regaining my love for free jazz

Every now and then, I spend a year (or two) (or three) immersed in a new musical obsession... and in the early eighties, I spent about three years where the vast majority of what I listened to was free jazz. [The Art Ensemble of Chicago and OM were particular faves.] Eventually I burned out on it some, and decided to wait til I was in the mood to hear it. And that mood rarely came. [I gather I'm not alone in finding that music demanding to listen to, it requires actual energy and focus.] Many years went by where I said "pass" every time the opportunity arose.

But recently I was browsing thru old albums, came across some free, and unexpectedly decided I could muster the gumption to tackle it. And it paid off. I was exhilarated and satisfied in the way unique to those sounds. Since then I've been going back there much more often, but no longer to the exclusion of all else. Pacing myself better seems to allow me to enjoy it more now, in my dotage. I've also discovered that new bands have been working in this area all along, and there are lots of new things for me to discover....

Today I finished drafting the script for my graphic novel. Now to draw it! Now to figure out how to draw it!

This is such an odd project for me, and such an odd place for my head to be in during a project. I can imagine all sorts of problems and complaints readers will have with what I'm doing and how I'm doing it, but none of them dissuade me. I feel like I've never before made a comic that is so much for me, and if other people don't like it, that doesn't mean I'm wrong. It's weird not needing to worry about audience reaction....

Getting the dishes done, even though I so felt like bailing on them: Tomorrow Morning Me will be very grateful.

 A beautiful sunny morning after too long without.

 scoring a humongous bargoon on canvases

Pillsbury Crescent Rolls! They aren't a major part of Thanksgiving dinner but they are a key part.

getting an excellent dental check-up

an easy fix

Last night, when I removed my hearing aids for their overnight recharge, part of one of them stayed in my ear. (Wuh-oh.)

This morning, I took them back to Costco for a repair. And it was simply a matter of unplugging the broken cable and plugging in a new one — literally took less than thirty seconds. (Oh, and it was free: “Everything is covered by your membership.”) Gotta love it.

The silver lining of a day of gastrointestinal distress: overnight I lost four pounds.