Tag Archives: Writing

Six Degrees of Leon Russell | Master of Space and TIme: Part Two

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There was a recent WordPress writing prompt to describe what type of music you listen to — although I never follow a prompt, I did however, think about it and decided I didn’t give enough attention to Leon Russell.

(OK, I admit it, I’m still obsessed with Leon, especially since I had a light bulb moment as I watched a video of Leon and Willie Nelson in concert.)

I thought to myself, OMG, I was only ONE DEGREE from Leon Russell! It’s true.

In 2006, Willie came to San Diego to promote his own brand of biofuel– BioWillie. In a strange set of circumstances, I attended the Sustainable Biodiesel Summit where he talked about alternative fuels. I believe he was accompanied by Darryl Hannah but I can’t be sure…actually, I’m 100% sure but my laser focus was only on Willie.

(I’m an unlikely country music aficionado, but only for certain musicians and only at certain times. I like the old hillbilly stuff, too, like Hank Williams.)

Here’s what I know about myself: I have no fear when it comes to talking to anybody whether it’s a celebrity or a high ranking politician. Or His Holiness the Dalai Lama. No fear, none at all. It’s like my brain goes into a different space (and time haha) and I become hyper-focused on the interaction and I simply do it without thinking of anything, really. It’s a very strange feeling, but not unpleasant…

I can’t recollect the exact reason why, but I remember walking on the stage to introduce myself to Willie and he gave me a big, lovely bear hug in front of a roomful of people. Why did I do that? I have NO idea.

It was so random, so unexpected, and soso COOL.

And then, literally just this minute, it dawned on me that I was THAT CLOSE to Leon Russell and how it was a total and absolute missed opportunity.

After the first time I saw Leon Russell in concert in the 70s, he performed in San Diego at the Belly Up at least half a dozen times, the last time a few months before he died. I never saw him again. It’s one of my biggest life regrets.

I was ONE DEGREE AWAY FROM LEON RUSSELL!

I would have most definitely been brazen enough to introduce myself to him and recount my previous interaction with Willie. In the story I tell myself, after that encounter, we’d forge a lasting friendship. At least that’s how it plays out in the little fantasy world in my crazy head.

This is Part Two of my Leon Russell obsession –the master of space and time. I’ve travelled down a rabbit hole to learn all about who he was.

What is even more remarkable about his extraordinary talent is that he was born with cerebral palsy, causing some paralysis to his right side which resulted in a limp. It made him the target of bullies while growing up in Tulsa, Oklahoma in the 1950s. Also because of this, he had to teach himself new ways to play the piano (and guitar).

I find him even more fascinating because I possess ZERO musical talent in any and every way. I can’t sing (you wouldn’t want me to), I can’t play an instrument, and I can barely keep the right count when I dance.

However, Leon Russell’s talents are forever; as a classically trained pianist, arranger, band leader, and songwriter.

Here’s Willie and Leon together:

Did you know that Leon played piano on many Beach Boys recordings?

Leon Russell and Glen Campbell were part of a group called the Wrecking Crew, first call session musicians in Los Angeles for Phil Spector. I can’t post it here, but look on YouTube for In Session – Glen Campbell & Leon Russell – 1983 https://youtu.be/TXHR_L6LeVo?si=thP93HlKfv1qrcy1

This a a compilation of many of Leon’s live concerts:

Herb Alpert had this to say about Leon Russell, “Leon was a wonderful musician and had a major effect on all of my recordings. His touch can be heard on many Tijuana Brass records, including “Whipped Cream” and “A Taste of Honey.” To top it off, Leon was a true gentleman with a special talent and he was a person that I had a great feeling for.”

In the early 1960s, before Leon became the long haired, very sexy blue-eyed pianist/songwriter/producer, he was the house pianist for the band on the Shindig TV show.

Here he is playing Roll Over, Beethoven.

Shindig again with Glen Campbell on banjo.

THIS! Delta Lady, one of my all-time faves. Leon wrote it for Joe Cocker (I never liked him) but does it so much better himself…some say it was written for Rita Coolidge.

To answer that expired prompt, right now it’s obvious that I listen to a lot of Leon Russell. Here’s a list of my recently downloaded playlist on my iphone:

One More Love Song
Magic Mirror
This Masquerade
It’s a Hard Rain’s a Gonna Fall
Tight Rope
Delta Lady
Stranger in a Strange Land
and of course, A Song For You

I really hope I’ve inspired you to re-acquaint yourself with Leon Russell’s vast body of work and if you have never listened to him before, please do!

He will always be the master of space and time; a musical genius.

Light After Dark

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There in the wild darkness
Is the silence
And, after the silence
Comes the light

A New Dawn, a little poem by Athey Thompson
Artist:Elisabeth Ladwig

Forest is Mother

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The ultimate mother...

Be my mother, I said to the trees, in the language of trees, which can’t be transcribed, and they shook their hair back, and they bent low with their many arms, and they looked into my eyes as only trees can look into the eyes of a person, they touched me with the rain on their fingers till I was all droplets, till I was a mist, and they said they would.       (Emily Berry, Canopy: Stranger, Baby)
Photo by vanesa ayala on Pexels.com

Happy Mother’s Day!

Is “Of Course” The New “You’re Welcome”?

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Of course!

I’ve become obsessed with observing how often people say “of course” in response to “thank you” or any other expression of appreciation. Have you noticed it, too?

For example, I was at the market and said thank you to the person who bagged my groceries. He said, “Of course.”

Later, a neighbor gave me a cool puzzle for the grandkids. I texted “thank you.” She responded, “of course”.

Someone else helped me find a particular section of rugs in TJ Maxx and when I told her I appreciated the help, she responded, “of course.”

This all happened in the same day because it seems as if no one says “you’re welcome” EVER –just “of course.”

Is it rude? Is it polite?

OF COURSE I did a little research…

Here’s the query: Is it rude to reply “of course”?

‘Of course’ by itself means obvious, expected. So when someone says ‘of course’ instead of ‘you’re welcome’, the feeling is “it’s obvious that I would do that because I want to do that’. It seems to be a friendly communication, BUT IS IT?

In fact, it’s a big search on Quora…

Why do millennials often say “of course” instead of saying “you’re welcome” when you thank them?

You can respond to someone who says “of course!” after you thank them by expressing your gratitude again or by acknowledging their kindness. For example, you could say “Thank you again, I really appreciate it” or “You’re so kind, thank you.” This shows that you value their response and appreciate their willingness to help.

What about people who respond “no problem” in response to “thank you”?

I like this following points of view:

“You’re welcome,” is the correct short answer. “Of course” implies entitlement. Even the currently popular, “No problem,” implies imposition.

Both of those answers imply “It’s all about me, not you.” I think it’s another sign, indicative of more and more egregious narcissistic behavior creeping into our society on a daily basis.

Regardless of the following ways to respond to “thank you” and you can call me old-fashioned, but I’m going to stick with “you’re welcome.” That’s the only one that feels right to me.

Do you say “no problem” or “of course” or are you like me and reply with a simple “you’re welcome”?

rachelsenglish.comhttps://rachelsenglish.com › youre-welcome

Planets Align | 4:4

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As we’re gearing up for the total solar eclipse on April 8, there’s a lot going on in the sky, like today, April 4, a rare celestial event occurs as four planets align: Venus, Saturn, and Mars will be visible to the naked eye, while Neptune can be seen with a telescope or binoculars.

These alignments carry profound spiritual significance. They represent moments when celestial energies merge, heightening awareness and opening doors to deeper insights and experiences.

There will be no sighting for me, I’m sad to report, because the skies are becoming overcast and cloudy due to an approaching storm, but I hope someone is lucky enough to see the planets align.

Even so, simply knowing that’s happening in the skies above, despite not being able to personally view the magic — is enough. I can still feel the energies.

As above, so below…

Photo credit to https://starwalk.space/en/news/what-is-planet-parade

Sleeping in the Forest

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The full moon and lunar eclipse again wreaked havoc with my sleep – I woke up several times seemingly for no reason, but I looked out the window and said “goodnight, moon“, as if I were in Margaret Wise Brown’s classic book where the bunny says goodnight to various objects and creatures before drifting off to sleep. 

I thought the earth remembered me,
she took me back so tenderly,
arranging her dark skirts, her pockets
full of lichens and seeds.
I slept as never before, a stone on the river bed,
nothing between me and the white fire of the stars
but my thoughts, and they floated light as moths
among the branches of the perfect trees.
All night I heard the small kingdoms
breathing around me, the insects,
and the birds who do their work in the darkness.
All night I rose and fell, as if in water,
grappling with a luminous doom. By morning
I had vanished at least a dozen times
into something better. –Mary Oliver

Cinderella by Frances Brundage

A Lagoon Swan and a History Lesson

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A few photos to memorialize January 2024.

This is my favorite, a swan pedal boat on Agua Hedionda Lagoon. It’s an activity high on the list when the Angels visit this summer. Doesn’t that look like a lot of fun?

Now I’m standing on a path with a view of the trestle bridge and a peek of a blue Pacific ocean. Do any locals know my specific location? I bet not, ‘cos it’s a secret.

After walking all the way around the lagoon, this is a look to the east and a very low tide…

If you block out the electrical poles and the road, it’s easy to transport yourself back in time to when this land was the home of the indigenous Kumeyaay Indian Nation.

This is where they lived, fished, gathered berries, wove baskets, and buried their families. They lived in small family groups which had to move frequently to find new sources of food and water. Each clan wintered in a sheltered valley and migrated into the mountains in the spring.

It’s sacred land and should stay that way in perpetuity.

Learn more here: https://www.kumeyaay.com/the-kumeyaay-millenium.html#:~:text=Kumeyaay%20fished%2C%20hunted%20deer%20and,created%20watersheds%20and%20stored%20groundwater.

Brutal Honesty

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“Grandma, what’s THIS?”

Angel Girl asks the question as she squeezes the back of my upper arm.

“Is that FAT?”

“Why is your arm so FAT right there?”

“Hey, T, come see Grandma’s FAT!”

That’s a call to action no big brother could resist. Angel Boy runs in, takes a hunk of the back of my upper arm and confirms his sister’s diagnosis.

“That’s a lot of fat, Grandma!”

I hear the unmistakeable sound of the original Angel Boy snickering in the other room. I bet it’s all deja vu for him as he must recall torturing me the same way.

Out of the mouths of babes, right?

I’m shaking my head; the apple definitely doesn’t fall far from the tree, not with these guys.

“Oh jeez, it’s SKIN, girl. Everyone has SKIN.”

She lifts her own perfectly formed and toned upper arm to show me. “I don’t. My arm doesn’t look like that.”

Mom chimes in, “Wait until you’re older. Come here and help me with breakfast. Let Grandma finish dressing!”

Her brother lifts his wiry arm (built just like his dad)… “Not me either, Grandma. See MY arm?”

I query the other grownups, “Where did she learn all this fat shaming? Sheesh, I thought nowadays children learned to be inclusive and accepting of all of our differences. What’s up with this?”

While I’m speaking, Angel Girl is following me around, squeezing my arms and laughing hysterically. I can’t help it, now I’m laughing, too–because, at the end of the day, it’s just funny. She’s always been hyperfocused and hypercritical of my each and every detail –from my hair to my shoes, and this is no different.

“Jeez Louise, girl, goodness gracious sakes alive, you’re killing me.”

She’s not being rude, if that’s your conclusion–she would never intend to hurt my feelings – it’s simply a case of speaking her truth. I’m one thousand percent sure that she would naturally censor herself with her pre-K classmates, but I’m different, and it’s OK to practice life skills on me.

I’m her pet project, the Little Grandma, with apparently endless patience.

Both of the Angel Kids are fascinated by my diminutive size…

“My hands are almost as big as yours, Grandma!” (This is a continual hand-to-hand ritual measurement every time we see each other to gauge how much they’ve grown.)
“Look, I can wear your shoes now!”
“Can I have your Hello Kitty shirt, Grandma! It fits ME!”
“Why are you so small?”
“Stand still! I am LITERALLY almost as tall as you are!”
And that’s true. I’m five feet and that 7.5 year-old truly is nearly my size.

That’s the time I tell them that the best presents come in small packages, but since that’s not their life experience, they shake their heads and laugh.

Thanks to Angel Girl’s eagle eyes, I have to silently agree that I need to focus more work on my triceps.

Brutal honesty. BRUTAL. Brutally honest.

Festival of Lights | Happy Hanukkah! | Chag Sameach 🕎 

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Tonight’s the first night of Hanukkah and Hello Kitty reminds us to let our light shine!

Our Jewish Festival of Lights lasts for eight days and nights in honor of a 2,000-year-old miracle in which light won out over darkness.

During Hanukkah 1931, Rachel Posner, wife of Rabbi Dr. Akiva Posner, took this photo of the family Hanukkah menorah from the window ledge of the family home looking out on to the building across the road decorated with Nazi flags.

While it’s definitely a time for serious reflection, it’s also all about fun with latkes, gold coins, dreidels, lots of presents, and this iconic song by Adam Sandler:

Last year’s post about Hanukkah has a lot more info about the historical significance https://enchantedseashells.com/2022/12/19/whats-hanukkah-all-about/

Searching

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“I am out with lanterns, looking for myself.” — Emily Dickinson

Curated from Pinterest. Unknown. Credit to the artist.