This weekend is spent deep in study for an upcoming test. Brian is with his dad as I return to those college days of sleep, study, workout, and study, TV, study, eating and more study. The only thing missing is 20 college friends in my living room, wine and an episode of Knotts Landing.
While studying Saturday night I did manage a break to watch Austin City Limits on PBS. Austin is one of my favorite training cities from when I was a trainer, and this program always transports me back to this wonderful town. [KB...do you think there are water snakes there..?? (Sorry side joke).]
Speaking of Austin City Nights ... ColdPlay, a favorite band of mine, is the featured artist along with the lead singer of REM. As Coldplay begins, “Scientist” I laugh aloud as I remember one of my final training trips for The Royal Bank of Canada.
I am terrible at names ... I don't know what it is... but my good friends, like KB have accepted this disability. They have found a great deal of humor about this at my expense.
Back in 2002 I keep hearing a haunting songon the radio ...over and over. I never quite catch who the artist is. I am a music nut. I become a woman obsessed when I can't find out the artist, so I can buy the album or download the song.
Over several weeks I keep hearing this song repeatedly. Finally, when KB and I are on a training trip to Seattle, a DJ says the name of the band. WHEW HEW ... I can now track the CD down and buy it. So....one night leaving the north Seattle office, I decide to stop at the mall on my way out of town and buy the CD. I think how great it is to be stuck on one of the many Seattle bridges listening to my new CD. To remember the band, I keep repeating in my mind, “Coldplay… Coldplay… Coldplay … I wonder if KB has had dinner …it is Cold… I miss Brian … Cold… look at the guy in that car… ok smile big … he’s probably a jerk in real life… play … I’m hungry … I hope I don’t get lost…ohhh there’s a Target store… Cold… my feet hurt… I hate being lost in a store … I’m hungry… ohhhh there’s the CD section … I’mhungry …ok the band is… ummmmm… is … ummmm is….shit....”. It is at this moment that I realize I forgot the band's name. Maybe I can just eye all the CDs and recognize them somehow…
My eyes stop at a CD covered with a bunch of skeletons. The name sorta looks familiar… oh what the hell … this has to be it and I am starving. I try to call KB … she doesn’t answer. I buy my new CD and race out to my cute rental car with the great stereo. I tear the CD out of the wrapper and place it in the CD player. I don’t turn it on, as I want to be on the freeway when I begin to rock out to my new band.
As the car reaches 65mph I push the CD in all the way, anticipating this great new song. Suddenly the sound of screeching tires combined with fingernails on a chalk board with a snare drum and some sort of awful sound is coming out of the speakers. WHAT THE HELL? Wow .... this is sure a different sound for the band; maybe it is the next song … I fast-forward to the next song… and the next. Where is the beautiful song I heard on the radio? Could it be just a "one-hit-wonder"… ? I forward to the next song and then the next. I fast-forward through all the songs, none of them is my new favorite song, and now I am stuck on the bridge without my band.
KB calls my cell. I tell her my story and she asks me who the band’s name on the CD. I tell her and she busts out laughing. “That isn’t the band the band is COLDPLAY” she shouts. “Well duh… what do I do with this damn CD?” I ask. “I’ll give it to my husband”, she says, “he’ll love it”.
As I watched Coldplay on ACL I laughed remembering that damn CD. Her husband still has it and loves whatever grunge band it is.
Between practice tests I also manage to watch the story of Paula Dean of the Food Network. I love watching her interact with her two grown sons. The older one reminds me of Brian. I too enjoy cooking in my kitchen with Brian’s help. This particular Paula Dean show included her life story. I have been unusually hard on myself for where my life is. This is the longest I have gone without continuing education, or achieving a particular goal. Frankly, I’ve been afraid that somehow I have “lost it”.
It seems Paula Dean became divorced after 27 years of marriage at the age of 45. She was broke and raising her two sons on her own. I sat up in my chair as she talked about her life with her sons and that difficult period. Things are not as bad as I thought. Maybe I was suppose to stay in and study just to catch her life story… to remember all that I have going for me.
I can’t say that the last few years been without successes. Brian is doing unbelievably well in school. My x husband changed and decided to quit fighting me. I was able to participate in my son’s classrooms … go on field trips. I found out who my real friends are and released the rest. I located a great doctor, and started taking my new wonderful thyroid meds. I have made new great friends and dated wonderful men….so all is not lost.
So what’s next…?
Was Coldplay my sign…?...
Until next time-
C
