our yard may not look very good at the moment but it sounded pretty nice tonight.

when i was 19 i told my mom that i planned on marrying a man who
played guitar. i told her that i wanted a house full of music. i did
not come from a musical home but i always admired that talent in
others. the next week my mom gave me my very own hummingbird guitar. she
said i should learn to play myself and not wait for a man. this is the
kind of mom i am so lucky to have.

at the time jon (my husband) was "just a friend". a
friend who had recently began to strum the guitar. his natural talent was
quite obvious from the very beginning. while visiting one evening
he spotted my guitar with the hummingbirds on it in the corner. he
immediately picked it up and began to play. i told him the story with
my mom and he agreed with her completely. he quickly offered to help me learn. i asked
if he could teach me ""five siring serenade"
by mazzy star for my first number. he was a patient teacher and always believed that i could learn just as easily as he had. i did master the first
three or four chords of the song, but not without a struggle. at the time i was falling deeply for my
camera and i gave up much too quickly on my guitar. it ended up back in the corner only to be played when jon came to visit.

i did bring it out for a photo shoot once, the perfect prop. i asked jon
to pose for me and play under one of my favorite tress. i told him that the photographs would be so much cooler if he took his shirt off (and they were). i added chunky rings to his fingers that i found at a pawn shop. i focused on the hummingbirds, old rings and his nimble hands. i enjoyed listening to him strum while i shot. i think
this was the beginning of something between us. even though we didn't
know it yet. couldn't believe my luck when i found a proof sheet from that day in one of the many photo boxes up in the attic tonight.

fifteen years later and i am still sneaking photos of jon with his
guitar whenever i can. his talent is amazing and awe inspiring.
his passion admirable and deep. he plays not for fame. attention or money. he plays for himself, because this is what makes his heart beat. he is a true artist in every sense of the word. our office walls are lined with his
guitars. when i look up at the row while working or when i hear him
strumming while i drift asleep….. i am reminded that i have just what i
wished for when i was 19.

have a listen for yourself, and hear how spoiled i am to have this playing everyday and night. i especially love the track titled "outside my head". i think you will too….jon almeda-the one man band.

snapped this one on the "L"  yesterday on our way to the airport in chicago. that little travel guitar is so banged up because it goes everywhere we go. am surprised we don't have more nicks and scratches ourselves. what a busy and exciting summer it has been (and it's not over yet)!