DawgTalkers.net Forums DawgTalk Everything Else... POSITIVE things from today

near the Aleutian Islands or North toward the Strait ? you said fishing so I assume you weren't picking up Crab cages.

Sure is Beautiful ... Lucky you

My 'good thing for the day':

Jim came over for drinks tonight. He brought his son with him- My Buddy Mitch.
Mitch is 15.

Mitch has autism.


Mitch doesn't talk. He rarely looks you in the eye. He follows his impulses wherever they take him. As he's grown from a young pup to an adolescent Dawg, his medications have been continuously adjusted for age, weight, behavioral condition and growth spurts. He's now 6'0", and has recently shot up in height and weight. His docs are adjusting his meds, but that's a slow-ish and incremental process.

Needless to say, MitchMan's last few visits to our house have been pretty chaotic and frenetic. Tonight was promising to be another of the same.

__________________


I have an upcoming gig that has been keeping me behind my cello for hours a day. It's a string quartet written by Chick Corea, the Jazz/Fusion artist known for his pioneering work with Miles Davis and his groundbreaking group Return To Forever ... and this piece is challenging as Hell. The cello hasn't been in its hard case for 5+ days. I obsessively run to it whenever I have a performance-related panic attack. It's the last thing I interact with at day's end- and it's the first thing I interact with after my first cup of coffee.

When Jim called to say that he & Mitch were on their way, My Wife and I went into "MitchPrep Mode": hiding all the objects he obsesses over, setting up the TV/DVD player to play his foverite DVD's, getting out the microwave popcorn, etc.

BUT: during our usual "MitchPrep Protocol," I forgot to pack away my 1920's-era Italian cello... a 30K sonic/artistic investment made 20 years ago that is now worth a very phat 6 figures....

_____________


Jim and Mitch arrive. Jim has spent his first 10 minutes chasing 'Mitchamaniac' all over our house... and has finally corralled him in the living room- all while I'm struggling to control Bella (our 100+ lb. Rottwieler/Doberman mix who loses her freakkin' mind whenever Jim shows up) and mix Jim his Old Fashioned.

Typical visit so far.

Then, I hear Jim shout: "Mitchie- NO!!!".... and hear the sound of my cello rolling over from its resting posture (on its side) to a position I can only call: "face down." When I get to the living room, Jim is on the couch, basket-cradling this 6 ft. tall 'child' who is now crying... because he doesn't know what he did wrong, and why there is now so much drama surrounding him.

The cello is fine. No damage at all. I pick it up, and get ready to rush it into the case (where it should have been anyway, btw...) BUT-

I stopped dead in my tracks.

I went to the mantle that hangs above our fireplace, and grab my bow. I tighten it, sit down... and play 'The Barney Theme' for him ("I love you, you love me... we're a perfect family"...).

Instantly, this overgrown kid "slowed his roll." He relaxed into his father's arms, focused his gaze on my instrument...


...and sang, in perfect unison with the notes I was playing for him.

He knew the song.
He knew the key.
...and he matched me, note for note, approximating Barney's words as best he could.

His smile lit up the entire room. Everyone stopped dead in their tracks, while this "special needs" kid sang a perfectly in-tune duet with His Friend.

When I finished the Barney theme, I played some simple Christmas carols. Mitch loves Christmas.

I finished with some Bach... and I took note of his body language, as he followed the contours of the musical lines.

______________________

I've played my stupidly expensive cello onstage with some of Classical Music's most heralded virtuosi. I've played works that changed 20th century Classical music under the gaze of the composers who wrote that music. I've even been fortunate enough to perform on the stage of Carnegie Hall... and none of those experiences came close to producing the 'goosebump effect' that this moment gave me... when I gave MitchMan his own personal recital this evening.

I must have played for 15-20 minutes tonight. All for My Friend.
'Barney tunes,' Songs from The Muppets TV shows, Simply-written timeless Christmas carols, J.S. Bach...

Mitch swayed in (perfect) time to the music.
He tried to dance... even as his dad held him in that 'basket hold' on the couch.
He actually focused on THE CELLO ITSELF... and the 'magic' that it was introducing to his ears.


When his personal recital was finished, and I had put the cello away, MitchMan jumped up from his father's lap, raced to the dining room (where the cello is now safe in its hard case).... and knocked on the front hatch. Then, he pointed at the case with his right hand... and pointed to his ear with his left hand.

I totally understood what he was telling me.

I said to him: "Next time you come, MitchMan... I'll play for you. I'll play for you every time."

...and this kid, this Human Being who is forever imprisoned in a world that closes his mind off to 90% of what we rely upon as social creatures...
...dragged me into an embrace that I will remember when I'm lying upon my death bed, years from now.

The same sounds that took me from an impoverished Midwestern neighborhood to the stage of Carnegie Hall, helped me to find a new depth of kinship with a loved one who has never had a true verbal conversation with me.


I love the fact that My Life is centered in the unifying language of Music. I love the fact that I can speak to others in a language that they can sense, understand, and FEEL- even when words fail us. I love that Mitch & I have another way to bond with each other... even if we can never have a good talk like I do with my fellow Dawgs here at this website.

Tonight, My Friend Mitch reminded me of the real reason that I do this crazyazz thing for a living.


Tonight was a very good night to be Clemdawg.

I am positive I just threw up a little in my mouth YUK

Great story, Clem!
It amazes me, the power of music and how it affects us. Gets inside us. Music makes you cry, makes you smile, makes you pump your fist in the air and makes you WANNA FREAKIN DANCE!!

Music has magic.

This summer I saw a Canadian rock band - Honeymoon Suite - who were big up here in the 80s and still tour in the summer. It was an outdoor festival and I noticed a lot of people in their 40s and 50s who were smiling and singing along.
But what was REALLY cool was the two teenage girls who were near me, they too were smiling and singing and knew all the words and dawg, for some reason that made me feel great. It was of the coolest moments I've had in awhile and I don't even know why.

I'll stop babbling now.

Posting this from my iPad.

So positive thing, I'm at the playground currently. Daughters doing kid stuff with other kids. There's an hugarian meet up group of moms here. Typical suburbia stuff.

Fight breaks out, outta nowhere. I understood "you're only here cause Ted knocked you up and you got your visa".

I absolutely loved it. All the kids had this look of confusion, dads in the corner laughing our asses off. I guess the guy named Ted runs over to the playground from the parking lot.

Yells at his wife, then walks off after saying "this is why I should've married a black chick".

I can't stop laughing. Best entertainment in months.

I'm not sure that's a positive. In fact it isn't.

I'm assuming that was to Swish?

Anyway, positives from this weekend:

Visited friends, at the lake. Always a good time.

Spent most of the day on the lake today. 6 adults (if I include myself), 5 kids, ages 17 down to 11. In the swimming area, tossing footballs (plural) and frisbee somehow became "throw the ball at the people that aren't looking", and no one got hurt.

Sooga and I, unfortunately, had to leave this evening to get home so she could be at volleyball practice at 8 a.m.

It sucks we had to leave right after supper, and in the process, miss another day on the lake.

Positive? She and I had 1 hour and 45 minutes to ourselves. No friends around, no mom around - just us, in the vehicle, for 105 minutes. (well, dummy the dog was with us as he is not fond of the lake. Only other time he'd been there was over the 4th of July - and people were lighting off fireworks - LOUD stuff...back then, he was petrified, and apparently his memory is good as he didn't want to even be outside.) Dummy was originally going to stay there, with my wife an others, but we nixed that.

Sooga and I had good "father daughter" communication. Nothing deep, although we spent a few minutes on her friend that made an attempt a couple of weeks ago. But we also had lighthearted conversation, conversation about stuff from last month, and 5 years ago.

When we got home, the plan was to feed Dummy (giving him ample time to decide to drop a load outside, later), me do laundry, and her take a shower so she's ready for practice.

When we got home, the plan took effect: She fed Dummy, I unloaded the vehicle. She went to take a shower and yelled "DAD!!! We don't have any water!!" She was right. Not even a drip.

We're on a well, so I checked what I could - breakers, pressure gauge, etc......no, we don't have water.

Decided to take her up to grandma's to shower. Put Dummy in the kitchen, since he's had an issue or 2 with eating carpet if no one is home. Penned him in, (right after he had eaten) and off we went.

Shower done, we headed home, only to find that Dummy shat in the kitchen, and apparently has learned how to jump the gate - he met us at the door.

Left vacation early. Found out we have no water. Dummy can now escape the kitchen. Yet Sooga and I still laughed. (glad my wife wasn't here with us, these kinds of things put her on edge, to say the least.)

Today I mowed my lawn w/ my first-ever all-mine, brand new mower. And I enjoyed it! Sweat and all . . .

Up til today I've only ever mowed lawns w/ my dad's mowers, other people's mowers, or my father in law's used one that he gave us when we bought our fist house.

I got invited to tag along for more subsistence related activities today.

We went across the sea in a boat, found some tundra, barreled down sloughs, and a son shot at some ducks while his father drove the boat.

What I'm feeling right now goes beyond words. I love my job out here.

This weekend I added more students to my roster that I teach privately so more money for me =)

I had a good day at work today, plus it's my wife's birthday and she loved what I got her. She wasn't expecting them. Nothing major, I didn't buy her a Porsche, just little things she appreciated.

Daughter's freshman team won tonight, and Sooga played a heck of a game. 6 good, hard spikes. Her serving was great, her sets were dead nuts on, and her bumps were accurate.

The highlight of her night? (well, her's, the team, and the jv team - the varsity team was in the locker room)? They got a picture with some guy named Zack Roerig. He's from Montpelier, OH, (the team they played tonight)

Apparently he's an actor and has the role of Matt Donovan on some show called "The Vampire Diaries". (he's been in some other stuff as well, I guess. I've never heard of the vampire diaries myself.

Anybody heard of him, or the show?

Steelers lost. That's always a positive.

"Chamber Music" performances are what I live for, these days.

From Wikipedia:

" Chamber music is a form of classical music that is composed for a small group of instruments—traditionally a group that could fit in a palace chamber or any small chamber. Most broadly, it includes any art music that is performed by a small number of performers, with one performer to a part. However, by definition it usually does not include solo instrument performances.

Because of its intimate nature, chamber music has been described as "the music of friends".[1] For more than 100 years, chamber music was played primarily by amateur musicians in their homes, and even today, when most chamber music performance has migrated from the home to the concert hall, many musicians, amateur and professional, still play chamber music for their own pleasure. Playing chamber music requires special skills, both musical and social, that differ from the skills required for playing solo or symphonic works.[2]"

______________

I love Chamber Music because of The Challenge: MY instrument's sound is represented by only me when the music gets played. It's very, very different than being 'a soldier in the infantry.' It's like being a soloist... but you still have to work your individual sound into the group's whole.

Chamber Music performances require the most delicate of balances:

1. Be a soloist, when the music requires you soar.
2. Be an accompanist, when the music demands that you play a subordinate role.

Sometimes, these musical demands require that you 'change roles' on a dime: soloist, backup, soloist again. It's like being a WR on a team... sometimes, you're the 'decoy.' Sometimes, you're the 'go-to guy' At ALL times, you have to 'sell-out' your role... so that the team can win the game.

I love Chamber Music, because it requires EVERYTHING I've ever learned in my years as a musician: soloist, accompanist, and 'team player' combined. NOTHING pushes me harder than this format... and I loves me a challenge.

____________________

This weekend, I'm playing a piece that was written by Chick Corea... that keyboardist/composer/ Jazz/Fusion artist that used his tenure in the Miles Davis Quintet... and took "Jazz" to an entirely new market of consumers who only knew Rock before.

One month ago, I was part of a ground-breaking initiative in my little minitropolis: we played ALL FIFTEEN of Dmitri Shostakovich's string quartets in one long-ass musical marathon. Noon til 10PM.

15 individual works. 20 different playaz, some doing double-duty. (Yours Truly played FOUR separate works with 2 different lineups)

Slam-dunked it! From noon 'till 10:00 PM. All in one day. Never been done before... ever.

This week, I've been putting together Corea's "Adventures Of Hipprocrates"... and My Peeps and me are gonna KILL IT. Dead, yo.

Tonight's rehearsal is the kind of 'under the scenes' work that is ALWAYS done... when ticket-buyers show up on Concert Day.... and expect a well-thrown-down performance.

Y'all can't even begin to comprehend how much work goes into The Finished Product... but I can.

Trust me: The Final Product is only a by-product of what draws me (and others like me) to do what you see on Concert Night. 'The Real Draw' for us, is THE PROCESS that takes place when we start preparing for the gig.

Sorry to disillusion you, but:
"The Actual Gig" is usually a letdown for us. It means that The Process has ended... and we have to start all over again.

-------------------

That said... I'm having a BLAST working with my colleagues on such a chhallenging and rewarding project.

Chick's gonna rule this concert.


My Peeps are going to make this happen.

I woke up snuggled in a nice warm cozy bed with the love of my life. It's going to be a wonderful day

Yeah, I woke up next to my Schnauzer too.

positive thing today was visiting a small display of exotic animals - pythons, a rat snake, lizards, caimans, tarantulas and a scorpion. Had never seen any of those critters before, snapped a couple pics and said " I'm so glad I get paid to do this"

My positive today? I got to sleep in. Then I got to watch the Bucks win, and Bowling Green win, and the Rockets of U.T. win.

Plus, Dummy the dog and I spent most of the day together. No wife, no daughter - just me and the dog.

Didn't get done half of what I planned to get done - but, it didn't have to be done today.

I can mow monday. I can trim monday. I can restack wood monday or tuesday.

CLEVELAND BROWNS FOOTBALL

Been up since 3 am waiting

positives.

it's browns football!!!!!

Pinch me it's Football Sunday!

My positives began Friday night when my son had an outstanding game in their first win. (He starts at L guard for a D1 school in a league where our team is severely outmatched). Constantly matched up against a DT that was a whole head taller than him and he shut him down and blew holes open. Then UT and BGSU pulled out huge upsets yesterday. Hoping the Browns can make it 3 days in a row of football positivity.

I didn't wake up in a cold sweat or wake up puking from nightmares about the game yesterday.

Niece had a home soccer game that allowed me to finally go to watch, for a little bit. She's a freshman, playing varsity. The volleyball games and soccer games seem to be on the same nights, but tonight, I got to watch her for a little bit. Man, that's a heck of a lot of running.

Wife made meat loaf for supper. Venison meat loaf. Out of a deer I killed. 2 lbs of meat loaf, and I ate 1 lb myself.

Had corn also, from our garden.

And taters. Probably from Idaho.

Played a piece by a music idol of mine in concert yesterday. I've been a huge fan of Chick Corea since I was a teen/20something. He wrote a piece for string quartet (2 violins, viola, cello) that was fully in his style: angular melodies, great harmonies, sophisticated (read: insane) rhythms... just like his Fusion music of the 70's/80's. I've been geeked about this for months.

I had to give the impromptu address before the performance. Got a whole 24 hours to prepare for it. Talked for about 3-4 minutes, and actually managed to give them some history about Chick's beginnings with Miles Davis, some personal history of my fanboy status, a general outline of the structure of the piece and some backstory about how it came to be. Actually got some laughter (at all the right places)... and a smattering of applause at the end of my address.

Played the piece down pretty much like we rehearsed it. A couple of rough edges in 2-3 tiny spots, but nailed at least 90% of what we wanted to do... and we were well-received by the audience.

I don't know if the concert will have a published review, but the local rag's concert reviewer was in attendance. She grabbed me at intermission, and gushed about the piece, our performance, and its send-up by me. "You really sold the work in your remarks... I were totally sucked in- and we couldn't wait to hear the music!" (The reviewer shares a bistro-type table with 3 other 'egghead music intellectual types' at these concerts... I've often wondered if her published reviews aren't an amalgam of observations they've all shared over drinks after the concerts...)

The conversation with Ms. Reviewer concluded. I'm still trying to make my way to the elevator. I need to put this 'hand-crafted wooden retirement fund' back in its case, you know? Then this guy walks up to me. He's a little guy- slim, about 5'9". Dude's rocking a black beret, an impossibly well-tailored Italian suit, with an impeccably-trimmed Van Dyke... you know- the kind that features a waxed-tipped flared moustache separated from the perfectly-pointed chin beard (think: The Three Musketeers... or maybe a late 70's/early 80's TV movie version of Satan...)

Dude's reserved, but enthusiastic... in that "I'm too cool for school, but I'm really pumped right now" kind of way.

He introduces himself as "Rory"- and proceeds to tell me this:

"I've been a friend of Chick's for over 25 years. When I get home, I'm going to e-mail him about your quartet's excellent performance tonight, and your inspirational words about what his music has meant to you over the years. He LOVES hearing about how his music touches people- and he'll love hearing about tonight. If he wants to get your contact information, can he get it from [insert name of my employer here]?"

I thanked him for coming out to the gig, and told him that I was available (without giving any personal info) to his friend through the proper channels.... and that I looked forward to seeing him again at future concerts.

_________________

Last night was the epitome of why I do this crazyazz, unconventional thing for a living:

1. No two days are ever the same on the job.
2. You meet the most interesting people at the job site.
3. Every gig has the potential of leading to something totally new, and as yet unforeseen.

For a 'social weirdo,' there can be no more stimulating way to live one's life.

__________

Maybe there will be a positive concert review.
Maybe there won't be a review at all.
Maybe Rory is a full-of-it 'concert stalker'... and I'll have to deal with him in the future. Or not.
Maybe Rory really IS a friend of Chick's- and I get an e-mail or phone call from him in the future.

Any way it plays out, last night was a positive. Good things happened because Human Beings came together from everywhere to share great music at the same time, in the same place.

When one considers the randomness of Life, coupled with the destructive/reductive qualities of entropy... it's a wonder that a night like this could ever be pulled off. (BTW: the other acts on the night CRUSHED IT, as well...)

Sunday was one of those: "I can't believe I actually do this for a paycheck" nights.


I believe that ALL of us deserve a few workdays like this. If your job doesn't provide you with at least a few days like this over the span of a career.... perhaps you should latch onto the vocation that fits your passion- and go for it.
If you get paid to do what you love, you'll never 'work' another day in your life.

Last night, I 'played' with some good friends. We had Big Fun... in front of others.
Last night, those 'others' enjoyed watching us play together.. and joined in at the right times. The fun was shared by all. Powerful stuff.
Last night, I shared The Thing I Love with others- in Real Time.
Last night, hundreds of people got to experience something profoundly personal... while also sharing it with others in a totally communal setting. That's nothing short of miraculous, if you ask me.

Last night was one to write down in the 'positive' side of the ledger.

Last night was a good night to be Clemdawg.

The large hole in my belly is starting to seep less and heal up a little bit, and I am going to take the motorcycle out today

At work and the vending machine has a

LANCES PEANUT BAR.

WAHOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Harken back to my childhood sdays when the old man was bowling on Thursday nights at IDORA Lanes in Ytown. I was allowed one peanut bar and two cokes to last me through watching him bowl three games.

Miss ya Dad

Nice post man. That was a positive thought, remembering your dad like you did.
Best part of my day has been the last hour or so.... home from work, wife went to bed and I'm playing guitar, screwing around with my les Paul. Not very good mind you, but making noise and relaxing. Finally.

came home from school. wife had made Quesadillas for lunch, then surprised me with some new J's.

You got some new jammies? Do they have race cars on them or baseballs?

Jordans, man. lol.

i loved it because i never owned a pair before, never wanted to spend the money on them, plus there's too many to keep up with. But my wife always ends up getting me something i absolutely love.

Keep her happy. Good women are getting harder to come by these days.

j/c

Picked my daughter up from practice. A neighbor girl, much young (maybe 6 or 7?) is a manager for the varsity team.

Sooga told me she said "Hey, do you know you're my neighbor?" The girl said "Oh. Do you have a white dog?"

Sooga said "yeah, why?"

Girl said "I saw him the other day. He was at our house. Who walks him, your dad or your grandpa?"

LOL

You should carry around lollipops with you and hand them out to the kiddies when you walk your dog, gramps.

Hahaha!

Here's a positive thing: I just put a poster, who is a troll IMO, on ignore!

First time I've ever done that but my life feels a tad bit better!

damn cuz why you did me like that?

Because I don't want to read your posts. lol

Harsh much, Dawg?


Daaang, Swish. I guess this makes you: