No, I am not gay. Not that's there anything wrong with that.
Ha! I love this pic - that's my friend, the brilliant author, Maya, on the left. Her dad played with the Allman Brothers so she's had a life as insane as mine. Notice I am wearing my black NaNo t-shirt -- last year and prior years I actually won; this year...well...I made it to 35,000 words but hey, 35,000 words in thirty days is still nothing to sniff at. Once again, NaNo is short for National Novel Writing Month, which takes place during the month of November, and the goal is to write a 50,000 word novel in thirty days. No sense my posting a link to their site now, huh.
So a moment of silence for the late, great John Lennon. I cannot believe it's twenty-five years.
Gary and I got the news the worst possible way. I was half asleep and Gary was watching Monday Night Football on television and heard Howard Cosell announce it. We were so young to be married already (like, when most kids are just starting college) - my mom had recently died and we'd just moved into our new house -- I sat straight up in bed and Gary and I looked at each other in total disbelief. We immediately turned on the radio and with sinking hearts, we heard every FM rock station playing a Lennon song. We knew it had to be true but we were still in denial until the song ended -- and of course it was Happy Christmas (War is Over) which I have never been able to listen to without getting teary eyed since -- and the disc jockey was crying and taking calls from crying fans. Anyway, Gary and I went on a week long bender - we drank Irish whiskey straight from the bottle, smoked about three ounces of pot...ugh, it's hard to explain to our kids what it was like and what John Lennon meant to our generation, but we are very fortunate in that Julie and Eric, while of course loving new bands like the Flaming Lips and Shins, etc., also embrace our music as well. Hell, the two of them are the ones who turned me on to Frank Zappa. I was into British blues/rock only, which was in direct defiance to my jazz musician father. (Though he'd really have hated Zappa. Ha.)
They had a memorial service for John Lennon here in Philadelphia one day after it happened on the steps of the Art Museum, which is right down the street from where I lived at the time and still live, in fact, and they had Imagine playing over loudspeakers. When whoever was in charge asked for a moment of silence, the oddest thing occurred. It was a dark, gloomy day, and all of a sudden, the clouds shifted, parted, and the strangest single ray of sunlight illuminated everything. The crowd gasped -- it was totally surreal. Here's a photo of the museum - there were people crowded together on every step...yes, the same steps Rocky ran up (bleh).
Oh, I just realized this pic does not show the steps. Okay, well, you all saw Rocky (unfortunately, I'm sure) so you know what I'm talking about.
In other surreal news, Eric goes into the studio at 1:00 p.m. today and all day tomorrow with the Control Freaks and he's really stoked. Hey, we're all stoked. More on that in a future post. I've name dropped enough in that regard, but you know, until contracts are signed, etc. I'd better stay quiet on that front.
Speaking of new music (was I?), there are two guys out there I really like at the moment: Citizen Cope and Lewis Taylor. Trust me on this. They are amazing! Check them out and buy their music -- it's important to crush the whole Jesus Take the Wheel movement. Oh my god, I'm sure she's very nice, but Carrie Underwood makes me want to climb up in a tower with a high powered rifle.
And back for a moment to the Flaming Lips. Guess who else loves them? Pete Townshend of the Who! How do I know this? I found his blog! He's blogging an entire novel, complete with MP3s! Yes! (Though I was really surprised to learn one of his favorite authors was Patricia Cornwell. No comment, but can you say "formula"?)
Ah well, I'm sure there's more news and stuff going on with this crazy family and if I remember it, I will be back, but in the meantime, I am off to write.
But before I go, do me a favor. Listen to some John Lennon music today, okay? And may I respectfully suggest you google him and read about his philosophies and well, about his life, really. This blog is named in honor of his brilliant book of prose, poetry, and incredible artwork: John Lennon, In His Own Write. If you don't already own a copy, buy it.
Whoops - apparently I'm not writing yet. Eric, even though on his way out the door to go to the studio, left me with the DVD of Let it Be on the television. The camera just panned to John. Oh god, here come the tears again...
Peace
xo
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