Music

This is such a fascinating description of Music.   My girlfriend wrote it out in a card for me a long time ago and I just came across it today.   I can see how one might choose to worship the art form itself as opposed to the Creator of such a powerful language. 

I am music, most ancient of the arts.  I am more than ancient; I am eternal.  Even before life began upon this earth, I was here - in the winds and the waves.  When the first trees and flowers and grasses appeared, I was among them.  And humanity came, I at once became the most delicate, most subtle and most poerful medium for the expression of emotions.

In all ages I have inspired people with hope, kindled their love, given a voice to their joys, cheered them on to valourous deeds, and soothed them in times of despair.  I have played a great part in the drama of life.  Through my influence, humanity has been uplifted, sweetened and refined.  With the aid of humanity, I have become a fine art.  I have a myriad of voices and instruments.

I am in the hearts of all and on their tongues, in all lands among all peoples, the ingnorant and unlettered know me, not less the rich and the learned.  For I speak to All, in a language they all can feel.  Even the deaf hear me, if they but listen to the voices of their own souls.  I am the food of love.  I have taught people gentleness and peace; and I have led them onward to heroic deeds.  I am comfort for the lonely, and I harmonize the discord of crowds.  I am a necessary luxury to all.  I am Music.
- Anonymous

A few of my favourite things

I'm generally not one to endorse products, but in the past month 2 random products have proven themselves to be worth a mention. Both products get the Diva Stamp of approval (kind of like the Good House Keeping seal but better cause it has nothing to do with house keeping:)

The first -Yaktrakers Pro. As a walker/runner I find the winter months to be difficult. Over the years I have figured out what to wear to keep warm while power walking and running. It's the slippery snow and ice that has frustrated me to no end. Before Christmas I pulled a muscle after losing grip on some hidden ice and I was ready to give up and attempt to be motivated by DVD's alone - Until I heard about yaktrakers. They're these coil rubber things that slip on over your runners. They grip to the ice and snow to prevent you from sliding. I was skeptical when I saw them on the Shopping Channel, but did some research, and found them at my local running room so decided to pick some up. And Yaaaay! they actually Work!!!! I thought they'd make the walking/running awkard, but they don't. Albeit they're not very attractive - they could use a little more sparkle or colour, but they certainly help make my wintery interval training easier! And I have to admit I secretly do kind of enjoy being able to zip quickly past those other random walker/runner people on my path with an ' in yo face slippery sucka!' kind of strut:)

The second dreamy product - Bath and Body Works look ma, new hands moisturizing hand lotion. Being a teacher trying to avoid all the kiddy germs I have to constantly hand wash and sanitize. This fall I have found my hands to be more dry than normal. (probably as a result of the overuse of the sanitizer with the H1N1 paranoia ) I've tried lots of hand creams which mostly leave a greasy residue forcing me to wash it off within minutes. I got look ma, new hands as a gift from a student and I LURVE it! It keeps hands super soft, smooth, supple and best part - it isn't greasy. It's apparently the paraffin in the cream that makes the difference! Whatever the magical potion is, it's worth the little over the top for hand cream Bath and Body Works price. I'll admit that I can't help but caress my own hands throughout the day cause they are so dang soft! Creepy? A little, but trust me, if you used look ma, new hands you would be a creepy hand caresser too!

So what are you waiting for? Come, join the "in yo face slippery sucka!"/ creepy hand caresser club:)

Cantique de Noël

My favourite Christmas carol by far is and always has been O,Holy Night. Even before I could comprehend the depth of the words, the song always gave me chills. I remember hearing it as a child at midnight mass and even when it was the warbly past her prime Lithuanian church soprano singing I'd still be moved. It didn't feel like Christmas eve to me unless I heard that carol.

Now, I am often asked to perform the song, and it still gets me everytime. I find myself getting emotional by the words, words that hold so much truth and are far more personal to me now. Even when I'm just on my own practicing the song I get chills (not because I sound great either, often I sound like a dying chicken:) The words are just so powerful. I've never sung the carol in french eventhough it is the original language. I've starting learning the french version though as I've been asked to sing it en français for a small gig next weekend. . . the English words are similar, but there are a few images that speak that much more powerfully in french - so moving! Looking fwd to sharing the carol in both english and french this season:)

Minuit, chrétiens, c'est l'heure solennelle,
Où l'Homme-Dieu descendit jusqu'à nous
Pour effacer la tache originelle
Et de Son Père arrêter le courroux.
Le monde entier tressaille d'espérance
En cette nuit qui lui donne un Sauveur.
Peuple à genoux, attends ta délivrance.
Noël, Noël, voici le Rédempteur,
Noël, Noël, voici le Rédempteur!

De notre foi que la lumière ardente
Nous guide tous au berceau de l'Enfant,
Comme autrefois une étoile brillante
Y conduisit les chefs de l'Orient.
Le Roi des rois naît dans une humble crèche:
Puissants du jour, fiers de votre grandeur,
A votre orgueil, c'est de là que Dieu prêche.
Courbez vos fronts devant le Rédempteur.
Courbez vos fronts devant le Rédempteur.

Le Rédempteur a brisé toute entrave:
La terre est libre, et le ciel est ouvert.
Il voit un frère où n'était qu'un esclave,
L'amour unit ceux qu'enchaînait le fer.
Qui Lui dira notre reconnaissance,
C'est pour nous tous qu'Il naît, qu'Il souffre et meurt.
Peuple debout! Chante ta délivrance,
Noël, Noël, chantons le Rédempteur,
Noël, Noël, chantons le Rédempteur!

Snack Time!

I'm totally addicted to BNL's children's CD SnackTime! It's been out for a while, but with all of the Steven Page controversy I've avoided downloading it for a while. I really wish that I downloaded it sooner though. . . . I have been playing it during gathering time for all of my classes for the past week and I can't get enough! I love it so much that I even listen to it in the car. . . where there are no children. . . . well except for one child at heart! My job requires me to listen to a lot of children's music , and I do like a lot of the kiddie CD's out there but BNL is by far my fav. It not only appeals to children but to grown-ups too . . . I particularly enjoy all of the Canadiana references:) I highly recommend Snacktime for anyone with children . . . or without .. . who says that you need children to have fun and enjoy some great music:)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MIkqEF2Mvc8

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wPh_6_u98tI

Oh Poop!

My car has recently become a fowl public washroom!!! Lately my car seems to be attracting bird poop. I'm not talking about 1 or 2 random droppings either - My car is covered with over 20 bird poop splats! The kind that not even a good car wash can get out. Not sure if it's where I've been parking or if the birds have a bone to pick with me. I am certainly not happy about it -it's almost as though my car has a sign on it that says "poop here".

My dad found this video though and has offered to install the anti-poop device on my vehicle- so I plan to have a poopless car very soon! :)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-ii7-q7DWdQ

Olivia the Pig

I'm all about the book Olivia by Ian Falconer lately. It's for kids, but I happen to enjoy it a lot. I picked it up a while back for Julia because I found it at Winners, which meant that it was cheap. I had heard that it was a great book. It won the publishers award back when it was released so I figured why not. Well little did I know how Olivia is truly my kindred spirit. Olivia is the spunkiest, sassiest little pig around! She's a wee little diva with a big personality. Julia loves the book too. She's read it so much with Daddy that she has it memorized. She "reads" it to me any time I'm over at her house. The other day as she was "reciting" the book, Julia stopped and acutely observed that Olivia and I are a lot a like. . . she said "Auntie, Olivia likes the colour red just like you!" she also noticed that Olivia likes to sing - just like Auntie! She looked at me and said quite seriously, "Auntie, if Olivia wasn't a pig and if her name wasn't Olivia - this book would be about you! . . . Maybe we should call the book Auntie the Pig!" :) Julia then went on to switch out "Olivia" for "Auntie" as she read the rest of the book. . . I suppose if one looks really closely there is a bit of a resemblance between Olivia and I . . . :)

The Truth about Divadom - By: Professor Prima Diva Donna

With the latest trend in society to call every walking, breathing woman a diva I feel it my duty to clarify a few things. I'll lay it out there with as much grace and tenderness that can come from a "true, bonafide, certified" Diva . . . I'm sorry to say, but the title "Diva" can not be applied to just any woman.

If we examine the history of the word Diva it was originally a term used to celebrate a woman of outstanding talent, beauty and majesty in the world of Opera. I'm truly sorry to break so many poor little un-diva hearts, but that means that at the very least one must be able to SING in order to truthfully live in the Diva realm. And when I say sing, I don't mean in the shower or at the karaoke bar or even to your wee little children who aren't yet able to comprehend that you are in reality squawking like a dying chicken. The term was used by the Italians to refer to a woman with a truly "Divine" voice. Of course there is a similar word that would refer to male singer, but I for one don't see it as necessary to discuss such nonsense. We all know that great sopranos are also great at everything else including: glamour, mystery, beauty, and radiance. We are certainly worthy of adoration for more than just our great voices, but it really does all come down to our teeny tiny infoldings of mucous membrane that stretch across the larynx and vibrate with such magnificent splendour and beauty.

What I'm really saying here is that if you are going to have the gall to call yourself a diva you must first at the very least be able to perform a death defying stellar cadenza popping all of the high C's,D's etc. with extreme skill and beauty, all the while maintaining your glamorous yet mysterious facade. Of course you also must be a master at several other skills, notably these: the maim and destroy all other sopranos skill, the humiliate your accompanist skill, the conduct the conductor with a death glare skill , the upstage ALL others at ALL times skill, the dump your lover at the drop of a dime skill, the over the top hissy fit skill and so much more. Let's be real, if you haven't mastered any of the skills that truly define a Diva at this point in your life, forget about it! You have no hope. You simply don't have what it takes to ever live up to the title. So stop pretending to be a diva and just deal with being ordinary. . .ordinary is um . . wonderful too . . yes it is! Simply wonderful! I personally wouldn't want to be just ordinary, so I do truly understand the desire to proclaim oneself a diva. I truly sympathize with you from the bottom of my heart if you are really just an ordinary person trying to fill the sparkly shoes of an authentic diva. For the sake of all of the bonafide, certified diva's out there can you please just accept who you are and stop abusing and misusing our rightfully earned title. The term "Diva" can only be applied to those who are truly grandiose enough to own such a divine title. :)