Tag Archives: Umphrey’s McGee

Seasonally Deviant

Let’s go.

I’m breaking the rules.

Considering my dislike for the cold, tendency to deal with SAD and passion for spring, I think I’ve done quite well with winter in recent history. Wonderful traditions like Winterfest and Chinese New Year, not to mention a small human who loves snow and wearing boots, make the season cozy and reflective rather than isolating and oppressive.

But. It’s February, and I admit to tiring of the barren and monochromatic world outside each and every window. I long for green, the sound of birds, sandals, psychedelic music, safe roads and the sight of my beloved neighbors lounging in their lush back yard (with their garden and their chiminea and their grill and their speakers pumping WYCE… *sigh*…).

Also, I finally succumbed to a nasty winter bug, and rode the roller coaster of fever, sinus pain and digestive upset that came with it.

Right this minute, as I write to you, sun is pouring on the snow outside. The slightly golden hue is fleeting, but I’m harnessing it to drift back to one of my favorite summers, and listen to Umphrey’s McGee cover a laid back tune of my childhood.

Cue the summer mindset in three, two, one…

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A Little Warmth


I have to step back for a minute and pretend it’s summer.

For the most part, I feel like I’ve been doing really well this year – not being too much of a grinch, hating on the snow or dreading the frequency of social obligations. Having a child helps a lot. Small things like Christmas lights and falling snow take on a new magic when you watch someone else discover them.

But. This is the lull. My birthday has passed, Solstice and Christmas are well over a week away, and I want a break from the snow (which Just. Kept. Fallingthisweek).

My mood is less candlelight and hammered dulcimer, and a little more free-moving and laid back. There is anticipation and appreciation in the air. Things are good physically, mentally and professionally, and I just want to bask for a while.

So, as I’m due to be creative, please visit the letters to my ancestors (above links), and groove to one of my favorite live Umphrey’s McGee covers (above video). The footage is not the best available, and not from a show I attended, but this rendition and video of Toto’s Africa is where I am today.

Happy Friday!

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