Celebrating the Arts

Did you know that October is National Arts and Humanities month? I didn't. But now I do, and Craig and I will celebrate with a great group of local artists, musicians and performers at the Shasta Arts Council's ARTsMART 2010.

We'll be on stage from 4:30 - 5:30, and we're looking forward to singing some of our favorite tunes with local flavor, including Under the Sundial Bridge and The Lost Falls of Whiskeytown.

We'll be giving away kisses (chocolate) and Sundial Bridge postcards (not chocolate), so please stop by and say "hi."

Here's a tune on our Saturday playlist :

Reminds Me of You

words and music © Erin Coombs Friedman

Stuck in traffic, suckin' up fumes

Turn on the TV - there's nothin but bad news

Big wad of chewing gum stuck to my shoes

Reminds Me of You - Reminds Me of You

The pain in my head from a cheap Chardonnay

Debris in the street from the rodeo parade

Shaving my legs with a dull razor blade

Reminds Me of You -- Reminds Me of You

It?s not the sentimental things

Keep me from forgetting you

It's things that stink

Things that slink

And leave an ugly residue

The scum that I scrub from my shower floor

The spider that crawls in under the door

A shiny red apple, bad to the core

Reminds Me of You -- Reminds Me of You

A screaming brat, stomping his feet

The cream in my coffee that expired last week

Ooze on the ground where the septic tank leaked

Reminds Me of You -- Reminds Me of You

It's not the sentimental things

Keep me from forgetting you

It's the things that stink

The things that slink

And leave an ugly residue

The smell of the breeze by the stockyard in June

A festering toothache, a hot-air balloon

The road kill remains of a mangy raccoon

Reminds Me of You -- Reminds Me of You

Saturday in the Mall

The Mount Shasta Mall will be crawling with artists this Saturday --- the Shasta County Arts Council presents ARTsMART. Enjoy demonstrations, entertainment and get some early Christmas shopping done AND support our local arts community.

Craig and I are looking forward to playing our original tunes on the Macy's stage from 4:30 - 6. But if you're one of those people for whom the phrase "original country folk music" evokes a flight-or-fight response, fear not. The other options for your listening pleasure include:

The Doug Godwin Band
The Phil Seymour Band
Celtic Harp
The Shasta Blues Society bands and more -- you can read the details and the schedule at the ARTS Council website.

We're looking forward to including a few new tunes on our playlist and we'll be doing this song - one of our favorites to perform live. And yes, we often stand in our backyard with our guitars - usually when our kids lock us out of the house.

Hop - N - Shop

Enjoy the Art Hop this Saturday, December 13th AND get some of your Christmas shopping handled, when you stop by the Artists' Reception at the Holiday Fine Art and Gift Show at Old City Hall (1313 Market Street).

In addition to the Artist Reception that runs from 6-9, Garrett Viggers (amazing dulcimer player) will entertain from 4:45 - 5: 15. The Redding Idol Contest winners will be performing upstairs from 5 - 6:15.

For more on Garret Viggers, check out his web site.

For all the Art Hop details, click here.

Hope to see you there.

Shopping Local

"Buy local" -- it's one of my mantras this holiday season. (My other mantra is: "Stop eating," but I'm not having as much success with that one.)

I like the idea of keeping dollars here in our community and supporting local artists and businesses.

It's easy to do, thanks to the Shasta County Arts Council (SCAC) Holiday Fine Art and Gift Show. The gift boutique is in the Old City Hall Center for the Arts, and you'll find artwork, jewelry, music and more.

Most of the purchase price goes directly to the artist. A portion of the money is retained by the Arts Council -- an organization dedicated to supporting and promoting the local Arts Community. The folks at the Shasta Arts Council are a tireless, dedicated group - and our community is more vibrant than ever, thanks to the work they do.

Check the SCAC web page for hours.