Today, I’m putting the finishing touches on a script for an hour-long program for a gala fundraiser this weekend. I’ve written all the announcements, crafted remarks and edited descriptions of the auction items. I’ve coordinated the live interviews and orchestrated the timeline. The lighting guys have their instructions and the slideshows have been proofed and submitted to the A/V company. There’s just one thing left to do—the music cues. This is the fun part for me. Picking the perfect song to introduce important people is a unique musical gift that I believe I have and take very seriously. I first realized I had this “gift” while planning my kids b’nai mitzvah. I selected songs for each friend and family member who was called up during the candle-lighting ceremony. One set of grandparents got a Beatles tune because my father-in-law loves them. “Walking on Sunshine” is my sister’s theme song so that was a no-brainer. Friends that moved out of town heard “Who Says You Can’t Come Home,” by Bon Jovi. This process takes forever, but it is a labor of love for me. I spend precious time (that I don’t really have) considering lists of song titles before picking out the right one. I listen to, and often look up, the lyrics to songs to make sure the sentiment is right. Sometimes, I’d finish the list, submit it to the DJ and then switch out a song (or 2) for another one I heard on the radio. I think I drove him crazy. But, I’m sorry. I can’t leave this important decision up to a DJ who doesn’t know the people in my life and let him pick random songs for them. And yes, I realize that no one (and I mean no one) being called up for the honor of lighting a candle is paying much attention to the song. But, that doesn’t matter to me. It’s the thought that counts. But, I digress (breathe, Elisa). Back to the gala, we need a song for a grand entrance, but not just any entrance. My bosses’ grand entrance into a room of nearly 1,000 supporters and potentially generous donors. This could be tricky and A LOT of pressure. I have a few ideas, but I don’t think they are going to like any of them. First, our musical tastes are quite different even though we are of the same generation. My team had some suggestions, but absolutely no one wanted to make the decision for them. I tend to agree with them, so I’ll take my special “gift” and sit this one out. To satisfy my inner DJ, I can still come up with what I think would be the perfect song. Some of the ones I’m toying with are “September” by Earth, Wind and Fire (great party song with a subtle tie-in to the cause); “I Got A Feeling” by The Black Eyed Peas (gets the audience pumped and in the mood to give); or “24K Magic” by Bruno Mars. (well-known, but maybe too obvious for a fundraiser). In the end, I’ll leave it up to them to decide. I think that’s what is called job security.
January 2019 archive
Beautiful
There are some songs that instantly bring me back to my childhood. Tapestry by Carole King is one of those albums I listened to over and over as a child. I think we may have worn out the needle on the turntable at some point because we played it so many times. I got to revisit those songs when I saw the Carole King musical, Beautiful today. I knew very little about this songwriter/singer’s life except that her hits could be a soundtrack for parts of my life. Hearing songs like “I Feel the Earth Move Under My Feet” and “You’ve Got A Friend” easily brought me back to my old house listening to that album as we did the dishes. My sister and mom have better singing voices then I do, so I just hummed along, but the memory is clear as day. And then, sitting in the theater, I had an unexpected reaction to another old favorite, “So Far Away.” Doesn’t anybody stay in one place anymore? Cue the tears…I mean, how true is that? So many people who have come and gone in my life. It would be so fine to see their face at my door. And it doesn’t help to know they’re just time away. Okay, you get the idea. Ugh, those lyrics just get me and I don’t know why. Maybe it is because I have a child going off to college or maybe because I miss friends that I haven’t seen in a long time and not sure when I’ll see them again.
A List for Life
I write a lot of lists. There is my daily to-do list, a project list, a list of books I want to read, and restaurants I want to try. Lists remind me not only what I must do, but what I want to do. Plus, I’m a big believer in what I put out into the world will somehow work out in the end. The act of making lists is allowing myself to write down dreams and goals and then giving myself permission to fulfill them. Four years ago, under the advisement of a career coach, I created a completely different kind of list. He called it a life/work balance grid, but it is still a list. We took the time to map out what I wanted for myself in 1 year, 5 years and 10 years. Today, I’m revisiting this list. Here is what I’ve discovered. The good news is “remodeling my kitchen” was slated for year 5 and I did it in year 3. I also wanted to see one Broadway show a year starting in 2020. I’m happy to report that in year 4, we are seeing not one or two, but six(!) Broadway shows in 2019! Not on Broadway, but I never wrote down where I wanted to see the shows. That isn’t as important to me as enjoying the theater experience. I love supporting the arts and there are so many shows I want to see, so I’m happy to be able to do this. I also wanted to read 12 books a year and according to my Goodreads account, I’ve come close but haven’t hit the mark yet. Of course, this year, I doubled my reading goal and although I’m already falling behind, I plan to catch up soon. I’m still pursuing my writing dreams by blogging (obviously) and I now see myself as becoming an author. My dream, scratch that–goal, is to write a book that will help others and then stand in front of a room full of people to talk about it. Also, in my dream, I see myself sitting at one of those “Meet the Author” events signing my new book and seeing a long line out the door. Hey, it could happen. There are a few areas in the grid where I’ve shorted myself, but I’m glad to be doing this exercise so I can get back on track. Speaking of exercise, I need to lose weight and then maintain it. This is a consistent goal which appears on year 1, 5 and 10 on my life/work balance grid and yet, I haven’t been taking it seriously enough. Losing weight has been a struggle for me. It seems ridiculous too because I only need to lose about 25lbs to be at a healthy weight. But, it is so hard! I know it will only be harder as I age so I need to really take charge of this area of my life. I mentioned that I enjoy hiking—which I completely forgot that I wrote down 4 years ago. And then a lightbulb went off in my head. Hiking is exercise, right? I’ll be checking this goal off my list next year. Recently, a friend reminded me that we are about to embark on the beginning of the best part of our lives. We’ve put ourselves through school, our kids are either headed to college or will be in the next few years, our professional paths have made us financially secure (knock on wood). Pretty soon, we will have more time, as Oprah would say, to live our best lives. So, what exactly does that look like? It’s a good thing I have a list.