Monday, December 18, 2006

Listening To: Stuart Davis


If Ken Wilber is the philosopher king at Integral Institute, then Stuart Davis is the court jester. But don’t be fooled by Stuart’s clowning around. Beneath the antics (and very funny antics they are) is the insight of a true spiritual seeker. Like the Zen mystics of a by-gone age, Stuart will lure you in with a catchy tune and then wack you upside the head with a jarring jewel of wisdom.

Stuart Davis has over 10 studio albums; all released without major label support or shackles. You could throw Stu into the College Radio/Indy Rock category and you wouldn’t be wrong, but Davis quickly transcends typical rock stereotypes with his playful yet masterful excursions into psychology, sociology, and spirituality. Davis creates pop rock parables: they penetrate the listener at whatever level the listener is prepared to receive them at.

The latest Stuart Davis studio album is this year’s, ¿What, is a rollicking tour through several levels of the spiral of development. All of Stuart’s albums are available on his website: http://www.stuartdavis.com/. Oh, and his wife just had a baby. So help the Davises celebrate by ordering a few CD’s. His clones will pop them into the mail as soon as they get a break from filming their TV Show and touring. Enjoy.

Monday, December 04, 2006

November Wet and Wild

November in Arlington started with rain and flooding and ended with snow.

For several days after Thanksgiving, the Puget Sound area got hit with snow. We had over a foot of snow at our house. Lots of trees lost branches. We had a couple of days with no power, no school, no work. So we huddled around the fireplace to stay warm and listened to the transistor radio.

Now the snow is melting. We are getting caught up at work and watching the same storm pound the Midwest. Suddenly, Christmas is just around the corner.

November was the wettest month in the Seattle area since they started keeping records 150 years ago. So hopefully December weather will be a little more normal.