Courage – Live Recordings

The last two weekends have been a flurry of action as the workshop production of Couragewas underway, first at Chief Ike’s Mambo Room in Adam’s Morgan and then in the blackbox at Capitol Hill Arts Workshop.

It was a trippy way to reenter the performance scene, and I had a blast working with the band, jamming and letting go (kinda) of my inhibitions about playing in front of a crowd. My mandolin enjoyed her time in the spotlight.

Want to listen to recordings from the final performance? Click here to visit the dog & pony dc Courageblog with all the sound files. In addition to playing in the band, I sang on “Home.” Two of the four performances I managed to stay on beat through the whole song. Sadly, this is not one of them. Sorry, Milo.

We’re going to do a studio recording in a few weeks. If I’m allowed to post those songs, I will.

Savage Chicken Spice

Savage Chickens is one of my favorite comics that I check out online every Monday – Friday. Today’s had a vague baking theme and therefore I share it with you.

Practice Makes Play

We had our first all-cast rehearsal for Courage last night. We did a round-robin read-through with the band playing the various songs we’ve been rehearsing the last few weeks. The violinist and I were the only ones going acoustic up against the guitar, bass, accordian and drums…which was actually kinda freeing for the first “performance.”

I’m still pretty shakey on a lot of the chord changes and strumming patterns, so it was lovely to know not many people would hear me if I goofed up. And also nice to know I could experiment in the realms I was comfortable in to make the performance as much of a practice session as any other.

More practice on Tuesday night! Playtime continues.

Exploding Chicken…or Why I Prefer Baking to Cooking

I often get asked by people why I enjoy baking more than cooking. Here is why…

Honey, thanks for cooking such a delicious and well-rounded dinner for me!

But wait...there's something missing. Shouldn't the entree be around here somewhere between the green beans and the potatoes?

Rehearsing to Be a Gypsy Punk

I spent last night rehearsing with the band for Courage. It was exceedingly cool. The crew was composed of a guitarist, bassist, drummer, violinist, accordionist and me on mandolin. The sound was so…full. It was the first time I’d played with that many people, not to mention played to be heard (rather than just blend into the background).

This Sunday we’ll play for the cast, so I guess it’s a little like our first performance. Maybe more like a try-out. If I can just hit that stupid Bb, I’ll be content. 

I’ll see if I can get the ok from the musical director to record a bit of a song or rehearsal for a preview here.

Sugar In The Air — The National Capital Area Cake Show

On Saturday, the Mum-in-Law and I went to the National Capital Area Cake Show in Burke, Va., to view the spectacle and splendor of cake writ large. I’ve been to two shows at this point, but this (oh god, I can’t help it) took the cake. (I know…I know…sorry.)

One of the many cakes competing in the show.

Baking Something New

Hey all,

So I dropped off the face of the blogging earth, huh? Sorry to those who were checking this page out with any regularity. But it makes me laugh a little when I look at the date of my last post — October 29, 2008 — because just a week later I learned I had already embarked on my most ambitious baking project yet. Wink, wink, nudge, nudge. Me and the Mister are gonna have a kiddo, you see! So I’m hoping you forgive my multi-month absence, as well as what is likely to continue to be a lazy updating schedule.

You know what’s weird? With every week that goes by, my mandolin moves just a little further away from me. The kiddo seems to enjoy the music, though. Speaking of…I’ve been given a really cool opportunity to play and sing in an upcoming workshop production of Courage — a take on Mother Courage and Her Children by Bertolt Brecht. I’ll be one of the minstrel rabble and we’re performing all original music…very gypsy punk stuff. Way out of my comfort zone (but then again, what isn’t at this point?) but so much fun to fiddle with. Lots of minor chords and trills going on…much stretching of the fingers.

It’ll go up early May and is being put on by Dog & Pony DC, a DC theater company run by three terrifically creative ladies. You can keep up with how Courage unfolds on their blog. And I’ll probably be babbling about it here, too.

Cheers, for now!

Have You Hugged Your Communications Department Lately?

A friend sent me this article today pertaining to an ill-advised (or utterly lacking in advisement, as the case seems be) letter from the Framingham State College alumni association to their alums. Check out the blah, blah, blah.

New House, New Oven

We’re in the new house! And hence…I have the time again to do the things for which this blog is named!

When we bought our house, I knew the range already had two tricksy burners. What I wasn’t expecting was a non-functioning oven and a not-up-to-code gas line.

*heaves big home-ownership-lesson sigh*

But I’m very lucky that there are people in my life who love me enough to sponsor my need for a functioning oven in which to bake. I owe my new Kenmore Gas Range and Convection Oven to my Omi and Opa and my Uncle Chris–I have named burners in your honor.

I’ve baked with convection before and knew I wanted to make that upgrade, but I’m wondering if anyone out there knows any interesting convection secrets? If so…hit me!

Echoes

It’s been a billion years since I last posted, and so for all six of you paying attention, I apologize.

I feel I have a good excuse, though: We’re buying a house. I have been advised it is not all like giving birth. You do not forget the agony of delivery the moment your eyes rest upon its shuttered windows. Rather, you enter a special kind of plain where HGTV is the only station your TV picks up and you discover a hereto unexplored fascination with gutter guards. I hate HGTV. Gutters are ok.

But that’s not what I’ve come to bother you about. I’ve crawled out from under paperwork and packing boxes to marvel at the fantastic acoustics of our empty little rental house!

Oh my word…the exhilaration…the exultation of pounding the mess out of my mandolin and singing for all my might! Overused hardwood floors, barren white walls, cat fur dust bunnies tumbling along the baseboards–it’s the best stage I’ve ever performed on. Empty and full of echoes. Rain coming down on this rotting roof and soaking the air, making the notes all the sweeter and easier to hold. Callouses sliding across the strings like pressing the whetstone to the knife…

I am so glad I took the week off to pack. It gives me this glorious goodbye to my love/hate home of three years. You know that “old Irish blessing” about the wind at your back? I’ve come up with a new one: “May your house always know music and your acoustics be complementary.” You can quote me on that one.