"Talking about music is like dancing about architecture."

“Talking about music is like dancing about architecture.”  No one seems to know the origins of this wise quote about love and music, but it doesn't make it any less true.  Angelina Jolie’s character Joan said it best in the movie Playing By Heart, “He may be right, but it ain't gonna stop me from trying.”

I've tried rather unsuccessfully to write about love and music, and my love for music.  I've also tried to write about my love for the music of Pink Martini, a mini orchestra from Portland.  This last Wednesday, Sheena and I adored their performance with the Colorado Symphony Orchestra from the 5^th row at Boettcher Concert Hall.

The band takes the stage to roaring applause, picking up their instruments. Thomas sits at the piano.  China and Timothy take their microphones.  The music begins and my soul is lifted from my body, transformed into a weightless cloud of bliss.  This is what I imagine heaven must be. 

I believe everyone has a musical soul mate, an artist that gets you high just with their own unique sound.  That’s what Pink Martini means to me; the perfect combination of vocals, horns, strings, piano, percussion, guitar, and bass. 

What band, artist, or composer does that for you?

My Two Favorite Words: Book Sale


This weekend is the annual Denver Public Library Gigantic Used Book sale. I decided to brave the heat, the piles of books, and the ant hill of people to find some cheap reads. It is an understatement to say… I’m so glad that I did! Lillian and I stumbled away with as many as we could carry, and we only spent $19!

Right before leaving, I decided to check one last table of hard covers, to see if there was something that I just couldn’t live without. I rested my box on some books and scanned the titles. Nestled in the middle, with only the spine exposed, was a book that made me scream. Yes. I screamed! Everyone stopped browsing and turned to see the crazy-ass woman screaming in the corner.



This book has eluded me for SIX YEARS. It’s not that it’s a rare book or anything like that. Unfortunately, I couldn’t remember the title or author. I tried Google searches, talked to librarians, and scoured shelves to no avail. I didn’t think I would ever find this book again. Here it was, amidst stacks of random titles. It was the first book I picked up.

I read this book when I was at a crossroads in my life. I immediately related to David, a reclusive poet facing the loss of his girlfriend and causing the loss of his parrot by throwing him out the window to face the wild. Feeling guilty, he learns all he can about conures and goes out into the world to find the feathered friend that he abandoned. If you ever read this book, don’t read too quickly. This book is one to be leisurely enjoyed. Ride along with David on a cargo ship to the mangrove swamps of South America. There you will fall in love with the Aratinga erythrogenys, best known as the cherry headed conure.

If you live in the Denver metropolitan area, go to the book sale and browse awhile. It’s on through Sunday at the Denver Central branch on Broadway. Find a book to savor in the shade with a cold glass of lemonade. Hell, at these prices you can store up for winter reading while you’re at it! I will be going back tomorrow. But this time I will park closer and bring a bigger vehicle!

Global Thanks for 2,000 Views

After I post this, my humble little blog will hit 2,000 views. I am proud of that. What I find particularly cool, is that I have readers all over the world. This week alone I have been read in France and many times in Russia, as well as the United States. I have been read in India, Croatia, Brazil, Australia, the Netherlands, Germany, China, the Philippines (Hi Amy!), and many more.

This gives me such a warm feeling of a global community. I invite those of you in other nations to PLEASE leave a comment on my blog. I’d love to hear from you about life in your corner of the globe.

Going forward, I’d like to give Reflections by Ronnie a more focused approach. In the past I’ve written about random musings on my day to day life. I will continue to do that, but in each new post I will be covering one simple pleasure of life on this big blue marble. We are all so busy working, caring for our families, dealing with stresses that it’s sometimes very difficult to enjoy simple things.

This blog will be just that, my reflections on simple things. I hope it’s as fun to read as it is to write.

Thanks for visiting my blog in the past, the present, and the future.

Ronnie

iPanic

To see me is to see my iPhone. It’s quite literally an extension of my hand. It goes everywhere with me.

A few nights ago we ate dinner at Taco Bell. (Don’t judge) Afterward we went to the adjacent King Soopers to pick up a few things. Aside from the Taco Bell slip, we’re trying to eat better. (Hey! I thought you wouldn’t judge!)

I wanted to scan a package of whole grain bread to see the nutrition info. I reached for my phone. It wasn’t in my pocket. I checked every other pocket on my person and probably looked like I was publicly groping myself in the bakery. No phone. “Honey, is it in your purse?” Sheena found hers, but not mine. “I gotta check the car!” I knew I left it unlocked and if my phone was in there, it was on the center console in plain view.

I whizzed through the chip aisle and made a bee-line for the door. It was already dark out and I ran for the Jeep through passing headlights, dodging moving cars. I pulled open the door to find. . . NOTHING. It hadn’t slipped to the floor. It wasn’t beneath the seats.

PANIC.

I checked the ground around the vehicle. I must have left it on the table when we ate. I lurched forward toward Taco Bell and started to run. No! I’ll drive! I stopped on a dime and pivoted around toward the Jeep. No! I should tell Sheena I’m leaving! I jerked back toward the store. With my arms stretched forward I must have resembled a zombie from Michael Jackson’s Thriller. (Never thought THAT name would surface in a blog entry) No! There’s no time to waste! I climbed in the Jeep and sped through the lot toward Taco Bell.

They didn’t have my phone. I felt like a fool for even asking at the counter. Like someone would really turn it in. My shoulders slumped and I drove back to the store to get Sheena and Lillian.

When we made it home, my smart little iPhone lay obediently where I left it: On the bed where I rested this afternoon to play Doodle Jump. (Don’t judge!)