They're saying that we are going to get big time rain here in Southern California over the next few days. Apparently they've even started evacuating some folks north of where I live. Where I live there is not much threat from rain-caused disasters. We'll just get rained on and I can leave my sprinklers off for a few days. Besides, I rarely see the big rains they talk about on the news. We'll get a little bit of rain and hear about mudslides in other places. I'm happy with where I live in the respect that we don't get those events like fire, flood, and mudslide. You can count me as thankful for most things even when I wish they'd be some other way.
With another birthday having passed I've begun to think about my own mortality. Recently a friend who had just turned 101 died. He was in pretty good shape until a few weeks before he died and then we didn't see him in church for a couple Sundays and then we get word that he died. I've got a good ways to go before I'm as old as that guy, but still I've known folks my age and younger just unexpectedly go. My father died at the age I just turned and so did my brother-in-law. That's just an observation that I can't help not ignore although I'm trying not to dwell on it too much.
So I guess I'll just keep on going as though I'm going to live to 101. Probably little chance of that considering my lack of a good diet and proper exercise. But I'll keep on moving onward as though nothing with finality will happen anytime soon. Besides I haven't got any appointment card or a notice to save the date. Whenever the end comes is when it comes and that's probably as much as I can say about that. In the meantime, I need to start downsizing. I've got to get rid of some of the clutter in my life. But more on that come April 1st. No fooling...
Battle of the Bands Results
Although my most recent Battle outcome was predictable, I had hopes that the final result would not be so lopsided. I was not surprised that most voters in my Battle picked the dreamy laid back sounds of Jamie Dupuis on the harp guitar. After all, initially this was my first choice. Such a wonderful cover of the Pink Floyd song "Comfortably Numb" and very aptly performed.
Then, as in the case with all of my Song Battles, I continued listening to both versions repeatedly for many days. Jamie's version with the harp guitar and electric guitar I could listen to for hours--it's so relaxing. As I continued listening to this version I realized there are no surprises. That's why it's so comforting. While the version by Thomas, though initially somewhat disconcerting--"choppy" according to one voter--this version is filled with surprises. With each subsequent listening I discovered new little sounds I hadn't noticed before. The visuals were very persuasive as well. But the treatment of the song is wondrous to my ears.
That's why my vote goes to Thomas Leeb. Not that it helps the outcome for him much. Jamie Dupuis ran away with this Battle.
Final Vote Tally
Jamie Dupuis 18 votes
Thomas Leeb 5 votes
Next Battle of the Bands on Sunday April 1st
No fooling! The next Battle of the Bands posting will be a sort of perfect storm scenario with the Battle coinciding with Easter, April Fools Day, and the opening of the 2018 Blogging from A to Z April Challenge. Now I need to hunker down and start composing those April posts. A big rain storm would keep me inside writing. Or maybe inside looking out at the rain. I love watching a good hard rain.
What's the weather like in your neck of the woods? Do you ever ponder your own mortality? Would you like to make it to 100 years if you could stay relatively healthy?
Hope the storm is not as bad as anticipated Lee.
ReplyDeleteTake care and hope all is well.
Voted for the wrong band this time, look forward to the next BOTB,
Yvonne.
Yvonne, so far not much rain where I am. We could use more.
DeleteLee
Enjoyed your post, as always, and am likewise increasingly aware of the mortality issue! Like you, this year I will be as old as my father when he passed away, and you are right - the thought gives one pause! But worrying about age and death is surely one way to hasten it; I like the idea of living each day we're given to the best of our ability, making sure we've emptied our daily bucket of love, help, inspiration and purpose before going to bed each night, counting blessings instead of possible days left. Like you, though, I am increasingly feeling the need to downsize and declutter, and so am looking forward to your April posts with even more than the usual anticipation! Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteElaine, day by day is the best way to live as long as we are thankful for those days. Nothing should be taken for granted.
DeleteLee
Be safe with the coming rain!
ReplyDeletePop Tart, I always try to be safe.
DeleteLee
I'm aware of friends and family dying now. I think once you hit the halfway mark, the reality of dying really hits.
ReplyDeleteHappy belated birthday.
L.Diane, I never thought much about the end before I turned 40 and then it started hitting me.
DeleteLee
Happy Belated Birthday! I've been thinking a lot about age too, since my birthday is on Saturday. I have both an optimistic view that both of my grandparents lived into their nineties, and a not so optimistic view of my husbands family has a tendency to die younger. It's scary. But we can only live life as we have it, right?
ReplyDeleteLoni, happy birthday to you as well! DNA can be good indicators, but still we never know for sure.
DeleteLee
Happy belated birthday! I'm not surprised Jamie Dupuis won. He's an incredible guitarist.
ReplyDeleteI'm set for A to Z: I've got all my posts written and queued up, and three of my five A to Z posts. That'll give me a few days to figure out what to do with K and Q...
John, Show-off! I wish I could say that I am as prepared as you are.
DeleteLee
We got a bunch of rain coming here too, maybe snow, blah. We can go at any time, can't dwell on it. Be fun to get to 100, but one will get where they get to.
ReplyDeletePat, I'd like to get to 100 if I were healthy and mobile, but I'm not sure that I could afford to keep going that long.
DeleteLee
I wouldn't want to make it to 100 in this world if I was Mark Zuckerburg...
ReplyDeleteCW, Zuckerburg will probably be fine with all of his money, but I could understand staying out of sight for a while.
DeleteLee
Cold here! Yes, probably think about my mortality too much at times. And yes, as of right now, I’d want to be healthy enough to live till 100!
ReplyDeleteLisa, if spring is here can summer be far behind? I'd like to live to 100 but take my time doing it.
DeleteLee
Happy belated birthday, Lee. If memory serves me correctly, I think I was in the few that voted for Thomas...but I could be wrong. My memory ain't all that hot. :) I'm looking forward to warmer weather maybe week after next. Maybe. That's what they are teasing after the next Nor'Easter swings through.
ReplyDeleteElsie
Elsie, you did vote for Thomas as I did. You are due for warmer weather. So are we.
DeleteLee
You know what, Arlee? I don't think it's all about diet and exercise (though that helps, of course). Our good friend Bill who is 55, crazy active, and eats right, suddenly started having chest pains a couple weeks ago. They put him in the hospital yesterday to do an angiogram and NOW he's scheduled for double pypass surgery tomorrow. One just never knows...
ReplyDeleteCalensariel, I know what you're saying because I've made those same observations myself. If it's ones time to go then bye-bye, you've got a train to catch. Some things can be hard to figure, but then we'll probably never know those answers anyway.
DeleteLee
ARLEE BOID ~
ReplyDeleteHaving seen your exchange above with C.W. Martin, before I get started on my "real" comment, I just want to say, "Phuqface Zuckerberg works for satan". That's all.
Hey, I see you had a "JOAN JETT VERSUS THIN LIZZY OUTCOME", too. Well, both recordings were terrific. I think the right one won, but they were both A-List and E-Ticket and I watched and listened to both recordings several times just for the pleasure of it. I can't say that about too many BOTB contests.
You've put together a number of very good Battles, but this one was my favorite in awhile.
Since April 1st is "Fools For Christ Day", I'm hoping to come up with something Gospel-y for BOTB.
~ D-FensDogG
STMcC Presents 'Battle Of The Bands'
STMcC, Facebook has some good uses so I won't say much bad about it. Zuckerberg almost seems naive in a way from what I've heard him say. I can't understand why people are in such a tizzy about data collection and analysis. This is something that's been going on even before the internet except now they can do it bigger, faster, and more efficiently. If people don't like it they can stay off the grid. I really doubt whether any info collected from any source did that much to sway people's opinions anymore than any other method does.
DeleteThanks for the good words concerning my Battle. Like you, I listened to both recordings many times and I could have voted either way for differing reasons.
I thought about a spiritually related song for my next Battle though since it's during A to Z I'm going more mainstream. Although my song might have some spiritual connotations.
Lee
I think of death now way more than I used to - probably because my sister, 5 years younger than me died in 2015 at the age of 56. She literally just went to take a nap and died. Of course they did find she had cirrhosis of the liver that none of us knew about; not even her husband so I doubt if even she knew. So sad and I always told her, I would go before her.It just wasn't supposed to happen like that and at such a young age.
ReplyDeleteDebby, it's a real eye-opener when a younger sibling dies. I'm still in a bit of a shock after losing my youngest brother last year--he was 55. He was always saying that he thought he would die soon, but we figured he'd outlive all of us.
DeleteLee
I think it's fairly common to focus more on death as we age. It's always disturbing to read about a younger person dying and it makes me more aware of how suddenly life can end. We should make the most of it! Sorry I haven't been keeping up with your posts, but I've been off on a tangent lately. Wishing you another successful A to Z Challenge!
ReplyDeleteDebbie D, I understand--I've been off on tangents lately as well.
DeleteLee
An April 1st, with no fooling? Now, Arlee...
ReplyDeleteHey, I am feeling the mortality thing, too. Going on a full year since I had a surprise heart attack.
Michael, heart attacks or anything really serious like that are not pleasant to deal with, but it's good when we survive a physical catastrophe.
DeleteI used to be a big trickster for April Fools Day, but in the past couple of decades I've gotten more serious. I used to always call my mother to trick her, but she's been gone for a few years now.
Lee
Hi Lee -- This post reflects a lot of my thoughts these days. I feel pretty healthy, but things happen and I'd like to be better prepared so family members don't get stuck with a big mess to sort out. De-clutter, downsize, writing down instructions for killing social media sites, etc. My dad passed at 61 but my mom made it to 97, so I guess anything can happen. Meanwhile, we gotta live every moment to the fullest.
ReplyDeletePatricia, we never know what will happen. Good idea to be prepared just in case.
DeleteLee
Lee,
ReplyDeleteFirst up, I'm sorry for not visiting before now to see how your last battle went down but as you know DH's 95-year old father went on to heaven last week. We got in bed last night at 6am and I'm just dragging today. We hope to get in bed early tonight but I don't think that will happen.
Anyhow, I went with the winner this round. Yay, me!! WOW, a friend of yours lived to 101! That's so amazing. I don't know if I want to live to be that old or not. There's so many things I've seen with aging relatives that's caused me to question my longevity. I certainly understand why you're wanting to downsize even though you still have lots of good years ahead. Just seeing all the stuff my in-laws left behind is mind blowing. DH's middle brother is the Executor of the Estate and I do not envy his job.
You asked about the weather. We had snow the first full day of spring with about an inch of accumulation at the start of the morning and it flurried all day long but no additional accumulation. On Saturday in the southern WV and western Virginia region they got a mini dump of white powder leaving evidence of the previous day's storm while we traveled on Sunday. It was so cold, too. The rivers were up and the mountain run off filled ditches, sometimes spilling over into the road. It made things tricky especially since we were driving a rental (Ford Expedition) which was a lot bigger than what we normal drive. I'm ready for a warm up fast!
Thanks for stopping by, dear friend. My next BoTB is set for Saturday and I'm anxious to begin the A2Z Challenge! Have a good evening and thanks for popping by for a visit. :)
Cathy, I understand your situation so no problem. The rain here didn't amount to as much as they were preparing for. At least I didn't see any problems.
DeleteI know how those estate things can go. We've dealt with my mother's and it was a lot to go through.
Lee
Hi Lee!
ReplyDeleteI love the rain, it provides a sense of calm even when its an all-out gully-washer because it proves all is as it should be. I think of (natural)death in much the same way - not that it makes the loss any easier, but the continuity of cycles provides us all a reason to embrace the past and plan for the future. In the end, its all going to be alright ;-)
See you Sunday!
Diedre, I enjoy rain except for cold or hard rain that I have to be out in for some reason. Watching the rain is wonderful. The sound is calming to me.
DeleteYes, everything turns out as it should in the end and that's good.
Lee
I listened to your winning track here, last night, again and again and again... That is addictive!
ReplyDeleteMichael, yeah, I know. I've listened to both of these many times.
DeleteLee
My daughter posted on her Facebook page, this query:
ReplyDelete"Name an album, in any genre, that you think is 100% perfect ~ where you don't skip one track."
She got quite a response from that. I played along. Maybe you would want to incorporate this into one of your blogs... Oh, and feel free to delete this comment, immediately, in the event you want to maintain the element of surprise with your contingent.
I've done some favorite album posts that would be similar to what you're talking about. It does sound like an interesting concept to do again or just focus on one album. Thanks for the suggestion. It's a good one.
DeleteLee