I know better.
in Funny Stuff, Performance, Thoughts and Feelings
as accordion, baby, brooklyn, cab driver, cake shop, conversation, doozy, happenstance, nobody, one of those days, question, random news, right, something, SPEAKER--if, sweet lady, tdbank, vowel
Right now, I am laying in a bed with freshly washed sheets, thinking about the things I said recently that made me sound rather moronic. Like, when I asked the guy in Brooklyn–WHEN HE WAS CLEARLY LUGGING AROUND A SPEAKER–if that was his accordion.
He had told me that he played the organ and something about the vowel sounds in organ made me think of the word accordion, and so, when I ran into him a little bit later by happenstance, I asked, “Oh! is THAT your accordion, then?”
Looking at the black, rectangular speaker that he was rolling around via dolly, he quietly answered, “It’s actually a speaker.”
I know that. I KNOW that. I know the difference between a speaker and an accordion. Oh, man.
But, that’s not nearly as bad as last night, when I asked a sweet lady the question that I know nobody should ask. Not unless you actually SEE a baby crowning, do you assume a woman is pregnant.
But, what did I do last night? After I played at the Cake Shop, I met a couple who just missed my performance because a cab driver had gotten them lost (and they aren’t from the city). Often, I try to talk to people about themselves; I don’t like all the attention on me, so I will include their lives in the conversation. So I said, “Oh my gosh! And you’re pregnant?!”
“No…I just had a baby…”
What do you say then? JUST KIDDING? You can’t. I ran right on ahead to the congratulations part of the conversation, but still.
I KNOW NOT TO ASSUME THAT.
Just like I KNOW THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN A SPEAKER AND AN ACCORDION.
Now to actually act like I know these things, I suppose.
Oh well, the good (and random) news is that my sheets are clean. And so are my clothes at the moment.
Tomorrow is one of those days that is a bit of a doozy. A good doozy, don’t get me wrong, but a doozy, nonetheless. I have a rehearsal for an industrial gig for TDBank from 6-10 pm (which I am in charge of! Hello, my name is Jessica and I hardly like to be in charge of anything. Except maybe decorating my family’s Christmas tree. And, okay, some baking projects)–and right after that, I have to run on over to Sleep No More’s Story Telling concert in which I am getting all fancified up for in a vintage dress, some fishnets, and heels (thanks for the kicks, Bets!). While there, I will sing some songs–one of them being an eminem song on the ukulele. Another one being Sweet Child of Mine on the uke. And then another in which I get to play the piano (thank goodness!) and am just singing some background vocals (thank goodness again!).
I am actually really excited for it. Collaborating with other musicians–super talented musicians–is like getting to share the wealth. Wealth being music, in this case.
Hopefully, during this doozy of a day I will not say anything extraordinarily ignorant, rude, or stupid.
Here’s hoping.
Ain’t my friend (lyrics/chords).
in Performance, Thoughts and Feelings
as baby, bridge, call, everything, feelings, fly, friendship, fuss, little bit, lyrics and chords, melodies, Oh-oh-oh, pain, redemption, song, time, truth, two cents, wanna, way
I’ve seen a lot of requests for the lyrics and chords of this song bouncing around the Internet. So, I figured I’d put them in one place to refer people to, when asked.
It’s funny, when I wrote this song over the summer, I never imagined so many people would hear it, let alone like it. It was just the way I was feeling at the time.
For me, putting my feelings into words and melodies is like a little bit of redemption NOW. A way of saying, This hurts so much, but maybe it’s worth it–cause look. Here’s a song, now, and that’s directly related to what I was feeling. Couldn’t have one without the other.
It doesn’t necessarily make it easier while you’re in it–but pain can produce good things. Worthwhile things. So what I’ve learned is not to run from your pain, but to sit there. Listen to it. And then use it to make things. Just my two cents.
Ain’t my friend:
Chorus: Baby, you ain’t my friend, and I ain’t your last call, nor can I let my heart wonder how you feel about me at all. Cause you got all your fans, people who are on call, but I ain’t one of them, nor can I let myself pretend…
Oh-oh-oh…baby, you ain’t my friend
Oh-oh-oh
See, I don’t really really wanna just be your friend; we’re either gonna play this game or let the game end. I mean, sure, I’ll be polite and wave as I walk by, but it hurts way too much to act like we’re still fly after everything that happened, that happened between us; you’re so good at pretending while I just make a fuss; now, I ain’t saying that it’s now or it’s never gonna be, I’m just saying that this friendship feels impossible to me. And maybe someday it’ll be just fine between us, but that day ain’t today, and maybe there’s some truth to the way they always say that, baby, you’re from mars, and maybe I’m from, I’m from, I’m from Venus.
Chorus
It’s not like you were wrong when you decided that I didn’t belong next to you, it’s just hard to stand here with you, when I’m not really with you, do you know what I mean? Don’t think I’m trying to be mean–no! I think you’re just great! Too great, in fact, that’s why I take a step back; it’s just a matter of survival as I walk through this new trial, don’t take it personally, cause I’m just trying to live free, to take a deep breath now and feel what I feel. As I keep walking, watch me walking, no I won’t stop. Though you ain’t here–stop with all the fear, I tell myself again and again just as long as you say that you are my friend, so…
Bridge: Hey hey hey, a baby (bay bay bay); you live your life now and I’ll be busy living mine; Hey hey hey, a baby (bay bay bay); I already got quite enough friends now, thank you, yeah, I’ll be fine, fine, fine….
Chorus.
Chords: chorus/rap: C,G,Amin,F,G (with an occasional extra F and G thrown in for good measure; I trust you to figure out when)
Bridge: Amin, C, Amin, F, G
(yes, the chords are simple…have I mentioned I haven’t playing the ukulele for that long…?)
And there you go.
Peace!
supermoon.
in I Lift My Eyes Up, Thoughts and Feelings
as baby, cape, earth, glow, hard time, kind, life, love, marriage, moon, music, perigee, place, sad today, spoiler, time, today
First things first: the moon. It’s a perigee. Or a supermoon. And though, this makes it sound like the moon should be wearing a cape, it actually just means that the moon is closer to the earth right now than it will be for maybe another twenty or so years. I went on a walk [...]
“we’re all mad here.” –the cheshire cat
in Funny Stuff, Loved Ones, Thoughts and Feelings
as baby, ballet, bright stripes, brother, burst, cat, caterpillar, cheshire cat, chicken, chickenIt, dances, Darby, day, eminem, five dollars, goodness, guitar, hit, house, Jase, nobody, nobody answers, none, order, point, progression, psych, psychedelic, raps, silence, song, sort, time, time of day, today, tone, tottie
I am playing a progression of chords on the guitar. Darby starts singing baby, it’s cold outside, and goodness, but I am not playing anywhere close to the right chords for that song, but she’s making it work. So I join her. You would have done the same, trust me. ——- At any given time [...]
somebody.
in I Lift My Eyes Up, Thoughts and Feelings
as baby, brand, eye lashes, life, little baby girl, somebodies, Somebody, tiny babies, tiny toes, way
Today I got to hold some dear friends’ brand new little baby girl. She is the sweetest part of life, I think; she is small and so very important, innocent and unashamed of her needs. I think I can learn from her. I think that it is a tricky thing, trying to be strong and [...]
birthday
in I Lift My Eyes Up, Loved Ones, Thoughts and Feelings, Uncategorized
as baby, bright stars, chocolate covered strawberries, covenants, death knell, Don, door, everyone, final death, God, gun two, heart, Jess, Josh, kind, life, million pieces, mom, night sky, ocean, right, someone, trash can, world
I don’t even understand how this works. I mean, we learn our lessons experientially, right? Someone walks outside and they see the ocean and then they tell everyone they meet that the world is very wet with a surface that never does stay still, it’s so busy swelling and upturning. Or they look up and [...]
