Nifty Noodles
Nifty Noodles/Breakfast of Champions
Nifty Noodles/Day after Christmas
Nifty Noodles/ Last Date
Nifty Noodles/ A Gig Too Far
Nifty Noodles/ morning has broken
Nifty Noodles/ free in Des Moines
Nifty Noodles/ revisiting Visalia
Nifty Noodles/ Visailing
Nifty Noodles/ Three in One
Nifty Noodles/ on the front
Nifty Noodles/ sad and silly
Copyright © 2000, 2002 All Rights Reserved, BryanD.com & Bryan Duncan
12/28/02 Wednesday
December 28, 2002
I closed my career year in Los Angeles with a "Championship Breakfast"
featuring the players and coaches participating in this year's Rose Bowl.
Art Linkletter was there, one of the Rose Parade's honored hosts this year,
as well as Hall of fame football player Anthony Munos, and Former Rams
lineman Rosie Greer.
Directing the festivity was Warren Duffy host of "Duffy and Company" a huge
talk show in L.A. On KKLA.
All was in support of the L.A. Chapter of Fellowship of Christian Athletes.
I thought it odd though that served for breakfast was a small quiche! I had
to stop at Burger King afterwards. But the commentary at this extended event
was worth the trip. Testimonies from two Christian players, one from each
team in the Rose Bowl (Washington State and Oklahoma).
One kid said he was a new believer and that He'd always thought that church
was for "old people".
When I got up to sing I commented on that... "old people are in church
recovering from what they did wrong when they were young"! I said and many
heads nodded at that remark.
My message was of Redemption to young and old alike... "the lyrics from my
first tune was about being "broke down on this highway (to victory) again.
'Knowing Christ' is the answer... not how many mistakes you don't make.
That's the difference between winning and losing in life and faith. It's
different perhaps from football.
Only God can capitalize on a "turnover" in my life I thought.
I talked with Rosie Greer at my table, now involved in a street ministry to
kids in L.A.. He spoke of the most disappointing story he'd seen in recent
football years. That of quarterback Ryan Leif who played briefly for the San
Diego Chargers..."His whole demise was his attitude" he lamented. (I
wondered about my own).
I finished with "Strollin on the Water" about seeing beyond myself and
rising above the circumstances. It was a fitting conclusion for my part.
Duffy, before closing, talked of how he'd prayed about doing this event with
his wife just a few months earlier and how he never imagined she'd die
before this breakfast.
(I attended her funeral a few months back).
" if you think your faith has been tested by things so far" he said, as I
recall, "just wait"!
The urgency in his voice brought power to bear as to why we have Christian
organizations to begin with. The real reason for any ministry! To help
others and to strengthen our own faith to face the future, and it's coming
in a hurry.
Thanks for lettin me Share bryan d
12/26/02 Monday Monday
Twas the day after Christmas....
Twas the day after Christmas and not a day late,
I'm recovering from all the stuff that I ate...
I started right, healthy, with two eggs and bacon
Things that would keep my poor stomach from achin'
But then,
Olives and carrots washed down with hot coffee,
Followed by fudge, Fritos corn chips and toffee
More chocolate and candy through the day quick to follow
The turkey, and yams I did not stop to swallow..
Diet cola, how stupid, like it'd really matter
Or keep me from growing two hundred pounds fatter..
still room for the pumpkin pie, ice cream with almonds
and egg nog a must have in glasses... The tall ones!
I'm a poor boy now and I need a TUM TUM
Is the song I am singing now that Christmas is done
Yes Santa was here, and he left a big mess..
So Here comes the clean up I now must address
the paper and ribbons now crumpled and torn...
Ammunition from rubber band guns on the floor -n-..
pieces of puzzles, directions we lost...
Spills on the carpet and furniture tossed
Broken Christmas tree balls on the floor by the tree
And the tensile the dog ate, spit up next to me
The left over socks... gifts not all that great...
The stuff to take back before it's too late..
Like that full jogging suit, already too small
more clothes that won't fit piling up in the hall,
toys without batteries, lying in wait
Ugly cooking utensils, a glove with no mate
Appliances even plugged in that won't work
And the one thing thatıs working has an interesting quirk
I'm finding new places for stuff I don't need
Things I won't use in my life time of greed
It's the day after Christmas and a wonderful life
I'll take a few aspirin and turn to my wife
Call Santa and tell him this stuff he can take
What I really need now is a holiday break!
My second Christmas poem by bryan d
12/23/02 Monday Monday
Murfreesboro, TN
Five oclock and eight oclock I did some shows for Christmas.
Full hour and a half concerts each. Christmas with the local choir and some
of the oldies from my past.
My friend Chonda Pierce M.C.'d the gigs at her home church here at World
Outreach...They got a new building for Christmas...
I overcame a real jet lag depression in the afternoon to be ready for the
shows. I was grateful to be singing but I wasn't my usual self either.
Maybe it's just been a long month. Good news is, I hit all the high notes
vocally and did not lose my voice this year, not once.
In fact I noticed that I was hitting the hard notes easier on "Maybe I'm
Amazed" as well. I gained some strength for all the hard work.
My Manager Ray was there with his wife and daughter. He thought I'd lost
weight! I should wear my fat boy clothes more often.
I'm on that BBC diet... "buy bigger clothes".
I'd like to thank Pam and Holly at Street Level for a fine Christmas after a
thin year. God has been merciful to me. I will take a few days to really
celebrate the redemption that Jesus began on my behalf with his human birth.
I will find the one important star in the sky and follow it to the manger
with my wise friends. I'll give gifts in honor of the Christ child.
Merry Christmas to you wise friends. find the good things to be grateful for
this Christmas.
Thanks for lettin me be me... Bryan d
12/15/02 Sunday Night in Des Moines
the only problem with this gig was that I tried to recreate what I had done
the night before. Somehow I misplaced my brain and my ability to be in a
new situation.
I was trying to be funny and personal instead of letting the night be what
it was. Too, perhaps it could be that I sat around waiting for this gig all
afternoon. I was just ridiculously self aware and mentally distracted.
There were some funny things though... "everyone has something to be
thankful for" I said at one point. "even if you're Bi Polar you can be
grateful half the time!"
So This concert was fine half the time.
Thanks for lettin me go home now... bryan d
12/15/02 E.V. Free Church/ Des Moines, Iowa (morning services)
"I've never seen a chestnut" I told the Sunday morning crowd. " I think you
burn 'em in the fire".
I opened singing with Joy to the world and then went into Joy is a singable
thing as that was the song the music guy liked the most from last night. His
other favorite was "I'll always have Jesus". Interesting, none of the
Christmas record songs came up. Of course most of the songs there are somber
and lack jazz or soul.
I'm finding myself not enjoying the material in the Christmas show. No
comments about the blues version of Silent Night that I like most.
Second Sunday service was horrible. I could not land a punch with these
folks. Humor was off and the silence was down right scary. I'm depending too
much on the comic aspect.
I sung Took the Form of Man to start and then Joy is a singable thing. I
was embarrassed and happy to get off the stage.
It didn't help that when the worship leader asked how many were coming to
the concert tonight very few hands went up.
I'm ready to go home myself at this point, six gigs and a rehearsal in five
days. I'm kinda burnt and my cell phone went out. I've eaten nothing but
junk food for most of this trip and I'm not gonna recover before next week.
One more show tonight and I feel tapped out. We'll see, stay tuned.
Thanks for lettin me share bryan d
12/14/02 Saturday night
No snow here, what a surprise not really cold either.
On the outside at least, People seem well adjusted. I'm at an E.V. Free
church. It's middle class in middle America... And I'm nervous. I'm pretty
sure they can see through me.
"I'm from California" I said, "Christmas is a big deal out there... We
produce most of the fruitcakes!"
I started the show with "Chestnuts"....thinking I would be better received
with the conservative tunes. I was wrong. The first enthusiasm came with
"Please come home for Christmas" and I turned "Joy is a singable Thing" into
a Christmas tune by singing "Joy to the world" over the final grove at the
end. I also added "I'll always have Jesus" to the list.
I talked about the difference between Santa and the Savior... Santa's making
a list and checking it twice to see who's been naughty... The Savior on the
other hand knows there would be no gifts for any of us if it came down to
our performance. We get the gift anyway! I follow that with "Jesus Loves me
anyway."
I sung four songs with their choir singing over my tracks. It was a
comfortable, living room kind of concert.
Not much else to say.
Thanks anyway... Bryan d
12/14/02 Still in Visalia, CA (second show)
There's an Oak Tree out front of the hotel that makes the freeway look like
a footpath. I stopped for the longest time to study the rugged lines of it's
trunk. A dysfunctional family tree I thought as I smiled.
It stretched into the sky in every direction making the sky look like a
broken pane of glass.
Little did I know that the family tree connection would be highlighted in
reality by relatives I'd never met before! I was introduced to one Bill
Duncan, a man in his seventies who's dad was my grandfathers brother. He was
the spitting image of the Duncan's I've grown up with especially my own
father! It was like realizing there really is a parallel universe! I was
introduced to a whole new clan of Duncan's. One "cousin" even had the
paperwork to verify how we are related.
Which was good cause they seemed otherwise not as "unbalanced" as my clan.
I'm suddenly hearing William Wallace in Braveheart saying in Scottish Brogue
"unite the clans"
Anyway the second show followed a Christmas dinner. Candle lit tables
replaced the audience seating of the previous night in front of the stage.
It was a much more relaxed and elegant setting for the presentation.
The people I worked with here were among the warmest I've ever met. Sincere
and professional the whole evening was amazing in it's variety of moods and
it seemed to just fit together like we'd been doing it for years.
Thanks for letting me share I'm bryan d
12/12/02 Visalia, CA/ Neighborhood church
Two days to realize the first of two shows with a local production of
Christmas is Jesus. The record does not make for an "up" live event in my
book. I feel sleepy by the end. Even though some of the highest notes in my
repertoire are in these songs. The black tie affair feels too formal for my
personality. But it fits what most folks like in a Christmas event: a chance
to hear traditional Christmas songs and dress up for the occasion. I bring
the humor and make people comfortable.
I was happy just to have teeth by the concert... I lost a crown on the way
to the rehearsal. Pulled out by the posts...thousands of dollars worth of
root canal work destroyed for the second time due to a chewing accident! was
chewing gum and the next thing I knew I had blood all over the steering
wheel. I was driving in the fog and trying to re seat the tooth to no avail.
So the rehearsal went by without my full attention. I felt like a jack of
lantern... "punkin Duncan". The head ache didn't help me focus on the
rehearsal. Trying to put back what the dentist had done while I was sedated
was like trying to hammer a couple of paneling nails into my skull while
fully awake. (I found time to see a dentist before the show and he put me
back together in minutes with no pain.)
Everyone seemed well rehearsed anyway. And so on with the show.
The gig was not packed... due to the intense fog I was told.
"I woke up in a fog myself this morning"... I told the determined.
I couldn't quite focus on the event. Too many thoughts were trying to work
my brain at the same time...(a.d.d. At it's finest) I introduced the
conductor by the wrong name... And talked about playing golf in the fog and
how it doesn't matter cause I can't find my ball anyway.
The whole time I'm looking at one of the violinists off the stage to my
right who clearly looked like she didn't want to be here. I was taking it
personally... Maybe she had a root canal done recently.
The first of the songs seemed unbelievably slow but I figured it could be my
attention deficit making my brain run really fast. So waiting on the
orchestra to reach the end of a measure was like waiting on a bus.
The only real train wreck was, once again, in the blues tunes. You can't
teach the blues to a band with charts!
I forgot where we were in the set a few times and confused "Oh come all ye
faithful" with "Oh come to my heart Lord Jesus"...
"there are too many Christmas songs with similar titles" I announced.
"somebody is out of God's will"!
I did a few songs from my "rest of the year records" but the choir stood
through the whole thing and I felt like I'd made a wrong turn and they were
waiting on MY bus.
My voice was dry and it almost locked up a couple of times... This is an
awful feeling... Like when your brakes lock up and suddenly your tires are
sliding on the pavement and you can't seem to steer out of trouble. And the
noise it makes isn't good.
Well at least I have my teeth I thought as I left for the night.
O.K. So there's THAT bryan d
12/8&9 Phoenix area
As a preacher's kid and in the ministry myself for 30 years and being a
recovering sinner to this day I had something to say to the pastors of the
Four Square churches in the state of Arizona. They were gathered with their
wives for the annual Christmas banquet. Few were older than me by the way.
Suddenly I am the elder statesman. I've lived my lifetime without the
endorsement of most spiritual authority. Seen as a "free spirit" among the
more grounded and responsible leadership. Always feeling disqualified, I'm
now realizing that there is a difference between leadership and
"performance".
For instance, the way it feels to lead the whole group in the singing of Oh
Come All Ye Faithful...(without music) because the track I had been playing
to went on the fritz. I stumbled through a ragtag version of Silent night
too, Playing poorly... But was I bothered? No. not this time. Because it
communicated something of how we all have our idea of what God will bless...
Assuming the external look and sound of "spirituality" will be honored...
like the Prayer of the righteous man... And then humility comes in the form
of unplanned and embarrassing disruption. What do you do? You bow your head
and smile... As I did... Stop the music and make a quiet comment with a
grin...
"well there went my best effort to look spiritual". Pastors who are honest
understand this so well that the focus immediately turns to God and what he
wants to do. And the bar is raised beyond our efforts. And in our
powerlessness we find a stronger connection than was there.
And singing together made a bigger impact than the perfect track!
I left and walked back to my hotel across the street and God was speaking to
me about how my life will not be the same ever again. I don't know what that
means really. But a page is turning and I am surrendered to it.
All that has come before this is old news to me.
I'm not all that different but God's will is different... I can feel it
coming!
I played two forgettable concerts on the previous day at this same location.
Not more than a hundred folks at either show. I felt uninspired. Though it
was good to see friends who have followed my music for years... Rich Davis
my Website master and his wife and some other long time supporters,
I left wondering what I was doing here.
Perhaps I have to lose my over inflated image of myself... It's the
proverbial camel that needs to fit through the eye of the needle!
I'm turning around as soon as I get home to go a day early to rehearse with
another orchestra and choir in Visalia, Ca.. I'm driving there as it is
faster than flying, and then on to Des Moines. Funny, a month ago I was
planning my new life as house painter!
I missed my youngest son's football banquet this week end. He was honored as
defensive player of the year. I called him but in my heart I know it is not
enough. I'm trying to balance my time at home but sometimes conflicts arise
as I cannot always pick and choose what I will do either, and so I make the
best of my circumstance and try to compensate where I can... I guess that's
the wisdom to change what I can and the serenity to accept what I cannot
change.
What a great couple of sons I have... I'm proud of them! and what a great
job their mother has done in raising them in my often absence.
I will not sacrifice next years banquet... That would be my better sacrifice
I think. Even if I become a house painter in the process.
I'm bryan d ....Thanks for letting me share
12/5/02 Ft Collins, Colorado
It's been two years since I did something with a full orchestra and choir.
I flew in early for a one time rehearsal. That in itself will help you
reinvent your prayer life. The hall was underpowered. The Lincoln Center is
a quaint little theater, seats about 1100. Even a 65 voice choir and forty
piece orchestra and band seemed like a whisper in some songs.
But the event came and went with little hitch except that, I was my usual
undignified self in a nice suit. Hey, somebody had to break the ice.
Nothing like 100 + people on stage being perfectly quiet before the start to
build a little nervous tension.
I came out singing "I heard the Bells" and the militia behind me made up of
local folks started into "Hark the Herald Angels Sing" but somehow I got my
"angels" mixed up... I was thinking "Angels we have heard on high" ... Had
to stop the orchestra and ask the conductor what song it was... I played it
up and it broke the ice and humbled me substantially... Christmas songs are
full of angels and shepherds and Choirs... It's easy to get 'em in the wrong
order.
Ft Collins feels like the wild frontier... Reminds me of Calgary, Canada...
Cold and bleak.
"The Christmas Spirit isn't gonna fall out of the sky and hit you in the
head" I told the locals... "even the wise men seemed to need a star, to find
the Christ child... " There was an investment on their part..."
My parents, two aunts an uncle and a cousin were among the audience. I have
many relatives living in Colorado. My folks were just passing through on the
way home to North Carolina and we just crossed paths on a coincidence.
It was a satisfactory performance on my part. I hit all the high notes which
is amazing considering how out of shape I've gotten in the last year due to
a slow down in work.
O.K. So there's That bryan d
The next day 12/1/02 Saturday Middleburg Heights, Ohio (Cleveland)
Seekers suddenly seems substantially small, sighting the size of Seekers
second store. Still this was the outstanding night!
First show seemed alittle sleepy but something happened during the second
show... It was me... I got to feeling really loose. I gave up trying to put
on a new face and just did what I do... Starting by goofing around with my
new piece of music, just the piano and singing ... "I don't have any words
for this tune... No there aren't any words for this music" yea, It might
have been a highlight. From there I just felt so free! for lack of a better
explanation. No pressure! and all of a sudden a heavenly light came on... I
felt redeemed and passionate and silly and full of real life with it's highs
and lows. I felt the sadness of some songs and the lightness of others...
The crowd was just trying to keep up.
Both sets were a mix of Christmas and regular concert tunes and went longer
than I planned cause I was having fun.
I won't be back for at least a year. Don't wanna wear out the welcome.
There's That bryan d