THE CHURCH BELLS ARE RINGING

It's Sunday morning and the church bells are ringing. Literally. I live across the street from a church and it's ten minutes to 9. The first sermon starts at 9. This same bell has been rung every Sunday for the past 150 years. Nevada City, CA, where I live, was built during the 1850's when they found "gold in them there hills!"

There's something about the sound of that deep, slow clang that I find comforting. I don't know if it's some DNA memory of western culture over hundreds of years, or just the fact that somehow after 8 months of living here, it now says to me, "good morning, it's Sunday!"

I work most Sundays so it's not like it signifies a day off, but I always try to take a walk or do at least one thing to clear my head before the weekly cycle repeats itself. People are more relaxed on Sundays. They sit at cafes or window shop. Traffic isn't as predicable. I like the energy of just walking down the street.

The bell will ring again about 10:15 as a call for the 10:30 sermon. I haven't gone to any sermons yet so I don't know how they are. I haven't even been inside the church. They sold hot dogs there during the Christmas festival and they have events in the back room from time to time. That door is right across the tiny street outside my window.

I'm not Christian or Catholic, so church visits have mostly been limited to weddings and odd special occasions in my life. But I love that big bell ringing. And I love Sundays. I love living next to a landmark. So much history in this small beautiful town.

With 3 new art + music shows booked before the end of the year, my plate is full. My days are mostly filled with painting, new songs, graphic design, and trying to find ways to pay for art show supplies while keeping my lights on. This schedule doesn't care what day of the week the calendar says it is.

It's a great life mostly, but I'm also feeling a lot of pressure. Even painting and music have a lot of logistics involved. I find it difficult to just "turn it on" and "turn it off" during the specified periods quarantined for creativity (if there are any). It lacks a certain romance. But I'm grateful to have as many opportunities as I do, and I plan on making the most of every one with the resources at my disposal.

Somehow on Sunday the load feels lighter. I'll probably be leaving Nevada City soon for work reasons, but I'm going to enjoy this place and those church bells as much as I can until then.

PHEW!

Wow. This year has been quite a blur so far. I finally released my "No Apologies" cd. I also got the idea, booked and delivered my first art & music show. After 3 1/2 months of round the clock working, refining, and learning, i packed my car and drove to LA. With a lot of help, I got it set up and it went amazing. I had no idea how much work it was going to be, but sometimes a little naivete can help us be bold. Or stupid. In this case, I'd call it bold. Maybe because it worked. If it hadn't, I'd be saying it was stupid. Amazing how sometimes just when we need it, the right person or thing shows up.

In spite of all its beauty, the world feels broken and inefficient to me most of the time. But every so often, things just click.

I was able to donate some of the proceeds from the show to the frostig center to help children with learning disabilities. It felt great to do. I'm really enjoying painting, and pursuing all the new ideas i have now as well. My world and my mind are open. And now that I got a little sleep, I'm interested to see what's next. More art shows are in the works, new multimedia ideas, songs, and a shorter stint in europe beginning in a week or so. Goin' back to Dali's house!

Got Shine?

I had to go down to LA for a few days for some meetings and a couple of cowriting sessions. After living in LA for so long, it felt strange to be flying in for a visit. But it felt good. I'm loving living in the mountains right now. New ideas are flowing in every day. This is quickly turning into one of the most creative periods of my life.

I was hungry (what else is new?) at the airport and had some free time before boarding, so I grabbed a burrito at La Salsa in the food court in my terminal. I was sitting eating my lunch when I noticed a little shoe shine stand to my left. Shoe shine stands are pretty common in a lot of airports, but the girl who was working there was a whole different story. Black hat. Leopard scarf. Patent leather apron. And light blue eyes with a vibe you could feel from the Cinnabon to the Mongolian BBQ. Just looking at her made me smile.

I finished my lunch wondering if she'd let me take her picture. She was inspiring and would be a great painting. It's hard for me to ask people sometimes because they tend to have no idea how interesting they are and wonder why I'd want their picture. Then I have to explain how fabulous they are, and because they don't believe it themselves, they almost never believe me. And then IF they say "yes", the picture is uncomfortable and forced. I guess my technique needs improvement.

I figured it was worth trying though, so I walked up and asked this girl. At first she looked at me weird and was probably wondering what my deal was. Was I creepy? Was I trying to pick her up? She thought for a minute then said "if you get your shoes shined, you can take my picture."

"How much?"

"$7.50."

"Done."

She obliged the photo below. Her name was Angelina. The back of her shirt said "Got Shine?" and as you can see her last name was a stage name. Evidently she's a "Shine Therapist." She then said that her shift was over and her co-shiner, Michelle, a licensed "Shinologist," would actually be working on my boots. No problem. I'm glad I didn't wait any longer to ask. And I'm glad I was wearing boots. My sneakers wouldn't have allowed this to happen.

Michelle proceeded to not only shine my boots, but make them look better than they did when I brought them home new. While she was working, a man walked up and asked if he could be next. She said yes, and he climbed up on the seat next to me. The chairs were those tall regal old school shining thrones. So there we were. Two kings chatting for a few minutes while Michelle performed her mini miracle on my feet.

Joel was a financial planner with clients in 19 states, and a really cool guy. We talked about the world, music, money, life and the finer points of Davis, California. I got his card, and if I had any finances worth planning, I'd certainly want to call him.

When Michelle finished my boots I shook both their hands and walked away a happy man with a handful of great new memories...and some damn shiny boots. It was the perfect beginning to what turned into a wildly successful trip to LA.

So if you ever find yourself in the Southwest Airlines terminal at Sacramento airport, wear some shoes worth shining. And bring your camera. It'll be worth it.

Before Angelina left, she asked me what I do for a living. When I told her, she got excited and asked if I'd write a blog about my experience. So Angelina, here you go. Thanks for making my day.