We’ve arrived at the letter “I” in my musical trek through the alphabet with Jackie over at Ambling and Rambling.

Did you know that this is Moody Blythe’s FAVOURITE letter?

If you don’t know her well, you might not be able to tell from the photo how pleased she is that you joined us.

And as I tried to find a theme to please her and fit the letter, it hit:

I Try – Macy Gray – 1999

Yup.  I spend a lot of my time “trying” to do various things: make daycare drop off and pick up on time; finish everything on the list; spend enough time with family and friends; not gain weight; keep my house not looking like a bomb’s gone off…

But her type of trying?  Give’s a girl a bit of perspective.

And I’ve always LOVED this song.  The yearning feel to it is just so emotional, so human and so very beautiful.

Because sometimes?  All we can do is try.

Until of course we realize that:

(I Got One Less) Problem – Ariana Grande Featuring Iggy Azalea – 2014

Mainly?  I’m hoping this is the song of the summer, because it’s just so catchy.  Head in the clouds, got no weight on my shoulders…

Yes please!

I got 99 problems but you won’t be one!

I know it’s about romantic relationships, but really?  I can apply it to so many other …. parts of my life, both in the past and as a present reminder ….

Because romantic or otherwise?  Sometimes it takes a while to realize that some relationships just aren’t worth the effort you need to invest.  Because sometimes the other side takes more than they give; invests less than equally in the relationship; or is just plain:

Insensitive – Jann Arden – 1994

I have loved Jann Arden ever since I first saw her in concert in the late 1990s.

While I generally like her music – I LOVE her in concert.

She truly comes alive on stage and connects with her audience.

This is a clip her live in Winnipeg.  Before launching into Insensitive, one of the big hits from Living Under June, she tells the story of how she found the song.  Her storytelling is wonderful.  I hope you enjoy both the tale and the song.

And remember to look for the moment and grab it when you see it.

Because really?  When you get over all that baggage pulling you down you can get on to:

I Love Myself Today – Bif Naked – 2001

One of the pump me up song of my twenties.  Proud, loud, and out of control.  About being completely okay with yourself and who you are.

Check?

Check.

You’re welcome.

So how do I end this?

Now that we’ve arrived at personal affirmation and self-actualization in four songs, how about we kick back and relax a bit?  Celebrate the awesomeness of us with a boat ride?

I’m on a Boat – The Lonely Island Featuring T-Pain – 2009

Quick warning – explicit version, so the language is less than awesome, but I figure if we’re all Biffy loud and proud we should be true to the …. artistic intent, right?

In the world of the random that is my brain, this song popped into my head last Thursday as I took my kids to vote in the provincial election.

I’ve taken them with me every time I’ve voted since each were born.  Briefly, voting is important and I want them to see it as something that you just … do.  We’ll get into more involved discussions about the issues when they get older.

So imagine my pleasure last Thursday when I picked my girls up from daycare and my four-year-old jumped up and down with glee when I told her we were going to go vote.

Wow, I thought.  Even from this young age, the modelling of good behaviour is really having an impact!

My parental pride wavered as her confusion obviously rose as we parked at the community centre.

“Where’s the water?”  she asks.

“What water?”  I ask.

“For the boat,” she explains, impatiently, like I’m the four-year-old.

I then had to have a discussion about how we were VOTING, not BOATING.  Brief talk about it’s to decide who gets to run the province where we live.  And it doesn’t happen on a boat.

“Oh.”  Somewhat deflated response. “Can we go boating tomorrow?”  Preschool hope floats and all that.

“No, but this summer when we visit the lodge we can,”  I try – parental hope equally afloat.

That satisfied her.   There was also a slide in the gym where I voted (not boated).  That helped.

They played there for a good 10 minutes after I was done.

As for nurturing civic duty?  Maybe next time.

Until then?  The lesson is:

But it has resulted in my humming “I’m on a boat!” for the past week.

That’s it for me musically this week.

Two more days of school and bring on summer!

I got my swim suit.  And my flippy floppies.  I’m ready.