This weekend, as I was jotting down the new music I needed to add to the iPod rotation (“Womanizer” by Britney Spears topping the list - yeah, I said it) I thought about my love of music.  And, I think part of the reason that I love music so much is because it is the soundtrack to my life.

Follow me for a minute, I know I sound a little crazy.

Everybody has certain themes that are weaved throughout their lives. I suspect that C-Murder can tell you about all the movies that she can relate to that mirror her life and speak to her.  For D-Magic, my educated guess is that books and poetry probably have the same effect on her.  Voldy – err Ken – can probably chronicle his life using sports greatest moments.  Well, for me, it’s music. Sometimes, I swear I can even HEAR the music playing in the background as things are happening to me.  Yup, I’m pretty sure when Voldy ended things with me Toni Braxton was somewhere in the background singing “Un-Break My Heart.” You heard it too, didn’t you? There are certain songs that take me back to my childhood, to important events in my life and some songs that will always be linked to certain people – forever.

So dear readers, below is my infinite playlist. These are the songs that I want on the soundtrack to the movie of my life - and I hope you enjoy them as much as I do. What do you think?  And more importantly, what songs make-up the soundtrack of your life? I’m dying to know, so please share in the comments.  And, just so you know, you don't have to share why these songs made the list - I'm not.  Some things, a Barbie's got to keep personal.  So please, share away!

Until next time,
iPod Barbie

P.S. Be sure to watch the very last video.  This is my favorite episode of the Cosby show ever.  When it comes on, I still call my daddy to tell him to watch - it's his favorite too!

Country Club Barbie’s Infinite Playlist (in no particular order)*

(These are links, so be sure to listen!)

1.    “Sittin’ Up in My Room” – Brandy
2.    “Lately” – Stevie Wonder
3.    “Berniece” – Ramsey Lewis
4.    “Revolutionary Etude” – Frederic Chopin
5.    “The Way You Make Me Feel” – Michael Jackson
6.    “Swallowed” – Bush
7.    “Satisfaction” – The Rolling Stones
8.    “I Get Around” – Tupac
9.    “Change the World” – Eric Clapton featuring Babyface
10.   “Three Times a Lady” – The Commodores
11.   “When Sunday Comes” – Donald Lawrence and the Tri-City Singers featuring Daryl Coley
12.   “September” – Earth, Wind and Fire
13.   “Crazy in Love” – Beyonce
14.   “Dreamlover” & “Vision of Love” – Mariah Carey
15.   “Anytime, Anyplace” & “Pleasure Principle” – Janet Jackson
16.   “Girls Just Wanna Have Fun” – Cyndi Lauper
17.   “No Such Thing” – John Mayer
18.   “Gone” – Kanye West
19.   “Hello / Goodbye” & “Daydreamin’” – Lupe Fiasco
20.   “If This World Were Mine” – Luther Vandross
21.   “Ray’s Rockhouse” – Manhattan Transfer
22.   “Don’t Stop” – Fleetwood Mac
23.   “Sweetest Goodbye” – Maroon 5
24.   “Share My World” – Mary J. Blige
25.   “Crush on You” – Lil’ Kim
26.   “Heard a Word” – Michelle Williams
27.   “Smells Like Teen Spirit” – Nirvana
28.   “Don’t Look Back in Anger” – Oasis
29.   “Bohemian Rhapsody” – Queen
30.   “(Night Time is) The Right Time” – Ray Charles

* This is a random sampling – my playlist is infinite and tomorrow, it might look a little different.

Esses sucessos repentinos a primeira coisa que despertam em mim é resistência. Quanto mais eu a via bombando, mais distância eu queria, sabe? Até que eu me rendi e fui ouvir o Breakout, álbum que ela lançou esse ano, para ver qual era a de Miley-Destiny-Hannah.

O CD tem 12 músicas, incluindo um remix de See You Again, que parece ser um dos sucessos dela como Hannah Montana, e um cover de Girls Just Wanna Have Fun, único sucesso de Cindy Lauper. Dessas duas, não gostei.

Eu esperava mais uma daquelas cantoras de pop adolescente cujo timbre de voz é irreconhecível, por todos serem exatamente iguais. Mas não. Miley tem uma voz diferente, reconhecível, que, a princípio, não me agradou justamente por ser diferente demais (assustou!). Ouvi o CD todo querendo dar stop no Windows Media Player. Não gostei, comentei com uma amiga, mas não deletei do computador. Odeio deletar coisas que levam tempo pra baixar. Minha internet era discada até outro dia, então valorizo isso.

Foi aí que eu me dei a oportunidade de ouvir de novo uma música ou outra e, quando vi, já havia me acostumado com o som dela. Do CD, apenas três correspondem ao tipo de música que gosto: These Four Walls, Simple Song e Goodbye. Destaque pra essa última, que descobri ser o tema da minha vida. Resultado: ouvi incessantemente e Miley ficou entre as mais ouvidas do meu Last.fm, o que é algo triste pra quem já tem na bagagem Sandy & Junior e RBD.

Mas é assim mesmo. Só não me peçam pra ver Hannah Montana e achar bacana aquela peruca loira! Aí, sim, já é demais...

It's especially nice right now because we can throw in those little bits leftover from Summer as well.  L. and I decided to take a nature walk and we spent a good part of the day out looking at the trees, collecting leaves, flowers, acorns, and spending time just the two of us.

When we came back inside, I was thinking of something that her and I could do with our collection we had found.  Something to sorda "save" it.  Remembering back in preschool and kindergarten when we would make collages using wax paper.  AH HA!  L.'s old enough now that our creativity time involves more than just a marker and a piece of paper. We even added in some using just crayon shavings (her favorite thing to do is sharpen crayons and pencils).  They are so pretty and for now will hang up on our big kitchen window till I can think of something better to do with them (suggestions please!).

Her favorite part being to help me with the iron, all the while I kept repeating, "it's hot hunny, don't touch it, please hunny, remember that it's hot, careful" (Ok, so the iron was on very very low heat, but still, to a 4 year olds little skin, that's really hot)

They all especially look really beautiful with the light shining through.

On a side note, I chickened out when I went to begin my sweater project.  Don't worry, it'll get done, but for now, I'm going to make the girls this very adorable Bird's Nest Pincushion (only not using it as a pincushion) from the book Closely Knit.  If you haven't seen this book, or if you don't have it, I highly recommend you get it.  It's my new favorite knitting book.  The patterns are so wonderful and is divided into who you want to make something for.

Cyndi Lauper - Live...At Last is available at Amazon for $11.99. To Order click here
Amazon Product Pages contain a lot of other details on this product as Customer Reviews, Sales Ranking, Special Offers, Alternate products that customers are going for and much more.Want to read these details? click here

Want to get some other Format / Binding / Version? You can search for them from here

Other Products of Interest

• Cyndi Lauper - 12 Deadly Cyns... And Then Some
• Bring Ya to the Brink
• At Last
• Hey Now! (Remixes & Rarities)
• The Body Acoustic

.

Artists who performed on 'Dancing on tv' (random order):

John Sharpe, Richard Bouma, Janice Williams, Jan Willem Linkerhof, Igor Zalesky, Chris Beckers.

links:

-Dancing on tv-the soundtrack

-ChrisCrazz

-Girls just wanna have fun

This amazing event was put together by talented women at The Shoe Club and funds raised from the event, sponsors and auction (see the killer shoes in our basket below - wow!) benefit The Shoe Fairy

and the Oregon Food Bank

To see more photos visit http://www.flickr.com/photos/tags/rtrpdx/

Two very difficult songs to make your own and two very difficult songs to sell different versions of as the originals are so culturally and historically well-known. Autumn's attempt does not work with both songs.

This EP contains nine tracks. There are five versions of 'Girls Just Want To Have Fun', one of 'Bohemian Rhapsody', two live tracks from her recent tour and an extra exclusive recording. Veteran Autumn fans will recognise the format easily enough, but for new fans this EP may be a bit baffling.

Her rendition of 'Girls Just Wanna Have Fun' stems from her impulse decision to perform it live on her tour, and it turned out to be so popular that it was in high demand for Autumn to record it. This is for good reason. Autumn's version of the classic is a triumph. It fits perfectly with her stage persona and attitude, and she has adapted it to her own unique style, which of course includes her second favourite instrument - the harpsichord. Unlike the original the electronics are at a minimum (just a drum machine for the beat) and some violin is thrown in for good measure. Her vocal delivery is as sarcastic and fun as ever. Probably one of her best recordings.

On the other end of the scale 'Bohemian Rhapsody' is not so immediately convincing. The arrangement is the same as her other recordings, with her strings and her drum machine (and a welcome electric violin that replaces the guitar) but it remains difficult to accept the changes. The original is a full blown production that screams fullness and atmosphere. This version pales in comparison. It is clear, however, that she is not taking it completely seriously and her vocals verge on comic, but the song feels simply empty.

Fortunately, her 'Girls Just Wanna Have Fun' dominates the EP with four remixes along with her original. The first remix takes out the drum machine and has only her harpsichord and vocals pull the song through. The second is almost opposite, emphasizing on the drum machine over the other instruments. The third takes it a step up and focuses on a heavier electronic percussion. The fourth remix has a more authentic rock band feel. Unlike Autumn's earlier remixes on other EPs, there is not much vocal manipulation in any of these remixes - they pretty much remain the same.

The live tracks are nothing special, and are an odd choice. One is an exclusive track called 'Asleep' which acts as an introduction to the second live track 'Mad Girl' that originally came from her Liar/Dead is the New Alive EP. The recorded version is superior - the live tracks only seem to perform the function of filling up the EP.

The last track is hidden and is not credited in the booklet or CD cover (the song was added at the last minute before production). It is an exclusive track called 'Gentleman Aren't Nice'. It's a short narrative song with a simple harpsichord accompanying - its tone is quite cabaret/jazz.

The Limited Edition of this EP (still available at time of writing, though it will be re-released in a jewel case once it sells out) is in a digipak with a colourful, glossy booklet with photos of her from her tour.  There are also two new photos from her Opheliac photoshoot in the fold out cover.

The full track list to this EP is as follows:

1. Girls Just Wanna Have Fun
2. Bohemian Rhapsody
3. Girls Just Wanna Have Fun (Harpsichord Rendezvous)
4. Asleep (Live)
5. Mad Girl (Live)
6. Girls Just Wanna Have Fun (Teatime Remix by EA)
7. Girls Just Wanna Have Fun (Asylum Remix by Inkydust)
8. Girls Just Wanna Have Fun (Bad Girl Remix by The Fire)
9. Gentleman Aren't Nice

Like any of Autumn's EPs, this is not for beginners. For dedicated fans, the title track is a real treat, along with the remixes though they do not deviate from her original recording that much. The rest of the EP is a big let down, and whilst you can only admire Autumn's courage to tackle 'Bohemian Rhapsody' and the vocals let you know it is not to be taken too seriously, it is still difficult not to feel a little bit uncomfortable with it.

Tracklist:
01. Girls Just Wanna Have Fun
02. Bohemian Rhapsody
03. Girls Just Wanna Have Fun (Harpsichord Rendezvous)
04. Asleep (Live)
05. Mad Girl (Live)
06. Girls Just Wanna Have Fun (Teatime Remix By EA)
07. Girls Just Wanna Have Fun (Asylum Remix By Inkydust)
08. Girls Just Wanna Have Fun (Bad Girl Remix By The Fire)
09. Gentlemen Aren't Nice
-----------------------------
Total Time: 36:55 min

New Double Feature EP from Emilie Autumn! In her emotionally charged and absolutely incomparable "Victoriandustrial" style, studded with killer beats and spattered with violins and harpsichords, Emilie Autumn mesmerizes us once more. Never one to play by the rules, Emilie Autumn ignores the standard release schedule established by other artists, and offers up her deliciously ironic renditions of two of the most notorious songs of all time.

DOWNLOAD
PW: www.synthema.ru

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Source

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Emilie Autumn's Myspace

Emilie Autumn's Vampire freaks

In the very beginning of the movie, Helen Hunt takes SJP with her on a babysitting job so that the two of them can watch "DanceTV" together.  While watching the scene where the girls walk to the house where they are to babysit, I noticed a street sign in the background which said "200 S. Plymouth Blvd".  So I did a little Zillow stalking and it turns out that there IS a South Plymouth Boulevard in Los Angeles.  In that scene, the girls walk past a HUGE brick house on a large corner lot before making their way to their babysitting job at the house next door.  When I zoomed in on Zillow to see a larger view of the homes on Plymouth Boulevard, I spotted the large brick house the girls walk past!  So I immediately hopped in my car and set out to stalk the place in person.  :)

Pulling up to the house, I could not have been more excited.  It's pretty silly actually, as only one very brief scene took place at this location, but I was floored just the same!  I felt like I was one step closer to finding the brick apartment building SJP's character lived at in the movie - a location I have always wanted to stalk! 

I am happy to report that the large brick house looked exactly the same as it did 23 years ago when filming took place.  The home is very beautiful in person and it's easy to see why filmmakers chose to use it in GJWHF  as it definitely looks like it would be located in a midwest suburb.   

The Plymouth Boulevard street sign that gave me my big stalking clue as to the home's location is also still in the same exact spot it was during filming.  :) 

After stalking the brick home, I made my way next door to stalk the house where HH and SJP babysat.  Although only the front porch area of the home was shown during filming, it was easy to see that it was the same house used in GJWHF.  You will notice the house number "217" in the background of the above screen capture.  Those same gold house numbers are still there in real life.  :)

My next stalking mission is to find SJP's apartment from the movie (pictured in above screen capture).  Does it look familiar to anyone??  I have a feeling that this location is going to keep me up at night for the next few weeks.  :)

For those who have not seen Girls Just Wanna Have Fun, I highly recommend renting it.  It is a GREAT 80s movie and just as much fun to watch today as it was in 1985.  :)

Until next time, Happy Stalking!  :)

Stalk It: The house SJP and HH walk by in the movie is located at 501 S. Plymouth Road in Los Angeles.  The house where the girls babysit is located next door at 517 S. Plymouth Road.

A very good celebration in fact.  On August 23, 1973 James was born, fast forward 31 years to August 23, 2004 and L. was born.  I don't think I would've given James a better birthday present that year.  And I think that it's so sweet that L. loves sharing her birthday with her Daddy.  Downside to that, is that James no longer gets his own birthday cake anymore.  In fact, now his birthday cakes come out looking something like the pictures below.

Hand decorated by an 8 year old and a 4 year old chocolate cake with chocolate icing topped off with chocolate chips (L. picked it all out and she loooooooves her chocolate).  Don't all Moms let their kids decorate their birthday cake?

And since we were all in "celebrating mood" we decided that we would take a little family vacation to Great Wolf Lodge and get away from everything around here.  Hung out, had fun, and friends of ours came up with their little girl to make the weekend that much more special.

There's just something about hotel beds that scream "Come jump on me!"

Happy 35th Birthday James and Happy 4th Birthday L.!

Now, something you should know about myself is that I let my children make their own decisions (to a certain extent) about the clothes they wear, their hair style, etc.  So when K. told me that, I happily took her to the salon and had them chop off all my daughters hair.  K. was excited, me on the other hand, almost cried.  Not because I was afraid it would look terrible (trust me, this girl could wear a garbage bag and a mohawk and make it look adorable), but because this was her first "grown-up" haircut.

K.'s hair after

She now (finally) looks her age!

As I'm starting to check things off my to-do list (and add some to the don't do list *wink wink*) I will not be back until next week.  A family weekend vacation, 2 very special birthdays, some birthday cake baking, packing, and lots of laundry will keep me plenty of busy.  Hope everyone has a very blessed week as well as a blessed weekend!  *Note to self: charge the camera!*

Okay does that sounds like fun or what? Come join us tomorrow evening (August 16th, 2008 7:00 PM) for the Rock The Runway Fashion Show.

This is Portland's biggest Fashion Charity Event, with previous attendance over 700, and will benefit two charitable causes: The Shoe Fairy Foundation, and Oregon Food Bank!  Combine fashion, fun and a good cause and we're in!! :)  

We've been long time supporters of the Oregon Food Bank and just became new fans of The Show Fairy, what a heartwarming organization!

The apparel line up is of fashion forward and sustainable selections of 18 designers. The list of generous Sponsors and Participants can be viewed on the event website, http://www.pdxrtr.com

Let's have a great time and Rock The Runway!

*This event is being recorded for MTV and The Style Network!

Days went by after being sent off on another voyage, and there was no word. We began to worry.

Mail went back and forth, mysterious warnings (about Olga joining up with that Girls Gone Wild crew) came in and Olga's Blog Mistress was forced to call in  Dimitrios, The Famous Greek Bra Detective to help find her and bring her back safely.

Sadly though, Dimitrios' investigation came to a stand up errr, still (or shall I say a lie down...) due to an overwhelming amount of 'evidence' obtained by examining her stay with Claire. Perhaps you'll want to examine that 'evidence' also? Please do...  it's in the video here. While I certainly understand Dimitrios' problem... it still left us wondering about poor Olga.

Not for long though! It seems Olga sensed our suffering, and, in trying to get here faster than her usual travel arrangements would allow, nearly lost her dignity. She has so far, refused to talk about her ordeal, but perhaps once she's settled in, she'll open up to one of the fraccy family members.

I, in my deepest sympathies for her suffering, insisted she immediately take a bit of relaxation out in the garden.

I am a little worried though. I think some of Olga's previous chaperones just might have influenced her a bit, for what she happened to have tucked away in her travelbag quite shocked me.

(Click the image to see what I mean.)

I think I'll have a talk with her after the evening meal.

I don't have the heart to upset her right now.

If you'd like to find out what really happened to her while she was missing, tell her so with a vote over at Humor-Blogs.com

Hace unos cuantos años atrás era casi impensable que las chicas aceptaran a un muchacho sin previo afane de - por lo menos- 6 meses. Y ni que decir de una chica tenga una vida sexual activa y no una pareja estable; la que lo hacía era una golfa y no merecía tener a un chico que la respete. No podía concebirse que una chica esté con un chico y a los 3 meses esté pensando en salir con otro. Mirar a otro que no sea tu pareja era pecado, y aceptar bailar con un especímen que no sea tu enamorado o tu mejor amigo extremadamente feo, no se podía.

A lo que voy es que la mujer de hoy ha cambiado un huevo y la palabra Diversión se ha vuelto el himno del sexo femenino. Si hay alguien que encarna a esta nueva mujer sin limitaciones obligatoriamente autoimpuestas, es mi amiga Bea. Cada que conversamos y la veo tan suelta, tan ella, tan orgullosa de lo que es y lo que quiere, sin miedo de ir sobre lo "correctamente" establecido, recuerdo a Samantha Jones de Sex and the City.

Sin ser una golfa, Samantha representa a la mujer que muchas quisiéramos ser, y no me refiero a ejercer nuestra sexualidad cuando se nos venga en gana, o todas las noches con alguien diferente, sino a que ella es ella sin miedo a lo que los demás puedan decir. Se viste como quiere. Conoce a quien quiere. Chapa y hace cositas más con quien quiere, y no tiene remordimientos. Habla como quiere. No juzga ni permite ser juzgada. En otras pálabras, es LIBRE. 

¿ Cuántas no quisiéramos ser como ella? ¿ Cuántas no queremos salir a la calle como se nos venga en gana sin tener miedo a que un desadaptado venga y nos diga cosas asquerosas, o nos meta la mano? ¿Cuántas no hemos querido ligarnos a un pata y no tener que pensar al día siguiente en "quiénes me vieron", o justificarnos diciendo "estaba muy mareada, la cagué"? ¿ Cuántas no hemos querido mandar al diablo lo que nos ha impuesto la sociedad y ser nosotras mismas?

No estoy defendiendo el hacer lo que uno quiere pisoteando a los demás. Estoy hablando de que si una chica está sola, no tiene compromiso, y por lo tanto a nadie quien pudiera resultar herido con sus acciones, ADELANTE!

Sí chicos, las mujeres queremos divertirnos y a lo grande!

I've always loved this water tower ever since we've moved here.  Don't know why, it's old and rusty, but I like it.

There are still more little bits of summer to be absorbed and I want to enjoy every last minute of them with my girls.

Il Times ha pubblicato la lista dei 20 film da vedere in coppia, di cui io ho visto solo 5 effettivamente accompagnata (Sideways, Shortbus, Jerry Maguire, Io e Annie ed Eternal Sunshine of a Spotless Mind, non necessariamente con la stessa dolce metà). La maggior parte non li ho proprio visti, come North by Northwest o A Bout de Souffle - io e i francesi, anche no.

La risposta Razor è la lista dei film che è meglio evitare di vedere in coppia:

Eyes Wide Shut - se si sceglie di vederlo in due, siate avvisate: dopo i titoli di coda tende a seguire un silenzio imbarazzato e poi si parla del tempo.

Closer - idem, forse peggio.

Vento di passioni - non è assolutamente da vedere con un uomo, primo perché la trama potrebbe portarlo a tentare il suicidio strappandosi i testicoli a mani nude. Secondo, perché grazie a un fortunato allineamento astrale, in questo film Brad Pitt si piazza tra l'Aurora Boreale e il Gran Canyon come uno dei veri capolavori della natura.

La cosa più dolce - qui non stiamo parlando esattamente di cinema d'autore. La commedia con Cameron Diaz fa largo uso di un umorismo da seconda media, con sette allusioni sessuali al nanosecondo. Il punto di vista però è quello femminile e se vogliamo farci due lerce risate parlando di dimensioni e difficoltà ad inghiottire, meglio chiudere i maschietti fuori dalla porta.

Al 10 agosto la lista si chiude qui... se vi vengono in mente altri film, commentate pure.

Noi ce ne andiamo in vacanza per un po'. Ci vediamo il 25!

Pearl Jam, My Morning Jacket, R.E.M., Trent Reznor and several others, signed a petition asking US Presidential contenders Barack Obama and John McCain to have a debate in the flood-ravaged city of New Orleans. The petition was then sent to Obama and McCain via the U.S. Senate, but neither has responded.

Sure, Obama pretended to be cool by saying that his iPod is chocka-block with pretty cool bands – but I highly doubt he’s about to start taking advice from them.

Personally, I could care less what musicians think about politics. If I wanna make an informed decision, I’m gonna watch the news – not MTV. It’s good that musicians are passionate about politics and may get some kids interested in decision making – but for goodness sake kids – don’t blindly vote one way or another just cause your favourite band says so!

It seems that musical thievery is running rampant!
Iggy and the Stooges have had a truckload of equipment stolen from outside their Montreal hotel. The Canadian bacon found the truck a few blocks away, but all the gear was gone. All the equipment has serial numbers and such and probably isn’t gonna be on eBay anytime soon.

Iron Maiden’s Adrian Smith has had to resort to playing air-guitar in concerts after his Stratocaster was pinched in Athens, Greece. It’s a one of a kind axe and its gonna be pretty tough to sell as well. The band is offering a signed tour jacket as reward for its safe return.

It’s not unusual for rappers to have a beef, but it’s probably rare for a beef to transcend genres. Jay-Z has recently appeared on stage at a Kanye West show and has had a dig at Oasis’ Noel Gallagher. Previewing part of a track from his in-the-works Blueprint 3 album, Hova raps "That bloke from Oasis said I couldn't play guitar/Somebody should have told him I'm a fuckin' rock star/Today is gonna be the day that I’m gonna throw it back to you".

The rap is in response to the statement Gallagher made, saying it was “wrong” that Jay-Z headlined the Glastonbury festival. However Jay-Z has also said that “I don’t bear any grudge, it’s all good” referring to Noley-Boy. So it just seems that the media is just trying to push both artists into a slinging match, and Hove is being a bit of a smart-ass cashing in on a hot topic. Can’t wait to hear what the rest of the Blueprint 3 is gonna sound like.

Rollingstone.com posted this piece of news:
Robert Hazard, the writer of Cyndi Lauper’s hit “Girls Just Want to Have Fun” and his own “Elevator of Life,” died unexpectedly after surgery on August 5th. He was 59.

The terrible thing about this news (other than Hazard’s actual death) is that the one thing he is going to be remembered for is writing that nonsensical gem for Lauper. “Girls....” is cheesy enough that you can’t hate it too much, but it’s certainly nothing you’d wanna be remembered for! Ironically, Rolling Stone fucked up the title of the man's only other hit, "Escalator of Life."

NIN’s Trent Reznor cancelled a show last night in Massachusetts due to a throat infection. He wrote on the bands website:
 "Just want to personally say how sorry I am to have to do this. I never take postponing a show lightly and if there were any possible way I could pull this off I would. This is a very frustrating and maddening situation for me and I appreciate your understanding. I'll make it up to you."
Throat infection my arse! Old mate Trent probably just wanted to watch the Olympic opening ceremony!

More Cowbell!