jazzy

i do not like smooth jazz. i like old be-bop, dixie-land, ragtime, and jazz that blurrs the lines between blues and itself...this is my opinion...it doesn't necessarily mean anything...i was just reminded of this tonight at dinner where the restaurant had a jazz combo playing...nice guys, they have people 'sit in' with them...i asked about that...if they do blues and stuff too....who knows, maybe i could sit in with them and play a few tunes?

xylophony

i take a couple of my students to a percussion class every 2nd period...there are xylophones and marimbas in that class.....it is simply amazing how lovely these instruments sound when played in harmony with themselves or other instruments in a band or symphony situation and HOW HORRIBLE they sound when everybody is just going off and 'doing their own thing.'

i wonder if this is a type-shadow of how humans are?

a whole new way of thinking

i'll be 40 this spring. when i was pre-teen, i was kinda chunky, then in my teenage years, i got all gangly and thin.

then in my early twenties i got kinda chunky again, then, from my mid twenties to my mid-thirties...i was pretty thin. (reallll thin at one point)

from my mid thirties to now, i've noticed a slowing of my metabolism....how? well, when i work out consistently, i get more 'bulked' up of course but the 15+ pounds i'd like to lose doesn't seem to budge.

i'm told that i need to change my way of thinking regarding food....that i cannot eat like an 18 year old at this age. i'm not sure i want to hear this, but i know it's true....the goals suggested to me are doable and reasonable....

i miss eating almost a whole pizza in one sitting though ;).....gone are those days and they have been for a long time (i never have more than 2 or 3 pieces of pizza!), but i suppose 'portion control' will need to be even more of a reality if i want to kick start my metabolism......i just get so hungry sometimes!!! :)

will he record soon?

the uke! been played a lot lately...have even written a few songs over the last several weeks

with my four-stringed friend...

next weekend may be a good time to record another e.p.

and.....

for some reason....this picture was the impetus for it....?! funny that!

a specific calling...or title...

there are a lot of books out there on finding one's life calling/vocation. i've read some and parts of others....there have been some good nuggets, but i'm beginning to think that most often we kind of stumble upon Divine callings in a layered or gradual sense.

i know i'm not the only one who has wished for the 'light bulb' or 'lightning flash illumination' experience. why do i know i'm not the only one?....cuz i talk to people and hear the same thing over and over.

here are the times that i've felt the most in 'that zone'....you know where you feel connected to God and your fellow human beings and creation. i wish i could say that it was fancy or sensational or dramatic, but most often it hasn't been. i guess i should thank God for that. i'm learning to like this ordinary-ness even.

a. letting one of my students wear my jacket when we were doing his P.E. regimen because he was cold and i hand a long sleeve shirt on.

b. helping some folks (on several different occasions) move some furniture into their apartments when they were the only ones around doing the work.

c. the few times that people have asked me (not at a church meeting) to pray with them to ask Jesus into their hearts.

d. the times that i have called or e-mailed people because they 'were on my heart.'

e. the times i have served at soup kitchens....the work was good, but visiting with the people was better...especially when my dad is there with me...he's got a great sense of humor.

f. the times that i've sang in front of an audience that loves folk music....not just people who are there to banter and drink coffee or beer, but people who genuinely love the sort of music i play.

g. when i read the scriptures or other literature that helps me to remember God's nearness....the sort of stuff that helps me to 'stop and pray.'

i'm not sure there's a specific 'title' for this ;)

my lil' motor car!

beep beep goes my lil' motor car...

vroom vroom under sun and stars

the tires are small and the parking is good

storage is small for family and food

this lil' motor car'll be what i can swing

with my salary, it ain't no thing

small is beautiful and simple is fine

now let's strike a deal

and let's make it mine!!

it's 2012 now get back to work!

Christmas/Holiday break has been....well, pretty darn good. lots of rest, lots of good food, some good walks and the weather was pretty amazing the whole time.....

we had family and friends stay with with us and the ukulele arsenal has been enlarged as well as the acquisition of an inexpensive banjo for me to plink on and learn with....

books were traded, credit was accumulated, cds were picked up at great discounts, and yours truly has a few new articles of clothing to start work with...righteous.

today marks the last day of my break...tomorrow will be back to work...part of me is sad because i find lots of things to do with my free time and part of me is glad to have the rhythm of the work week...not to mention, i enjoy my job.

the time off allowed me to shoot some more videos which was nice. my posting has been a bit sparse lately.

there was time to do some 'sitting still' and the weather outside was so wonderful for that.

here are some doodles and crafts we worked on over the holiday.

                                                       my cartoonys:

                    some fabric hoop pictures that i designed and that wifey made look even better!

                                     and my most recent vid with les banjo:

hope 2012 is great for you and if you have some resolutions and goals May God give you the grace to fulfill them or even amend them as needed :)