Looking Out My Back Door

Egregious Lack of Posts Lately...So Here's Some More

Yes, I admit it. I have been horribly lax about writing in my blog of late. Blame it on spring fever, blame it on being cranky because of a massive dental bill, blame it on the bossa nova, but, ultimately, it all comes back to me. So if I've disappointed anyone other than myself, heartfelt apologies and a promise to post more frequently. Here's an encore post for today to try and redeem myself...

When I'm not being an ol' crankypants, I try to keep myself occupied with new and interesting things (old ones, too). I recently discovered the incredible instrument that is Joss Stone's voice. I'd been hearing about her for a year or more (the gal just turned 18), a white teenager from England with a voice like Janis Joplin's. The full impact of her talent didn't hit me until I saw a clip from this year's Grammy awards. She teamed with the incredible Melissa Etheridge on a tribute to Joplin, and while it was Etheridge's night, Stone shone with her rendition of "Cry Baby." Then, as you may have heard, Etheridge stalked out onto the stage with her electric guitar and beautiful bald head and proceeded to rip into "Piece of My Heart." Outstanding. You can download it for a small fee, which goes to fund breast cancer research. I've been listening to it almost non-stop, and it really came in handy last Friday night, as I was stuck in horrendous George Washington Bridge traffic. As my car creeped along for about 45 minutes, I kept hitting the repeat button on the CD player and sang/belted/screamed along with Joss and Melissa, alternating joy with rage until my voice gave out (probably after the fifth time). I cannot fathom how Etheridge screams so beautifully. I don't have any of her CDs, but I have great performances by her from "The Concert for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame" CD and from the Paul McCartney-organized Concert for 9/11. It makes me think that I need to buy some of her stuff, and some of Joss Stone's, too.

Speaking of CDs, I finally tackled a chore I've been avoiding for about a year and a half. My brother re-hung my CD cabinets inside a large closet (I call it the media closet, as it is also crammed with albums and VHS tapes that I can't bear to part with, as well as a couple of thousand CDs) and half the collection was neatly put away, categorized by genre, then artist, then chronologically. The other half of the collection was stacked haphazardly in the closet. It only took about an hour and a half, but I got the rest of them organized and properly placed in the cabinets. Of course, this doesn't include the couple hundred CDs hanging out in the living room, bedroom or office, but I'll get to them soon. Eventually I'll have burned copies of favorites for the car and office, so I can then properly store the scattered discs, but that's a chore for another day. (I don't like chores of any kind, so postponing them is one of my favorite things to do!)

Next project...finding a home for the stacks of DVDs that seem to have popped up everywhere. The lovely storage cabinet I purchased for them was supposed to hold 350, but only takes about 240. Unfortunately, there's no room for the two or three additional cabinets I would need to purchase, so I have to figure out another way to contain them (any ideas are welcomed). Besides, my dentist has all my damn money anyway.

posted by Hopster @ 11:39 AM