On Bag Lust: The Weekender

For those of you who know me quite well, you're probably aware that I have a thing for bags. I have quite a few, but seemingly never the right one?

I do use many of my many bags, mostly for day to day items carrying to and from work or rehearsal or? But, recently I've been lusting after a bag that would be perfect for a weekend away or even a day or two more. Of course, J. Crew came to my rescue.

Let me tell you one quick story about this bag before I show it to you. I bought this bag online. I received it in the mail, but then a 25% discount became available to me. So, I returned the bag in store. Then, came back a week or so later and repurchased it... ending up with the exact same bag. I shouldn't admit these things, but I found it to be both amusing and embarrassing.

Anyway, check it out.

I gotta say, these colors are what got me. I love the brown leather and gold hardware with the khaki green. It also made of very high quality. The stitching is very nice and the bag is canvas, so of a light weight. I am super pleased with this purchase and especially glad that in the end I paid 25% less.

I'm excited to have this bag accompany me on my trip to Charlottesville, VA over Thanksgiving. More on that later.

On Professional Embarrassment

Last night was one of the more embarrassing experiences I've had as a professional musician.

I don't know what details exactly to go into, but I failed quite publicly in front of a group of musicians and was totally called out on it. This was not unnecessary. I was totally sucking.

It is also hard to recount the experience without making a ton of excuses. I have many! Probably the biggest is that I am really terrible at this kind of music. I truly am terrible and despite the work I've done on it, I'm still not doing well. I was made painfully aware of this last night. But, the bottom line is that I've been hired to do a good job of it and so it is my responsibility to make that happen.

I think the catch is, this is not an experience I have often in my adult musical life. I often deal with nerves, but rarely do I deal my blatant inadequacy. It is a wake up call. In the future, I either need to say no, or pull it together and make it happen.

For now, I am embarrassed. I have exactly three days to change my tune, quite literally, or else. What does not kills us, makes us stronger... I suppose.

On Red Shoelaces

The following is a post about shoes that I love that probably should have died a long time ago. I just can't give them up, so as a result I recently had them resoled at the Village Cobbler. The truth of the matter is, I love getting shoes resoled. Few things feel quite as gratifying as when something that is old once again feels new. So, I did just that to these little puppies and gave them new life as far as walking goes. Now visually speaking, they still needed a kick.

I originally had the red shoe lace idea with some other kicks that have red stitching. I thought it would give them a nice little jolt, but upon purchase of said shoelaces I decided that these dead buggers could use the rebirth. The result was quite pleasing.

On a Simple Shelf

My current place of residence in new construction. This is a first for me and it definitely has its benefits. One of which is thoughtful placement of outlets and such. When I first encountered my new bedroom I realized there was an electrical outlet and cable outlet placed smack dab in the middle of the wall. Now, I can understand the appeal of this if I were the type of fellow to say, mount large televisions on my wall... but as you can imagine, I'm not. So, for a solid year I was staring at these outlets trying to devise a way to cover them properly.

Whilst scanning a home magazine not too long ago, I noticed a shelf that was used to set frames atop of. What a grand idea! Of course, Ikea has such shelves, so with the help of the one and only Scott, I managed to pick one up and get it mounted on my wall to handle as much. The result is as follows.

I'm pleased with this! I think it fits the wall nicely and accomplished the said task. If I hadn't have told you, I would imagine you wouldn't even have known said outlets exist.

On Inspiration Friday

On Photographer Worship - Joseph Rynkiewicz

I'm in the process of considering making a very expensive camera purchase. More on that later, but in consideration it occurred to me that a) I don't know that much about cameras and b) my friend Joe would be super helpful in guiding me through that process. He, of course responded more than helpfully. In reading his response, I was also reminded that it had been a while since I revisited his beautiful photography, so I made my way on over to www.josephrynkiewicz.com. What a treat. His talent is growing!

In full disclosure, I actually already own one of these photographs, but it still waits for the proper frame. To me, there is such consistency of tone within these (and his other images) and I also feel like I'm observing specifically through his eye. A clear point of view that I appreciate and having the luxury of knowing him, I think it is pretty pretty. So, if you have a moment, stop over to his website and take a look along with me. I think you'll be quite pleased you did.

On French Pop/Rock/Icon Worship - Serge Gainsbourg

Since we're in France, why not stay there with a little Serge Gainsbourg.



This is one of those things you're not supposed to admit on the internet, but I knew Charlotte, Serge's daughter before I knew about him. I know, I know... that takes my cool factor down a bit, but it's honest. After discovering Charlotte and her terrific acting and music, I learned more about the Gainsbourg name (not as in Ruth Bader Ginsburg) and learned that Serge was the coolest of the cool. A popular icon. An artist of uncategorizable talent. He embodied and transcended all things "pop." Also, a fantastic dresser... but his legacy lives on as even more. It is also nearly impossible to find a picture of him where he is not smoking. A heart attack took him before lung cancer could.





If you download a ton of Serge Gainsbourg, you could play it all day long on your iTunes and never get bored. I promise that. You also might walk away feeling a bit cooler.

Take a listen and a look.

On French Rock Girl Worship - Sylvie Vartan

Are you listening to Sylvie Vartan? I am. She has been adorning my computer speakers for a number of year really, but most recently I've been playing her on repeat. French Rock Girl! This is as good as it gets. Well, not truly, I mean my dear Serge Gainsbourg is really as good as it gets, but I'll keep Sylvie in a little different special category because she was (is?) so darn cute.





But, why don't I just let her show you herself?



Adorable (said with French accent), right?

Do a little download. Take a listen and enjoy some fun 60's/70's French girl rock for your afternoon.

On Winter Boots - Quoddy Grizzly Boot

The truth of the matter is, for the past few years I haven't had a proper pair of winter boots. What ends up happening is a I wear boots that aren't water proof and end up with wet feet. But, it's a struggle when your destination is generally a professional work place and your feet are big so carrying an extra pair of shoes with you does not seem an option. So, I've been doing some research to try to find some sort of alternative that would allow me the warmth of a winter boot but allow me to keep them on all day at work. Does this exist? Enter Quoddy Boots. I'm not gonna lie, the only reason I know about these is because of J. Crew. That seems kinda sad, but it is true and since finding them I have read about them all over the place. They are hand sewn moccasins with a crepe sole that is meant for hunting in Maine. For my money, these look pretty business casual, but substantial... but what do you think?

The other thing is, these are an in. vest. ment. Because they are hand crafted, their cost is up there, but any repairs that would ever be needed are done free for the remainder of your life or the company's life... whichever ends first. Additionally, they can be lined with sheep skin and worn without socks. That sounds both awesome and HOT. My feet are sweating just thinking about it. So is it worth it? Are these right for a working boy in Chicago winter?

On Joy in Music Making

Most of you know that I make music. Some of you know that more than others as I am a man of many hats, but truth be told, music is my first hat. It's the hat I've worn most comfortably since I can remember. My earliest memory of making music is at the age of 2 when I sang at my parent's 25th wedding anniversary. I believe the song was "You Are my Sunshine" and the audience was friends, family and church family. That moment kind of started the whole thing. It seemed inevitable that wherever I would be from then forward I would be making music in front of people. Through my life, this has been both amazing and challenging. I suppose as anyone who has a public facing talent knows, it feels so good to share it, but sometimes it feels burdensome to figure out exactly how best to use it.

I'm still trying to figure this out. I think about it all the time. I'm not sure my musical calling is specific and so in what ways can I be fulfilled as an artist and share with others.

Rather than indulging my existential conundrum on this blog, I'd rather like to highlight one of the things I do weekly which brings me great joy in the music making process. I think it is way in which I've found myself as an artist while sharing with others.

I've been the vocalist for the Grace Chicago Consort in residence at Grace Chicago Church for about five years now. What once seemed a possible short lived gig has turned into a long time respite with other talented musicians. We are making music for a sacred setting which has so much tradition to glean from and the results are often, what I think to be, somewhat magical. Now before you balk at this being about church, might I suggest you take a listen?

I've had my little Zoom H2 recorder the last couple of Sundays and I wanted to share some stuff.

The following is a little prelude to start off the service, something A Capella:



This is the same song a bit later with the ensemble to accompany communion:



This is an example of one my favorite things we do. It involves taking a hymn that the congregation sings and kind of turning it on its through improvisation. This usually happens during communion time and is free form, based on a melody everyone in the congregation is familiar with:



Finally, this is an example of me leading the congregation. I can't imagine enough people know what it is like to stand in front of a group and have them sing at you. I believe this recording is about 135 voices, facing me and I at them. It is really powerful and moving for me:



So, all this to say, although I struggle to find my identity as musician, I know what it is to find joy in making music. It is rare that I feel the ability to sing with abandon and be true to that which I feel in the music. Each Sunday at Grace, that is exactly what I do.

On Inspiration Friday

On Liquid Nails

This is probably no news to you, but Liquid Nails is amazing. Scott brought some over the other night because I had this hinge on my bathroom cabinet door that had been totally stripped. I was at a loss of what to do. Do you get a bigger screw and go through the whole process again? Do you just stop using the door?

No, you use liquid nails!

We plugged up that hole, replaced the screw and then covered the whole mess with a little more of this goo... and voila! It worked like a charm. The door seems secure and I feel like I can go back to moving about in the bathroom in a somewhat careless manor.

If you have the right reason, I recommend the stuff. It works.

On Salt Water Taffy from the Allegan County Fair

Let me tell you a somewhat cute and funny story.

My parents have ventured into the world of text messaging. Now mind you, they are treading lightly and not out of choice but out of ability. My favorite message I've received so far from my mom read "Luvyudvn." Adorable, right?

Well, last week I was talking to them on the phone and they mentioned they were headed to the Allegan County Fair, which is just a permanent fixture of my childhood. Each fall we would go and just thinking back on it I am rushed with nostalgic smells and images, some of them a little bit trashy and lot of them pretty sweet. One of my memories is of buying salt water taffy. This is not the taffy that you get in little bite sized morsels, but that which is stretched out in a long strip, nestled between wax paper. It was unbelievably gooey and best when put in the refrigerator for a day or so.

After I got off the phone, it occurred to me to send the parents a text saying "Hey, if you have the chance, grab me some taffy at the fair and send it along." Of course there was no response, so I didn't really think twice about it.

Fast forward to yesterday, when I receive a mystery package in the mail that looks remarkably like those containers you use at the drive through bank.

Inside? a familiar shaped bag.

Inside that? Oh hai!

Yum! Just as I had remembered! This is no artisan taffy, but the homemade kind. Rough around the edges. Carefully, yet messily placed in the wax paper.

Ok, so this stuff is awesome and gooey and delicious.

It only tastes like this when it comes from the fair. I say this as someone who has eaten much taffy from many places. This stuff is special. It is full of sweetness and then the little bits that get stuck to your teeth manage to carry an incredible amount of salt, almost to cleanse the palate. And, after a few hours in the cold, you get a nice snap when you break off a piece to begin with. Thanks to the Youngs parents for making my day, yesterday.

On Laura Nyro

Have you been listening to Laura Nyro?






I have. I'm in love. I mean, she's so era specific, but there is something rather autumnal about the 70's anyway, I think. So, for September she is getting me in the mood.