bloggin’ my noggin’

Since my modulator pedal was technically my early Christmas present, I was surprised to see this!

www.artbyred.com

Nice job Bob! (I also got ‘Little Miss Sunshine” in my stocking) Thanks Santa!

Ah, 11:08 and nearly done wrapping gifts. I can’t figure out why I shop for it all and wrap it too.

Last night was great playing at church. However, I listened to the recording and my viola seems SO harsh and tight. Nick warned me that recording through the board might have that effect, but I still want to work on getting ‘big girl’ to sound like I want her to, and I can’t hear what it sounds like in ‘real-life’. More like butter, less like I’m playing in a giant coffee can. Overall, it was really nice to play with Matt, Mel, Angela and BOB! Oh yeah, forgot to mention that Bob sang! If you weren’t there, you missed a real treat. It’s kind of a secret talent…Mr. Theisen has awesome pipes! It warmed my heart to stand next to him and hear his satin voice.

It is now 11:29. I had to go wrap the infamous drum kit. I used a red paper table cloth I had leftover. Bob wrote a letter to Jack from Santa that actually made me misty-eyed. It had so much thought and Christmas magic in it…a little story about how he knew they didn’t get to talk this year, and Mom and Dad told him that He wanted a drum. So, he had a beat-up one that one of his elves had. He explained that Mom and Dad would fix it up and maybe get him a better one if he got really good playing this one.

Read the the traditional “Twas the night before Christmas…” and had to chase them into bed several times before they finally stayed there. (My favorite line is the title of today’s blog entry).
Wikipedia on Santa

Merry Christmas to all, and to all a goodnight!

In case you were wondering…I’m not dead. But I still have a wicked smokers hack. “Getting better” as I like to call it. I’m kind of wondering if it’s my new building. I’m especially sick there…and my co-workers seem to think it’s because I’m right under a vent. Great. [note to self: check air quality when I go back to work next year].

Christmas has done come and snuck up on me again this year! I’m excited to share the Christmas story with my oldest. He’s really into it. He can read now, so we read the first chapter of Luke 2 and re-inacted the nativity set I bought on clearance last year. It’s so cool to see their eyes light up and the wheels turn in their brains!

I’m stoked. As if it was a sign or an answered prayer…or something like that. We were going to buy a drum kit for Jack the rockstar and at the last minute decided to get him a percussion set and hold out for lessons next year. And wouldn’t ya know it. My co-worker (Robotboy) found a kit sitting in the alley by his house and snagged it for me! I hauled it the 1/2 mile to the parking garage today and have a STIFF neck from it. But I can’t WAIT to see the look on Jack’s face when he sees his drum kit! He really wants one! I plan on wrapping it (which Bob thinks is CRAZY). I’ll let you know if I lose my mind or develop chronic migranes (like EVERYONE says I will).

Going to bed, playing in church tomorrow. YAY! Might use the cello octaver for one of the songs.

p.s. check out Jessy Greene. She had a show at the Triple Rock Social Club last Friday. I was too sick to go. But I think she’s my new violin hero. I saw her last summer in the park, bub didn’t realize she’s the violinist the played with the Jayhawks and Wilco. Now she’s hanging out with the Hip Hop crowd and bringing the violin!

Day 15 of the cold.  I started by refusing to give it power over my life (denial)…then it totally kicked my butt…and then it kinda went away….and now it is back, and thinks it’s the boss of me again.  Chest cold…go away!  I actually got SENT home from work yesterday because I sound like have tuberculosis.  I’ve given up on herbal remedies.  I’m taking (2) mucinex, 24 hour sudafed, and a multivitamin…and drinking about a gallon of tea a day (as usual).

No, I didn’t breathe on the cookies last night, that wouldn’t have been very nice.

night. Enjoy!

Necessity is the Mother of Invention (in the kitchen at our house!). I forgot to post what I ate on Saturday night after church.

• Two to Three handfuls of blue organic corn chips on a plate

• Top with Archer Farms Tikka Masala Sause

• Spoon 5 huge teaspoons of vegetarian refried beans evenly on top

• Top with sharp cheddar cheese (I was almost all out, so it’s still good with very little cheese)

• Microwave for 1 minute

It was amazing. All because I ran out of salsa and cheese, and I got this free bottle of Tikka Masala sauce from work that I didn’t know what to do with. The sauce got all sticky and gooey, and a really GOOD combo with the other ingredients.

I was afraid it may turn into a gut bomb…but I survived just fine. Now I’m hungry….

Came home sick. Kept coughing on people, and that wasn’t very nice.

Getting stuff together for my Art show tomorrow night. Printing titles, etc…finding paintings…been doing too much fiddling and not enough painting. And i love it!
Now Devotchka starts up on the iTunes. I’m a little sad since they are probably playing this very song at this very moment at First Avenue right now. And here I am, snotty, headachy, and no ticket. Poo on that! I’m going to have my own Devotchka show tonight! Crank up the tunes! And drink GOOD EARTH Tea until I can’t stand up anymore! YAY!
It’s all about giving thanks in all circumstances. Since we talked about this in church last week, I’ve realized how whiney I can be. Can’t we all? Seems like it could get silly, telling people that I am thankful I’m not sicker, but it’s the truth. Trying to be sincere about it and not sister Mary Super Christian! I’m thankful and feel yucky. How’s that?
I have a party to go to. Me, myself, I and Devotchka! And my artist statement…and uh, titles, and all that art show stuff. And that work I brought home that I naively thought I would work on at home. Ok, not doing that. Rambling-Sudafed-head. Going now.

Played at bluer on Saturday night. Instead of just Anna and I, we got to play with Heather, Rick, Bryan, and Rob. If we had coordinated our outfits, it would have been “a mighty wind”. It was even better than ‘I can’t believe it’s not better’ (see last post). I played a bit conservatively because I didn’t know all of the songs, but it was addictive! The boys were hopping all around like little jumping beans at the front of the stage.

Gotta figure out the new modulator thingie. I stuck with #38 cause I was running out of patience and it sounded alright.

p.s. been diggin Derek Webb again. Mockingbird is the next on our list of songs to figure out. Go download the album fer free and see what I mean! It rawks.

p.p.s. Mark Wood | Fretted violin

See what Anna has to say about us playing at bluer on Saturday night. It’ll be the first time I’ve performed in front of a group since the ninth grade…and then, I was snuggled nice and tight into the Orchestra where no could really see or hear me. We can’t wait! I still have my black 1986 orchestra formal my mom made me tucked in my hope chest, wonder if I could squeeze into it?This will be a big day for ‘big girl viola’. She’s got a permanent “outside voice”, and would appreciate being able to use it once without drowning out all other sounds.

p.s. I’m afraid I have maimed her once again. I deleted the other posts, but in my attempt to quiet her, I put this fancy glittery tape over her ‘f-holes’ and it left a residue that makes her look like a transvestite. Yes, Nick called her RuPaul last week. And Matt let out an audible sound when he saw her and quickly offered to take off all of the finish on her face. Gonna have to scrape that off with lighter fluid or something. Like I always say…’she aint’ pretty, but she’s mine.’

Tofurkey

Abomination or delectable seasonal meat alternative? You decide.

Personally, it resembles the compressed Jennie-O Turkey-loaf too much for my liking.
I’ll just eat the hearty side-dishes! And I’ll make my special deviled eggs that can bring a grown man to his knees. Oh, by the way we have encountered the end of an age…a shift in the Universe has happened. Hellman’s mayonaise (the secret of my Nana’s deviled eggs and potato salad) has changed it’s recipe. Sounds like it will resemble it’s evil nemesis MIRACLE WHIP. I personally feel more than a little betrayed, and if my Nana were here, she would be taking names.

“Just because Dr. Pepper has the word Doctor in it, doesn’t mean it has any medicinal properties!”
-anonymous

BP50

Had the day off and went to the local music store. They gave me a practice room and let me try some stuff out. Here’s what I bought! Yes, it’s for a bass, but it sounded SO much better than the stuff that was there for guitars and it was 2-3x cheaper. Now I just have to find a place to be noisy.

Time to self destruct and start again….again.

Sorry for the inconvenience this may have caused.  Writing a blook.  After a couple of months of consideration, I deleted the whole kit and caboodle tonight.

514 posts in 2 years…poof!

Gone by manual deletion in exactly 1 hour.  At 9:12pm I started, and was done by 10:12.  It was a little like watching my life flash before my eyes.  And a little like when I watch the dentist drill my teeth (I actually don’t mind it.).  Somewhere between deleting baby’s first word and wandering through my own private idaho, I realized it was kind of like a forest fire…that annihilates everything only to be reborn.  Something like that.  I’ll be sure to tell you when the blook is done and I have my final euphemism (Jenism) of the deletion experience!

The ironic thing, is that I just did a presentation to a large group of people today…explaining what a blog is about, what my blog is about, etc…typical flakey artist.  )

Where do I go from here?  God only knows.