Deanna Dee-Dee Taylor

I have been playing piano for nearly 40 years. I began at age 6 and have not stopped playing since. While most kids cried over having to practice, I had to be pried from the keyboard to do other things like, uh…..homework and, uh….eating!

I come from a line of musicians. My grandmother was a singer and my mother also sang and is a great piano player. My dad is a guitar player. When I was growing up my mother played piano all the time. It was common during a thunderstorm to sit in the rec-room and play with my siblings while my mother played and sand familiar tunes to musicals like the Wizard of Oz and other songs we enjoyed. My dad would often entertain us with bluegrass tunes he liked on the guitar.

I majored in piano and voice in college. I prepared and presented four solo concerts all together – two piano and two vocal. I have since taught piano lessons privately. For 10 years of my 23 years of teaching, I was the piano department chair at a high school in Maryland, developing curricula for the county piano courses, teaching in a piano lab, and chairing the piano proficiency program of the Visual and Performing Arts Program, a magnet program offering AP and college entry-level study for students from all over the county who auditioned for and attended our program for 1/2 day and returned to their home schools the other half of the day. These were students who intended to go on to college as music majors. Most of my students were able to test out of the beginning piano placement tests when placing for such for their freshman college year as music majors.

Because of my years of music study and experience, I was able to teach myself how to play flute. Currently I am teaching myself some guitar and mandolin and hope to be able to teach myself violin at some point. There is so much to learn!

Tom plays violin. His dad was a violinist with the Utah Symphony and a trombonist in jazz bands in nightclubs. He taught Tom to play violin. Tom has a 7-string electric violin made out of a tree that was cut down at a local college.

Music continues to be a big part of my life – in my career as a music teacher and in my personal life. I cannot imagine life without music.

In 2001 Tom and I formed Blue Sky Institute, a non-profit educational organization. We wrote and developed a music curriculum where we taught adolescents traditional folk songs and prepared a show that was presented at several area rest homes and care centers.
We have also provided materials and instruction for teaching children how to make native-style flutes out of pvc pipe. We hope to continue offering this program as the opportunities arise.

We just found out that we have been granted permanent 501(c)(3) status as a tax exempt organization. We hope this will give us more leverage when applying for grants. We have applied for several grants and have not been awareded any.

We also offer the service of promoting locally owned, socially conscious businesses atBlue Sky Alternatives.

Photos of Amy Goodman Event, Monday, April 11, 2005:

Amy is host of Democracy Now!

I love to crochet. It is a skill I first learned from my grandmother when I was very young, but I was too impatient to stick with it. I picked it up again in the fall of 2002. Since then, I have developed my skills to the point where I have been able to start selling my items. I even created a page:

Blue Sky Originals

I also embarked upon my “Hats for Ethiopia” project, which can also be viewed from my site.

I am glad I started this hobby again. It is very rewarding. Except for the Ethiopia hats, I use mostly all natural fibers ~
wool, cotton, hemp, and blends of those. I get most of my yarn from thrift stores but occasionally I buy yarn for special projects from locally owned yarn shops or online shops.

I have also been free form sewing for a few years and some of those designs can also be seen on my site.

This bag is made from 100% hempton (50-50 hemp/cotton) with a 100% cotton lining and glass beads:

A halter made from 100% cotton:

A baby bunting made from 100% cotton:

A poncho and matching scarf made from 100% Virgin Wool:

A hat made from acrylic fiber ~ I was experimenting and I use synthetic fibers that I pick up at thrift stores to experiment with.

We first met him on the corner of 125 South State Street – the home of our weekly peace vigil since October 2001. Norb faithfully sat at that corner each morning in his lawn chair with his sign that identified him as a veteran for peace. He stayed into the summer after the Iraq Invasion (2003) but then left for Vegas. What wonderful stories Norb told us and philosophies he shared. Truly an inspiration.

We last saw Norb a few weeks ago – end of March – at Poo-Ha-Bah – home of Western Shoshone Spiritual Leader Corbin Harney in Tecopa Springs, CA. He had taken a fall at the test site the day prior to coming to Poo-Ha-Bah, but otherwise seemed fine. He told us of the beautful flowers he had seen in Death Valley before he arrived there that day.

We will miss Norb. Tom and I are fortunate to have had him touch our lives. Thanks for everything, Norb.




Obituary:

Published April 08, 2005.

DROUHARD, LAWRENCE

Lawrence “Norb” Drouhard, a long-time international peace activist, died April 6, 2005, in Las Vegas. He was 80. Norb, a U.S. Army World War II veteran had been active in the anti-nuclear and peace movement since the 1980s, most recently attending this year’s Good Friday protest at the Nevada Nuclear Test Site. He had participated in peace marches in five continents including a march across the former Soviet Union in the 1980s. He is survived by his sons, James, David, Brian and Andrew; daughter, Elisa Drouhard Sargent; and nine grandchildren, all of Washington state. He was a member of Veterans for Peace and graduate of the University of Kansas. A memorial service will be at 7 p.m. Friday, April 8, at the Las Vegas Catholic Worker, 500 W. Van Buren Ave. Contact 702-647-0728.

These photos from:
Vegas IndyMedia

Being a mother is like no other job in the world. One’s perspective and levels of stress and rewards definitely change with the advent of motherhood. It is indescribable.

Today my 20-year-old son, Greg, is having all his wisdom teeth extracted. Tom will be taking him to and from the dentist. I have left detailed instructions with him on how to contact me in case of an emergency and how to contact me if everything is o.k. (since I will be at work). I have also left instructions with Tom to leave his phone number with the dentist in case he has to leave while Greg is having his teeth pulled.

Tom makes harmless fun of me. “What if I go out into the parking lot for a smoke? Should I tell them to call me if there is an emergency?” he laughs.

Erma Bombeck related it best. She told a story of a visit with her mother. Erma shared with her mother her worries about her 19-year-old son who had moved out of the house but she still worried about him. “Mom, I thought when he moved out I wouldn’t worry as much. When does the worrying stop?” Erma’s mother gently patted Erma on the hand and said, “Just call me when you arrive home safely dear.”

Once a mother, ALWAYS a mother.

We have a greenhouse that Tom built a little over a decade ago out of salvaged materials. It is deteriorating and in need of a lot of repair. We have many plant species. One of Tom’s hobbies is orchids. We have a lot of those. Tom knows all the latin names for the species. We also have a variety of cacti, spider plants, succulents, and lots more. We use the greenhouse to start our garden plants as well. Right now we have tomato and herbs that are sprouting. We are still waiting for the peppers to peek through.

We also have spinach, onions, and peas coming up in the garden outside. It will be good to have yummy fresh greens!

Tom and I spend all our spare time in the spring and fall hiking for edible mushrooms. We are hoping for a good year this year because of all the moisture. We find oysters, morels, agaricus, and boletus edulus.

Today I walked 4 miles and didn’t tire out. I guess I’m still in pretty good shape after not so much exercise this winter!

When I was 30 I learned that I have osteoarthritis. By the time I was diagnosed, I had already been suffering with symptoms since the age of 14. I have it in my knees, cervical and lumber spine. I also have a form of bursitis on my hips called trochentaric bursitis that I have had for years. After I was first diagnosed, I could not receive treatment because I found out I was pregnant with my third child, my daughter. About a year after she was born I began a series of years of medicinal treatment, physical therapy, participating in research studies, and underwent two knee operations. The disease progressed to the point where I was having to use two canes to be able to get around. I had to use electric powered chairs for some things. My doctor, a research rheumatologist, fully expected me to have knee replacements by the time I reached 50, something unheard of. He had never seen the detoriation like mine in the knees of someone so young. I was the perfect research specimen!

When I found out that the disease had taken hold in my lumbar spine, I said “enough is enough”. I immediately began my own exercise and diet program at the age of 35. By the time I was 36 I had lost 70 pounds, thrown away the canes, was in the best physical shape I had ever been in my life, and was wearing size clothing I never dreamed of wearing.

Although I still experience some mild difficulties, I have been able to maintain this changed lifestyle for myself and rarely have to visit a doctor. My rheumatologist was ecstatic to release me from his care. I hike, bike, walk, climb and backpack and don’t eat meat – something I never, ever thought I would be doing. Although I am going through the “change” which brings with it a whole new set of symptoms, I am determined to keep the same pace I have now to stay healthy.

I never thought I’d be bushwacking to hunt mushrooms. Thanks to my determination (inherited from my adventurous grandmother) and the support of my wonderful husband, it’s one of my favorite hobbies.

<
This is Tom King, my husband, friend, and soulmate:

People say we are joined at the hip because we do everything together.

These are my children:
Greg, 20 ~ Emily, 15 ~ Brian, 18
Greg is an assistant manager at a fast food restaurant. He lives with us in Utah.
Emily is in 10th grade. She lives in Maryland with her dad.
Brian is a high school senior and will be graduating in June. He will be attending community college in the fall. He lives with us in Utah.

Me, 45 ~ my Dad, 75 ~ Greg, 20
I am the oldest child of my parents and Greg is the oldest child from his parents.
My Dad resides in Maryland where I grew up.

Both of our sons have some beautiful tattoos they have had applied by a local tattoo artist. Recently Brian decided to honor his great-grandmother, who died in February, with such a piece of art. Here it is: