Time travel is possible...
I know, I did it tonight.

I am usually in bed and asleep by now, but I am still processing what I have just experienced. If you are not around my age this may not make sense; you may not even know what I am referring to in this piece. First, you need to know that I went to high school in the 1950's, college and war in the 60's. It would help if you also knew that before I was anything else on this planet, I was a musician. I ate and breathed swing and other music of my time. I trtained with the first chair of the Milwaukee Symphony, had my own quartet and still have all the arrangements for my 14 piece band. I sat through the Glen Miller and Bennie Goodman movies multiple times and, at night, listen to Basie on my 76 rpm record player. In med school, during the week I was supposed to be looking for an internship, I went to New York and listen to jazz all night long for 5 days.

Tonight, for Valentine's Day, I took Lady Linda to a DooWop concert. If you do not know what the DooWop style is, I cannot explain it. If you do know, no explanation is necessary. Right there, live, on stage, came group after group of singers doing the old classics in the DooWop style. Some of these performers were older than myself, some were the original recording artists and some had written some of those song. Imagine, the guy who wrote Pennies From Heaven sang it and several of his other 1,000,000-selling hits.

I've heard that lots of things can cause recall of old memories. A smell, for instance, can remind one of a long past experience. Imagine what this music did to me.

First, as always happens with this music, my feet, hands and body began moving in rhythm and, suddenly, I was in high school...then I was in SE Asia and the war...then I watching the civil rights movement on a black and white TV...and on and on as the music of my day flooded me with memories. I traveled back in time.

I cannot say I am all that glad to be back in 2012 with all the crap and crappy music going on. I know it is another generations music, but I will bet anything that their music will survive the decades as well as ours. But, alas, there are records and the such; and I can time travel anytime I want. I also feel better for having written this little note. Now if I could just figure out how those tears got on my cheeks?

Paddle safe...
DS