Greetings Everyone!
I suppose by now we have all experienced some truly demented weather in still-young 2024. But as Sir Paul McCartney said, "Forge ahead." (He really said it.)
Of late I have been holed up in my studio as much as possible, and I've been zoom-writing a few new songs. (Of course zoom-writing even weird anymore.)
And believe it or not, after 50 years of playing guitar, I'm taking lessons. In some ways I play reasonably well, but my teacher and I agreed from the get-go that for our purposes I'm a beginner. I've been repeating myself for so long, and I found myself longing to stretch.
It's humbling, but it's exciting too.
So a bit of news today, plus a new poem and a couple of quotes for inspiration from Ann Lamott and Jon von Neumann.
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CONTENTS of This Newsletter
1. Ireland 2025: Now taking reservations!
2. Off to Florida for 2 shows this coming weekend
3. Poem of the Month: “Personality”
4. Food for Thought from Ann Lamont and John von Neumann
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1. Ireland 2025: Now taking reservations!
I so look forward to these tours. To seeing beautiful new places and making new friends. Somehow the tours attract the best people—good hearted, smart, colorful souls.
In 2025 we'll following the Wild Atlantic Way all the way to the border of Northern Ireland.
Here's the scoop:
What: I'll host a group or two dozen fellow adventurers, and we'll travel along the spectacular west coast of Ireland
When: Tuesday August 12 to Thursday August 21, 2025
Where: We'll explore Counties Sligo, Mayo and Galway
Cost: $2900 per person for shared room. So $5800 for a couple (or pair of friends.) Cost of a single room is $3400. (Note that availability of single rooms is limited.)
For much more info please visit the Ireland page at my website for clicking HERE...
...and visiting the Inishfree Tours website HERE.
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2. I'm off to the Florida Panhandle this weekend for 2 rare shows.
The scoop:
Saturday, February 17, 2024
Camp Helen State Park (showtime TBA)
23937 Panama City Beach Pkwy
Panama City Beach FL 32413
—For more info, click HERE
Sunday, February 18, 2024
Americana Cafe Sundays at Maggie's Musical Farm
Tom Kimmel - 4pm (open mic at 2:30)
15312 Blue Springs Rd
Youngstown, FL 32466
—For more info, email maggie(at)luckymudmusic(dot)
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3. Poem for the Month
Personality
My wife is a kind and understanding
person, perhaps to a fault. If you can
be kind and understanding to a fault.
The name of a mutual acquaintance
came up the other day, and I said he
always talks to you, but ignores me.
She said oh, that’s just his personality.
And one of our neighbors on her
morning walk past our house barely
nods when I speak to her. My wife
says she’s just not overly talkative. I
say yeah she’s underly talkative. My
wife says you know you could be a
little less critical and a little more
positive. But why defend myself?
That’s just her personality.
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4. Food for Thought
“I guess everything speeds up when it’s going downhill, but still, it’s unnerving.”
—Ann Lamott (b. 1954), author
“For progress there is no cure.”
—John Von Neumann (1903-1957) physicist, computer scientist)
Till next month, Maximum Peace, Love & Understanding.
TK
PS Thanks always to the folks at Elixir Strings for keeping me playing the world's best strings for over 25 years.
www.tomkimmel.com ©2024 Point Clear Records & Press