see the world, find an old-fashioned girl

August 11 marked a momentous occasion in my life. And since this is my own little corner of the internet, I'm going to wax nostalgic for a half-hour or so about it. Feel free to skip over this, those of you who know me are already well aware of my obsession with the band Gomez. Some of you have been reminded frequently of how I came to discover this amazing band. A year later, my love for the band has only deepened. But more than anything, this band has changed my life.

The story of Centrechick and Gomez goes back nearly 10 years. If I had been more in tune with what my soul was trying to tell me, I could have not wasted so many years NOT realizing this amazing band from Southport was there. Lucky for me, they were there when I needed them the most. I first heard of Gomez in 1999. I was a senior in college and, I swear on my grandfather's grave I remember this moment clear as if it were yesterday, I was checking my e-mail alone in my room with my back to the television in my dorm room, MTV2 on the TV. The video for the song Get Myself Arrested came on. It was like nothing I had ever heard before and before the first words of the song were sung, I had swung around in my chair and I was transfixed throughout the entire video.

Back in those days, Tivo was just an infomercial and I don't remember if I even caught the band name at first. When my roommate, Janie, came back from class I told her there was a video she just HAD to see and I'd let her know when it came on again. We had developed a habit of puting MTV2 or VH-1 on for music accompaniment while studying or getting ready for class. When the video played again when we were both in the room, I probably screamed a little because I was so in love with that song. Janie liked it. Not quite to the extent that I liked it, but well enough. There was this relatively new website I had found, amazon.com, from which I bought a copy of the CD. I listened to the other tracks on the CD, but I didn't find I liked them nearly as much as Get Myself Arrested. Graduation came, I moved back home. One night I remember laying in bed listening to the CD and commenting in my mind that I'd like to hear the guy who sings harmony with the lead singer sing a song on his own, he has an interesting voice, I thought.

With my newfound wealth of having a full-time job, I focused on filling out my music collection of everything I had wanted to buy in high school and college but didn't have the money to buy. This resulted in a lot of impulse purchases and why my music collection has some gems and a lot of crap. I eventually paid off my student loans and bought a house of my own in 2005. I didn't even hook up my computer to a DSL line (an old desktop pc donated to a poor first-time homeowner from her parents) until 2007 despite working for the phone company and getting it at a discount.

On August 11, 2007, I was asked to take my younger brother to work. I was cranky about it because it meant spending extra time at my parent's house until it was time to take him and I had not brought my iPod over with me to listen to in the car, so it meant I would have to listen to the radio. I had long before this point given up on most music. Music snobs with their obscure bands annoyed me and I could not stand the popular music, whether that be pop, rock or rap, playing on the local radio stations. I dropped my brother off at work that Saturday night and headed home. It may not be a castle, it may be two blocks away from where a cop was killed six months before I bought it, but it's mine (and the bank's) and there is nothing like coming home, especially alone. To peace and quiet and blissful, mother-free time.

At some point after exiting the freeway, the song "See the World" came on the radio. I had never heard it before. That song changed everything.

I don't remember much of the drive the rest of the way home. I just remember being overwhelmed by the beauty of the song. It was love at first listen. The voice singing the song was so wonderful. The melody so lovely. The lyrics spoke to my soul. I felt like Paul on the road to Damascus. At a stoplight, I looked at the face of the radio for the song title and artist and was confused to see the band name, Gomez. I had no idea they were even still together, let alone making amazing records like this one. I had no idea.

Floating/driving the rest of the way home, I reveled in the song. I parked the car in my garage and went straight through my house to the upstairs office in one of my bedrooms. I pulled up iTunes and hoped and prayed that I could buy the song. I needed to hear it again. Years of having Tivo or a DVR have conditioned me to be unwilling to wait for that song to play again on the radio. There was not even the possibility of waiting to buy the CD from amazon.com unless it was impossible to buy right then and there. Luckily, it was available. Along with several other albums I had never known existed. I listened to several samples of the other tracks, amazed to know that Gomez were behind the song How We Operate which had been in heavy rotation for the season finale of Grey's Anatomy a few months before. I decided to buy the entire album.

For the next two weeks, I scoured the internet for information about the band. I bought all of their albums from iTunes. I listened to only Gomez. I devoured every little tidbit I could find about the band like I had been wandering the desert and they were my first drink of cool water.

Then I found their official forum. And I joined. And I made an ass of myself repeatedly. And I met some amazing kindred spirits, some amazing people who share this Gomez religion. It may be sacreligious to worship this band, but I do. Through the people I have met on this forum, through our shared love of this music, I have rediscovered myself. I have grown so much as a person over the past year, I'm still in awe. I had no idea there was so much I was missing out of in my prior lonely existence. I still suffer from bouts of loneliness, to be sure, but it's different now. Now I don't want to stay in those bouts. It may sound strange to other people, but that's the best way I know to describe how I felt before and how I feel now.

I still haven't seen the band play live. I'm terrified I will embarrass myself if I ever actually were given the opportunity to speak to any of the members. Their music, not just the album I speak of in this posting, means so much to me. It's hard to put in words.

Hearing "See the World" still gives me butterflies in my stomach. And puts a smile on my face no matter what my mood before the song comes on. At first, when I heard that song, I pictured the singer, Ben Ottewell. Now when I hear that song I picture my new friends from the message board who have pulled me (kicking and screaming sometimes) out of my self-imposed exile.

And that, ladies and gentlemen, is why I love and will always love Gomez.