Leela Music Newsletter, May 2010Michael Stribling Here's an overview of what you'll find in this issue:
The new CD is on fire! Well, let me rephrase that and say that the musical ideas are flowing quickly, compositions are developing rapidly, and over 10 songs are well on their way to being completed, with at least a couple more on the drawing board. At this rate, I'm hoping to wrap things up over the summer, which officially begins today, Memorial Day (at least in America; Is it really summer already?). I'm hoping for a release in the fall. I'm inclined to spill the beans, let the cat out of the bag, ... you choose your favorite expression ... and give you an idea about what this project is about. With a working title of Paradise Lost, the CD solemnly commemorates the displacement of the Native American peoples at the hands of the encroaching "white man" (mostly of European descent). I suppose the project is inspired in part by a couple of movies, Last of the Mohicans and Dances with Wolves, which provide a different treatment of Native Americans than most of the movies of the last century. While the Native Americans are not the only displaced people in the history of mankind, I have a particular affinity for our first nations (I think that's how the Canadians referred to their indigenous people during the 2010 Winter Olympics). Who knows? Perhaps I was a Native American in a previous lifetime. In any event, I resonate with the theme and am enjoying the process of living with this project as it unfolds. Stay tuned. IKYP (I'll keep you posted).
Sometimes there just are no words. In a critical thinking class I've taught well over 50-60 times, there was this idea: "if you can't say it, you don't know it," i.e., if you can't put an idea into words, you don't understand the concept. I would frame this as a true/false question (which ultimately equates to "I agree/disagree with the statement"), and then the students and I would discuss situations when this idea does or doesn't apply. It was easy for many folks to admit that there are some concepts for which there just are not any words that do justice to the idea being expressed. And I would be quick to introduce the term ineffable, which is a good old theological term used by saints and mystics throughout history. It's very definition is "unable to be expressed in words." Of course, then I would joke that this idea didn't apply to exam questions; students have to know the material. They couldn't claim the ineffable defense in this case! In any event, there are some things we experience in life for which there are no words. Moments of ecstasy or bliss fall into this category. In the stillness, when our entire body and soul seems to light up and smile from within, we have a gift that we can thoroughly enjoy, even if we find it tough to describe to others. No matter. We can just celebrate those wonderful moments with ourselves. We really don't need to share everything we experience with everybody else. (The Universe is not on Facebook and doesn't need to be.) And in any case, sometimes we just can't find the words. Let it be. Just enjoy the moment. It's really okay. Sometimes there just are no words.
The old radio show, The Bickersons, was always a delight for me to listen to One of my personal "sports" over the years has been watching couples cuss each other out in a "conjoint marital therapy" (and especially a "pre-marriage" counseling session ... I know, counselors have a weird sense of humor!) If they come to a session after having some kind of relational bar room brawl, I've always enjoyed asking, "Well ... how did the fight start?" ================ One year, a husband decided to buy his mother-in-law a cemetery plot as a Christmas gift. And that's how the fight started ... ================ My wife and I are watching Who Wants To Be A Millionaire while we were in bed. I turned to her and said, "Do you want to have sex?" And that's when the fight started ... ================ I took my wife to a restaurant. The waiter, for some reason, took my order first. "I'll have the strip steak, medium rare, please." And that's when the fight started ... ================ My wife sat down on the couch next to me as I was flipping the channels. And then the fight started ... ================ My wife was hinting about what she wanted for our upcoming anniversary. And then the fight started ... ================ My wife and I were sitting at a table at her high school reunion, and she kept staring at a drunken man swigging his drink as he sat alone at a nearby table. And then the fight started ... ================ I rear-ended a car this morning. So, there we were alongside the road and slowly the other driver got out of his car. And then the fight started ... ============== SAVE THE BEST FOR LAST ... THE BROKEN LAWN MOWER When our lawn mower broke and wouldn't run, my wife kept hinting to me that I should get it fixed. The doctors say I will walk again, but I will always have a limp. ================ (gratefully borrowed from Phil Brewer; who knows where he found it ...)
Every issue, I give away a free CD (autographed, of course :-). If you're on the mailing list, you're automatically entered in every drawing. This month, the winner is Joni Forsht. Congratulations! ============================================================ That's it for this issue. Feel free to drop me a line and let me know what you liked, or didn't like, in this issue, and any recommendations or requests you have for future editions. If you're new to the mailing list and/or you want to read some of the back issues of this newsletter, just visit the Leela Newsletters page. Thank you for your support. Please invite your friends to visit Leela Music and sign the guestbook. Oh yeah, it's okay to order some CDs, too! They make wonderful gifts :-). I also have a page on MySpace.com. Have a look and join the list of friends at www.myspace.com/leelamusic. I wish you peace, joy, and love. Namasté, Michael Stribling If you would like to be removed from my mailing list, please reply to this email and type the word "unsubscribe" in either the subject line or the body of your reply. One more thing: if you change your email address without telling me, I won't be able to send you any more newsletters. So, please keep me in mind if/when you change your email address. Leela Music Newsletters
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