Thrive arrive alive bee hive Behave

Interesting devolopments in the You Tube: "Thrive" clip (over 2 hours long) and I'm not through it all yet. Talks of technology and further proof of ancient extra terrestrial visitations. I'm not totally convinced but this clip is tantalizing in its connections to that very thing. They're talking about discovering primary patterns found in every aspect of creation. Spinning rings of light i.e. Torus/vector equalibriam and the magnetic sphere et al. Look at the clip and decide for yourself. I put it on my FB. If true, this will likely be suppressed.

I'd rather be Whirling Dervish !! The clip is amazing and inspiring though !!

Any new technology will be manipulated and "owned" by armed force. This new technology if real, would threaten those invested in Carbon storage—the piggy bank for them. Who's power is threatened? ... like he says on the clip: follow the money. That reminds me of the RCA CEO ripping off the guy (i.e. out-maneuvering) that invented TV... he was on "What's my Secret show" in the 50's and that was his secret.... he didn't look mad only thin and riven—part of his prize was a carton of the show sponser's cigarettes. I wouldn't think that anyone would want to emulate this CEO guy: the look on his face a reflection of the hardness of his heart. But, I judge him not and can only try like everybody else, to emulate those with grace (as long as I don't forget).

A monopoly of influence. How can we respond docilely to the perpetuation of big money, big power, (and big 'worse')? and, the intellectual Trolls at the bridge entrances (CEO/BP...from Chris Hedges: "Death Of The Liberal Class). Unless those in power can exploit this emerging technology they will attempt to suppress it. So, true cancer cures are suppressed as being unexploitable?

Two personal things:

As an infant (2-3 years old).

I had a reoccurring dream just about every night that machines in the form of "truck" cranes etc. monsters would come to our house and devour my mother (I was born during WWII). Maybe I saw cement trucks at working outside I think. It was very stressful and the reoccurring dream affected me. The thing that is weird about it is that we expected them to come and in some painful way accepted it as fact — haunting really! and here it is tending to be true (Mom's 95 and fine —I pray) —(Mother Earth is struggling—and I pray).

Raindrops are unlikely to be blue.

As a 5-6 year old in the local kindergarten, we had a good time and I think learned how to read. I could certainly read in Gr. 1. The kindergarten teacher was well intentioned and for the most part was a good teacher. One day she asked us to draw a landscape of our neighborhood or something and oddly, told us to indicate raindrops as the color blue (it rained in Vancouver a lot). Something of a silent rebel i.e. seeker of painful truths, within me made me think about that and I realized that rain was not blue but really transparent and reflected the colors of it's surroundings So— what did I do: I colored (crayons) the rain yellow and brown and green and orange etc. I guess to symbolize that. Bless her heart and soul but the teacher asked all the kids in the little class to come and look at what a mistake I had made and basically shamed me for not painting the rain blue. My feelings at that moment were: I'm not really here... and it had no immediate effect on me. But, it made me think about that and of course I was right about that. How could rain be blue... of course it can I suppose if reflected by a patch of blue somewhere—we all know you need clouds for rain to happen or? We try to fight this with little acts of rebellion: giving to charity, and if possible, support to those who need it.


I still have a dream: Martin Luther King....

The dream is that we will all wake up to who we really are. Those who follow the so called "golden rule": 'them that has the gold makes the rules'—they can wake up to that fact also. That is a dream worth trying to fulfill. I just think it's great that we can see clips like "Thrive". Of course ever leery of being lied to, being ever gullible, still, I like what he is saying—he is brave and a truth seeker just by putting his thoughts out there is putting his life on the line while no doubt, perplexedly preturbing the brain waves of the (you know).

One last thought from Hariharananda: If you are absorbed in the workings of the mind, then emotions, judgements, dislike, and other negativities arise and are reflected back to you in people, nature, and the world. However, if you are constantly absorbed in the soul, then only love and goodness is reflected back. (Amen) !!

listenism ..

Music day... listened to some nice tracks that came my way by facebook.

'Got almost talked into purchasing an ipad re music storage with instant access for gigs etc... rather than all those books... Picked up a couple of gigs with Dino D. (Nolas Mar. 28/29 early show) who uses the ipad and of course has all his many things on there. Now if I could only read !! Apparently they are back-lit and are fairly easy on the eyes. It might be a good idea for gigs.. but for rehearsing/practising and developing arrangements on the fly might be less than productive than quickly pensiling in a cool sounding chord change that you just thought of. I probably will go the way of the ipad eventually... $900.00 is not small change so I better be gettin' a lot of gigs I guess (ihope).

A friend came for a "lesson" today re what does the "Book" (AATJP) say there? (he's got it)... that was fun for me too to work with an advanced person/player. Needless to say he had an ipad as well and had my book on file right there.. We still read from the copy that I have however.. but the ipad does look practical if not downright time consuming (is my fear).

I wanted to review the diminished chord function thing visa-vis extensions, function, and slash chord potential. I'll write more on that tomorrow.

Man! I've been reading Chris Hedges continuing on — he is so scathing at the corporate/governance with his concern for the working men and women and really outlines from his deep deep coverage of political events.

Here's a sample from "The Death Of The Liberal Class": To set this up he refers to a FedEx worker/driver (HENDERSON) who was hurt very badly in an accident while working for that company (not his fault or doing)... and was subsequently abandoned and shed piecemeal from this company."

"Our destitute working class now understands that the cloying feel-your-pain-language of the liberal class is a lie. The liberal class is not attempting to prevent wages from sinking, unemployment from mounting, foreclosures from ripping apart communities, or jobs from being exported. The gap between a stark reality and the happy illusions peddled by smarmy television news personalities, fatuous academic and financial experts, oily bureaucrats and politicians, is becoming too wide to ignore. Those cast aside are often willing to listen to anyone, no matter how buffoonish or ignorant, who promises that the parasites and courtiers who serve the corporate state will Disappear. Right-wing rage is becoming synonymous with right-wing populism."

"Obama, seduced by power and prestige, is more interested in courting the corporate rich than in saving the disenfranchised. Asked to name a business executive he admires, the president cited Frederick Smith. of FedEx, although Smith. is a union-busting Republican. Smith, who was a member of Yale's secret Skull and Bones Society along with G W Bush and John Kerry ........ Smith is rich and powerful, but there is no ethical system, religious or secular, that would hold him up as a man worthy of emulation. Such men build fortunes and little monuments to themselves off the pain and suffering of people like Henderson."

Chris Hedges is a brave, concerned and humble man who is deeply literate and knowledgeable. He's not just my hero d'jour but a true stalwart and tells it like it is. I seem to see it all around on the TV... Alberta's groovin' OK and the unions are not "busted" here so much ?? but the money pressure is definitely on. I can't say I know so much about that but there are social problems that can get very personal in a heartbeat. In fact the lack of skilled workers might slow things down too.... We DO hope for the best for everyone though (now even) Yeah !!

Bacheloring for a week ..kinds of foods.

So home alone for a week and back on my diet: Hemp hearts in the porridge, Bell peppers sauteed with other things (protean too) —I'm hopping to get back on the track of a pound a day. I'll be going for it in this next week for sure. Hemp hearts gives energy for the whole day and allows you to eat only the skimpiest of lunches (salad or sauteed veg. + a plug of salmon). Staying off anything sugary/"carby" bread and potatoes. I have a little brown rice (small portion) now and then. Anything that will slow down the digestive process and give the pancreas and liver a chance is fair game. One has to be reasonably full after supper. Then no eating after supper, i.e. go to bed a little hungry and voila another pound gone (hopefully). I still have quite a ways to go to reach my goal but it is worth it. Feeling better, a little more athletic and lighter on and off my feet. It's a good thing: a life saving, savoring thing. This is the first time I've ever sauteed garlic cloves... they are delicious.

I'm missing my grandson Jack who is amazing and developing into quite a fine kid. G. is off visiting them.

Work/chores/practise/listen—life is busy and planned and it's OK to not practise 6-8 hours a day. More like 2 hours maybe. I'm making some time think and read and (trying to) grow.

The book got relaunched (see the site: charlieaustinjazz.com) with KMO's brilliant new cover design (Yay).

I've learned a lot by listening to my tracks recently recorded—it takes a tremendous concentration as those that know will attest. I'm kicking myself over a few careless blunders that marred a potentially good take. Recording one's self is really soul-building (neuron building). I can measure my state of mind just by the touch of the keys. I confess that I out-smarted myself on a few rhythmic gestures and didn't wait for the downbeat to catch up. Right there is a reason to practise with the metronome. I can tell where I'm at mentally and personally (is there a difference? sub category) by what comes out: Solo piano gives you no place to hide really. I kind of flubbed an entry and then "classlessness" abounded as I tried to cover it up by doing grace notes to kind of imitate the flub as if it was intended all along. I won't do that again—it's just so obvious and false. Just start over with a new track and a stronger mind set and soul set! It turns out that except for a couple of very precious tracks on day 2, the best results came on the first day of recording ("beginner's" luck—with red light fever).

I'm thinking this will make me a better player—if I pay attention and do the hard work of listening to the same tracks individually over and over again. I would like to think I didn't squander the recording opportunity and got a CD's worth of entertaining music. This is serious business and everyone who does this sort of thing works really hard at getting it done well.

EKOS

I'll be playing less as it's getting to be EKOS choir writing time and I'm starting to think about some sort of allotment of time for P.'s wonderful EKOS ambitious projects. I think the overall concert will be a success in May because the choir can get a lot done because of the nature of the arrangements we're doing. The EKOS concert theme is New Orleans and covers some musical history and roots music that should be very entertaining and fun to do. I just have to get to work on it.

Reincarnation:

The thoughts on reincarnation are bearing some fruit in that I think I potentially have more peace and spiritual progress and am able to deal with past faults with more clarity and resolution. In any case the only way is forward. So that is the way.

Chris Hedges:

Here's one of the many You Tube clips of Chris Hedges. He tells it how it is on every level through many brilliant speaking events. He is so brilliant and well thought out and has a lot to say about our existence on this planet. Here's a link to get it going — it's all good stuff. We are fortunate to have this humble and wise man who in my view, has everyone's true interest at heart. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3aNik_d2Tug&feature=related

Hedges mixes it up with Hitchens... and wins hands down as far as I'm concerned —and I was (and still am) a fan of Hitchens: Then I saw Chris Hedges being interviewed. I'm reading his books and noting his influences: Noam Chomski and George Orwell.... they're all on You Tube as well... I'm going to take the time to absorb their thoughts too.

Take care all !!

Nola's gigs no less.

Nola's gigs no less. "Working" at Nola's. It's like an imaginary place but, it's for real enough for jazz et al. People just hang around after supper and love to talk over/under the live bands that play there. I think they like the idea of being able to talk through the music — it's like a party and the musicians are in the background having fun and playing their hearts out. So there's a potential scene there. The folks who are there don't strike as being Yardbird Suiters but seem to dig the music anyways and it's not Rock and Roll all the time. Dixie type jazz, bebop, jazz fusion, folk fusion. Musicians need some place to play so long may it continue. I played with Dino D. (his gig) Tenor and Greg D. on bass. Basically "real" booking it. It seemed to come off OK and was fun and challenging (no drums) but it went pretty steady all through the night.... some person came on to the stage at the end and gave us all a congratulatory hug and said that her 2 boys were playing the piano.... it's only a little club (on the edge' of town) but here we were being pleased enough with ourselves. Will it last?... We live well—for the moment. It was fun even if it was a trifle loud (whazhatusay). I will be wearing earplugs for a time to try to recoup the expected hearing loss. We did an unexpected duo today Sunday for which we had a devoted audience of about 8-9 people. They loved us bless their hearts. We played softer today and the musical rewards were increased up in the quantum leap area. It was a good way to end the weekend. It's all very inspiring—whenever I play 2-3 gigs in a row it feels like being a real musician with confidence and skill/solos that emerge that didn't seem to be there before.... Maybe its due to the fact that my little yamaha P85 is just a tad light in the key weight department. With the addition of dynamics there is a whole other world of expression, lines, confidence, fun and a little more involvement with self esteem (ah steam !) Yey !

Reincarnation:

To change the subject: the topic of reincarnation has been brought to my attention via Yogananda of the Biography of a Yogi (a recommended read for anyone—especially anyone involved with the arts and that can be literally anyone). A little passage here brings to light the potential for erroneous thinking in that this life has to be used up in the pursuit of physical pursuits etc. This may suffice for now.

" The early Christian church accepted the doctrine of reincarnation, which was expounded by the Gnostics and by numerous church fathers, ..... The (this) doctrine was first declared a heresy in A.D. 533 by the Second Council of Constantinople—in order to encourage man to strive for immediate salvation (point well taken enough). But truths suppressed lead disconcertingly to a host of errors. The millions have Not utilized their "one lifetime" to (not so much) seek God, but to enjoy this world — so uniquely won, and so shortly to be forever lost! The truth is that man reincarnates on earth until he has consciously regained his status as a son of God.

It just gives me food for thought and to be more earnest (hopefully Not "inept") in the quest for realization. Duty done will reap rewards of perhaps some other kind of good chance. Otherwise who knows? The magic is in preparation and willingness to look inward. Sorry for preaching to the choir but it's really self directed.

Face book issues: on MOX TV... privatization of jails (what a thought)—incarceration for profit— supposed to save the state money... according to the records of the fact: it indeed does Not save the state money...It's reminiscent of Chris Hedge's (The death of the Liberal Class pp 51) observation of the privatization of the Afghan war. There's nothing for the troops to do.... this "privatization" is still bottom-lined by the US state !! War is hell !! Prison is from Hell !!

In lighter news: The Oilers redeemed via an 8 point brilliant play by Sam Gagner ... Wee were there: G. and I. It almost felt like the Gretzy years there for a brilliant moment of play. The game did generate some much needed esteem amongst the jubilant fans. I was happy too.

Fell off the diet a little: all about nursing my split 4th fingertip don't y'know. I think I need the occasional relief from the extreme speed of losing weight: 25 pounds in a month and a half. Now I have to get back to it split fingertip and all... it's a little sore even through the bandaids.

Gotta transcribe Jambalaya for EKOS then listen to those tracks, then practise, then start editing and working on Book 2... I hope I don't have to have another 30 years of experience to write it. Geeeeeee this IS Fun after all..

Keep up the good fight All.... I will remember to remember to do the same.

tracking the tracks

I've finally got to sit down and start listening to my tracks. The first day of recording yielded some promising results. I've been listening carefully to the tracks of the 2nd day and in spite of Hector, D.O.'s dog/guy, I seemed at times to be wandering off into little harmonic cubby holes that sometimes appear relevant but often are a little annoying excursions into the dreamland of wanderings getting away from the matter at hand. They seem to be not as much fun in places.. Other times I'm wondering what I did there because it sounds even miraculous. I guess I'll just keep going and learn some of the tunes better and try to get inside them. It takes quite a while for me to really deeply know a song.

"Minimally" was the word Bill Evans used when he was asked about practising—that is working extensively on just a few ideas (and knowing it to be right under any playing conditions). My friend L.V. says that Bill has practised all day for weeks and months earlier on in his life.

So I'd like to try that a little bit too.... I have been playing these tunes for the best part of a life- time and still find ways to paint myself into a corner. Of course playing in up tempos was and is a challenge but with a little work at that I seemed to be able to play up without getting a stiff neck. "1/2 TIME THEY TELL ME." So that reminds me of the time I was in NYC (1983) and listening to the great Johnny Griffin tearing it up in this club with a very young Mulgrew Miller (who "played" —like he demolished the piano, very very awesome). Well, speaking of half time feel in a 4/4 up up UP tempo: I couldn't even tap my foot to it, it was so fast—I tried tapping my foot in half time meanwhile I was checking this fabulous bass player with the group and caught his eye: he noticed that I was tapping in 1/2 time and he looked at me without contempt but gave me a nod in the Negative direction (Not up and down) which told me that 1/2 time is not the way to go—I've never forgotten that. So the secret to playing fast up up 4 is not 1/2 time per say, but to somehow relax and feel (practise, listen, keep track of changes and form) the fast 4 in not such a square way (as I had been doing).... It's a challenge even to find players that want to play fast because to get good at it you have to go for it often.

These tracks I've just done are kind of the opposite of all that. My time is good (stretched here and there) but the impulse is more like a bar-long wave or more. Gotta watch those cubby holes.

Random news:

We went to Hugo.... very nice..

EKOS choir has a wonderful ambitious show coming up in May and I know I'm going to be attentive and hard working just to keep up with P. the director: lots of plans—it's going to be fun and entertaining.

Slowly reading Chris Hedges: He's got the take on our times !!

Reading Autobiography of a Yogi.... There's nothing like it out there. I've read it several times but now concentrate on the intake and study and living with the principles and revelations found there.

I'm going to practise—and remind myself what a great thing it is to be able to play even if tribulations do arise — it's the one thing that keeps going forward in some particular way.

Cheers, Everyone.