Thursday Interlude

Back porch view, with Campfire Coffee
Foto by jorma Kaukonen
33 degrees here at the homestead but clear. Given some of the alternatives a lovely if chilly spring day. Just finishing my second cup of Jorma Kaukonen’s Campfire Blend Coffee. I actually had a dentist appointment yesterday and today a scheduled checkup. I’ve been pretty much existing in my own bubble with Vanessa insisting on being my liaison with the world. With gloves and mask I even stopped by Krogers and picked up some stuff. Interesting to say the least. Now I live in a rural somewhat sparsely populated area so our daily normal is nothing like the reality my friends in the Northeast endure. That said, I don’t want people standing close to me and I consider people who have chosen not to wear masks in public utterly inconsiderate and there are such people. Take risks with your own life… don’t threaten mine.
The touring concert business is utterly gone at least for the rest of the year. Obviously we must wait to see what happens. I suspect the ‘new normal’ will be new and anything but normal as we know it today. Like so many, I and my colleagues are out of work. And so that goes. That we are able to bring you all our weekly Quarantine Concert live from the Fur Peace Ranch means the world to us!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bok1vPD9y5w&feature=youtu.be
This is truly our connection to the world and we are grateful for it.
From my not so lofty peak we are alive and still well. It could be worse for us and with that in mind, I try to minimize my complaining as hard as that is sometimes. Thinking positively and believing that at some point the Fur Peace Ranch will be open again, we are able to continue not only the upkeep of the infrastructure but also but also the making of improvements. Our very own Smiles is a busy beaver and some new walkways are under way. I have been spending more time in a true practice environment with my music than I have in years. Working gigs is not practice. The challenge of keeping the repertoire fresh for the streaming shows each week is more than stimulating. I’ll take the win.
The current situation robs us of time which can never be replaced. As a 79 year old I feel this loss more profoundly than I imagine my kids do, and that is as it should be. This is their time to be young and thank goodness they cannot walk in an old man’s shoes. My grandparents were born in the late 1800’s. When they were our kid’s age they were fleeing the pogroms of Czarist Russia and the bleakness of Finland when it was a Grand Duchy of Russia. Yeah, it could be worse.
The cold snap today is, well… cold, but at least the sun is shining. Time to walk the dogs, feed the other critters, empty the dehumidifiers, get some breakfast, play some guitar and suit up for my doctor’s appointment. Oh yeah, spend a little more time on the set list for Saturday.
There may be better times down the road, but I’ll take what I’ve got for today!

Zammy and Azlan in the garden
Foto by Jorma Kaukonen
Now here’s two being who know how to iive!