Friday, June 7, 2013

Weekly Wrap-Up (6.7.13)

Rock On, Cheerios
Have you seen the newest Cheerios television commercial? The one with the white mom and the black dad? The one in which their little girl, who is a beautiful mix of her two parents, sweetly tries to use Cheerios to improve her dad's heart health? Apparently this commercial has a lot of folks "hot under the collar", but I'm going on record to say that I love it.


Our differences - from the color of our skin to our religion to our sexuality - are actually what unify us as a people. For while we are all different, it is our differences that make us essentially the same: we are all unique individuals, worthy and deserving of respect and kindness from our fellow human beings. Our differences should be celebrated instead of ignored - or worse, used as fuel to spread anger and hatred - and perhaps this commercial is one small step in the right direction.

A New Group of Friends
As a farewell to college and a tribute to their friendship, a group of graduating seniors from Elon University recreated and filmed their own version - which is almost identical, from the setting to the props to the costumes - of the iconic Friends theme song ("I'll Be There for You" by The Rembrandts). Their video is as close to the original as any I've seen, and I suppose it'll do - something needs to fill the void - while all of us Friends Superfans wait for news of a Friends reunion.


Top 16 Summer Beers
Nothing will EVER top Blue Moon for me, but for those of you looking to mix it up when it comes to your summer beverage selections, check out the top 16 summer beers as chosen by the team at "Paste: Signs of Life in Music, Film, and Culture". (#2 and #3 come from Michigan!) Maybe I will have to try something new this year...

For The Longest Time
Every year on Valentine's Day, the choir department at my high school ran a fundraiser called "Singing Valentines". A month or so prior to Valentine's Day, small groups of choir members prepared and auditioned love-themed acapella (no instruments) songs. A couple of weeks later, students started purchasing Singing Valentine's for their friends, boyfriends/girlfriends, and crushes. And then, on Valentine's Day, the singing groups traveled the school "delivering" the Singing Valentines - which included the song, sung directly to the recipient, along with a rose - to the students for whom they were purchased.

One Valentine's Day, the boy on whom I had a crush - a choir member with an amazing voice - and his group sang "For The Longest Time". When my group wasn't actively singing, we followed their group around the school building, listening to and watching them perform. Since then, hearing the song on the radio - though I don't hear it very often - brings him and what was an enjoyable high school experience to mind.

Toward the end of the spring 2013 television season, characters on two popular shows - How I Met Your Mother and Glee - performed "For the Longest Time". I loved both versions, and I love that this older song is making a comeback.



The combination of catchy tune, the simple lyrics, and the interesting harmonies gives me goose bumps every time.

MomsEveryday: It's All Fun and Games Until Someone Pees on the Patio
In case you missed it the first time around, last week MomsEveryday ran on their website my story about how Hallie "livened up" a recent dinner out with friends. Luckily we've nothing similar has happened since that day...

Happy weekend, friends!

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