Show #215

Hello Friends of the Garden!

Lately I've been catching up on long overdue work that I put off doing during the school year. Working, physical working, in this weather is truly tough! For an urban setting I have a fairly large lot. Whatever it is you do in my yard, you'll be at it a while. There is a lot of any job you choose to do, mowing, raking, trimming, you name it! 

With all that work to do I am physically occupied and as if it was on a sliding scale, my mind goes to rest for a brief time. That time is short lived as my mind begins to wander to any and everything. One time (actually several times), while mowing I would "talk" to my deceased Father. My Dad was always a religious sceptic. I wanted to know if there was some kind of life after death. I figured that I knew my Dad loved me and if anyone would do this for me he would. I was trying to get him to give me a sign that he was there, like make a stick fall from a tree or knock something over. Of course, nothing happened, I half blamed it on my lack of faith, the other half of the blame fell completely on my foolishness in the first place!

I don't always try to invoke the spirits of dead family when I'm alone and working and thinking. Often, I think about the issues of the day. Of course news and media thrust most of these issues to the forefront. Lately, as I'm raking or hauling, I can't help but think about how divided we are as people. We have found and are creating more ways to separate ourselves all over the globe! This happens at the smallest level to the most broad and wide-ranging ones. Think about it, gun owners vs. non-gun owners, right to life vs. abortion, Republicans vs. Democrats, Mac vs. PC, frackers vs. conservationists, Ford vs. Chevy, America vs. everybody, conservatives vs. liberals, Christians vs. all other religions and vice versa, it just never ends!

I always end my show with a plea for harmony. If you think about harmony from a musical standpoint it is different tones coming together to make one full sound, rich and layered. It's people doing their separate parts to add to the effort. I really don't feel that Clinton or Trump are creating harmony. It seems as a people we are more comfortable being polarized so we can find like-minded people to affiliate with. What we need are more Immanuel Kant's, Bertrand Russell's, Gandhi's and Jane Addams and less focus on Bill Maher and Rush Limbaugh. 

I'm just sad about the way I see the world through the media and wish that the news was dominated by how things got better and not worse! I know it's not all bad, but it's bad enough for me! 

Here's show #215! Once again there's a lot of new things! I'm still discovering the balance of old and new. Replaying the stuff you've learned to like is as important as playing the stuff you've never heard that you will like so, I'll always do both! This week has Spanking Charlene (funny name), Amy Rigby, Wynonna & the Big Noise, Black Pistol Fire, and finally, Billy Gibbons and the BFG's are all new to The Sunday Garden Party. There's also great new stuff from Tony Joe White and the Hard Working Americans. I felt a groove putting this together and it felt good! The last set is a little poke at England and the whole EU thing, it's all about the money! I'm finishing with a reminder to myself about my upcoming Panic show in Oakland, it's gonna be a good time!

Thanks as always Jerry and Robin, what a good team we are!

Thank you listeners! Try to drop a note to me once in a while! I promise to reply! You can help by sharing with a friend, or even better listening with a friend together doing whatever!

Peace and love!

Mike