2019, here we come - The first Eleven of the year! 🍴

Happy New Year!

Hi there, it's 2019. How'd that happen? I spent some time updating my The Eleven archives in December - so, if you're curious about the history of this newsletter - feel free to dip into the archives .

Friday night, 1.11.19 - House concert and shabbat at Scooterville featuring Jonathan Brinkley - and Me and my friend Steve Bennett will play 2nd. That's Jonathan playing by a waterfall on the right.

A nd on we go. Into the New Year. I got to start the new year in fine fashion - with a group of 70 people at a guitar camp in the woods. By the time it was over my fingertips were blistered and I was grinning ear to ear. In the past couple years one of my goals at Guitar Camp is to work my way through a songbook. Last year I did the Grateful Dead's A-Z and this time, I found and devoured Rise Again - the encore to Rise Up Singing . Everyone should own these 2 books - I recommend getting the large print versions. Rise Again is a more contemporary version of Rise Up Singing and it even features 2 songs by my friend Ben Bochner who passed away this past April. Speaking of Ben, I've been working with others to put chords to his lyrics (he didn't need that since he knew how to play his songs). Here's the latest draft .

I've been introducing people to Ben's music and have applied to share his songs at a few festivals this Summer. This ties in with an idea that's been floating around my head for many years - to travel around performing a one-person show featuring the music of Steve Goodman. And start guitar camps. And save the world. You know, what Albert do.

These songs. They are so good. They have so much heart. Singing them together is the antidote to much of what the world is trying to get us to focus on. They're about bringing people together - holding one another - offering a better way to live and a better world. I feel lucky to know of them and to be in a place to learn them and offer them to people.

That's the lake at Puget Sound Guitar Workshop on New Year's Day 2019 below

Gas-Powered Leaf Blowers

I'm working with a group of people in Portland to ban leaf blowers. We're still trying to figure out whether this means electric ones, too - but personally, I'd love to see them all gone. We call ourselves the Leaf Blower Transition Team and here's a slide show we presented to the Multnomah County Council. I was surprised to learn how dangerous these GLBs are to workers' health. And, how much dust/debris/poison they kick up when they blow. Our group is working on various levels to change this - given that the city of DC just banned them, I think we stand a good chance of accomplishing the same. Here's something to share with your landscaping company.

I'm continuing to use Nextdoor.com to activate my neighborhood on a number of issues . I think my favorites are the ones where I can actually sense that the neighborhood has gotten quieter (less people using their car fobs to beep/lock cars; less idling; maybe some day less loud motorcycles). I highlighted some of the issues (oh, outdoor lighting!) that I've posted on over the years, here . Feel free to take anything I've done and share it on Nextdoor.com where you live and see if it has an effect.

Also, I've been using Nextdoor to try to source a group of friends/activists in my neighborhood. I have a list of 60 people in a email list and I invited them to meet me for dinner next week. So far the RSVPs have mostly been "I'm busy doing something awesome that night" - but, that's OK. I may be either barking up the wrong tree; have a small group to start with; or, whatever is behind door #3. It's worth a try. And, it tickles me to try things and generally have them turn out way better than I had imagined. So, we'll see. And, if I fall flat on my face, I've already had fun doing this. Someone just wrote this on Nextdoor in one of my threads: " Albert, what do you do, are you a volunteer doing all the great stuff in the neighborhood you do or are you getting paid for being awesome. ;) " - so, it's not all bad :)

I think that'll do it for this month's Eleven. I hope the New Year is treating you well. Please feel free to write back and say hi and share some news and goods from your life.

Lots of love,

Albert

PS - I'm looking for collaborator(s) for the Oregon Guitar Camp idea - if that's you, write back. Teachers, students, word-of-mouth spreaders... Hey, maybe I don't have to do this alone.

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