Siggy’s Blurbs

The grass is not greener elsewhere.  It is so tempting to believe that but it is not.  Sometimes paradise is right in front of you.  This year I discovered a large raspberry patch within an hundred yards on the street I live on the edge of some woods.

This was to be the second year I was going to pick raspberries in a patch I discovered last year on my property.  And then I discovered this patch.  I did not know who the owners were.  The berries were wild.  I picked enough at the new patch for at least two pies.

It amazed me I never noticed that patch before.  It was ten feet in from the road and I happened to notice it when my dog was sniffing around there.  What else am I missing right under my feet?

I was going home from church and took the long way because the land was wilder and I never knew what wildlife I would see from this road.

I was not disappointed this time:  I flushed a dozen wild turkey hens.  I do see wild turkey around here but I had never seen so many at one time.  I was thrilled to say the least.

I never know for sure what discovery I will make next time.  We have thousands of books between us and there is an universe in each of them so I have no need to travel too far to explore the next universes.

And that does not even include universe after universe in my music– thousands of LP’s, cassettes and CD’s.

I never run out of things to explore.  I do not have to go to far but don’t get me wrong I do enjoy traveling once in a while.  I just don’t feel I have to.

Tags: animals, books, cassette, CD, church, discovery, dog, explore, grass is not greener, LP, music, nature, paradise, raspberry patch, raspberry pie, right under my feet, travel, wild berries, wild turkey hen, wildlife, woods
Posted in animals, beauty, birds, knowledge&learning, life, local, music, nature, seasons, time, wisdom | No Comments »

Why do we care so much about things?!  You can not take your material possessions with you when your time comes.  It says in the bible ‘from dust you come and to dust you shall return’.

I am as guilty as anyone of this.  My music, my writings and journals and books are far too important to me.  Yet when my appointed hour comes, I can no longer hang on to any of these things.

Why do we act as if we can take our possessions with us when we die?  We try up till the last moment to retain some control of our most valuable possessions.  We make wills.

The fact still remains we can’t take them with us.  Wouldn’t it make more sense to invest in the things that really have more lasting effects?  Wouldn’t it make more sense to invest time while you are on earth in relationships–your immediate family, your friends, your kids?

Once you are gone all people have are their memories of you, the love and care you have demonstrated toward them.  You can have far reaching effects if you have invested time and love in others while you were on this earth.  People you have loved have memories of you long after you are gone.

Far too many people do not invest time in others.  They spend their whole life in accumulating things.  No one remembers how hard you worked in your lifetime.  They remember the love you have demonstrated toward them.  So before it is too late, do something about it.  Examine your priorities.  You have one life.

Tags: accumulating things, appointed hour, Bible, books, can't take it with you, care, dust-to-dust, examine your priorities, family, friends, invest in relationships, journals, kids, lifetime, long after you are gone, love, love is remembered, make will, material possessions, memories, music, on this earth, writing, you have one life
Posted in God, balance, beauty, death, knowledge&learning, life, love, marriage, money, music, relationships, seasons, time, wisdom, your job/mission/profession | No Comments »

I have been struggling for a number of weeks with depression.  I decided I would be more careful with certain things that were in my control particularly the TV I watched and the music I listened to.

I would be more careful with those two things.  Both of them I had control of.  I just had to exert it.  Too much of the TV I watched revolved around mayhem and murder and the music I listened to was simply not very edifying.

I certainly can avoid both.  It would take awhile but I was acting as if I had no control of my moods and was a victim.

Let me see what happens if I become more careful of the TV programs I watched as well as the music I took in.

What if I played music and TV that was more edifying?  Maybe my depression would lift or my moods would improve.  It certainly was worth trying.

And I imagine if I looked at my life more carefully there would be other things that were more in my control but I will start off with these two things.

Tags: control, depression, edify, music, not a victim, TV
Posted in balance, beauty, knowledge&learning, music, time, wisdom | No Comments »

I PODS AND OTHER TECHNOLOGY

“Download your favorite TV program
On your I Pod,” the commercial implored.

Tell me?  Why would I want to do that?
I do not care how good the technology is.
Or how clear that 4 square inch screen is.
After all, it is only 4 square inches.
I have to squint to view the screen.

And another thing:
Who is going to stand
In one spot
For sixty minutes
Holding their I Pod motionless
Viewing their favorite episodes
Of “Sex and the City”
Or whatever?

Sure you can watch your favorite music video.
I have the same problem.
Who wants to hold it still
For three and a half minutes?
I do not care how crisp the clarity
Of the screen is.
How can you possibly make out
The minute figures in it?

Of course, you need headphones
Aren’t you risking hearing loss
If you “pump” the volume high enough
And long enough?

I prefer watching my TV programs
And music videos
On my 28 inch TV screen–
374 square inches NOT 4.

Yes, now you can
Connect your I Pod
To an electronic component with speakers.
In the confines of your home.
Excuse me,
Wasn’t that what
We used to call a stereo?
I prefer listening to my two feet high Bose speakers.

And the commercials are bragging
How much smaller and thinner
They are making I Pods (and other MP3’s)
(and cellular phones).

Now I even saw an ad
In a magazine
Boasting how
Your cellular can possess
Gazillions of memory
And still fit in the palm
Of your hand

The keys on the keyboard
Would be so tiny
How could you possibly use it?

Yah, I know there will always be someone
Who will buy the latest gadget
No matter how impractical the “play toy” is.

All I can do is shake my head.

Am I the only person who thinks
This use of technology
Is ridiculous?

Let me know?

Tags: cellphone, I-pod, MP3, music, stereo, technology, TV, video
Posted in humor, music | No Comments »

I can not tell you exactly why music is so important to me but it is.  On some level, the music I pick every day to listen to is done intuitively.  As a rule, most of it is uptempo and I actually absorb energy from it.   In fact, if I am tired I can no longer can listen to such music:  I have to switch to something laid back and mellow.

I started listening to music seriously over forty years ago.  I knew back then I was not that articulate.  Music expresses the inexpressible so I was able to relate to it.  My favorite group then was Jefferson Airplane.  I came to the conclusion one reason I loved this group so much (I still do today) because their music had, at times, an angry tone and growing up I was not permitted to express anger at all, in any degree, so listening to them was cathartic.

As I grew older, my tastes kept expanding and were very eclectic.  I listened to a broad range of music:  blues, rock and roll, jazz, just about everything.

Although I spent hours everyday listening to music, it was not wasted time:  my mind would roam.  I started keeping journals and writing poetry.  I was gradually becoming more and more creative and that process started with  music.

At the same time, I was also becoming more and more articulate.  Music still was important and I continued to listen all those years every day for hours.  I never stopped.  In fact, I am very fortunate my wife shares my love of music.  I am always acting as her personal DJ.

I do not know if any of theses explanations explain my love of music or why I listen but maybe you can identify with some of these reasons or my drive to keep listening.

I am the only one in my family who is obsessed with music.  I can explain it quite plainly:  I want to listen to music almost more than I want to breathe.  I do not think you can be driven more than that.

Tags: blues, creative, jazz, Jefferson Airplane, journal, knowledge, learning, music, poetry, rock, rock&roll, time, writing
Posted in knowledge&learning, music, time | No Comments »

WELCOME! I hope you will enjoy reading my blurbs.

In addition to the Blogs, I hope to encourage and inform poets and writers at Siggy’s Cafe For Writers & Poets, www.siggyscafe.com.  Here you will find many pages of articles, poems, suggested reading, and more, plus a special section devoted to my love of music.  Siggy

Tags: articles, blogs, blurbs, encourage others, music, poems, poets, reading, siggy's cafe, suggested reading, welcome, writers, writing
Posted in God, animals, balance, beauty, death, health, humor, knowledge&learning, life, local, love, marriage, mental health, money, music, nature, politics, relationships, seasons, sports, time, wisdom, writing, your job/mission/profession | No Comments »

There is no such thing as secular music.  Every piece of music reflects something.  The musicians performing the piece of music reflected in their performance exactly how they were feeling, the reverence they had towards the music (or in some cases the irreverence).  Every emotion they were experiencing would come through in any superb piece of music.  It does not take long for a listener to realize the piece was mediocre.  Then you should discard that piece and no longer listen to that piece of music.

A good piece of music has power:  it can bring you up or even down.  And the best sometimes can do both.  You must be aware of the impact of the music you listen to and play it at appropriate times.

It is true there is no such thing as secular music.  Nevertheless, the piece can edify you or subvert you and you must be aware of what you are listening to and its power.  Subliminal messages can be conveyed.  Music can drive you up or bring you down.  You must be careful.

Tags: beauty, emotions, knowledge, learning, music
Posted in beauty, knowledge&learning, music | No Comments »

This is often no need to leave my room.  My music is here.  Each note, each song, each LP, CD and the cassettes I have put together from my vast music collection, they are all universes within universes.  That does not even mention the many books on my shelves.  Then there are the birds I view when the sun comes up and spend hours doing so.  I never have to go too far to explore the next universe.  My mind roams all the time.  And that is just one large room in this house.

Tags: birds, books, knowledge, learning, music, nature, time, universe
Posted in knowledge&learning, music, nature, time | 2 Comments »