By Abby Berman Mazenod
I go to the art museum
I tell myself “maybe this is how some people feel about poetry”
Then I don’t feel so ignorant
From “Selections from the Permanent Collection,” The Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles.
It’s Simple
That you’re complicated
And it’s fine
That you have your own mind
For something so easy to say
I wish it was easy that way
To believe the words tumbling, stumbling
From my mouth
It’s shameful
My attempt to tie you down
Like some exotic creature
I don’t get used to seeing you around
Hypnotic words you say
They do all they can to steal my heart away
Without a warning it’s still beating as you’re leaving
Tucked tightly in your hands
Because I’ve tried and tried
So many times
Even from the start
To convince my heart
It doesn’t love you
But my heart is a stubborn one
It runs miles and miles
Through mountains and streams
It does what it wants
It lives in it’s dreams
That someday you’ll love me
Buy my heart is a stupid one
Oh my heart is a stupid one
And it’s torturing me
These people
They’re not complicated
They’re fine
There’s nothing that they mind
They’ve never had a struggle to see
They know not of what you burden on me
And I wouldn’t wish it or curse it, not the worst of it
Though I feel so alone
Because I’ve tried and tried
So many times
Even from the start
To convince my heart
It doesn’t love you
But my heart is a stubborn one
It runs miles and miles
Through mountains and streams
It does what it wants
It lives in it’s dreams
That someday you’ll love me
Yes, my heart is a stupid one
Oh, my heart is a stupid one
And it’s torturing me
This can’t be good for me
It just can’t be good for me
My belly is hungry
I’m starving for more
This can’t be good for me
It doesn’t feel good to me
But I guess I’ll always get what I settle for
Because I’ve tried and tried
So many times
Even from the start
To convince my heart
It doesn’t love you
But my heart is a stubborn one
It runs miles and miles
Through mountains and streams
It does what it wants
It lives in it’s dreams
That someday you’ll love me…someday you’ll love me…someday you’ll love me
Someday you’ll love me…someday you’ll love me…someday you’ll love me
Someday you’ll love me…someday you’ll love me…someday you’ll love me
My heart is a stupid one
Yes, my heart is a stupid one
And it’s torturing me
It’s Simple That You’re Complicated-A Song by Abby Berman
I met a man
On the train yesterday
He told me he was married
But we could talk just the same
Was on his way back home
To see his lovely wife
He told me of his travels
He told me of his life
Then he said “Hey Sister,
What you plan to do?
Your life is just beginning
Your childhood finally through.”
And I just said “Well Mister
Anything else would be wrong
I want to be a writer of song.”
Well that’s beautiful through and through
And there’s nothing else that I could ever do
Than be a speaker of dreams and truth
A writer of song
So I will take this harmony
And I will take the tune
And I will show the world
What a melody can do
These words they will have meaning
And their truth will be said strong
When I become my writer of song
Well that’s beautiful through and through
And there’s nothing else that I could ever do
Than be a speaker of dreams and truth
A writer of song
So I will taste this sunset
And speak the broken earth
While I relive this beauty
At its humble birth
This moment not forgotten
It will live forever long
Sheltered by this writer of song
Well that’s beautiful through and through
And there’s nothing else that I could ever do
Than be a speaker of dreams and truth
A writer of song
These words they will have meaning
And their truth will be said strong
When I become my writer of song
(**I wrote this song quite a while ago, and decided to rerecord it recently. It really was written on a train about a month before I graduated high school. )
xoxo-Abby
You can dream the night away
You can close your eyes
Feel the darkness hold you tight
Her perfect lullabies
I’ll be watching over you
It’s only you I see
And when I’m dreaming you’ll watch over me
You can dream the night away
Float softly in the clouds
Feel the nighttime’s sweet embrace
Wrap you all around
I’ll be watching over you
‘Till all your dreams are found
And when you wake I’ll catch you on the ground
When you think it’s too late to turn around
And it’s too soon to go on
Don’t be scared, just reach out you’ll be found
Just rest your mind
Close those tired eyes
You can dream the night away
Rest your sleepy head
Such adventures you will find
While safely in your bed
Peaceful slumbers pull you in
Just let them hold you tight
And I will wake you with the morning light
When you think it’s too late to turn around
And it’s too soon to go on
Don’t be scared, just reach out you’ll be found
Just rest your mind
Close those tired eyes
You can dream the night away
You can close your eyes
Just feel the darkness hold you tight
Her perfect lullabies
I’ll be watching over you
It’s only you I see
And when I’m dreaming you’ll watch over me
Wishing you beautiful dreams,
xoxo-Abby
I guess it’s simply nice
To be here right now
In this day or night
Or whatever we say it is
Not feel time
Not be a part of time
Slow down
Where there is no time
Where time does not exist
And to be given this gift
My beautiful perfect gift
Given to myself, by myself
And so I give me this day
And this day is mine
I will cherish it
As if it is the only day I will ever have
-Abby
Like a storm that drowns your soul
Then waits for you to come back again
Take the pieces, once so whole
She waits for you to run back again
She’s the one
Your angel, who somehow fell from grace
She’s the one
You kiss her, her porcelain angel face
Let her go
It kills you, it breaks your tender heart
You should know
She’ll slowly tear you apart
Like a storm that drowns your soul
Then waits for you to come back again
Take the pieces, once so whole
She waits for you to run back again
She’s the one
Your savior, the healer of your pain
In your dreams
You see her, she lets you live again
Let her go
It kills you, but you’ll be better off in time
You should know
They watch her, eat you alive
Like a storm that drowns your soul
Then waits for you to come back again
Take the pieces, once so whole
She waits for you to run back again
She’ll never give to you
All the things you expect her to today
She’ll only say to you
All the world she knows you want her to say
She’ll never give to you
All you need
Because there is no cause for hope… when there is no loss of vanity
Like a storm that drowns your soul
Then waits for you to come back again
Take the pieces, once so whole
She waits for you to run back again
…Take the pieces, once so whole
She waits for you to run back again
Written and performed by: Abby Berman
Recorded by: Gabe Dulek
***In simplest terms, this is a song about a man who falls in love with a demon.
“She’s the One”, a song by Abby Berman
Regina Spektor at the El Rey, Hollywood. September 29, 2016.
Last night, I was blessed enough to see the incredible musical performance of Regina Spektor. Celebrating her new album “Remember Us to Life” and the two and 1/2 month tour to support it, this was the first full-length performance she had done in the three whole years… and she’s still got it!
I have never in my life been to a concert that was more of a sing-a-long than a viewing and listening experience. The small venue only fits 771 people and when looking around at the crowed, every one of those 771 people were accompanying her with every word to every song (excluding the songs she performed from her new album-which was release today). In songs like “Sailor Song”, the chorus of “Marianne’s a bitch” was chanted by the crowed like an anthem. In the final encore song “Samson”(a personal favorite), Spector magically lost her place halfway through while performing and the crowd graciously finished the song complete with “Ooo”s and “Ahhh”s.
Her demeanor as a performer is charming and whimsical. She has a shy and a friendly but quiet way about her, even though her songs are nothing if not open and revealing. An artist that I have often considered the Salvador Dali of modern music, her songs have such depth and an element of tragedy and desperation while still maintaining a sweet quirky genuine character to them. This was the experience of a lifetime.
Songs that she performed from the new album included “Grand Hotel”, “Older and Taller”, “Bleeding Heart”, “Tornaoland”, “The Light”, “Small Bill$”, “Obsolete”, “Selling of Flowers”, and “The Trapper and the Furrier”.
Regina Spektors new album-“Remember Us to Life”
Her new album, “Remember Us to Life”, is exactly what fans had hoped for… at least it’s exactly what I had hoped for. Consistent with her traditional sound and storytelling in songs like “Grand Hotel”, she also breaks away from the singer-songwriter style in songs like “Small Bill$”, which has a creepy offbeat melodic chorus true to Spektor’s unique genius . A genuine masterpiece of an album… it is everything to be hoped for from this musical goddess.
Hope you enjoy the album as much as I do.
Best wishes,
xoxo-Abby
Do I have to look alive
To be living
Do I have to look alive
To be breathing
I choose not to move
Because of you
Do you have to see my pain
For me to be hurting
Do you have to see the pills
For them to be working
I’m hurting whether you like it or not
Because of you
Such answer waiting here
Such a dream to be taken from me
Scared to death to lose everything
That doesn’t mean anything… anything… anything
Oh, I’ve felt it too…
To love somebody who doesn’t deserve you
Do I have to grit my teeth
While I’m smiling
Will I ever understand
Such a wild thing
I’m crazy, I’m losing my mind
Because of you
Such an answer waiting here
Such a dream to be taken from me
Scared to death to lose everything
That doesn’t mean anything
Should have known better from the start
But who could live that way
Scared to death to lose everything
That doesn’t mean anything… anything… anything
Oh, I’ve felt it too…
To love somebody who loves to hurt you
Do I have to look alive
To be living
Even though I close my eyes
I’m still breathing
I watch the world spin me to sleep
Because of you
Note: This is one of the saddest songs I’ve ever written… it captures a time in my life when I was experiencing true heartache. Luckily the specific details of this song are not literal and were inspired by a piece of literature I was reading at the time.
Have a beautiful day,
xoxo-Abby
Kyoto is enchanting. This city’s natural and ancient beauty could not have stuck with me more. Fortunately, with only a weekend to enjoy this magical place, we were able to squeeze in as much sightseeing as humanly possible while still getting to enjoy some of the tastes and culture of the city. A two and 1/2 hour bullet train ride from Tokyo, and you land in one of the coolest most modern train stations to ever exist, in the heart of one of the most ancient cities in the entire world. This is absolutely a destination that I need to visit again in the near future… one weekend just wasn’t enough!
Having been the capital of Japan for more than 1,000 years, this city has a very traditional conservative Japanese way about it. Women are seen dressed in the customary kimonos, and there are too many temples and gardens to count. For the ancient culture of Japan, this is the place to visit.
Nijo Castle. Kyoto, Japan
The first place on our sightseeing tour was the Shogun Temple. This was the residence of the first know shogun in Japan. Thought the actual exhibits were closed, the outside view was pretty marvelous!
The Golden Pavilion. Kyoto, Japan
This is a zen temple covered entirely in gold. It is incredible! This experience was actually what I had expected to see when visiting Kyoto. The calming spiritual environment is what anyone would imagine of ancient Japan. The surrounding pond and gardens are beautiful and enormous (my husband and I actually got lost wile wandering through them). We finished off our visit with some super tasty green tea soft serve!
Garden of the Golden Pavilion. Kyoto, Japan
I had read that this garden was a bit unexciting… yup… they were right. I had seen pictures of it because it’s so famous. Although it was interesting to see it in person, I can’t say it was exactly thrilling. This was the only temple we went inside of when we visited Kyoto, and that part was really cool and exciting! Any time I can have an inside view of such a devout aspect of a culture, I am all in! The outside gardens were very pretty… but I am still not exactly sure why the rock garden is so famous. (Explain it to me in the comments if you have the time and knowledge 🙂 )
Ryōan-ji-The Famous Zen Rock Garden
Inside Ryōan-ji Temple
The Bamboo Forest
The Bamboo Forest
My favorite place that we visited in Kyoto was the Bamboo Forest! This overwhelming ocean of bamboo is an experience that I’ll never stop dreaming about. It is a perfect creation of nature and a safe haven of greenery that would be impossible not to fall in love with. I miss the Bamboo Forest.
The city itself is so magical and has so much to offer! We found great restaurants, bars, shopping, and the cultural element is intoxicating.
The Venice of Asia… Kyoto, Japan.
I could not miss this perfectly magical city more. The culture and history, the restaurants and shopping, the beautiful people full of such kindness. I can’t wait to go back! If you’re visiting soon, you can fully expect an incredible adventure!
Happy travels and best wishes!
xoxo-Abby
In honor of my wonderful husband fixing my Moroccan Teapot today and also finding some awesome Moroccan tea cups a few days ago at World Market, I decided that I wanted to celebrate something simply, deliciously perfect… Moroccan Mint Tea!
I should start off by saying that, in my opinion, Morocco is one of the most wonderful places in the world. And from my experience, Moroccans are the kindest, friendliest, most warm-hearted people I’ve met to date. When visiting them in their home or enjoying any kind of hospitality, the first thing a visitor will receive is a cup of Moroccan Mint Tea. Even on the hottest days of summer, this piping hot tea is a comforting delight. To me, this tea represents friendship and kindness and is a reminder that all humans, from everywhere, can find connection through something as simple as a good cup of tea.
This is one of my very favorite teas. It a green tea, brewed with sprigs of mint leaves in the pot and heaps of sugar. It is supposed to be enjoyed outrageously hot and decadently sweet. The tea leaves are rinsed before the first brew and then steeped 5-7 minutes with the mint leaves and sugar is then added.
This is the perfect taste of Morocco!
Enjoy! Best wishes!
xoxo-Abby
