Someone said the other day that some people 'tend to use Hive as a diary'. I find myself doing this more and more as I'm too busy moving and renovating for anything else, and to construct a more cohesive, intelligent, informative or creative piece seems a little hard. So, today's post is yet another mash up - with a musical soundtrack, which sums up my life right now. I do need to get on to writing about the bluegrass festival in Bright last weekend, but today is not the day.

Yesterday the concrete breakers were in demolishing the concrete patio out the back. Yep, there's a little drama there but I'll save that for another post. But here's the little grandson torn between going to the beach with his buckets and watching the man with the huge saw. He's such a clever little mite. I was explaining about how it's all cut like a big piece of cake and they have to take each piece out at a time. He was fascinated. Boys and power tools, amirite???

This morning, in that nice quiet half hour whilst we are snuggled in bed drinking coffee and running down the day, we heard the news of Jimmy Cliff passing. He wasn't my favourite reggae artists, but it was one of the three Dad had on vinyl in the '70's so I remember it clearly. I feel like all the old musicians are dying round the same time as Dad, one after the other. It makes sense - one day all the young musicians my age will be dying too. As will I. Depressing, much? Or just grateful that we had them at all?

Whilst I could put some of his more famous tunes, like 'I Can See Clearly', I love seeing old footage of these reggae greats when they were so young. And I love a bit of rocksteady. It always makes me happy.

Before the little one came I was trying to tidy up Jamie's shed and hard wax oil the last bit of benchtop with the screeching of the metal saw against concrete. It was a job for noise cancelling headphones and for some reason I thought of Lucinda Williams. I haven't listened to her in years. Dad was a fun and me and my mate Noot, who I used to live with, loved her and went and saw her live, around early 2000's I think. She's dubbed too rock for country and too country for rock - that about sums her up. Her album 'World Without Tears' is one of those perfect albums - I fucking love it. I forgot how lyrically awesome she is as well. And this albums is sexy a.f.

'Be my lover don't cause me pain, just play me John Coltrane'

As I move more boxes down the coast today I'll be listening to her again, going back to 'Car Wheels on a Gravel Road', which was the first album of hers I heard via Dad. Dad was amazing at picking up music no one had heard of back then.

I also forgot how tenderly awesome this song is as well. It's about a women who's with someone who was abused as a kid, and it shows in his moods and persona. He's gruff and hard on the outside but she understands why - and sees his sweet side when no one else does.

This is a gorgeous version of it with the slide guitar. Slide's always gonna remind me of Dad and a lot of the music he used to listen to. It's a more acoustic and raw version. It's also her when she's way younger. She's 72 now, still touring, still playing music, despite suffering a stroke and not being able to play guitar. My Mum's 76. I have feelings.

You're tough as steel and you keep your chin up
You don't ever feel like you're good enough
You've had the blues ever since you were six
Your little tennis shoes and your pick-up sticks
You were screamed at and kicked over and over
Now you always feel sick and you can't keep a lover
Every Christmas there were presents to unwrap
But the things you witnessed when you were five and a half

With Love,

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