Irish Fortune Cookie

I woke up this morning grouchy. I had no reason to be. I guess. The calendar was still showing itself to be YESTERDAY, but other than that..all should be fine. I loved. I ate. I looked out my windexed-window as the rain drizzled down so miserably and misty-fine, that fog could not compete. And I was inside. Dry and warm. It was a fine day. If I was a bitch...it would only be because I could not see the beauty. And I couldn't. I pushed and pulled and drug and sweat through this Summer day...with all the momentum and ballet and patience of a jagged rock rolling down a cliff.

So, lunchtime, at 2:30 or so..I heard something that changed my perspective just a tiny bit. I guess it was a sort of Irish Fortune Cookie.

There were 4 of us, looking at menus, in a little gastro pub on the sea in East Cork. It smelled wonderful. We ordered and were left to our friendly reverie. One of us (not yours truly by the way) mentioned the fact that they were disappointed that a certain selection wasn't on the menu anymore. We lamented the fact that things change. And there was a pretty nice, rousing discussion as we concluded, "Yes, change is hard...but this is definitely as good as it gets". And it was.

As we got up to leave, the waitress asked us if "everything was fine for us?". We all said "yes, thank you!" , but then I just decided to add, "We DO lament that a certain dish you used to have, of sweet brown bread, fresh prawns with lemons, tabasco and salad-on-the-side is not on the menu anymore". She immediately replied..."oh, yes, but I think you can get what you want". And she DISAPPEARED into the kitchen.

We straggled around awhile, gathering ourselves to peel out the door, back into that misty-fog-of-a-day...and just as we started to cross the threshold, she seemingly came out of nowhere (although it was probably the gastropub's kitchen) and said, "I just asked the chef and he says: if you'd like that dish the next time you come...just ask". And THEN she said, (and this was the Irish fortune cookie part), "You just never know, unless you inquire. No harm in asking. Otherwise..you might not ever know the answer is YES".

And I swear...without her PHYSICALLY MOVING A MUSCLE....she winked an eye. Sparkle blue. Nothing. But magic. Bedtime 4 me. Ha!

I woke up the next morning vaguely aware, that after everyone had gone to bed last night, I stayed up with my computer and a very large glass of red wine. My first thought was, "oh crap!...'NEVER mix alcohol and writing'. Throw in my current hormone count and you have an extremely, explosive cocktail for disaster. I was convinced that I wrote ... See Moresomething much more akin to one of those long, butt-cringy letters that distant relatives send out at Christmas time, telling you EVERYTHING about their life...and their kids' life...and their parakeet's life, rather than something that was hopefully, slightly interesting. I grabbed some coffee. Grabbed my puter. And thought..."Maybe there's time to hit that delete button before anybody reads it"!!! I was relieved to find, it didn't seem too obtuse. It just occurred to me how amazing it is, that one, teeny, tiny COMMENT or TOUCH or LOOK from an absolute stranger can shift my perspective so radically from dark to light. I'm sure these cool, human, magical-moments occur DAILY...EVERYWHERE. Mostly when I least expect it. And, I guess what I'm saying is, it IS amazing to live here in such a raggedly-beautiful place, with my best pal. Wouldn't trade it for the world. But, even when I lived alone, on Top Ramen and sour cream in a creepy little studio apartment in Hollywood, putting WAY too many suspicious substances up my nose, living pay check to pay check...luckily...I thought THAT was all great too. I just keep rediscovering that, no matter what, I wouldn't want to be anyone other than myself. Which is actually a really healthy belief since I HAVEN'T GOT A CHOICE ANYWAY! There are a few things I wish for occasionally. Like it would have been excellent to have kids. Adopted or conceived. That is one experience that is a complete mystery to me. But I'm pretty sure of one thing, IF I had 10 kids, two dogs and 6 cats and lived in Pacoima, in a tent... I'd STILL have many of those cool, human, magical-moments that seemingly come out of nowhere to make me remember: "I'm lucky". O.K. maybe not a tent in Pacoima. According to that waitress, Mick Jagger and company were wrong. You CAN SOMETIMES get what you want. Or better yet, in the words of Edith Piaf, "Non,Je Ne Regrette Rien". O.K. I've now firmly entered butt cringe-ville, laughing all the way. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kFRuLFR91e4

"Bridie's Eyes"

I wrote the song "Bridie's Eyes" with Don Dixon. He delivered the beautiful melody and I filled in the words. Bridie used to live up the road from me here in Ireland. She lived in a small cottage with marginal plumbing and only a fireplace for heat. Her story is rich and sad and very Irish. I wish I could have written a book about her. A song just doesn't cover it. Everyday she would grab her walking stick, a burlap sack and her little dog Rose, and hike down the old cliff road to the sea to gather driftwood for her fire. She lived in another time. Bridie time. Like I've said before, she is a "walking song". Her eyes actually TWINKLE blue. She had a contagious laugh and spoke with wild Celtic wisdom. She no longer lives in the cottage by the sea. She's since moved into a nursing home, up the road. I actually went to visit her the other day and ended up playing some music for her and friends. Let me just say, I have had some pretty exotic and mind-blowing experiences playing music in my.....life, and THIS was NO exception. I could not get it out of my head. So I decided to document what is left of the life she used to have, on the cliff at the edge of the sea, with my trustee flip video camera. I got a little obsessed, taking videos of everything and anything that I thought she would have seen on her daily walk. I only have the one, blurry photo of her that I shot through my car window one day a few years ago as she headed down our road. She's doing well, where she lives now. But I think I'll choose to remember her the way she was when she lived in her little place by the sea. She is a hero of mine.

I spend my life in two very different places, in Ireland at the edge of the sea, and in California at the edge of the desert. Each year is an egg that I crack in half, usually pretty much right down the middle. The edges are a little jagged, and sometimes I lose a bit of shell, but all in all, it's a good move. It's... the one that I currently make anyway. I DO tend to get a tiny bit discumboobulated every time I switch from one to the other. I love "hello" and hate "goodbye" and can never quite get used to the idea that you can't have one without the other. (Still working on that one). I traveled around a LOT in the last few months, but it still didn't soften the blow that comes with hopping over the pond. East to West. West to East. Either way, it's an incredibly beautiful, educational and liberating way to live. It's also a mind-fuck, a spirit bender and a test of emotional stability. Luckily I get to spin around the planet with my Danman. We keep each others feet NEAR the ground anyway. It's a small world, but at the same time, it's a very large planet.

I'm dead tired. Completely happy and dead tired. Packing up for a Summer in Ireland and trying to soak in all the excellent experiences of the last few months. I've never had such an amazing time as I did playing out with my friends Don Dixon and Marti Jones (and Jim Brock when I could nab him), over the past few months. It was Disneyland with only E tickets for this chick. I've posted a little video of "The Beautiful Child" from the L.A. show at the M Bar a few weeks ago in my video section here. Lots of great peeps showed up and I think it was a pretty fine night. I certainly had a great time. Much more to come. From the Emerald Isle...

Mr. Van Dyke Park's did two wonderful string arrangements on TWIST. Sort of the 'bookends' to the girl theme, the young girl..."the Beautiful Child" and the older woman..."Bridie's Eyes". His early involvement on the record definitely helped to shape it's aural direction. I was asked by the San Diego News Network to write a few words about my impressions of Van Dyke and what it was like to work with him. It was a pleasure to do and I'm pleased to say they pretty much took me word for word. Here's the article about my friend Van Dyke Parks that came out Feb. 11th:

...Van Dyke Parks’ remarkable résumé includes producing the first albums by Randy Newman and Ry Cooder, writing with the Beach Boys’ Brian Wilson (most famously for the long-unreleased album “Smile”) and arranging for a dizzying array of performers ranging from Cher to U2. On his own, he created the massively ambitious ”Song Cycle,” an artistic triumph of true Americana whose economical title was not matched by the recording budget ($48,032 in 1968 dollars, reportedly making it the most expensive album to date).

“Whenever I hear Van Dyke’s music, even a snippet, I am immediately transported into his seriously beautiful cartoon-world of aural emotion,” said Kelley Ryan, the astroPuppees singer-songwriter whose bubbly new solo album, “Twist” (out Tuesday), features Parks arrangements on two songs. “Both his melodies and his lyrics take you to a place that only Van Dyke knows. Only he has the map. It’s like a secret musical treasure diagram and “X” marks the spot. The best musicians I know have worked with him, from Carly Simon to Brian Wilson to Rufus Wainwright, to name a few. And if they were ever asked, “What music would you take to a deserted island?”, I bet they would answer “anything of Van Dyke Parks has to be in the stack.” “In my case,” Ryan added, ”it would be “Tokyo Rose.” Or would it be the soundtrack to “Popeye”? Van Dyke has one of the most unique and supportive musical imprints of anyone I’ve ever had the pleasure of working with. He at once augments and lifts the music to a different level. For me, it was a level I didn’t even know existed in nature, let alone musical expression. He is magic.”

Mikel Toombs is an SDNN Music contributor.

If you want to read more and see a cool youtube video of Mr. Parks in action...click this:

http://www.sdnn.com/sandiego/2010-02-11/concerts-music-clubs/soul-legend-percy-sledge-highlights-valentines-day-weekend-shows

I have a certain fondness for monkeys,chimps,apes...
all primates in general. Alive OR Stuffed. Gorillas In The Mist OR Sock Monkeys. It's all good.

Anyway, I recently moved to Palm Springs, California and discovered from a local resident that Cheeta (yes, Tarzan's Cheeta) lives in Palm Springs too. Apparently he's retired from acting and become a painter. In fact, we had recently BOUGHT a painting from him on his website (http://cheetathechimp.org/). Of course. Well, our friend actually knew Cheeta's home address. It just happened to be on the way to our local grocery store. He actually lives in a residential neighborhood in one of those mid-century modern, Jetson's/Flintstone houses. Very appropriate for a retired movie star cum artist.

First thing my husband Dan and I did after our friend left was to run to the store for supplies. A little wine..a little dinner. Of course, on our way home, we decided we really SHOULD do a drive by of Cheeta's house. I know...I know. Weird. I felt like a stalker. But it was SO funny. We were laughing the whole way there and it IS on the way home (sort of). Anyway, we pulled up and the front gate was open and there was a guy taking out the trash. I rolled down my window and said, "Hi! We're fans of Cheeta. We bought one of his paintings." And he said, "Good. You want
to meet him?"

So of course we parked the car and followed him into his garage
that was very dark. I kept saying, "Are you sure it's o.k.?" because there was
one animal in there making a horrible, scary racket and he said, "Oh, yeah.
They're just antsy because they had to come in from the rain." I guess they
usually hang out in his backyard, but it's been so stormy here so he brought
them in. Yes. THEM. There was a baboon in the first cage who was really quiet
and cute and small. Then there was someone named Suzy who was shy and wouldn't
come out to say Hi. Then...right there in the middle in a big ass cage was
Cheeta. There was a sort of one foot square opening, and his face was right in
it, and he is BIG. The owner (who is coincidentally named Dan) said to stay
back cause he can reach out his long arms unexpectedly. He then said to Cheeta
to make a funny face and he totally 'raspberried' us. WE HOWLED!

Now, the whole time there is this ever increasing BANG BANG BOOMIMG from a dark corner in the back and it was SCARY so I said, "What the heck is that"?!! Cheeta's Dan said it was Cheeta's grandson. I'm telling you it was WILD! Literally.

So I just tried to ignore the raging, teenage chimp in the corner and I told Cheeta that I was a big fan of his painting, which I'm sure he appreciated as he had left a successful career
as an actor to pursue his true passion, which is art. I'm actually positive he
appreciated it because he gave us another raspberry. And then....as the BOOMING in the corner was raising to a fever pitch.....I put my hands in the air and bowed down to him
in homage, and his crapper grandson spit water at me from like 20 feet away!
Cheeta's Dan said I had been christened. I jumped 60 feet into the air. It
scared the poop out of me! It was GREAT!

He said we should come back on a nice day when they are all out in the backyard. I can picture it now...all of us just basking in the sun around Cheeta's swimming pool while he sits at his easel painting plein air style. Only in Sothern California......

My Many Hats and Marshall Crenshaw

I've known Marshall Crenshaw over the years while wearing many different hats. He, however, seems to always be wearing the same hat. The one that says 'excellent songwriter, guitarist and artist' all-in-one. I first met him over a tape machine. I worked as a tape-maker pitching songs at his publishing company, and fell in love with one called, "Favorite Waste Of Time". Among many others. I was a bit of a little fish in a giant pond rumbling around L.A. in my youth and his jangling and sunny guitars made me feel REAL. I eventually even ended up hand delivering his demo of that song to Bette Midler and she covered it on one of her most successful records ever. I actually got to take it to her house. (But that's another story). I wore another Marshall hat one night when I got to attend an awards ceremony to celebrate his success for writing a huge hit song for The Gin Blossoms "Til I Hear It From You". He co-wrote that one with Jesse Valenzuela, who eventually became a compadre of mine as well. (Yet, another story). Over the years, I have only grown to respect him as a musician. He's been a good inspiration to "live the life" as they say. When I eventually came out of the closet as a songwriter, (yep, another story too), I recorded two records for a little label called HighTone under the name ASTROPUPPEES. I wrote most everything, but on the 2nd record I wanted to cover a song I loved called, "Crowded Town". It was written by Marshall and the great LeRoy Preston. There was a groovy version I'd heard by Jeannie Smith. So I put on my 'artist' hat and covered one of HIS songs. He then responded in kind, and slapped on a beautiful jangle-guitar on another track on that same record. I've since admired him and his career as he continues to make music on his own terms and the quality improves with each day. He's been successful in movie music, oh many things, but now I get to wear one of my favorite Marshall hat's ever. As co-writer. I am pleased to say I have two co-writes with Marshall on his new record JAGGEDLAND..."Passing Through" and "Just Snap Your Fingers". I may have 10 hats stacked on my head by now, while he still wears the ONE, classy musician hat, but I can definitely say, I am proud to be sparring in the same boxing ring with him. Lucky ducky girl that I am.