Keep going

I'm forcing myself to remember this today. Last night at the gym, I added more weight to half the machines I use because they were getting too easy. This morning, I am more sore than I have been in weeks, with a killer headache to top it all off. My first instinct is to skip going to the gym tonight, even though it's a cardio night, but rather than make that decision now, I'm going to plow through the day and evaluate how I feel after dinner.

Right now, however, I'm going to get coffee, ibuprofen, and put this on a sticky on the corner of my laptop so I don't forget it today.

The amazing Annie Lennox

All my Hozier love last week was validated last night at the Grammys. Of course, that's mostly due to his getting paired with the astounding Annie Lennox.

If you haven't seen the video, you must. I have loved her since the 80s when the Eurythmics pretty much defined my high school self. Her "Why" remains one of the most powerful songs I've ever heard. She is still stunning, mesmerizing, and absolutely astounding on stage.

And the song that started my lifelong love affair, from a performance in Japan on tour in 1987...

No Limits

Friday is my day in my online wellness group, where I'm responsible for posting a topic for discussion. This is what I picked for today, for a lot of reasons. I'm not really reaching a plateau yet on my plan to get healthier in 2015, but this doesn't apply to just fitness. This applies to all areas of our lives. The notion of limits holds too many people back, whether it comes to what they think they can achieve professionally or personally.

So this is my reminder to all of you out there, when it feels like you're running in place and nothing is changing, that it's a struggle all of us face. The trick is to figure out what you need to get past them. Shake up your life. Make a change, even if it's a small one.

And have a terrific weekend. :)

Obsessed with Hozier

I am thoroughly, utterly obsessed with Hozier. Seriously. And it's not because of "Take Me to Church," which, while amazing, is not my favorite song from his album.

It's because of "Angel of Small Death and the Codeine Scene."

This is his performance from last October when he was on SNL. Forget the fact that the man is so gorgeous. Or has bedroom eyes. Or gives great interview. This song is just stunning to listen to.
The man is a poet. Just read the lyrics to his songs. You can't deny it. And this one is in iambic pentameter as well. And has smart references. Not one person I've talked to about this song realized what "small death" referred to. He's absolutely not afraid to couch his social criticisms in beautiful words and sex imagery.
I've even gone so far to start learning all the songs on my guitar. My guitar teacher is getting a little tired of me talking about Hozier all the time, though at least I got him to admit how talented he is.
So...yeah. A little obsessed. He cites James Joyce as an inspiration for his music. What's not great about that?

Amber Heat Sale

Today through Friday, all titles in the Amber Heat imprint at Amber Allure are 50% off! I have a couple titles there, including my vampire romance Ruby Red Rebels, but there are over 500 titles to choose from.

Check it out!

No Life for Pi

I had another DNF over the weekend. Life of Pi. It's one of those books that I always knew I should read but was never intrigued enough by what I saw to bother. I never saw the movie, either. I just couldn't muster enough desire to do it. But last week, I pulled the book off my TBR shelf and decided to give it a go. I lasted about fifty pages, which tends to be my marker on where I decide to continue on or give up on a book if I'm on the fence about it.

It's not that it was bad. It was interesting for the first few chapters. But as soon as he started in on the religious chapters, analyzing and exploring the various types and absorbing them into his life, I got bored. Very bored. Having long discussions about spirituality and religion is a major turn-off for me. It's not that I can't read about religious things - I'm currently reading Be Near Me by Andrew O'Hagan which has a Catholic priest as its central character - but that I don't want to be lectured or have it shoved in my face.

It's the lectures and dictating of morality that throws my hackles up. It just so happens that it occurs a lot with religious issues.

Sometimes I can overlook that kind of thing if I'm really into a character or the plot or the writing style, but I wasn't in this case. So I set it down and moved onto the next book.

Life's too short to waste on books that I don't care about.

Angela Lansbury in Blithe Spirit

On Saturday, I got to see a legend. I took my daughter, her BFF, and BFF's mom into San Francisco to see Noel Coward's "Blithe Spirit" at the Golden Gate Theatre. The legend wasn't the play. It was Angela Lansbury as Madame Arcati.

It. Was. Amazing.

It's not the first time I've seen the play. My college did it when I was a freshman, when I was still too chicken to try out for anything. It's one of those comedies that has survived its times. Too often, comedies are very topical and rely too heavily on contemporary references to have the same impact once those references are memories or forgotten. "Blithe Spirit" isn't like that. It's situational comedy that gets its laughs through witticism and cleverness, with just enough farcical elements thrown in to break it up.

This was a gorgeous production, from the sets to the sound to the performances. Charles Edwards played the lead. For those who watch "Downton Abbey," he was Edith's married lover, the one who fathered her daughter. Excellent casting. He's the pin that holds it all together, because although Angela Lansbury got top billing, the play is really about Edwards getting haunted by his dead wife, while he's living with his current wife.

But that doesn't stop Lansbury from stealing her scenes. She's the medium that puts the whole thing into motion, and it's a very physically demanding role. Lansbury didn't miss a beat, and what's even more astounding, is the fact that she's 89. Let me repeat that. She's 89. And we saw a matinee. She turned around and did another performance three hours after we saw her. Then again on Sunday.

She's 89, people. She puts a lot of us to shame.

Unsurprisingly, she wasn't doing signings at the stage door, but I did buy a T-shirt. Knowing me and my inability to throw any T-shirt away, I'll still be wearing it in twenty years. And every time I do, it'll be a reminder of this remarkable performance. Maybe I can use some of that inspiration to keep me going, too.