Everyone seems to be making resolutions and I have been thinking about where I am in my life and career. While I am one who personally enjoys making to-do lists (sometimes even several times a day), this year I feel, for my own sanity, I need to take a new approach to the resolutions. It is still a to-do list of sort (because I can’t resist) but on that focuses on my strengths rather than on the areas of improvements. So here it is, in no particular order…
Continue to write everyday. This includes blogging, finishing my novel, as well as writing down the best of the crazy stories I tell Thomas each night. Yes, he requests that I TELL him a story rather than read. There are good ones and some pretty terrible ones.
Continue to eat a vegetarian diet. Starting back with the Veg Week at the end of September, I just kept going with one or two meals off. It suits me. It feels right.
Finish the projects I started from 2011. Mostly this applies to work, but also to writing and reading. I’m not going to even suggest that I not start anything new until I finish. That is just unrealistic.
Continue to stay involved in my community.This includes North Park, the nonprofits I love and the local music scene.
Be the best mom and wife I can be. This really should be at the top of the list but since they are in no particular order, it is at the bottom. Roger and I are approaching year five of our amazing marriage and our little boy is turning three. I like to thank them everyday for being in my life through hugs, kisses, smiles, cooking dinners, telling stories and making cool costumes. Because without them I really couldn’t continue to do all of the things above with a smile.
I dropped the ball. Music this year managed to escape my ears. I look at the top whatever music lists for 2011 and I have heard of only a fraction of what is out there. I guess I am where the masses are. No… I know I’m better than that. I have heard some stuff this year through my old reliables: Slacker, Paste Magazine (with their new m-player) and radio. But from all I’ve heard, even through the new album streaming resource, Spotify, it is not enough to compile a top ten albums list.
Perhaps I need to preface, I really feel let down by music this year. Things that have been exciting most of my lovely music freaks, did not ring my bell this year. I’m not sure why. Have I narrowed my musical preferences? I surely hope not. Is this what happens when you get old? I know instinctively that can’t be true. I guess I have to chalk it up to a bad year for my ears, and that’s more true than told. I have been living with ringing in my ears for almost two months now. Tinnitus settling in. Sigh, best just to distract myself and move on to the good stuff… the good music I did listen to this year. No list, some songs, some albums, all stuff I loved.
I heard this song a few months back on Paste Magazine’s m-player. Her voice reminding me of Johnette Napalitano had me rushing out to by the CD and checking out when she played next. After listening to her album a few times, it didn’t catch me like I had hoped. When she came to the Casbah, I decided to pass and I’m still ok with that decision.
I really wish I took the time to see these guys when they were in town. This song tugs at my own heart, reminding me of the hard work my grandfather did to get my family where it is today. Perfect song to truly get “Lost in your Mind.”
I had the chance to catch Maren at several venues this year and was pleasantly surprised when I heard her album, as I always am when an album lives up to or surpasses a live performance. I feel her music is somewhere between The Sundays and Metric. She is local so go see her perform or hit up M-Theory for her record.
I’m a sucker for Brian Wilson. This is one more open door into his psyche. Comparing Brian Wilson’s Smile versus The Beach Boys’ Smile will now be one of those music geek convos similar to movie nerds’ comparing the various directors’ takes on Batman. BTW… Love this animated video. Even though it was made recently, you could totally see it being made in 1967, when the Smile album was originally intended for release.
This song is super catchy and made me by the album, but only last night so I haven’t given the album a good listen. This music video doesn’t give me the same empowerment as I feel just listening the the song, but maybe it will for you… just imagine the dogs don’t stop running after the car and have a better life abandoned in the middle of nowhere. Sorry, still not doing it.
I’m glad that this song was the radio hit. The drums hitting at off times and the song broken into distinct sections just rub me the right way every time. We have the album and I like most of what I hear, but this song feels miles above the rest. P.S. from this point on I will never, ever miss a Foo Fighter’s show. I have such a great time and endless energy when they hit the stage. Their live concerts are up there with The Rolling Stones and Rush: timeless and I can totally imagine David Grohl and Pat Smear in their 70’s rocking out.
After taking a recent listen to some of the Paste top 50, I have some listening to do in 2012. I’m especially intrigued by Beirut, Seryn and Tom Waits new album (I just bought the Tom Waits and Beirut albums last night at M-Theory). Next up, tackling Pitchfork‘s top songs and albums released this week. There is hope for me yet finding the needles in the haystack of sound.
November was a month of growing facial hair, walking 60 miles over 3 days and writing novels. I’m personally glad to have participated in one of these feats. You are crazy and pretty amazing if you did all three.
37,021 words in a month equates to 1,234 words per day or 75 printed pages, single spaced with 11 point Arial font. Here is how all of that panned out over the course of the month:
I love graphs. This chart helped me keep moving. I enjoyed watching the bar creep upwards each day as I input the word count.
Over all, this was an incredible learning experience. Over the span of the month, I found:
I work well with a timer. After attending a Write In at the Ink Spot, an awesome writers workshop space in East Village, I learn I was the most productive and focused when I set a timer and had a goal in mind. 50 minutes for 500 words.
I mostly averaged 10 words per minute (see above goal for calculation). That seems low, but referring to plot and character details, getting stuck on a word or changing scenes all cause delays.
Writing at a quiet coffee-house, good. Writing at a noisy bar, not very productive. All seemingly obvious. I tried out various places to write including Rebecca’s in South Park, Lestat’s on Adam’s Ave, Claire de Lune in North Park, Whistle Stop in South Park, El Zarape in University Heights, in my bed, the couch, at work, and of course, in Balboa Park.
Typing on a netbook can be hazardous to your health. I ended up going to the chiropractor weekly to adjust the kinks out of my neck from looking down at the computer.
Characters can take over your story. On more than one occasion, my characters defied my predetermined plot. Sometimes I had to make corrective actions to ensure late parts weren’t compromised, but mostly, I just let them win.
You have to just keep going. I like to word smith and edit as I go. I learned that to get the word count up, you have to just let it go and just know that you will have to come back to it later. The main thing is to get the concept on paper.
And by no means am I done. I’m about three-fourth complete according to my outline. I plan to continue writing everyday until the first draft of my story is done. Then there is the editing, reviewing and all of the work it takes to actually get it published. I don’t even want to start thinking about any of that until I at least have a completed first draft. I have started a list of people who want to help with editing, so if you are interested, please leave a comment or shoot me an email. Since this is all new to me, I appreciate any help offered.
Lastly, I want to thank my husband. I couldn’t have done any of this without his support, including spending extra time playing with our son allowing me more time to write. For this, I am truly thankful.
While big box stores and shopping malls are gearing up for special sales on Friday and online sales are set for Cyber Monday, Saturday has been claimed for small businesses. The marketing effort, spearheaded by American Express (most likely trying to mend broken small business relations due to credit card fees), has been broad reaching, focusing on business districts and main streets across America. In its second year, North Park Main Street was approached to be a part of the promotions.
On Saturday in North Park you will find shops open for business, many with special deals and or extended hours. District 3 Councilmember Todd Gloria will be on-site for a proclamation and drawing at noon for 12 $25 American Express gift cards, plus some other giveaways. The festivities will be taking place all over North Park, but these special affairs will be at Art Produce on 30th and Herman. Santa will also be out and about.
Regardless if you make it out on Saturday, make sure you frequent your community’s small businesses this holiday season. Do your part to get out and shop local.
We had the chance to see Amanda Palmer at the North Park Birch Theatre a few weeks back. It was an awesome show overall but one of the opening acts who Amanda courted out of Australia surprised us with heart-felt, honest, touching music. Mainly other beautiful adjectives could apply to the duo known as The Jane Austen Argument. I walked away with a six-song EP which I only recently put in my car.
Upon reaching the final song on the CD, I was treated with a short monologue by angel-winged, Tom Dickens that has since provided me with uplifted spirits and a new drive to take on the holidays and the new year. I provided two of my favorite quotes from the small speech, but I urge you to to take a listen to Plan Behind for yourself.
“I could fail spectacularly, but I’m’ a fan of spectacle.”
“Look for what whatever makes you happy. What couldn’t you live without doing? What do you do in your spare time that makes you smile and are you doing it enough? An if not, why?”
You might find inspiration in his words, adorable Australian accent or even in the song itself, sang by his partner in awesomeness, Jen Kingwell.
Karmic Life 