A man and his guitar.....
Doc Watson, the virtuoso folk-guitar player whose real name was Arthel, died Tuesday in a hospital in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. He was eighty-nine years old and had made more than fifty records. Before he was a year old he had gone blind from an eye infection, and he was educated at the Raleigh School for the Blind, in North Carolina. He was thirteen when he learned the chords to “When the Roses Bloom in Dixieland” on a guitar he had borrowed.
Read more http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/culture/2012/05/doc-watson-and-his-guitar.html#ixzz1wM3vDT67
Read more http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/culture/2012/05/doc-watson-and-his-guitar.html#ixzz1wM3vDT67
32 comments:
Howard, I think, wouldn't mind sharing firsties this morning with Doc!
Thanks, Jo for this thread!
Been a long time since I cried when someone famous died. Did this time. Tears just now.
Something, I think, to do with watching those who have every possible reason to whine and complain, and yet never do. Just pick up what they've been offered and make the very best of it. And then grin, too. . . .
(Over and against those who've pretty much been given everything, waste it, and then whine. . . . )
Oh--what a lovely thread -- and thank you Puddle. I have wondered what kind of courage it took to just go on like this.
Perhaps a good set of parents, support of his community and then Ralph Rinzler -the musicologist scourig the mountains and finding Doc and then convincing him he had something to give to a wider audience.
He surely did--and the people in Deep Gap continued to treasure him.
Yes--tears for this wonderful man.
Good Morning,
Your thoughtful posts have stayed with me. I think that how we have lived, what and whom we have loved is the measure of our reciprocity to the universe. Dr. Watson gave profusely, and that will stay with us.
Beautiful day here.
Romney made a stop yesterday in Colorado coal country. His comments were egregious. The mayor of Grand Junction made a remark that while he was glad that Romney made a stop, his words on energy policy were wrong and clueless (my words)but with the same meaning.
Frankly, if Romney were an honest man, he would say, I won't continue my efforts for the presidency because my words have been dishonest and self serving. Public servants, real public servants, don't do this. I apologize to the American people.
From NPR: whites have not voted in the majority for a Democrat since 1964. What does that tell us about racism and values in this country among whites? I shudder.
Well, have a good day, folks.
welll.... speaking of Mitt, may he have many more blunders like this to prove that this dude s no CIC!
(CNN) -- It's probably not the kind of thing voters will use to choose the leader of the free world.
But the Web was taking no shortage of presidential potshots Wednesday over Republican candidate Mitt Romney's new mobile app, which embarrassingly misspelled "America."
Yes, Internet. Welcome to AMERCIA.
"Sorry about the shaking California, that was just the rest of America laughing at Mitt Romney running for Pres. of #Amercia," wrote a person behind a parody President Obama account on Twitter (referencing a minor earthquake late Tuesday).
The gaffe, presumably by some poor developer hired by the campaign, appears on "With Mitt," the campaign's newly released iPhone app. The app invites users to photograph themselves with their choice of 14 pro-Romney slogans such as "I'm a Mom For Mitt," "Obama Isn't Working" and "The America We Love," and then share them on social media.
But one of the slogans reads, "A Better Amercia." Oops. Somebody didn't observe the "I-before-C" rule.
An update to the "With Mitt" app became available at about 1 p.m. on Wednesday. No one with the campaign was speaking on the record about it, but staffers were downplaying its importance in the run-up to November. By Wednesday afternoon, the campaign also had paid for a "promoted tweet" that appears when a Twitter users searches for "Amercia."
http://www.cnn.com/2012/05/30/tech/mobile/amercia-romney-iphone-app/index.html?eref=igoogledmn_topstories
as for white folks not voting for dems, I think there is more to it than just racsim, although imo that's a big part of it. I think that repubs in most places at the local level were honest peeps who realized the need to work together until the last 20 yrs or so - and many may take a long time to realize that their party ain't what it used to be. I think there is intimidation for many to be like their peers and for many they think tha they are givinng u their chance to be rich if they vote for dems - they listen to the hype but never question it.
I mean, look what repub fiscal policy has done to this country and they are running on doing the same dam thing! they DEPEND on the public being uninformed and also are happy when there is acrimony in Congress, for instance because that turns people away from the polls. jusr a few thoughts. ;)
Interesting, Jo! Does anyone remember the sloganator? I saved it and it got transferred with my pics when I migrated to this computer. It's up on my opening fan, now, lol!
Wonder what is IN the Republican brain that *likes* slogans so much?
Beautiful, cool, green, sunny, *moderate* day here. Almost exactly like a perfect day in May.
I have been out today--spending a good chunk of time at the doc and hospital
coming up to speed on Friday's scheduled tongue surgery--testing, preregistration, questions, questions etc. Good thing I have tomorrow to rest--daughter Brenda and I need to appear at the hospital at 5:30 AM!
The place is only 20 minutes away from my apartment--much better than the 90 mile drive from where I lived in Texas to MDAnderson in Houston!
Still wondering why the group in Raleigh who was sponsoring a
Honor Doc Watson Day
in June didn't try and do it a year or more ago.
Well. they won't be whacking away at my fingers so I should be able to post here!.
Now it is nap time!
Shirlee, will be thinking of you Friday! And it hasn't been so long ago I spent the day at UVA doing about the same, including a heart stress test. (Was tickled that my BP dropped 30 points during the test, lol!)
Just had a friend in ER in Alabama, for heart problems. They thought heart attack, but it's not. It's coronary artery *spasms* And he's going to be fine on that count. Been a tense couple of days.
Prayers.
yes, Shirlee, a prayer your way that all will go well.
Clips of Doc Watson playing guitar on PBS News Hour tonight. Phenomenal musician he was.
Wish we could get some rain. Have been transplanting trees, blisters on my hands. Why don't I use gloves!!
Well, long day, be well friends.
thanks, puddle--one of the hardest parts for me will just be getting up and ready to leave by 5:00 AM or so.
well, I don't have to worry about breakfast or meds!
private funeral arrangements being made for Doc--
off to bed, good night all.
Da Goob let me *sleep in* til seven this morning, bless his heart.
Beautiful cool green day going on out there. No rain predicted until tomorrow. Guess I should make hay, eh?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Been thinkin' a bit about celebrity and fans, and "privacy." Really started thinking about it *long* ago: about the time I became aware of Greta Garbo. What is it to actually make your living from making other people *care* about what you do -- which usually involves who you are. Or at least who others *think* you are, either with or without your collusion. Though usually *with.* And what about others, friends, family who also benefit from that celebrity? What is owed the lowly "fan"? And, conversely, what does the lowly fan *owe* the celebrity? 'Tis a puzzlement.
Good Morning,
Beautiful day here too. Thoughts Shirlee's way, hope all goes well.
I used to say, I prayed the aspen up from the ground. Still true. We lost a 7 year Siberian apricot, a tall aspen, but the rest are hanging on: weeping cherry, redbud crab apple trees, aspens-deer and rabbit chewed, lilacs, choke cherry, and we seem to have Ponderosa pine in the hundreds, despite the pine beetle. We had 65 trees cut down last year, and in the fall at least another dozen. But we are wealthy in new ones.
I was thinking about the same thing with a slightly different slant, Puddle. For writers, artists, musicians, dancers, and probably architects, crafts folks, story tellers, and performers of all kinds, we are forced to become commercial. You mentioned that in your perception writers had to be at least part stenographer. I think that's true.
The joy is in the doing, and if it brings pleasure, insight, knowledge, experience, that's a gift in itself, but I don't want to be a salesperson for my work or my self. I don't have an answer for a better way, but I am glad that I didn't have to earn my living with my writing. It would have taken all the pleasure out of it.
It seems to me we've commercialized almost every endeavor in our society.
And, just read on my homepage that Obama and Romney are tied in key states. How on earth can that be?
And on NPR, a woman remarked that people receiving food stamps get $1000 a month, have their nails done, eat sushi, while she works as a cashier just to get by. The reporter said, no, the food stamp allotment is $140.00 a month. That's about $4.00 a day, and about the only food you can get for that is junk food. Tell me that Reagan's "Welfare Queens" isn't still with us, and underlying those lies are prejudice, exclusion, a willingness to see others hurt, treated unjustly and deprived. What a species we humans are!
Jo, I think you assessment about whites was right on.
And enjoy the day!
Interesting point about celebrities and fans, Puddle. In general I think for it to be honest it must involve respect. That was certainly true with Doc Watson. He respected his audience and trusted them enough to tell them his stories.
I hope all the Doc lovers out there will respect the family's right to privacy now.
There was something unique about Doc, though. I don't think he ever saw himself as a "celebrity." He was blind, had a unique musical talent and needed to earn a living for his family. If he could have supported them
by continuing to play for tips on the streets of Boone, NC I think he would. Then Ralph Rinzler would have had a much harder time than he did convincing him to tour. We all would never have known him--but he would have been able to be at home with his family which is where
he always wanted to be.
Much missed.
Call from the tongue doc this morning--
needed more x-rays of my upper spine and neck area. Had told him in two visits about this and the report from MDAnderson about potential nerve damage if intubation is not done properly. Finally he decided x-rays were needed in case he must go back in after the biopsies and take deeper chunks of tongue or cheek--which would require different anesthesia.
Good thing my first choice in apartment buildings was right here on Elm--and my daughter works just 3 blocks south--and also has a worker there who she can tap to drive Mom etc. Done for the day! Now for a nap--rest up for the big day :)
Woo, Shirlee! Lot on your plate. Lighting a long burning candle for you. And yep, you ARE lucky! (And yay! for the Optimist's among us, lol!)(We LIVE longer.)
Sending you much love and light and healing prayers Shirlee. May all go well and be as painless as possible. I am so thankful that you live close and have family and friends to help!
I too live not far from a wonderful hospital and have family nearby so my surgery was much easier because of that.
lol puddle - it's so true about optimists and there is brand new research to prove it. when I heard of the new study I said a prayer for a few peeps who we used to blog with. poor miserable souls.
as for me i have been a hurting puppy for a couple of days. had an intense PT session in the pool on Tuesday and he had me do too many steps where I was leading with my operative leg. being in the water it was a strain but not really painful but that hip hadn't been bent that sharply or that much and last night it really kicked me. doc had me lay low, take a dilaudid and use heat and it is loosening up and getting better. I cancelled PT for today and won't go back until Monday. my doc and PT person were very supportive and helpful!
love you all - I really enjoy it when I can log on and 'be' with you my friends!
one step closer!
clip... A federal appeals court ruled unanimously Thursday that the Defense of Marriage Act, passed by Congress in 1996, discriminates against married same-sex couples by denying them the same federal benefits afforded to heterosexual couples.
The decision will have no immediate effect because it anticipates an appeal to the United States Supreme Court.
In upholding an earlier decision by a lower court, Thursday’s ruling, by a three-judge panel of the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit, in Boston, is the first time an appeals court has declared the federal law unconstitutional.
The ruling dealt narrowly with the question of federal benefits for same-sex couples, not with the legality of same-sex marriage itself.
“We think today is a great day and look forward to the next round,” Mary L. Bonauto, who argued the case for Gay and Lesbian Advocates and Defenders, told reporters on a conference call.
Strategically, Ms. Bonauto said, the plaintiffs could not have asked for a better decision as they prepare to test their arguments in the Supreme Court. She called it “crisp, solid and well-reasoned,” adding that it was “rooted in the last 50 years of equal protection jurisprudence.”
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/06/01/us/appeals-court-rules-against-federal-marriage-act.html?partner=rss&emc=rss
Thanks for the good wishes, folks-- I appreciate it. But at least I know what to expect. They have been whacking away at my tongue since the late 90's and three times were much worse than this.
It is one of the trade offs for using RA medicine that really stops the inflammation. Which really does give me a life mostly without pain.
My goal--quality over quantity of life. Need to keep telling doctors and once in a while remind a young'un!
Shirlee, when I was a little girl, we visited with one of my dad's cousins, who was married to a man with RA. He was absolutely immobile, and in pain pretty much all the time. He had two positions -- in bed, and on a disguised potty chair. Or a chair modified to accept a potty. She had help twice a day to get him back and forth. Made a HUGE impression on my young soul -- how much some people are asked to "live with" -- I think you made an excellent choice. But what a choice to have to make! Every ounce of love and light I can muster steaming on down your way. ♥
yes, RA shows no mercy. my aunt had RA, she lived in central NH and drove here to Burlington twice a month for injections of gold - an experimental treatment that showed some relief but not much. she was a heavy woman and it always amazed me how she could keep going in so much pain and with so much weight to carry. she swam almost daily to stay limber. God rest your soul Aunt Altha.
AND! I got eleven of the tomato plants in, and watered. The new strawberries watered, too. Rain tomorrow and then Monday, so I may be done with watering. Still have six to go. Two in five gallon feed buckets on the "beach," two in three gallon blue plastic buckets, on the beach (can be moved in case of flood), and two for my flower garden, as back up. There's not quite enough sun up there for a terrific crop, but they were the *only* tomatoes I got last year after critter inroads on the meadow garden. The buckets are a PITA because of having to haul dirt. And that's a lotta dirt to haul, lol! I still have the last of the end loader full of composted cow poop that Elmer gave me after destroying the previous garden by accident. None of these are known to me, so it should be interesting, lol! On my own, I generally go for: Early Girl, Big Boy, and Roma plus a few Mortgage Busters.
Jo, glad you're on the mend again. Easy to push a bit too hard during recovery. Or BE pushed a bit too hard.
And Pat -- I can't make myself where work/gardening gloves. Though both the kids and their dad do. I have so many worn out work gloves around here, I've though of making a collage on the side of the shed with 'em, lol!
My great plans for Tuesday are taking place, but bit by bit. Been working on getting all the bowls, etc. on the under counter trolley washed, since I'm removing them to paint it any ways. And the paint is out, next to the computer so I can roll it with me feetsies several times and hour. With luck, that'll minimize the stirring when I am actually ready to paint, grin. More shimming on the floor boards later.
It's been a busy day. It's hard to stay inside in summer, and watering, planting, composting, takes hours.
When we were in Louisiana, it was so lush. All you have to do is throw a seed down, and you have food, plants, flowers, shrubs, trees. I thought it was beautiful, and it made me wistful. How precious and scarce water is in the West.
My thoughts are with you, Jo and Shirlee. Pain is hard to deal with. I'm hoping things get better for both of you.
Will say good night now and I'm grateful for our conversations and connections.
We have such an interesting group of people to talk with
here. I love it all--and you all.
Puddle, when your tomatoes are ripening
it seems as though the fragrance and beauty might waft its way as far a GSO.
My honey had been an old time W.B.type farmer--and when he had to quit farming--he had the largest garden I had ever known. When we eventually moved into a smaller house with no garden space he filled the flower beds with tomato and pepper plants.
It feels as though you too, will be gardening as long as you possibly can.
Jo, take care with the therapy--but there are times when
it is good to slow it down a bit.
And, Pat continue to
write and share it with us if you can.
I understand the New Yorker is to have something on Doc Watson. I would love to see him on the cover.
Off early to bed for me--expecting a4:30 wake-up call from Brenda. Whew!!!
Thank you for this safe, sane, interesting and comfortable space Jo. I love it.
Good Night All.
Heck! Forgot to ask Miss Shirlee when she'd be *home* again. Meanwhile, prayers and light and love for today's ordeal.
We've got one of those weather days/weeks ahead:
Friday is a SEVERE WEATHER ALERT DAY: This morning will begin with mostly cloudy skies and mild temperatures in the mid 60s. We will see isolated showers early for your commute. Thunderstorms are likely on Friday afternoon through Friday night and we are expect strong and even severe storms. Our most likely threat is damaging winds, hail, flash flooding, and although, not as likely, isolated tornadoes can not be ruled out. Saturday will bring a mix of sun and clouds, but stay mostly dry. The weekend and early week will stay unsettled and cooler as a series of short waves wrap through the area, bringing a chance for rain Sunday through Thursday.
Just a good morning,
I hope your weather is just rainstorms and no violent winds or hail. Wish we could get some rain here.
Meadow walking for me is a joy, sets the tone of day. I walk out, look at the trees, the flowers (it's been a sparse wildflower season this year with no rains in March or April) and the plants. It cheers me, makes me feel grateful for the beauty and fertility of the land.
About John Edwards. What a shame: a handsome, talented, appealing person to have so little character, to be so ego centered and self gratifying. I'm wondering if there isn't something in our genes or make-up that is a factor of narcissism, or is it our culture? Anyway, I'm not sorry he was acquitted, though I think it makes the possible illegality of campaign funds harder to target. I don't like the man, never did, and was dismayed at how easily he was able to persuade people. While words matter, character matters more, I think.
Well, have errands, thoughts your way and hope today is a good day.
Was looking up Bloomsday events in Dublin this year. (Thinking if I had a bucket list, it'd be on it.) And was struck by something. . . . If you die young, your bronze busts will look better.
Which brought me around to this:
To an Athlete Dying Young
The time you won your town the race
We chaired you through the market-place;
Man and boy stood cheering by,
And home we brought you shoulder-high.
To-day, the road all runners come,
Shoulder-high we bring you home,
And set you at your threshold down,
Townsman of a stiller town.
Smart lad, to slip betimes away
From fields where glory does not stay
And early though the laurel grows
It withers quicker than the rose.
Eyes the shady night has shut
Cannot see the record cut,
And silence sounds no worse than cheers
After earth has stopped the ears:
Now you will not swell the rout
Of lads that wore their honours out,
Runners whom renown outran
And the name died before the man.
So set, before its echoes fade,
The fleet foot on the sill of shade,
And hold to the low lintel up
The still-defended challenge-cup.
And round that early-laurelled head
Will flock to gaze the strengthless dead,
And find unwithered on its curls
The garland briefer than a girl's.
Alfred Edward Housman
My dad loved this one -- found an English paper about the poem among his things after he died. And he did die young -- fifty five.
On Edwards: acquitted on ONE of six. Hung on five.
He was a very mixed bag. I think he got extra points because he was smart enough to marry Elizabeth. And he did do a tremendous amount of good as a tort lawyer. He could have left it there. One almost worries about the extra gifted -- whether looks, brains or money. That things become too easy for them, that they aren't afforded the learning experiences most of us have.
I remember being astonished, at 57, and finding my first "enemy" at how MUCH she taught me about *myself.* My Meeting at Christmas has a candle lighting ceremony, where you light a candle and name the blessing it's being lit for. She got it that year.
Sweet are the uses of adversity,
Which, like the toad, ugly and venomous,
Wears yet a precious jewel in his head;
And this our life, exempt from public haunt,
Finds tongues in trees, books in the running brooks,
Sermons in stones, and good in every thing.
As You Like It Act 2, scene 1, 12–17
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