17-22, The Long Way

Holy Slacker Batman.

Between a crazy work week with a new intern starting and having to make all kinds of meetings just "happen" (because you know that's how badass I am) to Physical Therapy, Dylan's counseling last week, a weekend of squeezing in Relay for Life stuff (since it's this coming Friday and my car accident sort of derailed our campsite making getting started on time) on Friday night with a couple members of my team, 2 family birthday parties Saturday afternoon, an outing with a girlfriend that had been planned weeks in advance (since I had been a basic reclusive shut in as of late due to stress and all kinds of hectic life chaos), my little cousin's graduation from high school and subsequent party on Sunday followed my MORE Relay making time with another team member.

I am friggan pooped.

This week may just kill me.

Ok, not kill me, but after Saturday I will likely feel like I could sleep for a week.

So today, after work, I get to meet up with some members of my team again to get our campsite going (it's gonna kick ass by the way, we haven't won "Best Campsite" 3 years running for nothing you know...). It's been hard to get everyone together each day so we've had to do some people one day, others another. All doing what we can between everyone having jobs and kids and what not. It's been our team in spurts, which is fine by me as long as it's ALL done by Thursday night, since the Relay is Friday!!

But since I am also a Relay Committee member, I have THOSE commitments too, so I have to be at our bank night, which is when teams turn in their cash and check donations, get their team t-shirts etc. I help organize that so I have to be there tomorrow night. I mean my team could hypothetically work on things while I am there, but me being the slight control freak that I am I like to see how things are going. I just want to make sure everything is perfect and all goes off without a hitch, although some of my team mates are seasoned and can handle it, I am a little over neurotic I guess.

Wednesday is Dylan's graduation from kindergarten (which I anticipate being freaking adorable), after that more Relay work, then a quick break for him to see his counselor and then back to the grind to make our site kick ass. I hate that it's all so last minute and that I don't have like a week of vacation time to dedicate to it, because I would be a LOT less stressed out. Although I tend to do good work under pressure, even though my blood pressure is probably through the roof right now.

I really feel like I may pull my hair out.

Thursday is the last day we can get all the things finalized and packed up and then Friday morning I am at the Relay site with the Committee at the butt crack of dawn, setting up for the masses to arrive, including my team. Once they get there, it's set up my own campsite and then I have to run over to help with the opening ceremonies, help with the Cancer Survivors dinner, and THEN I can hang with my team for the night, walking all night for the money we raised for the American Cancer Society (until Saturday.)

I somehow got my friend to get us an Army helicopter to land as part of the closing ceremony and am petrified something is going to fall through and it's going to ruin the whole thing for everyone, so I may also give myself an ulcer this week.

I get so harried the week of the Relay. I work so hard all year fundraising and raising awareness and I just want everything to be perfect. Just at the graduation yesterday, my cousin's mother-in-law is battling cancer and it just makes me that much more passionate about trying to find a cure for this disease. I'm not a scientists or a doctor, so all I can do is raise money so that they can use it to put their brilliance to work making it happen. I have lost a lot of family to this disease. A lot of close friends family members. Watched my best friend go through it. It's something that means a lot to me and I get a little tunnel visioned when it comes down to the wire like this.

Although, on a positive note, since my car accident I have dropped like 11-12lbs and my family kept commenting at the graduation party how skinny I was so that's a win! I guess not all stress is bad if it can be an effortless diet right? (Any nutritionist friends out there, please don't shake your fists at me)

Anyway, I am exhausted just thinking about it all.

So I have clearly slacked on my challenge. I think I left off on Day 16, which was on the 7th, so I have some catching up to do. So here come Day's 17-22.

Day 17: A Song You Often Hear on the Radio

Well, as I said in a previous post, up until the little asshole destroyed my pretty car, I had Satellite. I could listen to all kinds of music, not the repetitive 12 song repertoire of Top 40 radio stations.

That being said, I am glad they keep playing a certain song, on basically every channel because this woman is fabulous. I have loved her since she was "Chasing Pavement" and covering the Cure. She is amazing, and no matter how many times I hear it, I'm not sick of it yet. Perhaps because it has angry chick anthem written all over it and will go down in the books with "You Oughtta Know" like Alanis, who knows.



Day 18: A Song You Wish You Heard on The Radio

A song I would LOVE to hear on the radio, I can't get you a video to. Why you ask?? Because he's not famous. It's my pseudo brother-in-law Ed and his band of hooligans Lonesome Red. So fun. Quirky and folky and like a Bob Dylan-esque way. My favorite song is called "I'm Not Falling", and it has cult classic written all over it. (It takes talent to be able to play guitar, harmonica AND a Banjo)

They have a MySpace music page (YES! people still have MySpace, at least musicians...)

So click on over to this link and have yourself a listen, because I heart them. They play in seedy little Irish dive bars in Boston, and really, what's not better than that??
Lonesome Red

Day 19: A Song From Your Favorite Album

Well, I would have to first PICK a favorite album. I have a couple, but different artists. There are very few albums that I love every song on. Which is why I think the download generation sort of ruined music and helped it at the same time. People no longer buy an entire album JUST for one song, and then sort of explore it and see how it goes. They download that song and move on, at least those who aren't music junkies. I still generally like having the whole thing. I figure if I like one song by an artist, I am going to like the rest, but I digress.

So, to pick a few from albums I could listen to beginning to end, here we go.

I love Coldplay. (Waiting for the 40 year Old Virgin "Know how I know you're gay..." jokes to start) I have never heard a song by them I didn't love, but this song, and this album is brilliant and I adore it.



Eminem is incredible. Seriously. The man, all dysfunction aside is a modern poet. And his Recovery album is absolutely amazing. And of course, my "song" from that album has it's own meaning to me, but last summer it held a lot of weight. And I could still listen to this from beginning to end. On repeat.



Jewel has been a hero of mine since I first saw her. It was her "Who Will Save Your Soul" video on VH1, her in a bathroom stall back in like 1995. No one I knew listened to her, liked her or even WATCHED VH1 for that matter, but somehow I saw her. I learned she wrote, poetry as well as music. She was a kindred soul to me. She was all I aspired to be. Her voice was great, but not in that every day Diva way like Whitney or Mariah. She was on the cusp of rock and folk and country and I fell in love. I think I even wore out my "Pieces of You" album my playing it too much. This song was always one of my favorites on that album.



There are so many others , but I have other days to catch up on damnit!!

Day 20: A Song You Listen To When You're Angry

Well, I suppose I could revert up to the cliched Alanis song above mentioned, but it depends on why I am mad what I want to vent out to. I can think of 2 songs that I can listen to, and if they are cliched well, I don't give a rats ass. That's probably what the songwriters intended in the first place. So there.







Day 21: A Song You Listen to When You're Happy

Well, any song is a good song when you're in a good mood! But there are a couple that make you smile.

Like who isn't grinning like an idiot looking at this Weird Al video right now??


Day 22: A Song that Makes You Sad

Again, this is a topic I could fill a page with. There are different reasons why. The hardest for me are always those Father/Daughter wedding dance songs because I know I will never get to have that. But there are other songs that make me sad for other reasons. Especially in recent weeks.

Here's a couple.

This song kicks my ass.






Another one what kills me because of losing my dad


I'm sure I could dig deeper and come up with more, but I really don't want to make myself sad. In the words of the immortal Willy Wonka, "So much time and so little to do. Wait a minute. Strike that. Reverse it."