Day Thirty Two: My Mixed "Tape" and song #10

Romeo and Juliet. You'll understand why I included this image when you get to the bottom of this post.

My kids are into watching music videos on youtube.com.
Of course, I am the arbiter of all things watchable on the computer, and I jokingly call myself the "VJ" when the kids request a song. This morning, as per Mack's request, we watched/listened to Taio Cruz's song "Dynamite" three times before heading off to camp. That kid sure loves dance music.

I've been thinking a lot about music these days, thinking about my youth and how I associated certain songs with specific times in my life. Summers had odes to first loves, high school had break-up ballads, and college had anthems of empowerment. When I felt the urge to create a soundtrack to whatever I was going through, I made a little thing called a mixed tape. (Maybe I'm showing my age here, but once upon a time there were things called cassette tapes. This was after the 8-track and before the CD...and it was a golden time!) I still make soundtracks, and in today's gadget-conscious society it's now called a playlist on an iPod. But I flipped the purpose of music so it now creates a mood rather than expresses my feelings. It's working from the outside in rather than vice versa. My playlists are tools to motivate and influence me, like when I am working on a craft project, going on a long run, or trying to relax.

In the aftermath of my Mom's passing, I've been going "old school" and using music to express my grief and thoughts on family. Some songs are melancholic and little lovelorn while others are light and funny. And there are angry songs, "you did me wrong" songs, and "why did you leave me?" songs.

I thought I'd share them with you, let you listen to the mixed tape that carries me through my days. If I'm feeling like Rob Fleming, that Nick Hornby character from his book Hi Fidelity  (or at least the John Cusack movie version of him), please bear with me. I do have a top ten list, but I'll only share one song with you today, song number 10.



10. Dire Straits/"Romeo and Juliet"
This original version has a folksy sweetness that gets lost in the 2006 rendition by The Killers (my apologies to Brandon Flowers). And there's something about the cheesy 80's style video that furthers my association between it and my parents.
And that kooky lookin' fella in the video--Romeo--reminds me of my Dad.
My Dad has been telling me a lot of stories about how he courted my Mom back in the early 1960s, which is bittersweet for me to hear. Growing up, I always heard my Mom's version of the events, and it never occurred to me that my Dad cared too much about it. But he did and he's now willing to tell me his side of things.

So when I hear this song, it's almost like my Dad is the one singing, telling his story about my Mom.





Happy Friday, Dad.