Montana is a very wide state.  Driving across it after getting little sleep the night before, it seemed twice as long as it actually is.  Thank God for NPR and smart phones that hold mega bytes of music.

The song below is one that came up in the shuffle.  I was first introduced to Loreena McKennit’s music when I went to the Novels In Progress Workshop writer’s conference in Louisville.  NIPW wasn’t the first conference I’d ever been to, but it remains the best.  It’s where I first began fine tuning Painted Black.  I always chose to room in the late night dorm where we stayed up till all hours getting high on life and lack of sleep.  (And one time, tequila!)

One night, someone brought in their Loreena McKennit CDs around three a.m. and her music was so haunting and beautiful it was like a spiritual experience.  (And no, this wasn’t  the night I learned how to drink tequila.)

Balulalow is from one of her very first albums, To Drive the Cold Winter Away.  I don’t know if the beauty of it will be that evident from your computer speakers, but I hope you can at least get an idea of why I like it so much.