Can Music Create Vulnerability?

adventure.emm
Nov 7, 2018
4 min read

No dreams that I can remember. I hate the way my voice sounds with this stupid retainer in. Ugh. Oh well. We’re picking berries again today.

My orthodontic process wasn’t scheduled to end before I planned to leave Wisconsin. I was given a choice. Either keep them on through farming and come back for an appointment in the fall (and keep them on for even longer) or take them off before heading west, but risk the process not being finished properly. I decided that I really didn’t care about final product compared to the amount of desire I held for having a mouth containing only human parts. I signed a contract saying I wouldn’t sue the orthodontist for imperfections in my smile and finally freed my teeth. The downside I soon found was that I was instructed to wear a clear plastic retainer that hugged my teeth in order to keep them in line. It was more of a bone popping, squeeze-all-the-juices-outta-ya strangle than a hug that it felt like though. Reluctantly, I wore my new form of torture from after breakfast until dinner -taking it out for lunch- and all through the night. It made quick midday snacks an unnecessary inconvenience and any spontaneous singalongs a salvia show. Anyway, I’m totally not bitter about it. At least my teeth weren’t getting crooked any time soon. I will say I was becoming fondly reacquainted with my shiny new grin. No metal, no rubber, just slippery white pearls protruding from gums that could breathe again.

We’re just jamming. It’s so nice. I started humming Rock me mama like a wagon wheel, and Mikey got out his guitar and started playing it. Anyway, he’s playing and singing and I’m on the harmony.

Jamming. I never used that word very much while back home. It was usually just playing music or performing or open mic or a singalong circle. Throughout my travels I’ve used it more and more. To describe any of the above musical situations, plus other miscellaneous social interaction, hanging around, or conversation with the addition of an instrument or tune of any sort. And it turns out that jamming is, more often than not, an effective way to meet people; become friends. Break the ice. Music is so integral in our humanity that when individuals share and bond over musical interests it opens up a vulnerability that’s difficult to attain through small talk alone.

This morning I ate a breakfast of peach crisp, a banana, and a glass of water. Of course I had to pee half an hour into working again. We picked blueberries from 7:30 to 12:20. I was sure I was going to be stung again, because the wasps were EVERYWHERE. I ended up having to re-pick a row I did, because I was avoiding so many wasps. When we finished the patch we walked up to the house after putting the buckets of fruit in the truck. Dave drove it up to the house and we loaded the fruit into the kitchen. I changed into shorts, took off my socks, put put on a pot of rice for lunch, and sat down to write. I’m. So. Hungry.

I’m bored.

Lunch was cooked, set, and quickly devoured. Cleanup was minimal and the dishes took their places in the dishwasher. I found myself in my bedroom strangely bored out of my mind and unable to come up with anything to occupy the rest of my day. Before long I was dozing, eyes closing.

Wow. So… I fell asleep. But as I was saying, I’m pretty bored, so I’m going to prioritize my time and figure out how to get the most of this month. I want to make sure that I use the free time in my days to my advantage and not d-

Okay, I don’t know what’s up with me today, but my motivation to write -or at least finish my thought- is incredibly low. Oh well. I just ate an orange and put some sriracha ranch on the last piece of veggie pizza. Now I’m going to eat it. I might also chat with Jon some more. By the way, I purchased Apple Music.

Apple Music or Spotify? I’m curious to know what you use and what you like better. Which one is more reliable, effective, and versatile? Let me know in the comments section. I went with Apple because I’d just purchased a MacBook, so it made sense to me. Any thoughts?

I just ate some more peach crisp after talking to my family and Jon on the phone. I’m going to try to talk to him again tonight after swimming.

On the drive to the hot spring we dropped off fresh fruit at the home of a mennonite family. They have four adorable children and a baby girl. Swimming was a real delight. I stayed down in the pool this time and spent my time doing flips and handstands and other such shenanigans. According to Mikey and Dave, the hot baths were super crowded, so they hung out in the pool as well, floating right beside the inlets that let the hottest water in. After returning back home we played scrabble. Mikey crushed us. Now I’m in bed, ready to text with Jon for a while and head off to dreamland. Nighty night.