Spring is here!

While those of you state-side have to wait for vernal equinox, we here in Ukraine get Spring started today, the first of the month.

Such is Life

Poetry

Read this and then vote in the poll to the left!

You walk into the room
With your pencil in your hand
You see somebody naked
And you say, "Who is that man?"
You try so hard
But you don't understand
Just what you'll say
When you get home

Because something is happening here
But you don't know what it is
Do you, Mister Jones?

You raise up your head
And you ask, "Is this where it is?"
And somebody points to you and says"It's his"
And you say, "What's mine?"
And somebody else says, "Where what is?"
And you say, "Oh my God
Am I here all alone?"

You hand in your ticket
And you go watch the geek
Who immediately walks up to you
When he hears you speak
And says, "How does it feel
To be such a freak?"
And you say, "Impossible"
As he hands you a bone

You have many contacts
Among the lumberjacks
To get you facts
When someone attacks your imagination
But nobody has any respect
Anyway they already expect you
To just give a check
To tax-deductible charity organizations

Well, the sword swallower, he comes up to you
And then he kneels
He crosses himself
And then he clicks his high heels
And without further notice
He asks you how it feels
And he says, "Here is your throat back
Thanks for the loan"

Because something is happening here
But you don't know what it is
Do you, Mister Jones?

Now you see this one-eyed midget
Shouting the word "NOW"
And you say, "For what reason?"
And he says, "How?"
And you say, "What does this mean?"
And he screams back, "You're a cow
Give me some milk
Or else go home"

Well, you walk into the room
Like a camel and then you frown
You put your eyes in your pocket
And your nose on the ground
There ought to be a law
Against you comin' around
You should be made
To wear earphones.

Because something is happening here
But you don't know what it is
Do you, Mister Jones?

-Bob Dylan, Ballad of a Thin Man.

I bought a Best of Bob Dylan CD at wal-mart with Noah about ten years ago... right before going on a large trip (I think it was to Cape Cod) and I just popped it back into my CD player again today.

The Radio

It's been a while since I've listened to the radio. I learned to hate it in the states. I hated listening to 10 songs I didn't want to hear to get to one that I didn't really mind... it was never really worth it. I think Thomas Prettyman was one of the few kids around my age (he was older than me then, but now that we're "grown up", we're "the same age") that had as many CD's as I did... Even before becoming part of the typical BMG music club.

But it wasn't just music... it was the spoken word, too. You would get a Rush Limbaugh or other talk show host that was entertaining... but you had to listen when they were on (except for Adventures in Odyssey... we had the whole set on tape), otherwise you missed it. But no longer...

I have finally discovered the world of podcasting (I know, I know... they've been around for quite a while, but I'm just starting to get into it). Any topic you can imagine... Cooking, learning languages, music, cigars, Lost, movie reviews, politics... etc. etc. etc. It is all there. And you can listen to whatever... WHENEVER you want to. But the best thing is that you don't have to listen to anything you DON'T want to. It's great. AND they're free.

My current favorite is NPR's Jazz Profiles. Information and interviews about jazz personalities, diluted by clips of music that further emphasize the points being made. It comes out every Wednesday and the last two were Nat King Cole: The Piano Player and Nat King Cole: The Singer. It's cool to hear the voices of so many famous jazz players being interviewed and hear what they say about eachother.

It's also nice to have something that you don't have to look at, like books or TV/DVDs. You can actually get other things done when your eyes aren't glued to something.

Now if I only had an iPod, I could listen to them on the go!

Not much better...

So... we're not doing THAT much better at blogging. But I've always been good at making excuses. So I figure if I can combine that passion with blogging, I've got a shot at least getting a few posts up regularly.

So, what ELSE have we been busy with besides school? Well Dasha is at work (writing away) from 10 until 7.

I'm doing what musicians do, I guess. Here's what the last few days looked like, not counting school.

Monday: Four hour rehearsal at Philharmonic . And two private hour-and-a-half lessons. (In between those two was a cup of coffee with mom, the empy-nester.)

Tuesday: Four hours at the Philharmonic and then a rehearsal with the "next big pop star of Ukraine" (I'm the drummer... and Dima (some of you may know Dima from tours) is the percussionist.)

Wednesday: Almost five hours at the Opera House (with the Philharmonic orchestra and some of Ukraine's most famous opera stars) and then a 2.5 hour concert that evening called "To Ukraine, I Shall Return" where ukrainian opera and ballet stars, who are good enough to perform around the world, come back for a concert that they all sing at. (In between the rehearsal and concert I had another nice cup of coffee with Mammy Empty-Nester)

So that is some of what keeps us busy. Today is a little slower with only one rehearsal (actually there are two: Philharmonic and pop star, but the times conflict so had to find someone to fill in for one of them) but tomorrow picks up again with four hours at the Philharmonic in the morning, followed by a private lesson with the Dutch Ambassador's son, and then a concert at the Philharmonic in the evening.

Good excuses for not posting?

Why so long?

It's been a while... but Dasha and I have good excuses. We're on the homestretch at school... I'm in year five and in the masters program and working on 60 or more pages (in Russian) about the history of the marching drummer.

Dasha is in YEAR SIX (good grief) and is about to become a 'specialist' (somewhere between a bachelor's and a master's) and is writing a large written work as well.

So... we'll try to be better about the blogging. We'll see how it goes.

Christmas Music Awards: Part Deux

This award is for Best Non-Traditional Christmas Track:








If you need a break from the traditional Christmas style, then James Brown's Funky Christmas is for you. But this award goes to one track that stands out from all the rest:


"Santa Clause, Go Straight To The Ghetto"



Find it, buy it, download it. It puts smiles on faces. Just look at this album cover! ------>













Following in a close second is Louis Armstrong's:


'Zat You Santa Clause?


From the album "Verve Presents: Very Best of Christmas Jazz".

This is another great album. Not just a good Christmas album... but really a good jazz album. But be warned: Some may find a few songs on here a little too jazzy and not 'Christmasy' enough.






















Don't miss part one below... and feel free to add your own award winners in the comments section!