Category Archives: December

Music of the Night

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“Color is the keyboard, the eyes are the harmonies,
the soul is the piano with many strings.
The artist is the hand that plays,
touching one key or another,
to cause vibrations in the soul.”
Wassily Kandinsky

Music of The Night

A neighbor of mine, I haven’t met yet, plays the piano. Not just Chopsticks, but this person is no doubt a classical pianist. When they play, I find myself opening up my windows wider, listening in awe of this pianist talent to be able to play with such ease and effortlessness; never once hitting a bad note.

I’ve been hoping to run into this neighbor. So that I can tell them how much I enjoy their music and tell them how I especially enjoy when they end the evening playing, The Music of the Night.

Shine On

Winter Solstice

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“The winter solstice has always been special to me
as a barren darkness that gives birth to a verdant
future beyond imagination, a time of pain and
withdrawal that produces something joyfully inconceivable,
like a monarch butterfly masterfully extracting itself
from the confines of its cocoon,
bursting forth into unexpected glory.”
Gary Zukav

Winter Solstice

Winter solstice marks the longest night and shortest day of the year. The solstice occurs at the same instant everywhere on Earth. In the United States, it happens at 11:48 p.m. ET Monday (or 10:48 p.m. CT, 9:48 p.m. MT and 8:48 p.m. PT). In Europe, Africa, Asia and Australia, that means the solstice actually arrives on Tuesday.

The solstice is the astronomical beginning of winter. The start of the coldest three months in the Northern Hemisphere, even though meteorologists view winter as starting the first of December. Winter’s shortest day is typically not the coldest day of the year. There’s a lag between the shortest day of the year and the coldest average temperatures for most spots in the USA.

So what causes the seasons? The Earth’s tilted axis. During the Northern Hemisphere’s winter, the land north of the equator is tilted away from the sun, which lowers the amount of the sun’s energy warming the Northern Hemisphere.

And why is the Earth tilted? Scientist’s say, the Earth’s tilt is the result of collisions with various small celestial objects and other massive objects during the formation of the solar system billions of years ago.

Just a bit unsettling to realize that the reason the Earth has the perfect temperature for life to form is a few random collisions with other space rocks billions of years ago. But thanks to these collisions, we can enjoy our winter solstice.

Shine On

 

 

Laugh Your Ass Off

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“If it weren’t for Philo T. Farnsworth,
inventor of television, we’d still be
eating frozen radio dinners.”
Johnny Carson

iTunes Radio

As you loyal blog followers know, I’m a longtime fan of Steve Martin. The last few years I’ve been listening to his banjo music, most of which he writes and performs.

I fell in love with Steve Martin in the 1970s when he was known for his comedy. I had all his comedy albums and listened to them often. Now, I have his comedy albums on iTunes and enjoy listening to him when I’m cruising in my car.

The other day while syncing my phone to the car, I accidentally discovered iTunes Radio. I know what you’re saying, where has she been?  But, with the new car and the technology that we now have access to, I’m able to use my iPhone in the car.

Anyway, I typed in Steve Martin into the iTunes Radio search and up popped Steve Martin Radio. This radio station is the best. They play comedy routines from Billy Crystal to Chris Rock. They even play some of George Carlin’s and Woody Allen’s old routines.

For the last few days, I’ve been smiling and laughing so much my jaw hurts. If you’re feeling down from all the holiday hassles, tune in to Steve Martin Radio, sit back and be ready to laugh your ass off.

Shine On