Barenaked Ladies’ “Snacktime”…

Okay, so it has been far too long since I have posted anything. I wouldn’t be surprised if I barely have anyone left in my neighbourhood and have been removed from everyone else’s. I can’t really use slow typing as an excuse anymore because I have become fairly proficient at it.

Snacktime!
Barenaked Ladies

That being said, I have reeeeally wanting to get back to blogging. I miss it. Life’s schedule just doesn’t really lend itself well to spare time for it. So, as “inconvenient” as it is, I’m just going have to suck it up and make more effort. Besides I think the Barenaked Ladies’ children’s new album, Snacktime, is well worth the mention and an excellent reason to come out of hiding.
I love this album. I had first saw mention of it in a magazine at the doctor’s office one day and learned that it would be out (has come out) around Mother’s Day of this year. I knew I’d be buying before even listening to it. ;^)
Snacktime has 24 original songs and features ALL of the band members singing various songs. Here is what their site says about the album:

"Our collective kids now outnumber the band more than 2 to 1," explains vocalist/guitarist Ed Robertson. "We set out to make a record that would be entertaining for them…not strictly a children's record, but a record that children would really enjoy. Our kids are in to all kinds of music. They love the They Might Be Giants kids records, but they also love The Beatles, Fountains of Wayne, Randy Newman, Black Eyed Peas and Green Day. Making the focus about what our kids like was a truly liberating process and fun for the whole band."

Some of the songs are toddler friendly — Little X (20 moths old) LOVES Eraser and The Canadian Snacktime Trilogy: II) Popcorn but enjoys listening to whole album. Big L (3 1/2 years) LOVES almost the whole thing with his favourites being 7 8 9, Polywog In a Bog, Eraser, “Popcorn”, Drawing, Humungous Tree, Allergies and Crazy ABC’s.
Even though this is a children’s album, the songs are not uncomplicated in musical execution. My wife and I like it a lot too… which is good because it is the only thing on in our car these days. ;^) My favourites are Polywog In a Bog, RasinsEraser (they boys and have a little dance that we act out every time we listen to it in the living room), I Can Sing, “Popcorn”, Humungous Tree, I Don’t Like, Things (gets me choked up), A Word for That, Crazy ABC’s, among others.
I HIGHLY recommend this album. I think it’s easily likeable by kids and parents especially, hardcore BNL fans for sure, but also by anyone else who likes to listen to really good, light-hearted, fun music. I have included below as many videos of songs as I can find right now.
Enjoy. :^)
steelie

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Introducing steelie-lite™ (with half the sugar of regular steelie™)…

Okay so, yeah… I’m currently the heaviest I have ever been and am trying to discover all the little ways I can remedy that. One simple little change is switching from coffee to tea (I can say “simple” because I like them both equally so, it’s not a huge travesty for me to switch). I like coffee but I find it far too bitter to drink without sugar; however, I could drink tea without sugar if I had to. So, I tend to drink my coffee sweeter than I drink my tea… using probably more than twice the sugar (I don’t measure… we’re talkin’ little spoon vs big spoon difference).

So, with this little change I would be consuming roughly 80-90 teaspoons (okay, so I do measure) of sugar less every month. That’s slightly effin’ scary.
Hmm… that’s it… I can’t think of a clever closing thought…
steelie

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No more LoudTwitter for a while…

Wow… sorry for all the twitter-posts lately.

I don’t actually go and look at my own blog very often and when I did just that yesterday, I realized that my entry page is practically all one-line “twitter-bits”. I still like twitter (although, I admittedly don’t know that many people on it) but I kinda forgot that EVERY SINGLE ONE would get posted over to Vox.
So, for now, I’ve disabled LoudTwitter. I’ll probably re-enable it if I ever go on a trip or unusual adventure where play-by-play updates would work for journalling purposes.
steelie
(•sigh* I am very sore and tired from soccer)

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I am the heaviest I have ever been in my entire life…

We had to take Little X into the doctors for his 18-months shots yesterday evening / last night (long wait). He had to get two needles and was a real pro… didn’t even acknowledge the first one and only whimpered slightly for the second one. I was very proud of him. In addition, Big L was really well behaved, especially since it took us almost two hours to get into our appointment. Very proud of him too.

Well, of course, with every appointment, the doctor checks weight and height for your records. And, of course, we all weighed ourselves while we waited for the doctor to come in the examination room.
I am the heaviest I have ever been in my entire life…
I weigh 174.5 lbs…
Dang…
Through most of my tewnties I was anywhere between 155 lbs and 160 lbs…
Last year I was 165 lbs…
I’m not “out of shape” but I am in the worst shape of my life which, I realise, is a relative. As my wife pointed out, I have more muscle on me that I did a year ago thanks to Parkour. However, I also have more girth around the belly than I did a year ago thanks to cinnamon rolls.
Must. Pull. Self. Out. Of. Rut.
Thankfully soccer has started back up.
That should help some.
steelie

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musically triggered memories…

It’s amazing how certain songs can immediately bring you back to a very specific moment or event in your life and, of course, the more profound the event, the harder the song hits…

Well, after getting of the ferry on my way into work this morning, my iPod shuffled to Adam’s Song by Blink 182 and I was blind-sided by the memory of my cousin Lou’s death… Just over six years ago, Lou passed away after (what I would consider) a rather short battle with cancer. He was only 39 years old and the owner/founder of one of the most successful local graphic design companies. He gave me my first job as a designer. I learned an enormous amount from his talents. I knew he was gravely ill but I still couldn’t believe it when the cancer won.
I had just recently heard Adam’s Song for the first time and, although Lou passed away from cancer and not by means of suicide like Adam, I listened to that song — just that song — on repeat for a little over a week…
After hearing that song this morning, I was brought back to the first time I had ever lost anyone close to me.
I still can’t believe he’s gone.
RIP Lou.
steelie

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