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A Berry Good Life
Wendell may have rested in the grace of the world, but he brought a lot of grace to it as well.
Writer. Poet. Truth-teller. What he said in 1990 is even more true today:
Rest in the peace of wild things, Wendell.
Start with scribbles
“Dubbatrubba, what’s your writing process?” — asked No One Ever.
Why, thanks so much for asking, Mr. or Ms. N.O. Ever!
Whatever weirdness oozes out of my brain usually starts as scribbles. Pen on paper. It looks like gibberish.
It IS gibberish. Or maybe shorthand. But after all the scribbles and scratch-outs and circles and arrows, I usually figure out what I really want to say. And turn to the typewriter to whip it into shape. (OK, it’s a computer – sorry to let you down, Tom Hanks.)
The example above was when I was brainstorming ideas for promotional audio clips (i.e. mini-commercials) to be played on Inhailer Radio. They’re playing old episodes of the “97X Rumblings from the Big Bush” podcast that my friend Dave and I have been doing for several years now. You can catch the new/old episodes Sunday nights at 9 p.m. Eastern.
The time slot is a radio dead zone – I know this from experience because back when I worked at the AM oldies/FM country radio stations (WDJO-AM and WUBE-FM respectively) the program director of the country FM station would let me do air shifts during the Sunday night slot. (With the on-air name of “Cincinnati Redd” so kindly bestowed upon me by the PD…) And there was only one possible explanation for his largesse:
But hey, this new/old medium required very little effort on our part. And perhaps it’ll introduce a few new listeners to our labor-of-love podcast, since Inhailer is a kindred spirit of 97X.
The scribbles above yielded two longer promos (you can listen to one below), two short promos, and three mid-episode “cut-ins” (“you’re listening to…). Not bad for a page of paper and some ink.
Your process may be different. (And it’s probably better.) But if you want to write, start scribbling.
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Picking on Porches
In the Robert Frost poem “The Mending Wall,” the narrator’s neighbor says “Good fences make good neighbors.”
But I say “Open porches make new friends” At least, that was the case this past Saturday as my daughter Leah and I attended a “Porchfest” event in the St. Anne’s Hill neighborhood of Dayton.
It’s a cool concept (especially for music lovers like my daughter and me): free music performances on different porches (and yards) all around the neighborhood.
Explore the neighborhood and support local music at this unique annual festival celebrating the richness and diversity of the Dayton music scene.
It’s not a new concept. The first one was in Ithaca, NY in 2007. But I’d never heard of it until my friend Dave mentioned it a few weeks ago.
Dayton Porchfest was founded in 2017, inspired by the original Porchfest started in 2007 in Ithaca, NY (www.porchfest.org) and Larchmere Porchfest in Cleveland (www.larchmereporchfest.org), which started in 2009. Today there are over 200 Porchfests throughout the United States and Canada. Dayton was the 94th.
They had musicians/bands slated for every hour, with several music genres represented.
Leah and I got there around 3 p.m. – we had just found a parking spot when the heavens opened and a summer downpour commenced. But that didn’t dampen our spirits (just our footwear). Once the rain let up, we caught up with my friend Dave and caught all or parts of several sets. Bluegrass. “folkedellic,” Indie rock, Americana, soul…
We would’ve had fun just exploring the neighborhood – but we never would’ve made the trek to Dayton and explored it without the lure of bands.
Good fences may make good neighbors, but I’ll pick “pickin'” on porches every time. Because nothing creates community quite like live music.
What goes around comes around, mile after mile
Editor’s note: Below is a slightly modified version of an email I sent out yesterday afternoon. Posting here in case any of my loyal readers (all three of them) weren’t on the distro list for the email… or in case anyone else stumbles across this post and decides to donate.
Writing is usually my happy place, but this is one I absolutely hate writing.
I hate it because I am asking you to donate to my Ride Cincinnati efforts when gas and grocery prices are taking a much bigger bite out of your wallet. Granted, raising funds for cancer research, education and care is a noble cause. But that’s of little solace when there’s “too much month at the end of the money” as the old country song goes.
I hate it because the reason behind the email is cancer, and cancer is pure evil. It has taken away people I love, and people you love. And other friends and family members are battling it right now.
And I dread it because it’s yet another painful reminder that my friend “LJ” is no longer with us. He was diagnosed with brain cancer in May of 2024. He fought the good fight. No one was braver. No one had a better attitude. But still, we lost him in November of last year.
I hate writing this, but I know in my heart I’ll wind up loving the outcome.
Because of your generosity – even in tough times.
Because it helps. Every damn dollar makes a difference.
Through our partnership with the Cincinnati Cancer Foundation (CCF), Ride Cincinnati fundraising supports local hospitals, nonprofits and community programs that are making a difference in the lives of cancer patients and their families.
And because it reminds me that life is beautiful, even when it’s way too short.
24 days from now, I’ll have had as many spins around this globe as LJ got (Lord willin’).
38 days from now, I’m going to spin my bike wheels for 30 miles (knees willin’), to pay tribute to LJ, and keep his memory alive, and to help other folks who are bravely battling cancer with his same strength and grace. What goes around, comes around.
Give if you can. No worries if you can’t. I still love you, and appreciate you.
Thanks!
LJ on the left, with his wife Patty, and our friends Sheila and Art, on a sunset cruise in Florida last fall. We knew it would probably be LJ’s last trip to the beach, a place he loved very much.
Enjoy every sunset…
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