Today’s The Day for Ellen to know….
February 22, 2006

…that yesterday Jeff Goldblum got 15 new crickets in his cage.
…that I finished cleaning house so I can go hang with some friends over breakfast and laughter this morning.
…that my head cold is starting to feel less like camb snod and soon i will, hopefully, be breathing normally, again.
…that i am working hard on so many projects to further champion “MOTHERLODE’S” cd release, my head is starting to spin.
…that i will be referring to eugene ionesco at the end of this entry!!!

yesterday, teresa, my lovely assistant, and i had to hold back tears cuz there is only the two of us and we really believe in this album and we try to keep on top of the workload, but good golly miss molly! how can one little label have so much to do….! i am NOT complaining because teresa and i love what we do, there’s just days where we look at each other and need to stop and have a donut but we don’t because then we will get really behind (and feel hyper, followed by the intense desire to nap, from the donut fest.)

so, my goal is to have this album:

pay back the investors (first thing)

buy my baby a new pair of shoes (baby? what? what baby? is she having a baby?! no, no, calm down. i just was saying i could buy
EVERYONE in the family some new shoes so no more shuffling to school in bare feet…what?! BAREFEET!? no, no, we all have shoes. everything is fine. really!)

continue to help the causes i believe in and make the world shine and revel in healing instead of being downtrodden

this is all for today!
love,
sara

MANY HOURS LATER: THINKING BIG THOUGHTS!!!

no, no, this is not all…i must write more… because the day has been so great i have to share more about it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

you know, ellen, if you lived down the street, i swear we would be toilet papering someone’s house late at night. i just think that could happen.


ANYHOO!

i have to put this quote in here that my friend, tricia mitchell, sent to me after she found out i had written a song about my great-great-oh-so-great grandparents (john and abigail adams)…i can’t remember if i told you this, but they were the first to move into the unfinished white house….and tricia wrote me to say that john adams said:

“people and nations are forged in the fires of adversity!”

isn’t that intense? i love it!

so, tricia says i should quote that liberally, every chance i get. she says next time someone says,

“how are you today, sara?”

i could respond, “oh, well, i’m doing alright, but i’m a little down. but, you know, people and nations are forged in the fires of adversity, old grandpop used to say.”

ha ha ha!!! i love it.

…since i last wrote (this morning), i went to two SUP-AH meetings: one with a group of very intelligent, thought provoking folks talking about spirituality from all walks of life: b’hai, jewish, christian, buddhist, catholic, muslim….yowza! it was really a great way to start the morning…

…and, then, while i was at the gathering, i had an idea on how to solve a problem i’ve been having over the new artwork for MOTHERLODE. i realized i need to place three simple words on the cover:

START THE DIALOGUE.

do you see? do you see how people in this country need to start talking about so many issues, including women’s rights, sexuality,
death, AIDS, spousal abuse, spirituality, child welfare, homelessness, parenting, cell phones, DVD players in cars (i’m so against this…but, that’s me! see, we could talk about it!), animal rights, gay rights, taxes, laughter, fear, books….you name it. let’s just get informal and formal groups to meet, oh, every tuesday (or whatever is convenient for the entire united states!!!) and people around the country pick a topic and really DIG IN and explore what is causing so much FEAR.

START THE DIALOGUE…

let the conversations begin!!!!

THEME MUSIC FOR “START THE DIALOGUE” starts here….swells into a giant wave of emotion, applause, lights up…the hostess walks to the comfy chair in the middle of the stage, with her guests in tow, everyone takes a seat. it is a conversation in the round.
the audience participates in the dialogue.

ok…then from this meeting, i went to FOODHEADS and ate some yummy lunch with my husband, teresa, and members of cartis group to discuss the new concept of adding the words to the cd cover.

SUCCESS!!! everyone was elated and we all could see bumperstickers everywhere:

START THE DIALOGUE

…a return to conversation.

ok, i am getting up to go have a tea party with iolana and her friend, anna mae.

ONE HOUR LATER

while sitting on the sofa, i was treated to a royal performance of the two girls, neon scarves, marching, singing, a bouncing eyeball,
songs of scary monsters, insight into five year olds likes about the crazy and not crazy boys in their classrooms, butter crackers, screaming yellow zonkers (the flavored popcorn that is so delicious), hot tea with cream and sugar. lucky, the dog, was lazily upside down in my lap, watching the festivities while i lazily scratched her tummy and giggled to the antics. i was informed THERE WAS TO BE NO TALKING during the performance, only mime and dance and i could ask questions and i could sing along (except everything was being made up on the spot, especially when anna mae grabbed a drum and said firecrackers were exploding and little feet would be popping (you just go with it!) and iolana started chanting, “clean up on aisle 3!!!” then it was suddenly air guitars and changing of the names: iolana was now “kristina” and anna mae was suddenly “kate”. hmm. if i had had the opportunity to change my name, if would have been TRIXIE BELDEN because she was the coolest girl in the world when i was young. of course, my mom was always telling me someday i’d grow up and be GLAD my name wasn’t “trixie”, but i liked it cuz it rhymed with “pixie” and trixie was a tomboy and she wasn’t afraid of ANYTHING or ANYBODY and she never had to wear shoes!

it reminded me of college, when i was in a performance of “the bald sopranos” by eugene ionesco. i stood on a chair and got to make up a song about anything i wanted. and i didn’t have to wear shoes! that so rocked!

posted by Sara Hickman at 07:42 am
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Ellen, where does the time go?
February 18, 2006

Whoo! I’m telling you. Has it really been almost a week since I wrote? You know what? How does ANYBODY have time to get their nails done? Mine always look sporty cuz they are running track with life. They never slow down! Although, tonight, I filled the tub with this green bath salts that smells like peppermint and oatmeal… I got it at the most adorable grocery store down the street (Sun Harvest)…let me know if you want some and I will send it along… and then I soaked in the tub for 35 minutes. I didn’t read the paper. I didn’t count my toes. I didn’t daydream or think of things I needed to be doing. I just sat there in the steam and fell asleep. Oh, it was so glorious. I could hear children laughing down the hall, and my husband was in the bedroom folding laundry, and I just drifted off into the most yummy sleep.

Which, when I woke up, made me think about being a mom. And how great it is. And then it made me think about how all the moms I know are swell people, and all the times my mommy friends have gone to bat for me, or patted me on the back, or taken my children for a playdate so I could take a nap or clean the house, or the times we’ve actually all gotten together and had dinner and a drink and a good, long laugh over the stories of our lives.

So, I’d like to thank all the moms I know, and I know you know what I mean cause you really relish your mom, so maybe I’ll just start right there…with the long line of moms in my family, as far back as I can remember:

MY MOM’S SIDE

Great Great Great Grandma Abigail Adams…thank you for having all those kids and for running the farm and writing all those love letters to your husband and for having a quick wit and describing child birth in detail by penning to John while he was away. I bet you never got manicures, either.

(Missing this link in here)

Great Grandma Mamoo….you were one tough broad, birthing 11 children and living in a two room house in Alabama. I can not believe you were married for 75 years. I’ve got good memories of sleeping in your house and watching my great-aunts can fresh veggies and sweet strawberries just like you did. I know I sat on your knee. It was bony, but that’s cause you worked yourself honest.

Meema—-Well, you sure could be stingy and sharp with your tongue, but you taught me how to play cards and enjoy baseball on the radio. You helped me build tents out in the piney woods of Atlanta, and you were the first person to ever call me a bitch! But, I was a
moody teenager at the time, and I deserved it, probably, so there was a part of me that thought you were on to something and I thank you for that early lesson.

My mom—-who likes to be called “Zelda” for no other reason than it makes you happy, who can tear up a bathroom and rebuild it in a day, who introduced me to weaving and clay and drawing and let me buy all the dinosaur models I wanted as a child. Who didn’t guffaw when I came out dressed up as Santa at, cotton balls glued all over my face, because you knew I wanted to make the smaller kids down the street smile. Who let me have cats and guinea pigs, and cried with me when my dogs had to go away (allergies.) Who let me
staple animal pictures torn out of all the National Geographics all over my bedroom wall, and let me build volcanoes out of mud in the back yard. Who hired guitar teachers and read me books and explained what the future could be and has stood by my side, all my life, and ran down the empty halls of that giant hotel in Dallas, where we laughed, alone, and felt like the last two people on earth. Who sits in the audience when I sing and gazes up at me, sometimes singing along, and now has audiences of her own, wooing them with her poems and stories and shared faith of hope and glory. Who helped me birth my children and picked me up when I passed out, and washed my body as a tiny baby and , then, as a broken woman, and told me I could be whatever I wanted to be in this big, old world…but that I must never give up. That there is a light at the end of every dark tunnel. Thank you, mommy.

And to all my mommy friends….Julie, Leah, Alice, Corinna, Nina, Margaret, Rory, Sarah, Jen, Emily, Diane, Bertha, Fran, Karen, Lorrie, Lori, Sharon, Lisa, Kathy, Corinne, Kim, Kelly, Candi, Louise, Mickey…..oh, the list is so long!!!…all my girlfriends who are mothers and who bond together to make the days memories of shared dreams, gentle touch and a community of yes. Thank you.

MY DAD’S SIDE

Great-Great Grandma Orr…I didn’t know you, but I know you drove mules and farmed, too. I also know you were from Germany and had my great-grandfather, who became an opera singer. That’s so cool.

Great Grandma Hickman…I don’t know a thing about you! Why is that? I am so sad. I must find out.

Grandma…You let me sit by your side on the piano bench while you and Grandpa played “Five Foot Two” and “Moonlight in Vermont” and “Jeepers Creepers”, and the songs you wrote together…Grandpa playing his saxophone, you sweeping with intent and
relish across the keys, watching your feet change pedals, the top open to let the chords round the room and fill my heart with excitement. Golden threaded slippers and staying up late at the circular glass kitchen table to play solitaire, and always, ALWAYS, making food for everyone, never stopping to sit down and join us, working the rug between table and stove. You with the colored miniature glass bottles, the morning sun sneaking through to dot your countertop with reds and blues and orange and green. A closet full of fancy clothes, furs and ancient quilts from long ago, the cedar bursting in my nose and taking me back in time. You who laughed at my childish jokes and whose hands were fine, and delicate, and I could hold one in my hand and we would sit and say nothing at all.
Asking me questions, after my parents divorce, gently, trying to find the source of my sorrow. You who pasted the picture of me and George Burns right onto the wallpaper in the entranceway of your home so each and every person who walked in the door could see who your granddaughter had met.

You are all the women who reminded me, and taught me, and carried me, and urged me, to have a room of my own.

And for this, I am eternally grateful, with all my heart. And I will teach my daughters the same thing…to notice the texture of the cloth they wear, to hear the sounds of the early mockingbird, to enjoy the color of the sunset and the taste of Morocco and the journey of an excellent read. To weep when someone is hurting, to reach out and help or share a laugh, to tithe, to clean up after themselves, to write thank you notes, to enjoy the surprise of a gift or flowers, to carry on when they are so weary they just want to lay down their heads and pass out, to enjoy their childhood and regale in their womanhood, to ask when they don’t understand, and to surround themselves with
people of their own gender who can walk the road of life as a comrade in arms….

posted by Sara Hickman at 08:48 pm
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Sunday Showcase at Folk Alliance
February 15, 2006

my sunday showcase… me and the astounding fiddle player, richard bowden… pic by winker

posted by Sara Hickman at 10:14 am
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Ellen: Here’s My Top Ten Moments of The Folk Alliance

Ok, I’m sure some of you are wondering…who is Ellen and why do I keep addressing my blog entries to her? Well, I just thought it would be interesting to start a dialogue with Ellen DeGeneres about what I do everyday because I’d like to be on her show in 2006. So, after I write down these entries, I print them out, decorate an envelope, and mail them off to Ellen. To date, she’s had three envelopes sent to her offices. (Each envelope is numbered, too…#1, #2, #3, etc.)

I don’t know if she’ll actually ever see them, but my hope is that someone in her production company will start noticing these giant, creatively colored envelopes and read the enclosed…and, then, actually come visit here and see that I have a letter writing campaign started. So, any feedback or help you want to give will be very appreciated by yours truly…and my little dog, Lucky, too!

Ok, I was trying to write in backwards time for the previous Ellen letter, and I had to get back to my mommy world and didn’t have a chance to finish. So, instead of backwards time, we are now in Top Ten List mode; I think it will be more efficient and my fingers won’t cramp so quickly….(writing in backwards time doesn’t really require one to write backwards, but my fingers get stiff nowadays. Probably due to not enough Girl Scout cookie consumption.)

TOP TEN MOMENTS AT THE FOLK ALLIANCE

10) Escalators! Getting to ride up and down and wave hello every time you go. And hearing that Dana Cooper was on an elevator, pushed the “L” button for the lobby and said, “I’m going to L!” Ha ha ha.

9) Reading the name tags and saying “OH, you’re…!!!” and finally having faces to names or names to faces.

8) Hanging out in the bar…enough said. As many of you know, I ‘m not a big drinker because I am already high on life, so any liquor just makes me laugh out loud, dance on tables, want to kiss everyone, and then, immediately, fall straight into sleep. (I know, I know…I hear you…you’re saying..”And the difference is…?” Ha ha. Very funny.) But during the Folk Alliance I had one shot of Yeigermiester and one Fuzzy Navel. On two seperate nights. And my friends, Lorrie and Brad, drove me home after the Yeigermiester. See. I’m such a wuss!

7)…sitting in with Phil Parlapiano at his showcase and singing harmony to a room full of people lounging on beds and spellbound in chairs. I love Phil’s voice, I love his energy. He had on his hat and he doesn’t need to grab you or entice you…he just opens his mouth to share his songs and play his keyboard or accordian and there you are… In a very great place, enjoying a musician at his finest.
First time to run into Eric (Lowen) and Dan (Navarro) after years and years…and that was moving for me…I had no idea that Eric has Lou Gehrig’s disease, and so I was feeling all these feelings…and Eric is so classy, so warm and inviting, he lifts you up and makes everything alright and what a kind, kind man he is. And Dan’s got a husky voice with a timbre of bitterness but a heart of gold and the fact that he and Eric have been singing together for what, 20 years?, makes me feel nothing short of awe. The two of them blend like
birds fly…with ease and grace. I kept resting my head on Dan’s arm while singing with Phil (he was playing piano, so couldn’t rest there)…thank you, Phil, for the invitation.

6) The exquisite showcase by Anna Wolfe. Her voice is lilting and takes you to a simpler time, and she looks like a sweet faced angel…tall, with round toed shoes, and interesting lace and cotton clothing that isn’t over the top…she is honest and takes your heart by the hand and leads it into this world of little stories. She doesn’t need anything but her guitar to take you on a real journey into the soul of what a musical experience can be. Stunning. My other top favorite musical experience.

5)… running into Terri Lord (excellent human being and fantastic, groove oriented drummer) in the hotel lobby, who introduced me to Zoe Lewis, a moppy curled bright eyed high energy wonder…and I am so glad I met her! I went to her showcase and it was the best performance I saw at the whole shebang. This woman has energy, enthusiasm, light, curiousity, joy and a head full of words that burst forth in her infectious, upbeat songs. And she can play the guitar. And the piano (she was EXCELLENT on the keyboards). And she plays mean wooden spoons. Wow. All I can say is WOW.

4) making things right with Sarah Elizabeth Campbell (that was the Yeigermiester night…it is the drink of courage and forgiveness. Remember that.) Thank you, Sarah.

3) …my showcase for GoGirl and meeting Madlyn (I don’t think I’m spelling that right…sorry Madelyn…Madeliene…Maddy…Miss M…umm….) My friend, Lorrie Singer, sat in with me and gave her all….and the blessing of Richard Bowden and Michael Rubin just popping on up to sit in…wow! I love being a mom musician. The weird thing was that the artists were told we’d have 30 minutes, but right before I went on stage, the production manager says, “Everyone gets 20 minutes…” So, I go on stage and sing four songs,
but having been told I could do two more, I start into one and finish and then the same production manager glides up to the stage and gives me THE LOOK, and I lean over and whisper, “How much time do I have?” and she says “YOU’RE 2 MINUTES OVER!!!” and I stand up quick and say into the mic, “Well, that’s all! Gotta stop!” And the folks in the audience start saying “NOOOOOOOOOOOO!” and “LET HER PLAY!” and I was kinda giddy over that! But, you know, someone else needed to come up…however, I also knew that this was IT…you know what I mean? The whole CARPE DIEM thing?….so I realize that Madylyn/The Very Cool Woman who put on the showcase was sitting right there on the front row, so I ask her…”What should I do?” and she announces, “LET HER PLAY ON!” and I finish out with “Everything’s Red” and everyone’s on their feet and WHOOSH! It is over. Lots of excitement and people handing me business cards and that was fun. I made sure the woman artist after me wasn’t upset…she was cool, we had met years back, and she sounded great….! But she was ticked with the amount of time allotted, too…so she was letting the Alliance know.

2) meeting the elegant and funny Jonathan Edwards and hanging out with my assistant lady Teresa (Davis McLarty gave her that new monikor and it is sticking)…Aside to Jonathan/Teresa..how did we end up in this bar again?!….seeing Val Denn’s joy every floor and reaquainting withTaylor (what a great son! he is cute to boot!), Rod Kennedy (and his classy girlfriend, Linda), Dalis, Danny and Rene Britt, meeting Ellen Stanley and Chris from Redhouse, John Gorka (he has the best impish smile…what is he up to? hmm….), working on Michael Lille’s record twice at Flashpoint…first with Kristin (love you…you crack me up!) and Tom Kimmel and Eugene and Diane French.. and the second time, yesterday morning, with Tom Prasado Rao…which was conveniently located two blocks from the Hilton…seeing Vic and Reba (we have a book club going), seeing Ros and Howard, thanking the Epiphone cats at their booth for my new endorsement (via Gibson), the great time I had with Vivian and John for the radio interview “The Art of Song” on Creativity Radio (out of New Mexico)…meeting the sweet Cheryl and David from Folk-n Great Music Concert Series in Maryland..hanging out in the hallway with Mark Hallman and Kevin Wommack, shooting the s***…laughing with John Kunz and Kathy Marcus about books and broadway and showing everyone my new cd artwork and seeing what they think (it is a beautiful kama sutra illustration by local artist Aletha St. Romain)…hearing Bradley Kopp play great guitar…seeing Bill Oliver….running into old friends and making new ones…Winker, swimming through the throngs of people and always showing up when I needed a familiar, loving face…Seeing Todd at the children’s show….Seeing Joe and Louise….coming home exhausted and my husband and children loving me anyway….Finding parking RIGHT IN FRONT OF THE HOTEL!!!…oh, yea. That’s called valet. Ha ha. Losing my name tag and it didn’t really matter. That made me feel ten feet tall!

1) And the number one moment…..Sitting in with Lowen and Navarro, Phil Paralpiano, Ronnie Cox, Eliza Gilkinson, Wendy Waldman, Karen Mal, Michael Ramos, Joel Rafael, Jimmy La Fave, and a host of others during the Lowen and Navarro showcase. Listening to Eric Lowen sing his a** off was really inspiring, and everyone, arm in arm, singing along…just beautiful. The spirit of love in the room was blending out into the hallway and down the escalators and out onto the streets of Austin and must have flown worldwide: that’s how big it was.

posted by Sara Hickman at 09:00 am
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Love Alliance
February 14, 2006

that is phil parlapiano, me and dan navarro (of lowen and navarro) at my children’s show at folk alliance this weekend… phil and i wrote “stupid love” and he produced the track for the new cd… preview it on this month’s podcast.
photo by todd wolfson!

posted by Sara Hickman at 08:55 am
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Love is in the air

Henri, the wonderful soul who named my DVD, has gotten married! She sends these pictures from Australia… what a sweetheart!!!

We had a wonderful day — and being married is different but good! A little surreal sometimes.
I surprised my darling man Mark by singing to him a classic Dusty Springfield — ‘I only want to be with you’ — acapella with three others, and he loved it. Got to sing with my darling friends who had organised to sing “Love is simple” by k.d. lang to us whilst we cut the cake — lots of people were very moved by it all.

So here are a few snaps just to let you know how it went. Keep on singing!

P.S. the church is the same church my parents got married in and I was Christened in — the oldest Greek Orthodox church in the Southern hemisphere!

Love and hugs

henri
x

a day of love around the world!!!

posted by Sara Hickman at 08:11 am
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Ellen…Love is Everywhere!
February 12, 2006

Dear Ellen,

I will go through backwards time to describe what has happened in the last few days.

I’ll start with yesterday:

SATURDAY, Feb 11

4:00 - 9:30 pm After taking iolana (our five year old) to Bridget’s for a sleepover, Lance and I headed to the Hill Country so I could sing in Kevin & Kevin’s committment ceremony. I had asked one of the Kevin’s what color they would like me to wear for the event, and he had said “Brown”…and I said, “Ooh! Like chocolate!?” and he said, “Well, I was thinking mocha…”

Of all the weddings I have been to in my life, this one took the cake. The minute we arrived, I could FEEL that this was a blessed event.
Set way atop a mountain (ok, I think some people would call it a really tall hill, but I’m saying “mountain”), you could see out over a lake
with tiny sail boats, and the sun was that golden syrup of late day yellow, pouring down on all the beautiful trees that were shimmering outside the clear, gorgeous windows. The Kevins had their black lab, Jasmine, take part of the entire ceremony, and she looked lovely in a collar of yellow daisies and purple silk ribbon. She only barked once, right in the middle of “Faithful Heart”, and it was perfect timing.
It was if she was saying, “YES!” to the whole affair. It made me want to bark, too!

Father John Mark officiated the ceremony, with words of humor that lead into a depth of God’s grace that was so profoundly moving, I had to hold back tears. He talked about how God is still creating everyday, how Love is Love and that all of us in the room were expanding the love that Kevin and Kevin shared not only with each other, but with each of us, within their community.

Everything about the day exemplified how two souls can enrich not only each other’s lives, but enrich everyone around them. And, in exchange, then receive back the love that they have manifested. And, standing up with these two fine human beings, sharing the gift of music, I loved seeing two SOULS exchanging promises, two SOULS announcing their feelings and their hearts, and the desire to share their committment with one another with those they love.

As Father John Mark announced, when two come together in love, nothing can break that bond, and the church and the state can
bless or not bless a union, but the union has already been confirmed because the knot was tied long ago….

3:00 pm I got a phone call from dear Vic that I was supposed to be singing at his showcase at the Folk Alliance, a huge event that has musicians from all over the world descending on Austin this weekend…And I was so deflated, I had to tell Vic I didn’t know about it, and that I was on my way to go sing at a wedding. I felt terrible. I had seen Vic and Reba the day before and asked about the showcases, and no one mentioned my being on their roster, and I just had no idea I was suppsed to be there. This is only the second time I’ve ever missed a performance and I love Vic and Reba so very much, I would never want to upset them. This can only be cleared up in person, which I will do today (Sunday) when I head back over to the Alliance. (Sounds like I’m on the good side in Star Wars..I like that!)

1:00 pm We are at the Hilton Hotel, where the Folk Alliance is being held. I’m here with Joe McDermott and a lot of other children’s musicians, waiting to perform for the children’s showcase. We’ve just been informed that instead of having 30 minutes to do a set each, all the groups will now only have 8 MINUTES to perform. Ha ha ha. I tell the sound engineer, “Well, for some of us, that’s one song!” Of course, everyone gets up and it’s fun for the kids and Joe has a great set and then I pop on stage and have Phil Parlapiano, Bob Livingston, Dan Navarro and Bill Oliver hop up and we sing “I Wish You Well” and that was FUN!!! I ‘ve never had all male professional singers sit in with me like that. Ooh-la-la, it was suh-weet! But, of course, too short. I see friends. I take pictures. It’s time to go, we are heading out the door to get home to change for the wedding.

8:00 am Everybody up! io’s basketball game is at 9:00. Breakfast eaten? Check. Shoes and socks on? Check. Feed the dog? Check. Let the dog out to poop? Check. Let’s go! We stop on the way to pick up aftergame snacks for all (today a special treat: Rice Krispie bars!!! Whoo-hoo!) The game is great and noisy and lots of squeaky sneakers.

4:00 am Get up to let the dog out to pee. Back to bed.

posted by Sara Hickman at 07:02 am
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What a Small World, Ellen
February 10, 2006

Hi, Ellen!

My friend, George Marinelli, makes gum chewing an art. I saw him chewing away on your show the other day (he plays guitar with Bonnie Raitt), and I had to laugh. Forget guitar endorsements! He needs to represent a gum company!

Thinking about gum made me start thinking about what an amazing world we live in. There are people in this world who can make anything!

Like gum. Who figured out that a rubbery substance from a tree would be fun to put in your mouth? Who taste tested this idea?
Did anyone try to swallow gum, in the early days? I’m thinking it had to be cave people, the early gum chewers. The way I see it, maybe a bolt of lightning hit a tree, and this gooey sap was left in a gaping hole, and someone who happened to be sleeping nearby was awakened by the jolting light and sound, saw the sap and thought, “Hmm, me hungry.” They stuck their hairy, dirty hand into the goo (this is what led to soap, later on….dirty hands were never attractive)…Pop a plop of goo into their mouth and chew and chew and chew until, finally, after a couple of hours, realize, “This no food. This chewy!”

DId they spit it out, then and there, only to have Jocono (another cave person) walk out and step in it? Did Jocono say to the Chewing Man, “What this?!” Did a fight ensue? Did gum lead to early deaths? Or was gum revered as the stickiest substance discovered, and then utilized in some other way, like making rocks stick together, or early hair styles? Darn. Why was the camera invented so late!?

Well, since I wrote you my first letter, I’ve had a lot on my plate. I have this new record that is going to be released in May, around Mother’s Day, called “MOTHERLODE”. It is a two disc set that exemplifies what all a mom/musician thinks about; well, at least, what I think about. (I think about a lot of things. But you knew that. I’m only on my second letter to you, but I bet you can see my brain has a lot of hyperactivity. In fact, that was an entirely different blog entry, a while back…I wrote about my brain, Roger. I’ll insert the link here that will take you to that entry, if you want to read my conversation with my brain.)

Oh, and what else. I am running for a trustee position within NARAS (National Association of Recording Arts and Sciences, the folks that bring you the Grammys. Which, by the way, I enjoyed your introduction of Paul McCartney. (I love how YOUR brain works. And… how cool was that, to introduce THE MAN!!!!? Did you get to chat afterwards? I hope so! I hope you had your cell phone with you and took lots of pictures!!! I’m sure you were tickled to hang out with a BEATLE!!!! Which reminds me of an elevator ride I had with Pete Townshend…but that ‘s another story….)



And I was excited to audition as a host for a PBS children’s show last Monday. That was an honor! I created a little segment called “Austin Kiddie Limits” with about thirty kids on the Austin City Limits soundstage. Ellen, have you been to a taping of Austin City Limits?
Next time you have some free time, you have to go to one! It is one of the best musical experiences you can have! They have these amazing, giant cranes that move through the air like ultra-quiet robotic arms, filming the musicians on stage, and the audience is smart and attentive and the energy is BOOM! WOW!!! Zaaaap! Electric! Next date night you have, check it out. Then you can go over to 34th Street Cafe and have some really yummy food with interesting wallpaper. (Well, there isn’t wallpaper in the food, I just mean that the wallpaper on the walls is interesting to look at while eating the food.) If you go there, make sure and buy an ENTIRE coconut cake. It is so good. But if you don’t buy it when you first walk in the door, forget it. It will disappear and you won’t get to even try a bite.

Ok, I’m trying to keep these letters to you short, and I have to go clean the house now. Next time I’ll try to write to you about my snake, Jeff Goldblum. He is the sweetest. You would get along great! He will sit in your hair. He is tiny and green and very well behaved.

Adios!
Sara

posted by Sara Hickman at 11:57 am
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Dear Ellen
February 07, 2006

Dear Ellen,

Say, I hear you dance like no body’s business! I think this is exciting news. Yes, this is very good news! Good news for ME because, you see, my dancing needs improvement. I’m still dancing like it is 1979 and I’m at the prom with the boy whose name I can’t remember and then my mom shows up with her camera and…well, you get the picture.

“So”, you may say to yourself, “What has that got to do with me?”

Well, let me explain.

This may take me a couple of letters. Maybe a couple of months worth of letters. I’m not sure. But I know where to begin. The beginning. Cuz, as you know, the beginning is a very good place to start.

I’m not starting at the beginning, like, where I was born (Jacksonville, NC) or when I first started playing the guitar (when I was 7)
or how I knew I wanted to make the world a better place at 5 (after a bath, it just came to me while my mom was drying me off; I declared, “I’m an angel and I’m sent here to make people happy!” and my mom said, “That’s nice, dear!”) No, I won’t bore you with all that stuff. I’m going to get right to the heart of the matter.

It was 1977, and I was fourteen years old. I was standing in a field outside of my grandparents house, just standing, staring at the sky through the trees, feeling the warmth of summer on my skin. Just relaxing. Well, the darndest thing happened. At that very moment, I realized I had lost a very precious ring that belonged to my great-grandmother. And as it hit me that the ring was gone, my eyes
woke up to the fact that finding the ring would be impossible…there were wildflowers and tall grasses as far as I could see. That ring was a goner, for sure.

I went inside, tears in my eyes, guilt on my heart. My step-mom, Gaye, was sitting at the kitchen table, talking to my grandma. When I told her what happened, she told me to close my eyes and visualize the ring. So, I closed my eyes,
and tried to visualize the ring. Gold. Round. Two jade stones and engraved letters on the inside of the ban. I was thinking, “This is silly.
Why am I doing this…?” Blah blah blah. My mind wouldn’t stop being negative! But, I focused on the ring…

Well, Gaye says, “I’ll be right back.” She leaves the kitchen, heads down the porch stairs and my grandma and I watch her walk, with
grace and confidence, out into the field. She was standing very still, and suddenly, she moved with determination to a spot out halfway into the weeds, bent over, picked something up, turned to us and hollered, “Is this your ring?”

AND IT WAS!!!!! It WAS my ring.

So, Ellen, this is why I believe I will get to dance with you some day. These stories to tell: I’m just going to keep telling them to you.
These stories have led me to a place where I truly believe nothing is impossible. All anyone has to do is work hard at their craft, have faith, and, oh, yes, write a lot of letters!

In my mind’s eye, I see me (nervous and excited), and I see you (smiling and confident) and we are standing on the soundstage of your show, and I am laughing out loud as I learn to boogie-oogie-oggie to your happy steps.

And I see me (playing the guitar and singing) and I see you (with mic in hand, singing along) as we lead your audience in something we can all sing along….

Well, I will close for today. I have chores to do and house to clean and Girl Scout cookies to organize. We still have about four boxes of Thin Mint, if you are interested! Or, if you are calorie concious, we have the Lemon Pastries. Mmm.

As my friend eight year old friend Clara says,
“Toodles!”

Sara

posted by Sara Hickman at 07:51 am
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Dear God
February 02, 2006

Dear God,

In five hours, I will be in a taxi, heading towards the airport and a plane with my name painted on the side saying, “Come fly with me!”, jumping off in Houston, and teaching teachers about how to be even more creative with kids.

But you know all this.

In fact, you know what I’m going to type before I type it. S-e-e. You knew I was going to push that “s” letter, and the following “e”s. Hmm.
I can’t fool you….but what… if I did…. this

la;sldtz n ;s hghe gk ndfgesirhlsdgdkfgsidgncgij
ldorn
ikdft

Ha! Didn’t see that coming, did you?

Ok, ok. That probably translates to something in Minsk or Norse or Nordic or some old fashioned Swahili. I can’t pull the wool over your eyes.

But, here’s my question.

You keep sending me all these amazing projects. And, mind you, I am very happy to accept these assignments, really, I am!…but I have a beef about a couple of things concerning all these opportunities.

Before I mention the beefs, is it ok I’m bringing them to your attention in a public format? I mean, that’s ok, right? If your own creation can’t ask away, well, why do we have zippers?

Anyway, back to my concerns.

One, opportunities always seem to appear when I’m already working on the most recent four or five that have come down the pike, plus juggling family and the new dog that poops on everything. Why is that? Why don’t opportunities come when we are pining away for something fresh and zesty in our lives? When we are tired of the same bowl of cereal or looking for a new job or stuck in a rut. Why doesn’t it rain when we are dehydrated? Ok, just had to put that up to ya.

So, anyhoo, my plate is full. It looks like an IHOP Fresh and Fruity Rootie-Tootie on steriods. And, don’t get me wrong! I love the ol’ Fruit Toot-de-toot! Who doesn’t? Especially when it comes with a cute waiter and a steamin’ cup of joe with massive amounts of that weird cream in the little white plastic containers. I love to peel those things open! Whoever invented those, well, they had the right idea of convenience mixed with immediate gratification. And, best of all, THEY ARE FREE! No one ever has to pay for them!

You know, I like to pour about twenty of them in my decaf, and then stack them end to end to make a miniature plastic Leaning Tower of Pisa. I don’t know how the cute waiter feels about it, but it’s a fun morning challenge for me to create an entire city of non-dairy creamer containers, with non-dairy creamer rivers connecting the entire lot. AND…If your waiter still likes you, you can ask for a straw and carefully remove the paper condom but pinching it all the way down to one end, all crushed together neatly,
and pour creamer on that, and it slowly unfolds like an undulating paper snake! Yesh!

So, back to my dilemna.

Two, the ideas that begin to start EXPLODING in my weary brain due to the aforementioned opportunities are magical and festive, but I don’t need fireworks at night. As you know, this is a big problem with me….fireworks = big lights in the sky= NO SLEEP FOR THE LADY.
No sleep for the lady makes mama crotchety, and who wants THAT adjective attached to themselves?!

Thus, I would like to request that you and I solve this insomnia once and for all. You keep sending me a workload and I’ll sleep. Doesn’t that sound like a plan? Ah, it sounds like such a plan to me.

(Well, you should know. You created it! I’m just spelling it out.)

But, how God, how? How do I sleep? Could you send me a remedy? (Don’t send me one that isn’t covered by insurance cuz those remedies don’t work, trust me, I know.) How about a simple, cost efficient remedy, something that I keep on my person, and I just
reach out as I lay my head down to sleep, and there it is, all cuddly and warm and intoxicating…and I close my eyes and drift off into deep blue skies…

Something kind of Amish. I think the Amish have it going on. In fact, I wouldn’t be surprised to discover the Amish invented that non-dairy creamer.

So, please, when you have a moment, let’s sit down, and show me the Amish sleep remedy and I will take it…I promise!…I will take it nightly at the same time and I will sleep so darn good and feel all refreshed and ready to take on any and everything and there will be a zip to my step. Thank you.

Amen.

posted by Sara Hickman at 12:14 am
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