Happy Birthday Denison and the unearthing of the Tulsarama Plymouth have more in common in my mind than I originally thought. I listened to Denison’s podcast today in my car while driving to St. Paul, and it literally brought tears to my eyes. First of all, Denison is an excellent storyteller, there’s no arguing that. His podcast is every bit as wonderfully produced as THIS AMERICAN LIFE, and a “driveway moment” at that. But the story itself is so cool, too. Both the Nick Drake story and the buried car are time capsules. Nick’s by way of his beautiful recordings, and The car was seen as a method of acquainting twenty-first century citizens with a suitable representation of 1957 civilization. They mourn something that is lost. A time. Innocence. Or the idea of it. Some things in life are just meant to be, and I would like to treasure every moment when it is here, because everything is temporary. Kids grow up and become encumbered adults. Cars rust away. People die. The moments tick by, and soon we realize they are years and decades ticking by, and they can’t be reclaimed. That sounds sad until you realize the gift in it. The gift is that it will be gone, and that makes it so much more precious right now. And yes, I am a dreamer.

This is totally different than the buried car in Tulsa, but it’s another news item that touches me. Denison Witmer is a beautiful singer/songwriter, and I’m sure he’s a beautiful soul as well. Here’s a quote copied from his page www.happybirthdaydenison.com:———–

What’s All This? As of today (November 4, 2006), I am 30 years old. I’m throwing my own birthday party. You are all invited. I have decided to give you a gift: 30 new recordings of songs from my entire catalog, a few covers, a few unreleased songs, and a some podcasts of stories from my touring and my life in general. This is my gift to you free of charge. However, the purpose of Happy Birthday Denison is to serve as a fund-raiser for my favorite charities. Every year, I will be adding content to this site on my birthday. In exchange for the content (songs, etc), I am asking that you donate money to the charities I have chosen. Please donate whatever amount wish. The content on this site will always remain free of charge. All donations are received as a goodwill exchange.

The the charities I have chosen are Partners In Health and Musicians On Call.
—————————

I love that he sat down and recorded all these songs alone with his guitar, and I love that he’s offered them up as his birthday gift to us. I also love that he is asking for donations to charities he cares about. Please listen to his music. Please donate to the charities. Go see him and Rosie Thomas on tour if all possible.

This is totally different than the buried car in Tulsa, but it’s another news item that touches me. Denison Witmer is a beautiful singer/songwriter, and I’m sure he’s a beautiful soul as well. Here’s a quote copied from his page www.happybirthdaydenison.com:———–

What’s All This? As of today (November 4, 2006), I am 30 years old. I’m throwing my own birthday party. You are all invited. I have decided to give you a gift: 30 new recordings of songs from my entire catalog, a few covers, a few unreleased songs, and a some podcasts of stories from my touring and my life in general. This is my gift to you free of charge. However, the purpose of Happy Birthday Denison is to serve as a fund-raiser for my favorite charities. Every year, I will be adding content to this site on my birthday. In exchange for the content (songs, etc), I am asking that you donate money to the charities I have chosen. Please donate whatever amount wish. The content on this site will always remain free of charge. All donations are received as a goodwill exchange.

The the charities I have chosen are Partners In Health and Musicians On Call.
—————————

I love that he sat down and recorded all these songs alone with his guitar, and I love that he’s offered them up as his birthday gift to us. I also love that he is asking for donations to charities he cares about. Please listen to his music. Please donate to the charities. Go see him and Rosie Thomas on tour if all possible.

I can hardly tell you how much this story has captured my imagination! I hope there is a lot of media coverage of it, since I won’t be able to attend in person. For more information, visit www.buriedcar.com. Read more about it in the following post.

I can hardly tell you how much this story has captured my imagination! I hope there is a lot of media coverage of it, since I won’t be able to attend in person. For more information, visit www.buriedcar.com. Read more about it in the following post.

On June 15, 1957, a new gold and white 1957 Plymouth Belvedere Sport Coupe was buried in a time capsule in downtown Tulsa, OK. The time capsule was part of Golden Jubilee Week: Tulsa’s celebration of Oklahoma’s semi-centennial. The car is buried under the sidewalk in front of the Tulsa County Courthouse, approximately 100 feet north of the intersection of Sixth Street and Denver Avenue.

The car was seen as a method of acquainting twenty-first century citizens with a suitable representation of 1957 civilization. According to event chairman Lewis Roberts Jr., the Plymouth was chosen because it was “an advanced product of American industrial ingenuity with the kind of lasting appeal that will still be in style 50 years from now.”

The contents of a women’s purse, including bobby pins, a bottle of tranquilizers, cigarettes and an unpaid parking ticket, were added to the glove compartment of the car shortly before burial.

Other items included in the time capsule were:

10 gallons of gasoline and 5 quarts of oil
A Douglas Aircraft Co. aerial map of airport facilities and legend
Statement from Tulsa council of Churches and prayer for greatest good next 50 years a recently completed history of churches in Tulsa and a directory of the present churches
Statement from board of education – historical data related to 50 years of education in Tulsa and copies of “School Life” all-high school publication issued by Tulsa high schools each month
Statements from Mayor and Chamber of Commerce officials
Flags which have been flown over the national capitol, state capitol and in the county and city
Other aerial photos of the area
Statement from Tulsa Trades and Labor Council
Statements from all former mayors of the city – their record of service and civic accomplishments in the city, state and nationally.
As part of the “Tulsarama!” festivities, citizens of Tulsa were asked to guess what the population of Tulsa would be in the year 2007. The guesses were then recorded on microfilm and sealed in a steel container buried with the car. When the car and artifacts are excavated, the person whose guess is closest to Tulsa’s 2007 population is to be awarded the Belvedere

On June 15, 1957, a new gold and white 1957 Plymouth Belvedere Sport Coupe was buried in a time capsule in downtown Tulsa, OK. The time capsule was part of Golden Jubilee Week: Tulsa’s celebration of Oklahoma’s semi-centennial. The car is buried under the sidewalk in front of the Tulsa County Courthouse, approximately 100 feet north of the intersection of Sixth Street and Denver Avenue.

The car was seen as a method of acquainting twenty-first century citizens with a suitable representation of 1957 civilization. According to event chairman Lewis Roberts Jr., the Plymouth was chosen because it was “an advanced product of American industrial ingenuity with the kind of lasting appeal that will still be in style 50 years from now.”

The contents of a women’s purse, including bobby pins, a bottle of tranquilizers, cigarettes and an unpaid parking ticket, were added to the glove compartment of the car shortly before burial.

Other items included in the time capsule were:

10 gallons of gasoline and 5 quarts of oil
A Douglas Aircraft Co. aerial map of airport facilities and legend
Statement from Tulsa council of Churches and prayer for greatest good next 50 years a recently completed history of churches in Tulsa and a directory of the present churches
Statement from board of education – historical data related to 50 years of education in Tulsa and copies of “School Life” all-high school publication issued by Tulsa high schools each month
Statements from Mayor and Chamber of Commerce officials
Flags which have been flown over the national capitol, state capitol and in the county and city
Other aerial photos of the area
Statement from Tulsa Trades and Labor Council
Statements from all former mayors of the city – their record of service and civic accomplishments in the city, state and nationally.
As part of the “Tulsarama!” festivities, citizens of Tulsa were asked to guess what the population of Tulsa would be in the year 2007. The guesses were then recorded on microfilm and sealed in a steel container buried with the car. When the car and artifacts are excavated, the person whose guess is closest to Tulsa’s 2007 population is to be awarded the Belvedere