life+running » rock

Sweet Tunes Thursday: Power. Songs.

chimes — Thu, 10 May 2012 14:00:00 +0000

~~I’m taking a break from Blend Recapping (don’t worry. there’s more. if you’re sick of it, come back next week when I leave for Austin).~~

EDIT: I wasn’t going to recap today (I have tomorrow, Saturday and Sunday for that!), but Janetha posted her Friday night recap last night and I was so excited to see that I was featured on her blog. As you know, I’m kind of a fangirl of hers and pretty much do every workout she posts. You’ve seen her right? There’s a reason I’m a lemming.

Anyway, she was kind enough to post this very … special … photo of me enjoying the cupcakes from Street Fare at Friday night’s dinner.

I love how Ashley and Laura are all cute and Christine might have noticed my posing for photo … or was just as enthused about getting a photo of us eating as I was. I’m pretty sure somebody said “Can I get a picture of you ladies eating your cupcakes?” And that she did.

\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\

Now instead of another recap, I have so much music for you this week! I compiled ~~all~~ 10 11 of my favorite workout songs into this post.

Those of you who use Nike+ know that they have this thing called a “powersong”. You push a button, and the song that you picked that gets your heart pumping will play. Pretty cool, eh? I think so. I’ve definitely had some runs in which I’ve punched the button and listened to one of these songs on repeat for several miles.

Also, if you’re new to my blog, note that I have pretty schizophrenic music taste. So hopefully there is something for everybody here.

And if you’re not a fan of watching YouTube videos, here’s the playlist on Spotify instead. In case you didn’t know, Metallica is lame and doesn’t have any of their songs on Spotify. So if you really want to hear Master of Puppets, you’ll have to watch the video (I suggest a listen — you might recognize it from the classic — yes it’s old enough that I’m calling it that — Will Ferrell movie Old School.)

Jimmy Eat World / A Praise Chorus

Amon Amarth / Pursuit of the Vikings

Michael Jackson / Wanna Be Startin’ Somethin’ (Not my favorite version of this song — but I watched this concert SO many times when I was a little kid. Gold. Bodysuits.)

Ke$ha / Blow — Cirkut Remix (just so you know, it pains me to actually use the $ for an S and it made me shudder typing “cirkut”)

Iron Maiden / The Trooper

The Faint / Paranoiattack (Note: These guys are stellar live. the light show? they spend most of their $ on that, from what I hear)

Daft Punk / Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger (giving you this video because it cracks me up)

Metallica / Master of Puppets

Andrew W.K. / She is Beautiful

3 Inches of Blood / Deadly Sinners

Okay — I’m a fan of turning things up to 11. So here’s one more.

Children of Bodom / Are You Dead Yet?

Those guys also have a pretty hilarious cover of Oops I Did it Again. In case you were wondering

This song was singlehandedly the reason I came back from an injury and shaved 2+ minutes of my mile time. It also helped that I have a slight crush on their lead singer / guitarist (<===== oddly enough, that is the post that continues to bring the most traffic to my site). Yeah. I have weird taste in guys. Don’t judge. Tattoos, beards, guitars, long hair? If you have one or more of those, I’m in (Mark is obviously bearded and he plays guitar. And banjo. I was responsible for him continuing to grow his hair out in college, though we weren’t dating — oops.)

[ source ]

What songs pump you up? Do you have a go-to powersong? And how do you feel about facial hair or tattoos? Discuss.

Share on Facebook

Nerdboner

chimes — Wed, 07 Mar 2012 16:00:00 +0000

So I have this awesome friend that I met through twitter.

I know. I’m a socially awkward geek. So sue me. But he’s an even bigger one, which is where he gets the moniker: Nerdboner.

I met him in person a while back and we got some pizza … and he had a bunch of awesome geek swag from ComiCon for me.

He came down to hang out last month, and it got pretty out of hand.

Tomorrow he’s going to be here for a Doomtree show. It’s going to be a lot of fun! Especially because we’re getting margaritas and Mexican at La Fuente beforehand.

I can’t wait!

Share on Facebook

Sweet Tunes Thursday: She and Him Christmas

chimes — Thu, 22 Dec 2011 16:00:00 +0000

‘Tis the season for Christmas music. Normally I say “Bah humbug” to boring old holiday tunes, but I’m really interested in the She and Him Christmas album. Take a listen!

Speaking of festive, my friend Kelly is having an ugly sweater contest in which Mr. Barnabus Stinson, II is participating. Vote for Barney here! He is damn cute in his sweater. Check it out.

Share on Facebook

maybe I need some rehab …

chimes — Fri, 02 Sep 2011 12:00:00 +0000

… I have a sick obsession: pop music.

Going to see Ke$ha tonight in Kansas City and it’s the first pop concert I’ve ever been to! I’m not sure if that’s a milestone or an embarrassment, but it’s going to be fun. Doing some shopping beforehand to make sure I’ve got a super trashy outfit and then pouring glitter all over myself.

Share on Facebook

5, 4, 3, 2, 1 about chimes

chimes — Wed, 31 Aug 2011 12:00:00 +0000

Hi. I’m chimes. If you’ve been reading my blog and are just now figuring this out, well howdy. I’ve decided to try Craftzine’s 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 Profile questions. Enjoy!

One Project You Are Particularly Proud Of

1. My musical flowers pitcher. And the resulting photos of it. I really miss my little brick wall porch at my old place in Des Moines.

Two Mistakes You’ve Made in the Past

1. Not saying no when I should. I’m to proud to admit when I can’t take on a project — I love being a jack of all trades. I recently took engagement photos of my friend’s little sister and her (now) hubby. I really shouldn’t have. I’m not a photographer. And I said yes to taking her WEDDING photos too.

[okay, so they didn't turn out too horrible]

2. Using parchment paper to bake these amazing brownies. The result? What my roommate coined “reverse brownies” — gooey on the outside, done in the middle.

Three Things That Make Your Work Unique

1. I’m cheap — but in a good way. I use EVERY scrap of fabric — including the selvedge edges — every discarded dish, every possible inch of batting and use cereal boxes for patterns for sewing projects. I’m currently making a map of the states quilt out of pieces of fabric that are less than 2″ big. Partially because I’m a fabric hoarder too.

2. Asymmetry. I hate symmetrical and being matchy matchy. I will never make a quilt from a traditional pattern — it has to be wonky.
3. Obviously, I love handmade objects. And as a graphic designer in my professional life, I try to incorporate hand-done items into my work as much as possible — whether it’s my own illustrations, found objects, fabric or paintings created by a friend.

[album cover for a band I was in that never took off]

Four Tools You Love to Use

1. Rotary cutter. I have no idea why, but there is something so damn therapeutic about cutting fabric and placing it in neat piles.
2. Adobe Creative Suite (especially InDesign — use it daily at work)
3. Sewing machine — ~~I sometimes think I need a fancy one with more bells and whistles, but the freebie one I got from my aunt has been kicking out great projects and working just fine~~. I actually got a new Janome in October and it has been rocking my world! I even completed a quilt last month using that machine with no blips in the fabric or dropped stitches. I’m saving my old machine for threadbangin’ more crafty projects.

4. Sketchbook + Prismacolors. I don’t just do things. I think them through first and find several ways of accomplishing what my desired end result may be. It’s surprising what you come up with when you take some time to brainstorm.

Five Inspirations

1. Quilters like Fussy Cut and Oh Fransson!
2. Michael Jackson. Yes. I’m serious. If you’ve not read my blog before, then newsflash: I heart MJ.
3. Every DIY and craft blog out there. ever. I think I follow all of them in my google reader.
4. My granny — she left a TON of unfinished projects when she died and I’ve been randomly finishing them up in the past several years. Here’s a quilt I completed out of blocks she made from what we think may have been old clothing (she was also cheap and thrifty).

5. And I have to mention my boyfriend. He’s constantly helping me refine my work and offers up suggestions and critique as well as an incredible amount of support.

Share on Facebook

Sweet Tunes Thursday: Primus

chimes — Thu, 14 Jul 2011 11:00:00 +0000

I totally forgot about Primus. Primus is definitely an acquired taste — everybody in the band is super talented and the songs use the bass (Les Claypool) as their melody, which is kind of different than most bands.

This video is one of my favorite music videos ever. They filmed it in slow mo and sped it up because these suits were super heavy. And yes, the song is kind of inappropriate — but that’s how Primus rolls.

Share on Facebook

Sweet Tunes Thursday: Arctic Monkeys

chimes — Thu, 16 Jun 2011 11:00:00 +0000

Another song I discovered on The Current — ”Don’t Sit Down Cuz I Moved Your Chair” by the Arctic Monkeys.

I’ve not really listened to the Arctic Monkeys before, but I think I’m going to have to check them out. I’m open to suggestions for which albums.

Also, this video is pretty awesome. It’s got a lot of really neat artistic techniques and cuts. <3

Share on Facebook

Sweet Tunes Thursday: Children of Bodom

chimes — Thu, 26 May 2011 11:00:00 +0000

So my friend @MRJWAR on twitter informed me that COB has a new album out — on Monday, during my furious purchasing of music since my emusic subscription renewed and Gaga’s new album was $.99 on amazon. @MRJWAR reminded me that I like metal. So I got Children of Bodom’s new album, Relentless, Reckless Forever. And it’s awesome. Here’s the title track.

Share on Facebook

Sweet Tunes Thursday: The Cars

chimes — Thu, 12 May 2011 11:30:00 +0000

The Cars released a new album on Tuesday, and I am REALLY excited.

Here’s one of my favorite songs of theirs:

Share on Facebook

Sweet Tunes Thursday: Bright Eyes (The People’s Key)

chimes — Thu, 20 Jan 2011 12:00:00 +0000

I love when I find out that a band that has broken up, been defunct or has otherwise just not been around is releasing an album. Bright Eyes is going back to his old sound (so no folk, folks) and releasing a new album called The People’s Key on February 15. YAY!

You can download the first track, “Shell Games”, for free and preorder the album off Saddle Creek’s website.

If you’re super impatient, here’s a video of the new song. The term “video” is used loosely as it’s just a still image of the album cover with the song.

Share on Facebook