13 Thursday: Free Verse
1. My youngest son Dylan and his wife, Alexis, are expecting a baby in May. I can’t seem to say the words grandmother or grandchild yet (my first!), so I’m calling the baby my G-Whiz kid.
2. I told them that I would come down to Roanoke where they live to baby-sit whenever I can. The only two things I require are an internet connection and a baby stroller.
3. I lean towards believing there is a rhyme to the reason of life, but other times I think it’s all free verse.
4. I almost forgot how to blog over the Christmas holiday. Finally the evening of the day after Christmas I started to visit my blog friends again to see what they had been up to, sort of like when we were kids and would walk around the neighborhood the day after Christmas to see what kind of presents our friends had got.
6. Sometimes even my husband has to catch up with what’s going with me by reading my blog, especially when he’s in San Francisco helping to facilitate a teen meditation retreat like he is right now. XO.
7. My oldest son, Josh, and I just watched the Martin Scorsese’s documentary, “No Direction Home,” about Bob Dylan. We had a good laugh remembering the time when Josh was 13 and I tried to turn him on to Dylan by tuning into a show he was on. It was during the phase when Dylan’s singing was shot and he garbled a song as I explained what an icon he was. Josh thought I was out of my mind. “Maybe he’s trying act like singing bad is the new good singing,” I said referring to the rebel trendsetter aspect of Dylan.
8. I was happy to find two of my all time favorite Bob Dylan songs in one Youtube video HERE, but I did have to wonder about Dylan’s choice of hat because it looks more like something Camilla Parker Bowles would wear.
9. Speaking of hats, my blogging friend Paul has a hat blog and I’m featured today wearing the leopard skin pillbox hat inspired by a third favorite Dylan song and by Deana at Friday Night Fish Fry (who really has one whereas I was only trying mine on). See HERE.
10. I wish President Bush would have an affair … I wish he’d take off his black pointed cowboy boots … and look at the moon more often … And then I wish he’d wake up … and be inflicted with what Jim Carey had … in the movie “Liar Liar” … My Dream For President Bush poem is scheduled to be broadcast on The Monitor, KPFT/Pacifica, in Houston on Sunday from 6 pm to 7 pm CST. The host of the show must have found the poem on the internet. The roster of past guests on the show is impressive and includes: Daniel Ellsberg, Molly Ivins, Seymour Hersh, Arianna Huffington, Helen Thomas, Gore Vidal, William Rivers Pitt, Howard Zinn, Scott Ritter and others. You can read the rest of the poem HERE and HERE is the radio show’s website.
11. I’m a new Sufjan Stevens fan. I discovered him when I went to Blue Mountain Mama’s site and she had several Christmas songs of his downloaded on her blog. My favorite is called “The Worst Christmas Ever.” You can hear him sing it HERE.
12. Christmas Caroling in Angels in the Attic Thrift Shop by some of my Floyd friends is HERE.
13. Is it possible to play anything but a happy song with a banjo? Do you know what the difference is between a fiddle and a violin?
Post notes: Thirteen Thursday headquarters is here. My other 13’s are here. View more 13 Thursday’s here. This is my 113th TT. The photo above is of my son Dylan’s stepdaughter coloring at our house on Christmas Day.
December 27th, 2007 10:34 am
congratulations on your 1st grandchild!!
December 27th, 2007 10:38 am
Being a Grandmother does not make you old! It makes you blessed! Hope you have a very Happy New Year!
December 27th, 2007 10:48 am
Congrats on your impending “G-Whiz” hood! A fiddle is long and a banjo is round 🙂
December 27th, 2007 11:23 am
You lucky girl are becoming a grandma ! Congratulations ! I have to wait I don’t know how long. You made so many links that I first thought you excersise yourself like I did when I learned to use it, lol !
December 27th, 2007 11:26 am
Gratz on the poem being notice and the new grandbaby!
Happy TT
http://moondancerdrake.livejournal.com/
December 27th, 2007 11:26 am
I think my comment is gone with the wind I don’t see it anymore.
You are becoming a grandma you lucky girl ! I still have to wait I don’t know how many 9 months.
December 27th, 2007 12:06 pm
Hello~ You left a comment on my blog asking about my hair. 🙂 I only cut it a week ago. It is a inverted bob…short in the back and longer towards the front. I actually love it. It is hard to do my hair everyday with children..so it is much easier! Thanks for commenting on my blog!!
December 27th, 2007 1:00 pm
Yea! A new baby in the new year! (I’m assuming he’s not 16 years old…. 😉 This is such a fun stream of consciousness list. I hope your hubby comes home soon!
Happy TT!
December 27th, 2007 1:13 pm
You’re calling the kid the G-Whiz kid, but what I want to know is what you’re going to want the kid to call you! Congrats.
Safe travel wishes to joeyk
As for the fiddle/violin…I always thought of them as blue collar /white collar.
December 27th, 2007 1:37 pm
June, I like the way you define the difference between a violin and a fiddle … lol … it’s perfect!
Colleen, congratulations on having your “My Dream For President Bush” thoughts published so widely … and now you are becoming famous for it!
December 27th, 2007 1:52 pm
Forgot to say … I became “Grandma Bonnie” at 46 and now have seven G-whizzes. Having grandchildren gives you a whole new perspective on the world. I, too, would like to know what the grandkids will call you … do you have a preference? For years I signed cards from “Grandmama Bonnie” but no one ever even acknowledged that name, much less called me that. It was tricky to come up with unique names for the grandparents because of three sets of in-laws on the other side of the equation! I have three children, so my grands have nanas and such as well as me. And that doesn’t even account for the divorces and re-marriages. It was difficult for the little ones to figure out why two of their “cousins” are not on my list of grandchildren (they are my former husband’s wife’s son’s children, who are no blood relation to me … or my grandchildren … in any sense). Life gets complicated, doesn’t it? And we don’t have words for so many “new” kinds of relationships. What is my ex-husband’s wife to me? I call her my wife-in-law … lol.
December 27th, 2007 1:55 pm
Congrats on the poem!
Can one sing it to the tune played by a jack in the box? 😛
December 27th, 2007 2:10 pm
Grandchildren are a blessing! I have six and I’m only 41. They keep me feeling young and energetic! Happy TT
December 27th, 2007 2:30 pm
Well if I can’t come up with any preferred name, I’ll just use what we use for Grandma up north: Nana. I agree about how hard it is to explain so many relationships when “step” and “x” seem excluding. I married Joe in part so that his family would know what to call me! I had outgrown “girlfriend” and began to think about our legal rights as a couple. Otherwise I may have went the route Oprah and Susan Sarandon have. (But ultimately I’m glad I didn’t.)
As far as I know (and I have been asking musicians) a fiddle and a violin are the same instrument just played differently. So the difference is in the “intention.”
And Pop Tart, the song in my head that goes with a Jack-in-the-box is Pop Goes the Weasel!
I can’t beleive all you young grandmothers!
December 27th, 2007 3:04 pm
I enjoyed your “recap” of holiday happenings complete with musical links in this T-13. What a great way to “catch up” after “forgetting to blog” in the holiday busy-ness! Wise decision. Thanks for visiting Small Reflections.
Hugs and blessings,
December 27th, 2007 3:19 pm
My grandkids (16, counting steps) call me Grammie, and I love it. I think it’s a northern thing~
December 27th, 2007 3:33 pm
Congrats on your poem being broadcast. I can’t think of a better and more timely poem to broadcast. I’m glad others will hear it.
Like yourself, I have found my way back to the blogs after the holiday. Hope yours was wonderful. 🙂
~S 🙂
December 27th, 2007 4:39 pm
Happy G-Whiz-hood…I know our first has been a handful of blessings when he’s not just being a handful.
And how appropriate for the poem to be broadcast on Pacifica in Houston…I bet you remember KPFT from your time on the gulf coast. Back in those days they were getting blown off the air on a regular basis by the “good ole boys” down here in the deep south. I’ll look forward to hearing the broadcast on Sunday (and downloading it on Monday).
December 27th, 2007 4:44 pm
Congrats on the poem Colleen, its very good. Don’t be afraid of the word “grandmother”, to me and my grandgirls its interchangeable with “love” and has nothing to do with age.
December 27th, 2007 5:09 pm
Well I just haven’t ever been a grandmother before and it will take me a bit of time to own it. I had trouble with the word “wife” as well at first.
Gary, I don’t remember the station from when I lived near Houston (from about 1978-84). But I do seem to recall that the radio stations there started with K. It was Pokey Anderson who emailed me to ask for permission to use the poem. I’m supposed to be doing a phone recording in the next day or two. If that doesn’t work out I guess she’ll have to read it.
December 27th, 2007 6:17 pm
Congratulations!!!! My mom refused to be called “Grandma”….she’s called “Gramma” We had to leave out the d. May is a wonderful month to have a baby! I had two that month!!! Come by to visit when you’re in Roanoke sometime!xoxo
December 27th, 2007 9:55 pm
I’m Grandy to Mara Grace- so true about the happy banjo – What is your camera?Love clarity
December 28th, 2007 12:29 am
My mom loves being a grand ma. She has 5 grand kids. None of those mine. LOL!
I like being an auntie.
I enjoyed reading your post as I always do. Hope you had a great Christmas. Wish you a very happy fulfilling 2008!
You know who sent me here..:)
December 28th, 2007 1:05 am
I believe that it’s a violin if you rest it under your chin but a fiddle if you rest it in the crook of your arm. But don’t quote me!
December 28th, 2007 1:29 am
I discovered Sufjan Stevens about a year ago. He’s incredibly prolific and has given himself the mission to write an album for each of the 50 states. Don’t know if he’s serious about that or not. I wish him a long life. I have a few other folksy singers you might like. I might do a roundup in one of my posts.
December 28th, 2007 8:41 am
Hi Colleen! It is good to get back into a somewhat normal state after the holidays, catching up on blog happenings, and look what I found – you are becoming a grandmother! Ditto on the congrats from other comments (25 comments before me – WOW you are sooo popular!). Is it vanity that we don’t want to be called grandma? I started out as Granma (no D) Susan, but now have morphed into just Susan – and that is fine with me!
Love your 13 as always, I hope you have a great New Year!
Bonnie – I think the term is ‘step-wife’!
December 28th, 2007 10:17 am
Colleen I am so excited about your poem being read..very cool!
You know you are going to have to come up with a name for the baby to call you that suits you…like my mom is called Mo. I called mine Nannie and Hama…you need your own name. You are not a “granny”!
December 28th, 2007 9:41 pm
Congrats on becoming a grandma in May!
I love your #3…I so agree!
I never actually loved Dylan that much…I couldn’t get past his awful voice!
December 29th, 2007 6:11 am
I love that your Bush Poem is getting attention…! It deserves it Colleen, and I hope it keeps getting more and more! Very exciting especially because it is such a BRILLIANT and WONDERFUL poem!
You are going to have a G-Whiz kid!!! HOORAY! And Conratulations Colleen….How very very exciting.
December 29th, 2007 3:34 pm
I have a friend who recently became a grandmother and faced the similar dilemna of being unable to call herself a grandma. So she changed it up to Glam-ma. It fits her. 😉