Well, this email proved too much for some HWW fans. They didn't realize Bruce was kidding and came to O'Niell's to see if they could help Maria. We are extremely grateful for these loyal fans and friends. Please don't worry, though, we are enjoying our time!
Howdy Campers, Just a short note to let you know that “Holy Water and Whiskey” will be playing from 4 P.M. to 7 P.M. this Sunday, 6/29/08, at O’Niell’s Pub on Central and Washington.
As you all know, Maria (Maggie’s sister and Scott’s wife) is our beloved sound person, the person who runs the board and makes us sound better than we actually are. Performers are subject to continuous pressure and scrutiny that most people understand. However, most do not realize the tremendous pressure under which the sound person works. Alas, recently Maria succumbed to that pesky and most common pressure induced nuisance affliction among sound persons: hysterical deafness.
It’s just a fact of life among sound professionals. Maria is not one to become easily discouraged, however. She is adaptable, flexible, not willing to let something as trivial as temporary and total deafness obstruct her performance as our indomitable “Sound Lady”. Driven by her “The Show Must Go On” credo, she has devised a strategy for doing her job this Sunday. She plans to set up the board by the stage, then turn it around to FACE the audience. She will then rely solely on her keen and uncanny sense of reading people’s faces to determine how to adjust the sound. Looking for the subtle ques that she observes, she will finesse the sound’s balance, equalization and volume: dozing among audience members = too soft; hair blown back/appearance of G forces on audience member faces = too loud; looks of terror/small trickle of blood coming from the ears = too loud; cracked or chipped teeth among audience members = too much treble in the banjo mike; cardiac audience members clutching their chests, having their pacemaker’s signals overridden = too much bass; facial expressions of total bliss, peace and oneness with the universe accompanied by levitation of audience members over their chairs = balance and volume just right. These are the nuanced and subtle skills of a trained sound professional, developed over years of devotion to her craft, and I am sure that it will be a pleasure as well as an education to observe.
She is determined to do her usual outstanding job of running the sound, and we are completely behind her (and the speakers, thank goodness).
For those of you who were there, the photo will, I am sure, refresh your memories of the special events of that day. It was, as you will recall, the day that I gently suggested to Maggie that she watch her tempos a little more closely. She is a sensitive woman and took some offense at my suggestion and responded (somewhat defensively I thought) by turning me into a water bottle. It was a disquieting experience. The only good thing about it was that it was a hot day and I wasn’t thirsty anymore. Fortunately, Scott was able to persuade her that our three part harmonies would suffer considerably if I had to finish the gig as a water bottle, so she reconsidered and returned me to my original form and we finished the remainder of the gig without further surprises. Predictability is nice, but it is often the unexpected in life that makes it interesting.
Howdy Folks, Just a short note to let you know that “Holy Water and Whiskey” is playing again this Friday, April 18, from 6 P.M. to 9 P.M. at the Smokehouse Bar B Que in Rio Rancho, 4000 Barbara Loop, on the main drag (Highway 528) right behind Burger King, just north of Intel. We’re looking forward to having some fun and seeing some of our friends there, and we’ll also be helping Maggie overcome the disappointment that she experienced this week when she was eliminated from the Southwest Senior Women’s “No Holds Barred” Wrestling Competition at the hands of Katrina “Krusher” Karpov. We all know how hard she worked for this and how disappointed she must be, so please show your support for her by coming out to the Smokehouse on Friday.
P.S. Please don’t mention anything to her about the stitches on her forehead. She’s still kind of self conscious about it.
Howdy Campers, “Holy Water and Whiskey” will be playing from 4 P.M. to 7 P.M. this Sunday, 4/27/08, at O’Niell’s Pub on Central and Washington. That’s the place that has 97 different kinds of beer, and if you manage to sample them all within a one week period, they will enter you into a free liver-transplant raffle. April 27th, as we all know, is a very special day. It is the birthday among others, of Ulysses S. Grant (1822), Samuel Morse (1791, inventor of the Morse Code), Walter Lantz (1900, cartoonist and creator of Daffy Duck and Woody Woodpecker), and Sandy Dennis (1937, actress). It is also the date that some famous people died: Edward R. Murrow, Carlos Castaneda and Ralph Waldo Emerson. As we ponder the significance of these people sharing their comings and goings on this special date, I am reminded of one of many insightful observations of Mr. Samuel Morse: .-- …. --- -.-. .- .-. . … ..--..
Hope you can make it, Howdy Folks, We’ll be playing this Sunday morning, May 4th from 9 A.M. to 12:30 P.M, at the Corrales Grower’s market, next to the Post Office in Corrales. It’s supposed to be a beautiful day, and they have lots of great veggies, plants and other fine things there. For those of you who don’t make it to church that day, remember that you get partial credit for church attendance by listening attentively to some of our Gospel tunes. For those of you who were able to make it to church, you get extra credit. They have lots of great organic and natural food at the Grower’s Market. Scott used to only eat natural food, until he found out that most people die from natural causes. Ever since then, it’s processed food only for Scott. No exceptions. Nada. Oh well, more natural food goodies for us. Hope you can make it, Bruce, Maggie, Scott HWW |
