A Friendly Musical Visit Every Day

The other night, I wanted chocolate. And I didn't have any chocolate. I was alone at my apartment in a city where stores are actually open past six in the evening (as compared to the small town where my partner's house is, where stores are... not open after six in the evening), so I went out to buy myself chocolate. I never do this. Go out to buy myself a treat? Just because I want it? I don't do that. But I did. I went to the store and picked out a chocolate bar, and then I went over to pay. The cashier was obviously bored, because she had no customers and was just scrolling on her phone, but when she saw me, she put down her phone and smiled so big I couldn't believe it. We small-talked very briefly as we transacted, and wished each other goodnight, and I left the store walking on air. That tiny encounter made me unbelievably happy. By the time I got home, I didn't want my chocolate anymore. I was content. I went to sleep. Sometimes the thing you think you w...

This song popped into my head while I was cleaning my apartment. Not sure why. I'm very frustrated and angry over the state of my apartment at the moment. If I get into it right now, I'm just going to get angrier and more frustrated. So maybe this is a story for another time. Maybe not. We shall see. Lots on the go, where housing is concerned. Very stressful. If you're wondering how you can support me in bringing you songs and anecdotes, the easiest thing you can do is buy my books (most are for adults only!) or check them out from your local library.  Supporting my  AudioErotica  endeavour on  Patreon  would also help me hugely. I'm also an  Amazon Influencer,  so hopefully I can make a little pocket change when you buy stuff by clicking through  my affiliate links . I also recommend subscribing to my newsletter. I generally e-mail subscribers with a weekly update, and I would LOVE to have you on the list.  Click here to sign up:  h...

I had to stop myself from singing this theme song to my partner in bed the other night--not to serenade him, only because it was stuck in my head. I thought I might be able to remember all the words, but no. In preparing this post, I discovered that Tress MacNeille did the voices of Chip and Gadget on the show. Simpsons fans (and fans of animation, generally) will know the name. If you're wondering how you can support me in bringing you songs and anecdotes, the easiest thing you can do is buy my books (most are for adults only!) or check them out from your local library.  Supporting my  AudioErotica  endeavour on  Patreon  would also help me hugely. I'm also an  Amazon Influencer,  so hopefully I can make a little pocket change when you buy stuff by clicking through  my affiliate links . I also recommend subscribing to my newsletter. I generally e-mail subscribers with a weekly update, and I would LOVE to have you on the list.  Click her...

I took a whole bunch of painkillers this morning because my partner's real estate agent and some other people were coming in to prepare the house for sale (long story), but after they'd gone I decided all the spider webs in the rafters needed to be dealt with. It's something we've been putting off the entire time he's owned this house. So I duct taped two brooms together, I brought the ladder in from the garage, and I insisted that I was capable of swatting at spiders. Except that climbing a ladder and bending your head back is a very stupid thing to do for someone with chronic vertigo, among other conditions, and as soon as I was finished my self-assigned task, I had to lie down. On the couch. Because the couch was close. Actually, my partner doesn't own a couch. It's a loveseat. So my legs flop over the side. For a long time after that, I couldn't move at all. Despite the many medications I'd taken. I felt like a ragdoll. And I've had this s...

When I was a kid, my favourite cousin lived in a small(ish) town. One March Break, my aunt invited me and my sister to stay over for the whole week, and she signed us and my cousin up for art camp. I loved art and I loved my cousin, so this was the best thing ever. One of our art instructors one day said to another, "I love The Police." Except I didn't know The Police was capitalized in her sentence. I thought she was saying, "I love the police." Which seemed very odd to me, because she dressed like a punk, in a leather jacket and everything. Punks and police didn't go together, in my mind. Not sure how long it took me to realize she was talking about a band. Could be minutes, could be years. My memory is kinda sketchy. But every time I hear a song by The Police, I think of that art instructor. If you're wondering how you can support me in bringing you songs and anecdotes, the easiest thing you can do is buy my books (most are for adults only!) or c...

When we were watching the Olympics, a commercial kept playing where a Paralympic athlete said something like: I'm disabled, but I'm not fragile. Every time we saw that, I would say to my partner, "I'm disabled and I AM fragile." For someone who always prided themself on being strong, it's been a huge shift. I can't do things I used to do, but I'm constantly forgetting how weak I am now. I try to do things, and I fail spectacularly. Which is often embarrassing, because I offer to help old ladies at the grocery store when I see them struggling to pick something up, and then I can't pick it up either.  (Oh, I've got a good story about that, but I'll save it for another day.)  Here's an example of how weak I am now: I had to ask my partner to refill my water bottle because I couldn't lift the Brita filter. This is pretty standard. Before I became disabled, I wrote characters with physical disabilities as fierce. And in one way I...

My partner and I cycled down to the lake to watch the Perseids meteor shower earlier this week. We brought a blanket and got down on the ground to stare up at the sky. We only saw two meteors this year, but they were spectacular, so I'm happy with that. A couple years ago, we were visiting friends at their cottage during the Perseids. Being far from any town or city, we saw tons of shooting stars. But the most I ever saw was camping with my mother and sister in a dark sky preserve. We went on a guided night hike and the sky was just constant streaks of starlight. We counted well over 100, but there were kind of too many to count. We were spoiled for stars. If you're wondering how you can support me in bringing you songs and anecdotes, the easiest thing you can do is buy my books (most are for adults only!) or check them out from your local library.  Supporting my  AudioErotica  endeavour on  Patreon  would also help me hugely. I'm also an  Amazon Influe...

Fell down a rabbit hole, landed on Broadway. If you're wondering how you can support me in bringing you songs and anecdotes, the easiest thing you can do is buy my books (most are for adults only!) or check them out from your local library.  Supporting my  AudioErotica  endeavour on  Patreon  would also help me hugely. I'm also an  Amazon Influencer,  so hopefully I can make a little pocket change when you buy stuff by clicking through  my affiliate links . I also recommend subscribing to my newsletter. I generally e-mail subscribers with a weekly update, and I would LOVE to have you on the list.  Click here to sign up:  http://eepurl.com/R4b11 See you soon! Giselle

Apparently my partner watched The Three Stooges growing up (as did I), so his sister bought him a box set of Three Stooges DVDs, which included the Three Stooges cartoon as well. He has no memory of the cartoon. I do, though I have no memory of when it was on TV. The classic Three Stooges episodes were broadcast Sunday afternoons when I was growing up, and my siblings would groan when I insisted on watching them. If you're wondering how you can support me in bringing you songs and anecdotes, the easiest thing you can do is buy my books (most are for adults only!) or check them out from your local library.  Supporting my  AudioErotica  endeavour on  Patreon  would also help me hugely. I'm also an  Amazon Influencer,  so hopefully I can make a little pocket change when you buy stuff by clicking through  my affiliate links . I also recommend subscribing to my newsletter. I generally e-mail subscribers with a weekly update, and I would LOVE to ha...

My partner and I heard a big band perform this number the other day, and it reminded me of a friend I had in high school--not because he's a gigolo (I don't think he is, but we haven't kept in touch) but because this is the first song I ever heard him sing. He was very talented. He went on to become a professional actor, but I'm not sure what he's up to these days. I've been singing this song around the house, and when I actually think about the words, it occurs to me that this is one of those upbeat tunes that are really depressing when you stop and think about them. Lots of songs from the 50s are like that (not that this song is from the 50s--it was actually written in the 1920s, I believe, and popularized in the 50s).  Fortunately, I have the uncanny ability to sing lyrics without ever thinking about them. I can (and usually do) also listen to songs without processing the words. My partner thinks this is weird. I don't know if it is. We'll have to d...

I have horrible fatigue and vertigo--basically can't do anything but breathe and cry right now--but I've been listening to the Rifftrax riff of A Talking Cat!?! since 4 this morning. There's a character in the movie named Tina, and I always end up hearing the "Tiny the Talking Tabby" jingle in my head when someone says her name. My baby sister loved Arthur, and forced our family to watch Arthur's Perfect Christmas every year, well into adulthood. Anyway, if I have to suffer, so do you. (sorry) If you're wondering how you can support me in bringing you songs and anecdotes, the easiest thing you can do is buy my books (most are for adults only!) or check them out from your local library.  Supporting my  AudioErotica  endeavour on  Patreon  would also help me hugely. I'm also an  Amazon Influencer,  so hopefully I can make a little pocket change when you buy stuff by clicking through  my affiliate links . I also recommend subscribing to my news...

My partner put in an offer on a condo in his hometown. Housing prices there are way cheaper than we're used to, but it means you're living in... well, I won't say where, but it wouldn't be my first choice. Anyway, a big part of the reason he wanted to move back to his hometown was so that he could spend more time with a friend he's known since they were babies. This friend is seriously ill. Moments after my partner put in the purchase offer, he got an email from the friend's wife. The friend has stopped eating and taking vital medications. He is likely to die in the coming days. If you're wondering how you can support me in bringing you songs and anecdotes, the easiest thing you can do is buy my books (most are for adults only!) or check them out from your local library.  Supporting my  AudioErotica  endeavour on  Patreon  would also help me hugely. I'm also an  Amazon Influencer,  so hopefully I can make a little pocket change when you buy stuff ...

I woke up with this song in my head, which bothered me deeply because I would say I do have strings and I am grateful for those strings. But I also woke up full of anxiety because my partner wants to move again, and moving is such a big thing. It's probably a smart decision. We never put down roots in the small town where he bought a house, and we kind of never wanted to. Moving here was a snap decision, and right away there were so many things where we were like... oh, this was a big mistake. Not that it's been all bad. But there are just so many reasons to leave, not the least of which is lack of access to sufficient healthcare. Also, it's expensive. Also, transit is extremely limited. Also, also, also... When I'm anxious, I am not at my best. But what I've realized this time around that I didn't realize the last time my partner wanted to move is that he is anxious too. None of this is easy or comfortable for him. We are experiencing a lot of the same emotio...

I've been thinking about childhood a lot lately. Last week, I found out one of my old school friends has a horrible form of cancer. She's going to receive treatment at the same cancer care facility where my partner was treated last summer. In fact, she's going to receive treatment in the same radiation department. When I told my partner all this, he said that his own cancer was Mickey Mouse compared to hers. I've got tears in my eyes just telling you this. I found it so generous of my partner to say this, because I was there with him, watching the pain he was in throughout, and the all-consuming fatigue. He forgets all this, now that it's in the past. I can't remember if I mentioned to you that he said, the other week, that he hadn't been in any pain during treatment. Well, I can tell you for certain that that isn't true. I sat with him, watching him cry because he was in so much pain. But he's probably put all that out of his mind for good reason....

This song popped into my head this morning--possibly because I can't dance, but more probably because I can't walk. Or potentially because I've taken to walking with my hands out in front of me like Frankenstein. You know my chronic illness makes me dizzy and gives me vertigo, but I'm not sure if I mentioned that one of the medications I'm on also makes me... something else? I'm not sure how to describe it. I don't feel dizzy in my head, but I start to fall over and I have to catch myself against a wall or whatever is around. That's when I'm indoors. Outdoors, I've got my cane or my walker to catch me, but indoors I rarely use either. I just hold myself up against the furniture. Anyway, I've been walking into doorframes a lot lately. Hence the Frankenstein walking. I'm trying to keep myself away from things that hurt me. If you're wondering how you can support me in bringing you songs and anecdotes, the easiest thing you can do ...

Sometimes I tell you things I don't tell my partner. Maybe he knows without me having to say. I don't hide my emotions well. So maybe he already knows that I'm worried about him. I'm worried about him because the mouth sores he had during radiation last year have returned. His sense of taste, which had started to come back, is going away again. I am so, so worried that his cancer's coming back, but I don't want to make him worry. He still has to see his oncologist every three months. He's under a doctor's care. I am not a doctor. I'm just a worrier. But maybe he's fine. I hope he's fine. If you're wondering how you can support me in bringing you songs and anecdotes, the easiest thing you can do is buy my books (most are for adults only!) or check them out from your local library.  Supporting my  AudioErotica  endeavour on  Patreon  would also help me hugely. I'm also an  Amazon Influencer,  so hopefully I can make a little pocket...

Every time I walk out of the little grocery store in my partner's small town, I'm singing something. Yesterday it was this song, because it was playing over the speakers. They know their audience. While I was shopping, an employee asked if I needed help with anything, and my brain was screaming, "You're new here!" But I didn't scream that with my voice because I'm trying very hard not to freak people out these days.  So I left the store not only singing this song, but also saying to my partner, "That's how you know you live in a very small town: you can name every person who works at the one and only grocery store." (Okay, I can't actually name them by name, but I can definitely describe them--and I sure do notice when they add an employee to the mix.) If you're wondering how you can support me in bringing you songs and anecdotes, the easiest thing you can do is buy my books (most are for adults only!) or check them out from your ...

Yesterday I told you about my partner's favourite number from the jazz festival. This one was mine. I'd never actually heard it before and had no idea it was a jazz standard (despite the fact that I listened to a jazz radio station for years). I had to do a bit of digging to find out who was the vocalist on this 1926 (yes, that's almost 100 years ago) track (her name is May Alix) and that led me down a slight rabbit hole, where I discovered that "butter and egg man" was 1920s slang for a big spender: a travelling salesman who spent his cash freely at nightclubs. At the jazz festival, various people were dancing to the Dixieland band--most notably, a man who looked (and dressed) exactly like Colonel Sanders. If you're wondering how you can support me in bringing you songs and anecdotes, the easiest thing you can do is buy my books (most are for adults only!) or check them out from your local library.  Supporting my  AudioErotica  endeavour on  Patreon  w...

When we got home from the jazz festival, I asked my partner what was his favourite thing we saw or heard there. He surprised me by saying it was this song. I should have known, because I could hear him singing along and you know he rarely sings. If you're wondering how you can support me in bringing you songs and anecdotes, the easiest thing you can do is buy my books (most are for adults only!) or check them out from your local library.  Supporting my  AudioErotica  endeavour on  Patreon  would also help me hugely. I'm also an  Amazon Influencer,  so hopefully I can make a little pocket change when you buy stuff by clicking through  my affiliate links . I also recommend subscribing to my newsletter. I generally e-mail subscribers with a weekly update, and I would LOVE to have you on the list.  Click here to sign up:  http://eepurl.com/R4b11 See you soon! Giselle

I got into a bit of an argument with my mother about the way she imposes her excessive frugality on other people. Like, if that's the way you want to live, go for it, but I don't appreciate the snide comments when I choose to spend my money however I do.  And I'm not talking about spending thousands of bucks on... well, anything. I'm talking about buying a handmade handbag for $45 from a local artisan.  Supporting artistic entrepreneurs is important to me because I am also an artistic entrepreneur. But, you know what? It would be important to me even if I wasn't.  But my mom's got to raise her eyebrows and tell me that she got her purse for $3 at Value Village. Well, good for you. That's your choice. I had my first job when I was 8 years old. Let me spend the money I've been working for all my life. Anyway. Sorry. I visited my mother last week, and now I'm full of mom-related rants. The "dentist" verse in this track is so funny. As someon...

Yesterday we listened to Stranger in Paradaise, today we listen to its precursor. I keep thinking of it as "Dance of the Killer Maidens," which is not at all what it's called, but that would be a great name, wouldn't it?  If you're wondering how you can support me in bringing you songs and anecdotes, the easiest thing you can do is buy my books (most are for adults only!) or check them out from your local library.  Supporting my  AudioErotica  endeavour on  Patreon  would also help me hugely. I'm also an  Amazon Influencer,  so hopefully I can make a little pocket change when you buy stuff by clicking through  my affiliate links . I also recommend subscribing to my newsletter. I generally e-mail subscribers with a weekly update, and I would LOVE to have you on the list.  Click here to sign up:  http://eepurl.com/R4b11 See you soon! Giselle

When I was a kid, I thought I wrote this song. Turns out I did not. But neither did the composers of the musical Kismet, from which this song comes. The tune was written by Alexander Borodin. We'll listen to that tomorrow. If you're wondering how you can support me in bringing you songs and anecdotes, the easiest thing you can do is buy my books (most are for adults only!) or check them out from your local library.  Supporting my  AudioErotica  endeavour on  Patreon  would also help me hugely. I'm also an  Amazon Influencer,  so hopefully I can make a little pocket change when you buy stuff by clicking through  my affiliate links . I also recommend subscribing to my newsletter. I generally e-mail subscribers with a weekly update, and I would LOVE to have you on the list.  Click here to sign up:  http://eepurl.com/R4b11 See you soon! Giselle

Speaking of mishearing song lyrics, this track was playing on an episode of Heartbeat. I knew it vaguely, but I didn't know what it was called or who it was by. All I could really make out was "the days of curly center." Except those aren't actually the words, as I now realize. The strings are super-evocative, huh? If you're wondering how you can support me in bringing you songs and anecdotes, the easiest thing you can do is buy my books (most are for adults only!) or check them out from your local library.  Supporting my  AudioErotica  endeavour on  Patreon  would also help me hugely. I'm also an  Amazon Influencer,  so hopefully I can make a little pocket change when you buy stuff by clicking through  my affiliate links . I also recommend subscribing to my newsletter. I generally e-mail subscribers with a weekly update, and I would LOVE to have you on the list.  Click here to sign up:  http://eepurl.com/R4b11 See you soon! Giselle...

I couldn't mention Chaka Khan (as I did yesterday) and not play us some Chaka Khan. If you're wondering how you can support me in bringing you songs and anecdotes, the easiest thing you can do is buy my books (most are for adults only!) or check them out from your local library.  Supporting my  AudioErotica  endeavour on  Patreon  would also help me hugely. I'm also an  Amazon Influencer,  so hopefully I can make a little pocket change when you buy stuff by clicking through  my affiliate links . I also recommend subscribing to my newsletter. I generally e-mail subscribers with a weekly update, and I would LOVE to have you on the list.  Click here to sign up:  http://eepurl.com/R4b11 See you soon! Giselle

I love telling you tales of my own stupidity, so here's another one: I have heard this song many, many times in my life and until last night I always misheard the "shake it down" part. I always thought they were sinking "Chaka Khan, Chaka Khan now." And I often did think to myself, "Wow, The Commodores must have really liked Chaka Khan." In fact, I must have assumed the song was about Chaka Khan. But it wasn't something I gave my attention to. This was all just happening in the back of my brain. Well, my partner and I went to the Beaches Jazz Festival last night and we listened to the same funk bank I've heard sing this song ten time. Maybe more? But the band had a new vocalist this year, plus I was standing in the front row, so when she started singing "Shake it down," I was like ohhhhh... SHAKE IT DOWN. Not Chaka Khan. We've already listened to the original version of this song, so today we are listening to Lionel Richie...

My partner figured out how to play music from his phone through the car speakers. This song is on one of his playlists and the first time it came on, wow, it was the 90s all over again. It occurs to me, watching this video, that it would be very confusing to anyone who hadn't seen Ally McBeal. Or who didn't remember the 90s, for that matter. If you're wondering how you can support me in bringing you songs and anecdotes, the easiest thing you can do is buy my books (most are for adults only!) or check them out from your local library.  Supporting my  AudioErotica  endeavour on  Patreon  would also help me hugely. I'm also an  Amazon Influencer,  so hopefully I can make a little pocket change when you buy stuff by clicking through  my affiliate links . I also recommend subscribing to my newsletter. I generally e-mail subscribers with a weekly update, and I would LOVE to have you on the list.  Click here to sign up:  http://eepurl.com...

I didn't think I'd be able to bring you a song today, but that's been true of most days this week, and I've managed to deliver. My chronic illness is doing me in, and none of my prescription meds seem to be able to handle this attack. I spend my days and nights in pain and awake through it all. It's better when the pain knock me out, but nope. I'm awake with my pain. I'm aware of my pain. No matter which pills I take in which combination, the pain remains. My partner and I have plans we were really looking forward to in the coming days. All I can do is hope that the pain backs off, because my meds aren't up to snuff this week. (I can't believe this has never been our song of the day. I love this song and this video.) If you're wondering how you can support me in bringing you songs and anecdotes, the easiest thing you can do is buy my books (most are for adults only!) or check them out from your local library.  Supporting my  AudioErotica  e...

I found a copy of the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack in my partner's record collections, so I immediately played it. Touching vinyl really takes me back. It's something I haven't done since the 80s, possibly the 90s.   I've probably told this story before, but I specifically remember being in Buffalo NY when record stores were shutting down and pawing through endless stacks of clearance albums with my father.  Feels like forever ago. If you're wondering how you can support me in bringing you songs and anecdotes, the easiest thing you can do is buy my books (most are for adults only!) or check them out from your local library.  Supporting my  AudioErotica  endeavour on  Patreon  would also help me hugely. I'm also an  Amazon Influencer,  so hopefully I can make a little pocket change when you buy stuff by clicking through  my affiliate links . I also recommend subscribing to my newsletter. I generally e-mail subscribers with a weekly ...

Okay, last track from Cool as Ice. There are obviously more songs in the movie, but most of them are by Vanilla Ice. This outfit reminds me of the Friends episode where Ross gets stuck in his leather pants. Menopause really gets you thinking: how much am I going to sweat if I wear this? heh If you're wondering how you can support me in bringing you songs and anecdotes, the easiest thing you can do is buy my books (most are for adults only!) or check them out from your local library.  Supporting my  AudioErotica  endeavour on  Patreon  would also help me hugely. I'm also an  Amazon Influencer,  so hopefully I can make a little pocket change when you buy stuff by clicking through  my affiliate links . I also recommend subscribing to my newsletter. I generally e-mail subscribers with a weekly update, and I would LOVE to have you on the list.  Click here to sign up:  http://eepurl.com/R4b11 See you soon! Giselle

Another track from Cool as Ice. Okay, so it was in a bad movie. So what? This is a flat-out banger, if you as me. If you're wondering how you can support me in bringing you songs and anecdotes, the easiest thing you can do is buy my books (most are for adults only!) or check them out from your local library.  Supporting my  AudioErotica  endeavour on  Patreon  would also help me hugely. I'm also an  Amazon Influencer,  so hopefully I can make a little pocket change when you buy stuff by clicking through  my affiliate links . I also recommend subscribing to my newsletter. I generally e-mail subscribers with a weekly update, and I would LOVE to have you on the list.  Click here to sign up:  http://eepurl.com/R4b11 See you soon! Giselle