Where Pianos Roam

Early On a Sunday Morning

I hope you can forgive the lack of activity here on WPR over the last week.  I am in the throes of making some changes in my life that will allow for more balance.  For me, it's something I like to call "Life Management".  I've been thinking about how to do what it is you love but still make time for other things that truly matter.

For example, my life's work is my music.  The shameless plug in the poster above regarding my upcoming shows in Charlotte on October 2 allude to this.

However, there are other priorities that are dear to my heart.

Time for family.

Time for dear friends.

Time for private, thoughtful reflection and spiritual meditation.

Time for artistic/creative activity. (Drawing, designing, etc.)

Exercise, healthy eating, and personal wellness.

REST.

Underneath all of this, I've become more hands-on with maintaining my home and personal finances as a foundation for all of the above. 

With my to-do list in check, I plan all tasks at least two days in advance if not more.  Every day, I take a few minutes to balance my check-book and know in my mind EXACTLY where all of my money is being spent.  There is also time to address issues with my living (and driving space) such as tidying up, organizing, oil changes, and car maintenance. 

Within a week's time, I make sure there is a place at the table for all of the above.  I've made a conscious descision to be the one steering my ship and live my life to the fullest.  This, in turn, requires a good bit of basic management skills.

I've thought of how someone might run a business or a corporation.  Coordinating one's life should be no different.  There are goals to accomplish, but there is a solid foundation and a continuing sense of wellness to maintain all the while.  No stone is left unturned.

I think there are only two options in life.  You could be in charge, or someone/something else could force your feet to follow a path that will not make you happy.

Which options is yours?

PS- This is a busy time for me, but soon enough, more WPR posts will be coming soon.  :-)

The Bountiful

I've long treasured the experience of performing solo.  It affords an artist the space and time of barren intimacy with an audience.  There aren't other musicians on stage who can help carry the weight of the music with you.  The titan's strength and emotional stamina it takes to wilfully serve a song and deliver it to eager ears is a tall and mighty order.

Needless to say, I love performing solo just as much as I love playing with my band.  It's just a different experience altogether. 

I wanted to share with you a wonderful performance by cellist Zoe Keating.  She is a one womam orchestra who plays the cello and takes the notion of solo performance to a whole other level.

She is performing a piece called "Escape Artist" with the assistance of a foot-controlled laptop computer, and in this clip, she also happens to be 8 months pregnant.

Enjoy.

Watch the full episode. See more Performance.

 

There is something so beautiful about someone performing music at it's most basic and simple level.  The purity is rich with magic.  There are no theatrics and disguises to hide behind.  Ultimately, It's nothing other than a very real thing.

It is effusive and bountiful in its simplicity.  I guess it's true when people say that you can do so much more with so much less. 

One needs only to do what they do, and the rest will speak, quite eloquently, for itself. 

 

 

Early On a Sunday Morning

The image above is the cover of a book my dear friend Laurel gave me for my birthday a couple of weeks ago.  It focuses on an inherent way that we relate and connect with the world--through our thoughts.

One of the primary tenets of this book is that our thoughts and intentions, even though they may never be heard or outwardly shared, hold great power. 

A negative thought about a fellow co-worker or a boss is, in essence, no different than throwing a dagger at that person, jabbing them where it hurts most.  Such thoughts only serve to keep your own spirits down and embittered while denigrating its intended victim.

Since reading this book (I'm still reading it by the way.), I've made a more conscious effort to clear my head of negativity.  In the mornings, I meditate for a few minutes to clear my brain of unnecessary clutter which might include harmful thoughts. 

I am generally not one to think badly of others, but I do tend to be overly critical.  Internallly, I might blast someone's horrendous outfit or a quadruple-sized, overblown, really really massively HUGE rear-end.  My criticisms are not pretty and often quite bitchy.  (I thank God for the times I kept my thoughts to myself.  I would've gotten into a mountain of hellish trouble.)  Nonetheless, I am aware now of how my thoughts can have consequences both for myself and others.  The vibe you give is the vibe you get.  If you hate on others, you'll get hate back.  Isaac Newton would agree.

Congruently, our thoughts and intentions can also be a conduit for change in our lives.  Setting forth an intention and a purpose for oneself and embedding it deeply in one's mind and spirit is a foundational way to chart a course towards a long-desired dream.

Years ago, I clumsily plunked along at writing my first actual song.  I sat at my dusty keyboard and wrapped a little melody around a poem I wrote.  This innocent act planted a seed in me.  After I finished that song, I decided in my mind that I would write more. One full album and several shows later, here I am. 

Your intention, fueled by your thoughts, is your compass.  Once it is situated and defined, all you have to do is follow it.  Your instincts, as you grow to trust them, and the rest of the world, will follow suite.

My compass that I set years ago still guides me to this day, and I stay aligned to its direction wholeheartedly.

Have you found your compass? 

I certainly hope so.

PS--I've come to appreciate the beauty in a "quadruple-sized, overblown, really really massively HUGE rear-end".  LOL.  Junk gives purpose to the trunk, naturally.

 

I Never Told You

Was there ever something you needed to say, but you never got the chance?  Did the bottom fall out before you even had a moment to hold on to something?

I've had these instances in my life, with nothing left to do but sink with the ship--the destination fading away in the distance.

I am now more grateful for the times when things do work out--when hopes and desires come together to make you happy.

In a sense, I suppose this is all a part of life.  Some hopes fall to pieces while others bend in the wind, resilient in their resolve.

I've been lucky to have more of the happier moments so far, but this doesn't make the losses any less traumatic.

If I've learned anything by now, it's that it's best to be fully engaged in everything you hope to do and in the important relationships you sustain.  If and when the bottom does collapse, you can at least have the benefit of being present and able to deal with it in the best possible way.  Nothing is worse than feeling powerless and not able to put up a solid fight and make the right decisions for yourself.

Through time, life climbs itself out of various holes even as the losses remain. Nonetheless, it's helpful to remember the struggle.

I play this video now in honor of past struggles.  Some things have been worth saving while others needed to be laid to rest.

I'm grateful now to know the difference.

 

 

Unusual Things

One could argue that I might have strange tastes in things.  In fact, there are some unusual objects that I have been known to collect.

I collect fun, patterned socks, for example.

Much like these .  .  .

OR, these (oooooooh) .  .  .

Or THESE!!!  (Sigh)

I also collect t-shirts with Madonna on them.  My sweet friend Chris just got me one for my birthday last week.  I'll post picks of it soon.

I've got my eye on getting this one in the near future:

On a few occasions, I've also mentioned that I collect original paintings and rare prints of pieces that I love.

Here is an image of a rare, treasured, textured, full-size print that I own.   It is a painting of a matador by Barbara Weber .  .  .

One small collection I keep is of vinyl albums with great covers.

Here is one that I have:

As you can see, I have an eye and a heart for the strangest things.

Oh well.

 

 

Early On a Sunday Morning

I'm not one to believe that earning a diploma or a degree, advanced or otherwise, gives a person an excuse to stop learning and studying. 

I've long considered myself a life-long student of my own passionate interests.

For example, I will study the piano until the sun sets for the final time in my life, whenever that will be.

Lately, I've been studying drawing--looking at the ways that light adds depth to any object and that color, however subtle or bold, is a language unto itself.  I will learn how to speak French one day, and I want to learn how to cook all of my Mom's yummy Filipino dishes. 

There's something charming about stumbling along at something new and something hugely gratifying that comes with getting better at it through hard work and the passage of time.

Lately I have been enamored of this:

 

I've taken steps to start learning something entirely new, and I am hoping it will add richness to what I am doing already. 

The video above is a hint of things to come .  .  .

Have you studied anything new lately?

Gordon's New Tattoo!

This past Saturday I celebrated my birthday!  Over the length of four days I was treated to an Ethiopian lunch, given a yummy Oreo milkshake from Jack in the Box, and had an evening of music-playing, board games, mixed drinks, and pizza with several dear friends.  These were not the only highlights.

I got my first tattoo.  I say "first" because now, a few days after, I realize that I might have started a small addiction.

On Saturday afternoon, August 28, my sister and I ventured off to get me branded.  I was originally going to get a dragon tattoo like I had always envisioned, but the tatto parlor we visited had neither the time nor the design I was looking for.

So, a little crestfallen at not accomplishing our goal, we went to get some milkshakes.  I remembered that there was a small tattoo shop near my neighborhood, and I suggested we head there for a visit.

Luckily, they had the time, and I decided on the perfect symbol to emblazon on my skin.

Here it is folks .  .  .

I decided on a treble clef. It is perhaps one of the most iconic symbols in music.  More than anything else right now, it represents who I am at my core--an artist and musician.  I love that it is universally recognizable, curvaceous, and soaking wet with whimsy.

It was perfect.

 So there you have it.  I have joined the millions of people who have artfully decorated their bodies.  I want to give a big shout-out and mad Asian props to my big sister Lullette for the encouragement and support.  This was part of her birthday gift for me.  She's pretty darn awesome.

 

Later that day, on a beer run for my birthday dinner party, someone I didn't know came up to me and asked me if I play piano.  Before I answered, I was puzzled as to how some random dude figured that out.

But then I looked down at my arm.

With a smile, I said "Yes, I do."

:-)