"Lonely" by Anita Baker is a song I hadn't thought about in years, but used to love...so I downloaded it recently and it sounds just as sparkly and vibrant as ever...which made me wonder: is she working on anything new?

The last I read, Ms. Baker was working on an album called 21st Century Love, which was due for a November 9th release...but still has no availability date on Amazon.

In the meantime, it looks like she'll make an appearance on the upcoming Soul Train Music Awards:

Soul Train

On November 22nd two previously unavailable MP3 versions of Andy Gibb albums will appear on Amazon's digital download store...I'm so excited!!! And on the very recently released Bee Gees Mythology 4 cd set there's a disc devoted exclusively to Andy! Included is a never-before-released song called "Arrow through the Heart."

The girls I babysit for adore Max and Ruby...and now I've sort of gotten hooked on the Nick Jr. series, too. I especially like Max, who strikes me as a very independent and "in his own world" kind of guy. His older sister, Ruby, is pretty bossy and very rigid in her ways; it's no wonder Max is always wandering off chasing butterflies or lightning bugs while Ruby is so busy getting everything together, she can't keep track of her mischievous brother, who's having a blast.

Babysitting is not just something to do for money (which so many people seem to need in an economy where many of us are taking on second jobs or supplemental income through paid focus groups or odd jobs), it's a wonderful opportunity for anyone who loves kids and missed out (either by accident or on purpose) on having kids of his or her own. While I definitely need the extra dollars, I think I'd still babysit even for free...especially with the family I regularly watch now:)

Black Tie White Noise was the beginning of David Bowie's return from the wilderness of post-Let's Dance, the first indication that he was regaining his creative spark.--all music website

I always know I'm really really going to like a song when I hear it and feel like I'm going to pass out. More than spotting someone I think is cute or dreaming about a favorite meal, I hear that special track from a favorite album or a song that is new to me and I almost feel (sometimes actually do) as if I have to grab hold of something to steady me.

That's how I felt the first time I heard "The Wedding," the first track off of Black Tie White Noise. Though I've already blogged about this album, I can't say enough good things about it since I've still been playing the entire thing on my iPod weeks after I bought it...

Other times a song I haven't heard in years will come on the Internet radio stations I listen to and wham!! I'm back in my teens...recently I heard an old Go West song and I got chills....even though when it comes to 80s duos I much prefer these guys:

The only Wham album I was ever truly truly passionate about was Music from the Edge of Heaven; at the time I first bought the cassette version I though "Battlestations" was the coolest song ever!:):

I try to stick to music, books and movies, but (as I have before) am taking a detour....saw this article and while no one (on other side of the issue) will be breaking out champagne and wine glasses to celebrate, it's a bit more unexpected and open-minded than I would have imagined the Mormon Church to be. They are by no means advocating that acting on same sex attraction is acceptable to their Church, but at least (in my mind, it seems) anyone who is gay and Mormon and already vulnerable to self-hating thought may be a bit relieved that their thoughts alone aren't necessarily going to land them in Hell.

It's one thing to tell someone gay that their actions are "sinful," but another to tell them their thoughts and feelings (things they can't help as much as they can their actions) is heartbreaking when they are already facing a (more times than not) homophobic society, especially in their church or small town where anti-gay sentiment is usually stronger.

I do think "attraction" is not the best word choice. "Attraction" implies physical feelings or sex, when being gay is about so much more. The romantic and emotional aspects (caring for someone else of the same gender, enjoying their company and talking with them) are so complex and complicated. I think it makes it easier for people who hate gay people to think it's tied in to nothing more than simple sex acts...which is far from the truth as anything can be....