962, almost there!

I had a wonderful time at the Special Ed Conference held at Prairie High School today. It was a great event, well-attended and I gave 2 presentations as well as speaking to a number of people who came by my exhibitor table.

Happy 80th Birthday, Casey Kasem!

Happy Birthday, Casey Kasem!! In one of my music therapy groups today, we sang "Happy Birthday" to Casey Kasem and reminisced about his show, American Top 40. We played tambourines to the very first song to be played on "American Top 40" (July 4, 1970) -- Marvin Gaye's "End of The Road." The number one song on that first broadcast was "Mama Told Me Not to Come" by the inimitable 3 Dog Night, which we sang and played drums to. In the top 10 on that day were Elvis' "Wonder of You" and the Beatles "Long and Winding Road." Stretching our limbs seemed a natural fit for the Elvis song, and we joined in singing "I'll never know the reason why you love me as you do. That's the wonder, the wonder of you!" The Beatles tune worked nicely with a pentatonic tone chime improvisation. My clients were surprised to learn the #1 song from the 1970s was "You Light Up My Life" by Debby Boone. The group sang the song beautifully, accompanied by guitar. "Physical" by Olivia Newton-John was American Top 40s' #1 song of the 1980s, which of course we exercised to! It just seemed so right . . . What a fun walk down memory lane with Casey, AT40 and all those great artists. Long distance dedication to Casey!!

Music Therapy in the Longview Daily News Here is a link to an article about the music therapy group I lead in Longview for client with Alzheimer's: http://tdn.com/lifestyles/music-therapy-group-offers-sound-approach-to-healing/article_aa097142-8b43-11e1-8fe4-0019bb2963f4.html This group is sponsored by SWAAD and offers caregivers a chance to come to their support meeting while their loved one attends music therapy. The group is a pilot project and has been well-received in Longview!

908 I'm getting close to that 1,000 mark! I spoke to a lovely group of women at a PEO Sisterhood meeting Tuesday night. At the meeting were 15 women, many of whom are musicians and could relate to my topic because of their own experiences. Several women sing with "Vancouver USA Singers" and one with Bravo! Vancouver. Another woman works for a bereavement organization and has had much experience with helping people deal with grief through music.

893

I spoke to a lovely group at The Quarry today about music therapy. They were so receptive to what Ihad to say about the power of music. I shared my free report, "7 Days to Better Brain Power through Music" and fielded a number of questions about why we like the music that we do, and why music is such a powerful force for healing and wellness.