What I Bought

More on Dad later, I've already put out the gist of it below, but I learned a little more since then from the cardiologist.

To alternate back to what I was talking about yesterday, Kevin got pretty close to guessing what I had purchased. He was right to guess music, and given his guess of Metallica (which he also correctly figured out is not my type of band), I suspect he was also going off a good hunch based on the phrase “sad, but true,” that I included.

So, what was it? It was the original “Kiss Me” single. The “single” contains four tracks, three renditions of “Kiss Me,” which is a fine song, albeit not one that I need three additional copies of (I already have the self-titled Sixpence CD that includes it). It is the fourth track that had me looking for this single: “Sad But True.” Googling last night — which is how I found the eBay auction that had it — I noticed that Metallica has a song of the same name, but I checked the lyrics and they are entirely different songs, if you are wondering.

Here's a bit of history about why I was aware of this almost unknown Sixpence None the Richer song. I first heard the band in early 1999, when the radio started playing the aforementioned song, “Kiss Me.” Leigh Nash has the type of voice that catches your attention and I was curious to see who this band was. I diligently went on the computer, located the album on Amazon and listened to some of the clips. I didn't like what I heard. But their music stuck in my head. Not yet convinced that buying the CD was a good idea, I decided to fire up “Imagine Radio,” which was a neat service where you could select artists and the site stream fairly good quality audio, even over a dial-up connection, to you. Imagine Radio had Sixpence None the Richer, and after listening a few times, I quickly grew quite fond of their self-titled album. But Imagine Radio had also purchased the “Kiss Me” single, which, as I noted, included “Sad But True;” the only other place that track appears is on a limited vinyl edition of the self-titled album.

Imagine Radio, as I knew it, closed in the Fall of 1999, and since then, I have not heard the song “Sad But True.” Unlike many songs which I've heard more recently, and more often, however, I still can recall the entirety of the music that goes with the lyrics. Eventually, I purchased the self-titled CD, the older “Beautiful Mess” CD and — as soon as it came out — their last CD of original music, “Divine Discontent.” All of these are excellent, and I may do a further treatment on those in the next few days, as long as I am on the subject. But, every once-in-a-while, I'd remember “Sad But True.” Amazon had long since switched to the newer post-hit version of the “Kiss Me” single that took off the said track, and I had all but given up finding a copy. Until last night, when I found it on eBay.

So, I bought it. And now I wait for it. The lyrics are below if your interested.

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Coping, Part I

October 5, 2001 was a brisk, beautiful autumn day, the kind of crisp day that is really enjoyable. I spent the day frequently glancing out the window, but tied to my desktop: after weeks of work on a project I had naively decided to work on, I had announced it to the world. Originally, it was going to be a set of whitepapers and how-tos on GNU/Linux migration, but even in its brief time under development it had started to move toward what it would ultimately become: Open for Business. I was pleased with the initial reception and spent much of the day communicating with those giving warm wishes to the new site. For me, however, that would not be what I remembered the day for.

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I Found It... Finally.

Last year, I had ordered the older Michael W. Smith Christmas cd to compliment the newer Christmastime I already had purchased. I played it only once because I procrastinated and did not get it ordered until after Christmas. Today I went to pull it out, and the jewel case was… empty. That's not good. After digging through numerous other Christmas CD's, I finally located it, but I was worried for a bit. I don't even have it ripped onto my computer yet, I can't lose it yet!

That was about the biggest excitement of the day, otherwise I've been taking a day off to recuperate from the last few weeks. I slept in, read the Post-Dispatch, a bit of Voltaire's Candide and checked on the articles over at OfB. If only life was always this peaceful!

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Dante's Prayer (Lyric)

When the dark wood fell before me / And all the paths were overgrown / When the priests of pride say there is no other way / I tilled the sorrows of stone

I did not believe because I could not see / Though you came to me in the night/ When the dawn seemed forever lost / You showed me your love in the light of the stars

Cast your eyes on the ocean / Cast your soul to the sea / When the dark night seems endless / Please remember me

Then the mountain rose before me / By the deep well of desire / From the fountain of forgiveness / Beyond the ice and fire / Cast your eyes on the ocean / Cast your soul to the sea / When the dark night seems endless / Please remember me

Though we share this humble path, alone / How fragile is the heart / Oh give these clay feet wings to fly / To touch the face of the stars

Breathe life into this feeble heart / Lift this mortal veil of fear / Take these crumbled hopes, etched with tears / We'll rise above these earthly cares

Cast your eyes on the ocean / Cast your soul to the sea / When the dark night seems endless

Please remember me
Please remember me

-Loreena McKennitt

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I Can Only Imagine

I can only imagine / What it will be like / When I walk / By your side
I can only imagine / What my eyes will see / When your face / Is before me
I can only imagine

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Standing Still

Sigh. You know what it's like when you get a song stuck in your head and can't get it out? Usually you hear it inadvertently and then your head just replays it again and again. Well, that's what has happened to me for the last day.

I was peacefully eating a Tostada Pizza at California Pizza Kitchen (very good, by the way!) when Jewel's Standing Still was being played in the background. I like her music, although I don't own any of her CD's or anything like that. Anyway, while I've heard the song before, it stuck in my head for some reason this time. I mean stuck!

Cuttin' through the darkest night in my two headlights Trying to keep it clear
but I'm losing it here to the twilight
There's a dead end to my left
there's a burning bush to my right
You aren't in sight
you aren't in sight

Now, it would be good if some how I could draw a deep meaning out of all of this. You know, something about being stuck and how you can learn from it (don't listen to music and eat a weird pizza at the same time?). I can't.

Or am I standing still beneath the darkened sky?
Or am I standing still
with the scenery flying by?
Or am I standing still
out of the corner of my eye?
Was that you passing me by?
Are you passing me by? (Passing me by)

I've tried listening to, or thinking about, other music to no avail. Listening to Sixpence's cover of Don't Dream It's Over gave a slight repreeve, but not for long. It would seem, for the moment, my mind is indeed Standing Still. Oh well, maybe if I got another pizza…

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Christians and Secular Music

It has become accepted within much of the Christian community that Christian recording artists that “go secular” are some how traitors to the faith or something like that. While in many cases, it might seem that the move to secular music also involves the artist revealing his true colors, I wonder if this is always the case? I really don't think so.

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Friday -- Oops! -- Saturday Five

1. What was the first band you saw in concert? Well, that depends. If you consider Michael W. Smith performing at a Billy Graham Crusade a concert, than that's the first one I went to. Otherwise, Steven Curtis Chapman, last year during his “Live out Loud Tour.” What an awe-inspiring experience that was — praise/worship/CCM music and testimonies blaring through the local arena! (See my review here.)

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Review Time!

Okay, in the last six weeks, I've seen probably four or five full length movies (that'd probably be three more than I saw in 2002) and I've added some new CD's to my collection. It's about time for a review or two. The movies will have to wait. I'd like to use this entry to discuss Divine Discontent, the new CD from Sixpence None the Richer.

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Jesus is Life, yeah, Oh oh oh oh!

I just got a chance to listen to my new copy of SCC's Declaration CD. Its a great CD, every bit as good as Speechless (though lacking, perhaps, the quiet meditations of Be Still and Know and With Hope). Here's a sampling of the absolutely GREAT lyrics:

Jesus is life, yeah, oh, oh, oh Jesus is life, yeah, oh, oh, oh
The air I'm breathing
Why my heart is beating
Everything I'm needing
Jesus is life
Jesus is life

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