Daisy the bunny
On Thursday of last week, Deanne decided to get a rabbit.
A rabbit?!
I heard this on the way home from LA to Temecula. At first, I was a little bit miffed because I was not involved in the decision, but this was just my ego that was bruised. I was really more concerned for Deanne as having another pet is going to be very challenging given that we already have a cat, a dog a turtle and that she is doing quite a lot of horseback riding with Brandi up at her folks house.
The rabbit’s name is Daisy and it is a love! She is very gentle and as it turns out, very easy going with people, cats and dogs. The first night, we put her in the bathroom so she could just get used to being with us. The second night, we set up her habitat which was provided for us by her previous owners. Elie was tolerant of her, but for the most part, not very interested. Marley was very curious about the new addition and I think she was really wanting to play with the bunny.
In any case, from what I have read, rabbits are quite easy to own, you just have to give them space and attention, like you would any animal. Joelle and Corinne are prepared to assist with the day to day task of feeding the animals and tending to them, so Deanne will not be alone in the task. I am a bunny believer!
Stick at Un-urban
So on a whim last Thursday, I decided to swing by McCabe’s guitar shop to see if they had any music for Chapman Stick – a fantasy, I know, nonetheless, I went. Turns out there was none and I was not surprised. I did manage to strike up a conversation with what turned out to be one of the owners. I mentioned that I played the Chapman Stick and was curious to know if they would consider some sort of class at McCabe’s for beginning Stick players, perhaps even getting Emmett to come down if possible.
He liked this idea! He directed me to speak with one of their employees who is there on Sundays and Tuesday, so I am hoping to check in with them at that time.
I then walked down the street to un-urban, a coffee house just off of the 10 on Pico, east of Centinela. I inquired as to who the manager was, turns out her name is Pam. At about 9am tonight, I decided, after about a good hour of practicing, why don’t I give Pam a call and see if they want someone to come out and play Chapman Stick. When I called, Pam picked up the phone – I asked her if I could come down and play music, and she was very receptive.
I made it down to the cafe at 10pm, she was not there yet, so I set up. I got a cup of coffee from a nice guy named Matt. He served me my coffee in a beer stein, it was good and strong. I played unaccompanied for about 20 minutes; In a sentimental mood, Alive in Wonderland, Someday my Prince will come and segued into Somewhere over the Rainbow. This yielded the most applause, from what appeared to be about 7 people. People had questions about the Stick, so I took a moment to speak to them. There was no mic, just me and the Stick. I was using a Behringer K900fx and an Ernie Ball Volume pedal, running both sides of the Stick into the pedal and the amp.
Pam was very pleased with the music, and as I was breaking down, the man at the back of the coffee house asked if I could play some more. Needless to say, I was delighted to do so! I played Naima, an original called Forever in Love, some improvisational numbers (E and F are my favorite keys) and Equinox. I am hoping to add an original called Gingerly to the set as well as Duke Ellington’s Come Sunday and Eric Clapton’s You look wonderful Tonight. The gentleman that served me my coffee was very gracious about clapping after every song, and I was grateful for him being so considerate.
At the end of the evening as I breaking down a second time, Pam asked if I would like to come back and play again. This was such great news – I agreed. I mentioned that I had a friend that was quite good at Saxophone and that he might be interested in coming out and playing. Unfortunately, Marc was sick, as I had called him the moment that Pam said I could come down to play. I confirmed next Tuesday at un-urban with Pam and later when I got home with Marc via text.
