Friday, March 27, 2009

Brilliance

So, I was talking with this girl yesterday and together we happened upon brilliance. sheer brilliance. Here is our idea:

Rent is a big waste of money right? What if, for the spring/summer season- or whenever the weather is nice- you lived out of your car? It's so nice outside and just 4 months of not paying rent would pay of one of my biggest debts! 4 months may be a little long but even 2 months would cut it in half. Or, if you didn't have debt, you could quickly save up for something, or jump start your savings, OR even save up a chunk to start investing! Then you could just keep growing this small amount of money (if you knew what you were doing) and become rich and people would ask you how you did it and you would say: I slept in my car for the summer.

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I've taken this idea and thought about how I could adapt the concept to something a little more realistic for my life. That would be a combination of living in my parents garage, couch-surfing, and sleeping in my car. I think doing this from, say, April to June (or even July) would be reasonable. You couldn't really tell people what you are doing; you'd have to make it seem like you were in between houses or something, or they may feel it is unfair for them to be paying rent and you sleeping on their couch for free. I think I know enough people though that the couch part would be very spread out and no one would feel like I was abusing their generosity. Here's a more detailed plan: I move out and ask my parents if I can keep some stuff in their garage. Hopefully they say yes but I can also rent a storage unit for some of my furniture (this may come in handy for sleeping one day), I would inform my parents of my plan and offer my services as a babysitter and random task do-er in exchange for them putting up with my silly plan. They should be ok with this because they are among those that will be paid back. One of the things that I thought would be an issue would be my keyboard- i have to have a place to write music and practice. This is solved by leaving it set up in the garage where I would practice with my drummer who just happens to be my step-dad. bam. I keep a suitcase in the car so that I have what I need wherever I end up spending the night. I would join the YMCA which would only be like $20 a month cause I make jack shit. I could shower and change and stuff there. Here is an example of what a typical week would look like for me: Monday: work til 5, volunteer to babysit for my parents earning me a night's stay (indoors!) and a meal. Tuesday: breakfast at mom's, run errands, go shopping with the money that i'm not paying in rent (just kidding, that money is all going towards productive things, plus- i have no closet), go to a show or something fun, sleep in my car. Wednesday: get up early and go to the gym, shower and dress for work there, go to work, get off work at 5, go hang out with Pricilla and crash at her place. Thursday: roam around during the day, take my laptop to Fido, get work done, and back to the rents' house that night, practice some music and sleep in the garage. Friday: go to work, off at 5, and party! The possibilities are endless for the weekend. It's entirely acceptable to crash at a party site so if there's a fun party going on then I'd do that. There's also camping which is fun, or visiting someone in a close-by city. Weekends are also a good time to go play some shows outside of Nashville. Saturday: continue with fun weekend plans. stay at some one's house, or in car. Sunday: church, go out to lunch, hang out at the park, gym for shower, dinner at parents and sleep in the garage or the car.

See? Piece of cake! And the best part of it all- my life becomes quite exciting!

Here's the biggest problem with making this a reality: My lease is up in October.. Not the best time to do this kind of this cause it will be getting cold- summer is definitely the best. I couldn't sign a short enough lease to be out in time for the next summer though.. herein lies the biggest glitch in the fantastically flawless plan. So, what may end up happening is that I just do it for the month of October until the garage gets too cold. That's better than nothing and I could still save a good 800 bucks.

I hope you don't think I'm kidding. No, I'm gonna do it. And it will be awesome.

Wednesday, March 25, 2009

Something of interest..

http://www.style.com/stylefile/2009/03/lauren-bush-beyond-the-feed-bag/

blah blah blah (The 'Monday's on a Wednesday)

First of all, I'd like to say that I don't get Twitter. Someone please enlighten me. I just don't know what it is or does. thanks.

Next, I'd really like to be in my bed right now. Oh how I would like to be sleeping instead of sitting at this desk. The damn phone is ringing off the hook. Someone just kill me now. It's gonna be one of those days. For sure.

Well, I guess I should take advantage of this mood and the rain and go for a little rant. does that sound like fun? It does to me. Ok, what shall we rant about today? Oh I know. Ok. This boy. I suppose we are dating, or something. He confuses and frustrates me. I like him, but I'm still waiting for something. Some romance. Something to make me feel giddy. I guess I should just let it go shouldn't I? I mean, 2 months and I'm still trying to coax some sparks out of wet matches. Still, its teetering on the edge and I can't make myself just give up on it just yet, even though it's clearly lacking. It's like searching for a word thats on the tip of your tongue. Yes, it's just like that, and just as frustrating. But it's just right there and you know you're about to think of it! You see, I enjoy hanging out with him, I like things about him, and who [I think] he is, but it doesn't feel like how I think it should, or how it has felt in the past. I suppose someone reading this would be like, um, obviously it's not working and you need to move on, but you don't understand... it's really on the tip of my tongue! That's the best description I can think of. It's so close and I'm not ready to give up on it. (I just re-read this and I would like to go back and touch on the "something to make me feel giddy" part.) You see, I felt that in the beginning. I was super excited when I met him and I was all about it. I was ready to dive in- I wanted to find out who he was and where he came from and share things with him and just, well, you know, fall.. That's how I am- I'm an artist, I am passionate, I am obsessive. If I hear a song I like, I will listen to it on repeat literally for days. One song. Over and over. When I see something I like- I- I love it! I mean I go crazy for it! (The Notebook, anyone?) Anyways, that's how I am but he's obviously not that way. When the initially appealing formality of the first date continued through the next couple weeks, my passion began to feel incredibly suppressed by what was turning into cordial monotony. He's.. not as alive as I would like. Maybe I can wake him up. Even as I write this I am torn directly down the middle. directly. I keep expecting one side to take over but I am rewarded no clarity. none. Something will have to give eventually right? Maybe being in the middle is just as well as hating the guy. Who wants to be in the middle when it comes to love? But what is the force making me hang on, just to see? just in case.

Moving on to other things. I had some strange dreams last night.. I don't really feel like trying to recount... It would be very hard to describe. Aaron was in it though, he was home for a couple days. And there was a very strange part with two different old flames.. They kept sort of switching places.. thats all that is really translatable (is that a word?)

I finished a painting yesterday.. wanna see? Ok, here it is-

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It's charcoal and acrylic.. from an old photograph of my grandmother.

Over share of the day: So, fiber is good for you right? digestive system.. all that good stuff. Well, let me tell you, I don't usually drink coffee- I normally go for tea. Some days, however, like today, just require it. I take 2 sips though and I'm in the bathroom. I mean, if you wanna talk about digestive health? Coffee really does the job, when it comes to cleaning me out. haha. ok, I'm done.

You know one song that DOES NOT get old to me? Imogen Heap, Hide and Seek. I know its on every indie soundtrack ever and I've heard it millions of times (it was one of those that i played on repeat for probly a week straight)- but I still absolutely love it. I am listening to a mix I made probly a year ago. A mix for when I wanted to mope about lost love. I'm not moping about lost love today I just really like a lot of the songs on it. It has Hide And Seek as well as some other gems such as You Are Mine by MuteMath, The Special Two by.. (oh what's her name.. can't think of it), I'm Not Who I Was by Brandon.. something (damnit, i'm not doing very well on this..) Anyway.. oh yeah- Heath! Brandon Heath. good song. Oh and The Astronaut Suit, 40 days, check it out.

I feel especially suppressed today. I generally feel that way, just kinda as a rule. At the risk of sounding cheesy, I'll try and explain. I feel like a caged animal. haha, no really! There is this crazy aimless-earth-roaming hippie inside of me that is so squelched its almost painful sometimes.. I don't really know what to do about it. I am trying to make things happen in my life, but in order to do that I can't appease my whims to just get up and go. I am working, to pay off debt, and try to save money, and pursue things that I think will eventually appease my appetite- in the proper way. The proper way being something like getting my shit together and taking my music on the road, or getting a song cut so that I am financially free to do some of the things that I want. You know, just generally making a living doing something that I actually care about and something that is actually lasting. (re-reading to make sure any of this makes any sense at all.... ok, let me try again-)
Examples of what I want to do: 1. Get in my car and drive to Louisiana and to meet up with Aaron and then go with him to NY- just for the hell of it. 2. Take all my money and buy a ticket to Ireland and go hang out with Kacie. 3. Drive to Texas. 4. Sell my shit and start wandering around.
What I need to be doing/what I will do instead: 1. Continue sitting here, racking up the $12/hour. 2. Go home and write songs, practice and work. 3. Stay home and save my money.
Someday it will pay off. I will be financially free to do what I want and I can roam the earth without being a homeless person. Maybe I can do some good while I'm at it (have you noticed how much fun I am having with the italics today?)

Ok, you see why this post is entitled 'Blah Blah Blah'? Cause I am definitely blah blah blah-ing today. But its actually really making me feel a lot better. Very therapeutic- this whole writing my thoughts and feelings thing. Thank you for listening, Blogspot.

Friday, March 20, 2009

why god why.

It's 7:30 on a friday night- an odd time for me to be writing in my blog, since it's not a monday, wednesday or friday between 8 and 5, and because generally speaking, i have a life. So, I got home from work about 2 hours ago. I came home with admittedly high hopes for the evening. I poured myself a glass of wine, texted a few people to see what's going on, made a little food, ate that food, felt ravenous, made more food, ate that food, poured another glass of wine, got a few disappointing texts back, consoled myself with some ice cream, determined to keep an open mind about the evening- i don't need anyone, i can have a great friday night all by myself! turned on the tv- still waiting for a call about a super awesome party that just wouldn't be the same without me, quickly got bored with the tv, tried to put in a movie, dicovered that my dvd player is broken, switched back to the tv and found that Mickey Blue Eyes had just started- which i've never seen- so I popped popcorn, ate all the popcorn, decided that I MUST be pmsing because i felt like i could burst from my skin and do/eat everything in existence, walked to the corner store and did not look the attendant in the eyes when i brought my purchases forward- a glamour magazine and a box of chips ahoy, came home, poured another glass of wine, decided to temporarily give up on life, un-paused Mickey Blue Eyes, and finally- to catch us up to the present- re-paused it when I decided that my blog readers needed to know about the debauchery that was taking place on my friday night. Feel completely free to judge, however, I am reminded of a particular Bible story- something about throwing the first stone.. hm.. anyway, now that you know what my week is ending in, I hope you can go out into your evening of dinner parties, friend gatherings, bars, shows, dates, night clubs, and other socially acceptable pastimes feeling secure in the fact that no matter what sour turn your night may take, it could definitely be worse, and absolutely be more pathetic.

Wednesday, March 18, 2009

Mario Testino

Hello Mario. You have seen his pictures. You've ooh-ed, you've aww-ed. Now meet the man.
Here he is posing with one of the pictures that shot him to the top in the world of photography.

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Now he's sought after for everything from Burberry ads to bottled water ads (smart water- Jennifer Aniston) to Album covers for people like, oh, um, i don't know- Madonna! yeah.. anyway, I've looked at some 20 pages of a google-image-search of him and here are some of my favorites. Note that these are my favorites and I tend to like a certain style so if he seems limited it's only because of the ones i've selected, cause trust me- he's anything but.

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Of course he frames each shot perfectly; of course his technical abilities are flawless; of course the lighting touches his subjects in a way that you would swear he shoots it from his fingertips. But how do you teach someone to capture that something in someone's face? It's like his camera is a laser of truth. You feel like you can see directly into the soul of the person being photographed. And if you don't feel that way, then it's because he purposefully masked the peep-hole with mystery that leaves you feeling as if your life depends on knowing their secret.

I've been ripping ads out of Vogue magazine since I was 12. Its because of people like him and because a bottled water ad can be an incredible artistic work.

Friday, March 13, 2009

Wunderkind

I know I've said this before but there is a big difference between style and fashion. Its the difference between dressing yourself well and creating art. There are obvious extremes but as you approach the line between the two, it begins to blur. This is normally where I enjoy myself. I am attracted to the wearable art. The place where you are making a statement but not interrupting people's lives with outrageousness. When I watch the runways, I am processing the pieces and how they could transcend to the street. My favorites tend to be the ones that I could actually see myself wearing (not to be confused with 'affording') All of this is say, sometimes you just have to appreciate the art. And this is art. You actually could wear this stuff-one piece at a time of course- but overall, the presentation is quite eccentric. They way they put it all together.. wow, I just thought it was breath-taking. Reminds me of Alice in Wonderland.. Alice in Wunderkind? hm? no? ok...

I would also like to say that I am still really enjoying Adele. The Beatles-esque breakdown in Cold Shoulder is perfect. amazing. LOVE it. Very inspiring to me.

You don't know what you've got til its gone...

9:45am
Sitting at my desk. Listening to Adele. "I need to get away to feel again." Popping Ricolas like candy.

9:48am
This day is made up of minutes. 3 just passed. Now if that can only happen 408 more times...

9:49am
Slowly but surely, huh?

Ok, I promise I won't count down the minutes of the day via blogging. That would surely be an all-time low.

(9:50am)

(sorry...)

"There aint no room in my bed as far as I'm concerned"

The things that are on my mind right now are:

1. Aaron- he left last weekend for Texas. Plan is to interview with a guy there to go on the road with him around the world filming- i forget for what exactly.. If that doesn't work out, he's going to Louisiana to work with his Grandpa (again, i forget doing what exactly..) and then to NYC to work with the National Arts Movement (i think thats what its called) people.. So basically, it wasn't quite true when he said he'd only be gone for a month. I'm very happy for him though, he really needed to go. I am truly excited to see what happens. He's an amazing person. I definitely miss him though. And I know that I will continue to miss him. I actually hope he is in Texas for a while though cause I am going there this summer and we could hang out!

10:38am

I was on the phone with my sister for a while which passed a nice chunk of time beautifully. Random note, my boss told me yesterday that if our business doesn't do better within the next year that they may start laying people off. I'd be first. I thought to myself, if I'm still working here in a year it wouldn't matter cause I'd probly kill myself.

Ok, #2 of what's on my mind:
Trudy Chase- Trudy Chase is a lifestyle that will be on sale soon. This comes from Aaron wisdom. He says merch is the best way for us to make the money to keep it going with Trudy. Our artwork, our clothes, our music (of course- but even before we have an actual record, we'll make an ep with the couple songs we have recorded plus some live recordings), our style and our lifestyle.

#3- I'm thinking about going somewhere this weekend. Anywhere. Just driving somewhere.. Not sure where though. Plus, I do this every friday pretty much. And I never go anywhere. I'm too broke. I just got paid though.. hm.. Where should i go? Kentucky? I wish I knew someone in Louisville.. it's a cool place. Memphis? nope. scary.. plus i don't know anyone there either.. Maybe I'll just spend the weekend in Franklin with the fellas.. If it was nice outside I would go camping. But its very cold. I wonder if Jonathan is still in Indiana, or wherever he was.. maybe i could go there for the weekend.. In all likelyhood, my weekend will go like this- go home after work.. call a couple people, wait and see if Jason will call, probly get some dinner with him, go out, wake up late tomorrow, clean, find something to do, go out, wake up late Sunday, maybe make it to church, come home, clean, bum around, go out, sleep, work monday morning. thrilling. haha, actually its not bad at all, i always have fun with my friends but I'm just a restless soul and I always want to go somewhere.. different. i get bored easily. I need change all the time. Maybe I'll just go home and rearrange my furniture.

"I need to get away to feel again."

Monday, March 9, 2009

Diva is the female version of a Hustler

Thank you, Beyonce. Good to know.

Well, it was very lovely outside this weekend and I accomplished my goal of spending the majority of my time outdoors in it. Friday after work, a friend and I went in search of a 'veranda', although we weren't 100% sure what that is exactly- it just seemed appropriate for the weather. We found a nice restaurant with a patio and some drink specials and thought we must be close so we settled there for happy hour. From there we met up with my sister and some friends before joining in on some CRS festivities with my brother and all of his label people. Saturday was walk, picnic, watermelon, walk, park, frisbe, cookout, downtown. In that order and just as perfect as it sounds. Sunday, Mere and I (after sleeping til noon) helped our step-dad (and drummer) get his studio set up in the garage and then after the sun went down we joined in on another cookout! This one was complete with bonfire and smores. Uh-mazing. Man.. that was a great weekend.

So here I am now- Monday morning. And we're starting off strong! So you know my financial situation and how I'm trying to start moving toward making money doing things that i actually enjoy. Well, last week I decided that it would be smart to get a little part time restaurant job so I went looking. There was one possibility that may or may not be falling through. Either way, seeing the smiley girl at the front in her black pants and white tucked-in botton-down and then trying to sell my guest-seating abilities to the entirely too serious restaurant manager- well, it was enough to reignite the fire under my bum. So this morning I hit craigslist and began whoring all of my abilities- singing, decorating, organizing, NOT guest-seating or phone-answering. Hopefully, I get some interest!

Friday, March 6, 2009

"I think we're dead.."

This is hilarious and seems like a nice follow-up to a previous post. enjoy.

Wednesday, March 4, 2009

I <3 Superheroes

which is why i am embarrassingly excited about this.

Wolverine is my second love, next to Spiderman. Spiderman's nostalgic for me; he was the youthful crush and my first love. Thats not something you ever get over. He will forever remain my #1 Superhero. Come on though, its Wolverine. um, yes please?