Finally Friday - The Ballad of High Noon

Hey kids!

Happy Friday to you. Looks like we've almost made it to the finish line of the working week again. I hope you've arrived relatively unscathed. 

For those of you who observe them, I hope you had an enjoyable Bicycle Day (which marks the anniversary of Albert Hofmann's first LSD trip - not to be confused with World Bicycle Day, which is celebrated on June 3) and a lovely 4/20. What a week for celebrations!

Monday, April 24, is my dad's birthday. This will be the first year we mark the day without him. I'll be getting together with my family this weekend. You can bet there will be lots of laughs, stories, and probably some tears (mostly from me, a giant crybaby). We had such a wonderful time last year celebrating dad's 80th birthday. It's still shocking to me that he's gone and won't be tucking into a big piece of cake on Monday. 

My Finally Friday song choice today is by the legendary Tex Ritter. My dad was a fan of his, and my mom, well, not so much. I found this clip from an August 1970 episode of the Dick Cavett show. By the time this aired, Mr. Ritter was in his 60s, but boy, his voice was still amazing. "The Ballad of High Noon" was released in 1952, the theme song to the movie "High Noon." It won the Oscar for best song that year and Tex Ritter performed it at the ceremony. Others have recorded the song, but I think of him when I hear that famous opening line, "Do not forsake me, oh my darlin', on this our wedding day."

I hope you enjoy it. Also, if you're still lucky to have your dad around (and your dad is one of the good guys like mine), hug him or call him and tell him that you love him. I'd give just about anything to be able to do that again. xo

Do not forsake me, oh my darlin'

You made that promise when we wed

Do not forsake me, oh my darlin'

Although you're grievin', I can't be leavin'

Until I shoot Frank Miller dead

Can Con Thursday - The Cheapest Key

Today, April 20, is the birthday of my lovely grandfather, Lawrence Shanks. We lost him back in 1985 while my brother and I were still in high school. He lived with our family for the last few years of his life and I'll always be grateful for that extra time that we got to spend with him. I don't know if we realized at the time, what a gift it was to have him in our lives every day. I recognize it now and am thinking about him today. Happy Birthday, Grandpa!

My life is a little bit crazy right now, so this is the week's first post. On Tuesday, I felt particularly stressed and anxious, and I couldn't decide what to listen to.  I felt a bit like Goldilocks, some playlists were too bouncy, and others were too quiet. Finally, I realized what was "just right" for my state of mind and spent the entire workday listening to Kathleen Edwards.

Thank goodness for Kathleen Edwards! Her music soothed me on Tuesday. It did not, however, massage the giant knot out of my neck and shoulders, but it made my brain feel better than it had in a few days.

So, today, for Can Con Thursday, I'm going to share "The Cheapest Key." You can find it on her 2008 album, Asking For Flowers. 

Thank you, thank you, thank you, Kathleen, for keeping me sane this week. F is also my favourite letter xo

They say the start's always the hardest part

But like you know, baby, I'm all warmed up

Sometimes I wanna shout your name out loud

And let them in on what you're all about

Finally Friday - Pretty Good Guy

Finally, it's Friday. It's also Mark's birthday. He would have been 71 today. This year would have been a good one for him. Unlike many years when he was a kid, it's not falling on Passover, so he'd get to celebrate with a dessert he liked instead of a matzo birthday cake (he didn't care much for it).

Marking the day without him always feels sad and weird. By the time it gets to be the 8th time you do it, it should be easier, but it isn't. There will forever be a Mark-shaped hole in our lives. I miss him each day, and I know I'm not the only one who feels this way. Not a day goes by that I don't think about him, share a story about our life, or tell one of his favourite jokes. 

The way I'm feeling right now (which is a bit mushy and fragile),  if I say much more, I'll be crying too much to see the screen. That would be bad.

I'm sharing a song he loved and identified with in honour of his birthday. It's "Pretty Good Guy" by Fred Eaglesmith. I know that I shared a Fred song recently, but this one is special so I hope you'll indulge me. Mark loved this one. Normally, I just share a bit of a lyric from the song of the day, but I'm leaving the whole song here for you to read. If you substitute "fix your car" for "fix your computer" or "fix you a mind-blowing meal," you'll see that this really describes Mark.

Today, if you're inclined to do something in his memory, I'd suggest you have a nice breakfast (a good version of bacon, eggs, toast and coffee was always his favourite meal) and listen to some Fred.

Take care, kids, and hug the folks you love, frequently and often xo

There's a couple old people

That live across the road

So I keep the volume down

On my radio

And all the neighbours say

When I go by

He's a pretty good guy

Hey, I'm registered

In CPR

And if you asked me to

I could fix your car

It's just the way I am

I got a pretty good life

I'm a pretty good guy

Just one good man

All the good ones are gone

Hey, play it again

I like that song

There's a pretty good guy

Coming down the street

And you'd be surprised

He looks a lot like me

Since you've been gone

I've realized

That you were wrong

I'm a pretty good guy

Yeah, you were wrong

I'm a pretty good guy

Can Con Thursday - Mom Jeans // Mom Genes

Today's Can Con Thursday song is by Calgary's fabulous garage rockers, Miesha and The Spanks. 

What an awesome duo they are!!  It was not easy to pick just one song to share today. Originally, I was going to share "I Can't Wait." It's finally feeling like spring around here, and this song is a perfect warm weather song (actually, if it's cold where you are, dancing around your house to this one will warm up you up, too!). 

In the end, I changed my mind and am sharing "Mom Jeans // Mom Genes" instead. It's definitely an ear worm song but in a totally great way.

Not sure if you know this, but they have a brand new record coming out tomorrow (Friday, April 14). It's called "Unconditional Love in HiFi." I pre-ordered it on Bandcamp, and you can do that too (or just buy it on Friday at your favourite record store or from Mint Records). 

They'll also be hitting the road and will be in our area next month. Miesha and The Spanks will visit Kingston (well, Wolfe Island) on May 17 at the Wolfe Island Hotel and Ottawa on May 17 at House of Targ.

Give it a listen and have a good day kids xo

Mom genes for the babe who won’t sleep at night

Mom genes for the kid who wants to put up another fight

Mom genes for the mom times that we’ve lost

Mom jeans for the mom bod that I’ve got

Way Back Wednesday - Ever Fallen In Love

Today's Way Back Wednesday song is "Ever Fallen In Love (with someone you shouldn't have Fallen in love with)" by Buzzcocks.

Written by Pete Shelley, Ever Fallen in Love was released in 1978 and ranked as the Number 1 song of the year by NME. I have always loved this song, and let's face it, it's totally relatable. We've all fallen in love with someone we shouldn't have fallen in love with at some point in our lives. It's a universal message to all of us hapless sad sacks. Unrequited love truly sucks.

Fortunately for humans, it's easily forgotten when the real thing comes along. That's been my experience anyway, as the kids used to say, "YMMV" (your mileage may vary). I have no idea what the kids say these days, but I'm in the last month of my 55th year, so I'm not expected to keep up.

No matter how old I get, Buzzcocks will always be cool. Enjoy this performance from Top of the Pops and have a good day, folks xo

I can't see much of a future

Unless we find out what's to blame, what a shame

And we won't be together much longer

Unless we realize that we are the same