Posts Tagged ‘single parent’
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Friday, December 19th, 2008
I think that Paige and I are hitting some sort of musical kismet where are all of the stars are aligning and we suddenly like most of the same beats. This is common ground people. When you have common ground with your teenager, you grasp a hold of it and don’t ever ever ever let it go until it forces it’s way out of your clenched and white knuckled fingers.
When Paige was 7 years old I told her that when she turned 14 I would no longer censor her music. Censorship basically meant that I didn’t let her listen to anything too explicit or offensive to women. Or basically, shit that I didn’t want to listen to in the car while I was driving her around.
Back then making her wait 7 years seemed like an eternity, but it sure got here in a hurry. As soon as she turned 14 the first thing she said was, “NOW I GET TO LISTEN TO WHATEVER I WANT.” I had no idea that she had been patiently looking forward to her birthday precisely for that reason. Just another notch on the “neener neener, I’m becoming an independent person” post.
In order to make commuting in the car together more enjoyable, I decided to create an iTunes playlist where we both contribute songs to the mix. Surprisingly, this has been an amazing bonding point for the two of us. This is what I call “accidental genius.”
It all started with Hey Jude. You may have heard of that Beatles song. She would listen to it over and over again thinking that the Beatles was some sort of one hit wonder like Barry Mann or Billie Ray Cyrus. That’s when I started introducing her to the entire Beatles’ catalog. And where she was just AMAZED, amazed and dumbfounded that one band could come up with so many great songs and original music. In the day of remakes and sampling, it was almost unfathomable to her.
Since that day, she’s been adding to the playlist and I round out the mix with songs from the wayback machine that I think she might like. Sometimes I give her a musical history lesson. For instance, until recently, she had no idea that the Beastie Boys are Jewish boys from Brooklyn. Or that Reverend Run was the same guy on Run’s House. You should have seen her face when she saw before and after pictures of Lauryn Hill.
Sometimes she schools me on her musical repertoire too. Who knew she new all the lyrics to most of Johnny Cash’s hits? Or that she loves the Doors? And Bob Marley? She even introduces me to music like Estelle or Lupe Fiasco (For the longest time I thought Lupe Fiasco was a Latino rapper. He’s not.) I love it.
Here’s a samplin’ of what we were listening to on the way to the mall yesterday while stuck 3 miles behind a car accident with no where to exit. Oh yeah, it was snowing too. (more…)
Tags: atmosphere, beatles, britney spears, cold play, death cab for cutie, eminem, estelle, kerli koliv, lupe fiasco, mgmt, music, paige, Parenting, single parent, the killers, what i'm listening to
Posted in Daily, Parenting | 6 Comments »
Thursday, December 18th, 2008
The second comeback, not the one before.
I hate to say it, but I am a Britney Spears rubbernecker. I can’t help myself. Forget Christina. Forget P!nk. Nevermind Madonna even. Miss Britney’s popcandy is what keeps my legs moving at the gym and consequently I have developed an affection for her music and yes, for her too.
Now y’all may be laughing at me, but hear me out. Seriously. Britney Spears totally took one for the team. The mom team. Who hasn’t looked at their sweet child and then had thoughts of running off, doing drugs and shaving their head? Who hasn’t fallen for the wrong guy and then paid the consequences for it? You can’t tell me that you’ve NEVER worn an outfit that was completely unflattering (if you contest this one, you must not have lived during the 80′s).
I just think that it’s easy to judge. I know that I have been this close saying damnitall and instead of going grocery shopping, I have fantasized about going on a bourbon binge and having gratuitous sex with young bartender(s) who smoke cigarettes and have tattoos on their arms … in Brazil. The only thing different is that Britney just acts out all those impulses (and that she is an international pop starlet who could roll in money all day if she wanted to).
There was a time in my life when I was single and drinking up a huge storm every time Paige went to her father’s house. I felt as though that during this respite I could have some semblance of a “normal” 20-something life for a day or two a week. Except it wasn’t normal to drink that much. In fact, my friends had to have a firm but gentle intervention that basically went something along the lines of, “Baby, that ain’t flattering.”
Nowadays I’ve shifted to the otherside of the paradigm. I don’t think I drink enough. Correction, I am not carefree enough (carefree has traditionally been massaged out of me with a little bourbon neat). As you all know I am working on those changes but feel the need to take massive action. I think I need to launch a comeback.
Bring it on 2009.
Tags: britney spears, come back, Parenting, single parent, sweet bourbon
Posted in Daily, Midthirties Crisis, Parenting | 4 Comments »
Monday, October 13th, 2008
There comes a time in a parent’s life when the inevitable happens. Your kid starts asserting their own musical tastes. This is scary. I know that all of you out there are kidding yourselves, but I am here to tell you that a teenager’s musical preferences says a lot about what their personality is like. And God forbid, what they may be into.
When I was 14, I was listening to Ministry and Skinny Puppy and I can tell you that I was into all sorts of no good back then. Innocent were the days when Jermain Stewart (you don’t have to take your clothes off to have a good time!) and The Jets (I have a crush on you!) were blaring from my record player. Of course, at that point I was still playing with plastic horses and was reading “Sweet Valley High” books.
And yes, I did mean record player.
As I recall, my life took a dramatic turn at a certain point and the soundtrack to my life switched to Depeche Mode, Violent Femmes, The Yaz and so on. What I call my “gateway” musical period. Everyone else was listening to Motley Crue and Van Halen and if you didn’t listen to that, you were an outcast. Male or female, straight or gay … you were a “faggot”. But I pretty much didn’t care. (more…)
Tags: bob marley, childhood, music, paige, parenting advice, single parent
Posted in Daily | 5 Comments »
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