“Men are afraid women will laugh at them. Women are afraid men will kill them.” Margaret Atwood Domestic abuse and sexual assault are a systemic problem in most societies. As a young women in my 20’s, I was politicized by my girlfriend’s older sister who was an ardent feminist. I went to my first Women […]
Photography
Racism
The rise in racism upsets me. As a music teacher, I was given the opportunity to teach about racism in an age appropriate way while relaying pertinent information about the enslavement of African peoples and its parallels in Indigenous communities. “Oh, Great Spirit, keep me from ever judging a man until I have walked a […]
Ska Music
“I don’t stand for the black man’s side; I don’t stand for the white man’s side. I stand for God’s side.” – Bob Marley In the mid-90s, I played keyboards and sometimes sax in a ska band in Vancouver, BC. Our bandleader, Andy, got us gigs at most of the popular clubs of the time […]
Pinetop Perkins
“The blues will always be because the blues are the roots of all American music” Willie Dixon Pinetop Perkins played piano with Muddy Waters after Otis Span left the band. I used to go see him at the Yale, at the time (mid-90s) it was a blues institution on Granville Street. One time, I invited […]
Crossing the Line
“All good ideas start out as bad ideas, that’s why it takes so long.” Steven Spielberg The purpose of this post is to show the process and progress of my short film – Crossing the Line. Borders are currently a hot topic. Patriotism and protecting one’s own country are on the rise. Right now Americans […]