Tuesday Morning Serenade - The Rolling Stones

This one reminds me of college. We were big on classic rock.

Tuesday Morning Serenade - Schuyler Fisk

Happy Tuesday!

Tuesday Morning Serenade - Vanessa Williams

I have always loved this song. I will never apologize for it.

Tuesday Morning Serenade - Tim Seely

Tuesday Morning Serenade - Jamie Cullum

Let's pull one out of my archives. Yes. I like this better than the orig, don't you?

Tell Me Somethin' Good

image source: Time Life

I have had a rough week so far, and it stems from my inability to say no.  My weekend was nonstop and my evenings have been scheduled to the point where I'm trying to get daily chores in before I head to work, arriving late to the irritation of my boss, and still falling behind on everything I need to do to keep life running smoothly.  When my days are 7am to 10pm and the laundry hours in my building are 8am to 9pm, it's no wonder I've got a laundry crisis of overwhelming proportions happening in my bedroom this very moment.  I've been raiding the freezer for a week and baking "quick" breads in the morning because I haven't been to the store.  

It really stresses me out, and while I'm militantly protecting my workout time like a bulldog at a junkyard, I still feel out of control of the rest of my daily life.  This puts a giant weight on my chest, as though the breath is being squeezed out of me.  I don't like having this negative attitude, and in my role at work where I am constantly interfacing with vendors, clients, consultants, and staff, it is imperative that I suppress my desire to grumble at everyone who seems to get in my way and instead put on a happy face. So I'm coping.

For this, I turn to music.  I learned as a choirgirl that even when I was in a terrible mood and stressed about this, that, and the other thing, going to choir practice and just singing made me feel a whole lot better.  I can't be in a bad mood when I sing - it's physically impossible for me.  However, singing isn't necessarily appropriate when, say, I'm at the gym, or sitting at my desk in our very resonant office.  Because of this, I have a similar outlet: dance - also not office appropriate.  Even when I can't dance, though, I imagine dancing and this seems to work.

I learned this coping technique when I was on the treadmill, believe it or not.  It was mile 5 of a 7-mile run and even though I had my ipod cranked, it was grueling.  Then a song came on, and I found myself envisioning choreographing a dance to the song.  I became so engrossed in this imagined dance, I stopped paying attention to how tired I was and the way my shoe was rubbing on my arch.  I tried this with the next song that came on.  It was like magic!

Today, I'm employing the "fantasy choreography" method to my day.  My co-worker Carol lent me her We Got The Funk cd for the day, and I am currently imagining a spirited dance to "Let It Whip."  It's helping.  Rather than grumbling through the afternoon, I am grooving and shaking to the lyrics: Whip it baby; whip it right; whip it baby; whip it all night!  You should see the dance I've dreamed up.  On second thought, I'll keep it to myself.

Tuesday Morning Serenade

Let's start March of with a bang, shall we? Nikka Costa, you're rockin' my world with this song. I love her attitude and fire as she belts out "Get offa my sunshine!" I can't tell you how many times I've wanted to say this to someone who was telling my I can't do something. I know you ladies out there have felt this way too. This one's for us.

Tuesday Morning Serenade

Tuesday Morning Serenade

Tuesday Morning Serenade

Tuesday Morning Serenade

Tuesday Morning Serenade

Friday Morning Music

This is one of my favorite pieces of all time, and the visual representation of it in this video gives me chills it's so good.



Happy Friday, everyone!

Think Pink

sources: shirt, pants, blazer, shoes, jewelry

Today I woke up not feeling so hot - sore throat, queasy, tired as all getout.  I knew this was coming.  My normal rise time is 6 or 6:16am, but it was impossible to get up before 6:45 every day this week.  Yesterday my throat was feeling scratchy, and I did nearly everything I could to to keep it at bay.

To be honest, I probably could have had less wine last night, but there was a virtual merlot tasting going on so a friend and I spent some quality drinking time at a local wine warehouse yesterday to do our part.  We got through 11 of the 20 merlots offered, and I found one I couldn't live without.  Twenty-two ounces of wine later, I was probably not in the best position to fight off a bug.  My mistake.

I was woken in the middle of the night by my sore throat, and all that other stuff that goes along with having that extra glass or two of wine.  Bad Monica.

When I finally was able to pull it together to make myself coffee, I still wasn't up for breakfast.  Or a shower.  Or dressing up.  I decided to skip breakfast in hopes that my stomach will eventually settle enough for me to enjoy it, and begrudgingly shuffled to she shower.  

My first choice for attire today was sweats and slippers, but I had to get to the office regardless of my condition.  Jeans and a sweater would have been an ideal consolation prize, but because I interface with clients every day, that's not an option either.  The solution?  A comfortable bright shirt and my most casual pair of slacks.  The blazer and the heels make me look like an adult rather than a high school student.  Overall, I think it's a winner.  I'm still very comfortable, but not sloppy-looking.

Today's playlist pulls songs from the following artists:

Toad the Wet Sproket

Collective Soul

Hootie and the Blowfish

Peacock and Neutrals

sources: shirt, skirt, jewelry, shoes

I know I've been gangbusters with the fashion boards these days, but it's really fun.  It's also giving me some really great ideas for future quits.  I've been wanting to do something quilty with my current favorite color: peacock.  It's so beautiful that I really wouldn't want to put another color in competition with it, so I'm thinking neutrals... maybe some warm grays.  Problem is, I have so many half-completed quilts that I'm going to let this one swim around in my noggin for a while.

Today's soundtrack:

Just Say Yes - Snow Patrol

Brand New Colony - Postal Service

Hello - Poe

Heartbreak Warfare - John Mayer

First Train Home - Imogen Heap

Io - Hellen Stellar

Loro - Pinback