This weekend, Jeremy and I went to a show at the Q Cafe in Ballard. We’d been meaning to see Washington Mile for a while now, but this was the first time we actually got out and did it. I’m so very glad we did.
You know how good music can lift you up and seemingly take you into a different place? This show did that for me.
One song in particular has been in my head for the last few days. Enjoy it!
And go see Washington Mile at the High Dive on September 29th. They’re amazing.
Leave a Comment » | 
The Art Experience, Uncategorized | Tagged: High Dive, music, Purdy Waters, Q Cafe, Seattle, Seattle band, Seattle music, Washington Mile | 
Permalink
Posted by Elise
Today I stumbled upon a blog whose author describes himself as a “recovering English major.” I relate to that. I have no regrets about studying English – I loved it, and I learned a lot. But sometimes higher education breeds snobbery. As an English major, I got the feeling I was supposed to make a distinction between literary fiction and genre fiction. But I’m learning to let that go. I’m letting myself enjoy a good mystery novel from time to time. I no longer try to hide my love of fantasy stories.
I got my English degree at a liberal arts university. Now, I am enrolling in the Tom Petty School of Fine Arts. I mean this figuratively, of course. As far as I know, there’s no college by this name. (But if there is, I’m interested.) The Tom Petty School of Fine Arts is my term for the school of thought that values music, art, and stories that are engaging and accessible. I am a big fan of Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers for this reason: they write catchy songs – three-chord rock songs that make me feel good, written with the understanding that great composition does not have to be mind-bendingly complex.
I am not a musician; I am a writer, so what I aim for is the literary equivalent of a Tom Petty song. For me, as a writer, the Tom Petty School of Fine Arts involves reading and studying stories that catch my attention and make me care about the characters. Stories that keep me asking, “What’s going to happen?” These are the kind of stories I want to write.
The best book I’ve read so far this year is The World According to Garp* by John Irving. It’s a story about a writer, T.S. Garp. At one point in the book, he submits a manuscript to his editor, John Wolf. John Wolf passes the manuscript on to his cleaning lady, Jillsy Sloper. Jillsy is John Wolf’s secret weapon. She dislikes most books, but if a manuscript manages to hold her interest, it is sure to be a bestseller. Jillsy reads Garp’s manuscript very quickly, all the way to the end. She doesn’t like the how the story turns out (It’s a rather morbid story), but she can’t put it down. After she finishes it, Jillsy and John Wolf have the following discussion:
“If you hated it, why’d you read it, Jillsy?” John Wolf asked her.
“Same reason I read anythin’ for,’” Jillsy said. “To find out what happens.”
John Wolf stared at her.
“Most books you know nothin’s gonna happen,” Jillsy said. “Lawd, you know that. Other books,” she said, “you know just what’s gonna happen, so you don’t have to read them, either. But this book,” Jillsy said, “this book’s so sick you know somethin’s gonna happen, but you can’t imagine what. You got to be sick yourself to imagine what happens in this book,” Jillsy said.
“So you read it to find out?” John Wolf said.
“There surely ain’t no other reason to read a book, is there?” Jillsy Sloper said.
I quote this not because I think a story has to be sick in order for people to care about it, but because I agree with Jillsy on this point: The only reason to read a book is to find out what happens. When I am really into a book, when I can barely put it down, I go about the house asking (out loud, oftentimes), “What’s going to happen?” That is why I love to read.
I am an English major, and I love beautiful diction; I love symbolism; I love all the literary devices an author can employ. But just like Jillsy, the main reason I read a book is to find out what happens. The reason I like art is that it strikes an emotional chord with me. The reason I love music is that it’s catchy or emotive or beautiful.
I want this to inform the way I write. I want to worry less about making high art and more about crafting well-composed stories that make people care what happens. This is the Tom Petty School of Fine Arts.
(My apologies for the look of this video. It is the song I want to share, not the graphics.)
* A quick note: I liked this book a lot, but I have to say that I don’t recommend it for everybody. As with any book that showcases human nature, it can get fairly gruesome at times. … Not for the faint of heart.
2 Comments | The Art Experience, Uncategorized, writing | Tagged: art, Books, English, English major, fiction, John Irving, literary fiction, music, rock and roll, rock music, Stories, The World According to Garp, three chord rock, Tom Petty, Waiting for Tonight | Permalink
Posted by Elise
Friday night I bought a bunch of irises. I cut their stems to varying lengths and arranged them in vases. When I went to bed, their indigo buds were still closed tight. Two flowers began to open on Saturday morning, and by Sunday evening, they were all open, at the peak of their beauty.
I wanted to remember them in that state, so I pulled out my oil pastels and drew. Flowers are fun to draw and paint,
because they have organic shapes, lines, and colors that man-made objects don’t. And unlike most animals or people, they’ll sit still for a couple hours as you draw them.
Floral paintings can come across as chintzy and sentimental, but I sympathize with any artist who wants to draw them. Because they are so vibrant and so vigorously alive, and because they last such a short time, flowers often urge me to grab my pencils, my pastels, or my paints so I can capture a bit of their beauty before it goes away.
As I drew, I recalled this conversation from Neil Gaiman’s Coraline (which, I repeat, you really need to read):
“I still keep pictures in my mind of my governess on some May morning, carrying my hoop and stick, and the morning sun behind her, and all the tulips bobbing in the breeze. But I have forgotten the name of my governess and of the tulips too.”
“I don’t think tulips have names,” said Coraline. “They’re just tulips.”
“Perhaps,” said the voice, sadly. “But I have always thought that these tulips must have had names. They were red, and orange and red, and red and orange and yellow, like embers in the nursery fire of a winter’s evening. I remember them.”
The “voice” belongs to a child’s ghost recalling one of his few lingering memories. The tulips seem emblematic of his entire life: they are vibrant, sweet, and ephemeral. Old Testament psalmists, Dutch Renaissance painters, and modern folk musicians have all used flowers as metaphors for life’s transitory nature. I think they’re onto something. Flowers inspire me to enjoy life’s sweetness, they urge me to be creative and to celebrate beauty, because beauty, however briefly lived, is important.
It is good to remember that life is short. But it is also good to remember that we look forward to something more than death. Flowers remind us of resurrection too. Take, for instance, this passage from 1 Corinthians. And read this poem by Louise Gluck, who, it seems, is also inspired by irises.
Van Gogh’s irises
1 Comment | Uncategorized | Tagged: 1 Corinthians, art, Bible, carpe diem, Coraline, drawing, Flowers, Irises, Louise Gluck, Neil Gaiman, oil pastels, Paul, resurrection, The Wild Iris, Van Gogh | Permalink
Posted by Elise
Sometimes a song finds its way inside my head and gets stuck in there, rattling around for days. This can be very annoying. But every now and then, a really good song gets stuck in my head – one that makes me happy every time it replays in my mind. This is one of those songs, and I want to share it with you. I love it! Hope you do too.
This is from the DVD/CD Where the Light Is – Live in Los Angeles.
1 Comment | Uncategorized | Tagged: Good Love Is On the Way, John Mayer, music, song, stuck in my head, Where the Light Is | Permalink
Posted by Elise
Lately I’ve been spending too much time pondering the mysteries of Life, the Universe, and Everything. I don’t think it’s healthy. Instead of finding answers, I find myself feeling sadder and more confused.
The other night, Jeremy reminded me of a verse from 1 Corinthians 13: “Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.”
If the Apostle Paul, who wrote a huge chunk of the New Testament, felt that he only saw a dim reflection of all God is, I guess it’s okay if I feel that way too. I don’t understand God, but how could I?
So I’m trying to embrace the adventure that happens here in the messy middle. I’m trying to trust, trying to follow a God I don’t understand. And I’m trying to find joy in the process.
5 Comments | Uncategorized | Permalink
Posted by Elise
I love summer for all the traditional reasons – warm days, long sunlit evenings, fresh berries, and vacation – but another reason I look forward to summer each year is that it is the season of Shakespeare in the Park. Two Seattle theatre companies, Wooden O and GreenStage, tour local parks throughout July and August, each presenting two plays. My husband can attest that I start getting excited about this season each year around March. Why is this so exciting? I love theatre, but attending plays can be pretty expensive. This is my yearly opportunity to see four professionally produced plays for free.
Not sure if you’re a Shakespeare fan? This is a great way to experience Shakespeare for the first time. It’s a no-risk situation, really: the play is free, and you may just discover a new love of theatre and Shakespeare. I got my own first taste of the Bard’s work when, as a fourteen-year-old, I attended Wooden O’s production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream at Lynndale Park. As the players enacted this comic fairytale in the amphitheatre, the surrounding trees and deepening dusk added to the story’s enchantment. Since then, I’ve seen at least a dozen plays in local parks. I’ve become a Shakespeare addict.
Over the years, I have invited many friends to join me for these experiences. Some friends were dubious at first, but they wound up being surprised by how much fun Shakespeare can be. Four hundred years have passed since Shakespeare wrote his plays, but the tragedies are still rich with fascinating and believable characters who demonstrate human potential for nobility, as well as corruption. And the comedies still spring to life as actors and directors interpret them and put their own spin on the stories and characters.
Sound interesting to you? If so, I’d like to offer a few tips for getting the most from your Shakespeare in the Park experience:
That’s it. I hope you’re inspired to check out some Shakespeare and support local theatre. See you in the park!
1 Comment | Uncategorized | Tagged: GreenStage, Seattle, Shakespeare, summer, theatre, Wooden O | Permalink
Posted by Elise
