I’m going to see them next week, and I’m very excited! It’s hard to pick one song that represents their sound, because their material is quite diverse. But, Caught By the River is my favorite Doves song TODAY, so here ya go 
.
Musique Du Jour: Doves – Caught By the River May 12, 2009
On direction (or lack thereof) May 11, 2009
I was poking around on here a few days ago, for the first time in months. I’ll tell you–there might not even be one of “you” anymore–what brings me back in a moment, but anyway, I found the post below, something I had written almost a year ago and the timing could not have been more perfect.
What brings me back is a lot of… well, I don’t know if I want to call it soul-searching, but a lot of trying to figure out what my “ant thing” is, or at least something along those lines. (Read the post below if you have no idea what I’m talking about when I say “ant thing.”) So often when I end up in career conversations with people whom I love, I ask them, “What makes you feel alive?” or “What do you feel like you’ve been built to do?” And if they tell me, I respond by advising them to do just that. The advice is not so easy, however, when turned inwards. Are you kidding? That’s scary? What if people judge me? Reject me? Or [gasp] don’t LIKE me???????
Paulo Coelho, whom I affectionately (and jokingly) refer to as my distinguished Brazilian boyfriend*, talks a lot about the notion of the Personal Legend. He writes, “When you desire your Personal Legend, all the universe conspires to help you achieve it.” There’s a lot out there these days about manifesting your own destiny; i.e., if you truly believe it will happen, it WILL happen. I think people tend to read Coelho–er, my boyfriend–’s words and think them to mean that if we can only set our minds to it, we can make it happen. But, I don’t think this is what he’s talking about at all.
I believe the Personal Legend is that thing or set of things that is so intrinsically part of who each of us is. It’s what we are here to do, to learn, to achieve, it’s the journey we are to take, all that stuff. And while I certainly believe in free choice, I also believe that we have certain skills, personalities, strengths and limitations, and those largely dictate what we are built to do. Not what we necessarily choose to do, mind you (see “choice, free”) but nonetheless what we’ve been designed to do. And I don’t think that means we can’t be good at things that we haven’t been “built” to do. What I DO think it means, though, is that it will never feel quite the same as how it feels when you experience the peace, joy, fear, thrill, exhilaration, and expectancy of your Personal Legend.
Makes me wonder if those people who are absolutely miserable while chasing their dreams are chasing the wrong dreams altogether, if the universe is conspiring to not help them achieve those dreams because it knows (God knows) that it would lead to disaster.
It makes perfect sense to me that desiring my Personal Legend–that is, aligning ourselves with God’s beautiful and unique plan for me–would feel as though the whole universe has got my back (yo). I don’t for one second think that a life spent pursuing the Personal Legend is a life free of strife or struggle, but in the midst of all the crap, there is still something that feels so right about it, that you know you’re at least heading in the right direction. Something in your soul cries “YES” even though you are wondering what the heck you’re doing on this road, or desperate to exit stage left.
For me it’s become a process of elimination. I know what makes me feel alive, and conversely, what makes me feel dead. I think the Spirit of God has a lot of refining to do with me before I even have eyes to see specifically what it is I’m looking at, let alone gather the courage to go after it. But one of the things that keeps coming back to me is this: I love to write. I love everything from telling the story to creating a grammatically beautiful sentence. Heck, I even like the physical act of scraping my pen across a page.
Is it my ant thing? Will I glorify God by doing it? Maybe (I hope so!). I mean, maybe I’m wrong, but there’s always going to be a change that I’m wrong. So while my last few attempts to maintain a blog have been for entertainment purposes (I know, how silly!), this time around, I’m making a commitment to myself, and to what just might be my Personal Legend. I need the practice. I think we generally hold that we need at least 10,000 hours of practice, and I assume our Personal Legends aren’t exempt from this. Sweet. If I’m right, I’ve now only got 9,999.5 hours to go!
*I love him. Love, love, love, love, love. Normal people have the hots for Brad Pitt. I have the hots for old Brazilian men.
At the bus stop… May 9, 2009
“Hi again,” I say, smiling as I take my place on his left.
“Good morning. Is it a good morning for you?”
“It is indeed!”
We both look up the street expectantly, though each of us knows we have a few minutes yet.
A few moments later: “Do you speak French?”
“Nah,” I reply, ”I used to when I was in high school.”
“Well you know, they say if you don’t use it you lose it! I was just noticing your bag.” It’s from Chapters, and it has French on one side, English on the other. I spin it around in my hand so he can read it in English. The creation of a thousand forests is in one acorn.
I smile sheepishly at him; even I know it’s a bit hokey. “It was on sale, and it was the right size,” I explain to him.
“Did you know the seed for a Redwood is the exact same size as the seed of a Bonsai?”
“No, actually, I did not know that…”
“Yeah, there’s something that goes on after the seed starts to sprout, something about the root configuration, and that’s what dictates such a difference in size.”
“Isn’t it crazy the way the things in our world work sometimes? It just blows my mind. My roommate and I were watching Planet Earth, and some of the stuff you see… just incredible.”
“It really is. I find the human aspect of that show very interesting as well, how civilizations interact and all that.”
“I haven’t actually seen any human activity in the series yet… except for the special features when they show the guy sitting in a lean-to for 15 days straight waiting for a Bird of Paradise to impress his Bird of Paradise lady friend.”
“Now what possesses people to do stuff like that?” he asks me. “Sit in a lean-to for 15 days to see a bird dance… Like Mount Everest. Why do people climb Mount Everest? Just to say they’ve done it?”
I think on this for a moment and am about to say something when he continues.
“I guess it’s like that movie, Chariots of Fire.”
“I haven’t seen it, actually…”
“Ian Charleson’s character, he basically says, ‘I was put on this earth to run fast; when I run fast, I bring glory to God.’”
I cock my head to the side and look at him as I nod slowly.
“I guess,” he continues, “some people are put on this earth to climb Mount Everest, and because they do what they were put here to do, it brings glory to Him. Or even ants, doing what they do as ants, that brings glory to the God who created them.”
As always, a brilliant early morning interaction is interrupted by the arrival of the 345, and we say goodbye for another day.
Musique Du Jour: Elbow – New Born March 15, 2009
This song reminds me of Australia, even though they’re English. There was this shop in Sydney called Dirt Cheap CDs, and they had… well, dirt cheap CDs. In Australia, discs tend to cost about $25-30 AUD, but these were $10, new (mass imports / factory outlet I think is how they did it). It was brilliant! Anyhoo, this track is from one of the many CDs that I picked up whilst Down Under. Guy Garvey has such a pretty voice.
Will you pray for little John? March 1, 2009
I came across the story of this family at Stuff Christians Like. Mary Elizabeth and Meade’s twin boys, Warren and John, began having seizures several hours after birth on January 21. Little Warren went home to the King after a tough two-and-a-half week battle, and though John has stabilized a bit, they still do not know what is causing the seizures, and there is still an urgent need for prayer.
Read their story, and please join me in praying for this young family.
Musique Du Jour: Howie Day – Bunnies (live) February 28, 2009
Howie Day has a new song out so I thought this might be good timing, especially since this song just popped up on shuffle.
Here’s the thing about Howie Day. His singles are good. I enjoy Perfect Time of Day, Brace Yourself, She Says. They’re fun pop songs.
BUT. Howie Day is unfortunately one of those (many) artist whose best work is not all that well-known, unless you’re already a fan and you go looking for it. I’ve seen him live three times, and he’s a phenomenal musician, but again, I don’t think that’s really showcased in what we hear on the radio.
Take a listen to Bunnies, and keep in mind that this is a one-man show, from start to finish. Just Howie, his guitar, a mic, and 14 or so pedals. If you like it I would definitely recommend the Madrigals EP / DVD. The DVD is outstanding.
Musique du Jour: Derek Webb – This Too Shall Be Made Right February 26, 2009
derek webb – this too shall be made right
people love you the most for the things you hate
and hate you for loving the things that you cannot keep straight
people judge you on a curve
and tell you you’re getting what you deserve
this too shall be made right
children cannot learn when children cannot eat
stack them like lumber when children cannot sleep
children dream of wishing wells
whose waters quench all the fires of Hell
this too shall be made right
the earth and the sky and the sea are all holding their breath
wars and abuses have nature groaning with death
we say we’re just trying to stay alive
but it looks so much more like a way to die
this too shall be made right
there’s a time for peace and there is a time for war
a time to forgive and a time to settle the score
a time for babies to lose their lives
a time for hunger and genocide
this too shall be made right
I don’t know the suffering of people outside my front door
I join the oppressors of those who i choose to ignore
I’m trading comfort for human life
and that’s not just murder it’s suicide
this too shall be made right
Musique Du Jour: Au4 – Paper Cuts from Paper Butterflies February 23, 2009
To say that I was a fan of Stabilo throughout high school and most of university is an understatement–I truly reached levels of fandemonium, fansanity, fanaticism, whatever you want to call it. Though my tastes have somewhat changed, I still look back fondly at the memories of traveling all over the Lower Mainland to attend every all-ages show they had, and, when all else failed, booking them myself! The other great benefit is that the drummer, Nathan, and his brothers had (have?) a side-project called Au4.
I managed to catch them live a couple of years ago, and it was absolutely aurgasmic. Mmmm… All of the tracks from On:Audio are out of this world, but here’s Paper Cuts from Paper Butterflies.
They also have amazing visuals for each of their songs. My favorite (which actually accompanies Paper Cuts) isn’t available on YouTube but here’s another stunner:
Musique du Jour: KT Tunstall – Beauty of Uncertainty February 22, 2009
I used to do this back at the Old Ramblings, but then again, I also used to blog quasi-regularly, so there ya go!
Anyhoo, inspired by my friend Dan (whom I have not seen since grade 7 as far as I can remember!), I’m bringing it back. My absolute glee at some of his daily offerings reminded me that there are fewer things that are better, in my opinion at least, than being introduced to a new artist.
To start us off is KT Tunstall’s Beauty of Uncertainty. Ok, so she’s not “new”; I’m sure everyone’s heard Black Horse and the Cherry Tree, and Suddenly I See. I love this side of her, though, and I’m always a little bit sad when people judge an artist by their singles!
I first heard this song live when I saw her at the Commodore last year, and she earned herself top prize as my favorite female artist.
Hope you like it…
