A New Light

Last Friday was my last day of work in the corporate world. happiness, expectancy, and peace would be a severe understatement.

I almost immediately headed to Dartmouth to assist my choir director in running rehearsals on monday and tuesday and..to say the least, i am happy...and i sincerely thank GOD for that since it has been a long year of being in an unusually unhappy place.

this is not to say that life will be roses from here on out, but i know i am finally headed in the right direction.

i am now back into chicago and tomorrow is my first day of really feeling like i am not at work anymore (since i am in new hampshire on mondays and tuesdays) and i vow to really get my life in order and state my goals and start working toward them.

this is what life is about. GOD's perfect timing. talent. patience. drive. and most importantly, passion.

the world is my manuscript paper.

time to write some music.

On The Brink of A New Season

So...after much praying and fasting and making lists and talking to the people that mean the most to me....I resigned from my well paying corporate job.

Many may ask--in this economy? Do you have another job lined up? Why?

And to those questions I say this: When God tells you to move, move. Don't waste any time.

I am an artist.
I was an artist stuck in a cubicle faking an interest in developing better ways to sell and buy industrial supplies.
I am an artist.
I was an artist that felt like her soul was being dried up as she studied the dry science of the industrial supply market.
I am an artist.
I was an artist that was unhappy.
I am an artist.

I just told my Uncle who is a musical mentor to me and is the main reason why I live in Chicago now. And he is excited. His only question was: Did you speak to God about this?

That is the smartest and most pertinent question to ask. And my simple answer is: YES.

There are things in the works: my album, a part time teaching position of music, getting myself and my band out there.

Now that I will have more time and flexibility, you should be hearing from me more often (or not, haha)

stay tuned...

TOAL.

Trip of A Lifetime.

I go away for 2 weeks, perform to my heart's content for a great and diverse audience...only to realize that what I want to do is travel the world and spread positive music. What do I do with that dream as I sit at a cubicle for 9 hours 5 days a week?

I sigh.

I pray.

I dream.

I wait. patiently.

God has a plan that is now, slowly being revealed. Something is brewing within me...further. the same thing that brewed in me and resulted in a life changing move to Chicago. I don't know when I will be ready to go after my dream with both wings...but something tells me...soon...(but also) not too soon. I have yet to learn what it is I need to learn in the present situation that I am in. So until I yield to God's will and His instruction, I won't be going anywhere (that is, in a physical sense)...there is always the studio down the block which will let me go somewhere mentally and sometimes spiritually.

But until then, I will be paying bills and dreaming of the Spinnaker Lounge where I did my first gig ever with On The Fly and the Stardust Theater where I performed in 7 different productions. I will dream a dream that was once alive enough to whet my appetite for my REAL purpose....and will become alive again.

Wedding Fever

So...my best friend got married last week. And now I have wedding fever. Can't wait until the next one. Key things to great wedding weekends: get a wedding planner; have a bomb bridal party (bridesmaids and groom's men); have a joint bachelor and bachelorette party (some may agree to disagree); keep God first...

that's it.

the time of my life.

and it wasn't even my wedding.

"Professionalism"

Who wrote the rules on "professionalism"? Why does it have to be that an employee can't show emotions other than neutral and happy? Isn't it natural to have a bad day? Isn't it natural to want to cry? And whose fault is it when you leave the room quick enough to hide your tears? God made us fearfully, wonderfully, and uniquely. Some more emotional than others. Yes, there are the annoying drama queens, but by no means should the showing of an emotion be considered weak (let the disagreements begin!) I am an artist existing in this corporate setting. There are bound to differences in outlooks on professionalism when it comes to emotion. There are bound to be disagreements in perceptions of productivity, punctuality, effectiveness, organization, and just the whole concept of "professionalism". ugh. Sometimes my soul screams out from my cubicle for real life to rear its natural head within my bubble of "professionalism". Everyday, my destiny is reaffirmed when I walk into that bubble and for all the annoyance that it causes, me I am thankful for the reassurance. Music is not only the food of love. It is My life. My calling. My First Love. My Best Friend. And it all comes from God who is all that and more...

Whatever...Corporate America.

L-O-V-E

Having my bout with L-O-V-E right now. L-O-V-E, eh? yea..very interesting thing. It is the type of thing that can be there while there is STILL hot mess going on. In some instances, it can be good and be seen as unconditional love. In other instances, it is just crazy. I'm at the crazy point. But, I just wanted all of my readers to hear a very tried and true saying that I am not taking into consideration (and not just for me but for many that I see around me): "YOU CAN'T LOVE OTHERS IF YOU DON'T LOVE YOURSELF". It is plain and simple. Now, be careful. This issue can manifest itself in a variety of ways: jealousy, hurting others (both intentionally and unintentionally), cheating, abuse etc. My advice is, don't try to love someone else if you don't love yourself. It will save you from a lot of heart ache and pain. The FIRST lesson of the year 2009.

From this point, it is onward and upward.

Thanks for listening.

God Bless.

2009- Off To A Good Start

Wow. Happy 2009. This year has turned out to be great so far....our President is a God-fearing, Intelligent, and Humble Black Man. Couldn't ask for anything more. Well...yea...I had to ask God if our choir could sing at one of the Inaugural events...and God said....YES! We sang at the Inaugural Finance Committee Welcome Breakfast on Sunday, January 18th for the Financial Committee. You can see us on Youtube (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3MlCjgB1IBg). We rocked the house! Praise God! And we got to sing behind Bebe Winans, Carole King and Yolanda Adams. No one could ask for anything more.

Other than that, I am working on finishing my album. I am currently working on getting my demo tracks onto my myspace page, so you can see what I have been working on. Be patient. I am also working full time and doing other random things! There is never a dull moment.