Good Times

As much as the worries surrounding the uncertainty of a looming job future for my husband and the winter blahs that have hit Ohio pretty hard I still think that I am having one of the best times of my life right now. It's a great time mostly in part because everyone is home right now! Andrew and Lyndsay are home from Minneapolis, Evan is home from Bahrain, Kyle is home from Pittsburgh...we are just basking in the good times until everyone has to get back to the things that drive their everyday lives. I am in the cafe right now sitting at the new stainless steel tables waiting for applications and I'm thinking about when I left the house this morning. Sam was outside diligently preparing the wood supply for our house so that we can stay warm this winter. Evan came out to help and all I could hear was their dueling chainsaws outside. I am so glad that Sam has someone out there to help take the burden off of him in cutting and stacking all that wood and I am even more glad that Evan is actually in my front yard after being away for a whole year and he's sharing his time with my family. Right before I left to go to the cafe Evan was cutting down a big branch that is eventually going to come off the big sugar maple that we have in our front yard. He had to lift the chainsaw over his head to reach the branch and I watched the sawdust cover his whole head as it coated his bright red hair and in his eyes and all over his face. He put down the chainsaw to wipe out his eyes and the whole time he was smiling and laughing. I was so glad to see that! It's my hope that for all of us that are taking a little hiatus from the normal daily things that we do that it would be filled with fun and love and that it would re energize each and every one to bring us back to what we normally do with a new vision and energy and bring us all back together safely the next time around.

Drummers pt. 3

Here are the rest of the drummers in my life. Hope you enjoy!

Chris-My Brother. He’s the 6’6” guy that seems so imposing that it only makes sense that he should play the drums. When he stands up it just scares people so it is good that he sits for this hobby. Chris and I are only 18 months apart in age and we have always had a really cool relationship. I hardly ever remember fighting, we have a lot in common and we have this weird connection that when I have a bad day I always find out that he had similar circumstances in his own. I don’t know if drums were his first choice of musical instrument. I think that he was kinda thrown into them. I think that the guitar is his first love, but I do know that he loves playing the drums. It seemed like overnight he knew how to play them and he was instantly good at it. Like most things in his life, skills come easily to him. Once he knows something he doesn’t forget it either. The way that he plays the drums sometimes cracks me up though. Sam and I used to make fun of the way that he would hold the drumsticks. Like he was ready to beat down and kill a man. You get the picture hopefully or maybe not. We don’t want Chris to look like a murderer or anything; nasty rumors get spread that way. He is totally a straightforward drummer, he is right on with his timing and he plays exactly what he needs to with no extra flourish and it always sounds good. I know that he had no formal training, I am pretty sure he is self taught with a little advice from a couple other drummers at the beginning. I really enjoy watching him play the drums, it is impressive and it makes me happy.

Brad. My Bud.-Well this guy has the skills to pay the bills! Brad has real talent when it comes to the drums (I'm not saying the others don’t)! I became friends with Brad about 5 years ago when Sam and I were youth leaders at the church he went to, now we are totally awesome friends and Sam and I have become really close to Brad and I consider him one of my best friends. I was able to be a part of the worship team at the church he played at. I’ve also seen him play at concerts with a couple bands he was a part of. Always impressive, it is amazing how quickly he can pick up a song too. I’ve seen songs thrown at him that he’s never heard and he picks up on them the first time playing. If you can believe it he actually looks like he is playing the drums about 90% of each day while he is awake. He drums on anything around and his feet are always moving. To be sure, if a song is playing he is beating his hands on his head or legs, it’s always makes me smile. I love to see him play the drums, he has a really awesome drum set that is this gorgeous light blue swirled color, he is very skilled at the drums and he does so many cool variations and he gets the arms flying and makes a cool show of it with no holds barred. Pretty sweet stuff.

Mike. My Incognito Friend.- Mike is another one of those extremely talented individuals that also plays the drums. I met Mike about 12 years ago when he was dating Sam’s neighbor Ginny and I was dating Sam. Mike and I are like 2 peas in a pod. He’s just a little wacky and so am I, so I really understand his mindset and the crazy stuff he does. As long as I have known him there has always been a drum kit set up in his house. He often fools around playing it and has taught himself how to play too. He really likes to jam and get together to play live music with others, it totally gives him nourishment and revives him. Mike is good at everything he does; I know the drums are no exception.
Kevin. My Old Friend.-Kevin is this wiry guy that is bred to play the drums. He is so fast paced and always on the go, it would be a shame if this world didn’t have Kevin playing the drums. We first met in high school and we don’t get to see each other as much as either of us would like anymore, maybe once or twice a year, but when we do it is always awesome to be hanging out again. I’ve seen him play at church and at concerts from high school to just a few years back and he sincerely loves the drums. They let out his emotion and high energy and they fit so well into his life. He sometimes needs to vent and I think that drums are his way of expressing who he is; they are just a natural extension of him.

Drummers pt. 2...Sam

Of course the first drummer that I would write about would be my amazing husband Sam! I really have only heard Sam play the drums live one time. We were dating & he was making the decision to get out of playing the drums & he decided to take his set down and sell them. I had always wanted to hear him play & I told him that occasionally, kinda hinting that he should for me. He talked about how much he loved to play them & I wanted to see that part of his life at least once. Well one day he calls me over to his house & he brings me out to the garage & he says that he’s been practicing for hours on this song, its one of his favorite ones to play the drums to & he is going to play one last song for me before he retires the old drum set. I was & still am amazingly impressed that he would go thru all the trouble of doing this for me! I don’t even remember what song it was. He turned on the old cassette tape & blasted away at this baby! Something metal and loud, but it wasn’t the song that I remember. It was Sam playing something that he loved & put time and skill into, something that he wanted to share with me one last time. That moment made me love him so much for sharing a part of his life that was over, but he wanted to give me a glimpse of all the joy he had in it before he was done. To this day he has never played the drums again to a complete song that I know of. Yeah, he may fool around & hit a symbol or snare here and there (that rhymed). But everyone that asks him if he still plays drums he will say that he doesn’t do that anymore & that he has no interest in starting again. I’m not sure why he doesn’t want to give it a try, he actually has most of a drum set in our bedroom that is not set up. I don’t know if it will ever be again, or if it does when he will even sit behind it and play it. I may never see it again, but maybe he will sneak one of the old metal songs when no one is around & get that same exhilaration all over for something that he loves so much!

Drummers

I was just thinking about it the other day and I came to the conclusion that the most important and influential men in my life are drummers. They may deny that they are "true" drummers, but at heart they will always have that love for the instrument in them. I’m not sure why it is so important that they all play drums, or why in this weird way I have been linked to them. I love the intertwining of interests that they all share and I am so glad to be a part of it. I just thought that I would share my heart and the importance these men play in my life and how much they mean to me.
I love the drums, and I always have. The thing that draws my attention in music is the singing first and then always the drums. I wish that I could play the drums, but I know that I would get my feet and my hands all tangled in some non-coherent sounds and I would never be able to make any sort of effort of decent noise out of them. They scare me to play. I have sat behind a drum set and they are daunting. I can sit in front of a piano or other instrument and I have no problem making a fool of myself playing it. But those darn drums frankly just scare the crap out of me. I think that it is the fact that whether you are good or not they are going to always be LOUD. If you do some really sour things on it, everyone will hear you, I guess that I don’t like people to hear every little mistake that I make. That’s just my nature. I wish that it didn’t matter to me but it does.
I thought that I would share these drummer men in my life because, like I said before, they play huge roles in my life and I love the fact that they have something so awesome in common, yet they are so different in each of their styles. So for now I will stop and gather my thoughts....check back soon!