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"freedom to differ is not limited to things that do not matter much. That would be a mere shadow of freedom. The test of its substance is the right to differ as to things that touch the heart of the existing order."
- Justice Robert Jackson, West Virginia State Board of Ed. v. Barnette
I played a whole bunch of Christmas songs and carols on my saxophone today. The carols especially are mostly slow and fairly simple - and therefore easy to play!
Indeed! I can still play exactly one song on the piano and it is Joy to the World.
Now for some gratuitous Christmas saxophone pictures for throwback Thursday, because my goal, as always, is to charm the polyannas while simultaneously getting under the craws of everybody else.
This was a fundraising thing we did for my high school band.
We would rent ourselves out in small ensembles to play christmas music at parties and events. Couldn't you just die?!
It is about Mary and her "baby boy." It also has the distinction of being sung in just about every southern American church despite the fact that the arrangement always seems to make the soloist go flat. So even professional versions make me cringe anticipating that awful bad note, even when it isn't coming.
I actually like the tune quite a bit, though it is a bit tricky and can be pretty bad if the singer isn't up to it. But something about the lyrics… they always remind me of the sort of people that run up to pregnant women and start fondling their bellies without asking. Always kinda squicked me out.
I feel the need to counter ES's good cheer with some childhood trauma. There is a caveat that I don't actually remember this happening and am trusting my siblings memories, because why would they admit to being this evil if it wasn't true?
As a child I was always certain that I hadn't been good enough to live up to Santa's standards and spent most of December freaked out about not getting anything. One year, according to my oldest sister, I was so stressed out that I burst into tears every time I heard "Santa Claus is Coming to Town". My siblings thought this was hilarious so they sang it at me over and over and over again. And then they wondered why I had holiday depression as an adult.
So, go ahead punks, I dare you to get me in the Christmas Spirit.
__________________
"freedom to differ is not limited to things that do not matter much. That would be a mere shadow of freedom. The test of its substance is the right to differ as to things that touch the heart of the existing order."
- Justice Robert Jackson, West Virginia State Board of Ed. v. Barnette
I'm planning a variation on that for Library Week. I think I'll put my sister's Librarian Action Figure on top for the angel.
__________________
"freedom to differ is not limited to things that do not matter much. That would be a mere shadow of freedom. The test of its substance is the right to differ as to things that touch the heart of the existing order."
- Justice Robert Jackson, West Virginia State Board of Ed. v. Barnette
I get my Diane-dy tin whether I celebrate Christmas or not. And even if I didn't, I can buy chocolate any time. As for Tiny Tim. "Are there no prisons? Are there no workhouses?"
__________________
"freedom to differ is not limited to things that do not matter much. That would be a mere shadow of freedom. The test of its substance is the right to differ as to things that touch the heart of the existing order."
- Justice Robert Jackson, West Virginia State Board of Ed. v. Barnette
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"Her eyes in certain light were violet, and all her teeth were even. That's a rare, fair feature: even teeth. She smiled to excess, but she chewed with real distinction." - Eleanor of Aquitaine