It helps me in a lot of ways, but mostly it helps me by letting me sort out my thoughts and feelings about my life and work. It gives me a way to share my experiences with others. And it helps me, as a songwriter who would really like people to listen to my music, connect with people and make a case for my music when I can't be a "road warrior" and spend my time traveling and doing that kind of thing in person.
Lately, though, with the Christmas crush and things at home (son Desi home from college, Terry off work and enjoying time off at home) I've been much less rigorous about writing here. January has turned into this insane time of preparing for a couple of appearances, with an added workload of a weekday mass set up for Vicariate churches to be able to meet the new archbishop (on January 15). Then there's the annual Composers Forum in St. Louis the last week of the month. I must sort of coast along in my little cloud most of the time, because it feels like a smothering schedule through mid-February. And yes, it's my own fault!
So please bear with me as I try to manage all that. I get to be a part of the Gulf Coast Conference this weekend in NoLa, and have a concert with Terry and Peter Hesed's musical forces at the CSJ Motherhouse in St Louis later this month. Then I get to do a day of reflection with musicians in Minneapolis and work with the redoubtable Lynn Trapp next month. Lots of good work, new faces and old friends, and a chance for people to hear some of my new songs and sing some of the old ones. It's a good life, but it causes these late-night panic attacks, when I'm typing my blog on my iPad at 2:30 a.m. because if I didn't get up and do something I'd be tossing and turning in bed.
I love this medium that allows me to connect with you, my colleagues and friends, some of whom I haven't met yet. So when I'm unable to keep up with this blog at my usual pace, don't think it's from lack of desire or interest. Be happy for me that I get to sing a little more, in new and different places, or that as a family we have more time together. As my schedule settles back into its usual routine, I'll make time as before for writing here. I have a list of ideas that I dictate to Siri as they strike me through the week. I just need the psychic space to parse them out into sentences.
In the meantime, I'll post the occasional observation, or share some musical or liturgical idea on Facebook or Twitter, and let you know there about what and when I'm posting here. I'm still here: I think sometimes that I write just to be sure of that. For tonight, though, I think I've managed to make myself sleepy enough, listening to myself drone on with Seinfeldian nihilism about my wonderful life, that I can go back to bed and catch a few winks before morning.
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