Tag Archives: Orleans

Love is…

Love is… a lot of things. Love can be demonstrated through big, extravagant actions, but I tend to think that the small, quiet actions can often speak the loudest. Why? Because those small things show how well we know our partner, how well we see the little things that make their heart happy. Before I get into the heart of this post, you need to know a few things about Kenn and me: when it comes to music, our tastes are very similar – until they’re not. I like John Mellencamp; Kenn does not. Kenn loves Sting while Sting is the musical equivalent of nails on a chalkboard to me. I like what I call “fun” music. (Think Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go by Wham! and Taylor Swift’s Shake It Off.) I’m also old enough to have lived through disco and am not ashamed to say that I like it.

Kenn’s former guitar teacher provided him with a musical library on CD; it covered a wide range of decades and genres. On a recent trip to South Carolina to visit the kids, Kenn pulled up his library and said he had created a playlist for me; he set it to “shuffle” and hit play. I knew he had nailed it with the first song. As the music played, every couple of songs I pulled up the notepad on my phone and scribbled some notes. Kenn eventually asked what I was doing and I told him that I was making a list of all of the songs. When he asked why, I told him “because I want to remember; this is one of the sweetest things you’ve done for me.” I think he was surprised I felt that way, but I stand by my statement.

The songs on the playlist are (in the order they played):

  • YMCA by the Village People. Kenn does not share my love of the Village People, but he grinned as he drove while I did the arm motions for the song.
  • Annie’s Song by John Denver (IMO there are two singers who make singing seem effortless. One is John Denver, the other is Karen Carpenter.)
  • Somebody to Love by Queen
  • Disco Inferno by The Trammps
  • More Than A Woman by the Bee Gees
  • Wild Montana Skies by John Denver
  • That’s the Way (I Like It) by KC and the Sunshine Band
  • Killer Queen by Queen
  • Trying to Get The Feeling Again by Barry Manilow
  • Crazy Little Thing Called Love by Queen
  • Can’t Smile Without You by Barry Manilow
  • Open Arms by Journey
  • All Out of Love by Air Supply
  • I’m Sorry by John Denver
  • Calypso by John Denver
  • In the Navy by the Village People
  • Looks Like We Made It by Barry Manilow
  • Stayin’ Alive by the Bee Gees
  • Lost in Love by Air Supply
  • How Deep is Your Love by the Bee Gees
  • Bohemian Rhapsody by Queen
  • Making Love Out of Nothing at All by Air Supply
  • Don’t Stop Me Now by Queen (My favorite Queen song)
  • Back Home Again by John Denver
  • Another One Bites the Dust by Queen
  • It’s a Miracle by Barry Manilow
  • Don’t Stop Believin’ by Journey
  • Still the One by Orleans (This is “our song.”)
  • Saturday Night by the Bay City Rollers (In my early teens I was a die-hard Roller fan. The walls of my room were covered with BCR posters.)
  • Mandy by Barry Manilow
  • Brandy (You’re a Fine Girl) by Looking Glass
  • Fat Bottomed Girls by Queen
  • Daybreak by Barry Manilow
  • You’re My Best Friend by Queen
  • Get Down Tonight by KC and the Sunshine Band
  • (Shake, Shake, Shake) Shake Your Booty by KC and the Sunshine Band
  • Evil Woman by Elecric Light Orchestra
  • I’m Your Boogie Man by KC and the Sunshine Band
  • We Will Rock You by Queen
  • Even Now by Barry Manilow
  • Who’s Crying Now by Journey

We discussed the list and I told him he could remove Disco Inferno, but that there are a few artists I’d like to have added such as the Carpenters and the Eagles. We also agreed that Elton John and more ELO would be good. Then I told him that I’m indifferent to the Bee Gees; I don’t hate them, but I don’t go out of the way to listen to them either. I told him that I wasn’t sure why he had recently decided that I’m a big Bee Gees fan. He just looked at me in stunned silence and finally managed to say, “It’s not just recently. I’ve always thought you like the Bee Gees.” Nope.

Originally this post would have ended here. However, Kenn came home from an estate sale last weekend with these gems for me.🥰

I will be investing in some album frames so I can hang them on the wall in my game room. Side note: I did not know until I read the album covers that the Village People had recorded Just A Gigolo/I Ain’t Got Nobody so I looked it up. David Lee Roth did it better.🤷‍♀️

What is your favorite type of music?

What’s on your phone?

This is one of those weeks where every idea I’ve had for possible posts went… somewhere. So, in a bit of a throwaway post, today’s topic of conversation is cell phones and how they can be personalized. I’ve probably got phones on my mind because Kenn’s phone began malfunctioning a week ago and much drama has ensued. (Even though he denies it, the drama gene is strong in Kenn’s family.) Fortunately, after a trip to the Verizon store, we were able to order a replacement under warranty. Now that the new phone has arrived and is configured, our drama levels have returned to normal.

I’m big on personalizing my stuff, phones included. Kenn has had an impact on my personalizations. Kenn’s home and lock screen have always been family photos whereas mine have been video game themed. I guess you could say that I started feeling a little guilty. Kenn always has a picture of me on his screen. Why did I not have one of him? So, a year or so ago, I changed things up. My lock screen is still video game themed, but my home screen now features Kenn. For a while it was a picture of both of us taken at a wedding, now it’s Kenn and Bear. So, here’s a peek into my world.

The Mass Effect video games are my comfort games; these are the games I go to when my heart hurts, or when I’m missing my virtual friends. (I played a lot of Mass Effect during the eighteen month period in which we lost our remaining three parents.) In Mass Effect, you play as Commander Shepard. I play as a female Shepard, whom I have named Sascha. Sascha’s chosen love interest is Garrus Vakarian. (Garrus is one of the best video game characters ever created in my opinion.) So, my phone’s lock screen is a screen shot of Sascha and Garrus.

The photo on my home screen was taken Christmas day 2024 after our celebrations ended and the kids and grandkids had moved onto other locations. Bear is a fairly social cat and had spent most of the day mingling. I couldn’t help but laugh at him though. Once everyone left, Bear climbed into the chair with Kenn, wedged himself in the corner, and went to sleep. Poor baby Bear was exhausted. Peopling is hard!

Of course, my ringtones are personalized. My default ringtone is my favorite happy, feel-good song: Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go by Wham! Kenn, however, gets his own ringtone: Still the One by Orleans. Text messages go back to a video game theme. Incoming texts are announced by Kelly Chambers from Mass Effect 2 saying “You have unread messages at your private terminal.”

How do you personalize your phone? Do you use family photos, pet photos, or something else? How about your ringtones? Do you choose one of the ones that comes with the phone or something a little more personal to you?