Sunday, November 30, 2003

Austin Thanksgiving

What a wonderful thanksgiving trip we had. It was so fun to spend time with all the family.. and to see Kali and Meredith's beautiful home. It seemed to go by so quickly. One thing I never knew about us, that was observed by Roxanne, was that as a family, whenever we get together, we always want to "go do something". We don't just sit around and chat or watch tv (although there was plenty of that, I thought!). We like to get a game going, or take a walk or go out to see what's happening. We went out to eat, to explore Austin's shopping scene, to hear music and go to music stores. Ray and Roxanne are in their teens now, hanging in with Kali and Jesse and Kali's friends. Grandma came over for the day on thanksgiving, and joined in our family singalong session, providing a zesty tag to nearly every song. She liked to show that she could hold the last note longer and higher than anyone else. We also took a few trips to her house, which is about 20 minutes from Meredith's. Her home is clean and pleasant, she has a sunny room in the front corner of a large house in an older tree-lined neighborhood.

Austin things that we "did" include: the LBJ Library and Museum, City Lake and Zilker Park, South Congress shopping area, Sixth Street, the Warehouse District, Artz BBQ, RutaMaya Coffeehouse, walking under the MoPac Bridge.

Instruments played: mandolin, concertina, harmonica, guitar, voice, cowboy whistle.
Games and toys: remote control cars that John brought, Apples to Apples (with the extra added level).
Leah Brooks at 11:46 AM

Sunday, November 23, 2003

Update on the tree: Owners said in the paper that they were honored to donate the tree, and though sad to see it cut, after 50 years, were happy to share it with America. They received no money for the tree, but Rockefeller center will fix their front lawn,torn up by the process, and will put them up in a hotel for the lighting ceremony on December 3rd. I saw it today in New York City, or rather I saw a bit of it peeking out from the scaffolding and promotional sign hiding it as it is being prepared and decorated. I wonder if they are sticking in any fake limbs like dad always used to do on our great Christmas trees he engineerd in LeRoy?

R.G. Brooks at 9:46 PM

Friday, November 21, 2003

Getting ready for Brooksland

We are looking forward to spending next week in Austin with many Brooks family members! I am gathering advice about Austin from co-workers, and most of it seems to be food-related. I imagine by the time we get back, we will not only be full of holiday turkey, but of many other delicious cuisines as well.

Here is the list so far:
Louie Mueller Barbecue at 206 W. 2nd St. Hwy 79, Taylor Texas
Guero's Taco Bar in Austin
stubbs bbq....for both food & music
Threadgills: great home cooking
Ironworks BBQ in downtown
a nice Mexican restaurant called Las Manitas
Armadillo Christmas Craft Bazarre
Hyde Park Fudge Cake at any Texas French Bread location
One last cool diner is Hut's on West Sixth Street, great lil burger and beer joint that has been around for over 60 years
Driskoll Hotel on Sixth one block east of Congress: it was built in about 1890 and is a neat place with a corner bar where one could sit and watch the street


Leah Brooks at 12:47 PM

Monday, November 17, 2003

What happened to that tree?

One of the blogs I read regularly, "Because I say so", had a picture of the tree from Connecticut, now being put up in Rockefeller Center!

Maybe we can track its progress through the season. Do they put trees like that on the sidewalk on January 8th?

(update: "Officials from Rockefeller Center said they haven't decided what to do with the tree after Christmas. In the past, they have used the Christmas tree trunks to make horse jumps for the U.S. Equestrian Center in New Jersey, and chips for the Appalachian Trail. Last year's tree was recycled into toys shaped as zoo animals.")

Here's an article about the folks in Connecticut who sold the tree (no mention of what $$ they received)...


Leah Brooks at 9:37 AM

Friday, November 14, 2003

Busy, busy week

I guess I've been too busy to update much here this week... but something I'm working on with Barb is a list of our all-time favorite movies. There are several categories we are starting to formulate in our discussions:

1. Perfect movies. Ones that could not be improved upon and must be seen.
2. Movies that you want kids to see, in order for them to learn about some important time or person.
3. Movies that moved you at one time in your life - that probably would not be any good now, but were important then, at that moment.

Make your suggestions. The list is getting quite long already.
Leah Brooks at 8:55 AM

Tuesday, November 11, 2003

Adding another back-east post.

We saw in the paper that a tree in Manchester Connecticut (right next to us) was in the top 6, then 3 choices to be the New York City Christmas Tree in Rockefeller Center. It turned out to be not 5 miles from us, on the street to the mall that we pass all the time, without realizing that they have some nice looking, tall trees there beside a humble typical residence. But even while the papers were being coy about it being in the top 6, we pretty much knew it was a done deal, because they had wrapped the lower limbs, tied in all the branches and had a humongous crane truck and flatbed parked near it. Somehow we doubted they were treating the other "top 5" like this. Here is a picture I took yesterday. They cut it down and it is on the way to the big apple today. Will the home owners go the Virgin Islands on the deal?

R.G. Brooks at 4:40 PM

Celestial music

Barb sent me the list of the songs on the record aboard Voyager.

Here's a little on the "technology". The record is analog. I don't think we have a record player that will play at 16 2/3 rpm. Why so slow, I wonder?

"The Voyager message is carried by a phonograph record-a 12-inch gold-plated copper disk containing sounds and images selected to portray the diversity of life and culture on Earth. The contents of the record were selected for NASA by a committee chaired by Carl Sagan of Cornell University. Dr. Sagan and his associates assembled 115 images and a variety of natural sounds, such as those made by surf, wind and thunder, birds, whales, and other animals. To this they added musical selections from different cultures and eras, and spoken greetings from Earth-people in fifty-five languages, and printed messages from President Carter and U.N. Secretary General Waldheim. Each record is encased in a protective aluminum jacket, together with a cartridge and a needle. Instructions, in symbolic language, explain the origin of the spacecraft and indicate how the record is to be played. The 115 images are encoded in analog form. The remainder of the record is in audio, designed to be played at 16-2/3 revolutions per minute."
Leah Brooks at 11:37 AM

Monday, November 10, 2003

Eclipse-Eclopt

No sign of the moon, eclipsed or not, in the bay area. We had a spectacular rainstorm, however, complete with some lightning and some very dramatic thunderhead clouds. Yesterday we attended a fundraiser party for an interesting film being made by my friend and co-worker, Betsy Bayha. It was held 'way up in the Berkeley hills, in a large home with spectacular views of the bay. I only wish I had remembered to bring the camera. The house had 3 or more decks facing the view, and each level of the house had one windowed wall that dramatically revealed the sky. You could sit in the library and imagine yourself an eagle, perched.
Leah Brooks at 11:31 AM

Sunday, November 09, 2003

The Lunar eclipse (does lunar get capitalized?) was quite good here in Connecticut, and it was particularly interesting because it seemed to be produced just for us! During all but the very first peek, you could see the whole show from our back doorway. The sky was crystal clear, the moon was crisp, and the advance of the moon made an arc that was in all key locations visible, or visible through the spindles of the leafless maple tree branches. You could check out there from time to time and see how far it had progressed from about 6pm to 10pm. As the shadow first kissed the moon, it was dark black, then you realized you could actually see the moon even in the shadow area, a dark grey, but as soon as the umbra (see I did pay attention in science class) took over, the moon was a dim orange color in the shadow, kind of spooky, then it emerged bright on the other end. The dim orange glow is due to alien campfires that we can't see when the direct sunlight is on them.


R.G. Brooks at 11:26 AM

Thursday, November 06, 2003

Farewell, Voyager

I read in the paper today that the Voyager has reached the end of the solar system, they think. I remember when it was launched in 1977... what a nobel venture, to reach out beyond our realm, into the void of space. A smidgeon of the archives of the human race went along for the ride, including a recording of Johnny B. Goode and pictures by Michelangelo. To think that just now it has arrived a the edge of sunlight, known to scientists as "termination shock", 8 billion miles away. That term is somewhat mystifying - I would suggest instead, "where the sun don't shine".

I wonder if the universe bends back on itself, and someday the Voyager should come back to Earth - will our children's children's children's children recognize it as their history? Will they have the technology to play Chuck Berry in whatever format they used in 1977?
Leah Brooks at 10:34 AM

Wednesday, November 05, 2003

Finally, a change of season

We went from summer to winter with only a week of fall in between. The leaves are just now changing color, in a hurry to catch up with the dropping thermometer.

It's nice to sit up here on the third floor, looking out directly into the clouds as they mist their way around the hills. The pond looks black, with a few ducks trailing out some wake behind them.

All around me, the bustle of holiday party invitations, end of year business, vacation plans, warm clothes shopping, umbrella finding, flu shot getting and windshield wiper buying. Seasonal excitement.

I feel full of energy - is it the wheel of the seasons, or being on thyroid medication? Hooray for drugs - I feel like the awakened Rip Van Winkle.
Leah Brooks at 12:22 PM

Monday, November 03, 2003

Singing beats everything

There is nothing more fun than singing. Honestly, even if you aren't a good singer, isn't it fun? To put your head back and belt it out, snapping your fingers, singing some song that you know and love?

Yesterday was just about as good as it gets for a singer. My quartet came over to my house, we got all dolled up and went over to the civic center to perform in a matinee that the local men's chorus was putting on. (In other words, we didn't have any responsibilities except to show up - that's the best kind of gig.) The venue was intimate but the audience was enthusiastic, and my girlfriend was in the audience and cheered when I got introduced. We sang really well, and even remembered the dialog that we had just put together before the show. Then we went out for dinner at a great Italian place nearby, came home and had some homemade apple pie with some desert wines that Tina brought from Windsor, and then trotted over there again for the evening show. The house was less full but more enthusiastic, and after it was all over, the men gave us a check. Getting paid for having a totally fun day... you REALLY can't beat that.

On top of all that, we had some time to rehearse our holiday music, and work on Something's Coming (from West Side Story).. which is new for us. I think that song will become one of our best, once we get it down. For me, singing songs from musicals is done in my original voice, the most "innate" type of singing - since I did it in childhood, before I knew anything about "how to sing" or if I was any good. It's very organic, natural. To combine that kind of singing with my quartet's backup is bound to be fabulous.


Leah Brooks at 7:44 AM