Everyone Sing Along

It’s the worst possible tiiiiiiiiiiime of the yeeeeeeeeeear For the heater to break So hot cider I’ll make Must stay toasty in here! It’s the worst possible time of the year It’s the chill-chilliest weekend of all With the temperature dropping And raindroppage falling Repair order’s tall! It’s the chill-chilliest weekend of all I have […]

Piano Lessons

Years of piano study taught me about the world before I was old enough to comprehend its size. I also wasn’t aware I was learning lessons which would one day be relevant to life, love and the pursuit, but — looking back — they were plentiful and their truths have stood the test of time. […]

Music therapy.

Brian Crain’s “Song for Sienna” is a tune that moved me to tears the first time I heard it. I think I was listening to a Pandora station when it came on, and whatever I was doing was immediately paused. It’s a simple composition that sounds full of hope and sorrow, triumph and loss, patience […]

Breaking the mold.

I was in Laguna Beach earlier this evening watching a family try to leave Tommy Bahama. I say “try” because their daughter was enamored with the live music. The woman singing and playing guitar was really, really good. The four-year-old thought so, too, because as they made their way to the front door, she stopped […]

Glover Charm

My house is not too far from a stadium where local high schools often gather for football games and band competitions. Glover Stadium is where I spent many a chilly night watching Anaheim High School’s Colonists go head to head with rival schools. Touchdown cheering could be heard for miles, I’m sure, the same way it […]

Sarah.

There’s not much I won’t do — legally, that is — for great concert tickets. Sarah Brightman’s performance at the Honda Center was supposed to have taken place about six months ago, but her tour was postponed. Tonight is finally the night. I’ve seen her before, and her show is mesmerizing. Captivating. Enchanting. It’s the […]

Inspired creations.

I can’t not create something. It seems there’s always something brewing, something in the works. Maybe it’s a batch of biscotti, perhaps it’s one of these blog posts. Sometimes I’ll hear a song on the radio and give it a classical spin on the piano, full of ascending and cascading arpeggios that give a nod […]

My Grubby Halo

There’s no sensation to compare with this. Suspended animation, a state of bliss. It’s hard for me to find the right words when it comes to describing how I feel at 36,000 feet — or at most altitudes, really — but Pink Floyd’s “Learning to Fly” is a good start. It has a few lines […]

The Giveaway

Have you ever watched a movie, concert, visited a museum, been in awe of natural beauty, done or even seen something so moving to the point where you’re keenly aware of your heartbeat? At any second, it feels like it might just jump out of your chest. It’s pulsing and pounding, as if to tell you, […]