1.4.2011. The spirit lives at the Spirit of ‘77. It’s unclear whether it is 1877 or 1977. MLK Boulevard, Portland, Oregon.

1.5.2011 No photo. This is what I get for letting my friend use their camera. “I’ll send it to you when I get back!” 

• A very sweet article from the NYT about independence, adulthood and dating in the autism world. Introduced me to the term “mindblind.”
• An amazing piece of arts journalism from the San Francisco Classical Voice from Mark MacNamara about the San Francisco Girls Chorus. I might have more to say on this later, but it really highlights the difference between finding a musical director for a professional institution and something like a children’s chorus.
• Did you like yesterday’s piece on Nina Simone? A resource I found helpful was this Nina Simone database/discography lovingly put together by a fan. As digital collections, box sets, and low-budget reissues become more common, these kind of resources will become even more valuable.
• Putting in a little plug for my Tumblr, for those of you that are into that sort of thing.