mopinko
mopinko's Journallistening to some old steve earle. hometown blues.
even tho i've listened to the story on 'just an american boy' about this song a hundred times, it still tickles me.
i always particularly liked this song, cuz my hometown most def gives me the blues.
this version w jt is esp sweet.
has anyone heard anything about the wounded?
i heard a report that there were 18? i read about 1 little girl being discharged.
i think there was a blood drive.
that's it.
anyone have any info?
a little hope from langston hughes- kids who die
Kids Who Die
This is for the kids who die,
Black and white,
For kids will die certainly.
The old and rich will live on awhile,
As always,
Eating blood and gold,
Letting kids die.
Kids will die in the swamps of Mississippi
Organizing sharecroppers
Kids will die in the streets of Chicago
Organizing workers
Kids will die in the orange groves of California
Telling others to get together
Whites and Filipinos,
Negroes and Mexicans,
All kinds of kids will die
Who don't believe in lies, and bribes, and contentment
And a lousy peace.
Of course, the wise and the learned
Who pen editorials in the papers,
And the gentlemen with Dr. in front of their names
White and black,
Who make surveys and write books
Will live on weaving words to smother the kids who die,
And the sleazy courts,
And the bribe-reaching police,
And the blood-loving generals,
And the money-loving preachers
Will all raise their hands against the kids who die,
Beating them with laws and clubs and bayonets and bullets
To frighten the people—
For the kids who die are like iron in the blood of the people—
And the old and rich don't want the people
To taste the iron of the kids who die,
Don't want the people to get wise to their own power,
To believe an Angelo Herndon, or even get together
Listen, kids who die—
Maybe, now, there will be no monument for you
Except in our hearts
Maybe your bodies'll be lost in a swamp
Or a prison grave, or the potter's field,
Or the rivers where you're drowned like Leibknecht
But the day will come—
You are sure yourselves that it is coming—
When the marching feet of the masses
Will raise for you a living monument of love,
And joy, and laughter,
And black hands and white hands clasped as one,
And a song that reaches the sky—
The song of the life triumphant
Through the kids who die.
https://allpoetry.com/poem/14326876-Kids-Who-Die-by-Langston-Hughes
a convo w the father of a young child.
so, i was out planting peppers yesterday, and enjoying chatting w folks i hadnt seen over the winter.
a 30ish fellow from down the street was walking his dog. he has a charming wife, and an adorable boy of about 4.
we chatted a bit about me, and the farm. i asked how he was doing, and just the look on his face told me what was on his mind.
we chatted a bit about the tragedy in tx. him- i just feel like there is nothing to be done, but something must be done.
he's only lived in the hood for a few years. i asked if he had been involved w the ward party. no.
like me, he's grateful to have such good reps. it's easy to lay back when you live in a ward where obama got 90% of the vote.
i let him know that we dont rest on our laurels, and that we go where we're needed.
i recounted some stories from a bus trip i took in '08 to cinci, and about a race in upper wis that i'm involved w this cycle.
told him how much i love knocking doors in red places, visiting the lonely faithful in strange places. and how very effective doors are.
he agreed that it would be good medicine for the moment.
my advice was to find a race downticket, where a few dollars and a few hours can make a difference.
he walked away agreeing that it would be a good way to cope w the despair. and maybe he will, or maybe he wont, but at least now he has a map to doing something. that's something.
and after he walked away, i promised myself to do more than i had planned on this cycle.
it's a cliche, but "dont agonize, organize" is a true thing.
we're assembling quite a ticket for nov, all over the country.
we all need to do SOMETHING.
it's about the $$$$$$
it's about dark money.
it's about thinly veiled bribery.
it's about the gun makers, sure. but it's also about russia. and chaos.
and driving wedges.
they care no more about the 'constitutional right to bear arms' than they do about the lives of fetuses. we already know they dont care about the women who are occupied by them. and they dont care about the god they wear on their sleeve, either.
it's about money, and power.
and greed.
that's it.
just like hank wrote it.
prolly my all time favorite song is "i'll never get out of this world alive". til i started singing it, i had never heard anyone's version but steve earle's since forever.
when i got the sheet music, i realized he'd changed it a.lot. and left out a lot. but it's pretty much the way hank recorded it. and how every other vid i saw did it.
finally bumped into this one-
teach tried to teach me a simple piano accompaniment, but it didnt make sense. watching this, i can see that steve took some liberties w the pitch. randy keeps it flat, like hank wrote it.
i want to go back and listen to steve's version, but i am trying to forget his lyrics.
my segundo sent me this last night. got his heart broke. again.
i'd heard this song before, but never rly listened.
it's pretty poignant. i've worn those shoes, and never rly looked at it like this. i still have a soft spot for the couple of guys who didnt play that game.
thoughts from a sad mom on md.
i'm one of those moms who is included in the wishes of the day from those who realize that for many of us, it's not a happy day. the messages are usually general, tho, because for those that havent worn the shoes, it's hard to know what to say.
so, here's a tip- dont say happy. we are not happy. the only ones we want to hear those words from are our kids. some are gone, some are broken, some are righteously angry.
happy is not one of the available options.
for those of us w a helping of blame and/or guilt on top, well, just dont be surprised if you get bit.
if you know someone, and dont know what to say, try-
how ya doin today?
you okay?
do you need want to go have a drink?
do you want me to being wine?
do you have any chocolate in the house?
go ahead and cry, honey, i'm here.
feel free to add your own.
and please no sorrys for me. that's not my point.
eta this addendum. i also posted it on fb, and this happened-
addendum- another sad mom reached out to me, and we think next year we should form a sad moms club, and get together and get drunk. yes?
here's somethin you dont see every day-
fun start to your day-
Sing Sing Sing 2021 KYOTO TACHIBANA SHS BAND
can we talk about singers?
ok, i've prolly bored most of you talking about learning to sing in my 60's.
but if i havent, i am here to preach about it. i truly believe that if you keep learning new things, you never get old. a small medical miracle fixed the muscle cramps that made me a flat alto all my life. my kids wouldnt let me hum.
but here i was w a clear voice. and as it happened, a dear friend whose hubs is a voice teacher.
now, the friendship of that man is a big part of this story. our hour facetime lesson, plus time spent gabbing, is why i'm still on the right side of the grass. but aint that how this whole music thing works?
anyway. it's been 2 years, and i've gotten acceptably good. i went to catholic school for 12 yrs, so this is not the 1st of my voice training. i was in the freshman choir, and invited to NOT be in the soph choir. but my ear is good, despite a genetic tendency to tone deafness. and i love that my voice now has more power as i shrink into a little old lady.
teach and i have been talking of late about what makes a voice worth sharing. and it boils down to what they taught me in art school- style.
but a couple weeks ago, he let me in on a little secret. we've talked a lot about placement of the voice, of course, but in particular in relation to irish singers. that distinctive irish sound is in the nose. but what he told me is- the best singers all put an overlay of that nasal voice over everything. i feel like i just graduated from charcoals to pastels. i found the color.
so i've been watching singers, and trying to sort out how they use that color. i'm basically a pretty emotive person. this is obviously where i want to go. i want the color of my voice to match the look on my face. does that make sense?
so, if any of this makes sense to you, please share who you think is the best at this. ftr, steve earle is already my god, so, dont say steve.
ftr, i'm doing this strictly for fun. to sing w friends, to sing in irish pubs and hope someone buys me a pint. music has always been the backdrop of my life. i'm so grateful to have it in the foreground now, cuz i fucking needed it.
tia.
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