striking a deal

i think mother nature tried to compromise with me this morning. i was driving on route 3, leaving proctor to travel to fair haven for the last (i hope) of such friday morning jaunts, when i looked at the mountains up ahead. the bare trees and snow were aglow with the bronze rays of the early morning sunlight - so bright that i was convinced i was actually looking at the mountain in its autumn form, trees covered with the changing leaves i look forward to every year.

while still not a morning person and groggy without my first cup of coffee, i knew my eyes were tricking me. but the most i stared, the more the mountainside looked like autumn. and, surprisingly, the warmer i felt.

finally, my mind convinced my eyes to look at the scene as it actually was - sunlight bouncing off snow and tree trunks. but i felt as if i was being offered at least some form of an apology about the wretched winter we have endured. sure, she's not going to let up on us for at least another month and a half, but at least she can offer me a glimpse of why i stick around the place. my favorite time of year.

it was a brilliant start to the day and my high spirits continued throughout the morning and afternoon, carrying me into the writing of my last column as a correspondent. and, shock of all shocks, i actually really liked what i wrote. perhaps the pendant is working after all?

the focus of my column was a particularly tricky one - a concert i attended last night at the flynn. while my opinion of the event is clear - i absolutely loved it - trying to describe a jazz concert proves remarkably difficult a task to succeed in. how do you try to paint a picture of the event with words when you state early on that scat seems all the more appropriate to capture the moment? how to you convey to someone who wasn't there the way the saxophone wailed with a raw emotion that was perfectly underscored by the upright bass (or rather, how do you do this without falling into the cliches i just fell into now)? i think i did a decent job of it - i actually came up with some descriptions i really like. i feel like maybe these little bits of the column make me appear somewhat worthy of being considered a writer.

right now, i'll take what i can get. ;-)