From my one true love...

Bats in the belfry

(Not the real grandma). 

You can learn a lot hanging around with first graders.

Today I volunteered at school helping William's teacher from last year take her new recruits to the public library. It's a short walk from the school but you'd be crazy to attempt to wrangle 22 of them alone across several busy roads. 

On the way there I had this conversation with a little guy who was telling me all about his family.

Little guy: "I only have one grandma left now. My other grandma just passed away and both my granddads are dead and my great grandma is dead. They live in A Better Place now."

Me: "I'm so sorry to hear that but it sounds like you have some special angels looking over you. And it's wonderful that you still have one grandmother, right? Does she live close to you?"

LG: "Uh, yeah, too close. She lives in the BASEMENT of my house. And she is TOTALLY PSYCHO!"

Me: "I'm not sure that's a very nice thing to say about your grandma..."

LG: "My mom said I always have to tell the truth. And That. Is. The. Truth."

I later mentioned our exchange to a friend who happened, coincidentally, to know this family. "Oh yeah," she said, "He's right. That woman is completely psycho".

Ohhkaaaay then...

Coincidence?

My question is, have these four allegedly completely different musicians ever been seen together in the same room at the same time? No, thought not. I have no idea what's going on here. All I know is I hear the music, I like the music and then eventually, sooner or later, I see the people making the music. How is it possible that all the music I like is performed by men who look, 

for all intents and purposes, identical? 

We have here, from left to right, Bruce Springsteen, Eric Church, Lee Brice and Kip Moore. Wait, I mean Kip Moore, Lee Brice and Eric Church. Oh heck, I have no clue. 

I realise Bruce doesn't exactly fit the country rocker mold but I am certain he was the 

original prototype upon which these newer ones were fashioned. There's a factory churning them out somewhere in the deep south I guess. 

(Oh, just as a by-the-by, Kip Moore's debut record (yes, I said record), Up All Night, is a-may-zing. As  Molly* would say, 'do yourself a favour and check it out...' ) 

Of course, whether or not I can admit to being a huge fan of country music and still retain my rock chick credentials is a discussion for another day. 

(* Molly, aka Ian Meldrum, iconic Australian music critic.) 

  

Flowers Unlimited

I've been living in Martinsburg for a number of years and almost every day I drive down the main street of the old town as I ferry William to and from school. Evidently I have been driving around with my eyes and heart closed to the many treasures this place has to offer. 

I took these pics last week in a store called Flowers Unlimited on North Queen Street. It's a florist that doubles as a gift store selling everything from jewelry, scarves, hats, candles and lotions and potions, to seasonal decorations, knick knacks and ornaments. I can't wait to see what they do for spring if their Christmas offering is anything to go by. I love that I stumbled upon something so unexpectedly beautiful right here on my doorstep.   

Ries Ubuv Haet by William Schwind

Translation: Rise Above Hate. This is the catch cry of wrestling star, John Cena, a favorite of a certain 7 year-old in my life. I am not known to be a great fan of grown men wielding steel chairs and ladders and smashing them over the heads of other grown men but this particular guy seems to be a cut above the rest. At the very least, his message is important for kids. Or anyone really. 

It seems appropriate to share this today. 

Best friends

When William and Leanza first met, she was 9 months old. He was 3 weeks old. Although she is the older, infinitely more wise and mature woman in the relationship, they have been making each other laugh like fools ever since. Over the past seven years, they've created their own language, songs, dances and jokes together. Sometimes, they are very loud and VERY silly together. 

Leanza's mother recognized that new mother look of pure terror in my eyes the day I walked into the nursing support group run by the hospital where our babies were born. She became my first real friend in my brand new world and as a result, our kids have spent a lot of time together. I am pretty sure they don't mind. Hearing them laugh so hard they practically (and sometimes actually) pee their pants is such sweet music. I hope they are friends forever. 

I snapped these pics today at lunch. 

When they were very small...

On the road with Bruce

Apparently I was not paying quite enough attention the first 85 times I saw Bruce Springsteen in concert so the only right and proper thing to do was to go and see him again. Last week I added the Charlottesville, Virginia and Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Wrecking Ball shows to my list.

Of course, you might *think* this indicates a problem of some magnitude but I can assure you, this is a wee, small number of shows in the grand scheme of things. Although I must receive lots of credit for racking up a number like this, given that I come from a place where Bruce rarely performs, there are people who outnumber me in ways that make me seem like a rank amateur. My real claim to fame is that I'm the only person I know who permanently moved all the way across the world to in order to better pursue my obsession passion. (Actually, that wasn't the *real* reason. That would be ridiculous. The truth is I happened to marry a person who shares the same obsession passion and it was just dumb luck that he happened to live three hours out of New Jersey. Way less ridiculous, right?)

In any case, it's about so much more than the music and the man. Bruce is singlehandedly responsible for bringing so many amazing people into my life. My BFF Judi Johnson, for example. No Bruce, no Judi. No Judi, no Joe. No Joe, no William. You see what he did there?! And so it goes. Many friendships that began with this shared passion have long since transcended that initial commonality and grown into something strong and lifelong. It's true for so many of us in the 'Bruce community' and one of the many blessings of any show is the chance it gives us to reconnect with those friends. And sometimes, we even have entire conversations without mentioning his name! 

Some pics from Pittsburgh with my peeps. 

Me, Judi and Kelly

We're bad, we're nationwide

Oh Joe Grushecky, how you make me smile. All these years and you still don't know the words to Glory Days. The look on Bruce's face as you once again proceed to mangle it, in your own inimitable style, is priceless. He's like 'dude, you've had since 1984 to learn this thing. What is the MATTER with you?' I wish I had captured Steven completely cracking up but I was laughing too hard. One of the best moments of the show. Thanks Joe G

By the way, the lovely Soozie Tyrell (with guitar behind Bruce) is wearing

Matisse 'Pepper' Boots in black, from Nordstrom (also pictured below).

Very soon, I will also be wearing them. Love at first sight.