We are entering our 4th week of official shelter-in-place. How are all of y’all holding up? These days, I’m noticing that my emotions come in waves. Some days I’m experiencing my highest highs and feel like I’m thriving. Others days this week, I’m unsure of my feelings. I’m irritable and sad for reasons that I just can’t explain. I know some of you may be feeling the same. One thing that brought me solace was listening to Ben Gibbard’s daily stream every day for an hour. In addition to performing a mix of his songs and covers, he also took this time to express how he was feeling and how shelter-in-place for Seattle was also impacting him.
Ben’s last daily show was last Sunday, but he has agreed to come back weekly on Thursdays at 6PM PT. However, if you can’t wait five more days for his show, here’s a bonus filmed earlier this week. In times like these, I’m finding that more music is bringing me comfort so I hope it will bring the same to you as it does for me.
I may look back on this period of time and kick myself for how few posts I put out during quarantine. More on that later! We’re doing the best we can, but like work, even writing for Yow Yow doesn’t mean that we have our full focus during a pandemic.
Dua Lipa just released a sophomore album, which is a new favorite of mine. Unable to do her usual press tour and live performances, she opted for a completely virtual one with her band, backup singers and dancers. It actually was quite enjoyable to watch!
As much as possible, I want to try and keep some kind of normalcy during this quarantine. Sundays are my days for unwinding so that usually means being in my lounge wear, running errands, getting ready for the week, catching up on new music and television shows. Aside from running errands, we can do almost all of that. I’m also aware that having more time now, I’m able to create new routines for myself. I can spend more time on making a Sunday dinner that will set me up for the week once we return to work. Hopefully that’s not too ambitious!
In the last week five new albums came out that I was anticipating. Technically The Weeknd was the week before, but whatever. Dua Lipa’s album was released a couple weeks early due to it being leaked. I saw that she was upset at the news, but on the upside, it’s truly a bop and one of my new favorites.
If you’re looking for some new music to fill your time, here is what I’m listening to:
I’m not sure when I was made first aware of this, but I’ve always been a routine person. I love the idea of having a schedule that I can follow and getting competitive with my own to-do-list. In these times of uncertainty, creating a new routine for myself was made a priority. Honestly, last week was a wash. I was coming off of travel fatigue and adjusting to shelter-in-place while trying not to panic shop at the grocery store. Now halfway into my second week of working from home, I still don’t quite have it down.
The second day into my work from home last week, one of my favorite artists Ben Gibbard announced that he’d do a Facebook live every day at 4PM and perform songs for an hour. This didn’t exclude weekends! There were no shortcuts. Sometimes he includes The Postal Service! He has stayed true to his word of showing up at 4PM every day and actually, so have I.
In fact, I’m so committed that I have a standing event on my calendar from 4-5PM that I hold myself accountable for and don’t book over. In a working from home situation, it’s so easy to get carried away with things you have to do. Of course, we all know this; there’s always something to do. This 4-5PM time is time for myself. I can choose to work if I want, but I’ll have the stream going on my second laptop so that I can still watch. Or if I decide not to work, I’ll spend just this hour watching in solitude. In an hour, Ben performs about 6-8 songs, does a Q&A with fans, and shares an organization that he wants us all to give back to that day.
I haven’t seen Death Cab for Cutie perform since I was living in Seattle. I’ve got the same excuses as all of you. Sometimes there isn’t the time or the money. For this, we have no excuse. It truly is like watching the real thing, but in a way even better.
If you’re up for joining me tomorrow, feel free to visit this [link] at 4PM. I’ll be here regardless. And if you’re not ready to commit yet, here’s a video from his first stream published on YouTube afterwards.
I’m starting to wind down for the night, but I wanted to make sure I ended the night on a high note (literally!) “Love on Top” is one of my favorite feel-good songs. I can’t wait till I’m able to sing and dance to this one again at an upcoming wedding. Good night!
We’re spending this rainy day getting caught up on Jhene Aiko’s new album! Maybe it’s because Wedding Mondays is today, but this song is such a lovely one for a “first dance.” It may seem a little bit unconventional, but I happen to love it. You could say we’ve been waiting for this album to be released for some time. Listening to it now feels like it was worth the wait.
