I've got three things buzzing around my mind this vle-post chemo day.

1.  Newsweek's Redesign:  Having concluded that "news" is being covered by the 24/7 blogosphere and news channels, Newsweek has been in the process of reinventing itself as a news outlet.  Instead of being a "current news" delivery device, they've moved in the direction of offering commentary, in-depth interviews and profiles.

I like the thinking very much but believe they will be better able to engage their audience in this new format if they break things up a bit more.  Intersperse commentary (and woo Quindlan back for heavens' sake) with more in-depth articles.  Sprinkle the social commentary fluff-stuff throughout the magazine instead of saving it for the end.  A few little tweaks and Newsweek may be onto something.  Sorta wish Meacham had been in charge of the automotive industry this last decade or so.

2.  My at long last viewing of Shut up and Sing, a documentary about the Dixie Chicks and the "long road" they took to come back from lead singer Natalie Maines' off the cuff comment in London, on the eve of the invasion of Iraq, that she was embarassed that the President of the United States was from (her home state) of Texas.

The backlash from that comment (mainly from Country Music fans and the stations that used anti-Chick backlash to whip up some publicity) was brutish, ill-informed, and (as it turned out) dead wrong about the war being the right decision.   

The film follows these three incredibly talented performers as they navigate the fallout of Maines' comment and their subsequent choices.  There are some interesting nuances to the argument about free speech.  It seems like the producers of the film were all for Natalie's free speech but not so much for the free speech of those who disagreed with the Chicks.  I've been there, to a much lesser degree, when I wrote about abortion rights and came home to a hateful call on my message machine about being a baby killer.  It's hard to support someone's right to free speech when it gets personal.

3. Jon Meacham's interview with President Obama.  In it, Obama describes his process for deciding to surge troops in Afghanistan.  Listening to the way he approached the problem--taking into account historical contexts and lessons learned by other super powers who ventured there, gathering together people from every agency with something to add to the discussion, listening and asking questions, then demanding answers before making a decision--how refreshing in a Commander-in-Chief. 

Those Dixie Chicks, they were right on. 

I know I promised I'd get to parsing the candidate's "green" qualities...but this blog is about another type of promise.  After our discussion of "great" rock and rollers, and after Hal's comments about most famous women anythings...it occured to me that I'd like to talk up a performer I feel is particularly talented...a woman with promise.

I'd put her in the rock category, although her music does tend pop at times.  I found her when checking out One Tree Hill this season.  I've got a tendency to fall in love with a song, jot down what seems to be the title lyric and then hop onto I-Tunes at my next opportunity.

Thus, Kate Voegel.

Check out some of her songs here.

What I like about Voegel's voice is that she's got some depth and richness to her voice, yet she can also warp it into a growl or soften it into a sensuous purr.  She's got good range, although she doesn't have the pipes of Christina Aguilera.  Anyway, I'd recommend No Good and I Won't Disagree to anyone wanting to sample her music.

Any female songsters you're particularly excited about these days?

I'll get to the candidates tomorrow.  Promise.

Let's start with Official Recognition!  Ken (my brother-in-law) shared with me that one of his reviews got mentioned at an official movie website.  I'm so happy for him that I wanted to link everyone up!  The movie is Honeydripper (which I have not seen).  The review link is on the page and here.

As for golf, I had my first round since we got back from Hawaii in December.  9 holes with my friend, Renee'.  I shot 10 over par and had 3 pars, two bogies and the rest double bogies.  A bit better than my index would lead me to expect but I was chipping and putting really well today.  Part of the credit goes to Dan, who bought me a new attack wedge for Christmas.  It worked very nicely.

And Tagging...well, I checked in with Cindy's blog yesterday and found out that she'd been tagged by our friend, Todd.  So I went to Todd's blog to find out what the rules of the tag were and lo and behold, I'd been tagged too.  Quite some time ago.

Apparently I am to:

"List seven songs you are into right now. No matter what the genre, whether or not they have words, or even if they’re not any good, but they must be songs you’re really enjoying now. Post these instructions in your blog along with your seven songs. Then tag seven other people to see what they’re listening to. If you want."

First, the songs:

At This Point In My Life by Tracy Chapman
Your Heart is For Breaking by Anne Heaton (words only in this link)
Face of a Faith by Nellie McKay
L-O-V-E by Nat King Cole
Bless the Broken Road by Rascal Flatts
Mercy Now by Mary Gauthier
Love, Loss, Hope, Repeat by Carbon Leaf

As to tagging?  How about Mom, Erik, Hal, Deanna, Dale, Bev, and Dotty--all folks who I know read the blog at least occasionally!  Y'all don't have to post it on your blog tho...just answer the question in the comments section below.  If you feel like it.  <gg>

Off to pack now!

I sure am enjoying my Starbucks freebie iTunes!  Today's download was "Moon" by Emily King.  It's a beautiful, R&B/Soul song that I otherwise never would have found.  Very cool.

I've added a lot of new songs lately (and not just from our enormous CD library).  So I thought it would be fun to list my 10 favorite recent additions to the ol' iPod.

If you click on the song links, you'll hear samples of the songs.  The links that take you to last.fm.com require you to hit the "play" symbol underneath the title of the song.  The Amazon.com links just start playing.

"Moon"                              Emily King (see above for sample)

"I Told You So"                   Keith Urban

"Bless The Broken Road"     Rascal Flatts

"Face of a Faith"                  Nellie McKay

"Are You Alright?"                Lucinda Williams

"This One's for the Girls"      Martina McBride

"Gone"                               Matt Nathanson

"Over My Head"                  The Fray

"Breakable"                        Ingrid Michaelson

"Smile"                               Lily Allen

Phew!  That was work, building all those links.  Enjoy the samples!  It's pretty awesome that I can share snippets of songs with you, though.  Technology is great (I must add Dan's caveat: "When it works.")

Have a day lifted up by music.