Getting lyrical

Building on what my boy Russ did, I decided to follow, somewhat, the meme trail. But rather than sift through all of the categories - I, for instance, can't think of five instrumentals I like - I decided to focus on the lyrics that move my heart, inspire me or simply give me goose bumps when I hear 'em:

Amazing Grace

When we've been here ten thousand years ...
bright shining as the sun.
We've no less days to sing God's praise ...
then when we've first begun.

(EDITOR'S NOTE: I picked this one because, while being my favorite Christian hymn, it also holds a special place in my heart ... particularly this passage. The night my father was first diagnosed with non-Hodgkins, this song played at church and this verse really put me over the edge ... now, considering Dad has kicked cancer's ass twice, it's a much more joyful tune for me.)

Glory Days - Bruce Springsteen

Now I think I'm going down to the well tonight
and I'm going to drink till I get my fill
And I hope when I get old I don't sit around thinking about it
but I probably will
Yeah, just sitting back trying to recapture
a little of the glory of, well time slips away
and leaves you with nothing mister but
boring stories of glory days

Something In The Way She Moves - James Taylor

Something in the way she moves, or looks my way, or calls my name
that seems to leave this troubled world behind.
And if I'm feeling down and blue or troubled by some foolish game,
she always seems to make me change my mind..

And I feel fine anytime she's around me now, she's around me now almost about all the time.
And if I'm well you can tell she's been with me now.
She's been with me now quite a long, long time and I feel fine.

I Can - Nas

If the truth is told, the youth can grow
Then learn to survive until they gain control
Nobody says you have to be gangstas, hoes
Read more learn more, change the globe

Say Anything - Edwin McCain

It's not that the words aren't there but they'd only fail my emotions
Just want to feel this way without chaining you down to some old cliche
You want water in my hands and we stand waist deep in the ocean
It's bigger than the sea, it won't let me

Say just anything, because I feel everything
I'd rather say nothing than the same old lines
I think I give you more, something there's no words for
You don't have to hear me to feel me trying
To say anything

Through The Floor - Edwin McCain

And the first thing that I think of
are her sympathetic eyes
That see with only positive emotion
And she talks of being grumpy,
but I know that grumpy's not her style
And I soak up all her beauty
'cause I'm only here awhile
And I muddle through my docket,
nestle in the pocket
Just sit back and think about the world
And the only thing I see
when she's looking back at me
Is the promise of how life could be
And as I wrote my chest got tight for her
I know that I'm not right for her
and I couldn't live
if I ever caused her pain

Peaceful World - John Mellencamp

The money’s good and the work’s ok
Looks like everything is rolling our way
Til you gotta look the devil in the eye
You know that bastard’s one big lie
So be careful with your heart and what you love
Make sure that it was sent from above
It’s what you do and not what you say
If you’re not part of the future then get out of the way

Anna Begins - Counting Crows

"If it's love" she said, "then we're gonna have to think about the consequences"
She can't stop shaking and I can't stop touching her and ...
This time when kindness falls like rain
It washes her away and Anna begins to change her mind
"these seconds when I'm shaking leave me shuddering for days" she says.
And I'm not ready for this sort of thing

Crazy Love - Van Morrison

I can hear her heart beat for a thousand miles
And the heavens open up every time she smiles
And when I come home to her that's where I belong
Yet I'm running to her like a river's song

she gives me love love love love crazy love
she gives me love love love love crazy love ...

Encore - Jay-Z

Now can I get an encore, do you want more
Cookin raw with the Brooklyn boy
So for one last time I need y'all to roar

Now what the hell are you waitin for
After me, there shall be no more
So for one last time, n**** make some noise

Damaged - Plumb

I didn't say all the things that I wanted to say
And you can't take back what you've taken away
'Cause I feel you, I feel you near me

Healing comes so painfully
And it chills to the bone
Will anyone get close to me?
I'm damaged, as I'm sure you know

Elsewhere - Sarah McLachlan

I know this love is passing time
passing through like liquid
I am drunk in my desire ...
but I love the way you smile at me
I love the way your hands reach out and hold me near...
I believe ...

I believe this is heaven to no one else but me
and I'll defend it as long as
I can be left here to linger in silence
if I choose to
would you try to understand

The finest of mid-90s Dirty South

Our most recent post got me thinking about the lost art of Southern bass rap, perfected by artists like 69 Boyz and 95 South. So with that fresh in my mind, her's a list of some of the best songs from that particular genre (if I close my eyes, I feel like I'm a junior in high school again ... ):

Nasty Dancer - Kilo
Show Me Love - Kilo
Rodeo - 95 South
Ooh Lawd (Party People) - DJ Smurf
Get Retarded - K.J. & Da Fellas
Boom! I Got Your Boyfriend - MC Luscious
Quadism - (Unknown)
Ride 'Em Cowboy - Another Style
Kitty-Kitty - 69 Boyz
Tootsie Roll - 69 Boyz
Dickey Ride - Southern Playas
Shake Whatcha Mama Gave Ya - Poison Clan

Here's an idea

Anyone else think it would be beneficial if, whenever one is feeling a bit blue, the mid-1990s Southern Hip-Hop smash 'Shake Watcha Mama Gave Ya' was played really loud in your general direction?

Perhaps 'Boom! I Got Your Boyfriend' for the ladies?

Just a thought.

It's complete

With my wife occupied with a meeting of some sorts tonight, I took it upon myself to go see Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith.

Awesome.

Can't stress that enough. After being terribly disappointed by the first two prequels, this one definitely was worth it. The dialogue was still painful at times, but the story was tremendously better. And it did an excellent job of answering lots of questions, plus providing lots of foreshadowing.

What's interesting to note is the number of scenarios and situations that Anakin lived through, making the wrong choices, and then - in the original trilogy - seeing Luke go through those similar situations and making the correct ones.

Also got a chance to catch the trailer for The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe ... also not disappointing.

Ungracious losers

Right off the bat, let me say how pleased I am with the compromise in the U.S. Senate between both parties - brokered by key moderates like John McCain, Lindsey Graham and Joe Lieberman. It shows that bipartisanship still has a pulse, however weak it may be.

That out of the way ... let's note that CNN, MSNBC and the other 24-hour news networks are, naturally, leading with this breaking news. Want to know who hasn't even mentioned this?

Surprise, surprise ... it's Fox News.

They're not showing it because, quite simply, their side lost. I can't think of any plausible reason why they wouldn't cover this breaking news event when all other media outlets are. In my opinion, it shows how craven and how petty that organization is, and how it truly is merely an extension of the far right.

Looks good

Two shows coming up that have me interested ...

- FX is the first to wade into the realm of the Iraq war with 'Over There', which debuts in July.

- TNT will show a Steven Spielberg miniseries based on the settling of the frontier with 'Into The West' ... which promises to be much better than other depictions of the struggles of Native Americans during the expansion of the United States in the 1800s.

Reason No. 4,216 Santorum bugs me

It's no secret I'm not the biggest fan of Sen. Rick Santorum (R-Penn.), seeing how he's a member of the worst part of the extreme Right ... the part which tramples moderates and lacks the ability to engage in any sort of civilized or logical discourse.

Case in point is this gem he uttered during a floor debate on the filibuster yesterday:

What the Democrats are doing is the equivalent of Adolf Hitler in 1942 saying, 'I'm in Paris. How dare you invade me. How dare you bomb my city? It's mine.' This is no more the rule of the senate than it was the rule of the senate before not to filibuster.

Comparing Democrats to Nazism. Hmmm ... seems like there was a big to-do about a liberal drawing a comparison between Republicans and Nazism a while back ... and that Santorum had some problems with that:

Senator (Robert) Byrd's inappropriate remarks comparing his Republican colleagues with Nazis are inexcusable. These comments lessen the credibility of the senator and the decorum of the Senate. He should retract his statement and ask for pardon.

Not mention that whole Move On thing which the senator did not care for either.

So let's assume this - anyone from any party who starts comparing the trivial actions of their opponents to the Nazis isn't exactly the sharpest knife in the drawer. Perhaps a good rule of thumb would be, oh I don't know, not comparing either political party to a murderous regime hellbent on exterminating numerous races of people and conquering the world.

Losing the battle, winning the war?

Of course, I don't necessarily think that Democrats are losing the battle over the use of the filibuster, but there is a bigger picture here. As we begin our second day of debate in the Senate over some of President Bush's judicial nominees, it's important to consider the ramifications of these actions.

The primary outcome, I believe, will be considerable damage to the Republican Party. Regardless of where anyone comes down over the use of the filibuster or, shall I word it, this particular use of the filibuster, polls indicate that the vast majority of Americans are opposed to the Republican leadership's move to abolish the parliamentarian procedure. If the Congressional GOP continues to play this hand, it can only backfire on them.

So I'd say it's possible that Republicans may win this battle - that is, undermining the filibuster through means which violate Senate rules - but it's going to damage them greatly in the long haul - that is, the 2006 elections.

But, of course, I don't necessarily think that Democrats are losing this battle. Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) completely humiliated Majority Leader Sen. Bill Frist (R-TN) in a floor debate on Wednesday:

SEN. SCHUMER: Isn't it correct that on March 8, 2000, my colleague [Sen. Frist] voted to uphold the filibuster of Judge Richard Paez?

SEN. FRIST: The president, the um, in response, uh, the Paez nomination - we'll come back and discuss this further. Actually I'd like to, and it really brings to what I believe - a point - and it really brings to, oddly, a point, what is the issue. The issue is we have leadership-led partisan filibusters that have, um, obstructed, not one nominee, but two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten, in a routine way.

Hopefully there will be a compromise brokered by the moderates of both parties which can permit a vote on some of the Bush's nominees, allowing both sides to save face. Minority Leader Sen. Harry Reid (D-NV) has admitted he is open to such a plan, though Frist has flat-out refused. Of course, Reid has outplayed Frist throughout this entire debate, so there is that.

Hello folks

Due to some technical difficulties, and by that I mean my inability to simply convert the template on my blog, we have a new address and a new look and a loss of archived posts. Apparently, my copying of the template didn't work out the way I had hoped.

So we start anew. Please change your bookmarks and links.