The Southern Ontario Ukulele Players performed at the Home County Folk Festival, 2015. Hearing the Southern Ontario Ukulele Players (SOUP) was an added bonus of attending the Home County Folk Festival. The SOUPers, as they are called, played several songs, including “I’ll Fly Away,” written by Albert E. Brumley in 1929 and considered to be one of the most […]

Nancy hands me the sought after raw beeswax to become mouthpieces for my didgeridoos It is not easy to find “organic beeswax” in Gainesville. After driving to many different stores that you’d think would carry organic beeswax, I returned home to the search the Web.   And found Cross Creek Honey Company, a local provider […]

This summer I’ve been enjoying the Women of Mystery – the many women who write fictional mystery novels. I’ve been reading, listening to, and watching their mysteries – and enjoying participating in the process of trying to solve the mystery while developing an appreciation for their detectives. For years, I’ve been a fan of Agatha […]

Making WrenSong flutes was a dream achieved. Making musical instruments from a branch or from kiln-dried wood was a wonderful journey for more than 12 years. Currently I am taking a break from making and selling musical instruments and am engaged in painting in oils and watercolors.  Whether still lifes or plein air painting, I […]

Making WrenSong flutes was a dream achieved. Making musical instruments from a branch or from kiln-dried wood was a wonderful journey for more than 12 years. Currently I am taking a break from making and selling musical instruments and am engaged in painting in oils and watercolors.  Whether still lifes or plein air painting, I […]

A wonderful art challenge for me has been painting the Grand Canyon. Recently I hiked and painted at the Grand Canyon and had many opportunities to paint en plein air (on location) at the Canyon’s edge and on trails in the Canyon. Sitting on the edge of the Canyon with my paints, I could see […]

The four voices (L-R): Mary Chapin Carpenter, Joan Baez, Amy Ray, Emily Saliers Joan Baez. Mary Chapin Carpenter. Indigo Girls Amy Ray and Emily Saliers They were on stage in The Ryman Auditorium in Nashville for the opening night of their Four Voices Tour. The concert was two hours of harmony, addressing issues of life situations […]

Pieces of the Red Maple tree. When I saw the maple tree being cut down, I couldn’t believe it. This was a tree that I pass in my regular driving route, and I had admired the tree. There are not too many  maples in this section of Florida, which has many more water oaks and […]

Making WrenSong flutes was a dream achieved. Making musical instruments from a branch or from kiln-dried wood was a wonderful journey for more than 12 years. Currently I am taking a break from making and selling musical instruments and am engaged in painting in oils and watercolors.  Whether still lifes or plein air painting, I […]

Great picks for tremolo: Golden Gate, Dunlop PrimeTone 1.3 and Dunlop Big Stubby 2.0 The Dunlop PrimeTone really do contribute to a great tone. I’d never thought so much about picks (or plectrums as they’re formally called)  as I have since I began the quest to find the right pick for the varied playing demands […]

Watching and photographing wading birds, songbirds, or mostly any birds is a real treat. I have been enjoying following Tootlepedal’s blog because he always takes a “flying bird of the day” photo.  And that is the treat, isn’t it?  To catch an in-focus flying bird — not always an easy photo. While at Sanibel Island, I […]

Recently I enjoyed visiting the Red, White and Blues Blueberry farm to do some urban sketching. Well maybe not so “urban” as “farm” or “country” sketching. We spent a few hours sketching then enjoyed blueberry lemonade, a blueberry muffin, and blueberry salad.  All delicious. I’d posted my sketches on instagram and was contacted by the […]

Jamming. When I was to be an invited flutemaker for Flute Haven in September 2014, I thought about what a great learning experience I had when I attended the Flute Haven Leadership Training. That made me think about jamming. One of our activities during the week was learning to improvise – both how to work […]

My new Kentucky KM620-S I’m now learning to play the mandolin. I hadn’t expected to be adding the mandolin to my musical instruments, but a nice series of events has led to me having a Kentucky KM-620-S. A few weeks ago, my aunt gave me her old mandolin (pictured below). She had started taking mandolin […]