Let It Go

This was by far my favorite song from Disney's 'Frozen'. ^_^ I can almost sing this by heart. Hehehe.

New On My Mp3

Okay, never mind the name of this music group; their songs are *awesome*!!! If you're into soundtracks, medieval style music, thriller music and basically all around awesome songs, then here's the motherload  for you. This is basically all I've been listening to for the last three days. No lyrics, just a symphony doing an incredible job at creating inspiring songs. :)

Guinevere

Hope y'all had a good Thanksgiving, yesterday! We celebrated ours a day late this year, so today was my day of eating waaaaay too much food (oh glorious food!). Now I'm feeling sleepy, and wondering why on earth eating so much food is so tiring. Hehe. Eh, I'll ponder the answer to that in my sleep.

 I've got nothing hugely new to share since Monday (gadzooks! Was it really Monday that I last blogged???); save for the fact that I got my very own laptop as an early Christmas present from my family (eek!), and I've been busy all week doing that last-minute stuff before flying out next week. Yeah, I leave next week! Wow. My days have been full of saying goodbye to friends here in Oregon, enjoying having a driver's license (freeeeedooooom!), getting Gyp ready (he aced his health inspection at the vet!), and now I'm realizing that I do eventually have to pack. Grumble, grumble, grumble... If there's one thing I don't enjoy doing, it's packing. Too tedious.

 So in some random attempt to post SOMETHING new on here, I'm caving and posting a Youtube of a band that I've got a new crush on (okay, not the usual crush... But, you know, I'm like downloading aaaaaall their songs now. It's crazy.). They're called the 'Eli Young Band' and I'm loving the country/pop twist that they're putting in their music. This particular song, 'Guinevere' is probably my favorite so far (I call it my theme song), but hey if you're ever bored and you're looking for music, you could always try their other tracks like 'Crazy Girl' (second favorite!), 'Even If It Breaks Your Heart' (third favorite!), or perhaps 'Always The Love Songs'.

Or -- you could be a normal/sensible person and not listen to them at all and just smile at my eccentricities when it comes to taste in music. I really can't decide if my taste in music is awesome or horrible... Hm.

Anyway, talk at ya' later, guys. I'm off to go find something useful to do, while avoiding the kitchen and the tantalizing smells coming from there.

Let There Be Cowgirls

  It's been a long time since I've listened to honest-to-goodness country music. You know, the songs that actually talk about cowboys and cowgirls? I listen to a lot of country music, but my kind is the kind about tractors, crops, and pretty girls. ;) It's been many a year since the term "cowgirl" applied to me. I used to be that type of person... I was a rodeo girl; passionate about barrel racing and pole bending, and desperately wanting to master roping. My usual mount was a little gray Arabian mare; but my favorite was a lazy, bad tempered buckskin Quarter Horse named Snippy. The Arab was great if you wanted a good, dependable run; she was sturdy, and fast enough to finish a barrel course in 16 to 17 seconds. But the Quarter Horse... She made you work for the ride; you had to give things your all, ride her just right, convince her that this was the thing to do... If you were lucky, and she was in a good mood, the two of you flew through those courses and getting a time of 14 or 15 seconds on the patterns wasn't uncommon. I've ridden who knows how many horses over the years, but obstinate Snippy is still a favorite.

 But back to the music! Like I said, I haven't listened to this stuff since I was a rodeo girl myself, at the age of 12; my riding instructor got me hooked on this style of music and usually had it playing when it was just the two of us. I had forgotten all songs and artists that I liked over the years, and then a friend sent me a link to a country song the other day. I laughed at the song; thinking of all the memories that it brought back, and then instantly downloaded it onto my MP3. It's called 'Let There Be Cowgirls', by Chris Cagle and I have to admit that I'm quite smitten with it right now. I sing along with it outside while working in the barn, and my mind drifts back to days of creaking leather saddles, dusty arenas, and three barrels set up in a triangle shape... Waiting for a cowgirl and her mount to fly through it.

Feel free to give it a listen to. ;)

See You Tonight

  

Clear As Day

Of all the country singers I listen to, Scotty McCreery is probably one of my top favorites. I was floored the first time I heard him; couldn't believe that a voice that deep could be coming from someone so young (he was 17 when he made the song below). I also like it that his music is quite clean where lyrics are concerned; something that's not always easy to find in the world of country music.

His song 'Clear As Day' is one of my favorites (I have a few faves though... LOL.). It's a slower song that tells a story. And the ending always gets me. Always takes me by surprise. Each time I listen to it, I think some part of me hopes that it'll end differently. It has yet to, but hey, maybe someday...

I tried to upload a Youtube for y'all, but the only one that was good was restricted. -_- Ah phooey. All is not lost though. Here's a Grooveshark bite for ya'! 

Girl vs. Sheep

You know those bad dreams where you feel like you're trying to run towards something, but you're stuck in mud? And no matter how hard you try, you just can't seem to get anywhere? Well, if you've ever wanted to experience that feeling in real life, then I would recommend running after 13 escaped sheep through vetch/cleaver infested fields. It's uncannily like those bad dreams...

Yes, you guessed it. That's how my morning went. This was supposed to be easy. The sheep knew the routine in moving to a new paddock, but #70 has been a twerp lately and little rebel that she is, she bolted past me and all the others followed! Sigh... Where's my trained sheepdog when I need him? Oh right, he's still a puppy who would probably only chase them into the deep forest right about now. Seems I'm on my own. So up the hill I went running! I got half of them down and in the paddock, then ran back up the hill for the other half. Right before I got the second half in the paddock, the first half bolted through my small opening, and guess where they went. Back up the hill. -_- 

The second half joined them, and I was now back at the bottom of the hill, watching thirteen sheep bottoms getting farther and farther from me.

I sprinted after them, praying out loud and asking God to pleeeeeeze don't let them go into the forest! 

I was rather outnumbered right then and there, and those sheep had four wheel drive on 'em, which really left me at a disadvantage. The only thing I had going for me was that I knew a few deer trails at the top of the hill which allowed me to keep an even pace with the sheep on our way down.

If I hadn't been so paranoid about getting the sheep back in their paddock, I think I would have enjoyed myself with all that running. Gyp and I took last week off of running and I've missed it. Granted, running through the vetch and cleaver plants was a bear of a problem, and I accidentally crashed right through a blackberry plant that was hiding amidst the tall grasses, which has left me some pretty scratches up and down my arms. Honorable war wounds, those are.

I finally managed to get half of them in the paddock by distracting them with grain, but then the second group took a new tack and headed East, towards the creek. I sighed in frustration, and then grinned at the challenge; they were in familiar territory now where I knew all the deer trails. For the first time, I was the faster opponent. It didn't take long enough before I had them up against a fence line and was able to funnel them ALL into the paddock. I closed the fence line up with the speed and ferocity usually only seen from competitors in sheep dog trials. It had taken me an hour and a half of running up and down to get those sheep where they belonged!! 

When I finished with the sheep at last, I took a moment to pull out all the bramble thorns that were still embedded in my arms. I hadn't even noticed the pain while I was running, but I was sure feeling it now. Darn that blackberry plant... Did it really have to be RIGHT there??? Oh well. More than anything, I wanted to crash on the couch inside with a book and not think for awhile, but instead I had to package up some microgreens that I had harvested earlier. While weighing out sugar pea shoots and putting them in plastic clamshells, I flicked some music on and was generous with the volume. My favorite artist, Jai McDowall, just released one of his newest songs and I've been pleased to find that it's every bit as good as his others he's done. :) The catchy tune to Got To Let Go made the time fly with the packaging, and I finished shortly.  

Now that I seem to have done everything that needs to be done right now, I think I'm going to go crash on that couch like I wanted... Just twenty minutes with the book, and then I'll get back to work.

 Cross my heart. ;) 

Kulning Clip

While doing some research online today, I found another musical clip that has kulning woven into it. :) It always makes me happy when I find that more and more people are bringing this old style of singing back. You can listen to the sound clip by clicking HERE!

Nobody Knows

My love for variety and randomness is most clearly shown in my music tastes. Which is a nice way to say that I like an extremely broad range. Seriously, we're looking at everything from The Dillards to One Direction. Loreena McKennit to Jai McDowall. Libra to Secrets In Stereo. Yeah, I'm off the wall with what I like. ;) There are a lot of factors in what makes me decide to keep a song; the lyrics, the instruments, the voice, the tempo... Which is why I have so many different kinds.

I found this song yesterday, and fell in love with the lyrics. It's a keeper. :)

'Nobody knows the trouble we've seen

Nobody knows the price of this dream

And nobody knows what it took to believe

Nobody.'

Starting To Rain

"I've never been good at saying goodbye,

But everyday I wake up, and I try.

I'm haunted by memories, and things I can't change.

They're changing me.

It still hurts to let go,

But everyday I do.

I'm looking for some hope,

This cloud will pass through.

I'm pressing rewind,

I'm searching for when,

We have the skies,

But it's starting to rain again...

~Starting To Rain, by Secrets in Stereo

Yesterday's Theme Song

If there was a theme song for yesterday, this would would be it. :) 

Fix You

This is a new favorite song of mine that has been playing on my MP3 quite a bit lately.

Two minutes and thirty seconds. That's when the song gets really good. ;)

Hope for America Yet

As long as there are kids who still know what a mountain dulcimer is, and know the words/tune to old time songs like Shady Grove, Old Joe Clark, and Turkey in the Straw, there is hope for the future. ;) This kid was amazing to watch; I can only watch and imagine having such talent... 

The Bowed Psaltery

 It turned out that I had more free time on my hands today than I had thought I would, so I decided to be brave and record some songs of my bowed psaltery for y'all.

But first, a disclaimer. I am no professional at this. I've only been playing this instrument for a few months now, and my "beginner-ness" shows. There are mistakes in each video, but there's also something akin to a tune, so that's good, right? ;)

This first video has a bit of humor for me... The whole time I was playing, I was looking out the window instead of focusing on my playing. Our dog, and three of our hens were on the road outside and I was fervently hoping that they would all get back onto the property so that I wouldn't have to stop the recording and yell out the window at them. Thankfully all four animals got back where they belonged, but I was left with a not-so-great recording of Just As I Am. But I didn't want to re-do the whole thing, so you get to hear it with all its dog-caused mistakes.



So Very Important To Me

I walk in the house and as I look at the others, I am suddenly acutely aware of my filthy state. 

I've just come home from work. Eight hours of activity outside in the rain and mud leaves a lot to be desired when it comes to cleanliness afterwards. There is mud spattered on my face, on the collar of my shirt, in my hair even. My pants are wet from the knees down. I look like a mud monster. 

I clean up, have dinner, do chores... Now what? I'm tired, but not exhausted. My mind has words it wants to say, but I know not how to say them. I can write, yes, but when it comes to verbally saying something, I am all too often at a loss. It frustrates me more than I can say... Why am I such a dunce when it comes to communicating and expressing myself? I consider writing, think about sitting at the computer and writing a blog post, but I'm too restless for that right now. I need to do something. Need to say something. Need to silently express myself, which sounds rather impossible. 

At times like this, I turn to music. There is something about music that always fills the void and creates the words I wish I knew how to say. It describes what I'm feeling, what I'm wishing, what I wish I was brave enough to say, to write, to be. Whether I'm listening to music by someone else, or making it myself, there is a sudden feeling of completion. I don't have to speak; the notes will do it for me. This is what I wanted to say... Can you hear it in the notes? Listen closely, for my meaning is often hidden deep in the undertones of the song.

My subconscious knows what I want tonight as I restlessly watch the minutes tick by on the old clock in the living room. My mind has words it wants to say, but my tongue has not yet learned the trick to saying them how it's wanted. I need music; need to move, need to create something with my hands. 

So I find my bowed psaltery. Its walnut finished wood gleams beneath the fluorescent light bulbs in the sewing/music room. My fingers lightly trace over the grain of the wood, following its symmetrical pattern that creates such a lovely character for this rare instrument. I pull the matching horsehair bows out from the box in which they stay and give them a cursory application of rosin. They do not need a lot, but I wanted a sharp edge tonight. I wanted clear, strong notes that would give words to my actions. I start out with my old stand by's and favorites, 'Star of County Down', 'Just As I Am', 'Be Still My Soul'... I play these songs every time I sit down with the psaltery. They are songs I know by heart, songs that my hands can play while my mind is elsewhere, songs that allow me to shape words into their melody. I am no expert musician and that's a fact. But I get by. And it's enough to make me happy. The long, slow, haunting notes of the psaltery never cease to thrill me. As I play, I consider recording a video or two tomorrow so that y'all can hear it too. I make no promises though; I'll have to see how the day goes. 

I move on to other songs. Longer, louder, more emotional songs. This is what I wanted to say. Hear it in my notes. Hear the faults, hear the mistakes, the squeaks... Know that this is how I feel. Like a failure more often than not. Like someone who can't do anything right. But also hear the strong, proud notes. The low ones with their strength, the high ones with their grace. This is also how I feel. Like someone who is beginning to understand. Like someone who is beginning to see. I am learning, I am living, I am laughing. I mask my emotions behind a face that does not want others to see what is hidden there. But I cannot mask the emotions in my music. You may not understand what is behind the notes of my music as I play, but I understand it. As you and I get to know each other, I think you too will start to pick up on this language that I try to speak by using instruments. 

As I play the psaltery, my body moves with the melody; it can't be helped. I am in the moment, watching my bows, looking for the next notes, enjoying the sound. Oh how I love sound... I have shaken my braid out and let my long, thick hair simply drape around my shoulders. It falls halfway over my face as I lean in towards the little instrument during a particularly intense moment of a tune, but I can't do anything about it yet, or I will lose the rhythm of my song. I do not often let my hair down, but I do like it when I do. And after spending the day looking and feeling like something that crawled out of the swamp, I wanted a little reminder that *am* still a lady. Even if I am a lady who has dirt permanently under her finger nails and in the creases of her hands. 

After only ten or fifteen minutes of playing the psaltery, I am satisfied. I said what I wanted to say with the aid of wood and horsehair. I lay the bows and instrument back in the box where they always lay, and leave the room. I had not opened my mouth even once, but I felt like I had just had a heart-to-heart. 

Music is so very important to me. Music and writing. Without them I would be a cold, introverted person indeed... But with them, I am capable of speaking my mind. And that's what matters.

Okay, so this one isn't Christmas music...

But it's still amazing. LOL. I was delighted to see that The Piano Guys had finally done the LOTR music, and  was grinning by the time they got to the finale in doing the Gondor piece. It's amazing what you can do with only two instruments and the layering effect...

Time For Christmas Music!

The Piano Guys are quickly becoming a favorite of mine to listen to. :) They have yet to disappoint me.

This kid amazes me.

Apple Blossom

After just idly fiddling around with my beloved Strumstick for entirely too long now, I have now dusted it off, tuned it up and am getting down to business with this instrument. I'm getting serious with this little box of music, and by golly I'm determined to learn some old fashioned mountain music on it this Fall! 

First song? Apple Blossom. :) I've always liked this song and the Strumstick and I decided that it would be our first. Who knows, maybe after mastering some songs on this little whizbang, I'll buy a fiddle this winter...

This Makes Me Smile

How many ways can you play a piano? These guys prove that there are many. Their creativity makes me smile. :)