Friday, January 25, 2008

My iPod Talks to Me

My iPod has over 600 (and counting) songs on the list I play when I'm driving around and the local classical station switches to a talk show or decides it's time to hear the 101 Strings arrangement of "My Heart Will Go On."  And it's on the randomize setting because I like to live dangerously.  I've already had it play the same cut twice in a row, or two different versions of the same song back to back, or three songs by the same artist from three different albums.  And every now and then it even plays something that fits my mood or comments on whatever I'm doing in my life.
 
Today should have been a day off, but my teaching portfolio (aka that colossal waste of paper) was due, and what with auditions, classes, the freelance work I do to support my teaching habit and the phases of the moon, I pretty much started it today (except for loading my syllabi for the year on my memory stick, which I did last night so I wouldn't have to print them with my own ink and paper).  I got into the office at 11 (hey, it was supposed to be my day off), dealt with some student issues, spent an hour and a half in a meeting, then pretty much sat down to enter student evaluation scores (why is it the class you thought went best always hates you the most?), assemble materials for the two classes I was covering in depth and write eight pages of single spaced narratives in deathless prose relating what worked and didn't in my classes, what I had changed since the last time I had dealt with them and what I was going to do to fix all the messes the students and I had made.
 
I finally finished all my writing, hole punching, collating and assembling three minutes before the 5 p.m. deadline (only to discover the person to whom I was supposed to give this little folder of joy had taken off early--OK, it was a Friday for him, too).  But instead of feeling the great weight lifted from my shoulders, all I could think of was how many minutes it would be before the next one descended.  Plus, it was rush hour, and I still had groceries and other chores to do, and my blood sugar was tanking.
 
Then, in the middle of the drive, my iPod decided to have a Latin festival.  It started with Carmen Miranda's "Chica Boom Chic," which I can't really sing to as it's mostly in Portuguese, but at least I know where all the "Chica Booms" go.  Then came Judy Kuhn's Bosa Nova version of "You'll Never Get Away From Me," which really gets me rocking.  And as I pulled into the parking lot at Mama Fu's and Publix, Keely Smith was wailing her way through "When You're Lover Has Gone."  I swear, the iPod was telling me, nay forcing me to lighten up.  I've been on a roll ever since.
 
So, does your iPod talk to you?  (I was tempted to say "That's my light.  What's yours?" but I'll leave the soap opera ruminations for another post.)  

6 comments:

Uncle Robbie said...

My favorite playlists are in the order the songs were added (except for multiples by the same artist, which are dragged and dropped randomly) and I like to listen to them in that order to see how each has grown. My favorite is called "Coffee Music" and is a mish-mosh of songs I would have playing in my fantasy café. I do have one list set to shuffle. It's called "Monday, Monday,: and is filled with depressing songs. I made it back when I spent large chunks of my day praying for either a new job or death, whichever would deliver me quicker. I used to listen to it at work every Monday and it's long enough to last the entire ride to work, the 9 hour workday (including lunch), and all the way home again. Tracks include Monday, Monday (The Mamas & The Papas), Tired (Madeline Kahn), The Wind Will Change Tomorrow (Ed Ames), Waltz for Suzy (Dudley Moore), But Not For Me (Natalie Merchant), All Cried Out (Alison Moyet), Down In the Valley (Johnny Cash), I'd Rather Go Blind (Etta James), Fragile (Rumors Of The Big Wave), Throwing Stones (Paula Cole), Hymn To Love (Cyndi Lauper), It's Not Easy Being Green (Kermit the Frog), Save Me (Queen)
Ain't Got Nothin' But the Blues (Natalie Douglas), Ne me quitte pas (Nina Simone), I Can't Get Out Of This Mood (Sarah Vaughan), In The Wee Small Hours Of The Morning (Rosemary Clooney), Doug at the Gates of Hell (Uncle Bonsai), Once Upon A Summertime (Blossom Dearie), The Rape Of The World (Tracy Chapman), Oh, to Be Stupid Again (Michael Winther), Rock 'N' Roll Suicide (David Bowie), Waiting For My Real Life To Begin (Colin Hay), Is That All There Is (Miss Peggy Lee), What Have I Done To Deserve This? (Pet Shop Boys)... well, you get the idea. I don't listen to it often anymore, but once in a while I need a good walllow in what one of my teachers called "a delicious depression."

Walt said...

I wish I was ready to start putting together some proper playlists. I've nearly done uploading songs. I've been obsessed with this for almost two months. Another week or so and I hope to have my cd collection uploaded. I've got to tell you how exhausting it is. I immerse myself into things and this has been a total immersion affair.

LCM said...

Good lord, darling - so many words! (patting wig) I've got an iPod but I don't know where it is and I've never used it. (giving that "long story" look) It's a long story, darling - it began years ago - before I knew who I truly was...

(four hours later)

...and that's when I decided that Dolly Parton can go screw herself - I'll never lend her another tampon, ever.

Sipping Drink, Wiser Now, I Suppose
LCM

Uncle Robbie said...

I recently got the bug to finish importing my music into iTunes as well. As of right now I have just under 100 CDs to go. According to the counter, I have 887 albums. 2307 artists, 11812 songs, 31.9 days, 59.25 GB. This does not include all of DH's music, 1/2 of which is dreck (I'm sure you'd love it all, Walt). Oh, and today I downloaded a few new albums from the iTunes store, including Belinda Carlisle's latest album. (It's in French and it totally rocks!)

Walt said...

I've read nothing but glowing reviews of the Belinda album, but I'm still too afraid to take the plunge. I may still have to get it yet.

Uncle Robbie said...

Plunge, pumpkin, plunge. While I'm not fond of her take on La Vie En Rose, she does a kick ass Ne Me Quitte Pas (which is also in the bonus track section in English, but carries more emotion in the original French, I think). Even DH pronounced it a success for "Coke Nose" (his little nickname for her).