BS: Mark Cohen's House Warming Party!

Subject: BS: Mark Cohen's House Warming Party!
From: GUEST,Stilly River Sage
Date: 01 Jul 05 - 02:19 AM

Some of you may recall that Dr. Mark has moved from the lovely state of Hawaii to the area around San Francisco, CA. This allows him to be much closer to his daughter. He has moved a couple of times in recent years, and I can only imagine the stuff he left behind. He told us a story about a piano he couldn't get out of one house, so it stayed behind when he sold.

He is due to start work on July 1, so must be there in Northern California now. Perhaps in a sparsely furnished apartment, an echo greeting each footstep as he moves around the vacant space. But he's here, and its time for a House Warming Party! I propose we each offer Mark a nice (virtual) piece of furniture along with our good wishes, music, booze, and antics akin to visits to the Mudcat Tavern. And if you spill anything, it'll be easy to clean up.

Here's my offering: a nice desk and chair. And some Negra Modelo and chips with homemade guacamole to get things started. I don't play an instrument (well), I just sing along. So someone else will have to provide the live music.

Skoal!

Stilly River Sage (Maggie Dwyer)

Subject: RE: BS: Mark Cohen's House Warming Party!
From: GUEST
Date: 01 Jul 05 - 02:29 AM

Lovely, SRS.

For installation in another room I offer this:
No Hurry- but Don't Forget Us


So that he can sit himself right down and log in to the Mudcat...

Subject: RE: BS: Mark Cohen's House Warming Party!
From: GUEST,Roger the skiffler
Date: 01 Jul 05 - 03:51 AM

....and for laundry and percussion:no home should be without one.
RtS

Subject: RE: BS: Mark Cohen's House Warming Party!
From: GUEST,JennyO
Date: 01 Jul 05 - 06:26 AM

And of course, to take the place of the piano he left behind, I'll offer him this

Jenny

Subject: RE: BS: Mark Cohen's House Warming Party!
From: GUEST, Mary in Kentucky
Date: 01 Jul 05 - 07:02 AM

I'll send some bougainvillea, to remind him of Hawaii and to take advantage of the California climate.

Subject: RE: BS: Mark Cohen's House Warming Party!
From: GUEST,Giok
Date: 01 Jul 05 - 08:24 AM

Or this Virtual piano.
Giok

Subject: RE: BS: Mark Cohen's House Warming Party!
From: GUEST
Date: 01 Jul 05 - 08:34 AM

I'm still trying to envision a piano that you can get into, but not out of a house. Did he build the house around it?

Subject: RE: BS: Mark Cohen's House Warming Party!
From: GUEST,MMario
Date: 01 Jul 05 - 09:58 AM

I'll contribute a couple bar stools - very convenient to have around musicians!

And I brought a tray of sushi - but no california rolls!

Subject: RE: BS: Mark Cohen's House Warming Party!
From: Micca
Date: 01 Jul 05 - 10:05 AM

Mark, not so much Bougainvillea, but for me, Hawaii has always been epitomised by Plumeria (Frangipani) especially the smell of them!! every year about Maytime I go to The Royal Botanic Gardens here in London to see the blooms and smell the scent, so here , for your new home are some Plumeria

Subject: RE: BS: Mark Cohen's House Warming Party!
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 01 Jul 05 - 10:36 AM

Wow! I hope he rented the two-bedroom apartment, and not the studio! Those are great gifts!

For the kitchen, a couple of cookbooks. One on Texas barbecue and some Pacific Northwest salmon. Of course he'd need something to serve it up on.

Mark will have to tell us the piano story when he eventually gets here. I don't remember it clearly, though I think your guess is as good as any.

SRS

Subject: RE: BS: Mark Cohen's House Warming Party!
From: GUEST,Stilly River Sage
Date: 01 Jul 05 - 10:44 AM

Here's a snippit of information Mark gave me some time back:

Fortunately, rentals are reasonable and plentiful. I'm looking to find an apartment in a nice complex that has a swimming pool (for Shayna when she visits) and that will minimize my commute, preferably to ten minutes or less. . . .Yes, I'm jettisoning a great deal of stuff, so this move will really be starting fresh. Looking forward to reconnecting with all my Bay Area music friends, many of whom I got to see at Camp Harmony.

I can imagine quite a list of things he might need. Pool stuff, a bike, just all sorts of things. Spare swim suits for when friends come to visit, towels, you name it! (Don't worry about being a "sensible" shopper, this is the Mudcat, after all!)

SRS

Subject: RE: BS: Mark Cohen's House Warming Party!
From: CarolC
Date: 01 Jul 05 - 10:54 AM

For you, Mark, a barrel organ, because everybody needs and wants a barrel organ.

Happy homecoming!

Subject: RE: BS: Mark Cohen's House Warming Party!
From: GUEST,where's his secret santa?????
Date: 01 Jul 05 - 11:07 AM

Maybe his secret santa will get him a new swimsuit!HaHaHa

Subject: RE: BS: Mark Cohen's House Warming Party!
From: Ebbie
Date: 01 Jul 05 - 11:34 AM

There are many mountain biking ops in California so, Mark, it is with pleasure that I present you with this virtual

Bontrager Bike

Elva Bontrager

Subject: RE: BS: Mark Cohen's House Warming Party!
From: Rapparee
Date: 01 Jul 05 - 01:30 PM

Geez, you guys! Get him a GOOD bike!

Subject: RE: BS: Mark Cohen's House Warming Party!
From: Ebbie
Date: 01 Jul 05 - 01:32 PM

Try taking that into the mountains. Ha! I say.

Subject: RE: BS: Mark Cohen's House Warming Party!
From: Wesley S
Date: 01 Jul 05 - 02:26 PM

I'd be happy to supply the hot sauce. I make mine from scratch so let me know how hot y'all want it. I can make it just plane spicy to downright molten. Somebody always brings chips so I'm not worried about that.

Subject: RE: BS: Mark Cohen's House Warming Party!
From: Deckman
Date: 01 Jul 05 - 02:35 PM

Welcome back to the mainland Mark. I'll offer you a verse from a song:

"HOW DO YOU, HOWDJA' DO?
HOW'S YOUR SISTER, HOW'S YOUR BROTHER, HOW ARE YOU,
YOU MAKE ME FEEL SO GOOD, YOU CHEER UP MY NEIGHBORHOOD,
AS WE SHAKE IT UP AND DOWN WITH A HOWDJA DO!!"

When can you get back to Seattle for a hoot? CHEERS, Bob(deckman)Nelson

Subject: RE: BS: Mark Cohen's House Warming Party!
From: Ebbie
Date: 01 Jul 05 - 03:15 PM

Reminds me, Bob: "I see friends shaking hands, saying How do you do? They're really saying I love you..."

Subject: RE: BS: Mark Cohen's House Warming Party!
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 02 Jul 05 - 02:00 AM

The singing has only just begun, who knows what kind of songs could get sung here (especially knowing Mark's wicked and witty sense of humor!), and no one has mentioned art for the walls or what kind of appliances he might want to add. . . or pool toys!

Good to see you back on the 'Cat again, Bob! I think the air has cleared, don't you?

Subject: RE: BS: Mark Cohen's House Warming Party!
From: Mark Cohen
Date: 02 Jul 05 - 02:48 AM

Hey, thanks, Maggie, and everybody. What a great housewarming! Yes, I've been here in Santa Clara about 4 days now. Today was my first day on the job...there will be a fair amount of settling in and setting up, but I think I'm really going to enjoy working here. Kaiser takes excellent care of their patients, and their doctors. I very much like the docs, nurses, and other staff I've met so far. And they've just moved into a brand new clinic building, which is very impressive. You can take a virtual tour of the building here if you're interested.

And of course, the first piece of furniture I bought (my stuff will take another 3 or 4 weeks to get here) was a computer desk. The inflatable bed, comfortable though it is, doesn't really count as furniture. (It's made by the Swiss Army knife people, which does give one pause...)

Micca, I agree with you about plumeria. It's my favorite, too. I can't believe that I never knew about that plumeria garden at Koko Crater, which was only about a fifteen minute drive from my place. Oh well...I'll have to check it out on my next visit. One of the marvelous things about plumeria is that not only do the colors of the blossoms vary, but so do their scents.

And, as expected, it didn't take long to hook up with my Bay Area music friends. Mudcatter Ray Frank (DADGBE) will be camping out in my (very) spare bedroom this weekend after playing the contradance in Monterey, which I'll also go to. Bay Area music and dance...hooray!

Thanks again, folks. And have a Negra Modelo. (Maggie, how did you know that's one of my favorite beers?)

Aloha (always!),
Mark

Subject: RE: BS: Mark Cohen's House Warming Party!
From: Mark Cohen
Date: 02 Jul 05 - 02:49 AM

Let me try that link again to the virtual tour of the new Kaiser Santa Clara Medical Clinic. (The tour doesn't work with Netscape.)

Aloha,
Mark

Subject: RE: BS: Mark Cohen's House Warming Party!
From: katlaughing
Date: 02 Jul 05 - 07:48 AM

Dr. Mark, Dr. Mark
He's our Medicine Man (can't remember the rest of the song.:-)

How about your choice of Digital Fireplaces when the fog rolls in and the air gets nippy?

We tried to grow plumerias back East, inside, from Logee's Greenhouse, but the high, high humidity always caused problems. To this day, my brother still longs to be able to grow one esp. to get it to bloom so that we may smell that wonderfully-described aroma.

All good wishes,

luvyakat

Subject: RE: BS: Mark Cohen's House Warming Party!
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 02 Jul 05 - 10:39 AM

Those plumeria photos Micca linked to are quite large images--you could print them out nicely with a color printer, or make a more-than-adequate screen saver with one.

Mark, it's wonderful to hear that the music connections have already been made. Any time you move to a new place you have to work to make some part of that place yours just to be comfortable. With the music you've accomplished that. And here's some more music to help you get settled in, and in case you don't want to light the whole fireplace for ambience, here is a glass candle for your desk.

How did I know Negra Modelo was one of your favorite beers? It's one of my favorites, and in my opinion, anyone with good taste in beer at least LIKES it, if they aren't totally in love with it! (For me it's a fond reminder of the years I lived in Arizona at the border and ate many dinners in Sonoyta and washed them down with cervesa!)

SRS

Subject: RE: BS: Mark Cohen's House Warming Party!
From: Genie
Date: 02 Jul 05 - 12:51 PM

Hey, Mark, now that you're back on the mainland west coast, the chances are much better that I might actually get to meet ya one day -- 'specially if you come back to visit your old stomping grounds in Seattle one of these days. Of course, I was really looking forward to your Mudcat gathering in Hawaii whenever you'd get around to that! §:-D

Housewarming, eh? Hafta look around for a suitable present.
Hmmm ... How 'bout I paint ya a picture for your wall.

Just tell me what you'd like -- a portrait of you? a pineapple? Mauna Kea? a tiki? a hula girl with a uke? Elvis? -- and I'll 'paint' it and you can watch it here:

www.artpad.com

Here's an example of how you can watch "artwork" take shape at artpad:
http://artpad.art.com/?ihuusn1dkffg (an early phase of one of my artpad.com creations)

Aloha,
Genie

Subject: RE: BS: Mark Cohen's House Warming Party!
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 02 Jul 05 - 01:02 PM

Genie,

Is this what your link is going to?

Subject: RE: BS: Mark Cohen's House Warming Party!
From: Mark Cohen
Date: 04 Jul 05 - 11:31 PM

Well, the house is warming up nicely. Still no furniture (it ought to be somewhere in the North Pacific at the moment), but a good visit with Ray (DADGBE) and a wonderful session at the Starry Plough in Berkeley, at which I got to meet Dave Swan and PJ for the first time (true to form, Swan did absolutely nothing all night--but there was a trio called Oak Ash & Thorn, who were excellent), as well as seeing Chanteyranger again and a bunch of old friends. It was a pre-release party for a new CD called "In Harmony's Way," which features many of my favorite singers.

Very happy to be here. I just have to get used to having no clouds in the sky. (Yes, there are almost always clouds in the sky in Honolulu...they just generally are well behaved and stay back over the mountains. In Hilo, of course, that's another story entirely.)

Aloha,
Mark

Subject: RE: BS: Mark Cohen's House Warming Party!
From: Ebbie
Date: 05 Jul 05 - 02:30 AM

Well! If you're STILL waiting for furniture, here's a sofa I hope you will like. (If you don't like it, I have a liberal return policy.) But it's white and comfy and looks like it was bred for Hawaii, and it may be even better for California.


This Way to the Sofa

Subject: RE: BS: Mark Cohen's House Warming Party!
From: dianavan
Date: 06 Jul 05 - 12:04 AM

Mark - I think you will need some lighting with a little class.

http://www.toohipfortheroom.com/secret/odds/skulls.jpg

Subject: RE: BS: Mark Cohen's House Warming Party!
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 06 Jul 05 - 12:51 AM

Too Hip for the Room. dianavan's link. Bad pun. Awful pun. (Really ugly light fixture). Besides, it's too big for an apartment. This might fit better.

Just a thought. Not to take away from your human skeletal sculpture. . .

Subject: RE: BS: Mark Cohen's House Warming Party!
From: Ebbie
Date: 06 Jul 05 - 01:25 AM

Gracious- from the Addams Family to Dr. Jekyll. What kinds of secrets does our Dr. Mark hyde?

Subject: RE: BS: Mark Cohen's House Warming Party!
From: Peter Kasin
Date: 06 Jul 05 - 01:45 AM

Mark, isn't Kaiser's motto, "good songwriters / good medicine" ?

Chanteyranger

Subject: RE: BS: Mark Cohen's House Warming Party!
From: Roger the Skiffler
Date: 06 Jul 05 - 03:56 AM

I hope you don't want one of THESE!

RtS

Subject: RE: BS: Mark Cohen's House Warming Party!
From: John MacKenzie
Date: 06 Jul 05 - 04:03 AM

A pity Baltimore's so far away!!
Giok

Subject: RE: BS: Mark Cohen's House Warming Party!
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 06 Jul 05 - 08:56 PM

Now that he's back on the mainland, maybe he can get some good New York style bagels to furnish the bread box in his kitchen!

Subject: RE: BS: Mark Cohen's House Warming Party!
From: dianavan
Date: 07 Jul 05 - 02:45 AM

They look exactly like Montreal bagels to me.

Subject: RE: BS: Mark Cohen's House Warming Party!
From: John MacKenzie
Date: 07 Jul 05 - 03:03 AM

Not everything with a hole in the middle is a bagel you know!
G..

Subject: RE: BS: Mark Cohen's House Warming Party!
From: Genie
Date: 07 Jul 05 - 03:59 AM

Stilly, yes, this is the URL for the artpad.com (partly done) painting I was trying to link to:

halfway done painting - Genie
------------------------------------------------------------------------

Subject: RE: BS: Mark Cohen's House Warming Party!
From: Dave Swan
Date: 07 Jul 05 - 10:43 AM

It was a treat to meet Mark at the Starry Plough and to hear Ray sing one of Mark's songs. I look forward to many happy times and lots of good music with this guy.

D

Subject: RE: BS: Mark Cohen's House Warming Party!
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 10 Sep 05 - 09:55 PM

Hey Mark, how is the new place shaping up? And how many west coast Mudcatters have you connected with since moving back to the mainland?

Maggie

Subject: RE: BS: Mark Cohen's House Warming Party!
From: Mark Cohen
Date: 11 Sep 05 - 04:27 PM

Hey, Maggie, thanks for refreshing this. I could use a housewarming party right now...it's almost getting cold enough at night that I have to close the windows! Heavens to Murgatroyd, I might just have to start wearing long-sleeved shirts one of these days.

The West Coast 'Catters were out in full force yesterday at the San Francisco maritime music festival that was well and ably organized by our own Chanteyranger. Mudcat performers included Chanteyranger, RiGGy, radriano, Dave Swan, P.J; among the volunteers were Bev and Jerry, Open Mike, and moi. Sorry if I missed anyone. Danny and Joyce Mcleod were as good as everyone has said they would be. Andy M. Stewart was unable to attend, but Gerry O'Beirne was there, and he played some amazing ukulele solos, so I felt right at home!

As far as participatory music, there's been plenty of that, too. I spent a fine evening in Davis with Ray Frank (DADGBE) and the other two members of the new trio Mudlark--watch for them! I've been doing lots of Sacred Harp singing and contradancing, and tonight I'm off to Shay Black's Irish session at the Starry Plough in Berkeley, where I'll be sitting in the corner trying to play along with the slower tunes on my new mandolin, and waiting for the singing breaks. (There should be rather more singing tonight, as it's been billed as a post-Festival of the Sea party.) Most of the music is in the San Francisco and Berkeley areas, about 50-60 miles away from Santa Clara in the South Bay, so I've been putting a fair amount of mileage on my little CR-V, but it hasn't been complaining at all.

Most important, I've already been to see my daughter twice since the move...which was the main reason for the move. I'm hoping she'll be able to come up here soon for a visit as well.

All in all, the right move at the right time. And I have a spare bedroom if anybody's out this way.

Aloha,
Mark

Subject: RE: BS: Mark Cohen's House Warming Party!
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 11 Sep 05 - 11:11 PM

Maybe we should add a couple of blankets or a shawl to the list of housewarming presents? You probably didn't even own any living in Hawaii. :)

Sounds like a great weekend of music!

SRS

Subject: RE: BS: Mark Cohen's House Warming Party!
From: Donuel
Date: 11 Sep 05 - 11:18 PM

Here's wishing you a nice Korg Triton that you can move at will.

Subject: RE: BS: Mark Cohen's House Warming Party!
From: open mike
Date: 11 Sep 05 - 11:28 PM

ha! i missed the housewarming when you first arrived, Mark!
Welcome! nice to meet you..
i have a fire in teh wood stove
right now as the rain was falling
when i got home from sea songs...

since i was on the road this weekend,
i missed the Chico Contra Dance
tonight (which i usually attend)
we have one every 2nd and 4th sunday
if you ever get this far north...

the sacramento contra will feature
the fantastic fiddle playing of
Jamie Laval next month.
(we are presenting him in concert
in chico the night before)

hey--Ledward Kaapana (sp?) is
in the area here soon too

Subject: RE: BS: Mark Cohen's House Warming Party!
From: M.Ted
Date: 12 Sep 05 - 12:48 PM

If you ever get lonesome for some real Hawaiian food, Punahele Island Grill, on Judah St. in SF is the place to go. The have a great Hawaiian band--it's the place where Hawaiians like to hang out--

Subject: RE: BS: Mark Cohen's House Warming Party!
From: Mark Cohen
Date: 13 Sep 05 - 01:41 AM

Thanks, M.Ted...now where can I find water ice and a soft pretzel with mustard?

Aloha,
Mark

Subject: RE: BS: Mark Cohen's House Warming Party!
From: M.Ted
Date: 13 Sep 05 - 02:25 PM

There's a great little bakery on Sansom Street, near 17th, where you can get pretzels hot out of the oven, four for a buck--For water ice, John's Water Ice at 7th and Christian--the West Coast has a lot of great things, Mark, but there's only one place for soft pretzels and water ice--

Subject: RE: BS: Mark Cohen's House Warming Party!
From: Ebbie
Date: 13 Sep 05 - 03:56 PM

OK, fellers. What's water ice?

Subject: RE: BS: Mark Cohen's House Warming Party!
From: MMario
Date: 13 Sep 05 - 04:03 PM

sorta like Italian Ice but different.

Subject: RE: BS: Mark Cohen's House Warming Party!
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 13 Sep 05 - 04:17 PM

But is this from Mark's Philly roots or his Hawaii connections?

Subject: RE: BS: Mark Cohen's House Warming Party!
From: jaze
Date: 13 Sep 05 - 08:33 PM

Now Mark, you know you gotta go back to Philly for the genuine thing. Don't settle for imitations! Think Hoagies, Cheesesteaks,Scrapple. Don't it make you wanna come back east?

Subject: RE: BS: Mark Cohen's House Warming Party!
From: M.Ted
Date: 14 Sep 05 - 12:39 AM

Water Ice is definitely from Philly--it is, technically, Italian Ice--but, the kind that can get in Philly and environs is unique--

Subject: RE: BS: Mark Cohen's House Warming Party!
From: catspaw49
Date: 14 Sep 05 - 07:05 AM

BBBBRRRRAAAAAWWWWWMMMMPPPP

......**flubbb**.......fsssst.........poit...poit.........

Well Mark, they say it takes a lot of livin' in a house to make it home, but generally one good fart will accelerate the process considerably. Happy to oblige!

Spaw

Subject: RE: BS: Mark Cohen's House Warming Party!
From: Ebbie
Date: 14 Sep 05 - 12:19 PM

I still don't know nothin'- what's Italian ice? (Like a slurpy?)

Subject: RE: BS: Mark Cohen's House Warming Party!
From: Micca
Date: 14 Sep 05 - 01:36 PM

I suspect it is what they call Sorbet on this side of the Pond Ebbie

Subject: RE: BS: Mark Cohen's House Warming Party!
From: M.Ted
Date: 14 Sep 05 - 11:56 PM

It is, more or less, a sorbet in a paper cone--not a slurpee, not a snowcone, but, again, not exactly a sorbet either--it is a bit earthier--

Subject: RE: BS: Mark Cohen's House Warming Party!
From: Mark Cohen
Date: 15 Sep 05 - 12:27 AM

Actually, water ice and Italian ice are not the same thing. In Philadelphia, water ice is relatively coarse crushed or shaved ice with flavored syrup, while Italian ice is very smooth, almost creamy in consistency, and the flavor is mixed in at the factory rather than poured over it on the spot. Actually, what the Hawaiians call "shave ice" (sometimes called "ice shave" on the Big Island) is almost identical to Philadelphian water ice. Only in Philly, they don't have flavors like ginger, coconut, mango, lilikoi, and blue vanilla.

'Spaw, I'm honored. I think it's been more than a year since you've graced us with that mellifluous effulgence. Of course, I don't read every thread... And it's a good thing it's still warm enough to leave the windows open.

Aloha,
Mark