My best friend and duo partner, Diane, and I have been traveling together to rehearse and perform for many of our almost forty years of friendship. Right now we are in the mountains of western North Carolina, enjoying a lovely cabin as we celebrate the end of Diane’s third battle with cancer, rehearse for our … More On the Aging Clarinetist
Miraculously, Dan and I were able to grab a very short trip to our favorite place in the beautiful mountains of Western North Carolina in Bryson City, literally at the last second as the new semester begins. We’ve not been able to make our annual anniversary trip thanks to the pandemic, but no matter- we … More Mountain Medicine
It feels like we are living in some strange and nightmarish dream filled with dangerous and troubled waters from which we just can’t escape. I try my best to stay positive and put one foot in front of the other every day, but in all honesty it is getting more and more difficult not to … More Troubled Waters
I ran away from home on Sunday. Well, not exactly; I had the full support of my sweet Dan to go on a mission of love to check on a dear friend who is struggling in North Carolina. My BFF, Diane, very kindly offered to join me- no easy task during these challenging times of … More Pieces of My Heart
I am bone- weary tired from driving much of the day, but wanted to get some thoughts down while things were still fresh in my mind. I’m in Knoxville, Tennessee, finally tucked into my hotel bed after leaving Birmingham before 8am with my best friend and Amicitia Duo partner, Diane. We’re here to attend the … More On Road Trips, Memorials, Clarinets, and Life
The Grove Park Inn, back view. It had been several years since Dan and I visited the historic Grove Park Inn in Asheville, North Carolina- ten or more, to be more precise. The place is timeless, though, and as soon as we walked into the Great Hall, I felt as if I’d never left. It … More On Castles of All Kinds
As I sit here looking out at the mountains on our last morning at the Grove Park Inn, I am thinking about what my ‘take home’ is for this North Carolina adventure. We always enjoy our travels, but something was extra special about this particular trip. Maybe it’s that we both needed this time … More On the Take Home
The view from our room at the Grove Park Inn… As seems to be my tradition when we travel to the mountains of North Carolina, I have used all of the data on my iPhone from posting too many photos and videos. Frustrating for someone who had planned to blog each day of our trip, … More On Nothing and Everything
The View from Here 