Artists run in my family. My grandmother is an artist, and so are some of her children, while I like to dabble in painting and collage. My husband’s family also is artsy; he’s a graphic designer and photographer, and his late grandfather was a painter and photographer as well. Unfortunately, I can’t reveal his name for privacy reasons, but take it from me, Pops did some cool work. A lot of the time his subject of choice was his wife, and I have some really neat photographs that he took of her. The painting above is also of my husband’s grandmother; my mother-in-law recently unearthed it (along with some others) and sent a scanned copy to me. I hope to see the original one day, because this piece has style and flair!

I don’t wear t-shirts all that often, mainly because the basic, baggy shape is just not flattering on me. However, on days when I’m hanging around the house, going to the grocery store, or working out, I like a good, comfy shirt. And this one is perfect for me: “meh” is pretty much my standard response to everything (thank you, Lisa Simpson). So, to all the cynical, the apathetic, the Simpsons fans…go order the shirt. Then you won’t even have to speak; your shirt will do the talking for you.

My husband and I both love music (he blogs about it, I used to make a living from it) but we approach music quite differently, and therefore have vastly different opinions about what makes a piece or a song “good.” He is supremely interested in the actual music, i.e. the notes, chords, arrangements, etc. While I also appreciate these aspects, lyrics are also very important to me. I’ve always been a word person; I love to read and write, and I have a true love of poetry. Therefore, my favorite music occurs when an artist combines beautiful words with fantastic music arrangement. So, without further ado, here are today’s lyrics of the day. I really like Jewel’s 1998 album Spirit, so I’m offering up the lyrics from two different songs:

Absence Of Fear

Inside my skin there is this space
It twists and turns
It bleeds and aches
Inside my heart there’s an empty room
It’s waiting for lightning
It’s waiting for you
And I am wanting
And I am needing you here
Inside the absence of fear
Muscle and sinew
Velvet and stone
This vessel is haunted
It creaks and moans
My bones call to you
In their separate skin
I make myself translucent
To let you in, for
I am wanting
And I am needing of you here
Inside the absence of fear
there is this hunger
This restlessness inside of me
and it knows that you’re no stranger
you’re my gravity
My hands will adore you through all darkness aim
They will lay you out in moonlight
And reinvent your name
For I am wanting you
And I am needing you here
I need you near
Inside the absence of fear

Life Uncommon

Don’t worry mother, it’ll be all right
And don’t worry sister, say your prayers and sleep tight
It’ll be fine lover of mine
It’ll be just fine
Lend your voices only to sounds of freedom
No longer lend you strength to that which you wish to be free from
Fill your lives with love and bravery
And you shall lead a life uncommon
I’ve heard your anguish
I’ve heard your hearts cry out
We are tired, we are weary, but we aren’t worn out
set down your chains, until only faith remains
Set down your chains
And lend your voices only to sounds of freedom
No longer lend your strength to that
which you wish to be free from
Fill your lives with love and bravery
And we shall lead a life uncommon
There are plenty of people who pray for peace
But if praying were enough it would have come to be
Let your words enslave no one and the heavens will hush themselves
To hear our voices ring out clear
with sounds of freedom
sounds of freedom
Come on you unbelievers, move out of the way
there is a new army coming and we are armed with faith
To live, we must give
To live
And lend our voices only to sounds of freedom
No longer lend our strength to that which we with to be free
from
Fill your lives with love and bravery
And we shall lead
Lend our voices only to sounds of freedom
No longer lent our strength to that which we with to be free from
Fill your lives with love and bravery
And we shall lead a life uncommon

In the fourth season premiere episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, a group of vampires steal a poster from a freshman dorm room. They then take bets on whether it will be a Monet or a Klimt; it turns out to be the latter, and is added to a collection of Waterlilies and Kisses. The lead vampire’s response? "Freshmen. They’re so predictable." 

I’ve always been both amused and annoyed by this scene. On one hand, it is a pretty accurate description of dorm art. On the other, it pokes fun at two of my favorite artists. I too have a large print of Monet’s waterlilies, which I purchased more than 10 years ago at a fantastic Monet exhibit at the New Orleans Musem of Art. I also have a framed Klimt print, but it isn’t The Kiss. It’s Expectation, which seems to be a far less popular work. My husband doesn’t like it, so my copy is in storage in the attic, but I think it’s a beautiful, fascinating piece. Ever wanted to know more about Gustav Klimt? Here’s a short bio, courtesy of Grove Art Online:

Klimt, Gustav

(b Baumgarten, nr Vienna, 14 July 1862; d Vienna, 6 Feb 1918).
Austrian painter and draughtsman. A leading exponent of Art Nouveau, Klimt is considered one of the greatest decorative painters of the 20th century. His depictions of the femme fatale and his drawings treating the theme of female sexuality have assured him a place in the history of erotic art. He is remembered for his role in the formation of the Vienna Secession, the radical group of Austrian artists of which he became the first president in 1897, and also for the frequent scandals and protests that marked his later career. These contrast strikingly with the public and official approval that marked him out as a young artist of promise, even before he graduated from the Vienna Kunstgewerbeschule in 1883.

Sarah McLachlan, Do What You Have to Do

What ravages of spirit
Conjured this temptuous rage
Created you a monster
Broken by the rules of love
And fate has lead you through it
You do what you have to do
And fate has led you through it
You do what you have to do …And I have the sense to recognize that
I don’t know how to let you go
Every moment marked
With apparitions of your soul
I’m ever swiftly moving
Trying to escape this desire
The yearning to be near you
I do what I have to do
The yearning to be near you
I do what I have to do
But I have the sense to recognize

That I don’t know how
To let you go
I don’t know how
To let you go

A glowing ember
Burning hot
Burning slow
Deep within I’m shaken by the violence
Of existing for only you

I know I can’t be with you
I do what I have to do
I know I can’t be with you
I do what I have to do
And I have sense to recognize but
I don’t know how to let you go
I don’t know how to let you go
I don’t know how to let you go