All the Best

The first song I wrote [on the latest album] was ‘All the Best,’  If you look at the lyrics, it’s basically saying, ‘We had our moment, it was great. Thanks, everyone. And we hope someone else will pick up the mantle and run with it.’

 --Michael Stipe

So over me.
So pie in my face.
So talk to me
Tell me where to place this in my
Quasimodo heart
That's where I slipped and fell
I rang the church bell'til my ears bled
red blood cells,

I think
I'll sing and rhyme
I'll give it one more time
I'll show the kids how to do it
fine, fine, fine

I hold the mirror up
You tell me what is what
You tell me which part of my story baby,
stuck stuck stuck.
I'm in a part of your dreams
That you don't even understand.
It's just like me to overstay my welcome, man

Let's sing and rhyme
Let's give it one more time
Let's show the kids how to do it,
fine, fine, fine
fine.

I just have to get that off my chest.
Now it's time to get on with the rest,
All the best, all the best,
All the best, all the best, best, best

It's just like me to overstay my welcome, bless.

Let's sing and rhyme
Let's give it one more time
Let's show the kids how to do it,
fine, fine, fine

Let's sing and rhyme
Let's give it one more time
Let's show the kids how to do it fine, fine, fine
fine

The R.E.M. Impact: One Fan's Story

As I was browsing the internet yesterday, I came across the headline, “R.E.M. Call it a Day.” I had that sinking feeling, I knew what it was bringing on, I might as well click it. I read the story in disbelief; my favorite band was no more. I immediately tried to rationalize it.

“It must be some sort of April Fool’s Day joke...oh wait, it’s September.”

“But on the last tour Michael Stipe said, ‘See you soon!’ He wouldn’t lie to me!”
“Maybe the website got its sources wrong.”

So I went to remhq and read it straight from the source. R.E.M. was, indeed, calling it a day. Reading the quotes from the Michael, Mike, and Peter, soothed my mind a little, but it was still a shock.

R.E.M. has defined what music is to me for nearly twenty years. I remember as a teenager buying albums from other artists based on a popular hit song. More often than not, the hit single was the only bright spot on the album, and I was left with a lackluster listening experience. Not with R.E.M., though. I fell in love with nearly every song on Out of Time, Automatic for the People, and Monster. Once I discovered their back-catalog, I was hooked.

I remember going to the record store to buy used copies of Murmur, Reckoning, Fables of the Reconstruction, Dead Letter Office, and Document. I think my parents already had Lifes Rich Pageant, Green, and even a copy of Eponymous. I loaded the CDs into our five-disc player and let'er rip. Every song was pure joy. I found my band, and couldn’t wait to hear what they came out with next.

I bought New Adventures in Hi-Fi the day it was released, and I played that album non-stop.  It is, to this day, my favorite R.E.M. album; though, Collapse into Now is giving it a run for its money. With such a huge influx of music in such a short time, I still wanted more. I didn’t want to wait for the next album to hear some R.E.M. songs I never heard before. So, I hit the record store circuit and started buying singles.

I scoured record stores in Indianapolis, Lafayette, Bloomington, and Louisville, looking for singles with b-side songs I had not heard before. I found a lot of success along the way, not only with CD singles, but with 12” and 7” vinyl singles, too. Some record stores even had bootleg concerts for sale on CD, which I was more than willing to shell out extra cash for. I was amassing quite the collection, and then I discovered eBay.

eBay was a dangerous place for me. Every single I didn’t have, every poster I ever wanted, rare memorabilia, everything was there for the picking; it just depended how much I was willing to spend. Admittedly, sometimes I may have spent too much, but I don’t regret a single purchase. I was now in the thick of my R.E.M. collecting phase, and the band had since released Up and Reveal. It was about this same time when Napster came rolling along.

I really enjoyed Napster because I was able to pick and choose what R.E.M. songs I wanted, and they were free. Granted, I had almost every song, but there were a few surprises like “I Walked With A Zombie” here and there. Once Napster was gone, I found out about a peer-to-peer sharing site that specialized in live concerts. Suddenly, I had at my fingertips countless live R.E.M. performances spanning their entire career. Even better, I no longer had to pay $30 to own the performance; I could get it free. Needless to say, I downloaded just about every concert I could find.

Looking back, the peak of my obsession was in 2005 when I listened to all the concerts I had in chronological order. It was probably 200 or so concerts, and it took me several months to get through them all. Those concerts were the only music I listened to; it was fun, but I don’t think I would do it again.

Since then, things have slowed down quite a bit. I no longer feel compelled to listen to every concert, and I have pretty much tapped out the collectables market. There are still some elusive items like the "Gardening at Night" gardening gloves, a Dead Letter Office letter opener, a Fables of the Reconstruction book, and an R.E.M. backpack. I occasionally check eBay for those items, but I haven’t had any luck in a long time.

After the lackluster Around the Sun, R.E.M. rebounded with Accelerate and Collapse Into Now. The latter being their best album since New Adventures in Hi-Fi, in my opinion. It has been a wonderful ride being an R.E.M. fan for all these years. My highest high came in 2008 when I decided use most of my R.E.M. shirts to make a quilt. After posting the quilt on latent chestnut, remhq posted a link to it on their website. I don’t think it could get any better than that.

I think it goes without saying that I am deeply saddened that I may never hear a new R.E.M. song again.  The anticipation of a new album, the thrill and rush of hearing those new songs for the first time, stumbling through the lyrics as I try to learn the words, I want to experience it all again. I do understand their decision and wish them all the best; and I will always be a fan. I am happy to have been able to go to several concerts since I started following them.  That said, here’s hoping the reunion tour comes sooner rather than later!

For whatever it's worth, thank you R.E.M.!

R.E.M. 31

31 years ago, R.E.M. performed for the first time.  "Blue", the twelfth and final track on Collapse Into Now, has the feel of "Country Feedback" meets "E-bow the Letter" meets "Belong."  Some of my favorite R.E.M. songs.  "Blue" is the only song on the album whose lyrics are not included in the liner notes.  I found the lyrics online and wanted to share here as part of my R.E.M. birthday celebration.

Feels circus left the stakes a broken ropes useless mug

The ties that bind, ha ha

I can be bad poet

Street poet

Shit poet

Kind poet too

Subway

Almost 4AM

Halloween night

Had enough to drink to make my own party

All my fellow writers in half costume, half asleep

Half silly, gone to seed

I don't mark my time with dates, holidays, faded wisdom, locked karma, whatever's

Convenient

I am made by my times

I am a creation of now

Shaken with the cracks and crevices

I'm not giving up easy

I will not fold

I don't have much

But what I have is gold

I sing in platinum

I dress in brass

I eat in zinc

Let it pass

Compare a toast

I like that

I understand courage

I still roll with the shout of a character I was married to today

I try to see outside myself

I understand the eyes

Excuse all the highs

Sorry

I am sorry

Ha ha

I like you, love you, every coast of you.

I've seen your eddies and tides and hurricanes and cyclones.

Low ebb tide and high, full moon.

Up close and distant.

I read you like the sky, the sea, the ocean, the sun, the moon.

Blue, blue, blue, blue, blue, blue, blue blue, blue, blue, blue, blue.

Naked and blue.

Breathing with you. Touch. Change. Shift. Allow air. Window open. Drift. Drift away. Into now.

I want Whitman proud. Patti Lee proud. My brothers proud. My sisters proud. I want me. I want it all. I want sensational. Irresistible.

This is my time and I am thrilled to be alive.

Living

Blessed

I understand

Twentieth century

Collapse Into Now

Losing Shiny Happy People

REM - Shiny Happy People

There is a story on R.E.M.'s official website entitled 20 Years of Losing My Religion.  It pays homage to, arguably, R.E.M.'s most popular song.  Plus there are 14 different videos for your viewing pleasure.  Seeing this tribute got me thinking about how the album Out of Time also contains the song that R.E.M. seems to hide from the most, "Shiny Happy People". 

"Shiny Happy People" was the second single from Out of Time and is the last R.E.M. song to reach the top ten on the Billboard Hot 100.  I can remember hearing the song on Z93 while riding the school bus, and it always brought a smile to my face. 

R.E.M. has not performed the song live on tour since it was released, which is kind of strange for a top 10 hit.  "Losing My Religion", on the other hand, has been a staple of an R.E.M. concert since it's release.  "Shiny Happy People" also did not appear on the bands latest greatest hits album, In Time: The Best of R.E.M.  Curious, to say the least.  R.E.M. has only had four top ten hits, and they put the others on greatest hits compilations.

Perhaps they never played it on tour because they didn't have an way to replace Kate Peirson, but that didn't stop them from performing "E-bow the Letter" without Patti Smith a few times.  Maybe the guys will dust it off one of these days.  After all, they did perform "Kohoutek" after vowing never to play it live, and it wasn't ever released as a single.

"Shiny Happy People", for better or for worse, is a part of R.E.M., and I embrace it and sing along every time it comes up on my playlist.  It may not be the best R.E.M. song, but it's a darn good fun-loving bubblegum pop song.

Überlin

I watched this lyric video last night and couldn't find a way to post it.  Thankfully, R.E.M. put it up on their YouTube page today; so, here it is.  I haven't been putting up all the other lyric videos R.E.M. has been sharing, but I think this one is definitely worth a listen.  Enjoy!

Best of the season from R.E.M.

R.E.M. is feeling quite generous this holiday season.  Pre-order "COLLAPSE INTO NOW" on iTunes and instantly download It Happened Today.  I figured since I am going to buy the album anyway, I might as well do the pre-order to get the new song.  R.E.M. also released a lyric video for the song, so you can hear it before you buy it.



Also available for your viewing pleasure is a trailer for "COLLAPSE INTO NOW" featuring some live in studio snippets of some of the new songs.  Lots of new and exciting news on the R.E.M. front!  What a nice way to get into the Christmas spirit.

Discovering Discoverer

It's been quite a week to be an R.E.M. fan. First, I received the fan club Christmas package which included a Christmas card, 2011 calendar, and a CD. The CD includes Mike Mills singing "Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)," featuring Bill Berry on drums, and an instrumental mashup of three tracks off their next album, COLLAPSE INTO NOW, entitled “IHT>U>EDIYTW (Dubmix).” Based on the title, I assume the three songs are “It Happened Today,” “Uberlin” and “Every Day Is Yours to Win.” It was a wonderful early Christmas present indeed.

Little did I know, R.E.M. was just starting to spread the holiday cheer. On Wednesday, I was browsing through facebook and saw R.E.M. posted a link to download the first track of COLLAPSE INTO NOW. The song is called "Discoverer," and as soon as I got home, I downloaded it. I love the thrill of hearing a new R.E.M. song for the first time. I probably have a goofy smile on my face the whole time. The song does not disappoint, either. I found myself thinking that this song would fit perfectly on the album, Green, it has a "Turn You Inside Out" feel to it; which is definitely a good thing. Have a listen:



You can own the song for free, too. Just go to http://remhq.com/get-discoverer.php, enter your e-mail address and country, and a link to the song will be sent to your inbox. Mine was marked as spam, so I didn't know I had it at first, but it was sent almost immediately.  My excitement for COLLAPSE INTO NOW has increased tenfold, March 8th can't come fast enough!  Free previews to R.E.M. albums don't come along too often, especially in the form of a full length song, don't miss this opportunity!

Where is "When I Was Young"?

On June 5th, I posted about the expanded 25th Anniversary 2CD and digital edition of R.E.M.'s 1985 album, Fables Of The Reconstruction.  I was excited about the bonus disc containing an unreleased demo titled "Throw Those Trolls Away."  To the best of my knowledge, I had never heard that song before and was looking froward to hearing a 'new' song from one of my favorite periods of the band.

As it turns out, I had heard the song before.  It was performed live on April 28, 1985 and I have a copy of that recording.  I suppose hearing a new R.E.M. song from 1985 was too good to be true, but it was fun to hear the demo of the song.  There was also a bit of confusion.

Included in the artwork for the Fables Of The Reconstruction album was a track list that included a song titled "When I Was Young."  Years ago, when I first saw this track list, I was intrigued about what happened to the song.  Why didn't R.E.M. decide to include it on the album?  Years later, when I was amassing my collection of concerts, I was thrilled to see "When I Was Young" listed on one of the set lists.  When I first heard it, it sounded an awful lot like the song "I Believe" from R.E.M.'s next album Lifes Rich Pageant in 1986.  I figured it was just retitled and reworked for the Lifes Rich Pageant.

Granted, titles for new songs listed on a bootleg concert should be taken with a grain of salt, but "When I Was Young" sure sounded like the correct title.  It seemds to me that "Throw Those Trolls Away" was not the name of that song back then, especially since a song by the name of "When I Was Young" is listed on the album artwork and "When I was young" are the first words to the song itself.  I guess it will just remain a mystery.  Perhaps the "When I Was Young" listed on the album artwork is a different song entirely.  Though, I doubt it.

I do believe that "When I Was Young" became "I Believe."  Maybe this was common knowledge and the band decided to change the name to "Throw Those Trolls Away" to drive album sales.  Maybe it just sounded cooler to have a song with 'trolls' in the title.  I have posted "Throw Those Trolls Away" and "I Believe" for comparisons sake.  The picture for "Throw Those Trolls Away" is from the Fables of the Reconstruction artwork and "When I Was Young" is listed on the second line.

I'm sure I have put way too much thought into this...

Fables 25th Anniversary

Mark your calendars again!  R.E.M. will be releasing an expanded 25th Anniversary 2CD and digital edition of their 1985 album, Fables Of The Reconstruction on July 13th.  The package features the digitally remastered original album, plus 14 previously unreleased demo recordings, including a track I have never even heard of.  Hard to believe, I know!  I don't know how this track has eluded me for all these years.  The song is called "Throw Those Trolls Away" and I am really excited about hearing it for the first time.

The reissue of Fables Of The Reconstruction is a bit of a departure from the anniversary editions of Murmur and Reckoning because is does not include a live concert from time the album was origically released.  I am a bit bummed because the concerts from the Reconstruction tour are my favorite.  I'm sure the demos will be a lot of fun to listen to though, and I have enough unofficial recordings of the 1985 concerts to keep me happy.  I was just anticipating having a crisp clean sounding concert from that era.

Fables Of The Reconstruction is my favorite R.E.M. album from the I.R.S. years.  Peter Buck best decribes the songs on the album by calling them "character filled and vibey."  The album evokes many images and colloquialisms from the south, and most of the songs have a storytelling feel to them.  My favorite song from the album is "Good Advices" and it defines what an R.E.M. song is to me.  Take a listen...



When you greet a stranger look at his shoes
Keep your money in your shoes put your trouble behind
When you greet a stranger look at her hands
Keep your money in your hands put your travel behind
Who are you going to call for, what do you have to say
Keep your hat on your head home is a long way away
At the end of the day, I'll forget your name
I'd like it here if I could leave and see you from a long way away

When you greet a stranger, look at her shoes
Keep you memories in your shoes, put your travel behind
Who are you going to call for, what do you have to say
Keep your hat on your head
Home is a long way away
At the end of the day, when there are no friends
When there are no lovers, who are you going to call for
What do you have to change

A familiar face a foreign place I forget your name
I'd like it here if I could leave and see you from a long way away
Who are you going to call for, what do you have to say
Keep your hat on your head
Home is a long way away

One 'Monster' of an apron!

I received a marvelous birthday present in the mail today courtesy of Eva & Daniel.  A handmade apron complete with the R.E.M. Monster logo! 

The Monster design is flawless and the fabric patterns and colors are perfect.  If R.E.M. were to design their own apron, no doubt, this is what it would look like.  Eva and Daniel, you truly captured the essence of R.E.M. with this apron.  It will surely get plenty of use in my kitchen, and I can't wait to do some baking with 'What's the Frequency, Kenneth?' blaring in the background!

Thank you Eva and Daniel for such a thoughtful and unique birthday present!

Happy 30th R.E.M.!

On April 5, 1980 R.E.M. performed live for the first time. Seeing how this is their 30th birthday, I found myself reflecting on my favorite R.E.M. song. There are about five songs that immediately come to mind as potential candidates, but the one song that strikes the greatest resonance and stirs the most emotion in me is "Find the River".

"Find the River" is the twelfth and final track on Automatic for the People. It is a perfect song. Better yet, a perfect R.E.M. song. All of the elements that make R.E.M. great are there, but what stand out the most to me are the harmonies. The just continue to build throughout the song, then by the end, they are so powerful, I always get a little choked up.

Like a lot of R.E.M. songs, there is not one clear interpretation, so the listener is able to give whatever meaning he or she sees fit. It is one aspect of the band I particularly enjoy. The different ways to hear the songs keep them fresh, and keep them relevant. I could have heard this song one way when it was released in 1993, and a completely different way now in 2010. But no matter how I interpret the lyrics, there is one constant, it is an absolutely beautiful song.

Whenever I hear the opening chords to the song, no matter what I'm doing, I stop and listen. So, now that I have built it up to a point where the expectations are unrealistically high, here is the song for you to listen to. Please take time and listen to it in recognition of the 30th birthday of one of the greatest bands of all time! Hopefully it lives up to all my hype. I also posted the lyrics, too, because they are equally moving. Enjoy!



Hey now, little speedyhead,
the read on the speedmeter says
you have to go to task in the city
where people drown and people serve.
Don't be shy. Your just deserve
is only just light years to go.

Me, my thoughts are flower strewn
ocean storm, bayberry moon.
I have got to leave to find my way.
Watch the road and memorize
this life that pass before my eyes.
Nothing is going my way.

The ocean is the river's goal,
a need to leave the water knows
We're closer now than light years to go.

I have got to find the river,
bergamot and vetiver
run through my head and fall away.
Leave the road and memorize
this life that pass before my eyes.
Nothing is going my way.

There's no one left to take the lead,
but I tell you and you can see
we're closer now than light years to go.
Pick up here and chase the ride.
The river empties to the tide.
Fall into the ocean.

The river to the ocean goes,
a fortune for the undertow.
None of this is going my way.
There is nothing left to throw
of Ginger, lemon, indigo,
coriander stem and rose of hay.
Strength and courage overrides
the privileged and weary eyes
of river poet search naivete.
Pick up here and chase the ride.
The river empties to the tide.
All of this is coming your way

March

An early R.E.M. demo, dubbed "March". It would later become one of my all time favorite R.E.M. songs, "King of Birds".

Happy March everybody! Bring on spring!

End of Reckoning

I have all the R.E.M. albums on vinyl even though I don't have a record player. I also have a nice collection of 12" and 7" singles hanging on the wall in my den, though that's another post. I procured most of the albums through eBay. I remember when bidding on the Reckoning album, the item description mentioned additional music at the end of the album that was left off the CD. This piece of information was intriguing; yet, after I got the album, I never found a record player to listen to it.

R.E.M. released a 2 disc 25th anniversary edition of the album last year, and being such an avid R.E.M. fan, I dutifully added it to my collection. Even though my primary music distribution method for my music id through my iPod, I still like to buy the physical CD when it comes to R.E.M.; don't ask me why. I put the album on my iPod, but I also put the CD in the Civic to see just how much better it sounded now that it has been digitally remastered.

To my delight, it did sound better than the old CD I had. I was driving along one day and a piece of music came on that I had never heard before. I started the track from the beginning and it was "Little America". I was a bit confused, but I listened to the song the whole way through and after the song was over, there was a pause and then this:



It was the hidden music that I had read about several year ago. I completely forgot about it, but was tickled to finally be able to listen to it. I'm glad R.E.M. decided to put it on the remastered CD. It was fun hearing an some old R.E.M. music I had never heard before. It got me thinking, though, is this all they intended this song to be? Just 40 seconds at the end of the record? An unfinished track perhaps? I may never know, but it's good to hear it, nonetheless.

fascinating

I've latched on
I've been wrong
no one told me what to wear
no one sent me home
space age party, fascinating
I just don't fit in
someone throw me anything
the oxygen is thin

if you just could speak to me
just throw me a line
give me just a little nod
I could fascinate you

but I am out of place
float in outer space
no one wants to pull me in
it's awful saving face
I could fascinate
I could serenade
I'm opinionated
I'll have Vodka lemonade

if you just could me speak to me
just throw me a line
give me just a little nod
you are fascinating

I could serenade

we could throw this party
and take off on our own
find our own higher place
an odyssey back home

I could not be less included
you could not have known
in my darkest rose and pennant
I am so alone

if you just can speak to me
just throw me a line
give me just a little nod
you are fascinating
I could serenade

I could fascinate you
I could resonate

Working in Lafayette has given me a chance to get reacquainted with some music I haven't heard in a long time. I just load up my iPod with as many songs as it can hold, set it to 'shuffle', and I have a pretty good variety for the hour long drive home. "Fascinating" came up in the queue the other day, and even though I am normally in the mood for up-tempo music on the drive, I listened to it.

Fascinating was never commercially released and was only available as a download to the aptly nicknamed "Reveal 1.0" album. "Reveal 1.0" is the February 2001 master of the Reveal album. This first master included "Fascinating" and some alternate versions of some of the songs that were released on the album. Apparently, the band felt this song slowed down the already slow album a bit too much.

But anyway, I remember first listening to "Fascinating" in 2001 and it really stirred up a lot of emotion in me. I could really identify with the character in the song, and it pretty much sums up my entire high school experience. Listening to it again so many years later brought back the same emotions, yet, with a confidence and new outlook that wasn't there before.

It was kind of weird to hear it in that respect, and I don't even know if what I just wrote makes any sense. But, that's the best way I know how to describe it. I think it has a lot to do with being comfortable with myself, who I am, really knowing who I really am now. It's a good song, but I can see why they left it off the album. After hearing it again, I just wanted to share it here.

The R.E.M. Starter Kit

I was met with a challenge by a fellow co-worker the other day, a challenge I haven't had the opportunity to take advantage of in some time. She asked me to make her an R.E.M. CD. Talk about pressure. I haven't made an R.E.M. CD for anyone in a long time. I stopped my personal crusade to spread the music to unsuspecting souls long ago. Just because they are my favorite band, doesn't mean they have to be everyone else's. But, when asked, I couldn't pass up the opportunity.

I wanted the CD to be a good representation of the band, highlighting some of my favorite songs mixed in with some "classic" R.E.M. sounds. It was quite hard to narrow down my favorites to fit on one CD and then to arrange then in order so that the music flowed; something my mom taught me. Eighty minutes of music is not much to convert someone into an instant R.E.M. fan, but this is my best attempt.

After I chose the songs for the CD, I realized a lot of them were some of my first favorites. I still remember playing Donkey Kong Country in the basement with Angela with "Driver 8" blaring away. We had a five disc CD changer and it was usually filled with only R.E.M.; at least if I had my way. That's probably why I am so fond of the alternate versions of "Gardening at Night" and "Radio Free Europe"; because Eponymous was always in the mix.

The songs I chose are a representation of the best of what R.E.M. has given us so far. I made the playlist in iTunes and remembered a feature called an iMix that allows one to share any given playlist with the world. I thought it would be neat to post my playlist as an iMix and post it here on latent chestnut. Now everyone knows my favorite R.E.M. songs. I feel so exposed. Below I posted the cover art I made for the disc, so if anyone feels so inclined to create this CD for themselves, go right ahead. I hope you enjoy the music!

this is not a show

I was looking forward to this new R.E.M. release, but after watching this trailer, I can hardly contain my excitement!

Lightnin' Hopkins - Embryonic

"Lightnin' Hopkins" is the ninth track on R.E.M.'s fifth studio album Document released in 1987. The track shares it's name with Sam "Lightnin'" Hopkins, a country blues guitarist from Texas.
The similarities end there, as it is widely assumed that the song really has no meaning at all. The song is also recognized for Bill Berry's drumming, which is pretty much the most frenetic and busy performance of any R.E.M. song.

I'm not a huge fan of the song, but my mom likes it a lot. Any time we talk about it and I tell her it's not one of my favorites, she always says, "But what about the drums!?" The early version takes place at McCabe's Guitar shop just a few months before Document was released in 1987. I also provided the album version for comparisons sake. This one's for you, Mom. Enjoy!

September's coming soon...

"Nightswimming" is the eleventh track from R.E.M.'s 1992 album, Automatic for the People. It is yet another R.E.M. song that I enjoy singing to Ari & Emilie before bed; and a song that I feel is a fitting tribute to the end of summer. Enjoy!

Nightswimming deserves a quiet night.
The photograph on the dashboard, taken years ago,
Turned around backwards so the windshield shows.
Every streetlight reveals the picture in reverse.
Still, its so much clearer.
I forgot my shirt at the waters edge.
The moon is low tonight.

Nightswimming deserves a quiet night.
I'm not sure all these people understand.
It's not like years ago,
The fear of getting caught,
Of recklessness and water.
They cannot see me naked.
These things, they go away,
Replaced by everyday.

Nightswimming, remembering that night.
September's coming soon.
I'm pining for the moon.
And what if there were two
Side by side in orbit
Around the fairest sun?
That bright, tight forever drum
Could not describe nightswimming.

You, I thought I knew you.
You I cannot judge.
You, I thought you knew me,
This one laughing quietly underneath my breath.
Nightswimming.

The photograph reflects,
Every streetlight a reminder.
Nightswimming deserves a quiet night, deserves a quiet night.

A moment of unadulterated delight

My anguish from not winning Good Eats 'Great Fan' contest was eased when I happened upon this link on the REM official website.

Scroll down to the last section labeled 'I Don't Sleep, I Dream' and click on the link. I was pleasantly surprised to see where it took me. I can't seem to wipe the smile off my face.

The R.E.M. Quilt

My quilt is finished and functional! No longer are my old R.E.M. shirts destined for a life of darkness and squalor in my bedroom closet. No! They have been given new life, a breath of fresh air and a chance to be apart of something so much bigger; united as one. Their destiny has been fulfilled and they will live on to be enjoyed by all who snuggle in their warm embrace.

Well, maybe I shouldn't be so dramatic...

I am happy though, a project that started in January after being conceived the month prior is finally finished. With the invaluable help of Eva and Katie, my dream was realized, and I truly couldn't have done it without them for so many reasons. Thank you Eva and Katie for all you have done for me!

I ended up tying the quilt layers together which proved to be quite time consuming. I'm sure I did more than a few things to make the traditional quilter cringe, but I got it done nonetheless. I ended up using two colors of embroidery thread to make the ties because I couldn't decide which one to use. That decision alone caused me many more hours of work.

Here is a peak at the back of my quilt to show the ties:


Pictures I took of the quilt didn't look a whole lot different from my last post showing the completed front, so I took a picture of it folded to show it is quite a bit thicker with the three layers.
I am also glad to report that is fits perfectly on our queen bed.
Looks pretty good, huh?

I absolutely love my quilt and I am so glad I decided to do it. It was so nerve racking cutting that first shirt, but the payoff was more than worth it. The memories ingrained in those shirts and in making this quilt are priceless and I will cherish them forever.

Please click the 'r.e.m. quilt' label in order to see the different stages of the quilt.