jean mann

I went to play music in a Thanksgiving gratitude/fundraising yoga class yesterday. (also my first full yoga practice return after hip-surgery!)

At the end, I played my song, "lucky", as my fellow yogi's lay in savasana...
There's something so profound about singing and playing as delicately as one can muster, so as not to be harsh on their resting souls....

After class, a woman greeted me. We've been yoga studio acquaintances for a few years, but I hadn't been there in several months, since yoga had…

Put on the teapot, this is a long one....

At the close of my concert Saturday night, (January 21 - also the day of the March for Women) I had my first direct encounter with a DJT supporter. I walked away empowered and felt that a conversation had begun. More on that in a bit. A little back story:

Never an activist before this election, (or at least less public, more quiet support) I'd walked in the Seattle march amongst my 175,000 closest allies that morning, proudly donning my beautiful, hand-knit pink hat…

Hello from Europe!

I had a very special experience last night in Amsterdam, going to a local mans home, invited by my home-host to play a few songs for him in his flat. 

He has advancing MS and getting less mobile by the day. Aged 50 now, he grew up in the roughest part of Glasgow, with a large flock of siblings. Had been a political activist all his life until this affliction. (Think 15yr old Scot, jumping in the water to prevent nuclear weapons-carrying ships from proceeding...) 

We set this up spontaneously…

I was raised in a drafty, idyllic home along the shores of Lake Whatcom in Bellingham, Washington.
It wasn't fancy. We were a family of nine plus several pets, stuffed into way too few rooms.
It holds incredible, joyful memories for me. 

Confession: I was a messy child... One Christmas, Santa brought me a cute furry "foot" rug, (it was the 1970's!) which I treasured, but mostly never saw on the clothing-strewn floor. (click on photos to enlarge)

 Oh, it was a colorful place: a chin-up bar in the doorway…

Happy Solstice from the little kitchen that could...

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A girl and her extra weight, blood-work, and food journal walks into a nutritionists office. The nutritionist studies everything carefully and says "you need to eat more fat...." That's it. It's not a joke! This actually happened.

Really?! I keep questioning this crazy notion that eating MORE FAT will help aid in making me become less, you know, puffy. 

Okay, so it's not all willy nilly, "go eat a stick a buttah" ahem...

The skeptic in…

This week, introducing some new nutrition savvy into my routine, I sat down to an early morning candlelit breakfast of plain Greek yogurt with cherries, cinnamon and a hefty dose of almonds, accompanied by a cup of tea and big glass of water. Nice, right?
Except...

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...the glass of water is sporting a "generous pinch" of sea salt, as suggested by The Nutritionist (we'll call her Anne, as that's her name!) I physically shudder with each gulp. To me, it tastes like I'm drinking the sea, which…

Several years ago, I was having "crafty time" with my soul-sistah Debbie on our annual Oregon Coast gals-get-away.  
I was wiring colorful beads into a necklace, as she refashioned thrift store plates and other broken goodies into beautiful mosaic art. I started thinking about the reinventing of oneself (or putting a broken self back together) and wrote the song, "Mosaic" that weekend. 

Maybe we continually reinvent ourselves, every time we look at something in a new way, create a new story by picking up a…

Today, Dec 2, 2015 I begin working with a nutritionist. The goal: significant weight loss and overall heath overhaul. 

I thought a nod towards more writing might also be a good practice, sharing some of the process, or not. We'll see. If you know me, you know I'm pretty passionate about food culture. That is, cooking and coming up with interesting dishes, and sharing recipes in my funny conversational way. What I've deemed to be Healthy while reaching for a touch of decadent. Like life...

I have tried this…

Yesterday was my birthday.  I've been thinking about the incredible year just passed. June 29, 2014-June 29 2015:

I was graced with another day, another year, a chance to write another song (20+ this year to be exact)

I booked and completed my first European music tour, from which bloomed many lovely friendships.

I experienced deep love and deep loss, and have learned to appreciate the gifts found within each.

I performed in french, in a packed grotto-esque jazz club in Paris, France.

I celebrated twenty…

Hello! I welcome you to my new website. It's a step up and forward from my previous site, fancy templates and all.

While going through my old calendar dates, performance photos, posters etc,  I was overwhelmed at all the places I've had the pleasure to travel to in my 15 years on this grassroots musical highway. 2014 brought me to Europe, a long-wished for dream come true, which went very well indeed. 

Some of you have been along from the start, while others I've only just met. To all of you. I am honored…