Happiness 101

It’s never a bad thing to be reminded of the people & things in our lives that give us happiness, so I’m indeed glad to have been honored recently by the Happy 101 award from Lizzy Frizzfrock (nom de blog of Cheryl Cato). The Lizzy Frizzfrock blog is a delight, with its mix of photos & essays—everything from wild turkeys on the roof to meditations on politics & spirituality. Do check it out!

In keeping with the spirit of the award, 10 points of happiness:

1. My relationship with Eberle
2. My many dear friends, both those known in “real life” & those known in blogdom.
3. Playing guitar, banjo, etc., especially for other folks
4. Playing guitar, banjo, etc. with other folks
5. The support readers here & on Days of Wine & Roses have shown my poetry & music
6. The ocean—especially the Pacific—& especially walking in the environs of same
7. Speaking of the ocean, lunch at Cranky Sue’s Crab Cakes
8. The model train project Eberle & I are working on jointly
9. Watching birds at our four feeders
10. Road trips (see Monday’s post for more on this!)

As far as passing the award on: I know some folks don’t do awards, & I understand the reasons they don’t. So I’m going to name some blogs I think you should check out, & if those bloggers would like to display the award, list 10 things that make them happy, &/or pass it on, I say great! If they only wish to do one or two out of three, also great, & ditto if they choose to do none of the above. They’re all fine blogs that may be flying a bit under the radar as yet:

• Platypuss-in Boots: Of course! It’s Eberle’s really fun & witty blog about everything from stuffed animal consciousness to tattoos.
• 12 Tuna: Earl Butter, AKA Ray Halliday’s paean to out-of-date tuna cans & what to do with them. I don’t know how long this one will be on the shelf—there are only 12 cans in the title—so check it out soon!
• Usually Confined: The blog proprietor, Bill, bears a marked resemblance to another UK blogger we all like. He also bears quite a marked resemblance to Big Bird. Everything from global politics to The Wind & the Willows, with sharp, clear writing.
• Thoughtful Eating ~ A Food Blog: Speaking of bloggers we know from elsewhere, this is the work of Raquelle of Out of the Past ~ A Classic Film Blog. Raquelle’s writing is always well conceived & informative &—most importantly—fun! She’s coming up with some great recipes, & she explains them thoroughly & clearly.

Finally, a note on coming distractions here on Robert Frost’s Banjo. As regular readers know, two big series ended within the last month (give or take): Dad’s Photos & the Weiser River Pillow Book. Also, as I announced on Tuesday, Translation Tuesday is ended for the time being—nothing heavy here, just wanted a bit of change in direction. So I’m happy to announce three new series:

Adams County Makes the News: A collection of historical letters from the Adams County Leader, the Council Record, & The Adams County Record, compiled by Eberle, complete with her introduction to the collection. Both Eberle & I worked as reporters for the Adams County Record in the past, so we had a stake in the local newspaper game. Eberle compiled these letters as part of an Idaho Commission on the Arts-funded grant for a dramatic presentation titled Dear Editor. Adams County Makes the News will post every Thursday.

Mystery Posts: The first of these went up yesterday. These are “randomly timed but on-going series of Mystery Posts by Eberle," exploring her Catholicism & ancient goddess poetry—including her rendition of some ancient Sumerian poems! I’m looking forward to these.

L.E. Leone’s Poetry: Speaking of poetry, I’m so pleased to announce that my dear friend L.E. Leone, also known to blog readers as Dani, will be contributing to Robert Frost’s Banjo. L.E.’s poems will alternate on Tuesdays with B.N.’s (interesting how so many of my friends are big on initials!), just as my translations had alternated with B.N.’s poems in the past. L.E.’s poetry is much different from mine or B.N.’s, so her writing will bring a very new voice to the ol’ Banjo. L.E.’s first poetic appearance will be on Tuesday, February 9th, so stay tuned—& don’t miss the next B.N. poem this coming Tuesday either!

Hope you enjoy these new features!


Second pic: The old Adams County Leader office
Third Pic: L.E., gowned & gloved & bouqueted

7 Things About Me

As I mentioned last weekend, Sandra Leigh of Amazing Voyages of the Turtle was kind enough to send a “From Me to You” bouquet to my poetry blog, The Days of Wine & Roses. The bouquet actually came with the instructions to list seven things about yourself, but since The Days of Wine & Roses is “all poetry, all the time,” that didn’t really fit. However, this week Kat Mortenson of Poetikat’s Invisible Keepsakes (& other fine blogs!) also said she’d like me to do this meme.

OK—here are some facts, & hope I haven't mentioned too many of them before! But before we start, I would like to remind everyone that Sunday is posting day on The Days of Wine & Roses, so you can drop by there too as time permits today or in the next several for another poetic production!

1. The majority of my San Francisco poems were written with music playing in the background; lots of Dylan, Tom Waits, Patti Smith, the Mekons, the Minutemen, as well as Hank Williams, Lightnin' Hopkins et al. This hasn't been true of poems I've written in the past few years—see item 2.

2. Although music is a huge part of Eberle's life & my life, neither of us listen to recorded music much in a recreational way. We both will listen to music in the car—especially yours truly—& we both listen to music either to get ideas or learn songs, but that's about it.

3. I've taken two cross U.S. bus trips: one from Sacramento, California to Charlottesville, Virginia (1988) & one from Boise, Idaho to Crystal River, Florida (I think this was 2004). The first one was a lot easier on me than the second; the food stops on the bus lines now are all fast food, & sleeping in buses is not what it used to be! I've also driven coast-to-coast twice, both times from Virginia to California; & I'm planning a cross-country road trip for this coming spring—Idaho to Massachusetts, with stops in Ohio & New York City! I dream about taking Amtrak to the Mississippi Delta region, but that's not in the cards at present.

4. I’ve worked at all of the following jobs: trail crewman, gravedigger, shipping clerk, graduate student writing teacher (composition & poetry), nurses aide, carpenter’s helper, consumer services representative, claims adjuster, quality control editor, newspaper reporter, music teacher (& a few others that would take too long to describe!)

5. When I was younger I had a secret wish to learn the trombone. Jack Teagraden was my hero! I did play sousaphone & alto sax while in High School, but must admit I didn't show great promise in the realm of brass & woodwinds.

6. I’m not too keen on eating fish—because my father was such an ardent fisherman, my sister & I ate a lot of it growing up, & she’s even less keen on it than me. I do sometimes enjoy it when I’m near the seashore, & I do like shellfish.

7. Eberle & I built our own woodshed from the ground up—now that we no longer heat with wood, it serves as a nice-sized storage shed, & also holds hay for our llama & alpaca. I did quite a bit of woodworking & carpentry around the ranchette for the first several years I lived in Idaho, & am looking forward to doing a bit more as I build some tables for the model train.

As far as the pic goes: Eberle took it several weeks ago. Let me tell you, that Sawzall is a lot more “broken in” than it looks in the pic. It’s taken part in any number of projects over the last dozen or so years, from demolishing large outbuildings (in preparation for our new house) to limbing trees & lopping off Christmas tree trunks.

No post tomorrow; Eberle & I are simply too busy with the Christmas show (performances tonight & tomorrow); in fact, with the snowy weather we're getting, we may be staying in McCall (where the performances are, but with no computer access, or very little) all day today, & possibly tomorrow too. But I will post a Holiday Tune later this week, probably on Friday.

& that’s it—have a happy Sunday & Monday everybody!

Crazy Eights

Hey, I remember that game—played it as a kid. Just like “Authors,” we had a special deck with very cool pictures on the cards. I came by my love of card games early.

But this game appears to be a bit different—in the form of a meme, & I was “tagged” by Kate Gabrielle of the wonderful Silents & Talkies & Flapperdoodle & kate gabrielle & now Spiffy. Kate is a fantastic artist, & I recommend her blogs very highly.

So, without further ado, here goes:

8 Things I look forward to (in no particular order):

1. Having a week during which I don't make a trip of over 100 miles more than once (see this morning’s post for more details)
2. Cribbage games with Eberle (see remarks on card games above)
3. Watching our Netflix or old films on VHS together in the evening—lately we’re on a Foyle’s War binge, & we’re also watching Star Trek Deep Space Nine in order from beginning to end (right now we’re at the end of season four)
4. Any time I get a chance to play music, especially for others
5. First cup of coffee in the morning
6. Writing more ghazals
7. Receiving comments from the regular commenters here, & also reading all the lovely blogs I follow to learn what people are doing & thinking.
8. Excursions with Eberle (favorites: going to the Oregon Coast or to Portland, but also taking day trips around here)

8 Things I did yesterday:

1. Went to McCall for a doctor’s appointment
2. Worked on this month’s set list
3. Made a “picnic” of veggie burgers & coleslaw & chips
4. Taught guitar, & worked out fingerstyle arrangements for the lesson
5. Played my wonderful new handmade mandolin—more on that in the near future.
6. Took a nap in the recliner
7. Worked for wages (“telecommuter”)
8. Re-read The Rhyme of the Ancient Mariner for the umpteenth time

8 Things I’d like to do over the next few months (This was “8 Things I wish I could do,” but I’d rather look at things that I’m hoping to get done):

1. Get a book of my San Francisco poetry self-published
2. Doing some recording of the music I’m doing at the Senior Centers (& elsewhere), & also recording some instrumental stuff, probably mostly on uke
3. Finding more time to play the banjo—ironically, given the blog’s name, often the neglected instrument in the line-up.
4. Watching more baseball—I subscribe thru mlb.com & really haven’t had much time to watch so far this season.
5. Take a trip to either Portland or the Bay Area with Eberle (we’ll go to the Oregon Coast in the fall!)
6. Get better on my wonderful new mandolin
7. Have a full performing schedule thru the spring, summer & fall (without running myself ragged)
8. Read Kristeva’s Tales of Love & Desire in Language

8 Songs I’m Working On (This was "8 TV Shows I watch," but while we do watch TV shows from Netflix—we don’t currently get either satellite or cable—it struck me that those aren’t as important a recreation as music).

1. It’s Only a Paper Moon (Oh so fun—this is pretty simple by “old standards” standards)
2. Dreamer’s Holiday (I can finally sing this doggoned song—in C!)
3. Brother, Can You Spare a Dime (D minor or E minor? hmmmm)
4. Bach’s Bourée in E minor (on mandolin—I believe this was originally written for lute)
5. Little Maggie (I’m interested in finding a way to play some of those haunting old modal tunes on the guitar without re-tuning & without squaring them off in standard chords—I’ve come up with some chord shapes that approximate what a 5-string banjo’s playing when tuned to “mountain minor,” & it’s really fun.
6. Nobody Knows You When You’re Down & Out (I had it, then tabled it; but I’m getting it back)
7. Mississippi Delta Blues (I always get thrown by the changes & I don’t know why)
8. Duncan & Brady (Still working on breaks for this & trying to find the perfect tempo—this is one I tend to play too fast)

8 People to tag:
Sorry—especially sorry to Kate—but I always fall back on the “consider yourself tagged” line whenever I’ve done one of these memes. One reason is that some bloggers don’t choose to participate—which is totally legit—but then it’s awkward; for another, I always worry that I’ll somehow assume that I’ll think so-&-so might have no interest, when in fact he/she is the one person who really wanted to be “tagged.” So for those reasons, I play it safe. I’m still pondering blogs for passing on the Palabras Como Rosas award….

But thanks again Kate, even if I wimped out on the tagging part!

I have no idea what the pic at the top of the post has to do with Crazy Eights, but there you have it....

Me at the Moment

Cheryl at the very wonderful Lizzy Frizzfrock blog tagged me for the “meme of the moment.” Cheryl has been a stalwart friend of Robert Frost’s Banjo, & for those who aren’t familiar with it, her blog is very much worth a look & a read.

Without further ado, here’s a snapshot in words of me at the moment.

1. What is your current obsession?

Just to make a qualification right off the bat, I do make a distinction between “obsessions,” which I have known in all their full-blown fury in my day, & activities I find absorbing. The former: you’re driving on unfamiliar roads in the evening, & you’re lost & all you can think about is reaching your destination, but you keep making wrong turns & risky manuevers & yet you never seem to get on the “right road;” the latter: an amble thru a meadow or a pleasant stroll thru a city neighborhood on a sunny day.

Having said all that, I’m putting a good bit of energy into my solo playing/singing at local senior centers & other venues—very few things give me more satisfaction than sitting down & playing the guitar & singing old songs for long stretches, so I manage to get lots of practice without it feeling much like a grind.

& Robert Frost’s Banjo is an absorbing pastime that brings lots of fun & lots of great communication with fantastic folks.

& finally: ghazals.

2.Which item of clothing do you wear often?

T shirts, always. I have an evolving collection—sadly, they do wear out (I always thought it would be cool to make a quilt out of old t shirts, but apparently never believed this so strongly that I decided to learn how to do so). Right now, in no particular order, my favorites are:

Frog playing a banjo (light grey)
Elderly Intrustments (dark green)
Ukulelia (light grey)
Banjar (light green)
Mr. Potato Head (yellow—an old standby that I don’t wear too much because it’s getting a bit worn)
Old-Time Music (olive)

Generally a very casual dresser—in addition to tee shirts, carpenter’s pants, jeans, etc. I do have a thing for sport coats, tho; & I do favor baseball caps. My current favorite is a black ball cap marked GCEA (the tuning of a ukulele).

Oh, yeah, I wear Hawaiian shirts, especially when performing in the summer….

3.What's for dinner?

We almost always have our big meal at midday (“dinner” in the original sense of the word)—one of the benefits of working at home. Today: Red Beans & Rice! I use the New Basics Cookbook recipe, & it’s always a hit. A green salad with blue cheese dressing really complements red beans & rice, & we'll be having that as well.

4.What are you listening to?

Eberle & I really don’t listen to a lot of recorded music—hardly ever in the house. The one place I do listen to music is in the car, & because I have at least one long drive per week, I get my quota of listening in at that time. My “setlist” from last week’s long ride was: Hank Williams: 40 Greateast Hits; Mary Z Cox: A Secret Life of Banjo & Son House: Delta Blues & Spirituals. A couple of other cds I’ve listened to recently have been Folkways: A Vision Revisited: The Original Performances of Pete Seeger, Woody Guthrie & Leadbelly, & the Darkwood Consort: Tro og Håb Spiller. The latter is a cd I recommend very highly—it’s available at CDBaby here.

I just spend a lot more time playing music than listening to recorded stuff.

5.Say something to the one that tagged you.

Cheryl, the Lizzy Frizzfrock blog is always a pleasure to read. You’re a gifted photographer & writer, & your love of life really comes across on your blog. I always look forward to your posts, & I’m very happy you’re a good friend of Robert Frost’s Banjo. I also strongly believe you must have been a fantastic teacher, because you communicate so clearly & enthusiastically.

6.Favorite vacation spot?

Manzanita, Oregon, in Tillamook County on the beautiful Pacific Coast. Occidental, California, up in the redwoods & very near the Sonoma coast would be a close second. We try to get to Manzanita every autumn, & stay for a long weekend in a rental house. We’ve found a rental that’s right at the edge of the dunes, but also an easy walk to downtown—there’s a lovely small market there, & a pub that serves great fish & chips; & we get to watch the sunset behind the Pacific every evening. I love the ocean in general & the Pacific Ocean in particular.

7. What I'm reading right now?

Mina Loy: Lost Lunar Baedecker (poetry)
Ring Lardner: The Annotated Baseball Stories of Ring W. Lardner 1914-1919

I plan on writing both of these up for the Happy on the Shelf series here.

8. Four words to describe myself.

“Geez, I don’t know?”

9.Guilty pleasure.

This really is a guilty pleasure, too. I have counseling once a week, starting last summer. During the first few weeks & months of that therapy I was dealing with feelings of bereavement quite a lot, & when I was done with that session I would crave some kind of comfort food. What I hit upon was Amy’s frozen cheese pizzas, & most counseling days since this is what I’ve had for lunch. Yeah, I know—you don’t have to tell me. But they are “organic”….

10. First Spring thing?

Getting out for walks is certainly something I look forward to in the winter—because of my lung condition, it’s hard for me to do a lot outside in the cold winter air.

I also love this specific time of year—end of April, beginning of May—because most years the yellow headed blackbirds come thru. More often than not they move on after a few days (tho there’s a wetland a few miles from here where you usually can see them all summer). A couple of years they’ve stayed here all summer around the pond. They are such striking birds, & their call is like a very guttural version of a redwing blackbird’s trill.

11. What do you look forward to?

Gosh, lots I guess. In the near-term, I’m looking forward to getting a book of my poetry self-published—my goal is for this to happen next month thru lulu.com, but I’ve been a bit slow on this; still proof-reading. Looking forward (I hope) to writing more ghazals & to my upcoming music gigs (both those already scheduled & ones I hope to get in later in the season). I’m also hoping to do some recording this summer—Eberle & I were really burnt out after last year’s project (& the projects that had piled up, one after another, preceding that), but I think I’m close to ready.

That's all folks. I believe a lot of folks already have participated in this meme, so I’m going to cop out on naming 9 new “memers” (meemies?), & just say “consider yourself tagged”—have at it if you’d like.