27 Aug 2012

Elvis, Llamas and Ukuleles that Float

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This post is part 10 of 11 in the series, “Marvelous Midwest,” about discovering my extended family in Indiana and “ukeing” it up in Missouri.

It’s the first day at the Mighty Mo Ukulele Festival. We line up in the quaint Swiss Chalet dining hall for dinner and fill our plates at the trough…er…buffet. Lovely women, dressed Heidi-like, scurry here and there providing the sweetest service. “You mean I get dessert?” I ask. “This is the Midwest, honey. You get dessert with every meal.” She chirps. Read More

25 Aug 2012

Ukulele Players Make Nice With Everyone

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This post is part 9 of 11 in the series, “Marvelous Midwest,” about discovering my extended family in Indiana and “ukeing” it up in Missouri. 


It’s the first day of the Mighty Mo Ukulele Festival and we land at The Cedar Creek Conference Center which is nestled in the big green trees atop one of those rolling hills in wine country Missouri. Ukulele players from neighboring states like Illinois, Iowa, Indiana, even not-so neighboring California, pull into the driveway to unload their bags and ukes. All blue jeans and Aloha!

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18 Aug 2012

An Extra Day of Adventure

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This post is part 8 of 11 in the series, “Marvelous Midwest,” about discovering my extended family in Indiana and “ukeing” it up in Missouri. 

We turn west onto a blue highway toward New Haven.  That’s not Connecticut.  It’s Missouri.  I didn’t know this “Show Me” state has a wine country.  But it does and here we are.  The corn crop is a lost cause.  The soybeans are hanging on for dear life.  Lord knows where the grapes are but the landscape is beautiful.  Soft rolling hills and lots of trees. Read More

16 Aug 2012

What Time Is It?

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This post is part 7 of 11 in the series, “Marvelous Midwest,” about discovering my extended family in Indiana and “ukeing” it up in Missouri. All in one very eventful trip…

It’s a straight shot from Indianapolis to St. Louis on Interstate 70 as we continue our Midwest sojourn. After several days of getting to know the relatives I found on Google and Facebook, my husband and I are heading to The Mighty Mo Ukulele Festival in the rolling hills of wine country Missouri. In one afternoon we drive in three states. This is new territory for me, hop-scotching across state lines. In California you can drive fourteen hours and still be in California. Read More

11 Aug 2012

Classical Music Meets Aloha

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This post is part 6 of 11 in the series, “Marvelous Midwest,” about discovering my extended family in Indiana and “ukeing” it up in Missouri. 

It’s our last evening in Indianapolis. My husband Craig and I are heading over to the armory-size San Ash Music Store where we are scheduled to perform, teach a clinic and jam with the Indy Ukers. We settle into the “acoustic room” where the walls are festooned with ukuleles, guitars, banjos, mandolins. Standing sentry, they are, strings vibrating, ever so slightly as we begin to play.

We’re going to have a “Kanikapila” I cheerfully announce to this warm group of ukulele lovers. “A what”? They say. Alas Hawaii meets Indianapolis! Read More

4 Aug 2012

“It’s De-Lovely”

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This post is part 5 of 11 in the series, “Marvelous Midwest,” about discovering my extended family in Indiana and “ukeing” it up in Missouri.

Some folks call it PEEE-ROO. Others, PEAR-ROO. I call it PURR-ROO. Like Peru, South America and olé. That would be bienvenidos to Peru, Indiana. The hometown and final resting place for one of my favorite songwriters of all time: Cole Porter. Read More

31 Jul 2012

Visiting The Other House

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This post is part 4 of 11 in the series, “Marvelous Midwest,” about discovering my extended family in Indiana and “ukeing” it up in Missouri. 
Lexi and me rehearsing for our “Carnegie Hall” Debut

Somewhere in a lush, woody area of Indianapolis is “the other house,” shared by Patricia, the matriarch of the Tretick clan, her daughter Blythe and grandson Lexi. Day two of our Midwest visit, the whole family converges at the compact dining room table, digging into burgers, steamy-hot off the grill, and homemade delicious bean salad, Patricia’s specialty. We eat, talk music and family, with a kind of gusto that moves the air in the room. It’s so delicious, the gestalt of it all and a perfect coda to another wonderful day with our “at-last-we-found-each-other” family. Read More

28 Jul 2012

The Mama

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This post is part 3 of 11 in the series, “Marvelous Midwest,” about discovering my extended family in Indiana and “ukeing” it up in Missouri. 

For those of you joining this miniseries midstream, let me catch you up.

My husband Craig and I flew into Indianapolis from Los Angeles. My first trip to the “middle.” We met and totally fell in love with a branch of my family that, up to very recently, I didn’t even know existed. And visa-versa. It’s an interesting story, a how-we-got-here-from-another-country story. Click for the details. Read More

25 Jul 2012

The Family That Plays Together Stays Together

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This post is part 2 of 11 in the series, “Marvelous Midwest,” about discovering my extended family in Indiana and “ukeing” it up in Missouri. All in one very eventful trip…

My Indiana cousin Noelle and I email each other and on rare occasions, talk on the phone. She wishes I would learn to text because her hip and busy musical family have totally embraced that crazy-thumb way of staying in touch.

I’ve studied her pictures and this former ballerina and present-day violinist extraordinaire is positively gorgeous. I hear that Noelle is kind and generous.

And I hear right. Read More

24 Jul 2012

Marvelous Midwest

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This post is part 1 of 11 in the series, “Marvelous Midwest,” about discovering my extended family in Indiana and “ukeing” it up in Missouri. All in one very eventful trip…

I grew up hearing stories about my great uncle Sidney. The musical prodigy. The violinist. The light of this Russian immigrant family that landed in Baltimore around the turn of the century. My grandmother was the eldest of five and twenty or so years later Sidney came along. The baby. It’s wacky, but my mother and Sidney were born the same year and slid into a sometimes contentious brother-sister kind of thing. She was jealous of him because he got all the attention. Maybe too much attention because when Sidney grew up, he vanished. It was like the earth swallowed him whole. Read More

11 Jul 2012

Eeny, Meeny, Mighty Mo

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Hubby and I, partners in love and ukulele, are heading east to the land where there is a three hour time difference.

We’re meeting with the riotous Indy Ukers of Indianapolis, Indiana, on Wednesday evening, July 18 from 6:00 to 7:30 P.M. to play, sing, teach a little and have one glorious Kanikapila of a time. Joy central is The Sam Ash Music Store (located at 8284 Center Run Drive, Indianapolis, IN 46250).

And everyone is welcome. Even if you don’t play the ukulele, you can join the fun!

Then we are driving to New Haven, Missouri, which is west of St. Louis, for the Mighty Mo Ukulele Festival, July 20 through July 22, Read More

9 Jul 2012

Life, Death and Scrambled Eggs

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As if my wild ride through the car wash last weekend wasn’t enough… (see previous post)

A family of crows, who I suspect helped themselves to the all-you-can-eat salad bar at The Sizzler, took a royal dump on my front windshield. This morning. My husband insists I go straightaway to our own car wash here in the neighborhood. Compared to the crazy sci-fi one in the valley, “The Bubble Machine” is normal. And soon I am on my way to meet a dear friend for breakfast. Driving an extra, extra clean car.

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