I was down in Santa Cruz on Sunday and while there, visited Felix Kulpa Gallery. The sculptor Robbie Schoen has a series he calls Wreck and Roll; custom built art guitars. These are all playable and very cool.

Watermelon & Chocolate

A friend writes of the healing qualities of watermelon, so I email him and ask for one. He obliges.

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Spending a lot of time in bed recuperating, I got to catch up on my reading of the "Chronicles of Narnia". From last night’s reading:

“In our world,” said Eustace, “a star is a huge ball of flaming gas.”

“Even in your world, my son, that is not what a star is but only what it is made of.”

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Emails back and forth with several photographers Scott and I are planning to include in our Mac Store presentation. I’m trying to tease a better statement out of one of them - an amateur in the best sense of the word. She loves making photographs and puts herself out there to do it, undertaking night-time and nature photography, both of which require extra commitment to do well.

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I must be getting better. Chocolate is once again appealing.

Down and out with a head cold today. Looking out the windows, it is gray and rainy.


Yesterday's 'Tuning the Air' rehearsal began with a stunning circulation. Then the team moved into more exploration with Diana and the dance.

Taylor, Diana & Chris

After a hour of work with movement, the team focused on 'In My Room', 'Onyx', and 'My Precious Dream'. At the end of rehearsal, I could feel that whatever I was getting sick with was getting the upper hand, so I packed up and went home.



The husband half of the building manager team – who also has a full-time job - only does repairs on weekends. I’d reported that the dryer vent doesn’t seem to be venting – every time I use the dryer, the bathroom (which is where the washer and dryer are installed) receives a layer of lint everywhere. So, this morning he called and offered to look at it. He banged and crashed around in the bathroom for about 45 minutes, then came out and reported he found nothing at this end of the dryer vent. He then went upstairs and found that last summer’s paint job of the building included sealing my dryer vent. I did a load of towels today and noticed immediate improvement, not only regarding the lint trap, but laundry now dries in a fraction of the time.

I must be sick if the only thing I can remark about the day is my laundry.

Light on one side of a room.

In Christopher Alexander's A Pattern Language, (a favorite book) one of the patterns described is 'light on two sides of every room':

When they have a choice, people will always gravitate to those rooms which have light on two sides, and leave the rooms which are lit only from one side unused and empty.

This pattern, perhaps more than any other single pattern, determines the success or failure of a room. The arrangement of daylight in a room, and the presence of windows on two sides, is fundamental. If you build a room with light on one side only, you can be almost certain that you are wasting your money. People will stay out of that room if they can possibly avoid it. Of course, if all the rooms are lit from one side only, people will have to use them. But we can be fairly sure that they are subtly uncomfortable there, always wishing they weren't there, wanting to leave - just because we are so sure of what people do when they do have the choice.

This is one affirmed in my own experience. I knew from photos sent to me that my studio here would be light-challenged. The significant windows are on the smallest wall of the space - the southern wall. I had hoped that a side window - the only other window - on the north side of the studio would fufill this need for a second source of light. Unfortunately, that window opens to an interior entryway and as a result, provides almost no light.

The situation is further complicated in that it is essentially a retail space. It is entirely understandable that people walking down the street are inclined to peer into store-front windows. What are store-front windows for anyway? I treated two of the large windows with a translucent material in an attempt to provide privacy without eliminating sunlight. A few days ago - on a day I felt particularly depressed by the situation - I treated the last large window as well. But it remains dark in here and the place feels very cavelike. After a few hours of working here it is necessary to get out and breathe and take in the light. Cafes become a necessary refuge.

Light on two sides of a room - Cafe Ladro

I guess I am in a bad mood. What, with a visit to the DMV that did not result in getting anything done, and having a store clerk attempt to overcharge me $15 and - last but not least - having my iBook crash, it hasn't been a very good day.

Stopping at an intersection this afternoon, I glanced in the car next to me and saw this:

Included are a framed image of a cat, a newspaper clipping of an image by Henry Darger, taped to the dash and several figurines.

Lots of planning and emails for my upcoming visit to the Bay Area today. Still many left to write/respond to. The financial aid application I made to the YMCA came through - but they set a deadline for completing the membership application - and that deadline was today! So I had to find the time to get down there and go through the process.

Received a FedEx envelope frm HP that I've not yet opened. I expect it is the shipping labels and instructions for sending them the files and match prints for the work I'm having so much trouble printing.

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At tonight's Tuning the Air rehearsal, Jax requested they work on 'King for a Day' at a significantly slower tempo. This meant the solos had time to stretch out luxuriously. Here's Bob in the midst of a beautiful bit of slowed down solo work.

The check is *still* not in the mail

Spoke to the Sacramento dealer today. Actually, I sat and listened for much of the conversation as he told his tale of woe. He claims to have lost his house. He claims a neighbor purchased the property and is renting the guest house back to him. And he claims he'll be able to pay me in a few weeks. I am not sure what to believe and what action to take. I've given him four weeks - and at that point, I will either take him to small claims court, or...?

Acquired a new camera today. Learning about using it...

Tonight's Tuning the Air performance had a good crowd. I had a sneaking suspicion that Curt was considering having the team play Igor's composition Onyx for the encore. So after the show was over and the audience had applauded, I whispered to two fellows sitting next to me in the audience, 'You know they'll do an encore if we clap.' And the three of us started clapping. And sure enough, Onyx made its performance debut.

Curt during rehearsal

On the Beach

Called Mom with mother's day greetings this morning while walking along the beach. Got the good news that the doc has taken her off two of her medications. Four more to go. I can dream, can't I?

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Been very busy this last week preparing for the show. Much time invested in learning about this behemoth printer. On Friday, the prints for the show were packed up and shipped.

Last Sunday, I tagged along with Curt when he went to KSER down in Everett WA for an interview on Tuning the Air. I sat nearby to listen and remind him to keep covering the details.

Back in Five Minutes

Down the hall from the room where the Tuning the Air performances are held are several offices of various non-profit groups. On the door of one of these offices is a small sign that makes me smile whenever I see it:


The struggle with the behemoth printer continues. After several nights of being woken at 3 or 4am by the damn thing, I left it turned off all weekend. Well, it seems to be punishing me now as it as rendered all the profiles made over the last few days 'obsolete'. Which means I must re-run the the calibration steps - wasting paper and inks in the process. What fun.