haven't been posting much i've realized, computer problems, and i've been on the road for a month or so. time passes quickly when traveling, but i will get back at it shortly, once i get my 'puter fixed up.
what can i say, being an artist is a tough slog, because you're never just an "artist."
you've gotta be a PR person, constantly carrying the flag into battle and schmoozing up new gigs or clients, you've got to be a manager, booking gigs and arranging transportation and accommodations, as well as a researcher, delving into new technology and techniques, while simultaneously working to keep you chops up in an ever competitive world, and personal assistant, taking care of all the little tasks that need to be done to keep your ship running smoothly. it's endless and exhausting, and when you're not on the road, you ain't making a living, so you're constantly struggling against two worlds, the home world and the road world, which are impossibly different places to be at both times.
one lifestyle is domestic, take out the trash, do the dishes, pick up after the kids, banking, get in line for groceries, while the other lifestyle is a hectic, rock 'n' roll, mish mass of panic, and what i call the "hurry up and wait," syndrome at venues, galleries, theatres, hotel lobby's, hotel rooms, cabs, airport skybars, and of course, there's quite a lot of imbibing of spirits to pass the time in between it all. So, in getting home, there needs to be a little bit of 'downtime' to change gears and adjust to being a civilian again, instead of a frontline foot soldier in the trenches of the art, music, literary, and film world where people are throwing "culture bombs" at you in attempts to make you prove your worth, or send you back to relative obscurity and slavery.
myself, i've been on the road a good three years solid, traveling pretty much consistently across canada and a few forays into the states doing what i love doing, making art, or films, or music or writing. i haven't had much time to reflect on it, because when you're in the 'now' you have no time to look back on things, goals, accomplishments, missed ships and the like. but lately, i've been doing something a bit different, and that is abstaining from my good friend alcohol, and it's been treating me right. on the road, you can develop a voracious appetite for good spirits for a variety of reasons: missing home, missing friends or family, the love of a good time, and so on. it isn't a bad thing, i think it helps keep you sane and decompresses the mind from a high stress lifestyle in a lot of ways, but sometimes, differentiating between a "good time" on the road and a "good time" at home can be very, very different things. i guess what i'm saying is i'm slowing down and it's a good thing, because i was going very hard traveling and living for a few years, and i realize i am mortal, and have a multitude of responsibilities that i must take care of, dangling modifiers aside.
i quite like this new lifestyle i'm adjust to, it's not the home life, but tee-totaling it, because i'm up early in the morning now, not feeling like death warmed over, and i can feel a nice clarity coming out of a fog of frantic traveling. As well, for some reason, I’ve got all this damn energy, so I’ve been hiking a lot and trying to figure out what to do with myself while I my computer gently weeps in a mac repair lab…….well, here are some photos from the road....enjoy......(i should do a travel blog as well!)
anyways, travel is good for the soul, and i may bitch about it because i see a lot of airports, but not them big breaks or super fat pay cheques i'm starting to realize i want and am ready for more and more. plus, i've got kids, and i've missed three years of birthdays, gatherings, celebrations and holidays, and this "emerging" artist status should hopefully start changing sooner than later, because this glass ceiling is very frustrating.......well, until next time lovers,
cb.
