Bruins and Flowers and Big Thoughts

These flowers are for you, if you are a visitor to the blog today...

Well, last night the Bruins lost, my 13 year old had a terrible migraine and couldn't even watch the game, and my husband so busy with work he was up well past midnight (banging on his laptop keyboard - not happy - thanks, Bruins).  I have been busy with housework, driving up to NH to make sure my horse Nello didn't melt away in the rains of the past few days, taking care of all our other pets, working, etc. 

I got up very early this morning to get my son up to do homework he couldn't do last night, and was struck by these flowers on my table, and the way the sun was streaming in on them.  They are all from my yard (yay!!)  Over and over again, nature asks us to slow down and observe, and that's what I am increasingly drawn to in an outdoor life.  (I don't live in a shack on our property or anything; I am just outdoors a lot; my vitamin D levels self-corrected just through sunshine!  Yay!)  As we move forward technologically, we miss more and more of the simple and restorative moments that nature provides.  (Have you ever looked up at the sky and noticed the blue and the clouds and said to yourself, "Hey, when was the last time I even looked up at the sky??")  We're busy and stressed, and just doing our best to hang on.

And, the Bruins lost.  I'm going to be outside all day staring up at the sky. 

Nello Preoccupied

A Haunting Performance from A Multi-Talented Man

One of my all-time haunting movie performances (right up there with Robert Duval's performance as Boo Radley in "To Kill A Mockingbird") is the performance of a fine actor who played Loretta Lynn's father in the amazing "Coal Miner's Daughter."  Together this actor and Sissy Spacek portrayed a very close and connected father-daughter relationship that even transcended death, when Loretta, not knowing her father has died, sees him after his passing.

I remember the scene that always chokes me up in "Coal Miner's Daughter" - the scene at the train station, where they stand quietly, the father coughing from the coal miner's Black Lung that will eventually kill him, waiting for the train.  This train will take Loretta away from him, and into an uncertain future, where all he can be sure of is that she will be poor. "I won't never see you again, Loretty," he says softly, heart breaking.  And indeed, he never does.

And who, do I find out today, was this actor that so naturally and heart-breakingly played Loretta Lynn's father?  It was Levon Helm; drummer, all-around instrumentalist, mandolin player, and voice extroardinaire for The Band.  He passed away this afternoon, and those of us of a certain time and age also see some innocence and true musical style of our own youth passing with him.  "The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down," one of the best jam/funk/rock songs ever produced, reminds almost all of us of a specific time and place when we were young, and we all sang along.

We won't never see you again, Levon.  And yet we, like Loretta Lynn and her father, will see you again.  More accurately, we'll hear you, and we'll remember to sing along.

Battlestar Galactica - Portlandia on IFC

Haven't we all done this?  Or something like it...like it's school vacation week, and instead of going to take your 13 year old to see Lexington and Concord you are in your pajamas watching Portlandia episodes on Youtube??

Talent Alert! My Friend's Painting

This is an original painting done by a friend I see at the barn where I keep the Original Wonder-Horse Nello; I think it is just amazing.  I wish I could post it larger, but this is all the dang blog will allow without going haywire.  I love the energy of this painting; it has movement and an incredible positivity.  I love how each figure is immersed in their own activity but they are all connected.

Enjoy! 

This is a shot I took on the iphone, sitting at dinner down in historic Faneuil Hall in Boston.  My husband and I were seated in front of a large glass window looking out at the flower market at night, near closing time, and I was suddenly struck by the beauty of the flowers; they seemed both vulnerable and strong there in the dark.  No matter how much we look forward to travelling, sometimes the best views are right here at home. 

Sour D @ Hard Rock Cafe

 
My son's band Sour D at the Hard Rock Cafe Boston!  Great time, fun with friends....packed venue.