Genius

 I'm sitting in the Sweet Spot listening to music. I first listened to a Beatles Compilation. It's pretty amazing and greatly satisfying to remember that these, mostly uneducated, untrained lads were such musical geniuses. Then I listened to Time Out by Dave Brubeck. Totally different but still genius. Then I thought about my background in music. I was, if you can be, a music major in high school. I played the trombone. I was pretty good. I'll tell you my favorite story about that time. I was taking private lessons from a guy named Woody Thompson. He was a trombone player and he was the musical director at Arcata High School, we both lived in Eureka, across the bay. Back then there were dinner clubs where you could have dinner while a dance band played for you. Woody had a dance band. There was actually a musicians union. The union had a band that played at local events for free. Woody was the director of the band. When I was a junior in high school Woody invited me to join the band. My mother drove me to the first practice and I wasn't late but everybody else was already there. I got out my horn and went to the trombone section. The other trombone players were already seated and the only empty spot was first chair so I sat there. One of the other players, a grown up who got paid to play trombone, said "Mr. Thompson will assign a place for you to play". I hollered "hey Woody, where do you want me to sit?". He replied "you're good right where you are". Take that asshole. I wasn't a genius though and I split my lip later playing a fourth of July parade with the Musicians Union Band and ended my musical career. 

The Sweet Spot

I'm sitting in the Sweet Spot, a protected from the north wind exposed to the south sun corner on my deck. It's raining at times and sometimes hailing. I'm under the eaves and have a half patio umbrella to protect me from the rain. I have a propane fire pit with a really cool heat projector thing. I'm comfortable and warm. I like being outside. I have some new outdoor speakers for my streaming stereo. I usually don't play them very loud because I don't want to offend my neighbors who are wonderful.  It's winter, it's raining, they won't be outside to hear my music. Pink Floyd,The Dark Side of the Moon.

New Post

I worked for the City of Arcata from about 1964 to 1981. Most of those years I worked at  City Hall across from Flynn's Inn which was myArcata home bar. One year I was the inspector for a contractor doing TV inspection of the sewer lines. The crew was "old guys" probably about thirty years old. One time we went to Flynn's after work to drink and play shuffleboard. We finished a game and went to the bar so the losers could buy a round. When we went back to the shuffleboard table someone had taken it. An argument ensued and all of a sudden it was the four of us at one end of the bar and everybody else at the other end. A college kid stepped forward and one of my "old guys "stepped up. My "old guy" took off his shirt and he looked like Popeye, tattoos and muscles. The college kid went "Oh my god". No fight occurred.