Mission Accomplished

Well, I got back home on Monday night after spending four glorious days at Bosch Baha’i School in Santa Cruz, CA.  Bosch is a georgeous place about 7 miles or so from the coast north of the city.  And this year, the weather was perfect.

Each year I coordinate the activities for the Annual Music Industry Weekend at Bosch Baha’i School.  It is a labor of love.  This year it seemed to pay dividends as this group of musicians, though fewer in number than past years,  included many new faces and some very talented ones at that. Meeting them was a sheer delight.  I wrote a full report for the Music Industry Weekend website.  Please have a look.

What I want to write about here, was the Birthday surprise I received on Saturday (one day early).  My dear bride Deb enlisted the help of a friend, and delightful singer Kyra Platte, to get folks to sign a birthday card. Some of their comments are a hoot.   And then she conferred with Bosch’s Chef, Jamshid Kiana, who baked the bigest birthday cake I’ve every been presented.  It was as big as a truck tire.  Of course, he thought he would trick me with one of those candles that re-light themselves, but I saw the sparking and applied wet fingers to quench the flame.  But man, what a cake.  After feeding EVERYONE, there was still a good portion left over to enjoy with coffee.

I also wanted to comment about songwriting.  For the past 3 years, Alan James and I have hosted a “songwriter’s round table”  where we share our views on songwriting and also some tricks for breaking writing block, etc.  This year, several of our participants launched into songwriting during the weekend and that to me was very gratifying.

We’ve set a schedule for next year, tentatively reserving October 21-24 for our annual gathering.  We also are arranging for an optional “early arrival” Wednesday night for those who want to jam all day Thursday.  I’m looking forward to that.

Right now, I’m tired.  And I’m happy to be home for a while. I plan to take some time in December to do nothing but write new songs.  I have a collection of ideas and starting lines.  It’s time to develop some new material.

 

///Darrell

 

Darrell Elmer Rodgers

Singer, Songwriter, Performer, Humorist

http://darrellsongs.com

Next Weekend in the Redwoods

Bosch Baha’i School is one of the prettiest wooded spots in California, not just for those magnificent trees, but more for the spirit that permeates the 88 acres of the school.  I started going there regularly many years ago following my divorce.  Though a long way from my home, it was only an hour from Sunnyvale CA where I often went on business.  I spent many weekend hours helping out with maintenance (the best I could) or performing music for sessions.

For the past seven years, it has been the home of our annual Music Industry Weekend when dozens of Baha’i musicians, and like-minded musical friends, gather to attend workshops on performance, recording, promotion and to jam and make music together.  It provides an opportunity for aspiring musicians to gain skills and contacts and  encouragement that will help them succeed in their chosen field.  It’s a blast.  And it starts next week on Thursday evening the 22nd of October.

Now some Baha’is (some you may know in fact) have said to me:  That weekend shouldn’t be about improving business for musicians, but rather about serving Baha’i communties with music.  I say, NO. 

Think about it this way: No one would dream of gathering Baha’i plumbers to convince them to work for free in their communities.  No one expects doctors, lawyers, attorneys, engineers, or any other professional to work without compensation just because the customer is a Baha’i.  And think for a moment who has had a greater influence on people through music, Joe Nobody the unknown musician, or the late Dan Seals who had numerous number one hits?  Bosch has hosted Music for Service sessions in the past and I hope those continue for all who need it.  But there is no other Baha’i-oriented training for the business of Music available to our aspiting talent.

Our goal for the Music Industry Weekend is two-fold:  1) improve the caliber of Baha’i-oriented music available for the public, and 2) foster the success of Baha’i-minded musicians who will attract favorable attention to the Faith and uplift the character of the Music Industry.

I see some great young talent out there with a real chance to make a difference.  And there are ”old-timers” who still have some great music share ( at least I think so).  We will bring them together next weekend, and for me, that is a service too.

 ///Darrell 
 Darrell Elmer Rodgers                                 

Singer, Songwriter, Performer, Humorist

http://darrellsongs.com

Healing Deb

Hi friends.  My dear bride Deb is healing slowly following some ankle surgery.  She had the metal plate removed that was put in 5 years ago when she shattered that ankle on a cross counrty trip.  Hopefully, with that hardware removed, her range of motion will return to normal and help her feel better all around.

Five years ago, before we met, Deb was determined to celebrate her emergence from bed-ridden incapacity with a cross country car trip.  (It’s a long story that she’s putting in a book)  Unfortunately, while taking a walk in Wilcox, Arizona she tripped and her ankle shattered having become somewhat brittle from four years in a sick bed.   After getting wrapped by the local paramedics, that woman drove 135 miles to Desert Rose Baha’i Institute in Eloy, AZ, for some help finding help.   The Baha’is there took her to Casa Grande Medical Center which immediately referred her to the the Tucson Orthopedic Institute – some 65 miles in the other direction.  She drove. 

Upon arriving in Tucson, she could not walk and so, a staff member parked her car as they wheeled her into surgery.  Dr. Joel Goode, the surgeon on duty, re-aligned and braced her broken bones with some stainless steel and told her to rest for a few weeks.  She drove herself back to Desert Rose where the wonderful Ladjamaya Green hosted her and nursed her back to health.

Fast forward five years.  Now married (to me) and living in Casa Grande, AZ (another long story revealed through this blog) her ankle begins to hurt.  We “google” Dr. Joel Goode and find that he is still with the Tucson Orthopedic Institute.  We made the appointment and on the 30th of September, out came that metal.  Last Wednesday Dr. Goode removed the stitches.  Yes, it was ugly (no I won’t post pictures).  But it’s looking better each day and I know it’s a BUNCH better on the inside.

In another week, it should be healed sufficiently to safely embark on our next road trip to Bosch Baha’i School in Santa Cruz, CA for the 7th annual Music Industry Weekend.  We’re looking forward to seeing many of our musician friends and learning some good stuff from professional producers Jon Rezin and Jarome Matthew who are presenting their “Business Bootcamp” for independent recording artists.  Of course, the best part will be making music with spiritual people.  You know the music is good when you want to play along.  And this year, we might even see Deb dancing!  

 

///Darrell

 

 Darrell Elmer Rodgers                                        

Singer, Songwriter, Performer, Humorist

http://darrellsongs.com

 

Trip to Glenwood Springs

Community Center, Glenwood Springs, CO

We just returned from a long road-trip.  It was the kind of “automotive-walk-about” that we used to relish in our younger years, but somehow, the thrill is gone.  Long drives just aren’t as appealing as they once were.  But this trip had a great purpose.  I had been invited to perform at the Annual Commemoration of Abdu’l-Baha’s 1912 visit to Glenwood Springs, Colorado.  I’m glad we went.

Glenwood Springs was the only stop The Master made on his American travels just to rest.  When he saw the beauty of the mountains and greenery, he prayed for God’s mercy on those who had incarcerated his Father depriving Him of seeing such sights.

Mitchell Silas

It was an intimate crowd of about 70 people this year, about half (or less) of the regular turn out.  But everyone there was a joy to meet. I got to see some old friends like Derek Cockshutt and Mitchell Silas.  Derek is a member of the Northwest Regional Baha’i Council and he shared some thoughts on “change” that let me know that he and I share some perspectives in common.  Mitchell is a great Navajo Sand Painter whom I first met decades ago, when neither of us had gray hair, while he was touring with his craft in Virginia.  It’s always a delight to see such an artist at work.

And I finally met my Facebook friend David Barnes from Colorado Springs.  David makes Native flutes and does quite a job. 

David Barnes - flute making

This year he held a hands-on workshop where folks made flutes out of PVC pipe which were immediately proclaimed to be “dishwasher safe”.  The real flute player in our midst however was Alvin Bitsilly.  Alvin, who is Navajo, spoke about Spirit and finding Faith and when he played his flute, the sound carried my heart to the heavens.  It was a truly magic moment.  I am convinced that – if we listen – our Native Baha’i brothers and sisters will lead us to learn how to inculcate the Spirit of the Faith into the pattern of our daily lives.

I really enjoyed performing for such a spiritual crowd.  Of course, since these were Baha’is, I did the songs from my Each One Teach One CD.  But I did a few from “Plain & Simple” as well and a few that I haven’t yet published.

 

The trip up there was also inspiring.  We saw some more of this wondrous state of Arizona driving up through Sedona and Oak Creek Canyon into Flagstaff where we stayed for the night.  We dined at Macy’s Cafe (a Baha’i-owned Organic vegetarian food haven for Deb) in Flagstaff and got our morning (organic) coffee there too before driving north across Navajo Lands and through Monument Valley in Utah.  Mexican Hat is an amazing sight.

     

 Last time, I forgot to mention some stuff about our recent “dog exploits”.

Perhaps my bride was worried that now, having sold the Tucson house, there would not be quite enough stress in my life.   Maybe that’s why she felt it necessary for us to get a second dog.  Yes, we’ve been down this road before without success and so far, this most recent attempt was not any better.  We had just returned one dog to the shelter that seemed to be suffering from hip dysplasia, and, as though it was a good idea,  immediately brought home another.  Just before we picked her up, the shelter staff removed a tick, deep in the ear, and the poor dog was still bleeding hours later. Every time the dog would shake her head, blood would spatter half way up the wall. Our family room looked like a crime scene.  I had to put one of those plastic cone collars on her to keep her from scratching. First thing Monday morning, Deb took the critter to the vet.  The diagnosis: “Tick Fever”, “Bronchitis” and “105-degree temperature”.  We took the animal back to the shelter. She’s in “happy dog land” now.  I don’t believe we are meant to have more than one dog.  I never wanted the first one, but now, he’s part of the family (our special needs, short bus, pit bull, Rocket).  As for a “second”, we’ve just made our fifth attempt and it didn’t work.
Deb has agreed to let the matter rest for a while.

///Darrell

Darrell Elmer Rodgers

Singer, Songwriter, Performer, Humorist

http://darrellsongs.com

Heat, Sweat, and Stress – what a summer.

Casa Grande turns out to be noticeably hotter than Tucson (duh!) and quite a bit dustier.  But now, I’m here, and only here.  We sold our house in Tucson to our tennant, Noshene. It was too small for us, but it seems just right for her and her “Amish” black Labrador retriever. (She got the dog from an Amish farm in Lancaster, Pa)  So, no more “handy man” trips back and forth (an hour each way). 

This is supposed to be “monsoon” season here in Arizona.  We just had our first decent rain of August here in Casa Grande. The last one was late June.  Folks are calling it a “non-soon”- Wind but no rain.  In fact, I experienced a “Dirt Hurricane” last month.  Palm trees stretched like kids reaching for candy, stop signs waving like metronomes, visibility about 30 feet,  but instead of water, it was dust, moving at 80 miles per hour.  Nasty.

Deb and I made a couple trips to California, one before the wedding, and another just last week.  Both times were able to get Deb to see our two amazing Doctors – Dr Dan Harper of Solana Beach – a wizard of natural remedies and supplements – and Dr. Charles Hough of Orange, CA – who we have ordained as bonafide miracle- worker of chiropractic marvels. Bottom line – Deb’s feeling pretty good. 

That trip before the wedding turned out to be God-send.  Without it, I doubt Deb would have survived the pace of a houseful of relatives, particularly our nephew Ian.  He’s autistic and often lives in his own fantasy world that mimics whatever movie he happened to see most recently.  The first night in the house, he was walking in and out the front door about 4 AM.  When Deb asked him what he was doing, he said he was on a “covert mission”, to “Detroit”.  Why Detroit? Who knows? (maybe he was after that stimulus money) After they visited our friend Greg Waddell in Tucson, Greg called up and said Ian gotten them to leave early by planting a “nuclear device” in the house.  I asked my brother Pat about his son’s exploits in Tucson and Pat said “Yeah, we’d have stayed longer but he only gave us a nine-minute fuse”.  Pat takes it all in stride as he and his wife Jody stand constant vigil for that curious child.  They are super-heroes.

I’ve started seriously working on the next Music Industry Weekend at Bosch Baha’i School.  A number of our alumni have stepped up to offer some excellent workshops, and I’ve heard from some folks who will attend for their first time.  October 22-25 – It’s going to be a good one.

Back in 1912 when Abdu’l Baha visited America, he made a stop in Glenwood Springs, Colorado just for a rest (train travel was rough back then).  For the past 30 or so years, the Baha’is of Glenwood Springs have held a commemoration of that day. This year, on September 12th, I will be performing for that joyous occasion.  It runs all day with speakers and artwork demonstrations, and I’ll be on at 7PM and do two sets – the first mainly from my Baha’i Teaching CD “Each One Teach One – Songs for the Army of Light”, and the later set from the new Folk-music CD “Plain & Simple”.  It would be great to have bassist Rick Heyman along, but 1500 miles round trip in a truck – I wouldn’t do that to him.

 

 

 

///Darrell

 Darrell Elmer Rodgers

Singer, Songwriter, Performer, Humorist

http://darrellsongs.com