Goal Posters work!

Growing up, I disliked goals. Maybe it was my rebel nature, dissatisfaction of knowing the end the story before it’s told, or distrust in non-tangible theories. Now as an adult about to reach 30, I know that goals are the key to all accomplishments and more importantly GOAL POSTERS WORK! Below is a pic of my 2012 Goals for music:

 

Sundance: check. Kickstarter is a type of fund raiser, which I ended up conducting on my own: check. Record album: check (we’re in the studio now and it will be complete before the end of the year). Blog regularly and practice everyday have a half check because they are slightly more mundane and more of a reminder to keep them up. Lastly, 2 Mini Tours: as of this weekend, check.

Earlier this year the band did a short weekend tour (I like to call "Mini Tours") from Brigham City to Logan to Park City. We had a great time but I had set a goal for 2 this year with no prospects for the second. Then, out of the blue, a new friend I met while on tour with Melody & Tyler Spring 2011 sent me a message for a mini tour opportunity to the beautiful Pocatello, ID. :) I had such a great time this weekend, put up by my wonderful cousins, free amazing salad at Marigolds, and the wonderful group of fans supplied by the supportive #1 Fan, Mandy.

Another fun opportunity for me this tour was to introduce some new covers including “Wait” by Alexi Murdoch, “You and I” by Ingrid Michaelson, and “I Will Follow You Into the Dark” by Death Cab For Cutie. Original artist videos below. I loved performing these new-to-me covers, especially “Wait”. Such a good song! :) I hope you enjoy them as well and may all your goal endeavors be as fruitful. I’ve already started putting together 2013’s goals. Here’s to another great year. 

"Wait"

"You and I"

"I Will Follow You into the Dark"

New song: "Stay"

I’ve been really depressed lately. That’s not something I would usually announce online but it warrants my wonderful experience yesterday. For at least the past 2-3 weeks I’ve been depressed. I haven’t been this depressed in years. It was more than the "left by someone I love", "stressed at work", "music career gaining no traction", kind of depression but the real deal. Yesterday, I wrote a song and the depression went away. Completely. It was weird. As soon as I was done concentrating on writing I noticed the weight on my heart had lifted and I felt great. I'm not saying songwriting solves all problems, I've just yet to find one it can't solve. :)

I wasn’t even depressed about the subject matter I wrote about. I was just learning a couple Bon Iver songs and found a hook I enjoyed. The lyrics just started coming out. I couldn’t let it pass me up so I grabbed the nearest pen and paper and let it flow. You got to strike while the iron's hot.

"The Muse will always be the lead. You can never summon it. You can never make an appointment with it. It either comes or it doesn't and when comes, you consider yourself damn lucky."
-Glen Hansard

The subject matter was something I’ve been wanting to write for some time now. Earlier this year I fell in love in a dream. I figure if Paul McCartney can write “Yesterday” in a dream, I can surely fall in love. It may have helped that I dated the girl off and on in past. The dream was amazing. We spent a couple days together and it paralleled reality at several points. At the end of the dream we decided to start our life together and I had never been so happy, in a dream or reality. Naturally, I then woke up and couldn’t move. I have never wanted to swap reality with fantasy more in my life. I figured if I just laid there hoping and praying that waking up late for work was the dream and I could eventually go back to her. Needless to say, it wasn’t. But I was still in love with her. It didn’t work out but still to this day I remember every detail of the dream so I wrote this song. It presents the relationship between dreams and reality with a longing for the former but also tells the story of what happened in the dream. I very pleased with it. Hopefully you can hear it soon but in the meantime, here are the lyrics:

STAY

Once again you fall asleep

Sprawled half way off my bed

I pick you up to tuck you in

Startled awake from a bad dream

Fight or flight in your eyes

Until you see that it is me

You wrap your arms so tight around my neck

Pulled me close into my bed

Settled in for the night

I guess I won’t sleep on the couch

Wake me up with a kiss

Spent all morning in my bed

I fell in love with you again

In this moment, I’ve never felt so alive

                Chorus

People say that dreams are dreams

Doesn’t matter what they mean

I just can’t live that way

Waking up is like a death

Leaving where I’d rather live

Why can’t I just stay? …at least a while?

That night, dinner with the fam

So nice and interesting

Like you want to be a part

Now we’re sitting eye to eye

No more games, no more lies

It’s time for our life to begin

Now I know what all my pain offsets

Chorus

Bridge

Chorus

People say I can’t see

All the joy in front of me

I just can’t live that way

Waking up brings the pain

No strength left for the day

Why can’t I just stay? …at least a while?