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Showing posts from December 8, 2010

Magical Moment 313, "Moon River"

At a piano in TriBeCa Park in downtown Manhattan, I played "Moon River" from my all time favorite movie, Breakfast at Tiffany's . I was a fan of that movie before I was old enough to even realize what it was really about. I also realized that the silver bracelet I'm wearing in this video came from Tiffany and Company in New York City! It was my 3rd anniversary gift from my hubby. Enjoy the video. To see more videos from the Play Me, I'm Yours project, click here .

Magical Moment 312, "Radios"

Somehow, I'm always aware of music playing in the background in department stores, people's cars, or somewhere in the faint distance no matter how high or low the volume. Suddenly with the sense of a wolf, my head raises and my ears turn towards the sound. It usually doesn't matter the genre or radio station, chance are I know the song and begin to sing along. I was mostly unaware of this fact until a friend told me back in college, "Beth, I love how all you need is a radio playing to make you happy." I actually remember my very first radio as a child. It was an am/fm dial clock radio that my mother used to set her alarm in the mornings. She must have got a new one and passed the old one along to me. I was so young, that I had no concept of the radio station call letters or frequency numbers, and I went through with a permanent marker, turning the knob and making dashes on the plastic cover to mark the place of the good radio stations. I remember turning the

Magical Moment 311, "Blanket of Snow"

One day, when my nephew was a baby, he cried and cried. Nothing could calm him. Not a funny face, not a bottle of milk, not a new toy. In my last effort to sooth him, I laid him on his back on the living room floor and found his blue cuddle blanket. In one motion, I held two of the four corners and raised it above my head, then let it slowly fall in one horizontal sheet right over his face. I pulled the blanket gently back towards me and it softly brushed his delicate cheeks. He ceased crying long enough to flutter his eye lashes and glance curiously at me, What was that? I did it again and again. Each time the blanket came towards him in the air, he anticipated the touch with bated breath. And when it stroked his face, he let out a peaceful sigh and deliberately blinked his large eyes when it passed over them. "Shhhhhhh." I whispered. And he was calm. That's how I feel about the first snow fall. I look straight up into the sky and watch the large flakes come slowly tow

Magical Moment 310, "A Pleasant Ride"

Tired, frazzled, and thoroughly exhausted, I boarded the bus from Manhattan to New Jersey, looking forward to 40 minutes with my eyes closed and listening to my iPod as I made my way back home from a long day in the city. My head was pounding, my feet were blistered, and my muscles ached from shivering non-stop for the last 8 hours. Thankfully, I was early enough in line to be assured a seat, which I decided that I would take, no matter who I saw being force to stand as the crowd gathered. I don't care , I thought. I was here early enough, and I deserve a seat! I vowed. When I finally sat down near the front of the bus, I breathed a deep sigh, took out my earphones, and put the Raising Sand album on repeat. I closed my eyes and rested my head on the back of the chair. One by one, the seats filled with people anxious to get home and inevitably, some were forced to stand in the aisle - a miserable ride I know from experience, dealing with jerks, bumps, sudden stops and accelerat

Magical Moment 309, "Night Out in the Big City"

Eddie and I are gradually crossing items off our “things to do in New York City” list. Although we’ve been to Lincoln Center before, we’d never attended a performance at the Metropolitan Opera House until a few nights ago when we saw  La Boheme . It was an early Christmas celebration, and one of those night-outs that have to be pre-budgeted. I was looking forward to the show for days. I picked out my dress, planned for a manicure, and dug out my red heels. Eddie brushed off his suit and made dinner reservations at The Grand Tier Restaurant. I was very excited as I got ready for our big night on the town, thinking the last time I got this dressed up was for a military dining out banquet in college. The evening didn’t disappoint. Everything was stunning from our dinner, to the artwork in the lobby, to the crystal chandeliers hanging from the ceiling. The show was unlike any beauty I’ve ever seen or heard. The stage sets alone were images taken from a movie screen, or painted work of ar

Magical Moment 308, "The Light at the End of the Tunnel"

Photo by Vincent Belford I’ll never forget my first trip into Manhattan from our new home in New Jersey. It was on a bus that went straight through the Lincoln Tunnel and right into the middle of Times Square. Those few minutes in that dark, narrow tunnel underneath the Hudson River, I kept wondering, “ What am I gonna see when we come out the other side? ” The answer was an awe-inspiring array of skyscrapers, traffic, people, and lights. Since then, the novelty and excitement from that first trip has worn off a bit. I’m still amazed and privileged to be here, doing what I do, but the city can be rough at times. After a 9-hour day of fighting crowds and constant shivering through the dirty streets and subways, I long for a quiet place to hear myself think, warm my hands, use a clean bathroom. A corner Starbucks just doesn’t cut it. After my last battle with the subway for the day, and my final fight with the Port Authority Bus Terminal, I once again long for that tunnel. Only this t

Magical Moment 307, "Shoulda, Coulda, Woulda"

There are a million things in life that we feel like we have to do, or should do. It is the people that have the ability to ignore that nagging voice, that potentially break barriers, create change, or have a great impact on others. There is a woman named Edith who lives in an upstairs apartment from the small, New York City theatre she has owned and run since 1972. She is 94 years old. I am currently playing the piano for a play in this theatre, Touch the musical, and attend rehearsals a few times a week. Yesterday, I arrived early to find that Edith and I had the place to ourselves. She was huddled near an automatic heater with a blanket over her. "Is that Elizabeth?" she asked. I smiled and greeted her, then sat down and waited for the others to arrive. We soon fell into easy conversation and as I began asking her questions, I became more and more enthralled with the life she's led. Her family has lived a life of music and show business and I was struck to lea