Beginnings, Endings and Anniversaries.

I can't believe a whole week has gone by since I last wrote, but so it has. Today I will begin with an ending. That seems to be back to front! but it is said, that in order for a door to open in front of us, we must first close a door behind us.
Our second week of running the venue, Ye Olde Wolf n Hawk, went well except for one small problem, the avi capacity was far too low for comfort. The performers, Mamaa Saiz and Beth Odets, Shannon Oherlihy and Cailidgh Spires are popular entertainers and the venue was full from the first 15 minutes. While that may sound like a good thing, the problem was, how could Shannon or Cailidgh get into the venue to perform their sets if we were full to capacity. We had also received a few I M's from folks who could not get in and were wondering why?
Anyway to cut a long story, luck was on our side and both performers were able to get in as people came and went, but it showed us very clearly that if we wanted to carry on with the venue then we had to move to a sim that could accommodate more people, and so at the end of the show  and celebrations for that day, we were off land hunting.
We found somewhere relatively quickly and so said goodbye to the sim we had all lovingly created ,and Sunwolf and I began  dismantling and reassembling  the venue in it's new home during the early hours of the morning.
Unfortunately Alix and Trick, have so much going on in RL that they have decided not to continue with the venue, so now it is down to Sunwolf and I to run it. It is both  exciting and a bit scary, we just hope we manage to get it right, I guess time will tell.                                                                                           Sunwolf and I are lucky that it was just us two and the dog for xmas, so we were able to work on n off through the holiday and finally finished putting the last pieces in place earlier today.
Friday the23rd was Sunwolf's rezz day birthday, he was one year old.  He laughed and said how amazing it was that a one year old could play a mandolin and run a pc.
We played at Guthries that morning, a place we love dearly. There were a nice group of people in and it was a just great to be able perform for them.
Next, we were hosting at our own venue and again. There were a lovely group of folks in, so that in spite of the worry mentioned above, we still had a good time. Cailidgh and her band of tinies took over the venue during her set, and were still partying when Sunwolf and I left to get ready for our show at Cuddlers Cove.
It is always a joy to play At Cuddlers, it is the place Wolf n Hawk were born, and that would't have happened at all if it wasn't for the encouragement of Quinton and Suka, and knowing how much the music and playing gives to  Sunwolf and I makes their support more valuable than I could ever say.
We were truly touched when the aforementioned band of tinies turned up to our show and bopped with us till they could stay awake no longer. We were also joined by our buddy, Laid Back Celt, and one or two others who's names, I must admit I cannot recall, but they were so welcome never the less.
To end our celebration, we were then entertained by the awesome talent of Quinton Whitman, and so ended a truly lovely day , both our hearts were glowing by the end of the night.
With all the moving and celebrating, we did not get round to many other places this week, but now the work is done we will be back venue hopping in between performing and hosting our venue, and with a bit of luck we will bump into you somewhere.
So till next time, I am wishing you Peace and Happy Holidays.
 

Busy Busy Busy but trying not to flap

Well, it's Monday again, how quick the week went, I look back and so much is a blur.

There are two high lights this week. The first was the opening of our little venue Ye Olde Wolk n Hawk that we run with Alix Pledies and Trick Socking ton. Sunwolf and I took to the stage at 11am slt and are pleased to say quite a few folks came in, most of whom said they thought it was a lovely little place. All credit to Sunwolf who built it, I had kitted it out and Alix had also added some lovely touches. Trick would love to have been more involved I know, but RL issues have kept him pretty busy, still he managed to make the opening night which was just great to have us all together for that special time.

Rick (Ugh Yeu) followed us on stage and that was a great set, we look forward to having him back in the near future. He was then followed by the smooth relaxing voice of Steveeolio, who proceeded to wow us all , and graciously offered to do a set on Friday too.

Friday night at the Pub, found us listening to the lovely voice of, Miss Cailidgh Spires, who followed another wonderful set by Steveeolio, and we wound up with our lovable Lion, Ringo Robonaught, who did a mixed set with plenty of xmas songs to get us all ready for the holiday season. Again there were quite a few folks coming and going and enjoying the music. Alix did a sterling job welcoming folks with Sunwolf and I helping where we could. We have never hosted at a venue before, let alone our own, but I don't think we did too bad a job. We hope to have all these wonderful performers at the Wolf n Hawk again sometime in the new year.

Special thanks to Russell Eponym, who found time in a busy and trying day to come over and support us. He is  a wonderful guy and a real gentleman, as well as The avi choice for male performer of the year.  I can only say no one deserves this honour more.

Our only problem, at Ye Olde Wolf n Hawk, is the limited number of people we can have at the venue in our present location and I think we will have to address this issue fairly soon. 

In the meantime,I can only give my heartfelt appreciation to all who either performed or attended our first week, we can't thank you all enough.

Sandwiched in between our sl venue opening, was the sad event where we had to say goodbye to our dear RL friend Alan ( see prev blog). He was a very popular man and the crematorium was packed. The service was as much about celebrating his life as saying goodbye, never the less, my heart went out to his wife Sue, and his two grown up children Ben and Zoe, I came home feeling washed out and sad.

I was so happy to see my dear SL friend Sher123 returning , she had been suffering from pc problems and had to drop out for awhile, I do hope she is back to stay we have missed her terribly. Also now around a bit more is another dear friend( also in RL too) and that is Cailidgh Spires always guaranteed to make you smile. We haven't been able to get together in RL for quite a while either, so it's wonderful to see her around again. 

Finally we were honoured to play a benefit show for, Toys for Tots, on Saturday night at the Margaritaville venue, ( well it was night for us as we took the stage at midnight) It was a good show, and I hope we helped raise plenty of lindens for this wonderful cause. Following us on stage was another dear friend and awesome musician, Quinton Whitman, his set was brilliant as always.  Rick (Ugh Yeu) followed him, as the scheduled performer was having pc problems, so he stepped in. Rick had also been involved in the planning and hosting of this event, another big hearted guy. By this time it was gone 2am and though we did our best by 2.20am we had to admit defeat and log out for some much needed sleep.

I want to finish this week by saying, Sunwolf and I are often awed by the love and kindness of the folks on the SL music scene. I am sure there are lots of others too who are worthy of mention, but as we spend most of our time in and around the music scene this is the only group I feel confident to speak about. The  audiences are usually generous with their praise and tips, without which the music scene could not function. The artists are, in the main supportive of one another, no matter what the genre of music is they are playing, and the venue owners are gracious, caring people, who are dedicated to bringing live music to folks without trying to get rich, in fact most of them fund their venues, in part, from their own pockets it seems.

Occasionally it comes to my ears that there are some folks who are unhappy with the way the SL music scene runs and want to see things change. I say , think long and hard about this. The music scene is here for everyone to enjoy, not just those who can afford it, or have a limited idea about what folks should be allowed to perform or hear. After all, its the audiences who make a show, without them ,there is no show. Who is it really hurting to play the songs folks want to hear, especially when you can bring so much joy when doing so. I have often been moved to tears by the beauty of a song sung from the heart, and I know others have too. What greater reward can an artist have..! So I say, long may the SL music scene carry on and flourish just the way it is.

I wish the greeting card attached to this blog had gone where I wanted it which was here, but I am still learning the ropes and don't know how to shift it, so it remains where it is lol

Well, that's about it for this week, it just remains for me to wish you all a peaceful and joyful festive Season

until next time love and bright blessings to you all. 

THE ROLLER COASTER CONTINUES......

Now we come to the bit that hasn't been so much fun. In RL Sunwolf and I are saying goodbye to a dear friend and fellow musician this week (his funeral is Friday) I have written a little piece that I would like to share here

Alan 

You came to see me the other day,

stood long in the doorway drinking  the sight 

of the room we used to play in

where the passion of music used to ignite

There was a special kind of energy then

when the music flowed around

all of us in harmony

though no one spoke a sound.

The instruments expressed our souls

each one fitted to it's place

and we sang to one another in turn

I still picture your smiling face

You, dear friend, have left us now

to go to that other place

and I never knew, the day you came

it would be the last I saw your face.

Well that's  all for this time, see you next week until then Bright Blessings.

A ROLLER COASTER WEEK

It has been quite a week filled with highs and lows hence the title, as is my way, I will start with the good things.

Sunwolf,(my RL and SL husband) and I have caught quite a few good shows on the circuit this week.It was good to see Mash Rhodes again, he seemed to have been away for a few weeks and though we are relatively new to his music he has become a firm favourite of ours. His set at the Blarney stone began early and finished late, meaning he did about an hour and a half instead of the usual hour set, no complaints from us we loved it and the Blarney Stone is a nice venue full of friendly folks having a good time which to my mind is what SL is all about.
We also managed to catch, Conor Savage, Rick ( Ugh Yeu), Laid Back Celt and his lovely lady Stinna pop star,
Rapture Damone, Tim Anadyr, PonDman Halan Mamaa Sez and Russell Eponimn by Venue hopping. Russell has just won an award for Best Male Artist in SL,it is well deserved as he is one of the nicest guys you will ever meet in SL and his music is always a joy to hear. Each and everyone of the aforementioned artists are performing shows well worth catching, so if you haven't seen any of them yet do please try to get there, I am sure you won't regret it.
Sunwolf and I do have particular venues we like to hang out in whenever we get the time. All the venues are doing a great job in bringing good artists and music to SL, but there are some we feel more at home in and tend to go to as often as we can, for me personally these venues combine pleasant surroundings with welcoming and friendly owners / managers, enthusiastic hosts/esses where used and an all round good feel. Cuddlers Cove,
Guthries and Spice are the ones we most frequent. Spice has just recently re located to a sim with less lag problems and I know Tim and Katja worked through the night to get the new Spice up and running. It is looking so lovely and Sunwolf and I wish them every success and are proud to say they are friends of ours.
Again if you haven't visited any of these venues, try to go along, I will be surprised if you don't have a great time.There is another venue we also enjoy that is for the moment not putting on shows and that is Bring a Friend and Stay Awhile run by  Still Braveheart, Still is unable to open at the moment due to ill health and I will take this opportunity to wish her a speedy recovery and look forward to the time we will be attending shows at her venue once again.
Personally, Sunwolf and I were delighted to be given an extension to our weekly slots at Guthries on Friday mornings, we can't thank Dottie enough, to be a regular part of the line up at Guthries feels like such an honour to us.It was a defenate high in this week
Another high spot was being invited to Laid Back and Stinnas home sim for an impromptu get together. It's a lovely sim, especially the hidden bit, and Stinna and LB both did a few songs. Our good friend Alix Pleides was with us and we all had a great time. Stinna took a few photos and you can see these on my facebook page (titled Sparrowhawk).

Finally, on the good side, Alix, Sunwolf and I, have  finished the pub we have been setting up on Alix's land and are planning to open this Wednesday (see photo). It was our dream to be able to perform in SL and dear friends have encouraged and supported us in making that dream come true (see previous blogs). We are now hoping to help Alix realise a dream of hers, and assist her running this little venue, which she has graciously allowed to be called Ye Olde WolfnHawk. Unfortuately none of us are wealthy folks so the venue will be tips only to begin with. We open for her (again an honour) on wednesday 14th dec

No Blogg this week.

A dear RL friend and fellow musician died at the weekend and I am taking this week out from writing, but I will resume next week.