Listen to the Music

We’ve been on a bit of a vacation recently.  Let me explain. No, there is too much.  Let me sum up.  Mark, Kim, Steve & I went to Sonama, California to visit some wineries and attend an amazing concert.    We visited some wineries in both Sonoma and Napa Valley.  This turned out to be a fun experience as well as educational.  If you haven’t ever done this type of trip, I highly suggest you put it on your list. 

Here we are in front of one of the beautiful vineyards. 

It was interesting learning how it goes from this:

to this:

The countryside was just breathtaking.

This was what one person had to say about our time at Sebastiani’s Winery, where they were having an Italian Festival.  I think it sums it all up for you:

On Sunday we went to a fun concert at BR Cohn winery.  Bruce Cohn is the manager for the Doobie Brothers.  He also owns runs (and lives at) a very successful, beautiful winery.  Each year he holds a benefit concert at the winery with the proceeds going to various local charities.   The concert is held at the winery overlooking the vineyards - it was a gorgeous California afternoon.

This was the view behind the stage:

 

We went on Sunday - in case you can’t read it - here was the line up.  Doobies, Robert Cray, Dave Mason, The Turtles (remember “Happy Together”?) and Lara Johnston (Doobies lead guy, Tom Johnston’s daughter).  I have to say, the main draw for us was Dave Mason - who was outstanding.  Here is Bruce Cohn (on the right) getting ready to introduce Dave Mason.

I have a great video clip of Dave’s intro and first song but, it seems you can’t put on concert clips - is that right?  Am I really going to be arrested if I post a clip of the concert on you tube?  Someone help me out here.

Anyway, here are the Turtles:

Robert Cray:

and the Doobies:

And this is me after the concert with the Marc Russo the sax player:

 

Yes, he was walking by and I asked if I could take a picture with him.  I told him I thought he was an amazing musician but, in case you were worried, I stopped short of telling him about my own saxaphone experience.  He was very gracious and fun to talk to.  I also have a picture with the bass player but it is on Kim’s camera.  Our taxi was delayed getting to us so most of the crowd was gone and these guys were just hanging around.

The day was great.   Just plain fun.

The Past

Ah, old friends - nothing like it, ya know? 

Here is a quick recap of the 1973 class reunion.  

We had an unusually fun group of girls that were close in high school - just so happens there were 12 of us, conveniently called the “dirty dozen”.  Now, mind you, we were good, clean cut girls who just liked doing crazy things together - mostly harmless fun.  So, Friday night 8 of the original group got together for a little reunion of our own.  8 out of 11 remaining (our dear friend, Carlene, died a few years ago - we missed her) was a pretty good turn out.  We brought pictures of our families and just enjoyed catching up on each other’s lives.  Great fun.  I used to have a picture of the dozen but, I can’t find it right now so this next visual will have to do. 

Somehow in just a few short (well quite a few) years we went from this:

to this:

4 of the 5 cheerleaders are in that last picture, can you recognize us?  Haven’t changed a bit, have we???

Then, Saturday was the big parade downtown.  Our class had a float - thanks to some hard working folks who put it together.  This is what we looked like headed down main street.

Look closely - those are our senior pictures on the edge of the float.

This is the group that participated in the float riding - yes we are all wearing tie-dye…

A few of us in front of Eldon’s business - check out the window behind us. 

Later in the day we had a tour of the high school and then we went to Curt’s house (classmate) for dinner and more visiting.  Here is the group at Curt’s:

 

Not sure why the picture is so grainy but, you get the idea.  Out of a class of 52 we had 24 show up.  A really good showing.  (Yes, you will find me in the back with the boys - I didn’t get the memo that the girls were all in the front row.)  Our thanks to Curt for letting us meet at his place and Vickie and Lisa for organizing us and for all those who decorated the float and the window at Inman Electric!  It was a great weekend - we look forward to our next get together in 5 years.  We are calling our next reunion “The Senior Sneak That Never Happened” (we were sent home after the first night - long story…).  We plan to make up for it in a big way!  If anyone who was there is reading this, it was great to see you!!!

35 years

That’s how many since graduation from the ole high school.  This weekend I will see people I haven’t seen in that many years.  Some of them were at the 20 year reunion but, I think only about 20 people showed up for that (out of a class of 52).  This should be a fun get together! 

We were instructed to each submit a few pictures of us from the past - baby, elementary school, senior picture, and some of us now - our family or significant others, etc.

Here’s a few of what I sent in…

baby

my 8th birthday - anyone see London in this picture??

my senior picture

And, when I was searching for pictures I ran across this gem - taken when I was a senior in high school.  This was the cheerleading team - this picture was in the Hutch newspaper in 1973.  I think everyone in this picture will be at the reunion - I hope so anyway - they were some of my best buds.

I’ll let you know how it goes.

Smoooooth

Yes folks, it’s time for another concert review.

Carlos Santana, 9-16-08, Ford Center, Oklahoma City, OK

Those in attendance (with approx 9,994 other people) were: Mark & Kim, Kent & Sylvia, and us.  We started the evening with a great meal at “Zios” and ended the evening at Mark & Kim’s house, where we all spent the night. 

And, as it was with the Eagles, Carlos (at age 61) still has the skills and energy to entertain in a big way!

I “borrowed” a few pictures from the Oklahoma City newspaper - seems we all arrived at the concert cameraless. Thought you might like to see what he looks like these days…

Really not that different.

His son, Salvador, warmed the crowd up with his own band - the Salvador Santana Band - you can see what he sounds like with his video ”Summer’s Day”, which he played.  He was ok, played about 45 minutes and included his own version of dad’s “Evil Ways”.  He is about 25 years old and pretty talented. 

He got us ready for the big guy….

Carlos opened his set with “Jingo” (Saben Que Hacer - Mexico cd anyone???)  I was very hopeful this would be in the set list - nice surpise to have him open with it!  His percussion consisted of 3 guys with drums galore!  I’ve never heard anything quite like it before.  The Latin beat was strong and loud!  Very impressive.  He did a good mix of old and new including “Smooth”, “Maria Maria”, “O Ye Como Va”, and “Black Magic Woman”.  He played for over 2 1/2 hours with his only breaks coming when he highlighted members of his band.  He was definitly not afraid to show off his talented band.  There were 11 of them counting Carlos. 

He came back for an encore and played “Soul Sacrifice” - showing pictures of Woodstock during the song.  I’m sure there were members of the audience that were actually there watching him play it in 1969 at Max Yasgur’s farm.  Hopefully they remembered it. 

Ok, I won’t bore you with anymore details. 

It was loads of fun.

Take it to the limit

Here goes with another concert review. 

We had the pleasure of seeing the Eagles in concert this last Saturday night in Tulsa.  Wow. 

Here’s how the weekend went down.  Friday night our dear sister/sister-in-law, Elo, flew in from Amarillo.  Yes, that’s Texas.

  

Others came in throughout Saturday and by concert time there were 13 of us assembled at Kilkenney’s Irish Pub for a great pre-concert meal.  Kent & Sylvia (our friends from Tulsa) two of their friends, Mark & Lisa (from Tulsa), Mark & Kim and their son Bryant and his new wife, Chandra(from Norman, OK), Joe & Diana, (also from Tulsa), Steve, Elo and me.  Let me add at this time that Kent, Mark, Joe and Steve all went to Hugoton High together. There was no shortage of stories and laughter!

We proceeded on to the concert at the new BOK Center in Tulsa.  This was the first event held at the new center.  We were priviledged to be a part of it - it is a beautiful place.

The concert started at 7:30 pm and ended around 11:10 pm with one short intermission.   Yes folks, over 3 1/2 hours of Eagles.  Song after song you knew and loved!  This was our second time to see them and once again, they didn’t disappoint!  My man, Joe Walsh was in rare form, stealing the show with Funk #49, Rocky Mountain Way, Walk Away, and In the City, to name a few.  His distinctive vocals and guitar playing are better than ever. 

I took this picture, before my battery died…

Not this one - scalped it from the pages of Tulsa World…

For those interested in seeing more great photos of the concert and the BOK Center, click here.

The band came back for two encores, ending it all with Desperado.  Of course, we all know it is all planned but, you think your claps and whistles are what really brought them back on stage…  

We were way too pumped to go home and go to bed so, we made our way to a little Irish place a few blocks from our hotel to talk about the concert and tell more stories and laugh some more! 

After we closed that place down we went back to the hotel where we saw this on the clock…

It was a night to remember.

contest

I had a few great days in the shop making pots.  Here are just a few I’ve made over the last few days. 

 

Sometimes when I make a pot it takes on a sort of personality.  Like this next one. 

I have decided to call it Grandma Schulte. 

This first person to submit a comment telling me why I would call it that can have it.  For the record, Steve got it right away.  Here goes….

Happy Birthday Albert!

(not sure why that date is Sept 1st - it’s actually Aug 31st - important because that is his actual birthday…)

Today is my dad’s birthday.  If he were still with us, he would be 88 years old today.  In heaven, he is ageless, living forever in the presence of the Lord.  I am happy for him, sad for all of us who miss him so.  It’s been over 13 years since he died but, the memories are vivid. 

Here are a few of my favorite pictures:

Grillin’ up some supper!  Not sure what year this was taken but, it must be pre-1975.  

This next picture is Christmas 1993.  Someone has changed a little, wouldn’t you say??

Good times fishing in the pond.  Dad was always so patient with Sarah, Annie and Molly as he taught them the fine art of catching a fish. 

This is one of my all time favorite pictues.  One year we went for a visit right before wheat harvest.  I wanted to take back some wheat to use in an arrangement so, Dad and Edna took the girls out to the wheat field across the road and they helped him cut the wheat for me.    

This post is a tribute to a great dad and grandpa.  I miss him so much!

the mother load

Classic Car Show - Hugoton, Kansas - Steve’s ‘54 wins again!!  Yup, he brought home all kinds of prizes at this car show.  Let me explain…

Steve and his buddy Mark, who lives in Norman, OK, decided they were going to take their classic cars to their home town, Hugoton, for the annual classic car show.  Mark has a cool 1965 Corvette Stingray and we took our 1954 Chevy.  The car show was in the park in the middle of town - it was a beautiful day.

Steve and Mark had a great time visiting with the home folk and talking to people they haven’t seen in ages.  (Kim, Mark’s wife, and I were on “old girlfriend” alert, turns out, none of them showed…) After 30+ years of hangin with Steve, I actually knew quite a few of the home folk myself. 

On a side note - doesn’t this next picture bring back memories??  (only a few will actually appreciate this - our daughters and possibly certain cousins who may be reading this)

Back to the car show and the mother load.  It seems that the folks in Hugoton liked Steve’s car.  A lot.  At the end of the day he was the proud recipient of these awards.

1.  The mayor’s choice.

2.  Top 10.

3.  Amarillo Car Club picked their own favorite of the show.

4.  The award for the longest distance traveled to attend the show ($150 for this one).

And, they had a poker run (well, it was a walk around the park instead of the traditional cruise around town to pick up your cards).  Seems we’re good at this game - 3rd prize was Mark, our friend, 2nd prize was his wife, Kim and 1st place was me!  Now, there is really no skill involved - it is just the luck of the draw but, our luck was running high that day!  It was much fun. 

And, for further memories for the daughters and cousins, we stayed at Neil’s B&B. He was an excellent host, as usual.

It was a great weekend - I think the hometown boy did good, don’t you??

I won’t back down…

It’s concert review time… 

Yup, we’ve attended a concert that ranks in my top ten concerts of all time.  (This ranking will come in another post… someday.)

St. Louis, MO.

8-7-08.

Steve Winwood / Tom Petty.

Amazing.

First off, what made this concert extra fun was being able to experience it with family and friends.  After a brief downpour of rain (as we were driving, well… sitting still waiting to get into the arena parking lot) it became a beautiful, cool night - especially important as the concert was outside at the Verizon Wireless Amphitheater.  (Thanks again to Lars for dropping us off at the gate so we wouldn’t miss the opening song!) 

We had great seats.

Steve Winwood started out the evening with a mixture of old and new.  Highlights for us:  Can’t Find My Way Home, Dirty City, Dear Mr. Fantasy, just to name a few.  This was our second time to see him in concert.  Little Stevie Winwood started his career with the Spencer Davis Group at age 15 and has only gotten better with age.  He turned 60 this year and I’m here to say, he’s still got what it takes.  He wasn’t flashy or showy, he just walked out on stage and impressed us with his talent.  Wow.

Next up was Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers. Tom is a bit younger - he will turn 58 in October - and folks, he is a rocker.  He and his band (mostly original members) have stood the test of time and they put on a great show.   A bit more of a production.

Oh, yeah…  we were impressed again…

Free Fallin’, Mary Jane, Honey Bee, Won’t Back Down, Saving Grace, End of the Line (Wilbury’s tune), and many many more.  The set list was long and satisfying. 

And, song 2 of the 3 song encore - his version of Gloria (Van Morrison, remember it??), very impressive indeed.

A good time was had by all! 

Steve had the honor of trying to take the picture and be in the picture at the same time - hence the concentrated look.  The rest of us only had to put on our goofy grins - needless to say, we were pumped. 

We got together Sat night at Travis & Emily’s house for some yummy BBQ and all around good fun.  I have many pictures from that get together of our cute grandkids but, I’ll show you just two pictures that apply to this post:

the concert attendees in their concert t’s:

and Travis & Steve having a special moment:

Great memories of a great weekend in St. Louis!

 

new pots

Here are some of the pots that left the building  - see VaCay 08 - before they even were cool from being in the kiln.

And here are a few more - a couple of these will be going to St Louis this weekend where we attend this event and stay with our niece and her husband.  Not sure who will be the recipients of these…

That’s just a few of the last batch.  It seems I never have enough time to spend out in my shop - maybe I should retire and just make pots… and go to concerts.   Did I mention how pumped I am to see Petty & Winwood?!