GBGC Original: Today is My Birthday

What better way to kick off the beginning of the post-countdown season than with a GBGC original?

I wrote this song for a "show" that I performed at my birthday party. It (the show) didn't quite turn out as I'd planned or imagined it, but it was nevertheless perfect. The right thing for the right atmosphere. Hopefully somebody got a good live recording of this song at the party, because the audience reactions are priceless and not reproducible. 

Now that it's over and done with, the GBGC episodes will be less frequent. Once again, although I was determined to go, I skipped yoga in order to get this posted in time (I technically still have 4 hours until I'm officially 40). It's time I take the diligence and dedication that I've learned from this experience and apply them to other areas of life. 

It's been fun, y'all! Peace, out.

GBGC Top 40 Countdown: T-1, Running Up That Hill. Still running...

So I’ve reached the last day of my personal 30-day challenge. I set out to make one Bad Guitar video per day until my birthday, and my birthday is tomorrow (so, depending on how you look at it, I might have to make one more). First of all, I can’t believe I’ve pulled it off. Nobody is paying me to do it. Nobody really would have cared (or noticed) if I had skipped a day. There are many things which I’ve pushed aside in order to achieve this one goal (mostly mundane housework things, but my yoga has also suffered), and if I haven’t been able to push something aside, I’ve simply included it in the video (building IKEA furniture, going on a wee trip to the wine festival, etc.).

The last one was the toughest one, though. Up till now, I’ve just taken the ideas as they came to me. But today, I felt I had to pick a song which was more meaningful or appropriate for the cause. The truth of the matter is, I had no inspiration whatsoever. Although “Running Up That Hill” is quite a fitting anthem for what everyone is searching for in this long life, a greater understanding, I still don’t think it sums up my 40 years in a nutshell. Also, I found it nearly impossible to grasp the form and the changes so, like many people on YouTube, I just sort of made up my own version. But not without a fight. 

At the time of writing, I also have the feeling that I have to say something especially poignant to sum up the experience. That may come later, but today is just another day. And I suppose tomorrow will be, too.

GBGC Top 40 Countdown: T-2, Gimme, gimme, gimme some new Swedish furniture

GBGC Tutorial: How to Assemble 

Semi-disposable Swedish Furniture

After having built the sleeper sofa all by myself, I had no fear of the buffet cabinet from IKEA. Once again, the assembly instructions pictured two characters, but I knew I could manage on my own. Sure, it would be nice to have someone help - in fact, a friend offered to come by on Friday and help, but the fact of the matter is, I'm too impatient. Why should I wait a whole day, playing the damsel in distress, when I can actually manage by myself and have things when I want them?  Now, one day later, I am sitting on my brand-spankin'-new couch, and have a cabinet much more fitting for my home than the one that stood there before it. Might be spiessig, but I guess that's what getting older is all about! Turn up the ABBA  and let's start building!

GBGC Top 40 Countdown: T-3, Close to Me. Getting closer. And closer.

It seems that bit by bit, my life is falling into place. And it's material things that make me think so. For the first time in my life, I have a new couch. I mean a brand new couch, like, that no one's ever owned before me.
The Germans sometimes call a corner couch a Wohnlandschaft - a living landscape. Although my sleeper sofa isn't big enough to qualify for this distinction, in my small living room, it sure does take up a lot of the landscape. And somewhere in my mind, I feel closer to being a bit more grown up. Hope to write more about this phenomenon in my other blog ("Christine's Voice") before my big F-word birthday. Stay tuned.

GBGC Top 40 Countdown: T-4, Weeping Wine (Tour of the Weinfest in Guntersblum)

Here at Grahamophone's Bad Guitar Channel, we aim to entertain, but also to educate and intrigue. This is a tour of a typical German Weinfest. They claim to be one of the few wine festivals that serves their customers in actual wine cellars (as opposed to just at tables lined along the street), but I can't imagine that no one esle in all the land hasn't already thought of that. At any rate, I think this little film will give you the idea of what such a festival is like. The weather was lovely, the wine and the food was good (no bad sausages!), and the company was great.

For more about the music, you might want to read my article about Lloyd Cole from my other blog:
http://christinesvoice.blogspot.com/2009/04/are-you-ready-to-be-heartbroken.html

GBGC Top 40 Countdown: T-5, Back on the Chain Gang (featuring the train gang)

When my friend Caroline asked me to be part of her goodbye party outing to the wine festival in Guntersblum, I couldn't imagine being able to take part. First of all, I had to do a daily Bad Guitar Channel episode, and second of all, I thought it would be too expensive. As it turns out, the Gruppentageskarte costs not even 25 Euros, and with it you can take up to five people on the train to any destination within that price class. What's more, during a wine festival (which is all about the tasting, you know), wine is extremely cheap. As for the Bad Guitar Channel episodes, well, there was only one thing left to do - bring the guitar with me. Today's episode, as well as tomorrow's will feature scenes from this trip. And I think we've captured the mood rather well. Thanks to my lovely assistants behind the camera, and a special thanks to Caroline for coming up with this fun quickie vacation idea! 

GBGC Top 40 Countdown: T-6, F-f-f-foolin'!!

Sometimes words cannot describe the silliness....