Sandy Andina: News

I just checked the Web for dulcimer prices. Good news & bad news. First, the bad: prices for all-solid-wood dulcimers and even solid-top ones have gone up by at least $50-75 since I last bought my Black Mt. back in 1998. The Model 58 Deluxe, which is the least expensive good-quality, well-styled all solid wood American-made dulcimer (spruce top, cherry back & sides with rosewood backstrip and fretboard, modified scroll peghead, vertical geared tuners) has gone up from the $160 I paid to $230, adding $40 for strap, pick and gigbag (and $60+ for a Baggs undersaddle transducer pickup). Folk of the Wood no longer sells dulcimers, just straps and instructional materials. You have to go through Black Mt. itself (and they've since introduced the "80" series larger-bodied performance-quality instruments for $270-300).

BUT there are some decent all-laminated wood beginner/student models. The Apple Creek student hourglass models are made in Europe and have been getting enthusiastic reviews, and can be had for $65-75 street price (list $98). By contrast, my first dulcimer was a no-name Korean model with bad friction pegs and it cost $70 back in 1980! Go to Woodwind & Brasswind (wwbw.com). The unbranded model Target sells on its website is $95, strap and bag included. Not specified whether any part of it is solid, and the site says "Made in the USA or Imported." Apple Creek also makes a laminated birch teardrop-shaped model with nicer styling for $119, and the solid-top version is $169. (also at wwbw.com)

Check out eBay--but caveat emptor. Safe to say that if an ad doesn't mention "all solid woods" or the 6th-1/2 fret (or you can't see it in the photo), then it's plywood and/or lacks that fret. You can spot older McSpaddens, like my first all-walnut hourglass (solid top but plywood back & sides) at good prices ($200 or so), and it was my ONLY dulcimer for 18 years! I paid $150 for it in 1980 at Jean's Dulcimer Shoppe in Cosby, TN. McSpadden now makes all of its dulcimers with only solid woods, and its prices ($300-600) reflect that. Blue Lion all-solid-woods stage-quality models start at $375 and average $500 on up. (Back in 1999, I got my Model I W--cedar top, walnut back & sides, "shepherd's crook" semi-scroll peghead, dot inlays, planetary gears--for $300 at a music shop and had to ship it to Blue Lion to have the Baggs transducer installed for another $125; then I spotted the fancier but no-better sounding Model II W (true scroll, bookmatched walnut back, finer grained spruce top, brass-and-abalone rose inlay) for $395 on eBay--it had been a gift to someone who never wanted to learn to play it. I had to have a local luthier install a Fishman pickpup, also $125. My McSpaddens range from $280 for the soprano "Ginger" to $380 for the redwood/cherry 4-string baritone with pickup (both bought in 1999 and probably more today), to $375 for the unamplified bass model and over $500 for the 6-stringers with pickups I bought at the factory-store in AR in '07.

You can add custom options to a McSpadden or Blue Lion that'll raise the price over $1000 or even $2000. Then there's the Lamborghini of modern handcrafted dulcimers, the Bear Meadow. Depending on model, they'll set you back $3500-12,000, and you will have to wait 1-2 years. But they are extraordinary instruments, analogous to boutique-luthier custom guitars.

Don't spend that much unless you are sure you'll remain an aficionado!

I had a wonderful time at Fox Valley--not just doing the CSC showcase on Mon. (with harmony help from my "round-mates") but also getting to do the Dulcimer Workshop, flanked by the premier trad. dulcimer duo in the Midwest, Donna & Dan Benkert on my left and probably the best modern dulcimerist-songwriter alive, David Massengill, on my right. Wow! We got to demonstrate tips and tricks and snippets of songs from each of our very different styles, do a full song apiece (I chose "Talking to the Vines" as a way of demonstrating how I turn a guitar part into an effective dulcimer part) AND jam and collaborate on three tunes!

Many of you came up afterward and asked me some more questions about the Mt. Dulcimer, and I had to go back to the CSC tent and mind the store before I could answer all of you.

Q. I've never played an instrument before, and I don't read music. Can I learn mt. dulcimer?
A. Sure--because it's fretted diatonically (no "accidental" sharps or flats) and tuned to a particular scale, there are no truly "wrong" notes and, armed with a lesson on where the notes are and maybe a few simple chords, it's a really short learning curve. And there's plenty of room for you to eventually push the envelope and truly shine....I'm not there yet but I'm trying.

Q. Can I jam with other instruments?
A. Yup! And do as much of it as you can!

Q. Where can I learn more and buy a dulcimer?
A. Your local music store, if it caters to folk musicians (the types of instruments in the window and CDs and books inside are a dead giveaway). Ask if you're not sure. If you don't have such a store near you, go to www.everythingdulcimer.com, which has all kinds of links for vendors, builders, instructors, books and recordings (listening & instruction), etc. You might luck out and find a nice one at a dulcimer or folk festival or even a craft or renaissance fair. (I even saw a vendor at Epcot, and he had good stuff). Try before you buy if at all possible.

Q. How much should I expect to pay?
A. You can, with a little research, get a reliable, decently-built, playable and fairly good-sounding dulcimer for as little as $100, though it may not be anything fancy and may not have the finest materials and fit & finish. Insist on all-solid woods--even at that price point you needn't settle for plywood--and stable, easily tuned tuning pegs (geared, not friction, unless you are a violinist, know how to use them and they're top-quality). $200 and up should get you above student-level, and $300-400 and up will give you entry into the simpler of the pro-level dulcimers. You can spend more if you want, but unless you are truly committed, start a little less expensively and then trade up or add to your arsenal.

(One thing I think is essential, even on the plainest dulcimers, is a "6th-1/2 fret," which you can recognize by a pattern of 3 equal spaces in the middle of the fingerboard. In olden times, when all scales and chords were strictly limited to the mode in which the dulcimer was tuned, that fret was not there--this resulted in a flatted seventh, which is typical of a modal sound, if a scale is started on an open string. Without it, unless you are tuned to Ionian mode, you won't have the option of playing a standard do-re-mi major scale with a regular seventh, especially when starting on an open string). If you are buying a dulcimer on eBay, make sure you can see it in the photo. If it doesn't appear clearly, it probably isn't there. You can have a luthier put one in, but why incur the extra expense and hassle?
Of course, in an ideal universe, you wouldn't buy without trying--if you must buy one online or from a catalog, make sure you get return privileges.

Q. What was that little blue rug on your lap and how come none of the others used one?
A. I call it my "little Appalachian rubber shmatta," but it's really a piece of Rubbermaid mesh shelf liner. (DON'T spend $5-10 on a "dulcimer pad;" go to a discount store--even some dollar stores--and get a roll of the stuff. Mine came from a $4 roll from Target, and cost about 50 cents. Line your shelves with the rest of the roll). Massengill stands up to play--he suspends his dulcimer from his shoulders, and because he fingerpicks using very short strokes, can steady it with the heel of his hand. (I stand up too--but I lay the rubber liner across a folding keyboard stand). The Benkerts sometimes use straps, and though they sometimes strum, they use shorter strokes and the dulcimer stays steady. I use a lot of sweeping strums because I started as a rhythm guitarist and I play primarily to accompany my voice and other instruments; therefore, I need to keep it in place.

Q. What's the difference between a Mountain and an Appalachian dulcimer?
A. The name.

Q. OK, so how does it differ from a hammered dulcimer?
A. 30 years ago, when you said "dulcimer," it was assumed you were referring to a mountain dulcimer. Nowadays, there seem to be many more hammer players than mountain players. Both are zithers, both are tuned diatonically, and both are associated with folk (especially Appalachian mountain) music. But the mt. dulcimer is considered a "plucked, fretted zither" because it has frets (those metal bars across the fingerboard over which the strings pass) and you "pluck" (strum or pick) it. The hammer dulcimer has many more strings, strung in pairs or "courses," and you learn where the notes are by stringing patterns. It's shaped like a trapezoid, and you actually hit the strings with hammers--little wooden mallets with rubber or leather pads. It's a steeper learning curve. Many, like the Benkerts or Maddie McNeil, play both kinds of dulcimer. I don't. (I'm a klutz and am in awe of hammer players). Other kinds of plucked zithers are autoharps, psalteries and even arcane hybrids like the antique Pianolin and Ukelin.

Q. How come David's dulcimers had three single strings each, the Benkerts had four (one pair and two singles) and yours had six (three doubled pairs)? And why did your two sound different from each other?
A. Most of mine are like the Benkerts', actually. I went with the six-stringers at Fox Valley to be different, and besides the fact that one's a standard-tuned and the other a baritone (different woods, too), the baritone has octave pairs on both the bass & middle strings, whereas on the standard-tuned, only the bass pair is in octaves--the others are unisons. I brought the bari in order to demonstrate a particular song. Actually, the only difference in stringing between the Benkerts' (and my usual) 4-stringers and David's is that he removed the second treble string. At home I also have a 3-string bass (tuned an octave below the std.), a 4-string bari, and a 4-string soprano (tuned an octave above the bari). Between the std., the bari & the soprano, I can tune to every key without breaking strings or having them feel loose and sound "sour."

Q. Can you put a pickup on them?
A. Sure. In, on, whatever, wherever. I get the best results from an undersaddle transducer (factory-installed), run into a preamp/EQ box of the same brand. (Most of mine use LR Baggs pickups, so a Baggs box works well with them; my Blue Lion Model IIW 4-stringer has a Fishman Matrix, so I run that into a Fishman Pro EQ box).
You *can* get a cheaper, easier-to-install-and-remove stick-on pickup (like a Shadow, Hot Spot, or Barcus-Berry), but I find they sometimes fall off when you plug and unplug; and because they pick up vibrations not from the strings vibrating against the saddle and bridge but from the top itself, any noises from anything touching or brushing against the instrument will be amplified.
I actually have a solidbody electric dulcimer (made in Louisiana before Katrina) with a single-coil magnetic pickup (like an electric guitar) that picks up the vibrations of the strings above the polepieces (sensors) of the pickup itself. It's great for unusual stuff like running the signal through effects, but it hums around fluorescent and neon lights or poorly grounded power and is more of a novelty. I rarely play it because it doesn't sound like a dulcimer except for the tuning and drones.

Q. How are they tuned?
A. Like most modern players, I tune in Mixolydian mode (going from bass to middle to trebles, low to high, I-V-I (an octave above the bass--in the key of D, which is most commonly used in that tuning, D-A-octave D). The oldest tuning is "Ionian," which is I-V-V (or D-A-A, with middles and trebles exactly the same pitch). David uses what he calls a "reverse Mixolydian," or V-I-I (A-D-D) and plays his melodies as chords using the two outer strings. Joni Mitchell taught herself dulcimer without benefit of instruction, like she did with guitar, and likewise arrived at her own tuning. But it turns out it's an ancient Virginia tuning called "Galax," after that area of the state, and it is all three (or four) strings tuned to the same pitch. (I haven't tried it yet, because most of her stuff works in Mixolydian, but I intend to give it a go one of these days on "All I Really Want'). There are other tunings I don't use but intend to try. Possibilities are endless.

Q. You mentioned you most often adapt guitar songs to dulcimer. Do you play it like a guitar? Or instead of a guitar when you can't find a guitar?
A. No way!!! It's that combination of modal tuning and drone string(s), as well as the size and shape of the instrument that make it so unique and appealing. When I want the actual sound of a guitar, I play guitar. I love the dulcimer's sound, and play it on its own terms. When I play it with a guitar, it's to add its own dimension to the mix. THE DULCIMER IS NOT A GUITAR!

I just spent TWO HOURS writing a blog entry detailing my wonderful time at Day 2 of Fox Valley and a Q&A all about dulcimers. I hit "add" and instead of it appearing in my blog list, I was taken back to my login page!!!!

Moral of the story---if you are writing ANYTHING, don't just backup: periodically copy and paste it into a different program or text editor!

I am too tired to try rewriting my blog entry tonight--so if you have dulcimer questions, write me and I'll answer them (and with your permission, post them-- anonymously, of course).

&quoThe;day didn't start off auspiciously: a rainy night; a family bathroom traffic jam (2 baths, 4 people trying to get ready at once); and then once underway, an allergy attack so bad I had to pull over and get some tissues to wipe my eyes so I could see. But despite all that--and construction galore on the roads, I did manage to score a parking spot on the festival side of the road (albeit high up in the gravel). Had a few anxious moments setting up the CSC tent--same recalcitrant pole clutch as last year--but got it up in time to touch bases with Sam running sound and the writers I was emceeing on stage 2. The weather cleared up just in time too, and everything went smoothly from then on. I found out my recipe got into the WDCB Folk Cookbook (my mom's pineapple carrots!), and got to catch some great sets from Diane Ippel, Old Fezziwig's Band (backing up the English country dance), Anne Hills, CSC'ers Dean Milano & Donna Adler, the Folk Brothers, Deb Cowan (for whose voice I would not only kill but give up chocolate for all eternity), the Cajun Strangers (of Madison, WI--Festival Chairman Juel Ulven said they were from "Parish Ya Heyt;), and the utterly ageless Peggy Seeger.

The open mic at the Little Owl didn't come off--not enough attendee interest and the artists wanted to go to the Festival after-party. Alas, I had a long drive back here to the North Side and some rehearsing and printing (FARM and CSC flyers) to print out. Gonna grab a shower while Bob is engrossed in his movie and off to lullaby-land till the morning---when I gulp down my coffee & vites, grab my dulcimers & a good guitar (I took the little Gretsch "Way Out West" today since I wasn't performing except to sit in on harmony) and psych up for two great sets--the CSC Writers' Round at 11 am on Stage 2 (with my new song) and the 3pm Teaching Stage (Pavilion) Dulcimer Shoot-Out with Dave Massengill and the Benkerts. Hope to run into some of you there!

Rough morning--went to the funeral of a friend's mom. She'd had 11 kids--and when her husband died, raised 10 of them on her own. She suffered the pain no parent should--outliving 2 of her adult kids (and one is dying). Like her daughter, she was a dedicated nurse, loving and generous soul, and outgoing and gregarious. She had an enormous heart, and at 83 it gave out. I don't think any of us made it out of the church without tears.

Tomorrow is the official Day 1 of the Fox Valley Folk Festival. I probably won't be formally performing Sunday (unless someone sneaks me on to a workshop stage if a space opens up), but come to the CSC Showcase at 11 am on Stage 2 and I will be emceeing. Afterwards, I may be continuing to emcee the open mic, or holding down the fort at the CSC booth across the lawn. Expect jams to break out at the drop of a pick. As to tomorrow's open mic at the Little Owl and its adjacent pub, that'll depend on the crowd and noise level (they normally have rock bands). It may be an acoustic song circle. Or we might find a more amenable venue nearby, in which case I'll set up the P.A. system.

Monday is the big performance day for me--CSC Showcase at 11 am on Stage 2 and Dulcimer workshop (sharing the stage with David Massengill!) on the Pavilion Teaching Stage. My new song will make its debut at the Showcase (unless I'm slipped into one of the topical song workshops tomorrow).

My apologies to those who came to the Old Town School's First Fri. tonight expecting to find me at the Songwriters' Exchange. Woke up today with a scratchy throat and stuffy nose. Since I have to be up early tomorrow to be at a funeral on the South Side, and be in top form for Fox Valley Sun. & Mon. (lotsa driving, walking, being out in the hot sun & schlepping as well as performing), I decided to listen to my body late this afternoon. What my body said was "Take a nap and stay home tonight."

So here's the lyric to the song I WAS going to introduce tonight and WILL sing at FF on Monday. It riffs on the phrase "our better angels," which as you remember spawned a joyous and hopeful patriotic song upon my return from Grant Park; in light of recent events it was also naîve. This new one is also hopeful and impassioned but also gets down to brass tacks (note to conservatives: that's "TACKS," not "tax").

OUR BETTER ANGELS, CHAPTER TWO

Let our better angels through There’s important work to do
That’s why we elected you to be our voice
Set a course for common sense Give us back our confidence
To ensure our government provides a choice.

Freedom lives if hope endures Equally for rich and poor
Let our steps be strong and sure
That justice may prevail
Compromise is meaningless If it’s stalled by stubbornness
If nothing comes without duress
Then all are bound to fail

It’s okay—we know you tried But your opposition lied
Don’t forget you’re on our side, we trust you.
Shed the gloves, unsheathe the claws Do not wait to hear applause
Honoring this noble cause, you must do.

Freedom lives if truth endures. Let it ring out clear and pure
Doing nothing cannot cure
The ills to which we’re heir.
Hands across the aisle may be simple unreality
Just accomplish what must be--
The tools are truly there.

The best may often crush the good. But that doesn’t mean we should
Close the door on all that could still be done
Raise a torch against the night Leave the gloom, embrace the light
If we don’t give up the fight, then we’ve won.

So let our better angels through
There is still so much………….to……..do

........the Astroturf Teabag Brigade is at it again, spreading more of their usual manure. Heady with their perceived victory in dismantling health care reform, these GOPACs & 527s are plying heartland voters with parades and hot dogs to trumpet the virtues of our current energy industry in hopes of scaring the teabagger/birther/deather voters into getting their Senators to scuttle the Markey climate-change-control bill. The nasty details can be found here:
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/04/opinion/04fri2.html
Those dewy-eyed Pollyannas who still have any doubts that the GOP's only agenda is to ensure Obama fails at any of the goals that got him elected: Wanna buy a ski chalet in Palm Beach County? Have I got a deal for you!

Yup, I had to stop avoiding the subject sooner or later: the rapidly deteriorating Congressional-Executive fustercluck known as Healthcare Reform Legislation. How'd we get from a President and Democratic supermajority elected by a public hungry for reform (with, as of Inauguration Day, single-payor being the reform at the top of the polls) to single-payor lying in the morgue with a toe-tag, the "public option" in the SICU ("S" as in either Senate or "Sicko") on life-support, and even strict prohibitions against private health industry abuses in danger of being dealt away?

The wild miscalculation (and misconception) on the part of much of the Democratic leadership that Obama's promise of "changing the political culture in Washington" meant making the first move towards conventional hands-across-the-aisle bipartisanship, that's how. In fact, the delusion (what we first suspected and now know was a delusion) that the GOP had any concept of "bipartisanship" beyond "you compromise, we stand firm, you come over to our side or the hell with you," as originally practiced by Dubya when he was Gov. of Texas.

Now, at the time he ran, many grumbled that they wished Obama had had more legislative and executive experience. IMHO, he had plenty of that. What he needed, in retrospect, was some time in the trenches of a personal-injury litigation practice (instead of academia, Wall St., and a blue-chip take-the-high-road civil rights firm). He'd have picked up the nuts-and-bolts, down-and-dirty tools of effective horse-trading negotiation that all of us who've done those kind of cases know: ask for five times the "specials" (actual expenses), so that you can settle for your real goal of three times the specials. He (and the rest of the Congressional Democrats) should have started from the position of strength they had: if you want the moon, first demand the stars. The single-payor model should never have been taken off the table until the Republicans came up with a counteroffer that included strict industry regulation (mandatory acceptance of applicants, subsidies for those unable to buy private insurance, elimination of pre-existing condition exemptions and dirty rescission tricks) in return for mandating that everyone obtain coverage of some kind. Then the compromise position would have been all of that, with a public option (or at least a raised income eligibility ceiling for Medicaid, lowered age eligibility for Medicare, the ability to buy into the same plan Congress and Senate employees enjoy, or all of the above). Instead, it looks as if we're going to get nothing--which is what the insurance industry (which finances the campaigns of not just Republicans but conservative and centrist Democrats and faux-grassroots "citizen" front groups and handed their legislative beneficiaries the talking points that they fed the teabagger-birther-deathers) want.

Why was that baloney so readily swallowed at carefully orchestrated town halls all during August? Because while liberals studied political science, conservative lobbyists studied anthropology. The cold hard fact is that FEAR WORKS, no matter how ill-founded or even absurd. Why? Because evolution hard-wired the human brain and body to respond to fear and stress, not logic and reason. Does anyone seriously believe that it was logic, reason, research and analysis that enabled our cave-dwelling ancestors to outrun animal predators, repel marauding rival invaders or survive catastrophic natural phenomena? Yeah, right.

But, in a way, the Republicans have handed us liberals a precious gift: the gift of honesty and clarity--that they never had any intention of compromise or bipartisanship and that their only goal is not just to prevent disturbing their comfy status quo but to make sure Obama fails at being able to keep any of the promises he made or even goals he stated. So now we have permission to start over--ditch that idiotic "politically balanced" Gang-of-Six, put a robust public option on the table--heck, NAIL it to the table, and turn the conservatives' own philosophy against them: "we can get real reform bipartisanly or unilaterally, but we're going to pass it with you or without you. Join the march or get out of the way."

Obama has a unique opportunity this Wed. when he speaks first to returning schoolchildren and then to Congress. But this time, no platitudes, no lofty and dignified oratory, no staying above the fray. That sort of stuff doesn't work now that the Big Lies have been shouted loudly and incessantily. This is what he has to say:

1. The GOP and the insurance companies are lying to you. Lying. Yup--as in "like a rug," and "through their dentally-insured capped teeth."

2. There will be NO government "death panels." We already HAVE death panels: what your insurance companies and HMO's call their Utilization Review Committees, where you and your doctors are overruled every day by twentysomething bean counters with MBAs who probably never even took biology 101, much less medical courses. They're already pulling the plug on Grandma and if we don't stop them, you're next. (Scared now? Good. You should be).

3. We DON'T want to kill the private sector. We LIKE the private sector. It generates income for you, you get to buy more stuff and we don't lose tax revenues. The more it spends on you, the less government has to and the less you have to pony up at tax time. What we want is to make the insurance industry straighten up and fly right, and give YOU a CHOICE. You like your insurance coverage (probably because you never really had to test it yet)? You can keep it. We may not be able keep your doctor from retiring or going to a different plan, or keep your employer from switching plans or dropping coverage because they can't afford it...........BUT YOU'RE NOT GUARANTEED THAT NOW, anyway!!! If we can present you a cheaper and better plan, the insurance industry will have to clean up its act to keep your business---and THAT's what they're afraid of. Do you REALLY want them to be able to keep taking more and more of your money and giving you less and less value for it?

4. So what's in our plan? Heck, we don't know for sure yet........because those obstructionist bast......er, scoundrels in Congress won't even sit down with us and let us draft it. But we do know that whatever we come up with is gonna be a darn sight better than what we've got.

5. So those jerks are yapping about "socialism" and "government control?" And you want government to keep its mitts off your Medicare and veterans' benefits? Guess what: Medicare and the V.A. ARE "government programs." Heck, they're single-payor! With Medicare, you choose your own doctors, you and they decide what to do, and the government picks up the tab. Why not let other people at least BUY into that, if not get the same deal that seniors and vets do?

6. We're on a roll now about "socialized" medicine--but did you know we're the only major CAPITALIST nation without universal and affordable healthcare for everyone? You can look it up. (Go ahead. I'll wait). And guess what else used to be privatized, and was a freaking disaster? Firefighting! (commercial firefighting companies used to get into drunken brawls and even set fires)! Mail delivery! You think the Postal Service is bad? Nobody remembers the Pony Express, huh? And are FedEx and UPS any cheaper and do they deliver on Saturdays or overnight on Sundays? (Thought not). We already have: socialized libraries, socialized police, socialized road repair, socialized mass transit, socialized garbage collection and socialized schools----that's right, some of you may be able to send your kids to private school but most of you can't. What if we made every parent in America pay K-12 tuition, huh? And we have government-run military.....oh, that's right.....Haliburton, Blackwater, Xe......look how well those mercenaries are doing! Catch those pix yet from Iraq of those wild "contractor" (easier to spell and pronounce than "mercenary") parties where Roland the Headless Thompson Gunner is doing Jello shots off VanOwen's butt? (Oh, sorry, the kids are listening. Hey, they had to find out sometime).

(Oh, how I'd love to see the overnight Nielsens for something like that!!)

And while we're on the subject, when it comes to taxes, grow up. There ain't no such thing as a free lunch. You want a decently paid, big enough military? Libraries? Good schools that don't cost more than college? Roads that won't wreck your axles and swallow your cars? Water and sewers? Fire departments? Real police departments instead of Paul Blart, Mall Cop? Taxes are the rent and dues we pay to live in the greatest country in the world......or what would be the greatest country in the world if people could afford to get sick without going broke.

And you media conglomerates? (I won't name names, but some of your stations broadcast via Clear Channels to Infinity and beyond). Stop characterizing those proposed airplay royalty payments to artists as a "music tax." If it doesn't go to the government, it isn't a "tax." (And listeners don't pay it anyway--you broadcasters do. In fact, those college, streaming public radio, mom-and-pop labor-of-love and dorm-room Internet stations already do.....and YOU lobbied Congress to make them pay it). If that bill passes, some of the great soul, blues and country artists you grew up listening to (or their descendants) are finally going to get paid for they musical gifts they gave us. Bobby Rush, Melissa Bean--shame on you. Of all people (I'm talking to YOU, Mr. Rush), you ought to have known better than to vote "no." Good on ya, Jan Schakowsky, for being on the side of the artists.

It's a sad state of affairs that in today's America, the surest way to demonize anything is to call it a "tax." (That hard-wired visceral adrenaline thing again).

In short, it is September 2009. We have a Black President. We have huge majorities in Congress and the Senate. Republicans: We won. You lost. Get over it. Democrats: We won. They lost. Grow a pair.

End of rant--I have rehearsing to do. See you at First Friday, Fox Valley, and FARM.

Got the first real rough mixes of our first 9 songs (including bass, fiddle, & mandolin) and they're ALREADY sounding better than anything either of us had previously commercially released, individually or collectively. I'm dying to share them with you, but we swore a near-blood oath not to leak them to the public till they're done. (Gary is a genius--his roughs are better than most engineers' mastered cuts). We're headed back down to Sparta the 14th-18th to (we hope) finish up our end of the recording and hopefully give some of our "input" (non-sonic) to the mixing process.

FARM is fast approaching, and the big news is that the Thursday night Concerts In Your Home showcase is being thrown open to nominations by all talent presenters & media, as well as applications by all FARM attendee artists, not just CIYH members. The registrations are rolling in (and the Performing Lane slots filling up--when they're gone, they're gone). We have a KILLER lineup of juried showcasers this year from all over North America!

And we're about to begin the Fox Valley Folk Music and Storytelling Festival this weekend, on lovely (and sunny, high-and-dry!) Island Park in the middle of the Fox River in the heart of downtown Geneva, IL. There's a special pre-fest songwriting master class with Peggy Seeger Sat. afternoon 9/5 (check www.foxvalleyfolk.com to see if spots are still available)--I'd go if I didn't have to attend the funeral of a dear friend's mom that day. Sunday morning 9/6 at 11 am the Festival kicks off. Where will you find me?
Sunday:
11 a.m., emceeing Chicago Songwriters' Collective Writers' Round, Workshop Stage 2 (n. end of island across the river from the Mill Race Inn). Open mic follows IMMEDIATELY from noon-1 pm--get those slots while they're hot! Come see us at the CSC's booth during the day--buy member CDs, find out more about us, and join us!
6:30 p.m., running sound for the evening Festival open mic in a downtown Geneva club--location TBA, but it'll be indoors, with PA and sustenance available. Check the HQ at the Pavilion for details.
Monday:
11 a.m., performing in the CSC's Writers' Round, Stage 2--again, followed by an open mic (sign up EARLY).
3 p.m. I have the honor of appearing with the great David Massengill and Dan & Donna Benkert in the Taking the "Dull" out of Mt. Dulcimer workshop--in the acoustically perfect Teaching stage in the covered, cool and shaded open-sided brick Pavilion (plenty of chairs!). Bring a dulcimer if you have one--we may have some tips for you to try as well as songs you might never have expected to hear on a dulcimer.
5 p.m. Cooper & Nelson and Andrew Calhoun wrap up with their notoriously racy "Songs of Love & Lust" workshop, and as last year, I may get in a song or two.

And Friday? First Friday Songwriters' Exchange at the Old Town School of Folk Music, starting 6:30 pm. Be the first to hear some songs so new we'll still be wiping 'em off and slapping their little bottoms.

Showed up at the nail salon yesterday, with the recently "de-acrylicized" and "non-chipped" gel overlaid nails in sorry shape--they were just too weak to handle even normal right-hand activities of daily living. Just as before they'd had any reinforcements, they were splitting and tearing in exactly the same places. Though I don't pick with them, they were threatening to wear down to the quick (the way my left-hand nails need to be) and looked just plain raggedy. Had to keep reinforcing the gel with protein nail-straightener and filing/trimming away the notched portion. Oh, well. So they're back to being acrylics--this time a tad shorter than the two nails that do the main picking duty. Since I'm going to record in a week and a half, I'm going to get a professional file-down just before I leave town in order to keep them from clicking on the pickguard; but just in case, I'm bringing rubber finger-cots too.

Today I had my manicure appointment and told my nail tech about what had happened in the studio with my acrylic nails interfering with optimal sound (a phenomenon I am sure also appeared on an earlier recording and, at least to my ears in retrospect, affected airplay for at least one song). To recap, those long, hard nails that weren't actually picking the strings clattered on the pickguard, sounding not unlike gremlins eating Rice Krispies or a microclimate sleet-shower directly in front of the mic. And they made some scraping harmonics as they dragged against the strings as I strummed with a flatpick. I decided that tape on the guitar was no good for the guitar, and that tape on my fingers looked unbelievably dorky and felt rather clunky.

What I have on my left (fretting) hand nails, which must be as short as possible, is something my tech calls a "no-chip French manicure." (For the guys, a French manicure--get your minds out of the gutter, fellas--is one in which the nail tips are painted white over a natural or clear polish to mimic the look of perpetually clean shiny natural nails). What makes it non-chip is that it's actually made up of three shades of liquid self-leveling gel that is cured with a UV light but still somewhat breathable and flexible. It is okay for those guitarists with strong natural right hand nails who play nylon strings, but does not (in my tech's opinion) stand up to steel strings. In her experience, not even thin acrylic gels or silk wraps are strong enough. To her chagrin, I told her those lovely long hard acrylics (pink-and-white, also a permanent French manicure) had to go on all except my right thumb and index nails. We soaked them off and she had to trim back the three non-picking nails to just barely past the fingertip to keep them from stressing and tearing--acrylics can weaken the underlying nail bed and she wants me to strengthen those nails so that they can gradually take a bit longer length. We also decided that I need no more than 1/6" on my picking nails, so we trimmed back the thumb and index as well to be closer in length to the other nails. The new, gel-clad nails are still kind of soft, so I'll have to be careful when dishwashing and gardening, perhaps wearing gloves to prevent splitting, tearing and peeling for awhile. But for the first time in years, one of my hands doesn't have freakishly longer nails than the other; and I just tested them out on my guitar. Got plenty of length on the two now-shorter acrylics, the trailing nails no longer clatter nor scrape, and they seem to be holding up okay. I go back for "fills" in two weeks, so we'll see how it goes till then.

Saturday night, Bob and I went to the Cliff Dwellers' Club downtown for a marvelous dinner to pay tribute to Joseph Becker for his forty years of service (and counting, we hope!) as first a teacher and coach at and then (most of those years) Headmaster of Gordy's alma mater, Roycemore School of Evanston, IL.

Let me tell you all about a remarkable leader of a remarkable school. When I was growing up in the 1960s, a product of not only the NYC Public Schools but Brooklyn College, part of the public tuition-free City University of New York, the idealistic near-radical in me swore that I would never send any child of mine to any institution as elitist as a private prep school. Fast forward to when Gordy came along and attained school age. Our local public school did not offer preschool classes and we were committed to the Montessori system, so Gordy's first school was Rogers Park Montessori, a private secular school (albeit one housed in a Lutheran church). As he entered kindergarten there, it soon became apparent he had some special educational needs that combined physical assistance with availability of a gifted program, something his current school could not meet, nor could our neighborhood public school. He did not fit the demographic profile sought that year by the magnet schools (and we were not willing to hold him back a year in case they needed more boys the next year), and parochial school was out of the question--we're an interfaith family and he was already getting Sunday school training at temple. The psychometrician who tested him for his unique learning disability (dyspraxia) suggested Roycemore, and it was a marvelous fit. And this hot-headed wild-eyed '60's radical found herself a prep school trustee there for several years! (Moral: never say never! And keep an open mind).

Roycemore is located in a landmark building abutting the Northwestern University campus (and the property is owned by Northwestern---in a couple of years it'll move to its own larger wholly-owned building in north central Evanston). The student body usually ranges between 200-220, ranging from jr. kindergarten through high school. It is a college preparatory school, with an extremely high college acceptance rate and small class sizes. It has learning assistance and gifted programs--and the Advanced Placement kids in the Upper (high) School can actually take their classes on the Northwestern campus for college credit. The student body exactly reflects the demographic makeup of the Chicago northside area--not the North Shore suburbs in which it's located, and to that end Roycemore is committed to making sure that no qualified student is turned away for lack of funds. Those who can pay full tuition also tend to give generously to accomplish that and a terrific fundraising auction and generous alumni endowment fill in the rest. The kids are all supportive of each other--no cliques, and even the seniors help assist the littlest ones.

Which brings us to Joseph Becker. When was the last time you encountered a school principal who knew and was loved by every one of his students, from the four-year old preschoolers to the graduating seniors? The fact that Roycemore has some of the most dedicated alumni you'll ever see--Gordy, his friends, and older alums alike regularly return for school events such as Carnival, the Palio athletic festival, soccer and basketball games and the auction banquet--is due in no small part to Joe Becker's dedication. It's a tribute to him that though his politics are diametrically opposed to mine (and to many of the rest of the Board of Trustees), all of those differences melt away in his dedication to the school, the kids, equality and excellence. He is a man who was born to teach, born to lead, and born to guide and shape lives. Long may he continue to do so!

Saturday morning was Christine Gaylord's memorial service at her church in Lisle. It was a celebration of both her faith and her life. On one side of the altar was the praise band she'd helped lead; on the other, her bluegrass bandmates with her husband Joe playing heart-rendingly beautiful and perfect fiddle and mandolin. Her favorite songs (including one she co-wrote), prayers and readings rounded out the service, with a slide show of Christine as we all remembered her best. By the end, it was so rousing and uplifting I found myself singing along on the lyrics that did not conflict with my own spiritual beliefs. Much of the Chicago-area folk and bluegrass community as well as her friends, neighbors, relatives and congregation turned out to pay tribute to her talent and spirit and bid her adieu on her journey into the eternity she so wholeheartedly believed awaits us all.

It's coming together yummily. We tracked several more songs on Wed. and Thurs., with some surprises in the arrangements that occurred to us on the fly (including at least two instruments you've probably never heard on a record before--not even a rock record). I discovered that not being a morning person, the hours before lunch are best for me to lay down my instrumentals and scratch vocals, and then in the afternoon I have the energy and intensity to sing my actual vocals with greater edge, intensity and accuracy. Don't be afraid to know how your body behaves during the course of the day, and let your engineer or producer know. I saved myself quite a bit of frustration and wasted session time by quickly sussing out when I sound my best and on what.

I also had to revisit my usual nail care routine of long hard acrylics on my picking hand. I discovered I really am a thumb-and-index picker (I'm in good company--so, apparently, are Doc Watson and Doyle Dykes), and my other three idle nails were long and hard enough to uncontrollably clatter on my guitar top. Had to lay down a couple of layers of masking tape on the pickguard so they'd be inaudible. Thought that took care of everything, as the rest of my guitar parts were flatpicked or strummed, but to my consternation, the ring and pinky fingers and the trailing edge of my middle finger made a metallic "clashing" sound against the steel strings on the downstroke, so out came the roll of masking tape again--this time to wrap those fingertips. Not exactly attractive, and it felt less natural than even fingerpicks (which I hate enough to have gotten nail enhancements to begin with). I decided that when I got back home I'd have a conference with my nail tech to rethink the routine, especially since I realized the middle, ring and pinky fingers really don't do anything other than grip a flatpick and keep my hand from fraying at the edges.

Friday morning, I decided to revisit a couple of my backing vocals--I wasn't happy with the intonation as I couldn't hear myself and I was singing nearly as loud as I do on lead. After some tense moments troubleshooting a control unit that refused to talk to the computer (turned out to be only dirty contacts in the Ethernet and FW ports), we got to work, and what a difference: turned down the lead and the guitar and turned myself up in the cans, got up close and sang softly but intensely. Suddenly it clicked so well that on one song we decided to have me lay in a second harmony atop the first. Gary did some rough mixes for us to take home and evaluate (making us promise not to share them with the world yet, as they're still sorta like cookie dough--yummy at first but raw). We're gonna have a heck of a followup CD when all is said and done--really pumped for our next sessions down there in Sept. Wish we knew back in '05 what we know now--and had the patience we do now to get it the way we want it. And it's great to have an engineer-producer who not just likes our stuff but is candid enough to let us know when we need to take another stab at a track. Gary and Roberta were so wonderful to us--and the area so tranquil and beautiful (trap shooting tournament in the area notwithstanding) that I hated to go home.

No, I'm not talking about health care reform legislation (and the increasingly irrational and downright ugly sentiments and those who express them disruptively and disgracefully at "town hall" meetings across the country)--I'm angry enough about the loonies taking over the asylum that that deserves a separate blog post when time permits.

I'm talking about the process of recording, specifically, the next Andina & Rich CD (tentatively titled "Two Guitars, a Dulcimer and an Attitude"--thank you, Dan Navarro, for unintentionally providing us with that!). We began recording today at Inside Out Studio in bucolic and restful Sparta, IL, under the watchful eyes and ears and skillful hands-on-the-faders of Gary Gordon (of, with his wife Roberta, the excellent, delightful and authentic Americana duo The Gordons). We started by tracking three songs ("Shira," "Mudball" and "These Cowboys") with our vocals, guitars, dulcimers and a few serendipitous curveballs (teaser alert). We'll be here enjoying Gary's expertise, Roberta and his down-home hospitality and the gorgeous weather, tranquility of nature and beauty of the heartland scenery for the next couple of days as we continue tracking and mixing.....and we'll be back (both here in Sparta later on and on this blog tomorrow).

It is with a heavy heart indeed that I pass along the sad news that Christine Gaylord--tireless Secretary of the Board of FARM, magnificent singer/musician, founder of the Chicago folk band Gallimaufry, praise team musician, enthusiastic supporter of folk and bluegrass music and musicians in the Midwest, generous and gentle soul--is now sharing her music with the angels and the ages after a long and valiant battle with cancer. A gorgeous voice, a diligent volunteer and a vivacious spirit have been stilled, at least on this side of this life. Lilli Kuzma will devote a special segment of next Tuesday's (Aug. 18) WDCB "Folk Festival" show (90.9 FM, streaming at www.wdcb.org) to Christine and the music of Gallimaufry.
This has been a cruel summer indeed for those of us who love folk music and some of its most prominent and beautiful voices.

Block party, Edgewater Third Sat. and Edgewater Dinner Crawl were all tons of fun. The threatened storms on the 17th never materialized (a raindrop or two, and that was that), the weather was on the mild side--almost cool--and my voice and fingers held up for four sets/four and a half hours. Two hours in front of Pause Coffee flew by! Thanks to the Murphys for feeding me so well and providing electricity for the PA and a de facto green room for the block party gig. The Dinner Crawl was punctuated by storms, but not spoiled by them: Steve Rich & I performed inside Anna Held Florist & Ice Cream Parlor rather than outdoors--but the crowds were good and steady, the acoustics marvelous and the hospitality gracious (with wonderful coffee & cookies). We got to enjoy the last 45 min. of the Dinner Crawl and stuffed ourselves silly with pasta, sushi, Indian food, gumbo, and trifle. Heaven knows how people managed to get through more than a dozen eateries, albeit over three hours. Can't wait till the next one! Meanwhile, I will be seeing you along the same stretch of Bryn Mawr (bet. B'way and Sheridan) for the next Edgewater Third Sat. on Aug. 15. Will post the exact location as soon as it's assigned. Prepare those request lists!

Next Tues. Aug. 4 Steve and I will be playing live for the Madtoast Radio podcast at the Brink Lounge in Madison, WI (will let you know as soon as it's available for download), and we'll have some special guests sitting in on various instruments. Maybe some of the 'cast will end up as live tracks on our new CD--it will at least go into our Sonicbids EPK. The next day, we begin formal recording in Madison; a week later, it's down to Sparta to record the bulk of the project with Gary & Roberta Gordon. Normally, I anticipate recording (and photo shoots) with the same enthusiasm I have for root canal, but I have a REALLY good feeling about this.

Had some rough patches this past week when Bob's dad was hospitalized twice, and his latest home-care is tricky and challenging. Hope it all works out.

Finally, the tub bars are installed, the gutter project is finished, and I got my orthotics yesterday. Went to buy new running shoes (the concept of dedicated "walking" shoes has fallen out of favor since the last time I bought some in 199.... uh, TOO long ago). Amazing how something so lightweight and sculpted can provide cushioning and stability, but it can. Now own two pair of Adidas, which is ironic since my first running shoes 37 years ago were Adidas Viennas---no arch support (not even removable insoles), all leather, narrow toe box--which probably gave me the bunion in the first place. (I recall stopping a 3-mi. walk through the Capitol Hill section of Seattle because of the pain and being shocked to see a big throbbing red bunion at the ripe old age of 21). The game plan is to increase wearing my orthotics by an hour each day--tomorrow is Day 3--and to start slowly by walking a mile a day for the first week. Imagine my shock when I found only ONCE around my block is a mile! So I'd been handling longer distances than I'd thought before my foot went blooey. Hopefully, I can walk off enough of this weight to ease the burden on my arthritic foot and knees....and be able to walk some more. (Running will forever be a distant memory, alas--not enough soft tissue support to keep my knees from buckling on impact, alas. I still have dreams in which I skip downstairs and run to catch the bus....even occasionally find myself suddenly slim. Now you know why I love to sleep!).

Forgot to mention what's in store this week. Doing double duty (triple, if you count running P.A. and contributing to the potluck brunch) this Saturday, 7/18: from 2-4 pm I'll be out in front of Pause Coffee on Berwyn just e. of the Red Line CTA stop, serenading the shoppers at this month's Edgewater Third Saturday Greenmarket. Two sets, solo, unplugged. Then it's back to my block party to sing in front of 1314 W. Glenlake, mid-block, from 5-7:30 pm for your dining (and dancing?) pleasure. Stop by, sing along, even bring a guitar and sit in or take a guest spot.

Thurs. night 7/23, it's back to doing my E.C.C. civic duty by singing for this month's Edgewater Dinner Crawl, along Bryn Mawr bet. B'way and Sheridan--any of 13 restaurants (I might be assigned to venue-hop) between 6-9 pm. $25 ($35 day of event) gets you a "passport" to sample all their offerings, hop on & off the free trolley (allowing you to imbibe w/o fear of DUI) and catch the entertainment--besides me providing the folk music, there'll be jazz, dancers and even balloon-artists.

Should have some good tough finger calluses once I'm done--and then start the preproduction demoing for the upcoming Andina & Rich recording sessions in Madison, WI, Sparta, IL and perhaps Chicago too.

And now to take advantage of that brand-new good strong-shower before turning in for the night; the sawing and banging on my roof and gutters resumes at dawn.....

Coming to the end of Home Repair Week 2009 (necessitated by that monster storm we had last month, during which my basement flooded and my gutters leaked into the windows). Several grand poorer, but now have water pressure and showers the envy of any hotel, brand-new faucets in the kitchen and main bathroom, a floodproof basement, and 3/4 of my new gutters and fascia installed (not to mention some interesting temporary sheet-aluminum-and-ladders lawn decor--hopefully gone by the time Sat. morning's Block Party rolls around. Still need safety bars installed in the upstairs bath--none of us are getting any younger or steadier--and some icky ceilings patched up; but by summer's end our house should be in as good a shape as any centenarian can be.

Basking in the glow of an INCREDIBLE experience playing an outdoor house concert (Andina & Rich) at Terry & Nancy's Prairie Herb Farm in Monroe, WI. A totally enchanted place, set amid lush herb, perennial/annual/succulent gardens and forested glades in lovely rolling farmland--and the concert area is at the foot of the hill in a roofless stone-walled barn that is strikingly reminiscent of a mini-Baths-of-Caracolla (the venue for the Three Tenors). Terrific acoustics, large and attentive audience (most of whom contributed to a caffeine-themed potluck dinner), warm and convivial campfire and song circle afterward (with audience members who are no musical slouches themselves) and the amazingly gracious hospitality of Terry & Nancy. The house concert series is highly eclectic--the hosts delight in exposing their loyal attendees to as many kinds of music as possible; some of those who've played there include James Keelaghan, Don McLean, polka and Cajun bands and even an operatic troupe. Check their website at www.prairieherbs.com for reservations (you WILL need them if you want a seat); next show they're sponsoring is nautical bards William Pint & Felicia Dale at a restaurant in town on July 25; Aug. 1 will be a Balkan music troupe that is supposed to be wild and wonderful.

Excited to announce that in mid-August Stephen Lee RIch & I will be stepping into the studio to record our next CD (much of it at the studio of Gary & Roberta Gordon in Sparta, down in southern IL's bayou country--yup, cypress knees, moss and all). We should have at least an EP in hand by FARM or maybe even Lilfest!

And relieved to see that Sonia Sotomayor has apparently survived the GOP members of the Senate Judiciary Committee's attempts to get her to crack under cross-examination (sadly, a judge--or nominee--doesn't get to say "Objection: asked and answered" no matter how many times the same question is thrown at her). Who knew that Sen. Graham's seemingly benign assurance that "short of a meltdown, you'll be confirmed" was really an announcement of the GOP contingent's strategy---to attempt to induce a meltdown! The last resort of a powerless super-minority deprived not only of substantive objections but of any power to filibuster. I mean, she's been a resolutely mainstream judge regardless of any extrajudicial speeches she may have made (and the latter don't carry the force of law); and as for her personal life....well, let's just say it's not as if she ignored her official duties to go "hiking the Appalachian Trail" (thank you, Gov. Sanford, for unwittingly giving us the first truly cool double-entendre euphemism of the new millennium)!

Finally, Adventures in Orthopedics and Podiatry--it took two sets of X-rays and an MRI, but I don't have a stress fracture in my foot: besides the arthritis in two major joints, a big honkin' bunion, tendinitis and a (healing) sprained ankle, I have something called "cuboid syndrome:" a joint in my foot actually dislocates when I bear weight on it; and changes in the bone marrow that could lead to stress fractures without immediate intervention. Said intervention is taking the form of custom orthotics (waiting for them to come back from the lab) so that I can start a painless walking program to lose some of that weight I've been forcing my feet to bear; and OTC orthotics in the meantime. No more cast-boot, thank heavens!

On the foreign policy front, Obama cannot be faulted: Iran, Israel, Palestine--thus far he's been pitch-perfect, talking tough without talking trash, being a motivator and cheerleader where appropriate.

But here at home, it's time for him to step up to the plate and do what caused him to captivate all of us and catapult him into office. He's got the real "political capital" that W WISHES he could have had in 2004--and he can spend it far more freely and wisely than Dubya ever attempted to do. So here are my suggestions for his "Political Capital Budget:"

1. Quash all the kerfuffle that's brewing over his inability thus far to rescue the economy. Never mind it's been only five months. He needs to assert that first, he inherited a horrid bullet-ridden, kneecapped, slashed-beyond-recognition mess of a "patient" that was savaged by years of Republican-dominated deregulation and celebration of the philosophy that ennobled the concept of maximizing the making of money--even to the extent of conjuring it out of whole cloth, heck, thin air. He then needs to give us all that cold wet slap in the face that we are deep into terra incognita: that we know how we got into this mess but that NOBODY on either side of the aisle, not even the best and brightest, has a clue as to how to get us out of it. He has to be proactive and tell his critics to wake up and get real, and that whatever the eventual solution (if indeed one exists), it certainly isn't more of the unbridled laissez-faire that brought us to this point. And he needs to draw on his professorial skills and teach the nation a little Econ 101 instead of spouting the platitudes and clichéd indignancies that those on the right are yammering.

2. More political capital: a Senate majority of 59 (and, when Norm Coleman steps off the crazy train, 60), a still-record-high approval rating, and an overwhelming expressed desire from a lopsided majority of Americans for a public OPTION as part of a drastic repair and reform of a pathologically broken healthcare system.

That's public OPTION (as in "choice," not "mandate"), not single-payor nor "socialized medicine," contrary to what the GOP-and-insurance-industry PR machine desperately and wildly inaccurately hopes we'll believe. (Note to the other side: Harry & Louise have switched over to OUR team now).

3. Time to deliver the goods on equal rights: order the military to deep-six "don't ask/don't tell" and stop jettisoning valuable personnel just for being "out." Even though we decried Bush's DOJ putsch and purge of Asst. U.S. Attorney's who wouldn't drink the neocon Kool-Aid (and we'd be extremely hypocritical to demand Obama do the same to all those DOJ who don't fully hew to the Democratic Party platform), it's time for him to call in Eric Holder and his top deputies at Justice for a "what-the-hell-were-you-thinking" moment regarding the Defense of Marriage Act. He won our hearts and minds in part because he correctly asserted that marriage may need to be defended but certainly not defended from gay couples; he has come out explicitly against DOMA; he needs to get DOJ to retract or revise that amicus brief; and he needs to extend gay couples (and unmarried but otherwise lifetime-committed domestic partners of any sexual orientation) in the Federal employ all the benefits that the law allows him....and to urge the states and the private employment sector to do the same. This Saturday, Bob and I will celebrate our 38th wedding anniversary. If the gay or lesbian couple down the street getting the eventual chance to do the same doesn't endanger our marriage, it doesn't endanger anyone else's. Obama has the clout to get that done now, with little legislative or judicial help. (That's what Executive Orders are for).

4. And here's where all that gets wrapped up: after giving his opponents and critics a thorough schooling, it's time to take off his academic gown (or Law Review jacket) and do a little old-fashioned "transactional negotiation." Anyone who's ever engineered a settlement, brokered a deal or even haggled at a bazaar knows you NEVER let 'em know at the outset what figure will be the magic number you're willing to accept. Demand more, call in your chits if you have to, and you'll end up with your objectives while making it look as if you've compromised. Even though I have the utmost admiration for the civil rights firm of Davis, Barnhill and Miner (and would have leaped at the chance to have been even a "go-fer" there), I wish Obama had had a little transactional or even trial-litigation experience (say, at a P.I. plaintiff or defense mill) to make him comfier with the escalated and magnified horse-trading that national political office demands. No more trying to be the Great Conciliator--the Loyal Opposition (and I use the term advisedly) eats conciliators for breakfast and spits out the seeds.

We know Obama is human, not divine, and humans can do just so much. But as humans go, he's extraordinary and has the chance to bring the real change he promised. Ironically, that real change needs to be achieved by the adroit, expert, and larger-than-life exploitation of the political system as it currently exists: instead of "destroying the village in order to save it" (the bass-ackwards rationalization of the Vietnam war), one must game the system to its fullest extent in order to turn it inside out and renovate it.

Never thought I'd live to see the day when two journalists who are icons of Republican conservatism--Peggy Noonan and George F. WIll--would spring to the defense of Obama's careful handling of the powder keg that is the imminent Second Iran Revolution and condemn the knee-jerk bellicosity of the rest of their party's leaders and shills.

Iran's earthshaking grassroots sea change toward power to the people, evolving as we speak, is important to the world in general and to us specifically, of course; but in essence it's about Iran, and we do not and cannot attempt to overtly influence or "own" the results. It's not about us--and woe betide us and the freedom of the Iranian people if we manage to inject ourselves into it. The last thing Iran--and the entire concept of the dissolution of Islamic theocracy--needs is for the mullahs and the Ayatollah to be able to accurately characterize the uprising as American-caused or even "-backed." There are still too many in that world all too eager to see us as the "great Satan," and neither we nor the cause of democracy in the world needs us to fuel that. Obama is doing exactly what needs to be done about Iran: reassure those on the side of freedom and honesty that we encourage freedom and discourage corruption and repression.....not look for another war into which to parachute ourselves or find ourselves having escalated. Especially not when those still in power hold the nuclear cards in their hand (and may it not be a straight, flush or full house).

It is indeed thrilling that the Islamic Revolution of 1979 which--though it ousted an outrageous and anachronistic plutocrat--turned out so disastrously for us and for peace and understanding, is now on the brink of falling via a new anti-theocratic, pro-liberty counter-revolution.....and if we play it right, without our aid (or meddling).

Does anyone REALLY believe that the Iron Curtain collapsed because Ronald Reagan recited the ghostwritten words, "Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall?" No, I think humorist-philosopher A. Whitney Brown got it right: "Communism failed," he declared, "because there's no money in it." Well, Islamic theocracy will fail not because of any florid rhetoric from this side of the pond, but because there's no freedom or dignity in it.

Heartfelt condolences to Bob and Jackie Bresse-Rodenkirk on the loss of their beloved canine companion Gilbert (aka the puppy in wolf's clothing, the WBBM Newsradio Dog Food Taste Tester, etc.). Gilbert lived nearly 15 earth years---which translates to 103 dog years, all the more amazing because he was abandoned by his pack as a pup when critically injured by a car. If our pets teach us all about unconditional love, then dogs are the full tenured professors of that subject. May the pain ebb and the smiles in celebration of Gilbert's life take root in your hearts. (He certainly was the most unusual wedding greeter I ever met!)

...will have to wait till tomorrow--got a lot on my mind about world and national affairs and need a little time to put it out there as effectively as I see it. Meanwhile, I was ambushed by a worldwide flock of little birds and am now (it had to happen sometime) on Twitter. Got a mobile device? Find me there and on Facebook--my username at both is sandyandina. (Not surprisingly, I didn't have to wrest it from some domain-name squatter: there are some advantages to having an unusual and oft-misspelled-and-mispronounced surname; had I kept my maiden name I might have faded into a small but still crowded field). Still on MySpace but more people are gravitating to Facebook, where I'm still a "civilian;" haven't figured out how to convert my profile there to a performer. Of course, for details longer than 160 characters, you'll have to check in over here! I promise not to "tweet" unless I have something to say that can't wait for this blog or e-mail bulletins.

Denise Marie Stein--half of Foxfire and a singer/autoharpist/dulcimerist extraordinaire--was promoted from earthly entertainer to the choir and band of Angels this past Mon. June 15. She bravely battled leukemia for four years, singing till the end. It was an honor and a delight to have known and shared the stage with her. Heaven is a more entertaining place from now on...adios till we all sing together again.

You may notice some gigs are no longer listed in my calendar. One, in July, has been removed because the organizer has decided that those of us playing the more prominent (and paid) concert series in the same area ought not take up slots in the free festival--I agree wholeheartedly. Nonetheless, I played the free fest last year, and urge those in the Madison area the weekend of July 17-19 to head over to Lisa Link Peace Park and catch part of Maxwell St. Days--the artists are of especially high caliber this year (some have previously played the aforementioned concert series) and very enjoyable.

As to the Indiegrrl Festival in Nashville in August, there's no way I can do that as was originally envisioned and still devote time and energy to my organizational duties....and, just as important, get some sorely-needed recording done for the followup Andina & Rich and my own next solo CD. Sadly, science has not yet developed a way for us to be in two different places at once--computers can "multitask" in that way but humans can't. (If things change and I will be in Nashville, rest assured I'll let you know).

On the creative and performing front, premiered a brand new song at the Old Town School First Friday Songwriters' Exchange the day it was written--and received very positive feedback. Played it for Steve the next day, and it will definitely make it on to the next Andina & Rich CD. (You'll just have to catch a concert or buy the disc, if you weren't at the OTS last week, to find out what it's about).

Mill Bluff State Park last week was beautiful, bucolic and filled with wonderful music from our fellow artists on the bill (and Andina & Rich, she said modestly). It was also the coldest non-winter day I've ever spent (eclipsing a raw and wet day April day in line at Disneyland in 1990 and a blustery windswept visit to Tienanmen Square in Feb. 1994). I was okay while on stage (courtesy of the stage being under a canopy and sheltered from the wind), but as soon as I got back into the audience, I had to bundle up with three layers of clothing, put up the hood of my parka, and stuff my hands into my pockets whenever I wasn't cradling the hottest cuppa Joe I could find. If June is busting out all over, you coulda fooled me. To add insult to injury, after the gig I loaded up the car with my gear--and discovered a flat tire. Props to Ingrid's brother Ed, who changed my tire to the "donut" spare, which got me back to Madison where I spent an unplanned night before getting a pair of new tires the next morning (20 minutes total, including rotating all four tires) at Weber Tire in Sun Prairie. No wonder the place is so popular, aside from their prices being lower than in the city.

Now, in medical news---good and bad. Good news is that my foot is not fractured and the bone itself is not bruised. It's just a worsening of arthritis (which I didn't know I had) in my 5th metatarsal and bunion and tendinitis, caused by a mild ankle sprain that came on gradually over the spring. Time marches on, and I limp instead. Bad news is that I'm stuck wearing a big honkin' immobilizer boot (like a cross between a cast and a ski boot) for the next few weeks, but will still be on my feet as tolerated. (I am definitely making a footwear fashion statement, even if I'm not "stating" that which I originally intended). At least no crutches, thank goodness.

My father-in-law turned 89 this week--mazel tov to him. And in less than two weeks Bob & I will celebrate our 38th anniversary. Where'd the time go? Since our wedding we've had eight Presidents, four wars, lived in three states and cities, lost (and regained) hundreds of pounds, been through the arc of four careers (two for each of us), earned one graduate and two professional degrees, produced one terrific and talented kid (whom we're in no hurry to push out of the nest till he's good and ready to fly). Not to mention going through three hair colors (not including gray, which I still refuse to let emerge).

So it looks like I'm taking the rest of June off to do a little legal work (that pesky retirement still doesn't seem to be fully "taking"), songwriting, rehearsing, eldercare and volunteering. Back into the whirl starting July 4th weekend in Madison!