the title), and shivers ran up and down my spine - and they were not the good kind of shivers. the music matches the name. horrid!

i really could go on and on, but i'll come to my big point. the following band, which performs one of my Very Favorite Songs of All Time has a horrible, horrible name. and like the others, i avoided them like the plague for a long time. but one day, the clouds parted, and someone, somewhere played this song for me and i laid aside my prejudices and embraced the song.



big head todd and the monsters is one of those bands i truthfully know almost nothing about. that's okay - because lame name or no, they've produced music magic. the song, bittersweet, is something like a soothing balm - all warm weather, open windows, happy times, and lots of smiles. i've been in love with this song now for almost a decade, and i figure our love affair will last well into the next decade, as well:

A little light looks through her bedroom window.
She dances and I dream, she's not so far as she seems,
Of brighter meadows, melting sunsets,
Her hair blowing in the breeze.
And she can't see me watching.
And I'm thinking love...
love....

It's bittersweet, more sweet than bitter, Bitter than sweet.
It's a bittersweet surrender.

I'm older now.
I work in the city.
We live together.. But it's different from my dream.
Morning light fills the room. I rise.
She pretends she's sleeping.
Are we everything we wanted?
And i'm thinking love...
love...

It's bittersweet, more sweet than bitter, Bitter than sweet.
It's a bittersweet surrender.

I know we don't talk about it.
We don't tell each other.
All the little things that we need.
We work our way around each other.
As we tremble and we bleed.

the lyrics are sort of sad - but the song is just divine. it doesn't make you feel sad, not in the slightest. it's a lot like pearl jam's brilliant wishlist. it's on my feel-good list. check out a live version below:



enrich your musical tastes and life by adding this song to your playlist:


(mp3) bittersweet - big head todd and the monsters (courtesy of oliver di place)

in which i make a connection between canadian indie rock and steampunk

so, i've been listening to tokyo police club a lot lately - and i'll be honest, a lot of it is because of my kids. they love them some tokyo police club, and why shouldn't they? this is a really fun band that screams to be listened to loudly - and, of course, we do.


the band, who hails from canada, has these great moments where everyone sings together. it sort of makes me think of high school, or college, when everyone is sitting around together singing and yelling out the choruses. this band is all about good times.

here's a video for perhaps their most catchy song, your english is good:


personally, i really dig in a cave:

I threw darts at a spinning globe
Swapping out passport photos
I walk west to the setting sun
Every single step, I grow
Another second young

All my hair grows in
Wrinkles leave my skin
Hold still, don't fade
I'll be back again when the tide is in some day

I don't know who else to ask
Sitting in the dark, filling an empty glass
Stained my teeth with more red wine
I'm a romantic
But never pearly white

Elephant shell,
You're my cave and I've been hiding out
Will you tell me a little bit about
A bit about yourself?


(mp3) in a cave - tokyo police club

yeah, i know it's really weird - but this band seems to be a good soundtrack to a book i just read, called soulless by gail carriger. this was my first foray into steampunk fiction - something, i have to admit, i came to reluctantly. i know steampunk's been around for awhile now, and yeah - i did enjoy it in the league of extraordinary gentlemen, and i also really like historical fiction, but there was something that just sort of made me shy away from the genre.


maybe it's the name. it's weird, right?

anyway, this book also broke my self-imposed ban on vampire novels (twilight overload much?). and despite the wildly varying reviews online, i actually enjoyed this book. it's about a spinster named alexia tarabotti, who seems to be plauged with the following (ahem) deficiencies: she's 26, half italian, and soulless. (i need to just interject that, as someone of italian heritage, i must protest that this is EVER considered a deficiency!) victorian london is home to a plethora of supernatural creatures, including vampires, werewolves, and ghosts (who are fully accepted by society and even have jobs), and it is in this setting that miss tarabotti gets herself embroiled in: a) a murder mystery, b) a series of supernatural disappearances, and c) a torrid affair with an alpha werewolf who just so happens to be a peer of the realm.

i won't lie. it's ridiculous, snort-worthy fun. and tokyo police club seems to fit it well. why? i don't know. it just does.

in which thom yorke proves his awesomeness

so, i'll be honest. i am sometimes on the fence about radiohead - a band, i should point out, the husband is rabid about. early radiohead? awesome. mid-later radiohead? eh... doesn't inspire me much.

but thom yorke by himself? beyond cool.

two songs by yorke have been on my radar over the last number of months. the first is called all for the best, and is a cover of a mark mulcahy (of polaris) song. yorke, along with a number of other incredibly talented artists (including the national) did a series of covers as part of a mulcahy benefit album. all for the best is an amazing song - it's addictive beat, alongside distorted chords, is just brilliant, especially with yorke's distinctive vocals. yum!



(mp3) all the best - thom yorke

grab the benefit cd, titled ciao my shining star: the songs of mark mulcahy here and feel good that your money is going towards a good cause.

the second song is, believe it or not, off of the twilight saga: new moon's soundtrack. please - before the music snobs get all bent out of shape about me daring to post a song from this album, i plead with you to give this song a chance. it's thom yorke, right? anyway, it's entitled hearing damage, an oh, is it so good. much like all the best, there are plenty of minor, distorted chords and a killer beat to love. it begs to be listened to loudly and often.



(mp3) hearing damage - thom yorke (courtesy of music under fire)

in which i share a great maria taylor song

so, i mentioned a little earlier how i am sort of obsessive about music matching my writing. there's a song i wanted to share that has inspired me a lot lately, especially during the revision of some key scenes in some chapters i'm working on.

maria taylor used to be part of azure ray, this really ethereal, lush band that produced some really gorgeous songs. she's doing some solo stuff now, and first came to my attention with the very excellent songs clean getaway and a good start (which i highly advise you to check out). she's got a new album out this year, ladyluck, and while i pretty much dig the entire thing (especially cartoons and forever plans), orchids is one of those songs that just really speaks to me (and apparently a couple of my characters):

I won't get mad and I won't break in two
Because I understand you
Now take this change
And let my clothes soak with rain
As I study orchid blues

And some can't live
Unless they feed on fallen leaves
And so you'll let me down
To come alive
When you comfort me

I've watched you change
I've heard your words rearrange
Played back from the start
And if I did teach you anything at all
I hope it was to love with all your heart
And lie open wide
With imperfect symmetry
And so you'll love like you
And I will love like me

And to be reborn
They have to go to sea
And so, angel, you will have to set me free

i like how there are several interpretations to this song, especially when it comes to mood. of course, i automatically go to the sad place (because it's a well documented fact i like me the sad songs). taylor is a very talented singer/songwriter, who mixes meaningful lyrics to beautiful harmonies. i urge you to check her out!

(mp3) orchids - maria taylor (courtesy of AWmusic)

in which a little piece of my soul died

so, as many of you know, in just a couple weeks, i will be a mom of three.

three boys, mind you. i probably should not point out that i am the epitome of a girly girl, and that i've longed to buy pink dresses and dollies and tea party sets. but no matter - my husband is building his sports team and is salivating over the idea of grooming the kid favoring his southpaw into a left-handed relief pitcher (rationalization? they work forever).

yet i digress. the real point i'm getting at here is that i've always favored smallish cars. and before i found out i was pregnant (surprise!), i had almost talked the husband into a prius. but then came kid #3 and the need for a vehicle that holds three car seats.

we tried. we really did. we searched and searched for SUV's that would hold three. and a lot do - but however, you lose any and all room for groceries, strollers, et. al.

and so we did what i've long sworn we'd never do. heckled anyone who ever dared to bring it up.

yes. it's true. we got a mini-van.

holy crap. you do not know how hard it was to do that. mini-vans...i mean, yeah - they are supposed to be comfy. roomy. practical. great for larger families (whoa! i now have a larger family!). but they're also these hellbeast creations that reek of complicity, road hogging, and gas guzzling. and now i own one.

i hate to admit it, but it is convenient. and it's got a dvd player that's on a track and moves. and the kids can get in and out without help.

but i still weep a little for my lost prius. i suppose i'll see you in ten years!

in which i show you absolute cuteness

so, after a week of failing to blog in november, i offer only a photo today that i found on a friend's blog. why? because it's so frigging adorable, i can hardly stand it. plus, otters are my favorite animals: