A Song of Perseverance

*If the video does not play above then it is still processing.

Jimmy was nice enough to accompany me at a songwriter's night at the Bell Buckle Cafe last night. I've been talking about songs, and writing them, but I need to perform them to see how they stick. And with the band on a small hiatis (due to logistics and colleges, etc.) songwriter's nights will prove to help me still grow my talents in the mean time. I've posted the words to this song on here before. But I will repost them here so you can see them with the video. Thanks to Wes Worrell for taking the video for me.

Verse
These shoulders
May be the only ones fit
To bear the weight
That I must.

This heart
May be strong enough,
To feel what I feel
And not bust.

Chorus:
I was made for this,
From the skin on my hand
To the bones in my fist.

I was made for this.
Though my knuckles are white
As ghosts when I grip,

I hold on.
I hold on.

Verse
They've taken my eyes
And put 'em in the wrong holes,
But they'll never
Take my sight.

They've taken my dreams
And stripped 'em from my soul,
But new ones will come
Every night.

Chorus
I was made for this,
From the skin on my hand
To the bones in my fist.

I was made for this.
Though my knuckles are white
As ghosts when I grip,

I hold on.
I hold on.

Unicyle shot of the year

This is so funny. I am such a nerd. I took this of myself while riding the unicycle.

Feeding the Ducks

My younglins and I bought a bag of hot dog buns and took off to feed the ducks at the local duck pond this weekend.


Hannah (the older one) loved it but was a bit afraid of the ducks. She did very good at breaking off little pieces for them to eat; but when the ducks would see her doing this they would come closer to her, and she in turn would move farther back still holding on to the bread. The ducks still seeing the bread would follow her more, until eventually she thinks, "Oh yeah, drop the bread and they will leave me alone." Now repeat this process several times, and that is what you call comedy.

I gave Ava the bread and she wouldn't feed the ducks with it, she would eat it. I said, "Ava, that's for the ducks." And she'd reply, "Uh, uh... I hungry."

She didn't have a problem getting near the ducks, actually she got in trouble for chasing and scaring them. The picture below is a picture of her after she got in trouble for chasing one into the road. As I am taking the shot she is saying, "Leave me alone."


This picture was an extremely hard shot to take by myself, but I did it! Thank you girls for being still for 2 seconds.

Hit the Ground

I don't want to ever forget this song. It is short and sweet. I don't usually do short and sweet. I wrote this about three years ago, and it still means a lot to me.

Hit the Ground

Verse
There's a sound that silence makes,
It's a noise my heart can't take.
It's creeping in the house now,
As quiet as a mouse.

I'm not a man, I'm a shadow of
Love: the lack there of.
I keep digging in, looking for something else.
I faithfully fall off that shelf.

Chorus
And what I thought was rain
Was tears from God himself.
And though I couldn't feel the pain,
There was something that I felt.

I felt the chains that held me down
Hit the ground.

Verse
There's a rhythm inside my mind,
It speaks louder than words and life.
There's something hidden in every line.
I don't speak to loud because it may get out.

Chorus
And what I thought was rain
Was tears from God himself.
And though I couldn't feel the pain,
There was something that I felt.

I felt the chains that held me down
Hit the ground.

At the Hall of Fame Lounge

Jimmy was nice enough to join me (at the last minute) to go play some songs at the Hall of Fame Lounge in Nashville. I have been missing playing in front of people, and until I can get the full band practicing and in routine I think I will continue to hone my song writing and performing skills at writer's nights, coffee shops, etc.

We showed up early enough to catch two rounds of performers. And it took a while before I realized what the format was. It goes like this:

You have three chairs, three mics, and three inputs on the stage. Three different song writers take a seat. The writer to the left goes first, then the guy in the middle, then the guy on the end. You repeat this process three times. Each of you have a guitar, and are welcome to play along with the other performer's songs.

So when we went up I sat Jimmy to the left of me, and he played cello. He would play around a little when the other guys were playing, but not I of course. And one of the guys played along with Jimmy and I when we did our songs. It was very interesting.



All of the music that was performed besides our own could be considered country on some level, alt. country, country blues, or just blues. And Jimmy and I were easily the youngest people there. So given our attire, age, and set-up (cello and guitar) I think we had them all curious as to what we would come out with. And I believe (to put in Murphy Small's words, the first performer in our round) they were pleasantly surprised.

All of the musicians there were great song writers and excellent guitar players, it was Nashville is all about.

Thanks to Ty Brando for giving me the opportunity to play, and for taking these nice photos.

Restless Passenger

I wrote this song several weeks ago for a good friend of mine. The premise is this: Sometimes we make things to complicated. If it feels good, then keep it simple, and by all means enjoy it.

By the way, thanks for reading my blog. I have a lot of long term plans with the site, and all of you who participate are really helping my momentum.

Restless Passenger

Verse

The purpose of your skin

Is to hide what lies within,

But I just want to skim.... on the top.

Please don't tell me to stop.

The purpose of your eyes

Is to see what's on the other side,

But I could just stare

Twenty years into there

And never go anywhere.

Chorus

We're just two bodies, we're just two souls,

And all the missing pieces fill whole.

This sullen traveler finds peace.

And this restless passenger, release.

Chorus Outro

The purpose of our lives

May never be defined,

But still you can't deny

The way it feels tonight.

Verse

The purpose of these hands

Is to explore your foreign lands.

As I circumnavigate,

I paint your body like a landscape.

The purpose of our time

Is to see what we can find.

The moments that we share

Hang above us in the air,

And will never go anywhere.

Chorus

We're just two bodies, we're just two souls,

And all the missing pieces fill whole.

This sullen traveler finds peace.

And this restless passenger, release.

Chorus Outro

The purpose of our lives

May never be defined,

But still you can't deny

The way it feels tonight.

Pretty Little Princesses

To my girls: Thanks for a great weekend!