Music, memoirs and football
Well, it was a different kind of week for me. The highlight was getting to play with Jenna Torres on ‘Today in Nashville’ on WSMV Channel 4. It felt good to get the fiddle warmed back up in my hands and again, I came to the conclusion that I love to play that instrument. I’ve been listening to a lot of classical music again, and I see it as a form of practicing, even if it is passive. Listening to orchestral tones can be so relaxing to my busy mind - I don’t always want to take in lyrics. Maybe that is ironic since I rely on words with my own music mostly, but lately I’ve been taking comfort in Chopin, Rachmaninoff, Satie and Tchaikovsky.
After that I had the wonderful experience of prepping for my first colonoscopy. TMI? Ah well, it had to be done. Everything was normal, and for me, to hear that, is music to my ears. If you are due to do it, let this be your reminder. It is no fun at all but neither is colon cancer. Think of it as a cleanse! My brain is a bit mush since, so I’ve been relying on books, Netflix and music to get me through… here’s a few things I’ve been enjoying:
Margo Price - Her memoir that came out last fall ‘Maybe We’ll Make it’ AND her new album ‘Strays’ that came out 1/13/2023 are a great pairing. I devoured her memoir in 2 days and was moved by her story of struggle to ‘make it’ in the music business as well as her vulnerability she was willing to share with her audience. I’ve been rooting for her since we met at the Bluebird Cafe many years ago in a round with Tim Easton, and seeing her success in the industry over the years has warmed my heart. Her newest record is exciting to listen to - I’m 2 listens in and every track stands on its own. Margo is standing in her power and sounds so grounded in her voice. It’s genre-defying, dynamic, and refreshing.
The Andy Warhol Diaries on Netflix - I’m only halfway through it so far, but this series is a great reminder of what it takes be one’s own artist. After Andy was shot in his own studio in ‘68, he started recording some of his thoughts and feelings in a diary. Sometimes he would call someone to transcribe it instead of writing it himself. It uses AI technology to recreate his voice and it’s pretty effective. I’ve always been fascinated with Warhol, and I’ve been enjoying spending time with him in this series. I’m savoring it and trying not to watch it too fast because I’ll miss it when it’s over.
‘Love you Hard: A memoir of marriage, brain injury and reinventing love' by Abby Maslin. I’m listening to this on Audiobooks and it is read by the author. Her husband was a victim of a brutal attack on the way home from a baseball game about 10 years ago in Washington DC, where they lived. This memoir is addictive. I heard her speak about writing it in a podcast called ‘The Shit No One Tells You About Writing’ S8 E13 (thanks Betty B for the recc) and after I heard her talking about her process, I just had to know the book. I’m a little over halfway through it and her craft is incredible. She is telling the story, but incorporating little details along the way that give the reader a sense of who she is without making them work too hard through long drawn out irrelevant stories that sometimes happen in memoirs. As I am working out my story and craft in my own memoir (what the hell am I even writing… is where I am right now) it is a master class in telling a compelling story.
The NFL (really??) Ya, usually by this point in football season, I am counting down the days until it’s over. But I’m invested in a survivor league in which I’m one of a dozen left out of over 640 entrees, so I have to pick one winning team a week. It could all end any time, but this week I’m rooting for the Buffalo Bills. Plus one can’t help but pull for them after the events of Damar Hamlin on Monday Night Football less than 2 weeks ago. The nurse in me has been following his progress closely, and still hungry for details I want to know what happened inside his heart that moment to cause a cardiac arrest. It’s amazing he is out of the hospital and back in the locker room after such a traumatic event. A true story that healing energy follows intention.