Shake It

"Nobody cares if you can't dance well. Just get up and dance." -Dave Barry

I am a music nut. I swear, in a former life, I was Aretha Franklin or something. Um, yes, I know she is still alive. And no, I am not nearly as amazing as Aretha. But you know what I mean. I love to belt out songs and sing and dance and rap and just go crazy whenever the music is on. Sure, I don't always hit the right notes, and my dance moves are super corny, but I DON'T CARE. Put a good song on and I can't help myself.

I could probably write hundreds of blog posts about music (and who knows? I just might!)...because there are so many great songs and genres and artists. It's hard to capture all of my tastes in one blog post. However, for this post I am going to focus on HAPPY music. Particularly, silly, goofy, simple music that isn't necessarily deep or beautiful. It doesn't have poignant, touching lyrics. It's just great music with a fun beat that makes me want to get up and shake my butt around.

I notice that when I am dancing, I can't be upset. There is no way I can possibly be sad or feel sorry for myself. All I can do is smile and laugh and sing. It is such a boost to the spirit, it gets the blood flowing, and it's great exercise!

One of my favorite ladies of all time (who is also a former school co-worker) and I used to dance a lot at work. We would just randomly bust out moves in the middle of my office, usually alone...but we also danced in front of other friends at work. We didn't care that we looked silly or that our moves were mostly leftovers from the 1990s (Running Man, anyone?). We just loved dancing together and knowing that we could totally be ourselves around each other. It was our way of decompressing during a stressful day, and it was awesome. When my friend moved on to a new job, I missed so much about her, but the dancing was one of my best memories. As a goodbye gift, she bought me a "boogie button" that I could press whenever I was feeling the urge to shake my groove thang. (Are you reading this, girlfriend? I hope so!) :)

Fast forward a couple of years later, and now I am the one who has moved on from school (for the year, anyway)...and only after a few days of working at the liquor store, I realized that my co-worker that I work with 90% of the time also LOVES TO DANCE LIKE A GOOFBALL! Hooray! We spend a good deal of the day grooving around the store, shaking our booties, and laughing at our silly dance moves. We still manage to work hard, get things done, and stay productive, but we also find ways to make it fun. Honestly, if we had to go through the day staying serious and just going about our business, we would probably rip our hair out by 11:00 every morning. Instead, we make things fun.

The music certainly helps get us in the mood, and a while back, we discovered the BEST radio station. It's called Mike FM (93.7 for all of you folks in Massachusetts) and their claim to fame is that they "play everything." They are not lying, let me tell you! The songs are so random, but if your musical taste is as crazy and diverse as mine, you can really appreciate a station like Mike FM.

My co-worker and I are working on a Mike FM's Greatest Hits CD, which will include our favorite dance tunes that we hear during the week. Here are some of our favorites...whenever they come on, we go crazy and start jumping around and singing along:

Rock Lobster by B-52s
Break My Stride by Matthew Wilder
Physical by Olivia Newton-John
Jungle Love by The Time
Tarzan Boy by Baltimora
You Sexy Thing by Hot Chocolate
Party Train by Gap Band
Wild Thing by Tone Loc
Hold on Tight to Your Dreams by ELO

...and that's just the first volume! :)

So, what's my point? I don't remember...all I can think about is dancing! I guess my point is that music is such an awesome way to influence your mood. In this case, I love fun, upbeat, silly dance tunes to lift my spirits and help me get through the day. I am so lucky that I can basically dance my way through the work day with another fun and crazy lady who shares my wacky sense of humor. This is definitely a sure-fire way to improve my mental health! I highly recommend it to anyone looking for a good time. If you can't dance at work, then try doing it somewhere else--at home, when you wake up or when you get home from work, in the car (I love this!), in the grocery store, walking down the street....whatever. Just dance! I promise you will enjoy it.

QUESTIONS FOR YOU: Are you a crazy dancer like me? If so, tell me some of your favorite fun dance tunes (or, if you have not yet discovered Crazy Dancing, your favorite fun, silly, happy songs)!

Let's Play!

"Live and work but do not forget to play...to have fun in life and really enjoy it." -Eileen Caddy

When I was a kid, going outside to play was like second nature. No matter what the season or time of day, I was always up for swimming, biking, sledding, or just running around and getting dirty until it was time for bed. Nothing bothered me--mosquitoes, heat, cold, you name it--I just wanted to have fun.

Now that I am older, I still love to have fun, but sometimes, it feels like it is more of a chore to get going. I find myself complaining...it's too hot, it's too cold, I'm too tired, I don't feel like it...OK, am I serious? When I was younger, I would have given up days of sleep just to hang out with my friends, be outdoors playing, or just being around people that made me happy. So why is it so hard to get motivated now?

Don't get me wrong...I still enjoy having a good time, but I think in my stressed out state (aka The Old Me!), I would sometimes choose to just veg or be a blob when I could have been out enjoying life. I think I lost sight of the fact that playing does so much for the spirit...it recharges you, it brightens your day, and it can remind you how fortunate you are to have such great people in your life. So, as part of the 180 plan, I am trying to take advantage of every opportunity to PLAY. Yes, I still have to work and make money and pay bills, but I am going to spend as little time as possible on the couch (unless, of course, I am blogging) and as much time as I can enjoying the company of friends and loved ones. Fortunately, I have a lot of great people who love to play as much as I do! I am lucky!

Tonight my husband and I had my sister and brother in law over our house. We spent the night laughing, talking, and playing Rock Band. You should see us...we really get into it. I'm on drums, the guys are on guitar and bass, and my sister is our rocking lead singer. We have other amazing musicians who guest star from time to time, including my brother and some other good friends. It's a lot of fun pretending to be rock stars for the night...plus, it's comfortable because we are lounging around on bean bag chairs, it's totally inexpensive (just the cost of snacks), and it's just a bunch of silly people having fun together. Call us a bunch of video game geeks. We don't care. We are proud! And, we are counting down the days until the new Beatles Rock Band game comes out on 9/9...if anyone wants to join the Beatles Rock Band party, let me know! You are totally invited!

QUESTIONS FOR YOU: Do you play? What do you like to do for fun? Do you get as much play time as you'd like? If not, what's holding you back?