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Rhapsodydmb.com
A soft place for humanists to land to read poetry
& stories about music, share our love of piano adventures, & work toward restoration of a more just & kind U.S. & the world!
THIS is the country we live in right now. Please don't look away.
The richest 10% own 3/4 of the world's wealth.

The land on which I live: Raymatush Ohlone


Ooooo La La! /C'est Manifique! - A ROMANTIC PRE-VALENTINE'S CONCERT AT THE LIBRARY
What a manifique second-ever GROUPMUSE concert at the San Francisco public branch library in Glen Park on February 9 on a relaxed, sunny...

rhapsodydmb
Feb 14, 20253 min read
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JIMMY CARTER: A MAN FOR ALL TIME
Watching and listening to the celebration of life and benediction at Jimmy Carter's memorial service this morning, I realized that...

rhapsodydmb
Jan 9, 20253 min read
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ON THE FINAL DAY OF THE YEAR 2024, WHAT COUNTS IN MUSIC & LIFE
I am dedicating this blog to one of the most outstanding of our US Presidents and a hero of mine, Jimmy Carter (10.1.24 -...

rhapsodydmb
Dec 31, 20245 min read
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SEVEN PERSONAL WISHES IN 2025 FOR YOU AND FOR ME
"A" is the first letter of the English alphabet (here calligraphed on parchment and gilded by me some years ago), and the perfect way to...

rhapsodydmb
Dec 6, 20243 min read
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THINKING ABOUT HONORING OTHERS AND NEW BEGINNINGS AFTER YEAR'S END 2024
"The Golden Rule, a version of which is appears in all major spiritual and ethical traditions, may be the most narcissistic of our moral...

rhapsodydmb
Dec 1, 20245 min read
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ONE MORE STEP ALONG THE CATTLE CHUTE TO CERTAIN DEATH -- BY FASCISM
When I opened up a blank page on which to write today's music or poetry blog, a full third of the bottom of the page was occupied with a...

rhapsodydmb
Nov 26, 20244 min read
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UNEXPECTED GIFTS -- THE BEST KIND!
Do you notice how sometimes you set out in one direction toward a location only to end up headed in another direction and landing at...

rhapsodydmb
Nov 18, 20247 min read
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"NOT INDIFFERENCE, BUT DETACHMENT" (OLIVER SACKS)
The Phoenix Bird statue, carved out of the remains of a burned out tree and living now on the patio of Nepenthe, my favorite restaurant...

rhapsodydmb
Nov 10, 20246 min read
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"ESSENTIAL TRUTHS" - NECESSARY IN POETRY (AND MUSIC)?
My A.I.-generated picture of "frivolous"; is she holding a plum? (read on) Does poetry have to have a meaning, or an "essential truth"...

rhapsodydmb
Nov 6, 20247 min read
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DIALING UP THE MAGIC WHEN WE ARE WORN OUT
Coming upon the poet and activist Joanna Macy (who lives just across the Bay from me!), I decided to see how her perspectives on life...

rhapsodydmb
Oct 30, 20246 min read
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ACUTE ATTITUDE ILLNESS AND SURVIVAL OF OUR SPIRITS
I found an article in a recent online Journal of the American Medical Association that I thought was entitled "ACUTE ATTITUDE ILLNESS",...

rhapsodydmb
Oct 28, 20244 min read
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TOO MANY, OR JUST ENOUGH?
San Francisco moon, October 18, 2024 I often get tangled up in the lure of words. Mainly by using too many, sometimes by choosing wrongly...

rhapsodydmb
Oct 19, 20244 min read
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GIVING PEOPLE CHOICES
Giving people choices conveys many benefits in life, and to both or all parties to the equation. I was happy to learn there is one 2017...

rhapsodydmb
Oct 6, 20243 min read
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A NOTABLE EVENT IN MUSIC: SEATTLE SYMPHONY HAS A NEW FEMALE MUSIC DIRECTOR, XIAN ZHANG
(Image from Xian Zhang's website. ) In 2024 it's a notable event when a woman wins a permanent management position in a top tier...

rhapsodydmb
Sep 16, 20243 min read
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TWO MORE REASONS WHY WOMEN - AND MEN - SHOULD SPEAK AND ACT UP CONSISTENT WITH HUMANIST AND PRO-FEMINIST VALUES IN MUSIC, MEDICINE, AND LIFE
There have been a number of recent and not-so-recent books about hope . The latest published by a psychologist in August of this year...

rhapsodydmb
Sep 10, 20248 min read
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LONELINESS AND MUSIC
A year and a half ago I wrote a blog about the topic of loneliness because I continued to find a lack of connection with others in the...

rhapsodydmb
Sep 2, 20245 min read
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IN 2024 THE MUSIC WORLD (and AI) HAS NOT "COME A LONG WAY...BABY"...AS THE 1969 VIRGINIA SLIMS' CIGARETTE COMMERCIAL SAID (image created by AI*)
Did you ever wonder what the final dying words were of famous composers? A writer for the online music newsletter Interlude , wondered....

rhapsodydmb
Aug 16, 20244 min read
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JOY - AND DANCING ON!
"JOY!" I heard it yesterday morning! The news media who listened, heard it . Did you? The word "JOY!" ushered out of the mouth of our...

rhapsodydmb
Aug 9, 20246 min read
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THINKING ABOUT DUALITY THINKING
I've been thinking about duality thinking, and how to diminish it. Diminish, because I suspect there is no "cure." All we need is a...

rhapsodydmb
Aug 7, 20246 min read
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MUSIC - "FROM MY VERY FIRST CONTACT ... AND UNWAVERINGLY EVER SINCE..."
Reflected in the title above is a heartfelt comment to mine that he must truly love music. It's the response by my musical...

rhapsodydmb
Aug 5, 20242 min read
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