Would You Miss Me?

Well, it's December 27. If you're scratching your head, I'll give you an assist. The day that Jack killed himself two years ago. Also the day of our first date. Those two events may or may not be related. I won't know until I'm also dead. But, then I won't be able to blog about it and let you in on the news. It's a puzzler for sure.

I went back to a blog I wrote in 2010. A very long blog detailing the relationship in conversation and summary. I really had no clue about how to write a succinct blog back in those days. (Yeah, I know it's still an issue. You must grade me on improvement.) What follows are short excerpts from that blog:


Me: If I had to move to Florida, would you miss me? (I say this because it is a possibility. My finances are terrible, but I hope it won't happen.)

Him: I would miss you like I would miss the sun.

And that always makes me think of this song:



On the original post, I included the Grey's Anatomy video It's The End of the World As We Know It at the end, with these words bringing up the very end of the blog. Again, for the sake of your time, which I know is precious, I'm just going to skip to the clip at the end of that show (It's The End Of The World As We Know It, Part 2):




I have spent years trying to remember that last kiss, and I can't for the life of me. If you know something is going to end, you prepare better. You note each thing as it happens, and mark it as the last word, the last dance, the last dinner, the last touch, so that nothing is missed. I don't remember the last time I even saw him, much less kissed him, because I didn't know it would be the last time. And he isn't talking.

Well, it's 2016, and I still can't put my finger on that last kiss. I wish I'd asked him when we talked the last time (a few months before he died). Maybe he could've helped me out with that detail. As it is, he still isn't talking.

Merry Christmas, What I Want for 2017, and BoTB Results

Skidding into the office breathless...

I'm here. I'm here. I know I'm late with the results for Battle of the Bands. I know I was lousy about commenting to your comments. Yikes.

You know what I want for 2017... I mean besides all the obvious things like good health and world peace? I want direction. Focus. I want to finally get going. My ongoing (read: constant) prayer is that God simply give me direction on what He wants me to do and then guide my stubborn nose in the right direction. I'm praying for open doors and new opportunities and courage to walk through those doors and grab onto those opportunities. Even if they are scary. Or feel uncertain or new. I suppose I'm praying for a Jesus-style kick in the rear end. And joy. Lots of joy. I really want to seize the joy in life and be present for it. And live in the moment. All that good stuff.

Okay, now that we've covered where my mental energy has been spent (see above) instead of blogging, let's get back to it. 16 of you voted in the December 15 round of Battle of the Bands. The contenders were Amy Grant and Michael Buble. The song was Grown Up Christmas List. I confess that I found this song by going to YouTube and looking for Amy Grant Christmas songs. I'd gotten stuck in a Christmas song whirlwind (that place of too many songs = confusion), so I decided to begin with an artist I knew I liked. Work from there. Back in the 80s, I had Amy Grant's first Christmas record. It was the collectible variety with her the cover of the album imprinted into the vinyl of the record. I thought I'd choose something from that record. But then I came across her rendition of Grown Up Christmas List (awesome song!), checked out who else recorded it (serious contenders!) and a battle began to take shape. Point of fact, I liked the Michael Buble recording so much that he stole my vote from Amy (who started this whole thing in the first place!), which doesn't seem fair. But, that is how voting works. You think it's going to go one way, but then someone else does it better, and voila. And Michael Buble did it better to these ears. I couldn't have been more shocked.

What did you guys think?

Well, Amy Grant began very strong garnering the first four votes. After that it was back and forth. Then Michael Buble came from behind at the end for the win. And that was without my vote, which turns out doesn't actually count for anything in this battle, because you guys decided it. Final tally:

Amy Grant: 7

Michael Buble: 10 (inc. mine)

I think that was a darn good battle. Very close. And some of you heard a new song (Cherdo, yes, I'm looking at you:)/

Michael, I'm going to let you walk us out with a favorite in our house. Merry Christmas friends. I hope yours is overflowing with blessings!!!

Battle of the Bands ~ Grown-Up Christmas List

Hello friends. I apologize for being so slow in responding to your comments on my previous post. I have been reading them. I will say this: to each of you who said, "I should try iodine because..." I want you to know that I literally said out loud, "Yes! You should!" You should also do it now while the iodine and selenium are on clearance. I don't think the price will be any lower. They are trying to move as much inventory as they can by end of the year. One more note: this stuff isn't just for migraines. There are something like 3,000 reviews on the iodine on the website. I think I read 300+ (starting with the least favorable). Not one person mentioned having migraine problems, but tons of people mentioned having a variety of health issues that got better upon taking the iodine. Most shocking to me? Gout. This stuff detoxifies you. So, it pushes out the bad stuff, simply making you more healthy, thereby solving some surprising health problems. If you don't know what I'm yakking about, go back one post. I don't know one person who has said recently, "I'm so healthy that I wouldn't take something that would make me even healthier because I'm as healthy as a person can get." That is NOT the society we live in folks. Good health. The best Christmas gift ever. :)

Battle of the Bands.

Yes, I just changed the subject to the meat of this post. I know most (all?) have done this before. You listen to the songs and then decide who you think sings it better and place your vote in the comments. I will come back in approximately a week, tally up the votes, and write a post letting you know who won this thing.

The song for this installment is Grown-Up Christmas List. The contenders are Amy Grant and Michael Buble. I think both versions are really good. You can watch the video for the Amy Grant version, but don't let the optics influence your vote!  MERRY CHRISTMAS, MY FRIENDS. I hope whatever you're wishing for comes true this year!

First up, Amy Grant:


Versus

Michael Buble:


Please vote for the version of this song you prefer. If you want to get into the Ins and Outs of why you like one better than the other... I LOVE long comments!

For more Battle of the Bands fun, check out the other BOTB bloggers to vote on their battles. I've stopped trying to keep up with who is running a battle and who isn't. To see who is participating, go here: Stephen T. McCarthy's Battle of the Bands Blog.