Tunnel of Love...

Love the lyrics to this, just so true for all of us... some days more than others.

Fat man sitting on a little stool

Takes the money from my hand while his eyes take a walk all over you
Hands me the ticket smiles and whispers good luck
Cuddle up angel cuddle up my little dove
Well ride down baby into this tunnel of love

I can feel the soft silk of your blouse
And them soft thrills in our little fun house
Then the lights go out and it's just the three of us
You me and all that stuff were so scared of
Gotta ride down baby into this tunnel of love

There's a crazy mirror showing us both in 5-d
Im laughing at you you're laughing at me
There's a room of shadows that gets so dark brother
Its easy for two people to lose each other in this tunnel of love

It ought to be easy ought to be simple enough
Man meets woman and they fall in love
But the house is haunted and the ride gets rough
And youve got to learn to live with what you can't rise above if you want to ride on down in through this tunnel of love

Musical People

The sun is actually shining out there this morning!  Having a very difficult time accepting that I am going to be a grown-up and make myself go to work, where I will be in an office  instead of outside playing.  Oh-well, there will still be sunshine when I get home later (there better be!!!).

I went a little dark  in here yesterday.  I thought I'd counter it with something I've been wanting to write down for awhile.  I want to start writing more stories about my parents' lives- the happy stuff.  Someday I am going to print it all out and give it to my kids.

The last time I saw Dad, he started talking about the piano that he has in his storage shed.  It's the same piano that was always in the family house in Paradise, right at the bottom of the stairs.  Mom could play the guitar, accordion and the piano. Out of the three, the piano was her favorite.  When they moved out of Paradise, the piano never made it into their new place; it was just too big for their downsized home.  I don't think I ever heard Mom play again after they moved, which was sad because she played beautifully. 

Dad was talking about that piano, and about how he wants to have it restored and retuned.  He isn't a big talker- he's not the kind of guy who will sit you down and tell you his whole life story in one sitting.  He lets little gems slip out once in awhile though, and the back story behind the piano was one of those. 

The story starts with him, right after he first moved to Paradise to work at the railroad.  He was living in a little house on the property of my grandparents, right behind their family house.  He said that after work he would sit outside his little house and listen to that piano playing inside the big house.  He didn't know it yet, but it was my mom, her sister and her best friend in there.  It sounded like they were having fun- being silly and rowdy.  So, in a way, that piano was his first introduction to Mom, which for them was the most appropriate and perfect introduction I can think of. If there was ever a way to get his attention, is was through music (well, music or old cars, preferably of the model T variety).  It probably also didn't hurt that when he actually met her, she was a beauty.

Neither one of my parents were very big talkers, but they were both musicians and that was no small part of the communication in their relationship.  I remember them singing and playing together, Dad in the kitchen saying,"Hey Pat, what song is this?" and he'd start playing a song on his old Martin and singing (usually an old western) and soon she'd join in.  They knew all the words to the same old songs, and they would harmonize with each other.

I have a mandolin hanging on my wall- a gift of long ago from my mom to my dad, one of the first gifts she ever gave him.  They saved up for other instruments.  Back in the sixties they spent three hundred dollars for my mom's accordion- a fortune for them in those days.  It seems that whenever Dad shares a special memory about Mom, there is always music attached to it in some form.  It was such an important part of their story.

~Mom playing the piano at their wedding reception~

Some Thoughts on Organized Sports and Brain Candy

This was another calm weekend.  There was a time when that would have been a frustrating thing for me, but these days every quiet weekend spent in my little home feels almost decadent, like we are cheating or something.

There was no sleeping in (service Sat and meeting Sun), so that was a bummer.  Did a little shopping (Old Navy is having AWESOME deals fyi.  Shirts for $1-$3.  Loaded up on stuff for the kids), and then Derrick and I went out to dinner with some friends (Greg and Cookie Hanson) at Cafe Dolce, and went to a hockey game.  It was the first hockey game any of us had ever attended.  The best thing about going to a hockey game (for me) is that they have cotton candy there (I ask you, what can not be improved with cotton candy??).  Also, it was cool to get to hang out with Cookie and hear about some of her art and craft projects.  As far as the actual hockey goes, the best part was seeing the puck get slammed over the glass wall thingy and almost hit some guy in the head.  There should have been more of that- dodging pucks would be a lot more fun than just watching them get smacked around by hockey players.  This is my suggestion for Hockey Leagues everywhere (does hockey have leagues like bowling?)--->extreme audience participation.  I don't really understand the concept of gathering enjoyment from watching other people play sports.  I wouldn't enjoy sitting there and watching someone else eat chocolate cake, and that's same feeling I get when watching sports- a  jealous/bored combo.  The only sporting event I really like to go to is the Super Bowl, and I have never actually watched the game, it's just fun listening to everyone go berserk, and the party food is usually outstanding.  With that being said, I would always choose to go to a game if good company is involved.

I have that horrible Black Eye Peas  song in my head today- I think it's called The Time.  I swear the B.E.P's don't even try to write real lyrics, they just make them up as they go.  They do, however, have really fun music.   I consistently offer token resistance up when a new Black Eye Peas song comes out, because without fail their songs are the stupidest songs you will find (if you don't count Kesha, whose music has absolutely NO redeeming qualities).  But it never lasts... I'll forget to turn the radio station just once, and then I'm sucked in again.  Black Eye Peas, you will always win me over.  Your fun beats always trump your stupid lyrics.

Some people I know right now are on awesome exotic vacations.  To those people, I am thinking of you today.  Please send some sunshine my way! :)

Just in case you'd like a really stupid song with a fun beat in your head today (and if you had no idea what in the world I was talking about), I offer here The Time (Black Eyed Peas)

nobody's darling but mine- merle haggard

Some Drummin'

I went to drum lessons last night and it was AWESOME, just like Kloe has been saying (in a Rhino from Bolt voice).  

They play West African drums (djembes, ashikos, and dun-duns).   There were seven of us there, all with drums or shakers, repeating drumming patterns after the instructor and singing (last night it was that Michael Franti song- Say Hey...it seems that everywhere I go, the more I see, the less I know.  But I know, one thing, that I love you.  I love you, I love you, I love you). 

Okay, so this is what I liked about it (a lot)-  I looked around and saw that most of the kids there were pretty shy.  This class gives a safe enviroment to practice living out loud and to having a voice in front of others.  My little girl, who is not a shy girl at home, is a little shy at school.  I was surprised to see that she is one of the *quiet* ones.  Last night I as I watched her drum, I saw she had a hard time singing at first.  I understood, cuz I did too- I'm one of those quiet in a crowd types too.  But it was really fun for both of us to just let go, drum, and sing.  What a fun way to build self-confidence in a kid!

So, when it's time for her to go live on the beach in Mexico, be a beach hippie and play drums all day, I think maybe I will jump on board.

Wow, didn't sleep last night.  Derrick needs to come home, if for no other reason than so I can sleep.   I laid there all night, hearing every single sound.  I feel such strong impulses to send out texts to friends and family, if for no other reason than to say  "It is 2:30 in the morning.  Hope you were sleeping well.  Love, the Bitterly Disappointed in Sleep".  Or something like that.

Music Learnin'

Yesterday I went to Derrin's guitar lesson with him (this was his third one with this new teacher).  I sat quietly in the background trying to absorb the lesson discreetly.  My covert plan is to be Derrin's "practice buddy", and learn with him:)  We He was learning about whole, half, and quarter notes yesterday.  Derrin already knew all about that, but I found it interesting.  I can read tab, but how cool to read music and understand timing! 
The song to learn this week is "Redemption" by The Bob.  I was excited to know that Marley was who we'd he'd be playing this week, and I had to let the teacher (his name is James) know that I LOVE Marley, but I didn't know that song.  Derrick says that I am the reason pop culture exists- I only pay attention to the popular and easily recognizable stuff in music.  I beg to differ- I like lots of Marley stuff that isn't mainstream, but maybe I haven't heard everything he had to offer. The truth is I grew up in the ittybitty town of Paradise where the music I was exposed to all either came from the radio, tv, old records of my siblings from the 70's (Boston or REO Speedwagon anyone?), or the stuff my dad listened to (a whole lot of Cash, Haggard and Jennings), and eventually all the music of the 90's as a teenager (when grunge was in, and music was awesome*Sarah McLachlan and Tori Amos, also great finds of the 90's*).  I've branched out since then, and Marley was a good starting pointing when trying to find "new" stuff.  I know, it's like having ice cream for the first time at the age of twenty.
It's funny observing Derrin with this teacher.  Derrin LOVES structure.  Rules are his friends, a clearly defined lesson is how he learns best.  At the end of third grade, his class did that whole writing a letter to their fourth grade teachers about what they hoped for in a teacher.  What stands out in my memory about Derrin's letter is he said "I hope you are fun, but stern..."  It still cracks me up:) Clearly, he is his father's son.  Thank goodness he has Derrick for a "stern" parent.  I do my best,  but I am SO not that mom.  James the guitar teacher would be exactly the kind of person I could learn from- easy going, go at your own pace kind of teacher.  Regardless, I am so grateful that Derrin is in lessons, because he does have natural musical ability.  He also has a lot to say- I'm hoping that learning to read and play music will give him tools to express some of his thoughts and feelings as he gets older.
Kloe has been going with us to where we have the lessons, but she hangs out in the big central music room.  They have a "world beat" drum class (pretty sure they all just sit around in a circle and beat on their drums- think I will observe next week) during the time when Derrin's doing his lesson.  The teacher of that class asked if she could sit in with them yesterday, and she LOVED it.  I'm smiling as I write this, because I can so see her as a grown-up, living as a hippie chick on a Mexican beach, beating on her bongo.  This is very much up her alley.  I'm going to sign her up next week- it'll be good for her little free spirit.

Guitars

Today I am sitting here trying to learn how to play a song. It is actually sort of exciting for me because when I first got my guitar this was the song I wanted to learn. It's "Baby, Now That I Found You" by Allison Krauss. I thought it sounded easy enough to play and I loved it. Turns out it was too hard for me. This week I dug out the tabs I had printed out when I first started playing and started trying again. Not only can I play it but I can actually sing to it at the same time (this usually is substancially harder for me). It is exciting to have such a concrete proof of advancement:-)
I grew up in a family where both of my parents played instruments- my dad really likes bluegrass. All of my older siblings could play too, to some degree or another. I just was not interested the whole time I was growing up, I don't know why. The person who switched me around was a lady named Suzanne. She cuts and highlights my hair and once in awhile she would play music for me while the highlights were taking. I was INSPIRED. I love the songs she writes and plays and I knew I really wanted to learn how to play to. I'm so glad too- playing guitar is so calming to me. The only other thing that takes me so out of myself is when I'm taking pictures. When I'm playing all I'm focusing on is my fingers trying to make the music and every situation I'm thinking of could be a potential song if only I could find the right words and notes. When I'm taking pictures I start to look around at everything as a potential picture. That really makes everything look extra beautiful all of a sudden.

The thing that Suzanne taught me was that anyone can be inspiring as long as they really are passionate about what they are doing. And you can choose to keep learning, no matter where you are in life. Also, I can play guitar and take pictures with my kids right by my side and I think (I hope) that maybe that will teach them how learning something new can make you happy.