Revolution
Before long you’ll squidge a booger from your child’s nose in a public place and wipe it on your pantleg as fellow diners or shoppers cast disgusted glances your way. That’s when you’ll realize that you’re doomed to never again be hip.
That’s why we love the company of like-minded souls: others who know from experience that a shirt with one cashew-butter smear is easily two barfs away from being truly dirty, and totally wearable by either mother or father.
Comrades are nonplussed, unbewilderable. They get us, and we get them. To each other, we’re all still cool. A fine consolation, even if the rest of the world is not in agreement.
Yes, we sniff our kids’ rear-ends in restaurants.
And yes, sometimes we follow that with a loud, proud “Phhhheeeewwwww!”, accompanied with comic eye-rolling and mock swooning.
But, we tell ourselves, we have a lot of wooden toys or we don’t watch the Backyardigans or we don’t shop at Wal-Mart or Evan likes Gorillaz in the car. So there.
Everyone has their own principles, from secondhand kids’ clothing to veggie hot dogs. Distinctions and subtleties that bolster us against the wave of ordinary, predictable, porridge-coloured, 50/50 cotton-polyester parenthood.
For us it’s been music, which rings through the house almost nonstop. We’ve wandered the hallowed halls of iTunes in search of anything Disney and dinosaur-free. We discovered our beloved Pete Seeger and the loony-British-granny feeling of The Gruffalo, but right now, impossibly funky, acoustic Dan Zanes (and his friends) provide the soundtrack of our revolution. I simply have to pass it on, fist in the air, to all my fellow anarchists. Shout out.
sweetsalty kate
in coasting on the fumes of hipness
|
6 Comments
Reader Comments (6)
A 'real life' Sydney friend of ours (who has a music-focussed blog called Stay Cool Dad) directed us a long time ago to some fun websites. One was Mother Goose Rocks (http://www.mothergooserocks.com/) - this has changed quite a bit since our boys used to watch it, but their favourite is still there - check out No. 15, Mad Donna singing 'Wheels on the Bus'. The other was a site for the They Might Be Giants children's album, 'No!'. Again, this site has changed quite a bit (and Evan's favourite song has gone, it seems) - it is at http://www.giantkid.net/indexKill.html
'Adult music' faves with our boys have included:- Accapella music, especially Sweet Honey in the Rock (Evan loves all of their stuff, but is particularly keen on a kid-focused album of theirs called 'I Got Shoes' which features lots of counting in different languages...v. cool!).- Paul Simon's 'Graceland' album.- Anjelique Kidjo (irresistable rhythms).- Beatles (early 'Love Me Do' type stuff rather than their later albums...but I'm working on it by playing 'Octopus' Garden'from Abbey Road!)
...but their all-time, unanimous, favourite 'grown ups' album is - for some bizarre reason - Lyle Lovett's 'Live in Texas'. I don't know WHAT it is about this album, but they both absolutely love it. I cannot recommend it more highly for the over-twos! It seems to have several appealing features: (a) it starts with a song called 'Penguins'; (b) it features several fast, bop-around-the-room-wildly type songs with a great 'big band' sound; and (c) it mixes these with some very simple, melodic softer tunes. I still shake my head in bemusement when I ask my boys what they want to listen to and am met with a double-throated scream of "LYLE LOVETT!!!!!!". I am seriously considering writing the man a fan letter.
I am intrigued by Dan Zanes - will investigate him further. And I cannot WAIT to show them the Gruffalo website - they both enjoy the book. Thanks for the tips!!
Miss you terribly~!!Kel
As for Dan Zanes you can find him on Amazon.ca, and the cheapest source through them is to click on 'New and used' to see a seller called Caiman USA. I've gotten three CDs and a DVD from them so far:
Rocket Ship Beach: http://www.amazon.ca/exec/obidos/ASIN/B000051ZNR/sr=8-4/qid=1146748554/ref=pd_bowtega_4/702-3228672-0452038?%5Fencoding=UTF8&s=gateway&v=glance
Family Dance: http://www.amazon.ca/exec/obidos/ASIN/B00005TT6M/sr=8-9/qid=1146748598/ref=sr_1_9/702-3228672-0452038?%5Fencoding=UTF8&s=gateway&v=glance
Night Time: http://www.amazon.ca/exec/obidos/ASIN/B00006JYBG/sr=8-7/qid=1146748621/ref=sr_1_7/702-3228672-0452038?%5Fencoding=UTF8&s=gateway&v=glance