a new year. meh.
could you imaging i haven't kept fully any of those resolutions. at least i have stayed consistent.
i've been working more hours and i have been doing porter work. that's correct, i've been promoted from cashier to janitor. amazing. it's not bad though, it is more hours. and essentially less work. i'm also getting my student loans lowered which will give me more money to work with. so that situation is a bit better.
we had a Marx practice last Saturday. 1974 is playing a show on Saturday in white plains and Marx is playing a show on Monday in Danbury at the old empress. i haven't felt this happy in a long time.
I'm learning what it is that makes me happy. that is friends. it's like a tribe of people. both Marx and 1974 to me feel like family. like i am part of something. the music i play in 1974 is the best that i have been a part of writing, and Marx's music is amazing as well. i also have the best time with both in terms of artistic fulfillment and fun. everything else pales in comparison to the connections you make with other people. i feel like i've forgotten that over the years.
this is a good time in my life. i feel at peace and free.
Friday, January 15, 2010
Tuesday, December 29, 2009
Final Draft (I think)
Completely detox for a month or so. (no drinking, drugs, tobacco)
Completely give up tobacco products(ouch.)
Drink less. When i am drinking, also drink less.
Make enough money not just to get by. (hah. sounds easy.)
complete one song a day (wow.)
record at least 2 albums.
Go on a rather long trip. (either a tour or a road trip. hopefully a tour.)
Read a book every two weeks.
Stop eating meat. (I'll miss wings the most.)
Eat a healthy diet. No exceptions. (I've eaten like shit for long enough, i can bear being healthy for a year.)
Go to the gym, get in shape. (The classic new year's resolution. Get on to a plan that will get me the results i want.)
Only buy things like clothes, furniture, etc. second hand. (goodwill, salvation army, tag sales)
Necessary new products, purchase them ethically. (if possible buy from locally owned stores, try to bring shopping at big box stores to a minimum)
Become more politically active outside of my recliner.
Stay in closer Contact with people. (sorry.)
Stick to my principles, always.
I'm biting off more than i can chew. It's kind of my thing.
Completely give up tobacco products(ouch.)
Drink less. When i am drinking, also drink less.
Make enough money not just to get by. (hah. sounds easy.)
complete one song a day (wow.)
record at least 2 albums.
Go on a rather long trip. (either a tour or a road trip. hopefully a tour.)
Read a book every two weeks.
Stop eating meat. (I'll miss wings the most.)
Eat a healthy diet. No exceptions. (I've eaten like shit for long enough, i can bear being healthy for a year.)
Go to the gym, get in shape. (The classic new year's resolution. Get on to a plan that will get me the results i want.)
Only buy things like clothes, furniture, etc. second hand. (goodwill, salvation army, tag sales)
Necessary new products, purchase them ethically. (if possible buy from locally owned stores, try to bring shopping at big box stores to a minimum)
Become more politically active outside of my recliner.
Stay in closer Contact with people. (sorry.)
Stick to my principles, always.
I'm biting off more than i can chew. It's kind of my thing.
Monday, December 28, 2009
notes nearing the end of the decade.
Well, all i can say is that this decade was much like a lot of decades. In most individual's lives, they grew, did things, had ups and downs etc. On a larger scale, it blew and was full of misery. Maybe there was some type of social progress, but i can't think of any right now. Some places legalized gay marriage. that's a good thing.
The thing I'm realizing more and more is that there isn't a rewind button in life. It just keeps moving forward. You won't ever be younger and you never stay the same age. I'm never going to be a teenager or a child again. It sounds like an obvious thing, but somehow my mind has trouble with it. My mind has a habit of living in a different place than me.
Another thing i have noticed over the last decade is that the majority of people don't give a shit about music, much less my music. I am happy with my music and it isnt a matter of confidence in my craft. It's just an observation. You might as well write what you feel and write whatever you want to. Search for that personal connection with an audience that understands you, not the other way around.
I am relatively happy, in my semi-melancholy way. I'm rather at peace. As i get older i understand why older people always looked so angry to me when i was younger. I'm not that guy, i just am sometimes.
The thing I'm realizing more and more is that there isn't a rewind button in life. It just keeps moving forward. You won't ever be younger and you never stay the same age. I'm never going to be a teenager or a child again. It sounds like an obvious thing, but somehow my mind has trouble with it. My mind has a habit of living in a different place than me.
Another thing i have noticed over the last decade is that the majority of people don't give a shit about music, much less my music. I am happy with my music and it isnt a matter of confidence in my craft. It's just an observation. You might as well write what you feel and write whatever you want to. Search for that personal connection with an audience that understands you, not the other way around.
I am relatively happy, in my semi-melancholy way. I'm rather at peace. As i get older i understand why older people always looked so angry to me when i was younger. I'm not that guy, i just am sometimes.
Wednesday, December 23, 2009
Resolutions
Eat Healthy.
Go to the gym.
Write a song every day.
Get a band started.
Go vegetarian.
Get involved as an activist.
Make mad loot.
Following my life guidelines (in an earlier post)
I'll be adding more to this most likely. It's all a work in progress.
It's always important than after you learn and decide something, you let it sink in to your true self. Everyone needs to stop being an anything-ist. See and experience.
Go to the gym.
Write a song every day.
Get a band started.
Go vegetarian.
Get involved as an activist.
Make mad loot.
Following my life guidelines (in an earlier post)
I'll be adding more to this most likely. It's all a work in progress.
It's always important than after you learn and decide something, you let it sink in to your true self. Everyone needs to stop being an anything-ist. See and experience.
Monday, December 21, 2009
There is no authority but yourself.
I watched a documentary on the band Crass recently. They seemed to be some of the most free thinking pissed off individuals i've ever heard of. The ideas that they support are ones that have meant a lot to me in recent years.
As humans, we like to put things into categories. To give things names. Countries, states, cities, streets, political parties and ideologies, people; All put neatly together, so we can say "I like it.", or "I don't like it."
It's all bullshit.
They do nothing for anyone or anything. Ideas are the only truth. Our individual thoughts communicated to the word through words or music or fighting is hard enough. To get it out there. To have other people experience a slice of that idea. And there comes the label, the category, the dichotomy, the polarization. Fuck that. Stop thinking so damn much and just experience. Just. Do. Things.
I had a conversation with a friend once and we realized that art is like crying. You can relate and understand the pain, but never through their filter.
So next time you're bored. stop traffic by sitting naked in the intersection. They don't got shit on you. Just sit there and fucking meditate. This is your experience. You're the one crying. And no one will ever get it.
As humans, we like to put things into categories. To give things names. Countries, states, cities, streets, political parties and ideologies, people; All put neatly together, so we can say "I like it.", or "I don't like it."
It's all bullshit.
They do nothing for anyone or anything. Ideas are the only truth. Our individual thoughts communicated to the word through words or music or fighting is hard enough. To get it out there. To have other people experience a slice of that idea. And there comes the label, the category, the dichotomy, the polarization. Fuck that. Stop thinking so damn much and just experience. Just. Do. Things.
I had a conversation with a friend once and we realized that art is like crying. You can relate and understand the pain, but never through their filter.
So next time you're bored. stop traffic by sitting naked in the intersection. They don't got shit on you. Just sit there and fucking meditate. This is your experience. You're the one crying. And no one will ever get it.
Sunday, December 20, 2009
snowyness
it snowed a lot last night.
i woke up at 5:30 in the morning to find my car covered by a 4 foot tall snow drift. I got to work. My shovel broke. I think it snowed about 18 inches. Typically on the coast, we get less snow or no snow at all. In this storm, it was pretty much the opposite. I got to work a half hour early and chatted a bit with Mark, the porter. Starbucks and dunkin donuts were closed, so i went across the street to find coffee at the citgo station. caffeine is caffeine.
it was really slow. I put the sunday papers, and a stayed a bit longer because not many people showed up to work. now i'm home ,but i don't feel like doing much. maybe i'll write some. I kinda want to write a song a day. see if that helps me get my ass in gear in terms of writing. we'll see.
I wrote this the other day. just jotting down notes on band promotion. i write notes on everything.
Keys to successful band
1. good original music
2. practice: having a tight band
3. playing as many shows as possible
4. having a good internet presence and good recordings for after the shows.
5. Having appealing visual art and graphics.
strategy for band
1. write music
2. record demo
3. set up Myspace. add 300 people a day from local area
4. Set up Facebook, Purevolume, last.fm and ilike
5. Find message boards for local artists; join them and become a
regular.
6. Frequent local shows of artists like you. Flyer and talk to people.
Maybe give out free CDs.
7. After 4-6 months of this promotion. start playing shows in this area
as much as possible. flyer and get people to sign up for your mailing
list.
8. Once there is a decent following, only play in the area every 1-2
months, repeat the same promotion steps for a new area.
9. once areas you want to reach aren't easily reachable on the
regular, start setting up small tours.
I mean it's not perfect, but if you're starting off in terms of band promotion, it's a good start.
Here's my list for life.
1. Honesty
-being honest with myself.
-being honest about what i do and do not know.
-being open and honest with others
2. Integrity
-Keeping promises and obligations to the best of my ability.
*utility
-using your time to accomplish constructive goals.
-using positive and negative emotion as fuel for achieving goals.
*tension and release; mainly hedonistic non-productive activity.
-the more you do something, the less satisfying it is;the opposite is true for the less you do something.
*avoiding divisiveness.
-labeling groups, relationships, individuals.
-avoiding assumptions
*avoiding coercion
-becoming a leader by example.
-respecting other people enough to let them live their own life
-only step in if coercion is warranted, which is a limited basis.
-not allowing myself to be coerced by others
*there is no 100% proof of anything.
It's a much more practical set of guidelines than i usually make, but put to the test it can be extraordinary. Enjoy.
i woke up at 5:30 in the morning to find my car covered by a 4 foot tall snow drift. I got to work. My shovel broke. I think it snowed about 18 inches. Typically on the coast, we get less snow or no snow at all. In this storm, it was pretty much the opposite. I got to work a half hour early and chatted a bit with Mark, the porter. Starbucks and dunkin donuts were closed, so i went across the street to find coffee at the citgo station. caffeine is caffeine.
it was really slow. I put the sunday papers, and a stayed a bit longer because not many people showed up to work. now i'm home ,but i don't feel like doing much. maybe i'll write some. I kinda want to write a song a day. see if that helps me get my ass in gear in terms of writing. we'll see.
I wrote this the other day. just jotting down notes on band promotion. i write notes on everything.
Keys to successful band
1. good original music
2. practice: having a tight band
3. playing as many shows as possible
4. having a good internet presence and good recordings for after the shows.
5. Having appealing visual art and graphics.
strategy for band
1. write music
2. record demo
3. set up Myspace. add 300 people a day from local area
4. Set up Facebook, Purevolume, last.fm and ilike
5. Find message boards for local artists; join them and become a
regular.
6. Frequent local shows of artists like you. Flyer and talk to people.
Maybe give out free CDs.
7. After 4-6 months of this promotion. start playing shows in this area
as much as possible. flyer and get people to sign up for your mailing
list.
8. Once there is a decent following, only play in the area every 1-2
months, repeat the same promotion steps for a new area.
9. once areas you want to reach aren't easily reachable on the
regular, start setting up small tours.
I mean it's not perfect, but if you're starting off in terms of band promotion, it's a good start.
Here's my list for life.
1. Honesty
-being honest with myself.
-being honest about what i do and do not know.
-being open and honest with others
2. Integrity
-Keeping promises and obligations to the best of my ability.
*utility
-using your time to accomplish constructive goals.
-using positive and negative emotion as fuel for achieving goals.
*tension and release; mainly hedonistic non-productive activity.
-the more you do something, the less satisfying it is;the opposite is true for the less you do something.
*avoiding divisiveness.
-labeling groups, relationships, individuals.
-avoiding assumptions
*avoiding coercion
-becoming a leader by example.
-respecting other people enough to let them live their own life
-only step in if coercion is warranted, which is a limited basis.
-not allowing myself to be coerced by others
*there is no 100% proof of anything.
It's a much more practical set of guidelines than i usually make, but put to the test it can be extraordinary. Enjoy.
Sunday, December 13, 2009
it's raining. again.
I'm pretty sure that groton is the only place in New England to constantly get rain, while everyone else has seen snow. I at least would like to see a little bit.
Saturday i worked from 10 until 2 and then went up to newington to practice. One of the main issues with practicing on saturdays as opposed to sunday is that liquor stores are closed on sunday. hah. i still enjoyed myself, and practiced some covers. I guess we may be playing at a bar in hamden sometime in late January. I'll keep everyone posted.
Today i worked from 7:30 until 1:30 this morning. I was exhausted and not in the best mood. Customers were really getting to me. Amber kept waking me up and telling me i had to get up for work. At 3AM. I started second guessing myself during night and responded with asking what time it was every 1/2 hour or so. I have no idea why.
I got out of work, passed out for a while, and then sat on the computer until now. It's 8pm now. The time stamp on my blog is wrong. I haven't figured out how to change it yet. I'm still working on music promotion online. I need to figure out a strategy. I need to become more active. I need to eat healthier. I need to do a lot of things. I'll get there. I hope.
Saturday i worked from 10 until 2 and then went up to newington to practice. One of the main issues with practicing on saturdays as opposed to sunday is that liquor stores are closed on sunday. hah. i still enjoyed myself, and practiced some covers. I guess we may be playing at a bar in hamden sometime in late January. I'll keep everyone posted.
Today i worked from 7:30 until 1:30 this morning. I was exhausted and not in the best mood. Customers were really getting to me. Amber kept waking me up and telling me i had to get up for work. At 3AM. I started second guessing myself during night and responded with asking what time it was every 1/2 hour or so. I have no idea why.
I got out of work, passed out for a while, and then sat on the computer until now. It's 8pm now. The time stamp on my blog is wrong. I haven't figured out how to change it yet. I'm still working on music promotion online. I need to figure out a strategy. I need to become more active. I need to eat healthier. I need to do a lot of things. I'll get there. I hope.
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