Char gardening on the back deck, May 24, 2011

I hope this Spring
   will bring to you:
Plants and flowers;
   rain showers and dew.

Our brown yard:
   dry, hard; ready to bloom,
will green and grow
   as we till and mow; rake and groom.

The Summer sun will shine
   over your designs
Pots and beds, buds and vines,
   Awards and ribbons, and tour signs 

It all begins
   and wins with you.
My gardening mother
   no other would do.

Ray and Char Maas at a Japanese restaurant in Bush Gardens, circa 1968

Recently I scanned a box of mom’s APS cartridges. (It was a slow process and I haven’t cleaned them up yet.) While I was waiting for my friend’s Canon FS2710 film scanner, I scanned some prints mom had filed away.  One thing I noticed from both the negatives and prints- Ray and Char went on a lot of vacations together, and most of them were work related. I don’t think dad cared were he went as long as mom was along he was sure to have a good time.

Char and Ray Maas at a Creative Circle banquet, circa 1988

As a young man Ray was interested in photography. Unfortunately his budget didn’t support his level of enthusiasm, but in later years we always had a good 35mm camera. When I showed interest in getting a SLR in 1975 he was gun-ho and made sure I got one.
He was just as supportive when I got my first digital SLR in 2008 and posed for this frame.

Ray at the breakfast table, July 9, 2008

Ray left us in 2010, but he left us with a lot of fond memories.

Grandma Anna on auction day. 10/15/1973

Our family would drive to Jamestown for Thanksgiving and other family events, and she would visit us for Christmas. As she approached 100 the holes in her memory became larger, but she still had a warm smile for us and could remember events in her own childhood.

Anna Maas with Marilyn West, March 13, 2005

Every time it rains
You’re here in my head
Like the sun coming out
Ooh. I just know that something good is going to happen
And I don’t know when
But just saying it could even make it happen.

By comparison my sister Suzanne read 47 books for a total of 18,248 pages. As you can see we’re a bookish family. So much so, Suzanne asked me to set up a book review blog. Check out Cold Read- it gets updated at least once a week; usually more.

• Girl
• April
• Peace
• Over A Forest Green Ground (Live EP)
• Forgettable Water
• Fall: In The Name Of Hate (Single)
• Narrowly Asleep In Europe (Live EP)
• The Judges Pole
• Shake And Sing (Live & Studio Recordings)
• All You Want Is Me (Single)
• Devil Of Brooklyn (Single)
• Unaufmerksamkeit Adult
• Aquarica
• Inflate

* Thanks to Jon Bovi (SNL)

Updates:

July 28, 2010 at 8:40am
From the our first album “Girl” I’m thinking of two singles:
“In Control” and “You Will Lead”.
I’m not sure about a single from the second album “April” any thoughts?

July 29, 2010 at 8:25am
I would like to introduce the members of V1. On vocals the charismatic Nobo. On bass Eve Mudounce. On drums Harry Mullen Sr. and on guitar myself. I’m known as *The Plane and we are ‘V1′ The band has decided to only release one single from …”April” and that is the uplifting opening track “Ignomina”.
*Note: I’m known as The Plane not for my love of aircraft but for my love of Geometry.