in the eye of the beholder

Boomerific ramblings about revolutionaires and royals across the pond be damned, there is much more to life, though one might say that my life is nothing thrilling, as there are no fabulous wardrobes, love life drama, or exploding sports cars. My days of ridiculous adventuring seem to be behind me now, and will be saved for future Not-So-Great-American-Novel fodder and stories for the next generation of nieces and nephews.

But I don't need much to keep me entertained and inspired, just a cup of tea and some people-watching, some clay or paint or ink at my disposal, going down to the West Side Market or the lake, driving around with good music though I try to conserve that precious gasoline.

While I was mediocre with effort as an undergrad attempted art student, I feel like I've figured out my aesthetic sense since then, hovering between the starkness and grit of monochrome and the brilliant splashes of color that characterize the paintings piled up in my front room.







It can't be all melancholia, because the seasons have slowly shifted into budding and brilliant hues and we were lucky to escape the concrete and steel for the oasis under glass and the accompanying statuary and tulip bulbs. Some more crackerific types avoid this lovely place because it's in the hood. It's their loss because not only is this fine establishment free, they sometimes hook you up with hothouse fruits.









And in other news, while I don't really know much about jazz, I know what I do like and I love Regina Carter and her violin very much. Especially when she covers Amadou & Mariam and her current project includes a kora player. I don't know anyone else anymore who likes this kind of thing so I'll probably go by myself.

starting over from scratch...

I took the best art class I ever had at Tri-C my senior year of high school. My art teacher was part-timing it between three different schools and would sit in the middle of the room while we workedand tell stories about Jamaica and Mexico and her three previous husbands and hanging out with Sting and would let us listen to almost any music we wanted to. It was a fun three hours every morning, and I learned how to take my mediocre skills and translate them into something that worked.

Me and my classmate Tony would bring in all sorts of CDs as we were feverishly discovering new sounds and figuring out what we liked, climbing out of the teenage nu-metal abyss into adulthood. It was a great group of people who didn't shred each other's work to pieces and I found myself using many of her techniques in my own art later on.

She was a huge Morphine fan, and told about how the singer had a heart attack on stage a few years back. I found a couple of their CDs at the library a few years later and was hooked on the sound that really didn't sound like anything else. On a hot summer night two Junes ago, I played a huge chunk of "Cure for Pain" my second night on the air, and it just felt so perfect.



Tomorrow night I'll be hitting up the Beachland Tavern to see the surviving members of that band with my longtime friend who like me loves all things 90's.

"People always try to give you free advice, and that's something I've always tried, but you get what you pay for that's what I say, and now I'm paying and paying and paying..."

you got me...

I got my hair cut and caught up with a friend of mine Friday night and then just chilled. There's always that initial "my hair is gone" shock I go through but it's so nice to have it shorter again but long enough that I can tie it back if needed.

And thanks to Cleveland Scene, me and a friend got to see the Roots for free on Saturday night down at the lovely Allen Theater. The setlist was almost the same as the last time they came through but it was still a great show.

Our seats were up in the balcony, and at first we were wondering if it'd be not as good since last time we were up so close, but I had a good view of the stage and managed to get some blurry photos without my flash, while trying not to get kicked out by the ushers in red jackets who'd been giving us the side-eye since we got there. It's harder to work at crowd at a venue like that with everyone in seats and such, but the energy was there.





I didn't end up going to the afterparty at the b-side because I'm more of a live music girl than a go to the club person. I've tried the famous dj thing before and it's not me, all those people doing see-and-be-seen. I get a rush off live music, and live for those shivers when it just sounds so good.