Terlingua Word-Off 2015

There was some discussion about how many years in a row there’s been a “word-off” in Terlingua. The general consensus was “about 26.”

Last night, I attended my first word-off.

What’s a word-off?  It’s a combination of poetry reading, drama, stand-up comedy, air guitar, and philosophical discourse.

Once again, it made me proud to be a Terlinguist.  There are some deep, intelligent, insightful, and funny people living here and last night they performed at the Starlight Theatre.

One of the cool things about this place is how we make room for everybody.  For example, I’m a liberal. One of my best buddies has an “Impeach Obama” bumpersticker on the left side of his pickup truck.  And on the right side. We play pool. We don’t talk politics. We get along.

On the porch, you can hear the latest conspiracy theory from Alex Jones’ creative lab discussed as if it was gospel. You can also get into conversations about fractal interaction, drug-running in the 80’s, local literature… pretty much anything goes, and we make room for it.

Except for this one guy…

The performances last night were on a variety of topics:  breast feeding, sex, compassion in a laundromat, war, politics, family dynamics, religion, the cub scouts… an alarming number of them with delicious British accents. We’re a cosmopolitan little village.

I wish I had video-taped the show. I will next year.

For the most part, natives and tourists were entertained and respectful. Kids played in the aisles. A couple of out-of-towners tried to develop a romantic adventure with a waitress.

Everybody had a fine time, except for this one guy…

After the show was over, several of the organizers relaxed, relived some of the high points, and talked about how to make next year’s word-off bigger and better.

I’ll be there.

Here’s how it looked to me:

word 2

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J. Michael Combs at the Boathouse

Living in the desert, 80 miles from the nearest town, has its ups and downs.

The up part:  Saturday night I didn’t get to see Bruce Salmon and Michelle Alany at the Starlight or Ted Arbogast and Chase Peeler playing jazz at the Boathouse because my band, the Fabulous Vortexans was playing an outdoor concert in Lajitas.

There is amazing live music everywhere, all the time here.

The downside: cell phone service and internet access is fairly primitive.

Another upside: all though it takes a long time to download files from the internet, there are several entertaining places to hang out while you’re doing it.

I set up my repaired iMac in the studio at the Terlingua Store, opened my recording software, and was greeted by a notice that said, “No internet connection. Logic must download massive files before you can use it.”

No problem. I boxed up the huge 27″ computer and headed down to La Posada Milagro, where there is internet access, great coffee, and a majestic view of the ghost town.

my office at La Posada Milagro
my office at La Posada Milagro

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Glen Felts Memorial Open Mic – 1 Year Later

It was a year ago that the Terlingua Community awoke to a bad dream: Glen Felts was gone.

To some, it feels like only yesterday. Others say it seems like a long time ago. Traumatic experiences are like that- personal, subjective, and inexact.

Glen was inextricably connected to La Kiva and for the local musicians, Wednesday night meant gathering at La Kiva and playing at the open mic.

To celebrate the 1-year anniversary of his death, the Boathouse created a tribute open mic:  Laird Considine, who hosted most of the La Kiva open mics, was the host.  The kitchen served brisket. Gumby and Sierra were behind the bar. “Mind Erasers” were served and enjoyed. Songs were sung for and about Glen, and eYeball, who we also lost last year.

The Boathouse was packed. Don looked on, Jeffro ran sound, people danced, and much hugging ensued. The loss of a loved one focuses your thoughts on how precious your remaining loved ones are and how each hug might be the last.

It was a bittersweet night, but tipped toward celebration.

Here’s how it looked to me:

g1 g2

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