Songs you have probably never heard, but should

"Lover's Prayer" by Gillian Welsh -- lovely and romantic http://www.last.fm/music/Gillian+Welch/_/I+Made+A+Lovers+Prayer

"Feeling Good" by Nina Simone -- a fabulous personal anthem
http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x6xtaa_feeling-good-nina-simone_music

"Who Knows" by Marion Black -- should've become a household name
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4ZF_ZItsh6o

"Good Morning Little School Girl" by Muddy Waters -- the right mixture of steam & blues
http://www.last.fm/music/Muddy+Waters/_/Good+Morning+Little+Schoolgirl?autostart

"Now at Last I Know" by Feist -- thought-provoking, buttery-voiced & sad
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u1bM_7kW0fk

"These Arms of Mine" by Otis Redding -- get out the tissues
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7pVWBKqFFLw

"Real Love" by Lucinda Williams -- cupid's arrow has landed
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1oPgZoXZ1Z0

"You Sure Look Swell" by Sondre Lerche -- slow dance to this, sweetly
http://www.last.fm/music/Sondre+Lerche/_/You+Sure+Look+Swell?autostart

I'm Feeling the Clarity!

Was it a full moon? A change in atmospheric pressure? Something whispering into my ear as I slept? I don't know, but I woke up at my usual 5:17 am on January 5th and something was different. Decisions about which I had been waffling were instantly already made; a clear vision of what I want in 2009 was in my head; and I swear the pre-dawn stars were winking at me. All this before my first cup of coffee! How does sudden awareness and absolute clarity just decide to show up? I didn't do anything new or unusual the day before: no change in my herbal tea brand, no sudden flash of insight, no new haircut, no booming voices from on high.

Whatever the hell caused it, I am thrilled at its surprise arrival and plan to work hard to keep it from leaving. woo hoo!

My Favorite Colloquialisms

I love the way people talk. I love their accents, the way their lips and tongue move when they are forming sounds, the words they say and what's behind the meaning of those words. Colloquial speech is especially remarkable. As a former midwesterner, a current southerner and evidently a linguist in a former life, here are a few of my favorites:

"That smells really loud." Meaning, that has a really strong smell. (North Carolina)

"Searcy." A friendly little gift given for no reason at all. (North and South Carolina, Alabama)

"The Devil is beating his wife." Said when it's raining and the sun is shining simultaneously (North Carolina)

"A Red Bic Lighter." This is terribly bad luck to have and must be disposed of immediately. (Wisconsin)

"How you gonna show?" Meaning, what are you going to do in this situation? (Northern Ohio)

"Don't send a boy...." (to do a man's job). Used to describe when someone is unqualified to do a particular task. (Michigan)

"Szepicsam" (tzay-peecham). If you ask a Hungarian-speaking woman very sweetly, perhaps she'll tell you what it means. And if you're really lucky, she might show you.

"Plumnilly." Meaning, right in between. (North Carolina)

"Tsotski". (chaaats-kee). Meaning, those crappy, dusty brik-a-brak things that covered every shelf in your grandmother's house. (New York City).

"Pa-diddle". What you must say when you see a car on the highway coming toward you with only one headlight. (Michigan)