The Kingdom Is Now

Rest

1) grill chicken. make tacos.
2) find hammock. take nap.
3) blast bob. all day.
4) find ripe carrot. pick & eat.
5) build fire. teepee method.
6) sit on porch. enjoy view.
7) hungry again. more tacos.
8) s'mores.
9) good times with great friends. wouldn't have rather done anything else today. what a blessing.

Posted by PAT RICK at 11:26 PM | 0 comments read on

Bon Voyage

Today I said goodbye to Marilyn. What a wonderful car. I think I am actually quite sad. I hope some day I will own another boat to sail in.

Posted by PAT RICK at 1:06 AM | 0 comments read on

So Much For My Savings

I've seen this a few times too many. Marilyn really knows how to ruin a date.

Posted by PAT RICK at 5:27 PM | 0 comments read on

People Are Always Asking Me

"What are you doing tonight?" Well, this is what I'm doing most nights these days... I promise I will stop ditching all my friends as soon as I'm done with this album, that is until I start recording the next album. That said, I am finishing up electric guitar tonight, no matter how long it takes.

Posted by PAT RICK at 9:43 PM | 1 comments read on

The Record Store Of Tomorrow

Wow. This is the last page of a recording techniques book I was reading this morning. It's from 1995, not that long ago. The last chapter talks about how pretty soon movies will be on CD's and we'll be able to send protected video and audio files over the "Information Superhighway". Then a picture insinuating that we may at some point be buying music on a computer wirelessly. Pretty wild. Who wrote this book? He has a lot of crazy ideas... Actually it was good to be reminded of how recent audio recording really is in the scope of history. Stereo recording didn't exist until the 1930's. Multitrack recording distance exist until the 1950's, and wasn't attainable in cost until much later. We are very lucky to be able to make our own recordings and it's amazing how much has changed in the 15 years I've been recording music. I wonder of someday we will laugh at how we're doing it now.

Posted by PAT RICK at 9:24 AM | 1 comments read on

Ready To Get Messy!

Crab Hut kicked my butt.

Posted by PAT RICK at 7:32 PM | 0 comments read on

Editing Atmosphere

Busting out some editing between cafe goodies and neighborhood strolls.

Posted by PAT RICK at 6:11 PM | 0 comments read on

Getting It Done

On the home stretch, finishing up the album I've been working on for the last 11 months. Just finished bass tracks, got a few more organ, electric guitar, and vocal tracks to lay down. Then on to mixing, mastering, replicating, etc...

Posted by PAT RICK at 8:00 PM | 0 comments read on

Studio de la Herms

Helped Herms get his studio up and running so that he can finally record all those salsa songs he's been writing.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Posted by PAT RICK at 5:54 PM | 0 comments read on

Banjo For Beginners

Played the banjo for the first time tonight. Laid down some tracks, and I'm pleasantly surprised that they don't sound half bad. I'm only borrowing this banjo, but I'm liking it so much, I think I might need to get my own.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Location:C St,San Diego,United States

Posted by PAT RICK at 12:13 AM | 0 comments read on

Photo-Blogging, Kind Of

One reason I've been looking forward to getting iPhone 4 is I've been wanting to start blogging more, and publish high quality photos to go along with my posts. It will probably take me a little while to get into the groove, but I hope this will be a lot of fun and help me with my writing and on-the-fly photography skills. So this is my first post, and my first photo, taken in my beautiful neighborhood, Golden Hill.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone 4

Location:B St,San Diego,United States

Posted by PAT RICK at 12:08 PM | 1 comments read on

IF WE RAN AGROUND

Summer has gone and fall is running late

We're getting tired of the wait

We'd like to see leaves under our feet

We search for you in the street

Where did you go, so far away?

A new army dies in the skies everyday

If we ran aground, would there be a sound?

I'm not even sure that you're around

We're losing touch, or at least that's how I feel

We just keep spinning the wheel

The way that we are loving has lost it's appeal

It's not like that in the deal

Why have you gone and inspired this song?

We look to the hills, to the seas, and beyond

If we ran aground, would there be a sound?

I'm not even sure that you're around

You tell us to ask, then that is all we do

And we sit around and wait to hear from you

We search for a sign when we haven't got a clue

You've told us what we're supposed to be up to

How have we strayed, so far away?

And where is the faith to call down fire and rain?

If once we were lost, but now we are found

Then why do we stumble as if bound?

And why are we so underground?

I'm not even sure that you're around

Posted by PAT RICK at 8:51 PM | 0 comments read on

YOU WON'T HAVE TO FIND ME AGAIN

the axe just falls

you need to know i won't

i won't stop

the exit forms

you need to know i won't

i won't get off

and you won't have to find me again

no, you won't have to find me again

because i'm not lost

the beauty swells

the pain too much to bear

you can't feel

the light behind

the sun will break your heart

so you can heal

and you won't have to find me again

no, you won't have to find me again

because i'm not lost

Posted by PAT RICK at 12:38 PM | 0 comments read on

IN THE WAKE

i'm in the wake now

everything is fake now

i lost my stake now

i'm in the wake now

all i can tell you is

love

in the end

is a foe

not a friend

think i might skip town

before i tear this one down

don't tell me to bear down

my heart is a break down

all i can tell you is

love

it's a crime

to leave me here

and change your mind

all i can tell you is

love

is my cry

it could work

we could try

don't want to just sing about it

no more

you came and you left with the tide

won't you come back inside

and we'll talk by the fire

please baby don't live by your pride

my lips said forever

would you make me a liar

i'm in the wake now

my hands just shake now

i'm back to blank now

so what's the take now

all i can tell you is

love

is a choice

see my eyes

hear my voice

all i can tell you is

love

in the end

it will break

it will mend

Posted by PAT RICK at 3:56 PM | 0 comments read on

The 51st Street Blues

hey, 51st street, you were always there for me

you saw me on the ground

you saw me on my feet

you always took care

you never abandoned me

hey, 51st street, you were always around

even when i was down

you never moved out of town

you never put on a crown

you were never too good for me

hey, 51st street, even when she went away

i didn't know what to say

but you listened anyway

no matter how i acted

you would never talk back to me

and you know i

you know i love you in the rain

in the night

only you comprehend my pain

with the moonlight

falling softly on your face

yeah, tonight

you are my only means of grace

when i'm feeling beat

i just follow the signs

on 51st street

and you don't need to say a thing

because i saw all the signs

on 51st street

Posted by PAT RICK at 3:46 PM | 0 comments read on

LEO

I was leaning against the brick wall by my old apartment's parking lot, talking to God, smoking a cigarette, and waiting for a friend to show up. A guy walked by and gave me the standard head nod. Leo looked just like his brother Melvin who just had neck surgery so I asked him how his neck was. He introduced himself and I apologized for the mistake. He said it was okay and that he was glad I had spoken to him because he needed someone to talk to and was just asking God to send someone. He asked me for a smoke and I gave him one. I asked him what was going on and he offered me his story. Leo had been in prison over a dozen times and had been through some pretty rough stuff. Now he was out and trying to keep his life straight, but he was struggling with his thoughts. He had many fears, worries, and a lot of anger. We talked and prayed together for twenty minutes or so. I could see his eyes beginning to shine a little more and I was electric that day. I'll never see Leo again, but he's in my prayers now. When my friend showed up half an hour late, he apologized, and I just laughed. Funny how that happened. That's The Kingdom of God for you.

Posted by PAT RICK at 11:54 AM | 0 comments read on

EASY COME, EASY GO

I got my list of things to do, but you're always on my mind

There's stoplights on the boulevard, yeah I'm good at wasting time

Well, I wrestled with the God of Love and I know He's on our side

Easy come, easy go, but darlin', we'll be fine

A quarter tank of gas and seven dollars in my hand

I guess I'll buy some cigarettes and walk wherever I can

My payday came a month too late, now I'm a skinnier man

Easy come, easy go, yeah that's the law of the land

Well I heard that life's too short to sit around deciding what to do

But I wonder if those people ever find out what is true

A dime is like a nickel but it's smaller and times two

Easy come, easy go, I'd spend them all on you

Everyone's concerned with how they're going to shrivel and die

I've faith enough to laugh and sing, and courage not to cry

I may have fouled up, girl, but at least I did not lie

Easy come, easy go, but it's foolish not to try

If time is friends with death I'm gonna rob him just the same

And torture him till he agrees to tell me his real name

I'm sick and tired of playing his old usual cruel game

Easy come, easy go, yeah that's the devil's way

So say a prayer and send me luck and bid me a farewell

I promise not to buy, girl, will you promise not to sell

I may or may not see you soon, it's too early to tell

Easy come, easy go, I hope that you are well

Posted by PAT RICK at 12:34 PM | 0 comments read on

EASE MY MIND, CALM MY HEART

a twelve-hour drive ought to clear my mind

gonna burn my paycheck to see you

through the warm desert breeze where the buffalo breathe

restless in their graves from the struggle

my father made me think that maybe love was extinct

but now i'm hot on the trail and i am gaining

i see the ghosts of the trees and the gasoline e's

and the smile on the moon that is waning

honey, if you please, won't you ease my mind

have i gone to far, are we just killing time

honey, if you please, won't you ease these troubles of mine

lord, with a psalm, won't you calm my heart

is this thing called love now a long lost art

lord, with a psalm, won't you calm my aching heart

the albuquerque snow through an old window

god you make it sound so appealing

and does time slow down in the mid-west town

baby if it does i'm never leaving

i lost my head the minute you said

you would never tire of my calling

and it's hard to explain in a single refrain

exactly how hard i'm falling

honey, if you please, won't you ease my mind

have i gone to far, are we just killing time

honey, if you please, won't you ease these troubles of mine

lord, with a psalm, won't you calm my heart

is this thing called love now a long lost art

lord, with a psalm, won't you calm my aching heart

Posted by PAT RICK at 3:17 PM | 0 comments read on

THE DAY AFTER SAINT PATRICK'S

The Irish in my blood is putting up a fight

Blame it on the holiday if you like

Don't ask me how I know

Last night it was you on the phone

Conspiring with the clerk

I must have read it in the smoke

Vamoose from burning thoughts of you

As I try to do my work

I hoped for you; I do

After the click, after the tone

Did you at once feel like a jerk

You know I want the time of day

Not tell me it, but give me it

What do you fear when love you shirk

My ante is on the table

What's more, we play by your rules

One's lack of busyness or places to go or people to see

Does not make them dull and/or needy

There happens to be more conviction and vision in the ideas of my imaginary amigo here

Than in all your St. Patty's Day drinking friends combined

I will never leave home for seven months or more

To make easy money for Shell, Inc

You are not my last-ditch attempt

Nor will I be your eleventh hour resort

I know what you must be thinking, even now

Where did this guy come from

To be clear: I believe in you

I am not pushing for a verdict

I am for the implementation of vulnerable deliberation

Just so you know, that first night, the hat trick,

I wasn't even thirsty

I like the way you lead me on

It's therapeutic for my arrogance

And motivation for my ongoing revelation

So, actually, I should say, keep it up

Don't you worry, nothing's been pigeon-holed

Although I hear that pigeons are some of the smartest birds

And also quite trainable

I never quite know how to leave off

Maybe you can help me with that

I suppose that I could have it all wrong

In which case, please forgive me

But I just had one of those feelings

Like I know exactly what's going on here

And, unfortunately for me, believe me,

I have never been wrong

However, I'm willing to make an exception for you, dear

May I propose a toast

Here's to looking forward to possible things

Warm regards, really

Posted by PAT RICK at 12:48 PM | 0 comments read on

A Better Man

i've been riding this horse

and there ain't no telling it's course

the bridle is broken

and i can't see through the gold rush dust

but it makes no difference where i'm headed

no, it don't matter much to me

seems like all i leave behind

are tracks in the sand

tears scarring the land

and all i've got here to go by

are the lines my hand

(some kind of a map?)

ain't no special plan

no, i'm just trying to be a better man

lord you know i ain't no prospecting genius

i'm just waiting for your hand

send me a sweet southern belle

now my soul is thirsty

and i can't find a drop in this ghost town well

but it makes no difference where i'm headed

no, it don't matter much to me

seems like all i leave behind

are tracks in the sand

tears scarring the land

and all i've got here to go by

are the lines my hand

(some kind of a map?)

ain't no special plan

no, i'm just trying to be a better man

Posted by PAT RICK at 4:25 PM | 0 comments read on

WASN'T I TRUE?

i was your favorite

if just for a time

until you compartmentalized me

out of your life

we both helped make us

into what we are now

but it's you who avoids me

like the bad part of town

wasn't i here

when you needed me dear?

wasn't i true

to you?

isn't the ocean still blue?

i see you're still wearing

all the jewelry that i bought

i guess that i figured

you'd take it to a pawn shop

instead it was our friendship

you decided to hock

now through windows at a stoplight

the only time that we talk

wasn't i here

when you needed me dear?

wasn't i true

to you?

isn't the ocean still blue?

i stopped by your place

just the other day

but the eighties on your stereo

sent me on my way

and then i heard you wondering

why it seems i never stay

but when i do you just ignore me

and that's not okay

wasn't i here

when you needed me dear?

wasn't i true

to you?

isn't the ocean still blue?

Posted by PAT RICK at 5:19 PM | 0 comments read on

OH MAN, I WISH I COULD SKAT

Oh man, I wish I could skat like those jazz greats. Or at least I wish I could have been in one of those clubs where they played. I bet I could have kept up with them. I'd wear a loose tie and a tweed coat and I'd polish my shoes every Monday. I think I would have been a drummer. I'd get to the club right at dusk, when the sunlight reflects off all the dust in the air, and it's all a glare everywhere. I'd make sure the drums were tuned, and then I'd sit in a chair in the sun and take a nap until the rest of the band got there and got tuned. Then I'd go inside and rehearse with the other fellas. Then up until it was showtime, I'd sit in the round booth in the back corner and play cards with the trumpet player and sip on some sarsaparilla. It wouldn't be too long before the place was chalk full of all sorts of fine folks, then I'd go up and take my place on the throne behind the drums. After we'd played three or four songs, I'd cue the barman with a twirl of my drumstick up in the air, and he would know that that meant it was time, and he'd bring me a dirty martini with three olives, but it would be in a regular glass so I wouldn't spill it. Well into the set, when the air was full of smoke already, I would light a cigarette and just let it hang in my mouth while we played, taking a quick drag in the slow parts of the songs. It would be grand. You know, just sitting there, smoking a cigarette, before everyone knew they were bad for you. Just improvising off the crowd, off the vibe, off the mood of the room and the lights and the haze.

Posted by PAT RICK at 4:29 PM | 0 comments read on

the gold-hatted high-bouncer

here is how i feel:

who would love you? who would try?

you were a lie and you were a cheat and you were a steal,

and you expect me, now, to fall in line?

stab your gorgeous heel

deep through my ribs with every step.

the time it takes to heal -

you have got no idea, do you?

of the act when you walked away...

the fact that you locked away...

the lies that you actualized...

the lines that you compromised...

well, i should have known

that a queen would not pick me from her catalogue.

but that i would jest for you

until an upgraded model came along.

here at the station,

a ticket out is my only inspiration.

how i wish i

could manage to muster up more motivation.

but the act when you walked away...

the fact that you locked away...

the lies that you actualized...

the lines that you compromised...

outside my window

there stands a man of twenty-seven.

made-up and costumed,

well-rehearsed, i pretend to be him.

stone-cold and sober,

i have yet to make a good decision.

lights out and lock down.

i feel much safer inside my prison.

Posted by PAT RICK at 9:41 PM | 0 comments read on

MIND THE GAP

on a good day you keep your heart under quarantine
that way you can guarantee that you don't feel a thing
on a bad day you sleep until you can dream no more
and then you say very rude things

i'm talking about your mood swings

oh, but here she comes around the corner

do you think i should try to warn her

that i'm a little out of order

Posted by PAT RICK at 3:54 PM | 0 comments read on

YOU'VE LOST YOUR WAY

you've lost your way, lost your way
now it's gone
and come the day, come the day
and the sun
you find yourself, find yourself
with a gun
blood on your sleeve, on your sleeve
and it's done

walk until the morning
talking to yourself
and to no one else
sleep under the shade of a dragon tree
wondering about the word infantry
and what it really means
shiny bikes and soccer balls
why does the rest of the world
think that they need tv shows
everybody's looking for a friend out here
but nobody gets too close
out of fear of losing them

we've got to find a way out of here
we've got to rid ourselves of all this fear
we've got to find a better way to feel
we've got to find a way that is real
there's got to be a way that we can heal

Posted by PAT RICK at 1:32 AM | 0 comments read on

EXCUSE THE PENCIL

From Leonard K. Guthner to Miss Bessie Banes in Littleton, Colorado.

Written March 15, 1918. Postmarked March 16, 1918 in Ft. Riley, Kansas.

Dear Bess,

I got your letter this afternoon and was glad to hear that you are well. I wish I could say that again. I am still here in the hospital and sure am getting tired of it, although I have nothing to do but bum around but even that don't suit. The doctors don't seem to know what is wrong with me. They say there is nothing the matter with the heart or lungs. They say it is the muscles that are giving me the trouble. I thought that I would not have to go to bed this trip, but have put in three days already. I am up today. Our chaplain called Wednesday afternoon and offered his assistance. He sure is a prince.

I think I will accept your excuse as I know how it is when you are moving. You know, when I didn't get a letter on the regular day, I thought, they are moving and Bess hasn't the time to write.

I have no idea where Ed is but am afraid he is far, far away. I (ran out of ink) sure hope that Geo gets his furlough as he sure has had to wait long enough. He had not gotten it before I left.

I sure would have gone to that wedding if I had a chance. I certainly hope you went, and don't blame you at all for not wanting to be a bridesmaid. Well, give the happy pair my best wishes. Somebody else is married that we know. Remember that small little man that we used to meet on the Littleton car? I called him Scotty and he used to get on at Cherrylyn and he got off at Woodlawn. Well he married some widow. I didn't think he would wait so long as the boys at the shop were planning what they were going to do to our Scotty if he ever passed the cigars. That was when I was working there.

The weather is fairly good now. The wind blows one day and the next we clean up. The following day the wind blows again and so on.

I have a lot of relations who live in Kansas and have cars. They are just getting wise to the fact that I am here. That beats me. They are going to come and see me soon. This is what they say. It will probably take them longer to get here than it did for them to find out I was here.

I will close hoping you excuse the pencil.

I remain, as ever,

Len

Posted by PAT RICK at 12:08 PM | 0 comments read on