Music, man

So, I mentioned that last night, Coco and I were going out to listen to some live music - specifically, to Mama Doll, a group from Spokane that I have been trying to get to see live for about two years. I expected to be writing today about how cool that was, as indeed it was, but there was something even cooler.

Working backwards:

Yay! Mama Doll was the headliner, so they went on last, and they were great. They aren't the same group I fell in love with, though. Originally, it was just the honey-voiced Sarah Berentsen on ukulele dueting with Austen Case and her single drum; the pair produced haunting, smoky tunes with minimal accouterments. Now, Austen is gone and Sarah has been joined by Jen Landis on bass, Claire Fieberg on guitar and vocals, Kris Hafso on drums (with a full kit), and occasionally (like last night) Bart Budwig on trumpet. Sarah's ukulele and guitar are amplified now, too, and there's even a keyboard.

 not last night

Well, it's not Dylan going electric, but it was still a bit of a change.

Nonetheless, the band is still great. Sarah opens her mouth and magic comes out - this is the kind of music that can summon spirits and open doorways to souls. Her new teammates provide excellent support, both musically and vocally. I was not disappointed after my long wait.

Okay: The middle act was Windoe. I wish I could say that I had enjoyed them more, but they were the weakest link of the night - the band played series of sort-of psychedelic rock tunes with little tonal or thematic variety. But they were in a challenging position, sandwiched between the other performers that night.

Best for last: The opening act was Shenandoah Davis, and here was the surprise of the night. The entire house was blown away by this performer's passion, both in her vocals and in her piano playing. Her bandcamp tags are avant-garde classical parlour music pop singer-songwriter Seattle and that's probably pretty accurate, as far as it goes, but it doesn't go far enough.

Shenandoah Davis plays the piano like she was driving a diesel tractor-trailer rig up a mountain switchback in a storm, and she delivers a metric ton of torches with every load. Davis physically engages the piano not just with her fingers but with seemingly every muscle in her body, her shock of black curls tossing and her shoulders rolling as she pushes and shoves the music out of the instrument and into the world. Her piano pounds and booms with impossibly complex melodies while her beautiful, high-pitched voice cuts through the soaring music and her deceptively simple lyrics cut though your unsuspecting heart.

It's been a long time since I was moved so strongly by a performance. I don't go out to live music often (why it's clearly a blogworthy event) but I am going to go see Shenandoah Davis whenever I can. And you should too.

This clip doesn't do her justice - she needs at least a baby grand, not a little keyboard, to really open it up and roar - but it will give you a taste.

4W.2.10K&c

I write this on an afternoon that is the haziest I can remember in Seattle. Looking out the window, I see a sky as bad as it was in Spokane last weekend... which means that the Lilac City and the rest of Eastern Washington must be much worse. The fires are particularly bad this year and the dust from the unusual dryness is adding to the issues of air quality. Good wishes to all who might face this as a real health challenge instead of an annoyance, and good wishes to all the firefighters.

Running

No chart this week. After running the Ben Burr Trail last Sunday morning, I could barely walk. The ache persisted and my running partner, noting my limp on Tuesday, spoke from experience tat I should give it a good long rest. My massage-therapist spouse Coco feels it might be a piriformis strain, apparently a common running injury. Ne recorded runs this cycle, just some daily hobbles at the lake or on the track. I wish I could say it felt like it was getting better, but I might be lying if I did. We'll have to see Tuesday.

This injury, plus a scheduling conflict, may make the planned September 19 10K unfeasible.  But this is Seattle, so there are plenty of other 10K options the next week, including a fund-raiser for which I ran a 5K two years ago. We'll arrange something.

Facebook

I guess I can say I miss it a bit right now. A pal just got married, and there's lots of pictures and whatnot online that Coco has been enjoying. I am realizing that it is not so much the idea of FB that was getting off-putting, but rather the execution. The notion of a place to keep in contact with far-flung friends, family, and acquaintances is a groovy one; it's just that the algorithms, the inherent commercialism, and co-opting of the forum by other messaging gets in the way of that. I'm still trying to make my peace with the whole structure of online communication in a capitalist society. I'm not sure there's any entirely reasonable alternative out there.

Reading

Finished Old Venus.
Started and finished Fuzzy Nation.
In the middle of The Rhesus Chart by Charles Stross.

Making

No workbench time this week. Yeah, yeah.

Miscellany

• One partial day and one full day on work stuff.  
• One game night, a few lunches and dinners out.
• A wedding!
• On the docket: a live music show. As this is published, we'll be listening to Mama Doll at the Columbia City Theater! Here's a sample:

5W.2.10K &c

Running

Moving to the 40 minute/4 mile plateau has been tough. I'm hanging in there at about a 10:30 pace average, but the going is rugged and I had my slowest mile in several weeks today. I'll blame the 500 foot elevation change in today's four-mile route and stick with it for another week, at least.

Facebook

Things happened and no one knows...

Reading

Still a little left to Old Venus (it's pretty thick).

Making

Some frustrating workbench time. Even with new materials, this doesn't seem to be coming together. Curses.

Miscellany

• A couple of days devoted primarily to work stuff.
• Ed Putnam remembrance day.
• Three whole days in Spokaloo! With town & country, Shakespeare & baseball, beer & cider, ice cream & peaches, and Gayle & Mikey. Finestkind.

Coco, nature photographer.

6W.2.10k &c

Running

Four weeks in and holding steady at just a little over a 10:00 pace. This is a milestone: next week I will be running longer than a 5K for each training session. And so, a decision.

Almost forty years ago, before running was as ubiquitous as it is now, a friend who had already been a runner for some time told me that for overall health and wellness, the sweet spot for running was three miles, three times a week. Any more than that and you gain no general health benefits, you just become a better runner - and at the  same time, your risk of injury climbs sharply.

When I first set this goal for the summer, it was in the spirit of do it while you can - I'm not getting any younger and doing a longer-distance race might uncork some youthful vigor. But I'm not a capital-R Runner in any sense, physically or psychologically (as I have often said, there's never been a time that I was running that I wouldn't rather have been not running), so I have to think about how much I will get out of this for how much I put in. I'm not sure what sense of accomplishment completing a 10K would give me, or where it would eventually lead. I could stick with the 5K distance and, as my old high school girlfriend does now, run one just about every week (plus two training runs each week). That might be enough on all counts.

In any event, I'll stay the course for now and see what the next bump up brings. I made a running playlist of appropriately paced music and have figured out my four-mile route. We'll see what happens.

Facebook

Have really been grooving on Twitter this week. Wish more friends were on it...

Reading

Finished Raising Steam.
Currently reading Old Venus, a short story collection.

Making

Got some promising materials but didn't put in any workbench time.

Miscellany

• No work! Woo-hoo!
• I voted! Did you?
• Tried to watch the Republican debates but had to quit after just a few minutes when my brains started spilling out my ears.
• One gaming date, three lunches, a vet appointment (all clear!), a Third Birthday party, and a trip to Gig Harbor.
• Here's the graduation picture for Michele, the high school girlfriend I mentioned above.

7W.2.10K &c

Running

Week Three is finished. I ran the lake with Meagan on Thursday, and that may be a regular thing. Had my fastest miles on Saturday, coming in at just over two miles on the twenty-minute timed run for a 9:42 pace. Don't know why I was speedier that day - the rest of the times are remorselessly consistent. I have added a rolling three-run average to the plot lines that I think shows a more meaningful picture of overall progress.

Facebook

Actually missing the community a little bit this week... maybe I am forgetting the less-desirable aspects of the experience. But as much as I appreciate the connections that it helps maintain, I have been thinking a lot about how we have turned the Commons over to Corporatia and wondering if there is any way around that.

Reading

Gave up on The Story of Stuff.
Started and finished Death of a Liar.
Currently reading Raising Steam by Terry Pratchett

Making

Mostly materials research. I think I may need A Book.

Miscellany

• Worked on campus again, but only once, and this should be the last time for the summer.
• The Dead End project is being re-tooled.
• Had two gaming and three purely social engagements, including happy-hour happy time in Ballard and the Big Birthday Bash for Sissy!