Well it's been an eventful weekend, filled with generous offers, kind friends, lots of reflection, a few wonderful surprises, but no word on my old buddies.

Pawn shops, music stores and on-line sites haven't turned up anything matching the descriptions of any of my instruments. Same with talking to folks on the street. I decided not to do flyers or anything with contact information on it, since I had a bad experience a few years back with an anonymous caller who tracked me down from one of the television promos I do periodically for the Museum where I work.

It was somewhat limiting not to give out a way for people to call or e-mail me with info, but I remember having to essentially dismantle my life back then, setting up all new phone, post office box, and e-mail address both at home and work to get rid of this person. I decided it wasn't worth going thru all that now even if I got back the stuff. Since this event was connected to a crime to begin with, I thought the chances for weird calls were already pretty good.

Anyway, you guys have been amazing this week. In addition to the good thoughts and wishes on this thread (which are truly a boost!) many 'Catters sent me wonderful PMs and calls offering a variety of ideas and suggestions.   

I have even officially commissioned the creation of an original Bill D. tipper, which I'm very excited about. I'll keep you posted on that.

Here's another really sweet thing... no fewer than NINE people have approached me this week offering to lend or even give me a drum! Some from the Mudcat, some from the Starry Plough (my session local) and one from an Irish cop who bought our CD! (gotta love it)

I've been explaining to folks that, while their offers mean the world to me, I'm getting by okay with the other instruments I have for now. I feel very lucky that I have the resources to replace the items I've lost, when there are so many folks who can't afford an instrument to begin with.

This has now led to a whole other branch of this story...

I began searching for a place I could recommend that people donate instruments to kids in schools if they had something to offer. In the end I've hooked up with a wonderful organization called MUST, which stands for Music in Schools Today. They run a program called Adopt an Instrument, which matches up donors with schools who can't afford instruments.

Here's a link to their N. California MUST Program

You can follow the link for "Excess Access" to donate instruments from anywhere in the country or around the world, they'll match you up with somebody who needs it.

Their director told me this morning that in the past 6 months in the Bay Area they have had more instruments STOLEN FROM SCHOOLS than ever before. The schools couldn't afford to buy the instruments in the first place, and they certainly can't afford to replace them.

Shira & I did quite a few school programs last year, many in inner-city areas that were clearly on a limited (or non-existant) music budget. But the interest and excitement for music was very high among students of all ages. As a (very lucky) musician, I'm feeling a sense of responsibility about getting more instruments into these kids' hands through the school.

SOOOO.....

You're officially on notice, 'Catters! All you wonderful people with big hearts and extra instruments, you'll be hearing me talk about this program from time to time. I'll do my best not to sound like an Amway salesman but between concerts, festivals, our website, and buckets full of dear friends who are musicians, I feel like I have the chance to let a lot of folks know about this who are in a position to help.

And I've decided this morning to change my official fantasy about the instruments I lost. Rather than picturing them on some dusty pawn shop shelf or some theif's pile of crap, never to be played again by me, I am officially hoping they find their way somehow into the hands of somebody that never had the chance to make music before.

Maybe someplace under one of those dirty blankets in the park is my little silver whistle among the prized posessions of a person who has been giving it a tentative try. My little free-reed keyboard isn't hard to play, maybe whoever bought it from my theif could be trying to pick out tunes on it right now. My old faithful bodhran deserves better treatment than it's probably getting, but at least it may live out it's later years as a drum somebody wanted enough to steal.

Maybe not realistic, but who knows? That's my fantasy and I'm sticking to it. This morning I decided to officially stop trying to get back my instruments, let them be wherever they are, and move on. I've ordered replacements for everything I lost, and I'm putting a few things in a box to take to the local MUST Program instrument drop-off site.

Life goes on, and so does the music.

I love you all for helping me through this.

xoxo

pj