"My dad says that childhood is the happiest time of my life. But, I think he's wrong. I think my mom's right. She says childhood is what you spend the rest of your life trying to overcome. She says that beginnings are scary, endings are usually sad, but its the middle that counts the most. Try to remember that when you find yourself at a new beginning. Just give hope a chance to float up & it will" Bernice Mattise
Hope Floats is one of my all time favorite flicks. There's something quite genuine about the way Texans are portrayed in this movie, I think it captures the heart & the spirit. Ok, maybe as much as a light fictional drama starring Sandra Bullock would ever be able to capture something as monumentally huge as the spirit of Texas, but you get what I mean.
While home recently, I overheard my dad giving directions to my uncle over the phone, "About a mile as the Crow Flies". It struck me as not only a descriptive metaphor for the distance upon a country road, but also as the overall feeling when I'm back home. The shortest distance between two points. Less hem & haw more action. Less whining around feeling sorry for yourself & more making tough choices & then gettin' busy gettin'on with it. Zero pomp & circumstance, 100% substance.
For a girl who has an acute fondness for keeping her head somewhere in close proximity to the clouds? It's a good change of pace to get a good helping of prairie sod between the toes every once in a while.
And mom's apple cake, good helpings of that are also immensely beneficial.
"The Middle Counts The Most"
Hepburn Hugs & Stetson Dreams,
Birdee Bow
Thursday, May 17, 2012
"And there she stood...like a disheveled prom date: Our Very Own California Dream"
Bouncing violently from side to side I reached into the overhead compartment which held the few pieces of clothing I still owned. Dressing inside a moving vessel while ripping down the highway had become second nature for me, but today getting decked out into a white bikini & a pair of faded denim cutoffs was proving to be a bit more difficult than originally planned. Just behind a sliding accordion style door, separating me from the rest of the band, I caught a glimpse of myself in a shaky mirror upon a paneled wall. I guess that was me alright, tan face, sunburned nose & a tired set of blue eyes just above a matching set of deep dark circles. Too little sleep. Too many 99cent Burger King sodium sandwiches. And honestly? Entirely Too Much Fun.
As my head bounced & jerked it's way forcibly toward the window, I suddenly realized there was nothin. Nothin' but ledge & the remnants of falling rock. Wasn't there supposed to be a road here? Maybe a shoulder of some sort?? It was the type of scenery that would have normally compelled me into the high pitched terror screams of a little girl, but today my vocal chords made no sound. Still hoarse from 6 shows in a row at 6 different clubs with the same shoddy sound systems & non existent vocal monitors. Ahhh what's not to love about the Bartender / Sound guys of the independent tour scene?
All I could muster was a whimper. A whimper & a prayer.
Winding, bending & clutching onto curves like a slick butter knife teetering upon the edge of an ice cube, this Vintage 30ft Fleetwood Southwind RV (aka home) was hellbent on making it's way up, around & down Topanga Canyon.
Destination? The beach.
Objective?
Forget about the lack of dough needed
to keep that beast of a behemoth running on diesel for another 8 weeks of tour.
Somehow, someway we would make it happen.
But today?
Today we would relax like rockstars in the sun doin a little California dreamin'
There will be no Movie Spoiler Alerts in today's blog. Rest assured I won't be uttering any info which isn't readily available & or implied in the trailer;) "The Moment of Impact. That's the thing about moments like these. You can't, no matter how hard you try, control how it's gonna affect you. You just gotta let the colliding parts go where they may. And wait..for the next collision." Leo The Vow As a rule I try to avoid sad movies. So, last night when my friends recommended I see The Vow? I was skeptical. The trailer told me most of what I didn't want to know: Love story + sad accident? For me that typically equals = No Bueno. However, I am a fan of actress Rachel McAdams & I must admit the true story status of the movie pulled me into the 2 hour journey of joy, sadness & utter tragedy.
Two young lovers caught up in a freak accident. While each are severely injured, the girl sustains head trauma resulting in amnesia. Only remembering bits & pieces of her life, she struggles with the overwhelming challenge of rebuilding her world. Huge chunks of time were completely deleted from her memory bank and as fates would regrettably have it? The 5 year span encapsulating the time of meeting, falling in love & marrying her husband were among the deletions.
Disappeared. Gone. Vanished. Strangers.
One cannot even think of such a sad scenario without reflecting on our own existence. It's amazing the amount of "lives" which are lived within any one life. The changes we go through: There's the person we are, the person we once were, and the person we hope to become..
How unfathomable to comprehend the loss of one of those dynamics in one profound moment.
Change is constant & ever apparent, but without the gradual process which brings us to new understandings, how could we even begin to make sense of it all? Oh sure, I suppose losing a few really crummy BAD memories here & there might be a fabulous thing;
Like the time I slipped down an entire flight of stairs in 6th grade.. In front of my 8th grade crush, while wearing a pair of burgundy floral cowboy boots & a white lace Easter Dress. I, of course thought I was rockin' it, but in reality it was hideous and those boots were S L I C K as I C E !!
OK ok , But what are we if not the sum of all of our moments woven together? The horrible, the beautiful, the utterly brilliant the completely unplanned & the "Seriously, What the heck was I thinking?"
"There is no limit to the power of loving." John Morton Doc Pomus was one of the greatest songwriters of all time. Having penned such hits as Save The Last Dance For Me, Little Sister, This Magic Moment, Viva Las Vegas, Lonely Avenue & countless more... he & his songwriting partner Mort Shuman had a knack for spinning gold. They became inductees of The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, The Blues Hall of Fame as well as The Songwriter's Hall of Fame. Married to Broadway dancer, Willi Burke, Doc was a polio survivor whose post polio syndrome left him unable to walk & sadly forced him into an adulthood reliant upon a wheelchair.
Doc's wife Willi loved to dance.
Doc loved to watch Willi dance.
I recently learned this song was written on Pomus' wedding day, while the wheelchair bound groom watched his beautiful bride dance the night away with their guests.
I will never listen to this song the same way again.
Save The Last Dance For Me
You can dance-every dance with the guy
Who gives you the eye,let him hold you tight You can smile-every smile for the man Who held your hand neath the pale moon light But don't forget who's takin' you home And in whose arms you're gonna be So darlin' save the last dance for me
Oh I know that the music's fine Like sparklin' wine, go and have your fun Laugh and sing, but while we're apart Don't give your heart to anyone But don't forget who's takin' you home And in whose arms you're gonna be So darlin' save the last dance for me
Baby don't you know I love you so Can't you feel it when we touch I will never, never let you go I love you oh so much
You can dance, go and carry on Till the night is gone And it's time to go If he asks if you're all alone Can he walk you home,you must tell him no 'Cause don't forget who's taking you home And in whose arms you're gonna be Save the last dance for me
Oh I know that the music's fine Like sparklin' wine, go and have your fun Laugh and sing, but while we're apart Don't give your heart to anyone
And don't forget who's takin' you home And in whose arms you're gonna be So darling,save the last dance for me
So don't forget who's taking you home Or in whose arms you're gonna be So darling, Save the last dance for me
Oh baby won't you save the last dance for me Oh baby won't you promise that you'll save, The last dance for me Save the last dance, the very last dance for me.
Love is Unselfish, Powerful & Limitless. Beautiful without Boundary.
"Leave your old Jalopy by the railroad track. We'll get a hip double dip Tip-Toppy 2 Seat Pontiac"Harry Connick Jr."Wink & A Smile"
It's all too easy to see the negative side of things. Negativity squeals like an out of tune weed in a perfectly pitched rose garden. Poppin up over & over again to prove it's existence; It always returns just when the tiresome pruning endeavors have ended. Negativityhas an ugly way of stealing center stage & setting up camp. I often find myself gettin' down with it, y'know stomping around about it...screamin about it in total disgust with both fists in the air! Words flying out of me like a Sophia Loren wanna be in a riled up 1950's movie scene.
Today? Today I'm shovin' negativity to the very back of the bus. Or rather, the very back seat of my make believe '66 Station Wagon with the panel siding. I'm filling up the rest of my make believe Station Wagonwith daffodils, star gazer lilies & orchids. Smells pretty good no? Yep, THIS is the pretty show. You're invited.
Enter Spring. It's a beautiful bubble thing. Mellow days bring the scent of pine needles mixed with lazy afternoon rain showers. It's the kind of experience which could easily be accompanied by a Nora Ephron romantic comedy soundtrack. Walks along tulip lined sidewalks are a constant reminder of a shared space with mother nature. Run-ins with bunnies, squirrels, even deer along short journeys to the bank or the organic hippie inspired grocery store.
Laughter.
Laughter is more plentiful, more infectious in Spring. I don't know, maybe it's just a bubble thing?
Toast. Jam. Back roads empty for miles.. it all goes together, like a wink & a smile ;)
I noticed the energy of his entrance long before I noticed the man himself. From a peripheral view, I saw a very busy, small shadow of a man standing inside the store window, "Glory of a Day we're having isn't it?" It was indeed a warm, cloudy day with storm showers in the forecast, but the sun was still beaming through. He went on, "I'm only in town for a few days & not particularly in a shopping mood, but this window display lured me in. The placement of the floral umbrellas is pure genius! I must have one!" his voice was booming & self assured.
With the deliberation of a man on a mission he sauntered his way toward me, "Pardon me Miss", It was the type of precise diction usually attributed to an upper echelon character in a Truman Capote novel, "Might I trouble you to hand me that umbrella just behind you? The one with the huge painted gardenia?" As I reached to pick up the umbrella, I finally really saw him. A man of average height, mid to late 60's, but with an even older & wiser presence. He had the definite distinction of a world traveler who had most likely shopped the most fabulous stores around the world. Impeccable shoes. Shiny enough that one could instantly identify finite leather details & the most unique color of Burnt Cognac.
Stooping in toward the umbrella I suddenly noticed he might not be the only one fond of the Gardenia pattern. A small bumble bee began to buzz near my hand. As I jumped back, he interjected "OH MY!It's such an authentic painted Gardenia that even Nature has been fooled!" With resounding laughter, he continued, "step aside, lovely girl, you should never be bothered with such things". I watched as he seamlessly escorted the bumble bee to the front door & it flew away.
He made his purchase, bid his farewells & then disappeared with the same enigmatic style with which he had entered.
And there it was..
a signature upon a small receipt just lying on the counter "SWeitzman"
It could NOT be. The man whose fabulous designs have made me drool like a kid in a candy store while staring at Weitzman Window displays from Manhattan to LA?? No WAY. It Couldn't be. IT ABSOLUTELY Could NOT BE.
