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The First Blog Entry

Stick Speaks

Okie…so, why am I doing a blog, and what will I be talking about? Well…for one, I’ve always believed in communicating, and reaching out to people with words. As a self managing artist for the last 45 years, I have had to contact people, and let them hear my music, since nobody else is doing it for me. Even in the ancient days of cassettes (and I still listen to them, ha) and snail mail, I wrote people all over the world, and still have many letters I’ve received in reply. Now, of course, with email and social media, you can reach people much more efficiently, and I like that. So with a blog, no telling who might read it, at any place in the world.

I also like to know what other people are saying and thinking; when I read the newspaper, the first thing I do is turn to the editorial section, to read the letters, as well as the opinions of the editors at the paper. I like being informed about what’s going on in the world, and also spend time reading various articles and reports on Facebook, where you will often see more obscure stories that don’t appear in what we now quaintly call the “mainstream press.” It’s fascinating, and a bit disturbing to me, how few people there are in American culture who are what I might call “well informed.” When I’ve gone to Europe, it seems that many more people are aware of current events. And I was told that, perhaps, since there are so many different countries/cultures/languages in a much smaller area in the EU, that it’s easier, and more essential, to keep track of what’s happening elsewhere. When I went to Holland for a fretless guitar festival in 2007, my host and I went out to eat…and the first thing he did was ask me about the rumored underground city beneath Denver International Airport…I mean, this from a cat in The Hague. I was surprised, but also very appreciative. Americans can be pretty insular about what’s going on in the world. I like talking to people that are upon current events…I wish I found more folks who were.

Another important reason for communicating is this…by putting our ideas out into the public eye, we then can get responses to
what we think, and in this way, perhaps everybody can share with each other, and we can all learn. I’m very aware that I make mistakes (sometimes too many), and I’m happy to get new information to correct my errors. Of course, the corollary to having discussions with others is simple…it needs to be done peacefully, and with mutual respect. It’s easy to get a bit, um, flustered at times, and perhaps say something that one shouldn’t. Learning to engage with others is an ongoing process…and if I make a mistake, the honorable thing to do is acknowledge it, apologize, and move on from there.

My plan is simple…I am going to write about things that matter to me, and at this time in the world there are many issues that I feel need to be addressed. I also want this blog to be more from the heart than the head…I tend to write in my own style, and I hope that people will hopefully come along for the ride. I hope that what I say may stimulate others to consider their own positions on issues. And I will always attempt to be honorable and respectful of others. Growing up in the slums of St Louie in the 1950’s, though, has given me a rather “street” take on things at times. We were a rather funky group of wittle kids, and rather blunt in the way we expressed ourselves. Being a musician most of my life has also give me a bit of an outsider’s perspective on things…I’ve never fit well into the old 9-5 lifestyle. And man, if there’s a group of people with a raunchier sense of humor than musicians, I’m not sure who it is. But…we also turn that humor on ourselves frequently, which helps us maybe not take things so seriously at times..as the blues line goes, “laughing to keep from crying.”

Okie…one down, many more to come. Let’s see where things go from here…till soon…Hstick