Awkward Pose

Oh my blog!

It seems as though I began writing an account of the Bridge School benefit, the actual last show of “the tour”, and I hijacked it with my flaky nomadic lifestyle pony. I’m sure it wasn’t the laziness pony, anyway, that’s more aged dog than pony.

Can we pretend this is a movie with a highly effective flashback sequence? Ready? Go:

(And remember, this is three weeks ago now, parts of my hair were shorter/longer, I had one less wrinkle, and a slightly different sparkle in the eyes.)

I’m trying not to crash too hard from the high frequency emotions party that was The Bridge School Benefit this weekend. Something I/we have been hearing about for years, only to be fully understood by partaking. It’s all a bit surreal. There are the hosts, Neil and Peggy, who have been giving their hearts to this for years and years. They make you feel like a part of their family. There are artists like Eddie Vedder who have been doing the show for years and years who, you can tell, are really connected to it on many levels. The event feels like a micro rock universe, less ego, less party, more kids and smiling. The backstage hang is soft and friendly, conversations last longer than usual. The kids from The Bridge School hang out and watch the show on the stage, and they are the real game changer. They take rock world out of itself, and give it this raw…love. I can’t really think of a better word. The expressions of joy when they know the song, or when something gets them going, are totally un-repressed and life affirming. So yeah, a little different from your average rock show.

Then there’s the aspect of actually getting to hear all these powerhouses perform acoustically. Firstly, Neil Young is amazing to watch. First time for me in person actually. So many tears. Oh and playing Helpless with him was the best thing ever. And then, not that I’ve been pining away for the opportunity to hear Dave Matthews play solo (or duo in this case) but actually, it was kind of great. Perhaps especially with him, without the rock band, there’s a chance for the music-person-core to emerge. A big open expressive thing without the layers (funky bass) turning it into something else. Watching Eddie Vedder by himself is this way too, only different for me personally, as I was an adolescent Pearl Jam fan. So it’s this voice that reaches in from those terrible/amazing years and gives you the chills, totally reset in this new context.

Also, Tony Bennet. What? Wow. That man brings on the old fashioned Christmas tingles. 

And….you’re back in the room. Re-reading that I realize there is NO shortage of hyperbolic language. That’s what happens at the end of summer camp. I mean, that really was the most hyperbolic way to end this last year and a half of summercamp. But Neil Young or not, on that last day the feelings are huge. Then there’s a residual glow, and then a crash. Thankfully I, we, have done this before. I know well the cycles of real life/tour life/crash down boom. (I stole that last thing from a 3 year old- crash down boom- It’s pretty accurate.)

Thankfully I’ve engineered the next phase of life to be similar to a tour schedule, so my talent of riding the wave won’t go unused. After said weekend, I spent a week in LA at the new Moksha Yoga studio. Some great friends of mine opened it, and as our Moksha NYC studio now has ceilings I thought it’d be best to go and visit the burgeoning LA family. They too have ceilings, higher ceilings with skylights. A bit of a barn vibe (which, I would imagine, is a rare find on LaBrea Ave.) and the sweetest staff ever. Taking classes there is a big sweaty hug that leaves you feeling good all over. 

As the band breathes for a moment, I set to work on the little project of opening Moksha NYC. Gotta christen the space with my violin, water the living wall, and do yoga with some New Yorkers. (I swear, those are the only things I have to do.)

So what does this all mean?!

Is New York REALLY a different temperature than Montreal in January? What does it feel like to stay in the same place for more than 4 days in a row? Will I eventually tire of delicious things (coffee) because of the sheer saturation in NYC? And finally, will all the bands I play with start recording at the exact same time and cause me to conduct a cloning experiment?

I can’t pretend that any of these shallow quandaries are of much importance. But I will probably visit these topics on this here blog, over this here winter.

Take care of yourselves.

Sarah.