A Special Message from your Lockdown Lemonade Team

A Special Message from your Lockdown Lemonade Team

We have reached a significant milestone! Your Lockdown Lemonade team is thrilled to celebrate our 50th weekly installment as we close in on a full year of the incredible observations, insights, and ideas that you have contributed. Together we have dealt with all aspects of the effects of the pandemic. We have shared your stories of triumph and tragedy, your accounts of despair and exultation, your explanations of what has happened in your heads and in your hearts. It has been our fervent hope that with these simple expressions of the reality of dealing with lockdown, you all have helped each other get through the tough times.

Now we feel the need to look to the future! The future for our music community really begins in a couple of weeks when FAR-West will present our 2021 Virtual Music Conference on October 14-16. You can look forward to three days of amazing music showcases, informative educational workshops, supportive peer group sessions, extensive networking opportunities, inspirational award ceremonies and much more. Please use this link to find out more and to register. https://far-west.org/2021-conference/ Prices start at a very reasonable level and there are scholarships available for those in need. And, because it is all virtual, there are no expensive travel costs or hotel rooms necessary.

As to the future of Lockdown Lemonade, that really is up to you all. Since your submissions have slowed to a trickle, we are questioning whether it should continue or whether we need a new format. We’d love to hear your opinion! If you’d like Lockdown Lemonade to continue, let us know by making a submission. If you think it’s time for something new, let us know your ideas for a new format. After the Conference we either will resume or begin something new.

~ Lockdown Lemonade is the brainchild of Julie Zipperer. She is assisted in administering it by Marlynn Block and Peter Krantz. Send your submissions to: juliez@far-west.org or marlynn@far-west.org

Lockdown Lemonade is FAR-West’s response to the dramatic and drastic shifts of 2020’s global health and economic crises. For many, this cultural reckoning and political upheaval spurred a period of personal reflection and the discovery of coping mechanisms some of us didn’t even know we had. Lockdown Lemonade is a look at the bright side. With this collection of flash creative nonfiction, brief personal essays, recollections, and musings from members of our community, we hope to shine a light on the best things that can and have come out of the most challenging of times. This column will continue on a weekly basis and postings will be released at 10 AM Pacific every Monday, so watch for them! For guidelines and submission details, please contact Julie Zipperer at julieZ@far-west.org or Marlynn Block at marlynn@far-west.org Submissions will be posted based on approval from the Lockdown Lemonade Committee.