Visit my current blog

It was too confusing to have two blogs, so for about a year I've been posting at only one. I just realized I should direct everyone to http://www.teebubble.com. Thanks!

blog dog days

well, I seem to have royally messed up my regular blog and now that I'm an addict I must publish somewhere. I did a data dump of mySQL databases 2 nights ago so I could do a clean install of Word Press. Now I can't make the data go back in. I've tried asking politely, wheedling, even a little begging and finally threats of violence.

If any one of the no one who reads this blog knows how to fix mySQL error 1045, drop me a line ;).

Things I Learned #3

From my short list of important things learned in Montreal:

3. During winter, do NOT park your car by an awning. Your skull will be pierced by icicles and a snow boulder will fall on your auto.

As proof, I offer up my humble photo of this sign, seen randomly around the city.

 

note the double whammy 

Things I Learned #2

Joz (called Jauceleen by the natives in Montreal) looks awfully cute in a tiara. Even matched up with a tshirt.

 

she's a princess! 

Au revoir Montreal!

I got home from my most excellent vacation yesterday. Not only is Montreal beautiful, I got to sing with my choir, who have somehow become the darlings of the whole festival! More on the trip later, but here's a preliminary list of important things I learned:
 
1. If you're going to put a bunny in the freezer, turn the dial to 10.
2. Joz looks excellent in a tiara (picture to come).
3. During winter, do NOT park your car by an awning. Your skull will be pierced by icicles and a snow boulder will fall on your auto (more on that later).
 
Joz, musikchyck, Evi, La Concha, I miss you already!

Giselle

I saw the Royal Ballet perform Giselle last night. The second act, particularly the beginning, was one of the most beautiful things I've ever seen. Amazing dancers + sets + spooky excellent lighting. I loved it.

What I'm Watching

Amandla: A Revolution in Four-Part Harmony. Four stars outta five.
Excellent movie about South African freedom songs and the central part they played in the 50 year fight against apartheid. Maybe it's because I believe in the magic of music too, this one really touched me. Without song, I don't think they could have held out.

OW! That's my mouth!

Tuesday I had the dubious pleasure of a root canal immediately followed by a 'crown lengthening.' Really that last should be some sort of torture method. Gum & bone cut away. EEW.

My face is still swollen and I'm really fucking tired of eating soft food. Unless it's baby food, soft food is not vegetables. It's mostly starch which is not my favorite food.

I go to the ballet tomorrow though, and next Friday leave for Montreal.

Damn skippy!

And one more thing...

You MUST get Lila Downs' latest CD "Una Sangre." It is marvelous in the true sense. When I hear it, I marvel at her passion, her voice. You may remember her as the singer from the movie "Frida."

Tiene que comprar el CD de Lila Downs, "Una Sangre." Es maravillosa en todo. Su passion, su voz. Puede recordarla del cine "Frida."

Two of my favorites are Brown Paper People, about colonization, and Dignificada, about a female attorney assassinated in 2002 for fighting for human rights.

Brown Paper People
‘See a continent hidden/see a paradise crazy/see the gods who were strangers in liquid gold cities/see the brown paper people/see the footprint and the money/see the funny bird snake man/see the gold in his garden.’

OK, I was wrong, they were crazier

on Saturday night. Concert was a total blast with almost no empty seats and lots of friends and familiar faces in those seats. My fellow singer describes it perfectly.

Thank you to all the awesome women who came before me and gave us someone to sing ABOUT.

An interesting question: here are the names of 40 women we listed in one of the songs we performed. Do you know who they are? How many of them? Does it make you want to know more?

Sojourner Truth
Eleanor Roosevelt
Katharine Hepburn
Sally Ride
Susan B. Anthony
Harriet Tubman
Annie Sullivan
Gertrude Stein
Coretta Scott King
Amelia Earhart
Lillian Hellman
Eartha Kitt
Sacajawea
Ella Fitzgerald
Golda Meir
Dorothy Dix
Louisa May Alcott
Billie Jean King
Emily Dickinson
Lucy Stone
Margaret Sanger
Clara Barton
Billie Holliday
Juliette Lowe
Elizabeth Blackwell
Rosa Parks
Lena Horne
Beverly Sills
Barbara Jordan
Helen Keller
Indira Ghandi
Agnes de Mille
Corazón Aquino
Gloria Steinem
Rachel Carson
Joan of Arc
Babe Zaharias
Marlena Dietrich
Anne Frank
Simone de Beauvoir

have fun!