Friday, July 21, 2017

Three Weeks of Hell, Health and Recovery



So here we are. 3 weeks of recovery done after my surgery to repair a deviated septum and remove my tonsils/adenoids. I’m finally eating again. Thinking about exercising. Probably sick of ice cream, coconut water and green smoothies. Still marveling over my breathing being so much better and clearer through my nose. It went by fast and I’m just at a loss for how it all happened. How do you describe something that humbled you, silenced you, tested you mentally and physically, reduced me to a baby then built me back up different.

I mean. On Day 3, I’m crying because I want to touch my dog. Just for a sense of normalcy. That’s how taxing this whole thing was. Taking the meds was painful at first and I was happy when I got stronger meds once my nose healed on Day 6. It flipped everything up to where normal stuff like walking upright, sleeping, eating, drinking and SWALLOWING was a chore. I cried because of the pain that hurt like a lingering sore throat. And even when I resumed eating this week, it still wasn't easy at first because my body had to get used to it.

And yet, here I am. Stronger. Better. Seeing exactly what the doctor said. July went by fast as I prayed and hoped it would. From waking up early on June 30 and wondering how this would go to waking up July 21 fully okay, thinking about driving to see people and getting back into a routine.

Monday, March 20, 2017

Sound of Silver Turns 10: How LCD Soundsystem help me grow up


“Sound of Silver, talk to me. Makes me want to feel like a teenager. Until you remember the feelings of. A real life emotional teenager. Then you think again”

LCD Soundsytem’s “Sound of Silver” isn’t an album that I discovered in 2007 and I wouldn’t have been ready for it then. It’s an album that makes more sense as you get older and experience life. On the surface, it’s a great dance record made by one of the best producers this century in James Murphy. But underneath those pulsing rhythms and sly lyrics is an album that not only touched my soul and made me ponder life, it’s an emotional piece of work that’s as introspective as it’s fun

I found a kinship in Murphy because he didn’t find success until his 30s. When I discovered LCD at 26, I had just quit my job and was looking for something to keep going. I was single (not for much longer) and when I heard “All My Friends”, it made me feel something. Missing my friends, missing college, feeling like I tried so hard to be a success that I missed something in the journey. (“you spend the next 5 years trying to get with the plan and the next 5 years trying to get with your friends again”).

When I first heard the full album around around 2011, I didn’t know what to expect besides the twin killing of Someone Great and All My Friends. What I got was something that made me dance, think and cry. An album that had what I call “soul on the dance floor” and transformed LCD Soundsystem from a great live band with singles to a band that spoke to life.