HOW CAN I KEEP FROM SINGING?

I can't, that's all. 
And fortunately for me, I have music co-horts who invite me to sing with their group, on occasion.
One such being yesterday, a fabulous day of warm temperatures and sunshine.  We were at a dockside restaurant by the waterfront; people were walking with families or dogs or friends, or biking, or eating scrumptious food, or just lying in the man-made beach of imported sand nearby.  Enjoying life, praise the Lord.
And we were providing some music for them.  John Deehan played his sax; Dick Felix thrummed his bass; Peter Hill invented all sorts of musical combinations on his keyboard; and I sang, tra-la.
Got a few pics of the day, plus one very short clip of the ending of "Don't Get Around Much Anymore".  Forgive the lack of focus and the weird angle.  It was sort-of a selfie-movie - camera sitting on a nearby table.  I only remembered to turn it on for the last bit.  Still....

 

 

And just for the scientists among you, here's a bug sitting on a table in my backyard:

 

BUT WHAT IS SHE DOING?

You might well arsk.  I arsk meself too.

The fact is, I'm not doing a lot of gigs these days.  One does get weary of bars and restaurants that don't want to pay musicians (oh, but they do want you to bring a "following" to fill up their place).  Funny, isn't it?  You wouldn't ask your doctor, or your plumber, or your mailperson to give you their services for free - or just for the love of doing it - but they seem to think that musicians should.

OK, mini-rant over.  And if I'm not performing at a lot of gigs, what am I doing?

I'm getting ready for a really big, super-fun extravaganza NEXT YEAR.  That's right.  All the way to July, 2015, if all goes to plan, I'm hosting another CD launch, as well as a huge celebration for myself on my birthday.

So in fact I'm very busy these days, but it's all prep work:  the songs, the musicians, the decisions about recording, etc. etc. etc.  And the venue too, bien sur. because we want to have a lovely time, along with good food.

This morning, as I sat in my back garden (I'm lucky to have one), I thought about St. Stephen's Green in Dublin, which I recently saw for the first time and loved, and about many other beautiful places in the world, and I thought those well-worn thoughts that "there's no place like home", because my garden was lovely, and peaceful, and just a few steps from my piano and my food.  What else does a girl need?

Here's my garden:

The irises are lovely in their purpleness, yes?  and that unusual outdoor art board is my contribution to the 'good fences make good neighbours' idea, since the neighbours I'm blocking from my sight are actually miserable sods.  I've improved the view.

and so i'll add building to my at-home activities, and also going out to the burial of a friend's ashes in the colourful and restful grounds at Mount Pleasant Cemetery last weekend, (although this photo was in the subway):

Sadly, I'm attending another funeral tomorrow for a woman I knew many years ago.  Pat McDonagh was a very well-known clothes designer, in Canada and the U.S., and her creations earned her a name on the world stage of fashion.  She died last week.  I still have, and wear, a dress she made for me when she first started in Toronto.

Stay tuned for updates on the big bash.  and in the meantime, some of my songs which to date have not been available, will be up on itunes in the coming weeks.