Playing In My Head ...

We don't often get a chance to "fool around" on the site. We're pretty serious with the topics most of the time. On occasion, we'll mark special days. We did this on Valentine's Day, and we've done it on 9/11. We just post thoughts about something personal to us. Or we let our readers see just a bit more of us. For Marcie and I, being personal is difficult. We like our quiet. We like our privacy.

But, personal to me is a bit different for me than it is for her. When I mean personal, I mean something like sort of music I enjoy. I have a wide variety of music, from rock to country to classical to jazz. And if there's one thing I can say in regard to the music I do buy, I'm picky. CDs cost about $15-$20 out here at most of the stores. (We have bought little off of the Internet.) So, if I'm buying one, it had better be good, or the one or two songs on it had better be well worth the money.

To me, that means musically and lyrically. Lyrics are something that I pay attention. After all, a song is just a minor page out of someone's life, or it could signify one of their largest chapters. Take, for example, Alan Jackson's hit Remember When. The entire song is a reflection of a good life. One that has its ups and downs, like anyone's does, but the music makes the song endearing to its listeners.

Lyrics can have an awesome feeling for me, as John Parr's St. Elmo's Fire does:

Just once in his life,
a man has his time.
And my time is now,
I'm coming alive

Tat comes at the crescendo of the song, and I always feel goosebumps up my back when it comes on. The same is true for Toby Keith's An American Soldier. It's starts out so simple. A guy trying to be a dad, and a husband, but when you're in the military, that call could come through, and you gotta go. But the most powerful reminder of that message is locked in two sets of lyrics:

I don't do it for the money
There's bills that I can't pay
I don't do it for the glory
I just do it anyway
Providing for our future's my responsibility
Yeah I'm real good under pressure
Being all that I can be

And I can't call in sick on Mondays when the weekends been too strong
I just work straight through the holidays
And sometimes all night long.
You can bet that I stand ready when the wolf growls at the door
Hey, I'm solid, hey I'm steady, hey, I'm true down to the core
And I will always do my duty no matter what the price
I've counted up the cost, I know the sacrifice
Oh, and I don't want to die for you
but if dyin's asked of me
I'll bear that cross with honor'cause freedom don't come free

That song also reminds me that I have a job to do over here. Our men and women are doing what they've always done: Watch the frontier, and prepare for the Indians. (Before anyone goes off half-cocked, and accuses me of being racist, I suggest you pick up a book. Imperial Grunts by Robert C. Kaplan is a must-read for anyone who wants to understand the military right now, and how it's conducting the war we're in. Then come talk to me about the "Indian" comment.) As someone over here, my job is simple.

I got to work. I do my job. I buy our groceries, pay for our vacations, buy our cars, etc. I'm keeping the economy going. That's my job. It's Marcie's, too except she goes to school. I'm sorry, but just to placate the Left, I'm not uprooting my life, and joining the military. Besides, I know I couldn't pass the physical requirements. Without Marcie in my life, then I might have considered it. But not now, and not at my age.

There are other ways to "fight the good fight." Marcie and I opted to make a move towards the blogosphere for the sheer fact that we had some opinions, and a lot of people liked them. But that was a jump. We put our butts on the line, with only our honesty and integrity to support us. In other words, we had to be right as close to 100% as we could be. I think we've done pretty well considering that we're small fish.

But, on a chance to prove ourselves to more people, we opted to join the 101st Keebees. That was a leap, too. And it was a big risk. One major misstep, and that trust will be gone. And so, the song that pops into my head almost everytime I finish a post (as I cross my fingers that an early morning or late evening post contains no mistakes, and is as up-to-date as possible--even through the bleary eyes) is Garth Brook's Standing Outside the Fire. Which, coincidently, seems to be a signature song for me because sometimes I love to take the risk that few choose.

We call them cool
Those hearts that have no scars to show
The ones that never do let go
And risk the tables being turned

We call them fools
Who have to dance within the flame
Who chance the sorrow and the shame
That always comes with getting burned

But you've got to be tough when consumed by desire
'Cause it's not enough just to stand outside the fire

I'll never give up the music I love, and those are just a few songs that run through my head on a semi-daily basis. Sorry for being the geek from time to time, but some e-mailers inquired about something "personal." That's about as personal as I get. Sorry if that doesn't satisfy the inquiries. We try to accomodate as much as we can, but like I said in the beginning, we like our quiet. We like our privacy.

Publius II