Running For The Cure

Happy birthday to my music partner and friend, Allison! Do drop by the virtual birthday party and say hello. Party ends at MIDNIGHT TONIGHT. Because of the Viva strike (and because I'm still sick :-\ ), we weren't able to get together last night for our Urban Tapestry birthday bash and rehearsal.

We also rehearsed virtually as well, exchanging e-mails and soundfiles -- we ended up successfully figuring out a three-part arrangement to "Running For The Cure," our new song. I've enclosed the lyrics below.

We have other songs as well; how many we sing will depend on how much time we have. Learning from our experience at Relay For Life a few years back, we purposely chose songs that were upbeat and catchy; people will likely be milling about in Nathan Phillips Square after the run. Hopefully we may even get a few people dancing. :-)

I wrote the chorus first, based on my experience with the Run for the Cure. It's always inspirational, seeing how many people participate, and in so many ways. Some people run, some walk, some push strollers, and some are in wheelchairs. You'll see people dancing, singing, and holding hands -- it's an amazing feeling, being in the midst of it all, knowing that you're part of a greater effort striving for a worthy cause.

If you're planning to attend the event and are at the main stage when we sing this song, feel free to sing along on the chorus. We're scheduled to perform from 10:43-11 a.m. in Nathan Phillips Square at the CIBC Run For The Cure this coming Sunday.

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RUNNING FOR THE CURE
By Debbie Ridpath Ohi
For performance by Urban Tapestry at the
2008 CIBC Run For The Cure

CHORUS:
Gonna run, gonna walk, gonna roll
Gonna dance, gonna sing for the cure
Gonna cry, gonna laugh, gonna stroll
gonna find some hope and Run For The Cure.

It began in '92, small candle flame
burning bright
Years pass, that flame grows stronger still
Fire in the night.

CHORUS

We run for our mothers
sisters and aunts, and daughters dear
We run for friends we haven't met
There are no strangers here.

CHORUS

Breast cancer affects us all, we'll
never give up, we will fight it
Runners, walkers, volunteers
Canadians united.

CHORUS (twice)

English Country Dancing at Fort York

So on Friday night, I went with my friends Cathy and Ardelle to do some English Country Dancing at Historic Fort York, Jane Austen style. Cathy's been part of the group there for years but I only became interested after attending a dance workshop at Balticon.

The regulars were all dressed in historic costume. The women were lovely in their gowns, their skirts swirling around. And though I felt a bit sorry for the men in their wool suits, I have to say they all looked quite dashing and Colin Firth-like. Don't believe me? Check out the photo on the left that I took of my dance partner, Joel.

Ok, maybe that's not QUITE what Joel looked like but it's close, I swear! And he sewed his entire outfit (except for his shoes) by HAND. I managed not to step on Joel's feet during the dances, though I kept threatening to accidentally knock him over.

Melanie, the woman who taught us the steps as well as calling out the dances, also provided interesting historical info along the way that helped explain how certain dances developed. Music was provided on a wooden flute by Michael, who also wore a costume.

Anyway, I had a huge amount of fun and have asked Cathy if I could come next time as well.

For more info about the events at Fort York, see this page.

Spastic kittens, UT practice and Dr. Horrible

Allison's and John's kitten Kara was in fine form last night at our Urban Tapestry practice. What is it about kittens? Kara is super-cute and she knows it.

Throughout the practice, Kara was jumping and leaping all over the place. One minute she'd be checking out my flute and trying to get into my bag. The next she'd be practically sitting on Jodi's shoulder, peering around to look at Jodi's face while Jodi was singing. A minute later she'd be dashing madly up one side of the couch, across the back behind Allison, then down the other side.



Kittens are spastic balls of energy, I swear. Allison showed us the remains of a planter that her kitten had knocked off a table:



I took the photos above with my iPhone during the practice. We were rehearsing some songs for our upcoming gig at the CIBC Run For The Cure (10:43 am - 11 am on Sun. Oct. 5th in Nathan Philips Square, main stage).

Anyway, the practice went well. Allison learned the new CIBC Run For The Cure song I sent her THE DAY BEFORE (she is a very very patient music partner) and we recorded it for Jodi to figure out some harmonies.


We're also learning My Eyes, a song from Dr. Horrible's Singalong Blog (not for the Run for the Cure but just for fun :-). Allison and Jodi ran through their parts; it's a great song with intertwining lyrics / melodies. I love hearing them perform this song, and continue to feel incredibly lucky to be part of Urban Tapestry. Even after all these years, I'd be happy to just sit and listen to those two sing forever.

Another song I loved hearing them perform is "The Way I Am" by Ingrid Michaelson. Jodi sings lead, and Allison will add harmonies. I haven't decided if I'm going to be adding harmonies and/or flute on this song.

My Life In A Nutshell, songwriting and iPhone Pocket Guitar

My Life In A Nutshell has been updated.

I'm writing a song for Urban Tapestry to perform in a couple of weeks at our CIBC Run For The Cure gig. I didn't intend to; the whole chorus just popped into my head without warning. I used my iPhone guitar apps to figure out a chord structure.

Speaking of iPhone guitar apps (and in keeping with the theme of the above cartoon), I recently downloaded another guitar app. This one's called Pocket Guitar, and it cost 99 cents:



The basic idea is to press the frets in various chord positions, and then strum or pick the bottom row. You can also adjust the settings so that you can pick the fretboard and automatically have the right note sound (as in the video below, though I'm not sure if the app is exactly the same or an earlier version). You can also choose from different instrument sounds, from electric guitars to acoustic to ukulele. Different effects can be achieved by tilting the Iphone.



From some of the YouTube videos I've found where people are using the iPhone guitar apps, it certain seems as if there's some potential, if you know what you're doing.



Next I may try out MooCowMusic's Guitarist.

Hm...it would be fun to get together with other iPhone musicians and have an iPhone jam session with all our digital instruments sometime. :-D



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Urban Tapestry at the CIBC Run For The Cure

I'm pleased to announce that Urban Tapestry has been invited to perform at Nathan Phillips Square as part of the CIBC Run For The Cure on Sunday, October 5th. We're currently scheduled for the 10:43 am - 11 am time slot; I'll post here if that changes.



The CIBC Run For The Cure is the largest single-day volunteer-led fundraising event, taking place in in 55 communities across Canada. Funds support the advancement of breast cancer research, education, diagnosis and treatment.


(Thanks to Reid and Luisa for the photo)

I've participated in the RFTC in previous years, plus Allison, Jodi and I performed at Relay For Life some years ago; it was another event in support of cancer research. I've always found these events incredibly inspiring.



We're getting together tonight to put together a playlist. If you're interested in finding out more about the event, you should check out the website. Want to participate in the run but can't be there in person? Consider doing a virtual run.

Quote of the Day

The other day, I updated my Facebook status to read "Debbie Ohi is in love with her iPhone. Jeff still comes first, though."

I was amused when Ryan Couldrey replied: "Jeff doesn't come with a monthly fee, though, he does come with a lifetime contract. That's gotta suck compared to your Rogers one."

:-D



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