My Bearded Valentine

Two major holidays are upon us, Valentine's Day and Abraham Lincoln's birthday, which as we all know were both invented by corporate America to sell greeting cards, but that's ok. I'm not going to fight the system on this one. Nothing wrong with Valentine's Day, and Abraham Lincoln is quite possibly our greatest bearded President ever, but what about the others? What about the single people? What about those without a significant other? What about James K Polk? I don't know, call me sensitive but I'm just a softy. Even admist celebratory times I feel bad for who the victory is celebrated over. Like at award shows, I couldn't stand winning. I'd feel bad for the losers. I'd feel like I did something wrong. I guess I could just keep my speech short and dedicate the win to James K. Polk.

Jazz music is misunderstood. A lot of people listen to jazz music and think, ".......what was the name of that guy from high school that wore that crazy shirt?". It's hard to stay focused. I love jazz music and even for me it can be a test in focus. But once you do focus you'll find jazz music is probably more fulfilling than any other genre. Here's a few key tips to getting more involved while listening to jazz music.

Tip #1: Make noises. Jazz is a very informal kind of music. It's a product of black culture (so it has to be fun) and has it's roots in brothels, bars, and taffy pulls. It's anything but straightlaced so if you're listening and you hear something you like, make it audible. You could yell out, "Yeah!" or "Meeeercy!" or "That was an interesting use of the A flat pentatonic" If you really here something you like, throw something at the performer. I would say underwear but that's cliche. Blow bubbles maybe?

Tip #2: Move. Don't sit still. Tap your toes, get up and dance. If there's no room to dance, dance anyway. Most people will move after the third time your foot hits them in the crotch. Don't worry about what you look like when you dance. If people laugh, shrug it off. They're probably just jealous that they have control over their body movements.

Tip #3: Act like your playing an instrument. The air guitar has been popular for years with szychophrenics and alcoholics alike. If you pretend that you're playing a trumpet, saxophone, piano, or drums while listening you actually feel like you're making the sounds. No lessons necessary. Just imagination and low self esteem.

And there you have it. Jazz takes a little extra effort but boy is it worth it. Before jazz music, I never realized that my old gold jewlery was worth so much money.

Cambob-