Bait and Switch and Cut and Run

A brief one today:



I just thought of a very effective counter to the Republican cut and run mantra - The Republicans are engaged in bait and switch. I.E. George Bush promised us a war on terror, but instead he and his fellow Republicans did a bait and switch, and got us into the swamp in Iraq. On the heels of a CNN poll showing that 61% of Americans disapprove of the war, and an NY Times poll that show that by 51 to 32 % Americans don't believe there is a connection between Iraq and the war on terror, this simple sound bite could be very effective...Now if we can get Democrats to repeat it over ad nauseum ala cut and run and flip flop, we might get somewhere with the short attention span theater that passes for the electorate.

one more letter

Hard to believe, but we have been gone from the Bay for 3 months! This last missive barely can cover it all, so I am sure there will be another, but this one is a start. Here, Carla has done tremendously. I can't (or won't) bore you with all the details, but suffice to say she now has a co-producer for her show, so will be coming down to LA on Thursdays to do it once a week at the Hayworth theater on Wilshire Blvd, has the agent for Mort Sahl, Dick Gregory and Jay Leonhart booking her for colleges and festivals, and another agent wants to book her for film, TV and theater. Her first audition for a feature film is tomorrow. I always knew she was the more marketable one in the family and she is absurdly talented, so it is nice to see this happen for her. She will become a star, in all likelihood, and my only nonnegotiable is that she gives me the right of first refusal as MD on any TV, movie or Broadway deal she gets.

Mac continues to thrive. He is now taller than I am, with a lower voice, is a basketball stud, has skipped a grade and is about as cool and decent as I could hope for in a 14 year old. I am blessed and will work hard to maintain a strong connection with him. When I see how well he is turning out, centered and wise and levelheaded, I am very glad I made the choice to move from New York and basically prioritize being his father. It has paid big dividends...

As for me, I continue to do some cool things. Playing Berkeley Jazz Festival on Thursday August 24th (returning that day), then the following weekend play the Bach on Sunday and Yoshi's on Monday with Balajo, the Latin big band I co-lead, and have a tour of the Northwest in beginning of December with the amazing guitarist John Stowell. He is a subtle, harmonically beautiful and musically sensitive player, and he comes from the Ralph Towner, Abercrombie, Mick Goodrick world, so that is a nice direction for me to explore - quieter and more spacious textures. Lastly, have hooked up with a fun drummer down here named Michael Barsimanto, who is Lieb's favorite drummer in LA - very organic, modern and loose, so not surprising Dave likes him. Beautiful cat, too. So I will be coming down to LA to occasionally play with him and others here, as well as help Carla out on various things.

The saddest and toughest thing has been with my father. He has Alzheimer's and Parkinson's, and also got a blood infection which went to his brain. We thought we were going to lose him. I was up in Vancouver to help out, immediately after the 9 week run of Carla's show ended, and had the distinct pleasure of being there when he returned home from the hospital. We had a few very wrenching days, but he is better now, and my mother has hired full-time live-in caregivers to help out, so we are really fortunate that she has the finances to do that. We, as a society are criminal in how we treat the elderly. So many languish alone, with no visitors, waiting out the end of their time. So I have made a commitment to visit an elder care facility at least once a month with my son and our two dogs, to try and bring something to those poor lonely souls. I am doing it for my father and for my son...and for me.

Be good and if you can, fall by one of the gigs coming up. It would be great to see you. I look forward to reconnecting with you face to face, since it has been a while! Peace and love (consider the alternative), MZ

further farther father

Further on fathers and family and LALA

There is more clarity now on my father’s situation. It appears he suffered a massive blood infection from a tennis injury, which caused severe delirium. For about 4-5 days it was unclear if he would survive. The physical news has taken a huge upturn since then. He is able to take care of his basic functions, is in a very good private room in the geriatric ward and has constant vigil from my mother and sister. I will be traveling up there on August 8 to spell my sister off for a much needed rest, and the big decision at this point is whether or not he will come back to my folks beautiful but very stair-heavy Victorian, or whether they will move into a floor through or some kind of assisted living.

I cannot do justice to the massive soul searching something like this spurs. There were days I felt literally crippled and was seconds away from booking a plane up there. However, as things cleared up and immediate mortal danger passed, I was able to bring myself around to LA and the show and the LA family.

Carla and Mac were also deeply affected, and I strongly implored Carla to maintain focus on her show and the incredible opportunity it was for her career. She has done so and has worked profoundly hard at making things happen. Now some exceptional things have happened for her and do not be surprised if you hear a lot more about her in the coming year. I can’t go into detail on this blog, but suffice to say that some very influential people in the “business” think she is astounding and…well that’s all I will say for now. She richly deserves it and I am glad I was able to be a part of making it happen.

I will be honest that my wife and I usually have pretty different rhythms. I have often joked that she puts the A in type A, whereas I am much more the stop and smell the roses, walk along the ocean kind of person. Now, it makes all the sense in the world that she is running frantically, because she is pursuing something she loves with all abandon, and that makes sense to me. It has also made it very clear to me that I should be pursuing what I love, and I will be making the changes necessary for that to happen. Among the results of that is you, dear readers, will be seeing more of me on the scene as a player. I shifted focus from that when we moved out to the Bay from NYC, dedicating myself front and center to family, and now it is time to shift focus back towards my dreams and desires.

I cannot say how the trip to see my father will affect me, but it is necessary for to see for myself how he is and let him know I love him.

Lastly, LA is a pretty cool place in many ways, with far more of a nightlife and cultural diversity than in the Bay. Yes, there is a large quotient of vapidity and narcissism here, but there are ways and byways of fascination, and the most powerful lesson have drawn from being here is that it is what you are doing and who you are with that makes the place. If I am living in Chicago, playing great music with people I love around me, it beats Maui with neither of those. I draw the line at Cleveland or Dallas;=}