Pat Blythe – Eyes on the prize….Speak Music….and music

The eyes are windows to the soul. A rather romantic and idealized thought. Whether that’s true or not, at the moment mine are not…..at least temporarily. No matter how hard we work at it and struggle, our bodies, inside and out, begin to crumble as the years pile on. On the whole, we (as in all of you and me) exercise (okay somewhat), we try and feed our body good stuff (jujubes and chocolate don’t count!), we drink in relative moderation (I’m outta ice cubes and mint again!) and, well, the air we breathe…..that’s out of our control and so is the aging process.

Pat Blythe – 2020 and beyond….HERE WE COME!!!!….and lots of music…..

A new decade! A new year! Purging, changing, modifying, exploring, new beginnings and some endings, recounting and remembering, wondering, searching, discovering, assessing…..all these and more as a new decade begins.

Pat Blythe – ‘Tis the season…..a little music history….with music

All my neatly laid out plans for today’s column……changed on the note of a Christmas song. Although Fall may be my favourite time of year, Christmas is by far my favourite holiday. It is an incredibly happy, sad, bittersweet and joyous time of year that brings out every possible emotion in me. I run through them from top to bottom repeatedly.

Pat Blythe – Just stuff…..and music

Saw the hip doc yesterday….time for a checkup. After 14 years my bionic hip is still in rock solid shape. Yes, there’s a little wear and tear but after all this time I can still do the hippy hippy shake. I’m extremely fortunate it’s lasted this long and the doc ….he’s smiling.

I decided to walk from Queen and Victoria over to Sherbourne and Bloor (downtown Toronto). I haven’t strolled around these parts in years. It evolved into a walk down memory lane. Chris and I moved into our first apartment together on Sherbourne between Dundas and Shuter. It had brilliant orange balconies and we were situated on the top floor. Complete with sunken living room, 12-foot ceilings and a huge bedroom we were set. We hunkered down there for two years before we became Beach residents.

Pat Blythe – Mom is 90!….an autism benefit…..and music

Today…..today is a very special day. Well, not the day (Monday) but the date (November 4). Today my mom celebrates her 90^th birth date. If you ask her, she doesn’t feel any older than yesterday. In fact, she doesn’t feel any older than when she was 16 or 20 or 30. Inside all of us, the years just blend together. The highlights, the lowlights, the surprises and disappointments, past loves, special trips, a glance, a look, a smile, a comment, the colour of your first car…..they are the pictures inside our minds, our “living” stories….they flash before our eyes in a heartbeat….and somehow, we’re not 16 or 20 or 30 anymore.

Pat Blythe – Suzi Kory….Indie Week….and music

It seems I am perpetually running late these days. I write for Fiverr and never imagined it would get as busy as it has. I’ve been writing brochures, website verbiage, package inserts, “how to” columns, etc. I’ve had to research products and learn how to “do things” and then write about them. So far, so good. It’s all on a timer….you have so many days to deliver your finished product and if you’ve agreed to revisions, they have to be done within the agreed upon time. When you receive multiple “gig” orders all due at the approximately the same time it’s a bit of a panic. So…….here I am…….late again. (sigh) Super, super short but…..this, DBAWS, is one writing “gig” I never want to give up.

Pat Blythe – VOTEing…..Indie Week…..ONE WORD on ONES…..with music

I know we’ve all had more than enough of politics and politicians in the last three months. Today (I started to write this on Monday) is voting day. Today we have the privilege, the democratic right, to select who we want to represent us here in Canada and on the world stage. Voting is the only tool we have that has any kind of impact. Who we choose to guide this country for the next four years is decided today. I voted. One out of two of my sons voted. At this writing, my mom is waiting to vote. My sister will take her. But there are more who don’t vote than do. Telling….in oh so many ways.