Wake Up

Have I been sleeping?
I’ve been so still
Afraid of crumbling
Have I been careless?
Dismissing all the distant rumblings
Take me where I am supposed to be
To comprehend the things that I can’t see
Cause I need to moveI need to wake up
I need to change
I need to shake up
I need to speak out
Something’s got to break up
I’ve been asleep
And I need to wake up
And as a childI danced like it was 1999
My dreams were wild
The promise of this new world would be mine
Now I am throwing off the carelessness of youth
To listen to an inconvenient truth
I’ve been asleep
And I need to wake up,Now

Above are part of the lyrics of Melissa Etheridge's recent song titled 'I Need To Wake Up',beautifully accompanying Al Gore's Oscar-winning documentary on global warming.The song has a gives me a bit of inspiration,and I'm sure plenty out there have felt the song's effect,be it small doses-making it part of their motivation to overcome their daily troubles or try to rid themselves of self-destructive habits and change their attitudes for at least one day.And though it's common knowledge that it's up to oneself to decide one's personal happiness,because depending on the rest of the world and all it's eternal fuckedupness would mean a life of disappointment,sometimes we need reminders of that-someone to tell us to just relax and enjoy the ride,to not fear the unknown or one's own weaknesses,and just embrace one's own fuckedupness with open arms-and this song,does just that.

*For anyone with an allergy for melancholies,these other songs either motivate you with their lyrics,or just do.

The Noisette's-Don't Give Up
Jet-Cold Hard Bitch
Arctic Monkeys-A Certain Romance
The Spinto Band-Oh Mandy
The Kinks-Everybody's Gonna Be Happy
Lenny Kravitz-Fly Away
Oasis-Live Forever
Mika-Grace Kelly

I haven't got the faintest idea of what Mika's Grace Kelly is about-but the sensation the song gives equals to entering a time machine back to the time when our grandparents danced in fancy clothes under kerosene lamps (i have no idea what my grandparents did back then,but suffice to say,no matter what they did do,I'm sure they had heaps of fun)-an era where Nick Lowe's Cruel To Be Kind,songs by the Indigo Girls and Bob Dylan played in the night through rusty radio's-a time perfectly pictured and briefly glimpsed through the second-long smiles of old men and women,even with their failing knees,weak bones and frail faces-i envy them for the years of suffering and joy they've survived,while they silently contemplate the bright years they've left to savour before the ride ends.