This is Lawrence. March 3, 2006

London, Nov. 3, 2005

Teddy Geiger - Underage Thinking

If it wasn't for the short-lived (and I hope soon to be picked up) show Love Monkey, I wouldn't know who Teddy Geiger is. But I loved that show, and fell in love with Teddy Geiger. His album Underage Thinking came on this week. I played it at work yesterday, and my officemate compared him to Gavin DeGraw. I don't really listen to Gavin DeGraw (should I be?), so I couldn't say for sure if that's a reasonable comparison or not. I do know that I really like this album.

Teddy Geiger - These Walls
Teddy Geiger - For You I Will (Confidence)

Teddy Geiger's Website
Purchase Underage Thinking

The Best $5 I've Ever Spent

First, I purchased a half-season of the NHL Center Ice package. Now, I have gone a step further. Yesterday I called the Cable Lady and had the digital sports tier added to my package. It's only $5 a month, so I figured what the heck. It includes three Fox College Sports channels. I have only had the package for 24 hours, but in that time I have already been able to see some CCHA hockey (it was a rerun, but still, the game orginally aired on a Fox Sports network I don't get so I wouldn't have seen it anyway), NCAA women's gymnastics (again, out in Washington State, so it's a meet that never would have been televised here), and some rugby in the Commonwealth Games. The Commonwealth Games!! A competition I always want to watch but never see because the United States is not a member of the Commonwealth. All of that for $5 a month.

I was amazed by that, but it gets better. I also get the Fox Soccer Channel. My dad would make fun of me for wanting this channel, but I like soccer, and have been trying to follow the sport more. That's tough to do when you don't have the soccer channel. So now I do, and I'm very happy.

Some people probably think I'm nuts. I'm writing my dissertation proposal, so why do I need more channels? Well, amazingly enough, I can work better with sports on the television that when watching anything else or listening to music (unless it's classical). See, extra cable channels helps me be productive!!! And I'm not even joking!

Primary Day

Yesterday was the primary here in Illinois, and I didn't vote. That's right, me, who always votes, who always encourages everyone else to vote, didn't. I didn't think it was right. For the past few weeks I have been avoiding the news. I think I was blue about my grandmother's passing, and I didn't want to watch anything that made me upset. Thus, no news. It extended beyond that. I'm one of those people who likes depressing movies, or movies that make me really emotional. I purchased Rent the day it came out on DVD, but I haven't been able to bring myself to watch it yet.

But I digress. Back to politics. Because I haven't wanted to see any bad news, I haven't been watching the news or reading the newspaper much. I didn't know who all was running, and didn't feel my vote would be an informed one, so I didn't vote. I feel bad about it, but I didn't vote. During lunch at work yesterday we were discussing the primary, and when I said I wasn't going to vote one of my co-workers almost fell out of her chair. She was amazed that me, of all people, wouldn't vote.

I did read about the results in the newspaper today. It was the first time I read the newspaper in a couple of weeks. I just didn't want to read about all of the horrible things going on the world. I finally listened to some news on NPR on Monday, so I think I'm getting there. I'm wanting to get information again, so I think that's a good sign.

Hard-Fi - Cash Machine

Purchase Stars of CCTV by Hard-Fi.

We're All Irish Today

In honor of St. Patrick's Day (the second biggest party day of the year in Chicago, only behind New Year's Eve), here are several songs. Go, now, go and drink some Guinness or Harp.

Gaelic Storm - Hills of Connemara
Purchase Gaelic Storm

Flogging Molly - The Kilburn High Road
Purchase Drunken Lullabies

The Chieftains with Diana Krall - Danny Boy (m4a)
Purchase Tears of Stone

Christy Moore - Bogie's Bonnie Belle
Purchase Common Ground: Voices of Modern Irish Music

The Pogues - Thousands Are Sailing
Purchase Essential Pogues

The Dubliners - The Rocky Road to Dublin
Purchase Legends of Ireland

Irish Drinking Songs - Whiskey in the Jar
Purchase Irish Drinking Songs

Eileen Ivers - Calum Beugach/The Devil in the Kitchen/Muileann Dubh/Sandy Cameron/Cape Breton
Purchase Her Infinite Variety: Celtic Women In Music and Song

This is Belmont. 3/3/06

You Are My Sunshine

Norman Blake - You Are My Sunshine

I used to sing this song with my paternal grandparents when I was a little girl. My grandfather passed away 25 years ago. My grandmother passed away last week. Here are a few of the wonderful memories I have about my grandmother:

--I would often come to her house after school or spend summer days with her while I was a child. I loved spending time at her home. I would go through all of her jewelry and shoes.
--My grandmother knew how much I loved Hostess Ho-Hos and doing the crossword puzzle, so the summer before sixth grade my grandmother bought me a package of Ho-Hos and a Sun-Times every day.
--When "The Jeffersons" used to be on TV, I would call my grandparents as the opening theme began, and we would watch it together over the phone and laugh.
--I used to watch a locally produced show called "Polka Party" with my grandparents. I would sing along with them when they played Frankie Yankovic tapes in the 8-track player that was in their car.
--My grandparents bought my first bicycle.
--Over the past few years I called my grandmother every Wednesday. If, for some reason, I didn't call her by the time she expected to hear from me, she would become really worried that something happened to me.
--Every time I left her, she told me to be careful on my way home. It was one of the last things she ever said to me.
--For every birthday she would give me some money, but she always added my age to the amount. On my last birthday she added $31.
--I used to go to her apartment and she would tell me stories of her childhood.
--We would watch the Cubs together. She was a big sports fan, and she loved the Cubs and Tiger Woods.
--She was very excited when I went to England because she had never left North America.
--She loved flowers.
--She used to let me watch my favorite TV shows and listen to my favorite music in the car, and always acted interested in them. Whether she actually was or was just pretending to like what I had on, I felt like we were sharing something and that she cared about what I cared about.
--People I never met would know who I was, and tell me how much my grandma talked to them about me. She was very proud of me.
--I brought her back a t-shirt when I went to Montreal, and she loved it and wore it all the time.
--Almost every time we spoke she asked what I was planning to have for dinner, and would be concerned if I didn't know. She wanted me to eat well.
--She always asked if I had enough money, and told me to come to her if I ever needed any, even when she wasn't really in a position to give me any, such as when she was in the hospital.
--When I was named Student of the Month in high school, my grandma came to the ceremony.
--She would come to a few of my gymnastics meets and get teary eyed when I performed. She was there when I got the highest score of my competitive career. She was very proud and bragged to everyone that I was her granddaughter.
--We used to make latch hook rugs together.
--She was very excited when I took up knitting. She was amazed at what I could make, and was astounded that even though my mom only gave me a couple of lessons I was able to make so many beautiful things. She belonged to a craft group at her church, and she made sure that when one woman got rid of a set of needles and a skein of yarn she snapped them up to give to me. Last month I started knitting a blanket for her using colors she chose. I showed it to her after I had done a few sections. She passed away before I could finish it. I regret that I was never able to give her anything I had made. I plan to finish the blanket and donate it to a charity in her name.

Purchase the O Brother, Where Art Thou? soundtrack

Police Horse, 4/7/04