notes from the kelp

…listen
…info about the music

Click on the blue music icon above to hear “Dream Vista,” an oh-so-very 80’s new age recording from my past.

Further proof that musicians can indeed live well: this magnificent view of Hayman Island in Australia’s Great Barrier Reef, complete with spiritual streaming of light from on high. Oh, how I wish I could tell you that it was I who just saw this in person and took this picture. But no– it was snapped a couple of days ago by a friend of mine, Rick Kvistad. When he’s not playing principal percussion in the San Francisco Opera, he’s looking for all sorts of ways to have fun, and a trip with his chamber ensemble Adesso to perform down under (do they call us “up top”?) was the perfect excuse to extend his trip into a vacation.

There are so many gorgeous places on this planet, but for each of us, different percentages and combinations of land and water resonate personally. Some people are inland types most awed by standing in the middle of a forest, perhaps with a bucolic lake nearby. Others are moved to tears by the stark beauty of the desert. And tears are a good thing, since they’ll need a little extra water. Then there are us ocean-types, for whom the expanse and mystery of what lies beyond and below is a constant lure. Of all the photos of magnificent places I see, there are very few that I find more compelling than right where I am on the southern and central California coast. What an extraordinarily fortunate thing to be able to declare. When Charles and I ponder where we might next wish to live, we’re hard pressed to come up with any better combination of weather and geology. The exception is that every time I see images of Australia and, even more alluring, New Zealand, my spirit pulses with that personal resonation. I could indeed live in that part of our planet, happily.