Happy Late Night, my Darling,
I hope you had a nice day and are getting in the "spirit" for Halloween. ;) I got back from the Alice Cooper concert a couple hours ago, and I had an Absolute Blast. I went with Grimsley, we took the subway down to Hollywood, and when you get off at the Hollywood & Vine station, the Pantages Theater is right across the street. I had not been to the Pantages since I was a little kid (with my parents), and once upon a time it was another of the ornate movie theaters that were around in the early 20th century in Los Angeles & Hollywood (and all over the country). It's still ornate - probably the nicest out of all the Former Theaters That Are Now Concert Venues - and it was the perfect place to see Alice Cooper on the night before Halloween.
He and his band came on at 8:15 and played non-stop until 10pm. Just one song after the other, no stopping to talk to the audience. I like it when a band does that. It keeps the spell intact, and Alice wove quite a spell on the audience tonight. An Alice Cooper show is a spectacle, with all kinds of stage props, dancers in costume and other things he is known for, like the guillotine that he is placed upon at the end of "The Ballad Of Dwight Frye". That part of the show goes all the way back to the days of the original Alice Cooper Group in the early 70s, when the shows were still very shocking and even frightening to audiences used to seeing musicians simply play music onstage. Before Kiss, before Slipknot, or Marilyn Manson or even Lady Gaga, there was Alice Cooper. He and the original group invented shock rock or theater rock or whatever you want to call it.
But they also wrote a ton of great songs that have stood the test of time.
"Billion Dollar Babies" is one of my favorite albums and it is a great example of how rock can be turned into a very dramatic and even macabre or horrific musical form, while still retaining melody and hooks galore, enough to turn a few songs from that album into radio staples, like the title track, or "No More Mr. Nice Guy" or "Elected", which closed out the show. For that one, Alice brought out two dancers in Trump and Hillary costumes and masks and had them battle it out as the band played ferociously.
His band is killer - total pros with chops galore as well as good stage moves. It's a Big Time Show, which is what Alice has always been known for. In the days of the original group, it wasn't as polished, but perhaps far more dangerous. Now, it is polished down to a T, but it makes up in fun for what has become less shocking, because we've seen Alice get his head chopped off before, haha.
Still, it's awesome. Alice is the best, and furthermore it wouldn't mean a thing if the music weren't great, which it most assuredly is, thanks to original band members and writers Dennis Dunaway, Michael Bruce, Glenn Buxton and Neal Smith, none of whom are in the band now. But they are in the Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame.
Anyhow, a great show, perfect for Halloween, and the trip down on the subway and back was a piece of cake. I am loving these early concerts when I can get back fast.
This morning was good singing in church and working on a John Rutter piece for Christmas.
Tomorrow is Halloween, so the whole day will automatically be great. I hope you have fun tomorrow!
Post if you can. I Love You. See you in the morning.
xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo :):)
Monday, October 31, 2016
Sunday, October 30, 2016
Witch Is Witch + Gotta Have My Charlie Brown + Tirade About Conformity
Happy Late Night, Sweet Baby,
I like your Witch costume! You nailed the look, and I really dig those black boots you are wearing. I don't know if you got those specifically for the costume or if you had them already, but if you did have them, then you also have some serious punk rock cred.... :)
You make a beautiful Witch (great make-up & hat), and the background of the photo is just right for the Halloween effect. I am assuming you went to a Halloween party either tonight or last night, and so I hope you had a blast. It was nice to have you back on FB today. I know you've been busy.
I had a nice walk at Aliso Canyon this afternoon. The sky was overcast with thick clouds which gave the place a Sleepy Hollow look. The Fall vibe at Aliso is quite different from the Summer vibe, and we do have a Fall season in Southern California. It just takes a while to kick in, and it usually starts right about now.
I also drove to Granada Hills Library, because they had one of the few available copies of "It's The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown" in the whole library system, and I had to have it! Yes, it has been repeatedly demonstrated that I'm an overgrown kid and I admit it, haha. But I've got to have my Great Pumpkin at Halloweentime, and I'm glad I found an available copy because most of 'em have been checked out, no doubt by other Overgrown Kids. I didn't watch it yet; I will wait till Halloween night......
I saw two posts today, one via Steve about a new video on Sunday morning. I know you've been busy working on your own video, and I don't know if that post was meant to reference that you are ready to release it, but I guess I will soon see. :)
The other post was about liking mainstream stuff, or more specifically feeling okay about liking mainstream stuff. I could go off on a tirade here, but I'll try not to (though I may be unsuccessful).
I like Mainstream Stuff. I also like Esoteric Stuff. I like All Kinds Of Stuff, and the only thing I don't like, and never have ever since I was old enough to recognize it, is being "told" what I should like, or being "directed" to what I should like, or whatever you want to call it.
That's why there are Hipsters in the world, Sweet Baby. Because they are people who have no idea what they actually like as individuals, or if they do they suppress it (out of various fears), and instead they simply subscribe to What They Are Supposed To Like.
Whatever is Hip at any moment is what they like. And of course What Is Hip almost always sucks.
I am off on a tangent because this isn't specifically what the post was about. The gal (I think it was a female) mentioned something about having "authentic" experiences, or rather not wanting to have to have them all the time. I don't know the current terminology, so I am not sure what an "authentic experience" is, but I would guess it is Something Hip.
People think they have to always follow. Follow what is Supposed To Be Done.
For me, I couldn't do that if I tried. Seriously.
It just isn't in me.
Here's just a few examples.
I try to eat well, but I don't hate fast food or fast food restaurants. I used to eat at them on a regular basis until I hit my late 40s. Then I basically stopped, just because I wanna keep my health. But the Hip Thing is to say, "Man, I hate McDonald's"! McDonald's is as mainstream as it gets. I do not hate McDonald's. I always liked it. I just don't eat there much anymore cause I'm closing in on 60 and I wanna live to be 100 and stay in good shape doing so.
Another example : Oh man, I'm a LIberal! I hate Republicans!
I am not a Liberal (just a registered Democrat), and I don't hate Republicans. I don't hate anybody, but if I followed what I am Supposed To Do, I would hate Republicans as a knee-jerk reaction.
Same with religion : "Oh man, I hate religion"!
A blanket statement usually, without any thought behind it. Now, I realise that some people have had horrible experiences with some forms of so-called religion and hate it from personal experience. But I am talking about people who make a general statement about it in that way.
The same with music, or movies, or any kind of art.
If you like one thing, you aren't supposed to like another.
If I like Art House movies, I'm not supposed to like Hollywood movies. But I do.
If I like reading unusual, obscure books, I'm not supposed to like reading horror.
Good Lordy, Sweet Baby : I'm not supposed to like certain Chick Flicks or Journey songs. But I do.
So, because I have been through all of that (i.e. not giving a hoot what people think) I encourage you to keep doing the same. Just be yourself, and never ever be anything else.
However, I hope you will draw the line at Adam Sandler movies and rap music.
I know you will.
And Schwarzanegger movies, too. And movies with Danny DeVito.
We've gotta stand up for something, SB. :)
So, that's all I know for tonight. Tomorrow is church and choir, so I will be awake and then back here at the usual times, and then tomorrow night I am gonna go see Alice Cooper in Hollywood at the Pantages Theater, but it starts early, at 8pm, so I should be back here at Pearl's by the usual time. And before that, I'll be around in the afternoon and early evening.
See you in the morn. I Love You. xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo :):)
I like your Witch costume! You nailed the look, and I really dig those black boots you are wearing. I don't know if you got those specifically for the costume or if you had them already, but if you did have them, then you also have some serious punk rock cred.... :)
You make a beautiful Witch (great make-up & hat), and the background of the photo is just right for the Halloween effect. I am assuming you went to a Halloween party either tonight or last night, and so I hope you had a blast. It was nice to have you back on FB today. I know you've been busy.
I had a nice walk at Aliso Canyon this afternoon. The sky was overcast with thick clouds which gave the place a Sleepy Hollow look. The Fall vibe at Aliso is quite different from the Summer vibe, and we do have a Fall season in Southern California. It just takes a while to kick in, and it usually starts right about now.
I also drove to Granada Hills Library, because they had one of the few available copies of "It's The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown" in the whole library system, and I had to have it! Yes, it has been repeatedly demonstrated that I'm an overgrown kid and I admit it, haha. But I've got to have my Great Pumpkin at Halloweentime, and I'm glad I found an available copy because most of 'em have been checked out, no doubt by other Overgrown Kids. I didn't watch it yet; I will wait till Halloween night......
I saw two posts today, one via Steve about a new video on Sunday morning. I know you've been busy working on your own video, and I don't know if that post was meant to reference that you are ready to release it, but I guess I will soon see. :)
The other post was about liking mainstream stuff, or more specifically feeling okay about liking mainstream stuff. I could go off on a tirade here, but I'll try not to (though I may be unsuccessful).
I like Mainstream Stuff. I also like Esoteric Stuff. I like All Kinds Of Stuff, and the only thing I don't like, and never have ever since I was old enough to recognize it, is being "told" what I should like, or being "directed" to what I should like, or whatever you want to call it.
That's why there are Hipsters in the world, Sweet Baby. Because they are people who have no idea what they actually like as individuals, or if they do they suppress it (out of various fears), and instead they simply subscribe to What They Are Supposed To Like.
Whatever is Hip at any moment is what they like. And of course What Is Hip almost always sucks.
I am off on a tangent because this isn't specifically what the post was about. The gal (I think it was a female) mentioned something about having "authentic" experiences, or rather not wanting to have to have them all the time. I don't know the current terminology, so I am not sure what an "authentic experience" is, but I would guess it is Something Hip.
People think they have to always follow. Follow what is Supposed To Be Done.
For me, I couldn't do that if I tried. Seriously.
It just isn't in me.
Here's just a few examples.
I try to eat well, but I don't hate fast food or fast food restaurants. I used to eat at them on a regular basis until I hit my late 40s. Then I basically stopped, just because I wanna keep my health. But the Hip Thing is to say, "Man, I hate McDonald's"! McDonald's is as mainstream as it gets. I do not hate McDonald's. I always liked it. I just don't eat there much anymore cause I'm closing in on 60 and I wanna live to be 100 and stay in good shape doing so.
Another example : Oh man, I'm a LIberal! I hate Republicans!
I am not a Liberal (just a registered Democrat), and I don't hate Republicans. I don't hate anybody, but if I followed what I am Supposed To Do, I would hate Republicans as a knee-jerk reaction.
Same with religion : "Oh man, I hate religion"!
A blanket statement usually, without any thought behind it. Now, I realise that some people have had horrible experiences with some forms of so-called religion and hate it from personal experience. But I am talking about people who make a general statement about it in that way.
The same with music, or movies, or any kind of art.
If you like one thing, you aren't supposed to like another.
If I like Art House movies, I'm not supposed to like Hollywood movies. But I do.
If I like reading unusual, obscure books, I'm not supposed to like reading horror.
Good Lordy, Sweet Baby : I'm not supposed to like certain Chick Flicks or Journey songs. But I do.
So, because I have been through all of that (i.e. not giving a hoot what people think) I encourage you to keep doing the same. Just be yourself, and never ever be anything else.
However, I hope you will draw the line at Adam Sandler movies and rap music.
I know you will.
And Schwarzanegger movies, too. And movies with Danny DeVito.
We've gotta stand up for something, SB. :)
So, that's all I know for tonight. Tomorrow is church and choir, so I will be awake and then back here at the usual times, and then tomorrow night I am gonna go see Alice Cooper in Hollywood at the Pantages Theater, but it starts early, at 8pm, so I should be back here at Pearl's by the usual time. And before that, I'll be around in the afternoon and early evening.
See you in the morn. I Love You. xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo :):)
Saturday, October 29, 2016
Happy Late Night
Hi Elizabeth,
I didn't see you on FB tonight until a little while ago, so this is a late post just to say hi. I guess you are busy lately, but I saw a few minutes ago a Halloween post of a guy with skeleton face paint and a black hood. It said "Halloween From The Office".
Tonight I went over to the Dia De Los Muertos event at CSUN, at the Chicano House which is a locally famous small brick building on campus. For the last few years, the Mexican students who use that building as a group facility for an organization called MEChA have created a Day Of The Dead artistic exhibit that is pretty impressive. Grimsley and I discovered it last year by chance, and this year we made it a point to go. It is also a live event, with vendors and music, but we were there mainly to see the exhibit within the several rooms of the Chicano House. In Mexican culture, as you probably know, the Day Of The Dead is a celebration of death, which is seen as something beautiful. The art memorials these students produce are really something special.
Took Kobi to see his heart specialist today. He is doing well and doesn't need to be seen for another six months. Not too shabby for a soon to be 17 year old (he's still a Teenager).
Yesterday the main event was the CSUN movie, "Mouchette" by Bresson. A profoundly sad film, featuring one of the great performances of cinema by a non-professional actress named Nadine Nortier, who never acted in another film but who created an indelible character in this one. One of Bresson's greatest works.
Well that's all I know for tonight.
xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo :):)
I didn't see you on FB tonight until a little while ago, so this is a late post just to say hi. I guess you are busy lately, but I saw a few minutes ago a Halloween post of a guy with skeleton face paint and a black hood. It said "Halloween From The Office".
Tonight I went over to the Dia De Los Muertos event at CSUN, at the Chicano House which is a locally famous small brick building on campus. For the last few years, the Mexican students who use that building as a group facility for an organization called MEChA have created a Day Of The Dead artistic exhibit that is pretty impressive. Grimsley and I discovered it last year by chance, and this year we made it a point to go. It is also a live event, with vendors and music, but we were there mainly to see the exhibit within the several rooms of the Chicano House. In Mexican culture, as you probably know, the Day Of The Dead is a celebration of death, which is seen as something beautiful. The art memorials these students produce are really something special.
Took Kobi to see his heart specialist today. He is doing well and doesn't need to be seen for another six months. Not too shabby for a soon to be 17 year old (he's still a Teenager).
Yesterday the main event was the CSUN movie, "Mouchette" by Bresson. A profoundly sad film, featuring one of the great performances of cinema by a non-professional actress named Nadine Nortier, who never acted in another film but who created an indelible character in this one. One of Bresson's greatest works.
Well that's all I know for tonight.
xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo :):)
Thursday, October 27, 2016
Hilary & Hillary + Sparkling + CNN Is The Worst
Happy Late Night, my Darling,
I am back - back a couple hours ago actually - from the Hilary Hahn concert at Disney Hall. Tonight was a recital, so no orchestra, just Hilary and pianist Robert Levin. It was of course a fantastic performance, two hours long with pieces by Bach, Mozart and others, including a world premier of a partita written by a Spanish composer named Anton Garcia Abril, who was in the audience. Grimsley came with me, and on the way down we were caught in a traffic nightmare and almost didn't make it on time. Disney Hall is one of the only venues in Downtown LA that isn't easily accessible from the subway. The nearest station is one mile away, which is doable, but the problem is that classical concerts start at 8pm, so time is a factor. The good news is that we made it - barely (they didn't start til 8:07 & we got there at 7.59!) - and the other good news, which is another thing I love about classical concerts, is that I was back here at Pearl's by 10:40.
That is awesome and I wish all concerts were that way. Yeah, I know.....when I was younger it didn't matter cause I hung out after shows so I could meet rock stars, etc.......it didn't matter if I got home at 2am or even 4am.
But nowdays, SB, I love getting home early, haha. :)
This time also I did not stay for the usual after-show meeting with Hilary, just cause the line was super long and Grim was with me and we had the opportunity to get back home early. So, despite the traffic on the way down, a successful evening.
I hope you had a nice day, and as I said yesterday I love that new portrait of you that you are now using on FB as well as on Youtube, which I originally commented on. I also liked the quote you added, by Rumi, because it so fits the way you look in that picture. You look joyous, and really......you look positively sparkling. It is a beautiful photograph of you, and also, you have as always a good eye for style and color design because the black & white of your dress (or top, not sure which) plays just right against the dark grey background, and sets off your hair and the color of your lipstick, as also remarked by one of your friends.
An expressive picture of you indeed.
I hope that means that all projects and day-to-day life in general are going well, and I guess it must mean that. How else could such a picture emerge? :)
I also went to a movie this afternoon : "Trumpland" by MIchael Moore. I don't go to the theater a lot as you know, but Grimsley had been hounding me to see this one, and to see it before the election, so I did. It's really not even about Trump but about Hillary Clinton. And it's not a documentary like most of Moore's films, but a filmed live show, of him doing a stand up routine before an audience in Ohio. But it's mostly about Hillary, and why we need her as President, and I must say that Moore's commentary, besides being hilarious (he's a riot) was exactly on the money. He says all the same things I've been saying about why we need a woman President, and specifically this woman. It's an extremely incisive film. Moore nails it.
And today just so happened to be Hillary Clinton's birthday, so it was the perfect day to see it.
Of course, when I got back from the movie, CNN is pushing Trump, Trump, Trump.
"Oh, he's closing in on the polls in several states! He's closing the gap".
God, I hate CNN. The phoniest baloniest Trump-Creating station in the nation. They created him, then they tore him down, and now as the election closes in, they want to bolster their ratings as so they tell us that it's gonna be a cliffhanger.....
"Trump is closing in! He could win"!
I don't like Anderson Cooper or any of those people. Total phoney baloney corporate news.
I like Michael Moore better. He tells it like it is. He knows Trump Is Toast.
That's all I know for tonight, Sweet Baby.
See you in the morning. I Love You. xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo :):)
I am back - back a couple hours ago actually - from the Hilary Hahn concert at Disney Hall. Tonight was a recital, so no orchestra, just Hilary and pianist Robert Levin. It was of course a fantastic performance, two hours long with pieces by Bach, Mozart and others, including a world premier of a partita written by a Spanish composer named Anton Garcia Abril, who was in the audience. Grimsley came with me, and on the way down we were caught in a traffic nightmare and almost didn't make it on time. Disney Hall is one of the only venues in Downtown LA that isn't easily accessible from the subway. The nearest station is one mile away, which is doable, but the problem is that classical concerts start at 8pm, so time is a factor. The good news is that we made it - barely (they didn't start til 8:07 & we got there at 7.59!) - and the other good news, which is another thing I love about classical concerts, is that I was back here at Pearl's by 10:40.
That is awesome and I wish all concerts were that way. Yeah, I know.....when I was younger it didn't matter cause I hung out after shows so I could meet rock stars, etc.......it didn't matter if I got home at 2am or even 4am.
But nowdays, SB, I love getting home early, haha. :)
This time also I did not stay for the usual after-show meeting with Hilary, just cause the line was super long and Grim was with me and we had the opportunity to get back home early. So, despite the traffic on the way down, a successful evening.
I hope you had a nice day, and as I said yesterday I love that new portrait of you that you are now using on FB as well as on Youtube, which I originally commented on. I also liked the quote you added, by Rumi, because it so fits the way you look in that picture. You look joyous, and really......you look positively sparkling. It is a beautiful photograph of you, and also, you have as always a good eye for style and color design because the black & white of your dress (or top, not sure which) plays just right against the dark grey background, and sets off your hair and the color of your lipstick, as also remarked by one of your friends.
An expressive picture of you indeed.
I hope that means that all projects and day-to-day life in general are going well, and I guess it must mean that. How else could such a picture emerge? :)
I also went to a movie this afternoon : "Trumpland" by MIchael Moore. I don't go to the theater a lot as you know, but Grimsley had been hounding me to see this one, and to see it before the election, so I did. It's really not even about Trump but about Hillary Clinton. And it's not a documentary like most of Moore's films, but a filmed live show, of him doing a stand up routine before an audience in Ohio. But it's mostly about Hillary, and why we need her as President, and I must say that Moore's commentary, besides being hilarious (he's a riot) was exactly on the money. He says all the same things I've been saying about why we need a woman President, and specifically this woman. It's an extremely incisive film. Moore nails it.
And today just so happened to be Hillary Clinton's birthday, so it was the perfect day to see it.
Of course, when I got back from the movie, CNN is pushing Trump, Trump, Trump.
"Oh, he's closing in on the polls in several states! He's closing the gap".
God, I hate CNN. The phoniest baloniest Trump-Creating station in the nation. They created him, then they tore him down, and now as the election closes in, they want to bolster their ratings as so they tell us that it's gonna be a cliffhanger.....
"Trump is closing in! He could win"!
I don't like Anderson Cooper or any of those people. Total phoney baloney corporate news.
I like Michael Moore better. He tells it like it is. He knows Trump Is Toast.
That's all I know for tonight, Sweet Baby.
See you in the morning. I Love You. xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo :):)
Tuesday, October 25, 2016
Happy Monday + Singing
Happy Late Night, Sweet Baby,
I am guessing you are working on something, possibly your music or a new project or maybe even a road trip, but anyway, just so long as you are having fun and the work is coming along to your satisfaction. Those are the important things. :)
Just a quick update from me. I had fun myself singing bass on yesterday's church anthem, "Locus Iste" by Bruckner (sung with English lyrics instead of the original Latin, which I disagree with but you can't have everything). It was my first Classical piece, and a beautiful piece it is. Now I am working on "Ave Verum Corpus" by Mozart (which will also be unfortunately sung in English), and on that one I will be singing in my normal tenor. It has some subtleties such as half-step sharps and flats in a certain progression that sound counterintuitive to the ear, like "why does it go like that"?! But then you hear how Mozart resolves it into the main key, and it gives you goosebumps. It's only a two minute piece, and the first minute is very easy, but I want to nail the last minute so I've gotta work on it and the best way to do it is to try and understand melodically why he takes it in the direction he does.
But I hope we get to keep learning these classical pieces. I wanna get good at them. :)
I want to be a good singer.
Today was a good day too. Just a regular work day but we went to Lake Balboa at 5pm and had a nice time there. And as I write, there is a Hammer Studios/Christopher Lee "Dracula" movie on TCM, so all is well.
I like your new self-portrait that you are using on your Youtube channel. I just saw it this evening, and it is a lovely picture of you.
That's all I know for tonight. See you in the morning. Post if you can, and if you wanna.
I Love You. xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo :):)
I am guessing you are working on something, possibly your music or a new project or maybe even a road trip, but anyway, just so long as you are having fun and the work is coming along to your satisfaction. Those are the important things. :)
Just a quick update from me. I had fun myself singing bass on yesterday's church anthem, "Locus Iste" by Bruckner (sung with English lyrics instead of the original Latin, which I disagree with but you can't have everything). It was my first Classical piece, and a beautiful piece it is. Now I am working on "Ave Verum Corpus" by Mozart (which will also be unfortunately sung in English), and on that one I will be singing in my normal tenor. It has some subtleties such as half-step sharps and flats in a certain progression that sound counterintuitive to the ear, like "why does it go like that"?! But then you hear how Mozart resolves it into the main key, and it gives you goosebumps. It's only a two minute piece, and the first minute is very easy, but I want to nail the last minute so I've gotta work on it and the best way to do it is to try and understand melodically why he takes it in the direction he does.
But I hope we get to keep learning these classical pieces. I wanna get good at them. :)
I want to be a good singer.
Today was a good day too. Just a regular work day but we went to Lake Balboa at 5pm and had a nice time there. And as I write, there is a Hammer Studios/Christopher Lee "Dracula" movie on TCM, so all is well.
I like your new self-portrait that you are using on your Youtube channel. I just saw it this evening, and it is a lovely picture of you.
That's all I know for tonight. See you in the morning. Post if you can, and if you wanna.
I Love You. xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo :):)
Sunday, October 23, 2016
Art Outweighs The Constraints Of Tiny Apartments + Dodgers + "Walking Dead"
Happy Late Night, my Darling,
I hope you had a good Saturday and I'll bet you were out working on a project or simply following your artistic muse in one way or another. I was busy myself, though in the afternoon it was shopping with my sister Vickie, who has been coming over again after not doing so for much of the past several months. We went to the regular market and then to Total Wine for wine tasting (oh boy!). I got back home at about 2pm and decided to finally mount a couple of my drawings that have just been "sitting loose" on shelves or wherever I can put them. Because I live in a Tiny Apartment, and because I have A Ton Of Stuff Inside (mostly books & guitars), I have to constantly Shuffle Stuff Around if I want to, say, get clothes out of a drawer. Gotta move a guitar or two, etc. And books....gotta move books, and I've had loose drawings sometimes sitting on stacks of books. I'm not a pack rat or anything close, it's just that I live in the World's Smallest Apartment and I need a bigger one, like really bad.
But art is the most important thing, in all it's forms, and so I got some black posterboard a couple days ago to finally mount the loose drawings (ones that had been pulled out of the sketchbook), and today I did that. I mounted three drawings, using Scotch Tape on the backside. One was mounted as a single stand-alone drawing, and the other two were mounted as a "double", side by side on a larger piece of posterboard. I have put several of this year's drawings together as "doubles" because it just seemed like certain ones went together. To mount them, I just eyeball everything. I don't really measure because I don't have patience for detail work, but so far my eye for balance has been pretty good. The only problem is that I have all these double-mounted black posterboard drawings sitting all over my Tiny Apartment, and now I have to move them, too, in order to get cds off my bookshelf or whatever.....
It's a conundrum, but there are worse ones to have. I am being cramped out of my apartment, but at least it's by books, guitars and drawings, lol.
In the early evening I walked over to the CSUN parking structure a block down from my building, the one I use to take sunset photos. I climb the stairs to the top so I have an unobstructed view of the sky and mountains. I knew this evening was gonna be a good one because jets were leaving a lot of trails in the sky. Those usually lead to dramatic sunsets.
After that I listened to the Dodgers choke the final game against the Cubs.
Yeah, sports.......I know. And I bet people are going crazy for the Cubbies up there because they haven't been to a World Series in 70 years and haven't won one in 108!
Good Lordy Moses, Sweet Baby. :)
If you took my whole life, and doubled yours, that's still not as long as the time since the Cubs last won a Series....
This evening I watched the last couple episodes of "The Walking Dead" Season Six, and so I am finally all caught up with that series and can watch the premier of Season Seven tomorrow night at Pearl's.
Tomorrow I will be back at work, starting with church in the morn. I think I have my bass part down for "Locus Iste". It's pretty simple.
I'll be back after choir practice at about 1pm as usual.
See you in the morning. I Love You. xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo :):)
I hope you had a good Saturday and I'll bet you were out working on a project or simply following your artistic muse in one way or another. I was busy myself, though in the afternoon it was shopping with my sister Vickie, who has been coming over again after not doing so for much of the past several months. We went to the regular market and then to Total Wine for wine tasting (oh boy!). I got back home at about 2pm and decided to finally mount a couple of my drawings that have just been "sitting loose" on shelves or wherever I can put them. Because I live in a Tiny Apartment, and because I have A Ton Of Stuff Inside (mostly books & guitars), I have to constantly Shuffle Stuff Around if I want to, say, get clothes out of a drawer. Gotta move a guitar or two, etc. And books....gotta move books, and I've had loose drawings sometimes sitting on stacks of books. I'm not a pack rat or anything close, it's just that I live in the World's Smallest Apartment and I need a bigger one, like really bad.
But art is the most important thing, in all it's forms, and so I got some black posterboard a couple days ago to finally mount the loose drawings (ones that had been pulled out of the sketchbook), and today I did that. I mounted three drawings, using Scotch Tape on the backside. One was mounted as a single stand-alone drawing, and the other two were mounted as a "double", side by side on a larger piece of posterboard. I have put several of this year's drawings together as "doubles" because it just seemed like certain ones went together. To mount them, I just eyeball everything. I don't really measure because I don't have patience for detail work, but so far my eye for balance has been pretty good. The only problem is that I have all these double-mounted black posterboard drawings sitting all over my Tiny Apartment, and now I have to move them, too, in order to get cds off my bookshelf or whatever.....
It's a conundrum, but there are worse ones to have. I am being cramped out of my apartment, but at least it's by books, guitars and drawings, lol.
In the early evening I walked over to the CSUN parking structure a block down from my building, the one I use to take sunset photos. I climb the stairs to the top so I have an unobstructed view of the sky and mountains. I knew this evening was gonna be a good one because jets were leaving a lot of trails in the sky. Those usually lead to dramatic sunsets.
After that I listened to the Dodgers choke the final game against the Cubs.
Yeah, sports.......I know. And I bet people are going crazy for the Cubbies up there because they haven't been to a World Series in 70 years and haven't won one in 108!
Good Lordy Moses, Sweet Baby. :)
If you took my whole life, and doubled yours, that's still not as long as the time since the Cubs last won a Series....
This evening I watched the last couple episodes of "The Walking Dead" Season Six, and so I am finally all caught up with that series and can watch the premier of Season Seven tomorrow night at Pearl's.
Tomorrow I will be back at work, starting with church in the morn. I think I have my bass part down for "Locus Iste". It's pretty simple.
I'll be back after choir practice at about 1pm as usual.
See you in the morning. I Love You. xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo :):)
Saturday, October 22, 2016
Friday Night Love From Home + Movies About Brains Rule
Happy Late Night, Sweet Baby,
I am writing from home; I'm off until Sunday morning. I hope your day was good and that you are heading into an enjoyable weekend. Today was mostly running errands for me, but one errand was to take The Kobester to his new groomer. We feel it is safe to have him get groomed again. If you remember, we stopped in February because he had a seizure right after being groomed, but he is better now. Anyway, this groomer was discovered by Pearl's daughter who found her online, and I may have already mentioned this but : what a coincidence (or not).
This new groomer works right out of her house, which just happens to be located right next door to 9032. I don't mean the former Rappaport house but next door on the south side.
How weird is that? Pearl's daughter did not know the significance of the location when she chose the groomer. She chose her for her good reviews. Anyway - 9032 strikes again! (what a great house it was). I told the young lady that I'd lived there for 25 years..........
Kobedoggie looks very handsome now, but you can also see how chublike he has gotten, from pounding dogfood nonstop day and night. Man, does he ever love dogfood. :)
I got home at 4pm this aft, and I've mostly just been hanging out although I did walk down to Northridge Libe to pick up some dvds I ordered : "Under The Dome" (season three), "Walking Dead" (season six), and "Tales From The Crypt". Tonight after my walk I watched "The Man Who Changed His Mind" with Boris Karloff. I don't usually like to watch movies on computer or Youtube, but I made an exception because I don't own this one and can't find it in the library system. And it's a shortie, only 62 minutes long.
But it's a classic, and..........it's all about Brains!
Yes, Brains, SB!......(you know I love movies about Brains).........
So that was my night. I am still recovering from last night's Opeth show and running on little sleep, which I will try to catch up on during the night.
I see several band posts for you, for Atilla and Stitched Up Heart. Both are on tour, so I trust you will be joining them at as many shows as possible. Time to finish out the year in high gear!
(hey, that sounds reminiscent of when I used to be a Drill Sergeant. Do you remember that? Waaay back in 2012. I was only a Drill Sergeant for a brief period, but I just reminded myself of it, lol).
That's all I know for tonight. See you in the morning.
I Love You. xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo :):)
I am writing from home; I'm off until Sunday morning. I hope your day was good and that you are heading into an enjoyable weekend. Today was mostly running errands for me, but one errand was to take The Kobester to his new groomer. We feel it is safe to have him get groomed again. If you remember, we stopped in February because he had a seizure right after being groomed, but he is better now. Anyway, this groomer was discovered by Pearl's daughter who found her online, and I may have already mentioned this but : what a coincidence (or not).
This new groomer works right out of her house, which just happens to be located right next door to 9032. I don't mean the former Rappaport house but next door on the south side.
How weird is that? Pearl's daughter did not know the significance of the location when she chose the groomer. She chose her for her good reviews. Anyway - 9032 strikes again! (what a great house it was). I told the young lady that I'd lived there for 25 years..........
Kobedoggie looks very handsome now, but you can also see how chublike he has gotten, from pounding dogfood nonstop day and night. Man, does he ever love dogfood. :)
I got home at 4pm this aft, and I've mostly just been hanging out although I did walk down to Northridge Libe to pick up some dvds I ordered : "Under The Dome" (season three), "Walking Dead" (season six), and "Tales From The Crypt". Tonight after my walk I watched "The Man Who Changed His Mind" with Boris Karloff. I don't usually like to watch movies on computer or Youtube, but I made an exception because I don't own this one and can't find it in the library system. And it's a shortie, only 62 minutes long.
But it's a classic, and..........it's all about Brains!
Yes, Brains, SB!......(you know I love movies about Brains).........
So that was my night. I am still recovering from last night's Opeth show and running on little sleep, which I will try to catch up on during the night.
I see several band posts for you, for Atilla and Stitched Up Heart. Both are on tour, so I trust you will be joining them at as many shows as possible. Time to finish out the year in high gear!
(hey, that sounds reminiscent of when I used to be a Drill Sergeant. Do you remember that? Waaay back in 2012. I was only a Drill Sergeant for a brief period, but I just reminded myself of it, lol).
That's all I know for tonight. See you in the morning.
I Love You. xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo :):)
Friday, October 21, 2016
Opeth Was Awesome, The Venue Less So + Porcupine State Park + Lens Flare, etc.
Happy Super Late Night, Sweet Baby,
I am back from the Opeth concert. They played 2hrs 45minutes, a marathon show divided into two sets as described last night. They didn't even take a break between the sets, just two minutes with the stage lights down low as they walked offstage.......and then back on again. Their music is so complex and full of dynamics, and they are flawless players, on par with the best progressive bands.
The show, and band, were fantastic.
The venue was another story.
I had not been to The Belasco Theater before. It is another of Downtown L.A.'s old historic theaters, set adjacent to The Mayan Theater, where I saw my first Opeth show in 2011. Anyway, The Belasco has the Old Theater Look, very 1920s and classic, but it is comparatively small versus a place like The Orpheum (just a few blocks away) where I saw Opeth last year. So the sound, which is very loud, tends to bounce around and get muddy in places. The quiet parts - a feature in almost every Opeth song - stood out in crystal clarity, and the loud stuff was pretty good for the most part because it's so tightly played. But compared to the sound at last year's Orpheum show - which was flawless - it left something to be desired.
But the worst part about The Belasco is that it was An Absolute Sardine Can. It looked like they oversold it, and I can't imagine the fire marshall would've been too pleased had he inspected the joint. I got there at 8:15 (when the opening band "The Sword" were on) and I couldn't find a clear sight line on the balcony, which had no seats, only standing room at the railing overlooking the stage. It was jam packed.
So when Opeth came on, I tried the floor, which was far worse. Me being 5' 9", I could only see the heads and shoulders of the band members, and the sound was terrible down there because at the back of the floor where I was, there was a balcony overhang, which caused the sound to be compressed underneath it, and it was awful. So, I went back upstairs and by the third song I finally found a spot with a semi-clear view all the way to the left side by the staircase, and I stood there for the rest of the show.
It was a general admission show, and even though Opeth put on a great performance as always, I don't think I will do another general admission show, especially for a hard rock band with a lot of drunk fans. One thing that drives me absolutely crazy is the way people can't sit still (or stand still) and just watch the show. They have to run back and forth, up and down the stairs, to get beer after beer or whatever, like it's a freakin' baseball game. But the worst part is, and I think I mentioned this before, that everybody thinks he's a comedian at an Opeth show. Because Mikael is known for his stage banter, drunk fans think they are funny too, and they yell stuff back at him, and they sing loudly along to the songs........
Good Lordy Moses, SB.
That's why I love classical concerts so much. Nobody makes a peep until the music stops.
Still, it was an excellent show musicwise, and I would never miss an Opeth show for any reason because they are so good live.
Except.........well, let's just say I hope they don't play The Belasco again, or any general admission venue.
I hope your day was good. That was a beautiful photo you posted this morning, from Porcupine (Tree) State Park. Man, what an incredible expanse of trees! As far as the eye can see, turning color. If I remember correctly, you went there before a couple years ago. And so that's where you were last weekend, not in Mexico City but in Upper Michigan. :) Post more photos if you wanna.....
I liked your concert photo, too, from your professional FB page. You say you are obsessed with lens flares, and I've gotta say that I always have been too, lol. I am always looking for lighting "artifacts", and way back in the 90s, when I was shooting film at The Meadows and other earthquake related places, I was always trying to use the sun as a "special effect". In fact, I used to try to use my own eye as a reflector, haha. When I was shooting film with my Pentax ME Super, an SLR, I used to think, "hey, the Sun is reflecting through the viewfinder........what if my eye on the receiving end can reflect it back.....and cause an artifact of it's own"?
I had (and have) no idea if that is possible, but I do have a few photos from that time in which an iris-shaped artifact is visible in the photo, in which I was using the Sun to create special effects.
So keep doing it and see what you get!
Post more photos when you can.
See you in the morn (which is almost here already).
I Love You. xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo :):)
I am back from the Opeth concert. They played 2hrs 45minutes, a marathon show divided into two sets as described last night. They didn't even take a break between the sets, just two minutes with the stage lights down low as they walked offstage.......and then back on again. Their music is so complex and full of dynamics, and they are flawless players, on par with the best progressive bands.
The show, and band, were fantastic.
The venue was another story.
I had not been to The Belasco Theater before. It is another of Downtown L.A.'s old historic theaters, set adjacent to The Mayan Theater, where I saw my first Opeth show in 2011. Anyway, The Belasco has the Old Theater Look, very 1920s and classic, but it is comparatively small versus a place like The Orpheum (just a few blocks away) where I saw Opeth last year. So the sound, which is very loud, tends to bounce around and get muddy in places. The quiet parts - a feature in almost every Opeth song - stood out in crystal clarity, and the loud stuff was pretty good for the most part because it's so tightly played. But compared to the sound at last year's Orpheum show - which was flawless - it left something to be desired.
But the worst part about The Belasco is that it was An Absolute Sardine Can. It looked like they oversold it, and I can't imagine the fire marshall would've been too pleased had he inspected the joint. I got there at 8:15 (when the opening band "The Sword" were on) and I couldn't find a clear sight line on the balcony, which had no seats, only standing room at the railing overlooking the stage. It was jam packed.
So when Opeth came on, I tried the floor, which was far worse. Me being 5' 9", I could only see the heads and shoulders of the band members, and the sound was terrible down there because at the back of the floor where I was, there was a balcony overhang, which caused the sound to be compressed underneath it, and it was awful. So, I went back upstairs and by the third song I finally found a spot with a semi-clear view all the way to the left side by the staircase, and I stood there for the rest of the show.
It was a general admission show, and even though Opeth put on a great performance as always, I don't think I will do another general admission show, especially for a hard rock band with a lot of drunk fans. One thing that drives me absolutely crazy is the way people can't sit still (or stand still) and just watch the show. They have to run back and forth, up and down the stairs, to get beer after beer or whatever, like it's a freakin' baseball game. But the worst part is, and I think I mentioned this before, that everybody thinks he's a comedian at an Opeth show. Because Mikael is known for his stage banter, drunk fans think they are funny too, and they yell stuff back at him, and they sing loudly along to the songs........
Good Lordy Moses, SB.
That's why I love classical concerts so much. Nobody makes a peep until the music stops.
Still, it was an excellent show musicwise, and I would never miss an Opeth show for any reason because they are so good live.
Except.........well, let's just say I hope they don't play The Belasco again, or any general admission venue.
I hope your day was good. That was a beautiful photo you posted this morning, from Porcupine (Tree) State Park. Man, what an incredible expanse of trees! As far as the eye can see, turning color. If I remember correctly, you went there before a couple years ago. And so that's where you were last weekend, not in Mexico City but in Upper Michigan. :) Post more photos if you wanna.....
I liked your concert photo, too, from your professional FB page. You say you are obsessed with lens flares, and I've gotta say that I always have been too, lol. I am always looking for lighting "artifacts", and way back in the 90s, when I was shooting film at The Meadows and other earthquake related places, I was always trying to use the sun as a "special effect". In fact, I used to try to use my own eye as a reflector, haha. When I was shooting film with my Pentax ME Super, an SLR, I used to think, "hey, the Sun is reflecting through the viewfinder........what if my eye on the receiving end can reflect it back.....and cause an artifact of it's own"?
I had (and have) no idea if that is possible, but I do have a few photos from that time in which an iris-shaped artifact is visible in the photo, in which I was using the Sun to create special effects.
So keep doing it and see what you get!
Post more photos when you can.
See you in the morn (which is almost here already).
I Love You. xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo :):)
Thursday, October 20, 2016
Happy Wednesday Love
Happy Late Night, my Darling,
I hope your music and film are coming along well. I don't have a lot to report, except that I did go out to Corriganville this afternoon to visit The Scary Old Hollow Tree, one of my favorite trees to photograph. You probably know which one it is. I was a little concerned when I got there because we've had a lot of wind the last couple days, and many branches of trees (and a couple trees themselves) were blown down in the park, but Old Scary was still standing and intact. I took a few pics, but they weren't too different from my past pics of the tree, so I held off on posting one for now.
Watched the debate tonight of course. It goes without saying that Trump Is Toast. He's been toast ever since they nominated him, but he just reinforced it tonight with another obnoxious performance that only reiterated what a Complete Jerk he is. America needs to be rid of having this person in their collective consciousness night after night, so c'mon Election Day........get here already! :)
Tomorrow night is Opeth, which is gonna be awesome because it is one of only four special shows on this tour where they are gonna do two sets : one regular and one specifically for the "Deliverance & Damnation" albums, which were just remixed & reissued. Mikael is a touring machine; I will have now seen Opeth at least once in every year since 2011, this will be my 7th show for them. I am listening to "Sorceress" and "Kodama" and the beautiful new acoustic album from Eric Johnson, called "EJ". What a great year for music it has been.
I should be back tomorrow night not too much later than usual, and will write as soon as I get here.
See you in the morning. I Love You. xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo :):)
I hope your music and film are coming along well. I don't have a lot to report, except that I did go out to Corriganville this afternoon to visit The Scary Old Hollow Tree, one of my favorite trees to photograph. You probably know which one it is. I was a little concerned when I got there because we've had a lot of wind the last couple days, and many branches of trees (and a couple trees themselves) were blown down in the park, but Old Scary was still standing and intact. I took a few pics, but they weren't too different from my past pics of the tree, so I held off on posting one for now.
Watched the debate tonight of course. It goes without saying that Trump Is Toast. He's been toast ever since they nominated him, but he just reinforced it tonight with another obnoxious performance that only reiterated what a Complete Jerk he is. America needs to be rid of having this person in their collective consciousness night after night, so c'mon Election Day........get here already! :)
Tomorrow night is Opeth, which is gonna be awesome because it is one of only four special shows on this tour where they are gonna do two sets : one regular and one specifically for the "Deliverance & Damnation" albums, which were just remixed & reissued. Mikael is a touring machine; I will have now seen Opeth at least once in every year since 2011, this will be my 7th show for them. I am listening to "Sorceress" and "Kodama" and the beautiful new acoustic album from Eric Johnson, called "EJ". What a great year for music it has been.
I should be back tomorrow night not too much later than usual, and will write as soon as I get here.
See you in the morning. I Love You. xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo :):)
Wednesday, October 19, 2016
Composing + Early Music
Happy Late Night, my Darling,
I hope you had a nice day, and I saw your Eric Whitacre post this morning about composing, so I will guess that's what you are doing, and probably what you were doing over last weekend too. I know you are working on your film, and you even posted that picture of yourself at the keyboard, so I should have guessed you were still at work on it. (I've got a bit of a thick skull, you'll have to forgive me, lol).
I trust - and will bet - that your music is coming out great. I agree with what Whitacre said about composing, and it's the same thing Stephen King says about writing. In his book, "On Writing" (one of his only academic books) he says that people often come up to him and say, "Oh, I really wish I could write! How do you do it"? He says that he always responds by saying : "Start writing".
That's "how you write" : start writing.
And Eric Whitacre says the same thing about composing. You - meaning You yourself, i.e. the SB - have already composed before on many occasions, so you know what it entails, and I add only one "two cents worth" suggestion, which I already mentioned last week, and which is obvious anyway (meaning that you already know it). I say : go deep, and when you sit down and get ready to compose, and even before that, whenever and wherever you are focusing on your music, dig deep, and connect with the emotions and nuances therein that are driving your composition. Make sure the music is exactly (or as close as possible) to what you are feeling as you match it to the imagery in your film.
That's my two cents, and you already know it anyway, but......I love to talk about music! :)
I saw a post on FB this morn, after I dropped Pearl off at church for Golden Agers. It was from the Oviatt Library (my former "home", where I used to write to you on Myspace), and they announced a used book sale that was in progress. Even though I have already "booked myself out of my Tiny Apartment", I couldn't resist walking over to check out the goods, and I found two great volumes on Early Music, one that covered the period from 900AD to 1300, and the other one that covered 1300 to the Renaissance. As you know I love Early Music, so I was stoked to find these books (four bucks for both).
I am gonna start a Gregorian Chant group, haha, especially now that I am gonna sing a bass part next week.... ;)
Seriously though, I love the purity of Early Music, and the profound spirituality.
No hike today, it was a Golden Agers Tuesday, but tomorrow I will try to do one, and I have gotten back into the Swing Of Things so a hike should be doable.....
See you in the morn.
Keep composing! (I first said that way back in 2012)
I love you. xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo :):)
I hope you had a nice day, and I saw your Eric Whitacre post this morning about composing, so I will guess that's what you are doing, and probably what you were doing over last weekend too. I know you are working on your film, and you even posted that picture of yourself at the keyboard, so I should have guessed you were still at work on it. (I've got a bit of a thick skull, you'll have to forgive me, lol).
I trust - and will bet - that your music is coming out great. I agree with what Whitacre said about composing, and it's the same thing Stephen King says about writing. In his book, "On Writing" (one of his only academic books) he says that people often come up to him and say, "Oh, I really wish I could write! How do you do it"? He says that he always responds by saying : "Start writing".
That's "how you write" : start writing.
And Eric Whitacre says the same thing about composing. You - meaning You yourself, i.e. the SB - have already composed before on many occasions, so you know what it entails, and I add only one "two cents worth" suggestion, which I already mentioned last week, and which is obvious anyway (meaning that you already know it). I say : go deep, and when you sit down and get ready to compose, and even before that, whenever and wherever you are focusing on your music, dig deep, and connect with the emotions and nuances therein that are driving your composition. Make sure the music is exactly (or as close as possible) to what you are feeling as you match it to the imagery in your film.
That's my two cents, and you already know it anyway, but......I love to talk about music! :)
I saw a post on FB this morn, after I dropped Pearl off at church for Golden Agers. It was from the Oviatt Library (my former "home", where I used to write to you on Myspace), and they announced a used book sale that was in progress. Even though I have already "booked myself out of my Tiny Apartment", I couldn't resist walking over to check out the goods, and I found two great volumes on Early Music, one that covered the period from 900AD to 1300, and the other one that covered 1300 to the Renaissance. As you know I love Early Music, so I was stoked to find these books (four bucks for both).
I am gonna start a Gregorian Chant group, haha, especially now that I am gonna sing a bass part next week.... ;)
Seriously though, I love the purity of Early Music, and the profound spirituality.
No hike today, it was a Golden Agers Tuesday, but tomorrow I will try to do one, and I have gotten back into the Swing Of Things so a hike should be doable.....
See you in the morn.
Keep composing! (I first said that way back in 2012)
I love you. xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo :):)
Tuesday, October 18, 2016
I'm Back + Excellent Photo + Recent Hikes (deer) + Evolution Is Baloney
Happy Late Night, Sweet Baby,
I was glad to see you back today. For a minute there, I thought you might have actually gone to Mexico City for Knotfest, because I knew one of your bands was there and I thought maybe you got invited along. But then I thought, well, Mexico City is a major excursion and you probably would've mentioned it. :)
Anyhow, as always, that's the only reason I didn't write for the past three days, just cause I didn't see you on FB. I hope you had a nice weekend, though, and I liked the photo you posted this morning. You got some great color tones with the different shades of purple (hair & background) and the ink black of her dress. I agree with your friend Brian too, that you used your lighting to great effect to make her hair three dimensional against the background.
I finally did some hiking since I last wrote. On Friday I went way up high on the O'Melveny Trail, 36 minutes in and more than halfway to Mission Point. O'Melveny is a longer distance to the Point than when you take the DeCampos Trail, so 36 minutes only gets you halfway whereas on the DeCampos it gets you almost to the top. The other thing about the O'Melveny is that it's steep. So it was a bit of a workout after not hiking much for a couple weeks, but I had a blast.
Then on Saturday I went out to Santa Susana, where I hadn't been in a few months. Normally I used to go there once a week or so. This time I didn't climb to the top of the Devil's Slide, just because of the steep hike the day before. But it was great to be back at Santa Su anyway.
Sunday (yesterday) was Church, so no hike, but today I went out to Whitney Canyon in Newhall and had an awesome 65 minute hike. It's funny, because I had intended to go to the DeCampos Trail and hike for 40 minutes to get to the top, or at least close. But for some reason I spaced out and missed the turn onto Sesnon Boulevard, and before I knew it I was to far ahead to turn back. So, I went to Whitney Canyon instead, a few miles down the road (and across Sierra Highway), and I was glad it worked out that way because I saw two sets of deer! The first pair were in a meadow a short ways in, and I got to see something I've never seen before, at least not in person. When they saw me and heard me coming, they bounded away, and because they were in tall grass with rocks and uneven terrain underfoot, I got to see them leap, they way we've all seen in nature films and footage. It was beautiful because it looks so graceful and effortless. They trot along, and then all of a sudden they leap - and tuck their legs up - and they seem to float for a second. They are suspended in midair but moving forward. Then they land and trot very gracefully again until the next leap. It was wonderful to see, and I think I missed my exit for the DeCampos Trail on purpose, haha.
The other pair of deer I saw further into the canyon, and they just froze up and pointed their ears at me, as you may have seen if you saw my FB picture this evening. I love Deer Ears, haha. They seem to have an existence all their own; these big giant funnels on the relatively small deer heads that move directionally like radar. Just the shape of them is what I like. Super cute, but also very useful.
So those were my hikes since Friday. We had good singing in Church yesterday, and next week the director wants me to sing bass on a song by the classical composer Anton Bruckner called "Locus Iste". It's a pretty easy part, but I gotta practice anyway cause I'm not used to singing that low.
For my reading, I finished "It" by Stephen King (which I may have mentioned) and I also finished the Timothy McVeigh book by Dr. Wendy Painting, who in my opinion should get a medal for her work on that book. It ought to be required reading in every school in America (and everywhere else too) so that people will know what the Department Of Justice and the FBI are really up to. And the CIA and Military, too.
I have just begun two new books : "The Black Carousel" by Charles L. Grant, a poetic writer of self-described "quiet horror" whose earlier books I was a fan of in the late 80s/ early 90s. Now I am revisiting him. My other new book is called "Genesis, Creation and Early Man" by Father Seraphim Rose, an American priest (now deceased) of the Russian Orthodox Church.
I have probably already said this, but I do not believe in Evolution. What I mean is that I do not believe in it as a philosophy or a Truth. Yes, it may be observable that certain species, even many species, have traits that seem to be genetically advanced or "built upon" the traits from other species, as if a frog advanced from a fish, or whatever. I am not well versed on evolution, and I'd bet that most people are not. They just accept it as fact - that nature (the only "observable" phenomenon unlike "unscientific" God, who is unobservable) created all we see and know. And not only that - that everything in the Universe arose out of nature - but that it arose and changed and adapted at random and without reason.
Excuse me, but What A Bunch Of Total Baloney.
Yeah right, Mr. Darwin : The incredible creatures that are human beings - with all the things they think and feel, and know instinctively, and with all the spiritual history they can feel at their cores, and the connections they feel to Eternity, and the Things They Glimpse That Cannot Be Described....
Yeah, that was all just a series of random chance connections that occurred in the Primordial Soup. Humans came about for no reason, only because certain molecules happened to bump into one another - totally by random chance - even though, in becoming Human, they turned into creatures with minds and souls that are truly beyond comprehension, so much so that even the most advanced computers and robots will never be able to approximate them.
Yeah right, Mr. Darwin.
How can anybody believe in Evolution?
It may have some technical value, to describe a process in which smaller animals adapted features from progressively less well-adapted animals, but as a theory for all of biology in the Universe, and especially in trying to describe the indescribable human mind and soul?
I repeat : what a bunch of baloney.
So, I am interested in other theories of Creation, and while I am not in any way a Fundamentalist Creationist who believes that dinosours were here 5000 years ago, and while I am not interested in any simplistic religious theory of Creation, I am interested in the theories and writings of the Christian Fathers (i.e. Patristics) because they were present and witness to the teachings of Jesus Christ.
I believe that the true origins of Man are mindboggling in a magical way, something truly miraculous.
Anyway, that's enough of a tirade for tonight, lol.
It's funny because people think science has all the answers, which it does not and never will, because all science can do is observe and measure, and deduce. Now, of course science has greatly improved the lives of humans over the past four or five centuries, and has taken us to the Moon. Science is amazing and incredible. The problem is when it oversteps it's bounds and attempts to answer The Questions For Which An Answer Cannot Be Measured Or Quantified.
That's all I know for tonight. Post if you can. See you in the morning.
I Love You. xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo :):)
I was glad to see you back today. For a minute there, I thought you might have actually gone to Mexico City for Knotfest, because I knew one of your bands was there and I thought maybe you got invited along. But then I thought, well, Mexico City is a major excursion and you probably would've mentioned it. :)
Anyhow, as always, that's the only reason I didn't write for the past three days, just cause I didn't see you on FB. I hope you had a nice weekend, though, and I liked the photo you posted this morning. You got some great color tones with the different shades of purple (hair & background) and the ink black of her dress. I agree with your friend Brian too, that you used your lighting to great effect to make her hair three dimensional against the background.
I finally did some hiking since I last wrote. On Friday I went way up high on the O'Melveny Trail, 36 minutes in and more than halfway to Mission Point. O'Melveny is a longer distance to the Point than when you take the DeCampos Trail, so 36 minutes only gets you halfway whereas on the DeCampos it gets you almost to the top. The other thing about the O'Melveny is that it's steep. So it was a bit of a workout after not hiking much for a couple weeks, but I had a blast.
Then on Saturday I went out to Santa Susana, where I hadn't been in a few months. Normally I used to go there once a week or so. This time I didn't climb to the top of the Devil's Slide, just because of the steep hike the day before. But it was great to be back at Santa Su anyway.
Sunday (yesterday) was Church, so no hike, but today I went out to Whitney Canyon in Newhall and had an awesome 65 minute hike. It's funny, because I had intended to go to the DeCampos Trail and hike for 40 minutes to get to the top, or at least close. But for some reason I spaced out and missed the turn onto Sesnon Boulevard, and before I knew it I was to far ahead to turn back. So, I went to Whitney Canyon instead, a few miles down the road (and across Sierra Highway), and I was glad it worked out that way because I saw two sets of deer! The first pair were in a meadow a short ways in, and I got to see something I've never seen before, at least not in person. When they saw me and heard me coming, they bounded away, and because they were in tall grass with rocks and uneven terrain underfoot, I got to see them leap, they way we've all seen in nature films and footage. It was beautiful because it looks so graceful and effortless. They trot along, and then all of a sudden they leap - and tuck their legs up - and they seem to float for a second. They are suspended in midair but moving forward. Then they land and trot very gracefully again until the next leap. It was wonderful to see, and I think I missed my exit for the DeCampos Trail on purpose, haha.
The other pair of deer I saw further into the canyon, and they just froze up and pointed their ears at me, as you may have seen if you saw my FB picture this evening. I love Deer Ears, haha. They seem to have an existence all their own; these big giant funnels on the relatively small deer heads that move directionally like radar. Just the shape of them is what I like. Super cute, but also very useful.
So those were my hikes since Friday. We had good singing in Church yesterday, and next week the director wants me to sing bass on a song by the classical composer Anton Bruckner called "Locus Iste". It's a pretty easy part, but I gotta practice anyway cause I'm not used to singing that low.
For my reading, I finished "It" by Stephen King (which I may have mentioned) and I also finished the Timothy McVeigh book by Dr. Wendy Painting, who in my opinion should get a medal for her work on that book. It ought to be required reading in every school in America (and everywhere else too) so that people will know what the Department Of Justice and the FBI are really up to. And the CIA and Military, too.
I have just begun two new books : "The Black Carousel" by Charles L. Grant, a poetic writer of self-described "quiet horror" whose earlier books I was a fan of in the late 80s/ early 90s. Now I am revisiting him. My other new book is called "Genesis, Creation and Early Man" by Father Seraphim Rose, an American priest (now deceased) of the Russian Orthodox Church.
I have probably already said this, but I do not believe in Evolution. What I mean is that I do not believe in it as a philosophy or a Truth. Yes, it may be observable that certain species, even many species, have traits that seem to be genetically advanced or "built upon" the traits from other species, as if a frog advanced from a fish, or whatever. I am not well versed on evolution, and I'd bet that most people are not. They just accept it as fact - that nature (the only "observable" phenomenon unlike "unscientific" God, who is unobservable) created all we see and know. And not only that - that everything in the Universe arose out of nature - but that it arose and changed and adapted at random and without reason.
Excuse me, but What A Bunch Of Total Baloney.
Yeah right, Mr. Darwin : The incredible creatures that are human beings - with all the things they think and feel, and know instinctively, and with all the spiritual history they can feel at their cores, and the connections they feel to Eternity, and the Things They Glimpse That Cannot Be Described....
Yeah, that was all just a series of random chance connections that occurred in the Primordial Soup. Humans came about for no reason, only because certain molecules happened to bump into one another - totally by random chance - even though, in becoming Human, they turned into creatures with minds and souls that are truly beyond comprehension, so much so that even the most advanced computers and robots will never be able to approximate them.
Yeah right, Mr. Darwin.
How can anybody believe in Evolution?
It may have some technical value, to describe a process in which smaller animals adapted features from progressively less well-adapted animals, but as a theory for all of biology in the Universe, and especially in trying to describe the indescribable human mind and soul?
I repeat : what a bunch of baloney.
So, I am interested in other theories of Creation, and while I am not in any way a Fundamentalist Creationist who believes that dinosours were here 5000 years ago, and while I am not interested in any simplistic religious theory of Creation, I am interested in the theories and writings of the Christian Fathers (i.e. Patristics) because they were present and witness to the teachings of Jesus Christ.
I believe that the true origins of Man are mindboggling in a magical way, something truly miraculous.
Anyway, that's enough of a tirade for tonight, lol.
It's funny because people think science has all the answers, which it does not and never will, because all science can do is observe and measure, and deduce. Now, of course science has greatly improved the lives of humans over the past four or five centuries, and has taken us to the Moon. Science is amazing and incredible. The problem is when it oversteps it's bounds and attempts to answer The Questions For Which An Answer Cannot Be Measured Or Quantified.
That's all I know for tonight. Post if you can. See you in the morning.
I Love You. xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo :):)
Friday, October 14, 2016
How Do You Set Up The Self-Portraits + Badass Geese + No Movie Tonight
Happy Late Night, my Darling,
That was a beautiful picture of Fall In The Northwoods this morning. Great color saturation in that one; I'm guessing that it might have been an overcast day, or perhaps a layer of high clouds, which will add to that effect - the opposite of the way full sun bleaches color out. Now, that photo is a selfie, right? I mean, it's on a timer? You shot it yourself in other words. Okay, so you set up the frame and gave yourself some distance, so that you'd fit easily into the frame.
But how'd you hit such a perfect spot? You are right smack dab in the middle of the pic (and posed "just so"), so I am wondering if you block that out before you shoot. Do you mark a spot to arrive at, the way an actor's spot is taped down on stage?
Oh, wait a minute.......I forgot that you can trigger the camera with your phone.
But you still have to set up the frame beforehand. And you still have to pick a spot to stand at.
Well anyway, however you are doing it, you nailed it once again. You are a master of self-portraits.
Today was a day of cancellations on my end. Pearl's hairdresser was sick and couldn't keep our appointment, so we went to Lake Balboa instead. Saw a whole bunch of surly Canada Geese, lol. They were crossing the parking lot when we got there, about a dozen of 'em, and they are big, and they just walk across the lot in a gang, all together, and they just look at you and start hissing, like "get out of our way, humans". Definitely no fear of people! (or The Kobedog).
We are still "doing Summer" here. The temps aren't super hot anymore, but still in the mid-80s, and although the sun goes down much earlier now, the colors haven't changed much and probably won't until late November or December. Of course we don't get the colors you guys do, but in the past we've always gotten some nice, rustic fall colors. But these days, with our never ending drought and global warming, I don't know if we're gonna get colors this year. We'll see by Thanksgiving. :)
The other cancellation was for tonight's CSUN Movie. The Professor sent out an email this morning telling everybody that the screening of Bresson's "Trial Of Joan Of Arc" was cancelled for technical reasons. Maybe the digital projector broke down again. Anyway, he said that they are gonna just double-up "Joan" with next week's film, "Au Hazard Balthazar" and show both next week. The only problem with that is that I will be at the Opeth concert and won't be able to see them. Good thing, then, that I watched "Joan Of Arc" two nights ago at home, and also that I own "Balthazar" on dvd and have seen it twice before. I'm still gonna miss seeing both of them on the big screen, but you can't be in two places at once, and of course I can't miss Opeth.
Tonight I watched an episode of "Under The Dome". I am up to Season Three now, the final season.
Maybe a hike tomorrow, if all goes well.
Dodgers won (yeah....sports, cmon Ad get real), and........
I Love You.
See you in the morning. xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo :):)
That was a beautiful picture of Fall In The Northwoods this morning. Great color saturation in that one; I'm guessing that it might have been an overcast day, or perhaps a layer of high clouds, which will add to that effect - the opposite of the way full sun bleaches color out. Now, that photo is a selfie, right? I mean, it's on a timer? You shot it yourself in other words. Okay, so you set up the frame and gave yourself some distance, so that you'd fit easily into the frame.
But how'd you hit such a perfect spot? You are right smack dab in the middle of the pic (and posed "just so"), so I am wondering if you block that out before you shoot. Do you mark a spot to arrive at, the way an actor's spot is taped down on stage?
Oh, wait a minute.......I forgot that you can trigger the camera with your phone.
But you still have to set up the frame beforehand. And you still have to pick a spot to stand at.
Well anyway, however you are doing it, you nailed it once again. You are a master of self-portraits.
Today was a day of cancellations on my end. Pearl's hairdresser was sick and couldn't keep our appointment, so we went to Lake Balboa instead. Saw a whole bunch of surly Canada Geese, lol. They were crossing the parking lot when we got there, about a dozen of 'em, and they are big, and they just walk across the lot in a gang, all together, and they just look at you and start hissing, like "get out of our way, humans". Definitely no fear of people! (or The Kobedog).
We are still "doing Summer" here. The temps aren't super hot anymore, but still in the mid-80s, and although the sun goes down much earlier now, the colors haven't changed much and probably won't until late November or December. Of course we don't get the colors you guys do, but in the past we've always gotten some nice, rustic fall colors. But these days, with our never ending drought and global warming, I don't know if we're gonna get colors this year. We'll see by Thanksgiving. :)
The other cancellation was for tonight's CSUN Movie. The Professor sent out an email this morning telling everybody that the screening of Bresson's "Trial Of Joan Of Arc" was cancelled for technical reasons. Maybe the digital projector broke down again. Anyway, he said that they are gonna just double-up "Joan" with next week's film, "Au Hazard Balthazar" and show both next week. The only problem with that is that I will be at the Opeth concert and won't be able to see them. Good thing, then, that I watched "Joan Of Arc" two nights ago at home, and also that I own "Balthazar" on dvd and have seen it twice before. I'm still gonna miss seeing both of them on the big screen, but you can't be in two places at once, and of course I can't miss Opeth.
Tonight I watched an episode of "Under The Dome". I am up to Season Three now, the final season.
Maybe a hike tomorrow, if all goes well.
Dodgers won (yeah....sports, cmon Ad get real), and........
I Love You.
See you in the morning. xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo :):)
Thursday, October 13, 2016
Happy Wednesday Love + Iconic Photo + Gotta Do Art
Happy Late Night, Sweet Baby,
I hope your day was good and that your soundtrack is coming along well. :) I finally went on a hike, though it was only a standard Aliso Canyon one. But still, a hike is a hike, right? I had actually been planning to go out to El Escorpion Park in West Hills to go to the Cave Of Munitz, but Grimsley texted me at 1pm to ask if I'd meet him at Aliso, so I said yes. I was just glad to get a hike in, after not doing one for almost a couple weeks. I still have to go to Rocky Peak (which I do every year at this time), and also back to my new favorite, the DeCampos Trail that goes up to Mission Point. My next trip will probably be to the top. I will see if I can do it in under 40 minutes.
But first, I've gotta get back to my regular hiking. It's been a busy couple of weeks, work wise.
That was a great photo you posted for your professional FB page, of Mixi from Stitched Up. I've gotta say, it looks like the fans up there really turn out for these festivals. Whenever you show the crowd in one of your photos, it always looks like a lot of people. That particular shot has an iconic feel, because of the way she is posed on the small platform at the front of the stage, with the crowd facing her, and then the crowd itself is hemmed in by the old buildings of the city. That's what gives it the iconic look. That, and the black & white, which always gives a "historic" look to a photo, for reasons discussed many times here in these blogs.
Stitched Up Heart must have a good following in Madison, and it's really great that you have them on your roster.
That's all I know for tonight, except that I also really am enjoying doing my drawings this year. I draw for about 20 minutes or a half hour while listening to music in the evenings (it's gotta be with music cause the music influences the drawings), and anyway, it has made me wanna just really incorporate artwork as a permanent and developing part of my life. I think I mentioned that I started painting 20 years ago at Burton Street, and while I don't have the time or facilities to paint right now, I know I will in the future. And I can still draw in the meantime.
I cannot do anything remotely considered "representative" art, but I can do my own thing. The most important part is that when I do it, I feel really involved.
I can't "draw" in the traditional sense, but I can feel that something is trying to get out nonetheless, and I love to do it, so Continuing Art is in my future........
See you in the morning. I Love You. xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo :):)
I hope your day was good and that your soundtrack is coming along well. :) I finally went on a hike, though it was only a standard Aliso Canyon one. But still, a hike is a hike, right? I had actually been planning to go out to El Escorpion Park in West Hills to go to the Cave Of Munitz, but Grimsley texted me at 1pm to ask if I'd meet him at Aliso, so I said yes. I was just glad to get a hike in, after not doing one for almost a couple weeks. I still have to go to Rocky Peak (which I do every year at this time), and also back to my new favorite, the DeCampos Trail that goes up to Mission Point. My next trip will probably be to the top. I will see if I can do it in under 40 minutes.
But first, I've gotta get back to my regular hiking. It's been a busy couple of weeks, work wise.
That was a great photo you posted for your professional FB page, of Mixi from Stitched Up. I've gotta say, it looks like the fans up there really turn out for these festivals. Whenever you show the crowd in one of your photos, it always looks like a lot of people. That particular shot has an iconic feel, because of the way she is posed on the small platform at the front of the stage, with the crowd facing her, and then the crowd itself is hemmed in by the old buildings of the city. That's what gives it the iconic look. That, and the black & white, which always gives a "historic" look to a photo, for reasons discussed many times here in these blogs.
Stitched Up Heart must have a good following in Madison, and it's really great that you have them on your roster.
That's all I know for tonight, except that I also really am enjoying doing my drawings this year. I draw for about 20 minutes or a half hour while listening to music in the evenings (it's gotta be with music cause the music influences the drawings), and anyway, it has made me wanna just really incorporate artwork as a permanent and developing part of my life. I think I mentioned that I started painting 20 years ago at Burton Street, and while I don't have the time or facilities to paint right now, I know I will in the future. And I can still draw in the meantime.
I cannot do anything remotely considered "representative" art, but I can do my own thing. The most important part is that when I do it, I feel really involved.
I can't "draw" in the traditional sense, but I can feel that something is trying to get out nonetheless, and I love to do it, so Continuing Art is in my future........
See you in the morning. I Love You. xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo :):)
Wednesday, October 12, 2016
Great Picture + "Joan Of Arc" by Bresson + Organic Creation
Happy Late Night, my Darling,
I liked your picture this morning, showing you "in your workplace" just like I was talking about last night. :) I like the way you have everything set up, and I like the light coming through the window, and I also like your sweater. It's looks just right on you and is perfect for the tone of the picture.
I also happen to agree wholeheartedly with one of the comments made by an FB friend of yours; she is exactly right. :):)
It's quite an undertaking to create music specifically to fit a film, and to match the feeling of different scenes, and finally to sync it all. I know I take it for granted that you are a One Woman Cinematic Machine, but it's really an accomplishment to do what you are doing, and of course I look forward to the finished product!
Today for me was an Atypical Tuesday, because instead of taking Pearl to Golden Agers, we went instead to a really awesome small park in Simi Valley called Santa Susana Park. It's just down the road from Corriganville. Pearl woke up too late to go to Golden Agers (because her hours are backwards, as mentioned last night), so I took her and The Dogenheimer to this park, which is beautiful with canopied oak trees, a big green lawn and sandstone formations. The rest of the day I was just chillin', and right now all is quiet on the Western Front, a good sign, as that has not been the case recently. If I can get Pearl to start sleeping normal hours again, I may be able to start hiking in the afternoons, at least on a semi-regular basis as I was doing up until recently.
Tonight I watched a Tremendous Film : "The Trial Of Joan Of Arc" by Robert Bresson.
"Now, wait a minute, Ad. This is Tuesday night, not Thursday. How could you have seen the Bresson film two days early"?
Because I was very generously given a dvd copy last week, by a guy who (like me) always attends the screenings. We are gonna see the same film two nights from now, but since he gave me the dvd I figured I'd watch it beforehand, to get prepped for the CSUN showing. With Bresson, you've gotta have multiple viewings anyway, and so I watched it for the first time tonight. I won't go on a Bresson tirade (not tonight, anyway, haha), but his "Joan Of Arc" is a fantastic film, and though different in tone from Carl Theodore Dreyer's classic and more famous version of the trial of St. Joan, I'd put both films on par with one another. The Bresson version is only an hour long, and stripped down to just a recounting of the trial, using the actual 15th century transcripts. His "Joan" comes across as more defiant and stoic than Dreyer's actress, even though her performance is hailed as one of the great female leads in all of movie history. I think both are great, and I'm glad I saw the Bresson. Now I will see it again on Thursday. :)
I liked your post, via your friend Morgin, of the picture that said "The Ram and The Lion".
I can think of another picture that could say "The Ram and The Archer"....... :):)
I saw other posts too, one was a beautiful photo of the mountains in British Columbia, showing the colors of Fall. And Sarah's post about having the available technology to create one's own music. That's what it's all about these days, SB - the opportunity to just plug in and do it with no middlemen, so all you've gotta do these days is focus on the deep well of emotion from where the music comes. When you are the engineer as well as the musician, you want to make sure and separate the technical, automatic recording process from the intuitive music creating process. Take your time and dig deep for the music. Let it develop as it wants to.
You already know that, of course. :)
I will see you in the morning. I Love You. xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxooxoxoxoxox :):)
I liked your picture this morning, showing you "in your workplace" just like I was talking about last night. :) I like the way you have everything set up, and I like the light coming through the window, and I also like your sweater. It's looks just right on you and is perfect for the tone of the picture.
I also happen to agree wholeheartedly with one of the comments made by an FB friend of yours; she is exactly right. :):)
It's quite an undertaking to create music specifically to fit a film, and to match the feeling of different scenes, and finally to sync it all. I know I take it for granted that you are a One Woman Cinematic Machine, but it's really an accomplishment to do what you are doing, and of course I look forward to the finished product!
Today for me was an Atypical Tuesday, because instead of taking Pearl to Golden Agers, we went instead to a really awesome small park in Simi Valley called Santa Susana Park. It's just down the road from Corriganville. Pearl woke up too late to go to Golden Agers (because her hours are backwards, as mentioned last night), so I took her and The Dogenheimer to this park, which is beautiful with canopied oak trees, a big green lawn and sandstone formations. The rest of the day I was just chillin', and right now all is quiet on the Western Front, a good sign, as that has not been the case recently. If I can get Pearl to start sleeping normal hours again, I may be able to start hiking in the afternoons, at least on a semi-regular basis as I was doing up until recently.
Tonight I watched a Tremendous Film : "The Trial Of Joan Of Arc" by Robert Bresson.
"Now, wait a minute, Ad. This is Tuesday night, not Thursday. How could you have seen the Bresson film two days early"?
Because I was very generously given a dvd copy last week, by a guy who (like me) always attends the screenings. We are gonna see the same film two nights from now, but since he gave me the dvd I figured I'd watch it beforehand, to get prepped for the CSUN showing. With Bresson, you've gotta have multiple viewings anyway, and so I watched it for the first time tonight. I won't go on a Bresson tirade (not tonight, anyway, haha), but his "Joan Of Arc" is a fantastic film, and though different in tone from Carl Theodore Dreyer's classic and more famous version of the trial of St. Joan, I'd put both films on par with one another. The Bresson version is only an hour long, and stripped down to just a recounting of the trial, using the actual 15th century transcripts. His "Joan" comes across as more defiant and stoic than Dreyer's actress, even though her performance is hailed as one of the great female leads in all of movie history. I think both are great, and I'm glad I saw the Bresson. Now I will see it again on Thursday. :)
I liked your post, via your friend Morgin, of the picture that said "The Ram and The Lion".
I can think of another picture that could say "The Ram and The Archer"....... :):)
I saw other posts too, one was a beautiful photo of the mountains in British Columbia, showing the colors of Fall. And Sarah's post about having the available technology to create one's own music. That's what it's all about these days, SB - the opportunity to just plug in and do it with no middlemen, so all you've gotta do these days is focus on the deep well of emotion from where the music comes. When you are the engineer as well as the musician, you want to make sure and separate the technical, automatic recording process from the intuitive music creating process. Take your time and dig deep for the music. Let it develop as it wants to.
You already know that, of course. :)
I will see you in the morning. I Love You. xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxooxoxoxoxox :):)
Tuesday, October 11, 2016
The Concert Scene Is Your Workplace :)
Happy Late Night, Sweet Baby,
I hope you had a nice day and I see that a couple of tours are happening : the post of the Stitched Up Heart photo looks like they are in front of a classic old Hollywood style apartment building. They are from L.A., right? And they seem to have a national following. Also, I see that The Fine Constant is going on a fairly extensive tour. Man, it would be awesome if you could travel to some shows with either band, or both!
But it looks like you have a lot of stuff happening already. The photo you posted this morning was a new band if I am not mistaken : Famous Last Words. By "new" I mean new for you. When you post a lot of your pics, you add the date of the show, and it looks to me like you are hitting a lot of the local shows and clubs on a regular basis. Those are your places of work, those clubs and other facilities, and so it is just like any other profession in that regard, except that it is a lot more fun to have rock clubs and your own room (where your computer setup is located) as your place of work. Too cool, says I.
Although I still go to a fair amount of shows, I haven't been a regular on the Sunset Strip in a long time. But back then, when I was down there a lot, you would see the same few photographers at every show, and at the Santa Monica Civic, too. Back then, I would sneak my camera into a lot of shows, but these guys were pros and had photo passes, and so they didn't have to sneak. But yeah, they went to all the shows, and it was the same few guys, over and over. You always saw them.
And it looks like that's what you are doing, establishing yourself as the On Scene Photographer. It also looks like, from the pix you have posted, that there is a good crowd in these venues on a nightly basis. So that's what I meant when I said a while back about becoming the Go-To Photographer for your local scene. And you are doing it!
And the 8000+ hits for your Alesana pic is fantastic! Obviously they must have a national following as well.
I wish I had more to report for myself, but the last couple weeks has been pretty much work intensive. I am having to be really "on the ball" for Pearl - more than before - and so it has not been as easy to get away for hikes and photos. I still have the time to do so, in the afternoons, but the problem is that I haven't been getting a lot of sleep and so I am tired in the afternoon. Pearl's hours get turned around backward and she can be up until 3 or 4 in the morning.......
Anyway, no big deal. Things will hopefully get back on an even keel, and then I'll be able to watch movies and go on hikes......I hope they open up Placerita Canyon soon. It was damaged in the fire last Summer, but as soon as it opens, I'm there.
That's all for tonight, SB. See you in the morning. I Love You.
xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxooxoxoxoxo :):)
I hope you had a nice day and I see that a couple of tours are happening : the post of the Stitched Up Heart photo looks like they are in front of a classic old Hollywood style apartment building. They are from L.A., right? And they seem to have a national following. Also, I see that The Fine Constant is going on a fairly extensive tour. Man, it would be awesome if you could travel to some shows with either band, or both!
But it looks like you have a lot of stuff happening already. The photo you posted this morning was a new band if I am not mistaken : Famous Last Words. By "new" I mean new for you. When you post a lot of your pics, you add the date of the show, and it looks to me like you are hitting a lot of the local shows and clubs on a regular basis. Those are your places of work, those clubs and other facilities, and so it is just like any other profession in that regard, except that it is a lot more fun to have rock clubs and your own room (where your computer setup is located) as your place of work. Too cool, says I.
Although I still go to a fair amount of shows, I haven't been a regular on the Sunset Strip in a long time. But back then, when I was down there a lot, you would see the same few photographers at every show, and at the Santa Monica Civic, too. Back then, I would sneak my camera into a lot of shows, but these guys were pros and had photo passes, and so they didn't have to sneak. But yeah, they went to all the shows, and it was the same few guys, over and over. You always saw them.
And it looks like that's what you are doing, establishing yourself as the On Scene Photographer. It also looks like, from the pix you have posted, that there is a good crowd in these venues on a nightly basis. So that's what I meant when I said a while back about becoming the Go-To Photographer for your local scene. And you are doing it!
And the 8000+ hits for your Alesana pic is fantastic! Obviously they must have a national following as well.
I wish I had more to report for myself, but the last couple weeks has been pretty much work intensive. I am having to be really "on the ball" for Pearl - more than before - and so it has not been as easy to get away for hikes and photos. I still have the time to do so, in the afternoons, but the problem is that I haven't been getting a lot of sleep and so I am tired in the afternoon. Pearl's hours get turned around backward and she can be up until 3 or 4 in the morning.......
Anyway, no big deal. Things will hopefully get back on an even keel, and then I'll be able to watch movies and go on hikes......I hope they open up Placerita Canyon soon. It was damaged in the fire last Summer, but as soon as it opens, I'm there.
That's all for tonight, SB. See you in the morning. I Love You.
xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxooxoxoxoxo :):)
Monday, October 10, 2016
Happy Sunday + Debate (Trump Is Toast) + Yuppie Trip + Radiohead
Happy Late Night, Sweet Baby,
I hope you had a good weekend. We had good singing in church this morning, and then this afternoon my sister Vickie came over for the first time in a few months. We did a little shopping and went to the Total Wine store, which is a huge place with hundreds of different wines and craft beers. My sister always likes to go to the wine tastings they have, so we did that (oh boy!). :)
That's about all the news on my end, except for the debate. If you saw it, well, it was about what you would've expected. Trump "did better" (so they say) because his handlers got him to stay focused and not fly off the handle, and Hillary stayed calm and kept her focus on policy issues for the most part. Trump attacked her mercilessly, even saying at one point that he'd have her put in jail if he were President.
The only bummer for him is that he won't be. He is gonna get creamed, and the election is only four weeks away now. After November 8th, we won't have to hear about this lowbrow anymore, and maybe the Republicans can do some soul-searching and figure out why they allowed their party to be highjacked into choosing him to begin with......
I saw a few posts of yours today, all music oriented. One for Knotfest (which just played here, with Ozzfest). Are you gonna go to that one? I also saw one for Stitched Up Heart, and I know you are going to that one.
The other post I saw was the Power Rangers pic. :)
James would have fit in perfectly back in the days of Creem Magazine, when rock stars were always doing crazy poses and mugging for the camera. To be a rock star, you have to be a bit of a character, and he is definitely that!
Speaking of concerts and rock stars, I am seeing a lot of posts from people who went to Desert Trip, the big weekend show out here with The Stones, McCartney, et al, and the more I read the more I am glad I didn't go.
Super expensive. 150 miles away. Way out in the desert, which is fine for a road trip or sightseeing but definitely No Fun when you have to stand in the dust all day in the middle of a huge crowd. And most of all, it looked like a Yuppie Trip : people with a lot of money who generally don't go to concerts but went to this one Because It Was The Thing To Do. Not hard core rock fans, in other words.
Might as well have been a gigantic Jimmy Buffet yacht rock weekend, from what I can see.
So I ask of you, SB, to always be a hard core fan to the bands you like and love, at concerts both large and small. A concert is never something to "be seen" at. Concerts are always about the bands, not the audience, though it is the audience that powers the bands with their energy.
Anyhow, I obviously know that You Of All People know that, because you are a hardcore fan as well as a Total Pro.
Sorry for the mini-tirade, but : down with Yuppie Concert Festivals.
Tonight's listening : "A Moon Shaped Pool" by Radiohead. Wow. This has been a great year for music and it just keeps getting greater. This album came out a few months ago but I hadn't heard it until tonight (just got it in the mail yesterday). Radiohead is a special listen, because they sound so different, mainly because of Thom Yorke's vocals and also their rhythms, which can be frantic and hypnotic at the same time. This album is smoother than some of their others, but the structures and melodies are ultra beautiful.
So that was my day. Hoping to get a hike in soon, and new pix.
See you in the morn. I Love You. xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxooxox :):)
I hope you had a good weekend. We had good singing in church this morning, and then this afternoon my sister Vickie came over for the first time in a few months. We did a little shopping and went to the Total Wine store, which is a huge place with hundreds of different wines and craft beers. My sister always likes to go to the wine tastings they have, so we did that (oh boy!). :)
That's about all the news on my end, except for the debate. If you saw it, well, it was about what you would've expected. Trump "did better" (so they say) because his handlers got him to stay focused and not fly off the handle, and Hillary stayed calm and kept her focus on policy issues for the most part. Trump attacked her mercilessly, even saying at one point that he'd have her put in jail if he were President.
The only bummer for him is that he won't be. He is gonna get creamed, and the election is only four weeks away now. After November 8th, we won't have to hear about this lowbrow anymore, and maybe the Republicans can do some soul-searching and figure out why they allowed their party to be highjacked into choosing him to begin with......
I saw a few posts of yours today, all music oriented. One for Knotfest (which just played here, with Ozzfest). Are you gonna go to that one? I also saw one for Stitched Up Heart, and I know you are going to that one.
The other post I saw was the Power Rangers pic. :)
James would have fit in perfectly back in the days of Creem Magazine, when rock stars were always doing crazy poses and mugging for the camera. To be a rock star, you have to be a bit of a character, and he is definitely that!
Speaking of concerts and rock stars, I am seeing a lot of posts from people who went to Desert Trip, the big weekend show out here with The Stones, McCartney, et al, and the more I read the more I am glad I didn't go.
Super expensive. 150 miles away. Way out in the desert, which is fine for a road trip or sightseeing but definitely No Fun when you have to stand in the dust all day in the middle of a huge crowd. And most of all, it looked like a Yuppie Trip : people with a lot of money who generally don't go to concerts but went to this one Because It Was The Thing To Do. Not hard core rock fans, in other words.
Might as well have been a gigantic Jimmy Buffet yacht rock weekend, from what I can see.
So I ask of you, SB, to always be a hard core fan to the bands you like and love, at concerts both large and small. A concert is never something to "be seen" at. Concerts are always about the bands, not the audience, though it is the audience that powers the bands with their energy.
Anyhow, I obviously know that You Of All People know that, because you are a hardcore fan as well as a Total Pro.
Sorry for the mini-tirade, but : down with Yuppie Concert Festivals.
Tonight's listening : "A Moon Shaped Pool" by Radiohead. Wow. This has been a great year for music and it just keeps getting greater. This album came out a few months ago but I hadn't heard it until tonight (just got it in the mail yesterday). Radiohead is a special listen, because they sound so different, mainly because of Thom Yorke's vocals and also their rhythms, which can be frantic and hypnotic at the same time. This album is smoother than some of their others, but the structures and melodies are ultra beautiful.
So that was my day. Hoping to get a hike in soon, and new pix.
See you in the morn. I Love You. xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxooxox :):)
Saturday, October 8, 2016
New Client + Classic Band Backdrops + You Have Done It :)
Happy Late Friday Night, Sweet Baby,
I hope your weekend is off to a good start and it was nice to see your photo this morning of what I am guessing is a new client band? If so, congrats! You have quite a roster now. I also liked the alley location. I remember on one of my Metrolink train trips to Hollywood and Los Angeles a while back, I was shooting old buildings, and I was also purposely looking for old, decrepit or industrial looking alleyways, and I found a cool one off Hollywood Boulevard that I took a pic of and posted on Flickr. Three classic band backdrops are : alleys, train tracks, and brick walls. And when using those backdrops, bands have gotta look like tough hombres - like guys you wouldn't wanna run into in a dark alley! In a tongue-in-cheek way, of course.....can't have 'em looking like psychos, just more like "we mean business". :)
Today was all business for me, still no hikes or anything otherwise. Pearl's hairdresser was finally back from Vietnam after five weeks, so I took Pearl there, and I was also supposed to take The Kobester to see his heart specialist veterinarian. Kobe is on heart pills and anti-seizure pills, though you'd never know it because even at (almost) 17, he's still a wild man. But I had to postpone his appointment because the car wouldn't start. I called AAA and the guy said the battery was dead, so the rest of the afternoon was spent getting it replaced.
I saw a post a little while ago that said "another day at the office" and showed a room very much like the pics I have seen of your own music room, with a keyboard and chair set against the wall. So maybe you mean that you, too, are working on music in your "office".
I know I say it a lot, but I have gotta say it again.
I just think it's fantastic that you are doing what you love to do.
You just "went for it" right out of college and art school, and it is happening.
But as we had discussed while you were still in college, that is precisely the method by which it works.
You follow your bliss.
And you did.....
Well, that's all I know for tonight. I'm still watching "Under The Dome", up to Season Three now and I think it's great. A show where anything can happen.
I will see you in the morning. I Love You. xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo :):)
I hope your weekend is off to a good start and it was nice to see your photo this morning of what I am guessing is a new client band? If so, congrats! You have quite a roster now. I also liked the alley location. I remember on one of my Metrolink train trips to Hollywood and Los Angeles a while back, I was shooting old buildings, and I was also purposely looking for old, decrepit or industrial looking alleyways, and I found a cool one off Hollywood Boulevard that I took a pic of and posted on Flickr. Three classic band backdrops are : alleys, train tracks, and brick walls. And when using those backdrops, bands have gotta look like tough hombres - like guys you wouldn't wanna run into in a dark alley! In a tongue-in-cheek way, of course.....can't have 'em looking like psychos, just more like "we mean business". :)
Today was all business for me, still no hikes or anything otherwise. Pearl's hairdresser was finally back from Vietnam after five weeks, so I took Pearl there, and I was also supposed to take The Kobester to see his heart specialist veterinarian. Kobe is on heart pills and anti-seizure pills, though you'd never know it because even at (almost) 17, he's still a wild man. But I had to postpone his appointment because the car wouldn't start. I called AAA and the guy said the battery was dead, so the rest of the afternoon was spent getting it replaced.
I saw a post a little while ago that said "another day at the office" and showed a room very much like the pics I have seen of your own music room, with a keyboard and chair set against the wall. So maybe you mean that you, too, are working on music in your "office".
I know I say it a lot, but I have gotta say it again.
I just think it's fantastic that you are doing what you love to do.
You just "went for it" right out of college and art school, and it is happening.
But as we had discussed while you were still in college, that is precisely the method by which it works.
You follow your bliss.
And you did.....
Well, that's all I know for tonight. I'm still watching "Under The Dome", up to Season Three now and I think it's great. A show where anything can happen.
I will see you in the morning. I Love You. xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo :):)
Friday, October 7, 2016
"PIckpocket" by Bresson + Bresson's Style + Creepy Clowns
Happy Late Night, my Darling,
As always, I hope you had a nice day and that projects are coming along well. Tonight at CSUN we saw Bresson's "Pickpocket", in which he refines his "essentialist" style down to the barest essentials. The professor has shown us some documentary stuff before the films, including interviews with Bresson, and he talks about something very interesting : that much of observed life appears mechanical, such as when you are walking down the street in the city and you see a crowd of people on the opposite sidewalk. "What you see", he says (meaning what you observe), is not multiple human beings with lives and emotions, but instead you just see arms and legs in motion". He says that, when humans are observing on automatic pilot, as we do much of every day when our minds are running an interior dialogue and we are paying attention to that, what we see is just sections of things : arms and legs swinging as people walk down a street, or a section of a car (front end and wheels, perhaps). Or if we are standing in a crowd, as does the main character in "Pickpocket", we see things from a closer perspective, just backs and shoulders, suitcoats, and because the Pickpocket is at work, we see the swift smooth movement of his dexterous hands and fingers.
Bresson shoots his shots like no other director. He shows you what you really see in life - things in sections - and then he edits it together, as I said last week, so that each shot fits into - and turns into - the next shot, like the gears in a Swiss watch.
Now, that is just the mechanics of his style. What he does with his deliberately chosen non-professional actors is another story, because he takes all the emotional cues out of them. He goes for semi-blank faces and downcast eyes, which would seem to make for a monotone emotionless film.
But what you get is exactly the opposite, because he substitutes the cinematic form (use of camera, editing and sound) for theatrics. There is no conventional emotive acting. There is very little exposition (explanation of plot points in dialogue by actors). What there is, is motion......what the human eye sees in every day reality. And there is his incredible, unique and almost unparalleled, editing.
Finally, there is the deep spiritual component of Bresson's films, which is what results when you add all the other mechanical parts and the devalued acting together.
That is what I mean when I call him an "Essentialist". He strips out everything you see in conventional movies, all the dramatic acting and camera tricks, all the spectacular lighting and (most of) the music, which in conventional films is placed to direct your emotions. Music in films tells you "how to feel" in any given scene, which is why you cry or feel elated in parts of many movies. Bresson strips away all of that and just gives you cinematic form and repetition. He only gives you the "essentials" - of what you would observe, as a human, in real life. That is how he tells his story.
For the record, and as you know, I love conventional movies, from Hollywood and anywhere else. So long as they are well made and don't have Sandler, Schwarzanegger, DeVito or Van Damme (or a few others).
I love movies, and I love regular conventional movies......
But for some reason, Robert Bresson is one of my top two or three directors. Him, Lynch, and Ozu. Tarkovsky.
But Bresson is all by himself when it comes to style. There is simply no one like him and I can't recommend his movies highly enough. They take some getting used to - you have to "do a little work" as a viewer because he doesn't give you the conventions you are used to, but it is so worth it.
And that's the end of my Hooray For Bresson speech for this week!
I saw your post a little while ago, from Versus Me, about the Creepy Clown sighting at a local record store. Now girl, that is classic and way too cool because it is straight out of SK and "It", which I am in the process of finishing as I close in on the final 70 pages (been reading since June!).
There seems to be a lot of Clowns around these days. They are being seen all over America. They carry balloons and they are not friendly and funny like Bozo or Chuckles, but instead downright scary.
Terrifying even. Like Pennywise. :)
Stephen King himself just posted about this phenomenon on Facebook. He was actually defending Clowns, who he says are "mostly" funny and nice to children. As a kid, I loved Bozo, and even Hobo Kelly, the successor to Ronald McDonald......
But I think King was just being facetious. He loves Scary Clowns.
After all, he invented the scariest one himself. And Pennywise may be the most fun of them all.......
......if only because he isn't real. I mean - he isn't........right? (man I hope not).
That's all I know for tonight, SB!
I Love You and will see you in the morning. xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo :):)
As always, I hope you had a nice day and that projects are coming along well. Tonight at CSUN we saw Bresson's "Pickpocket", in which he refines his "essentialist" style down to the barest essentials. The professor has shown us some documentary stuff before the films, including interviews with Bresson, and he talks about something very interesting : that much of observed life appears mechanical, such as when you are walking down the street in the city and you see a crowd of people on the opposite sidewalk. "What you see", he says (meaning what you observe), is not multiple human beings with lives and emotions, but instead you just see arms and legs in motion". He says that, when humans are observing on automatic pilot, as we do much of every day when our minds are running an interior dialogue and we are paying attention to that, what we see is just sections of things : arms and legs swinging as people walk down a street, or a section of a car (front end and wheels, perhaps). Or if we are standing in a crowd, as does the main character in "Pickpocket", we see things from a closer perspective, just backs and shoulders, suitcoats, and because the Pickpocket is at work, we see the swift smooth movement of his dexterous hands and fingers.
Bresson shoots his shots like no other director. He shows you what you really see in life - things in sections - and then he edits it together, as I said last week, so that each shot fits into - and turns into - the next shot, like the gears in a Swiss watch.
Now, that is just the mechanics of his style. What he does with his deliberately chosen non-professional actors is another story, because he takes all the emotional cues out of them. He goes for semi-blank faces and downcast eyes, which would seem to make for a monotone emotionless film.
But what you get is exactly the opposite, because he substitutes the cinematic form (use of camera, editing and sound) for theatrics. There is no conventional emotive acting. There is very little exposition (explanation of plot points in dialogue by actors). What there is, is motion......what the human eye sees in every day reality. And there is his incredible, unique and almost unparalleled, editing.
Finally, there is the deep spiritual component of Bresson's films, which is what results when you add all the other mechanical parts and the devalued acting together.
That is what I mean when I call him an "Essentialist". He strips out everything you see in conventional movies, all the dramatic acting and camera tricks, all the spectacular lighting and (most of) the music, which in conventional films is placed to direct your emotions. Music in films tells you "how to feel" in any given scene, which is why you cry or feel elated in parts of many movies. Bresson strips away all of that and just gives you cinematic form and repetition. He only gives you the "essentials" - of what you would observe, as a human, in real life. That is how he tells his story.
For the record, and as you know, I love conventional movies, from Hollywood and anywhere else. So long as they are well made and don't have Sandler, Schwarzanegger, DeVito or Van Damme (or a few others).
I love movies, and I love regular conventional movies......
But for some reason, Robert Bresson is one of my top two or three directors. Him, Lynch, and Ozu. Tarkovsky.
But Bresson is all by himself when it comes to style. There is simply no one like him and I can't recommend his movies highly enough. They take some getting used to - you have to "do a little work" as a viewer because he doesn't give you the conventions you are used to, but it is so worth it.
And that's the end of my Hooray For Bresson speech for this week!
I saw your post a little while ago, from Versus Me, about the Creepy Clown sighting at a local record store. Now girl, that is classic and way too cool because it is straight out of SK and "It", which I am in the process of finishing as I close in on the final 70 pages (been reading since June!).
There seems to be a lot of Clowns around these days. They are being seen all over America. They carry balloons and they are not friendly and funny like Bozo or Chuckles, but instead downright scary.
Terrifying even. Like Pennywise. :)
Stephen King himself just posted about this phenomenon on Facebook. He was actually defending Clowns, who he says are "mostly" funny and nice to children. As a kid, I loved Bozo, and even Hobo Kelly, the successor to Ronald McDonald......
But I think King was just being facetious. He loves Scary Clowns.
After all, he invented the scariest one himself. And Pennywise may be the most fun of them all.......
......if only because he isn't real. I mean - he isn't........right? (man I hope not).
That's all I know for tonight, SB!
I Love You and will see you in the morning. xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo :):)
Thursday, October 6, 2016
Sweet Babyism + James Cannot Help But Be Humorous + "Kodama"
Happy Late Night, Sweet Baby,
Ok SB, now that is awesome and I love it! I am talking about your post via James of the Baby who resembles him. Now, the subject of Sweetbabyism is usually pretty serious business, haha, but now even James is getting in on the act (though likely unbeknownst to him), and because he is, you know the humor will come through. I have a feeling that he is one of those guys who doesn't have to try to be funny. Do you know what kind of guy I am talking about? It can be a girl too of course, but someone who, just by being in their presence you are ready to start laughing. That's James : getting in on the Sweet Baby Business without even realising it and being funny all at the same time. :)
I hope your day was good. I finally got my copy of "Kodama" in the mail, and Holy Smokes! Neige is back in the thick of All Things Metallic and Spacy, even though he said previously that he wasn't gonna do that anymore. I'm glad he went back on his word. I had a chance to listen once through, and the track that stands out the most - it blew me away - was the second one : "Eclosion". On that song he builds up the riffs to an incredible, intense release point where, in the chorus (refrain is probably a better word in this case), he is screaming his head off moreso than I have ever heard him do before.
Neige said in a recent interview that the terror attacks in Paris had a visceral effect on him, as he lives so close by the Charlie Hebdo offices and the Bataclan. He said that some of the music on "Kodama" is a response to those acts - an "F.U". is the way he put it. I don't speak French so I don't know the lyrics to any particular song, but "Eclosion" is about the most intense thing I've heard him do, so maybe that is what he is referring to. After one listen, I was pretty blown away by the album. The artwork is beautiful as well (just like the Opeth), and I noticed one thing that was interesting for me personally :
There is a guest vocalist on the album named Katherine Shepherd. That is probably not an uncommon name in the scheme of things, but I had never heard of this singer before, and she spells it with a K, and Neige and I have the same birthday. Of course it's just a coincidence, but my Mom, Rosemary Landers, was adopted. And her birth name was Katherine Shepherd, spelled with a K.....
Kinda cool, sez I. :)
It sure has been a great year for music, and I am still looking forward to the new and upcoming Eric Johnson acoustic album, and also Metallica's new one.
No hike today, but I did take The Crew to Lake Balboa, and we had a nice time amidst the ducks and flying blackbirds.....
I saw one other post which showed up where the newer posts do, even though it was dated a year ago in 2015. It was from Threnody In Velvet, she is wearing a Black Swan costume.
You got the copyright on that one, Sweet Baby. :):)
See you in the morning. I Love You. xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo :):)
Ok SB, now that is awesome and I love it! I am talking about your post via James of the Baby who resembles him. Now, the subject of Sweetbabyism is usually pretty serious business, haha, but now even James is getting in on the act (though likely unbeknownst to him), and because he is, you know the humor will come through. I have a feeling that he is one of those guys who doesn't have to try to be funny. Do you know what kind of guy I am talking about? It can be a girl too of course, but someone who, just by being in their presence you are ready to start laughing. That's James : getting in on the Sweet Baby Business without even realising it and being funny all at the same time. :)
I hope your day was good. I finally got my copy of "Kodama" in the mail, and Holy Smokes! Neige is back in the thick of All Things Metallic and Spacy, even though he said previously that he wasn't gonna do that anymore. I'm glad he went back on his word. I had a chance to listen once through, and the track that stands out the most - it blew me away - was the second one : "Eclosion". On that song he builds up the riffs to an incredible, intense release point where, in the chorus (refrain is probably a better word in this case), he is screaming his head off moreso than I have ever heard him do before.
Neige said in a recent interview that the terror attacks in Paris had a visceral effect on him, as he lives so close by the Charlie Hebdo offices and the Bataclan. He said that some of the music on "Kodama" is a response to those acts - an "F.U". is the way he put it. I don't speak French so I don't know the lyrics to any particular song, but "Eclosion" is about the most intense thing I've heard him do, so maybe that is what he is referring to. After one listen, I was pretty blown away by the album. The artwork is beautiful as well (just like the Opeth), and I noticed one thing that was interesting for me personally :
There is a guest vocalist on the album named Katherine Shepherd. That is probably not an uncommon name in the scheme of things, but I had never heard of this singer before, and she spells it with a K, and Neige and I have the same birthday. Of course it's just a coincidence, but my Mom, Rosemary Landers, was adopted. And her birth name was Katherine Shepherd, spelled with a K.....
Kinda cool, sez I. :)
It sure has been a great year for music, and I am still looking forward to the new and upcoming Eric Johnson acoustic album, and also Metallica's new one.
No hike today, but I did take The Crew to Lake Balboa, and we had a nice time amidst the ducks and flying blackbirds.....
I saw one other post which showed up where the newer posts do, even though it was dated a year ago in 2015. It was from Threnody In Velvet, she is wearing a Black Swan costume.
You got the copyright on that one, Sweet Baby. :):)
See you in the morning. I Love You. xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo :):)
Wednesday, October 5, 2016
Debate + Slow Day + Absolute Favorite :):)
Happy Late Night, my Darling,
Nothing major to report, but just checking in since I didn't write yesterday. I hope all projects are coming along well and that others are in the works. I always love to see what's coming up next, and I am especially looking forward to your personal film, the one with Tina that you are doing the music for.
We watched the debate tonight at Pearl's. It was about as exciting as watching paint dry, but that's all you can expect from a vice presidential debate. Pence seems reasonable when you watch him - his presentation is far better than Trump's - but his record shows that he is just about the Rightest-Wing Man In America, so no thanks!
Are you enjoying October? I will assume the answer is a definite Yes. We are finally getting some cooler weather that "almost" warrants a sweatshirt at night, or at least a long sleeved shirt. I say "almost" because I am still wearing short sleeves and I will hold out to the last minute, haha. And, help is on the way because our weather forecast calls for 97 degrees this weekend, yippee. :)
I haven't done a hike so far this week : yesterday I was a little tired from lack of sleep and today was Golden Agers. I also gotta take some new pictures, and I want to get out to Corriganville soon to see my favorite tree - the Halloween Tree I photograph every year (you know which one I mean). Every time I go there I check to make sure it's still standing, cause it's hollowed out and has limbs broken off from fires or lightning.
It sure has personality, though. :)
I only saw one post today, but I loved it : the one with the young lady and the kitty that said "my absolute favorite".
That was perfect and beautiful, Elizabeth.
You are my Absolute Favorite, and I love you.....
See you in the morn. Post if you can. xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo :):)
Nothing major to report, but just checking in since I didn't write yesterday. I hope all projects are coming along well and that others are in the works. I always love to see what's coming up next, and I am especially looking forward to your personal film, the one with Tina that you are doing the music for.
We watched the debate tonight at Pearl's. It was about as exciting as watching paint dry, but that's all you can expect from a vice presidential debate. Pence seems reasonable when you watch him - his presentation is far better than Trump's - but his record shows that he is just about the Rightest-Wing Man In America, so no thanks!
Are you enjoying October? I will assume the answer is a definite Yes. We are finally getting some cooler weather that "almost" warrants a sweatshirt at night, or at least a long sleeved shirt. I say "almost" because I am still wearing short sleeves and I will hold out to the last minute, haha. And, help is on the way because our weather forecast calls for 97 degrees this weekend, yippee. :)
I haven't done a hike so far this week : yesterday I was a little tired from lack of sleep and today was Golden Agers. I also gotta take some new pictures, and I want to get out to Corriganville soon to see my favorite tree - the Halloween Tree I photograph every year (you know which one I mean). Every time I go there I check to make sure it's still standing, cause it's hollowed out and has limbs broken off from fires or lightning.
It sure has personality, though. :)
I only saw one post today, but I loved it : the one with the young lady and the kitty that said "my absolute favorite".
That was perfect and beautiful, Elizabeth.
You are my Absolute Favorite, and I love you.....
See you in the morn. Post if you can. xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo :):)
Monday, October 3, 2016
Sonic Boom Footage (2015) + Last Scully Game at AT&T Park + Top Ten King Books
Happy Late Night, Sweet Baby,
I hope you had a great time at the show today, and also that it was a success for all involved, you and the band and the fans. Did you stay the whole day? I'll bet it was a blast, and I can hardly believe that a year has gone by since you went to last year's Sonic Boom (initials SB....meaning that The SB was at SB), and....where was I?.....oh yeah, that a year has gone by since you took those awesome from-the-stage shots of James and Versus Me at the 2015 show. Time flies, which means you've been having fun.
I saw your post a little while ago from Versus Me that showed video highlights from the 2015 Sonic Boom, and I wondered if you shot any of that footage? There was some cool stuff in there, and I know you were hanging with the band that day, so maybe you did some video shots as well as the stills...... :)
Not a lot to report on my end. We did not sing this morn, as first reported last night, but we did have an hour long practice of songs for upcoming weeks. This afternoon I had both my radio and my TV tuned to the final Dodger game of the season which was also Vin Scully's final game of his 67 year career. I didn't wanna miss it, and it was just so great to listen to him one last time. The sound of his voice has not changed since I first heard him as a kid; he's gonna be 89 on November 29, but he doesn't have an old person's voice. His voice is exactly the same.
Well, I wrote about Vin the other day so I'll leave it at that, but it was also really cool because this last game was at AT&T Park in San Francisco, which I got to go to when I was up there in July, a beautiful stadium for sure.
As much as I love football, I think I've gotta say that baseball is still my favorite sport after all these years.
Yeah, sports........(c'mon Ad). But it was Vin's last game, so........ :)
And now, because it's October (and because I don't have a lot to write about tonight), a quick list :
My Top Ten Stephen King Books (novels only) :
1) "IT" (rereading it now - almost done - and I don't know how anyone could write something so great, so epic)
2) "The Shining" (the first thing I ever read by SK, almost forty years ago)
3) "Christine" (1983)
4) "Cujo" (got a signed copy : I sent it to him in the mail, he sent it back. Pretty cool!)
5) "11/22/63" (a recent SK masterpiece)
6) "Joyland" (another recent one about love and horrors in an old fashioned amusement park)
7) "The Stand" (which many consider to be #1)
8) "The Tommyknockers" (his lone UFO book. He hates it for some reason. I love it)
9) "Salem's Lot" (the greatest Vampire novel ever written, beyond scary)
10) "Pet Sematary" (a truly horrific book, buy hey - this is Stephen King we are talking about)
I have a few that would probably make most fans' Top Ten List, and some that wouldn't, but anyway, this was inspired by my current re-reading of "IT", and the fact that Stephen King has been with me most of my life (like Vin Scully, who was with me all of my life), and that kind of thing - longevity and connection throughout one's life) is an awesome and amazing thing for which I am beyond grateful.
That's all I know for tonight!
I Love You and will see you in the morning, Sweet Baby.
xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo :):)
I hope you had a great time at the show today, and also that it was a success for all involved, you and the band and the fans. Did you stay the whole day? I'll bet it was a blast, and I can hardly believe that a year has gone by since you went to last year's Sonic Boom (initials SB....meaning that The SB was at SB), and....where was I?.....oh yeah, that a year has gone by since you took those awesome from-the-stage shots of James and Versus Me at the 2015 show. Time flies, which means you've been having fun.
I saw your post a little while ago from Versus Me that showed video highlights from the 2015 Sonic Boom, and I wondered if you shot any of that footage? There was some cool stuff in there, and I know you were hanging with the band that day, so maybe you did some video shots as well as the stills...... :)
Not a lot to report on my end. We did not sing this morn, as first reported last night, but we did have an hour long practice of songs for upcoming weeks. This afternoon I had both my radio and my TV tuned to the final Dodger game of the season which was also Vin Scully's final game of his 67 year career. I didn't wanna miss it, and it was just so great to listen to him one last time. The sound of his voice has not changed since I first heard him as a kid; he's gonna be 89 on November 29, but he doesn't have an old person's voice. His voice is exactly the same.
Well, I wrote about Vin the other day so I'll leave it at that, but it was also really cool because this last game was at AT&T Park in San Francisco, which I got to go to when I was up there in July, a beautiful stadium for sure.
As much as I love football, I think I've gotta say that baseball is still my favorite sport after all these years.
Yeah, sports........(c'mon Ad). But it was Vin's last game, so........ :)
And now, because it's October (and because I don't have a lot to write about tonight), a quick list :
My Top Ten Stephen King Books (novels only) :
1) "IT" (rereading it now - almost done - and I don't know how anyone could write something so great, so epic)
2) "The Shining" (the first thing I ever read by SK, almost forty years ago)
3) "Christine" (1983)
4) "Cujo" (got a signed copy : I sent it to him in the mail, he sent it back. Pretty cool!)
5) "11/22/63" (a recent SK masterpiece)
6) "Joyland" (another recent one about love and horrors in an old fashioned amusement park)
7) "The Stand" (which many consider to be #1)
8) "The Tommyknockers" (his lone UFO book. He hates it for some reason. I love it)
9) "Salem's Lot" (the greatest Vampire novel ever written, beyond scary)
10) "Pet Sematary" (a truly horrific book, buy hey - this is Stephen King we are talking about)
I have a few that would probably make most fans' Top Ten List, and some that wouldn't, but anyway, this was inspired by my current re-reading of "IT", and the fact that Stephen King has been with me most of my life (like Vin Scully, who was with me all of my life), and that kind of thing - longevity and connection throughout one's life) is an awesome and amazing thing for which I am beyond grateful.
That's all I know for tonight!
I Love You and will see you in the morning, Sweet Baby.
xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo :):)
Sunday, October 2, 2016
Sonic Boom (have a blast) + Cobweb Decor + I Love Those Macaws
Happy Late Saturday Night, Sweet Baby,
I hope you had an awesome time at Sonic Boom today! Or possibly you are just going tomorrow? I know that is the day I Prevail is playing. Well, if you went today too, I'll bet you had a blast. :) I am looking forward to seeing pix as soon as you can post them.
Speaking of pictures, how'd ya like the way I changed my FB to All Spider Web decor? I did that for Halloween month of course, and in all black & white, too. I figured it was an appropriate look for the season, haha.
I still didn't get my Alcest cd in the mail, so I listened to the Opeth again. There is a lot going on in that record, and it all builds toward the end, with the mega-metal track "Era", which just explodes out of the speakers (or headphones in my case.....I wish it exploded out of speakers, lol). I cheated and looked at setlists from the current tour.......and they are not playing that song. Why, I do not know, because it's one of the best they've ever recorded.
I had a nice hike at Aliso this afternoon. We are enjoying Indian Summer here. It's still in the upper 80s to low 90s and very dry, desert like. This weather pattern usually continues until almost Halloween and sometimes beyond. Anyway, time to set up the plastic spiders and ghosts and orange lights and other decorations here at Pearl's. I'll look for new stuff also, at the 99 Cent Store. They have a lot of really cool Halloween items, like severed hands and tombstones and things like that. :)
I saw your post about the Snuggling Macaws, and you know I loved that... :):)
I love that they are monogamous, and that they stay together for 50 years.....
And that they are snuggling.
How beautiful is all of that, SB?
I think it's what life is all about......and since you posted it, it's something to keep in mind, right?
:):) = what life is all about.
We will not be singing an anthem in church tomorrow because a dance troupe from Nicaragua is gonna perform instead, so I get to sleep in for an extra half hour or so. You will probably be either at the show when I get back from church, or on your way there, so have fun! I will be back from choir practice at the usual 1pm.
I Love You. xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo :):)
I hope you had an awesome time at Sonic Boom today! Or possibly you are just going tomorrow? I know that is the day I Prevail is playing. Well, if you went today too, I'll bet you had a blast. :) I am looking forward to seeing pix as soon as you can post them.
Speaking of pictures, how'd ya like the way I changed my FB to All Spider Web decor? I did that for Halloween month of course, and in all black & white, too. I figured it was an appropriate look for the season, haha.
I still didn't get my Alcest cd in the mail, so I listened to the Opeth again. There is a lot going on in that record, and it all builds toward the end, with the mega-metal track "Era", which just explodes out of the speakers (or headphones in my case.....I wish it exploded out of speakers, lol). I cheated and looked at setlists from the current tour.......and they are not playing that song. Why, I do not know, because it's one of the best they've ever recorded.
I had a nice hike at Aliso this afternoon. We are enjoying Indian Summer here. It's still in the upper 80s to low 90s and very dry, desert like. This weather pattern usually continues until almost Halloween and sometimes beyond. Anyway, time to set up the plastic spiders and ghosts and orange lights and other decorations here at Pearl's. I'll look for new stuff also, at the 99 Cent Store. They have a lot of really cool Halloween items, like severed hands and tombstones and things like that. :)
I saw your post about the Snuggling Macaws, and you know I loved that... :):)
I love that they are monogamous, and that they stay together for 50 years.....
And that they are snuggling.
How beautiful is all of that, SB?
I think it's what life is all about......and since you posted it, it's something to keep in mind, right?
:):) = what life is all about.
We will not be singing an anthem in church tomorrow because a dance troupe from Nicaragua is gonna perform instead, so I get to sleep in for an extra half hour or so. You will probably be either at the show when I get back from church, or on your way there, so have fun! I will be back from choir practice at the usual 1pm.
I Love You. xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo :):)
Saturday, October 1, 2016
Have A Blast At Sonic Boom + Starbucks Jerk Tirade + New Opeth Is Killer
Happy Late Night, my Darling,
I hope your weekend is off to a good start. I saw a post with a photo of a giant outdoor concert stage that said "JJO" and "Sonic Boom" on the sides, and after Googling I see that the Sonic Boom show is this weekend (starting tomorrow), so no doubt you will be there! Have an absolute blast.... :)
I saw a bunch of posts today. One from earlier this morning, via Dreamhouse, showed a hand writing on a pad of paper. It said "planning for the future" in the text, so I figured it meant you are currently writing (music, perhaps), or planning for the future yourself. I am always looking forward to see what's coming up next! :)
One post made me mad; not at you but at the jerk at Starbucks who pushed the young lady out of line. I won't go on a tirade, but that guy definitely needs to get his butt kicked and sooner or later he will. That, or he will get arrested. I won't go on a tirade about this, either, but I was just saying to my sister that the biggest prejudice in this country is not about skin color or religious belief, but gender. That's why Hillary Clinton is the most hated Presidential candidate in history, simply because she's a woman, and there are millions of Troglodytic, cretinous males in this country who believe a woman ought to just "stay in her place", i.e. at home, or even more than that, to simply not challenge what these males believe to be the proper hierarchical structure. This is not to say that women who wish to stay at home and raise children are somehow subservient to men - not hardly. My own Mom, and many if not most women of that era were "housewives", which was neither a derogatory term nor a life choice to be looked down upon. It was also, and still is, one of the most time consuming and difficult jobs in the world - keeping a home and raising children. And decent men saw it that way and respected their wives from that era as equals (or at least treated them that way on the surface).
But in this day and age, when women have long since entered the workforce, and now we have one who is going to become President, the boorishness and downright assaultive behavior of men who resent women is coming to the forefront because they just can't stand it. And as I told my sister, it's extreme.
For men like this, it's even worse than a black guy becoming President, because......well, at least he was a man. But a woman?!
Bring on the expletives.
And all the false cries of "she's a liar" or the ridiculous proclamations that she is deathly ill (seemingly with every disease known to man)....
Hillary is about to break the Gender Barrier, which is another order of magnitude even to what Jackie Robinson did when he broke the color barrier in baseball.
Women have always been the biggest minority (or have been treated that way because they aren't actually a minority), but it's all about to change.
And it's fitting that Hillary is about to defeat a buffoon who is the epitome of the Boorish Loudmouth American Male.
Well, I see I went on a tirade anyway, but that Starbucks guy really made me mad. He will get what's coming to him, however.
In other news, did you get your copy of "Kodama" in the mail? I did not. Sometimes you get it on the release date if you preorder, but mine didn't come today. I did, however, pick up a copy of the new Opeth, "Sorceress", at Best Buy, and it sounds fantastic. It's really spooky sounding all the way through, like Halloween music, haha. I've only heard it once, but I think it's my favorite of the three they've made since they changed their style and went progressive. I can't wait to hear the Alcest as well. Hopefully I will get my copy tomorrow. :)
That's all I know for tonight. I didn't go on a hike today because of shopping, but maybe tomorrow.
Have a great time at Sonic Boom and post some pix when you can!
I Love You. xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo :):)
I hope your weekend is off to a good start. I saw a post with a photo of a giant outdoor concert stage that said "JJO" and "Sonic Boom" on the sides, and after Googling I see that the Sonic Boom show is this weekend (starting tomorrow), so no doubt you will be there! Have an absolute blast.... :)
I saw a bunch of posts today. One from earlier this morning, via Dreamhouse, showed a hand writing on a pad of paper. It said "planning for the future" in the text, so I figured it meant you are currently writing (music, perhaps), or planning for the future yourself. I am always looking forward to see what's coming up next! :)
One post made me mad; not at you but at the jerk at Starbucks who pushed the young lady out of line. I won't go on a tirade, but that guy definitely needs to get his butt kicked and sooner or later he will. That, or he will get arrested. I won't go on a tirade about this, either, but I was just saying to my sister that the biggest prejudice in this country is not about skin color or religious belief, but gender. That's why Hillary Clinton is the most hated Presidential candidate in history, simply because she's a woman, and there are millions of Troglodytic, cretinous males in this country who believe a woman ought to just "stay in her place", i.e. at home, or even more than that, to simply not challenge what these males believe to be the proper hierarchical structure. This is not to say that women who wish to stay at home and raise children are somehow subservient to men - not hardly. My own Mom, and many if not most women of that era were "housewives", which was neither a derogatory term nor a life choice to be looked down upon. It was also, and still is, one of the most time consuming and difficult jobs in the world - keeping a home and raising children. And decent men saw it that way and respected their wives from that era as equals (or at least treated them that way on the surface).
But in this day and age, when women have long since entered the workforce, and now we have one who is going to become President, the boorishness and downright assaultive behavior of men who resent women is coming to the forefront because they just can't stand it. And as I told my sister, it's extreme.
For men like this, it's even worse than a black guy becoming President, because......well, at least he was a man. But a woman?!
Bring on the expletives.
And all the false cries of "she's a liar" or the ridiculous proclamations that she is deathly ill (seemingly with every disease known to man)....
Hillary is about to break the Gender Barrier, which is another order of magnitude even to what Jackie Robinson did when he broke the color barrier in baseball.
Women have always been the biggest minority (or have been treated that way because they aren't actually a minority), but it's all about to change.
And it's fitting that Hillary is about to defeat a buffoon who is the epitome of the Boorish Loudmouth American Male.
Well, I see I went on a tirade anyway, but that Starbucks guy really made me mad. He will get what's coming to him, however.
In other news, did you get your copy of "Kodama" in the mail? I did not. Sometimes you get it on the release date if you preorder, but mine didn't come today. I did, however, pick up a copy of the new Opeth, "Sorceress", at Best Buy, and it sounds fantastic. It's really spooky sounding all the way through, like Halloween music, haha. I've only heard it once, but I think it's my favorite of the three they've made since they changed their style and went progressive. I can't wait to hear the Alcest as well. Hopefully I will get my copy tomorrow. :)
That's all I know for tonight. I didn't go on a hike today because of shopping, but maybe tomorrow.
Have a great time at Sonic Boom and post some pix when you can!
I Love You. xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo :):)
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