Friday Favorite

Friday Favorites: The Solace of Heroes, Nature, and Music

71 Comments

It has been over a week since a right-wing mob attacked and ransacked the Capitol—1/6 is a new date to remember for its infamy. Right now, silver linings are pretty hard to find, but I can offer you the story of a hero, of how Eugene Goodman, a lone Capitol police officer, using himself as bait, lured the mob away from the Senate Chamber. I am in awe of how this man had the courage and the presence of mind to do this. I salute you, Eugene Goodman. I also salute Huffington Post reporter Igor Bobic, who filmed the event on his phone.

Closer to home, January continues to provide cool solace for the ills of this country. Many people in the north dislike January because of the long nights and cold days. I am not one of those people. I have always found January to be beautiful and brilliant yet soothing, a time to reflect and rest before boisterous Spring makes her appearance.

Here is a January picture of the Lower Narrows, peeping through the lacy fingers of the trees and bushes.

What would Friday Favorites be without a Tiny Desk Concert and the solace of music? This time the fabulous Andrew Bird, who not only can play and sing but also whistle like, well, a bird. As someone in the Tiny Desk comments section asked, “Is it wrong, do you think, to envy someone’s whistling ability?”

To read about more favorites from blogging friends from around the world:

Thistles and Kiwis, who surely eats better than most people I know.

All Things Bright and Beautiful: Really, Ju-Lyn? A cobra?

71 thoughts on “Friday Favorites: The Solace of Heroes, Nature, and Music”

  1. Beautiful photo — I can understand the appeal of January’s soothing brilliance, but I’d rather enjoy it vicariously, ha!

  3. Lovely photographs and thank you for the links – I was interested to see the first and enjoyed listening to the music 🙂

  4. I don’t mind January if I can have sunshine. So far this month (this year!) we have had only 1 day of sun. Today it’s rain that’s freezing as it falls. We can move on to February now. I liked the Andrew Bird music!

  8. We had a cold but sunny day today and I saw my first daffodil showing colour plus a little cluster of snowdrops. January at its best 🙂

  9. Lovely picture of the frozen water. I also feel the need for the cold of winter, even if makes me a little flat at times. If I don’t get enough cold and snow, it makes me feel like I’m missing something, and I’m not ready to move on.

  10. He whistles, he plays the fiddle, he sings! Be still my heart. (My late brother was a whistler, so I have a soft spot for men who whistle. My brother died way too young, at age 60, in 2000.) Thanks for sharing that sweet concert!

  11. The beauty of winter is in your lovely photo. If the sun is shining in winter it makes all the difference. Andrew Bird, what a great whistler, and musician! Have a happy winter’s day.

  19. Frank above is right, I detect a trace of Bella, too!
    I think we all feel a bit ‘battle weary’ even if from merely observing the Capitol events (and not like those on the front lines…like Officer Eugene) so your post of ‘solace’ hits home!
    Stay safe and stay the course.

  21. Laurie! Thank you for the shoutout!
    And thank you for pointing me back to Tiny Desk … I haven’t visited them for ages and I’ve had so much fun reacquainting myself. Andrew Bird is such fun!

  24. Every day we read Heather Cox-Richardson’s revelations about what happened on 6 January with increasing horror. When we watched the live pictures, we had no idea of what was really going on, so thank goodness for the few brave people, particularly Officer Goodman, for standing up to that terrifying mob.
    Lovely picture and great to take solace from music. Roll on the 20th.

  25. I am soooooooo happy that my SIGNED!!!!!! editions of the Great Library series have arrived are queued up in the reading pile (sorry, but I’m slogging through a very academic text on the ideas of WEB DuBois, which I have committed to finish before any more pleasurable reads). I also have a post which I am proofreading that you should enjoy. Meanwhile, I am consuming only small portion of the news for the moment -Oscar

    1. As with other blogging friends, it sure took a while for those books to get to you. I mailed them December 8. Well, at least they got to you. Many thanks for ordering all three!

      1. Very colonial. A mail carrier on horseback might have made the trip in the 18th century in about the same time. Hopefully Dejoy et al will be on a slow mule out of town soon (sadly, though I have little empathy for the decisions they made to join the Trump bandwagon, from what I hear from friends in D.C. many of the Trump appointees to various mid to low level bureaucratic jobs will not only be unemployed but toxic on the job market with the Black Spot of being a Trump appointee on their resume. How many lives can one man ruin?) – Oscar

  26. Eugene Goodman made the news here, and I salute him with you. I hope he gets recognition for his bravery. I actually think it’s been very well covered over here and as a result I’ve found it extremely unsettling too, especially in the context of the disputed Ugandan election. Is it true some of the people arrested are asking for pardons on the grounds they were doing what the President asked?

    2. I am not sure if some of the arrested people are asking for a pardon, but I have read that they were shocked they were being arrested as they thought they were simply doing what the president had urged. Wow, just wow. And, yes, I thought of Uganda, too.

  29. Andrew is whistling and singing and strumming in the background as I write this comment. I agree that there aren’t many silver linings right now in the US, Laurie. I’m dreading what Trump will do next. We are on the brink of despair and hope for our country. And Goodman? Amazing.

  30. Loved the music and have already added Andrew Bird to my music library! Were you familiar with his music prior to the Tiny Desk Concerts? I was amazed at all his albums and that I had somehow missed his music over the years. Winter looks so much better in Maine with the blue skies!🙂

  31. I’m quite fond of a crisp and sunny winter day. Unfortunately they are mainly grey and soggy at the moment, even if I can bring myself to leave the house. 🙂

    Roll on April!

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