…You can go out and make it happen.”

Such a simple quote, but it rings true for me right now with not being afraid to fail and not just standing by while my dreams float by me.  It is weird when you start thinking about new things how something falls into your lap that keeps you motivated to keep going in the direction of your goals.
We had someone stay on our couch a few nights this past week – she is an independent filmmaker from Toronto doing a documentary on the creative process and how it can help with healing in any aspect – less pain, more happiness, etc.  We ended up talking to her for a really long time one night in the kitchen (good conversations always happen in the kitchen – where there are no comfy places to sit!) and basically it just reminded me that I’m not crazy for going down my own path and trying to do things my own way.
For a few different reasons I thought I was going to keep my personal life as inconspicuous in this blog as possible, but in order to head in the direction of my goals I think I need to bring it openly to the blogosphere.  The jazz group I work with are The Joints based out of Boulder, CO and they released their first album in December of last year.  I have worked with them to release the album and do as much online promotion as possible.  We have had our ups and downs and our occasional lulls in the past year but I am realizing I love doing this and I want to give it my all.
It is easy when you are heading down a path less traveled to feel like you are alone and that maybe all your hard work is for nothing – sometimes it does seem easier to just settle down and find an office job to work in ‘forever’ and while I may still have an office job I want to be pursuing my creative passions on the side.

The woman staying with us was such a breath of fresh air – she worked in the ‘corporate’ film world for quite a while, and then decided it was time for her to put her own stamp on the film world – hence the documentary.  Talking to her just got my creative juices flowing again and helped me realize if you love what you do (whether it’s your job job or your after work activity) that it is never in vain.  You have to do what you love even if it’s a more difficult path (let’s be honest, it’s always a harder path when you are trying to do what you are passionate about).

It got me thinking about an Art Collective – how random was it that I just happened to have a several hour conversation in my kitchen with a woman from Toronto who finally decided to fully dive in and chase her goals after, according to her ,”too long.”  It’s nice to talk to like minded people from time to time and I know there are so many more like minded people in the world – how great would it be to connect all of them in one place – promote each other, bounce new ideas off of each other – no matter what discipline of the arts/creative world they were diving into.

I took many things from the conversation but the biggest take home point was to keep going – don’t give into the masses and continue to head in the direction you want to take – even if it isn’t the ideal path everyone else wants you to take.
So I have dreamed about it, now it’s time to go out and make it happen.  I just need to take it a step at a time and know I am making a different – even it’s only a difference for me!
If you want to check out who The Joints are and see what they’ve done so far you can do so at www.thejointsmusic.com.

Also, I think I’m going to incorporate a weekly recipe into this blog – to not only share the great recipes my boyfriend and I cook but to also keep us accountable to cook during the week!  This week we failed and my recipe of the week is Kraft Mac & Cheese… we have been so scattered that (besides the Spinach Salad from last week that we cooked again a couple nights ago) that is the only thing we have cooked all week; the other nights we either didn’t eat (terrible I know!) or went to Noodles & Co.  I’ll work on having an actual recipe for everyone next week:)
Until next time
~Music Manager in Training~