i am a control freak. actually i think most of us are if we’re willing to admit it. i’ve realized for myself the things i try to control aren’t necessarily big things, they’re just surfacy things to help me cope with the bigger issues i know i can’t control. i like to feel independent. i enjoy a sense of pride that wells up in me when i do something productive. i say “i did this”. pat myself on the back “good job, jessie.” i’ve never been officially diagnosed, but i’m probably a little OCD – which would magnify some of my controlling issues. right? anyway, it’s not ever big things i attempt to control, i’ve been around long enough to know that i can’t control big things – duh. for instance:
other people
my children
the weather
God
the past
my country
my superiors
my cat
so for the sake of this blog being a bit trite (which it will be), i’ll share some things i enjoy controlling, or manipulating – if you will. {sidebar: i aim to not pigeon hole myself on my blog, because…..well…..i’m not a pigeon. i am not a mommy blogger, fashion blogger, food blogger, music critic, christian blogger, or whatever kind of blogger you might think i appear to be. i’m just me. a dabbler in all sorts of things; a professional amateur just looking to grasp what the winds of life toss my way, then sort it out with a dance, some tears, a laugh and sometimes a piece of writing. i really just like writing, and i think writing likes me.}
jessie’s control-freakanomics
Mary-effing-Poppins (or MFP)
to MFP a room is for the room to be completely and utterly destroyed, and one (me in this case) approaches said disaster and in a miraculous amount of time and with such little effort that gawkers would gasp. this person (me) magically makes the room so clean that the room physically sighs with relief and beams from wall to wall. all dishes clean. all laundry folded. all toys put away in their organized, color-coded bins. floors sparkling. windows shining. rug vacuumed. pillows puffed. counters sanitized – in 30 minutes or less. that room just got Mary effing Poppins’d! BOOM!
i actually love cleaning when i feel the need to control something. when i’m sad, angry or frustrated and need to see an instant product of my labor – i clean. it’s actually a really great way to burn some negative energy – both emotional and physical. i’m thankful my bend is not to sit and eat chocolate or drink a whole bottle of wine. i attribute this to my dad. he can MFP a room like nobody’s business.
since i can’t control other people, or even my cacophony of dumb female emotions at times: i clean. i can control how my house looks and get a sense of freshness and newness. it doesn’t necessarily solve my problems on a deeper level, but usually it fulfills the initial desire to control or fix what is plaguing me. and my house gets clean – which is never bad.
2. Fashion
one of my earliest acts of rebellion or trying to assert my independence was fashion related. actually most of my rebellion as a kid/teenager was due to an ongoing clash with my mother regarding clothes. as an adult, my need to control the bigger things which are not within my power to control (see paragraph 1) can be redirected by making myself feel strong, confident, bright, different and beautiful through what i wear.
my sense of style has never been “normal”. mom bought me white socks with a lace ankle tutu when i was 6 and i hid in my shag-carpetted closet and cut the lace off before Sunday School. of course she noticed and i got in big trouble. the lace ankle tutu cutting episode was one of my first acts of rebellion as a child. my unique fashion sense started very young. my desire to be stylishly independent was just beginning.
in the 6th grade my favorite bands were Weezer and The Cranberries. like most youngsters i was introduced to both bands by a boy i had a crush on. The Cranberries have a lyric about wearing Doc Martens in the sun, so naturally i saved up all my money and bought a pair of Doc Martens. paired with awkward cut off jean shorts, crazy patterned tights and awful 1990′s tops i must have been ahead of my time (since this is terribly popular now). needless to say Mom and i argued incessantly about what i thought was fashion and what she thought was trashy, frumpy and inappropriate.
today fashion is a silly joy for me. i’m a thrifter, so i have a lot of clothes (all purchased cheaply – of course), and i’m always rotating them out. selling the ones i don’t wear anymore and getting new pieces (The Buffalo Exchange has made this possible). it sounds so ditsy, but i love putting outfits together. it’s an easy creative outlet to incorporate how i’m feeling through what i’m wearing. i can’t control the weather or my capricious heart, but i can control the look i want to embody on a given day. i like the power of choosing to be someone different every day. i like mixing genres, colors, themes, textures and patterns. femininity hasn’t always been my strong suite, so my friends have been helping me incorporate ‘glam’ into my wardrobe lately, and i’m kind of loving it.
it’s amazing to me how much confidence, attitude, peace, and joy i gain just by controlling my own style. i am thankful for fashion. i’m glad it’s my own. i am glad to be a girly-girl one day and total grunge another. to be a professionally dressed teacher and an amateur hip hop dancer – all in the same day. it’s fun. i suppose it all goes hand-in-hand with not wanting to be pigeon-holed, labeled or defined. it’s probably why i studied theater in college – to see what it’d be like to be other people. i also like being a mystery. you can’t put me in a box or category if you’re unsure of where i’d fit. (schnarky smile)
3. Dance
i am not human, i am dancer. dance is another form of communication for me. my favorite reality television show is So You Think You Can Dance. movement speaks to my soul. when i dance it unlocks my brain, my emotions, my spirit. dance is probably the best way for me channel frustration, fear, anxiety, anger and even sadness. i’m not a good dancer or anything, i just have this unrelenting need to kick out my limbs in every direction, shake everything vigorously and make myself dizzy to recenter and balance unmanageable emotions. i typically have 3 to 5 personal dance parties a week. sometimes with my kids, but usually just by myself. i cry, laugh and sweat. the catharsis is irreplaceable.
i took modern dance in college and have taken a few hip hop and break dancing classes here and there. i love that dance is an outlet to express what words cannot. i love that i can control my body to align with music; with a cadence. i wish i was better than i am, but i’m thankful to be able to shake and thrash and rock and spin. it keeps me young, i think. it helps me release an expression in a bigger way than words.
this scene from the movie Billy Elliot illustrates what i’m having trouble communicating:
as well as this from the original Footloose:
this episode of So You Think You Can Dance aired when Sparrow was in the hospital post surgery. I cried so hard watching it that night and still cry every time i see it. so so powerful.
to control what i cannot control i clean the crap out of my house, manipulate my quirky, shifting style and hash out my feelings through movement. how do you cope? tell me!
i haven’t bloggered in a long time. here’s why: i’ve been staying up all night crafting my brains out getting ready for this BIG holiday art market. i also have been teaching a lot more – which is great. but then i have no time to sit and write.
anyway…..come to this thing this weekend, bring everyone you know and spend all your money buying Christmas presents. k?
if you’re an out-of-towner and you want to purchase some of my stuff, i’ll post everything that doesn’t sell on my etsy shop.
these friends of mine will also be selling their awesome handmade things:
i know i haven’t written in awhile. sorry. and the bad news is that this isn’t a real post either. it is me shamelessly promoting an art show i will be selling my handicrafts at. i promise i have meaningful posts bumping around in my brain cells, and they’re on the way, for anyone who cares. in the meantime, come see me in person this Sunday in NODA.
22 local artists. 5 local food trucks.
some of my friends will be there too selling their art. see….
Dang, I am so excited to introduce to my blog a new feature where I get to promote bands and music I believe in. To kick off the series, I was lucky enough to grab an interview with Civilian‘s own Ryan Alexander. In between writing poetic and politically charged rock and roll, Ryan also records and produces for other bands and musicians.
Civilian is getting ready to tour the pants off their brand new full-lenth release ‘Should This Noose Unloosen’ up & down the east coast. I’m not sure how I got this privilege, but Ryan sent me the new record last week and I can’t stop listening to it. Both catchy and thought-provoking, ‘Should This Noose Unloosen’ drives with heavy guitar riffs and convicting vocals that instantly suck you into the passion and poignancy.
But don’t take my word for it (or you can if you want). Check out our convo below, watch the video, then go download the album for yourself. Taste and see – that the rock and roll is good. I promise, you won’t be disappointed.
JM: Hey Ryan. I’m excited to be interviewing you and talking about your band’s new record ‘Should This Noose Unloosen’. How excited are you?
RA: I am probably more excited to do this than I have been to do almost any interview in the past. Reason being, most interviewers want me to type the responses so that they don’t have to transcribe them later. I am also excited about this because I got to read the questions ahead of time. Most of the time I find myself answering with a million “umm’s” or by lying.
JM: Well we don’t want you lying, Ryan. Glad to hear you’re excited. I am too! Thanks for sending me the record ahead of time. I am already a BIG fan. Seriously. After listening to ‘Should This Noose Unloosen‘, I’m curious as to who some of your biggest influences are; musically and in general?
RA: Good question, m’lady. Musically…. If there were to be an ultimate Invincible Musical Robot, then I am sure that he would be constructed with the…
Mind of David Bazan
The Musicality of Patrick Watson
The Satire of Randy Newman
The Innovation of Jack White
And the timeless discontent of Minor Threat
O, and I LOVE No Knife. “Fire In the City of Automatons” is probably my favorite record of all time.
JM: Nice. That’d be some kind of robot. How old were you when you first realized you had 2 first names?
RA: Actually, I have 3 first names, ipso facto. I was in a bar the other night, about a week ago, and the bartender came back over and said, “Just so you know, I gave you a discount. Please don’t murder me.” And I had no idea what that meant. So I just turned my head to the left – the kind of turn that a dog’s head makes when some neighborhood kid won’t stop ringing the doorbell, or when the TV makes a high pitched ringing. He said, “Dude. You have three first names.” And I said, “Yes.” He said, “Just like all the famous murderers.”
I later found out, he was only half right. The murderers (actually, they are noted as “political assassins”) are guys that typically had three names. Such as, Lee Harvey Oswald, James Earl Ray, and John Wilkes Booth. He was only half right because the asssassins went by three names, not their first names. Needless to say, I am going to start going by three names. It makes living in downtown far more affordable. And, I like the tension.
JM: Are you going to murder me after this interview?
RA: Who knows? Depends how fast I can change my facebook info. It needs to be official. Facebook name changes are legally binding right?
JM: Probably……? Well, now that everyone is officially scared, can we move on?
RA: I think it’s “safe” to say we can move on. But who knows. I may snap.
JM: I’ll talk fast…. Hearing a musician use words like “caustic”, “sanguine psychology”, “dichotomy” and “paleolithical” makes me question if your day job is being a college professor.
RA: I love words. And I love education. And I love enlightenment. Songs have the potential to be both educational and enlightening if the writer chooses to orient themselves in a way that aims to communicate or uncover something that is hidden or undiscovered by most. That said, I hated college so, I quit.
JM: What did you study while you were there?
RA: And I hated high school, so I didn’t try. Unless trying meant that I wouldn’t be grounded.
I wanted to study Engligh. hahahaha. the best typo ever.
JM: I can see why you dropped out.
RA: I feel like choosing words is my favorite part of writing. Paleolithical isn’t an actual word, if I am correct. I wanted to use the word really bad, so I figured I would make it work by adding -al to the end (of Paleolithic). I wanted a word that expansively encompassed the entire era of cavemen. You know, because I really wanted to.
JM: That’s brave
RA: I also use the phrase “ever’gain” on Bottom Dollar. I don’t know why I wrote it that way, but it seemed like the perfect word at the time. It didn’t occur to me until after everything was recorded that I used a phrase that doesn’t exist. I used it to combine Ever and Again. I like words.
JM: Gosh…..me too.
RA: I heard it said once that words create worlds.
JM: If words were an island, I’d probably live there.
RA: Words Create Worlds. Capitol: Crazytown. Population: Me.
JM: But you’re a man – not an island, right?
RA: Right. Most of the time.
JM: Have you ever seen that movie ‘About A Boy?’
RA: Yes
JM: I love the moment when Hugh Grant realizes he needs to be needed, and that being an island is a pretty lonely concept after all.
RA: My favorite song is from that movie…”Silent Sigh” by Badly Drawn Boy
JM: I love that movie, and BDB.
Ok, Ryan. I got a heavy hitter for you, son. Can you tell me about James Kent?
RA: James Darryl Kent. He was the guy that was around when my life completely changed. Before him, I was fine. My life was really easy. And convenient. He was a 50 year old guy that was a crack addict that had been an addict since his 20′s. It held him up. It made him burn bridges with everything he loved. It demanded his life. And he handed it over. And he lived on the streets for over 25 years of his life. Sleeping where he pissed. You know, a real life homeless guy.
And one day, I knew I had to do something about it. I had to help him. I couldn’t pass him on the off-ramp one more time. I had never talked to a homeless person really. Never had a need to. I didn’t even really understand the gravity of “homeless”. I just thought it meant a person who was dying to get in a home and get their life straight. Turns out, that even people with homes and beds and showers are homeless.
JM: So true….
RA: And so James Kent (Darryl) became best friends with me and my best friend/ roommate, Bobby Denison. We did everything together for a few years. Darryl, to Bobby and I, represented the hope that anything could change and that all of creation is livable. And for years he had a home. He was a struggling addict. He was a relapser. He was a saint. He fed the homeless. He was a good employee. He failed drug tests. He was a Christian. He was agnostic. He was everyhting I was, except, he was comfortable with himself to not lie about how messed up he was.
And after years of living together – living my life with him – sharing everything, he asked me and Bobby to go drop him off on the corner of Broward Blvd and 95. He was out. He couldn’t do it. We literally sat there in a Burger King for hours and cried and begged him to keep trying. We told him that no matter what, he was our brother. That no matter what we would love him for our whole lives. And so we ate our last meal together at Burger King. And then we dropped him off. And he walked away wearing all of the clothes we gave to him that were ours. His shoes were our shoes. And he walked back under that bridge and I didn’t see him again.
A few months later, another homeless guy (Tommy) that also had moved into our house; after relapsing, came back to our house one day with the newspaper and told me to look at it. It said that a guy described to look exactly like Darryl had walked in front of the train. And that was that.
JM: Oh God, Ryan…
RA: He got a mention in the newspaper. But he died alone. And then he had a funeral, and me and Bobby went. Not a tear was shed by a single person because no one knew anything about him. He died an addict to them. A fuck up. Not an overcomer – which he was. Not the sweetest person I’ve ever met – which he was. He died with a stigma. Not with dignity. And no one had anything to share about him becuase no one ever called him back. No one had any stories because they didn’t know where he lived. And when I walked out of the funeral home, I started wandering.
JM: You wrote a song about Darryl….a powerful, sad song.
RA: Yeah
JM: A beautiful song about a man who was your friend. I personally feel convicted after hearing this song.
RA: Well, the irony is that he died alone, for the most part his life was plagued with anonymity. No one knew him. He didn’t know how to be known. But I feel like by writing this song, he will have more of a legacy than I will.
JM: I think we as humans are capable of giving much more than we realize. You and Bobby were a light, a glimmer, if even for a moment in his life. I hate it ended the way it did. I hate addiction and I hate that you lost a friend. But I do love the song and I am certain he will have a legacy because of it……because of you.
RA: I feel like people hear and they don’t think, “what a well written song”. They think, “that Darryl guy must have been incredible.” The power of the story outshines the brash words it was written with. I really like the first line. ”James Kent, son of a bitch.” It really sums up how I feel about him. I love him and he is forever endeared, but at the same, I hate him.
JM: Sometimes strong words are all that will suffice to convey true feelings. That and/or a strong drink.
RA: Both work. I had the first line in my head for years. It wasn’t until recenty that I got the courage to start his song with it. I feel like that song represents the capacity to which I can care about and love someone. It’s the most emotion I have ever put out there in anything I’ve done. It really is a bi-polar song. And I like that.
JM: It’s wild how the one’s we love the most can evoke an equally strong hatred at times.
RA: Yeah. It definitely consumed me.
JM: Wow. Thanks for sharing. That is such a powerful story, and an undeniably incredible song.
There’s no good way to segue out of that story. But when in a pinch I try and choose humor. Here goes. So….are you like 7 feet tall? Do you have to shop at special tall people stores?
RA: I am not 7′. Unfortunately. I am 6″3″.
JM: Close enough
RA: And I have terribkle posture. And spelling.
JM: You should work on that.
RA: I have always been tall. And skinny. The tall thing is cool because I can always see the band that’s playing. The downside is that I feel bad standing anywhere except the back because the shortest girl in the room always finds her way behind me.
JM: You should just offer to pick her up and put her on your shoulders (I have often been that girl). Anyways…. next question?
RA: Moving on
JM: So, are you the main writer for Civilian, or do you collaborate with the rest of the band?
RA: I write the lyrics and basic song structures. Anything after that, the band does. They basically make it sound like us. They are the real talent behind the sound. And I mean that. They each have a really unique way that they approach their instruments. None of them play their instruments the way other people play it.
JM: Who are they?
RA: Alex Bennett plays guitar and sings. Nick Nardone plays bass, and can fix/ build/ destroy anything. And Nash Nardone plays drums. Together, the three of them make up the core of the sound of the band. I am lucky enough to get to be the voice.
JM: Awesome. Sounds like you guys are tight. I hear you guys are headed out on tour soon. Can you tell me 5 things you love about touring and 5 things you hate?
RA: 5 Things I love (about touring). 1. I love playing in front of unimpressed people. 2. I love being suprised by good shows. 3. I love yelling at strangers, when I’m singing. 4. As a band, we play disc golf in almost every city we stop in. We have played SOO many awesome courses. We played the national PDGA championship course in Knoxville, TN and it was one of the nicest places I have ever seen. 5. I love being in a new place. I love the mystery of being completely lost and and trying to make up something fun to do with my spare time.
What I hate (about touring): 1. Anytime we have to stay somewhere that a cat (or several cats) is also staying. I am allergic to them and it’s not to want to drown them (the cats). 2. I hate loading a trailer after a show. 3. I hate asking the promotor for money. I hate anything that deals with money, period. Asking someone who doesn’t want to pay you how much they are going to pay you is the worst. 4. I hate selling merch. It’s awkward and I feel like a gypsy. 5. I hate when bands don’t watch other bands. The reason your band sucks is because you think you are better than every band you play with.
JM: Ah that’s a good one. I hate when other bands don’t watch too. I think it’s super rude and cocky. Anyways, here’s a good one, Ryan… If you were to animorph into any creature on midsummer’s eve, what would it be?
RA: I would probably become a panturtle. A panturtle is hybrid animal. The only known and discovered species around the world are the Pan(ther)Turtle and the Pan(da)Turtle. they also happen to be tattooed onto my body.
JM: What are it’s powers? Aren’t turtles kinda slow?
RA: They are known for being incredible defenders and incredible offenders.
JM: Ok.
RA: Well the PandaTurtle. Is the size of a bear with a turtle shell. It’s not only strong spirited, but is also believed to be the only animal in the world that doesn’t feel bad about eating children. And the PantherTurtle…well he is as mean as a honey badger, as misunderstood as a great white, as ferocious as a …panther and as loveable as a baby monkey. It is the size of a baby monkey.
JM: Sounds like you’ve thought about this before. Glad I asked. Where are these futuristic mythological hybrid’s tattooed on you?
RA: I wanted to get a panturtle tattoo so bad at the time, but my girlfriend wouldn’t let me. She then dumped me. I got them tattooed above my knees.
JM: You gotta live your dreams and be who you are, eh?
RA: (on my legs)
JM: Thanks for the clarification.
RA: No room for confusion.
JM: I’m sure they give you super powers?
RA: I feel like they do. My friend Nate asked me to leave them at home when we went to play basketball a few weeks ago. He was terrified of defending them.
JM: Ok. Next quesh……everyone knows it’s close to impossible for music to pay all your bills. Do you have a day job? If you weren’t playing music, what would fill your time?
RA: It is impossible. I basically have to choose which bill to not pay every month.
JM: Oh shoot!
RA: I have a pretty solid rotation.
JM: That sucks.
RA: I do have a day job. I have had a bunch. I get let go from most of them because I never am around enough to work. Currently, I have been producing bands for the last year. That’s what I love to do.
JM: That’s good.
RA: I actually hate saying that I “produce” bands.
JM: Why?
RA: I think it’s more appropriate to say that I record them and help them acknowledge what they are really good at and show them how they can do those things again and better. The idea of being a “producer” has an ego attached to it that I don’t understand. I just say, I record bands.
JM: You’re an encourager and you hit buttons…..?
RA: Yes. Other jobs I have had… Shipping and packaging for Rifle Paper Co., Art direction for a music video, data entry. I want to get an internship with a carpenter. I feel like I would be good at building one off furniture. I love details. Can you make this happen? I also like taking my time.
JM: I’ll see what I can do about the carpentry internship. I’d love to get an internship with a clothing designer. Just to learn how to make my own clothes.
RA: Like a hippie?
JM: No. Like a fashion designer.
RA: That would be awesome. I have friends that are studying that. I just tell them to try it for a few years, every day, and they will be able to do it.
JM: But I’d just want to make cool clothes for myself, my kids, my friends. you know…
RA: Your hippie friends?
JM: I only have one hippie friend and she’s more “Boho” than hippie. so….back to you, How do you take your coffee and waffles?
RA: Coffee black. Preference: Intelligentsia, Agua Preta. Pour-over method.
JM: Come on. Intelligentsia is…..like no other.
RA: Or their Honey Badger based traditional Cap., that is the best thing ever. You ever had Blue Bottle? Or Stumptown’s Hairbender?
JM: No
RA: Awesome espresso. Waffles… I like Ego Buttermilk. I like to toast 4 of them. Then put a little bit of butter on them, then fold them in half and eat them like 4 little tacos.
JM: No syrup?
RA: Barely any, if any at all.
JM: Alright alright. Sounds nice – enough.
RA: It’s the reason I am going to have a heart attack. It better sound nice. And it better taste better than nice.
JM: No heart attacks. You have a tour coming up!!!
RA: hahahahah!!!!!! Yes!! And like every tour, dates are falling through, BUT….This is going to be our album release tour. And we are going on tour with some of our best friends and Fort Lauderdale cohorts, The Goddamn’ Hustle.
JM: Yeah stay positive….and on that note I have another question: With so many bands on the radar and so many of them making powerful music, what would you say makes Civilian stand out? What do you hope people “get” when they listen to your songs?
RA: The thing that makes Civilian stand out is how much we care about what we do. We don’t have a label. We don’t write hits. We try to do what we want to do in order to connect us with people that are going where we are trying to go. We want to make music that helps people 1.) dance a little 2.) get upset 3.) see the light and life in everything.
JM: That’s touching.
RA: We want to say what everyone has been thinking, but everyone is struggling to say.
JM: I really love the song “I Get What I Want”. Can you tell me about it?
RA: I can. First off, the lyric ”I get what I want”….. it’s really disgusting. If you think about it. It’s a matter of fact to the person saying it. ”I get what I want from you” is awful. It comes from probably the darkest place. So, the song’s written from the perspective of the Oppressor.
JM: Ok, I’m tracking…
RA: It’s this guy reminding his crew that they would starve without him, so they need to fall in line with what’s asked of them. And then I turn it on the audience… ”You see, everybody’s acting like they built us an ark….” It’s like saying, they think they saved you. But you aren’t safe. They think they rescued you, but you aren’t living. Examine what people are telling you about yourself becuase it isn’t true. And the second half is regarding the murdering of people we don’t like and how fucked up it is that we actually let each other feel like good people for being the cosmic gatekeepers between self interest and justice. I like the phrase “towelsnapping” in the song because I think it sums up what we do as people who have no clue what damage our decisons have on everyone else. It’s an illusion to picking on the easy target, fat kid after P.E.
JM: I hate bullying.
RA: That song came from my guts.
JM: I can tell. Seriously. So, what’s next for Civilian?
RA: I don’t know. I know what I want to see. I want to tour every day this year that I can. That’s really what we love doing. Of course we want to do art well, as in record good music, but we also want to love people well, and be apart of the national community as a whole. Touring affords us the chance to meet people all over the country and let’s us hear their ideas. I feel it is part of what makes us relatable to people in limbo on things…
JM: And isn’t pretty much everyone in limbo with something in their life?
RA: The fact that we hear a lot of different ideas from a lot of different places. The music is an outlet that I hope allows people to feel less alone in asking tough questions about love, race, religion, sex, capitalism, nationalism and purpose. And maybe some more things I am forgetting about. I just want to write more now. And better.
JM: I can’t speak for everyone, but it’s been successful here, for me. (The music that is).
RA: I hope to be a writer that is intentional with every opportunity for communication. Thanks for asking me questions. I forget a lot about what I care about. This reminds me.
JM: Glad I could help! I think we get reminded by telling ourselves, actually. I learn more about life/myself when I write.
RA: In the insanity of making a record – writing, recording, designing, printing, paying for it all, etc. – it’s easy to wonder why in the world you signed up for this.
JM: I bet. It’s a hell of a lot of work and sacrifice. Glad for your efforts though and the art you guys make in Civilian. And yeah, thank you so much for your time!
RA:
Fin.
good lord, these lyrics struck my heart like a match. here is an excerpt from ‘Heaven’ written by Ryan Alexander and Civilian.
Nothing happens the way that it’s supposed to
Love doesn’t care if you want to, it’s going to move you
So lean in because I want to breathe what you’re breathing
people, it’s time for another list. i saw a dear friend recently and we got to discussing bucket lists – she confessed she didn’t really have one and so i encouraged her to start thinking of things she’d like to do at some point in her life. a week later she sends me a picture of herself on a motorcycle and says bucket list: CHECK!
so here’s a slice of mine. i kinda feel like it’s always changing; or i’m always adding to it. so don’t hold me to this in a year. it might have changed drastically by then.
this weekend (starting tonight) my big brother Nick’s Camp Canaan is hosting it’s first annual Music Festival. Nick & i are both huge music lovers and now that he has the land and the resources to host a big event like this, he is making dreams come true!
i could brag about him a lot more, but all i’ll say is that he and his wife Tiffany started this Camp on a hope and a prayer. check out their website and if you have chillens’, sign them up for Summer Camp this year. i promise you, it’s WAY better than the Y, and your kid’s lives will be forever changed. and no – i never exaggerate. seriously. it’s the best summer camp ever. zip lines, olympic size swimming pool, kayaking on the Catawba River, arts, music, wilderness, rope swings, preaching & Bible teaching! come on.
In addition to the music there will be arts, crafts, food, drinks and other entertainments!
all dat Saturday, i’ll have my shop at the Fest: the lost and found and my cards, along with some other trinkets i’ve been working on! Joining me are Plumcake and Charlie and Nell! Some beautiful arts & crafts you do NOT want to miss out on. (i’ll let you in on a little secret too – ALL of my stuff has been marked down, so….if you like a good sale come see my shop this Saturday at the Festival).
you can get your tickets here for a cheaper cost, or you can always buy them at the gate!
me & my brother Nick circa 1995
this is actually 2008 & 2009 pregnancies
