The album came out Sept. 30th you can pick it up here....

[September was immers de laatste vakantiejobmaand in de al eerder vernoemde supermarkt. Dit jaar geen kassa, maar we rekjes vakkundig aanvullen en tussendoor nog even de klanten vriendelijk de weg wijzen in het hele hypergedoe.]

Want jawel, ze draaien daar tussen de nodige mededelingen en reclameboodschappen:

* Bericht aan alle mama's: gelieve uw kindje even uit de winkelkar te tillen, dat is beter voor zijn billetjes. *
* Wat gebruik je voor je tanden? Tandpasta natuurlijk. En voor je handen? Een handcréme. En voor je billen? Euh... Je billen verdienen meer aandacht. *

muziek. Veel vrouwelijke stemmen, zoals dat hitje van Gabriella Cilmi of eentje van gouwe ouwe Madonna. Beter dan niets en bij momenten een verademing. Zo ook nog eens lekker genoten van The Drugs Don't Work van The Verve. Misschien wel hun beste nummer, njammie. Het verlicht het werk, jawel. Maar de grootste 'verlichting' komt morgen. En dat is?

I might run off at any given time
Don't leave no notes there ain't no reason to lie
Guess I haven't found what I'm looking for
Can't keep my hands to myself
Or my eyes off the door

Is it any wonder that I'm on to the next
I'll be the first one to tell you
And the last to forget
Don't let me drag you into this bitterness
Sometimes I don't even understand the half of it

Don't work yourself up
Don't work yourself up
Don't work yourself up
Too much, too much love

Don't work yourself up
Don't work yourself up
Don't work yourself up
Too much, too much love

Sometimes I can't stand to be apart
I walk around this city, alone 'til it's dark
And if the sadness won't ever go away
I suppose I'll build it a home
So it has a nice place to stay

Most of the time I don't mind the company
But God I wish you would stay
Why do you have to leave
Seems like we always want what we can't have
But that's just life baby, you can't get mad

When there's no one to blame
And nothing here to see
You don't call, I don't blame you
I don't even trust me

Don't work yourself up
Don't work yourself up
Don't work yourself up
Too much, too much, love

Don't work yourself up
Don't work yourself up
Don't work yourself up
Too much, too much

I want to love you but I don't know how
I want to love you but I don't know how
I want to love you but I don't know how
I want to love you but I don't know how

And this happens all the time
Oh yes it happens all the time…

From Paste Magazine

Dave Grohl says Foo Fighters will take a break
By Jeffrey Bloomer
on September 17, 2008 5:00 PM

Suddenly the title of the Foo Fighters’ last album, Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace, is starting to make a little more sense. Frontman Dave Grohl told BBC radio that the band plans to take a break following its tour this past summer.

Grohl didn’t specify exactly how long that would be, but he did say the band will stay out of the U.K. for as long as a decade and will “come back when people really miss us.”

“We've never taken a really big, long break. I think it’s time,” he said. “It’s a funny place being in the band now because we’ve been a band for about 14 years."

The Foo Fighters’ longtime fans no doubt aren’t feeling their loyalty rewarded right now, but given that the band has released a studio album every couple years since many of its fans were preteens, maybe taking a breather isn’t such a bad idea. You can listen to the radio the interview here.

---------------------

According to NME, this break will be a bit longer than most would hope.
"Foo Fighters are set to take a "long break" from music and have warned fans not to expect a new album any time soon."

Associated Press at Cincinnati.Com.

I try so many times
but it's not taking me
and it seems so long ago
that I used to believe
and I'm so lost inside of my head
and crazy
but I cant get out of it
I'm just stumbling

And I'm juggling all the thoughts in my head
I'm juggling and my fears on fire
but I'm listening as it evolves in my head
I'm balancing on one fine wire

And I remember the time my balance was fine
and I was just walking on one fine wire
I remember the time my balance was fine
and I was just walking on one fine wire
but It's frayed at both the ends
and I'm slow unraveling

Life plays so many games inside of me
and I've had some distant cries, following
and their entwined between the night and sun beams
I wish I were free from this pain in me

And I'm juggling all the thoughts in my head
I'm juggling and my fears on fire
but I'm listening as it evolves in my head
I'm balancing on one fine wire

And I remember the time my balance was fine
and I was just walking on one fine wire
I remember the time my balance was fine
and I was just walking on one fine wire
but it's frayed at both the ends
and I'm slow unraveling

And I'm juggling all the thoughts in my head
I'm juggling and my fears on fire
but I'm listening as it evolves in my head
I'm balancing on one fine wire....

First of all, these athletes took the time necessary to focus on ONE thing and become great. There are wonderful students in our classrooms and ensembles who seek recognition in many areas - there always will be. They make positive contributions musically and socially to our organizations - they always will. But lest we forget, there is that small percentage who is on the cusp of doing something great. We need to focus the energies and talents of those students like a Coach does and help them understand their potential and the path to take to realize it. Every student is different, every situation is unique, and each coach has their own perspective. So where do we start?

I spoke with my marching band over the summer about five aspects of a musical experience needed to make it meaningful (These are taken from Reimer's A Philosophy of Music Education: Advancing the Vision - thanks Dr. Dorfman!). They need to understand trust - each member of our group has to depend on someone else who is depending on them. They need competence - achieving it means that work needs to be done. They need cooperation - both between members of the group, but with the materials (the music, the instrument, the sonic image of the composer). They need respect - grant others a sense of worth as part of a shared enterprise). They need courage - the risk of being open to the unexpected, the not yet known, and willing to be wrong as much as they are right. I agree with Dr. Reimer that these make more ethical people from our teaching, but it also lends itself to making student musicians who make great musical and social decisions. Phelps trust in his relay teammates was rewarded - Men's & women's track and field relay teams fell apart. How hard Nastia and Shawn worked for those moments - and cooperation with their coach, the apparatus, and allowing their body to perform what was created in a visual image by the mind. All of those athletes had courage - even when that meant a slight bump on the hurdle cost Lolo Jones everything she still had the courage to speak about what happened. The "Redeem" Team has been a wonderful example of respect in their support of the other athletes - a lot of that comes from the top down, and I love Coach K. (I highly recommend his book, Leading with the Heart).

But that is not all. There is one component I would add that they NEED to see from us - and that is passion for what we do, the art we create, interpret, and teach. Do you really believe there was no passion in the overtime between the US and Brazil in Soccer? Or between Japan and USA in Women's softball? Passion reigned supreme when those events ended. But passion should fill our hearts as educators and we should not be afraid to show it in a rehearsal or in a concert. How much better will students react when they see someone excited and energized about what they do? Never forget why you became a musician - it was a love affair with sound (this great advice was shared with me by Francis McBeth some years ago). They need it as much as the five qualities named by Dr. Reimer.

In some cases, these athletes have spent a lifetime training for 10 seconds of glory. One match. Just under 51 seconds of the most exciting swimming final ever. But they prepare with a mindset to give their personal best each time - the process of their preparation is to be the best in the world. Our students are a little different and sometimes are far from that standard, but it doesn't mean we should give up because it is never going to be attainable. Their coaches have taken TIME to teach them - they set them on a path towards excellence, they inspired them to believe in themselves, they put them through a process so that no matter if there were three people who finished ahead of them they know that they have given their best.

Maybe a concert doesn't need to be an hour long - maybe it only needs to be 40 minutes of greatness instead of 60 minutes of better than average. Time is the biggest pressure we have day to day within our teaching schedules - ask anybody they will agree, maybe not on a Presidential choice, but on instructional time? Pshh, that is a no-brainer. When is the last time you heard anyone say "I wish I didn't have as much time to teach my students?" These athletes continue to prove that the quality of the experience is more important than the quantity of experiences. Perhaps our instruction should reflect more of that commitment to raising the quality, and doing it in what little quantity we sometimes have.

We (as educators) are not in the business of working with professional musicians - but that doesn't mean we should be lacking a professional attitude. Some of them are amatures, some slightly better, some that are exceptional - but they are all still kids. Kids who need role models committed to trusting, competence, cooperation, respect, courage, and passion. Role models who teach them because they love what it is that they do for all the right reasons. And before some of you take fingers to keyboard and call me out, yes those paychecks do help don't they? But explain to me why I feel like a million bucks at the end of the Pines of Rome - for me that is one of those right reasons.

We want our students to make the right decisions as people and musicians. Let us lead them as their coaches in making our choices ones that inspire, challenge, and mold them into student musicians who seek to continually improve themselves. My opening ceremony for the year is now concluded , the torch is lit, and it is officially time to teach!

Timbaland Producing Jay-Z's Next LP: 'It'll Be A Monster' - News Story | Music, Celebrity, Artist News | MTV News.

Mars Once Mild and Wet: Discovery News : Discovery Channel.

Radiohead make new video - without cameras | News | NME.COM.

Feist redoes her song "1, 2, 3, 4" on Sesame Street. soooo cute.

YouTube - Feist on Sesame Street.

Check out the article below. Click here to see the original page & article.

July 10, 2008 -- Starting with Charles Darwin, evolutionary biologists have fretted and fought over the origins of flatfish, among the handful of weird, deeply asymmetrical creatures in Nature's bestiary.

Did flatfish wind up with two eyes on the same side of a lopsided skull through a few chance mutations?

Or did this happen gradually, over tens of millions of years?

The answer, in turns out, has been gathering dust for nearly two centuries in museum drawers, according to a study published Thursday in the British journal Nature.

That was where Matt Friedman, a graduate student at the University of Chicago, found two fossils that clearly show a glacial evolutionary shift from normal upright fish to their bug-eyed, bottom-hugging descendents.

Each dates from the Eocene epoch, some 45 million years ago, and one -- Heteronectus chaneti -- is an entirely new genus and species.

The other is from the Amphistium genus, whose earliest known specimens date back some 200 million years.

Both are true "missing links," with one eye just below the dorsal fin on the side of the fish closest to the ocean floor.

For reasons unknown to scientists, some species of modern flatfish, such as turbot, have both eyes on the left side, while other -- halibut and sole, for example -- see from the right side.

The two fossils "deliver the first clear picture of flatfish origins, a hotly contested issue in debates on the mode and tempo of evolution," said Friedman.

There can no longer be any doubt, he said in a statement: "The evolution of the profound cranial asymmetry of extant flatfishes was gradual in nature."

The flatfish controversy has vexed scientists for at least 150 years, and even provided fodder for creationist challenges to the very notion of Darwinian evolution.

All the great figures of early evolutionary biology weighed in with theories falling roughly into two schools.

The absence of any fossils showing a halfway point between normal fish and flatfish led some to believe that change took place in dramatic leaps, a process they called "saltation".

Others, including Darwin himself, predicted that we would one day find evidence of a gradual eye migration that mirrors the maturation of living forms.

When flatfish are only days old they are perfectly symmetrical.

But they rapidly metamorphose as they grow, with one eye migrating toward the other.

Neither of the key fossils rediscovered by Friedman had been examined with modern scientific tools for fear of causing damage.

But Friedman was finally allowed to treat a single specimen housed in the Naturhistorisches Museum in Vienna with a weak acid bath, and to carry out computer-based tomography imaging of the skull of another specimens at the Natural History Museum in London.

Both fossils had been found in limestone quarries in northern Italy.

Do you remember these tunes? We've heard these in the 8 bit game, played by an orchestra. But nothing really reminds me more of the legendary game other than this marimba and percussion version.

The guy with his brother saving the princess, smashing bricks, running around with his dino and mushroom friend.

The Plumber Brothers hit the soundwaves... Interesting...

This email looks long, even to me, but I'll just put it out there and read what you want...there's some stuff I learned I thought some of you might enjoy, and I wanted to get it all in there! If you don't want me bothering you with emails, well....this is probably my last one, but just email me to let me know anyway!

A lot has been happening down here on the farm. Last weekend, Tim and Vicki took me to a film screening at a barn in a nearby town. It was actually the Canadian premier of the film "Michael Schmidt - Organic Hero or Bioterrorist?". Basically, Michael Schmidt is a dairy farmer who sells raw milk to people in Toronto and the surrounding area. The problem? The sale of raw milk (aka unpasteurized milk) is illegal in Canada. So, the authorities aren't too happy with him. He tries to get around the law by selling "cow shares" - shares of his cows, specifically, their teats. People pay $300 a teat for a season's supply of raw milk. That way, he isn't selling the milk directly; but technically, it is still illegal. The film basically dealt with the issue of freedom and choice; Michael Schmidt didn't use the film as propaganda for raw milk, but instead sent the message that people should be able to choose what they drink. Many people don't like to drink pasteurized milk, because some think the pasteurization process kills many of the nutrients and bacteria that make milk what it is - a natural drink that builds the immune system. Many cancer patients have claimed that switching to a diet of raw milk has helped them go into remission, and apparently, drinking raw milk is what guards against the development of allergies. What I found most surprising is that lactose intolerant people can drink raw milk; their intolerance of lactose is actually an intolerance of the pasteurization process. However, their are some people (like officials in the Canadian government) who believe that raw milk is dangerous and deadly, because, if handled improperly, can contain potentially lethal bacteria. In the film, Michael Schmidt introduces evidence that raw milk, when handled properly, is completely safe, and claims the reason the government is against raw milk is because it poses a threat to large dairy corporations. Large dairy corporations like pasteurized milk because it can keep longer, which aids them in transporting it; but if many small, local dairy farms could cut into dairy corporation's revenues. I don't know if I'll switch to raw milk, but its interesting to think about the subject, and how Canada is not as untouched by governmental strife as Michael Moore portrays them to be, haha.

Anyway, enough about raw milk. While all you guys celebrated America's independence on the 4th, I got to celebrate Canada's independence on the 1st of July! Tuesday was Canada Day, and to celebrate, Canadian's basically do exactly the same thing we do: set off fireworks and barbeque. Tuesday was extra awesome for me, though, because while Tim was out on his CSA delivery run, Vicki revved up the big tractor and took Stephanie, Jocelyn and I for a tractor ride to a blueberry field a few kilometers away. If you've never ridden on a tractor before, I highly recommend it. The blueberries weren't quite ripe...they should be good to go by this Thursday. But there were some that were nice and fat and dark blue, and they tasted amazing. Still bitter, but in a delicious, biting kind of way. To add to the joy of Canada Day, when we got back, Vicki's friend had come over and randomly brought us a ton of ice cream. Sweet. At night, Tim, Vicki, Stephanie, Sage and I went over Vicki's aunt's house, which is actually a cottage right on Lake Ontario. It's view is one of the best I've seen; you can see all the way to the lights of Kingston (an hour and a half drive away), and then right out over the lake in the direction of Rochester New York! Some of Vicki's cousins went out on the dock and set off fireworks (don't know how safe that was, but I was on shore so oh well?) and it was really beautiful watching them explode over the water.

Besides that, we've been picking strawberries almost every day to get the last of them out of the bushes, planting a LOT of lettuce because our last batch is growing bitter-tasting, planting some cardoons, and weeding the beets. We also made another 113 containers of pesto out of the garlic scapes (when Vicki and TIm first harvested them, they had 260 lbs!). The spinich is all gone, sadly, so we've been using beet tops to make dinners. Tim's also been teaching me a lot about the political things that are going on with farming. He gave me a very interesting article in Acres US, some farming magazine I've never heard of, and it talks a lot about what's going on with corporate agriculture. We started the conversation because we passed a field of canola on our way to visit Tim's aunt. Vicki mentioned that, currently, all canola grown is genetically modified (GM). Heirloom (non-genetically modified) canola doesn't really exist because farmers growing GM canola let the seed blow into non-GM fields and contaminate the heirloom crop. So, there's that. And now, argribusinesses are starting to patent the seeds they create (known as GMOs) and charge the farmers for the use of them. One company, Monsanto, sued a small farmer who was growing genetically modified wheat they claimed was theirs. The farmer claimed their GM seed had blown into his field and contaminated his crop, because his family had been saving a certain kind of wheat seed and growing it for generations. Although I think his claims were probably true, he lost anyway, and Monsanto bankrupted him out of business. The article Tim sent me also described how companies are developing something called "Termination technology" in their seeds. Normally, farmers can save the seeds of corn, soybeans, wheat, and other plants and use them to grow new crops year after year. This termination technology would be implanted into GMOs and cause the seeds to "terminate" after one year....so the plants, in effect, produce useless seeds that the farmers can't save and grow beyond one season. This could mean that US corporations could control the food supply of entire countries; first, these countries have to pay for the rights to use the patented seeds, and then, if they do something the US or the corporations doesn't like, the companies could refuse to sell them seed, and the farmers can't save seed from plants they have just harvested thanks to this termination technology. Stuff like this just makes me want to be a lawyer even more, so I can kick these bastards in the ass. I hate them! I'm really glad intellectual property as a subject can apply to both agriculture law and music law, because I love both. I'm finding that we talk a lot about music here, and when I first got here, I used shared musical tastes to kinda make friends and start conversation. Plus, we have a lot of disco dance parties. It made me realize how important music is to society, and how integral it is to the enjoyment of everything we do. So that's good!

The rest of the week was tamer. I had a slight cold, which is all gone thanks to some homeopathic healing by Vicki. She gave me a bunch of teas mixed from varied herbs, and did some "touch therapy"...which doesn't actually involve any touching at all....it's weird, but I let her try it, and something worked I guess! I think I really got better when all the girls and I went to this field on Friday morning and attended a Chi Gong class. Chi Gong is related to Tai Chi, I believe, and it's all about moving different types of energy around your body. It was actually really relaxing, and kinda felt like I was giving my body some kind of spiritual steam bath. It also helped that I was in some huge, expansive, gorgeous field overlooking the water. I'm thinking of looking for some Chi Gong sessions in Central Park when I get home. I don't know if I actually believe it moves energy around, but the experience was really pleasant nonetheless. Everyone here is very into spiritual and homeopathic remedies, and they seem to work for a lot of people here. One woman who is friends with Vicki has cancer, and she has switched to a completely raw diet and homeopathic treatment after two rounds of chemo did not work for her. Her cancer is slowly disappearing. In the future, I might try more homeopathic medicines just because they seem to be less harsh on your body...but if I'm really sick, I'm gonna want Sudafed and that's just the way it's gonna be.

Alright, that's enough for now. Hope everyone is doing well: write back!

~Shayne

Hello everyone!

It's raining today and I'm a bit bored, so I thought I'd send you another email update about my life as a farmer. Some of you I just added to my little farming email list thing either cause I forgot you the first time (sorry, I had about 5 minutes to type) or because I thought you'd be interested in the subject matter. Don't worry, this is not the beginning of a crazy amount of farm spam.

Basically, here's the run-down if I didn't explain it well enough before: Vickis Veggies is an 6 acre CSA farm (CSA = community supported agriculture: people become members and get shares of food each week from March-November) located in Picton, Ontario. Picton is a GORGEOUS island on the coast of Lake Ontario with acres and acres and acres of undeveloped land. A lot of golden, rolling fields and rocky beaches on Lake Ontario Recently, it's been attracting a lot of tourists and older people moving from Toronto, so there is a lot of debate and tension about developing.

Anyway, Vicki's is owned by Vicki and Tim, and employees 4 girls besides myself. Stacey, Stephanie and Jocelyn are all around my age, and Terry Lee is VIcki's age. Working with them is the most fun ever; we basically just talk talk talk all day long as we weed or plant or harvest. It's kind of like being at a party all the time, except instead of drinkin' beers or whatnot, we're outside in breathtakingly beautiful landscapes gettin' tan and doing some farm work. It's not as physically taxing as I thought it would be, although I'm definitely exhausted and gross and sweaty and achey at the end of each day. My farmers tan is ROCKIN! I'm so brown, and it's a pretty even tan because it's really hot and we basically all take off our shirts and work in these home-made bathing suit bra/top things that Vicki's sister made. Of course, I've used about half a bottle of sunscreen in one week, but the rest of them here are so used to the sun that they just go without and don't even burn.

Right now, we're kinda in-between seasons. Spring is giving way into summer, which means we're picking the last of the spinach, harvesting snow peas and snap peas, and trying to figure out what to do with the 260 lbs of garlic scapes we've got in the barn. Today, for example, we made 18 lbs of garlic scape pesto (while listening to Vicki's old disco records and learning to do the hustle). I'm bringing the recipe home and having a garlic scape party. We also just planted some celery, and are beginning to harvest lettuce. We've spent most of our time, though, weeding the carrots and onion. It took us eight days to finish the carrots, and we're still not done the onions; Tim says its because he put hay down in the fields before planting, which was a good environment for crabgrass seeds to take hold. Crabgrass is evil. It's the hardest weed to pull out, in my opinion. Tim and Vicki also buy chickens from large industrial farms (they buy them for $7 a chicken, and basically save their lives) and raise them to lay eggs. Oh! How could I forget? It's also strawberry season, so we just go strawberry picking every day in the field and have fresh strawberries constantly. I also have been learning a bit about herbs. So far, I can identify chamomile and cumphrey (i think thats how you spell it) and I know that cumphrey is used to keep bones strong and heal cuts quickly.

The days here are pretty nice: wake up at 8am, have a nice breakfast with Vicki and Tim and Sage (their adorable 3 year old daughter), work until the lunch bell calls us in at 12:30-ish, eat a MASSIVE lunch (seriously...I'm going to gain a million pounds while I'm here - and I'll enjoy it!) with everyone at this long, fantastic wood table, go back to work until 5 or 6 and then done! We've been doing all sorts of things at night; one time we went swimming at Vicki's sister's house (her entire family sung me "Oh Canada" in an effort to teach it to me), another time we build a bonfire in the yard and just hung out, took out some guitars, played a few songs and watched the stars come out. I've never seen so many stars! Yesterday, Vicki, Tim, Sage, Stephanie and their friend Brendan and I all went out to this place called Little Bluff. It's a rocky beach by Lake Ontario, and it's the most gorgeous place ever. The rocks are all completely smooth and thick and round, and most of them are about the size of the palm of your hand. It lies right on the edge of the Lake, and the water is so clear that you can see straight to the bottom for at least ten feet out. Lake Ontario looks more like an ocean; you can't see the other side (which is obvious, I guess, since it's bigger than New Jersey). We build a campfire, and roasted some food, drank a bottle of wine, and roasted marshmellows. Sage got marshmellow gunk all over her face, and Tim taught me how to skip stones. I got pretty good at it!

The best thing, I think, about Picton and "the county" as people call Prince Edward County, is that it's very rural, but everyone I've met here is extremely bright, well-traveled, and educated (although not always educated in the traditional sense). The things Stephanie knows about herbs and Japan, (two things she is interested in) could fit into an encyclopedia. Every story from Vicki seems to begin with "When I was in New Zealand/Germany/Spain/Australia/any other random country", and Tim has lived in both the states and in Africa for extended periods of time. Jocelyn has been to Indonesia. It seems to be much more natural to travel here than it is in the states. Everyone I've met, even if they didn't finish college, goes above and beyond in an effort to educate themselves about the things they are interested in. Sometimes it's printmaking, sometimes it meditation, sometimes its videography or furniture making; but if you've got an interest in something here, it seems like people don't stop learning about it until they become experts. Also, everyone seems very into politics; we talk about Canadian, US and international politics all the time in the fields. Stephanie jokingly calls Canada "the progressive wonderland" but in reality, its not as progressive as one might think. It's similar to America except for gay marriage, healthcare, and not going to war every five seconds. Stacey jokes that the Canadian Navy is basically two men and a dinghy. Additionally, the amount of knowledge it takes to run a farm is breathtaking. Vicki's Veggies is one of the most popular farms in the county; they have 80 CSA members, supply tons of restaurants and have their own little store next to the farmhouse. They've been written up in some national Canadian magazines, and basically, are the best small business ever. Of course, I'm learning about all the difficulties of running a farm as well; it's hard to make a profit off of selling vegetables locally, so Vicki and Tim rely heavily on the food tourism industry that is alive and well in Picton. The government also subsidizes some of the wages for their employees. Even in a town as environmentally conscious as Picton, it's hard to compete with large food companies.

However, although I'm learning slowly about HOW to farm, I'm really learning about the importance of farming, I think. What you eat is so integral both to your physical and spiritual health, and the way of life here is a perfect balance between constantly busy and constantly relaxed. People here put health, family, friends, the environment, and a healthy sense of hard work before anything else. Native county folk aren't the richest people I've met, but they don't want for a single thing, it seems, because they've got everything they need right in their backyard. I think it's a combination of the way of life in general, and the political climate of Canada. I'm definitely glad I came here, and I wish I was staying longer!

Get ready for some awesome recipes when I get back. Also, feel free to send me an email, because I'd love to hear from you!

PS - www.vickisveggies.com for pics of where I am! You can find the Vicki;s Veggies group on facebook too.

Miss and love you all,

--
~Shayne

Hi!

I'm writing to you guys from Picton, Ontario, which is a little island on Lake Ontario. As some of you may or may not know, I'm working on an organic farm here for a couple weeks (www.vickisveggies.com). Just wanted to send you a little email update, and say hello!

Picton is a very rural community, but is getting more and more popular as a tourist destination. It's quite beautiful; lots of rolling fields, and blue water all around! Some of it's super-sweet natural attraction: a lake on a mountain, called Lake On The Mountain (creative, eh?) and the Sand Banks, which is North America's largest freshwater beach. I'll send pictures eventually!

I'm staying with Tim Noxon, Vicki Emlaw and their beautiful 3-yr-old baby daughter Sage. They are amazing; I feel like part of the family already, and it's only my second day here! So far, we've been to a Slow Food fish fry, and art gallery opening, I've spent day weeding carrots, chased chickens and have begun learning all about the challenges of running a farm in today's modern world (and there are a lot). There are always tons of people around, from family to neighbors, to people coming and buying things from the roadside stand. There are also a bunch of really cool girls who work here; they're all around my age so that's nice.

I've been learning a lot about growing things: for example, lighting puts a ton of nitrogen into the soil. which is why the grass is so green the day after a lightening storm. Nettles also can be cooked, and make a really rich, excellent food that has TONS of nutrients. It's strawberry season in June, and raspberry season in July. (This means I get fresh strawberries all the time right now!). Plus, I've been talking a ton of politics; I've had two people so far ask me if I'm a Republican or a Democrat, and who I'm voting for. Also, I've been asking lots of questions about Canada, especially their health care system; the government of Canada recently became quite conservative, and now there is a new push towards a partial privatization of health care, which some people are not happy about.

Anyway, I'll send more later, but for now, love you all and hope everything is well! Write me back!

~Shayne

Quiz en muziek, een ideale combinatie voor Coudie. Een vijftal keer geprobeerd en steeds de drie rondes uit kunnen spelen. Momenteel blijft mijn topscore steken op 341, oftewel de score van mijn tweede spelletje. Voor de liefhebbers, een aanrader. Waarschuwing: het is behoorlijk verslavend en dus niet ideaal als je straks je masterproef moet gaan verdedigen en daar graag nog iets wil aan voorbereiden. Meespelen doe je hier.

[EDIT: mijn eigen topscore is ondertussen 354 362 414]

UNITE THE UNITED | A CHARITY TO BENEFIT THE VICTIMS OF AN AMERICAN TRAGEDY

Music Saves Lives

Home | DKMS - Americas
DKMS represents patients, donors, doctors, volunteers, families and friends. We connect the missing pieces, creating a forum where people can come together with one common goal. With a little courage, commitment and generosity, together we can find answers and help provide happy endings for patients fighting leukemia and other blood diseases.

But now I find myself past the half way point of my summer session at Kent (a little sad about Dr. Dorfman leaving, but he will do great things at BU), and balancing my course load with a series of summer rehearsals with the marching band.  My hour plus drive during the week has provoked some thoughts in me about our role as band directors and how one year never really seems to end...

Consider that our performance groups mirror the school athletic teams in the districts in which we teach: football leads to hoops like marching band gives way to pep band.  For some of us, our jazz ensembles usually start before pep band finishes.  Preparing students for honors festivals takes time in and out of school, and before long preparations for a spring trip come into play.  We hold auditions for next year's band fronts before we sometimes get all the equipment back.  We become immersed in the process of recruitment/retainment for our ensembles for the next year before the final note of our spring concert is sounded.  Don't forget monthly Booster meetings, important board meetings, faculty meetings, and in-service days that have all the relevance of a Paula Cole acoustic set at a Biker Rally in Sturges.  During my last week of school while other teachers are putting away books, cleaning up their rooms, and putting together a summer reading list, I work with the Senior Class Advisor making graduation practice happen for about 100 graduates to be - at the same time being responsible for 25 students in the commencement band.  All of this being said I have not mentioned that we are teaching students during the school day....that is when the brilliant Ed Rendell says we don't have to be testing them (note: Rendell=jabroni).

At times, the "necessary evils" of our profession seem insurmountable.  There is only one of us, and we can get stretched pretty thin.  So submitted for your approval, 5 suggestions to make your life as a band director a bit more manageable.

5) Plan early - Budget not only what amount of time you commit but when as well.  This means getting your schedule set early for all extra-groups and constantly looking at the big picture.  The more information we have at our fingertips when we begin mapping out our schedules, the less chance we have for a frustrating surprise wrecking our plans.

4) Don't teach the same band every year - Each year our group's complexion will change.  Sometimes we reload sections, sometimes we rebuild them.  But in either case - they are a differently personality that learns in a different way.  They should know our expectations, but we should be responsible to learn how to connect with them better.

3) Think about next year's band now - Huh? Yes, in the moment of working with this year's group make sure you take time to note how underclassmen are developing.  To ensure our groups can maintain the demands of performance and live up to their expectations, we need to build up the skills, confidence, and demeanor of younger players so that when the time comes they can assume a new role.

2) Consider goals - We should engage ourselves and our ensembles in setting goals - personal and group goals for our camps, and throughout the year.  The goals should be worthy of our (collective) commitment.  The goals should be reachable through sound process (no pun intended).

1) Take Time for You - Throughout the year and especially in the summer, we need to take some breaks.  One week in the Outer Banks does wonders for yours truly, and the other 51 don't seem that bad.  Even throughout the year, from month to month, taking time away is rewarding.  Finding those 15 minutes a day for you and  your other interests can make a world of difference.

There is a band for all seasons, as long as a Director is there to lead them.

1. Flip Kowlier – Caravan (MS)

Als ik een muzikaal lijstje moet samenstellen, dan is er één constante te ontwaren, met name Flip Kowlier. De laatste maanden ben ik redelijk in de ban van Caravan uit zijn derde langspeler. Het plaatje klopt gewoon.

2. Vampire Weekend – Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa (MS)

De BBC wist ze in het begin van het jaar nog aan te kondigen als één van de mogelijke doorbraken van 2008. Verder dan een bescheiden hitje met A-Punk geraken ze nog niet, maar ik ben alvast verslingerd aan Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa.

3. Logh – Lights From Sovereign States (MS)

Eén van de ‘duystere’ bands die ik per toeval ontdekte en steeds opnieuw blij was dat ze mijn in mijn speellijst terecht kwam. Deze groep staat trouwens ook op de tweede compilatie van het gelijknamige programma van Studio Brussel.

4. Het Zesde Metaal – Ik Haat U Niet (MS)

Ook met deze band met de van oorsprong Wevelgemse Wannes heb ik een bijzondere band. Enkele jaren uitkijken naar zijn debuutalbum. Even moeten wennen aan het nieuwe geluid, maar blij zijn met de nieuwe pareltjes. Het begin van dit nummer is al voldoende om het hier op te nemen.

5. Fleet Foxes – Mykonos (MS)

Nog maar net een post aan gewijd. Dankzij last.fm en Eppo hier bij geraakt en nog steeds geen spijt van. In alle eenvoud bijzonder.

6. De Jeugd Van Tegenwoordig – Hollereer (MS)

Misschien de meest verrassende keuze, maar het is een feit dat deze track al meerdere malen aan mijn gehoord is voorbijgekomen. Vooral de intro zoals op de albumversie te horen is, blijft zelfs na meerdere luisterbeurten grappig. Rare kerels, maar dit nummer werkt. De houdbaarheidsdatum, dat is een ander paar mouwen. We zien wel.

7. Iron & Wine – Boy With A Coin (MS)

Ik ben blijkbaar in een rustige gemoedstoestand, want ook mijn laatste is een ietwat ‘duystere’ popplaat. Iron & Wine leerde ik helemaal waarderen dankzij onder meer nummer als Jesus The Mexican Boy (hij lijkt er zelf wat op) en Naked As We Came. Van het laatste nummer staat trouwens een versie uit de sessie op Duyster.3.

Wie interesse heeft, mag altijd dit stokje oprapen en een geheel eigen invulling geven. Ik doe immers graag muzikale ontdekkingen.

okay... i gotta go see who won. ttyl!

Like this:
Sufjan Stevens : Casimir Pulaski Day

Golden rod and the 4-H stone
The things I brought you
When I found out you had cancer of the bone

Your father cried on the telephone
And he drove his car to the Navy yard
Just to prove that he was sorry

In the morning through the window shade
When the light pressed up against your shoulder blade
I could see what you were reading

Oh the glory that the lord has made
And the complications you could do without
When I kissed you on the mouth

Tuesday night at the bible study
We lift our hands and pray over your body
But nothing ever happens

I remember at Michael's house
In the living room when you kissed my neck
And I almost touched your blouse

In the morning at the top of the stairs
When your father found out what we did that night
And you told me you were scared

Oh the glory when you ran outside
With your shirt tucked in and your shoes untied
And you told me not to follow you

Sunday night when I cleaned the house
I find the card where you wrote it out
With the pictures of your mother

On the floor at the great divide
With my shirt tucked in and my shoes untied
I am crying in the bathroom

In the morning when you finally go
And the nurse runs in with her head hung low
And the cardinal hits the window

In the morning in the winter shade
On the first of March on the holiday
I thought I saw you breathing

Oh the glory that the lord has made
And the complications when I see his face
In the morning in the window

Oh the glory when he took our place
But he took my shoulders and he shook my face
And he takes and he takes and he takes

this is the one that got me today: