coming into focus

I envy those friends of mine who knew early in life what their calling might be. Particularly those of the creative persuasion, and how productive their hobbies and passions actually turn out.

While dawdling in a little bit of everything, or as I like to say 'Jill of all trades, master of nothing,' I want to fine tune all of my interests into one sweeping finale. I am not a photographer, I am not a sports fanatic. I can knit the most minimum of all basics, paint when I feel inspired, play a few songs on the piano and strum some sounds on the guitar. I truly enjoy writing, but have been having major struggles finding things to write ABOUT.

On a day like today, where the snow and antibiotics have kept me indoors baking banana bread and zoning out on television, all I can do is sit and watch the thermometer fall and rise to zero.

So my grand focus is a rather broad one. I just want to tell stories.

Stories.

Bonjour 2009

Another year dead and gone. 2008 was a quick year, it seemed. It started off with a Vegas wedding, continued through last winter with long work hours, awoke in spring with more work. Summer lent itself to a few outdoor music and food festivals, September allowed for a quick week in Florida and the year rounded out with Chicago politics on a global stage.

And snow.

This photo was shot just outside my home in the early evening of a wintry blast of a storm just before Christmas. The snowfall, in its moment of conception in this local realm surrounding me, is certainly heavenly in its own right. The calamity of life lessens, the air seems to whisper softly and everything looks gorgeous.

We won't talk about what happens over the course of the days following a heavy snowfall.... of the polluted black snow mounds, slush, and potholes. That would ruin the mystical quality of the winter songs Mother Nature sings.

(But it suffices to say it doesn't last long.)

2009 begins another year of hard work. For most everyone, it seems. The economy is what it is. I feel a serious tone almost everywhere I turn, which may not be such a bad thing after all. I have always lived a frugal lifestyle, as has my husband, so this isn't any new contender in the fight. But I do anticipate a sort of change among people. Will it be like the snowfall? Peaceful in its meager beginnings? But leaving behind a very difficult and ugly aftermath?

Only time will tell, I suppose.

Some Bests of 2008? Getting married, Slumdog Millionaire, Obamapalooza, Paul Weller's 22 Dreams album, a customer stepping up to pay as I was ordering my lunch, getting back in touch with old friends, Lucinda Williams' Little Honey, several Netflix finds and a new television set.

It's the little things, you know?

World Music

As a person who enjoys the written word, story-telling and the art of proverbial jaunts, I have found a hobby over the years in becoming more familiar with music and words different from my own. Music for the sake of music.

I have spent my entire life listening to the words and the message and the story in Western song rather than recognizing the ephemera of it all and just enjoying the moment that music is able to give us listeners.

If I had a knack for creating music like so many of those whom I admire, I would pull together a band of intercontinental sounds and languages and throw them all in a casserole dish and let it bake for hours. Sadly, my guitar-playing is rough, my elementary school piano lessons have gathered dust in the attic of my brain, I have the rhythm of a rickety worn-out electric train and I can only play Oh Susannah on the steel drum. Therefore, I will leave the music makers to the sounds that curate the non-verbal exhibitions of our lives.

This is an extraordinary Ethiopian recording I stumbled upon. As I said before, I'm not a fan of 'reviews' but rather the evocativeness of this exchange. Google it, order yourself a copy of this and escape for 62 minutes. I just can't get enough of this record.

Barack Obama

It was an overwhelming sight to see in downtown Chicago last night. I didn't step into the rally but was able to soak up the peace and love on the streets of a town where I've meandered a majority of my life. I had never seen a moment of joy in Chicago quite like last night. Vendors filled the areas surrounding Grant Park, selling everything from light-up buttons to dollar bills with Obama's face imprinted...American flags sold by Central American accents, smiling so full of life and wonderment, watching the tears flow....

Did you watch the Young@Heart documentary yet? The epic journey of their performance of the following song is a pretty spectacular sight to see. (I couldn't find a film clip on youtube so thanks to Lee Dorsey/Allen Toussaint and the person who posted it for this incredible song...)

And speaking of hearts, who would have thought POLITICS could have one?

I'll be back soon with some photos from last night. We are on the threshold of some very powerful times....

'Twas the night before election day...

The air is tense.

I am thinking about wandering the crowds tomorrow night in Grant Park.

Thinking about it.

It may be too much too handle.

Tomorrow only knows.

Vote for Obama.

I love this clip.

See more Ron Howard videos at Funny or Die

iLike

I woke up this Saturday morning with my cup of coffee, relaxing before I head into a much-dreaded closing retail shift this afternoon. And every Saturday night for that matter. Not much to comment regarding the news. I am an Obama supporter and that's all I have to conclude from the latest political farce. The economy sucks, sales are slumping, everyone is on edge (both co-workers and my customers) and there are a million problems to be fixed. No sense dwelling on the bad. Instead I shall focus on a few of my favorite things à la Julie Andrews.

In no particular order.

1. The new yarn I bought this week. It's knitting season! I haven't picked it up the last few years so I had to borrow a knitting dvd from the library to refresh my memory on a few steps.

2. Ricky Gervais. He has a particular twinkle in his eye that entertains me so. Have I already commented on this? I don't remember. After watching the film Ghost Town I have concluded that the Ricky Gervais eye-twinkle is similar to that of the Tin Man in Wizard of Oz.

3. The new Lucinda Williams release. This one, Little Honey, is like listening to Car Wheels on a Gravel Road for the first time. Not so much in its sound, but in the sensation of hearing something so incredibly new and rockin and refreshing. I have seen her in concert several times and was even invited to the Soundstage taping at WTTW long, long ago. She is just the coolest. Incredible record.

4. Blindness. This film was genuinely disturbing but I was captivated throughout the entire picture. I was unfamiliar with the book but plan to read it once I get through all the other thirty books in line before it. I don't know why I seem to be drawn to apocalyptic themes so often....hmmm.

5. Halloween music. In particular, the latest Little Steven's Underground Garage release Halloween-a-Go-Go, the Classics from the Crypt album and an old Rhino release Halloween Hits with all the whimsical favorites such as Monster Mash, the Blob and Ghostbusters. You cannot deny the magnificence of the Monster Mash. I wish someone like Nick Cave or David Byrne would do a cover...

6. The 7-11 voter cups. I had no idea when I wandered into a 7-11 on my way to the train yesterday morning that I could CHOOSE an Obama, McCain or Undecided cup. I know I said I wasn't going to mention politics in this blog entry but I got a lot of questions about that cup I was holding. I told them it was a new blend at Starbucks - the Obama blend: a smooth, rich flavor with hints of anti-anxiety medication for a rich, robust experience.

6. Pretenders' Break Up the Concrete. Fantastic energy in this one. This is one to purchase and not download because the packaging includes a paper sleeve you can plant in soil and see some sprouts. I've always mentioned what an incredible incentive it would be to buy physical discs if there was a Willy Wonka golden ticket factor played in the surprise of it all...

So speaking of avalanched cd sales, I must now prepare myself for work.

SIGH!

To Sir, With Love

God, I love this movie. I just watched it again for the first time in years.

Discipline.

I have been trying to devote a little time each day to a concrete writing submission project, but I fall down on the job each time. I'm not going to beat myself up over this. I work a ridiculous work schedule, never have two consecutive days off, and if I do have free time I like to spend it with my husband. It would be fantastic to find myself an agent and receive some spectacular publishing house funding to concentrate solely on W-R-I-T-I-N-G, but I am well aware of the reality of 'luck' and find refuge in the mere fun of it all.

As I sift through candid writings from days of yore, old travelogues and travelblogs that were originally written as a correspondence to all the family and friends I've met along the way, I cringe at times when I remember the thoughts I had at the moment of the original writing. Again, I pull from the months in France in 2005. This was written at the moment of the so-called Parisian suburb riots, incidentally only 3 towns away from the one I was in, and at a time when I had absolutely no idea where my life would be taking me even one week from that point.

You re-read your own thoughts and relive those particular experiences and laugh at how silly everything seemed. But you also slowly smile and thank God for allowing you to choose your own adventure....

Monday, November 7th, 2005

1:05 pm - Creators, Creation, Media and Everything Else Out-of-Proportion

It's been a bizarre few days. I just heard from the folks back home and everyone was scared that I would somehow get lost in the Paris riots. I've watched it slowly grow, from the first few burnings being covered on the french news, to the eventual coverage by the BBC satellite tv at my cousin's house, to the concerned American family members and their kooky coverage back home. Kinda ironic how a little news story a week or two ago spread like a wildfire around the globe and is now out of control. I have walked and climbed and scaled these city walls and I haven't even smelled one whiff of fire. You know what? There are a million other things going on in this city too. I went to the Louvre yesterday because it was free and they moved the Mona Lisa to a nicer room and got rid of that scratched acrylic panel and replaced it with a very tall piece of glass. Also, the Information Desk at the Louvre is on strike. Everyone here in France goes on strike! Immigrants flock to this country because the social benefits are incredulous. I watched a tiny little nation's people protest around the Bastille to bring attention to their atrocious government and the loss of their culture. They had music, a bunch of loud percusions and you could hear it almost all the way over to the Seine. Today I was roaming and sat down on a bench near the Arc de Triomphe and some Arab women asked me if I could give them some money. The first one cursed me when i shook my head no. I explained to the second one that I also did not have any income and she blessed me as a sister in her language and the others smiled around me and did a two-second prayer vigil around me or something. They flirted with French security standing nearby and everyone laughed and they went on their way with their daily beggings. Globalism is here. Il faut melanger. C'est la vie. I wandered around the Pompidou Centre and looked at an incredible modern art collection, not organised chronologically or by school, but by socialist themes. The last rooms were war, death, voyeurism and prostitution. I left feeling rather melancholic, as if that's ALL we have to come together and create right now but mass chaos everywhere, but there was one last room right by the Big Bang entrance, which was nearly pitch black, you had to walk around a dark room with strangers and search for the guiding lights, featuring five film installations of particular cosmic happenings in the astral skies above. Five Angels for the Universe. Great, a little optimism never hurt anyone, perhaps misdiagnosed as naivete often, but pray tell, where exactly ARE these five angels and when are people going to start listening to them?

honka for wonka

There are many random occurrences in our daily routines that can make life a little more extraordinary.

While on my way to the train this past august, Willy Wonka was parked right outside my place. What do you think he announces over his rooftop intercom system? Or what song do you think plays as he drives? Most importantly, WHAT WAS HE DOING OUTSIDE MY HOME?

In the spirit of random joys, here are some other things that have made me smile recently.

1. Nick Cave @ the Riviera, September 28th. I have always wanted to catch one of his shows...his ballads and screechers and beat poems and other diversities have repeatedly piqued my curiosity. So he didn't perform Nobody's Baby Now, but I was pleased nonetheless. He even includes a Charlie Manson lookalike among his Bad Seeds. Mr. Cave swaggered like Mick Jagger and beguiled everyone with Polly Jean Harvey gestures. Had they not dated I would swear they were born from the same initial group of cells. The opening band, Black Diamond Heavies, showed us what the world would have been like had Animal the Muppet played piano instead of drums.

2. Two movies. The Fall, starring the most charismatic little Romanian actress who absolutely MADE the film. And Young@Heart. One of the most endearing film experiences I've encountered in quite some time.

3. My brothers. My brothers are my sisters. Does that make sense? One brother in NYC went to his first psychic to celebrate his birthday. I imagine the experience as that of Peewee Herman stepping into the psychic's office as he went for advice on where to find his bike. The basement of the Alamo. Don't forget your wallet, Peewee. And the other brother, who is a longtime rock-n-roll show attendee extraordinaire, has become a grown up and started wearing earplugs at loud shows. In his most recent rock-n-roll excursion, he forgot about his earplugs, they got stuck and he had to have them removed by doctors.

4. Cost Plus World Market's brand of Nutella-like spreads. They have a dark chocolate version. Slap some a dat slop on your bagel or croissant and behold. It tastes like thick brownie batter.

5. The autumn. This is, by far, my favorite time of the year in Chicago. I don't fare well in the heat, and I love tall boots and scarves and the scent of leaves and HALLOWEEN and warm jackets and crunching leaves in my path and cuddling on the couch under the blankets with Eric and watching scary movies.

6. Barack Obama. What can I say? He is above all the madness and stupidity in the world and knows the profundity of human interconnectedness. Chicago's early voting starts after Columbus Day and you can bet your big tall autumn boots I'll be at my neighborhood library to seal my vote first chance I get.