Mixin’ It Up

Mom’s out of town for two days so Gert is distraught and emotional. This is the very first time Mommy has ever left. It’s usually daddy who has to go somewhere, so this is a new set of emotions for her. When I dropped her off at school this morning she was twice as forlorn as normal and begged me to stay. “I’m too big to stay,” I told her.

“But I’m too little,” she said sadly. I was eventually able to peel her sadness off of me and I turned and walked out the door, making sure I didn’t look back at those sad, Anime-sized eyes lest I be drawn back to rescue her.

Tonight we’re having a popcorn party AND skipping bath. We’re talking major decadence. I’m going to watch the coverage of yesterday’s Tour of Flanders and, I suspect, around 11 I’ll find Gert in my bed. Matlida is an old pro at 10 going on 40, and is being the rock.

One thing that is keeping her happy is her very first mix CD. Yesterday I was preparing a lullaby CD for my friend’s son when Gert came in and asked me what I was doing. When I explained, she wanted to make her own CD as well. After fifteen minutes of explaining that, while I have a very nice computer, I could not in fact hire a band and record her 72-minute-long original opus to childhood, complete with all living members of the Wrecking Crew and Brian Wilson production, she began selecting her tracks.

Halfway through the process Matilda came down and joined in, contributing her favorite five tracks (two Jack Johnson, The Ditty Bops, Puff the Magic Dragon and one TMBG), explaining that there is no CD on Earth that would be complete without those rocking tracks. She was right; “Sister Kate” brings the disc to its knees.

Gert was more personal about her selections. While they mine her general favorites, she really considered her audience and selected songs that really mean something to her. She opened with Wilco’s “Just a Kid” because of the “na na” section. She worried about including a live track because it might scare the baby. She had me against a wall, explaining angrily that Grampy sings a song about a train that explains that the train is long and tall and, because Grampy sings it, it must be included. It took me a while, but I finally called Grampy who explained the song was “The Wabash Cannonball,” which I had, thank God or I might find a fish on my door.

I was impressed by her selection of Neil Young’s “My Boy.” Impressed yes, because the content is perfect, but more so because she remembered the song. I was surprised. However, most impressive, was her choice of the Flaming Lips’ “Enthusiasm for Life Defeats Existential Fear” aka “the bad dream song.” That was chosen as the closer because the baby might have a bad dream and that song is about people you love.

Overall, it’s a fantastic mix that the two created. I did the sequencing based on Gert’s choice of the first and final song. You can hear it as a new Radio SFT playlist. Enjoy

Mom accused me of molding the children in my image. However, I must protest. They did this on their own. That they kick ass at it, however, is a point of pride for which I take full credit.