Autumn in New York, 2014
The lazy days of summer are behind us now. The nights are getting longer and life is taking on a more structured time frame… or is that just me?
We had a wonderful time traveling to Alaska in July. It was a leisure trip, so I packed my little Baby Taylor travel guitar just for fun! The sights of Denali were spectacular and the small boat cruise through the Southeast Passage was magical. Grizzly bear sightings, fly fishing in Denali National Park, the Raptor Rehab Center in Sitka, and taking the Polar Bear Plunge off the back of the Admiralty Dream were all highlights of a unique and exciting two week journey.
My adventures continued when I attended the Puget Sound Guitar Workshop for a week in August and played and jammed 'til the wee hours in paradise, under the pine trees in Bremerton, Washington. As a topper, a group of friends sang our camp mate, Rachael, down the aisle outdoors with a beautiful song by Nick Drake called "Northern Sky." A fitting title, as they were married in Kitsap Memorial State Park, in the beautiful Pacific Northwest.
My teaching schedule resumes this week with the lovely members of the Singin’ Seniors at the Lenox Hill Senior Center in midtown Manhattan. We always have a good time. We have some fun songs to learn. This semester we will start with "Manic Monday" by the Bangles (written by Prince). We are also going to tackle the Beach Boys song "In My Room." We will see how far we get with those luscious harmonies! Big thanks to Clare Cooper, our accompanist, for keeping the music flowing!
The Middle Church Jerriese Johnson Gospel Choir has also resumed their schedule. We had a beautiful service on Sunday evening at Art & Soul. One of our choir members had a new baby daughter who was being baptized and we sang as much for her as for the adults attending.
On a sad note, we had to say goodbye to our dear dog, Lincoln, on August 29th. He was a very brave fellow. Cancer is a beast. I think of him with love on a daily basis and I wish anyone who is going through a similar battle with cancer all the best and my best wishes for healing and peace.
I continue to write songs and practice guitar and mandolin. I hope to make it back into the studio some time in the near future to start on CD number 6. Maybe when the winter winds blow. It is always great to get back to the recording studio. I love it!
Last but not least, I'll be performing at Tin Angel in Philadelphia on Wednesday, October 22. Check out the Facebook event page for all the details!
https://www.facebook.com/events/359330087555881/
Thank you for listening!
With this update, I send you much love,
xxx
Deborah