december

Happy Holidays! It snowed here in Utah somethin' fierce this weekend. I went to a concert at Temple Square on Friday with some friends... and the snow was INSANE. I'm glad I wasn't driving. Last year Stephanie Smith and I had to drive home from a gig in SLC in white-out blizzard. I couldn't see the road; I couldn't see the median; I couldn't see the signs. Yeah, I thought I was going to drive off the edge of the mountain and die in one terrific fireball. By the time we reached home (safely) I was visibly, physically shaking and I had to pry my hands off the steering wheel.

But snow signifies other things besides instant death...Christmas! To ring in the holidays, I posted a recording of my arrangement of Good King Wenceslas on my Myspace profile (which you can access from the Links section). I will be posting a new Christmas arrangement every week until Christmas! I've also posted a demo recording of my newest song, Subtraction. I recorded these tunes in my closet on my MacBook so don't expect any stunning sonic wonders. Also, you may want to check the Calendar page. I've added some new gig dates. Merry Christmas!

november

November is upon us. I can't believe Thanksgiving is next week. How time flies. I'm trying to have a goal to write a song a month for the next little while. That doesn't sound like much, but considering how long I agonize over lyrics...that sounds like a huge, daunting commitment for me. It shouldn't be. So I've got October down. November is already half over. I better get crackin'.

I was in the studio last week recording a duet with the talented Benton Paul for his new album. A few of you may have seen Benton and I perform this at a show or two. It's a really sparse heart-breaker ballad with just the piano and two voices. Benton's album will likely be released at the first of next year. I'm sure it will be fantastic.

finished

I finished my new song yesterday. Although technically it's not 100% "new." I wrote the original version of this song many years ago. I liked the lyrical and musical idea, but hated the finished product. So, having a new and poignant inspiration and reason to rewrite this particular song, I dusted it off, opened it up, and revised it. It's called Subtraction. Some of you may have heard it or remember me playing it once or twice. Now it's brand spankin' new and I'm finally satisfied with it. That's the best feeling in the world. Why don't I write more often? I will tell you why. Because I'm lazy.

Can you believe that after all of the insane traveling I did this summer, I'm already itchin' to go somewhere? I believe they call this malady wanderlust. I've got a serious case of it.

october, new song, and charlie

It's the first day of October! This is a momentous day. Why? Uh...just because I like it. It's getting much colder here in Utah. Saturday was ridiculously cold and now I have to actually scrape the frost off my car windows when I get up early in the morning. This I could do without...both the scraping and the early mornings.

I started writing a song on Saturday. It's been a LONG time since I've written. Way too long, in fact. I read somewhere (I think it was on the blog of one of my fav. bands and friends, Raining Jane) that if you have writer's block it's simply because you're not writing. This was true in my case. I'd sit down for a few minutes, come up with some ideas, and then abandon them. So I resolved on Saturday to stick it out no matter what. And now I'm actually getting somewhere and I'm pleased with the lyrical direction, which is what I usually struggle with the longest.

Last night I was forceably awakened at around four in the morning by a raging charlie horse in my calf muscle. It lasted for longer than I care to remember. Now my whole leg is sore. I would like to know what causes these atrocities. I have a theory that it's because I wore heels all weekend which I don't always do. Cursed heels.

portland and pumpkin bread

This weekend I had the opportunity to fly to Portland to open for the wonderful Sam Payne at PSU. I'll be honest, after the hassle of last month's flight experiences, I was not looking forward to stepping foot in the airport again. Fortunately, the flights were very uneventful and smooth...and the security lines were short. We were graciously taken care of by the sponsor of the show, the founder of Jim Band Music, Dave Andersen. For the past couple years, Dave and his crew have worked relentlessly and sometimes thanklessly to put together wonderful family-friendly shows in the Portland area. It was an honor to be included with this one, especially on the same bill with Sam Payne. Sam is the ultimate performer. I love watching his shows and I especially love listening to him preface the songs with stories. He's has one of those voices that was born for telling stories, that soothes and entertains all at once. I always walk away from Sam's shows edified and inspired to write.

Sunday was the autumnal equinox. Stephanie Smith and I are somewhat fanatical about the fall season, so we had been planning our autumnal equinox celebration weeks in advance. We couldn't have planned better autumnal weather...overcast and cool. We inaugurated the celebration by lighting a pumpkin spice candle which was almost unnecessary since we made pumpkin bread from scratch and soon filled Steph's kitchen with the natural scent of pumpkin and spices. Then, in the company of her family, we enjoyed different breads, imported cheeses...gouda, swiss, portsalut, and fruit. Could one ask for a better fall celebration? I submit that one could not.

autumn...

Autumn is my favorite season. But this has been a rather strange month for me for various reasons and there's been a hint of melancholy to the approaching season. I still love to look up on the mountainside and see the scrub oak leaves turning orange and I eagerly await the scarlet of the sumac...but it's just the tiniest bit sad to see things dying. It's sad to realize that the vibrancy is one last ditch effort before death, before the frost and bite of winter and loneliness. So I remind myself that it's just change...and change brings growth. There's beauty and wonder in the change if I choose to look for it. So I will.

I love the word autumn; I love everything about it--its letters, its length, and especially what it denotes. I can feel its crispness in the air when I say it aloud. There are a lot of things I want to do this autumn. I want to go hiking when all the leaves on the mountains have changed and the air is cool and smoky. I want to go to a corn maze at dusk, when the light is just beginning to fail. I want to carve a pumpkin and then roast the seeds. I don't even like roasted pumpkin seeds. I want to make warm, gooey pumpkin chocolate chip cookies and share them with my friends as we laugh and talk outside among the fallen leaves.

home again

I'm finally home again after an exhausting...but wonderful...summer tour. I love music, in case you hadn't noticed. It's been such an awesome experience to share mine with so many wonderful people. One of my favorite things about being a musician is that I get to meet new and exciting people at every show...guaranteed. It's something I look forward to. I love the fast pace and I love facing new situations every day that force me to grow as a person. Yes, even flight cancellations...alone...in Paris.

So, what's next? I plan on sitting down with the ol' guitar a lot these upcoming months and writing a lot of new material. I have so many experiences, emotions, and ideas percolating in my head. They need to come out. And I'm sure I'll be doing plenty of shows on top of that. I'm not one to turn them down. The future is exciting.