Song of the Week

"Full of Grace" by Sarah McLachlan

I had such a hard time choosing the song for this week. I knew that I wanted to feature Sarah because anyone who knows me knows that Sarah and I are tight like that (or at least we WOULD be if she knew me), but choosing my favorite Sarah song is like trying to choose a "favorite star in the heavens." I finally decided on "Full of Grace" b/c I feel like it's a prime example of all that I love about Sarah. I love how her music is just right, whether I'm up or down. I've listened to her ever since she was an underground Canadian hit, and I've always felt like her music perfectly fits my mood. Some people have a hard time listening to Sarah for a long time, but that would definitely not be me. Her music is so lush with harmonies and melodies that it's easy to get swept away in. My favorite feature about Sarah's voice is how she can shift from chest to head voice and back so seamlessly. Listening to her voice as she effortlessly moves up to hit those high notes with such clarity is like listening to Gil Shaham as he moves up the fingerboard of his violin; I'm completely carried away in the moment and I feel as if I, too, am rising up to some celestial home. It might sound a bit dramatic to you, but music like Sarah's has such a powerful effect on me. Though I would never put her in the same class as some of my favorite opera singers (TeKanawa, Bonney, Von Stade, Fleming), the effect that her voice (and music) can have on me is very similar to what I might experience while listening to one of them.

Political Comedy

I saw this on my brother-in-law's website and I had to borrow it, I thought it was so funny!

Are you a Democrat, Republican, or Southerner?

You're walking down a deserted street with your wife and two small children. Suddenly, an Islamic Terrorist with a large knife comes around the corner, locks eyes with you, and screams obscenities, praises Allah, raises the knife, and charges at you. You are carrying a Glock cal 40 and are an expert shot. You have mere seconds before he reaches you and your family. What do you do?

Democrat's answer: "Well, that's not enough information to answer the question! Does the man look poor? Or oppressed? Have I ever done anything to him that would inspire him to attack? Could we run away? What does my wife think? What about the kids? What does the law say about this situation? Why am I carrying a loaded gun anyway, and what kind of message does this send to society and to my children? Does he definitely want to kill me, or would he be content just to wound me? Should I call 9-1-1? Why is this street so deserted? We need to raise taxes, have a paint and weed day, and make this a happier, healthier street that would discourage such behavior."

Republican's answer: BANG!

Southerner's answer: BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! Click....(sounds of reloading) BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! Click

Daughter: Nice grouping Daddy! Were those Winchester Silver Tips or Hollow Points?

Son: Can I shoot the next one?

Wife: You ain't takin' that to the Taxidermist!

The Hunt is On!

John and I have finally scheduled to look at houses this Friday with a realtor. We're going to check out a few houses in Little Elm, one in Frisco and a few on the Frisco edge of McKinney . I'm starting to get very anxious about not knowing where we're going to be in a month's time, so I'm really pressuring John to get things going. It's been hard to schedule time to go and look b/c he's been so busy with finishing up school, but he's done after tomorrow... WOOHOO! We both really wanted to stay in this area, but after dedicating an entire day exhausting all of my resources, I came up with one house in our price range and it won't even be ready to look at until the end of the month. I can't wait that long! So now John and I are having a hard time deciding where exactly we should end up. Unfortunately, we both have a hard time settling for an old, smaller house, which rules out The Colony, Plano and most affordable parts of Lewisville. That leaves only the areas that are growing, which are Frisco, Little Elm and McKinney. While we would both prefer Frisco over the other two, there is NOTHING in Frisco at the moment (which stinks.) So we'll probably end up in either Little Elm or McKinney. Finding a home and moving is such a tiring and stressful process, but I know that we're doing what is right for our family and I know that we will be so blessed in so many ways once we move into a home.

Song of the Week

"Nine in the Afternoon" by Panic at the Disco

This band is a new discovery for me and I just have to say that I'm diggin' their unique sound. Aside from Brendon Urie's great voice (and rather interesting vibrato), I love the way pop, electronica, dance, rock, raggae and jazz are brought together to make for a very pleasing and positive sound. I can't help but tap my toes and dance in my chair as I listen to this song (as well as a few others that I've included on my playlist.) I don't like the tunes from their 2005 album quite as much; they tend to be a little on the raunchy or crude side with explitives thrown all around the place. But I like this new, peppy sound of theirs alot. They've definitely got something here!

Out of five stars, what would you rate this song? I'm interested to hear back from you. Enjoy!