A few weeks ago I stumbled onto this site and, on a whim, joined The Great Blogger CD Swap of 2006. I meant to advertise it here, really I did, but all my blabber about heathenism and color correction did zip to keep me focused about what truly matters in life, which, duh, is your Internet audience. Anyway, I mailed CDs to group members Sarah, Dawnie, and Carla yesterday morning, as well as one to Fraulein N because upon reviewing her song list I begged her to send me a copy, provided she was secure enough in her womanhood to receive a disc that features a song from Hanson.
Since I planned on posting my liner notes once the CDs were mailed, I thought I'd go the extra mile and continue with the whole "Life in Pictures" idea I had oh, TWO MONTHS AGO. So yes. Cheesy pictures set to admittedly questionable music. Lucky, lucky you.
Frema's High School Musical: 1994-1998
“Mmmbop,” Hanson
My love for boy bands and Bad Pop has already been documented here, so that needs no explanation. Also, I thought starting the mix off with this track would give an accurate first impression to my group members, all of whom are learning about my world for the first time, as in, I'm so boptastic, you may spontaneously burst into song about planting seeds and flowers and roses (as if roses weren't flowers themselves) in my honor.
Man, I rocked this CD so hard. It was in constant rotation from the summer before senior year all the way through my freshman year at Saint Joe. And I was not ashamed. I would drag my Memorex boom box into the living room and just jam to the grooviness of this song. The vocabulary alone--stellar!
Even MORE stellar is my high school uniform, which comprised a polo, sweater (sleeveless vest or long-sleeved), and the ever-popular plaid skort. This photo was taken at the hospital right next to the school, where many Mystics flocked to pay their candy-striper dues by stuffing charts and refilling ice-water buckets in patients' rooms. It was the first time I ever encountered the smell of death. But it was fun.
I was barely fifteen when this was taken for the school's view book, and it's painfully obvious I have not yet mastered the ability to do good hair, or even decent hair, because my bangs were accepting admission for their own private roller coaster. They were in operation every day until my mother bought me a flat iron, an act that has no doubt secured her a spot in Heaven.
“Bullet With Butterfly Wings,” Smashing Pumpkins
I was an Angsty pre-teen, predispositioned to enjoy the melancholy sounds of Jeffrey Osborne and Rod Stewart, but it was in high school I discovered Slightly Angry Angst, the kind of Angst that birthed poetry stanzas like "Give me a light while I drink this beer / I'm wasting away in my own private hell." Seems appropriate that I enjoyed this song, though the whole world and vampire metaphor was a bit much, even for me.
“Not the Doctor,” Alanis Morissette
When Jagged Little Pill came out, I was fifteen and didn't know what it meant to go down on someone in a theatre. I loved the song, though, and I LOOOOVED this cassette. (Yes, cassette, I didn't get a CD player until I was sixteen, you wanna start somethin'?) I played it when tackling theorums for geometry, when leaving messages on the answering machine of The Boyfriend Who Went Three Weeks Without Calling, with desperate messages to the tune of "Call meeee. Am the soul mate of Mr. Lonelyyy. Am crying RIGHT NOW."
I chose this song because it was one of my favorites; also, I figured everyone and their mother would include "You Oughta Know" on their compilation. Outfoxed you all, I have!
My costume for the role of Peter Quince in Maria's production of A Midsummer Night's Dream, also known as My Imitation of Mel Gibson in Braveheart. Be sure to check out that five o'clock shadow. Can you believe I didn't have a boyfriend?
“When You Come Back To Me,” World Party
Soundtracks were huge in the nineties, and the one for Reality Bites may go down in history as one of the best, simply because it features Ethan Hawke singing about a pothead momma and a cokehead dad, after he and Winona Ryder bumped uglies for the first time and he fled the scene, just like Harry did in When Harry Met Sally, only he didn't offer to take Winona to dinner later, he just went to the bar and played loud music and waited for Winona to show up, only Ben Stiller's character showed up, too, and Ethan Hawke had to be a huge tool and sing that song about why can't he get just one kiss.
This song isn't from that scene, though. It's near the beginning of the movie, when Jeanine Garofalo is writing down the names of all her sexual conquests. It seemed Very Adult at the time. Now? Just Very, Very Sad. Not to mention Really Slutty.
“Alone,” Lisa Loeb & Nine Stories
Another instance where I pull a fast one on the masses by refusing to include "Stay," even though I loved it (also on the Reality Bites soundtrack, by the way) and thought Lisa Loeb had a very delicate yet Deep and Soul-Searching voice. This one's from Tails, her first album, which also includes "Stay," and is lots of fun.
“Who Will Save Your Soul,” Jewel
I loved Jewel and her willingness to talk about Love and Humanity and We're All Beautiful and fearlessness in lecturing us not to Hate That Ugly Girl, Because She's Pieces of You. So deep!
"Fade Into You,” Mazzy Star
Confession: I don't know the words to this song. Hell, I don't even know what it's about. I just remember thinking that the sound of this woman's voice was enough to answer all questions about the universe and my place in it. Am thinking they played this on the radio with snippets of dialogue from Natural Born Killers, which I rented once for my mother and me. We got about fifteen minutes in, to the part where they do that "I Love Lucy" parody and Rodney Dangerfield grabs Juliette Lewis's butt, before my mom turned it off and we popped in While You Were Sleeping, which educated us both on the significance of Leaning. That flick is one of my favorites to this day, partly because Bill Pullman is hand.SOME. and partly because it takes place in Chicago during a time when tokens were still in use on the Orange Line. I think the scenes were actually shot on the Brown Line, but whatever.
“Push,” Matchbox Twenty
Remember the controversy surrounding this song, because some people thought Rob Thomas was singing about wanting to knock around a woman? Dumb@$$e$.
Speaking of pushing, I spent the summer before my senior year pushing around a pretzel cart on the boardwalk at Chicago's Navy Pier. (Actually, it was a stationary cart, but the transition, it was flawless, no?) Here I am, properly overexposed to UV rays and mixing sugar for our cinnamon topping. And let me tell you: these pretzels are gooood because they are actually made in the store; none of that buy-'em-in-plastic-wrap-and-stick-'em-on-a-warming-rack business. WE sectioned off the dough; WE made pretty knots; WE burned our forearms getting them into the oven. If you ever visit Chicago and happen to hit the Pier, GET A DAMN PRETZEL and remember the girl who sent you.
Also, not only am I wearing my Kairos cross (more on that in a minute), I am WEARING A PEN ON MY KAIROS CROSS. Jesus died for my sins and I didn't have enough respect to keep Bic ink off his death bed. The fetish for The Precious was clearly out of control.
“Wannabe,” Spice Girls
I liked Hanson, people. Don't tell me you're surprised.
“Talk To Me,” Wild Orchid
I still love this song; these days, I try and figure out which parts were sung by Fergie and which ones were assigned to her Kids, Incorporated partner-in-crime-and-also-sister Rene. Rene must be so pissed now.
“I Guess That's Why They Call It The Blues,” Elton John
Did I not warn you I was Angsty and an easy listener?
“As I Lay Me Down,” Sophie B. Hawkins
I first discovered Sophie around the time 90210 was on, because they played "Damn, I Wish I Was Your Lover" during the summer Brenda was playing up to Dean Cain with her awful French accent and Dylan was giving "friendly" massages to Kelly at the beach house. Intrigued, it wasn't until this song came out I was completely sold. This is probably my favorite song of all time, as my entire family can testify, and yes, it made the wedding CD, and no, I don't think her back-up singers are really asking if we want a taco.
This picture makes me want to reach for a hankerchief, because God, how many times did Jason attend my high school dances, and how many times was my teenage self too chicken to just ask him the eff out? Instead I pawned him onto every friend I could, as if it were possible to date him by association, and those friends were usually more than happy to oblige, like Adele here on my left, who also worked with me at Pretzelmaker. She took Jason, and I took Jason's friend Eric, who was nice enough but had an oval-shaped head and wore gold rope chain necklaces, and I am of the mindset that no man should ever wear a gold rope chain necklace. (While we're at it, how about no jewelry on men at all? But I digress.) This picture also features my dear sister Samantha, who was on a date with Mike Brady, no lie, and our cousin Kenny on the far left, who was Samantha's friend Liz's date even though he was only thirteen because her original guy backed out at the last minute. Kenny's dad was so proud he brought Kenny to the dance himself, camera in tow, and make 8 x 10 prints of this shot for every single one of us.
“Good Enough,” Sarah McLachlan
Another song I really don't get the meaning of, but the music is haunting and Sarah McLachlan's voice is beautiful and it was how I came to know Sarah in the first place. Fumbling Towards Ecstasy is one of the best albums of that time.
“The Roof,” Mariah Carey
I was a devout MC fan until the release of Charm Bracelet, which means I subjected myself to the monstrosity that is Glitter. Feel free to weep.
This song is on Butterfly, and while there was a video for it, I don't think it received airtime. However, it's one of her sexier songs, and she looked so damn GOOD for this album--trim, in shape, with hair that wasn't flat-ironed to the side of her head. Those were the days.
“China,” Tori Amos
How many of you are familiar with Kairos--you know, the spiritual retreat where you spent four days in pseudo group therapy, listening to talks and songs and receiving absolution for the time you let your boyfriend stick his tongue in your ear? (So kinky!) I first heard Tori Amos during my junior year while on this retreat and was completely taken by her voice and lyrics. However, I was still horribly naive, and when listening to "Silent All These Years," I thought the line "Boy, you best pray that I bleed real soon" was totally a cheap shot at trying to be Deep With Intangible Ideas, because what in the hell could a line like that possibly mean?
And that's when I learned where babies come from.
Here's where I brag and tell you that, in my senior year of high school, I played "Anne with an e" in Anne of Green Gables. Only my production was more like Frema of The Obvious Hair Piece, because my red wig kept slipping to the back of my head, thus revealing my bangs, which had finally exited the nauseating roller coaster only to subject itself to a daily fake-and-bake with a flat iron. Also pictured: Samantha puckering up for the camera, while across from her is her then husband-to-be Dan. They met and fell in looove during the run of this play.
Change the World,” Eric Clapton
One of the best. love songs. ever.
“Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me, Kill Me,” U2
Very cool music; more importantly, it was played during the ending credits for Batman Forever, which provided the setting for my first-ever movie date, with Nick, the one with the aversion of actually having conversations with me more than twice a month. It was a fun date, though. Just holding hands was enough to send The Woman In Me to infatuationalistic heights. (Look at me totally reinventing American vernacular. Am freakin' genius!)
“To The Moon And Back,” Savage Garden
Please don't laugh. I was very young. I won't even tell you how--just months ago--I tried to feel out Luke's willingness to use "I Knew I Loved You" as our wedding song, because we danced to it the night of the auction.
This was taken at my "surprise" going-away-to-college party the month before I left for Saint Joe and features photographic evidence of Nick's floating head, a head we've already established was not so good with the whole phone bit. There's also a second ex in here, Kurt, and living proof of HIS existence is at the bottom of this photo. He was one of Jason's numerous botched attempts at a fix-up, and he eventually went on to hook up with two of my friends, which still amazes me because he really did leave a lot of spit on my face, so I wasn't all about giving a glowing recommendation. (I actually thought he was the bee's knees until I realized he'd attended community college for like, nine semesters and still didn't have an associate's degree, but even then I asked him to prom and he said yes but then took it back and said no, and apparently anger and humiliation were all I needed to find my balls, because I used them to finally ask Jason, who proceeded to balk and stammer and pretend he didn't Get it, so I finally asked Nick, who'd been hanging around since Easter, anyway, months after one of our set-your-watch-by-it break-ups, so now you know who's really to blame for me losing my virginity.)
One last note about the CDs: it wasn't until after I mailed them that I realized I could've been a little more upbeat in my selections; like, maybe Elton John was never meant to share the musical stage with Hanson, and the "chicka Cherry Cola" song from Savage Garden was probably better known. There's also a number of songs I thought about including but didn't, as well as songs I would have included had I more time to contemplate the play list. Therefore, I'll end this post with my honorable mentions:
"Ode to My Family," The Cranberries
"Sunny Came Home," Shawn Colvin
"Standing Outside a Broken Phone Booth With Money In My Hand," Primitive Radio Gods
"Far Behind," Candlebox
"I'll Be There For You," The Rembrandts
"These Are Days," 10,000 Maniacs
I was SO too cool for school.
Wow - first time ever being the first to comment on your blog...! How exciting, you being the mega star of blogging and all!
Anyway...I recognize some of those faces on there from Maria. Was that one picture on there from the "student lounge" that was down from the gym? I think I was in there once. It was where you cool theatre girls hung out!
Glad you threw a Sarah McLachlan song in there. I love her music.
Oh, and my friend Oneida, who also reads your blog also worked some summers at the Pretzel Maker. Maybe you two can swap some stories one day! She still owns 2 of their aprons!
Posted by: Jenabeeb | May 05, 2006 at 03:29 AM
Yes, Megastar of Blogging. I tell everyone that you are the Princess of Blogging.
But Princess Frema, I am flabbergasted, amazed, and surprised that the Peter Quince picture is you. Even now that I know, it is difficult to see the lovely Frema in the picture.
Fantastic
Posted by: mjd | May 05, 2006 at 10:00 AM
And, really, I thought the mutual love we had for Amalah and Noah, pre-teen lit and the whole nuptial-izing ("getting married" is sooo blase!) in 2006 was enough to prove we would so totally be real life friends, but um...your songs, they so remind me of my own life soundtrack (which also includes the very drama-surrounded song "I Can Love You Like That" by All 4 One...All 4 One, Frema, All 4 One...)! Funniest part of this whole thing is that on my drive home from work yesterday, guess what ENTIRE CD I listened to, and sang along to (loudly, with the windows all open)and knew every word to and felt so back in 1995 and realized I had no clue what angst was back then really and WOW, I have owned this CD for 10 years.....Jagged Little Pill. (Quick question and then I shall end this novel...did the cassette have the "secret track" at the very end? If it didn't, have you heard said track? And if not, I should really send it to you because that whole album song set is not complete without it.)
P.S. One more week! Oh.My.Gosh!
Posted by: Lauren | May 05, 2006 at 10:34 AM
Lauren--my cassette TOTALLY had a secret track, and yes. It is awesome. But also? A wee bit creepy.
Posted by: Frema | May 05, 2006 at 10:48 AM
Two things:
1. Ethan Hawke can't sing.
2. Drinking an entire fifth of whiskey and NOT passing out with your head in the toilet would really be quite a feat. That's a quite a bit of booze.
Posted by: Luke | May 05, 2006 at 10:58 AM
OK, so maybe it wasn't quite a fifth, but it was at least half. And he was still nasty! He didn't have a car, so he had taken the train to Rensselaer on Friday night, and the only train back to Chicago was the 6:50 a.m. one on Saturday, and if he missed that one he'd have been there until Monday, so you better beLIEVE I powerwalked him the whole twenty minutes to the station that morning, so nervous was I that he'd miss the train and propose to me before lunch. You know, when he was done throwing up.
Posted by: Frema | May 05, 2006 at 11:10 AM
I totally heart ALL those songs! Whatever happed to Savage Garden anyway...
I almost spit out my coffee when I read the caption of your costume for Peter Quince. Sweet lord that was hilarious!
Good luck on your big day next weekend!
-Mandy
Posted by: Mandy Meyers | May 05, 2006 at 11:42 AM
I am so squeeing at this list. I am woman enough to get into this, Frema, but not woman enough to reveal pictures of my high school self to all and sundry. Trust me, it's for your own good.
But "Change The World"! Pre-breakdown Mariah Carey! And yes, the Spice Girls! This is the mix I would have made if only I were a bit more brave. I can't wait to get my copy.
Posted by: Fraulein N | May 05, 2006 at 11:55 AM
SO MANY SONGS I wish I'd thought of.
And "Not The Doctor" and "To The Moon And Back" are some of my favorite songs. "To The Moon And Back" is infinitely superior to the "chicka cherry cola" song.
And, OH MAN, "Change the World" was on the Phenomenon soundtrack, a movie I saw, no shit, THREE TIMES in a week: once after work the day before it was released, once with my mom, and once with the guy from work I was madly in love with.
I LOVE THIS CD. LOVE IT. Although, it's a little trippy, as it's bringing back TONS of memories I'd totally forgotten I had.
Also, I have While You Were Sleeping in DVD. Feel free to stop in and watch it next time you're in the neighborhood.
Posted by: Dawnie | May 05, 2006 at 04:06 PM
What a writing talent you have. I have never written so much at any one time. What a joy to have you into the family!
Posted by: daddy d | May 05, 2006 at 06:32 PM
Man oh man sister, you really know how to take a girl back into the day. Your list of songs does not surprise me, as you listened to them PROFUSELY when we were bunk/roommates. I used to go CrAzY because you played, "Now I Lay Me" or whatever that song is called, a million times a day.
You picture of Peter Quince is really funny Bree. You've always made goofy ass faces in pictures, it's kinda your trademark. Anywho, I still love and listen to "China" all the time and have you to thank for it.
Your blog has really taken off sister. I'm never the first to comment anymore...and your 1st commenter was so right about you being the megastar of blogging.
I LOVE YOU!!!!! ;)
Posted by: Sambo V. | May 05, 2006 at 08:40 PM
I knew that you would check your comments before you went to bed and I had to make you happy with a 12th comment. It was so nice seeing you today. I am going to get spoiled seeing you so much in the last few months. I'll see you on Thursday! I love You!
ps I hope you liked the home video we showed you before you left here :o)
Posted by: Brooke | May 07, 2006 at 12:57 AM
Awesome! Too awesome!
I'm so glad you pimped out our uniform. That was some crazy style baby.
And Change the World? As soon as it came out it was immediately my "song" with the love of my life (at the moment.)
Posted by: Lost a Sock | May 07, 2006 at 12:37 PM
Excellent list. What a fun exchange. :o)
Posted by: Janet | May 08, 2006 at 06:29 PM
I lurve you!
Posted by: Silly Hily | November 14, 2006 at 05:21 PM