The Starbucks' Experience

'Tis the season...
Usually to be jolly...

BUT

I have found that's not ALWAYS the case and most of us can attest to that. For example, one day I was in the Dollar Tree in Marion after Thanksgiving, killing time while my wife and Mother-in-law went to Wal-Mart to shop or something. I figured going to Radio Slack and the Dollar Tree would be a great way to pass time while they were in crowded Wal-Mart. I actually found something I wanted to buy in the Dollar Tree and waited in line. Ahead of me was an older lady and her husband was off to the side. The cashier asked if she wanted to donate a dollar to some charity, but it was essentially for kids who weren't going to have a Christmas. The old man said "HA! Kids who don't have Christmas, yeah, right!"

I was ticked

So when I paid, the cashier didn't even ask me if I wanted to donate. So I had to ask what it was about and I gave a dollar out of spite. It's funny what motivates us sometimes.

* * *

So the other day I went to Starbucks to get some gift cards for some of my friends. That was a mistake. It was crowded in there! I didn't know where the line was and who was waiting for their order... pretty chaotic.
I had to leave... because all of a suddden there was a swarm around me. I do bad enough at lunchtime at my work!

So I left it till morning.

I went to another Starbucks. I went inside... and the line was huge! I had to be to work! I don't normally associate gift cards with a drive-thry but I decided to try it. when I was first there, there was only one car. I got into mine and then there was a line there! I couldn't win!

Anyway, I waited it out and finally got my friends' presents. It's funny what we put ourselves through in order to "celebrate" this time of year. Maybe we should just stick to gold, frankincense and myrrh.

This should be my last relatively sardonic blog for a while. I will soon be dedicating this blog to the goings on of my family which will become extended in March or so.

uhhhh... yes, I am still alive...

So it's been a while. Okay... longer than a while.

Anyway, I have a new Blog dedicated to my new ventures which I SHOULD update more regularly. I'm hopeful anyway.

Check it out:
A Fresh Start

Meanwhile, I am going to be a dad in March. But those of you who have Facebook have probably heard already.

Later!
-Sween

Being a dad

The title of this blog may beg incorrect assumptions but to clarify immediately, I'm talking about my experience house and baby sitting for some friends of ours. The girls were 6 and... 10 or 11, can't quite remember, I'm pretty sure 11... anyway, despite my wife doing most of the baby-sitting cause I had plays to do and band practices to attend, the time I had with the girls was interesting. I think I mostly had fun with them playing on the trampoline and playing hockey. The fact they were pretty low maintainence was helpful, too. I guess that nothing really cataclysmic happened except that I think it would be fun to be a dad. But that's probably the typical guy response or desire is that it would be fun. I thought I had a more profound expression of my experience but that's the extent of it.

As a result of baby/house sitting I stood up some friends on St. Patrick's Day, thinking that if I have kids, I probably can't do all the social outing stuff like I would want to. Well, maybe I'll have some green beer next year!

Snow, snow and more snow!

Here's my attempt to putting this on my page...

Getting Out There

As you may well have heard, I am in process of creating a new album. Also in this process I'm realizing the need to be a proactive artist as well. I think it is proven difficult to get out there if you're not playing places. Sure, there's the internet and with all this technology it would be very easy to not go out and play but there could be something to playing live that creates more of a platform and a dynamic atmosphere to entertain. Funny that this is coming from a guy who doesn't go to concerts, mostly due to turbaphobia or more commonly, "fear of crowds".

In the other process of creating new material, I think a colleague of mine said it best when he said, "...You almost have to be going through something in order for something to come out." (taken from The Yarmouth Vanguard in an article about Ryan Cook written by Michael Gorman).
I took that to mean you must be experiencing something in order to create something heartfelt and profound. Living in suburban Fishers, Indiana doesn't provide much fodder for heartfelt experience when you have almost everything at your disposal. Perhaps I will bemoan materialism or self-sufficeincy in my up and coming album. That has been the trickiest part of producing new songs is that routine mundane thing that life has become for me now. Right now a cover of "Farewell to Nova Scotia" is the most heartfelt song I have in my new cut.

Those are some thoughts for today. I have also put some stuff up on a site dedicated to Yarmouth bands. Please enjoy and tell all your friends!

Music

This is a work in progress. What is it you ask? My putting music on the internet for people to hear. Right now I have a myspace account with one tune on it. There will be more to come. Right now I am fighting depression and a proverbial writing block musically but when I pull through, there will be a veritable bonanza of new tunes.

Meanwhile check out my new site

Dragon Warrior

I just beat Dragon Warrior in about an hour and a half last night.
I just want to let the world know