I recently enjoyed a few days at Asilomar, near Monterey, California, while attending a NSF conference on Artificial Intelligence. The air was sparkling clear and fresh. Early the first morning I wandered down to the beach to watch the first rays of sun hit the sand. Waves crashing on the rocks. Walking down to the beach. ...

The historic 6th and I Synagogue provided a beautiful setting for a stunning set by Julian Lage and his trio, featuring bassist Jorge Roeder and drummer Dave King. Words that come to mind to describe the music: virtuoso, intricate, emotive, warm, engaging. What we all noted after the set was how much fun the band was having, and we were having fun right along with them. Before the set, I snapped this photo of the wonderous dome above us. ...

On a visit with Jacob in Denver, we looked at the last minute for some live music and discovered that Charged Particles was playing in downtown Denver. They were playing music of Michael Brecker, who was one of the heros of jazz in my high school years. For example, check out this 1980 performance of Some Skunk Funk. Although Michael Brecker has passed away, his brother Randy joined the set on trumpet. And Tod Dickow was up to the task of Michael’s precise, high energy lines on tenor sax. We enjoyed a wonderful set with super talented musicians. Charged Particles has an album called Live at the Baked Potato on Spotify, if you want to check it out. ...

Blues Alley recently had a fire, but Lisa Fischer burned the house down all over again. I learned of Fischer through a documentary about her backup singing in the Rolling Stones. Now she has her own solo career. I’ve seen Lisa Fischer perform several times, but this was the best! She has an amazing expressive range. At one point, she asked the audience to call out songs and she sang a minute of each. One was the corny ballad, Misty. What she did with that song! ...

As the culmination of a great family visit with Amy, Len, Isla and Jack, we toured the Washington Monument. We were blessed with a very clear day and great views in every direction. After passing through security (some guy failed to get through with a large purple scissors), we were whisked 90 seconds up in an elevator to the top. Jefferson Memorial and the Tidal Basin (South) The Potomac River flows out beyond the memorial. ...