Over this past weekend, I had the immeasurable pleasure of taking a road trip with the Garfield High School Jazz Band. (Well, to be more accurate, bands, as in I & II.) Our destination was the Lionel Hampton Jazz Festival at the University of Idaho in Moscow. I signed on as a chaperone for the trip. By some anomaly in nature, Emmett, who plays guitar in Band I, had no issue with his goober mom coming along for the ride, even if it meant she…
January 22, 1992. My most vivid memory from that day was of standing completely naked in my living room. The scene around me was frenetic and chaotic, but I remember feeling like I was in slow motion. It was early in the morning, maybe around 5:30am or so. The front door was wide open. It was frigid out and dark. I remember the flashing lights from the firetruck and ambulance in front of the house. I can still see the firemen walking into the house…
Tomorrow is Thanksgiving, the beautiful autumn celebration of communion, food and giving thanks. Many of you will be gathering with friends and family over sumptuous feasts and lively conversation. Some of you will be traveling, enduring icy roads or TSA pat downs to reach your waiting loved ones. I will be nestled into my apartment. My boys (Emmett, age 17 and Enzo, age 13) will be with their father, and the three of them are attending a soiree at the home of family friends. I…
A few months ago, I took on a new job that I knew wasn’t right for me. Fiscally-speaking, it offered low-hanging fruit, and my fears about economic insecurity won out over the small voice inside of me that kept whispering…..warning me…..that I was about to take a wrong turn. That small voice was right. This particular gig, while definitely enhancing my day-to-day financial situation, has become an enormous time and energy suck. It eats up several hours of my day, and when the time comes…
The Earshot Jazz Festival is in full swing with outstanding jazz performances taking place at clubs and concert venues across the city. The roster of artists is exquisite as usual. Although it will be impossible to hit all of the shows, I will be making noise about some of the performances that I think are worth checking out. I am all about the locals and I’m happy that Earshot is featuring many hometown artists in the festival this year.…
