Ever since FAWM ended March 1st, I’ve just been having fun on YouTube. I’ve given up on writing. At least for now. Maybe because I can’t seem to stop making these clips, although I’m thinking of playing around with some Push Magic.
Hey, check out Chip’s clip – he seems to know what he’s doing and he makes it look easy. Certainly fun – certainly more fun than writing quiet words that don’t make music – lol!
(Music clip provided @WolfKier on YouTube.)
#Slothcore is when you create a song that is between 25-40 bpm. Song #17 (“To the Sky”) is at 35 bpm. Song #18 (“Reach for the Sky”) is the same song but at 120 bpm. Listen to how very different they sound.
Happy Valentine’s Day!
Okay, so it’s day 1 of FAWM 23, and I’ve uploaded song #1, A Lover’s Lover.
What else am I doing on day 1 of FAWM 23? Continuing my read of Digital Minimalism. I do like minimalism, don’t I? I’m almost finished reading Essentialism. Similar ideas.
Both validate my whole POV anyway. But it’s always good to be reminded and to realize you’re not alone in thinking these things and in practicing them, too.
What to do about social media is always a struggle, but it’s good to know the best way to deal with technology is to choose the parts you find essential and to toss the rest.
Take FAWM, for example. It is a bit social media-like and can trigger the dopamine rush checking to see how many comments you get and what people are saying about your music, but it’s also the motivation I need to get some music done. So, overall, I find it worth keeping.
Now, on to some more reading and writing and listening. That’s how FAWM works. You listen to others and they listen to you and you often discover some real gems – both people and music – along the way.
The best professional move we made this past year was in selling our home in Las Vegas and building one in Florida, even with all the blips and bumps. The main reason is ever since Covid, hubby has been working at home full-time and the house we built in Vegas pre-Covid did not suit us.
It wasn’t that it was so terribly small (1470 sq ft) by California standards–I would have loved to have had a home like this when we lived in California for over 25 adult years (not counting my childhood)—it was that it was spread out on 2 floors and the downstairs had very little room–not even a dining room or area big enough for a table.
Upstairs was better because we had a nice-sized master and two more bedrooms over the garage–one as office for him, and one as studio for me–right next to each other. So there wasn’t a lot of privacy for his meetings and my recordings. It was just too tight for an introvert like me. No escape. 24/7.
But now he has a really nice-sized office with double windows in the front of the house. I claimed the “flex space” on the other size of the hall next to the garage with a small window, kept all dark and clubby with changing colored lights. And even the cats have a fully-decorated room for their litter, toys, tree, couch, and dresser.
So professionally, and personally, this has been a victory for us. And with Disney and beaches within a short drive. Just like how I grew up in Southern California.
On this last day of 2022, I haven’t really set many goals, mostly to focus on music and to hybernate from social media for the month of January. The intention is to refrain from actively participating on YouTube, Twitter, and maybe not even a blog post. All to prepare for FAWM ’23 (February Album Writing Month), not only musically, but emotionally, psychologically, and all the interaction that FAWM entails.
Happy New Year!!
Kathy Holmes Books & Music 