Month: October 2017

Day 11: Daily Rituals and Songwriting Goals

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I’ve read Daily Rituals: How Artists Work , or at least a good chunk of it. I was fascinated to find out how famous creative people ordered their lives. They seemed more human, more accessible and less god-like.

I am currently re-ordering my life, finding my balance and figuring out how to be a thriving creative. My current set of habits or rituals upon rising are: coffee, gym and writing, crafting or practicing music throughout the day.  This is all in-between chores and errands and caring for my kids.

Because I’m taking part in this month-long Write 31 Days project, I am blogging at night. This feels last minute. I’d like to change that and begin blogging mid-morning. And as far as music goes, when Alan and I have a gig, we always practice at least once the week of. So we need to this week (AKA tomorrow).

In addition to practicing our covers, I know we need to write music. It’s been looming on the horizon for a while, but the reality has landed. We need to do it NOW. There are several venues we would like to play in that will only allow originals performed. So I’m wondering if we can come up with 28 songs for a two-hour show. We currently have two written.

If we aim for January, that’s approximately nine songs a month, or about two per week. No pressure! No problem! Needless to say, I am brainstorming and writing down phrases, titles and recording snippets of melody. It’s time to make this happen.

What are your daily rituals and goals?

Day 10: Good Friends and Sushi Dates

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9F3F83E8-76E3-4054-A04B-5ADF8994DD4FI needed today to be the Tuesday it turned out to be. The pressure to make, create, be brilliant, to learn new skills was weighing on me.

The “Not Enough” and “Too” gremlins were barking loud, “Not enough–not enough creativity, not enough skill, not enough ability, not enough time, etc.” “Too–Too fat, too dumb, too stupid, too slow, too untalented, too late, too old, etc. ” After working out and cleaning the house this morning, I just wanted to go back underneath the covers and hide from them.

But my friend was coming over for lunch, so I chopped fennel, carrots and leeks and sautéed them in olive oil, added white wine, vegetable broth, diced tomatoes, white beans, salt, pepper and oregano and brought it to a simmer in my Le Creuset French Oven.

(I adore that piece of cookware. It’s purple, it cooks like a dream, cleans up easily and I’ve wanted one for twenty years. Actually, I adore French cookware and bakeware in general.)

We had roasted beets and butternut squash earlier to add to the salad. So there was the roasted vegetables and homemade vinaigrette. And of course the gluten free vegan carrot cake I made yesterday for dessert.

I’m so glad my friend came. My spirit was lifted, I calmed down, the gremlins’ barking faded away and we had a lovely afternoon catching up. We ate lunch unhurriedly, then took our cake and coffee to the gazebo.

What a relaxing time with the view of lake and now-harvested cornfields surrounding us. We drank in the natural beauty and nourished our souls with real conversation.

When she left, I took a nap and then tried to drum up enthusiasm and an idea for dinner. As I sat in the darkening bedroom practicing my ukulele, Alan came in and asked if I’d like to go to Capital Corner, the sushi restaurant we love in Ithaca. YES! Of course, I did.

So off to Ithaca we went and had a quiet and delicious sushi dinner. Miso soup for me first, of course. It’s so simple yet always richly comforting. If you live around here, you ought to try Capital Corner if you haven’t. They never disappoint.

When we finished, Alan said, “I want Starbucks.” I did too. Since we had to go up to the mall, we stopped at the Starbucks in Target where he got a Pumpkin Spice Latte and I got a Coffee Frappuccino with almond milk, no whipped cream or dairy and an extra shot of espresso.

We searched for a Halloween store, but the mall had none, so we went to Party City. That store had more Halloween items than last year. We tried on hats and masks and noted prices on pieces we need for our costumes. I got a couple of things for my costume. Then we headed to Wegmans and came home.

Oh, and the gremlins are gone. At least for today.

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Day 9: Tulip Bulbs, Dean Koontz and Carrot Cake

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After a busy weekend when we play out, Mondays always seem like I’m trying to find all the pieces of me and reassemble myself.

I woke late, went to the gym late and then planted sixty-one tulip bulbs around the gazebo. Yes, that’s a lot and my back can testify.

My sister-in-law sent me a very generous birthday gift of one hundred tulips and fifty daffodils. They arrived Friday.

I’m thrilled when I think of the beauty coming up next Spring, but now is the time to plant them while the ground is wet and the temperature mild. So I planted a little more than a third of them today and will work on planting them the rest of this week.

After I came in and showered, I put a gluten free vegan pizza in the oven for lunch and sat down to finish The Silent Corner: A Novel of Suspense, the Dean Koontz book Alan gave me for my birthday.

It wrapped up nicely, but clearly a sequel was on the way. And indeed, The Whispering Room: A Jane Hawk Novel is now available.

Jane Hawk, the protagonist, is definitely a badass, but one with a heart of gold. Everything she does is to protect her son, avenge her murdered husband and save the world. No big deal. If you like suspense novels, add this one to your list.

Next up on my fiction list is Neil Gaiman’s American Gods: Author’s Preferred Text.

My afternoon was spent sewing felt dolls and birds while watching The Tunnel on Amazon Prime.

And then it was time for carrot cake. Sarah Bakes Gluten Free is a blog filled with delicious gluten free and mostly vegan treats.

I have a friend coming over for lunch tomorrow and wanted a classic dessert to serve her. This recipe will produce a carrot cake you won’t forget. I subbed carrot for the zucchini and added 1/4 almond flour. With vegan buttercream frosting, it’s scrumptious.

What was your Monday like?

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Day 8: Sunday at Bandwagon

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Today we performed at Bandwagon Brewery in Interlaken. As it was a Sunday and the Bills were playing, it was a pretty quiet afternoon.

However, four people from Ithaca came out and stayed for two-thirds of the show. They were so supportive and fun and said they’re our new groupies.

Then EJ and her husband came and cheered for us. She was a trip, jumping up and clapping after every song. The high point of the afternoon was that my son and daughter came to hear us play for a few songs. I proudly introduced them to people, thrilled they showed up. Will gave them ginger beer and EJ chatted to them. It felt like a small family affair. And right before close, we had a surprise visit from Jason and Rose Hazlitt.

When we got back home and unpacked the car, we discovered that Judah had the pizzas started. We ate, talked and played Canasta. All in all, it was a happy, satisfying day.

Day 7: Making Magic Means Work

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If you play an instrument or sing, for yourself or for others, you know there is no way around practice. At least in order to be even a little bit good. And getting good means more practice.

Because we are playing at Bandwagon Brewery tomorrow from 2-5, this past week we needed to put in at least three hours of practicing together, plus whatever we had to do on our own. Like most people who work at home, we had various family and house responsibilities to take care of that continually cut into our practice time.

We put in less than an hour on Thursday because Alan’s music stand was missing and his capo broke. Yesterday I didn’t feel well, so we practiced only an hour. That left today.

And today was full of erranding in Ithaca. We were both tired and hungry and dinner still had to be made. So we started dinner and practiced. We stopped and finished evening meal prep and ate. Then, we slogged through our last hour of practice.

The good thing is, at the end, we were both smiling and laughing. It feels rewarding to complete the preparation, to know that tomorrow we will be ready.

Here is a short blog post from Seth Godin on Defining Authenticity that kept me motivated to do the work this week. I hope it encourages you to consistently do the work and share your creativity with the world. Happy Saturday!

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Day 6: A Book Recommendation

Kim2 Comments

I recently read Jeff Goins’ newest book Real Artists Don’t Starve: Timeless Strategies for Thriving in the New Creative Age and recommend you do the same. He wrote twelve chapters on the differences between the “Starving Artist” and the “Thriving Artist”. He included many real-life stories to show how to thrive. Here are three quick and uplifting points to encourage you as a creative.

The Thriving Artist steals from his influences, rather than attempting to be original. 

The Thriving Artist cultivates patrons, rather than waiting for people to find him or her.

The Thriving Artist always works for something, rather than working for free.

Jeff’s book woke me up to the possibility of making a living creatively, helped me understand how things are changing for creative people online and otherwise and how to be healthy and thrive in today’s world. Get a copy and read it. You’ll be glad you did.

Day 5: One of Those Days

Kim2 Comments

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You know the days when you plan out your schedule in your head, with appointments and errands all neatly arranged and completed at the right time? No traffic jams, no appointments in which you are shown to the room and then wait, wait and wait some more? Just everything going like clockwork and you arrive back home with plenty of energy to put away groceries, make dinner and clean it up and attend to your creative work. Yeah, wouldn’t we all like several of those days each week?

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As much as I dreamed of that kind of day, instead, the other kind was doled out to me. My daughter needed me to drive her to the orthodontist and we waited and waited. She forgot to bring her lunch to school today and was hungry, so we stopped at Ithaca Bakery and I bought her a mid-afternoon meal. We sat together and chatted. Then the bank transaction took longer than expected as did traffic. And then there was Wegmans. Wegmans at 5pm is never a good idea, but this was when I was in town, so I had to get groceries. Driving home was slow and long. By the time we reached home, Ella and I were both done in. Thankfully, Alan came out and helped us carry in all the bags. After we put away the contents of said bags and prepared, ate and cleaned up dinner, it was 8:30. We still needed to put in an hour and a half of practice for Sunday’s gig.

Things continued to be a struggle. Alan couldn’t (and still cannot) find his music stand. So after a fruitless search of house and car, we decided we could practice without it. He will have to look in his car again in the morning and if it’s not there, then call Ithaca Bakery on Meadow Street to see if we left it there last month when we played. So we sang two songs thinking everything was golden. And then his capo broke. His capo that he’s had for thirteen years. Well, that limited us to practicing three songs and means tomorrow morning he is heading to Ithaca to purchase a new capo and possibly a new stand if he can’t find his old one. We will get our songs practiced because we must.

The redemptive thread in this story is that Alan is able to spend time outside tonight with the moon–one of his favorite monthly activities when the moon is full and the sky clear. And I can write and read, which I’ve wanted to do all day. Those days can hold a sliver of happiness if we stay positive and look for the good.

I’d love to hear how you get through “those days” when plans are interrupted or things don’t turn out as expected. Do you make time for creativity and relaxation in the middle of chaos?

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Day 4: To Market, To Market

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This is one post in a series about creative living, but the message I am hearing from many different sources and discovering the truth of is this: being a creative person means being a business and marketing-savvy person as well.

I grew up shying away from selling or soliciting in any shape or form, whether with a church group or at a personal yard sale. I just didn’t want to force my stuff or opinions on anyone, didn’t want to toot my own horn or be pushy in any way. Talking to artist friends of mine, I hear the same story from them. Who wants to brag about one’s work? Who wants to push one’s stuff or try to navigate the frightening areas of business and marketing. I continually heard,” I am no business person.” “I am not good at selling anything.” After believing this to be true for myself most of my life, I now disagree with this self-talk. I think every artistic/creative person owes it to themselves and their work to learn as much as they can about how to market oneself, how to make connections, and how to become a business person.

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What changed my mind? Last summer, I formed an acoustic musical duo with Alan. We call ourselves The Inner Crazy. We made a list of songs and started learning them and practicing. A friend of his booked us for her private party, and his boss hired us to play at her cafe. But after that, what? No one knew about us, what our music was like, if we would work well in their venue, etc. It’s not like we had a manager. We were it!

I began asking people I knew for venue ideas, Alan and I made a list of places, we made some cover demos and began visiting local wineries, breweries and restaurants. We didn’t have a website or a business card at first, just an email address, Facebook, Instagram and Twitter accounts and links to our digital demos. If we couldn’t visit places or meet the person in charge of booking, I sent out emails. It made me nervous, both visiting and emailing, but I did it. Alan cold called places as well. I wasn’t courageous enough to do that.

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In most cases, the emails were not helpful. A few places got back to me and said they were booked for the season already or only wanted bands. Most ignored me. A couple actually booked us without meeting us first. Really, the successes were from all the places we went to and met the person in charge. I had to follow up with a “thank you for taking the time to meet us” email and ask if they wanted to book us. Yes, this felt pushy. Some places got back to us months later and said they would book us. In a few cases, I tried again after several months of no response and received a reply.

We are grateful for every gig we’ve had this year. In between gigs, we practiced a lot, learned many new songs, wrote a couple, designed a business card and built a website. We opened a SoundCloud account and kept posting on social media. I started learning the ukulele. I continued to contact places and researched new ones. We had a lengthy list of places we wanted to play at.

We wanted to play at Six Mile Creek Vineyard and were able to play there twice this summer. Treleaven Wines was another place that graciously gave us two bookings. The Trumansburg Farmers Market had us back this August. Bandwagon Brewery opened around the corner and booked us once a month through the end of the year. The Finger Lakes Cider House and Americana Vineyards were both venues Alan has been trying to get a chance to play at since he was doing solo shows. We connected with the folks in charge of both places but didn’t hear back. So we tried again. And both of them booked us and we are thrilled! The Cider House show will be Friday November 10 from 6:15-8:30 and Americana’s will be March 25 in 2018. We play at Bandwagon this Sunday October 8 from 2-5pm.

We have since designed and distributed posters with our names, faces, upcoming shows and contact info in local businesses in Trumansburg and Ovid. I haven’t even done Lodi or Interlaken yet. But we need to create new ones for next month and start passing them out in another week. It’s non-stop.

I have a lot more to learn. Currently, I have a to-do list that is super long. I need to improve our website and add a “subscribe to get email” feature. I am watching Lynda.com tutorials to learn about graphic design. Tumblr is a platform I haven’t tackled, but should, we need new photographs, some videos on Youtube, new cover demos to send out and a holiday EP recorded. We are also seriously contemplating a combined private art/craft show and Inner Crazy concert at our house for the holidays. This will push us out of our comfort zones again, but could end up being fun and a great way to meet with friends and make money at the same time.

Do you have an arts-related business? Are you in a band? I’d love to read what you’ve learned.

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Day 3: Walking on Sunshine

Kim4 Comments

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One of the ways I fuel personal creativity is by immersing myself in Nature. I am fortunate to live in the middle of farm fields with hills, valleys, lake and sky out every window I look.

This morning I took a truly satisfying walk. I stepped out of the door into the cool sunny embrace of the day. I walked slowly, taking in the cornfields that the farmers have been harvesting, some already bare, some still standing. I saw the lake faraway, reassuring me that something is right in this world. The Amish farms, tidy and exuding industry and old-fashioned wholesomeness, were to my right as I walked down the hill. I could hear a killdeer shouting, crows gossiping and crickets singing a slower, cheerful early fall song. Doug the dog at the small house near the bottom of the hill stood sentinel and simply watched me. I continued carefully on by so as not to work him up. The sun warmed my right ear and my neck, the slight breeze held the edge of a chill. I remembered what my therapist told me last year: to take walks and just observe sight, sound, scent and relax into my surroundings. So I did not hurry and attempted not to think about calories burned or steps walked.

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In the nestle of the hollow, I heard rustling of small fauna within the shelter of the trees and breathed in the sweet scent of decaying leaves. The creek was very low, nearly dry. As I came up the hill on the other side I noticed the hay rounds had been removed. I guess I should’ve snapped a shot of them when I had the opportunity. Maybe next year. After the shade of the wooded area, the sun warmed me considerably and I pulled off my sweatshirt, slinging it around my waist. An Amish buggy approached and a young woman with sunglasses waved as she passed, her black horse carrying her away. The sound of their buggies always causes me a bit of a fright. I guess I expect the grim reaper instead of a good Amish. I chalk it up to my overactive imagination. When I reached the corner where the horses stared at me I turned and headed home.

It was as if by doing an about-face the weather changed personalities. Out of the South a strong wind blew into my face and I walked uphill with dried corn stalks flying at me as the farmers harvested.

Trying not to get bits in my eyes, I squinted against the now glaring sun and kept my mind on home. The romance from earlier had definitely flown. As I passed the lower farmhouse, Doug barked twice to let me know he wasn’t fooled by my lack of interest. At last, I hauled myself into the shade of the driveway and felt an overwhelming sense of love and gratefulness for this house that shelters me from Nature and all her moods. I was definitely ready to be productive with the rest of the day. Indoors, that is.

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Tell me about your walks and what they mean to you. I’d love to hear where you go and what the landscape is like where you live.

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Day 2: Ukulele and Me

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The ukulele is a pop thing over the past few years. Since I don’t listen to enough pop to know if one particular song or star launched the current craze, I will just talk about the ones I am aware of. Twenty One Pilots has a cute little ukulele video of “I Can’t Help Falling in Love With You“, plus they feature ukulele in several of their own songs, like “House of Gold” and “Judge“. Meghan Trainor sang “Better When I’m Dancing” and “Just a Friend to You” and most recently she teamed up with Michael Buble to sing “Someday“. All include ukulele. My favorite is probably the late Brother Iz singing “Somewhere Over the Rainbow“. That’s what really decided me on learning to play uke myself.

Last Christmas, Alan surprised me with my very own. I was thrilled but scared at the same time. What if I couldn’t actually play? As I do often when I’m afraid or intimidated, I procrastinated. Anyone else? But by July I knew I needed to open the case and begin learning the chords. I shut my library door not wanting Alan to overhear and laugh at my pathetic attempts at strumming and forming chords. When he did hear me, he was super encouraging and said he couldn’t believe how quickly I was catching on. He found me a few tutorials on youtube and that helped me learn better than simply going through a list of chords. I practiced “Just a Friend to You”, “House of Gold”, “Someday” and it felt great, even with mistakes. Then I decided to use the chords I could play to write a little love song, which we will eventually record and release. And now I’m learning “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” and getting ready to take on more challenging chords. Being able to strum with Alan is lots of fun. I had to purchase another ukulele with a pickup so that I can plug into our sound system. And now we are getting ready to debut these ukulele songs at our next performances.

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We’ll be at:

Bandwagon Brewery (Interlaken) on Sunday October 8 from 2-5pm and

Ithaca Bakery on Friday October 13 from 6-8pm.

Are you learning to play a new instrument this year? I’d love to hear all about it in the comments below.

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