Friday Night Video

A little something for the weekend -- a new video from Northern State called "Better Already." This all-female band from Long Island is kind of like Luscious Jackson meets The PowerPuff Girls. Or the Go-Go's in a world where all Go-Go's are Jane Wiedlin. Super-cool stuff.

Oh, and this is mostly for grown-ups. One brief edited hand gesture is all that keeps it from being entirely family friendly.

Southern Culture with the Kids II

The boys, especially Walter, have been meeting a lot of new people since we got to Georgia, many of them native Southerners. Like a true, happy-go-lucky, I-love-everyone child, Walter hasn't focused much on the differences between us (Northerners) and some of our new Southern neighbors and friends. If only I could be as accepting as my 7-year-old.

I've cringed at some of the extreme Southern accents we've encountered, and have begun to wonder if 2-year-old Ralph will grow up talking like this. I especially cringed when someone told me I had a "nice accent" and asked (seriously) if I was from another country. I've cringed at some of the far-out grammar we've been hearing (not that all grammar in Ohio or Iowa was perfect) and at some of the other daily reminders that we are in a new and different place.

There are many things I love -- LOVE! -- about the South, and especially about Atlanta.

I love a good Southern dialect as long as I can understand it. I think a pleasant drawl can give one license to be much more direct and blunt than they would be otherwise. For the most part, this is a good thing, and it definitely cuts back on the amount of passive-aggressiveness. Southerners do a much better job of saying what they think than most Northerners I know.

I love the word "ya'll" -- there is really no appropriate Northern equivalent. "You guys" (or "youse guys" as some say) just doesn't work as well as "ya'll."

I love that people here call soda "coke" whether it's Coke or not.

But the other day, as I was checking my local Freecycle group online (if you don't know about Freecycle, definitely check it out), I came across a post that hit on pretty much everything I don't love about the south. And it hit me hard. I'll preface this with a gigantic (SIC):

DO TO NOSHOWS 17 TO PUT A # TO IT I STILL HAVE MY OFFERS PLEASE
DONTSAY YOULL COME THAN DON`T ,,,I have no pic don`t ask ;;;;;;;;

1) ski jacket bright yellow/pink size m brand new

2)n rockwell pic lg (the marriage license)

3) 11x 16 jeff gordon pic

4)vcr

5) dvd

6)gun cleaing kit

7)cammie bible

8)kittens very loving need indoor homes only

9) 3d 9/11 pic

Where do I even begin? With the spelling and grammar? With the gun cleaning kit? With the camouflage (cammie) bible? Or with the fact that one household has ALL these things under one roof? At least they're giving them away.

Maybe they're getting ready to move north.

CNN Jumps the Shark

In an ongoing effort to re-familiarize myself with Atlanta (and to get the kids out of the house so my husband could finish some projects that involved power tools and adult language), I took the boys downtown on Saturday. We spent about 10 minutes at Centennial Olympic Park ooooh-ing and aaaah-ing over the awesome water fountains before deciding that air conditioning would be preferable to the heat and sun. Luckily, an indoor oasis was just across the street.

The CNN Center is fabulous inside. There, one can find the Turner Store -- a gift/souvenir shop with merchandise promoting a number of Turner Networks (CNN, Cartoon Network, TNT, TBS) -- as well as a massive food court, access to CNN studio tours, and plenty more. After lunch in the food court, we did a little shopping. Walter was beyond thrilled to see so much "official" Cartoon Network merchandise, and it was all I could do to get out of that store for under $25.



But while the Cartoon Network goodies were a major highlight, I was struck more by the CNN merchandise. Seeing cardboard cutouts of Anderson Cooper, Wolf Blitzer, and Lou Dobbs in a store window less than 10 yards away from the Powerpuff Girls was jolting. Yes, the Cartoon Network portion of the Turner Store was nicely sectioned off from the rest of the merchandise as a super-fun, super-wacky area, but in the larger area, CNN caps and keychains and windbreakers were intermingled with Sex and the City (TBS) t-shirts and TNT coffee mugs. And there was so much Anderson Cooper merchandise (portfolios! shirts! umbrellas! bags!), he actually earned his own page on the Turner Store website.



The celebritization of news anchors and the blatant branding of such a major news organization was mind-blowing, and caused me to question my media reality. Sure, the line between news and entertainment has been blurred for years. Most morning news shows now have outdoor cheering sections and live concerts, so that after a report about a helicopter crash in Iraq we can cut away to Hilary Duff singing her new hit single. And the fight for ratings in network news became much more apparent in recent years as ABC, CBS, and NBC all underwent major changes in nightly news anchors. But none of that struck me quite like this did.

If you're chuckling at this, thinking, "Sure, CNN is like that. But I get my news from a more objective and serious source that would never brand itself." Think again.

ABC News is doing it:

NBC and Meet the Press are doing it:



Those are probably not terribly surprising to you. But how about some toddler-sized overalls from the New York Times?



Or a Wall Street Journal hat?



Even NPR is not above merchandising:



Oh, and you can also get a FOX News "fair and balanced" tie:



There's something very wrong with the media and our consumption of it when we are walking around sporting the logos of our favorite news sources the way we would wear a Chicago Cubs hat or a Metallica concert t-shirt. What exactly are you saying to people when you're wearing a CNN shirt? I like CNN? I've been to the CNN Center? I believe in CNN?

Branding individuals like Anderson Cooper or Tim Russert, and thereby furthering their celebrity status, makes the situation even more disturbing. Before this weekend, I viewed most news media with a fair amount of skepticism, and I frequently rolled my eyes at the entertainment-ish tendencies of much of the news on TV. But having seen CNN and many of its anchors and reporters packaged and merchandised like professional athletes or Disney characters, I'm not sure I can ever take any "news" seriously again.

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P.S. Thanks to all of you who commented and/or emailed over the weekend. It helped so much to hear from you. I've been working through my "crisis" and am definitely here to stay.

This Happens to Everyone, Right?

In spite of the fact that so many great things are happening right now in the world of kids' music and media, I just haven't been inspired to write about much of it. I have a long list of post ideas, and a growing stack of material to review, but very little interest in these things. There are so many other topics I would rather write about right now -- many of them personal things that I really can't share so publicly, and some of them completely random topics that suddenly have great prominence in my life (painting! landscaping! the joys of Ikea!).



This has led me into a major existential blog-crisis (a blogxistential crisis?) -- something I know many bloggers have experienced, and something I've experienced before on a much smaller scale. At the same time, I've been adjusting to a new place and new routines. All this week, I've been toying with various scenarios to get myself out of this blog-crisis, everything from ramping up my efforts here, to mandating a two-post-per-day rule until I get back in the groove of blogging, to forming some new partnerships, to ditching the blog entirely and re-surfacing anonymously with a different focus.

Whatever the outcome (and I really don't think I could effectively cover my tracks and go anonymous), I've vowed to work through my blogxistential crisis this weekend. So look forward to something -- I don't know exactly what, yet -- from me on Monday.

Kids' Music and Media Links for 8/20/07

Dadsmacker discusses the premiere of Yo Gabba Gabba TODAY on Nickelodeon: "The show is so hip it makes 'Jack’s Big Music Show' look like Lawrence Welk."

Miss Zoot watched High School Musical 2 with a roomful of tweens, and lived to tell about it.

CNN reported last week that Noggin and The N are splitting into two separate networks, beginning December 31. The two currently share one channel, with a daytime-nighttime arrangement. The split will move us one step closer to a dedicated kids' music video channel -- something I predicted last summer, and I still think we'll see in the next 2-3 years.

If you've been following any of the hype about CBS's new reality show Kid Nation, you shouldn't be surprised that the show has spun off a few lawsuits.

Southern Culture with the Kids

Having lived in Atlanta many years ago, my husband and I were excited about introducing our sons to some of the local culture upon our return to the area. One especially notable memory of our years in Atlanta was the remarkable and often bizarre TV news.

We prepared Walter for this shortly before our move, telling him that the news here would be much more "exciting" and "strange" than the news in Ohio. While we've tried to shield him from most of the crime coverage, we've encouraged him to watch the local weather (have I mentioned that it's really HOT here lately?) and some of the local interest/features. We were here less than three weeks when I came across THE news story that perfectly demonstrated the "exciting" and "strange" elements I had described to him.

Friday night, I showed him this story about a local man and his monkey. You can see the video here. Be sure to watch for the lollipop at about 1:48 into the video. This stuff is better than Cartoon Network.

Friday Night Video for 8/17/07

Have I ever mentioned how much I love Jill Sobule? Probably more than once.




This is a new video that just showed up recently on My Damn Channel. It's produced by Don Was, which (I think) is a sign that Jill is doing well. There are more of her videos on Jill's MySpace page, and more music on her website.

Jill actually has a connection -- a pretty big one -- to the world of kids' music, writing songs for the Nickelodeon/TeenNick series Unfabulous. And she rocks.

The Back-to-School iMix

As a follow up to Tuesday's Ten Back-to-School Songs, here is an iMix with eight of those ten songs, put together by the wonderful Monty Harper (who happens to be one of the artists in the mix).

Enjoy!

Tuesday Ten: Back-to-School Songs

Yesterday was Walter's first day of school. Second grade! This inspired today's Tuesday Ten -- a list of ten songs to get your kids (and you) excited about going back to school. I stuck to kids' artists, as tempting as it was to add the Ramones' "Rock N Roll High School" or the Waitresses' "Square Pegs" to the list. And I know there are many, many other songs that would fit here, so feel free to mention them in the comments.

Here are my ten, in no particular order. Click the song titles to hear a sample, and click the album names (in parentheses) to check it out at CDBaby or Amazon.

Justin Roberts - Billy the Bully (Not Naptime)
It was hard to choose between this one and Yellow Bus, but "Billy the Bully" is one of my all-time favorite Justin Roberts songs.

Terrible Twos - Math Stomp (If You Ever See an Owl)

Ernie and Neal - Homework Blues (Rock the House)

AudraRox - Short Attention Span (I Can Do it by Myself)
I've told a few people that I think all kindergarten teachers should have to listen to this song to be reminded of their clientele.

The Hipwaders - Educated Kid (Educated Kid)
This is from the new Hipwaders album, which is fantabulous. I'll have more on that soon.

Monty Harper - Dog Books (Paws, Claws, Scales and Tales)

Milkshake - School (Bottle of Sunshine)
A super-sincere and super-catchy pop song that is great for convincing your child that going back to school is WONDERFUL and FUN.

Eric Herman - I Can't Wait for Summer (Snow Day!)

John Hadfield - Bunny Foo Foo, The High School Years (Robot Monkey Head)
Ton Loc's "Wild Thing" adapted for kids. Brilliant.

Asylum Street Spankers - You Only Love Me for My Lunchbox (Mommy Says No!)
I love how many pop culture and kiddie culture references the Spankers pack into this song. If your child is insisting on a SpongeBob backpack or a Dora pencil case, you will really enjoy this.

Kids' Music and Media Links for 8/10/07

Gwyneth has moved her Kids Music in Atlanta site and has news about Brady Rymer, Baby Loves Disco, and other upcoming shows.

Sesame Street's 38th season begins on Monday. Celebrities stopping by this season include Rachael Ray, Ellen Degeneres, and Anderson Cooper. Catch video of Elmo on this morning's Today show promoting the new season.

Idolator has a sneak peek at the High School Musical 2 soundtrack. Their prediction? "It's going to drop next Tuesday, hit No. 1, sell more copies than anything else released in 2007, and help keep the music industry afloat for another year." The movie itself premieres on the Disney Channel next Friday, August 17. According to this Orlando Sentinel blog, a third High School Musical movie -- one that will actually be released in theaters -- is already being planned.

And because I know you just cant get enough of High School Musical 2, here's a look at what happened when one of its stars made the cover of the new issue of Rolling Stone.

Don't Blame the Clown

I've long insisted that holiday Hershey kisses taste better than regular Hershey kisses, and that any kind of chocolate tastes better when it's shaped like an egg and wrapped in Easter-pastel foil. Now it turns out that low-income pre-schoolers tend to agree with me.

In this sensational story about a fabulously flawed research study, more than half of the pre-schoolers involved said that various foods (including carrots and milk) tasted better when they came in a McDonald's wrapper versus a plain wrapper or package. Shocking! Kids, even young ones, react to advertising and packaging.

And then the article shares this nifty statistic: "Kids who preferred 'McFood' tended to live in homes with a greater number of television sets and tended to eat at McDonald's more often than kids not influenced by the McDonald's brand name."

What they don't mention is that children in lower income families (which happened to be ALL the children in this study) are generally exposed to far more television than children in middle and upper-middle class families. Is it possible that parents with lower incomes might not be as well-equipped to help their children process the TV and advertising they see and hear? Is it possible that parents with lower incomes might not have as much time to watch and discuss TV with their children? And is it really surprising that kids who eat at McDonald's more often were more likely to respond positively to McDonald's packaging?

Once again, I'm stunned at how many seemingly intelligent people are buying into the notion that kids who watch TV (and, therefore, television commercials) are destined to become stupid and fat, as if there are no other factors (genetics, family dynamics, income level, family eating habits, parental literacy, parental health, school quality, peer influences, general parenting style) at play in this. In my opinion, TV is perfectly fine for kids, as long as parents are standing by to discuss and filter and encourage critical thinking. And as long as they balance TV with other activities, including actual physical activity.

NBC ran a similar story around this same time last year, and it nearly made my head explode. Much of what I wrote then applies well to this latest study:

Advertising is a part of life. It's part of a free market. It's also (and
you saw this coming, didn't you?) part of our popular culture. You can run from
it, but you can't hide. You can avoid TV, radio, print media, and the web - but
what kind of life would you have? You can't very well avoid billboards and other
signs, logos on bags and boxes, or logos on other people's t-shirts and hats.
And you can't completely shield your children from these things either.

But you can teach your children to think critically, and to intelligently
process what they see and hear in advertising. When your two-year-old sees
the golden arches and yells, "McDonalds!" or "French fries!" you can ask him how
he knew what that symbol meant or why it makes him think of fries. As he gets
older, you can ask him why he thinks Shrek is on a box of frozen waffles, or why
he thinks the waffles with Shrek on the box are better than the other waffles.
You can have intelligent discussions. You can involve him in making decisions
about what to eat, where to shop, what to buy.

There are plenty of other ways to make your children stupid and fat. Don't blame it all on television and McDonald's.

Tuesday Ten: Summer's End

Walter starts school next Monday, and I'm probably one of the few parents who will say, "I'm not ready for summer break to end!" Remember back in June when I was counting the days of his summer break and worrying about keeping his days full and interesting? Well, his days have certainly been full. Maybe not as interesting or as fun as he would like -- unless playing his Gameboy on the couch while I packed is considered fun and interesting. But he's had plenty (plenty!) of new experiences, plenty of exercise and fresh air, and a considerable amount of fun. So even though Walter was uprooted from the place that he's called home for the last seven years, I think he had a good summer.

Here are ten things I'm glad he (or we) did this summer.

1. He went to his first drive-in movie with two of his friends.

2. He saw a few other movies, a couple plays, some live music, and a puppet show.

3. He played outside A LOT with Ralph and with kids from our neighborhood.

4. He climbed trees.

5. He ate a lot of Popsicles, and we made a few trips to the Dairy Queen.

6. He flew for the first time since he was 2 years old.

7. He caught lightning bugs and stayed up late.

8. He saw fireworks on the Fourth of July.

9. He visited family in Iowa, and played and swam with his cousins.

10. He read. All by himself. For fun.

I'll have to remind him of all these things before next Monday. But even if I do, when he is asked the inevitable question, "What did you do over the summer?" he will respond with either

a) "Nothing"

or

b) "Watched TV and played on the computer."

Then he will wow everyone in his class by quoting a few lines from Spiderman 3 or Aqua Teen Hunger Force, singing a verse of "Stacy's Mom" (I've just discovered the joys of Fountains of Wayne and made the mistake of listening to this while he was in the minivan with me), and telling them all about how Comcast OnDemand works. I can hardly wait to meet his new teacher.

They're Like the Partridge Family Only Much, Much Cooler

Okay, the Trachtenberg Family isn't really like the Partridge Family at all. But their video from Jack's Big Music Show -- "You're The One Who's Made for Me and I Was Made for You"-- showed up on YouTube a while back, and I've been meaning to share it. 'Tis AWESOME.

They'll Revoke Our Membership in the Hipster Parent Club for This

We took our sons to the Sears Portrait Studio last month.

No, we didn't hire some fabulous local photographer to take pictures in the park, or in our yard, or in his/her basement studio. No, we didn't set up our own tripod and digital camera up on campus. We went for the good old, reliable Sears Portrait Studio, where one can find 19-year-olds behind the camera, cheesy backgrounds and props, and poses that would make any grandparent or great aunt squeal with delight.

My motivation in scheduling a sitting with Sears was Ralph's second birthday, which happened to be more than two months past. And a coupon I had received in the mail. And my firm commitment that this would be our family's ABSOLUTE LAST TRIP to the Sears Portrait Studio. Or the Studio at Target. Or the Picture People. There have been many such trips over the last seven years.

For this momentous occasion, I dressed Walter and Ralph (ages 7 and 2) in complementary outfits -- I go for the complementary rather than the matching, which is so gauche (note: our 2003 family Christmas card photo). Unless you have twins. Or girls very close in age.

As we drove to the Sears store that afternoon, my husband and I braced ourselves for a total disaster. We imagined 2-year-old Ralph grabbing unwanted props and crashing through backdrops. We imagined 7-year-old Walter melting down when he realized that Ralph was the real center of attention, and that he would be in only in a couple of poses. We imagined ourselves losing all our patience and buying the single-pose $14.95 package after just two or three shots.

But the whole shoot went beautifully. We had, as expected, a camera-operator (I hesitate to say "photographer") in her late teens or early 20's. We were clear up front that we didn't want any of the cheesy backgrounds or props. For the most part, our young camera-operator honored our wishes. And I got the very poses I had wished for --poses that elicited a gushy response from elderly relatives and were presentable enough that I could frame an 8-by-10 to hang in the foyer of our home.

Quite honestly, I do think that was our last trip to the Sears Portrait Studio. Or the Studio at Target. Or the Picture People. Because even though most members of my family will recognize only an actual studio portrait as a photo worthy of framing (no matter how well I master the aperture settings on my digital camera or how creatively I pose my children), I am done. D-O-N-E done. They will have to make do now with school pictures, soccer pictures, or my own photo creations -- which really, if I do say so myself, are not bad at all.

Yes, It's Been a While

I accidentally took an entire week off from blogging. And while it's not what I had planned to do, it felt pretty good. Here's a quick rundown of what transpired in the last seven days that may be of interest to you....

Stefan shared his imaginary plan for catching 30-plus acts in three days at Lollapalooza/Kidzapalooza.

Gwyneth from Gooney Bird Kids has some great reports (with photos and video) from Summer on Southport.

This AP story on Dan Zanes and kids' music ran in a few places last weekend, and it includes some fabulous insights from Bill and me. (Okay, not really so fabulous on my part, especially considering I talked to this reporter for 45 minutes and ended up being quoted in just one barely coherent sentence.) But really, it's a great story.

So that about covers it.

Oh, you're wondering about the move? Oh, yeah. The moooooove.

Yes, we're here in our new house, rocking the suburbs of Atlanta. (You can see some pictures of our our progress here.)

We've met most of the neighbors on our cul de sac, and one of them even brought us dinner the other night. (Love her!) Walter already found some friends his age from across the street and has been climbing trees and hunting for bugs with them.

And yes, we spent a few days in Gatlinburg last weekend, as a way of re-immersing ourselves in southern culture and passing the time it took for the movers to get our things here. There's no doubt about it, we are in the south. I'm living near a city where I could go see a band called Anna Nicole Miner's Daughter next weekend. And who knows? I just might do that.