Molly's Reach

"Dance your cares away, worries for another day..."

These famous words are from Fraggle Rock. Part of CBC’s Sunday night line up many years ago when I was burdened by junior high homework. Sunday night seemed to be the default time to do homework. It was always put off and put off again until the heavy ‘Sunday night feeling’ would come. I didn’t want to do the work, and probably didn’t feel like going to school the next day either. I think I actually believed that by watching Fraggle Rock, I could send my worries to another day – or at least put them off for half an hour. Funny thing is, I really didn’t even like Fraggle Rock but it was a welcome distraction.

But alas, “Down the road is where I’ll always be”...the Littlest Hobo came next followed by the Beachcombers. By that time, homework was delayed an hour and a half, and soon it would be time for bed.

‘Wouldn’t it be nice to be in Molly’s Reach? - hot soup, in from the cold, friendly conversation and no homework to do?’ That was the solution – just get to Molly’s Reach and everything would be all right.

Now many years later, I have shrugged the Sunday feeling, but I must have retained a lot of the philosophy from back then. I have a son named Jesse, and a daughter Molly, - no one named Nick or Relic though.

That happy feeling, born out of hopeful, wonderful, fantastic imagination I am sure was present, sub consciously we chose the name Molly for our daughter. I sing this song to her - while she is in her crib and I am beside her in the rocking chair in her room...and there I am so close by- in Molly's reach.

Blue Eyes Cryin' in the Rain

It's obvious that I didn't write this one, but it is a lot of fun.

About three years ago when I was starting to wonder if I would ever find a group to jam with or even dare to dream, play live in front of people again, along came 'The Man Room'.

An old friend of mine from high school introduced me to the group, and we have been making music in a Montreal basement ever since.

Recently we started to play live, and it is a lot of fun. We are a bunch of dads with daytime jobs living in the moment enjoying where the adventure is taking us. Seven of us round out the stage including a bunch of guitars, a banjo, a mandolin and you never know when we are going to get out the 20L water cooler jug, harmonica or anything else.

Here's to jamming and good fun live music.

Displaced Maritimers

I live in Montreal, not in New Brunswick, so I fit this description.

Displaced Maritimers are great. When I first joined the club, I found out that us displaced Maritimers are more ‘maritime’ than ‘back home’ Maritimers. We whoop it up and sing and talk about the Maritimes all the time telling the locals or other displaced people about the wonders of the far east. Probably the ‘back home’ types are whooping it up, singing and talking about other places that aren’t the Maritimes.

Anyways, it is neat -we displaced Maritimers seek each other out, whether in Montreal, Toronto, out west or wherever – we get together and have common, familiar ground.