the One with All the Good Music

So, I have a new favorite singer/songwriter at the moment who is AWESOME!! (Sorry, Brandi Carlile, you're still my favorite, but you never come visit me!) Her name is Missy Higgins, I discovered her about a year ago right before I left for Mexico, but I rekindled an interest when she opened for the Indigo Girls here in Atlanta. A couple of weekends ago, I visited my fellow musical enthusiast and lifelong best friend, Danielle Rapkowicz, who introduced me to a new song from Missy called "The Special Two." I love it. I listen to it all the time. And, a lot of times, a song resonates with me because it has some sort of theme that rings true in my life, or it reminds me of an experience I had. But the theme of this song has no real common thread with my life, it's just a beautiful, heartfelt, honest, and very raw storytelling of 2 people dealing with a bad decision and the guilt that comes with it....but also of the hope that they will be those "special two" standing together in the end. Like I said......nowhere near what my life is like or has ever been like! But, I am in love with the song. In the musically world where the #1 song on the chart talks about 2 girls makin out or slappin the crap out of your Ho when she does you wrong, or pretty much anything that Kanye West does (bluh).....it's nice to see that there are still truly gifted songwriters who can move me with their lyrics, and inspire me with their music. Where are the Carly Simons? The Patty Griffins? The John Denvers? The Johnny Cash's of the music world? They exist in the songwriters like Missy Higgins, and Brandi Carlile, and Foy Vance. They are still here, and they are only just beginning! So, listen to "The Special Two" by Missy whenever you get a quiet moment, and just listen to the words and her voice. You won't be dissappointed. And while you're in the mood....."Turpentine" by Brandi Carlile and "First of July" by Foy Vance. Enjoy!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6tqUYrfSlac

Things I never thought I'd miss from Mexico

1. The fish tacos from the taco stand on the side of the road in Navajoa. They are AWESOME! I have been craving them for like 2 months, and nobody has them! You eat these with this weird, watery salsa verde stuff that just makes it taste even better! I never thought I'd miss fish tacos, but holy crap, I wish I had 1 right now!!

2. The chickens. Every morning while Carla and I were washing breakfast dishes, I would have to stop and run outside to chase the chickens back to Abuela's house from the garden outside the kitchen. The chickens would always come over to the "casa grande" looking for food scraps, and in the process, mess up all the plants in the garden. I acutally kind of missing chasing them around and watching them scurry away from me! I secretly always wanted to kill 1 with a big rock....is that weird?!

3. Frijoles. I used to Hate bean, like Hate them. I'm talkin...wouldn't even eat Becky Bird's famous baked beans hated beans! Then, I went to Mexico. You can't go to Mexico and not eat beans. Those people eat beans ALL the time, like every single meal. And they know how to cook 'em!! Benita's beans were the best refried beans I have ever had! Not even the best mexican restaurants in town can compare to hers!

4. Tesia. OK, I knew I'd be missing my favorite community in Mexico, but I'm pretty sure a piece of my heart was left there along with some of the bravest, most loving people I've ever met.

The One With All The Coffee

This is what corporate America has done to me.......and I'm only on week 3 of my job! As most of you know, I have always disliked coffee. Every time we went on a Starbucks run in college, I was that girl that orders a hot chocolate. All that coffee house mumbo jumbo was so confusing......Linti soy mocha-frappa latte with non-fat milk....I mean what the crap does that even mean? It takes a freakin dictionary to order something there. So, after years of swearing off coffee and endless cups of hot chocolate later, I finally caved. Besides the stress of a somewhat "corprate" (whatever that means!) job, I blame 2 people really......Emily Ray Fridrichsen and Molly Bird Bush. They are the reasons for my downfall. Em has been giving me sips of her mocha-frappa-soy crap for years, and it always ends with me making a disgusted face and brushing my teeth as soon as I reach the nearest toothbrush. Molly has been a little more aggressive by actually serving me coffee doctored up with sweeteners. So, during Cult Reunion 2008 in Nashville, I decide to take up Em's offer of coffee on Saturday morning and let her doctor it up for me-mistake #1. I like it- mistake #2. Mistake #3- I proceed the following week at Kroger to buy coffee and sweetener, excusing it by telling myself it's for Molly when she comes into town that following weekend. I have a cup every morning before work that week (last week). Then, as if it hasn't been bad enough...Molly introduces me to the wonderfulness that is Dunkin Donuts' coffee. We each proceed to drink at least 2 cups on Saturday while out shopping. So, now, as I sit here finishing up my 2nd cup of the evening before dinner, I realize that I have just added 1 more addiction to my list (this addiction comes in 2nd to my addiction to chocolate, and a little head of my tv watching issues). So, I guess you could say I have officially joined in with the rest of Corporate America with my newfound love of coffee....not to mention the office lingo I've picked up like, "I'll shoot you an email" and the constant usage of abbreviations like, "Do you have that MG on SET for WSPA from estimate 2327?" More on that stuff in a later blog!