#45 - Don't Like Alexa Invasion

​Quarantine Family of 3

Sometimes I feel like Don and I are sharing our quarantine home, with Alexa. Most of the time, that's actually okay. She is a good sport when she answers our trivia questions or tells us about the weather. But she definitely likes Don better. She always answers him immediately. She tells me, "Hmm, I don't have an answer for that."

Don claims it's because he is polite and says "Thank you!" 

Sometimes we talk about her behind her back. "Did you ask her yet? What did she say?" We don't dare say her name, or she will intrude.
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​But, in the evening I welcome Alexa's intrusion! We're cooking more now than ever and music has made it a lot more fun. One night, we turned on polka music and I almost killed myself. Polka-dancing on the bumpy slate floors, in our flip flops, is not safe. Then, after all our laughing and stumbling, I feared my shortness of breath was a symptom! No! We can't let Alexa's music lead us to the ER!

Morning Music

Don thought we needed an Echo Dot, (mini Alexa) in our bathroom. I was not sure about this invasion. I like to shower in silence. That's where I think.

But Don (who always showers first) likes to start his mornings with music. He generously leaves the music on, so when I get to the shower I can enjoy whatever he has picked.

At first I just laughed and went along with it... or turned it off. But then I began to notice how music altered my mood, each morning.
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It's become a thing. I never know what music Don will pick. And thank goodness, he loves a wide range. Some mornings I walk into the shower with BB King wailing away. Another day it's Woody Guthrie. Yo Yo Ma can ease me into a peaceful morning and  Frank Sinatra can get me humorously crooning along. I could pick my own tunes, but I kind of like it that Don has some fun starting our day.

Choosing My Own Music

The other day, I took on a huge cabinet cleaning project. I spent an entire day sorting, moving and scrubbing, inside and out. There's no way I would have kept at the tedious job so long, without Alexa's help.

Even though I was the one working, I felt like a spoiled princess, hollering at Alexa.  She was at my service, all day long, playing the artists I requested, halting when I didn't approve, playing softer, playing louder. ​

When I wondered about musical artists from my youth, I just spoke up, "Alexa, play Cat Stevens" and then when I got curious about the artist... "How old is Cat Stevens?" "Is Cat Stevens still alive?"
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One song led to another... musicals, symphonies, Irish jigs, tropical exotica music... on and on!  I found some old favorites and I discovered some new favorites.

Here are my new Go-To Quarantine Songs!

​My Tune to Sooth Coronavirus Nerves:  "Begin Again" by the Piano Guys 

My Quarantine Lullaby: "Slumber My Darling" by Allison Kraus, with Yo Yo Ma

Isolation Themed Song: "Waving Through a Window" by Ben Platt, from musical "Dear Evan Hanson"

I could go on and on, but those are a few fun discoveries for now. 
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