The Longest Day

Happy Father's Day to all of the dads out there, and happy Summer Solstice to all of the pagans. I happen to agree that the changing seasons are definitely worth celebrating... plus it works out well that all of us dads (at least here in the northern hemisphere) have more time to grill out in the sunshine today than we do any other day of the year. For that, I'd like to offer a very special thanks to the earth's tilt. 

On a more serious note, Father's Day of 2020 was one of the last occasions that I ever spoke to my own dad before he died unexpectedly. It never ceases to amaze me how quickly things can change. Sometimes that's a good thing, sometimes not. I recommend that you make every effort you can to appreciate the time that you have with the people you love. Life is too damn short. Trust me on this. 

My dad never got to hear my two most recent albums, but I think that he might have liked them. In honor of Father's Day and in the memory of my own dad, I'd like to share with you a song from each. 

The first track comes from Embers (2021). I wrote this song with my dad in mind. Basically, anything that might have made the playlist on the NPR show Car Talk was cool with him, and it's not hard to imagine this song being sampled between callers. It's called Original Miles, and at almost 44,000 streams, it is by far my most played song on Spotify to date.  

The other song comes from Petrichor (2021), which I just released a few days ago. Haunted is about how strange it is to go back to the house I grew up in, where there are all of these things that my dad built, even though he's no longer there. This is one of only two songs that ever made me cry while I was writing it. I usually try not to conflate art with therapy, but this song definitely provided me with at least a little bit of catharsis in that regard. If you happen to need it, I hope that you can get something from it as well. 

Enjoy the music. If your dad is still a part of your life, I hope you'll thank him for something--the more specific, the better. Personally, I tend to believe that we don't regret the things that we do so much as the things that we don't do. 

Thanks for listening to my music and checking out my blog. Now get outside and enjoy the sunshine, and if at all possible, spend some quality time with your dad. 

Ask him to tell you about the craziest thing that he ever did, along with what, if anything, he learned from the experience. There's bound to be a good story in there.