I'm blogging at The Popculturedivas

Join me at The Popculturedivas for 2013 -- The Transforming Year of the Black Snake.

5 on Friday -- Set 202

Spinning Friday tunes since 2010...

For anyone who wants to join in, simply choose five pieces of music and post them for other bloggers to enjoy. Then check out the set posted by the other 5 on Friday blogger -- you can sign in over at Golch Central's Rambling Stuff.

At the moment, Mike and I are carrying on a tradition started four years ago by our friend Travis. Over the years we've had up to ten bloggers creating wonderful musical sets to share with one another on Fridays.

If you'd like to join in, please do! It's a lot of fun. I've discovered a ton of great new-to-me music doing this weekly feature.

This is the last set before Christmas rolls around next Wednesday. Here are five lively seasonal tunes to get your toes tapping while you get your last-minute Christmas stuff done.

1 - Riu Riu Chiu -- Kalenda Maya

2 - The Seven Joys of Mary -- Great Big Sea

3 - Christmas Jig and Mouth of the Tobique Reel -- Natalie MacMaster and Yo-Yo Ma  

4 - The King -- Loreena Mckennitt and Cedric Smith

5 - Panxolina -- Cristina Pato and Yo-Yo Ma

Behind the Sugar Plum Fairy -- Virtual Advent Blog Tour -- 6th year

Welcome, Virtual Advent Tourists!

This is my sixth year participating, and I'm so glad that Marg and Kelly have launched such a wonderful holiday tradition into the blogosphere. It continues to be a highlight of my season.

I blogged previously during the 2009 Virtual Advent Tour about my love of ballet and The Nutcracker in particular. I can never get enough of it!

Is The Nutcracker a Christmas tradition for you, as it is for me?

Are you lucky enough to live in a large city with a professional dance company? Is a live performance of this ballet classic one of the things your soul can't live without every year, as it is for me?

I have a large collection of Nutcracker-themed Christmas ornaments, including a Clara, the Mouse King, a Sugarplum Fairy, some Snowflakes, some Waltz of the Flowers figures and a Harlequin doll. I'm always looking to add more.

Aside from writing and film, ballet is my truest passion. I studied ballet when I was a younger, uninjured version of me. When dancing myself was no longer an option, I was lucky enough to get a job as an usher at the theatre that was at that time the home of the National Ballet of Canada in Toronto.

For eight years, my Christmas season revolved around the performances of The Nutcracker, and I got to see so many wonderful behind-the-scenes aspects of what it means to be the Sugarplum Fairy in a production such as this.

For those of you who may already have your tickets for this year's performance, who may hum many of the pieces from the score by Tchaikovsky -- here is a backstage peek at one of the women who dons the famous tutu and tiara of the Sugarplum Fairy. 

"When I'm onstage, I'm not really thinking about the steps anymore," says principal dancer Heather Ogden. "I want to be hearing the music and letting my body remember the steps by itself and move with the music, and enjoy the story and bring a character to life."

"The Nutcracker in many companies is the staple at Christmastime, and it's rare to come back to a role every year. So it's really nice to do the Sugarplum Fairy, because you get to revisit it so often. I've found a level of comfort where I feel like I can really enjoy telling the story."

Ruth Bartel, resident cutter in the National Ballet of Canada's wardrobe department, gives an in-depth look at how a tutu is built: "We build our costumes to last for twenty-five to thirty years...A tutu something like this, the Sugarplum, could be as much as thirty-five hundred dollars."

Heather Ogden is the featured Sugarplum Fairy in this piece.

~~~

Did you always wonder what it would feel like to be the Sugarplum Fairy?

5 on Friday -- Set 201

Spinning Friday tunes since 2010...

For anyone who wants to join in, simply choose five pieces of music and post them for other bloggers to enjoy. Then check out the sets posted by the other 5 on Friday bloggers -- you can sign in over at Golch Central's Rambling Stuff.

This week marks my final post in this year's Birthday Boy/Birthday Girl project, which ran throughout 2013. I had a lot of fun with it.

I found it fascinating to see the sorts of music created by people born in different months, for the most part displaying the characteristics of their astrological signs.

Here's a wee recap of the Birthday Boy/Birthday Girl sets:

January birthday boys -- Rod Stewart, Robert Palmer, David Bowie, Michael Hutchence (INXS) and Steve Perry (Journey)

February birthday girls -- Stockard Channing (Grease soundtrack,) Roberta Flack (with Donny Hathaway,) Natalie Cole, Leontyne Price and Patty Andrews (the Andrews Sisters)

March birthday boys -- Harry Belafonte, Adam Levine (Maroon 5,) Chris Martin (Coldplay,) Charlie Reid and Craig Reid (The Proclaimers) and Eric Idle 

April birthday girls -- Kelly Clarkson, Sheena Easton, Carnie Wilson (Wilson Phillips,) Victoria Beckham (Spice Girls) and Hayley Westenra

May birthday boys -- Steve Winwood, Lou Gramm (Foreigner,) Bono (U2,) Paul Weller (The Style Council) and Georg Wadenius (Saturday Night Live band)

June birthday girls -- Nancy Sinatra, Anne Murray, Laurie Anderson (with Peter Gabriel,) Alanis Morissette and Nicole Scherzinger (Pussycat Dolls) 

July birthday boys -- Geddy Lee (Rush,) Stewart Copeland (The Police,) Robbie Robertson, Vince Guaraldi (Vince Guaraldi Trio) and Carlos Santana

August birthday girls -- Shirley Manson (Garbage,) Shania Twain, Geri Halliwell (Spice Girls,) Florence Welch (Florence + The Machine) and Madonna

September birthday boys -- Harry Connick Jr, Michael Buble, Freddie Mercury (Queen,) Bruce Springsteen and Moby

October birthday girls -- Julie Andrews, Susan Sarandon (Rocky Horror Picture Show soundtrack,) Katy Perry, Gwen Stefani (No Doubt) and Mavis Swan Poole 

November birthday boys -- Denny Doherty (The Mamas and The Papas,) Leslie McKeown (Bay City Rollers,) Adam Ant, Billy Idol and Jimi Hendrix

And now lets say Happy Birthday to these December birthday girls.

1 - I Feel Love -- Donna Summer

2 - Sex Crime from the 1984 soundtrack -- Annie Lennox from Eurythmics

3 - Lady Marmalade -- Birthday girl Christina Aguilera with Mya, Pink, Lil' Kim and Missy Elliott  

4 - Toxic -- Britney Spears

5 - Give it To Me -- Birthday girl Nelly Furtado with Timbaland and Justin Timberlake

5 on Friday -- Set 200!

Spinning Friday tunes since 2010...

For anyone who wants to join in, simply choose five pieces of music and post them for other bloggers to enjoy. Then check out the sets posted by the other 5 on Friday bloggers -- you can sign in over at Golch Central's Rambling Stuff.

200 musical sets! If my February-of-2010 self could see me now...

Let's head into the Christmas swing of things, shall we? My sister and I will be having our annual Sisters Outside Lights Christmas Party tomorrow, so here are five tunes to set the mood.

1 - Rockin Around the Christmas Tree -- Brenda Lee

2 - Wonderful Christmastime -- Paul McCartney

3 - Joy -- Apollo 100

4 - It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year -- Andy Williams

5 - Wizards in Winter -- Trans-Siberian Orchestra

5 on Friday -- Set 199

Spinning Friday tunes since 2010...

For anyone who wants to join in, simply choose five pieces of music and post them for other bloggers to enjoy. Then check out the sets posted by the other 5 on Friday bloggers -- you can sign in over at Golch Central's Rambling Stuff.

I'm in the last two days of the November writing marathon known as NaNoWriMo, wherein crazy people write a 50,000-word first draft novel in 30 days.

This is my fifth year slogging through the ordeal. At this point everyone participating seriously questions their sanity.

However, from past experience I also know that pushing this far past my normal creative process always gives me amazing material to work with later.

So, as I head for the 50,000-word finish line, here are five tunes about writing.

1 - Every Day I Write the Book -- Elvis Costello

2 - Lady Writer -- Dire Straits

3 - Dancing in the Dark -- Bruce Springsteen

4 - Paperback Writer -- The Beatles

5 - If You Could Read My Mind -- Gordon Lightfoot

I'm blogging at The Popculturedivas

Join me at The Popculturedivas for 13 of My Favorite Costumes From Hal-Con 2013.

My next Thursday Thirteen will be my 300th listing of thirteen things. A big milestone for A Piece of My Mind!

Because I won't be able to get ready for that by next week--I'll need to recover somewhat from NaNoWriMo and my choir concert this Friday--my retrospective of Thursday Thirteens from 200 to 300 will be posted sometime in January. See you then!