ehru

I spent most of yesterday with my niece Annie. It was one of the first times that I've had Sara or Annie all to myself, and I found it was a much different experience than hanging out with both at the same time. I found myself feeling almost shy with Annie at first, as if we were getting to know each other for the first time. Annie was oblivious, of course...she was obviously overjoyed about getting me all to herself for once. :-)


After hanging out at our apartment for a bit, we went to the du Maurier Theatre Centre at Harbourfront; Ruth and Kaarel had tickets to some of the kids' "cushion concerts". Yesterday's concert featured George Gao on the erhu, a Chinese bowed instrument...very cool-sounding instrument. He did a couple of solo pieces, but the main story was the story of Hans Christian Andersen's The Nightingale, which Barbara Budd narrated as Gao played in the background.


I don't think the ehru really grabbed the childrens' attention...or maybe children's concerts are always like this. Almost all the kids were fidgeting and restless by about the midway point, some babies started crying.


"When is the show going to be over?" Annie whispered into my ear about ten minutes into the performance. She was pretty good, though, and sat quietly through the rest of the performance, patiently waiting for it to be over. While waiting in line, she had befriended a little girl named Mackenzie; the two sat close together on the floor cushions.


My favourite Annie-quote happened during the ten minutes before the performance began; things were pretty chaotic as we all trudged in and found our seats on the floor or up in the stands. Lots of kids running around, grabbing cushions, yelling.


"Babies," sighed Annie. "First they're born to their mothers, then they all run away."


I gave Annie a hug. "You're not going to ever run away, are you, Annie?"


Annie grinned and squirmed out of my arms. "No, Auntie Debbie."

---

Our friend Helen is visiting from Amsterdam! She'll be staying at our place tonight, then going to Amanda's. We'll likely see Harry Potter again sometime this week (Helen hasn't seen it yet). :-)


Food/fitness update: So I actually seem to be sticking to my goal of eating better and getting back to a regular workout schedule since OVFF. I go to the gym about five times a week, am cooking at home more. Whilst browsing through Chapters recently, Parki pointed out a new Moosewood cookbook that's just come out! Augh!!! I am resisting the urge to buy it until next year (budgeting, y'know). I love my current Moosewood cookbook (Moosewood Restaurant Lowfat Favourites) but I know there are now at least two Moosewoods out there I don't have.


Enjoyed practising some Christmas carols on my harp last night. I am SO in love with my harp, it's scary. Also having fun starting to do some improvisation and composing on it. Jeff's going to show me how to convert tapes I record on our four-track to digital, so I can make some homemade CDs. I'd love to write/arrange/record some harp and flute stuff for fun. I also reallyreally want to hear Kim Robertson in performance sometime.





Blatherpics:


- Annie, earlier this summer.


- Sara's Dolly. As you can tell, Dolly's well-loved. Sara took Dolly to Brownies' camp this past weekend.


Today's Poll: (Suggest a question)

Have you attended a classical concert within the past twelve months?

sundays

Jeff and I spent most of yesterday doing housecleaning. In the evening, Parki came over and we went to the Paramount to see Spy Game, a movie starring Robert Redford and Brad Pitt. We all enjoyed it more than we expected. But wow, Redford's sure looking a bit worn-out, isn't he? My favourite Redford movie has always been Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid.


Short Blathering this morning; I'm leaving very soon to babysit Annie for a couple of hours so Kaarel can get some housepainting done while Sara and Ruth are on a Brownies weekend sleepover. I'll take my camera and might post some more pics later.


Blatherpics:


- Parki, me and Jeff.


Today's Poll: (Suggest a question)

Have you cleaned your bathroom within the past two weeks? (where "cleaning" includes scrubbing the toilet...and no cheating and going off and doing it right now :-) )

obsessed geeky fangirl

Yay, so Jeff and I have our tickets for the opening show of the Lord of the Rings movie on Dec. 19th! As do Reid, Luisa, their son Michael, Scott, Bryan and possibly Parki. Not sure exactly what time we'll be lining up, but I'm likely going to be there pretty early. I have a reputation to maintain, after all. At the very least, a reputation of being an obsessed geeky fangirl who hadn't yet even read Lord of the Rings eight months ago.


Went to see Harry Potter again last night, this time with Christine and Andy, went to Chapters for a Chai Latte afterward. Though we ended up heading into the theatre only ten minutes before the movie started, it wasn't nearly as crowded as I expected. I enjoyed HP even more the third time, though I have to say that I'm getting really, really tired of the same commercials and trailers that run before the movie. My current teeth-on-edge make-it-stop commercial is for a hair colouring product. Lots of smiling waifs jumping up and down in slow motion, their exquisitely-hued hair billowing in waves around them. The last line of the commercial is, "Are You Open?" When I saw HP with Jeff, Parki, Lindsay and Wendy, we all felt compelled to poll each other at the end of this commercial: "Are you open?" "Yes, are YOU open?" Everyone was open except for Jeff.


While waiting for Christine and Andy at the Paramount, I had a rather circular conversation with a security guard in the lobby. The following is an unexaggerated excerpt.


ME: "Hi there. I'm going to be showing up early on opening day for Lord of the Rings. Do you know where I should be lining up?"


GUARD: "You can go right upstairs and wait."


ME: "What time does the Paramount open on a weekday?"


GUARD: "11:30 a.m."


ME: "Ok, well, the Lord of the Rings movie doesn't start until noon. People are probably going to be lining up well before that, don't you think?"


GUARD: (blank puzzlement)


ME: "If I show up before the Paramount opens, where on the sidewalk out there do people usually start lining up?"


GUARD: "You don't have to line up on the sidewalk. You can come right inside and go upstairs."


ME: "But the Paramount doesn't open until 11:30, right?"


GUARD nods.


ME: "What if people show up earlier? Where is the best place to start lining up outside."


GUARD: "People aren't going to be lining up outside."


ME: "Believe me, they will be. This is 'Lord of the Rings'...I suspect that some people will be showing up more than half an hour before the movie. Where do you think they should be lining up?"


etc.


Fortunately Andy and Christine showed up before I gave in to the urge to shake the slack-jawed guy by the shoulders.





Tidbits:


Yay, looks like Dave Clement is going to be visiting with me around the weekend of FilKONtario!


Also looks like I'm going to be doing a monthly column for The Muse's Muse, with a focus on basic music theory for songwriters.


Please note that Allison's e-mail address has changed from adurno1@home.com to adurno1@rogers.com.


Journal links:


Reid is now using Livejournal.


I've updated Annie Walker's journal URL.


Congrats to Terence on his new Titanium G4 Powerbook!


Amanda has seen Harry Potter as often as I have (so has Allison!).


Andrea reports on Eloise Beltz-Decker's housefilk in Chicago.


Katy takes a time-out.


Reid discusses the end of @Home.


Seanan continues The Bishop of Islington's Daughter.


Heather plans a journal overhaul.


Luisa takes Ronnie to for a Harry Potter birthday party.


Becky dreams about vampires.


Annie discusses her Onion.


Blatherpics:


- My Lord of the Rings ticket (thanks, Jeff!).


- Me, in the morning, at the Wickinninish Inn near Vancouver, B.C.


Today's Poll: (Courtesy Mike Whitaker)

Do you prefer dark or white chocolate? YES for dark, NO for white.

urban tapestry

Went out with Allison and Jodi last night. Swiss Chalet for dinner (hey, it's Festive Special time!), then to Allison's place, where we talked about ideas for our next CD. This project is in the very early stages and we are purposely not deciding on a release date for now (so if you ask us about it, don't be surprised if you get a "no comment" :-)).


Anyway, 'twas a good get-together...I really missed our weekly practices during my sabbatical. Partly because I missed doing music with Allison and Jodi, but mostly because I missed the social aspect. Some people comment to me how surprising it that Urban Tapestry is still together. Eight years (nine, if you count our days as Northern Retreat) is a long time for any group to stay together, particularly in filking.





I attribute this to the fact that our friendships with each other have always taken precedence over the group entity. I would be disappointed if Urban Tapestry dissolved, but I would be devastated if our friendships with each other did.


I don't remember when I first met Allison. I remember seeing her at some Toronto conventions; her red hair made her easy to spot. There weren't many musicians with guitars back then, so I always got excited whenever Allison joined a filk circle. She was pretty shy back then. So was I...which is probably why we didn't actually have a real conversation for a couple of years after we first met. :-)


Allison and I eventually ended up together in a music group called Northern Retreat. One of the group members, Kevin Davies, introduced Jodi to the group...they had met through gaming. I remember being blown away by a tape that Kevin played for us, where Jodi performed with the group she was with at the time ("Group of '77"). Our group went through a bit of an upheaval during '93, and by the time everything settled, Jodi, Allison and I were a trio called Urban Tapestry. I lived out in Hockley Valley near Orangeville at the time, so my interaction with the two consisted mainly of e-mail and exchanging cassette tapes by snailmail. From time to time, they'd come out to Hockley Valley to visit for the weekend and from time to time, I'd be able to make it to Toronto for a practice.





1993 was also the year my brother and his wife were killed in a car accident. Allison and Jodi were incredibly supportive; the bond between the three of us grew much stronger. One of my favourite Urban Tapestry songs is Days We Spend Together, a piece that Allison and Jodi wrote around that time. They also helped me record Song For Jim, which I wrote in memory of my brother two months after he died. I remember how the three of us crammed into a sound booth at Sound Techniques recording studio and did the song live, in only one or two takes. I gave the recording to my sister as a Christmas gift...Jodi, Allison and I later decided to include the song on our Myths and Urban Legends CD.


Each of us has grown musically over the years, both as individuals as well as in our musical collaborations. We encourage and support each other, acknowledging and accepting each other's strengths -and- weaknesses. Ten years ago, for example, I would rather have jumped naked in a vat of boiling marmite than sing in public. Jodi and Allison have convinced me that I don't suck at singing as badly as I thought I once did.





As a group, Urban Tapestry has been invited as guests to various conventions across North America as well as to the UK. We'll be Guests of Honour at Conchord next year in California. Unless we have a gig coming up, our weekly get-togethers tend to be more social gabfests than actual music practices...I'm sure professional musicians would be horrified. :-)


But for us, this is exactly what we want. Allison, Jodi and I are friends first, a group second. We've been through much laughter, some tears, and we've seen each other at our best and (a TRUE test of friendship) worst. The going hasn't always been easy, but somehow our friendship has survived through this rollercoaster journey, becoming stronger over time.


And I feel very lucky to be part of the ride.


:-)


(This entry was written as part of On Display. Assigned topic: "Journey".)





Blatherpics:


- During our concert at Didgeri-Douze in the UK. Photo by Godfrey Joseph.


- Outside of Sound Techniques studio (where we recorded our first album). Photo by Carl Gardiner, our sound engineer for the "Castles and Skyscrapers" album.


- Cover painting for our CD, Myths and Urban Legends. Artwork by Beckett Gladney.


- Our promo photo. Photo by Gary Rush.


- During practice. Photo by Beckett Gladney. Beckett took a boatload of photos in prep for doing the cover painting for "Myths and Urban Legends".


Today's Poll: (Courtesy Chris Conway)

Have you an autograph of someone you are/were a fan of?

e-mail vs snailmail

Finished my Applied Arts article and sent it off yesterday. Being able to work with editors by e-mail is SO great. No fiddling about with finding the right size envelope or postage, wondering for days whether my mss has reached its destination.


Sometimes I do miss snailmail, though, at least for personal mail. I only started feeling like this in the past couple of years, when I was drowning in hundreds of e-mail messages (both business and personal) and unable to keep up. There's something wonderful about getting a personal letter in the mail, especially handwritten ones. Now they're so rare that anytime I do get one, I feel like sticking it up on my home office corkboard and admiring it for weeks. :-)


I used to be an avid snailmailer. My friend Cathy says she still has some of my old letters I sent to her during family vacations. I'd add silly cartoons and use different-coloured pens as well as rubber stamps and stickers. I also remember writing to penpals I found through my Archie comics (those were the days when it was ok for people to send in their snailmail addresses to be publicly posted).

Disadvantages of personal snailmail

- It's slower. Impossible to get any sense of real conversation going unless you're both answering each other's letters immediately, and even then it takes several days. One great aspect of e-mail is that you can get a reply to a letter within minutes, depending on the e-mail habits of the other person. Instant gratification, woohoo!


- It takes more effort. Compared to writing and sending e-mail, the effort of writing and sending a personal snailmail letter is astronomical. Plus mailing the thing means that one actually has to get off one's butt and Go Outside Into The Fresh Air to find a post office or mailbox.

Advantages of personal snailmail

- It's slower. The space between each exchange can be a welcome breather, making each letter more special, giving each person more time to come up with material for the next letter. The lack of instant gratification makes you appreciate each letter that much more, making you more willing to put more effort into your own letters.


- It takes more effort. Because it's tougher to send snailmail, your correspondence load is cut way down. Only friends that -really- want to keep in contact with you will continue a snailmail correspondence (or phone, but for people like me that dislike being interrupted in the middle of a workday with an unexpected social call, this can turn into an extra disadvantage).


- Historical archives. It can useful (both for sentimental and historical reasons) to have a paper record of your correspondence. In comparison, e-mail is so ephemeral.





Bottom line: I miss personal snailmail.


On the other hand, it's not something I could ever go back to on a regular basis. Why send a particular friend snailmail when he/she is on e-mail? And because snailmail takes so much time and effort, there is no way I would be able to keep in touch with the number of people I currently do. I'd likely lose touch with a fair number of friends who live far away and aren't the snailmailing type.


I'd be interested in hearing from any of you about your opinions re: personal snailmail vs e-mail. Post your comments in Blatherchat.

Culinary skills update

I cooked again last night. I have to admit, I actually am enjoying getting a bit back into cooking again. This time I made Mediterranean Stew (from the Moosewood Low-Fat Cookbook) and Broiled Portabello Mushrooms (ditto). Craig and Bryan came over, and the four of us watched Enterprise. Dinner turned out ok, yay! Jeff put together a dessert from Belgian waffles, fresh fruit, and Devonshire cream, yum.


And finally, HAPPY THANKSGIVING to all you Americans out there. :-)





Blatherpics:


I took these pics while walking to and from Sanko's on Queen Street West yesterday. Hey, I bought the makings for SUSHI! My mom taught how to make a certain type of norimaki a long time ago; I'm going to see how much I remember. :-)


- Closed-up shop.


- Sock puppets!


- Sock puppet close-up. Paulette Bourgeouis is a children's author (the Franklin books). Rex Harrington is a principal dancer in the National Ballet of Canada.


- Custom ring jewellry shop.


Today's Poll: (Suggest a question)

In the past six months, have you written a letter by hand and sent it by snailmail? (postcards don't count, sorry)