Music is good. (Stream of Consciousness.)

I am a musician, but somehow don't buy nearly enough music. I should be the most crazy consumer of art, but somehow jeans and food and toilet paper and fun often come out on top where my discretionary income is in effect. Today, however, I decided to devote a little cash to some new CDs. Two Christmas discs --- James Taylor at Christmas (with some ass-kicking studio musicians that I wanted to check out) and Chanticleer (a classical a capella group that includes a member from Quimby, IA... don't be confused, they are in fact very well known); also John Legend's latest project.

IT IS AWESOME. AWESOME. AWESOME.

Lately I've had to turn to artists like Beck for creativity, but pop-star Johnny Boy clearly brings some pretty remarkable influences I happen to love (Stevie Wonder, Marvin Gaye, Al Green) and seems to be intelligent and talented. I, for one, have respect for that. He also performed with Tony Bennett on a primetime special a few days before Thanksgiving PLUS a stint with my fave diva, Oprah. (If you can get ahold of that, check it out, it has Stevie Wonder in it really blowing my mind.) The whole primetime connection and prominence before the general American public of football and NASCAR fans is a blog for another day.

So, I guess where this is going is to say something I've known for a long time: music is powerful. Cheezy though it may be, it has taken me places (literally), informed my entire way of thinking, been largely responsible for meeting many of the coolest people I have ever met (this is been going on since I met pal-for-life Josh at music camp in the early '90s, plus pals from a summer jaunt across the state of Iowa in a tour bus --- culminating at the Iowa State Fair, oh, and meeting the most special and remarkable person in my life...) I digress.

Now it seems I am a very lucky girl. I'm starting the voyage on a second artistic path, one with visual arts at the forefront. At least for my day gig. May you feel as peaceful as I do this moment, checking out music. :) Aaaaaahhhh.

Where you at?

I've been exploring one of life's many cool opportunities: a job where I am not attached to my computer perched on a desk chair for eight solid hours. I fire a kiln, sell kick-ass holiday decorations, show people around the gallery, work the cash register, promote arts education program, work on art projects (as in get paid to work on them), hang around with kids and volunteers... So there's always lots going on and no two days are the same.

I am grateful for the good things in my life, and in addition to fulfillment during my working hours, I am learning lots about my place in the universe. Earlier this week students from a local public school dedicated to serving students with provound physical and developmental diasbilities visited the gallery. Their teacher told me one of the six visitors had made a very few sounds --- he does not speak though he is a teenager, and is confined to a wheelchair --- that the most emotion she had seen him display since mid-August was when he saw the lights and objects displayed at our holiday show. See what I mean about perspective?

But life provides good balance. I took a part-time job working at a women's clothing store to provide a little extra cash and some serious comic relief, but that's a stor for another day. Let's hope that there's more time for that soon.