How Do You Like Your Car?

I have been asked this alot lately. It's been six months since the Jeep was replaced. I've gone through every season except spring, but, given the warm air over Chicagoland, you could say we had mini-spring this past week.

I'm driving around Chicagoland on Monday, February 20th, with the windows down and wearing a short sleeved shirt. My photo feed reminds me that 3 years ago, we had 6 inches of snow.

There are things I miss about the Jeep. It was fun to drive, even in traffic, with the stick shift. It sat up higher and I felt I could see more of what was around me. I'm constantly tweaking the mirrors because I don't feel I can see to my left or right, even when I turn to look before changing lanes. Never had that issue with the Jeep. There is one thing the Malibu has which the Jeep did not.

I have information at my finger tips. This was in August. We didn't get a lot of 100+ degree days. We haven't had a summer that hot in a few years. I'm not complaining, mind you. I like hot weather but I think I would feel extremely oppressed if that was the norm, rather than the exception.

On the Monday the above photo was taken, this was the temperature when I got into the car.

I documented this more for the "Oh look. An even number of miles", than the temperature. I haven't figured out the trip meter. I'm going to have to actually read the owner's manual for that. Until I do that, I write the beginning and ending mileage in the notebook I carry with me. The Jeep had a little button I pushed to reset the trip meter.

I also have a tire pressure and oil life indicator I can scroll through. I don't like the lack of a beep or a light if the gas gauge gets low. I have to notice and then set the display for "Fuel Distance". I've come close to being out of gas because I don't have that on the display. (Note to self: you need gas.) Perhaps a noise can be set but I'll have to read the manual to figure out how.

I used the Sirius XM radio free three-month trial and I am NOT signing up for that service. If I listened to classic rock, hip hop, rap, or current popular music, it would pay to have it. The sheer abundance of stations playing that kind of music was immense. I listen to jazz. I had the 1940's channel; the all Frank Sinatra channel; the 'smooth jazz' channel; and a channel devoted to Broadway musicals. Huh? No thanks. When I go cross-country and are out of the reach of my local jazz station, I have a CD player. I can listen to Gregory Porter's "Be Good" or Annie Lennox's "Nostalgia" or Duke Ellington's "Three Suites" or "Ella and Louis Together" or any of my jazz albums, provided I remember to bring my CD case. And don't even get me started on my Scottish music. A station for that? You're nuts.

They have been calling to get me to renew my subscription but don't seem to get that what they offer is not what I like. Last night, I told the guy, "Please stop calling. I won't sign up and the more you call, the more angry I am and the less likely I'll consider your service, period." "But...but...ma'am, you just need to listen..." Click.

As I travel about for work, I've found a number of people who say the Malibu is probably the best passenger car Chevrolet makes. They are impressed I drive one, even one which is 6 years old.  How do I like my car? For once, in spite of the circumstances surrounding the purchase, I got a break from life. I'm happy. It works for me.

Beverage:  Raspberry Seltzer

Deb

Concert Tickets

I stopped by Arby's yesterday. I had to go to the hardware store to get garbage/yard waste stickers and to inquire if I can get a second free quart of paint from the upcoming promotion. I took advantage of a free quart to get a color I want to use in the back bedroom, assuming I ever get that far in household chores. But I was looking around my living room, which is painted in colors I really like and I could use a quart of the custom color on the walls for touch ups. I wasn't sure if it's a one-shot deal. The gal at the counter said it wasn't so the next free coupon that comes my way means I'll hie thee to the store for touch up paint. Arby's is one door down from Ace Hardware.

They are doing this promotion where you sent them a photo of special concert cups turned to the artist you'd like to see. You could win VIP tickets to see that artist in concert. The choices are: Trace Atkins, All-American Rejects and Taio Cruz. I've at least HEARD of Trace Atkins.

See, this semi-irritates me. I realize that Arby's has to go with whomever they can find to be a part of a promotion like this. Plus, they have to look at their demographic; where are they most popular and then, by extension, what kind of music does that demographic listen to? And factor in which age group is most likely to actually photograph their drink container and email it. I'm not inclined to photograph and submit the drink container to an online contest. I'm not their target audience.

But what if they gave away tickets to the Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra? What about the Dallas Symphony Orchestra? Or say the Lyric Opera of Chicago? It's hard to imagine, in this day and age of corporate sponsors being pretty much anywhere, that they couldn't find someone other than these three to go along with the whole VIP idea.

A promotion like this doesn't affect, one way or another, the amount of times I go to Arby's. I do think, however, that companies limit themselves when they don't think beyond country, pop and rap. There's a huge audience for other music and just once I'd like to see a company akin to Arby's acknowledge this. Who knows. By offering VIP tickets to something like the Dallas Symphony, they could entice someone who never would consider classical music, exposing them to that vast repertoire and enriching their life.

Yes, I am tempted to send in the above photo, even though it's half-way between Trace Atkins and All-American Rejects. "Well, I couldn't decide," I'd say. But that's not true. I have decided. I decided I'd just drink my soda and chuck the container. I'll take Old Blind Dogs over any of these any day.

Beverage:  Edinburgh's Finest tea

Deb

That's a Lot

The next step in the cat Christmas banner is to get the backing material and sorting through the boxes to see if I have quilt batting. I think this would look so cute if it was quilted to festive fabric with bright trim all around it. I probably have, somewhere, the appropriate fabric in one of the boxes.

I decided my task would be to empty the boxes and reorganize all the fabric. There would be a box for the scraps, for that "someday" quilt, as in "someday, I'm going to make a quilt out of all these scraps". Then I could organize the other fabric by kind or color or amount or something. All the interfacing pieces would go in another box and the bags of stuffing in yet a third. All the boxes would be labeled so I could see, at a glance, whether I have blue fabric anywhere and maybe that box of trims could go inside the box with the interfacings. Ooooh, organization! Since I would be using boxes I purloined from the office which originally held paper, they would all be the same size and would, therefore, stack very nicely in the closet. Mija's been enjoying the flat surface of one box I put in there.

Well, step one in this grand master plan is to clear off the table in the living room. So, let's see. Bill. Bill. Bill. Those go in the office to be paid. (I did that on Sunday.) Half-finished magazine. Sit down and read the rest. Chuck happily into the recycling bin. Rebate information for the wasp spray. That needs to be stuck to the fridge so I can find it. A couple of letters that need to be answered. Into my bag with my stationary so I can find them when I sit down to write.

Now, what's left are the CDs and the CD holder. I've been listening to my music as I travel about and it's time to match up the CDs with the cases and see what's left to listen to.

 

I kept two stacks of cases on the desk in the office behind my computer. Occasionally, I would blow the dust off the top one but it was, pretty much, just a storage spot. "You know," I would tell myself about every 6-8 weeks, "you should sort through this and match up what's in the holder with what you have here." Like the angel and the devil on your shoulder, one side would say, "That's a great idea" while the other side would say, "Yeah, yeah, yeah." You can guess which one usually won that conversation. 

But the need to have a large empty work space won out this time and I moved the giant stack of CD cases to the table to match up with my CDs. (Oh the dust! Man. I had to shake out the dust rag twice, after I moved the stacks.) In the photo above left is Old Blind Dogs Play Live, middle is OBD Close to the Bone, upper right is The Best of the Nat King Cole Trio. I can't tell what the bottom left is. The middle left is Benny Goodman, Best of the Yale Archives, 1936-86 Disc 2, middle right is Preservation Hall Jazz Band Volume 2 and far right is Classical Cats, a Selection of Classical Music with Cats in Mind.  

Once I matched everything up and made sure that the CDs left in the case to be listened to had cases in the stack, I put the filled cases in my CD rack. I have two of them. One is one of those little spinner type things. It's got 4 sides and you spin it to get the CD you want. But, that was not going to hold my collection so I bought this many years ago. 

As you can see, it's almost filled. CDs aren't in any particular order other than the bottom left has non-jazz, non-classical items, such as my Beach Boys Greatest Hits  Manhattan Transfer's Christmas Album, Sons of the Pioneers Greatest Hits, etc. The bottom right has a few of my classical CDs. I have another CD holder that sits on top of something. It's two levels and I have most of the rest of my classical CDs and most of the rest of my Christmas CDs in that. It currently sits in a box. There's really no rhyme or reason to the jazz CDs here. I should come up with something like vocal on one side, instrumental on the other and group all the ones I have by the same artist together. Those are projects for another time.

I wound up with four CDs missing their official cases. I found a bunch of empty cases from a batch I bought some time ago so I had cases and didn't have to get more. I also found 3 cases without the matching CD. They have to be somewhere in the house. I just haven't found that pile. Plus, I found that CD I need to replace because it got soda spilled on it. I wiped it off, but it's never been the same since. I hope I can find it. It's rather obscure. And I found a couple CD's I've never taken out of the packaging. How did that happen?

And that causes me to think about replacing the cassettes I have in another spinner. I have some really good music on cassette that I'd love to have on CD. No no. Not in the budget.

What you can't see is the stack on the back edge of the cedar chest. It's about half as tall as this CD holder. I guess I need another tall CD tower for organization. The problem is, I need space to put another CD tower. That means finally sitting down and dealing with all the stuff sitting on top of the table to my right in the office. I can hear those two on my shoulder arguing. "Just do it. You have been meaning to for years." "Yeah, yeah, yeah." 

Avoidance of the task is an option. I think I'll order pizza. 

Beverage:  Huckleberry tea

Deb

So Worth the Price of Admission

Perhaps you've seen the movie poster to the right. It's the new Pixar movie "Brave" or "Pixar Does Scotland", if you want to be somewhat cynical about it. The Illinois St. Andrews Society did some promotions for the movie and gave away tickets to it at the Highland Games in June. I finally got to see it this past Sunday, with Pam. Now, I have not been to a movie in a theater since Carole took me to see the Star Trek prequel back in May of 2009 when she lived in Seattle. Yeah...I don't get out much.

But, I am sorely tempted to go again. This is a great movie. The premise is something that we see repeated in a lot of movies. The parent and the child are talking but neither are listening. Something happens which changes one or both of them, not for the better. The rest of the movie is spent trying to reverse the change before it becomes permanent. In the process, the two people come to understand each other. The ending evokes tears of happiness and the you see the two people riding off into the sunset, happier than they have ever been.

I really enjoyed what they did with Scotland in this movie. There is no definable place. The landscape is an amalgamation of many Scottish landmarks. There are the "highlands" and the mountains. There is the sea and the lochs. There are the trees and the forests. Celtic iconography is heavily featured. The myths of the Celts showing up throughout the story. There is also the kilt and there is one section which features a creative use of the kilt that left me in stitches.

We stayed to the end to see the cast, many, many actors who are Scots. And the music. Oh the music. It's all original and is distinctly Scottish-influenced. My only "bone" to pick with the the music is that it's the London Symphony Orchestra. They couldn't use the Royal Scottish National Orchestra? I will be getting this soundtrack. It's sort of up-tempo Scottish music but I hope that exposing people to the bagpipes via this will cause them to want to find out more and that will lead them to Scottish traditional music. There's so much out there that deserves a wider audience.

We had quite the adventure ourselves in the theatre. About 45 minutes into the movie, it stopped. An usher appeared and apologized for the loss of power. She advised us that if the movie did not come back in 5 minutes, they would issue refunds. If you did not wish to wait that long, they would issue refunds. Pam and I looked at each other and decided we'd stay. We really didn't have any place to go other than lunch. After about 4 minutes, up comes the movie. It runs for 5-6 minutes and quits. We said another 4 and up comes the movie. It runs another 7-8 minutes and quits. This time, it was down for only 3 minutes but when it came back, there was no sound. Pam had seen the movie the week it came out and the part where we were missing sound wasn't crucial to the plot. This ran for about 6-7 minutes before stopping and restarting with sound. From then on, the movie didn't stop at all. We weren't sure why they had problems but, oh well, we got to see it.

As we were leaving the theatre, after watching the credits for the voice actors and the music, we were met by an usher who gave us free passes. Pam gave hers to me as I had expressed an interest in going to see some of the movies advertised in the previews, movies she's not interested in seeing. We were quite surprised and thanked the guy. We'd stuck through to the end so we weren't expecting any passes.

We were still mulling over the power outages as we got to the front door. With the heat, was this a brown out? That would seem to make sense. Consumption of AC would be huge and a theatre is a large open space that needs a lot of cooling. Once we were outside, we realized heavy storms had rumbled through the area and they were responsible for the loss of power. AMC did not have to give us passes. It was an act of god, so to speak. This is exceptional customer service and the passes don't expire until June of next year. I think I can find a movie to go see before then.

As a person of Scottish ancestry, I like what they did with my homeland. I like the movie. I like the theme. I like that the female lead doesn't need a prince to rescue her. I like the portrayal of family and clan. Go see this. You don't need to buy anything from the concession stand. That's overpriced junk anyway. Just go see the movie. You won't regret it.

Beverage:  English Breakfast tea

Deb

Getting My Scots On

I went to a concert on Sunday night at the Old Town School of Folk Music in Chicago. It's a gem of a place on Lincoln Avenue. If you live in the city, taking the elevated train is the way to get there. If you live in the 'burbs, as I do, you kind of have to drive. Mass transit just isn't a real good option for us. There is a parking lot across the street and some on-street parking but, this being Chicago, finding a free spot can be as much of an adventure as driving there.

I hadn't been feeling very well all day but I've been looking forward to this concert since I got the ticket back in February. I saw The Tannahill Weavers, one of my favorite Scottish folk groups. I stumbled across them about 10 years ago now, right after finding Old Blind Dogs, my favorite Scottish folk group. The Tannies have been around for a long, long time and I've come to the dance late. Even as I wrestled with the idea of just sleeping because that seemed to be what my body wanted me to do, my head kept telling me I would regret not going. So, I listened to my head. It was the right choice.

When I got the ticket, I picked the best seat I could. I honestly didn't know how good my selection was until I got there and found my seat. This is the second row of regular seats, on the end. In front of me were the small tables and chairs they have for sale. It was the perfect spot from which to enjoy traditional Scottish music.

Some observations:  The band used to be 5 members. It's now 4. It doesn't lack for musical power with Les being gone. It means Bill has to sing now whereas, in the past, he used to just play pipes and flute.

They always seem to have a different bagpiper. I don't think I've seen the same guy in any of the 3 other times I've seen them. It's always some cute young gentleman who is 6 1/2 feet tall. I swear. Maybe you can't play the pipes if you're short. I don't know. Roy said Colin, who plays the bagpipes, has doctorates in Zoology and Metallurgy so "If you need your hamster welded, talk to Colin."

The vocals are a bit strained and Roy is showing his age. Some of the songs with notes in the higher registers weren't hit square or weren't even attempted. They played many more instrumental songs than in previous concerts. But, I remember the late Beverly Sills saying, when she announced her retirement, that the spirit was willing but the voice had just aged. It's inevitable. The repertoire changed to reflect this. That means some of the songs I hoped they'd sing, they didn't. But an hour and a half of foot stompin' music with a mix of old and new tunes and I wasn't disappointed.

Roy is really funny. You get the feeling, from the jokes he cracked and the stories he told, that if you got him in a pub with non-stop pints, you would be there for hours, days even, as he spun story after story. They have always played "Jaime Raeburn's Farewell", one of my all-time favorites. In the past, the jokes leading up to this song have been amusing. This year, it was really funny.

"Jaime Raeburn is a transport song. What that means is that Jaime was going to be transported out of Glasgow. We have no idea what he did but it doesn't matter. They sometimes made things up as they went along so you could be transported. See, back then, we didn't have a CSI: Glasgow. Heck, we couldn't have one now. There's no teeth for identification. And the DNA all matches." 

It's infectious music. The venue was not sold out, which is a shame. The crowd was mostly my age, which again is a shame. When you have someone you like, you want people to see and experience it. If the venue isn't filled, will they come back again?

The Weavers played a couple of songs by the man from whom they take their name, Robert Tannahill. He was a contemporary of a certain Robert Burns and is very much overshadowed by Burns. He wasn't as prolific. One of my favorite Tannahill songs they didn't play, The Braes O' Balquidder. I have been working through my pile of magazines about Scotland and had just read a brief biography of Tannahill. I knew the group took their name from him but reading the biography gave his short, tragic life a bit more meaning. Roy said they were so glad he wasn't a "colonic irrigationist" when they were choosing band names.

Scottish life is framed by the '45, the ill-starred attempt by Prince Charlie to take the Scottish crown. The Tannies sang one song written about this rebellion, Cam Ye By Athol. Roy said he grandfather taught him this song and I can see this being handed down verbally since it speaks of riding with Prince Charlie which was treason. Sung Sunday night, it became something of a lament, a sad reminder that the rebellion was doomed from the start and so much of Scotland was crushed with Charlie.

After a standing ovation, they came back for 5 more songs and finally ended with a little ditty by Robert Burns. You know it, but you only know a portion of it. Plus, the music the Tannies use is not the schmaltzy Guy Lombardo-induced strains you're familiar with. "Auld Lang Syne" is on their Best Of 1979-1986 CD and, if you don't have anything by them in your collection, get this one. Just sit and listen to the song. It becomes something else, a good bye to a friend.

I walked out of the concert into a light drizzle and drove home in alternating bands of light and heavy rain. I am so glad I put the "meh" feeling aside. If the Tannies come by you, try to go see them. You don't need to know anything about Scotland or Scottish music to enjoy the concert.

Beverage:  Huckleberry tea

Deb

Visiting Ohio: What I Listened to

When I went to Iowa on the 11th, I decided that trip and this one to Ohio would be good ways to go through the CD holder, listen to music and change what I have in the holder. I tend to listen to the same stuff over and over because I don't want to go through the hassle of finding the jewel cases for what's in the holder and changing the music. But when I've got all this music surrounding me, it should be something I should do. I bought this music because I liked it. Then I should be listening to it.

The trip to Ohio allowed me to listen to 14 different CDs. Of course, my tastes being what they are, three genres were featured: jazz, Scottish and classical.

On the ride out, I started with A Treasury of Artie Shaw. He was a big band leader during World War II, played clarinet. My favorite song on this CD is "Begin the Beguine".
Next was The Tannahill Weavers Collection: Choice Cuts 1987-1996. This is a greatest hits collection. It's a good choice if you aren't familiar with them.
Then was Old Blind Dogs and Tall Tails. While this CD has some catchy tunes; Wife in Ev'ry Port, Pills of White Mercury and Barnyards of Delgaty; it's not my favorite OBD collection. I skip over at least a couple of the songs.
After that was the seminal Miles Davis recording, Sketches of Spain. If you are looking to include some Miles Davis, I strongly recommend this recording.
From there, I went to Gene Harris/Scott Hamilton Quartet and At Last. Gene Harris was a pianist and Scott Hamilton is a saxophonist. It's a nice addition to my jazz collection even if it's not something I might reach for when wanting to play music.
The black CD is The Best of the Rat Pack. This is a collection of music sung by Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin and Sammy Davis Junior. It's what could be termed a 'little ditty' of an album. There are better collections by each of these men, but this is a good way to have something from each. "Me and My Shadow" by Frank and Sammy, is one of my favorites. I play this and remind myself that I need to search out a Sammy Davis, Jr collection. He had a wonderful voice. 
Lastly, on the player as I pulled into the driveway was Legacy by Old Blind Dogs. I like everything on this album but my favorite is "The Snows They Melt the Soonest".

On the way out, I started with the radio but quickly lost the signal as I headed east. Since I don't know any jazz stations close to Youngstown, I simply stayed with CDs all the way home. If I do another road trip, I need to find a listing of radio stations that play jazz in the locations I find myself. Then, carefully copy down the call letters and number and leave that list on the kitchen table as I head out the door.

I started the trip back with Five by Old Blind Dogs. The opening numbers, "Trip to Pakistan" and "Battle of Harlow" are two of my favorites. "Parcel Full o'Rogues" is a lament on the union of Scotland and England. This is the second CD I've owned of this, so that tells you how much I enjoy it.
Next up was Best of the Preservation Hall Jazz Band. Preservation Hall is located in New Orleans, for those who don't know it. They play New Orleans-style Dixieland jazz. This collection has their anthem, "When the Saints Go Marching In". They tour a lot so if they come near you, go see them.
After that, I played Tchaikovsky. This CD holds his "Pathetique" and "1812 Overture" on it. It's hugely ironic that this should come up as I'm just taking the CDs as they are in the holder. We had talked briefly about Tchaikovsky on Sunday night. I did not know he committed suicide by drinking cholera-laced water. People passing me or being passed by me must have wondered as I was "singing" along with the ending of the Overture. "Ba ba ba ba ba ba ba bup ba bah...boom." This is the very familiar overture which, in some settings, can end with cannon fire. A Tympany plays that roll in normal settings.
From there, it was back to jazz and Lionel Hampton with Flying Home (1942-1945). If you have any knowledge of jazz, "Flying Home" is one of the most recognized tunes. This CD has several variations on that theme including the original. For those who don't know, Lionel Hampton was a vibraphonist. He played what you might call a xylophone only it was a lot more than just that. The CD has a queer little number, "Blow Top Blues" sung by Dinah Washington. It's just, well, weird.
Next was Preservation Hall Jazz Band Volume 2. Why only have one collection of hits when you can have two? I recommend the first one and get this one to supplement.
After that, I listened to one of a series, Benny Goodman, Best of the Yale Archives, 1936-1986. When he died in 1986, Benny Goodman left his music notes and tapes to the Yale University Archives. They compiled a series of CD's documenting Goodman's rise from a small trio to a band leader and then back to small group before concentrating on classical music in his later years. This particular CD contains quite a number of his more popular recordings. It does not have his signature song, "Sing, Sing, Sing". I honestly don't remember where I got this and I wouldn't recommend this if you want a collection of Benny Goodman. There are other greatest hits CD's out there or get your hands on the Carnegie Hall concert CD set.
I ended with Nina Simone and Little Girl Blue. Nina Simone had a husky, gravelly voice that may not appeal to some people. She could wrap that voice around a song and change how you perceived it. "I Put a Spell on You" is one of my favorites and I love what she did to "I Loves You Porgy".

Now to put these back in their jewel cases and select some different music for my travels about town.

Beverage:  Edinburgh's Finest tea

Deb

Traveling Music

I had the chance to go to Iowa on Sunday to do a couple of small jobs on Monday. WDCB lasts for about 2 hours as you head west. Then, jazz is nowhere to be found until you get to the Mississippi River and can pick up KCCK out of Kirkwood Community College in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. This time, I remembered my music. Once I get started with CD's, I generally stick with them to my destination.

Here is Sunday's selection. I started at the front of the CD case and played them one after the other without looking to see what was next.

Classical Cats is a selection of classical music which represents the various manners and moods of the feline. It starts with "Morning" from Pier Gynt by Edvard Grieg which represents waking up and stretching in the morning. I don't remember where I got it.

Concord Jazz: Various Artists Collectors Series is just what the name implies. It's a collection of a variety of artists who recorded on the Concord Jazz label. I'd have to find the box to know who is on the CD.

Good Night and Good Luck is the soundtrack from the movie of the same name. Dianne Reeves is the vocalist. She is featured several times in the movie and, at one point, I thought they had interspersed footage of Ella Fitzgerald singing some of the same songs. The jazz standards on this CD are superb. You don't have to care one whit about the movie to like the soundtrack, but the movie is excellent, too.

New Tricks is the first studio release by my favorite Scottish folk band, Old Blind Dogs. I'm not sure which cut is my favorite on this CD, Bennachie or Bedlam Boys.

Coming home on Monday, KCCK lasts far longer than does WDCB, so there is one fewer CD.

Fit? is the 7th CD released by Old Blind Dogs. The CD opens with my favorite Dogs' tune to date, Is There for Honest Poverty?, one of Robert Burns' songs. This is the second CD of this I have owned. I scratched the first one from playing it so often.

Night Lights is a collection of Nat King Cole songs. The opening track, Night Lights, is one of my favorite Cole songs. Some of the songs on this collection are quite dated. To the Ends of the Earth is downright creepy, if you really listen to the lyrics. But I think this is one of my favorite Nat King Cole CD's and I own quite a few.

The Best of The Proclaimers is a compilation of songs by another Scottish group. I'm not sure where they would fall in the pantheon of classifications. You know them because I'm on My Way was used in the movie "Shrek". There are a few songs on this collection I don't like but I wasn't familiar with them before I got this CD so it's a good way to find out about them.

I have a lot of music. I tend to listen to the same CDs when I'm out driving because they have been in the CD case the longest. I decided I will change these 7 now and put something else in their stead. This way, eventually, my music will get cycled through those long lazy drives there and back again.

Beverage:  African Rooibos tea

Deb

Robert Burns

I realize I haven't posted in awhile. I've been really busy and my brain has felt like mush. That's not conducive to coherent thought to say nothing of trying to wrangle the individual words to form a line where I can start with a capital letter and end with a period.

I do want to make note that today is the anniversary of the birth of Scotland's poet Robert Burns. One of the Scottish retailers I follow on Facebook posted this YouTube link last week. The words are Burns' anthem for the common man. The singer is Ian Benzie, co-founder and former lead singer for my favorite Scottish group, Old Blind Dogs.

Enjoy.

Beverage: Edinburgh's Finest Tea

Deb

One Day of Sewing

One afternoon of sewing resulted in this.

It started with tailor's tacks on the darts on the front. Some people use chalk or erasable pencils. I've not found those other methods work any better than good old reliable tailor's tacks. 

The fabric irons very nicely. The back of it is gorgeous, too, which was a selling point when I bought it.

The only real problem is its propensity to unravel. I had two choices in dealing with this, other than leaving it alone and that really wasn't a choice as eventually, the seams would unravel to the stitching.  I could do what's called a "princess seam". First you stitch the wrong sides together in a 1/4 inch seam. Then you fold the fabric over and stitch again the remainder of the 5/8 inch seam. It's more labor intensive but it completely encases the seam and the ends. The problem with this material is the bulk. Folding over again on the seam makes for a lot of fabric in the seam. I tried a scrap and didn't like how it looked on the outside.

So, my other option was zigzag sewing the ends. I like how that worked. It's still kind of time consuming because any edge that is not a hem needs to be zigzagged. Then I go along and trim the frayed edges. 

I'm very pleased with how well this sews. I had a moment of panic as I started because I couldn't remember how to wind a bobbin and I didn't have a bobbin with cream colored thread in it. Thankfully, the instruction manual is in the sewing chest. "Oh yeah! That's right." 

I also had some problems with the initial zigzag attempts but discovered the top thread was just not working right. I replaced it with a lighter weight thread and have had no problems since. I've used up one small spool of cream colored thread and am working with a very pale pink color now. The edge stitching, shown above is cream as it's coming out of the bobbin. I even found a small spool of the green of the dress. It probably won't be enough to sew the dress with, but it might be enough to get started. 

For the most part, the girls hopped up on the table once, to see what I was doing and then left me alone. Pilchard tried to interrupt things but 4 kitty treats convinced her to move along.

Musical accompaniment to the sewing was Joshua Bell, Voice of the Violin; John Coltrane and Johnny Hartman, John Coltrane and Johnny Hartman; Old Blind Dogs, Four on the Floor; and a classical compilation entitled Classical Cats that I've had for years. 

Sleeves and hem are all that are left to do. I think I need to have Pam help me with the hem to make sure it's even. I'm still unsure about the closure at the neck. I think I need to make the dress and see the whole outfit to decide what I should put there. I have it pinned shut for the photo. I have probably 2 more hours of work and it's done. I'm really pleased with how quickly it went together considering I have not sewn in a couple of years. 

Carole had her dress fitting on Thursday and just needs the straps adjusted. I was sent a photo but, no, I'm not posting it. Suffice it to say she looked beautiful. In less than 2 months, this whole event will be a memory. Time has passed so quickly from November when we first walked into that dress shop and she started trying on dresses. 

Beverage:  China Black tea

Deb

Zip-a-Dee Do Dah

John Denver had a song lyric that I like.

Music makes pictures
And often tells stories
All of it magic and all of it true. 

I had a lot of music in the house this weekend. I think the girls were a bit surprised because I'm not one to have a lot of background noise about. The TV isn't on just for the noise factor. The radio only comes on when I have to get up or I goof up on the alarm. I do have the game sounds on and there is music with the game, but it generally isn't loud enough to carry into other rooms. So, having music playing from the DvD player seemed to leave them a bit unsettled. But I felt like music.

On occasion, I would get an email thread from someone with the premise that you would score the movie of your life. What would the music be? The idea behind the email was you'd learn something about the person you sent the email too simply by asking what music they'd like to see behind the movie of their life.

I like jazz and not that smooth jazz that embraces Kenny G, Najee, or Spyro Gyra. I also listen to Scottish folk music as played by The Tannahill Weavers and Old Blind Dogs. I know pop music up through roughly the end of the 1980's and a bit into the early 1990's, but the current pop scene is foreign to me. I also like, for lack of a better description, "old" music, a lot of it Stephen Foster-ish and his ilk. Broadway show toons? Check. Andrew Lloyd Webber? Check. Theme songs from animated movies? Check. It adds up to a lot of material from which my brain has to choose.

Which leads to some of the weird songs I've had kicking around in my head lately. Someone took the term "earworm", which describes a type of worm that burrows into ears of corn, and applied it to that song that gets stuck in your head; you know, the one you can't get rid of. It's an apt appellation. Lately, songs stuck in my head have ranged from "A Cockeyed Optimist" from South Pacific to "Keeping the Faith" by Billy Joel to "Bra' Sailin'" by Old Blind Dogs to "Peel Me a Grape" by Diana Krall. That's quite the repertoire. I was thinking about the title to this post and suddenly, I heard Uncle Remus saying, "This is one of those 'zip-a-dee-do dah days, the kind where you can't open your mouth without a song zippin' right outta it." I don't know about my bursting into song, but my brain certainly did. And I could do a lot worse than hearing the upbeat

Zip-a-Dee Do Dah, Zip-a-Dee Ay
My, oh my, what a wonderful day.
Plenty of sunshine heading my way.
Zip-a-Dee Do Dah, Zip-a-Dee Ay.

Never mind that it's overcast and warm enough to make the snow melt straight into fog. You have to be cold of heart not to hear that and feel warm.

My earworms are certainly situational. Overwhelmed, I can conjure up songs of abandonment. Jazz is really good for that. "But Not For Me" seems to be one of my brain's favorites. "Blue Moon" is a jaunty melody that comes up a lot. "Piano Man" turns up because I wrote a parody to it for World of Warcraft last year. Plus, I like the fact I know ALL the words, including the stanza from the long version of the song.

I guess because I have a son-in-law in the Navy, I've had the anthems, with words, to all the military branches. We had to learn those when I was in school. Show of hands. Who knows the words to "Roll on Columbia"? I do. How about "I Love to Go A'Wandering"? Some 25-odd years ago, I remember reading an article stating that so much music, which would be considered "folksy" was in danger of being lost because it's not taught in school. Well, that gets into the whole cutback issue and what are you going to cut first, music programs or football? Let's not get into that here.

In grade school, we had music 3 times a week. In middle school, you could have it daily; chorus 2 times and band 3 times a week. It was the same in high school unless you were in multiple choruses and the band. I had music 2 times a day 3 days a week. We sang more difficult pieces. I sang a piece by an Italian composer. My music director had to contact his alma mater for someone to come spend 2 hours after school with me so I could sing the piece in Italian. I have no memory of whether we knew what I was singing about. He just wanted me to perform it "properly". It certainly wasn't "Shenandoah".

"Music paints pictures and often tells stories." Music gives my life another dimension. I played Dizzy and the CD David gave me for Christmas (Miles Davis and John Coltrane) and some Benny Goodman and Ella. I'm missing a Tannies CD but "Four on the Floor" filled the house with Uileann pipes and Jonny Hardie's fiddle. Music makes doing laundry or dishes or cleaning kitty litter and finding tax information more than a little bearable.

Beverage:  Dr Pepper

Deb

Happy Music

Music hath charms to soothe a savage beast, to soften rocks, or bend a knotted oak.

--William Congreve

Such a familiar quotation, but it's true. What you are listening to says a great deal about who you are.

Everyone knows I listen to jazz. My parents listened to singers who have been given the moniker "crooners"; Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Perry Como, Bing Crosby. They grew up in the 1950's, when the solo jazz artist was in his prime. Swing's time had passed with the end of World War II. People listened to music. I remember my father, who couldn't carry a tune in a dump truck, singing all these jazz standards to the cows as he milked them. It doesn't seem at all a stretch to be a jazz lover now. "Lady What-ga"? Rap? Isn't that another term for knocking on something, like a door?

I fire up my iMac, turn on iTunes and let the music flow. I have a little over 5 days worth of music. In true collector form, there a number of tunes for which I have 4 or 5 versions, my favorite jazz standard, "April in Paris", is an example. My iTunes play list probably consists of 70% jazz in some form and the rest in classical, pop, celtic, folk, Christmas, movie music and other eclectic categories.

When I'm contemplative, there is nothing like Copeland, Mussorgsky, Grieg or Joshua Bell. I don't usually have music playing when I read because I find myself pulled towards interaction with the music when I have chosen interaction with the printed word. When I play World of Warcraft, the games sounds and musical snippets get repetitive, so I'll turn on my iTunes, set the sort for some category and let it go. In the summer, if I'm sitting on the deck, I'll some times crank up the volume on the computer, which sits right by the window, and pump Ella and Louis and Frank and Dizzy out into the atmosphere. The Beach Boys can't be beat for driving around Chicago with the top down on a July Sunday.

As I'm cleaning my house in preparation for a visit from my daughter, I've had 'happy' music on. Generally, this consists of peppy jazz, Count Basie and Duke Ellington, Artie Shaw and Benny Goodman with some Glenn Miller thrown in for good measure. But I also include my favorite Scottish band, Old Blind Dogs, in the category of 'happy' music. The skirl of the pipes, the bouzouki, the fiddle make a nice counterpoint to buffing windows, dusting pictures and door frames and sorting and shredding mountains of papers.

I was listening to WDCB, College of DuPage. Last night, I turned on the radio before going to bed, just to unwind. They were running promos of upcoming programs and this music came out of my radio in response to a promo for "Mountain Stage". It was peppy. It was bouncy. It was happy. Who is this? Pine Leaf Boys. Never heard of them.

So, this morning, I did some research. Oh man. I will have to find a way to get one of their CDs. I could play this music a lot. Give them a listen. Go to the "Media" tab and click on the videos. This is infectious music. I see they were at the Old Town School of Folk Music in Chicago, the venue where Carole and I saw a lot of Old Blind Dogs. I couldn't afford to attend a concert there right now, but Chicago has a lot of free festivals during the summer. Maybe they will turn up on the venue for one of them. I'm thinking, like OBD, listening to them live is much more of an experience.

Tonight, I work on the living room. Maybe some Nat King Cole?

Beverage: China Black Tea

Deb

Post Concert

This is the program. Yes, it's the same as the photo below. Artists tend to choose something and stick with it.

It was not a standing room only crowd. I think the weather may have played a role in that. It started snowing at 2 and didn't end until after I was home at 11:00. We wound up with 2-3 inches when we were supposed to get a dusting. Of course, that's nowhere near what east of us got. Had that kind of storm hit here, I'm sure there wouldn't have been a concert. We might be better able to handle snow than in the east, but that doesn't mean 2 feet is a walk in the park for us either.

Pam and I went to IHOP, not to be confused with iMac, iPod, iPhone or iPad (what a ridiculous name). The one in Wheaton has always been good for us. They were short staffed unfortunately. It's got to be hard to balance out your servers in this economy. They were busy on Friday night and didn't have enough staff to serve everyone and check people out in a timely fashion. But, I'm willing to bet, on a Tuesday night, you have servers standing around. Fortunately, we had time to spare so we could wait.

We had main floor, right side seats. There were tee shirts, baseball caps, pins, CDs and big programs for purchase. Members of both groups mingled with the incoming crowd before, during and at intermission. I really couldn't think of anything witty to say to any one of them and didn't have questions.

Both groups are superb. The Irish band is what could be termed a "traditional" military band, mostly brass. They had one saxophone, 3 clarinets, a marching bassoon, and one lone piccolo player who was female. She was the ONLY woman amongst the two bands. I did wonder if women were allowed to join the Scottish group or if they have held firm in tradition with this being men only. The Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders, 5th Battalion Royal Regiment of Scotland is part of an active British military unit whose members have done tours of duty in Iraq and Afghanistan. Part of the CD sales was going to Afghan relief efforts as part of the regiment is due to return to Afghanistan in August.

This name seemed somewhat familiar to me although I have never heard a Scottish pipe band live. As I was reading through the program, it mentions that in 2002, the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders were merged into the Royal Regiment of Scotland. Ah yes. I remember the furor this caused in the Scottish magazines I read. The 91st Argyllshire Highlanders and the 93rd Sutherland Highlanders were distinct units until 1881, when they were merged. The 93rd gained world-wide distinction in the Crimea in 1854 with the battle of Balaklava. Although vastly outnumbered by Russians, the Regiment repulsed an attack above the town. A British correspondent described the men as a "Thin Red Streak Tipped with a Line of Steel". It's from his reporting that we derive the expression, "Thin Red Line".

The music was lively and very emotive. People say they hate bagpipe music, that you might as well be squeezing cats. What they are reacting to is the learning process that gets you to what we heard last night. In the hands of someone who is intimately familiar with the craft, a bagpipe is an amazing instrument. Good players can produce over and under tones of great diversity. It was mentioned that these men are trained and the music produced showed that training. They did an amazing drum line set where they tossed and exchanged drum sticks.

The Irish band played traditionally arranged military band music. Both groups marched around the smallish stage. One John Phillips Sousa march was included in the program as well as the marches of the Army, Marines, Navy, Air Force, Coast Guard and Merchant Marines. Veterans or active duty personnel from each branch were asked to stand during their respective march.

The Highland Fling was performed along with the sword dance. Young men did the dancing. This is the same material you will see if you attend a Highland dance competition. It requires precision and a knowledge of the correct moves. One of the young men doing the dance looked visibly nervous.

They ended the program with a solo piper playing Amazing Grace, then a group rendition of Auld Lang Syne and a faster version of Scotland, the Brave.

It was an exceptionally good concert. A few people wore tartan. I saw only one man in a kilt but I did see several people in trewes, tartan pants. And to answer the unasked, but I know you're thinking it, I have no idea. The way they marched and danced, it was designed not to show the audience anything. These guys are trained professionals. I dare you to don a kilt and try those high marching steps at home.

If this tour comes close to you in any way, I recommend you go. It's well worth the money to see them. All the men we chatted with were very personable and you can tell they love what they do. They enjoyed explaining to kids the nuances of their respective uniforms, what all the medals and stripes and various elements meant. It's an exceptional 2 hours of music. I knew quite a few of the Scottish tunes played and a couple of the Irish tunes. Plus, they play music everyone has heard in some form so you'll find something you recognize. I'm very, very glad Pam invited me. It was a lot of fun.

Beverage: Cranberry Grape Juice

Deb

I'm getting out of the house.

Pam and I are going to see this tonight. I'm excited. My kilt is in need of a cleaning and it's a mite nippy to be wearing a skirt so I probably won't wear that. But I'm thinking of a red sweater with my clan sash over it. I have to wear something tartan.

There will be a review later.

Beverage: Assam tea

Deb

February 5, 2010

Band of the Irish Guards and the Royal Regiment of Scotland come to Wheaton

The Artist Series at Wheaton College presents the Band of the Irish Guards and the Royal Regiment of Scotland in a performance Friday, February 5 at 8 p.m. Noted for their excellence and steeped in traditions of music and military service, the groups visit Wheaton on their debut tour of the United States.

The performance will take place in Edman Chapel, located on the northeast corner of Washington and Franklin Streets in Wheaton (campus map). Ticket prices range from $39–$53 for general audience with discounts for students and seniors over 60.

As a pre-concert event, Dr. Gene Green, Wheaton College Professor of New Testament and bagpiper with the Chicago Highlanders, will present a lecture titled “Twelve Clansmen and a Bagpipe Make a Rebellion: The History, Mechanics, and Music of the Great Highland Bagpipe.” This event is free and open to the public and begins at 6:45 p.m. in room 339 of Blanchard Hall, located at 501 College Avenue in Wheaton (campus map).

For more information, or to order concert tickets, call the Ticket and Information Office at 630.752.5010. Online orders may be placed through Wednesday February 3 at www.ArtistSeries.org.

Monochromatic Suburban Music

In shopping yesterday, I wanted to get a couple of jazz albums. They have had airplay on WDCB 90.9 FM. Granted, WDCB is a public station and is located in a suburban Chicago junior college campus, but the albums in question should have a wider fan base as they are current. It's not like I'm looking to replace my Fred Astaire cassette tape, although that would be a nice idea, replace all my jazz cassettes with CDs of the same album.

Does anyone even say "album" anymore or does that seriously date me?

Anyway, the mall where I was at only had one store selling any kind of music, f.y.e. I walked in and could not find the jazz CD's. They were way in the back corner. There were only two sections for jazz. It could be worse. I could prefer blues. There was only one section for that.

I was looking for Eliane Elias' Bossa Nova Stories and Patti Austin's For Ella. How hard can this be?

Well, maybe I should have looked to replace a couple of my Ella Fitzgerald tapes because everything they had would be considered either smooth jazz (gag) or born before 1935. The clerks were busy with customers so I was able to sneak out. I didn't want them to offer to order something because I don't want to have to drive all the way up to Woodfield Mall to get music.

The Pop/Rock section was huge. It was such a disappointment not to have any selection to even browse. I might wander over to the Border's here in Wheaton as they tend to have a larger selection of jazz versus Pop/Rock.

I remembered a store at Oakbrook Mall. It was nothing but jazz and classical music, about 2/3rds jazz and 1/3rd classical. At Christmas, I would take a note pad and write down my top 10 wants. There were always people in the store, but it closed after about 3 years. There was another one tucked away in a corner that was heavy into jazz but they lasted only 18 months.

It just seems the music offering in the suburbs is strictly what's featured on the top 40 radio stations. Shortly after Carole and I heard Old Blind Dogs on a public radio station in Iowa, we were able to go to Tower Records and buy their CD's The World's Room and Fit?. We ordered the rest of their available CD's through Amazon.uk. Now, I order them off the band's web site. But, if I were looking for something I heard on "Blarney on the Air" on WDBC on Monday nights, I'd be really hard pressed to find it through traditional outlets. There's a celtic music store in Villa Park, which is a 15 minute drive east, assuming I can remember where they are when I get there.

Maybe it's just my age and my curmudgeonlyness. I think it does a disservice to people when they aren't exposed to a wide variety of music. I was extremely lucky in having a father who loved early Frank Sinatra, Rosemary Clooney, Bing Crosby and the like. My mother has this wonderful collection of 78's with jazz music from the late 1950's. These are songs you don't hear, not even on WDBC which play all jazz (except 'smooth', whatever that is) so has millions of songs available from the early days of jazz through today, as witnessed by the two CD's I linked above. Jazz is still very alive with performers recreating the standards and writing new and interesting material. Having this available to the consumer expands the fan base.

There's a reason Eliane Elias and Diana Krall pose seductively on the covers of their CD's. They know people will pick it up based on the cover alone.

The urge to possess these CDs has passed. I thought I would reward myself with some music and that was not to be. I did get something else not of the chocolate persuasion. I have Halloween M&M's with peanuts on top of the fridge so my chocolate needs are satisfied for now.

Maybe at the end of the month, I'll check on music. It's not like I don't have any music. If I played everything stored on my mac, it would take, currently, 5 and a half days to get through and I haven't uploaded ALL my jazz CDs to the Mac. Carole has more than me, I believe.

Now, if you will excuse me, I'm going to do some writing to the dulcet tones of Artie Shaw's Greatest Hits.

Beverage: Huckleberry tea

Deb