Blog

Three years ago, Alaina and I were wed in Warwick, NY. It was easily the best day of my life. What an event! All our most loved people surrounding us for our eternal vows, bearing witness to our bond, then celebrating all through the night. We had been in Love for many years before that, but something changed on that day and remade us. I thank Good for her everyday.

With a few hours to spend in between classes, I have parked myself in Central Park, where I now write this dispatch... Living in the city, one is obligated to settle for constricted green spaces like the park or make a concerted effort to travel elsewhere for space and peace; Colorado certainly has plenty of both. A week spent there is refreshing and a reminder both of the necessity of nature in our lives and the true beauty of a cultural mass in cities like New York. I need both. I have yet to find an adequate compromise that can provide an all-in-one solution. So I appreciate my limited time camping and hiking in the awe-inspiring mountains even when it snows in June, and I appreciate my relatively cramped living arrangement in Brooklyn for its cultural access. But still, I wish I had world-class skiing on my doorstep...

The Celtics took down the Lakers with a great drubbing, winning by 39 points and earning their 17th World Championship. Back when they were relevant in '86, I remember sitting second row behind the basket (Dad's magic tickets) and being shocked by the giants on the court, named McHale, Ainge, Johnson, Bird and the ultimate freak show, Robert "The Chief" Parish. Last summer, two of those classic Celtics conspired to bring another championship to Beantown when McHale, the GM of The Timberwolves and Boston's GM Ainge pulled off a blockbuster to bring a monster even bigger than his 6'11" frame, Kevin Garnett, to the Big Green. I love this guy. He is so unconsciously emotional and animated on the court and off. Numerous times during their celebration, ABC had to mute the sound to save viewers from the profanity KG was spewing in exaltation. "Anything is Possible!" he yelled in pure joy for his first ring. Not to mention the other deserving members of the crew, Pierce and Allen, Rondo and Perkins. It is a great team and the pride of Boston right now, a town still recovering from a tragic loss in February... Athleticism, Drama and Triumph: when they meld together they create an alchemy of excitement not experienced with anything else.

While Tiger Woods does not represent any specific geographic community, it is impossible to not root for him. He is the greatest golfer playing now and and will probably be definitively considered the greatest ever someday. He proved his dominance once again with a playoff victory in The U.S. Open, sinking clutch putts like nobody else. He is the rare athlete who completely owns his sport and takes the competition to new level. It is inspiring to watch history unfold.

This is fun. Text a question--anything-- to chacha (242242) and you will receive an answer written by A HUMAN. From directions to bar suggestions to fun facts to fortune telling, someone will research your query and text you back. As it relies on the internet, the responses are not always 100% accurate, but the human feel of the service makes it truly entertaining, like having a pen pal. I recently texted "What do you like to do when you aren't chachaing?" The response: "I like writing music." Me too! It is free, so chacha to your heart's content.

Mountains! On Monday, Alaina's mother, brother and I will fly to Colorado for some natural inspiration, hiking and camping in The Rockies for a week. Planned months ago, it has been a beacon in my future. Now the future is here... It also coincides with separate cross-country trips by my sister (recently graduated!) and brother (recently engaged!) as we converge for a Buckland-Taylor powwow. When I return, I will have six weeks of summer in NYC before heading to Guatemala, Peru and Bolivia for six weeks. It's nice to have an exciting future, but even nicer to have an exciting present!

History

It All Began

In a Big Bang

Before Was Nothing

Then Everything

Day Was Born

From The Night

Out of Darkness

Came The Light

The Great Eye Opens

And It Can See

Be Feel and Breathe

Infinity

All Eternal

All as One

All Burning Bright

As Billions of Suns

Around One Sun Fell a Rock

With Some Astronomical Luck

This Infintesimal Orbiting Sphere

Had Just The Perfect Atmosphere

What Was The Spark

What Turned It On

What Flipped the Switch

From Night To Dawn

From The Beginning

To The End

As Future Moves Past

Now is The Present

So nice to see you again. I am sitting out on my balcony overlooking the Greenwood Cemetery, enjoying some great Brooklyn socializing... sometimes I feel like a tourist in my own home! Today was spent on this balcony, enjoying this wonderful weather pattern and preparing a DJ setlist for this evening's activity: Festival of Friends at All Souls School. I have just completed my first year as the Music and Movement Specialist at this pre-school and tonight was the end-of-the year jam. Food and activities from all over the world with a Supergood musical sauce. It was a great way to end the year there. I have learned so much as a part of that community and I relish the opportunity to explore music and movement with the kids; their response is pure and raw. When I think about the average response of an 18+ listening to music, I wonder "What happened?"

Here come the raccoons, creeping across the street to feast on garbage day... urban bears.

My neighbor across the balcony runs a ukelele cabaret once a month and inspired me to play the other day. I played a set of, what else, kids music. Let's try to remember the joy of our earliest years...