March 17, 2020 is the day the world shifted and it hasn't righted itself since.

I had a House Concert booked for March 17 and in the few days leading up to the concert we were on again off again as to whether it was safe to host the concert.   We finally felt the full weight of reality the day before the event and we cancelled the concert and live music has not really found a way to thrive since then.

Like lots of people when the world shifted, I busied my self at first with cooking and freezing soups and stews, lasagnas and meat loaves,  spaghetti sauces and chili.  When my freezers were full I started digging through closets and sorting out stuff that had remained unseen for years!!

I came across a box of old photos and next thing I knew I was sitting with photos piled around me and taking a trip down memory lane.  One of the photos I found was me as a young mother sitting on the couch holding a guitar.  I was sitting with my two adorable sons.   Sean was about seven years old and Tim was about two.

As I looked at the photo of my sons and my young auburn haired song-writer self, I wondered "what kind of guitar is that?"

The guitar was given to me when Joe and I were living in Ottawa and we went to visit a friend in Deep River.  I honestly can't remember why Joe's friend gave me the guitar.  I was writing poetry at the time and must have expressed a wish to write songs.  Strange that I don't remember.  I also got a book on how to learn to play guitar from a girlfriend from school.  It seems that I had a plan even if I can't remember. 

 The guitar travelled with us to Maple Ridge, BC and was the guitar I used to write my very first songs.  Several years later the guitar was stolen out of my car and I bought my beautiful Fender girl that has been my rock steady songwriting companion all these years.

I was very curious about the guitar in the photo and so I decided to take a picture of the photo and put it on Facebook.  I asked "who knows what kind of guitar this is?"  I received an answer that same day from a young man that I have known for many years.  He and our youngest son Tim were in an amazing band together called Barrage. 

The young man was Aaron Young.  He informed that the guitar was a Stella.  I don't believe I had ever even hear of a Stella guitar.  I am definitely not a guitar aficionado.  Aaron then informed me that he just happened to have a Stella guitar and it was for sale.  He wondered would I like to buy it!

I felt like the story of my songwriting was coming full circle.  I decided to buy the guitar and make arrangements to have the guitar delivered when things settled down with the pandemic.  Little did we know it would not be settling  down for quite an undetermined length of time.

So, I went back to keeping busy.  I happened to have a mandolin in the house.  It had been therefor around 15 years or more but I had never gotten around to learning to play it.  With nothing but time on my hands I took the advice of a fellow songwriter and decided to learn to play the mandolin as a way to get inspired to write.

I downloaded some simple chords and wrote the first song almost immediately on the mandolin.  It was as if I had turned on a song faucet!  I wrote song after song and they all had the same themes.  Hope!  Looking for the beauty in the world.  Dreams of freedom.  Planting seeds of hope.  Working together!  It was a wonderful healing process.

Several months passed and I finally made arrangements for Aaron to bring the Stella guitar to my back yard.  I fell in love with the deep rich tone of Stella and named her Bella Stella!  As Aaron and I talked, I told him about the songs I had been writing.  I sang them for him and we decided that I should go to his home studio and record the tunes!

I felt safe in his two room studio and was so excited about his amazing ability as a musician, producer and harmony singer!  The songs took on a new life and I was off on a journey of discovery and intention.  How to put my music out onto the internet in a way that I had never done before in order to reach a wider audience.

And so began steep learning curve!!  A fun and frustrating process that I am still working on.  Songs are recorded.  Art work is in process.  Videos are in process.  Strategies for a single release are being explored.  On line concerts being learned with the hope of a CD release concert?  Who knows what else I will need to learn! 

I have been busy and focused and I know that has been good for me in these unsettled times.  I also believe in the power of these songs that have been gifted  from a creative force that I really don't understand.  I know I need to do my own due diligence to get these songs out into the world where I believe they can bring hope and encouragement into the lives of others.

The first song to be released will be Heartbeat of the World.  This song was inspired by the world wide marches that were happening at the time of the death of George Floyd and others.  I was inspired by the energy that I felt from the people gathering to make their statements heard!

I will keep working to make my statements heard through my music.

Take care everyone. Stay strong.  We are all connected.

THE SAGA OF BIG RED 
Big Red was a beloved Dodge Caravan that had travelled with us over many back roads and highways in search of adventure. 
Big Red was roomy enough for four musicians and their gear. 
Big Red had drop down movie screens so grand little girls could watch cartoons lovingly selected for their edification. 
eg. Yogi Bear & Boo Boo, Snagglepuss and Foghorn Leghorn! 
Big Red was in tip top shape for someone that was almost 10 years old. (That's probably 50 years old in car years). 
With a quarter million clicks on the speedometer and new tires to travel a quarter million more, Big Red met a mid life demise during a misadventure with a deer in the dark just outside of Priddis a couple of weeks ago. 
The deer died, unfortunately, but Big Red motored valiantly home through the darkness, with one light shining up into the crumpled hood and the remnants of the grill scattered on the roadside. 
Amazingly, with the engine light and battery light shining ominously, Big Red made it home with out even overheating!! 
We then spent a rather hilarious few days dealing with the insurance company. 
After repeatedly asking if the deer was dead when we hit it and, after being assured that the deer was definitely alive and kicking when it leapt in front of our vehicle, she still filled out the claim saying that the deer was (check the box) dead when we hit it!! 
She then gave our wrong email address to the repair shop so we didn't hear anything for several day. When we were finally contacted we were told that Big Red would be repaired!! 
This was because the mileage was SO LOW! 
The claim had been filled out saying that Big Red had 25,000 clicks instead of 257,000 clicks! WOW! Such service... 
When everything was sorted out it was decided that Big Red would indeed be a write off and was designated for van heaven where all good vans go. 
We grieved the loss of Big Red and started looking for a replacement, knowing that we would probably never love another the way we loved Big Red. 
So, a week or so later we headed out of Midnapore to test drive a new auto member of our family and as we approached McLeod Trail, a flat deck truck pulled out in front of us, and there, to bid us a fond farewell, was Big Red!! 
We followed Big Red down the McLeod Trail and waved a last goodbye as the flat deck truck headed west on 22X. 
What are the chances that we would be leaving Midnapore at the exact same minute as Big Red? 
A coincidence?? I don't think so!! 
RUST IN PIECES, BIG RED...

LATEST ADVENTURE OF A LATE BLOOMER!! 

             HARLEY & HARLEY ON-LINE CONCERT! 

I hope everyone is staying healthy and practicing safe social encounters. 

The virtual world is becoming more and more a part of everyday life.  I have a feeling much of this type of interaction will continue long after the pandemic has run its course. 

In my ongoing adventure as a Late Blooming performer I recently performed my first on-line concert with Stagehand and Calgary Arts Development. 

I am attaching a link to the show but I wanted to give you a blow by blow of events leading up to the concert. 

Thank you to everyone who tuned in for the live show!  Now you will know the rest of the story! 

BACKSTAGE IN OUR LIVING ROOM 

Joe and I selected the songs we wanted to perform and the tone of the show.  A little serious but mostly just fun. 
We set up the tall chairs and the sound system in our living room. 
 We did a sound check and ran through the tunes and were almost ready to go. 
Dan, famously known as  'Dan The One Man Band'  from Stagehand arrived at our front door and set up the camera on a Tripod on our front porch and showed us how to use it. 
He set up the Stagehand banner on the front porch and showed us how to use it 
He gave us a clock that would count down starting at five minutes before the show and showed us how to use it. 
Joe set tup the camera and the banner and the clock.  Everything looked great! 

NOW FOR THE FUN PART!! 

While Joe was busy I decided I should practice getting set up for when the show started. 
Just before the 5 minute clock was going to start I decided to practice walking behind my tall chair to plug my guitar in to my amp 
I brushed against the Stagehand banner and it fell with a crash.  I shrieked and jumped! 
I fixed the banner and thought "I better not do that when the camera is on”!! 
I plugged in my guitar and walked around to sit on the chair and noticed that my guitar's RED warning light had come on. 
The battery in my guitar was going dead! 
Joe roared downstairs and got me a new battery.  Whew!! 
The clock had started counting down from 5 minutes to show time. 
We then got my iPad and went to the Facebook page to find the show.  Nothing was happening on the Stagehand page.  Why was that we wondered!! 
We were fiddling with my iPad when Dan knocked loudly on the front door and said “You guys need to turn on the camera”!! 
Joe rushed to the camera and couldn’t get it started!  Dan gave instructions and with about 30 seconds to show time I sat on the chair and the show started. 
Luckily I had decided to do a couple of songs solo and talk about my busking adventures. 
When I started to play the first song I realized that because the battery had been dying my guitar had been turned up quite high. 
With the new battery the guitar was going to be really loud. 
I realized I had to play very gently.  I kept hoping it didn’t blast. 
Meanwhile Joe was downstairs combing his hair! 

THE SHOW MUST GO ON! 

In spite of all the drama before the show started we did manage to do our show and things went quite smoothly until we got to the very end of the 45 minute set. 
 We had about 5 minutes left. 
From just outside our front door we heard Dan shout “Do another song!” 
This was a definite poor idea for Joe and I 
We then spent the last few minutes valiantly trying to remember what key a couple of our songs might be in. 
We then struggled through a verse and a chorus of a song - in the wrong key.  Joe gave up and I created a new melody!! 

FOR YOUR ENTERTAINMENT: 

Here is the link to the show. 
Enjoy now that you know the wild adventure that occurred almost seconds before this show started. 

Take care everyone and stay safe! 

Harley & Harley On-line Concert 

https://www.facebook.com/stagehandlive/videos/290907975233825/UzpfSTU0NTEzMTc4NDozMDYwNjExMjk0OTk0MTQ6MTA6MDoxNTg4MzE2Mzk5Oi02NzYxMjQ2ODgzMTkyNDUxNjg1/  

THE GRANDMA BUSKER!

I have given myself the nickname The Grandma Busker!

I am here to say that my adventure in busking has turned out to be way more helpful, eventful, productive and fun than I could ever have imagined!!

I busked once a week for the whole summer on Stephen Avenue Mall in downtown Calgary.  I was hired by The Calgary Downtown Association through Stagehand (an online booking platform - check them out) and so I always started out with a payment to start my busking.  Tips and CD sales would be the bonus. 

It was very slow at first and I mentioned in earlier blogs that people did not stop at the spots chosen by the people organizing the buskers stations.  There were no benches nearby to encourage people to stop and the area was narrow so that people who did stop felt like they were in the way of the walkers.

Several weeks ago I arrived at my designated spot only to discover two workmen with huge, loud cement grinders.  I asked how long they would be and they said "All day!!"  It would have been impossible to sing there so I looked for another spot and one block down I found an area with benches on both sides of the street with people already seated.  I checked with the restaurant across from Winners and he said it was fine if I set up a cross from his patio with my amplifier.

When I started I welcomed everyone and thanked the Calgary Downtown Association for bringing live music to the mall and I began to sing. 

It was like night and day! 

People clapped when I finished a song and others stopped behind the benches and listened and I made more in tips on that one day than I had any other day.  I made on-line friends with two young women from Germany who sat on a bench for almost all of my two hours like they were at a concert.  They each bought a CD and I got a 10 Euro tip!  It was so much fun!!

I decided to go back to the same spot the next time and the same thing happened. Lots of people sitting on the benches to listen for awhile and then giving a loonie or a toonie or  fiver or an American dollar bill.  A fellow came out of the patio with a $20 bill from tips from people at the sidewalk cafe.  How cool was that!

Every time I set up at this spot I had lots of interaction and more CD sales.  One of the CDs was for a woman who asked me to sing my song Waltzing With A Memory again.  She had heard it earlier.  She then sat with three of her friends across from me and I sang the song for her while she cried through the whole song.  She said she might hire me to come to her birthday party!

Another time a fellow sat and listened to me for awhile and then disappeared.  He returned and told me he had gone to the mall office to suggest that they come hear me to book me for the stage on Stephen Ave.  When I got home there was a request for permission to send my link to the city!!   A few days later I got an invitation to busk at a city event in September for a generous payment! 

I am hoping that I have found my way into more City events! 

Because I am returning to the same spot each time I have made myself learn some of my songs that I have not performed live very often.  That has been good for me to challenge myself to perform new tunes.

I am loving working without a mic stand.  The freedom that my head set mic gives me to move and interact is wonderful.  I love my Bose amp and I am proud of myself that I have the stamina to stand and sing for 2 hours!

My final busking adventure will be busking at the First Annual Busking in Bragg Festival!  I will do two 45 minute sets there. Fun!!

I will look for opportunities to busk through the winter.  Busking is a good fit for me!

I am glad that I decided to try something new!

I AM STRONGER THAN I THOUGHT!!

The lessons continue!!  

• This was my third time officially busking.  I was once again on Stephen Ave in downtown Calgary during the height of The Calgary Stampede.  I was curious to see,  with more out of town tourists, if people would be more inclined to stop and listen.

Lesson learned:  The answer became obvious when I arrived at my designated spot in front of the ATB building.  As I was setting up I watched two very talented musicians performing to an endless stream of people.  Out of all those people only a few would actually stop for a moment to appreciate the music.  The rest just streamed on past.

• I had decided to set up closer to the building instead of right at the edge of the pedestrian walkway.  My thought being perhaps people would stop if they didn't cause a traffic jam on the walkway.   

Lesson learned:   It turned out this didn't make a difference.   People still just smiled at me as they passed on the walkway or the sidewalk.  Only a few people stopped and once again it was families with children and seniors. 

• I had decided to set up on the shady side of the street as I had done last week.  Unfortunately,  when I arrived the shady side was filled with hay bales and sidewalk cafes.  So I set up in the sun and wondered if I would make it for two hours without shade. 

Lesson learned:  I am stronger than I thought.  I played for one hour and took a 15 minute break and then finished my two hours with energy to spare!

• Thank you to my dear friend Val who came downtown and surprised me while I was busking.  I appreciate her feed back about my performance.

Lesson learned:   Val shared with me that as she walked along Stephen Ave she could hear my voice singing my country tunes and it added to the atmosphere of the place.  She remembered being in Ireland and on other holidays  where the live music stayed with her even though she was just walking past the musicians.   This made me feel like I added something to the day even if people didn't stop and linger.

• I want to give a shout out to the buskers who were performing before me.  They came and tried to help me get my guitar chord working through my lovely little Bose amp.  It turned out the cord was not working!!  

Lesson learned:  Listen to your son when he suggests that you always have more than one cord with you.  This is something that he had suggested to me and being the smart ass mother that I am I did not listen. (Or I didn't remember).  At my age it could be either.   Anyway, I ended up performing for two hours with only my vocal amplified!

Lesson learned:  Put sunscreen on your feet if you wear sandals on a hot day!! 

• I have committed to a summer of experimenting with busking.  I am back two more times on Stephen Ave and then I will be auditioning to busk at the Calgary Farmers Market on Blackfoot Trail.  I am not making tons of money but it is an interesting adventure.  

Lesson learned:    If I look beyond the monetary advantage of busking and seek out the lessons learned I will see this adventure in busking as a success!

I AM STRONGER THAN I THOUGHT!!

My second official busking adventure is now behind me!  I learned a few more important things.

A big shout out to Jarred Albright for coming to busk with me with his brand new violin! 

I learned if I know my tunes really well a really great musician can jump right in and add a wonderful finesse to my songs.  That's exactly what Jarred accomplished! Thanks!!

I had a great time and learned that working with another musician on the fly is a great opportunity to work on focus and to stay in the moment even when there are so many distractions.  (We performed a bunch of original country tunes that Jarred didn't know).  I loved it when we did lock in and we got some really nice feed back from people who stopped to pay attention.

I learned - always pack your clothes pins!!  Luckily I did and it saved the day since we were working from a song book and the pegs kept the pages from blowing.

I  noticed again that lots of people try very hard to pretend that they don't see us.  Once again the audience that stopped to listen and dance were mom's with children and seniors with time to spend!  Once again the work force was on a mission and didn't have the time or the inclination to stop.

I learned if you play a waltz you have a good chance of getting dancers.

I learned that if I have a good high  protein breakfast and set up in the shade I can play for two hours!

I learned that the buskers with experience are amazing people who are more than willing to help a beginner! 

A big thanks to Dan The One Man Band.  He helped me with my new Bose amp and gave me tips on how to set up my space.  We both agreed that the loud music from the restaurants was a big competition to buskers.  Dan has been busking for years and said the busking audience has changed.

A big thank you to Busker James who stopped and indicated that I needed my vocal turned up and then got out his accordion and joined Jarred and I on a tune!!  James also said that the busking world was different now.  He busks in a Plus 15.

Thanks to the three moms with the lovely group of dancing girls!  Such fun!

Thank you to the fellow who approached me and told me that I sang for him at the Drop In Centre!  A very special moment for me!  (I have great band members who gave their time and talent to perform at the Drop In Centre several times before they closed that stage).

I learned that even with a payment from the Calgary Downtown Association to prime the pump, (and even though it is fun), it is not financially worthwhile to work with another musician on Stephen Ave in June and early July.   Stampede and summer time with tourists might be different.  I'll let you know.  Jarred is not available for my next booking so I have made a scary decision. 

I will go next week during the hight of Stampede and do solo busking for 2 hours!! 

I have pulled out all my original country tunes including Borrowing a Heartache, Bury Me In A Jukebox, Waltzing With A Memory, Country In My Soul, Heartache Lost and Found and Two Timing One Time Too Many!!

If you are downtown look me up, Thursday, July 11 from 1 - 3 near the ATB!  (that rhymes!)

Happy Stampeding!!

Well, I accomplished my first 'official' busking event yesterday on Stephen Avenue Mall in downtown Calgary!

My observations about what I learned from this experience are varied.

I learned I need to eat a bigger breakfast before I head out.  I got quite light headed by the end of my hour of music.

I learned I need to set up in the shade to avoid overheating which also contributed to my light headedness.  Also wear sunscreen!!

I learned to bring a snack or a power bar to have with my water.  It takes a lot of energy to be smiling and singing in the sun.

I learned that in June the main traffic on the mall is downtown workers on a lunch break on their way to get lunch and to find someplace to sit.  At the busking area where I was singing there is no place to sit.  I believe that in the summer there will be tourists who will have the time to stop and check out the buskers.

I also realized that if there are 6 sites along the way for buskers, people who work regularly in the area cannot financially be making donations to performers on a regular basis or they would go broke!  The people who did stop and made a donation were mothers with young children, and seniors who had the time to stop.

I learned that if my goal in continuing to busk is to make money I will probably be disappointed.  I made $25.00 and it cost me $6.80 to ride the C-Train.

I learned that there is a skill to engaging a passing audience and that I can learn a lot by continuing to return to busk and work at engaging people to pay attention to my songs.

I learned that I can make eye contact from a distance and draw people to specific lines of my songs as they pass and make them smile back at me, howl along with me,  search out my voice in the air until they find where I am singing and smile at me. 

I learned that I can be satisfied that friends came to support me and that a fellow came up to me to say he thought my song Shadow Walker was a really good song and he thought I had a great voice! 

I can be satisfied that two little girls came and each gave me a looney with big sweet smiles! 

I can be satisfied that I spent several weeks organizing my gear into a small pull cart and purchased a microphone head set so I am now completely independent on the C-Train with everything I need to set up my sound system.

I can be satisfied that the time I spent rehearsing my songs was well spent because I performed everything from memory and actually expanded my guitar playing to include some solo sections which I normally don't include but I was having fun with the rhythms and it seemed right.

I can be satisfied that all the small steps I took added up to a successful event.  I will  go back next week and make improvements to the details and will probably have the energy to go down to Olympic Plaza and set up there after a break and do some more busking before I head home.  

Everything I do that takes me further along the road to being a strong entertainer has value!

I will not rate the success of my first busking experience on the $25.00 earning.  I will rate the success of it on what I learned and the fun I had!!

Next week will be another adventure for me as a 'late bloomer'!!