Mythical Legends Dinner Story

Just wanted to share this evening with you. It was cool. Winter is nice. Click on this text for the whole story.....!

Good Day.....

Today was a beautiful day. I went for a run (down the block) to catch the last farmer's market from the community garden down the street from me. Finally got some eggs from the chickens they take care of there, so excited to taste fresh eggs again. Then I went for a bike ride, breezy crisp and cool. Supa cool. Other stuff happened too that was nice. But what I really wanted to share is that I stopped in to one of my favorite spots in Brooklyn to get some flowers for my roommates birthday (Scorpzl in the hzl, hey!), Park Delicatessen. It's a beautiful shop owned by a beautiful couple (with the cutest kid I ever did see) that sells skateboards, clothing, odds and ends, stunning fresh flowers, and good times. Every time I go in there I feel community in my bones. Find these places and go to them. They matter.

Am listening to this song right now and it is sounding real good. The whole Deerhunter Halcyon Digest album is great.

Fall Musings...

Moving into my new apartment this summer (September was still 80 degrees yo...that's summer), I would waken to sun streaming through my window and open my eyes to the vibrant jungle green leaves of the tree outside my fire escape. Having my mattress on the floor is actually a beautiful way to look up to the world outside my bedroom. And now the leaves are becoming such brilliant shades of yellow, orange and red and for at least a little while longer, I am still woken by streams of sunshine that fortunately always get me before any alarm can go off. Ah, nature, so practical and useful! On another note of the seasonal changes, I have been sick with the mother of all colds/flu for the past week or so. Bed ridden with all the fun things that go along with that. Ah, nature, so practical and useful! Right? A break is sometimes forced upon you when you don't know how to take one for your self. So, I surrender humbly to the sickness that infests me.

Had to go into the city today for a court date (a ticket for riding my bike on the sidewalk, real bad ass) and a not so surprising coincidence occurred: Two older Jewish women (or they were just foreign and wore funny things on their heads) were on the same car as me going into the city from Brooklyn. After my court date, about three hours later, I get back on the train going to Brooklyn from Downtown and the same two women are there on the same car as me again. Duly noted. It happens all the time, but still, huh? Makes you think of the odds.

Here's a song for today from one of my favorites, Mose Allison: "I'm not discouraged, but I'm gettin' there".......he has a way with words among other things. Style people, delivery, it matters. What happened to the good ol' days?!!!!

Oh, America..

We are a big and fascinating country. So young, so much to learn. Listening to Leonard Lopate on WNYC this morning (he may be my favorite host), there was a very enlightening and thoughtful conversation (not uplifting though) between him and scholar Richard E. Rubenstein on the culture of war in America. Our economy is driving our youth to the battlefield, and if it isn't the economy it is some other propaganda. There really is no way to discern who the bad guys are, it depends what side your fighting on right? Anyway, it was a really engaging discussion I would urge you to explore. It might be too soon to stream it, but you will be able to by tomorrow I am sure. Please check out more information here.

Man, all this shit is happening right now. And it has been forever. And it probably always will. That sucks ass.

Hilarious

I sent an e-mail out to some peeps about getting in a submission and I shared a little story like this:

"My father used to sit in my room because I was too scared to fall asleep all the time. He thought it might help to tell me that I should imagine that Jesus was sitting in there with me, watching while I fell asleep. Well that scared the shit out of me. Thanks dad."

Then my dad wrote me back later a message like this:

"I said that Jesus was watching you? What kind of crack was I on? Seriously, I can't remember ever having said such a thing!"

The kind of crack that makes you play music on Classon Ave with a stranger? That's crack I can get down with...love me some pops.

Haunting Post

When we were younger our parents used to take us to Vancouver and we would always go to the aquarium. I remember at the Orca whale tank you could go below ground and watch them swim through the glass. The turquoise chlorine water would glow and the massive whales would slowly swim in repetitive circles, it seemed as though it took hours for their bodies to pass by me and the sounds of the water pressure through the glass was terrifying. I was mesmerized and haunted by these animals. I have had dreams and nightmares my whole life about whales hovering and floating around me ever since and have never been able to shake that they are mad at me (us) and then they beach themselves to remind us how evil we are.



Just a haunting story to share in anticipation of your stories. Check here for information on how to submit.

My Parents Win

Not that it's a contest, but.........honestly. Look at them:

This is my parents in Amsterdam for their first wedding anniversary. 1978 y'all. My mom is 21 years old. Whoa. Rock Stars maybe? And my mom knitted my dads sweater, which I remember him wearing growing up.

Also, yes, I am still bothering with bothering you about thinking about what you will send me for the Haunting topic! Oh, you don't know? Well check it out here. do it.

Haunting Continued....

Is that a ghost on stage with us?

So I have been terrified of ghosts my whole life, but I have decided that I am not allowed to see them so hopefully I wont. ever. Doing all sorts of searches on "haunting" just to get some ideas and explore the theme more.

I found this site where people submit photo's they have taken that have exposed images which appear to be apparitions.......could be totally bogus who knows. But it's fun to look at in a what the hell am I doing, this is scary kind of way. Some of them are really freaky! Maybe I should send in our picture.

Check it out Here

Haunting Grounds.....

Dudes! I cannot figure out why the bottom of the post is linking. It's not a link yo. And I don't want to re-write this whole thing. Sorry. Hell no, I ain't doin' it.
Welcome Back Friends. It's share time and it's on. I am so excited to relaunch the blog and collaborate with all y'all to post your collected thoughts and stories...

Current Submission Topic: Haunting......

Definition of HAUNT
transitive verb
1
a : to visit often : frequent b : to continually seek the company of
2
a : to have a disquieting or harmful effect on : trouble
b : to recur constantly and spontaneously
c : to reappear continually in
3
: to visit or inhabit as a ghost
intransitive verb
1
: to stay around or persist : linger
2
: to appear habitually as a ghost
— haunt·er noun
— haunt·ing·ly\ adverb

What haunts you? What is haunting that dude across the street? Have you ever seen a ghost? Ignoring problems will come back to haunt you? What cool spots do you frequently haunt? Haunting images? Dreams? Monkeys?

Please e-mail me with any short stories, memories, quotes, photo's, doodles, sentences, fiction, non-fiction, poems, monkeys, etc.. that the word or concept inspires you to create! Don't think too hard about it, chances are the first thing that comes to mind is what you should roll with. For whatever reason (I am a tech idiot) I have never been able to figure out how to post MP3's on the blog so songs are totally legit to submit, but I have to find them on like YouTube or something to get them on here...really annoying. Ok, bye! E-mail submissions to cfwinspace@gmail.com and I will be taking them all through October and post them sometime in the future of our lives.

Wow..

I have been talking with a friend of mine about protest songs and possibly doing some covers. In my research I unearthed this..... when the man starts dancing my heart melts.



I do not think we can top that one.





Who is this Paul Draper? I just started reading about him. He invented ballet tap and man, he feels it.

Past meets Present

So, I have this blanky. As you can see in the above picture it is pink and beautiful, so soft to the touch. I have had it for as long as I can remember and there are many photos of me in various stages of my life with that thing wrapped around my shoulders or head. Easter morning, Christmas morning, late night television watching.....it is my ultimate comfort.

My mom used to have to make me wash it because I hated putting it in the wash and preferred it with a healthy layer of grime. I can still hear her saying "Catherine, it's filthy!"

I came home from work the other night, exhausted and ready to curl into bed. "Look," Tania said, "I washed your blanky, it's drying."

Some things never change.

This morning we wrapped Tito up in my blanket for a modern family portrait. He looks embarrassed, which is funny with cats. Do you have something like a blanky you grew up with that makes you feel safe? PG Tips is also up there......and of course FuFu.

Another Project, but...

I'm not playing favorites. I've started a Mythical Legends blog as some of the work the band does is in need of it's own message and I would like to keep my more personal stories and thoughts separate from that. If I can. I hope you will check on both and I love and miss you all very much. Check out the ML blog just so you can get a killer Guacamole recipe (world famous) and see the awesomest music video you've ever seen.

who is in Seattle still that wants to hang when I return at the end of the month? Holla at me!

Changes..

are abound. This is my first post from my temporary new home in Bushwick. It's been more of an emotional transition then I was expecting, but sometimes it's good to recognize your attachments and I've realized that having a sense of home is so valuable. I basically had to start a new family out here and felt like I was saying goodbye to them. But really, I'm in my old neighborhood even more then my new one anyway still.

Today I went for a run in my new hood. It was sunny and the blue sky adorned with fluffy clouds, strong but not unwelcome breeze either propelling me forward or adding resistance (like nature's gym I guess). I slowed down a bit as I got to a busier street where school was being let out. The kids must have all been between 6 and ten or so, I can never really tell. There was a man up ahead in a brown suit walking on crutches, he had a missing leg. I began to feel sorry and almost guilty about my ability to take leisurely runs and bike rides whenever I want, I imagined what it must be like to not be able to do these small, underestimated things. As I got closer to him I could hear all the kids around us saying "Bye, Mr. Curtis.." he warmly responded to all their goodbyes and our eyes met and we smiled at each other. I didn't feel so badly for him anymore, it seems Mr. Curtis has a lot of love in his life. Yesterday on the bus, everybody was greeting each other and saying "Happy Mother's Day," the old, the young, the men, the women. Except the white people. Go figure.
One of Tania's rabbits was discovered dead today. She had been missing for a few days and we were hoping she was having babies cause rabbits do that a lot right? It seems as though she might have been attacked. I didn't know how to help them take care of the burial so I left to go on my run. Her name was Maru. She is survived by a surprisingly unaffected friend rabbit named RuRu. And so it goes.....

But things here at Locust St. are moving nicely. Music is in the air and our mission is coming into fruition. I cannot wait to share our songs with all of you. Here's an idea of what's going on (please note cat, turtle, unicorn):

50 years....still a lot to talk about

It's the 50th anniversary of the birth control pill. And while the literal science of the pill has had an effect on pretty much all women and their ability to make choices about their bodies and sexual lives, it still hasn't necessarily changed the difficult decisions facing women and men when it comes to career and religion and the way pregnancy, especially in America, is viewed as a professional killer and a black and white family vs. job choice.

WNYC's On The Point program just hosted a really informative and interesting discussion on the history of the pill and how things have gotten better and worst since it's introduction. One woman discussed how she cried for hours after the pope announced that it was unCatholic to use contraceptive and that she was terrified to be doomed with a dozen children as a consequence of her religion. And another called in to mention that when she was in college and engaged to be married in the 60's she wanted to explore the pill as an option but was turned away by her doctor because of his personal beliefs that prohibited him from recommending or even discussing it. And that still is happening now.

I'm a traditional girl. I want to get married and have babies and be able to provide and make a conscious decision about when is the right time to start a family. I don't think I ever want to be on the pill again, it's weird and the hormones kind of freak me out. That being said, it is a really great option for women to explore sexuality without being completely terrified of getting pregnant and having to make the emotional, painful decision of keeping it or not. I'll take the pill over an abortion any day. Both options need to be available, no question about it, especially if we're going to be living in a culture that doesn't financially support families and pregnancy in any way...health care, education, paid pregnancy leave etc.......

Listen to the story here, it's really well done and thoughtful.

Happy Birthday birth control. You aren't perfect, but we need you.

And it's not women like me who are blessed with supportive friends and family that would stand beside me no matter what decision I made who need it. It's the women who have to follow a rigid tradition that doesn't respect their individual health physical and mental when it comes to raising children and acknowledging their sexual needs. Can you imagine secretly taking the pill and thinking it might send you to hell just because you don't want to deal with having 100 little shit kids? Reminds me of that one movie with Kate Winslet and Leonardo DiCaprio. Yeah, that one. No, not Titanic idiot.

What is this?

What are they doing? So weird. Is that dancing? I am so confused by this video, how are they single-handedly so absurd and entertaining......been researching Hall and Oates music for a future event that I will let you know about later.

Gary....sigh

I was so lucky to find the Telekon vinyl in San Francisco, it sounds so beautiful in record form. This song isn't initially my favorite, but there's something very hypnotizing about it. I woke up with it in my head today. Numan. Done. Gonna dedicate my next DJ set to him.........

Cute!

I went over to my friends house to work on some music. His cat crybaby was so cute sitting on the amp chilling with us.

Images

Been loving life. It could maybe be more quiet, but that's a choice right? I went to San Francisco for a few days and it was great but I felt so behind when I got back. I can't tell if going away just makes you forget how much you always have to do or if it just makes it so you have to do more to catch up when you return home. Probably both. Thought I would share some photos with you instead of trying to explain anything anymore.



San Francisco. In Tuesday's kitchen. Drinking beer and eating chips. That's what we like to do.


A diner serving soul food and run by a Korean family. They chose this mug for me when they found out I was visiting from New York.


It was completely and utterly the right thing to do at the time. Like my new shoes?
Kara and Petunia.
I will be completely consumed by a Jukebox. I live to put money in them and play songs. Not a bad selection at the Phonebooth, which is a place that took my 80 year old bronchitis cough to a whole new level.

Back in New York. We had just played a show at Lit lounge and found this book in the booth. It was educational and we read it to each other by candlelight.


She would be our friend if we could find her.

Goddess Party

It took me moving to New York to really find some girls that I get down with. And get down we do. Why are we so cliche in so many ways, good ways. 4 bottles of wine later, demolished cheese plate, chocolate dip scraped clean, penis talk still going. I think someone cried?
Then we played Goddess cards! And it was awesome. I remember when I was little and would look through fairy pictures with my friends and we would pick which ones we wanted to be. And we would be them. This was kind of like that, but the cards were destined for us, we chose them blindly. Here's a lesson about some of them.


In order from left to right:
Athena: The olive tree owed to her it's fruit.... (Rosebud, how Greek!)
White Shell Woman: She gave them the animals, she gave them the gift of rain.... (Poppy)
Venus: She was the goddess of chastity, despite the fact that she had many affairs... (D.Dame, you like it)
Themis: The divine voice who first instructed mankind in the rules of order and hospitality... (Miss Melissa, a beyond amazing host)
Amphitrite: Loud moaning mother of fish, seals, and dolphins.. (Bug, you do like animals. A lot.)
Here's a picture going the other way so you can see all our Goddesses. I wanted to write a funny sentence about all of them, but some of the mythical bitches had nothing funny to say on their sites.

Beyond blessed to have these amazing woman in my life. Life's short, have more vagina parties. And the combination of an apple with cheddar cheese dipped in chocolate is pretty fucking delicious. Hay!

Current Inspiration

Ninjas.

And Chuck Norris has always been an idol of mine. This movie, The Octagon, is the perfect example of Chuck at his best. He is so in touch with his being and his instincts are his guide. He knows in this scene that there is something wrong, somebody is there, but he doesn't have time to explore because he has to fight:


Once the lady has sadly been killed and Chuck has extinguished the attackers, he takes a look around to assess the situation and discovers the truth, what he is up against:


NINJA!!!

Stay tuned for something that will blow you away. About Ninja's.

Animal Fun

Sometimes I feel weird about animals and peoples relationships in captivity, but these guys all seem pretty happy with their lives.

What we did during the day....

I love Brooklyn. I love these kids.

Bug and I have been working on a cover of previously mentioned "Drop the World" by Lil' Wayne and Eminem. As we were at her place practicing, the homeboys across the street were bumping the song out on the stoop. We knew then what we had to do. So we played for them. They recorded it and now we share it. It was truly a special moment. Then we drank Hennessy and chatted for a bit. What do you guys think?

He can put.....

He can totally put.

I always knew there was a huge buzz around Lil'Wayne, I finally decided to check him out and I'm in love. He's a creative little shit, his music is dope and he's sexy as hell. He is mom, okay, you just don't get it.



"Unique people get noticed and you're noticing..."

This is the performance from the Grammy's that he did with Eminem. It's edited so it's kind of annoying to watch, but I love that he went out there and said his shit the way he wanted to. And this song "Drop the World" is amazing. I'm a pick the world up and drop it on your fucking head." Say it, it feels really good.

I'm Still Here

Don't worry. So much has happened this last month.

Lost my job, lost a friend, went to Mexico, played a show, sent out resumes;
deciding where to go......
next.

This is the first time in my life I have been unemployed since I began working at 16. My immediate impulse was to send out mass amounts of resumes to bars and restaurants so that New York wouldn't eat me alive with it's rent and seemingly necessary extravagances (I like my $2 a day NY Times, thank you), but things have surprised me. I've surprised myself.

There are choices to be had. The paper, well, I can find used ones in almost any cafe and the crossword is usually in tact. Bottles of wine (good wine) cost less then 2 glasses at a bar (sometimes even 1, depending on your taste), having people over again is nice. Eggs are incredibly versatile, not too expensive and can be used in any meal. Seriously. I still buy organic food and dairy, but with more longevity in mind. Soup can taste good for days.

Beer is cheap. And delicious.

I can make music for free, and it's delicious.

People in the neighborhood are taking care of me. I have been working here and there at Milk Bar, 1 of a Find, and Weather Up. All in my little Brooklyn community. All this helps keep me here, physically and spiritually.

I stay quiet, listen for direction.........what next? Bring it.

Little Treats..

I just found out the Junior Boys album review I wrote for BUST is on their website! Cool! Anyway, it's the little things. Check it out!

Winter Share

We went to a fashion show in Soho. it was super cool. The models were posed like mannequins around the room and we joined in a circle surrounded by them and stared at them and took photos and made them uncomfortable. Most of them looked really bored.


There was music by Living Sacrifice, our friends, and Carly's jewelery was used in the show as well, check it all out here, the website is AMAZING!!
This is what band practice for Mythical Legends kind of looks like.
What I woke up to the other morning, New York winter is for real people.
There's this awesome game called Apples to Apples. You win green cards and collect them and at the end of the game, the green cards are what represent you. These were mine, I am really happy with the combo.
These are my most recent purchase from my favorite vintage store 1 of a find. So Mythical Legends. I wore them for our first show ever (which went beyond well) and almost everyday since then. LOVE them!!
I leave for Mexico tomorrow morning. A Valentine's holiday for just me. I also have no job and am watching my bank account deplete. Perfect timing. I feel so free people.

Spreading the Word

Good news. I just discovered that my interview with Guitars is on the NUMU Arts Collective website! I know that the interview was originally posted here so you've probably already read it, but please revisit their thoughts and music as well as checking out NUMU, which is an awesome community of gorgeous people (body and mind) doing good things for the world. I am going to their Fuck Valentine's open mic tomorrow night, see you there! More news about my recent musical ambitions and unemployment to come........the anticipation! 

MYTHICAL LEGENDS

In case you were wondering what I might be up to these days.......

MYTHICAL LEGENDS is the answer. We have our first show on Saturday February 6th at Lit lounge. For more information you can visit our magical website here and please let me know what you think about it: Mythical Legends

Here's a little inside view of what us very hard at work with some friends looks like:

Art Party

Farts and Craps went wonderfully! Here, I'll show you:

Food and art....one and the same.
I painted on the newspaper....like the effect
Our three different interpretations of the word FLOAT.
Cheers!

Farts and Crap!

I have decided to do a monthly Cultural/Arts project aptly named "Farts and Craps", because there's nothing worst then taking your self too seriously. It's funny there is so much to do in New York and I don't really do it. This project should help with feeling a little bit more a part of my community and the wonderful creative people around me. Of course Rosebud and Dandelion Dame will be in full attendance. Sometimes we will go to shows or exhibits, other times, like our next project, we will stay in and read or create something together. This week we are going to paint! I have been wanting to paint for a while, so now I'm doing it. 2010 is bringing it peoples. What are you going to do for yourself? Little things are big, even the whole Universe used to be a little condensed unit.......And then time came in and changed everything. Wah WAh. (Sorry, just started reading Stephen Hawkings, it keeps slipping in, but that's a whole nother post my friends.)

What took me so long?

I've always known I liked Joni Mitchell, even before I heard her music. Some things you know matter to you before you even know why. On the road trip Rosebud put Joni on as soon as we hit the California coast and it was beyond a cliche moment because it's kind of an absolute necessity to do if you have any sense about you. From that day on I knew a relationship was forming and it continues. Rosebud made me a data disc of three Joni albums, awesome. But the real moment was my first Joni record. I wake up in the morning and I put it on. I come home at night and I put it on. It's beautiful. I cannot find a date on it, but it's pretty damn early on in her legacy. Part One is I came to the city and Part Two is Out of the city and down to the seaside. It makes me smoke cigarettes and drink though. I am a product of my environment.

This is an amazing song that is on the record, but seriously, look at this woman. No contest. And I am so busy being free.............



Bring this back.

2010

Is upon us. It's a New Year and I have just discovered my delete button doesn't work on my computer. You'd be surprised by how annoying that is. Anyway:

Tania and I woke up this morning and wrote a song in bed. We drank tea and listened to Moondog records. We added him to the list. Then we took her car to her house and dropped off Jim 2 (the best keyboard in the whole world that I got for x-mas). Subway to the city for brunch. Bacon waffles handmade by Gilleon, Eggs Benedict with an excellently executed hollandaise, mimosas.......tv. Then fried chicken and negro modelo. Now I am drinking pg tips and eating a muffin. It's that kind of day and it feels good.

Warm people, big party last night, good bodies and souls. I was surprisingly clear headed and alert this morning, could feel a really nice energy in the city, fresh. I really think this year is going to be good. For me. For you. Just let it, you know? It wants to be good, don't fight it.

I know this.

Guess who else we added to the list? I think a part of my day today goes to recognizing people like this, people who do things that matter: