Happy Late Night, Sweet Baby,
I hope you had a nice day today, perhaps enjoying the snowy weather or working on a project in one form or another. I did see a few of your posts - only available on "posts You like" - one of them had to do with James and his penchant for grilled cheese, lol, and another was a clip of an upcoming release from a band. It had a space motif. Maybe they are friends of yours, or you have an inter-band connection to them? I am guessing one of the two. I don't know how you got involved with Versus Me, but they seem to have a big following, so maybe you can connect with other bands through them.
Still super chilly in The 'Ridge. Tonight I watched a new series, "Fear The Walking Dead". It's like with "CSI" - they franchised it out, and with that show you got "CSI Miami" and a couple others. This one could be called "Walking Dead Los Angeles" because it takes place here, and the first couple episodes are actually quite scary because they show how disorienting and chaotic such a scenario would be, as it is unfolding. In regular "Walking Dead", which is the standard bearer, that series began with lone characters and their experience as the ordeal was already underway. It was pure reaction, dealing with hundreds of zombies immediately, and finding themselves in an instantly changed world. In the new series, the situation involves many people, family members in a city, and shows how the city dissolves into panic.
Yeah, cheery stuff, I know! :)
But if you're a fan of the original "WD" like me, it's a pretty awesome and different take on the original (which is a classic and still the best).
On an entirely different score, I also finished watching a Charles Dickens mini-series called "The Old Curiosity Shop". This was a BBC version made in 1979. I found it at the library and figured that Dickens goes with Christmas, so I began watching it about a week ago.
I have gotta say that the English actors are just incredible in the way they can bring an old story to life. They really know their own history, and the language of that time is so interesting, everyone speaking in paragraphs full of self-reference and slang, yet formal all the same.
Shakespeare, at least from what I have seen, wrote all his characters to speak in very formal language for the most part, with slight variations of class-based slang or humor. Charles Dickens wrote his characters, as far as I can tell anyway, in "formal slang", i.e. everyday speech from the Victorian era. Everybody talks a blue streak and seems nervous......
But it's incredible writing, and use of the English language, and of characterization, and I think I'd have to put Dickens up there as possibly the equal of Shakespeare, if not in precision of language, then certainly in drama and creation of characters. "The Old Curiosity Shop" is an epic story, and this version blew me away at the end......
Now I will look for more Dickens productions on dvd. :)
Tomorrow is New Year's Eve, and as usual I will keep things local and low key. It's of course a work night for me anyway, so we will watch the ball drop in Times Square and let the New Yorkers do the partying for us. It's always a fun night even vicariously, but if you are going out, have a blast!
I will see you in the morn at the usual time. Sweet Dreams until then....
I Love You. xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo :):)
Thursday, December 31, 2015
Wednesday, December 30, 2015
Excellent
Happy Late Night, my Darling,
Wow, your picture today is one of your best portraits ever. Everything about it is just right, and it is the model's eyes and the way they are made up that really draw you in. All the details are great : the snow in her hair, the motion of the falling snow (glad to see you captured that), and one detail that I noticed a little while ago, which is the slight hitch in her left shoulder - right side in the picture - which causes a "stance" in her posture, and that right there is a quality you see in all the best model shots - a stance or posture that suggests action or attitude (which is usually only slightly suggested, and rightly so, as in your picture). You may have directed her to stand that way, or she may have only done it because she was cold, but it is those kinds of small physical indications that can give a pic an added plus.
As somebody on FB noted, that looks like a photo from a movie scene or advertisement. It looks like you front-lit her, the way the color of the model stands out from the background. (do you have the equipment to bring lights out in a snowstorm?).....
But yes, a fantastic picture and that gal is a good model for you.
Not a lot to report for me, just a basic day. Freezing again, yikes! But, we already have an extra eight minutes of sunshine added to the day, and tomorrow it'll be nine.
See you in the morning. I Love You! xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo :):)
Wow, your picture today is one of your best portraits ever. Everything about it is just right, and it is the model's eyes and the way they are made up that really draw you in. All the details are great : the snow in her hair, the motion of the falling snow (glad to see you captured that), and one detail that I noticed a little while ago, which is the slight hitch in her left shoulder - right side in the picture - which causes a "stance" in her posture, and that right there is a quality you see in all the best model shots - a stance or posture that suggests action or attitude (which is usually only slightly suggested, and rightly so, as in your picture). You may have directed her to stand that way, or she may have only done it because she was cold, but it is those kinds of small physical indications that can give a pic an added plus.
As somebody on FB noted, that looks like a photo from a movie scene or advertisement. It looks like you front-lit her, the way the color of the model stands out from the background. (do you have the equipment to bring lights out in a snowstorm?).....
But yes, a fantastic picture and that gal is a good model for you.
Not a lot to report for me, just a basic day. Freezing again, yikes! But, we already have an extra eight minutes of sunshine added to the day, and tomorrow it'll be nine.
See you in the morning. I Love You! xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo :):)
Tuesday, December 29, 2015
Lemmy
Happy Late Night, my Darling,
It took me a little longer to get situated here tonight, hence the semi-late start, but maybe you are still awake. I hope you were able to get some good pictures today, if the snowstorm did materialise and if you got your models for the shoot. Weather.com shows snow due tonight, so maybe it started earlier. But it continues through Wednesday, so that is good too. I saw your picture of Stephane by the lake, which would probably be frozen by now (would it not?) if you were having a normal Winter.
Just so you don't get the interminable Deep Freeze, right? Man, it sure is cold here. Not as bad tonight because of the cloud cover, but still mighty chilly......
You know, with the news about Lemmy, I was trying to remember how I first got into Motorhead. With many bands, I can remember who introduced me to them, or if I discovered them myself, where I bought my first record by a band, etc. So many of my all-time favorites came to me via the College Records connection, from the guys who worked there (like Ono or Jon Sutherland) who knew all the great bands and turned little 14 year old me onto them.
But with Motorhead, I'm pretty sure I discovered them for myself. I know it was when "Ace Of Spades" came out, so I Googled the release date and it was November 1980. That sounded about right. About that time, I was listening to Judas Priest, Rainbow and Rush mostly. Those would've been my big three, with Van Halen up there, too. I was listening to almost all hard rock in those days.
I think I read a review of "Ace Of Spades" in Kerrang! (exclamation point was part of the title) or some other music magazine. The name "Motorhead" sounded cool, and the album cover may have actually been the thing that really drew me in. It looked like an image from a Clint Eastwood movie.
I never was one to just take a chance on bands, but if I remember correctly, that's what I did with Motorhead and "Ace Of Spades", because of the great review, and the badass album cover.
I very distinctly remember playing the living you-know-what out of that record, once I got into it, which was immediately. 1980 was a weird time, an in-between time, because the NWOBHM (New Wave Of British Heavy Metal) was still two years away. Few knew who Iron Maiden were in 1980. American bands like Metallica and Slayer hadn't even formed.
But here was Motorhead, with "Ace Of Spades". Every song was fast, and this was before speed metal or any of the metal genres. Motorhead wasn't metal anyway, not really. And they certainly weren't punk, despite what many writers want to say was an ingredient in their music. I hated punk, so you know I would say that, but it's true. No punk band could play like Motorhead.
So they weren't metal and they weren't punk, and they weren't really traditional hard rock. So what were they?
I think, in their early stages, when they had the classic line-up of Lemmy, Fast Eddie Clarke and Phil "Philthy Animal" Taylor, that they achieved the result that all bands should aspire to : they sounded like no one but themselves. If anything, they took basic '50s rock structures, modernized them and amped them up with massive drums, volume and guitar solos, and then added the voice and lyrics of Lemmy as the distinctive ingredient.
Lemmy was on fire back in those days. "Ace Of Spades" is a start-to-finish classic, every song is great and every song is memorable, lyrics and all. The follow up album, "Iron Fist" was good, but not as good, and Fast Eddie left soon after it was recorded. They replaced him with Brian Robertson from Thin Lizzy, who was a great guitarist himself, but in a different mold.
That's when the interview happened, the one I went to, in May 1982. It was right after Clarke quit and Robertson joined. Lemmy was super cool at that interview. He was a real hero to me and my late friend Dave Small at that time.
I have probably mentioned this at least once, but when a street crew was repaving Rathburn Avenue (the street I lived on), I took a stick and carved "Motorhead" in the newly poured soft concrete of the gutter. It stayed there for many years and might still be visible. I haven't checked, but I may do so now.......
I got to see Motorhead with Fast Eddie and Phil Taylor (the original and best lineup) one time, in 1981, probably in the Summer. I saw them a few other times, too, with Robertson.
I stopped following them around 1985 or so, because the only guy left was Lemmy, and while he was great, and a legend, I have always liked original member bands, or bands with at least more than one guy still in them. I don't like it when one single guy becomes a band's focal point. Lemmy probably wrote a lot of the Motorhead music, but to me it was all three guys who made the original lineup so great.
But without Lemmy, there would never have been a Motorhead in the first place. It was his creation all the way. His voice powered the music more than anything.
He was one of the coolest guys in rock history, and a true original. I hadn't followed his band or his music for the last 30 years, but in the years that I did, Motorhead was one of my favorite bands, and I'd say that "Ace Of Spades" is in the 30 or so greatest records ever made.
Wow.
Lemmy & Motorhead.
What a time that was. :)
That's all for tonight, Sweet Baby. I will see you in the morning. Fingers crossed for snow and good photo results........
I Love You. xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo :):)
It took me a little longer to get situated here tonight, hence the semi-late start, but maybe you are still awake. I hope you were able to get some good pictures today, if the snowstorm did materialise and if you got your models for the shoot. Weather.com shows snow due tonight, so maybe it started earlier. But it continues through Wednesday, so that is good too. I saw your picture of Stephane by the lake, which would probably be frozen by now (would it not?) if you were having a normal Winter.
Just so you don't get the interminable Deep Freeze, right? Man, it sure is cold here. Not as bad tonight because of the cloud cover, but still mighty chilly......
You know, with the news about Lemmy, I was trying to remember how I first got into Motorhead. With many bands, I can remember who introduced me to them, or if I discovered them myself, where I bought my first record by a band, etc. So many of my all-time favorites came to me via the College Records connection, from the guys who worked there (like Ono or Jon Sutherland) who knew all the great bands and turned little 14 year old me onto them.
But with Motorhead, I'm pretty sure I discovered them for myself. I know it was when "Ace Of Spades" came out, so I Googled the release date and it was November 1980. That sounded about right. About that time, I was listening to Judas Priest, Rainbow and Rush mostly. Those would've been my big three, with Van Halen up there, too. I was listening to almost all hard rock in those days.
I think I read a review of "Ace Of Spades" in Kerrang! (exclamation point was part of the title) or some other music magazine. The name "Motorhead" sounded cool, and the album cover may have actually been the thing that really drew me in. It looked like an image from a Clint Eastwood movie.
I never was one to just take a chance on bands, but if I remember correctly, that's what I did with Motorhead and "Ace Of Spades", because of the great review, and the badass album cover.
I very distinctly remember playing the living you-know-what out of that record, once I got into it, which was immediately. 1980 was a weird time, an in-between time, because the NWOBHM (New Wave Of British Heavy Metal) was still two years away. Few knew who Iron Maiden were in 1980. American bands like Metallica and Slayer hadn't even formed.
But here was Motorhead, with "Ace Of Spades". Every song was fast, and this was before speed metal or any of the metal genres. Motorhead wasn't metal anyway, not really. And they certainly weren't punk, despite what many writers want to say was an ingredient in their music. I hated punk, so you know I would say that, but it's true. No punk band could play like Motorhead.
So they weren't metal and they weren't punk, and they weren't really traditional hard rock. So what were they?
I think, in their early stages, when they had the classic line-up of Lemmy, Fast Eddie Clarke and Phil "Philthy Animal" Taylor, that they achieved the result that all bands should aspire to : they sounded like no one but themselves. If anything, they took basic '50s rock structures, modernized them and amped them up with massive drums, volume and guitar solos, and then added the voice and lyrics of Lemmy as the distinctive ingredient.
Lemmy was on fire back in those days. "Ace Of Spades" is a start-to-finish classic, every song is great and every song is memorable, lyrics and all. The follow up album, "Iron Fist" was good, but not as good, and Fast Eddie left soon after it was recorded. They replaced him with Brian Robertson from Thin Lizzy, who was a great guitarist himself, but in a different mold.
That's when the interview happened, the one I went to, in May 1982. It was right after Clarke quit and Robertson joined. Lemmy was super cool at that interview. He was a real hero to me and my late friend Dave Small at that time.
I have probably mentioned this at least once, but when a street crew was repaving Rathburn Avenue (the street I lived on), I took a stick and carved "Motorhead" in the newly poured soft concrete of the gutter. It stayed there for many years and might still be visible. I haven't checked, but I may do so now.......
I got to see Motorhead with Fast Eddie and Phil Taylor (the original and best lineup) one time, in 1981, probably in the Summer. I saw them a few other times, too, with Robertson.
I stopped following them around 1985 or so, because the only guy left was Lemmy, and while he was great, and a legend, I have always liked original member bands, or bands with at least more than one guy still in them. I don't like it when one single guy becomes a band's focal point. Lemmy probably wrote a lot of the Motorhead music, but to me it was all three guys who made the original lineup so great.
But without Lemmy, there would never have been a Motorhead in the first place. It was his creation all the way. His voice powered the music more than anything.
He was one of the coolest guys in rock history, and a true original. I hadn't followed his band or his music for the last 30 years, but in the years that I did, Motorhead was one of my favorite bands, and I'd say that "Ace Of Spades" is in the 30 or so greatest records ever made.
Wow.
Lemmy & Motorhead.
What a time that was. :)
That's all for tonight, Sweet Baby. I will see you in the morning. Fingers crossed for snow and good photo results........
I Love You. xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo :):)
Monday, December 28, 2015
Happy Late Sunday Night
Happy Late Night, my Darling,
I'm just checking in to say hi. Not much to report today except good singing in church, and very cold once again, 34 degrees as I write. Thank goodness for houses, and walls, and insulation, and heaters, lol. I hope you had a nice day, and I saw that you are gonna do some portrait photography in the upcoming snowstorm.
No cold wimp you! :)
Seriously though, I hope you were able to get some models, and also that you get some good flurries. I just looked at weather.com for your area, and it looks guaranteed. There is all kinds of potential for great shots, with lots of white, lots of texture, and even motion as well (if you are shooting while snow is falling).
Post a picture or two if you wanna; I know you will get some good ones. :)
Well, that's all I know for tonight. See you in the morning.
I Love You. xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo :):)
I'm just checking in to say hi. Not much to report today except good singing in church, and very cold once again, 34 degrees as I write. Thank goodness for houses, and walls, and insulation, and heaters, lol. I hope you had a nice day, and I saw that you are gonna do some portrait photography in the upcoming snowstorm.
No cold wimp you! :)
Seriously though, I hope you were able to get some models, and also that you get some good flurries. I just looked at weather.com for your area, and it looks guaranteed. There is all kinds of potential for great shots, with lots of white, lots of texture, and even motion as well (if you are shooting while snow is falling).
Post a picture or two if you wanna; I know you will get some good ones. :)
Well, that's all I know for tonight. See you in the morning.
I Love You. xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo :):)
Sunday, December 27, 2015
Settling Back In
Happy Late Night, my Darling,
I am back at Pearl's, writing again at the Usual Time. Another freezing cold and windy night in the Valley. I went on my walk, of course. But now I am shifting back into work mode and schedule after my holiday week off.
I hope your day was good. I actually saw a post of yours in the news feed this afternoon. By "news feed" I mean the main scroll of posts that goes down the middle of FB (as opposed to the much smaller "news ticker" on the side, which I don't have anymore anyway). But yeah, it's been a long time since a "like" by you showed up in my news feed. It's weird as I've said, because I have all my settings in your favor, but anyway, maybe it's a good omen. The "like" was of that "black metal classroom" video, which was a riot. :)
Today was low key, not much to report. Tomorrow morning we will be singing two songs in church. Usually we do just one, but somebody must have renegotiated our contract. :)
You are no doubt working on the Fall ll Rise video, or maybe you've finished it?
Well at any rate, I will be around in the early morn before church, and then back afterwards at about 1pm.
See you then!
Sweet Dreams..........
I Love You. xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo
I am back at Pearl's, writing again at the Usual Time. Another freezing cold and windy night in the Valley. I went on my walk, of course. But now I am shifting back into work mode and schedule after my holiday week off.
I hope your day was good. I actually saw a post of yours in the news feed this afternoon. By "news feed" I mean the main scroll of posts that goes down the middle of FB (as opposed to the much smaller "news ticker" on the side, which I don't have anymore anyway). But yeah, it's been a long time since a "like" by you showed up in my news feed. It's weird as I've said, because I have all my settings in your favor, but anyway, maybe it's a good omen. The "like" was of that "black metal classroom" video, which was a riot. :)
Today was low key, not much to report. Tomorrow morning we will be singing two songs in church. Usually we do just one, but somebody must have renegotiated our contract. :)
You are no doubt working on the Fall ll Rise video, or maybe you've finished it?
Well at any rate, I will be around in the early morn before church, and then back afterwards at about 1pm.
See you then!
Sweet Dreams..........
I Love You. xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo
Saturday, December 26, 2015
Late Christmas Night Love (wonderful season)
Happy Late Christmas Night, my Darling,
I hope you had a nice holiday today. I will post now, then come back and write more. Back in a few minutes.......
I'm back yet again. This will be the last night I do it this way, at least for a while, because tomorrow I am back at work and I'll be writing at a somewhat more reasonable hour (I know - only a half hour earlier, but still......).
Anyhow, as I say, I hope it was a nice Christmas for you and your family. I did see several of your posts today - one was from your friend Tristan, that "tattoo > Christmas" in a manner of speaking. That is funny, because he's such a character. Another was Sarah's post about explaining her year to relatives, "riding around in a van, etc.". Life on the road, in other words. I love it, and for you I have to re-state one more time that I know that you had a total blast on the Holiday Run tour, and it makes me super happy that you did have a blast, and even though you can't wait to do it again, I can't wait even more, because I want you to have as many awesome & true-to-life rock n' roll experiences as you possibly can. Because of the way everything has unfolded - like magic - I want it to keep going, and there is no doubt it will. :)
The doubly awesome part about having these experiences, especially at a young age, is that they accumulate. And as they do, you start to realise that this is your life. And that's the really great part.
To put it in context, imagine being in, say, a monotonous factory or a job you don't care for, and feeling stuck, and then thinking the same thing : "this is my life".
Your life is gonna be as an Artist (which includes all things therein - rock n' roll, photography, your own music, et al.) It will take you all kinds of places, and there will be times when there are pressures and it will feel like work.......but mostly........it will be An Experience. A Continuing Life Experience.
And it will consist of many singular experiences and adventures, like your recent road trip.
For me, to know that you had fun makes me happy. So I win too. I want you and all the bands to keep advancing and have a blast in the process. :)
I also saw your post of Clint and his girlfriend, so you know I liked that one too! :):)
It has been a wonderful Christmas season, I think.
I had a nice day today myself. I went to Pearl's for an early Christmas dinner, and then we went and saw lights again, this time up in Granada Hills. Then I came back home and did my walk, even though it was fruh-heeeeeeeeezing cold, and super windy. They say Chicago is the Windy City, but at the moment it's Northridge. :)
Now it's nice and warm in my apartment. I am grateful for a nice Christmas and looking forward to the New Year.
Sweet Dreams, and I will see you in the morning.
I Love You. xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxooxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo :):)
I hope you had a nice holiday today. I will post now, then come back and write more. Back in a few minutes.......
I'm back yet again. This will be the last night I do it this way, at least for a while, because tomorrow I am back at work and I'll be writing at a somewhat more reasonable hour (I know - only a half hour earlier, but still......).
Anyhow, as I say, I hope it was a nice Christmas for you and your family. I did see several of your posts today - one was from your friend Tristan, that "tattoo > Christmas" in a manner of speaking. That is funny, because he's such a character. Another was Sarah's post about explaining her year to relatives, "riding around in a van, etc.". Life on the road, in other words. I love it, and for you I have to re-state one more time that I know that you had a total blast on the Holiday Run tour, and it makes me super happy that you did have a blast, and even though you can't wait to do it again, I can't wait even more, because I want you to have as many awesome & true-to-life rock n' roll experiences as you possibly can. Because of the way everything has unfolded - like magic - I want it to keep going, and there is no doubt it will. :)
The doubly awesome part about having these experiences, especially at a young age, is that they accumulate. And as they do, you start to realise that this is your life. And that's the really great part.
To put it in context, imagine being in, say, a monotonous factory or a job you don't care for, and feeling stuck, and then thinking the same thing : "this is my life".
Your life is gonna be as an Artist (which includes all things therein - rock n' roll, photography, your own music, et al.) It will take you all kinds of places, and there will be times when there are pressures and it will feel like work.......but mostly........it will be An Experience. A Continuing Life Experience.
And it will consist of many singular experiences and adventures, like your recent road trip.
For me, to know that you had fun makes me happy. So I win too. I want you and all the bands to keep advancing and have a blast in the process. :)
I also saw your post of Clint and his girlfriend, so you know I liked that one too! :):)
It has been a wonderful Christmas season, I think.
I had a nice day today myself. I went to Pearl's for an early Christmas dinner, and then we went and saw lights again, this time up in Granada Hills. Then I came back home and did my walk, even though it was fruh-heeeeeeeeezing cold, and super windy. They say Chicago is the Windy City, but at the moment it's Northridge. :)
Now it's nice and warm in my apartment. I am grateful for a nice Christmas and looking forward to the New Year.
Sweet Dreams, and I will see you in the morning.
I Love You. xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxooxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo :):)
Friday, December 25, 2015
Merry Christmas! (church & lights)
Merry Christmas, Sweet Baby,
I am back from Midnight Mass at Our Lady Of Lourdes, my Mom's church just a block up from my apartment. I will post first, then come back and write. :)
I am back. The service at OLL was very beautiful and traditional. The Catholic Mass is very participatory, with congregation responses following certain recitations, and it is also ceremonial and ritualistic. Prayers are said in a distinct order, followed immediately by music. It's all very powerful, especially with a packed church. I am always in the overflow section of the crowd, standing in the narthex (lobby) area. The Mass was about 80 minutes, with lots of singing.
Earlier in the evening I also went to the Christmas Eve service at Reseda Methodist. We had a pretty full church, too, more than usual and of course you get that on major holidays like Christmas Eve or Easter. This service was unique because it was bi-lingual. They had a band singing in Spanish and then the congregation would alternate with them in English. It was certainly different, but nice. All of us choir members were in the audience. It was a short service, only 45 minutes, so afterward we headed over to Candy Cane Lane, which is a Christmastime name for several streets in the neighboring town of Woodland Hills. Candy Cane Lane started out in the 1940s or 50s as just one street, now it's several, and it's in an upper-middle class neighborhood. People on those streets have a decades old tradition at Christmas of lighting their homes to the hilt, and it's really something to see. I've been going for years, but this year - wow. The lights and decorations were beautiful as always, but I have never before seen such a line of cars to get in.
You'd have thought it was a U2 concert at a stadium or the World Series. The traffic began to back up about a mile from Candy Cane Lane, and then it came to a stop not much further. From that point it moved at a crawl, and it took us (me, Pearl, her daughter and The Kobedog) about 45 minutes just to reach the streets with the lights from that point. One of the all time traffic jams, but it was worth it because the lights were beautiful and it was nice to see so many people enjoying them. Even the Channel 7 ABC News was there.
So that was my night, a good one with a lot of Christmas Spirit.
I hope your day was good, and that you had a nice Christmas Eve with family and maybe friends too.
I saw your Taya Iv post this morning, and it was absolutely perfect! It summed up everything that this year has been about, and the part about climbing a mountain was right on the money too. :)
So, now I'll be heading back to NORAD in Colorado Springs. We're gonna be tracking Santa for the rest of the night, and it'll be a pretty busy one, but I imagine he'll be all done by morning, so I should be back home and awake by the usual time, 10am or so.
In the meantime, Sweet Dreams! And Merry Christmas too........
I Love You. xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo :):)
I am back from Midnight Mass at Our Lady Of Lourdes, my Mom's church just a block up from my apartment. I will post first, then come back and write. :)
I am back. The service at OLL was very beautiful and traditional. The Catholic Mass is very participatory, with congregation responses following certain recitations, and it is also ceremonial and ritualistic. Prayers are said in a distinct order, followed immediately by music. It's all very powerful, especially with a packed church. I am always in the overflow section of the crowd, standing in the narthex (lobby) area. The Mass was about 80 minutes, with lots of singing.
Earlier in the evening I also went to the Christmas Eve service at Reseda Methodist. We had a pretty full church, too, more than usual and of course you get that on major holidays like Christmas Eve or Easter. This service was unique because it was bi-lingual. They had a band singing in Spanish and then the congregation would alternate with them in English. It was certainly different, but nice. All of us choir members were in the audience. It was a short service, only 45 minutes, so afterward we headed over to Candy Cane Lane, which is a Christmastime name for several streets in the neighboring town of Woodland Hills. Candy Cane Lane started out in the 1940s or 50s as just one street, now it's several, and it's in an upper-middle class neighborhood. People on those streets have a decades old tradition at Christmas of lighting their homes to the hilt, and it's really something to see. I've been going for years, but this year - wow. The lights and decorations were beautiful as always, but I have never before seen such a line of cars to get in.
You'd have thought it was a U2 concert at a stadium or the World Series. The traffic began to back up about a mile from Candy Cane Lane, and then it came to a stop not much further. From that point it moved at a crawl, and it took us (me, Pearl, her daughter and The Kobedog) about 45 minutes just to reach the streets with the lights from that point. One of the all time traffic jams, but it was worth it because the lights were beautiful and it was nice to see so many people enjoying them. Even the Channel 7 ABC News was there.
So that was my night, a good one with a lot of Christmas Spirit.
I hope your day was good, and that you had a nice Christmas Eve with family and maybe friends too.
I saw your Taya Iv post this morning, and it was absolutely perfect! It summed up everything that this year has been about, and the part about climbing a mountain was right on the money too. :)
So, now I'll be heading back to NORAD in Colorado Springs. We're gonna be tracking Santa for the rest of the night, and it'll be a pretty busy one, but I imagine he'll be all done by morning, so I should be back home and awake by the usual time, 10am or so.
In the meantime, Sweet Dreams! And Merry Christmas too........
I Love You. xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo :):)
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