John Kerry ROCKS
July 29, 2004

Great information and site

posted by Sara Hickman at 10:30 pm
| permalink | | Share on Facebook

Get on the bus
July 27, 2004


here is a picture of me and my other co-horts from NARAS (national association of recording arts and sciences) on our way to the FCC community meeting in San Antonio from last spring. we all rode on the Asleep at the Wheel Bus and did our best to represent artists/musicians/producers/songwriters, etc. by speaking out on behalf of protecting free radio for all.

posted by Sara Hickman at 08:06 am
| permalink | | Share on Facebook

Walking Sticks
July 15, 2004

Are the two joined walking stick insects a male and a female, or a mother and child? There is a set of two that show up under my back porch light nightly...

And my mockingbird, who seems to have traveled from my last residence six years back to this current home, has been lighting on my front porch, daily, swooping down and screeching at my cat, Pip. That mockingbird seems to appear within twenty feet of me whenever I step out to get the mail or water the plants. It is eerie how often we catch each other's eye. I feel this immediate calm whenever I see her perched on my mailbox, calling out in her unmistakable song. I love her so much. Is it possible to love someone as deeply as I have come to love her, and yet, we have never truly met? What a sensation. The heart in the chest. Reacting to beauty, reacting because it can.

There is so much going on. I won't bore anyone with it. But, life is very, very full these days. There are times I have to laugh out loud: wow. Lately, io and I have been wrestling, and we get to points in the "match" where she says,
after she pushes me off the bed into the "ocean":

"YOU MAY THINK YOU'VE WON BUT I'M JUST GETTING STARTED!"

And there is something so comedic in her delivery that I laugh until tears come out of my eyes, and then she starts cracking up, and we are just rolling around, attempting to squeeze out the words, "Stop! Stop!" but we are just gasping from laughing. THAT is a stupendous feeling. Where does laughter come from?!
WHAT is it? Why are some things funny to some people and totally boring to others? I don't know. But, I'll tell you what...wrestling with my daughter just gets me giddy thinking about it because we have the best, best time.

RULES:

No tickling.
No pillow fights.
Stop laughing.

Then, the other day, we went outside and we were attempting to play hopscotch, but all the rules were out the window, my friends. Yes! New rules! New iolana rules that are very serious and include the words "gold" and "when you land on the pink person" because she drew a VERY large pink face with the chalk after adding an enormous number "1" at the top by the "10", and then went into detail about how you MUST hop from eight to one for the gold and deliver the marker...OR ELSE. I was just nodding my head, yes, yes! Of course, I'm saying! I understand! I see...thank you for sharing the rules, I say.
Then, I have to ask her to show me because, truly, I have no idea what she is talking about. But no laughter right now. This is not funny business. This is the real deal. This is BIG STUFF, people! I see how she will run the country some day, but it won't be chalkmarks in a rainstorm...it will be genius and my heart will swell with pride and love. Watching the mockingbird land is but a wee bit of what my heart can feel...

posted by Sara Hickman at 10:57 pm
| permalink | | Share on Facebook

Whoo
July 11, 2004

Played a private backyard party today for a lovely, lovely family, but the rain came down and there were swimming pools, slip-n-slides and snacks to compete with and so I did my best considering I've been playing indoors in libraries with no mosquitos or bathing suits! The family was so nice: they gave me a bonus! That's twice this week someone gave me a bonus, as if to say, "I appreciate how hard you're trying! Great job!" It made me feel better, cuz I wanted to have those kids clapping and singing along...there were just too many distractions. Of course, I blame myself...but my husband said I did fine.
Why is it artists beat themselves up so?

We just finished reading the comics. Every Sunday, our family reads the comics together before bedtime. I would say it has become a tradition, actually!
We love it...laughing and giggling over the funnies; scratching our heads over the ones that make NO sense. My favorite is MUTTS. I just think it is a beautiful, thoughtful, sweet and comical comic. When we get to that one, which is near the end, someone always exclaims, "MUTTTTSSS!"

Off to spend quiet time with Lance. Goodnight, sleep tight...don't let the bed bugs bite...sweet dreams....no schemes...until we meet aaaaaa-gain!

posted by Sara Hickman at 09:54 pm
| permalink | | Share on Facebook

Elephant Velvet
July 09, 2004

They say the eye of an animal holds wisdom. Trying to look up into the eye of an elephant could be intimidating, except that the animal is ten times smarter than we are, and has the courtesy to tip it's head slightly.

Eye to eye, I told her how gorgeous she was. She responded by lipping me with her velvet trunk, touching my face, throat, chest, smelling and blowing hot air
all over me as she did. The strength in her trunk was sudden, going from a gentle caress to wrapping around my middle and pulling me towards her open, wet mouth. I never got that far, as she stopped. Perhaps because I just kept my eyes on her deep, dark non-blinking eye. When is an elephant smiling?
Just look into their eye, that is the only way I could tell. I would say she was actually chuckling at me.

Then she would express these tiny "hoots", like someone saying "hmm."
I kept my hands running near her leathery face and "hmm"ed back. She just kept running her nose around, as if she was going to find a peanut in my bra.

Janie, from the circus PR department, took some photos. Gosh! I hope they come out and I get one to share with y'all!

My family was waiting out in their seats, and, suddenly, I was standing with Jonathan, a handsome, 6'4" black man bedecked in sequins and long red topcoat...the ringmaster!

It was dark behind the curtain. We were cracking each other up with ringmaster jokes. I was thanking him for allowing me to sing the National Anthem (usually his job), but he said he's sung it 20,000 times and he was glad I was doing it tonight. Then, it was time! The man on the stool pulled the rope: the curtains parted. Out went the clowns. Clowns with giant rubber balls of yellow, green and pink. Out went Johnathan. Strolling in knee high shiny black boots.
Back in came Johnathan. The curtains closed. He took my arm; I told him to remember to kneel when he asked me to marry him. Ha ha. Time to go! Curtains parted, again.

We walked to the middle ring. Johnathan said something, but I was concentrating on starting on the right note (can't start too low or too high...either way is trouble!) And WHAM! The spotlight was on ME! The entire arena was dark except for the circus toy lights kids buy and swing around, eerie little rings of light. I hit my note and went for it. Wow. A GREAT sound system makes singing such a DEE-LIGHT! I sang to Asia, the elephant I had just been hanging with, and she walked around the three rings, flag and girl on her back, and I held that "land of the freeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee" with all my might.
Good God, I love to sing that song! God bless America! God bless this world!

The circus was just AWESOME! Except that Lily and I were grumbling about animal rights, we loved it all. The SIX guys on motorcycles in the GLOBE OF DEATH (how how how do they do that?! I couldn't even watch...what if just one of them slips...!) Belo the clown...hilarious! Tightropewalkers! Cotton candy!
Tigers! Camels! (I love camels. They are so sassy!) And, of course, little dogs dressed like clowns, chirpy and slap-happy. One of the dogs was jumping on our friend, Todd's, back...he was chosen by a clown to come out into the middle ring (it was our ring! We were lord of the rings!) And Lily was chosen, too, to be a "bubble girl", standing in the middle of a giant tub of water...encircled by a giant bubble the clown creating with a super wand...wow! I can only just keep saying WOW!

I have to go make breakfast now.

posted by Sara Hickman at 08:45 am
| permalink | | Share on Facebook

Page 1 of 2 pages  1 2 >