Sounds of Grenada II

Ever wonder what one listens to while cruising around in one of these (and by cruising around I mean bouncing around trying to read my notes until we get to campus)?

Wonder no longer because here's some of the good stuff (really, I like it).

The amazing thing is that if you don't like the lyrics to this song I found there are at least seven to eight other versions with just the lyrics changed.

Do a little search on Spotify and you could get down to this "riddim" all day long.
(And check out an old original and the reggae-fied remake here: original and remake.)

My Picture Book of Songs

Did you wonder what the title of this post was all about? Well...

When I was a little girl, my mother pulled out the yellow songbook. The yellow songbook was tradition in my family and I remember singing about Jumbo Elephant, the Giraffe, Mr. Jack-o-lantern, and Simple Sal (among others). What was neat about our yellow songbook was that my mom had had my dad (who worked at the University Press at the time) chop off the binding, laminate the pages, and bind it back together in a spiral. So, instead of being tattered from use, it was well-worn with only slightly bent edges.

As I grew up, I remember absolutely adoring the book and the songs, and I even took it babysitting with me as part of my babysitting kit (cardboard box with cow-print wrapping paper and all). Oh yes I was that nerdy.

Anyway, the yellow songbook has grown to be a family tradition and now Adrielle absolutely adores it. I love it when she sings Jumbo Elephant as "Umbo Eefaat" when she sees the pictures. Darling.

Image courtesy of hart + sew 

As I was googling "My Picture Book of Songs" I (as always) came across a blog post about the origin of the book, and wanted to share. Love it.

And, I'm looking forward to taking my copy (my mom bought each of us a copy of the 40th edition) and having it laminated and rebound.

iPod Tag 2

Ryan and I are revamping the blog, and came across the first iPod Tag that he did a couple of years ago.

So, to have some fun, we decided to try it again. 

Here are the rules:


1. Put your iPod on shuffle

2. Fill in each number with the next song title...

3. DON'T CHEAT!!

Results below (and we did not cheat): 

1. How am I feeling today? "Days Go By" (Keith Urban)

2. How far will I get in life? "Te regalo" (Translation: "I gift to you" (Carlos Baute)

3. What is my best friend's theme song? "Te dejo, Madrid" (Translation: "I leave you, Madrid") (Shakira)

4. What was high school like? "Mentira" (Translation: "Lie) (La Ley)

5. What is in store for me this weekend? "DJ Got Us Fallin' in Love" (Usher) We're excited about this one.

6. What is the best thing about me? "Bendita tu luz" (Translation: "Blessed is your light") (Mana)

7. What song is about my parents? "Tu No Eres para Mi" (Literal translation, "You aren't for me") (Fanny Lu) We're a little concerned about this.

8. How is my life going? "Love Story" (Taylor Swift) Awww...

9. What song will they play at my funeral? "Fireflies" (Owl City)

10. How does the world see me? "Bella's Lullaby" (Piano Version) Hum... not quite sure what to think. I've always said that Ryan is my Edward... 

11. What do my friends think of me ? "Si No Te Hubieras Ido" (Literal translation: "If you hadn't left") (Mana) I guess this means we're loved?

12. Do people secretly think I’m good looking? "DJ Got Us Fallin' in Love" came up again! :)

13. How can I make myself happy? "Chances" (Five for Fighting) 

14. What should I do with my life? "Manos al Aire" (Literal translation: "Hand to the air") I guess this is good, right? Throw your hands up (in a good way)?

15. What is some good advice? Apologize. (One Republic) This song is the exact same song that Ryan happened upon two years ago! Some good advice maybe?

16. Will I get married? "Ni Freud Ni Tu Mama" (Literal translation" "Neither Freud Nor Your Mother") Yikes.

17. Where will I go in life? "Strip Me" (Natasha Bedingfield) Yikes again.

18. Will I have kids? "Colgando en tus manos" (Literal translation "Hanging in your hands") Hum... yes, Adi is always hanging on and around us. 

19. What is my current theme song? "Mine" (Taylor Swift) 

iPod Tag

I have seen this tag before, but tonight I decided to try it out. Some of these turned out to be pretty funny. I gave some translation and explanation, and/or commentary for some of them. 

Here are the rules:
1. Put your iPod on shuffle (I had to use half iPod and half iTunes since I forgot to charge my iPod)
2. Fill in each number with the next song...
3. DON'T CHEAT!!

Ready? Here we go...

1. How am I feeling today? Powerless. (Nelly Furtado)

2. How far will I get in life? Crush (David Archuleta)

3. What is my best friend’s theme song? No Air. (Jordan Sparks)

4. What was high school like? I Remember the Days. (Nelly Furtado)

6. What is in store for me this weekend? Geografia. "Geography" (La Oreja de Van Gogh)

7. What is the best thing about me? Ojos asi. (Shakira) "Eyes like that" literally, or "eyes like yours"

8. What song is about my parents? Limon y sal. (Julieta Venegas) "Lemon and salt" which is funny, my mom loves lemons and my dad loves salt. 

9. How is my life going? Dame otra tequila. (Paulina Rubio) "Give me another tequila" Enough said. I guess that's what I get for taking 20 credits my first semester of grad school. 

 
10. What song will they play at my funeral? Pop. (La Oreja de Van Gough) Referring to the music genre, pop. I hope it's a good time for all. 

11. How does the world see me? Despertar. (Alex Ubago) "Wake up".  I guess people see me as being sleepy. 

12. What do my friends think of me? Escondite ingles. (Shakira)  It's the game of hide and go seek in english, also a somewhat literal translation, "english, hideout" or "hideout english". 

13. Do people secretly think I’m good looking? Ven.  (Sin Bandera) "Come" or "Come here". I guess that's a good thing? Maybe they think I don't smell too bad.

14. How can I make myself happy? Ni sola una palabra (Paulina Rubio) "Not a single word" I guess this translates to running or sleeping or anything that doesn't involve me talking. 

15. What should I do with my life? Strut. (Cheetah Girls)

16. What is some good advice? Apologize. (One Republic)

17. Will I get married? Estoy perdido. (Luis Fonsi) "I'm lost", which would be accurate if I weren't married. 

18. Where will I go in life? Over my Head. (The Fray) I guess the theme continues throughout my life?

19. Will I have kids? Too Little Too Late. (JoJo) Too busy for kids right now anyway, they would be severely neglected. I actually had the assistant director of my grad school program say it would be a good idea to put it off until Kenz and I are out of school. 

20. What is my current theme song? La Tortura. "The Torture" (Shakira) I guess the 12 hour days on campus are getting to me.