Subway Story

The thunderous rumbles of the subway are much louder than the steady hum of the LIRR. This is why it is somewhat difficult to listen to an ipod while on the subway. But today I stuck the little green buds of my earphones into my ears and put my ipod on shuffle, figuring I would give it a try.

As V'havienu's Hamalach Hagoel swam around my ears, creating a soundtrack in my head, the sudden sharp rhythms of rap beat themselves against my otherwise peaceful listening experience. I glanced in the direction of the sounds and saw that a rather gangster-looking rapper was sitting a few feet away from me. He, too, was listening to an ipod, but he was shouting the lyrics of whatever song was playing for the entire subway car to hear.

Across from him sat a little blond girl. She looked about three years old and she watched the rapper curiously, nodding her head along whenever he bobbed his to the beat.

Suddenly, I heard, "Stand up, Israel!" Pause. "Stand up, Israel!"

I paused my song and listened. That's when I first could tell that the rapper was not speaking coherently. Either he was incredibly drunk or there was something seriously off about him - or both. But for an instant, he spoke clearly. "Who are we? Israelites!" Then he went back to his slurring.

All the time, the little girl nodded her head to the beat as her mother napped beside her. I turned Hamalach Hagoel back on and the subway chugged onward, the strange ensemble playing in my ears for the rest of the ride.

Migration of MBC

Hat tip: Jameel

The Flight Of The Bumblebee

I love this. I used to play the flute so I am really in awe of how difficult this is.

Life's For Sharing

I thought this was amazing.



Here you can watching the making of.

Sick Cycle Carousel

Hat tip: Ezzie (kind of, a while ago)



Regardless of what this song is originally about (probably a relationship), it can be about anything anyone is dealing with, from major issues to small ones. Anything that makes you feel like you keep revisiting the same issue over and over and over again. It's important to be able to break out of that cycle, because only then can you actually move forward.

John Denver

This conversation transpired earlier this evening while my mom was doing today's NY Times crossword puzzle:

Ima: The John Denver song...is that Annie's Song?
Me: Who's John Denver?
Ima and Abba: *Stare* YOU'VE NEVER HEARD OF JOHN DENVER????

Well, have any of you heard of John Denver? Vote in the poll! I must know - am I legitimate in not knowing who he is, or am I completely not living on the same planet as everyone else? Is it like not knowing Billy Joel? (I love Billy Joel, just fyi)