SKIP ALLUMS

Summer is going along rather swimmingly. I’ve certainly tried to adhere to my goals for these few months: take more photos, ride my bike more often, return to music making, and read more.

I’ve tried to take a camera wherever I go these days, whether its the shambolic serenity of the Albany Bulb (above, a nearby wetland/landfill that juts into the Bay), the summit of Mount Diablo, the abandoned 16th Street train station in West Oakland:

…or even to rehearsal with Maggie Morris, for whom I’ve been playing bass for these days:

It’s been nice returning to music in way where so much of the focus isn’t on me, and I can contribute instead to a songwriter I respect and think should get more recognition… helping them acheive their goals and reach more people. Maggie has a brilliant sense of melody and lamentation, with just a touch of California sunshine. We’ll be on tour throughout the West Coast in mid-August, as a part of the Boy Gorilla Records tour.

All this has in turn rekindled my own musical expression. Here’s a new recording that Maggie and I worked on together for a yet-to-be-named new project.

As fall quickly approaches, I’ve been thinking more and more about what to work on for my master’s thesis. Lately I’ve been obsessed with directional signage, and how different symbols translate across cultures. Lately I’ve taken to logging interesting, effective, awkward or otherwise amusing signage over on Which Way?

Other projects on deck:

• some pro bono web work in the elder care field
• prepping for my week-long visit to Yosemite in September
• wrapping a documentary of recording with The Stragglers