My Own Devices...

Safe. Today.

I have always been a loner. So life under the coronavirus confirms the lonely path. I mean, I am not alone, I am hunkered down with a my closest loved one, and we are surrounded by our little birdies. A flock of 4. So even in our little bunker, we are surrounded by life. Living with the living. I have also been staying in touch with other close friends and loved ones via phone.

Still, I have always been a loner, and I have actually always been comfortable being alone. It's funny, later in life I got into theater and music, and found myself on stage in front of lots of people. But, really, being on stage is just perfect for someone who embodies alone-ness.

This morning I think of Bartleby the Scrivener and his famous saying... "I would prefer not to."

There is so much we can no longer do, we must kiss these actions goodbye:

to congregate
to meet
to crowd in
to hang out
to gather together

Theater and music are no longer communal things (until further notice).

A big part of my life has been canceled. Weird. Strange. Odd.

So I am left on my own, and I am owning it. I fill myself up with music, books, videos, playing music, learning a new instrument (mini-MOOG!), dreaming, laughing, crying.

So what's on the agenda today? "I would prefer not to" is my guiding imperative. So many things fall away... what is left?

Safe. Today.

The a.m. soundtrack - John Coltrane's "My Favorite Things."  (1960). One recent morning I played Hendrix's "Axis: Bold as Love", and my partner followed it up with this record. And it totally made sense. Jimi Hendrix and John Coltrane. Ultimate musicians. Ultimate Artists. Unlike any others. They do kind of complement each other. So this morning I spin Coltrane. He takes some familiar standards and flies to distant lands. He is playing soprano saxophone for the first time on a record. Such a beautiful tone, such a beautiful, expressive vibe. It is a fantastic record, and a historic one. The first version of the John Coltrane Quartet with McCoy Tyner on piano, Steve Davis on bass, and the amazing Elvin Jones on drums. What is Jazz? This is Jazz and so much more...