Riblet

Oh Alex, what have you done?

I taught all day in Kona yesterday. It's 7pm and I'm heading back up to Waimea and Alex calls.

Alex: "Hi Jess...Ummm....do you want a chiuaua?"

Jess: "Noooo...whyyyyyy?" (I say apprehensively)

Alex: "A little chiuaua dachtshund mix has chosen us to be her family. She's really cute"

Jess: "Oh. No."

So I get home and low and behold, she IS cute. I don't even LIKE little dogs. And I'm an animal person. I hate little dogs in fact. But I think this dog took a class on how to win a potential owner over in 30 seconds or less. She is so stinkin' cute! And SO well behaved.

But no, you guys. I can't. We travel. We are lucky Alex's parents so willingly look after Moki every time we leave. We can't impose yet another animal on them to watch.

So, I'm going to use my blog as a method of advertising. Hoping that maybe one of my 1140 viewers out there might consider adopting the world's sweetest little 4 pound cutie! I could hand carry her to Seattle from Hawaii no problem if any of my Washington readers are interested. I would literally take her in a heart beat, she is that sweet. But I have to be considerate to my in laws!

Weekend Woodbury fun in Kona

At this point in the day, Moki is smiling and quite comfortable on the paddle board
My two surfer dudes!
Moki and I heading out for a paddle board adventure. I couldn't keep my balance with my 70 pound counterpart!
So I kicked him off my board to give standing a try!
The active Woodbury family. Mama Cathy and Shaye in the 2 man canoe, Mike in the one man canoe, Alex and Cleo on the paddle board, and Moki swimming out to join the party.

Moki's first moment on the board. You can tell he's a little bit nervous.
Mama Cathy's Birthday party at Grandma's house. My cousin Ryan lives right next door.
And we have bloomage people! These are the first blooms of the season!
Moki swimming, sending out an S.O.S, and paddle boarding videos!

Four Years ago TODAY

My mom's dahlia's were in full bloom!
Dancing until the wee hours......
Our cousins are bonding
Which hula dancer is real?
My mom singing the beautiful solo "In my daughter's eyes"
Our dear Bellingham friends. Their baby (our Godson) was born almost exactly a year after this picture!
My sister Kimi and my sister in law Shaye. Our sistah's got Seoul!
Fiddling with my grandfather Beebop!

So four years ago TODAY we had our Seattle wedding. It was a summer full of celebration! I was glad to get a second use out of my wedding dress. Transporting leis to Washington was the hardest part. The weather started out cold and rainy, and I think everyone prayed for a sunny wedding because it turned out to be a cloudless, bright blue, almost 80 degree day!

Something in the water

Sniff Sniff. Today we lost 3 of our giant Koi (Big Mama, Tipsey, and Fronk) We emptied half of the pond to clean and pump it yesterday. When we put new water in, and the fish went into shock. We aren't sure if we didn't oxygenate the water properly, or if the county has treated the water with something the fish don't like. After the earthquake in 2006, we lost every single fish when we added new water to the pond.

I was so incredibly sad today. But Alex said "Jessica....this wasn't your dog. It wasn't your cat. It wasn't one of your friends. It wasn't a member of your family. It was a FISH. You eat those for dinner!" Ok Ok...Granted the fish I eat for dinner don't have individual pet names, but whatever. I didn't have animals around growing up. I don't handle animal loss very well. And I especially don't like watching something die. Watching a fish drown is spookily unsettling! It's going to take years and years to get Koi that size again. I'm just glad Harpo and Goldilocks still have each other to school around with.

This One's for you Dad!

With four guitar/vocal students lined up this fall, I've been practicing my guitar every day! Alex has been working late hours downstairs and I told him the other night "You know Alex, with you working so late, it's just going to make me more of an AWESOME guitar player!" I bought a capo the other day, so now I can play some Coldplay and other fun songs in different keys. This Bob Marley song required me to put the capo on my 3rd fret. I know I have a long way to go before I truly am an "awesome guitar player", but the thing is, I have never picked up a guitar and tried to learn it in my almost 30 years of existence. I grew up in a household with the world's best guitarist. And I jammed with dad on my violin. The guitar and violin are such a great duo I think it deterred me from wanting to try duo guitars with him. So this is me on my guitar after a week of self teaching. I want to squeeze in some lessons with dad when I go out to Seattle this summer!

Human Body Detective recording studio

One of our child vocalists in the recording studio. We went in one at a time. I had the opportunity to harmonize WITH myself. We recorded me singing the melody. And then I sang over that track singing harmony. I called myself Jessie Past and Jessie Present. Karl called me Melody and Harmony. I told him my parents were THIS CLOSE to naming me Melody. Part of me really wishes they had, since music has been such a leading role in my life. But then my clients may think I was some hippie who changed my name since it would have been such an allegorical name!
Charles Brotman watches Karl in action. I can tell from this picture he's looking at us in the studio singing and matching it to the Garage Band file on his computer.

Ever wonder what Grammy winners do with the gold trophy? I sure did. Charles Brotman's sits in his recording studio on his desk. It's sort of mingling with wires and sheet music.

We are still waiting to see the final product!

Happy Four Year Wedding Anniversary

Four years ago today, on a beautiful Sunday evening, Alex and I got married at sunset. You would think for a classical musician,I would've been conventional and have a string ensemble play Pachelbel's Canon in D. But I went for a "techno-y flamenco-y style remix" version of Shubert's Serenade by Tosca. I can't find an online example of the song, except for in it's original version HERE. The version I picked wasn't as melancholy as the way Schubert wrote the original. But it's a beautiful melody that has always been stuck in my head since I was a child. When I hummed, I would sing a tune close to this Serenade. And one day I heard Schubert's serenade and it reminded me so much of the tune stuck in my head! 

It's funny in a way to say that Alex and I are celebrating four years, since we started dating when I was 19 (10 years ago!) But in many ways I still feel like the giddy teenager who thinks Alex is just the coolest person ever. 

So my dear husband, this post is dedicated to you. Thank you for growing up with me into the people we are today, thank you for choosing me to be your lifelong adoring partner, and I can't wait to see where the next many years of marriage brings us on this journey! 

I told Alex I purposely picked July 3rd to get married because it feels like everyone is celebrating! Fireworks will explode in the sky! Sparklers will magically sizzle and sparkle like fairy wands in people's hands. And it's a holiday weekend!  HAPPY 4 YEAR ANNIVERSARY ALEX. I love you.