by Phil Houseal | Dec 4, 2024 | All Articles, Education, Events, History, Music, People of the Hill Country, Venue
Dec 4, 2024–When we put a violin in our granddaughter’s hands last year, I would have been happy to listen to her saw away at endless Suzuki songs. But unexpectedly, and due to encouragement from her instructor, Theresa Britt, she has developed an affinity for fiddle...
by Phil Houseal | Nov 6, 2024 | All Articles, Events, History, Philosophy, Venue
Nov 6, 2024–Whether you embrace or avoid weddings, the celebration itself is a panorama of the human condition. Every stage of a person’s life is acted out in the drama on the matrimonial stage. At a recent betrothal, I was able to sort the life passages into five...
by Phil Houseal | Jun 19, 2024 | All Articles, History, Music, People of the Hill Country, Venue
June 12, 2024–While listening to a recent NPR podcast of Wait Wait Don’t Tell Me, the answer choices for “What was one of the lesser musical acts that performed in the middle of the night on the Jerry Lewis Telethon” were: A) the Hell’s Angels singers B) Ray Sanders,...
by Phil Houseal | Jan 31, 2024 | All Articles, Education, Events, History, Music, People of the Hill Country, Venue
Jan 31, 2024–Audiences for the Dublin Harpers are so enamored with the lilting sound of the Celtic harp, they go away wanting to play it themselves. Unfortunately, the care and feeding of a full-size authentic harp is beyond the grasp of most casual players. It’s a...
by Phil Houseal | Nov 8, 2023 | All Articles, Events, Food, People of the Hill Country, Philosophy, Venue
Nov 8, 2023–For the semi-pro party planners that lurk among us, the holidays are their Olympics, Super Bowl, and Academy Awards, wrapped in a bow with a Christmas carol soundtrack. No group is more motivated to create a memorable event from scraps of paper and...
by Phil Houseal | Nov 3, 2023 | All Articles, Education, People of the Hill Country, Philosophy, Venue
Nov 1, 2023–If you’d told me I would get emotional while picking up a tire, I’d have punctured your sidewall. Believe it or not, I visited a Discount Tire for the first time this summer. It’s like the Buc-cees of tire chain stores. My first clue it was a special place...
