And we’ll remember this when we are old and ancient

This is a concert experience so excellent it bears repeating.

I always tell people that the Ryman Auditorium is such a great concert venue, I could sing on stage and people would still applaud. There’s not a bad seat in that room, and there’s a certain magic to it. I’m not sure if that’s more because of history or acoustics. Either way, it’s a wonderful place to see a concert.

So I was thrilled months ago when it was announced that the Decemberists would be playing the Ryman in September. I’ve desperately wanted to see them on their current tour, during which they’re playing The Hazards of Love in its entirety, but their I had already been told a Birmingham stop was unlikely this time. I bought tickets immediately, so anxious to make plans that I didn’t even check my seats. It’s the Ryman. How could I go wrong?

An hour later I got curious and pulled up my confirmation email. Front row. Center.

Before the concert began, my friend Monica and I sat in our oh-so-close seats and discussed our expectations for the evening. We admitted we set the bar high: If this wasn’t the best show we attended this year, we would be disappointed. (And we both attend a lot of concerts.) But here was the thing. We were certain we wouldn’t be let down. The Hazards of Love is such an epic album that we knew the night would be memorable.

The Decemberists are apparently a brilliant live band (this was my first time to see them, but I’ve since heard that from multiple people). My heart was racing as they came on stage, and every moment of The Hazards of Love set was just right. When Shara Worden came to the front for her first solo, she instantly lifted the energy of the very excited but very polite crowd. (My mantra is now, “Shara Worden is the very definition of bad ass.”) “The Rake’s Song” was one of the evening’s highlights. I’d been anxious to see the majority of the band behind drums, and it was incredible. I thought the guys in the folding chairs set up before the front rows of pews were going to lose it.

The band took an intermission after The Hazards of Love before a second “greatest hits” set. I turned to Monica and said, “The only way this could get better would be if we were in the center of all the music.”

I’m not as familiar with the Decemberists’ back catalog, but I thoroughly enjoyed the second set. They finally got us on our feet with some gentle admonishing; I think everyone remained seated during the bulk of  The Hazards of Love simply out of consideration for the rest of the audience. But now we were on our feet, singing along and cheering as Colin Meloy bantered with us.

I’m not a fan of standing ovations, and frequently plop back in my seat if I don’t think the performance merited one. This time, I was on my feet until the band returned for the encore. The final song of the evening was “Sons and Daughters,” and at the conclusion of the song Meloy prepared to lead us in a sing along. But before we could join in chorus on the song’s final long, he stepped to the front of the stage and said something to the effect of, “You guys. Get up here.”

I looked at Monica, wide-eyed, and took off. About 100 audience members clamored onto the stage. I looked up into the balcony of the Ryman as we sang, “Hear all the bombs fade away.” Sure enough, I was singing and they were still cheering.

And then, everyone on stage spontaneously began jumping up and down. It was such a communal moment; no one started it, but I don’t know that you could have remained planted on the ground unless you had a very large instrument holding you there.

At last, I was inside the music.

It’s not as if it’s a matter of will

The plan was simple. One year, no book buying (save for a three book exception, meant to stave off the seductive appeal of the forbidden). After filling my backseat with purchases from one book sale, I thought I needed a break from book buying. Otherwise I may never get caught up on my book reading.

That worked well for a time. I bought my first book at Square Books in Oxford, Miss., a place that begged for just such an exception. The Paris Review Interviews Vol. 1 is the perfect souvenir for this literary town. Weeks later, exception two came into play: The Sun Also Rises by Ernest Hemingway, on sale at Seattle’s Elliot Bay Books.

Then there was last night. Yes, last night brought book three. And four. And five. All the way up to 12. And I don’t feel a bit bad about it.

Technically, I fell off this particular wagon months back. I spotted three hardback copies of John Green’s Looking for Alaska on a sale table, and I couldn’t leave them lying there. I purchased all three, confident that I could find them homes. (I already owned two copies of the book, myself.)

But that didn’t count, not really. The books weren’t for me, after all. Neither was the hardback copy of Corduroy, purchased for a friend’s daughter’s birthday last month. By those rules, one of the books I bought last night doesn’t count either. When I saw a $3 hardback copy of a Charles Schulz biography, I knew my 16-year-old brother had to have it.

So then I’m only at 11 books for the year. Is that better?

This is what happened: It’s been a busy summer, one full of change. I haven’t been reading much as a result (a very strange circumstance, indeed). When a friend emailed yesterday, asking if I wanted to go to another library book sale, I said yes. I was ready for a little rule-breaking. (The fact that this counts as rebellion in my world is likely indicative of how big a nerd I am.)

We met at her house for a glass and a half of wine then headed out, hoping for a couple of good buys. Though I exhibited a fair amount of discretion, I still took home 10 books totaling $15. I broke the rules, and my only regret is not knowing which book to read first.

1. Downtown Owl by Chuck Klosterman (The only Klosterman I didn’t own.)
2. The Girls’ Guide to Hunting and Fishing by Melissa Bank (Often referenced as the original chick lit, and known for its author’s huge advance. I’m curious.)
3. A Walk in the Woods by Bill Bryson
4. The Reason for God by Timothy Keller
5. My Losing Season by Pat Conroy
6. Proof by David Auburn
7. The Little, Brown Handbook (Buying a 1986 handbook from a publisher I admire surely marks me as a full-fledged word nerd. Even more so if I read it. But it seems like a handy reference, doesn’t it?)
8. That’s What I Like (About the South) Edited by George Garrett and Paul Ruffin
9. Schulz and Peanuts by David Michalies
10. Southern Living 1981 Annual Recipes (My mother bought me a copy of this book in 1981, the year I was born. I lost my original copy in the midst of too many moves and have been hunting another since. The discovery was made even better when I realized the book was only $1!)

Hey look, I’m not weighed down

There are a lot of ways I know I’m busy. It’s the way I tend to live my life (although I haven’t quite figured out why–perhaps it’s the Type A thing). My birthday card from my grandparents was even titled “Ode to a Busy Person.”

And at present, the most glaring example of my busy-ness is the long list of unplayed podcasts in my iTunes. Silly, isn’t it? But I’ve barely listened to a one of them this month.

I queud up the most recent episode of The Splendid Table on the drive home Friday night, and was quickly reminded of how much I love that show and public radio in general. Here’s hoping I can slow it down for the rest of the summer–or at the very least, fit podcasts into my drive time.

American Public Media’s The Splendid Table (3)

B&N Meet the Writers Series (2)
Kathryn Stockett, author of The Help
Alice Hoffman, author of The Story Sisters

Book Lust with Nancy Pearl (1)
Featuring Susan Wiggs

New York Times Book Review (2)

Little, Brown and Company (1)
Luis Alberto Urrea, author of The Devil’s Highway

NPR All Songs Considered (4)
The Best Music of 2009 (so far)
Discoveries from the Pitchfork Music Festival
Monsters of Folk
Merge Records Turns 20

NPR Books Podcast (3)

NPR Live Concerts from the All Songs Considered Podcast (5)
Dave Douglas Brass Ecstasy Tiny Desk Concert
Bill Callahan Tiny Desk Concert
Sonic Youth
Maria Taylor Tiny Desk Concert
The Avett Brothers Tiny Desk Concert

NPR This I Believe (2)
Returning to What’s Natural
The Questions We Must Ask

NPR Wait, Wait Don’t Tell Me (3)

Paste Culture Club (2)
Including the Harry Potter podcast!

Some New Trend (2)

This I Believe (3)
Colleen Shaddox
Jackie Robinson
Kay Redfield Jamison

(The other thing this proves? I’m a big book and NPR nerd.)

Let’s pack our bags, get out of this town

May has been one of those particularly busy months, the kind when you realize it’s the 18th of the month and wonder if you remembered to pay rent. (I did.) It really started back in April, with back-to-back three concert weeks, birthday celebrations, six of eight weekends out of town (that stretches till June!), meals out and more. I can’t much complain, mind you; my trips have taken me from Seattle to St. Augustine, for work and for play. (I’m fortunate enough to frequently combine the two.)

But of course, I’ve found myself spread a bit thin. I’m tired, and this round of mayhem won’t end for at least three more weeks. Last Monday encapsulated that exhaustion. I stepped off the plane from Seattle around 4 p.m. and arrived home by 4:30. Four days of constant walking and experiencing rendered me mute on the couch for a few hours, but by 7 I was up and on my way to trivia before catching the tail end of a friend’s birthday dinner. Come Tuesday, I was pretty tired.

I’m trying to find a balance here, something I suppose I’ll be striving for all my life. There’s work, there’s friendship, there’s pursuing new challenges, and somewhere in this mix I hope there’s time for me. Just me. I need that (quite a lot of it actually) to succeed at anything else.

I claimed yesterday for myself. I returned home from another weekend trip and quickly busied myself with cleaning and cooking. But after a few hours I gave in and did what I really wanted to do: hopped on my bike in the rain. I met up with a friend on the trail, then headed to the grocery store (back to the practical) before visiting another friend for coffee. The alone time on my bike followed by one-on-one conversations? Both essential parts of a good day, I think. I then returned home, skipped church (something I rarely do!) and cooked a fairly balanced dinner for myself. I completed a writing assignment, took a bubble bath and read, for pleasure, before bed. Save for skipping out on church, it was nearly as balanced a day as I can imagine. 

Getting up at 4:30 a.m. probably helped.

Where do they all belong?

Since I brought her home two weeks ago, my bike Eleanor Rigby and I have stuck to riding the neighborhood streets. There’s a quick route up one street and down the other, totaling a mile per lap. I’ve quickly learned that everything in Birmingham really is a hill. My neighborhood run is convenient, but it’s almost entirely up hill one way and coasting down the other.

It’s a nice way to fit in a 20 minute ride after work. But even with the gratification of flying downhill, the monotony has already set in. So today I took Eleanor on her first trip out of the ‘hood.

I drove to a nearby park, unloaded E.R. and replaced her front tire, then took to the trail. And quickly turned back around because I realized I was coming up on a foot traffic only bridge; my only option was to bike on the street until it reconvened with the trail. From then on, I was immersed in the experience. Even riding with traffic on the way back didn’t bother me.

I didn’t ride any farther than I normally do. My route totalled about three miles. But I rode for almost twice as long as usual, and was pedaling nearly the whole time. I’ve been back at my apartment for several hours now, but I’m still daydreaming about that quick little trail. I can’t wait for a weekend when I can stay out longer and explore more trails.

Let’s go ride a bike

Sometimes I joke that life would be easier if I weren’t passionate about so many things. And I’m not going to say I’m passionate about cycling (it’s been a day!), but that borderline obsessive personality comes out whenever I get interested in something.

On the evening of my first day as a bike owner, I parked it in front of my computer and googled Nishiki and Nishiki Pueblo. It seems that people have a strong allegiance to their Nishikis, mourning the fact that they sold them, even well after they’ve moved on to fancier bicycles.

I’d say I did OK. (Thanks, again, Elisa!)

But I also panic any time I drop a bit of money on something. My bike was crazy inexpensive, and the helmet wasn’t much more. Still, before bed last night I was worrying about whether I’d made a wise decision, whether I would ride my bike enough to justify the purchase, whether I’m going to get into a terrible biking accident tomorrow.

This morning I woke up and pouted because it was raining. I wanted to ride my bike today! In other words, the panic had passed.

I only got to ride for five or 10 minutes today, in the alley behind Elisa’s apartment when I went over to pick up Eleanor. I thought about riding from her place to church (less than a mile), but it was supposed to resume raining around the time the service ended. It didn’t happen, so I drove for no reason.

Still, I’m excited. I have a bike in my car (need to change that!), and I’m contemplating where to ride after work tomorrow. I also realized that if I ride semi-consistently for two months, I’ll have gotten my money’s worth. (I spent the equivalent of two months at a gym on my bike and helmet.) And already, another friend has asked Elisa to keep an eye out for a bike for her. Add another one to the list, Bike Mom!

ETA: Introducing Eleanor Rigby

Waits at the window, wearing the face that she keeps in a jar by the door, who is it for?

When Elisa and I became friends, she was getting more involved in living a local lifestyle. We joined a community supported agriculture group together, reveling in the glory of fresh, local produce each week. She planted a garden outside her apartment’s back door. And she bought a bike, a beautiful cruiser she named Kevin Bacon.

These were things she’d been interested in for some time, but her involvement quickly took off. In particular, that was true for her cycling. Before long, Elisa began riding her bike everywhere and upgraded to a commuter bike, a friendly, sleek guy she named Mick Jagger. Recently she and some friends launched a bicycle co-op. And after months of listening to her talk about the joys of bike riding, I made a deal with her: Find me a cheap bike that fits me, and I’ll try riding.

So she did. And today, I became a bike owner.

My bike, Eleanor Rigby, is a blue Nishiki Pueblo, a hybrid that needed just a little love. Elisa and a friend tuned her up, but the back wheel needed a little more work than Elisa could provide. So this morning I picked her and Eleanor’s back wheel up and we drove to the local bike shop.

I left my apartment brimming with excitement and anticipation. I’m a very risk-averse person; sometimes I get nervous driving the same route I take every day. But I want my recreational biking to be more than riding around my (very small) neighborhood five times a day. I hope to load Eleanor into my car and take her downtown on weekends, when the streets aren’t filled with traffic and when I’m likely to waste a lot of gas just running around.

While Elisa spoke to the bike mechanics, I got fitted for a helmet. (Helmet hair be darned! I technically purchased my helmet before my bike. It’s that important!) And after we returned to her apartment and replaced Eleanor’s wheel, I was ready for my first ride as an adult bike owner.

Elisa kindly offered to join me on the one mile trip from her apartment to the birthday party I was attending, and her presence really did help me feel more comfortable with riding down a semi-busy street. Even so, it was an easy ride, mostly downhill and flat, with only a block uphill. And the rewards were sweet: Two friends and their children were climbing out of their car when I pedaled up. I was the talk of the party (OK, save for the precious 1-year-old whose birthday we were celebrating!), and I felt pretty darn great. Intrinsic motivation is great, but a little outside motivation helps too.

After the party came the ride I was nervous about. I was meeting friends to play at the science museum downtown, and had decided to ride the two miles to my coffee shop. Although the museum is only five blocks farther, I knew I would feel comfortable leaving my bike locked to a meter outside the shop. And frankly, I always want coffee.

I set out from my friends’ house with warnings to be careful and to call them if I needed any help. A recent doctor’s visit confirmed that I’m healthy, but as I pedaled through the streets of downtown I was quickly reminded that healthy and in shape are two very different things. Even riding on the flat roads wore me out. I had to stop twice and quickly finished the tiny bottle of water I brought with me.

But I felt so accomplished as I pedaled over the bridge (a hill!) and crossed from Southside to downtown. I spotted a girl in a pink shirt pedaling toward me and knew it was Elisa. She joined me for the final three blocks to the coffee shop, and I’ll admit, I didn’t feel quite so awesome as we pulled up. I was sweaty, my dress was sticking to me and that two mile ride had kicked my butt. My best guy friend walked up, laughing at me (I’d already warned him that this was how I would arrive), and after locking my bike I went inside and threw myself across the counter. “Water!” I said, panting. “I need water!”

Another friend who rides had cautioned me to take it slow as I began riding. Only ride when you want to, he said, and don’t let anyone push you into doing more than you’re ready for. Bike nerds can be pretty hardcore, and he didn’t want me to become disenchanted before I really got going. So after playing at the museum, I decided to lift my bike into the back of a friend’s truck and get a ride back to my car. Five and a half miles on my first day would have sounded more impressive (OK, even if it’s not very far on wheels!), but loving my bike tomorrow is more important.

As he lifted my bike into his truck bed, my friend identified the source of my troubles. My back tire was scraping the bar that held it in place. No wonder those two miles were so tortuous! “Do I get superhero points for riding with it like that?” I asked him. He said maybe not. But I am even more motivated to keep going, and that’s enough for today.

Oh, and the other lesson from my first day as a bike owner? Pigtails are definitely the way to rock a lilac and white helmet. If you pass me on the street, be kind. I’m new at this.

Made with love

Sometimes an idea is worth copying. This is me, jumping on the bandwagon.

The first five people to respond to this post will get something made by me. This offer does have some restrictions so please read carefully:

•  I make no guarantees that you will like what I make.
• What I create will be just for YOU.
• It will be done this year (2009).
• It will be something made my own two hands.
• It might be a mix CD, a knitted scarf, stack of cards, a poem, baked goods, an original photograph … the possibilites are infinite.

In return, all you need to do is post this on your blog or facebook and make five things for five other people.

Stranded in a fog of words

On Jan. 3, I filled my iPod.

I didn’t see that milestone coming. When I finally bought an iPod two years ago, I intentionally purchased a model I thought large enough for my ever-growing music collection, but not so large that its capacity would go to waste. I expected the device to break before I ever needed more than 30GB.

When I added the albums that pushed my music collection over that 30GB mark, of course I panicked. “I need a new iPod!” I thought. “Do I have money to bump up to the next size? What am I going to do?”

I quickly came to my senses and realized I was being ridiculous. I love being able to carry every album I own everywhere I go, but I don’t listen to all 17.7 days worth of music. I would be scared to count how many of those 6,352 songs I’ve not listened to even once. So maybe the problem isn’t that my iPod is too small, I concluded. Maybe I’m the problem.

I cleared enough music off my computer to ensure my iPod and iTunes would sync, and in the weeks since I’ve continued the spring cleaning. I only listen to one track from Amy LaVere’s album; though so many people loved it, it never really clicked with me. Off it goes. I load albums I’m sent for review, but if they don’t make the cut? Delete. 

The following weekend I applied the same mentality to my apartment. I have more clothes than I need, and so many that I don’t wear. My trunk was quickly overflowing with bags earmarked for Goodwill. My bathroom was next on the list. I had developed a tidy collection of samples: shampoos, lotions and anti-aging creams (lots and lots of anti-aging creams). Just because I might need this cream someday doesn’t mean I need to store it today (besides, by the time someday rolls around, the cream would have expired). I bagged them up and took them into work, where my coworkers quickly claimed the products and put them to use.

It felt good, this cleansing ritual. And it’s ongoing; I’ve got clothes I’ve set aside, waiting a few days to see if I really can part with them. If I don’t wear it, why do I own it? And I’ve continued to edit my iTunes as new music comes in.

But there’s one area of my life where I can’t seem to break the hoarding cycle. Books.

Last weekend was the Friends of Emmet O’Neal Library Book Sale, and I certainly did my part to support the library. By the end of the weekend I had bagged up 80 books: 35 for one of my best friends, 44 for me and a crossword puzzle book for my grandfather.

And I’m unashamed. It’ll take me a while to read all of those books, especially combined with my already-lengthy to read list. And OK, I’ve instituted a book buying fast: I am not allowed to buy books again until Feb. 22, 2010 (or next year’s Emmet O’Neal book sale, whichever comes first). I need to read through some of what I already own, and no doubt I’ll continue to acquire more freebies. (I’ve got a knack for it, well, a knack and Paperback Swap.) I’m allowing myself three exceptions, because you just never know when something fabulous will be published. I hope to have read at least a significant chunk of this year’s book sale purchases by this time next year.

Even so, books are one thing that I just can’t get enough of.

Book Sale Bargain Day Finds:

1. Beowulf translated by Burton Raffel
2. Travels with Barley: A Journey through Beer Culture in America by Ken Wells
3. The Archivist by Martha Cooley (OK, I totally bought this book based on its cover.)
4. The Best American Magazine Writing 2002 
5. Name All the Animals by Alison Smith
6. On Writing Well by William Zinsser
7. The Best American Essays 1990 edited by Justin Kaplan
The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne
8. I Feel Bad about My Neck by Nora Ephron (OK, I’m too young for this book. But I like Nora Ephron.)
9. Watership Down by Richard Adams (My book club read this a few months ago. I … didn’t.)
10. Peace Like a River by Leif Enger (See above.)
11. Stern Men by Elizabeth Gilbert
12. The Reivers by William Faulkner
13. The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver
14. The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time by Mark Haddon
Angela’s Ashes by Frank McCourt
15. The Case of the Missing Books by Ian Sansom (Again I must confess: I bought it because of the cover. It has a date due card on it. And it talks about books.)
16. The Summer of the Great-Grandmother by Madeleine L’Engle (Because I have friends who OBSESS over her work)
17. Before Columbus Foundation Fiction Anthology edited by Ishmael Reed
18. Bel Canto by Ann Patchett
19. Still Life with Woodpecker by Tom Robbins
20. Reading Rooms: America’s Foremost Writers Celebrate Our Public Libraries with Stories, Essays, Poems and Memoirs edited by Susan Allen Toth and John Coughlan
21. Sister Age by MFK Fisher
22. Ray in Reverse by Daniel Wallace (Because I dig Daniel Wallace)
23. The Corrections by Jonathan Franzen
Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil by John Berendt
24. Leaving Home by Garrison Keillor (I have, um, never read or even really listened to Garrison Keillor.)

My fingers wrap around your words

Tonight I broke into a little dance when I left the library.

Sadly, that’s not an entirely unusual thing; I think it’s becoming an annual tradition. The occasion? The Friends of Emmet O’Neal Library Book Sale.

Last year was my first visit to the sale, and the trip resulted in the purchase of 36 books for $7. I’ve been talking about the event ever since.

My strategy this year was to begin with the Friends Preview Party on Thursday night, then return on Sunday for last-minute bargains. With my fellow bibliophile Monica in tow, I wrote my check to become a Friends member, grabbed a book tote and faced the books.

I intended to use today only for books that were absolute must-haves. I’d already snagged a few while volunteering with the Friends group over the past month, and I knew there would be plenty of classics left on Sunday. I’m running out of shelving space in my tiny apartment, and frankly I haven’t finished reading all of last year’s purchases. (Perhaps I should tally that number!) 

$54 later, I was set for the night. There was only one book in my stack that I questioned its must-have value, but it was a $2 purchase–so why not?

1. Downtown Birmingham Architectural and Historial Walking Tour Guide by Marjorie White, the Birmingham Historical Society
2. The Art of Eating by MFK Fisher (includes Serve it Forth, Consider the Oyster, How to Cook a Wolf, The Gastronomical Me and An Alphabet for Gourmets) (one of the big finds of the evening! Can’t believe I only paid $2 for this)
3. Writing Down the Bones by Natalie Goldberg
4. Big Fish by Daniel Wallace (yes I’ve read it, but I didn’t own it)
5. Chez Panisse Menu Cookbook by Alice Waters (this is the other big find!!!)
6. Wayside School is Falling Down by Louis Sachar (I loved these books as a child!)
7. A Thin Difference by Frank Turner Hollon (have read two of his books, big fan, plus he’s a Bama boy)
8. The God File by Frank Turner Hollon
9. Where the Sidewalk Ends by Shel Silverstein (for $2. SERIOUSLY.)
10. The New York Times Large Print Big Book of Easy Crosswords (for my grandfather!)
11. Endless Feasts: Sixty Years of Writing from Gourmet edited by Ruth Reichl
12. Early Days in Birmingham: A Printing of the Original Papers of the Pioneers Club whose Members were Eye-Witnesses to the Events of the Founding of the City (I just thought that was too cute to pass on! I love Birmingham history.)
13. Somebody Told Me: The Newspaper Stories of Rick Bragg
14. Leaving Birmingham by Paul Hemphill (one I’d been hunting for two years!)
    
15. The Prince of Frogtown by Rick Bragg
    
16. Gilead by Marylynne Robinson
    
17. The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down by Anne Fadiman
    
18. Reading Lolita in Tehran by Azar Nafisi