The Lola Shuffle - The "Sucky Week" Edition

Let's just say it's been a rough week and leave it at that.

Come on Lola, shuffle up a good mix...

1. The Trouble With Love Is - Kelly Clarkson
2. Como Fue - Beny More
3. Brass In Pocket - The Pretenders
4. I'm Still Standing - Elton John (barely...)
5. I Need - Meredith Brooks
6. City of New Orleans - Arlo Guthrie
7. Peggy Sue - Buddy Holly
8. Jessie - Joshua Kadisson
9. Cecilia - Paul Simon
10. Funkytown - Lipps, Inc.

Not bad Lola. I hope you all have a great weekend...

'Toon Tuesday

Fun with Your MPG player

I got this from Amy's Facebook page...



1. Put Your mp3 player on Shuffle.
2. For each question below, type the title of the song playing and the artists in (parenthesis) and any comments in [brackets].
3. Press the forward/next button to get the answer to the next question.
4. You must write down the name of the song no matter how silly it sounds!
5. If you want to play, please me know in my comments.

1. What do you think of your parents? Sex Bomb (Tom Jones) [Oh God!]
2. What do you think about very often? Someone To Watch Over me (Rod Stewart
3. What is 2+2? Because The Night (10,000 Maniacs)
4. What do you think of your best friend? Anticipation (Carly Simon)
5. What do you think of the person you love? Moonglow (Rod Stewart)
6. What is your life's story? The Sound of Freedom ("Sarafina" soundtrack)
7. What's your dream job? Could It Be Magic? (Barry Manilow)
8. What do you think of when you see the person you love? Anyone Else But You ("Juno" soundtrack)
9. What will you dance/should you have danced to at your wedding? Over My Head (Fleetwood Mac)
10. What will they play at your funeral? Every Morning (Sugar Ray)
11. What is your hobby/interest? Crazy (Patsy Cline)
12. What is your biggest fear? Separate Ways (Journey)
13. What is your biggest secret? Concrete Angel (Martina McBride)
14. What do you think of your friends? Mary's Place (Bruce Springsteen)
15. How would you describe yourself? Don't Stop the Music (Rihanna)

Your turn!

The Lola Shuffle - The "We've Got Ourselves A New President" Edition

It's finally happened. Thank God! What a wonderful day Tuesday was! And he hit the ground running - already we've seen changes that are heartening. I am thrilled!

So is Lola - she wants to shuffle a special shuffle in honor of our new President, let's see what she comes up with...

1. Falling In Love Again - Marlene Dietrich
2. Shining Star - Earth, Wind and Fire
3. Happy Ending - Mika (perfect!)
4. Fields of Gold - Sting
5. Come Together - The Beatles (this is random, I swear!)
6. Bonito y Sabroso - Beny More (title translates to "pretty and tasty")
7. Are We the Waiting - Green Day
8. Smile - Lily Allen
9. You're My Best Friend - Queen
10. Wrapped Around Your Finger - The Police

Nice job Lola! Everyone have a great weekend - and stay warm!

Reclaiming a Word: Patriotic

According to Merriam-Webster Online:

Patriotism - : love for or devotion to one's country

Nationalism - :a sense of national consciousness exalting one nation above all others and placing primary emphasis on promotion of its culture and interests as opposed to those of other nations or supranational
groups

First of all YAY!!! President Barack Hussein Obama - welcome and God bless you. There's no need for me to go into how happy I am today.

One of the plethora of things about which I'm happy is that now I feel I can reclaim the word "patriotic". Throughout the former administration "patriotic" felt like "nationalistic". In my opinion patriotic is good, nationalistic is bad.

Today, after Tuesday's glorious day - I think that President Obama (I love thinking, reading, hearing and saying those words) has made it OK to feel love, devotion and yes, pride in our country. I believe he is going to lead our country with dignity but not arrogance, with strength but not by bullying, with conviction but not by disrespecting other countries and cultures.

Although I already knew it, yesterday while he was giving his phenomenal inaugural speech it really hit me that he truly is *post-racial*. Think about it: his father was Black African, his mother was a white girl from Kansas, part of his life he grew up and went to school in a Muslim nation, and the rest of his youth was spent in Hawaii with Pan-Asian elements.

He is so the right man at the right time.

So, thanks to you Mr. President, I am again comfortable using the word "patriotic" - I now see it as love for my country without implying disdain or disrespect for other countries.

'Toon Monday (because I'll be busy tomorrow!)

It's a beautiful day...

See the picture up there? That was today in Miami! Palm trees and a beautiful blue sky - temperatures in the mid to low 70s. I had a great Saturday. We drove out to Homestead, the agricultural area near Miami. It was Hubby, my friend Purplepassion and me.

First we went to "Knaus Berry Farm" - a farmers market run by "Dunkers" a German Baptist sect. They've been at the same location from November to May for at least 40 years. They're best known for strawberries and baked goods - particularly their cinnamon rolls - AMAZING!

Here's today's line for baked goods.

And look at the tomatoes, strawberries and veggies - YUM!

Afterwards we had lunch at one of Hubby's and my favorite Mexican restaurants. There's a large Mexican population living in Homestead, so there are a lot of very good, authentic Mexican restaurants. Later my friend and I walked around Downtown Homestead, checking out the antique shops, which I love doing.

While most of the country is enduring a horrifically cold winter, we are blessed in Miami to have days like today.

Lucky us!

The Lola Shuffle - The "End of the 8 Year National Nightmare" Edition

If Lola had legs, she'd be leaping for joy! By the next time Lola shuffles George W. Bush will be out of the White House, out of power, unable to cause anymore damage, and safely ensconced wherever he's going.

I know it's hard to believe coming from Lola and me, but we honestly wish George and Laura the happiness they deserve and hope they enjoy long, healthy and happy lives far, far away from politics. Godspeed and good riddance...

Now...for the shuffle of joy...

1. The Cup of Life - Ricky Martin
2. Give Up the Funk (Tear the Roof Off) - Parliament
3. Changes in Latitudes - Jimmy Buffett
4. Movin' Out - Billy Joel
5. Limelight - Rush
6. Goza Mi Mambo Cubano - Cachao
7. Baby Be Good - The Smithereens
8. As Good As I Once Was - Toby Keith
9. Forever Young - Joan Baez
10. Seasons of Love - "Rent" Soundtrack

YAY! A most excellent shuffle...Lola definitely's "got the funk"...

Have a wonderful weekend and inaugural experience!

YES WE DID!

American Idol - Season 8

(sigh)

OK fine, I wound up watching the frickin' frackin' season premiere. "I didn't wanna do it, I didn't wanna do it..." I HATE the auditions, but I'll admit last night's was relatively less horrible than in the past.

There's a new judge . My opinion of her so far: "meh, whatever". The "auditioners" were generic, except for the blind guy.

Oh and Bikini Girl. Appalling! Beautiful girl but appalling! Randy and Simon were ridiculous while Paula and what's-her-name wasted a fabulous opportunity to add a scintilla of dignity to the proceedings by failing to advise the young woman that she probably would have gotten through to Hollywood even if she hadn't skanked up the joint. Instead her behavior was rewarded - she'll probably show up in a g-string and a whip for the first round of the Hollywood competition.

But the zenith of the evening was Ryan Seacrest high-fiving a blind man. Really. Then, just to make more of an idiot of himself he *told* the young man "I'm high-fivin' you dude".

Why does Seacrest have a job? And I won't even comment on the spectacle of Bikini Girl with her tongue down Seacrest's throat.

So here's the deal. I don't plan to watch AI again until they whittle the horde down to 24, and *if* I watch this season (which I don't want to, but probably will) I plan to start recapping after they get down to the final 12.

I don't plan to post about AI till then. Unless I something noteworthy happens or Seacrest makes an idiot of himself again. Given that, I'll probably post after tonight...

'Toon Tuesday - Back from Vacation

Book Review - "Little Women" - Louisa May Alcott

I've read Little Women several times through the years - the first time when I was about 10 years old I guess and always enjoyed it.

The story is simple and sweet, but I think it still carries a strong message about the strength in the bonds of women. Progressive for the time, Alcott presents in the March women different "types" - Meg, the pretty, domestic one; Jo, the tomboyish, independent rebel; Beth, the too-good-for-this-world moral angel; Amy, the flighty, spoiled, bratty princess - at least at first; and then Marmee, the redeemed wild child who is now their strength and moral compass. The men, while not maligned are almost incidental, serving as props to highlight the different personalities of the women.

The characters are wonderfully developed,as we see them grow through the years. The setting is very well described - you can "see" the gardens and rooms. And again, having been written for young women, the writing is easy to read and follow, if a bit long-winded. Despite Jo's detailed character development, I feel her love story was rushed and not developed enough - as opposed to those of Meg and Amy. I imagine her relationship with Bhaer is delved into more in the sequel Little Men, which I haven't read yet.

Although I like the book very much I think it suffers in comparison with Jane Austen's "Pride and Prejudice". Even though the time frame of "Little Women" - during and after the Civil War - is almost 100 years later than "Pride and Prejudice" - late 18th century/early 19th century - I think Austen's classic feels more relevant.

I definitely recommend "Little Women" to everyone, not just pre-teen and teen girls. It's a beautiful, well-told and surprisingly progressive story.

The Lola Shuffle - The "I Have a New Office Cubicle!" Edition

I'm almost done moving...it's nice, for a cubicle. I have a window seat and it is a gorgeous day in Miami today. There are only seven of us in the area so I can play streaming radio through my speakers rather than with headphones.

Lola is ready to shuffle, so let's see what we get today...

1. Fortress Around Your Heart - Sting
2. Get the Party Started - P!nk
3. Carraroe Jig - The Corrs
4. Cry Me a River - Julie London
5. Ships - Barry Manilow
6. Nobody's Home - Avril Lavigne
7. Don't Speak - No Doubt
8. Always and Forever - Heatwave
9. Mambo - Cachao Lopez
10. J'Menui De Toi - Danny Collet & The Swamp Rats

Have a great weekend!

I'm Home!

Yes, we made it back last night. The drive home was relatively uneventful and loooong.

Today was my first day back at work and I had to move to another floor! That's always a pain, particularly when you;re me and have a lotta crap. As of right now I have stuff at two desks on two floors. Good thing: I got a window - YAY! Bad thing: air conditioning trauma, I'm hot and everyone else is cold - welcome to my world!

Nothing else for tonight, I'm just trying to get myself organized.

The Lola Shuffle - The "Happy New Year" Edition

See the pictures above? That's William Penn atop Philadelphia's City Hall. The top one was when we arrived in the city om a clear, cold Philly day - the second one was half and hour later through snow flurries - ACK!

So...even though Lola shuffled a couple of days ago, she wants to shuffle again. In honor of the new year, this shuffle will only contain newly added songs...how exciting!

Ready?

1. Mercy - Duffy
2. Girls in Their Summer Clothes - Bruce Springsteen
3. Life in a Northern Town - The Dream Academy
4. Bleeding Love - Leona Lewis
5. I Kissed a Girl - Katy Perry
6. Bad Things (Theme from HBO's "True Blood") - Jace Everett
7. Dulce Locura - La Oreja de Van Gogh
8. Viva La Vida - Coldplay
9. So What - P!nk
10. Merry Happy - Kate Nash

I'll be in Philadelphia for a couple of more days then we'll be on the road again. Have a great weekend...stay warmer than I am!