Lucky 13?

My son was born 28 years ago today. It was also a Friday. I said then that Friday the 13th was my lucky day. Our relationship is strained, to put it mildly. I have taken him to rehab twice, visited him in jail countless times, had him arrested once, filed for custody of and adopted his child. Although this was all painful I have absolutely no doubt that I've done the right things.
I love my son very much but there are times when I don't like him at all. I want to be proud of him but he makes it pretty tough. There is hope, however. I, too, was troubled and in trouble in my younger days. My poor choices made life difficult, to say the least. When I was sick and tired of being sick and tired I started making better decisions. It took a long time but my life got better, much better. With time and effort he can do the same.

Happy birthday, Mark. I'll continue to love and pray for you.

P.S. I also met his mother on a Friday the 13th. That turned out not so lucky, but that's a whole other story.

Genius or what?

Please bear with a proud father bragging about his very bright little girl. At supper tonight I told her someone was coming to visit her tomorrow and asked if she knew who. "corin?" she asked. "No, not Corin", I said. "Mark and Jessie!" she exclaimed. "Right, Mark and Jessie are coming to see you."
Mark and Jessie are her biological parents. She sees them once a month. We hadn't told her they were coming, she hasn't asked about them, but at two years old, she has figured it out.
She was playing with a number/letter shape sorter and could not only put the objects in the right holes, she correctly ID'd each letter and number. She's TWO!!
She can sing along with a kid's CD, carry a tune, get all the lyrics right, and name the artist. (she gets that from me)
She knows Dan Zanes and Laurie Berkner by sight.
She can identify the sound of a banjo, violin, piano, and harmonica.
She can identify a song by the introduction. Did I mention she's two?

This is her "magic flute". She told me "It's wind, it blows the leaves around." I don't know if Lindsey is advanced or not, but I am really impressed. Beauty, brains, and talent. Where did THAT come from?

The day the music died

It's been 50 years since three early rock'n'roll stars were killed in a plane crash near Lake Clear, Iowa. Buddy Holly, Richie Valens, and J.P. Richardson(The Big Bopper), were on their way to a show in Moorehead MN when they crashed just after take off. The pilot, Roger Peterson, also died.

These three musicians were pioneers of modern music. Peggy Sue, LaBomba, Chantilly Lace... all masterpieces of early rock and roll, helped spark my appreciation for the music I love today. I was 4 years old when this happened. I don't remember hearing about it until ten years later. I recently saw a documentary about it and was stricken with both grief and awe. These kids left a great legacy. Many careers began when their's ended.

Don McLean immortalized the event in his song, American Pie.... "I can't remember if I cried when I read about his widowed bride, but something touched me deep inside the day the music died."