I'll figure it out.  I always do.  I am an optmist.

Although, it is a widely held belief by my family and friends that I am a R&B Music Junkie, which is true, however, it may be surprising to some that I appreciate a variety of music and lately I have been listening to a lot of folk/pop music playlists on my IPOD. I always say I have my mother to thank for my diverse musical tastes. Although, Mom really liked the artists on the Motown label, she also appreciated the likes of Joni Mitchell and Joan Baez, to name a few, and I mention those two because I remember falling in love with both artists. I loved Joni’s “Big Yellow Taxi”and Joan’s “Diamonds & Rust” two hits for which they are best known. In the late 70’s I was fascinated upon learning that Joan had a large gay fan base and I learned that her song "Altar Boy and the Thief" was written as a dedication to her gay fanbase. In the late 70’s, growing up as a smalltown boy I didn’t have much to latch on to in the way of gay news and information so I was particularly drawn to Joan Baez and her music given her gay-friendly views. 

I want to post some comments of my favorite pop/folk tunes of all time:

1)      Diamonds & Rust by Joan Baez – a song about memories being likened to diamonds and rust (time both turns dirty charcoal into beautiful diamonds and shiny metal into ugly rust).
 

2)      Annie’s Song by John Denver – a beautiful ode to a love companion, in this case, his wife. I like that Annie’s name is not necessarily mentioned in the song thus making it able to apply to anyone which is probably why it is a wedding favorite.
 

3)      Leader Of The Band by Dan Fogelberg – such a beautiful song both lyrically and musically. I love all of Dan's music and it was a tough choice to decide which I liked better, this hit or “Same Old Lang Syne”.
 

4)      Everything I Own by Bread – a folk/pop standard that has been re-recorded by many artists. The song is often regarded as a love song but David Gates actually wrote the song as a tribute to his father after his father died.
 

5)      Love & Affection by Joan Armatrading – this is a true classic in my opinion and it really inspired me to follow her musical career. I was happy to rediscover the song when Sheena Easton covered it on one of her CD's in the 80’s and I thought Sheena did a respectable version.
 

6)      Just Remember I Love You by Firefall – a local Colorado band scored big with this hit. I remember when I was visiting Denver with my family and staying with cousins who informed me that they were touring as the opening act for Fleetwood Mac.  It was right around their Rumours release. I sooooo wanted to see the concert but alas, never made it.
 

7)      Cat’s & The Cradle by Harry Chapin - the song is told in first-person by a father who is too busy to spend time with his son and although I am always moved to sadness by the story, I think that’s why I like it so much because it’s a story-telling song.
 

8)      Time in a Bottle by Jim Croce – a great singer/songwriter and had his life not been cut so short, I am sure he would have had continued success as an artist.  I love this artist!
 

9)      Danny’s Song by Anne Murray – though she may be considered more country than folk per se, she has always been a favorite female vocalist of mine.
 

10)  What I Am by Edie Brickell – a one hit wonder by all accounts but what a great hit!   Had she not married Paul Simon and had kids, I wonder if she would have been poised to have a bigger career? 
 

11)  We’re All Alone by Rita Coolidge – My mom was an absolute fanatic about Rita’s music. I, too, couldn’t help but love her music. This song is a song I used to sing out loud whenever I got the chance, in the shower, in the car, etc. I remember absolutely loving it!!!
 

12) Wildfire by Michael Murphey – this was always a very haunting song and I loved it so much! I used to sing it at the top of my lungs too!
 

13) Crazy Love by Poco – I loved the guitar strings of this song.  Very pretty melody!!!
 

14) Fast Car by Tracie Chapman – could not have a complete list without this Tracy classic!
 

15) Brown Eyed Girl by Van Morrison – got to have some Van Morrison on the list too. I always thought their music was a unique blend of folk, blues, soul and jazz.

My horoscope today read: “a slow and easy pace makes a difference” and I couldn’t agree more. Last year, it seemed as if life had been moving at a somewhat feverish pace all year long, but all that has changed after I vowed to myself before the holidays that I just wanted to slow down the pace and simply relax for the sake of relaxing.  So, what have I been doing for relaxation? Well, mostly just vegging-out in front of a television and I’ve been enjoying it immensely. And, I think I am going to be doing a lot more of it for the next few months with American Idol back on TV, among other television shows that will be coming back (Big Love, The L Word, The Real World, 24) and others that have me following them faithfully (The Mentalist, Ugly Betty, Greys Anatomy, Desperate Housewives, Brothers & Sisters, New Adventures of Old Christine, Chelsea Lately, The View, to name a few…)   Gosh, I do watch a lot of TV!!! 

Anyway, just purchased tickets today to go see Miss Lady Gaga in concert in March. Looking forward to that concert – should be fun!!!

1.  Crash & Burn by Nadia Ali – from the singer of iio's two singles’s Rapture & At The End from 2001, this song was released in the summer of 2008 and I thought it had hit written all over it (at least the dance mixes made it to the billboard club play charts) but no one I know has even heard it.  Anyway, the radio version became an immediate favorite of mine and is my top favorite of 2008.  

2.  I Can Feel You by Anastacia – released outside the US at the end of 2008 but of course this international single become an instant hit with me. It reminds me of the vibe she displayed on her first release “Not This Kind”. When is this girl gonna get her props due to her in the US? 

3.  I’ll Be Loving You Long Time by Mariah Carey – this song may have totally bombed on the charts and on radio but with each play for me it easily became my favorite song on her E=MC2 release even surpassing my initial favorite “I’m That Chick”. 

4.  All I Want To Do by Sugarland – easily my favorite country release of the year as I couldn’t get the catchiness of this song outta my head.  

5.  Fall by Kimberley Locke – I really thought this single would take off after she performed it on Idol but it soon faded off the charts much to my disappointment. The dance remixes were awesome too!

6.  Bottle It Up & Love Song by Sara Bareilles – These two songs go hand in hand for me because I always play them back to back and they were always a joy to hear on the radio or on my IPOD or while watching the video’s play on TV or in any video bar. This is simply fantastic songwriting!

7.  Bossy by Lindsay Lohan – This song was my ultimate guilty pleasure of 2008. Very few people I know have heard of it but whenever I play it for friends no one ever guesses it is La Lohan. She did manage to get a #1 hit of it on Billboard’s Club Play Charts.

8.  Stamp Your Feet by Donna Summer – this was my favorite dance song of 2008. It faired well considering Donna’s been out of limelight for quite some time and kudos to her for being able to perform it on IDOL. I really wish it would have been a BIGGER comeback for her because it sure deserved it. I also love her “Sand on my Feet” song from her release. 

9.  Sensual Seduction by Snoop Dogg – I loved this old school sounding single. It was easily my most played song in early 2008. As they say, “this is the jam!!!!

10.  Just Fine by Mary J. Blige – as with Snoop Dogg’s release which came late in 2007. This continued to be played like crazy by me in early 2008 so I definitely consider it one of my top 10 jams for 2008. 

11.  Magic by Robin Thicke – I guess I really was feeling all the old school sounding R&B releases this past year because this jam was another overplayed single in 2008.

12.  Honey by Erykah Badu – I absolutely went Radio Ga Ga over this song when I first heard it. I heard it first when it was played on BETJ as a video. I am thrilled to see that her full length release made many critics Top 10 list of albums for 2008. Ms. Badu deserves it!!!

13.  Superwoman by Alicia Keys – another Alicia classic. I was surprised it didn’t become as big of a hit as her other releases from the same CD because this was the standout cut for me. “Even when I’m a mess, I still put on a vest with an S on my chest………” 

14.  Beautiful UR by Deborah Cox – the dance diva came back in 2008 with this great message song with an undeniable groove. 

15.  Human by the Killers – this song is so mesmerizing to me! 

16.  WOW by Kylie – not an official single in the US but it was released as a single abroad and it was easily my favorite song on her 2008 release.

17.  Mercy by Duffy -  this song may have been overplayed to the point that I started to get annoyed with it, nevertheless, I can’t deny the excitement it brought to me when I first heard it and subsequent plays until I wore it out. In spite of being worn out on it, it definitely deserves to rank as a favorite for 2008. 

18.  So What by PINK! – what a great sing-a-long song!   I played this over and over many times after it first came out and I almost wore it out like Mercy by Duffy but I stopped listening to it on purpose just so I wouldn’t become sick of it!!!!  

19.  Just Dance by Lady GaGa – this song deserves to be a favorite for 2008 because it brings a lot of fun and silly memories of singing along to it with my honey!!!

20.  Bleeding Love by Leona Lewis – definitely a highlight song for me in 2008 even though I almost wore it out in late 2007 when I first got it as import from the UK.   I hope it wins the grammy award! 

Well, I’ve been really digging some new and older R&B artists and their music lately.  Check it out:

1)  Leigh Jones – a newcomer on the scene who is a blue-eyed soul songstress.  I absolutely love her!!!   I haven’t felt this way about a white singer since Teena Marie or Lisa Stansfield.  This girl is fantastic!!!!

2)      Wayne Brady – this guy can sing!  His single entitled “Ordinary” is one of the best R&B songs I have heard in quite some time.  This song totally reminds me of Rob and I and the love and life we share as one!!!  Don't let the title fool you!!!

3)    Nikka Costa -  I have always digged this funky chick ever since her “Everybody Got Their Something” days, which was my personal favorite song of the year back in 2001!!!   Her second release was a huge let down for me, however, her new “Pebble to a Pearl” release is quite fantastic, especially the title song and the release “Stuck to You”!!!!  I love the Steve Wonder vibe of the title song!!!!

4)      Incognito – one of my favorite R&B/Jazz inspired groups is back with Tales From The Beach and Maysa Leak, my favorite rotating lead vocalist of the group is back and singing on this newest release.  “I’ve Been Waiting” is classic Incognito at their very best!!!

5)  Deborah Cox is back!!!   Beautiful U R is a fantastic return for another of my favorite female vocalists!!!   The beat is thumping and the message is important!!!   

6)  Lalah Hathaway – Donny’s little girl, well, not so little anymore.  I have always loved Lalah’s rich, deep voice!!!   Her song “Breathe” has kept me going for the last few months.  It is reaching the pinnacle of the most played on my IPOD!!!!

7)      Jody Watley has a new forthcoming album entitled “Chameleon”.  I have gotten my hands on her first single, “Candlelight” and it is a sensuous mid-tempo jam reminiscent of the feel good soul records from the 70s.   YOU GO JODY!!!!

8)  Algebra Blessett is another newcomer this year and she enters the music landscape of India Arie and Erykah Badu !!!  “What Happened” – her single is absolutely beautiful!  

Well, I can finally check off seeing Madonna live in concert from my “things I want to do/see before I die” list!

First impressions – it was quite a theatrical spectacle! Second impression – it was energetic!!  Third impression – without question she is the undisputed queen of pop in my mind! This was definitely an event. I didn’t want to psyche myself up too much in building any anticipation leading up to the concert because I really did not want to be let down or disappointed. I can safely say that I was not disappointed or let down. The highlights - I really got into Madonna and her guitar rock version of Borderline!!! But my favorite was probably “Like a Prayer” and the screens flashing religious quotes throughout the song! Of course, she did not sing my favorite Madonna song of all time – Dress You Up, but that’s okay because it was all still great!!!

Below is an interesting analysis of what Tim Wise believes to be the double standard (based on race) that exists in the current election process.  In case you don’t know who Tim is, he is among the most prominent anti-racist activists in the U.S., having given lectures from 1995 to the present in 48 different states, and on over 500 college campuses. He has trained a multitude of teachers, corporate employees, non-profit organizations and law enforcement officers in methods for dismantling racism in their institutions.  

 This is Your Nation on White Privilege By Tim Wise  9/13/08

For those who still can’t grasp the concept of white privilege, or who are constantly looking for some easy-to-understand examples of it, perhaps this list will help.

 White privilege is when you can get pregnant at seventeen like Bristol Palin and everyone is quick to insist that your life and that of your family is a personal matter, and that no one has a right to judge you or your parents, because “every family has challenges,” even as black and Latino families with similar “challenges” are regularly typified as irresponsible, pathological and arbiters of social decay.

 White privilege is when you can call yourself a “fuckin’ redneck,” like Bristol Palin’s boyfriend does, and talk about how if anyone messes with you, you'll “kick their fuckin' ass,” and talk about how you like to “shoot shit” for fun, and still be viewed as a responsible, all-American boy (and a great son-in-law to be) rather than a thug.

 White privilege is when you can attend four different colleges in six years like Sarah Palin did (one of which you basically failed out of, then returned to after making up some course work at a community college), and no one questions your intelligence or commitment to achievement, whereas a person of color who did this would  be viewed as unfit for college, and probably someone who only got in in the first place because of affirmative action.

 White privilege is when you can claim that being mayor of a town smaller than most medium-sized colleges, and then Governor of a state with about the same number of people as the lower fifth of the island of Manhattan, makes you ready to potentially be president, and people don’t all piss on themselves with laughter, while being a black U.S. Senator, two-term state Senator, and constitutional law scholar, means you’re “untested.”

 White privilege is being able to say that you support the words “under God” in the pledge of allegiance because “if it was good enough for the founding fathers, it’s good enough for me,” and not be immediately disqualified from holding office--since, after all, the pledge was written in the late 1800s and the “under God” part wasn’t added until the 1950s--while believing that reading accused criminals and terrorists their rights (because, ya know, the Constitution, which you used to teach at a prestigious law school requires it), is a dangerous and silly idea only supported by mushy liberals.

 White privilege is being able to be a gun enthusiast and not make people immediately scared of you.

 White privilege is being able to have a husband who was a member of an extremist political party that wants your state to secede from the Union, and whose motto was “Alaska first,” and no one questions your patriotism or that of your family, while if you're black and your spouse merely fails to come to a 9/11 memorial so she can be home with her kids on the first day of school, people immediately think she’s being disrespectful.

 White privilege is being able to make fun of community organizers and the  work they do--like, among other things, fight for the right of women to vote, or for civil rights, or the 8-hour workday, or an end to child labor--and people think you’re being pithy and tough, but if you merely question the experience of a small town mayor and 18-month governor with no foreign policy expertise beyond a class she took in college--you’re somehow being mean, or even sexist.

 White privilege is being able to convince white women who don’t even agree with you on any substantive issue to vote for you and your running mate anyway, because all of a sudden your presence on the ticket has inspired confidence in these same white women, and made them give your party a “second look.”

 White privilege is being able to fire people who didn’t support your political campaigns and not be accused of abusing your power or being a typical politician who engages in favoritism,  while being black and merely knowing some folks from the old-line political machines in Chicago means you must be corrupt.

 White privilege is being able to attend churches over the years whose pastors say that people who voted for John Kerry or merely criticize George W. Bush are going to hell, and that the U.S. is an explicitly Christian nation and the job of Christians is to bring Christian theological principles into government, and who bring in speakers who say the conflict in the Middle East is God’s punishment on Jews for rejecting Jesus, and everyone can still think you’re just a good church-going Christian, but if you’re black and friends with a black pastor who has noted (as have Colin Powell and the U.S. Department of Defense) that terrorist attacks are often the result of U.S. foreign policy and who talks about the history of racism and its effect on black people, you’re an  extremist who probably hates America.

 White privilege is not knowing what the Bush Doctrine is when asked by a reporter, and then people get angry at the reporter for asking you such a “trick question,” while being black and merely refusing to give one-word answers to the queries of Bill O’Reilly means you’re dodging the question, or trying to seem overly intellectual and nuanced.

 White privilege is being able to claim your experience as a POW has anything at all to do with your fitness for president, while being black and experiencing racism is, as Sarah Palin has referred to it a “light” burden.

 And finally, white privilege is the only thing that could possibly allow someone to become president when he has voted with George W. Bush 90 percent of the time, even as unemployment is skyrocketing, people are losing their homes, inflation is rising, and the U.S. is increasingly isolated from world opinion, just because white voters aren’t sure about that whole “change” thing. Ya know, it’s just too vague and ill-defined, unlike, say, four more years of the same, which is very concrete and certain.

Okay, so just when I think my brother has things figured out with his next living situation, he goes and flips it all upside down on its head - AGAIN!!!!    He has initiated purchase contracts on 4 homes.  The first one he was outbid and the last 3 he got either impatient and/or cold feet.   

Now, because I have been personally vested in this process with him, I could choose to be frustrated, exasperated, fatigued, exhausted, drained, spent, or whatever other words one can think of along those same lines, but I am making a choice to just laugh about it.  After all, it's been said that laughter is the best medicine.  I just hope his realtor can laugh about it, but I think not.   I have simply reached a point where I cannot expel any more energy trying to help my kid brother sort out his life.   And, he's not a kid.  He's 40 years old!!!  The poor guy is just lost and aimless at this juncture in his life so I know I should cut him some slack, but geez, he's given a whole new meaning to the phrase "being wishy-washy!!  He has no clear direction and with no job I can only imagine that it only compounds things for him.  I just don't know how to be helpful to him anymore so I am making a choice to step back and watch him let the chips fall where they may.  He knows I love him and he knows I want the best for him but I've reached a crossroads with him and maybe me thinking that I am being helpful is really not being helpful to him at all.  I just don't know anymore and I simply need to let me my mind focus away from him and back to me and back to what's important in my own life and Chris will just need to figure out his life on his own!  I am just going to try and be a sounding board from now on and that's it.   I guess we'll see how long that lasts..........

No More Tears (Enough Is Enough) a remake by Amber & Zelma Davis -  first off, where has Zelma Davis been hiding out since the C&C Music Factory days?  I just find it interesting that she appears out of nowhere all of a sudden.   Anyway, singers from Jocelyn Brown & Kym Mazelle to Andy Bell & KD Lang to even Tina Arena have taken this song on, but I have to say this is a solid version in it's own right and could end up being my all-time favorite version of the song.

Control Yourself (Soul Deep House Mix) by Erin Hamilton - Carol Burnett's daughter is back again and I like it.  Last year, she put out "The Flame" which was okay, but this is definitely a better song because she has a house remix and everyone knows that I am partial to soulful house mixes of ANY song.  I remember seeing her perform at a Gay Pride event in the early 2000's and liking her but thinking her vocals were thin, however, she sounds like a Black Diva Singer, at least on this mix of her song.  

Don't You Wanna Be Mine (Bimbo Jones Mix) by Denise Lopez - I wonder if I am the only one who purchased her CD's from the late 80's, early 90's (Truth In Disguise & Every Dog Has It's Day).  I remember really digging her song "Sayin' Sorry (Don't Make It Right)".  To me, her music was always catchy and fun dance/pop and I likened it to the music of Paula Abdul at the time.  Unfortunately, Denise never really went anywhere with her music on the charts except for maybe the dance charts kind of like Lisette Melendez - although Lisette probably had a little bit more success and notoriety.  Anyway, it sure is fun to see "Don't You Wanna Be Mine" being resurrected with an updated sound for today.  I always liked the original version of this song by Clivilles & Cole but I really like today's updates of the song.   

Looking For Men (Ralphi & Craig J. Mix) by Rosabel Featuring Tamara Wallace - I like the sassiness of the song's lyrics.  It's fun.  I remember hearing it during Pride and wondering who it was and then re-discovering it later. 

Give Some Love (Richard Earnshaw Mix) by Antoine Clamaran & Mario Ochoa Featuring Lulu Hughes - I always love uplifting lyrics backed with a great dance sound and this one doesn't disappoint. 

Pop Muzak (Martin Solveig Electro Disco Mix)  by Mousse T. with Roachford - I always thought this was a great pop record and one of the year's surprises back in 2004.  It never got much notoriety stateside but I believe it was a decent hit in the UK.   This is a track I've been resurrecting lately and it is what I like to call an "undiscovered gem from back in the day".   Of course, I love the funkier, fun Martin Solveig version but the original is actually pretty darn good!!!

In fact, here's a link to the video:         http://new.music.yahoo.com/Mousse-T-/videos/view/Pop-Muzak---Featuring-Roachford--2171310

It's a hard pill to swallow when you are in receipt of information said from a family member that you never thought you would hear them say.  I don't want to be too specific except to say that my mother shared with me an opinion of my brother's that he had shared with her recently and it has left me somewhat unsettled.  You see, my brother has been living with Rob and I for about 6 weeks now and apparently he is formulating opinions about what he has been observing of Rob, and me for that matter.  Suffice to say, he has expressed to my mom that since he has been living with us, that he has begun to perceieve Rob to be a completely different person than he thought Rob was and it doesn't appear to be a good perception, as best I can tell.  My mom didn't want to go into specifics except to say that Chris told her that he believes I put up with way too much where Rob is concerned.    Initially, I was a little stunned to hear it and even started to become somewhat defensive but upon immediate reflection and putting it into what I feel is the proper perspective, Chris is somewhat right, however, I told my mom, of course Rob isn't the same person he was and he has not been the same person since the beginning of the year.  The permanent hearing loss he experienced in January and the devastaing loss of his father in April have been two HUGE factors that have contributed to the obvious personality changes, mood swings, short tempered-ness, etc., that have taken place with Rob.  And, OF COURSE, I have noticed it - how could I have not noticed it.  In fact, Rob has taken note and even admitted it to both himself and to me that he feels like a different/changed person and he doesn't like the person that he has been showing to the world at times. 

So, if Chris wants to publicly state his observations and say that I am putting up with way too much where Rob's behavior of late is concerned then I feel the need to say to Chris in rebuttle - PLEASE put it in the right perspective my dear brother!  Also, it's because I love Rob and because I know that Rob loves me that I am willing to stand by him and be a little more patient, a little more forgiving and of course I am going to make for some allowances as he works through the various stages of his grief especially given that he has experienced a very intimate parental loss as well as him still coming to terms everyday still with his devastating hearing loss.  After all, sticking it out with the person you love unconditionally comes with the territory when you are in a committed relationship - you take the good with the bad, for better or for worse, in sickness and in health and unfortunately we're just experiencing the bad for now and I say "for now" because I know Rob just hasn't had that "break-through" yet, but I do know that it's something he has been working towards and will undoubtedly continue to work towards until he finally arrives at that necessary "break-through" point down the road that he most definitely needs to come to at some point- and Rob fully understands that!   And, yes, I hope it comes sooner than later but it has to be on Rob's terms and time table and I know it cannot be forced.  So, I guess if Chris wants to make judgments about Rob and how I put up with him then I suppose I need to remember one of Don Miguel Ruiz's "Four Agreements", which is "Don't Take Anything Personally". 

This is actually the second agreement of the four and I have to say that it is the hardest one for me and I imagine it probably is for most people.  I'd like to think I know myself fairly well and I recognize that I am emotionally based so it can certainly feel like a slap in the face for anyone when you hear a negative comment about yourself and/or the ones you love and when it comes from a family member, it is so much easier to feel let down and disappointed or even betrayed, but I have to remember that it is important to keep in mind that what others say and do is really a projection of their own reality on to others and if I can only commit this to memory and to always remember this then it will help me look at turning negative responses into more of a positive thing for me. I must remember not internalize any negative projections from my brother, or anyone else for that matter, personally!!!

I used to recite at least one of the four agreements as part of my daily mantra practices in the past but I haven't recited any of the four agreements in awhile.  I think it's high time I dust them off and start rotating them back into my current daily mantra practices once again.   

So, now that I have finished writing what I needed to get out of me in this journal entry, I do feel much better.  Thank you Mr. Journal!!!  

As infrequent as my posts have been of late, I have been listening to ALOT of music to help get me through the past month's doldrums.  Music has always been a positive thing for me and will continue to always affect me postively no matter what may be going on in my life.  I can remember being a young toddler around the age of 4 or 5 and being subjected to listening to my parents fight all the time and I would always escape those situations by going into another room and turning on my little portable phonograph and listening to the Jackson 5 or some Motown artist and being happy for that moment in time despite there being a huge fight taking place between my parents in another room.  

Well, not much has changed as I've continued that escapism technique up through my adulthood and I can only imagine myself being a music loving senior citizen when that chapter of my life catches up to me - LOL.  

Here's what I've been listening to and liking lately.  Some new tunes and some old resurfaced tunes:

1)     The Dance (Soul Seekerz Import Mix) by Evelyn "Champagne" King - I was always a fan of disco and "Shame" is a disco classic, however, it was Evelyn's more R&B oriented stuff that made me a huge fan.  I recall buying her debut on vinyl "Smooth Talk" which is torn and tattered now but I played that album continuously.  I am so excited she is back with something.  This song is destined to be a HUGE club hit.  She even samples her own song "Love Come Down" at various points in the song.  LOVE THIS SONG!!!!

2)  God Laughs by Delta Goodrem - I bought this singer's US Debut release having higher expectations.  It's grown on me and there's no denying her vocal abilities.  This song is one of my favorites off her release.  

3)  All I Want To Do by Sugarland - Jennifer Nettles is so fantastic!   I think she and this group may be on their way to becoming one of my all-time favorite groups!  This song is so undeniably catchy!  ooooh,ooooh,ooooh,ooooh,oooooh,ooooh,ooooh.............

4)  Happy by Orienta-Rhythm Feat. Joi Cardwell - this has been playing alot of on my IPOD because of its message and funky beat.  I play this in my car and I forget that people are watching me in the car beside me because I am just singing and dancing away!

5)   Joy (Bobby Blanco & Miki Moto Remix) by Christian Hornbostel Feat. Beverley T. - this is the next song after "Happy" on my IPOD playlist and like the title suggests, it brings me JOY, JOY, JOY!!!!!!!!

6)  What Are You Doing The Rest Of Your Life? by Alison Moyet - this is one of my favorite classic love songs.  I have dedicted it to Rob in the past and he especially likes this version because he is a HUGE Alison Moyet fan.  She does a wonderful interpretation of this classic!!!!

7)  Forever (Bobby Blanco and Miki Moto UK Club Mix) by DJ Andrew Emil Feat. L.S.P. - I have been on a MotoBlanco kick lately ever since my friend John turned me on to Jennifer Hudson's Spotlight Moto Blanco remix.   The vocals on this song are sung are by Mica Paris!  Another fabulous UK vocalist!!!!

8)  Push Up On Me (Moto Blanco Mix) by Rihanna - although this isn't an official single.  I absolutely think it should be and this remix is "OFF THE HOOK!!!!!  You go Ri Ri!!!!

9)  Close To Heaven by Stonebridge - I love the hypnotic vibe this song gives off!!!!

10) Let's Get Back The Feeling (Radio Edit)  Feat. Samuele Sartini vs Jordan Dee by Cece Rogers - a nice house song by one of house music's best IMHO - CECE ROGERS!!!!!!!  

This past weekend was very nice!  Rob and I finally had “me time” and “us time” which is something we haven’t had in quite some time!  There isn’t much to report on the weekend because it was so low-key but at least the weekend didn’t have to involve others.  My brother was/is away for a long weekend and Rob’s mom is out of town until mid-September so there were two individuals that we weren’t obligated to have to cross paths with at all.  We did catch up with one friend Friday night that we hadn’t spent time with in awhile and she wanted to spend more time over the weekend together but we put the kibosh on it by declaring this would be our first weekend of being alone together in quite some time. 

There are some potential new living arrangements on the horizon.   Rob’s mom has expressed an interest in selling her townhome, which Rob owns, and moving in with us before winter sets in and then possibly finding another place for her to live in about a year or so.  I can’t exactly say no, well yes I could, but I am not going to because I know Rob really wants my support on this, so I am willing to keep an open mind since it has been stated by everyone as being a temporary situation.  Who knows, it really may be an okay thing?  We do know that it will save us all money, especially Rob and I, since we have been subsidizing his mom’s living expenses in order for her to continue living in that townhome now that his dad has passed and she doesn’t have that extra social security income that they both brought in together.  Rob’s mom is a generally laid back person and definitely not a “mother-in-law from hell” type, which is a bonus.   So, we’ll see what lies ahead.  We put the townhome on the market last week and in this crazy market who knows if it will sell or not.  I suppose if it’s meant to be then it will happen.  We plan to also explore renting it if it hasn’t sold in a few months.  Although, the place is in such great shape that we almost hate to think of renting it out to renters who could possibly trash it and bring down its value.  Again, we just have to wait and see what lies ahead. 

I am in need of writing a long post so I can have a mind dump of everything that's been swirling in my head these past few weeks.  Instead of long post, I am going to attempt a bullet point version which will make sense to me but may not to some reading this post.    

• Rob's mom leaves tomorrow for a 7 week trip and I'm elated to have more ME time as well as Rob & Me time!
• I haven't had hardly ANY me time in recent weeks and I think that has alot to do with my scattered frame of mind.
• My brother has been living with us and it's been better than expected but it can still be a huge drain of my energy.

More to come....I'm being interrupted.....AArgh!