OFF the couch!

Here I sit on the couch trying to get myself in gear.  Green tea- check, computer- check, ideas-check, dog in my lap with his butt on my computer- NOOOOO!

Talk about persistence, Conway Cole is one to never give up easily.  Something that is so frustrating, but something I have always found inspiring too. You can tell this little fuzzy bugger "no" 10 times, and he will still jump up on the couch and try to claim your lap...where the lap top is supposed to be.

Not to long ago someone mentioned to me that I should blog about the journey Stuart and I are taking to be independent musicians and our journey as a couple more directly. I've tried to stay away from too much of the nitty gritty...but sure, I'm willing to give anything a try...here goes...

So, OFF the couch has more meanings today than just a command for my dog Conway Cole. I've been fighting the couch potato blues for a while now. So much to do, so little time, only so much energy...and balance? well I gave up on that a long time ago.  In the past year Stuart has quit his job teaching full time, and we are putting our energies into our music. This was a long time goal of ours, but the transition isn't one we've made without a few bumps in the road, and then there are those 3 am wrestling matches with worry...so much fun!  There are so many bases to cover, and it takes time to get the ball rolling when you make such a big change. That's what my head tells me, but my heart and soul want all the ducks to be in a row NOW!!!!

At a show recently someone asked if music is all we do. I felt a bit of pride as I shared "yes", and realized music is all I've done for my whole adult life. Sometimes teaching it, sometimes recording it, sometimes writing it and always singing it (even if at times it was just to my dog or best friends late at night).  Stuart has been the jack of many trades, always playing music along side other projects, and it is an exciting chapter for him to be in music so deep these days...but in the same breath I have to admit it is a challenge. Almost anything worth it in this world doesn't come easy, and this is no different. It is a blast to perform, a gift to share our hearts through song, and a joy to feel the audience connect...and we are working hard to put all those pieces together on and off stage.

The new album is almost ready, the gigs are starting to come fast and furiously, the audiences have been receptive and enthusiastic for the new stuff, and the new material is sinking in.  Still, sometimes I feel like I am that little duck at the end of the line. I am paddling so hard underwater, while doing my best to look like I'm not breaking a sweat on the surface.  But here you go friend, I'm sweating it a lot.  I feel like I push it as hard as I can...and then hit a wall hard and here I sit on the couch trying to regain my energy and focus for the next push.

OFF the couch...keep the faith, keep paddling, sweat it, paddle harder, take a rest, and then paddle some more...OFF the couch...make the phone calls, create the artwork, order the t-shirts, play the show....OFF the couch...go to Nashville, have the meetings, take the notes, write the song, learn the song....OFF the couch!

So here I am, on the couch...getting ready for the next push.  Conway Cole  is defiantly nestled in (I'm gonna tell him the 10th time in a second), and I am sharing what our journey is really like. Right now, I'm getting OFF the couch for the next push...I promise to write about exactly what that is...once I figure it out!