| Sunday, July 24, 2005 |
| Bye, Bye . . . |
Not sure exactly where I'm going with all this, but on Friday Kelly and I broke down and bought an iPod. There's just so much stuff it could do, even she's pumped up about it. The only problem is I've done a horrible job organizing our iTunes playlist which means, when I synchronized the iPod with my iBook, everything was wack. I'm going to have to get organized this week so I can use it properly. Fortunately we have plenty of free time with the move coming up on Friday, so I have plenty of time to get that done [sarcasm implied].
I was really feeling it this morning: total exhaustion. I really wanted to call in sick but, if you're a minister, it's not an option unless you're throwing up a lung. So I got showered and dressed while half asleep and got out the door. Having no iPod working to play my music, I was forced to take what the radio gave me [how archaic]. As I turned the ignition of the Explorer, I was greeted by the radio to the end of Fooling Yourself by Styx. I'll admit, that perked me up a bit. I'd have that on my playlist anyway. And the very next song really got me going: Don McLean's American Pie. I don't have a copy of that, but I gots to get it.
Now before I get into my reflections about driving my "Chevy to the levee" [of course, everyone wants to go to Newport, but GM is struggling so you might drive a Honda instead], I need to talk about how I think God can work. Some of you might consider it blasphemous that I listen to non-Christian music on my way to church. Sorry if you feel that way, but honestly I'm one of those people that appreciates good music and will use it to perk me up when I'm feeling low or tired. Don't get me wrong, I'm not jammin' to the Thong Song or anything like that on the way to church, but I'll definitely go with the Beatles or something classic. Maybe in the next few weeks I'll drop my Christian music diatribe on y'all. Then I'll really tick some people off.
OK, back to my American Pie thoughts. I wonder how many young people, when they hear the words "American Pie", think of the movies by that name rather than the song? Since I've never seen the movies, thankfully, I always think of McLean's masterpiece. I don't remember if I ever made a concerted effort to do so, but over the years I memorized the lyrics. They're beautifully poetic, even though you don't always understand what he's talking about. Fortunately, there are enough web geeks out there that have posted the meaning of the lyrics so you could do a study of the meaning behind was being sung. In case you're totally disinterested in reading more about American Pie and are ignorant of it's background, McLean wrote it as a tribute to Buddy Holly, Richie Valens, and The Big Bopper who tragically died in a plane crash in February 1959. They were supposedly flying in a plane called the "American Pie" and that day was referred to as "The Day The Music Died."
There's nothing like driving fast and yelling out the "them good ol' boys were drinkin' whiskey and rye." All the lyrics rock. Where else can you find something like this:
"And while Lenin read a book on Marx, the quartet practiced in the park and we played dirges in the dark . . . "
Brilliant. And the somewhat religious:
"And the three men I admire most The Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, they caught the last train for the coast."
Makes me want to pick up my guitar right now and start playing it. Great song. So anyway, I'm awake now and good to go, ready to face the day. It might seem weird to think that God could use a classic rock song [especially one with references to alcohol] to get me rolling, but he did. Hey, He's the Master DJ. We're all on his playlist. |
yet another musing of steve-o @ 7:11:00 AM  |
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