All posts tagged: Random DJB Thoughts

A Musical Weekend

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Messiah.  Just a mention of the name of the famous Handel oratorio this time of year brings up thoughts of Advent. So it was only fitting that we settled in at the beautiful First Church of Christ Scientist in Providence on Friday evening for the first of two performances of this perennial favorite on our weekend calendar. Candice and I are in Providence to visit with Andrew and to hear him sing with both the University Chorus and the Brown Madrigal singers. Friday evening’s performance of Messiah was a double bonus, in that this was a “bring your own score” community sing-a-long.  It has been a long time since I sang in a regular performance of Messiah, but I do own a score and brought it along for the evening. Some choruses were like riding a bicycle – you never forget.  Others…well, I decided not to inflict pain on those around me and quickly dropped out of those where my muscle memory wasn’t very good. Andrew, as you already knew, did a much better job with …

From the Bookshelf

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Despite a busy fall schedule of work and travel, I’ve managed to finish several books that have sat on my bookshelf for various periods of time. Some are hot off the press, others have been waiting for me to pick them  up for more months than I care to admit. All were worth reading, and two were terrific finds.  So here are a few thoughts on a season’s worth of reading – beginning with the one I finished earlier this week, and working backwards from there. Lawrence in Arabia:  War, Deceit, Imperial Folly and the Making of the Modern Middle East by Scott Anderson. This new work on the Middle East of World War I falls in the “terrific finds” category. Obviously much has been written about the exploits of T.E. Lawrence – the famous “Lawrence of Arabia.” In this book, however, the veteran war correspondent Scott Anderson weaves in Lawrence’s story with those of three spies from the era (German Curt Prüfer, American – and Standard Oil employee – William Yale, and Zionist Aaron …

Community Pride—With Meaning

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These are words you don’t often hear in today’s America: “We would like to see this community come to be not the cheapest in America, but the very best community of its size in the country.” Last week I was in Indiana for the National Preservation Conference – the National Trust’s annual gathering of preservationists from around the country. I’ve been in this field for quite some time, and this year marked my 37th conference.  I’ve seen and heard a great deal at these sessions . . . but I can’t recall how long it has been since I was as moved as I was by Will Miller’s closing remarks at last Saturday’s luncheon in Columbus, Indiana. The story of how industrialist J. Irwin Miller and the Cummins  Engine Foundation came to pay the architectural fees for public buildings designed by world-class architects has been told countless times.  Architecture buffs and cultural travelers now flock to Columbus by the millions annually to see some 70 modernist buildings along with a Victorian Main Street and historic …

Remembering Doc Watson

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I know when I’ve been inspired by a performer or a piece of music…I change the strings on my guitars. Since hearing a wonderful Tim O’Brien remembrance of the late Doc Watson, I’ve got brand new strings on two of my guitars.  It’s that good. Friday evenings I’ll often ramble through YouTube videos, starting with a musician I enjoy and seeing where the recommendations take me.  More times than not, I will find a video or two that opens up a new perspective on a well-known performer.  Such was the case last evening. I’ve always enjoyed Tim O’Brien, seeing him live most recently at this summer’s Red Wing Roots Festival.  But until I heard this video from a 2012 Kennedy Center performance, I didn’t know that Doc was his musical hero — although the news wasn’t much of a shock.  I believe it was Bill Clinton who said — when giving Doc the National Medal of Arts award — that every baby boomer who picked up an acoustic guitar tried, at some point, to emulate …

Labor Day Grab Bag

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What do empty nesting, Keith Olbermann, a day at the pool, good food, and Lee Daniels’ The Butler have in common?  They are all part of this Labor Day grab bag of (relatively) quick observations – because it is still summer and I don’t want to work too hard writing long blog posts! Hopes for Year 3 of Empty Nesting:  As of 6 a.m. on Saturday, our third year of “empty nesting” officially began.  Candice and I took Claire to the airport for her flight to California.  Andrew went back to school about 10 days ago (even though – as you can see below – he is also managing to fit in things not school-related). My hope is that Empty Nesting: Year 3 will be the first “normal” one, following our health problems of the first year and the rehab-focused Year 2.  After extensive rehabilitation and a few months of myofascial release, Candice is walking – and feeling – better than she has in five years.  In fact, she’s so positive about myofascial release that …

Summer Reading 2013, Continued: The Unwinding

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American journalist, novelist, and playwright George Packer wrote one of the most insightful works about America’s invasion and occupation of Iraq in his 2005 book The Assassins’ Gate:  America in Iraq. So when I heard that Packer had a new work out on the demise of the American social contract, I quickly picked it up and added it to my summer reading pile. The Unwinding:  An Inner History of the New America is a very important work by a gifted observer and interpreter of American life.  It is not light summer reading.  Packer’s work can be hard to read – not because it is dense (it is anything but).  The Unwinding is difficult because almost any reader of this work is likely to find someone captured on its pages who represents his or her way of thinking and his or her life, and realizes the sad place we all find ourselves in today. Packer’s work follows about ten individuals – most not well-known – over the course of the last 30 years, during the time …

Listening and the Labyrinth: A Day of Silent Retreat at Dayspring

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Candice was the final family member to introduce her activity to us in this year’s “plan your own vacation.”  We had spent a wonderful weekend in Pittsburgh to check another ballpark off my bucket list and took in Fallingwater on the way home.  Andrew has now taken us to three of his four ethnic restaurants as he worked to expand our culinary horizons.  (Tonight’s visit to Mike Isabella’s new Greek restaurant Kapnos tops the list in my book…and was the best Greek food I’ve had in quite some time.) We arrived home yesterday from three days at the beach – courtesy of Claire – and threw in an outdoor viewing of Ferris Bueller’s Day Off for good measure. So the bar was high as Candice took control. For twelve years, Candice has been a regular participant in Quiet Days and Ember Day silent retreats at Dayspring, a beautiful rural oasis in Montgomery County.  The Retreat Center was begun as a place for Sabbath rest and reflection by the ground-breaking Church of the Saviour, established in …

Beach Bums and Ferris Bueller…A Perfect Combination

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We’ve been beach bums during our staycation for the past three days…and it has been wonderfully relaxing.  A short three-day-two-night jaunt to nearby Bethany Beach, Delaware was Claire’s contribution to the “let the family build a stay-at-home (almost) vacation around activities each wants to do.” So, what did we do? Not much. We laid out on the beach for hours on end, reading, enjoying the breezes, and getting up for an occasional Kohr Brothers frozen custard cone.  (Make mine vanilla, dipped in chocolate, please.)  We walked around the town at night.  We ate really good food (truly) both nights…but the best was at Patsy’s in Bethany Beach on Tuesday evening.  I was able to have my soft shell crabs.  We watched a good friend and her group compete on America’s Got Talent (a first for me…and probably a last). Claire thought it would be funny to post the picture of Candice and me walking down the street with the title of “Matching Parents” on Instagram…and immediately picked up a number of “likes.”  Candice and I …

That’s More Like It

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In a year of struggles, today’s Nationals/Phillies series wrap-up was one of the feel-good games of 2013. The day:  Beautiful late afternoon game at the ballpark with 32,355 other fans…including Andrew!  Third game in 8 days, and second with Andrew.  (Can you tell I’m on vacation!) Temps in the low 80s, and Section 313 starts out in the shade!  Smart decision to take the scorecard. Even the President’s Race was funny: each president wipes out Sharknado (don’t ask…something to do with the Discovery Channel’s Shark Week), Bill Taft gives him a body slam for good measure, and Teddy wins. On to the game itself… Stephen Strasburg:  First career complete game and a shutout for good measure.  No Philly makes it into scoring position. Totally dominant. Ten strikeouts. One walk. 99 total pitches – 66 strikes. Jayson Werth:  Second three-hit game in a row. Hitting ropes to left field.  Werewolf in London walk-up music shows he doesn’t take himself too seriously. Scores – along with Ian Desmond – on one of the best hustle/heads-up plays of the …

Summer in the City

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Taking a vacation in  your hometown – or a staycation as it is commonly referred to – can be a great experience when you live in a city as rich in talent and activities as Washington. Earlier this evening Candice, Andrew, and I enjoyed dinner at the Irish Inn at Glen Echo (technically, Andrew only joined us for tea at the end of the meal) and then walked next door to the wonderful Glen Echo park to take in the free Thursday evening concerts.  Tonight’s entertainment came via the Rockville Swing Band, and they had the old bumper car pavilion jumping.  It was hard to know where to keep your eyes – on the musicians or on the terrific dancers, some of whom were in their late 70s and still cutting the rug with the best of them. We were in Glen Echo because Claire was wrapping up a six-week glass blowing course.  Claire decided that she wanted to take two arts classes – totally non-credit – over the summer just to feed her curiosity …