Sunlight Shining Through Cloud

When I was young and stupid, there were lots of new experiences to stimulate the soul. For me, that often took the form of music. Now I’m old, and — since I already know everything — I must search for stimulations. I can turn back to Santana’s Soul Sacrifice live at Woodstock, or to Mike Oldfield or Keith Emerson. I guess what makes my soul sing is… music!

Lisa might be tracking Taylor Swift’s You Need To Calm Down and I be like, Wow! Lemme hear that again. Or I’m watching a Hyundai commercial — Yikes! Who is this couple with eyes that twinkle and tunes that pop (Pomplamoose)?

There’s a lot of time these days to search endlessly for a movie to stream. So many duds. And then, wham! The Vast Of Night which is darn near a no-budget B&W flick set in 1950s New Mexico. A big waste of my time? NO! It’s riveting storytelling. And the bonus is a sound track that will absolutely glue itself to you. Who knew a piano could make the hair stand up on the back of your neck. Can’t get enough.

And just last night, I streamed a Matt Damon movie that bombed at the box office, Downsizing. I liked it… I think. Couldn’t figure out if it was a comedy (Kristen Wiig was in it). Or maybe it had a message (downsize humans to reduce consumption and waste). I was undecided when the credits rolled, and was reaching for the remote when an a cappella group began to sing A Little Change In The Weather. The Swingles, who’ve been around since the ’60s, knocked me outta my armchair. Better than Manhattan Transfer, or Sailor.

So, naturally, I embarked on an obsessive search for everything about The Swingles and, in the process, also discovered Naturally 7. And these guys are great, too!

Okay, so maybe I don’t know everything, after all. But I don’t mind. If every new day brings a happy accident, my soul welcomes it. Maybe it’s time to fit new headphones into the budget. There’s so much to learn…