Thursday, December 31, 2015

"Stay Hard, Stay Hungry, Stay Alive"

Blogging Friends.... One year ago today--yes, on New Year's Eve!!--I started hip swaying/dancing/working out to Bruce Springsteen!! And what an incredible journey it has been!! Damn, what a ride.... I have hip swayed/danced/worked out to Bruce after feeling happily exhausted because we spent all day long watching my beautiful nieces, "Amethyst" and "Opal". {As resulted? I quickly learned that hip swaying/dancing/working out to Bruce helps me unwind and maintains my sanity!! Score!!} I have hip swayed/danced/worked out to Bruce while battling head colds. {Like this week, for example. Bruce is the best medicine.... I am feeling better already!!} I have hip swayed/danced worked out to Bruce despite an insanely busy Summer of watching kids and writing prolific fictional stories. {Because I made him a priority!!} I have hip swayed/danced/worked out during 95-plus degree Summer heat waves.... While flinging sweat literally everywhere!! I have hip swayed/danced/worked out as our old, now-replaced, mini pump slowly sucked rainwater from my formerly flooded bedroom crawlspace.... It had a loud, mournful, wailing sound!! I have spent hundreds of dollars at Amazon on Bruce's albums.... I'm not exaggerating!! I have created "Born In The USA Wednesday". Translation? Every single Wednesday, I hip sway/dance to a Born In The USA-themed Bruce Springsteen Workout!! {Album, live versions, outtakes and all!! "Born In The USA Wednesday" can last a good five hours!! I love it!!} And, as resulted to spending one year hip swaying/dancing/working out {Ahem, ahem, ahem....} cutting loose/performing to Bruce's music? I have lost tons of weight.... No pun intended!! Anyway.... I composed a "song"/poem which expresses how hip swaying/dancing/working out to Bruce makes me feel!! Enjoy!! By the way? This "song"/poem is not set to music. Why? Because I'm not musically gifted. I am just a poet. I'm an artist!! Love you later.


5-11-16
Adelaide Dupont.... I just noticed that you have given several of my fictional stories a 1 + count!! Thanks, Friend!! And during an unplanned, suddenly busy time in my Life when, as resulted, I fell off of the face of the Internet planet, became a loner, {Yeah, I tend to do that....} and have ever since temporarily stopped writing creative fictional stories, you also sent me a comment--through Anna's Blog--expressing your enjoyment of my poem/song "Stay Hard, Stay Hungry, Stay Alive"!! Thanks, Friend!! It feels good to be missed!! So where have I been all these months? {Aside from recently coming out of hiding to send Anna my love, somehow making new Blogging Friends along the way and replying your comments?} More on that later....

As I give credit to whom credit is due, I did not write the line: "stay hard, stay hungry, stay alive".... Bruce did!! It is a line from his song, "This Hard Land". However. "Stay hard, stay hungry, stay alive" is my motto as I hip sway/dance/work out to Bruce.... And it has been ever since January!! So!! I have "borrowed" Bruce's line for the title of my "song"/poem!! Because, why not?! Also, as I give credit to whom credit is due, I did not write the line: "hey, ho, rock 'n roll, deliver me from nowhere".... Bruce did!! It is a line from his song, "Open All Night".... Plus "Living On The Edge Of The World". Both lines speak directly to my heart and soul, especially throughout 2015, particularly!! Love ya, Bruce!! I sincerely hope you do not mind!!

Something that I neglected to mention about this "song"/poem.... It's autobiographical!! Yes, every single word, line, syllable and rhyme is absolutely true!! I did not fictionalize any of it!! This "song"/poem is my Life.... Of hip swaying/dancing/cutting loose/working out to Bruce!!

"Stay Hard, Stay Hungry, Stay Alive"

Written by Raelyn!!

So it all started with Bruce's album, Born To Run;
For dancin' as "Tenth Avenue Freeze-out" plays is fun!!
Then I quickly fell in love with this New Jersey boy;
Now Bruce brings my Life endless bliss, happiness and joy!!
Then I became his fanatic shortly thereafter;
And now Bruce fills my Life with song, music and laughter!!

They say it is the endorphins, but I disagree;
Bruce does somethin', does somethin', he does somethin' to me!!
Yeah, Bruce does somethin', does somethin', does somethin' to me!!
Oh, Bruce does somethin', does somethin', does somethin' to me!!

I whip my hips as the rhythm pounds and pounds and pounds;
I play air guitar at its very first rockin' sounds!!
Dancin' to Bruce is not just a physical workout;
For it exercises my mind, as his songs I shout!!
You know, workin' out should not be fun, so I've been told;
Yet hand-shakin' adrenaline rushes don't feel old!!

They say it is the endorphins, but I disagree;
Bruce does somethin', does somethin', he does somethin' to me!!
Yeah, Bruce does somethin', does somethin', does somethin' to me!!
Oh, Bruce does somethin', does somethin', does somethin' to me!!

I feel things, I become emotionally involved;
For Bruce's characters' heartbreak and grief I must solve!!
When I wrote on my birthday that I'd rock my thirties;
I never expected I'd take it literally!!
I vehemently anticipate dancin' to Bruce;
As I "stay hard, stay hungry, stay alive", I cut loose!!

They say it is the endorphins, but I disagree;
Bruce does somethin', does somethin', he does somethin' to me!!
Yeah, Bruce does somethin', does somethin', does somethin' to me!!
Oh, Bruce does somethin', does somethin', does somethin' to me!!

He sets my heart and soul free, he gives them a release;
Dancin' to Bruce is an escape, makes me feel at peace!!
An escape from Reality, an escape from Life;
When trials and tribulations cut me like a knife;
If Bruce had any superpowers, what would they be?
He takes me away with his brilliant poetry!!
'Cause "hey, ho, rock 'n roll, deliver me from nowhere"!!

They say it is the endorphins, but I disagree;
Bruce does somethin', does somethin', he does somethin' to me!!
Yeah, Bruce does somethin', does somethin', does somethin' to me!!
Oh, Bruce does somethin', does somethin', does somethin' to me!!

12 comments:

  1. Raelyn
    Sounds like you had a fun New Year with your neices and got off to a good start with your Bruce Springsteen workout!
    Oh, I feel your pain with the fireworks, it was exactly the same outside our house and Elliot doesn't like them either. That was so sweet of you to comfort Rose.
    Aww thanks about the drawing, I enjoyed drawing him :)
    Love, Lynne x

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    1. Lynne....
      Thank-you for the comment, Friend!!
      "Oh, I feel your pain with the fireworks, it was exactly the same outside our house and Elliot doesn't like them either. That was so sweet of you to comfort Rose." Aw.... I had chocolate in my system, drank a small can of Sprite soda and I softly sang Christmas carols to Rosey at the stroke of midnight!! Although I am feeling tired and under the weather--I'm still recovering from that late night with Rosey!!--I'll be fine!! I'm getting too old for this!! Ha!! Not really.... At age 31, I do not want to possess that attitude.... Because.... At age 66, I do not want to possess that attitude.... So, let's reverse it. I'm getting too YOUNG for this? ;op

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  2. Raelyn
    You're right, with a bad night we can be tired at any age. I am struggling with Dip at the moment since she has suffered with dementia she wants to get up at all hours of the night.
    Yes Ted is our adorable little hammy!
    I know what you mean, our pups hate the dreaded vet too. Fingers crossed she gets a clean bill of health when she goes to be weighed in a couple of weeks.

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    1. Lynne....
      Hi Friend!! ;)
      "I am struggling with Dip at the moment since she has suffered with dementia she wants to get up at all hours of the night. I know what you mean, our pups hate the dreaded vet too. Fingers crossed she gets a clean bill of health when she goes to be weighed in a couple of weeks." Yes.... Fingers {And Paws? Claws?} crossed for Dip's next V-E-T appointment!! Here's to her clean bill of health!! Our hearts always break--and we feel utterly helpless--when something is ailing our precious babies.... ;op

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  3. Glad I saw this update just now Raelyn.

    I thought it might have been autobiographical!

    The endorphin effect is marvellous.

    "Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out".

    Blogging friends are always good to make. I think I can tell where the quotes are.

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    1. Adelaide....
      I am breaking this long comment up into twain parts!! I so cannot do Twitter!! Ha!! ;-D
      My fellow Bruce Springsteen Fanatic, rock 'n roll lovin', Blogging Friend!! Hi!! ;)
      Yes, this song/poem is one-hundred percent autobiographical!! Every single word, every single line, every single syllable!! I wrote it last September after hip swaying/dancing/cutting loose to Bruce's album, Tracks {Yes, all sixty-six songs!! I tackled Tracks for Bruce's sixty-sixth birthday!!} but then I added the last verse later, because I just could not leave well enough alone!! You know what? I think that being a perfectionist is a blessing and a curse. It definitely has its positives and its negatives. Sometimes I actually like being a perfectionist--which, by the way, I inherited from Grampa--because, as it turns out, that last verse is my very favorite part of "Stay Hard, Stay Hungry, Stay Alive"!! ;-D

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    2. Adelaide....
      "The endorphin effect is marvellous." I absolutely agree!! When endorphins--and adrenaline!!--rush through me, I get wound up, I get hyperactive, I get happy!! Bruce does somethin', does somethin', he does somethin' to me.... What can I say?! ;)
      "Tenth Avenue Freeze-out" was my very first of Bruce's songs that I ever hip swayed/danced/cut loose to!! Because I just could not help myself!! On December 30th, 2014? I popped Mom's copy of Born To Run into a CD player and danced like nobody was watching!! So.... Much.... Fun....!! To this day, I always feel nostalgic about "Tenth Avenue Freeze-out"--a song that was written and recorded years before I was even born!!--because it started everything!! I would not have fallen in love with and become Bruce's fanatic.... If it weren't for "Tenth Avenue Freeze-out"!! I would not hip sway/dance/cut loose to his music every single day.... If it weren't for "Tenth Avenue Freeze-out"!! I would not be currently finding myself on a "soul-searchin', rock 'n roll healin' The River Challenge journey".... If it weren't for "Tenth Avenue Freeze-out"!! ;-D

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    3. 66 tracks for a 66th birthday.

      The last verse might have been the one you were going for.

      I don't know where my perfectionism comes from. It seemed a hop-out-of-kin even within my own character. I think it is the feeling of working within a craft, a guild.

      And isn't it great when something turns out to be your favourite.

      ***

      What a soul-searching journey, Raelyn, that you are going on.

      Songs that started everything ... have spent the day listening to a community radio station.

      He does somethin' somethin' somethin'...

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    4. Adelaide....
      Thank-you for the comment, Friend!! I truly appreciate it!! ;)
      I am breaking this long comment up into twain parts.... Again.... ;-D
      Yes, I did tackle sixty-six songs for Bruce's sixty-sixth birthday!! It was fun, it was insane, it was wild.... It was unforgettable.... That particular Bruce Springsteen Workout? It was my longest on record until recently!! That particular Bruce Springsteen Workout? It sent me on an ultimate high which took days to emotionally recover from.... When no future Bruce Springsteen Workout "felt good enough", when I did not "feel good enough"!! Strange the lies that our minds and emotions can tell us, huh? {No, I was not suffering from Depression, just Perfectionism!! I recovered!!} I tackled Tracks while Grampa underwent yet another successful operation {I do not even remember which surgery it was.... What a long cancer journey he suffered through....} and I needed Bruce to distract me.... To take me away with his brilliant poetry!! And--as always--Bruce did not let me down or disappoint!! There were, like, a billion interruptions, so tackling Tracks took ALL DAY.... I felt physically, mentally and emotionally exhausted during disc four.... But I did it!! "Stay hard, stay hungry, stay alive"!! {Really cool fact. "This Hard Land" is actually one of Bruce's songs on Tracks!!} ;-D

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    5. Adelaide....
      Yeah, I just sort of threw out into the void that I'm on a soul-searchin', rock 'n roll healin', The River Challenge journey.... Didn't I? ;)
      The River Challenge. What is it, exactly? Bruce and the E Street Band are currently on a The River 2016 Tour. And I cannot attend any of their shows. So--in an effort to avoid Self-Pity--every time Bruce and the E Street Band performs their scheduled concerts, I tackle The River-themed Bruce Springsteen Workouts in my little bedroom!! Which are always marathon, always epic, always long.... Always super fun!! The River Challenge feels like therapy sessions, as God {through Bruce's profound, poetic, brilliant songwriting!!} has shown me that I possess a heart of stone, that I struggle mightily with envy, Self-Pity and jealousy issues.... Which, I'm continuously working on!! The River Challenge is.... Well.... Challenging in every sense of the word!! It is emotionally, mentally, physically, and spiritually challenging!! The River Challenge feels like a long-term mission trip, only instead of travelling to some foreign country, I am time travelling to 1980 {I was not even born yet!!} and instead of drawing sinners closer to God, He is somehow drawing this sinner--me--closer to Him. The River Challenge. What is it, exactly? The River Challenge was unplanned. It was spontaneous. It was unexpected. And it was just going to be one day--January 16th, 2016--not an entire tour.... ;-D
      Question. As of right now, my The River Challenge journal entries {which I am overwhelmingly behind on} are private. Should I start a The River Challenge Blog? Would you read it/leave comments? ;)
      Well, I need to go.... "Amethyst" and "Opal" just showed up and they want my attention!! ;-D


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  4. You keep rocking your thirties, Raelyn!

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    1. "You keep rocking your thirties!" I will!! I am!! ;)

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