St. Paul, Minnesota

Just got back from St. Paul, Minnesota…

I seem to say each week how wonderful it was to be part of a project so cool, but this week was especially great because I got to be part of a story with some very old friends. We all know what its like when we get together with old friends, you just pick up where you last left off.
This week our special guests were the Muppets and Sam Champion from Good Morning America.

Sam was very cool, and to see him do his job is amazing. If you think what he does is easy, think again. His show is done “Live” and Sam never seems to miss a beat or stumble over his words. Plus, he has to get so much information out quickly; I just don’t know how he does it. He was great to work with and he had fun joking around with all the kids that came out to volunteer. I hope he comes back to help again.

Let me get back to talking about “Old Friends”… well, Sam is a new friend but what Sam and I had in common was our old friends, The Muppets… Kermit, Fozzie, Pepe, Rizzo the Rat, Animal, Statler and Waldorf, oh the Swedish Chef, Bobo, Sweetums, Bunsen and Becker, Crazy Harry, Sgt Floyd Pepper, Camilla the Chicken and her friends, and Miss Piggy! That’s right even Miss Piggy come out to help.

I was 11 or 12 yrs old when I first met Kermit the Frog on our TV set back in Philadelphia. From that time forth Kermit and me were friends, Kermit didn’t know it but I did. We all can relate to the fact that there are those that help us through life that we never know personally… for me it’s the likes of Bob Dylan, Tom Waits, Bruce Springsteen, John Prine, The Band, the Dead, The Beatles, the Muppets, you get the idea.

Now a few years ago the Muppets helped us out on a couple builds and we all had a great time. I forgot how they have the ability to open my heart up like… well, like an old friend.

One of the best moments for me this week was when I was asked by the Muppets to play the piano for them while they sang “Just One Person”. Those of you who know me, know what it meant to me. It truly does not get better than that.

I will miss my old friends till I see them again, and then we will pick up where we last left off and smile and laugh again. There are many rewards to my job, none better than the fact that I can make music with my friends… old and new.

And to my new friends that helped my old friends and me out this week, I will miss you too.

Also, I want to thank Pride, Cory, Mike and Lauren and all the other volunteers for the wonderful work they did in making the Day Care Center come to life.
And that’s all I am going to say about that!

The wonderful thing about our imagination is just that. It’s ours.