Crones Counsel Newsletter – January 2018

Reading like the Billionaires
By Janet Morrissey

I love books, libraries, newspapers and most things associated with reading. About a week ago my husband read an article to me about the reading habits of the top billionaires, who spend an unbelievable amount of time reading. Warren Buffet is one of those billionaires, spending 80% of his day reading. Even when he was starting his investment business, he read 500 pages a day. Bill Gates challenged his followers in 2015 to read 50 books in a year, because he explains that “reading has always been one of the chief ways that I learn.” Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg all are avid readers. A study was done on 1,200 wealthy people and the common thread that ran through their lives was reading. All of these people do not read for entertainment but for knowledge, self-improvement and success.

Two days after Christmas my husband and I received a package from Amazon, containing a book for each of us. I was delighted and totally surprised. I couldn’t remember ordering any books, but it was from our son and daughter-in-law as a thank you gift. One book was the Bobby Kennedy book by Chris Matthews, and the other a book on writing well by Harold Evans, Do I Make Myself Clear?

While reading the LA Times on New Years Day, Jessica Roy wrote an article entitled, “Resolved to Read More in 2018”. Roy counts all book (cookbooks, audio books, novels, comic books) in reaching her goal of 36 books a year. She claims that reading books is “one of the singularly most rewarding things I have done for myself in my adult life.”

I know most of you Crones read a lot, but perhaps you might want to set a goal for yourself or expand your genre. Perhaps, you might want to get an e-reader if you don’t have one. Some of you might want to post on our Facebook what you are reading or favorite books of yours. I’d love to hear what you are reading. Could one of these suggestions be a New Year goal?

Happy Reading in this New Year.

YEAH! Drumming!

We’re very happy to offer a pre-conference Simone LaDrumma workshop — Drumming & The Holistic Expression of Rhythm” — this year in Bellingham. It will be on Wednesday, September 25th from 10 – Noon and 1 – 4 p.m. The cost is $50 and there is a limit of 30 participants. Sign-ups will be available via the website beginning in early February through April 30, 2018.
Simone will bring some drums but you are welcome to bring your own – djembes and/or congas. (With regard to frame drums, Simone teaches on hand drums, not drums that use mallets or sticks. Frame drums will have a very limited use in the workshop.) You can bring other percussion instruments – rattles, bells, etc.

The workshop will include:
The “blueprint” of rhythm: the all-important UP, DOWN and OFF-Beats.
How to feel rhythm rather than just count it.
Technique on West African djembes and Cuban congas.
Hand percussion: How to play bells, shakers, etc.
Playing multi-part rhythms with others How to create your own rhythms,
and much more…

Mark your calendar for registration. We suspect this will fill quickly. Register now.

Bellingham, Washington

According to Wikipedia, Bellingham is the largest city in and the county seat of Whatcom County in the U.S. state of Washington.[6] It is the thirteenth-largest city in the state, with 80,885 residents as of the 2010 US Census, and is part of the sixth-largest metropolitan area in the state. The boundaries of the city encompass the former towns of Fairhaven, Whatcom, Sehome, and Bellingham.

Bellingham is the northernmost city with a population of more than 50,000 residents in the contiguous United States. The city is known for its easy access to outdoor recreation in the San Juan Islands and North Cascades as well as proximity to the cities of Vancouver, BC and Seattle.

Its population (2010) is 218,000. This area was originally populated by the Lummi and Nooksack Tribes. A Dutch settlement with windmills and farming is to the north. Other settlers brought lumber and fishing industries. Today our Mt. Baker attract skiers and our bay brings recreational water activities.

Bellingham’s climate is generally mild and typical of the Puget Sound region. The year-long average daily high and low temperatures are 59 and 44.1 °F (15.0 and 6.7 °C), respectively. Western Whatcom County has a marine oceanic climate that is strongly influenced by the Cascade Range and Olympic Mountains. The Cascades to the east retain the temperate marine influence, while the Olympics provide a rain shadow effect that buffers Bellingham from much of the rainfall approaching from the southwest. September average is from a low of mid-40’s to a high of mid-60’s.

For more detailed information re: Bellingham, its history, economy, climate, geography, demographics, etc., go to either the City of Bellingham or Wikipedia sites.

Transportation from the Seattle-Tacoma Airport to Bellingham can be arranged with the Bellair Charters and Airporter (www.airporter.com). The stop in Bellingham is at our hotel, the Bellingham Hotel – Four Points by Sheraton.

Crones Counsel 26 Facebook Group

The Crones Counsel 25 Facebook group has been archived and the Crones Counsel 26 just made its debut a couple of days ago. This is a private group and requires a request to join. Search for “Crones Counsel 26” and ask to join the group. Please note that you must have a Facebook account to join this group.