It is eleven months since my album Shifting Sands was released. It is nearly impossible to believe that it was such a short time ago. I have come to love and understand these songs more and more as I play them. As I head out on my tour/trip I understand again the words of the song Thanks Past Me. I find myself almost daily being grateful that I can depend on something I have done or learned in this past year. I bought some new sound equipment yesterday and was proud to realize that I do understand some of the continue reading…
Creativity
New Connections
I have had a lot of chances during this last month to experience some new connections and for this I am very grateful. I just finished a trip to the UK where I met my first grandchild. It is impossible to express how grateful I am for this new person who has come into my life. The most amazing things are often the ones you don’t expect. I had never really thought about being a grandma but here it is and it is so cool, new connections indeed! Before I left for my trip to the UK, a wise friend continue reading…
New Perspectives 2
I am in the middle of a trip to the UK. It is always interesting to travel and see things from a new perspective. As well, to be reminded that there is more then one way to do things. This can be as simple as how people eat their food. Apparently I don’t use my fork and knife quite right as compared to people here. I would have never guessed this was a difference in the past. I had a colleague review my album Shifting Sands recently and I was so pleased with the review. What struck me was the continue reading…
Camping in a Tent , a Gig and Connections
I drove the highway from Ravenscraig towards the Cypress Hills and I could feel my body begin to unwind. Concerns I had been obsessing about seemed to lose their intensity. I found my tenting spot when I got to the park and got set up. My body relaxed even deeper into the nature that surrounded me. Then there was time spent hiking in the trees. Wildlife seen on the road near the park, coyote, deer and a hawk reminded me of my place in the universe. A Moose showed up on the road as I drove back to the park continue reading…
Building Community and Trusting Oneself
Hello on this first Wednesday of July. I have a lot of things to look forward to this summer plus I have had a great first half of 2018. I have been performing a couple times a month which is way more than ever before and I am grateful for all those opportunities. The show that I am reflecting on today is one that our songwriting group just had on June 20th. We had our wind up which we celebrated by putting on a showcase which included nine of our songwriters. We were fortunate to do so at a local continue reading…
All of a Sudden
All of a sudden two weeks has passed and it is time for me to write another post. I have done some fun things these past two weeks, shared a new song with my songwriters group, had two paying gigs and had an interview with a freelance journalist about my music. Who says the Universe is not helping out. When I asked the journalist how he found me, he said he found me because another musician he interviewed was following me on Twitter… Wow. I also heard from my sister that they continue to play my music on my hometown continue reading…
A Week of No Social Media
I have been doing the Artist’s Way by Julia Cameron these past few weeks and during one of the week’s activities she strongly suggests not reading. The book was written 25 years ago so social media wasn’t a thing and I figured a break from that would be very beneficial and it was. I immediately had more space in my brain and way more time then I would have anticipated. The other thing I have noticed now that the week is over is that I am back to a lot of my old habits. Checking Facebook especially when I am continue reading…
Performing, oh How do I forget the Nerves
Performing is such an interesting thing. I have been doing it since I was a child and yet it remains a challenge. I have gotten better at it as time has gone on and there has been changes in what I perform. I laughed at myself last Friday when I was getting ready to take my gear to a local restaurant/bar here in Regina to get ready to perform, as I realized how anxious I was. Why do I do this to myself I complained to my wife? Well, I do this because I love it. I love to perform continue reading…
All Things Creative
I just reread my last blog post and ideas that I shared there have been put into action. I decided to redo, The Artist’s Way, a Julia Cameron book that has supported me in the past and is doing so again. I am giving myself the time that is needed to nurture my creative self. I am sharing this journey with a group of other artists. I realized as January came to a close that I needed to refocus. I wanted to be clear about why I am doing what I am doing. It is so easy to get pulled continue reading…
Time is What we Need
Growing up folks had a difficult time with my last name so they opted for groundhog. Well, as a child growing up this wasn’t very complimentary. I realize now that they do tell us if spring is coming fast or slow which seems to me to be a helpful skill. And here we are in Saskatchewan in the middle of a not so nice winter, extreme cold, rain and ice. This is a rare combination for us. We usually deal with extreme cold but don’t have it mixed in with ice or rain. I have been very grumpy about continue reading…
