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Showing posts from April 6, 2011

Magical Moment 432, "Skill"

Braving the crowded, confusing streets of Manhattan in my trusty Hyundai, I searched the narrow, one-way streets of the Lower East Side for a parking spot. I was in no mood to pay $35 or more for a garage. Searching hard for a vacant space between the lines of parked cars, I tried to block out the honking taxi cabs behind me, trying to rush me out of their way. But you have to drive slow, because if you're driving too fast when you see a spot and overshoot it, you're out of luck by the time you drive around the block and get back to it. The fire hydrant spaces are the trickiest. All that room by the curb, and what a waste! Park there, and expect a hefty fine. I know this from experience. At last, up ahead. Could it be? Wait, is it a fire hydrant space? Nope! It's all mine! Time to parallel park. Slowing down, lining up with the passenger door of the front car. Oh that taxi driver is angry. Honking doesn't make me park faster! I have a flash of doubt. Can I make it? Is

Magical Moment 431, "Early Spring Images"

While everything is  beginning  to bud and bloom, I found this one, completely open flower among the bare branches of a near by bush. Talk about an early riser! Birds are shedding some extra pounds, getting ready for warmer weather (as  I  should be doing). DEER  are shedding some extra pounds!!! (Don't know what I'm gonna do with this yet, but it's gonna be something cool). I can't get enough of this tree outside our apartment. So heavenly fragrant and colorful. I just love standing underneath the tree and looking up at the blue sky peeking out behind the various blooms. And I love the SUN peeking out through the various blooms! Just wait til all these open up. Ah, such beauty!

Magical Moment 430, "Guiding Jerry"

I am SO not a  horseback rider , though I love to try every now and then. Eddie and I went for a trail ride in the Pocono Mountains and I rode an older, brown horse named Jerry. Like most trail horses, Jerry followed the guide in front of him with minimal direction. I thought it was odd though, that Jerry kept veering around the particularly rocky parts of the trail. I am no expert, but I thought maybe the rocks were uncomfortable for his feet, so I let him veer occasionally.  But my heart stopped several times when Jerry stumbled and tripped. Some stumbles were so bad, that I spoke up and told the guide, worried that poor old Jerry may actually go down. The guide didn't seem concerned at all. He told me, "Just keep him on the trail." It dawned on me that perhaps Jerry thought he was making things easier on his feet by veering around the trail, but really he was tripping himself up on his own feet, making things more complicated. After that, I was much more strict with

Magical Moment 429, "The Poconos"

Driving through the Pocono Mountains for the first time, we were inspired by the beauty even though it rained the entire day. At one point, we got lost searching for a waterfall. In our confusion, we spotted this serene pond out the window and pulled over. As I got the camera out, the sun emerged. Eddie explained how he would go about painting this scene if he were at his easel. A touch of yellow on the branch tips to get the light green effect, how to create the reflection, and so on. When he was finished "mime painting," the sun slipped back behind the clouds and the rain continued. Those few moments made this little pond even more special. The rain didn't stop us from  finding  that waterfall though. It was worth it! Some of Eddie's paintings: Sunburst Durango Hubble  

Magical Moment 428, "Happy Birthday"

Today is the birthday of my friend, Kevin Gaspers. I've mentioned him several times before: If I Die Before You Wake The Eleventh Hour He was my friend and fellow soldier. We went through college and ROTC together, then were both stationed at Fort Bragg. I have many fond memories of school, dancing, we even had the same birthday. :) So it's easy for me to remember him. Not that I could ever forget. He was killed in Iraq on April 23, 2007. My  Grandma Valencia wrote this poem  in his honor. It brings a tear to my eye each time I read it. He would be 30 today. Happy birthday, Kevin. We will never forget. "1LT Kevin Gaspers" By  Mary M. Valencia 4/ 25/2007   Have you named your star in heaven? There’s one there close to us for Kevin. Look! Up above, the first star of the night, this clear night reveals the multitude, so bright. ‘Twas once a twinkle in an eye,   groomed, then zoomed to heights, the sky. Never a stranger to the world below, we knew this young man, ou

Magical Moment 427, "Make Someone Happy"

One of the best feelings in life, is the result of seeing someone you love happy. It's why we give presents at Christmas and birthdays, why we work and toil at our jobs, and why we sacrifice our free time. It's usually for the greater purpose of pleasing someone we care for. And when that happens, our heart soars and everything is worth it. I know from experience how hard it is to see someone you love unhappy. It's  torture . His name was Theadore, and he was my teddy bear when I was a little girl. I loved him SOOO much! His dark eyes, his sweet face, and his pudgy little stomach. The only thing was, Theodore frowned. His creator sewed his yarn mouth into a downward pointing frown. I couldn't understand it. I wanted him to smile at me. After all, I played with him, cuddled with him, drank tea with him. Still, I couldn't make him smile. Lucky for me, it was Granny, the sewing master, to the rescue! After a minor surgery with her scissors, needle, and thread, Theodo

Magical Moment 426, "Progress"

One of the last and most challenging things in recording my album with Modern Vintage Recordings, is the vocal tracking. It's difficult to explain the complexity that goes into singing each word, each  consonant , each vowel, drawing a breath a certain way, creating a certain tone, a certain vibrato, all while trying to make the song sound fluid and cohesive. It's a lot to think about and has certainly been an eye opening experience for me. That microphone is more like a micro scope , that magnifies every flaw inaudible to the naked ear. It's quite exhausting. So it's taken me longer than expected to find my groove in the process. But I'm happy to say that we've completed 2 of the 10 tracks now.  This is a rough audio of the completed " Mary's Lullaby ." There is no mixing, no auto-tuning, and no re-verb on my lead and background vocals. But this is it. After the producers work their magic, I think this is going to be an amazing track. I am espec