I GOT TAGGED AGAIN ... GUITAR GREATS

Okay, I wrote this blog weeks ago (17-05-07 to be exact), before my health fell apart (still working on that ...) and never did figure out how to get the YouTube videos on here. Call me inept if you wish ... but if you care enough, these solos are all on YouTube and definitely worth the listen. Heck, after doing the research, it prompted me to dig out all my concert photo albums and my vinyl of these artists and spend some real quality time with them.


Bond honey, you got me again ... at least it's helping me work through my blogger's block.

I had the same problem with this meme as Vinny did: how to narrow the list down to "just five" ... so, because I knew that everybody else would be choosing from the "Guitar Gods", I decided to do something a bit different.

So, in no particular order, from a variety of music genres, here are 5 ... um well, actually ... 9 great Canadian guitar solos.



1. Rik Emmett (Triumph) --- TASTE OF STEEL


2. Jeff Healey --- SEE THE LIGHT


3. Colin James --- KEEP ON LOVIN ME BABY


4. David Wilcox --- THE BEARCAT


5. Bruce Cockburn --- WATER INTO WINE


6. Neil Young --- DEAD MAN


7. Alex Lifeson (Rush) --- CLOSER TO THE HEART
(also features a kick-ass bass guitar solo by Geddy Lee)

8. Robbie Robertson --- SHINE YOUR LIGHT


9. Lenny Breau --- THE NEARNESS OF YOU

FIVE QUESTIONS FROM BOND

A couple of weeks ago, before my life fell apart, I begged Bond to choose me for this. Damn me for the masochistic little fool that I am. LOL. So now I am honour bound to respond to questions that I find exceedingly difficult to answer.

OK, here they are, courtesy of that sadistic mind over at the Couch:

1) You are a teacher of young minds. If you could change one thing about your classroom what would it be?

I became a teacher because I love two things above all else: music and kids. It balances out. On the days the kids are horrendous, I have my music to soothe me. When my music is uncooperative or uninspiring, the kids give me a reason to continue. And on those "Eureka" days with the kids, I have both. Why mess with a perfect balance? There is nothing I would change.

2) If you could select a career for your son, what would it be?

I would never presume to choose a career for my child. But given the question, I would choose for him something that would make him happy and fulfilled. Knowing his preferences and aptitudes right now, I would probably steer him in the direction of architecture (building blocks), construction (big trucks and heavy machinery) or professional sports (anything that involves a ball and running). He is, after all, a pretty typical 4 year old.

3) You play a multitude of instruments. If you were able to appear on stage; what venue would you choose, what instrument would you play, and what song would you perform?

This one was very difficult to answer, until this morning at 3 am when I was pondering how to respond to ANY of these questions. Suddenly, it hit me. My venue of choice would be Vinny's living room. The instrument? A kazoo. And I would perform "The Song That Never Ends".

Apparently, SOME people don't think a kazoo is a "real" musical instrument. LOL. So my second answer to this question is that I would love to play Gershwin's Piano Preludes, followed by Rhapsody In Blue, at Lincoln Center, probably at the Avery Fisher Hall, because I love the atmosphere there.

4) Tell us the one place you have never been to, but long to visit and why.

This was the most difficult question to answer. Not because there were no answers, but because there were so many possibilities. Narrowing it down seemed an insurmountable task. Then I began to think outside the box. I realized there was only one real answer, and it was one I had expressed many times before. The one place I long to visit doesn't really exist physically in one place, except in the hearts of the people who met there. I grew to love those people in a relatively short period of time, although I've never met any of them face to face. Those people are the "why" and will always be very important to me. The "place" is the Original Soul Patrol. Was that cheating, Vinny? I hope not, because it's the best answer for the question, and you know it.

Ok, the Bondman thought I cheated on this answer, too, so I will redo it, as well. If I had to choose a real place to visit, it would be the Australian Outback. My reasons are that the area is populated by wonderfully fascinating people and animals, and is probably as physically different from my home region as anywhere on the planet. It's also far, far away from here, and right now, that's where I wish I was.

5) You can choose to change one day in your life. Which is it and why?

I have always tried to live my life without regret, but there are a few days that I would love to have a chance to "do over". The most obvious choice would be the day I said "Yes" when my response should have been to scream omg, and run away, fast! Not too many good things came of that particular event, so I would have no regrets in redoing that day and changing the history of my most recent life.

WARNING: THIS POST IS NOT FOR THE FAINT AT HEART

Hi everybody. Sorry I've been away for so long. You know how they say bad things come in threes? Okay, well, I hope these were my three, because they're going to keep me going for a looooooong time. I have been trying to keep things upbeat on my blog, but I find that I have a need to write about these things before I can move on. (Vinny, honey, I haven't forgotten about my questions. I promise to get them done as soon as I've worked my way through this.) Please don't feel like you need to read the rest just because you got this far. I'm not a very happy camper right now, and I'm not going to try to hide it. My apologies to anyone who is looking to be entertained, as this is plain and simple catharsis for me. Hang on tight, it might be a bumpy ride ...

A month ago, mid-April, we had a freakish snowstorm that dumped two feet of snow on our lovely city. I prefer to look at the silver lining, so let me say that the resulting snow day was a lovely gift. About 10 am, my 4-year old son and I went outside to shovel out the driveway. We were happy and having a good time when it happened. My little guy was enthusiastically shovelling snow from the lawn onto the driveway (lol) when he lost his grip on his shovel and it flew out of his hands, hit me in the face and knocked out my front tooth and damaged two others. Yeah ... so we're still working on getting that fixed up. I'll keep you posted.

Two weeks ago, I stopped into my usual grocery store to pick up a few things. My ex was there. He's not a very nice man, and has a tendency to fly off the handle. Apparently, he found out I was dating, and that made him rather upset. To keep it simple, he ended up punching me in the stomach. Yes, he was dragged off by the RCMP and no, they didn't keep him long. The next day, I was at work when I experienced a sharp pain in my abdomen. I fainted. I thought it was unusually severe cramps but I was wrong. Two days after that, I was still in a lot of pain, so I went to the afterhours clinic. They rushed me into the hospital, where I was subjected to a CT scan. An hour later, I was in surgery for a hernia, caused by a tear in my stomach muscle which was the result of a blow to my stomach (wonder how that happened?). I have been off work recovering since then and it's driving me crazy.

A dear friend and confidante suggested to me that I should perhaps thank my ex for that particular experience. Reason for that is because, in the course of the CT scan, the doctor noticed something else. It seems I have a rather large "mass" on my right ovary. There is no way of knowing what the nature of that is without further examination. Unfortunately, they need to wait until I have healed from my hernia surgery before they can proceed. I have been assured that there is no doubt that surgery will be necessary, as the growth is about 10 mm in diameter. So for now, I play a waiting game. It's never far from my mind, although I am trying to look on the positive side. However inadvertently, my ex may have actually saved my life. Ironic, considering he has spent a good part of the past year plotting to do away with me. I have regular checkups and paps, but somehow this had been overlooked until the CT scan was necessary.

Until now, I have only told two people about this. I don't want anyone's sympathy, but I could use some prayers. It's been a hell of a year so far. It can only get better, right?

IT'S THURSDAY ... WHAT DO I WRITE ABOUT?

I used to subscribe to all the current memes, but it seems that many of them have fallen out of favour. In a way, they made the blogging experience easier, because all I had to do was fill in the blanks, as it were. The TT was one of the more difficult for me to complete, because I could NEVER come up with thirteen of anything without a lot of effort and a little exaggeration. So today, I couldn't decide what to do, because I had decided when I came back to blogging that I wasn't going to get trapped into anything I didn't feel like doing.

That's when it struck me. It's Thursday. I'm going to tell you all about three things that are important to me. Welcome to my THURSDAY THREE. I'd like to introduce you to the three most important people in my life right now.



1. Brennan. My son. My sunlight. Has there ever been a more positive, cheery, even-tempered, kind 4 year old boy? He had a rocky start, but he's come through everything without lasting effect. I first saw him crawling across the kitchen floor at the home of his foster parents. It was Hallowe'en and he was a roly-poly little Tigger. Bam. Love at first sight. He was eight months old. Seven days later, I signed custody papers and we came home. The adoption was finalized only a few weeks after his first birthday. It hasn't always been easy, but being mommy to this little boy has always been joyful and rewarding.

2. My brother, Eric. Bubba, to those of you who know me ... He's been my rock and my protector all my life. He's four years older than me and has always looked out for me. He's made mistakes, sure, but I know he loves me and always means well. From my earliest recollections, Bubba has been my friend, not just a sibling. He took me to my first rock concert and my first jazz festival. Unfortunately, I didn't always listen to his advice. I should have, I guess. It would have saved me a lot of heartache in the long run. But through everything, he's stood behind me, ready to help in any way he could. I know how lucky I am to have someone like that in my life, because it's rare.


3. Okay, I wasn't sure if I should include such a recent arrival in my life, but after a lot of consideration, I decided that Victor is definitely important enough to be on my short list. I only met Vic a couple months ago. He and his daughter were newly emigrated from Romania to my town, and he was still struggling with all the changes in his life, including a relatively new language. We met at church, which is where my mother always told me I should strive to meet men ... thanks mom ... and hit it off as friends right away. His little girl is a few months older than Brennan, and they have become fast friends. Although we don't always see eye to eye, Victor has shown me respect, gentleness and consideration beyond anything I've ever witnessed before. It's not just window dressing, either. The respect thing is bred into the bone. And I think his feelings for me influence the rest. Sure, he's opinionated and arrogant beyond belief, but there are worse things, believe me. Besides, I have found that his arrogance to be a source of amusement. And he can laugh at himself! There'd be no hope if he couldn't. I have no idea where we're headed with our relationship, but I am incredibly grateful to have met him. Victor is living proof that a man can be tender and emotional without jeopardizing his masculinity. In fact, there's nothing sexier ...

TWISTED ...

Did you ever look at something and wonder what the creator was thinking at the time of conception?