Sunday, June 30, 2013

something amazing


i am home now.
doing my best to unpack & acclimate.
what a wonderful trip we had.

our trip was full of
"too good to be true" moments.
seeing with our own eyes so many
wonders of the world.
these things, i'll share here in time.

today, though, i want to share with you
the singular most amazing thing that happened.
the thing that brought me to my knees.

on sunday, june 23, the day of missy's celebration,
i knew i wanted to do something special.
i had plans to sit in a cafe and drink a toast
to my very favorite friend.
i waited to see how the day unfolded.
the post i had scheduled for the day
was not yet live, as i was 8 hours ahead.
it was full of the most special songs for her.

we were given a bit of free time in the morning,
with instructions to meet back at 11:55.
i headed out with marian & ally,
where we found handmade jewelry,
tiny stovetop italian espresso makers,
and the kindest roman people.

we were a few minutes late,
rushing back to our meeting place right at 12,
when i was stopped in my tracks
by yet another song.
all through europe, we were hearing the songs that i had
posted for missy here on my blog - coincidence?  no.
straining to listen though the noonday bells,
it hit me that this song was one
i had slated to play on this very day.
it was all i could do to stay on my feet
and to hold my camera still.
i stood there crying and videotaping,
feeling wave upon wave of raw emotion.
the boisterous church bells gonging at full-tilt,
missy wanted to make sure i didn't miss this.
she was there.
she was flooding me with her presence.
she is happy.
she sends her boundless love.
and i believe she knew
i would capture it to share with you.

when the song was over,
on shaky legs, i stepped closer
to drop some euros
into the musician's guitar case.
he could see i was crying,
and asked if his song had touched me.
i said, "you have no idea."
i told him why it meant so much.
he hugged me & gave me one of his cd's.
such a sweet man.
his name is vincent.
if you feel inspired to send him a note,
you can email him at
supervincenzo51@libero.it

here's the song i had posted for that day

afterward, we headed to a cafe,
a stone's throw from the pantheon,
where i drank a toast to her,
including all of you, dear friends,
who were sitting there,
with me & marian, with missy, with all of us,
in an outdoor cafe
on this most special day in rome.
salute, missy!
i love you!


Saturday, June 29, 2013

feels like home



i've just returned home from europe.
you can see my pictures on instagram:
http://instagram.com/five_ten_fifteen


Friday, June 28, 2013

van morrison


wow.
i have a 20-year-old tape of this show
and i just found it on youtube.
he just wants to rock your soul, baby.

i'm in europe.
i'm posting pictures on instagram.
follow me:

Thursday, June 27, 2013

brandi carlile


this is so beautiful.

i'm in europe.
i'm posting pictures on instagram.
follow me:

Wednesday, June 26, 2013

elton john



i'm in europe.
i'm posting pictures on instagram.
follow me:
http://instagram.com/five_ten_fifteen

Tuesday, June 25, 2013

jackson browne



i'm in europe.
i'm posting pictures on instagram.
follow me:

Monday, June 24, 2013

the beatles


who wants to do this with me?

i'm in europe.
i'm posting pictures on instagram.
follow me:
http://instagram.com/five_ten_fifteen

Sunday, June 23, 2013

today


is missy's celebration of life
& dance party!
wherever you are,
please do something awesome
in her honor


this special song {and accompanying Qi}
is from missy's dear friend, diana lion.



i'm in europe.
i'm posting pictures on instagram.
follow me:
http://instagram.com/five_ten_fifteen


Saturday, June 22, 2013

shakira


a really dance-y song for missy
{and for cindy, who's in africa}

i'm in europe.
i'm posting pictures on instagram.
follow me:
http://instagram.com/five_ten_fifteen

Friday, June 21, 2013

gabe dixon band



i'm in europe.
i'm posting pictures on instagram.
follow me:
http://instagram.com/five_ten_fifteen

Thursday, June 20, 2013

colbie caillat



i'm in europe.
i'm posting pictures on instagram.
follow me:
http://instagram.com/five_ten_fifteen

Wednesday, June 19, 2013

diane birch





i'm in europe.
i'm posting pictures on instagram.
follow me:
http://instagram.com/five_ten_fifteen


Tuesday, June 18, 2013

billy joel



i'm in europe.
i'm posting pictures on instagram.
follow me:
http://instagram.com/five_ten_fifteen


Monday, June 17, 2013

ho hey {lennon & maisy}



i'm in europe.
i'm posting pictures on instagram.
follow me:
http://instagram.com/five_ten_fifteen

Sunday, June 16, 2013

happy father's day {& cat stevens}


♥ happy father's day, dad ♥

this is my cat stevens father's day song.

i'm in europe.
i'm posting pictures on instagram.
follow me:
http://instagram.com/five_ten_fifteen

Saturday, June 15, 2013

james taylor



today, i'm on my way to europe.
i'll be posting pictures on instagram.
follow me:
http://instagram.com/five_ten_fifteen


Friday, June 14, 2013

leaving on a jet plane



i am packing-packing-packing.
marian & i leave tomorrow
to travel in europe for two weeks.
we'll be in london, paris, florence, rome,
& the island of mallorca {off the coast of spain}.
we will be seeing pam in paris,
and anastasia on beautiful mallorca.

i'll be posting pictures on instagram
so you can follow along:
http://instagram.com/five_ten_fifteen

i have scheduled songs in missy's honor
for every day that i'll be gone.
so, there will be something new here
every morning.

IMPORTANT STUFF:
missy's celebration of life is
sunday, june 23, in kneeland.

there will be a second celebration
saturday, june 29, in lodi.

for more information,
please see missy's caringbridge site.

i'm playing john denver today.







p.s.
ned is flying today
to visit grandma & pa in las vegas.
{i love you, neddy}


ned's backpack, in honor of missy

Thursday, June 13, 2013

missy's poetry


many of you know that missy was a prolific poet.
twice a month, she met with the amazon writers,
hosted by the
humboldt community breast health project.
her book, the cyclic nature of promises,
is available for purchase
through the breast health project.
do you remember her poetry reading last year?
it is at the bottom of this long post.

another book of her poems is in the works,
and i will post details here &
on missy's caringbridge site when it is available.
{thank you, stephanie, for keeping me posted}

i did find this link on the HCBHP website.
with a recent poem:
http://www.hcbhp.org/writers_grue1
be sure to click the link & read the poem.
it is untitled, but could maybe be called
if i could be a flower.
i think she was a flower.

the breast health project is an amazing resource,
and gave missy so much support.
they actually help actual women
{friends of yours & maybe even you}
every. single. day.
if you are inspired to make a legacy gift
to the HCBHP in missy's honor, here is a link:
http://www.hcbhp.org/legacy

i'm re-posting this little clip of
stevie nicks singing wild heart.
i just love it so much.
singing with her is her sister-in-law, lori nicks.
their harmonies are amazing.
it was right when she wrote the song,
but before it was recorded,
and this version is just so raw and beautiful.
better than the studio version.
missy had a wild heart, too.






Wednesday, June 12, 2013

the arcata eye


missy's obituary is in today's arcata eye.
it will be on northcoast newsstands all week long.



Tuesday, June 11, 2013

why be normal?



this purple bumper sticker used to be on the back
of every vehicle missy drove.
upside down.
recently, she had switched it to
normal is relative, also upside down.

i'm so glad missy wasn't normal.
she was weird.
i'm weird.
i think you might be weird, too.
even if you are normal,
would it hurt to question your state of being?
i don't think so.

missy's mom, bonnie, will have some of these stickers at
missy's celebration of life on sunday, june 23.
just tell her "i'm not normal"
{and give her a nice, big hug}
and she'll give you one of your very own.
i will sadly miss missy's party.
i'll be in rome on that day : )
so these bumper stickers are one way i can be there.

please remember:
put it on your car,
upside down.

and honk when you see one on someone's car.

these bumper stickers are also available online
at the peace project:
http://www.peaceproject.com/content/why-be-normal-full-size-sticker-0
{let them know you are buying one in honor of missy!}

for those of you who are also unable to be there,
let's all vow to do something amazing
on sunday, june 23, okay?
spread some love and kindness.
plant some flowers.
dance in public.
wear a purple wig.
get your nose pierced.
get a tattoo.
that sort of thing.

today's song for missy is NOT normal.
i used to sing it to her like this:
oh, missy, you're so fine
you're so fine you blow my mind
hey, missy!
hey, missy!




Monday, June 10, 2013

♥ love ♥


give yourself to love, by kate wolf
{this song was requested to be played for missy by her sweet friend, elaine}
i'm not sure about the video, just close your eyes & listen

love is on its way, by the jonas brothers
i took my kids to see them in concert in 2009.
i kind of think missy would get a kick out of me playing a jonas brothers song for her.

these songs are for missy,
and also for these guys.
my mom & pop.
today is their 52nd anniversary.
as in, they've been married since 1961.
~love~

Sunday, June 9, 2013

~ angels sing ~


missy left a note stating that she
wanted her memorial to be a
party!
okay, the bold + italics are mine, but the exclamation point is hers.
in her note, she requested this powerful song
~ angels sing ~
to be played at her memorial celebration.
her note also said that she couldn't listen
to angels sing without crying.
this is francine's song
{you can hear nymiah singing harmony}.
the "video" has 3 photos:
two are from missy's blessing way ten years ago,
just before giving birth to aliana,
and one is of francine, singing to missy
at the women's herbal symposium last month.


Saturday, June 8, 2013

francine & nymiah sing for missy


wow.
this is a true honor.
francine & nymiah are humboldt county treasures.
they sang to missy at the women's herbal symposium
the week before she died.
missy called to tell me how amazing it was.
the song they sang to her is called
~what if~
francine emailed the song to me,
and terri, from the symposium, had her photographer, darcey, 
search for a photo of them singing to her.
{francine is wearing the black dress, nymiah has the guitar, do you see missy's smile?}
marian helped me turn the song & photo into a video.
{thank you, to everyone who had a hand in making this happen}
oh, missy, i do hope you can see and feel the beauty here.
we love you so much.
♫ when i look into your eyes
it comes as no surprise
that i'm lookin 
into myself ♪


Friday, June 7, 2013

jimmy cliff from cindy


missy's friend, cindy, is in uganda.
she is keeping in touch via caringbridge,
and yesterday,
she sent me a great story & music request.

long, long ago,
she & missy worked on a farm in maine.
on a beautiful summer day,
the two of them took a day off from the farm
to delve into fun, friendship, and this music.
an unforgettable, ecstatic experience.


Thursday, June 6, 2013

ripple from sara


sara has a truer understanding of
~gratitude~
because of knowing missy.
if i knew the way, i would take you home

read sara's story in missy's caringbridge guestbook.


Wednesday, June 5, 2013

michael franti


remember when
myel & aliana met michael franti?


this is from his wikipedia page:
In 2000, Franti decided not to wear any shoes, initially for three days. 
Since then, Franti has chosen to go barefoot
except for occasionally wearing flip-flops as required
to board an airplane or to be served in a restaurant.  
Franti prefers to go barefoot.


Tuesday, June 4, 2013

be brave


when i'm driving in my car,
i like to play radio lottery.
it's sort of like my magic 8 ball.
i say, okay, radio... what's it gonna be?
of course, now, i'm trying to channel
any sort of message missy might be sending.
this is the message from yesterday.

let's be brave.


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