1. Back in February, I came across videos for six minute workouts in the home, including explanations that this way of exercising can be beneficial. I gave it a try today and I agree. Two sets of jumping jacks, standing lunges, kneeling push ups, and plank, each set lasting thirty seconds, got my heart pumping, winded me a little bit, and helped me sleep better. The article offers three videos, three separate workouts, and I'll keep it bookmarked and return to it -- maybe more than once a day if I'm really feeling ambitious.
I don't know if you need a subscription to the New York Times to see this article and its videos. I'll post the link just in case you are interested and can get to it. It's here.
2. Friendly ghosts from Whitworth, Eugene, Corvallis, Yachats, La Push, and Seattle and other places joined me in the Vizio room tonight as I watched and listened to a live performance by Bill Davie, performing in his residence in Seattle, and Heidi Muller with Bob Webb, performing from their residence near Joseph, OR.
Some of those ghosts were also in the virtual audience listening to Bill and Heidi and Bob -- Kathy and Loras, Jeff, Val, and Andrea to name a few.
Others flew in my room from all over the country as I remembered going with them to hear Bill perform, first in Spokane, and then around western Oregon, often with a group of friends from Eugene. Tonight those friends were all with me in spirit as I enjoyed Bill's performance. Invisible connections are powerful and I enjoyed feeling like the past had not melted away but was present and alive in my little room here in Kellogg.
I'd only heard Heidi Muller perform in person once, probably about 25-30 years ago, in Corvallis, but I heard her songs a lot on KLCC and listened to her CD Cassiopeia at home.
Heidi Muller and Bob Webb were scheduled to perform in Kellogg a few weeks ago, on March 22nd, at the St. Rita's Church fellowship hall as part of the Community Concert series.
It was postponed. Last night, after learning from a Facebook comment I made during the concert that I was from Kellogg, Heidi left me a comment saying that she and Bob are scheduled to play in Kellogg in September. I look forward to that assuming the pandemic has subsided by then.
Hearing Bill perform twice in the last two weeks, and knowing he'll be performing again online on Tuesday, April 21st, here's what makes me as happy as having the ghosts visit me: I'm thoroughly enjoying becoming familiar with Bill's latest songs.
I realize that these online performances are happening because of venues being closed and that Bill would rather be performing with his listeners physically present.
But, for me, having Bill's performances broadcast online means staying connected with his songs and with him as a performer in a way otherwise unavailable to me, unless I were to travel to Seattle. I am loving becoming familiar with songs I hadn't heard before, seeing how Bill has evolved as a performer, and being engaged again with his versatility as a songwriter and guitar player.
I can hardly wait to tune in again next week. For too long, I have lived exclusively in the past with Bill's songs. I will continue to do this. His songs open up some of my life's very sweetest memories. But now I can also live in the present with Bill's songs, join him in meditating upon aging, upon the nature of love now that we are in our sixties, and upon that favorite of Bill's subjects: the eternal mystery of things.
3. With Bill and Heidi and Bob's concert having come to an end, I joined Debbie in the living room and we decided to watch some more television programming from the days of our youth.
Debbie didn't watch Green Acres much when she was a kid. I remember it being funnier than I'm finding it right now. I'm wondering if the show got off to kind of a slow start in the early episodes. In my memory, what made Green Acres really funny were the townspeople of Hooterville and, in these early episodes, they haven't played as prominently in the stories as maybe they will later.
We watched two episodes of Green Acres and closed out the night with a Dick Van Dyke episode focused on Sally's ongoing mission to find a husband. Is the show suggesting that a talented, hilarious, intelligent, and slightly caustic woman has no chance finding a man interested in her? Or is the show suggesting that men are dumbbells because Sally's intelligence, somewhat caustic wit, and talent scares them off? Personally, I think the scared men are dopes.
April 15th is Jackie Robinson Day and here's Stu's limerick for today:
No one can compare with this guy.
His toughness you cannot deny.
He changed everyone's mind,
Left prejudice behind.
And made the world better, no lie!
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