Sentimental Valium

I can't believe it's Monday.

Spent some time with Amish Aaron and the girls this weekend. (That's a good band name...."Ladies and Gentlemen! I'm Dogman from the Dogman and Speck Morning Show on WUSX 98.3 FM. Tonight we are proud to have with us, bringing their own brand of neo-folk, Amish Aaron And The Girls!")

I have always wanted to be a dj on a radio station. Then I remember, 'Oh yeah, I hate everything that's on the radio... That would suck having to play music you hate!'

Anyway, time with Amish Aaron was good. We planted a tree--I'm confident that phrase has never shown up in a post of mine before. We also went to the beach. Amelia, the oldest, graduated from pre-school this weekend. I cried a little bit. So weird to see her growing up--and she's not even mine!

Speaking of that little smartie, she said three things this weekend that made all of us laugh hard. I'll give a little context and then the phrases, from the mouth of a five year-old.

Phrase #1 We are sitting on the beach when it becomes obvious that Arianna (the younger of two daughters) has a swimming suit on that is a little too small. The parental decision is to have her wear shorts and a t-shirt instead. Aaron then says to Janet, his wife, "Well maybe you should go put that one on" with a laugh at Janet's reaction. Amelia, obviously listening, says "Momma, you can't put that on and show off your nibbles and everything!"

Phrase #2 Amelia has lost her flip-flops somewhere on the beach. I decide to go walk with her to look for them, but I tell her that I want to put my shirt on first and then we can go. "Why," she says, "so no one will laugh at you?"

Phrase #3 I love to get corrected by Amelia. I constantly pronounce things wrong so she will roll her eyes and look at me as she gives the correct pronunciation. Sitting in Chili's after the beach, we are talking about how her mom is a good mommy.
"Could I be a good mommy?" I ask her.
"Only girls can be mommies Uncle Troy."
"OK, could I be a good daddy?" I ask.
"If you could find someone to marry you," she answers after a pause.

Little kids...

I am trying to connect my readers with good music and I'm personally not a fan of streaming a lot of stuff. I have to give two streams today though--they are worth it!

First off, Man-Made by Teenage Fanclub is fantastic! If you aren't familiar with this band, you need to be IMMEDIATELY! Just give the first two tracks a listen and I'm confident you will agree with me--this music deserves to be known by more people.

Second, you can listen to an audio-blog stream of the upcoming record by The White Stripes on scenestars.net. It's diverse and unique and not a re-hashing of the last two albums. Here is a duo that is trying to move ahead and it's pretty inspiring. Obviously Jack enjoyed working with Loretta Lynn--there are definitely some country "influences" on this record. Look for the May 20th post and click the link at the bottom.

Finally, I was introduced to a band called Ratatat a while back. I went out and bought the album and really enjoyed it. A friend mentioned to me last week that he bought it on iTunes and that I should pick it up. Instead, I just listened to it again. And then again. And now I must introduce the rest of you. This duo makes some great instrumental music with fun sounds and organic textures. Seventeen Years is the first track of their self-titled album.

I asked Lissa today in an email about what invention she wishes was credited to her. I've been trying to decide my answer, but haven't been able to narrow it down. Essentially, I would like for it to be something common, that people use regularly, and it would be named after me. I would love to hear people say, "Hey would you hand me a Troy-clip please?" or "Hey honey when you're out can you get some more Troy-bulbs?"

I used to not like my name. Maybe that's really common for younger kids--we always think other names are better than our own. Now, I really like my name. I think it should be spoken more, especially in crowded public places, even without a context or object of referral.

Thanks to c@it, who has more creativity than she knows what to do with, for her newest suggestion for my "sign off" which I will employ soon. But first:

"tr0y!!"

Go on, give it a try--just shout it out wherever you are right now, especially if you're in public!

Feels good doesn't it?

"Letting your kids listen to mainstream radio is about as safe as letting them lick a school bus driver."

posted by -tr0y- @ 2:19 PM