Category Archives: Family

Family

The Sibs

Leave a comment

Beltane                                                                 New (Early Growth) Moon

Wish someone could tell me why the internet or the microphone or the video camera decides to not co-operate when I’m about to call my brother and sister.  Rationally, I know I notice it most when it interferes with something I’m about to do, but it sure seems like some mildly annoying other-world cyber creature gets its kicks on those days.

(Vishnu)

Resolved though and was able to talk to Mary and Mark.  Mark’s navigating a flare-up in his school, apparently not uncommon in Arab related ESL institutions.  A friend of Mary’s who spent 20 year in the Middle East has told her, “Never underestimate the Arab capacity for chaos.”  Mary has a trip planned to Mumbai and Pune with two of her Indian colleagues.

Art and Culture, Family

Jazz Noir

Leave a comment

Spring                                                                                       Planting Moon

And some rain.  Ta dah!

The Hamm Building in downtown St. Paul anchors a vibrant outdoor cafe scene.  A week ago today the snowplows would have been roaming St. Peter, tonight young couples sat at tables, drank beer, ate, talked.  The energy was good.

The Artist’s Quarter formerly of 26th and Stevens in Minneapolis, formerly of Lowertown St. Paul, is now in the basement of the Hamm Building.  A room light on decor, with lots of black it feels like a jazz joint.

The play tonight, the radio drama, broadcast live over KBEM to what is now its international audience, was a period piece set in 1929 just before and just after the crash, most of the play taking place in a boarding house run by Avon Davis and her Dad.  On Rondo Avenue, now under Highway 94.

It didn’t shy away from identifying Avon’s grandparents as former slaves or the pride Avon’s father had in owning and operating his own business.

Avon was a budding talent on the jazz piano, encouraged by a novelist and week by week resident of the boarding house who had been working on his novel for 17 years and now needed J. Beam to achieve the mood to write.

It was fun.  The audience had a part.  When the applause sign lit up, we shouted or spoke lines from one of two colored handouts.  “That’s hot.”  “She sure can play that thing.”  “Oh, baby.”

The place had all chairs and tables filled and it felt like the start of something, something uniquely Minnesota, yet going out to the nation and the world.

 

 

Aging, Dogs, Family, Music

Jazz Noir

Leave a comment

Spring                                                                        Planting Moon

“Creativity is the social act of the solitary person.”  William Butler Yeats

Reading the book about introverts, Quiet, will help you see why.  Even if you’re not an introvert, reading this book is a good introduction to the world of those of us who prefer alone time, find crowds and parties taxing, would like time to mull over decisions.

Part of what was so stressful for me with the Kona situation and the back pain was that I had to go to the vet with her three days in a row, meaning I increased my regular interaction with outsiders by multiples.  That tires me out.  Even on a good day.

Right now Kate’s upstairs doing the cross-word and watching the dogs, the back pain is much better this morning, probably the result of the prednisone and I’m down here in the study getting ready to get back to work.

 

We have a jazz weekend planned with Craig Taborn at the Walker tonight and Jazz Noir at the Artist’s Quarter on Sunday night.  Taborn is a Golden Valley kid who has made a big name for himself as a jazz pianist and an ensemble player flavored by Miles Davis in his Bitches Brew phase.   Jazz Noir is a radio play being broadcast live at the 8 pm hour over KBEM.

“For those who long for “the grand old days” of radio, Jazz88 has answered the call. Jazz Noir is a new original radio series complete with live radio actors and jazz ensemble in front of a studio audience, just like in the days of radio’s infancy.

(Avon–Latisha White)

Jazz88’s first episode is an original drama, Charles & Avon, that will be performed, recorded and broadcast in front of a live audience from the Artists’ Quarter in downtown Saint Paul on Sunday, April 28, with shows at 5 and 8 p.m. The 8 p.m. performance will be broadcast live on 88.5 FM.”

Family

Kate

Leave a comment

Spring                                                                       Planting Moon

Got onion sets in the mail yesterday.  Planting will be in order over the next few days, at least the cold weather crops.  Glad Kate will be here to help.  It will go faster.

On missing my partner.  I had one day of sudden in a funk blues shortly after Kate left and one conversation with her turned my spirits around.  Then, until my back began to assert its anger at my abusing it, I got into rhythms with the dogs, my work, some projects around the house.  Even then, I was ok, fine with handling matters as they came up.

After Kona started her downhill slide Sunday morning until yesterday afternoon when I got back from the eye doctor though, I was pressing on, coping.  I missed her then, a lot.  Of course, in general, I miss my life partner and soul mate when she’s gone.  I also enjoy the time alone, to a certain point, but when the pain increased and the amount of things going on also increased and the snow fell.  Well.  I would have been very happy to have her here.

These last matters were unexpected and somewhat over the top, increasing my desire for Kate’s valuable insight into medical phenomena, yes, but also into me.   Could I have handled them on my own?  Yes.  I did.  Did I handle them as well as I could?  Hell, I don’t know.

She chose a long time with the grandkids, whom she loves, which they need and which I totally support.  I’m glad she went, glad she went this time and glad she stayed as long as she did.  I’m also glad she got to see the International Quilters Museum.

I’m also glad she’s turned the corner to the left and got headed in my favorite direction:  north.

 

Dogs, Family

She’s Homeward Bound

Leave a comment

Spring                                                                          Planting Moon

Kate’s in Lincoln, Nebraska.  She’ll see the international quilt museum tomorrow, then head east into Iowa. That’ll put her home on Thursday.  I’ll be really glad to have her back.

Our plan about vehicles works well.  We have one at home, the Rav4 and when we need a car for a long trip, we rent one.  Usually now from Enterprise.  That way we put the mileage on the rentals and the Rav4 stays home.

Feels like I’ve floated through the last three days, seeing the vet with Kona three different times, John Desteian, picking up and hiving the bees, taking meds that make me feel weird.  I’ve set aside my exercising–too much pain–and my writing and my Latin–too hard to concentrate.

That’s life at times, one foot in front of the other, getting through the day and on to the next one.  I don’t feel bad about it.  At all.  Just what’s required right now.

Tomorrow I see the eye doc.  Get my glaucoma surveilled and check those flashes of light I’ve begun to have in the upper left quadrant of my left eye.

 

 

 

Bees, Family

Bees

Leave a comment

Spring                                                                             Planting Moon

Good news.  I can pick up the bees tomorrow.  That makes today a good bit more manageable.  I’ll pick them up, go see John Desteian about getting lost on my way to seminary or college (dreams), take them home, spray them with sugar water and hive them on Tuesday when it’s warmer and not rainy.  A better deal all round.

(In case you were wondering, this is a package of bees.  A 2 pounder. You can get 3 pounders as well.  About 7,000 bees.)

Had a Skype visit with the sibs in far away places, the desert and the tropics.  Yesterday evening I sent Mary an e-mail saying yes, I could call this morning.  She had just started her day.  I read a bit, then went to bed, woke up, fed the dogs, ate breakfast, went downstairs and called her at her bedtime, 9:30 pm.  Mark was at 4:30 pm.  While I slept, both of them finished work days.  Seems strange to me even though we do it regularly.

Just to change things up a bit, it’s raining today.  Don’t want to get into a rut precipitation wise.  Should turn into snow later on though.  Global weirding.  Indeed.

Family, Travel

She Went Over the Rivers and Through the Plains

Leave a comment

Spring                                                                                       Planting Moon

We set our first new low temperature since 2004.  Probably another one today, too.

Kate’s been in Denver since a week ago Thursday.  Long enough time for Grandma to settle in and be part of the day-to-day.  Last week she went to Ruth’s school and ate lunch with her.  A big deal for Ruth, an even bigger deal for Grandma.

(one of the lamer attractions on the road to Denver)

She’s had 8 inches of snow.  Then quarter inch thick ice on her rental car.  Later, she picked up a bolt in the tire of her rental and had to rely on the kindness of strangers.  Has not dulled her enthusiasm although that flat tire coincided with some crankiness on the grandkids to make a not so very good, if not exactly horrible day.

For those of you who wonder, we travel independently largely because of the dogs.  It’s very expensive for both of us to travel and board the dogs.  We have a mutual travel fund, but it’s modest.

Though I would not describe us as living on a fixed income, we have much less flexibility than we did.  This is a reality for most retired folks.  (I can hear Kate.  Sell that book.)

(the trail to Denver crosses all of Nebraska)

Revision is the first order of business each day except Fridays, so I’m on it, sweetheart.  Fridays (or Thursdays) I retain for art related matters.  Ovid is in the afternoon.

Dogs, Family, Third Phase, Woolly Mammoths

Becoming a doctor instead of a professional sewer

Leave a comment

Spring                                                                          Planting Moon

Granddaughter Ruth, turned 7 last week, asked Grandma, “Why did you become a doctor instead of a professional sewer?”  Grandma has been teaching Ruth to sew.  “Because I’m good at being a doctor, too.”  Lots of great information in that exchange.

Vega just came in from the outside carrying one of the green toy balls.  She brought it all the way inside, deposited it beside the water bucket and continued onto the living room to lie down on the rug.  It’s a dog’s life.

We’ve been talking, here and there, about the third phase at our Woolly meetings.  Maximize life now.  While we have it.  Say yes to life.  Do what only I can do.  A few approaches, still being tried out.  We had two new third phasers join the group in the last couple of months.  There’s one outlier at 64 and another at 60.

 

 

Family

The New Feminism

Leave a comment

Spring                                                                                 Planting Moon

Meanwhile in Denver.

Kate bought Ruth a sewing machine for her 7th birthday.  She got it yesterday at her birthday party.  I’ve seen this level of concentration many times.  On Kate.

A 7 year old.  Kids mature faster these days, though I’m not sure about the emotional aspects.  Ruth seems to have a lot of skills and insight for a kid her age, but I imagine her Grandma did, too, at a comparable age.  To my eyes she’s a beauty.  And so is Ruth.

Cinema and Television, Family, Latin, Letters, Poetry, Translating Metamorphoses, Weather +Climate

Rainy, Gray, Blah

Leave a comment

Spring                                                                      Planting Moon

Moved books and sorted files.  Finishing up that long study and file reorganization, clean out begun some weeks ago.  Went out for dog food and got a hamburger at Culver’s.  They make a good burger.

Read some more Robert Jordan, now in the second volume of the Wheel of Time.  Watched three Supernaturals and one Danish show, The Eagle.  A lazy Sunday.

Did get started on Book I of Metamorphoses.  Not far.  Verbs pulled out and conjugated.  I checked the Perseus (classics website) text with the most scholarly text available right now and there was one small difference in the first four verses.  Started a word list which will feed into the commentary.

Needed a psychic bump today and Kate provided it.  What would I do without her?  I know it’s a canard; but, with buddy William Schmidt losing his wife Regina last year, it’s no longer something that has happened to others.

This gray, cold weather has many Minnesotans in a bit of a grumpy place, all of us waiting for daffodils and sun.  As Garrison Keillor said today, “The snow will melt.”  You betcha.