Nov 26
http://ramseyssoundandstyle.com/wp-trackback.php?p=90
i was strolling through my earth, wind and fire collection and ramsey lewis – a well renowned and talented jazz musician – popped in my mind. i looked him up on google to see if there was any information about him out there. i happened upon his blog and i read the linked article which was a response to the WSJ article about jazz being a dying art form.
i want to make a few points here in response to the article. jazz is not dead nor is it dying. it is very much alive and listened to by many people; young people. i am under 40 and i have loved and enjoyed jazz my whole life. i am a very big fan of the cool era and my favourite artists are herbie hancock and dave brubeck. i have known many young people (ages 5 to 45) that love jazz. diverse people with no other similarities other than the love of jazz.
terry teachout of the WSJ points out the attendance at live jazz concerts has dropped significantly. he uses percentages and statistics to explain his point of view. he may have asked survey takers and pollsters, but i doubt he actually walked up to a young person and asked ‘hey, do you like jazz? what do you think of miles and coltrane? do you like the swing or are you more of a bop person?’
statistics are nice and informative, but like computer programs, they only give you the information asked for. statistics never give you more than exactly what you think you are looking for. sometimes you have to ask other questions in order to get the facts. many people stop looking once they get the figures they were looking for never realizing there is more to life than 13.5% are this and 12.98% are that.
you cannot quantify feelings and expressions. jazz isn’t a statistic. jazz is colours, jazz is movement. jazz is art. jazz is life. jazz is soul.
~adieu
many thanks to mr ramsey lewis
Nov 15
i had to come to the new office today to unlock it for the cable installer. right next door is a starbucks so i thought i would drop by here for a bit of relaxation after everything. my week was spent with a head cold or the flu or something. i was dizzy and nauseous on sunday and sick monday. felt better tuesday and wednesday but thursday i caught a head cold. today i am feeling much better (with the exception of a headache).
monday night susanna called me. it had been so long since i heard from her and we just had a great heartfelt conversation about everything that was going on with our lives. catching up as friends do. unfortunately, it seems we cannot remain as such.
most of the week i spent at home trying my best not to infect anyone else, though i did manage to get carmen and carole ann sick which led to carole ann’s father getting sick. though they did manage to get the tree up sick and without me. a feat to be sure even when one is well.
i sold my main windows pc to a co-worker for a bit of cash. i really didnt need it anymore since i got the mac for my birthday. im hoping i can use the money to go out and see the kids for the holidays or near there. it really depends upon my work schedule.
well, it is a beautiful day today. i think i am going to go out and enjoy it. remember, there is only ever one November 15th, 2009. make the most of it before it disappears forever.
~adieu
Tagged with: carole ann • life • sick • starbucks • susanna • work
Oct 30
Das Parfum
i finished reading perfume a few days ago. i just didnt have the time or want/need to talk about it. although i enjoyed reading the book as it is very well written and an interesting read, i have not been in my right mind the past week to really come and talk about it. i still really dont.
i give the book 4 stars out of 5.
my next read will be Mr. Midshipman Hornblower by C S Forester. its a favourite of a dear friend of mine.
Tagged with: books • perfume
Oct 25
everywhere i go
and everything i do
i seem to find something
that reminds me of you
Oct 17
the cold winds of autumn are blowing in from the north. a chill has descended upon the tiny tropical state of florida. the leaves have fallen from the branches of the trees. the flesh of vegetation removed revealing naked skeletal arms that reach up to the cold night sky. a new season is upon us. after many months of hot and humid weather, jack frost has finally made a visit.
of course weather is changing all over the globe. frost and chilly weather is all the rage to the north, but here is another story. last week and up until today, the weather has been beyond bearable. now we are at a calming point. a tranquil rest from the hazards of the heat.
autumn is upon us.
~adieu
Oct 17
I cry for a loss I never had.
I weep alone.
Oct 17
A fugue state, formally Dissociative Fugue (previously called Psychogenic Fugue) (DSM-IV Dissociative Disorders 300.13[1]), is a rare psychiatric disorder characterized by reversible amnesia for personal identity, including the memories, personality and other identifying characteristics of individuality. The state is usually short-lived (hours to days), but can last months or longer. Dissociative fugue usually involves unplanned travel or wandering, and is sometimes accompanied by the establishment of a new identity. After recovery from fugue, previous memories usually return intact, however there is complete amnesia for the fugue episode. Importantly, an episode is not characterized as a fugue if it can be related to the ingestion of psychotropic substances, to physical trauma, to a general medical condition, or to psychiatric conditions such as delerium or dementia, bipolar disorder or depression. Fugues are usually precipitated by a stressful episode, and upon recovery there may be amnesia for the original stressor (Dissociative Amnesia).
Oct 09
i havent posted in some time. it is difficult to do so when time is fleeting. i have been swamped with work from, well, work that i havent had time for myself. seems like this is the first time ive had to myself in quite sometime. unfortunately i find myself so wrapped up and busy that i have nothing to write about. well nothing significantly important. the more i work the more boring i get and the less i have time to let my mind wander.
is this what happens when one gets older? we let life runaway with us and forget how to use our imaginations and lose our creativity? i can recall being such a prodigious writer when i was younger. i find myself struggling now. things were so much easier then. i am not saying it was all good. some of it if not most was just fodder for the furnace. so many times lately i find myself wanting so much to just ‘do it’. to just sit down for hours on end and write. paint pictures with words. to take the reader places they have never been before.
i hope that i can break the bonds that restrict me. i hope that i am not the only reader of my tales.
~adieu
Sep 18
a week ago tonight, i started to come down with a head cold. it wasnt much, but it did make me extra tired and fuddle brain. the past couple of nights i had to work extra late which has drained me further. one good thing, yesterday i heard from susanna. its very uplifting to hear from her. i have been thinking of her – well i always think of her – but i was just thinking of her and wondering how she was doing. it seems she was doing the same. weird how we do that.
in a week i will be 37. not something i am looking forward to. it just sounds so much older to me. oh i know age is relative, i just never see my self as nearly 40.
happens to everyone i suppose. (well those that make it this far)
~adieu
Tagged with: age • sick • susanna
