Hi all, after a wee bit of Indian summer, we’ve now entered the drizzly, chilly days of Daylight Wasting Time here in Nashville. The most earthshaking news is that I’m joining in the popular uprising called “Mass Exodus” from Facebook, at least I’m mostly exodized. I have deleted my FIVE, count’em five, FB “artist” pages and kept the one Facebook page I was actually using. But I will only use that now for professional messages (for example, someone in Croatia who writes wanting sheet music of one of my compositions, which can only be acquired by sending them a pdf by e-mail).

I will be on MeWe more now, mostly just posting notices of this diary when there is a new edition. I always joked that Mass Exodus was those people who flee from Mass right after Communion instead of waiting for the final blessing. But if you want a site that doesn’t spy on you and potentially pass judgment on what you post, go to either MeWe or Parler. I found that MeWe was closer in format to Facebook and easier for me to understand how to use.

Last weekend we found this lovely 100-year-old German grandfather clock at a local antique store and couldn’t resist buying it for our dining room! It has a beautifully rich sounding gong on the hour and half hour, called “bim-bam” because it doesn’t give any tune on the hour, just the strokes for that hour, and doesn’t sound at the quarter or three-quarter hour, only a single ding at half past, dang it. It’s not loud enough to wake the dead (or us sleeping), as we feared but a peaceful, gentle sound.

We got news of a nice gift. Thanksgiving week, Crystal’s parents are giving to us a room on the beach at a resort in Fort Lauderdale by the Sea!  Seafood! The beach!  We decided to drive down there and break up the trip by staying over at their house in the Atlanta area, four hours the first day and eight the second. It remains to be seen, of course, whether the virus quarantines and the hurricanes will cooperate.

My new novel continues to be scrutinized behind the scenes, and a top Hollywood writer even gave me some advice on how to proceed. It’s one of those projects that moves at a glacial pace. Meanwhile, we’ve had an offer to visit a friend in Portugal, atop a hill with this view (and this kind of seafood) (below). Will look for a date we can go!

Today is the day of Remembrance in the UK and “Armistice” in the U.S. for the multitudes slain in WW1. My latest article, on composer George Butterworth, who died in WW1 at the Battle of the Somme, was published on November 4 in The Epoch Times — CLICK HERE

I THINK that’s all the news that’s fit to print, for now! I can only add that I hope the election will be over and officially certified soon. It has frayed many nerves. As a member of the Music Composition Party, I’d like to think that most ordinary people on both sides mean well, even if they have been given slanted information to go on. Some leaders behave with civility and respectful speech and seem to want to do good. Others appear to lust for power for its own sake and demonize their opponents. I try to learn the issues and to vote but then let it go and pursue my own calling of art and beauty. I was taught to be respectful toward everyone and toward the office of president itself, no matter (as my dad would put it) which scoundrel may hold it at the moment!