Monday's Music Moves Me - Elemental Girl (And Spotlight Dancer!)

Sorry for the late entry today.  I've been trying to get housework done before computer work, because I have a tendency to lose myself in the internet if I do it the other way around.  But now that I've got the housework from my To Do list finished, I'm able to focus on the fun stuff that I want to do do.

So, here I am for this week's

And I'm pretty excited about it this week, not just because I love sharing some of my favorite music with y'all, but also because I've been made today's Spotlight Dancer!  I'm really proud to be spotlighted like this, and I hope that anyone that decides to stop by because of it will decide to stick around for awhile.  I haven't been part of Monday's Music Moves Me for long, but I've had fun every week adding my favorite music to that week's topic.

This week, we're talking about the elements.  Songs involving fire, water, earth and air.  I've seen a lot of people use rain related songs and, I'll admit, when I started making my list, a lot of mine were rain related songs.  But I love a challenge, so I'm going to add a few songs that hit some of the other elements.

First, of course, I'm going to start with the first song that comes to mind when I hear the word "elements".  It may not be technically the four "classics", but it does help make them up.



Anyone that has watched what I share knows that I like a wide variety of music. One of my favorites is Tori Amos. Her music is both familiar and different with each album, and that's what I love about her. I tried to see what other music of hers that I could find to fit the theme, but the closest I was able to come was this: "Little Earthquakes".



This is one that some may consider a bit of a cheat, but hey, it's my list of music, so I'm adding it! I love a capella groups, and one of the best to (re)emerge on the world scene in the last several years is Straight No Chaser. This is a medley of Earth, Wind and Fire songs that they've done at some of their shows.



I love this song. It's one that I think everyone who is trying to do the best for themselves should adopt as a theme song. Just hearing it brings tears tears to my eyes and watching the video - full blown tears. The quality of the video isn't the best, but it was the only copy I could find on YouTube. And it's important for everyone to remember that "life is not tried, it's just merely survived if you're standing outside the fire".



I had to have one water song, and yes, it's rain related. When most people think of the movie Beaches, the song they think of is "Wind Beneath My Wings". My favorite, however, is this song. "I Think It's Gonna Rain Today". This version is sung by Bette Midler during a visit to the Johnny Carson Show.




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Someone really likes me!

Ok, probably more than one someone.  But, as I commented in my last post, this someone gave me an award because she likes me!  And that is turning what has been a frustrating day around to being much happier.

This was given to me by a blogger that I recently discovered when she started following me.  And hers has become one of my favorite blogs to read.  Do Sweat the Small Stuff is, in her own words, "the ramblings of a neurotic housewife."  Her posts are regularly humorous and incredibly reminiscent of my own day to day life. (A couple of my favorites have been World's Worst Mom #100 Part 2 and The Lament of a Newbie Blogger.)  And I love the retro look of her blog.  It's just awesome.  You don't know what you're missing if you don't at least take a look.

I was pretty surprised when she told me that she'd awarded me one of the fifteen awards that she was able to give out herself.  It makes me feel good that she's actually enjoying my blog!

Having won this award, I'm now required requested to do a couple things.

• Thank the person who gave you the award and link back to their site in your original post.
• Tell us seven things about yourself.
• Pass along the award to fifteen newly discovered bloggers.
• Contact these bloggers and let them know they got this award.

Since I've done the first above, it's time for the second.  It's hard to remember what I have and haven't posted about, but since there are as many new readers as old, and as many people who know me outside of the blogosphere as inside it, I'm just going to throw out some random things that come to mind.

1. Upon meeting me, people remark on two things.  My height (I'm 5') and my weight ("You said you weighed 245 pounds!  You don't look like you weigh that much!")
2. When I was a kid, I wanted to sing on Broadway.  Eventually I realized that, while I have a decent voice, I don't have a decent amount of acting talent and even just a decent voice wouldn't be enough for me to make it.  But I'm actually happy singing to my boys and being able to be with them all the time.
3. I've never been out of the US.  I've always wanted to travel, but the opportunity and money have never combined to make it a possibility.  Until about 10 years ago, I'd never been out of the Eastern Time Zone.
4. I have a social phobia.  (You wouldn't guess from what I write on here, would you?)  Whenever I have to deal with a business face to face or over the phone, or even call a friend I haven't talked to in a long time, I freeze up.  I've got all these worst case scenarios that run through my brain and practically freeze me.  I communicate much better online, where I can take the time to think about what I'm saying.  But, I am trying to overcome the phobia by forcing myself to do the things that are so difficult for me.
5. I love to write, but I have no desire to write a work of fiction.  I mean, I would love to see my name at the top of a best seller's list somewhere, but I have no idea what I'd write about.  Plus, my descriptions usually suck.
6. I can't sleep in silence.  I have to have something playing on the TV or on my MP3 player, or a fan running or SOMETHING.  The quiet gives me too much time to think.  Also, I need to wear an eye mask when I sleep.  The light is another thing that keeps me from getting the sleep that I need.
7. I can't drink plain water unless it's ice cold.  There's something about it that just keeps me from drinking it.  It's one of the more difficult things about trying to be healthier.

Just like with everything else, I kind of bounced all over the map there. Ah well.  It's who I am.

Now, it's time for my nominations of the Versatile Blogger Award.  This is going to be really hard for me because there are so many bloggers out there that I've recently discovered and that I look forward to seeing what's going to come from the fingers next.  But I've got to give it a try so...

1. The Writer Revived - Elizabeth is a phenomenal woman.  She's a writer, a mom and an activist for change among the Mommy Blogger community.  She is the one that started up The Mom Pledge and has helped keep it going.  She takes the time to comment to people, both in their blogs and on Twitter.  And her personal blog is just wonderful to read.  
2. Things I Can't Say - Shell writes from the heart.  She files off the serial numbers on a few things, but that doesn't make her writing any less sincere.  She says through the blog many of the things that she can't say in person.  And every Wednesday, she has Pour Your Heart Out Wednesday.  I've started pouring my heart out with her.
3. Composing My Life - Randy is someone I knew back in college.  We hadn't talked in years, and still don't talk much now to be honest.  But I love to read his blog.  He's a composer and he talks a lot about what the art of composing means to him.
4. Tales of a Hockey Wife - I adore this blog.  Between the things that she writes and the altered, hockey mask pictures, I smile with every post she makes.  
5. My Little Life - Mama M is a mom of 5 who still has time to do other things beside being Mommy.  I love to read the insights into her life.  It's like sitting across the table from another Mom friend and talking about your day.
6. The Book Vixen - Brianna's a bibliophile, which means I love her for that if nothing else.  She reviews reads very regularly and I love the way that she does her reviews.
7. Novel Niche - I found Shivanee's blog through a Swap-Bot swap and I anxiously await new posts.  She is another reading reviewer, and most of the books that she reads are from Trinidad.  She opens me up to a whole new genre of books that I'd never considered.
8. The Aftercraft - This is another blog that I found through Swap-Bot and she is one crafty lady!  I love the tag on her blog - "Creative clutter is better than idle neatness".  She not only puts up pictures of the crafty things she sews, but makes tutorials so you can do the same!  I really want a sewing machine now!
9. Starving, Insatiable - Jennifer's blog is just fun.  She does several memes, talks about her life, posts pictures... it's just enjoyable to read!
10. One Me, Two Monsters - Just the title of her blog resonates with me on a daily basis!  She gives us glimpses into her life with words and pictures.
11. Not Enough Patience and Never Enough Jewelry! - Greta is the mom of 4 kids 5 and under - and no, there are no twins in there.  I honestly don't know how she does it.  She shares herself and her life with her readers and I have a ton of admiration for her.
12. My Write Side - Stephanie writes. Her entries are filled with wonderfully composed bits of fiction that were inspired by various writing prompts.  I wish I had a quarter of her talent.
13. The Awkward Adventures of a Kiwi - Siobhan is another scrapper/crafter/blogger superwoman.  She posts bits and pieces of everything - the crafts she's done, the day she's had, contests, giveaways, pictures and words.  I'm envious of her crafting talent (but then again, I can say that about all the craft blogs I read!)
14. Chronicles of the Troll Family - I found Mumma Troll through Swap-Bot as well (that's the case with most of the blogs I read - either Swappers or Mommies.)  She doesn't post every day, but she does post regularly and her posts are ones I always find interesting.
15. Feeling Beachie - Hilary describes herself as "a thirty something beach living and loving, finance executive, who is also a wife, daughter, friend, and mother of an elderly cat..."  You'll find a lot of humor in her posts about every day life.  And Alex, the elderly cat in question, is just adorable!

I'm also going to do an honorable mention.  The only reason that this blog isn't among the 15 above is because it's supposed to be for recent finds - and I've been reading this blog for years.  Blog, Jvstin Style is written by my friend Paul.  He likes to describe himself as "just this guy, you know", but he's so much more than that. A good friend, a knowledgeable man, someone who writes wonderfully and the creator of the longest running Amber Diceless Role-Playing Game on the net, Strange Bedfellows (of which I'm honored to be a part).  His blog really is a hodgepodge of things that he finds interesting.  One of the best features is a recent addition - his picture of the day.  I wish I had his talent at photography.  He's very unassuming and I think that's one of his charms.  You really should take a moment to check out his blog if you haven't done so already.

Now I'm off to send notifications!