Month: January 2017

I’ve been blogging for twelve years! I started this blog on January 22, 2005 and the very first photograph I posted was of me and my friend Ellen Cooper, drumming at her New Year’s Eve party. I’m happy to say that I was at her New Year’s Eve party last month, except I was playing a shaker instead of a caxia. My drumming is rusty these days.

I don’t have a picture from Ellen’s party last month, but here we are at another recent party with my former Manhattan Samba bandmates (who still play). I’m in the back left and my hair is styled exactly the same. Ellen is standing right behind the two guys on the front right.

All the remaining posts in January, 2005 were about cats, surprise, surprise. Here is Finney when he was only two years old, sprawled on my desk with a Haydn score.

And here is Finney today. His hair has yet to grow back on his shaved leg, but as you can plainly see, he is still the cutest cat in the whole wide world, tied with Bleecker.

Holy mother of god it was FREEZING! I’m amazed I lasted as long as I did. Apparently I missed a lot, but I’m most sorry that I forgot there was going to be a march to the Tower next door to Tiffany’s at the end. That would have been so much fun.

Two readings stayed with me; a section about bullet holes that Peter Zilahy read from his book The Last Window Giraffe, and a piece from a speech David Foster Wallace gave shortly before his death (I’m sorry I don’t remember who read it, but thank you for that reading choice).

There were a lot of people there, especially considering the cold. By the way, people who don’t wear hats in this weather are insane.

A sign I liked. Plus some insane people without hats.

A group of children sang a song about bullying. They were so ridiculously great I’m guessing all of these children sing on Broadway, for one play or another? Here they are! And yes, they are all professional performers. So, each of these children makes more money than I do.

Another sign I liked (Unpresidented), and more reasonably attired people.

I stood by a section of people who chose to sit. They so nicely asked me if I planned to stand the entire time (I did) that I moved aside. Later a woman said her mother told her, “Well behaved women don’t make history,” and I thought, well, damnit all. Stupid nice Stacy.

Another crowd shot. That looks like a man taking a picture of his wife and son? Very cute.

I’m going to the main branch of the New York Public Library (42nd and 5th) today at 2pm to join a protest co-sponsored by PEN and a new organization called Writers Resist. More information about the event is here, but there are parallel events around the country. You can check if there’s one near you here.

If you can’t be there PEN is going to stream it live on their Facebook page. I will be taking plenty of pictures, of course.

My new haircut! I don’t like to smile anymore in photographs because there’s something off about my teeth since I had all that work done. Except screw it. I’m 60. And I’m probably the only one who thinks my smile looks weird.

I added a few more people to follow and already I’ve got way too many tweets to read. So, I started removing people, but that made me wonder who I might be missing who is great. Right now it’s all politics all the time, which is important, but I need a break. Or at least other news and ideas to read about. I’d love to hear suggestions. Who is your favorite to follow?

A fun thing to do in the snow? Kinda looks like work to me.

Every year my friend Barbara and I go to the Grace Church production of Amahl and the Night Visitors. It’s such a sweet, feel-good opera. But I think the fact that I’ve been listening to this music every holiday season since childhood is a big part of the appeal for me. Innocence. I remember innocence.

They always do such a great job at Grace Church. It’s been the same singers every year, and I hope they continue to sing these parts for years to come. The only singer that changes is the child who sings the part of Amahl. This year they chose a girl! Anna Sorensen. I wish I had gotten a picture of her because she was so great. She sang beautifully, she has a boy-sound soprano voice, and her acting was the best I’ve seen in this part.

Thank you everyone involved, we had a wonderful time! If you’ve never seen Amahl and the Night Visitors before you really must try to go next year. I’m sure you can find it somewhere near wherever you live. Or, just buy the album (dating myself).