tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-90615880096119102622024-03-18T12:58:19.576-07:00BROOKIE BABBLEI'M BROOKE WHITE... LONDON'S MUM, MUSIC MAKER, IDOL SURVIVOR, ARTSY FARTSY LADY, WILD HAIRED, BAREFOOT SHOE LOVER, STRIPE OBSESSED, OVER-ANALYZER, CHILD OF GOD, GIRL WITH GLASSESBROOKE WHITEhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04549523864746273219noreply@blogger.comBlogger177125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9061588009611910262.post-88359944723671738072014-11-14T15:13:00.001-08:002014-11-19T23:37:51.056-08:00I'm Recording a Record on PledgeMusic To Benefit O.U.R.<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #141823; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;"><span style="color: #141823;">Well, the day has come that I can finally tell you about something that my head, my heart, and my voice have been quietly and anxiously engaged in for a long time now. Nearly a year ago I got a call from a company I worked with on “Change o</span><span class="text_exposed_show" style="display: inline;"><span style="color: #141823;">f Plans” called </span><a href="http://foundationentertainment.org/" target="_blank">Foundation Entertainment</a><span style="color: #141823;">. They informed me that they wanted to give me a gift of $20,000 to give to a charity of my choice! Wow, such an awesome thing right? I got to work trying to select a charity. Little did I know, this was one of the most overwhelming and difficult choices to make. I've worked with so many incredible charities since my time on idol, and there just doesn't seem to be one more important or needful than another. I felt quite heavy sifting through causes and wondering where this small, yet big donation would best be put to use. The world is full of need, heartbreaking unfulfilled need. I felt quite heavy sifting through causes and wondering where this small yet big donation would best be put to use. I sought for action, transparency of use of money and a direct use to the cause. I have an extremely tender heart for the struggle of mental illness, so that is where I was focusing my research. While I felt very strongly for the cause I had some trepidation for reasons I couldn't put my finger on. It was impressed upon me that there was a specific organization that I was suppose to find. I stewed about it everyday and turned to prayer for direction to find this specific charity. One day, I was scrolling through my IG feed where I came across a picture of Stephanie Nielson 's </span></span>(<a href="http://nieniedialogues.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Nie Nie Dialogue’s</a>) <span style="color: #141823;">husband on the floor with his hands behind his back in what looked like an intense situation. I read the caption and felt prompted to read her blog post which lead me to O.U.R., </span><a href="http://ourrescue.org/" target="_blank">Operation Underground Railroad</a><span style="color: #141823;">. Her husband Christian had just been apart of a jump team on a rescue mission with OUR to rescue and place in safety, nearly 30 children from sexual slavery in the Dominican Republic. Soon I was on the phone with the founder, Tim Ballard. He told me about his extraordinary and proactive efforts to go in and rescue children from the bonds and terror of sexual slavery. And then take them to safe havens of recovery. It's an ambitious + complex effort, one that seems almost impossible. But OUR is all about action and makes it possible. Sexual slavery is happening everyday, all day these CHILDREN are raped repeatedly. It is extremely tough to fathom or think about, and yet I have educated myself on the realities of the ugly evil truths and facts of the matter, and it's moved me to action. </span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span class="text_exposed_show" style="background-color: white; display: inline;"><span style="color: #141823; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;">After 6 months of searching, this was where the money and awareness and conversation was supposed to go, of that I felt sure. But I wanted to do more than just transfer the money. I felt like there was something of myself I could give. Music seemed to be a good gift. I also wanted to expand the $20,000. </span></span></span></div>
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<span class="text_exposed_show" style="display: inline;"><span style="color: #141823;">So here's where you and I come in. I started a <a href="http://bit.ly/OURpledge" target="_blank">PledgeMusic</a> page today, where you can donate to this cause, it can be a little or a lot, and in return you will receive from me, a special collaboration record, each song written and recorded with a generous and talented artist such as </span></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #141823;"><a href="https://www.facebook.com/OfficialDeanaCarter" target="_blank">Deana Carter</a>, <a href="https://www.facebook.com/MindyGledhillMusic" target="_blank">Mindy Gledhill</a>, <a href="https://www.facebook.com/davidarchuleta" target="_blank">David Archuleta</a>, <a href="https://www.facebook.com/leigh.nash.music" target="_blank">Leigh Nash</a>, <a href="https://www.facebook.com/lucyschwartzsongs" target="_blank">Lucy Schwartz</a>, John Hanson, Chris Seefried, <a href="https://www.facebook.com/thesilverseas" target="_blank">Daniel Tashian</a>, <a href="https://twitter.com/carlysmithson" target="_blank">Carly Smithson</a>, and <a href="https://facebook.com/jackandwhite" target="_blank">Jack Matranga</a>.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #141823; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">Many people have asked me if I'd ever do a lullaby record… Welp I've been working around the clock on this with these incredible friends and fellow artists and I can't wait to share it with you. It is a record i’m calling “Lullabies and Happy Songs”… And I'm not talkin cheese ball kids music, but some pretty and magical tunes of joy and comfort that I feel anyone could enjoy. </span></span></div>
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<span class="text_exposed_show" style="background-color: white; display: inline; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><span style="color: #141823; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px;"><span style="color: #141823;">If we can pull together, I’d love to raise $20,000 more dollars that Foundation Entertainment will match, which could mean a donation of $40,000 that would fund almost 2 rescue missions!!! It would be a dream come true. Please please join me on PledgeMusic, become educated with this incredible cause, and I hope it moves you like it does me. </span><a href="http://bit.ly/OURpledge" target="_blank">http://www.pledgemusic.com/brookewhite</a></span></span></div>
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<i>(note: started this post 2 weeks ago)</i></div>
I never sent my Christmas cards. I tried, but then they turned out grainy. And I just couldn't bring myself to send grainy. They are sitting right beside me, in a box, on my desk as I type. I thought, sending Valentines could be fun?! February 14th came and went, and I completely spaced it... kind of. I thought about it, and realized that I just, didn't have it in me. First time I haven't sent a holiday greeting in the almost ten years I've been married. Ten.</div>
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Also, looking back at my last post here on this ghost town of a blog/website, was the 8th day of Christmas, of the infamous 12 days of Christmas Give aways that pretty much turned into the 10 days of Christmas Give-aways. Yes, 10 is the new 12. Never say never, but I might never do a give-away ever again. I'll tell you my heart was so in the right place in orchestrating the most overwhelming give-away during the most overwhelming, I mean wonderful time of year, but it kind of was a disaster. Sorry about that. Some people are really good at give aways, and math, and sports and letting go of unimportant stuff. I am good at none of those things. </div>
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There is generally a part of me that really gets worked up on the inside over dropping the ball on items such as Christmas cards and give-aways. One day the worry police in my brain were on my case about both things, plus a few others that maybe were more important... and I really got to feeling crappy about it all, and that's when suddenly I decided, it was not worth feeling crappy about. I decided! For once I could kind of grasp the silliness over the obsession with doing Christmas Cards, when I was reminded that everyone has seen and heard about my family, pretty much everyday for the last ten years. Thanks social networking. But wait, they don't have the paper version that comes in the mail and goes in the trash in three weeks, or in my case on the spot, because it arrives mid to end january when everyone has already ripped the dear things off the back of the door?! That sounds so bah humbug and cynical. That isn't my style. But sometimes you assert reality to get you through.</div>
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Really what I was hung up on was the idea of Christmas cards, or Valentines cards, and give aways. But in reality the act of sending Christmas Cards is one of the most time consuming expensive tasks of the season that kinda sends me over the edge every year. Like I end up having to go to the post office twenty times for more stamps because half of my family is Canadian and I never account for the extra postage... never, every time. Of course I want to design my own and have them printed on very fancy heavy recycled card stock paper for like one million dollars for 50. But then to save a little bit of cash I opt to go find my own envelopes (instead of having them made) for that custom card that is a really weird size, because I needed to be "artsy" and or "stupid", in which I will run to Staples, Office Max, Target, Wal-mart, Michaels and that other expensive stationary store in the mall to realize, yeah so they don't make envelopes this size. So I settle for envelopes that are bigger, and as I put each card into the envelope a little part of me dies, that it doesn't fit like a glove, that it's jiggling and floating around in there. I think of it shifting from side to side inside the monster envelope as it's traveling in the mail. Like fingernails on a chalkboard. Yeah, really, it's hard for me. As I write this, I'm embarrassed to actually say it out loud, or write it out loud. Because I don't think twice when other people send me pre-made cards, or smaller cards in bigger envelopes. I think "Yay! So nice of them to send me a Christmas Card!" Honestly I don't hold anyone to my ridiculously high personal Christmas Card standards. I wonder why I can't go to Costco like all the other normal sane people of the world and just buy like 100 cards + envelopes for $15. </div>
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I will tell you why, because deep down I am chained to the pursuit of perfection. Like, Pinterest Perfect, ya know? And remember that whole, "done is better than perfect" thing? Yeah, I still just can't seem to get into it. Still aiming for "perfectly done", which really means "never done". So I thought about all of this and realized that, indeed I was more emotionally invested in the thought of Christmas Cards, then in the actual sending of Christmas Cards. I should say, and say with em-phasis, that I love Christmas cards, receiving them is magical, and sending them is a kind gesture. But I realized that a big part of it for me, was <i>for me</i>, and that's kind of selfish and not what Christmas cards are supposed to be about. As of 2013, it will go down in History as that one year that I didn't send out Christmas cards. Maybe next year after I reform and simplify my Christmas card mentality, or just my mentality, I will get it done. Which brings me to 2014.</div>
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So first, Happy New Year! You may be thinking "hey brooke you know it's like March". And right you are. Here's the thing, you know that feeling you get at the start of a New Year? Like you are starting fresh, that you have a new vision, a sense of clarity, a burst of real motivation, the world is yours for the taking feeling?! As if that one singular day that transitions us from one year to the next, magically makes us able to change all the things that we were just completely incapable of being able to change just days before. It's all mental, isn't it?</div>
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Well I didn't have any of those feelings. As a matter of fact, the dense Christmas fog hadn't lifted. The over-committments of 2013 woke up with me in 2014. And I was just... tired, confused, unmotivated and quite frankly absolutely unsure how to change any of it. I was very Eyore-ish. And that just isn't like me. But I think that my old ways have caught up with me and I can't pretend like it's working anymore. </div>
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So I didn't write that "ready to conquer the new year" post that so many of us feel compelled to write. Because I was so very un-compelled. And much like the Christmas Cards and give aways, I was worried that I wasn't compelled, or motivated. But then I also had the moment of being okay with not being okay with everything. I don't know if I gave up those worries because I just had no brain space for it, or I just became indifferent. I have to tell you I have a fear of indifference. But once you become indifferent, well it doesn't make a difference. Yay for the most redundant paragraph of all time! </div>
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This is where I was, most of January. I tried to break free of my exhaustion and indifference and decide that even though I didn't know how to change, that I needed to start wanting it. And change is hard until, staying the same is harder. Bam, so I prayed to know what I needed to do to start the change process. So I made several lists. Listing things that I needed to do, commitments that needed to still be fulfilled, unfinished projects, emails and texts that needed responding, people that needed thanking, and lastly, things I desperately wanted to do... like paint, read self help books, take guitar lessons and practice the piano, finally plant a garden in my old greenhouse and take London to the beach. Then I just let it all sit there on the paper for a while, extraordinarily daunted. So I took out the scissors and cut about three more inches off my own hair for starters. Long true story. That's when anxiety hit, for nearly all of February.<br />
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<i>(Part 2: Here is where I am picking up tonight, Thursday, March 13, 2014)</i></div>
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It is hard for me to remember where I was going with this blog post 2 weeks ago. My headspace has actually changed quite a bit since then. So I am going to try to pick it up from here. The list wasn't magically crossed off. That's when I realized that in addition to the things I needed to do, there actually was a list of things I needed to not do, or stop doing. I wrote those down. I also looked at those for a while and wondered how I would stop doing them, this was going to be hard. I realized that many of those things I needed to stop doing were standing in the way of the things that I needed to start doing. And thus here we run into the struggle of change. I decided there were five things I really really really wanted to do, become or change, and essentially if I could change them, then the mass of to-do's on my to-do list would likely take care of themselves or just be done.<br />
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<b>1. Be on time:</b> My due date was May 20th... I arrived to Earth two weeks later, June 2, 1983, my poor mother. Truth be told I haven't been able to catch up since. Being on time, or should I say running late, is a chronic problem in my life that effects many opportunities and relationships, and ultimately my self-worth. So much of my internal disappointment with myself stems from never being able to keep up and letting people down. I'm hard on myself about this. Others are beyond frustrated with me about my tardiness, and yet I am still late. Some people might cut me some slack saying "having kids slows you down", and while it's incredibly true, I have to own the fact that I was slow, and falling behind long before London. It is a real problem, it's a wonder that I have accomplished what I have. Despite my sincere efforts to get out the door on time, I have failed. Essentially, this is an issue rooted in my character, this is where my focus is, which leads me to number 2.<br />
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<b>2. Say No:</b> I have made the connection, that number one is a close relative of number 2. Generally my inability to be everywhere I said I would be on time, is because I struggle to say no. I overcommit. Overcommitting has been a life long habit. I don't know where it came from, trying to be everything to everyone has been how I connected to my own approval. Do things right a couple times, make people happy, and before you know it you're addicted, addicted to yes. There is a quote floating around saying something like "say yes and you'll figure it out later". Because People that say yes are go getters! movers and shakers! ambitious! working! rich! Famous! Followed! Commented! Popular! Liked! Loved! This is the mentality of the business I am in. This is the mentality of the society we are in. We all work so hard to get a break, that we just say yes, in fear of the lost opportunity, in fear of lost approval, of lost "love". Truth be told, Yes can ruin your life. I am discovering with each passing day that while yes is easier to say it is so much harder to do, and while no is so hard to say, it's much easier to do. This isn't about taking the easy way, but being real, being honest, with others and ourselves. Will we really be able to follow through? How will saying yes to everything cause conflict with other commitments? If we say no, what if we disappoint? Will we still be worthy, valuable, important, love-able... to others, to ourselves? Seems extreme, but I think this is the stuff we sometimes don't want to own as real, the truth, the root. I know I don't, but I am ready to change, so I am trying.<br />
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<b>3. Be decisive: </b>Wouldn't you know that number 3 is a cousin to 1 and 2. Indecision is paralyzing. Nothing stalls one quite like the inability to make a choice. Everything from detergent or toothpaste, to a set list, or what to say on the caption of an instagram, to how to respond to a text, what task I will complete during nap time, what I am going to wear to church, should I stay or should I go, should I be quiet, should I speak up, was that right, was I wrong? Too many options, so much second guessing, not enough trust in my instincts, in the spirit. Scared I will make the wrong choice. Often by the time I do choose I am out of time and forced to just settle on something. Settling, sucks. Settling generally causes regret, which causes less confidence in our ability to choose, and around and round we go. Sometimes it's a choice of yes or no, will you do this? No could rock the boat, no would ruin my reputation of being dependable, being the hero, being a super human, just say yes. I have decided (look at me!) that a great deal of indecision comes from a fear of what others will think. Again, all of these changes are rooted in character. These are the hardest changes.<br />
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<b>4. Listen : </b>You may have noticed that I have a lot to say. Sorry, working on it. All this time I've thought that I was this great communicator, turns out I am a crap listener. Just because I know how to express myself, my feelings and emotions, doesn't make me a good communicator, it makes me kind of self centered. Talking isn't communicating, sure it's part of it, but it is the lesser part. If we truly hope to connect with someone, it will be because we listened to them, heard them, empathized with them and sought to understand them, with out making it about ourselves, with out thinking about what we are going to say next, with out having to tell them how they should be different. Yes it is important to respond, and yet responding with validation is a delicate balance, without turning it into something about us. I fail at this hard. My mom is one of the best listeners I know, she listens, asks questions, repeats the thing you said to be clear that she understood correctly. When she meets someone she immediately asks them questions about themselves, and then she listens, with her ears, with her eyes, with her heart. People love my mom, because she listens. I want to listen. I want to shut my big yapper and open my ears and my heart, and take it in, and just be there, and maybe, if I am asked, respond with something from my story that helps the other feel not alone. Listening can change our lives, marriages, friendships, businesses and spirituality. Listening doesn't come easily to me, I want to listen.<br />
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<b>5. Mindfulness: </b>In other words, put the damn phone down. I don't say the D word, but sometimes it's necessary. The impulsive phone checking, in the middle of a sentence with our spouse or a friend, while we are with our babies. Being here now, such a test of our day. We see people in the cars swerving down the freeway, staring at their phone. Day after day, it seems we're all putting our lives, our relationships and our families on the line, in danger all for what's in the phone, and the psuedo-connection we find on the internet. Does it scare you like it does me? I'm dependent like the rest of them. It's fun, and it's an escape, and at times totally helpful and necessary. But, I worry about it's influence on my life, my family, my daughter. She is 21 months, she knows how to get to youtube and flip through videos of elmo. Is this a life saver in Target? Yes, but does it frighten me that she isn't even two and all day she just wants to hold my phone and press buttons and stare at the screen? Yes, yes it does. We're always looking down, in a trance, in restaurants, in the check out line, in bedrooms and dinner tables. I want to be in the moment. Instead of always checking, comparing, always pinning, wishing our living room looked minimalist but colorful, understated yet eclectic, that if we did these 5 moves our butts could look like victoria secret models and that if we just had that pair of leopard booties our wardrobe and life would be complete. Consumed by consumerism. I spend more I want more, and it never ends. I want to look up. I want to spend less, I want to get more out of my real life with my real family. I want to see it, feel it and realize as often as possible, how grateful I am. Documenting is wonderful, connecting is awesome, but where do I draw the line. Working on it. Mindfullness.<br />
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Each of these are their own posts. And with all that said, I realize many of these changes, and many of the struggles mentioned in this post are rooted in perfectionism. An addiction and real struggle unto itself. I am reading this beautiful wonderful book called "the gifts of imperfection". It is so insightful, uplifting and helpful and I would highly recommend it. If you are reading this and find yourself in similar struggles, you are not alone. Maybe pick up the book, say a prayer, find some self compassion, seek gratitude. We can change. </div>
BROOKE WHITEhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04549523864746273219noreply@blogger.com19tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9061588009611910262.post-31456935186323374802013-12-21T11:10:00.000-08:002013-12-21T11:30:21.689-08:008th Day of BWC: MERRY NOEL TO YOU! <div style="text-align: justify;">
Hello friends!</div>
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Wow, this week just about ate me alive. But the good news is I am alive, and we had a very magical wonderful Christmas Show at the Thousand Oaks Civics Art Plaza, and for that I am grateful! Nonetheless this particular season is kicking my booty hard, I'm sure you can relate! Anywho, yesterday I apologize for dropping the ball, I just had to give some time love and attention to everything else I have been neglecting for too long, like family, laundry, my health (boo) and of course I have done no Christmas shopping. Waahhh! It is all good though. How are you? Are you hanging in there? Times like these we need to take a deep breath, and ponder on what matters. Ya know?</div>
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Getting back on track, I am super duper excited about today's giveaway. Summer and I recently wrote and through together a brand spankin' new Christmas song and video. In true GWG fashion we quickly wrote, recorded and filmed this video in a matter of 2 darn days. We love to stress ourselves out, haha! But when it all comes together we usually decide that it was worth it! We love making these music videos, and being silly and getting into the holiday spirit! We gotta give shout outs to friends who helped make it possible, my buddy and guitar extraordinaire <a href="https://twitter.com/KevinLHaaland" target="_blank"><i>Kevin Haaland</i></a> for producing, playing and mixing this track with us. <a href="http://geronimoballoons.com/" target="_blank"><i>Jihan</i></a> for connecting us with the cutest gal Taylor of <i><a href="http://www.taysings.com/" target="_blank">Taysings</a>,</i> who connected us this a rad accordion player, <a href="https://soundcloud.com/colin-hatch" target="_blank"><i>Colin Hatch</i></a>, who she started a band with, their called JUNECAT and they are really good, be on the look out. We can't leave out our girl <a href="http://www.changsandchanges.com/" target="_blank">Priscilla Chang</a> for being our right hand Girl with Glasses and keeping us moving and organized on set. And then a big shout out to Kerry Bellessa who shot this whole thing, we couldn't do it without the K-bells. And guess what, Dave Ray CPA made his first debut in this one, he's a bit bashful about it, but I love it. All in all, we just love how this turned out, and hope you do too! (<i>Disclaimer, um, we don't speak French. Forgive us for all of our idiomatically incorrect usage of french words, it's all in good fun)</i></div>
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So here is the scoop... Today we are giving away a pair of our golden glittery glamourous official <b>GLITTER GLASSES</b>! As well as a pair of my personal favorite dangly <b>EARRINGS</b> from designer <a href="http://shop-marciamoran.com/" target="_blank">MARCIA MORAN</a> that I love. Also, because I dropped the ball yesterday, we are giving away a free download of our other Christmas classic "I LOVE CHRISTMAS", happiest Christmas Song ever!</div>
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<b>TO WIN:</b></div>
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- WATCH OUR NEW MUSIC VIDEO <a href="http://thegirlswithglasses.com/index.php/video-merry-noel/" target="_blank"><b>"MERRY NOEL" </b></a>AT <a href="http://thegirlswithglasses.com/index.php/video-merry-noel/" target="_blank"><b>THEGIRLSWITHGLASSES.COM</b></a></div>
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- REPOST THIS GRAPHIC WITH THE CAPTION: HAHA WATCH THIS @THEGWGSHOW VIDEO #merrynoelgiveaway!</div>
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- FOLLOW<a href="http://instagram.com/thegwgshow"> <b>@theGWGshow</b></a> ON INSTAGRAM OR LIKE US <a href="https://www.facebook.com/thegwgshow"><b>FACEBOOK.</b></a></div>
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- LEAVE A COMMENT ON OUR GIVEAWAY POST</div>
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- FREE DOWNLOAD <a href="http://thegirlswithglasses.com/index.php/video-merry-noel/" target="_blank"><b>HERE</b></a></div>
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Thursday I ran an Instagram contest for the 7th Day of Christmas and gave away my favorite wrap watch, the jane, from <i><a href="http://www.feralwatches.com/" target="_blank">Feral Watches</a>! </i>Winner was announced today on Instagram, thanks sooo much to Feral watches for joining in the fun!</div>
BROOKE WHITEhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04549523864746273219noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9061588009611910262.post-21586454406815149642013-12-18T11:40:00.000-08:002013-12-18T11:42:10.917-08:006th Day BWC: Silent Night and A Spotify Premium Membership<div style="text-align: justify;">
Anybody that knows me, knows I live for playlist. When I grow up I just want to make playlists for a living. If I love you than I probably have made you a playlist, or a mix tape or mix CD. Whatever the format, nothing delights me more than to hand select song by song the perfect list of tunes to dance to, drive to, party to, cry to and just get through life to! From nostalgic and sentimental songs from childhood, to oldies classics, hip hop and top 40, cheezy adult contemporary, to indie rock to down home country, I am into just about everything. Well not everything, but most of it. And then there is Christmas music, which holds it's own special place in my heart and my music library. </div>
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Today's giveaway coincides with my playlist obsession. I will be giving away 2 six month long premium memberships to Spotify! This means no ads, and the premium membership means you can listen to almost any song desire, on your computer, phone, device <i>wherever you are!! </i>Whether you're at home, in the car, at a friends, at work, at the grocery store (yep, London listens to spotify at Target all the time, keeps her from turning into a wild monkey child). This membership is usually $9.99 a month, so this is a pretty cool deal, well I think so anywho:) Also, importantly, it's a legal service and it still supports the artist, yay! </div>
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So if you are a hardcore music lover like me, and you live for a good playlist, and you don't have a premium membership, then you should jump on this!</div>
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TO WIN:</div>
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1. START: A <a href="http://open.spotify.com/user/realbrookewhite/playlist/5TxJb2Hq96V7hfAkKCA4sf" target="_blank"><b>Spotify</b></a> account if you don't already have one (it is free and easy to sign up)</div>
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2. FOLLOW: Follow my <a href="http://open.spotify.com/user/realbrookewhite/playlist/5TxJb2Hq96V7hfAkKCA4sf" target="_blank"><b>Brookify Playlist</b></a> (posted above in this post!), which I will be changing and updating week to week, starting in 2014! Yay, dreams come true!</div>
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3. CREATE: your own 10 song Christmas Playlist and include at least one song from my album, Brooke White Christmas! </div>
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4. COMMENT: Leave me a comment letting me know you entered, and your favorite Christmas song</div>
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Lastly, tonight is the big show, it's been a long time, and I am looking forward to jumping on a stage with my awesome band, playing some tunes and connecting with the audience. One of the moments I am most excited about is singing Silent Night, we will close the show with it and have the audience sing along. I did this last year, and the feeling in the room was beyond magical. Music is a gift!</div>
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There are still some random single seats left, as well as a row or two available towards the back. If you've got nothing to do, come get into the Christmas Spirit with us tonight at 7:30 at the <b><i><a href="http://www.ticketmaster.com/brooke-white-christmas-thousand-oaks-california-12-18-2013/event/0B004B618CBC47E4?artistid=1351237&majorcatid=10001&minorcatid=1" target="_blank">Thousand Oaks Civic Arts Plaza</a>! </i></b></div>
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Also, winners for the last two contests:</div>
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<b>Day 4:</b> Sequin Pants: this was a hard one! Bravo to the six brave souls that danced for the pants, but they were all so cute and hilarious, it was so hard to choose! The winner of the sparkly pants and a signed BWC CD is: @lyndsbeegee, yeah girl you went for it, and it is so good! laughed my head off. go you!</div>
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Congrats!! Please send an email to BrookeWhiteMail@gmail.com with your address and size, woohoo! </div>
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<b>Day 5: </b>Winner randomly drawn for 100 Christmas Card Prints from <b><a href="http://www.ashleesprinting.com/" target="_blank">ASHLEE'S PRINTING</a>: </b>@ladybugaloo! Cute family you've got! Send an email to BrookeWhiteMail@gmail.com to get the process started for your Christmas cards! Hooray! </div>
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BROOKE WHITEhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04549523864746273219noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9061588009611910262.post-23931521605363927002013-12-17T12:46:00.000-08:002013-12-17T13:44:08.994-08:005th Day of BWC: 100 Custom Christmas Card Prints<div style="text-align: justify;">
This giveaway goes out to all the slackers out there, the procrastinators, the wait till the last minuters! Haha, let me rephrase that, to those of us who have yet had a free second to even think about Christmas Cards. Guilty! I still haven't put one together, however I just can't bring myself to not send one. So I opt for the better late than never. I just love Christmas Cards, especially receiving. I know we all see each others faces just about everyday on Instagram and Facebook, but there is still something so magical and nostalgic about getting a card in the mail, with a stamp, and a lovely pieces of paper that you can hold in your hands and tape to the backside of the door. I look forward to it every year. </div>
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I love Christmas cards so much, that I even wrote a song about it. This song is possibly one of the most inspired songs I have written in the last five years. Written from personal experiences. A song about forgiveness and reconciliation in the smallest simplest form of a Christmas card. Explaining meaning of songs is always weird, Maybe you want to just listen to it <a href="http://open.spotify.com/artist/1feuQE7d9izI54MoL5Lc7t" target="_blank">here</a>. This is a real heart song. I get a tiny tear in the corners of my eyes when I sing it. </div>
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Remember last years awesome <a href="http://brookiebabble.blogspot.com/2012/12/let-voting-begin.html" target="_blank"><b>Christmas Card Contest</b></a>? There was an incredible level of participation and it made my heart literally sing with glee and gladness to see all of the creative and unique designs that so many people came up with. I wish we had more time, but we're kind of cutting it close to Christmas, pushing the envelope if you will. Pun Intended.</div>
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So this year we are simplifying with a one day giveaway. Whether you plan on getting your cards out in the final hour, or you want to send a New Years card, or heck, a Valentines Greeting, than this giveaway is for you! Or you can even use this giveaway for next year! </div>
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Our cool Friends in Mesa, Arizona of <a href="http://www.ashleesprinting.com/" target="_blank"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">ASHLEE'S PRINTING</span></a> are kind enough to give away 100 custom printed Christmas Cards of your own design to one wonderful winner! Note: They do not do the design, just printing. So if you like designing your own cards, or have a friend or family member who does, then this is for you! The turn around is super fast, so you will have them quick! </div>
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TO WIN:</div>
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- POST: your favorite family picture, whatever your family looks like, newly weds, cute kids, you and a cat. NOTE: This doesn't have to be the picture you would use on the actual card! For an extra entry, you can even post your design. </div>
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- TAG: Hashtag #5DayofBrookeWhiteChristmas and tag @realbrookewhite </div>
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- COMMENT: Leave me a comment letting me know you entered, especially if your account is private.</div>
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Winner will be randomly selected and chosen by noon tomorrow!! </div>
BROOKE WHITEhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04549523864746273219noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9061588009611910262.post-571432134364115832013-12-16T12:37:00.002-08:002013-12-16T18:09:11.839-08:004th Day of BWC: LAST CHRISTMAS DANCE CONTEST + WAYF SEQUIN PANTSOh you guys, I am bursting at the seems of my sparkly pants over this giveaway. You remember<b> <a href="http://www.babble.com/style/comfy-chic-7-days-a-week/friday-fun/" target="_blank"><i>these pants I posted a little while back</i></a></b>? The "funky genie" pants as Dave calls them... well I am so excited to grant one winner a pair of the exact same insanely comfortable and over the top sparkly and amazing <a href="http://rstyle.me/n/dwurvz7pe" target="_blank"><b>Wayf</b></a> sequin track pants that I wear almost every day. They make me wanna dance, and I do.<br />
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Here is the catch, you are gonna have to dance for these pants! Time to do the #sparklypantsdancecontest</div>
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- DANCE: take a video of yourself or your kiddo, or you dancing with your kiddo, or with your cat, or your whole family dancing to todays song LAST CHRISTMAS from "Brooke White Christmas". You can listen to it on<a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/white-christmas/id572049813" target="_blank"> <b>itunes</b></a> or <b><a href="http://open.spotify.com/album/34tFAovdiQf0BP0GHYCAxb" target="_blank">spotify</a>.</b> Man I wish I wrote this song, isn't it the best Christmas song ever?<br />
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- POST: post the video on your Instagram, <i>make sure to hashtag</i> #4dayofBrookeWhiteChristmas<br />
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- TAG: tag me <a href="http://instagram.com/realbrookewhite" target="_blank"><b>@realbrookewhite</b></a> and <a href="http://instagram.com/wayfpr" target="_blank"><b>@wayfpr</b></a>. If you have a private account it will be tricky for me to see it (maybe make your account public for the day -or- send me a message with the video)<br />
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- WINNER will be selected upon raddest/funnest/funniest/cutest/nerdiest dancing, and will receive a pair of their very own Wayf sequin track pants! Woohoo!<br />
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Thanks for your participation thus far everyone. Let's have some fun friends! Get your dance on! Merry Monday and Happy Christmas!<br />
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LASTLY, THE WINNER OF THE <a href="http://www.etsy.com/shop/barnowlprimitives" target="_blank"><b>BARNOWL PRIMITIVES</b></a> SIGN IS @Brandijos on Instagram. Yay for you Brandi! Send me an email with your address to brookewhitemail@gmail.com<br />
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<br />BROOKE WHITEhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04549523864746273219noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9061588009611910262.post-32195278027916563632013-12-15T18:27:00.000-08:002013-12-15T21:43:16.175-08:003rd Day of BWC: Oh Come All Ye Faithful Free Download!<div style="text-align: justify;">
So sorry for the delay! Because it's the sabbath, and because of technical difficulties, today's giveaway is running a little late! But since it's Sunday, and because today's giveaway coincides with "oh come all ye faithful", I wanted it to have a little more simplicity and meaning. While I love to decorate and shop for gifts, some of my most favorite moments are the quiet ones, filled with peace, without stuff, without the bustle and endless to-do's. I love the moments when the spirit calms my soul and I feel that intangible joy that is hard to explain with words. </div>
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Last night, after getting home from our church christmas party and put London down for bed, I sat at the table near the glow of the christmas tree, the house was still and quiet, and that feeling came over me. For me, for many, this season is about the birth of Savior, the gift he gives a broken world of peace, of hope and of second chances. While listening to "Oh come all ye faithful" the words that stood out ro me were "joyful and triumphant". That's what this season is about.</div>
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Everybody wins today. Click on the Photo below for a FREE DOWNLOAD of Oh Come All Ye Faithful! This song was one of my favorites to record from <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/white-christmas/id572049813" target="_blank"><b>Brooke White Christmas</b></a>, the simplicity of just the piano, and voices. My passion is creating harmonies, and this was a real joy to put together. I hope you enjoy it too!<br />
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<a href="http://t.opsp.in/h1kl7" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdFEp0ioHqkrbm4Rw8wZZ4BLO0d91Wdf_oMxDpK7beQc1WTRNIeR-xzmXSlltS5rLOFEzb7Glnx3otn7hVbQv6bFuClwirROQA3HXwHHGjwB94_Dgk-Uonf9rVXg1jbJgW2L7cYySrtNsr/s1600/free+download.jpg" /></a></div>
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Feel free to spread the love, with the cover pic and this link: <span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"><a href="http://t.opsp.in/h1kl7" style="color: #1155cc;" target="_blank">http://t.opsp.in/h1kl7</a></span><br />
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<br />BROOKE WHITEhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04549523864746273219noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9061588009611910262.post-17785873895570146382013-12-14T13:14:00.003-08:002013-12-14T13:54:53.631-08:002nd Day of BWC: Barn Owl Primitives and My Christmas Living Room<div class="" style="clear: both; text-align: justify;">
<i>On the second day of Christmas, Brooke White gave to me (you).... A <a href="http://www.etsy.com/shop/barnowlprimitives" target="_blank">Barnowl Primitives</a> sign!</i><br />
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I am excited to give you a little looksies into my Christmas living room. As a kid, the most magical day of the year is when we would put up our Christmas tree and my dad would get out the "christmas boxes" from the attic with all of our decorations. We would blast Carpenter's Christmas and Beach Boy's Christmas while we hung ornaments, strung lights, and went wild turning the house into a little piece of holiday heaven. Now that I am grown up with a little kid of my own, I'm still obsessed with these traditions, if not more so! Real trees are a must, as well as a collection of fake trees that I buy on super clearance after Christmas every year. I have five trees this year, Dave thinks it's a tad excessive, I say there's no such thing, can you have to many Christmas trees? Too much Christmas spirit? um, not possible.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8NlhJmURPjHVIS4T6cuLSsLiIyNR0CdvKTvGpyq3inkgWEiEs4wEt_RMktLIBUu0fp961ih5WSQrCTnuMCc0drhtk-kx1Ag1hfFKIHdwg1Zt5PP_DrKWyVWhSimi_BT_XWkfEqVM1WSxs/s1600/Win+this+Sign.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8NlhJmURPjHVIS4T6cuLSsLiIyNR0CdvKTvGpyq3inkgWEiEs4wEt_RMktLIBUu0fp961ih5WSQrCTnuMCc0drhtk-kx1Ag1hfFKIHdwg1Zt5PP_DrKWyVWhSimi_BT_XWkfEqVM1WSxs/s1600/Win+this+Sign.jpg" /></a>Of course it takes me all of December to put it all together with boxes open and strewn about the house (not shown: we pushed them into the dining room aka "the disaster zone" for this picture). It never gets finished with the hustle and bustle of the crazy time of year. Nonetheless, I try, actually I love that it's never finished, I love chipping away at it, one little decoration at a time. </div>
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One thing I love to do is find little pieces of art to hang on the walls during Christmas, however I'm pretty particular, it can be kind of hard to find something not super cheezeball, and the good stuff can be a little expensive for just a month or two. Most of the times I just make something out of a huge canvas or an old piece of plywood. But this year my awesome friend Kristi of <span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: red;"><b><a href="http://www.etsy.com/shop/barnowlprimitives" target="_blank">Barn Owl Primitives</a></b> </span>surprised me with this amazing Christmas sign and I was so excited!!! As you can tell I have a thing for black and white, and with the little dash of red for Rudolph's nose, it was just the perfect fit for my space. Seriously, made for eachother. </div>
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Kristi was kind enough to join in my giveaway and is going to give one of these happy signs away!</div>
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Here's what you do to Win:</div>
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1. Repost the above picture on Instagram -OR- a picture of your Christmas living room or any room of your house that is your favorite festive space.</div>
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2. Follow<a href="http://instagram.com/barnowlprimitives" target="_blank"> <b>@barnowlprimitives</b></a> and <a href="http://instagram.com/realbrookewhite" target="_blank">@realbrookewhite</a> on Instagram</div>
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3. You must tag #2DayofBrookeWhiteChristmas</div>
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4. For an extra entry to win you can pin a picture from this post on <a href="http://www.pinterest.com/realbrookewhite/" target="_blank">pinterest</a>. Leave me a comment with the link.</div>
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Winner will be drawn randomly and announced tomorrow! </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5tbEHMQ5P_PM_ygPdoojvaXMfos-bDPHfAOTKsNiWimCtcjFEMar_53v6CGaaTckV1nDJ-okgyOyThyphenhyphenVSiF6q2SUrfgyfR2ZES893qoTxz4s_ukR4Dp_tey1oFaTLNTVa8ZX2LkPaB_FP/s1600/living+room+4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5tbEHMQ5P_PM_ygPdoojvaXMfos-bDPHfAOTKsNiWimCtcjFEMar_53v6CGaaTckV1nDJ-okgyOyThyphenhyphenVSiF6q2SUrfgyfR2ZES893qoTxz4s_ukR4Dp_tey1oFaTLNTVa8ZX2LkPaB_FP/s1600/living+room+4.jpg" /></a></div>
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I wish it could stay Christmas in my living room all year long</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2qL7dSpVVExZlxdP9ugKBHHogrvUCpyv2dmSxgJGplNZoVdzltFaDObB90dAIG0VBgXqQCYoBqBARRECfYnxxIqq5yt3BE2p8SoYcjUKAEPUdAyzq5gcbTwljylFLYcldgpNzBDLsNkCZ/s1600/living+room+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2qL7dSpVVExZlxdP9ugKBHHogrvUCpyv2dmSxgJGplNZoVdzltFaDObB90dAIG0VBgXqQCYoBqBARRECfYnxxIqq5yt3BE2p8SoYcjUKAEPUdAyzq5gcbTwljylFLYcldgpNzBDLsNkCZ/s1600/living+room+2.jpg" /></a></div>
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the tree... short and sweet</div>
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it's a small world garland! Found these little ornaments from target, just sewed their mittens together! </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjajmLrYIRmQw6M1MXPHgofWwzA7lFXMpVQPIQhQ7OZY1p3r6fqnD2SdcUeUoH1WoPLVo62bDAze1GZKKtQG6FyR84Tfp_uUignG0ZDmm7Ya0hIHCWdLxDz1r7qMy5Dd8oVg4Fxc51VB1mV/s1600/living+room+7.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjajmLrYIRmQw6M1MXPHgofWwzA7lFXMpVQPIQhQ7OZY1p3r6fqnD2SdcUeUoH1WoPLVo62bDAze1GZKKtQG6FyR84Tfp_uUignG0ZDmm7Ya0hIHCWdLxDz1r7qMy5Dd8oVg4Fxc51VB1mV/s1600/living+room+7.jpg" /></a></div>
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Dancing with my Loo in our Christmas living room to<b> </b><a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/white-christmas/id572049813" target="_blank"><b>Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas</b>!</a> </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-KWluettfFbBjmPftnGNGFSvnKuQSthycO-PJyexOeozFT8QMpqbkX3jtawJXsO0Kl1oFb18nhR3P-OwCPBrLdPOF4g9CwglHd0O1-i_ntfr4emB_5bx8jMOX0Ke7_bNSLjAzvqFN5O3C/s1600/living+room+3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-KWluettfFbBjmPftnGNGFSvnKuQSthycO-PJyexOeozFT8QMpqbkX3jtawJXsO0Kl1oFb18nhR3P-OwCPBrLdPOF4g9CwglHd0O1-i_ntfr4emB_5bx8jMOX0Ke7_bNSLjAzvqFN5O3C/s1600/living+room+3.jpg" /></a></div>
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Nothing more Christmasy than a roaring fire on a 72 degree day! lol.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3Em4uKUHYfnxc8qx5bkrO_S3OSxazgStiO5_ScoeHQDn5vn_F04vbkLDl5d0FiVtnszBdryvXvWlWTyvfCqwaL2CeZZGNDXXOC-jm4ixrHviumeS3QVVc2fa3PSNUkGLjZ8CONvtHiYHa/s1600/living+room+5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3Em4uKUHYfnxc8qx5bkrO_S3OSxazgStiO5_ScoeHQDn5vn_F04vbkLDl5d0FiVtnszBdryvXvWlWTyvfCqwaL2CeZZGNDXXOC-jm4ixrHviumeS3QVVc2fa3PSNUkGLjZ8CONvtHiYHa/s1600/living+room+5.jpg" /></a></div>
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My new paintings on the wall finally! And that big 'ol pom pom hat, a <a href="http://www.babble.com/style/super-sized-pom-pom-beanie-diy/" target="_blank"><b>DIY</b></a> here</div>
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Oh and I almost forgot! The winner of the 2 tickets to my show is: @kezonfire Keziah send an email to @brookewhitemail@gmail.com for your tickets!! woohoo!</div>
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BROOKE WHITEhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04549523864746273219noreply@blogger.com16tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9061588009611910262.post-85433027890609494172013-12-13T12:02:00.002-08:002013-12-13T12:07:25.017-08:0012 DAYS OF BROOKE WHITE CHRISTMAS! <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrnjfAuBZV8LCSXHRxwpMg-cgXgItrwadkfcgZ_Yq3Xr57GxKWR3nkpwEZuUhsPoNXidQqMRMyY6Id79a7gBuTUYjD85U77W-imBlWok0897LnO8Oy2WzOQ0Cu8xTp_LBHMCdghH3H0zfN/s1600/12+Days+of+Brooke+White+Christmas+.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrnjfAuBZV8LCSXHRxwpMg-cgXgItrwadkfcgZ_Yq3Xr57GxKWR3nkpwEZuUhsPoNXidQqMRMyY6Id79a7gBuTUYjD85U77W-imBlWok0897LnO8Oy2WzOQ0Cu8xTp_LBHMCdghH3H0zfN/s1600/12+Days+of+Brooke+White+Christmas+.jpg" height="640" width="640" /></a></div>
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Hip hip hooray and ho ho ho! Let the countdown to Christmas begin! I am not one to do give-aways and contests, however this year I thought it would be kind of fun to give to my friends and fans some of my favorite things! These aren't elaborate over the top giveaways worth millions of dollars, but just the little trinkets and treasures and wonderful little things that make me happy that I genuinely use in everyday life. Being an indie gal since the beginning, I especially love supporting small and independent businesses, makers and artists and most of these cute festive objects are in collaboration with some wonderful little companies. Of course there will be some handmade items made by yours truly, I'll even be giving away a painting! </div>
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Of course I wanted to incorporate music, because, music is my favorite! Every winner will get a signed copy of <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/white-christmas/id572049813" target="_blank"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: red;">Brooke White Christmas</span></a> :) If you already have one, it could make a nice stocking stuffer for your mother or your brother or your friend?! Every day and giveaway will coincide with the songs on Brooke White Christmas. We will be giving away one giveaway per day, and will announce the winner the following morning along with the next days giveaway! Also, you are free to enter every giveaway!</div>
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Follow along for the next 12 days to be a part of the fun and perhaps be the lucky winner of one of these lovely giveaways! Each day will contain the rules for the giveaway. </div>
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So without further ado let the 12 days of Brooke White Christmas begin!</div>
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<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"><b>DAY 1: <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/white-christmas/id572049813" target="_blank">CHRISTMAS TIME IS HERE!</a> </b></span></div>
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<b>GIVEAWAY:</b> <b>2 awesome tickets, to my upcoming Christmas Show at The Thousand Oaks Civic Arts Plaza.</b> Of course a hug and meet and greet is included :) Obviously you will need to either live in Southern California, or take a plane, train or automobile to get here for the show! </div>
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<b>HOW TO WIN:</b> </div>
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- This giveaway will be held on <a href="http://instagram.com/realbrookewhite" target="_blank">Instagram</a> </div>
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- Quite Simply repost the show flyer below</div>
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- Tag a friend on your post, as well as me, @realbrookewhite : )</div>
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- you could include a cheezeball caption like "christmas time is here, Brooke White show and cheer"</div>
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- must include the hashtag #1dayofBrookeWhiteChristmas and tag @RealBrookeWhite in your post! </div>
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- Winner will be chosen randomly, and will be announced tomorrow morning here on the blog! </div>
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BROOKE WHITEhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04549523864746273219noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9061588009611910262.post-27446939438999822002013-11-24T13:50:00.001-08:002013-11-24T13:56:12.262-08:00HELLO HELLO AND A CHRISTMAS SHOW... OR TWO!!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeUtvB48QMo-n9imXOUQZzek8yuVC7-vRv8PfxYxDvbKzeGvOaW8MO27TtYTcUEVBgIdWJnkdykFeZ80KGQ-k-GXcF5D1WNBP-ehkGDBf9AldNeiOPoSC080PAYNj1Cg7oajGtuKW85s7W/s1600/WHITE+CHRISTMAS+SHOW+TO+FLIER+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="612" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeUtvB48QMo-n9imXOUQZzek8yuVC7-vRv8PfxYxDvbKzeGvOaW8MO27TtYTcUEVBgIdWJnkdykFeZ80KGQ-k-GXcF5D1WNBP-ehkGDBf9AldNeiOPoSC080PAYNj1Cg7oajGtuKW85s7W/s640/WHITE+CHRISTMAS+SHOW+TO+FLIER+2.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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Greetings my friends! Can you believe that we are in the midst of the Holiday season?! Getting really excited (and hungry) for Thanksgiving! And then it's Christmas! Holy smokes, this is happening!</div>
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I just noticed my last blog post was back in October, such a slacker. Well not really, actually I am blogging up a storm over on <a href="http://thegirlswithglasses.com/" target="_blank"><b>The Girls with Glasses</b></a> and Disney's <a href="http://www.babble.com/style/monochromatic-mix-how-to-wear-the-same-color-from-head-to-toe/" target="_blank"><b>Babble.com</b> </a>as a style contributor. Can we talk about how much work blogging is? That is it's own post. Anywho, I do have a great deal of catch up to do here. The deal is, you can expect a fresh new face here soon on BrookeWhite.com as I am getting ready for a brand new, prettier, higher functioning site that will encompass everything I love, music, motherhood, real life talk, style, art (i've been painting a lot these days... another post), home stuff etc. Until then, there's not a whole lot going on here, and I'm bummed about that.</div>
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But there are a few wonderful festive and lovely things in the works. First, this fun show that I am so happy to be putting on for the folks of Southern California on December 18, 2013. This is the one and only live show I am doing during the Holiday season, and I am going all out. It is going to be at a gorgeous venue in Thousand Oaks, The Civic Arts Plaza. There will be a grand piano, a full band, the works. I am practicing everyday cause I don't get out there and play like I used to (another post) so I just want to be ready and really deliver something special. If you live around these parts I would love for you to join us for a merry night of music! <a href="http://bit.ly/1b0xdmv" target="_blank"><b>Tickets are available now on Ticketmaster.com! </b></a></div>
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Okay, so my plan was to play a show in my home state of Arizona and then one somewhere in the heart of Utah, however that plan just didn't come together! Bummer! Maybe someday I'll make some money and will take this whole show on the road and get over to the east coast. Until then, I found a way to come to you and be everywhere in the world at the same time and play a little show for you! Have you ever heard of StageIt.com ? Basically it is an internet venue, where you log on, pay what you want, it can be as little as 10 cents to a dollar or whatever you wish, and you can join me where you are for an acoustic Christmas show with my three piece band! I will also be chatting with y'all and it should be a lovely time. That will be Tuesday, December 10th at 5:30 pm PST. <a href="http://www.stageit.com/brooke_white/live_brooke_white_christmas_concert/29979" target="_blank">Click here for all the details!</a></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">London's first time to Disneyland!</td></tr>
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All in all, life is just a feast, so much to partake of everyday, sometimes I am so full and don't feel I can take another bite, but I do, because I am grateful for the abundance of opportunity, love and creative inspiration. My family is at the heart of my existence, I am trying with diligence to make them first, it is a substantial part of the reason I am not on the road, in the studio everyday or on a set somewhere. Of course I am still creating everyday, but I do what I can, and I keep it close to home. Close to my London, who turned 18 months this very day. How is this possible? This time is short. Being present in my marriage and my little ones life over the last year and a half has been worth the sacrifices, and that is what I am most grateful for this Thanksgiving.</div>
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Thanks to you for caring, reading, watching, listening and connecting with me as I travel along this interesting and challenging terrain known as real life! I wish to you the happiest Thanksgiving filled with people you love, and food that is delicious. </div>
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Love,</div>
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: )Brooke </div>
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PS- Oh yes, and check back soon for my "12 days of Christmas"! Also follow along over on <a href="http://instagram.com/realbrookewhite" target="_blank"><b><i>Instagram</i></b></a></div>
BROOKE WHITEhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04549523864746273219noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9061588009611910262.post-60535721299542448542013-10-07T01:06:00.000-07:002013-10-07T01:06:31.293-07:00GOODBYE SUMMER...<div style="text-align: justify;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjweEPYj7lL9gFZmFjuAiK6IcO6YRfLnrhq9b-xvhR3_j4Y7VDVjU2gAJbSN2ZVKGftJAexqHXwvc7lzVv5dmIZFyGTlcGzFPNPRPoAkMeSHAyiqgxvhCHW2GHlYPkaeioig2xUM2HMvF5j/s1600/goodbye+Summer+3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjweEPYj7lL9gFZmFjuAiK6IcO6YRfLnrhq9b-xvhR3_j4Y7VDVjU2gAJbSN2ZVKGftJAexqHXwvc7lzVv5dmIZFyGTlcGzFPNPRPoAkMeSHAyiqgxvhCHW2GHlYPkaeioig2xUM2HMvF5j/s1600/goodbye+Summer+3.jpg" /></a>A big gust of wind came through this week and started blowing leaves off the trees and into the streets. </div>
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The sun is starting to fade around 6pm and with each passing day, it gets darker earlier and earlier.</div>
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It's Falling... The days are still warm, but it won't be long till we are turning on the heat.</div>
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Wow was that fast or what? I am trying to let go of Summer, of these days at the beach with London running into waves with big little laughs and not a smidge of fear. Watching her grow was the highlight of my summer. We walked, talked, read stories and spent a little time at home for a change. These were the days, days that feel like they go on forever... and warm evenings without sweaters or coats. I loved my summer Artist way group, enjoyed the visitors that came to stay on vacation, and I couldn't get enough of wearing my mumu, Dave however, could. I am a summer girl, and I always will be.</div>
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We went for a family walk this morning and the air was crisp, and I thought to myself "well, this is pretty nice". I know it will get colder and these early mornings have been dark making it just a little bit trickier to pull ourselves out of bed. But October is really the magic month of the season. I know everyone loves fall, with it's boots and apples, (y'all, I've become apple crazy, writing a post on that)and pumpkins and Halloween. I am going to fall into it all, I even put out my scarecrows. </div>
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Goodbye Summer, until next time, thanks for everything, you were the best.</div>
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BROOKE WHITEhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04549523864746273219noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9061588009611910262.post-18744212916217169022013-09-20T01:23:00.000-07:002013-09-23T08:43:17.551-07:00YOU KNOW YOUR READY FOR A HAIRCUT WHEN...<div style="text-align: justify;">
Seems like old news, but I cut my hair this summer. Seems like we all cut our hair this summer. Something in the air?! If you followed me on vine (remember vine? do you still vine?) six months ago I posted this silly six second ramble about my incurable urge to chop my hair... like a virus. I battled that urge for six months, me against the scissors, and exhausting all my weak resistance, the scissors took the win. And I am okay with that...</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgi61zWSCvWzjDXWUeNIEwM06_JnLntGcG36cM1jDzEIVfPLPSuX0adTPJnnKFIh4q3TKBIFAgugn0xtxNQdzyIEFW23D674zTj6KHNCeXaYnewQQB7J2DaOZUIsZdMHbKiesZKOwghrQ9V/s1600/HC+post.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgi61zWSCvWzjDXWUeNIEwM06_JnLntGcG36cM1jDzEIVfPLPSuX0adTPJnnKFIh4q3TKBIFAgugn0xtxNQdzyIEFW23D674zTj6KHNCeXaYnewQQB7J2DaOZUIsZdMHbKiesZKOwghrQ9V/s640/HC+post.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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I've had the same 'do for nearly a decade now, with the exception of a impulsive emotional chop to my mane that I gave myself in the first year of marriage. I admit it wasn't my finest look, but I was 21 and everything about life was changing. We often take it out on our hair when we feel like we are out of sorts with ourselves, or feel out of control. Being a beauty school drop-out I still have a pair of old shears in the closet just waiting to lop off some hair. Usually I just go for the bangs, once a year, every winter when my skin gets dry and my forehead gifts me a few extra wrinkles, it's cheaper than botox and more natural. But every once in a while those scissors give me a good stare down and I have to put them in a high place and walk away... </div>
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Hair is kind of a big deal, true, it is a scientific fact that it's necessary for our heads to hold in and retain warmth. But also true is it holds psychological power. It's a part of our identity. After I moved to L.A. I would give $15 bathroom haircuts and highlights to friends from school and church so I could keep buying spaghetti and bread to eat while I went to music school. I started cutting other peoples hair when I was 11, starting with my best friend Golda and my little sister Katie, in the same day I gave them both very short Dorothy Hamill style haircuts that resembled mushrooms, moms were not happy... and I never really quit until the time I went on Idol. My clientele has pretty much dwindled to Dave these days and maybe a sister or friend. But I've got to say, doin' hair all those years stressed me out hardcore. I was slow as molasses, and I put my heart and soul into peoples hair, but it doesn't always turn out "just like the picture" they brought, or didn't turn out like the picture in their head. Or the infamous "just do whatever you think will look good". If you say this to a hairdresser you are asking for it! So much awkwardness in a hair-do gone bad with a good friend. People just take their hair super seriously. It was just too much darn responsibility.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">4 years ago when it was at it's prime, healthy and super curly, those were the days...<br />
picture by Jessica Mendivil/Mendipixel</td></tr>
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So back to the haircut, after 9 years of long curly hair, my hair had seen better days. Previous to idol it was healthy and thick and full of body. As I went through the constant rigorous ritual of glamming up for the show, shoots and then on the tour and beyond day after day, it began to take it's toll with all the and it started snapping and splitting. I began to wear extensions to fill it out. I got a few trims trying to keep it long, but it just couldn't recover. </div>
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Fast forward, then I got pregnant, and it seemed to be growing in thicker and healthier! But then I had the Londy Loo and I tell you I exchanged my hair for a beautiful baby, a worthy trade. However, over the course of a year postpartum, my hair line birthed a wild crop of baby bangs, my roots turned dark and ashy and my curls began to disappear, resulting in the puniest almost wave. A slave to highlights and constant trims, I just couldn't get it back. Big time Sadness, yes. Curly long blonde hair was my identity, and now it was fading away, as looks almost always eventually do. But wait, have you seen the back of my Loo's hair?! it is the most gorgeous collection of golden swirly locks you have ever beheld. They say that everything that is yours becomes your childrens', in this case, I gave London my curls. And now I live vicariously through her wild lovely locks... it's pretty special.</div>
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So after resorting to braids and buns everyday for months, I pulled the classic new mommy cliche, and I went and chopped it all off. However I wasn't gonna settle for just any ol bob. I searched out<a href="http://www.pinterest.com/pin/113856696801666835/" target="_blank"> <b>the best looking haircut in the pinterest world</b>, s</a>o good I pinned it twice, and randomly found the guy who cut it, and just happened to be in Los Angeles! My dear friend who usually does my hair was taking a little time off, so I figured I'd give this guy a call. I tracked his number down on the internet and called his assistant, Turns out he had one opening in his schedule the next day, I gulped and told them to put me on the books.<br />
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The following afternoon I drove through two hours of traffic down the sunset strip to the salon. I walked in frantically and sat in the chair and told the stylist. "I want this haircut... the one on pinterest!". A quiet lovely man, he laughed, apparently he gets that a lot. I asked him if I was crazy, I told him I was freakin' out, he told me it was a great idea. I put the fate of my hair in his hands. Before I knew it a half of a foot of my gnarly scraggly old hair was just chillin' on the floor. It felt scary, and good.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">photos taken by my brother the mighty quinn</td></tr>
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<a href="http://ramireztran.com/2013/" target="_blank"><b>Ahn CoTran</b></a>, the hair wizard really fixed this old tired hair up, and after over a month of living with it, I'm so not sorry I did it. I adore long hair, but Change is good, hair grows back. People resist change and might not love your new do, but that is okay, to be expected! You got to live a little!</div>
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Ok, so you know you're ready for a haircut when...</div>
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1. You've been rockin' the same style for more than a decade... check in, is this style outdated or old fashioned? We often get stuck in our "hair prime". The 80's perm, waterfall bangs, scrunchies and claw clips, or trapped beneath a long blanket of lifeless hair. You can still maintain length or a similar look, just freshen it up to create a modern updated style. </div>
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2. You wear it up more than you wear it down. If you are ponytailin' it daily, it might be time to chop chop ! </div>
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3. If your long hair becomes super jagged, frail, thin and transparent, it's time to let it go... Long hair isn't pretty if it looks like it got caught in the garbage disposal. Trim it to it's thickest and healthiest point and then maintain tiny trims regularly to allow it to regrow thicker and healthier. </div>
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4. You've been thinking about cutting it for longer than a month or two. If you are wanting to cut your hair on an emotional impulse, give it a little time. Check yourself... anything going on your life? Break-up with your boyfriend? Hating your job? Take a deep breath, try reading a self help book, go to a yoga class or talk to someone before you take it out on your hair. Get through your life crisis, if you still want to cut your hair, go for it!</div>
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5. If your current hair isn't serving you, it doesn't flatter or make you feel like your best self, find a great stylist, consult with them and invest in a new style and cut, one that is flattering, realistic for your lifestyle and easily maintained. You'll feel great. </div>
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After all of that, we can't forget, it's just hair. Trust me, I'm a beauty school drop-out :)</div>
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BROOKE WHITEhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04549523864746273219noreply@blogger.com64tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9061588009611910262.post-36512688317172539102013-08-26T01:54:00.000-07:002013-08-26T23:00:54.562-07:00JAMM: SOMETIMES LOVE...<div style="text-align: justify;">
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Hello there! You have two options, you could either, one, just watch the JAMM above and move along your merry way, the more time efficient option. Or two, you could watch the JAMM <i>and</i> read my 2 a.m. attempt at breaking down my productivity issues. Totally up to you, choose your own adventure : )<br />
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Sometimes Love, track 10 on <i><a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/high-hopes-heartbreak/id322319551" target="_blank">High Hopes and Heartbreak</a>, </i>my full length post idol record<i>. </i>Can you believe that it's been over four years ago that I put it out into the universe? I love this old song, it's probably considered a B-side, it sits quietly near the end, those are always my favorites. I wrote it with Kelley Lovelace in Nashville. This song felt so right when we wrote it. It was a one take wonder in the studio. I remember sitting down at the piano with a microphone in front of my face, surrounded by the band. We hit record, I counted to four and played it and sang it, all of it happening all at once. One take, that was all it needed. I'll never forget that magic moment. Lucky to have had it. This song is special... listen to the words. Proud of these ones...<br />
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Part 2...</div>
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"Done is better than Perfect"</div>
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I keep seeing this quote floating around, and finally I realized I kept seeing it, because I needed it.</div>
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My original goal was to post a song every monday, whether it was an original or a cover, familiar or brand new, polished or a little rough around the edges. It was about the music, the joy of it, it wasn't about money or numbers or perfection, just for me, and for you. But lately I am getting hung up on my imperfections, or finding little reasons why I can't put this or that up or finish lots of things I've started. Just good enough has never been good enough for me. Kinda makes me twitch. Why be good enough when I can be great, just one more try, and another and another... Truth is, I'm just not a settler, and yet in my desire to not settle for less than the best, I get stuck, or stagnant, hyper focusing on the flaws. I can't be satisfied. Paralysis by Analysis, Dave calls it, or it's something he read maybe. Basically, overthinking. I overthink, over time, all the time. It's just wiping me out, trying to figure it all out. It's probably wiping you out just reading this. When it comes to putting myself out there, such as a you tube video of me singing and playing, I just don't want to throw something up to throw something up, I want it to feel intentional and connected. And then of course there's a bit of fear, of criticism, or judgement, when I already know, it's not perfect, not at all. But I think if I'm being honest with myself, part of the reason I am resistant to post is because, I haven't been at my personal best, why? Because I haven't put in the time, or at least enough time. You know, practice. And why haven't I put in the time? Because, of a lot of reasons. </div>
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I'm always having talks with myself, with Dave, saying stuff like...</div>
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If I just had more time, if I just was more effective with my time... or if only I was faster...</div>
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If I was just more organized, more connected, If I just made a little more money, or spent less money...</div>
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If I could just stay focused on one thing...</div>
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If only I could be more decisive, concise, simple...</div>
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blah blah blah</div>
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But then I remember, this one reason, so big and so little...</div>
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This little one is my main reason for my lack of perfection or productivity in many other areas of life right now, and it's a really good reason, and I can't get down on myself about this reason, because she is my reason, my heart and my everything. I've never loved something more. I am a mom right now, to the cutest fifteen month old. A very curious, crazy-haired, vivacious, energetic, clingy, climby, hungry, screamy, strong willed and busy toddler, who's life is in my hands, the shaping of her spirit, the safety of her tiny body, growing at the speed of light, this time is short, so short. The toothy smiles and new words like baby and cheeze and jesus, and all her wild curiosity fill my days with happiness and loads of exhaustion. I just can't miss it, not to be the best singer, the best songwriter, or the best painter, the best social networker, the best girl with glasses or even the best friend. This is not to say that I'm not still striving to be those things, I am those things, and I love being those things... I just might not be THE BEST, can't be the best, right now. And yet so much of my old identity is very much wrapped up in wearing all those hats, those hats I wear have always defined me. That part is tricky for me to separate, me and the hats, it's humbling, I'm learning, and London is the teacher.</div>
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The last few weeks I have been walking around in circles, staring at long lists of things, very few of them getting crossed off, emails unanswered, texts with out replies, and yet so much energy trying, I put in the work, and yet it never gets finished, thinking about it and worrying about it and feeling like I'm falling short, always falling short. Guilt, more guilt. Starting and then stopping, starting and then stopping, catching her before she falls, pulling coins and pebbles out of her mouth before she chokes, swooping her up when she is clinging to my ankles and yelling "mama!", picking up an endless trail of torn up pieces of toilet paper, random tupperware and toys. It all feels a little bit like washing the car in the rain. Then it just hit me, let it go... let it be, ha!</div>
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<i>Let go of perfect Brooke</i>. You can't do everything, you can't be everything to everyone all the time, your house won't always be clean, almost never. People might be disappointed. Ponds will be rippled. I knew this, but I forgot, I forget a lot. But I think, no, yes I can, Because I am kind of a delusional person, and a lot of my success has hinged upon my belief in that delusion, the impossible dream has been the drive. But the dream is changing a bit, and having to find some compromise with reality.</div>
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So, Forgive me when I miss a week, or three or four of JAMM, or posting blogs. I know it's just a small thing, but I really care about it. And though it appears that I try, I'm deciding I'm not going to uphold this facade that I can do it all, perpetuate an image that isn't grounded in the truth, I can't. I love all of these things dearly, yes I'm creating new videos for the GWG, yes I'm working on a new record, these pieces of me, they are still there, I need them, I will nurture them when I can. But if they are at times neglected, it means that I am caring for and loving my greatest creation. I will be here when I can. I will put up songs, sometimes I will stumble on a note or a key, sometimes there will be pterodactyl screams in the background, sometimes the audio quality will be subpar, my editing skillz will smell super amateur, but I will try to surrender to imperfection and still put them up anyway. I am going to "just do it". Allowing the world to see me as I am, where I am, juggling, dropping balls like crazy. Still sharing my love for the music and the art but also a mother, very much mothering. This new role is a gift, such a gift, on it's own, in itself. Raising a child is productive. Can't forget it... </div>
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I can't thank all of you enough for your support, seriously, read that sentence again. I am grateful to you, for reading, listening, commenting, connecting, sharing and feeling with me. Your responses on my friendship post, your personal stories, thanks for trusting me with them, they really healed me. I guess I needed that. Forgive me when I can't respond to every comment, message or email, here, there, facebook, instagram and beyond, but please know of my sincere appreciation, and the many ways you give me hope. I suppose this is why I still do all this. It ain't easy, but man I love it.</div>
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ps- with all that said, i've got a fun little light hearted hair tutorial video goin' up here soon. No long mom rants I promise. Just hair :-)</div>
BROOKE WHITEhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04549523864746273219noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9061588009611910262.post-90029913709567098762013-07-31T02:55:00.002-07:002013-08-26T11:35:53.404-07:00HOW TO SURVIVE A FRIEND BREAK-UP....<div style="text-align: justify;">
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About six months ago I quickly scribbled a bunch of thoughts I felt inspired to share on a piece of paper, then I folded it in half and stuck it behind a box for a time I was ready. I found it tonight, so I think it's time. It's probably going to be long.</div>
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They say that breaking up is hard to do... there is a wealth of information out there on how to deal with the end of a romantic relationship, divorce or a separation with a lover. But what about when something goes wrong in an important friendship? It's a topic that I haven't seen a lot of talk about. I am ready to talk about it.</div>
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A friend break-up can be just as traumatic as the unraveling of a romantic relationship... we are left with a lot of loose ends, and the end of a friendship can dramatically change the landscape of your life, particularly if you live far away from your family...</div>
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where you will watch the superbowl...</div>
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who your kids play with...</div>
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who you will run with on Saturday mornings...</div>
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who you call when your baby has a high fever and you don't know what to do...<br />
who you sit with at lunch...</div>
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or even who you follow on instagram and facebook...</div>
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It also has complexities, as it often leaves mutual friends in the awkward position of choosing sides, or changes the dynamic of a once tight knit group... </div>
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A loss of a friend can be like a death, leaving you with a large void, one that takes time to fill, one that must be grieved, one that has to be healed, one that has to be learned from.</div>
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I would love to tell you this has never happened to me... and yet, beyond my efforts to keep all my friendships healthy and whole, I'm sorry to say, it has happened. It has been some of my life's deepest sorrows to lose a good friend, for reasons that in some instances that have been beyond my control, or whose fate led to lives leading in different directions, and though it's hard to own, have been part of my own doing a particular time or two.</div>
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There are many reasons why a friendship crumbles. There is pride, betrayals of trust, competitive and jealous tendencies, there is neediness or co-dependency, negativity, unkindness and a lack of respect, spreading of gossip... true and untrue, dishonesty and on and on. Some situations might be of a much more complicated nature. Perhaps two people can no longer be friends because of associations to other people, family members, spouses, close associates etc. And other times, there may be friends that have a toxic interaction, and they just don't bring about the best in each other. There are millions of individual situations and scenarios, but whatever the reason of the down fall, whether it was mutual, whether you were the defriend-er, or the defriend-ee, it is hard and heartbreaking.</div>
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If you have never experienced a falling out with a friend, I want to congratulate you! (Please inform us on how you have managed to do so in the comment section below;)) However, I have a feeling that most of us, at one time or another have gone through such an experience. We're humans, we're complex and complicated, co-dependent, emotions run deep, feelings get messy, we're insecure, self centered, self-conscious and imperfect.</div>
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As I sit here and type, please know this is a vulnerable topic for me, as I attempt to write with honesty, from the heart. I write in hopes to give someone struggling a portion of hope, a little peace of mind, to know they are not alone, and that there is a light at the end of the friend break-up tunnel, and perhaps to offer a few thoughts that have come to me in my own experience.</div>
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Maybe not particularly in this order:<br />
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<b>1.) GREIVE:</b> It hurts... our hearts, our minds, our fragile egos. I think it's necessary to allow ourselves the permission to feel our feelings. To cry it out, feel sad, mad, bad, broken, confused, pitiful or empty. Write it down, scream it out, punch a pillow, eat a carton of cookie dough ice cream. I've given myself a certain amount of time to dwell on it, I've even tried to give myself a deadline "pity party it up for an hour then get on with it". Perhaps you have to do this over and over again. I find supressing emotion is counter-productive, and yet I also find rehashing and constantly dwelling in the pain of the past can also keep us from moving into the light. Like all things, we have to find a balance between the suppression and the dwelling... difficult. Good luck...</div>
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<b>2.) REFLECT HONESTLY:</b> Think about it, reflect, do your best to be <i>honest </i>with yourself. This part may be difficult initially, but in time you may find it easier to be subjective. Most situations are rarely one sided, "what is my part?" Is a question I have asked myself. What issues, behaviors or situations did we bring to the table? And if you can, or when you can, try to put yourself in the other persons shoes. There are two sides to every story. Try to see the picture from their perspective... how would it feel to be them? I have found this very effective in finding compassion, especially in times of anger. Remember "in the quiet heart is hidden, sorrow that the eye can't see". I love one of the seven habits taught by Stephen R. Covey "Seek first to understand and then to be understood". </div>
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<b>3.) DON'T OBSESS:</b> Right after I say reflect, I will also say this, <i>do your best to not obsess</i>. Perhaps you are one of those people who washes their hands clean of the person, and can say good riddance and move along completely detached of emotion (or denial of emotion), again, I would congratulate you! For the rest of us, when the situation is fresh, and we sift through our initial reactions and feelings, this is especially challenging. You may feel defensive and want to speak your mind to the person, resist. We may try to fix it, change it, control it and we will find that those efforts often make things worse. Replaying the events of the fall out, things they said or did, things you said or did, things you wish you wouldn't have said or done. Often our thoughts become like a hamster running on a hamster wheel, repetitive, exhausting, leading to no where... stuck. I know sometimes I over dramatize things on the stage of my brain. Also I have learned, it is best to never assume. If there is something you don't know, <i>you don't know</i>! Try not to construct imaginary details... accept unknowns. Often times we want to know WHY?! We want a reason, and yet we may never find reasons or answers that will satisfy us. Like Demi says "give your heart a break" and give your mind a break, be conscious of your thoughts. In the few situations I have been in, I have found that I have really had to develop self control and awareness with my thoughts. I have learned to question the validity of my thoughts. My mom would always tell us to ask ourselves "is that thought true?". Thoughts are powerful and often dictate our life! </div>
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<b>4.) UN-FOLLOW:</b> This one goes hand in hand with "don't obsess". With social media at it's peak, we are constantly aware of what each other are doing, with updates happening every hour. We may be tempted to "stalk" or check out what our old friend may be up to. I'm suggesting that it's not the best idea. Whether you are feeling particularly raw and tender about the situation, Or you may have made progress with moving on... seeing a picture on instagram or a status update pop up on your feed from your old friend, or friends hanging out with out you will likely feel like a little stab to the heart. I have experienced this before, and sometimes it would derail my day, or would take me a few hours to shake it off. Maybe I am overly sensitive, probably. If you are too, do yourself a favor and as high school-ish as it sounds, unfollow or de-friend the individual (or individuals) on your social networking platforms that trigger heartache or propel you into a funk. Don't make a scene, don't do it to be catty or hurtful to the other person, but to protect your heart, and your thoughts and your efforts for progress... To help you move forward, and let them move forward. </div>
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<b>5.) HAPPY TOOLS:</b> My grandma always told us to "find our happy tools" when we were sad. Happy tools are anything that help you turn your frown upside down. For me music has always been a happy tool, playing the piano has been my therapy through out my life. Or dancing in my living room or taking a drive, rolling down the windows and blasting a pop song like "party in the USA". I also love a good project that requires focus and invigorates my mind without wearing it out... painting, styling a shelf, re-arrange furniture. Pulling weeds, gardening, cooking, hanging out with kids, giving service, getting a pedicure and yes, trips to Target and shopping are all helpful little pick-me ups when we are feeling blue from our situation. Figure out what your happy tools are, write them down on a list, refer to them when you are bummin' out. </div>
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<b>6.) PRAY OR MEDITATE:</b> I'm a pray-er. I am one of those people that prays about almost everything. And in the instance of friend break-ups, I have found prayer to be one of the most comforting and relieving remedies to my soul. If I have a moment alone, I especially love to pray out loud, speaking honestly and earnestly with God, expressing my struggle, asking for understanding, asking for healing, asking for the ability to let go, to forgive, to move on and find peace, and to try to find gratitude for the lessons I am trying to learn from the trial. And when I am unable to pray out loud, I pray on the inside, whenever or wherever I am. Somedays it feels like I am praying all day, and like I'll never be ready to say amen. Some situations may be beyond us, and we can't do it alone. I can't. I would highly recommend prayer. However, If you aren't into all that, then meditate, find quiet moments to give your struggles to the universe, or to find serenity in nature, walk, drive to the ocean, swing on the swings in the park. Personally I do both, pray and meditate. Yoga is also a very peaceful practice that can also sooth and center the anguished spirit.</div>
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<b>7.) DON'T GOSSIP:</b> Resist the urge to talk about the situation with everyone you know. We all need someone to talk to, but limit it to a trusted individual, a parent, spouse or someone removed from the situation, like a counselor if need be (I endorse healthy counseling). This can become murky territory, we sometimes think that it's our right or responsibility to share what happened with others indirectly involved or not involved, and sometimes we convince ourselves that it is our duty to spread the word, we even may tell ourselves that we are doing a noble thing. It's not. There are those delicate occasions when we do have to share, and it is necessary, and those situations require sensitivity. We have to be honest with ourselves about who really needs to know, and how much they need to know. I have been imperfect in this arena, and have regretted telling the wrong person the wrong thing, a hard lesson I have learned. RESPECT mutual friendships, try to not contaminate, recruit or ruin the relationships that your friends may have with the other person. If it is not between them, it's not between them. You may have to be prepared with a simple answer to questions you may get from mutual parties. And even though the friendship might be over, you may feel angry or justified, don't betray confidences the person previously placed in you, revealing secrets or personal information. There are of course, exceptions to every situation... but, try hard, don't gossip. </div>
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<b>8.) APOLOGIZE & FORGIVE:</b> Wow this one can be hard. Forgiveness is one of those principles that is often both oversimplified and yet overcomplicated. I take this one back to prayer. There are times we feel we are unable to extend forgiveness, or we have yet overcome our pride or recognize that we need to say sorry for our part. We have to come to this place with sincerity for it to become effective. I find it takes time, a long time even. There is one particular situation I found myself in years ago where I had a falling out with a close friend, we didn't speak for two years. I didn't know if I could ever let go. I wondered if I would be able to overcome my feelings. I read books, prayed and sought for the change of heart. But it wasn't until I had received a heartfelt letter of apology and reconciliation from my old friend that my heart was softened, I was surprised by how much it healed me, I wanted to reciprocate with my apologies. We were actually able to repair the relationship and are friends again today. Now I am not saying that this should or would be the case for every fallen friendship, some things are meant to be over, but I will say that taking proactive steps towards forgiveness and acknowledging our part is something that will help us find closure and ultimate healing. If you are able, perhaps after the passing of time, and emotions have settled, a simple heartfelt note of apology or forgiveness can do wonders. Of course, as I mentioned before, every situation is different. If there is a risk to potentially re-open a door that should remain closed or cause further pain by sending the wrong message, then maybe you can write the note without sending, as a way to find expression and peace within yourself. </div>
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<b>9.) LET IT BE:</b> It's amazing how much peace can be found in surrendering to that which we cannot change or control. This is also difficult, but it can also be easier than we make it. I was counseled once by a very wise man about a set of trials that were consuming me. With tears rolling down my cheeks, I told him I just didn't think I could let it all go. He held up a pen, and then he quite simply, let it go. I watched it drop, I insisted that it wasn't that easy. He had me do it, I held the pen, and then I opened my hand and let it go. I felt silly. But suddenly I got it, I applied the same principle to the problem in my mind and suddenly, I let it go. It didn't necessarily change the situation, but then again, neither did worrying, obsessing, replaying and stressing about it all. But it did change me. Quite frequently I would pick back up the thing I let go of... I would just have to let it go and let it be, over and over again. Things will be what they will be. We do our part and then we must let it be. I have sung that song a few hundred times. It has become natural for me to sing and say each word with conviction, a message of faith "there will be an answer... let it be".</div>
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<b>10.) GIVE IT TIME:</b> Time is a healer. Nothing changes us and the situation quite like time does. Because as time passes and everything changes, so do we, things fade into the distance, other things become more important and demand our attention and energy, we gain clarity and perspective, and yet our memory becomes a bit foggy of the details that we thought we'd never forget... thankfully. Time proves our resilience and helps us turn a painful experience into wisdom. Give it time, and then give it some more time... things will get better.</div>
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<b>11.) MOVE ON:</b> Try oh try to move on. Learn from the situation, from your mistakes, write things down that you would never do again, and the things you will do differently moving forward. Create new boundaries for yourself, for your friendships. Be open, but go slow as you re-open your heart to new people and new friends. Believe that there will be other people, that will be better suited for you, and you for them, that will be healthier and better friendships, that will support you. Try to be positive, adopt optimism over pessimism, and exude that energy with the people that you meet. Be authentic, be you! Be a good listener, be the type of friend you want to have. Resist dragging your old baggage into your new friendships. You may feel scared, you may feel like you want to hyperventilate into a paper bag, you may feel like hiding under the bed like a little kid. Of course, you may feel vulnerable in social situations. I do, at 30 years old I still get that nervous feeling in the pit of my tummy when I throw a party, or invite friends over to my house, or send a text, wondering if the person will respond. That's just the scars... it's ok. </div>
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BROOKE WHITEhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04549523864746273219noreply@blogger.com188tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9061588009611910262.post-78897825255597397142013-07-29T11:58:00.000-07:002013-07-30T10:14:35.988-07:00JAMM: LEAVIN' ON A JETPLANE & JOHN MAYER<div style="text-align: justify;">
I've always wanted to sing this tune, but thought it was the predictable choice... but then I thought, whats wrong with predictable ? :) The late legendary John Denver wrote this song. My parents loved John Denver, therefore I love John Denver and his pure humble voice... reminds me of being a kid. Peter Paul and Mary made it famous with their three part harmony, now I will attempt to sing it super simply from my living room. Everyone knows this song, everyone loves this song, feel free to Sing along! </div>
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Oh, and This weekend Dave Ray took me to see John Mayer in Irvine... I'm a fan. I've been following John since "Inside wants out" and saw him perform at Mesa Amphitheater twelve years ago with my brother Tyler. From a glossy Room for Squares, to a poppy Heavier Things, to the bluesy John Mayer trio, to the perfect Continuum, to the transitional battle studies, to his California country Born and Raised and his upcoming Paradise Valley... John keeps evolving as an artist. And where ever he goes I will follow. Yeah I know he had his less than chivalrous moments, and has dated everyone from Simpson to Swift and Aniston to Perry... I don't give a whoop about any of that. (haven't said "give a whoop" since the 90's)But I do care about the music, the guitar playing and slaying, the soul, the dedication and persistence to artistry when not a lot of people seem to care about that anymore. </div>
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Small sidenote: I gave birth to London while Born and Raised comforted my agonizing body and petrified mind. It will forever be the soundtrack of the biggest bestest day of our lives to date.</div>
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The show was nothing short of magical. The set was beautiful, the band was off the charts. There was a new humility about him, and he got pretty carried away in the music, his face was about to explode with happiness and he was so whitty. What can I say, the guy is talented. He was killing me softly, slaying my soul, blowing my mind, and melting my face off with his guitar. I came home inspired, ready to write, ready to practice, ready to listen. </div>
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Oh, one last super awesome thing! L.A. traffic was at it's gnarliest, It took us nearly three hours to get there, not so awesome. We missed Phillip Phillips who opened the show, also not awesome (that we missed him, not that he opened, that is so awesome). If only we could've pulled a chitty chitty bang bang over the 405. However as we were driving there, my manager brad was in the backseat, we were listening to the Mayer playlist I put together for the drive, we got to talking about who produced Born and Raised, he googled it and found out it was <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Don_Was" target="_blank"><b>Don Was</b></a>... the same Don Was that produced Carly Simon, and Bonnie Raitt and Dylan, and the Stones. I said to Brad "I need him to produce my next record"... he laughed "yeah". We arrived, and we could hear "paper doll" from the parking lot. It was the first song of the set. We ran to will call and got our tickets and then bolted through the pavillion to get to our seats, but I decided to quickly stop at the merch booth and pick up my new favorite "queen of california" t-shirt. I paid and ran with my JM Tee in hand... and just yards away from the ticket usher, we saw this guy with dreads and a hat and cool sun glasses. Brad said "I think that is Don Was"... </div>
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He said, lets go talk to him, so we walked over... I was too nervous to approach him and so Brad said "are you Don" and it was :) I told him that he was awesome, we talked about Carly Simon, he seemed to know that I sing, he was beyond nice. I told him "I would love you to make my next record" like a big nerd. I asked him if he would take a picture with me. He did. True story. Later he went up on stage and played with John. Don Was is awesome.</div>
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Lastly, totally and completely unrelated... I put up a baby gate tutorial over on <a href="http://thegirlswithglasses.com/index.php/the-little-red-door-baby-gate-tutorial/" target="_blank"><b>The Girls with Glasses</b> </a>blog. If you have a wild monkey adventure baby that loves to climb to the top of your hardwood stairs, like I do, then you need this gate. </div>
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BROOKE WHITEhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04549523864746273219noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9061588009611910262.post-16942299640719157022013-07-15T13:04:00.003-07:002013-07-15T13:17:31.110-07:00JAMM: FLY FLY FLY<div style="text-align: center;">
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You will notice a cute Londy Loo, waddling around the background in this one. Motherhood and Music must exist in the same room, as I always hoped it would, and I'm grateful that it does :) You will also noticed I said "forget" twice in the bridge, I mean't "regret" the second time. (important lyric distinction)</div>
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If you were to ask most singers, they would tell ya that they prefer to sing ballads. Why? </div>
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Probably because they contain more emotion, and the slower pace makes it easier to give it the inflection and feeling it needs to really find it's soul and connect with the lyric. In a way, it's easier-ish, kind of. An up tempo tune with the wrong arrangement was usually the kiss of death on American Idol. That is why everyone is singing slow songs, if you were wondering:) It is deceptively hard to perform fast songs and pull it off. I mean don't get me wrong, when it comes to listening to records, I prefer something peppy, something with a solid beat that makes me wanna dance and let my hair down. Yes I do love to rock. And if I am in the studio, putting together an upbeat track is the greatest! But making it happen live, different story. Be it fast or slow, singing really well while also connecting really well while also playing an instrument really well, and picking or writing a song really well... is well, really quite tricky! I just keep working at it... someday I might get "there"!</div>
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As I mentioned last week, I also wrote this song for Banner 4th of July. The inspiration was fully present in writing this one. It is definitely my favorite song of the two, and certainly my favorite scene in the movie with Christian Campbell. I am posting half of the scene below that <a href="http://www.mjsbigblog.com/" target="_blank">mjsbigblog</a> put up on Youtube, (thanks MJBB!). This was the song that she had written just before the band split. She was feeling the need to "go find her way all on her own". But it's never really that easy, leaving the familiar, the family, the place you've always known, and it almost always hurts the ones you leave behind, and that is the hardest part. We all go through this at some point in our lives whether it's a place, a relationship or even a job, sometimes you got to fly fly fly away... and yet those places and people and things will always be a part of who you are. </div>
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At this point in the story, years have passed, feelings are hurt, a brother and sister damaged by the distance and a misunderstood past. This song is the healer. As it always does, the music is what says what she has never been able to say, and it speaks to him what he's never been able to hear. It transcends who's wrong and who's right... it's the language that the heart can understand.</div>
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We usually never intend on hurting the ones we love, and yet so often we do... it's a bummer. Life is complicated, and so much get's lost in misunderstanding. How do we make it right? Time? Saying a sincere <i>I'm sorry</i>? Letting go of pride, failed expectations? Sometimes we just let it be. </div>
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In this case, Desiree Banner makes it right with a song. And in many of my own cases, I do too... or at least, I try.<br />
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PS- Thank you and happy birthday to the lovely miss Priscilla Chang for capturing this video for me, and for helping me get my JAMM back!<br />
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PSS- Oh and yes,<a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/banner-4th-july-original-soundtrack/id660909223" target="_blank"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;"> FLY FLY FLY is available on itunes</span></a>! yay!BROOKE WHITEhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04549523864746273219noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9061588009611910262.post-28804637026605867722013-07-08T22:06:00.002-07:002013-07-09T09:38:57.389-07:00THE RETURN OF JUST ANOTHER MUSIC MONDAY: SUN UP SUN DOWN...<div style="text-align: justify;">
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Well my friends, it's been a few Mondays since I last posted my lil' homemade iphone music videos. You know I intended on it, <i>but</i>...</div>
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Too much, not worth the explanation, but the good news is I'm back in business with JAMM... and yes I am just going to shorten it to JAMM because Just Another Music Monday just takes too long to type:)</div>
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Apparently I have this reputation for being... long winded, chatty, descriptive, redundant and possibly over communicative. Now, I'm not saying that I am going to go drastically changin', cause I like the details, however I am going to attempt to say more by saying less. I know we don't have time to scroll down through my novelish length posts all the live long day. I mean, who reads these days? (ha!). So If there is a way to write with heartfelt efficiency, and for you to read and connect with heartfelt efficiency then that would be super duper for all of us. </div>
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Back to JAMM... I've been a'waitin' (<i>in the words of Buddy Holly, needless side note? totally needful in my book, this less is more thing is gonna be tricky</i>) to play you this song that I wrote back in March just after I got the call to play the roll of Desiree Banner, however I had to wait till the movie aired (<i>Btw, a <b>big thanks</b> to all of you that tuned into the Hallmark Channel to watch Banner 4th of July. Also a necessary sidenote. I want to say more, resisting</i>). Any who, I read the script before I was officially casted, thought it was cute, hoped I would get the part. Weeks later I had a conference call with the director, producer, writer and EP of the movie, and they informed me that they would like me to write a few original tunes that I would also sing. With great excitement they explained that I need to write "the Banner Project's big hit" they would really love something "kinda mumford & sons-ish meet's Phillip Phillips Home and a little bit Lumineersy". I had to chuckle, if I knew how to write songs like that I'd probably be wearin' a rolex and drivin' a Rolls, but let's be honest, I'm wearin' a timex and driving a Honda (<i>which is honestly my preference</i>) By my own personal standards, I'm successful, but not that successful! :) Sarcasm aside, I really wanted to take on the challenge, and the reference was quite helpful, so I told them, YES! I will do it! Oh, and I supposed that meant I got the part? :)</div>
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When it comes to writing songs, I rarely sit down with such a specific concept, or think "write a song that sounds like this". So I felt like maybe this wasn't something I would be able to pull off. Generally I feel at the mercy of whatever song wants to present itself to me. People always ask me "how do you write a song", and I always give a confusing long non-answer, cause I really don't know. Obviously I write lyrics, and pair them to a melody that sings over an arrangement of chords, obvious I know, but how? The songs write themselves, I just try to make myself available when they are ready. Cause believe me, I try to write songs all the time, and a lot of times it is a lot of staring at a blank sheet of paper. I put in the time, I write down stuff, I play a lot of stuff, and a lot of that stuff is, pretty much crap. However, I do wonder if all that stuff is just necessary priming for the real thing. The work precedes the inspiration? Like I said, I really don't know. Honestly, every time I finish a song, I wonder "will I ever be able to do that again?". Writing a really good song sort of feels like winning the Lotto. It feels lucky... that being said, I've never played the Lotto, so I definitely have never won the lotto... lame comparison?! </div>
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Ah! Trying to make this short(er), so I wrote this song, I was very surprised. The whole "write a song that sounds like this" thing totally worked! And no it doesn't sound like M&S or PP, but it was my best original interpretation that felt right for this story. Best of all, they were happy, and I was happy. And let me tell you, I love acting, it is really interesting and challenging and fun, and I don't do it very often for complicated reasons, but being able to write the songs as a songwriter, and then sing them in the movie as an actress was really really rewarding. In the final scene of the movie, we (the banner project, me and my bros. Mitchell and Johnny) sing this song to our hometown. It was about 30 degrees that "4th of July" night and it was raining, you could see our breath, and we literally sang <i>sun up sun down</i>, from sun down to sun up. We pulled an all nighter, along with a couple hundred of the most enthusiastic group of extras I've ever seen. Seriously the citizens of North Bay Ontario deserved an academy award for their level of commitment to being the most believably energetic, excited crowd I've ever seen in all my time on stage. Granted they were "acting" but they sang along to every word, and danced and shouted so joyfully, to every single take. It was pretend, but it was real. It was kind of amazing. </div>
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So here it is, this is how every song begins, just a guitar (or piano) and a voice...</div>
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Oh, If you like it, you can find it over on the <b><a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/banner-4th-july-original-soundtrack/id660909223" target="_blank"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">iTunes</span></a></b>. Up next Monday... Fly Fly Fly, the other song I wrote for the movie. </div>
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*A shout out to Christian Campbell (who plays Mitch) for singing a great vocal on this track. And one more shout out to Kevin "Kedge" Haaland for producing and playing a lot of instruments on this record, so great. </div>
BROOKE WHITEhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04549523864746273219noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9061588009611910262.post-2615092117772706962013-06-25T15:44:00.003-07:002013-06-25T22:23:39.249-07:00BANNER 4th OF JULY...<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/banner-4th-july-original-soundtrack/id660909223" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnMQQRbF8fRc5SmC-EuOlYBTEu9t7ZvzGxOdZ0qBEkEY-ob0VDT6G6vEAN8jhuJP5Fr2_JKl-NaPa6ogIBotUjEE9p2DZ0hIiKHwK7x3nbzE2I2Q_b8icJjQIODyXFi_u4rRbvYhVPRdej/s640/BANNER+DESIGN+2+wVintage+pic+BIG+TEXT.jpg" width="640" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/banner-4th-july-original-soundtrack/id660909223" target="_blank">ORIGINAL SOUNDTRACK EP AVAILABLE ON ITUNES TODAY!!!</a></td></tr>
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Oh yeah, so did I tell ya that I went to North Bay Ontario Canada a month and a half ago and made a Hallmark movie? Yeah, so, I did.</div>
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If you follow me on instagram then you probably saw this picture of me standing in the snow... in May. See, the movie is supposed to take place around the fourth of July, but looked like a White Christmas, as you can imagine, this was quite the predicament. I thought, <i>hmm, maybe they'll reschedule</i>, but you know what they say, <i>the show must go on</i>! And go-on we did, in temperatures roughly 6 degrees celsius, which in fahrenheit translates to, Cold. So imagine standing outside with bare leggies, and a gust of icy wind comes a bustin' through my silk summer dress, you could see my breath and every hair on my arm was standing tall, teeth chattering... remember, I hail from Arizona, and reside in California where we exist in one season pretty much all year long, I'm basically a lizard, and yet there I stood, a human ice cube... it was an intense practice in mental toughness, I've never had to act so hard in my life! We all anticipated that glorious word, CUT.. when they would instantly throw floor length parkas on us. It took a few weeks for me to defrost, or shake the chill in my bones. Watching it back you'd never know it, thanks to movie magic, a snow blower and some pretty flowers, it looks just like a beautiful summers day in Pinewood Hills! </div>
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Just a few days later after shooting most of our outdoor scenes, the sun came out, melted away the snow, the trees sprouted leaves and revealed probably some of the most gorgeous weather and scenery I've ever seen, the sky was blue and the bay was pristine... andouldn't ya know we headed in to shoot all of our indoor scenes. Isn't it ironic?</div>
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It was a fast and furious shoot, however I loved every minute. Acting is really fun hard work. The days are long, but I just didn't mind. I think what I love so much about making a movie is that it is a true collaborative effort. The cast and crew become your fam for a few weeks, they are there to support you and catch you when you fall. From our incredible director Don, to our camera guys Rod and Andreas, to wardrobe, hair and make up, AD's and craft services. Everyone plays an important role, and you grow to love these folks that you will likely not see again. It was wonderful to have my London close at hand, who would come to visit me on set and sit in my lap and eat (my) lunch with me everyday... everyone got to know my Loo. Even Dave was there for the final week of filming.<br />
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This role was different from my last, although I play yet another musically inclined lady, this gal is more conflicted, and has a few more walls built up around her and her heart that has been broken by the business and her past. I got to rummage through a bunch of feelings to be her and relate to her story, I maybe even yell a little... :)</div>
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Probably the most rewarding part however was writing, recording and then performing the songs for her and the band to sing in the movie... obviously music is a bit more familiar territory for me. I wrote two new originals, <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/banner-4th-july-original-soundtrack/id660909223" target="_blank"><i><b>Sun Up Sun Down</b></i></a> which is the bands big hit, which has a more up beat, clap your hands, stomp your feet, americana vibe. Then there is "<a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/banner-4th-july-original-soundtrack/id660909223" target="_blank"><i><b>fly fly fly</b></i></a>" a more raw emotional ballad that I play on the piano, with Mitch accompanying me on the guitar and singing harmony. I co-wrote songs for Change of Plans, but have never really written with such a specific purpose or theme on my own, I usually just write whatever I am feeling in the moment and allow the song to dictate itself. However I was pleasantly surprised with how quickly they came and how inspired I felt... it was kind of a break through for me as a songwriter. I can't wait for you to hear them, as a matter of fact the songs are available on a <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/banner-4th-july-original-soundtrack/id660909223" target="_blank"><b>four song original EP as of today, as in RIGHT NOW</b></a>! You may also recognize XYZ and VOICES that Jack and I released last year. I was excited that they also placed these songs in the film! Feel free to take a listen over on <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/banner-4th-july-original-soundtrack/id660909223" target="_blank">itunes</a> :)</div>
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The cast was a small but super talented bunch. Mercedes Ruehl plays my mom... if you don't know much about Mercedes, you should google her. Academy award...check, golden globe... check, tony... check... basically she is an Emmy shy of an EGOT. She is rather legit you could say, and for being so successful and distinguished in her craft, couldn't have been more generous to a mere rookie like myself on the set. This isn't my first rodeo, but it's my second. She gave me some truly valuable advice to help me level up to the task of a lead role. This lady is a riot and it was an honor and a privilege to be under her tutelage. As it also was with Christian Campbell, who plays my older brother and former bandmate, who also has an extensive body of work. He really makes acting look easy, which it's not. Like a real big brother would, he took me under his wing and ran lines with me, we broke down the script and figured out subtext. Preparation equals confidence, and I came to set feeling like I knew my scenes, thanks to the kindness and talents of Christian. Then there was Mike Barbuto, who plays the drums, and our brother as the third member of the "the Banner project" band. Nicest guy ever, and also helped me discover the art of crying on demand. You'd think this would be a slam dunk for an uber sensitive emo weepie like me, but it's not! Unless you're Mike, then it is, it's a real skill. Of course this is a Hallmark movie, so there is a hint of romance, and Chad Connell, brought it with his symmetrical features and super debonairness (totally expected that word to not really exist, however I see no dotted red line, so I am going with it) Yes, I said DEBONAIRNESS!!!<br />
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But really this movie is about the family. I play Desiree Banner, former singer and songwriter for the Banner Project, a small town band that she and her two brothers Mitch and Johnny started over a decade ago. Just as they were about to make it big time with their smash hit single "sun up sun down", she was swept away from the band by a producer from LA who convinced her she needed to make it on my own, leading her into a doomed marriage, and breaking up the band, causing bad blood between her and Mitch. Fast forward to now, when they hear the sobering news that their mom, Rosalind has had a heart attack, bringing them all home to exist under the same roof together for the first time in ten years to look after her while she recovers. Now she finds herself forced to face the music (budum-ching). While she tries to deal with Mitch and the angry elephant in the room, she also discovers that her hometown of Pinewood Hills is in extreme economic distress potentially forcing them into bankruptcy. Her mother, who also happens to be the Mayor however, who has been known to always have a plan up her sneaky sleeve, secretly schemes up a way out of all of this mess while on bedrest...</div>
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and with all that, you're just gonna have to watch the rest to see what happens :) you could also <b><a href="http://hallmarkchannel.com/banner4thofjuly/video/Preview/Banner4thofJuly" target="_blank">watch a little trailer right HERE.</a></b> </div>
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Ahhh! So set your DVR's my friend, SATURDAY, JUNE 29th 9p/8c on the Hallmark Channel! Join me on twitter while I'll be nervously watching this movie for the first time!</div>
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PS- If you live in Los Angeles, I will be performing "sun up sun down" on Good Day L.A. this Thursday morning! </div>
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And then on the Home and Family Show on the Hallmark Channel on Friday... Woohoo!</div>
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BROOKE WHITEhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04549523864746273219noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9061588009611910262.post-47057313419766326612013-06-22T00:15:00.001-07:002013-06-22T17:38:30.723-07:00HELLO SUMMER...<div style="text-align: center;">
Feelin' in a great mood today, it's the first day of Summer, and there is magic in the air.</div>
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I think I've decided that Summer is the season of all seasons...</div>
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and while I live in California where it seems to be the land of the endless Summer, there is still something extra special about this time of year...</div>
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I love how the my bedroom fills up with light early in the morning, and doesn't fade till after nine pm. </div>
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I live for these long days... as long as the sun is shining I feel like I can conquer the world!</div>
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I can't get enough of seedless watermelon with a little sprinkle of salt.</div>
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I love when Dave fires up the BBQ and grills burgers with pineapple after work... and I think it's deliciously awesome that we eat corn on the cob with nearly every meal.</div>
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I love Sunday drives down the PCH to the beach after church.</div>
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I get a rush rolling down the 101 with the windows down while blasting <i>Good Vibrations</i> by the Beach Boys and <i>amber</i> by 311, or anything from Pete Yorn's <i>music for the morning after</i> with the warm wind blowing my hair into a big gnarly knot.</div>
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I feel free with no coats and liberated in a dab of lip-gloss and no make-up.</div>
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I look forward to quick trips to the carwash, my favorite place to sit out in the sunshine and eat a strawberry shortcake ice cream bar while oldies blare over the intercom, songs like smokie's <i>tears of a clown</i></div>
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I long for the smell of sun screen and Banana Boat suntan oil.</div>
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I love evening bike rides through the hood, seeing kids playing outside and people walking their dogs</div>
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I'm talkin' Flip flops, family vacations to San Diego, saturday home improvement projects, fireworks and the Fourth of July!</div>
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And this year, a lot of time spent with our Londy Loo, watching her grow, taking her on early morning walks, pushing her on the swings and watching her chunky roley poley legs walkin' and waddlin' in a soggy diaper and swim suit of red white and blue with her sweet little belly hanging out... splishin' and a'splashin at the Splash Pad amongst happy kids.</div>
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Life is good in the Summer time.</div>
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BROOKE WHITEhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04549523864746273219noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9061588009611910262.post-29633784759918747482013-04-15T12:06:00.000-07:002013-04-15T12:06:34.906-07:00THE GIRLS WITH GLASSES TURN 3!So if ya didn't know, my dear pal Summer Bellessa and I started this quirky little webseries three years ago known as <a href="http://thegirlswithglasses.com/" target="_blank"><b>The Girls with Glasses Show</b></a>!<br />
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In three years we have created nearly 100 videos, we live in two different states, Summer had two babies, I had my first, there have been records, movies, magazines and whole lot of crazy in between. Really it's miraculous that we continue to pull this thing off. But, we have had a blast developing the girls with glasses, and to celebrate the occasion we are doing a give-away of our favorite things! Woo hoo!<br />
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Head on over to our blog <a href="http://Thegirlswithglasses.com/"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Thegirlswithglasses.com</span></b></a> to enter to win!! Super good stuff!!<br />
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Here are a few of my favorite videos to get ya started if you've never been acquainted with our four-eyed fun.<br />
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It all began with a song...</div>
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the story...</div>
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trainwrecks and catfights</div>
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we love hats</div>
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BROOKE WHITEhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04549523864746273219noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9061588009611910262.post-29126695118700120902013-04-01T16:09:00.001-07:002013-04-01T16:56:52.435-07:00EASTER LOO AND A SONG...<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhd8-hWHDl2P0aHL6Dr2tsWhEu0gHVPsMp6V-YnDmD2LfjKXS2U_Fn1wiCnmgC5_9wxDakmtgobmFDw1-hkkrIWKO6lRbAJVJt13ds7OHPR6989x7ABv45lxhvdY7HOOipTpxsAq6LsD0qb/s1600/DSC_0008.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="428" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhd8-hWHDl2P0aHL6Dr2tsWhEu0gHVPsMp6V-YnDmD2LfjKXS2U_Fn1wiCnmgC5_9wxDakmtgobmFDw1-hkkrIWKO6lRbAJVJt13ds7OHPR6989x7ABv45lxhvdY7HOOipTpxsAq6LsD0qb/s640/DSC_0008.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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Easter was quite happy. A rainy Sunday, a peaceful morning at church, a couple of simple Easter baskets, shish kabobs with a few kind<i> <a href="http://www.littlemissmomma.com/" target="_blank"><b>friends</b></a></i> and a whole lot of our Londy Loo. It was so fun to give her her first Easter basket and watch her dump all of it's contents on the floor... bubbles, a book about Jesus, her own pretend smart phone and of course a little chocolate bunny. Dave found me a striped floppy hat and filled it with reeses peanut butter eggs, pretty cute and clever if you ask me. I gave him a small wooden box filled with a pink plaid Tie, a new mix CD for his car, a few cadbury filled eggs, and a handful of cutie oranges... he's done a lot of changing to his lifestyle and eating habits, so I had to go easy on the sweets. I hope I don't embarrass him by mentioning that he's lost 24 lbs and counting, He's practically a new man. Super proud of him.<br />
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Dressing up our little lady was fun, I found a yellow dress (it had a neon flower on it, but I took the seam ripper to it and got rid of it) and this over the top headband at Target late on Saturday night of course. She looked like a lil' flower child, I took nearly a million photos of her. She kept making the funniest face every time she caught me taking a picture... Personality oozing out of her lil' ears I tell ya.<br />
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Lastly, I know it's Just another music monday, and I had something, but then my 30 day editing software trial is over. I am debating between sticking with the Final Cut Pro which I find super user friendly, or going with Adobe Premier, cause I've been hearing good things. Any tips or thoughts from you editing gurus out there? Until I get that worked out (hopefully this week), I thought I would share this video from the archives. </div>
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Quite a while back I had received an invite (in the form of a tweet) to go record with <a href="http://www.byutv.org/watch/76d3b2ce-f07e-47b2-a666-c18529a0e336/the-song-that-changed-my-life-the-lower-lights" target="_blank"><b><i>the Lower Lights</i></b></a>, if you may or may not remember. They are one of my favorite music collaborations out of Provo, Utah, I've mentioned them on many occasion. But if ya haven't been introduced, The lower lights are a slew of abundantly talented music making folks that get together in the studio to create spontaneous musical magic, re-interpreting hymns and other classic songs of a spiritual or Gospel nature... a Hymn Revival! You really should get into The Lower Lights... so good.</div>
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This was one of the tunes that myself and a few of the lads arranged and harmonized in the stairwell of the studio. It is a song we used to sing in primary, particularly around Easter. It is called "He sent his Son". Primary songs are simple and pure, they have a way of transcending our stubborn overcomplicated grown up minds and getting into our hearts and reminding us of our more innocent selves. Well it does for me anyway :) I really hope this video works for you, I couldn't find it on youtube so it's a ustream video therefore it's a bit wonky at times. Please endure the lame advertisement at the beginning and take a listen... (if it doesn't work, watch it on the <a href="http://www.ustream.tv/new/search?q=juneaudio" target="_blank"><i><b>little screen here</b></i></a>)</div>
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<i>"Have faith, have Hope, live like his son, help others on their way..."</i></div>
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<a href="http://www.ustream.tv/" style="background: #ffffff; color: black; display: block; font-size: 10px; font-weight: normal; padding: 2px 0px 4px; text-align: center; text-decoration: underline; width: 400px;" target="_blank">Video streaming by Ustream</a></div>
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Oh and a few more things:<br />
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-An idol update with my pal Lyndsey Parker at <b><a href="http://yhoo.it/YJ1uyz" target="_blank"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">Yahoo Music</span></a>. </b>Are you watching this year? Who's your fave?<br />
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-Have you heard of Jessie Baylin? I wrote a little post about her and her record (which is my new favorite) over on <a href="http://thegirlswithglasses.com/index.php/have-you-heard-jessie-baylin/" target="_blank"><b><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: large;">The Girls with Glasses Blog</span></b></a><br />
<br />BROOKE WHITEhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04549523864746273219noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9061588009611910262.post-30125506429114484842013-03-18T23:34:00.000-07:002013-03-18T23:44:18.460-07:00SO MUCH...<div style="text-align: justify;">
So much has happened. I've missed the last three weeks of "just another music monday". I just couldn't pull it off amongst the chaos. I know it's not the end of the world, it's not like the New York times front page headline exclaims "brookie babble fails to post just another music monday three weeks in a row, a real disappointment". I know it's just a really small thing I'm doing in my living room, but I kinda need to be doing it for reasons i'm not really sure of. I will get back on track... next monday... or tuesday, okay, probably wednesday.</div>
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A dear family member has just experienced an unthinkable tragedy, I have been grieving hard with a heavy heavy heart for, and alongside her for the last few days. I am reminded that we just absolutely can not take this life and our relationships for granted. We are all so vulnerable. We just have to love people dang it, we have to love our families, our lives, our homes, ourselves, our God. just love, as much as we can, for as long as we get.</div>
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On a significantly incredibly less important note, I cleaned out a closet, and in that closet was ten years worth of shoes. As you can see from the picture below, I have a hard time partin' with my footwear, but it was time. Honestly it was the last thing that didn't even make it on my to-do list, but every time I opened that darn closet, shoes would literally come a flyin' at my head, so after being attacked by a falling heel one day I just started chucking them into a pile. Luckily I had my trusty little side kick, the Loo, to help me get control of the madness. Mostly she just sat there and smiled and tried to chew on the heels of some gnarly old shoes, but man is she cute. I didn't part with as many pairs as I should have but, it's a start, and it feels good. </div>
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Before this happened, <b><a href="http://thegirlswithglasses.com/" target="_blank">the girls with glasses</a> </b>took over my house and kaboom... it kinda looks like it exploded. Every wall was painted a different color, every piece of furniture has been relocated to random places and I think it might take the rest of 2013 to put it back together again. I don't remember feeling this bonkerz in a long time. However, we had a legit crew, and these are going to be our finest looking videos, we're excited. Details to come, stay tuned...</div>
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I teamed up with my gal pal, Ashley, the one and only <b><a href="http://www.littlemissmomma.com/2013/03/the-boho-crown-braid-tutorial.html" target="_blank">little miss momma</a></b> and did a little tu-tu-torial for the boho crown braid, aka, my go to hairstyle for day two hair, or three or four... like cheese, or leather, it basically gets better with time, live in it, sleep in it, drive with the windows down in it, and before you know it a bird has landed in it and found itself a nest, and that's when you know it's time to take it down and start all over again. See it, follow it, do it... step by step over on<a href="http://www.littlemissmomma.com/2013/03/the-boho-crown-braid-tutorial.html" target="_blank"><b> Little miss momma...</b></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMifqU4omlIpslVgDdYw1jXV8cpvbbvqNKi1Ky4MSxhqTrkMoYW_8nyc1xLINp6Q_RU2zLliE2yHJ16TOblHMmaU9_vBETptuhVBqNTB3EmeXgrZpI5XZqvoASkJB-uF0PZWHUyW1KQft_/s1600/braid+tutorial.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMifqU4omlIpslVgDdYw1jXV8cpvbbvqNKi1Ky4MSxhqTrkMoYW_8nyc1xLINp6Q_RU2zLliE2yHJ16TOblHMmaU9_vBETptuhVBqNTB3EmeXgrZpI5XZqvoASkJB-uF0PZWHUyW1KQft_/s640/braid+tutorial.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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It's been a crazy time, but I love my family, and art, and music, and while life is stinkin hard, it is beautiful too, and I love it. Thanks to you all for watching my music mondays, for reading my jibberish and for caring. There is more, so much more, but it is time for bed. Goodnight.</div>
BROOKE WHITEhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04549523864746273219noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9061588009611910262.post-61546818733428187592013-02-25T15:37:00.001-08:002013-02-25T16:58:42.236-08:00JUST ANOTHER MUSIC MONDAY: HERE NOW<div style="text-align: justify;">
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About four years ago I was writing songs, all day, every day for several days...</div>
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Then one day... BAM. I hit a wall. I had nothing left. </div>
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Writers block they call it. I had it, and it bummed me out hard. What if I was never going to be able to write another song again? What did this mean? Was my life void of inspiration, passion and experience? Months went by, I read the <a href="http://juliacameronlive.com/" target="_blank"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: blue;">artist way (life changing, you should read it)</span></a>, I wrote morning pages, wrote a gratitude journal took myself on artist dates to the Getty, got a sketch pad and sketched a bunch of hands and eyeballs, flowers in vases and mickey mouse, spent more time serving at church, I walked several laps around the lake at balboa park and listened to a lot of Joni Mitchell... I even attempted, <i>quiet time</i>... that was weird. I wondered if maybe I was trying too hard, and then some days I wondered if I was trying hard enough. </div>
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I'd sit down behind the piano, hours would pass, a blank open page of my notebook staring me down... but there was nothing. So I pulled out the guitar, and spent a lot of time just, holding it... but there was nothing. I spent a lot of time obsessing over the fear that I was never going to be able to write again. I went about life on autopilot, doing a lot of stuff, but in my mind became a hostage to my dramatic, fear based thoughts. I reminisced of the days when I had something to say, something to play... and started questioning my choices. </div>
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I had to keep reading<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: blue;"><a href="http://instagram.com/p/T2enQPRmNu/" target="_blank"> <span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: blue;">this...</span></a> </span></div>
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Panic. Despair. I quit...</div>
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Kinda, but not really. Quitting never lasts long for me. I did pray, for songs, or for acceptance that there would be no more songs, maybe it just wasn't what I was supposed to do anymore.</div>
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Fast forward a while, I can't recall how long. I played a lot of gigs, sang the songs I had. I was sitting in front of the mirror blow drying my hair with a round brush when it came... </div>
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<i>fast forward then rewind</i></div>
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<i>look ahead and look behind...</i></div>
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In a rush of excitement, I dropped the hair dryer and the brush like a hot potato and I ran to my keyboard... the intro was instant, I found the chords to support the melody that the words delivered to me. But then there was more...</div>
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<i>present moment never lingers</i></div>
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<i>time will slip right through your fingers</i></div>
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<i>when... you're not livin' </i></div>
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<i>and everything, you've been missin'</i></div>
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<i>you can't take back again...</i></div>
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And that was it. That was all I could get. Gah. For the next several weeks I would spend a few hours a day, staring at that verse, trying to figure out where it wanted to go next...</div>
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Months passed by, and I had gotten a call from a friend of mine in Nashville, Chris Oglesby, he connects writers, and was responsible for setting up some of my most successful co-writes. He wondered if I wanted to write with this guy<span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: blue;"> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Busbee" target="_blank"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: blue;">"Busbee", Mike Busbee</span></a></span>, who lived in Laurel Canyon. I figured maybe it'd be a good idea to get back to co-writing, so I said yes. That day I brought this song I had been working on... I played it for Busbee. I moved over, He sat at the piano and started singing... </div>
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<i>"How long, How long, till we've figured out, that we're <b>here now</b>"</i></div>
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<i>"How long, How long, till we turn around and it's all gone, will we wish that we were still <b>here now</b>"</i></div>
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It was perfect. We finished the song in a little over an hour. That afternoon he created and we recorded potentially one of the greatest demos I've ever made, just a piano, vocal and strings. It just felt, true.</div>
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I popped the disc of the demo into my cd player and listened to it on repeat during the long drive home through the canyon. I was raw with emotion. I realized the song was schooling me...</div>
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I was waiting. We all are waiting. Waiting for that day when we'll finally be happy...</div>
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<i>when we write a song.</i></div>
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<i>when we get our braces off</i></div>
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<i>when we graduate.</i></div>
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<i>when we get married.</i></div>
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<i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: normal;"><i>when we pay off the credit card.</i></span></i></div>
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<i>when we get pregnant.</i></div>
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<i>when we get some sleep</i></div>
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<i>when we lose ten pounds</i></div>
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<i>when we get a record deal</i></div>
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<i>when we move out of the crappy apartment</i></div>
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<i>when we remodel the kitchen</i><br />
<i>when we get our pay check and we can go buy more stuff</i></div>
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<i>when we get a tan</i></div>
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<i>when we quit workin' for the man...</i></div>
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<i>when we get that apology</i></div>
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Really? I don't know, maybe we will be happier... for a minute, and then on to the next thing.</div>
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Or we get stuck in the past, we spend our precious minutes on regrets, wishing we had or hadn't, or we coulda shoulda, fantasizing we could rewrite history, or reminiscing a time we thought it had it all.</div>
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Don't get me wrong, I am not suggesting it is wrong to learn from our past, or to dream, or strive for a better future. It is actually really important, goals are great, change is necessary. </div>
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But, what about <b>now</b>, what about this moment that we are in?! If we are stuck in yesterday or living for tomorrow, we totally miss out on today. And today is the best day ever, because it's what we got. And when it's gone, it's <i>gone</i>. </div>
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Yep, Life is hard, it has it's disappointments and super crappy let downs, and we tell ourselves "the best is yet to come", but until then, maybe we can still be happy now.</div>
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And when I say "we", I kinda mean "me". Feel free to join me, let's be here now.</div>
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I've been saving this song... maybe the next record :)</div>
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BROOKE WHITEhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04549523864746273219noreply@blogger.com26tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9061588009611910262.post-70924628823522175772013-02-19T23:04:00.000-08:002013-02-20T11:19:19.866-08:00JUST ANOTHER MUSIC MONDAY: POOR LITTLE FOOL...<div style="text-align: justify;">
i'm sorry. </div>
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Feeling a little defeated as I type this and I don't think I have the energy to articulate why... and there is a giant mosquito hawk flying around my computer scarin' the crap out of me. I know he's harmless, and I don't want him to die, I just want him to go hang out in the living room. </div>
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Basically, I'm tired of being late... </div>
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I can't catch up, it's been this way for like fifteen years, or I don't know, maybe twenty nine... I want to change, and I don't know how, and I am trying. In the words of what about Bob "i'm doing the work I'm not a slacker". But I'm slow, and I care too much about too much, indecisive and a tortured perfectionist working with a great deal of imperfection. Really, It's okay, but it's not, and this isn't a woe is me post. I'm just sayin'...<br />
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All of you decisive efficient people that are always on time, teach me, what is your secret?</div>
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I know I said I was going to post a Valentines Day song, but I thought Valentines was Friday, and I had been working on "close to you" by The Carpenters all week. It is not an easy song, and I wanted to do it really right, because it's Karen, and it's basically sacred. Then it turns out that Valentines Day was actually Thursday, and because life was serving me a Thanksgiving feast on a salad plate, I just wasn't ready for that. Incidentally, I was wearing my red hello sweatshirt which I have worn for nearly five days straight, and so I put a heart onesie on London and thanks to Summer, pulled off a cute instagram (see below). Dave came home from work with Valentines in hand for me and the Loo, sheepishly, I told him that Valentines was just going to have to be on Friday, like I planned. I had a small thoughtful gift, the card but not a second to wrap it, or write it. But I couldn't even pull off Friday... Friday turned into Saturday.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrtH8a-EA8eHWzXMt9Vf-BpEnVHNJjkauPqv1wFs0vGpjBN1nZHsCvyCAOPvIWJe60BvKdUUkFluMYM4oCbEhy5YbZVFKTuEIzg4yQOm7QiOcyA3gAEzLU5VNBemeD359FmDVpFeF7_937/s1600/me+and+loo+valentines.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrtH8a-EA8eHWzXMt9Vf-BpEnVHNJjkauPqv1wFs0vGpjBN1nZHsCvyCAOPvIWJe60BvKdUUkFluMYM4oCbEhy5YbZVFKTuEIzg4yQOm7QiOcyA3gAEzLU5VNBemeD359FmDVpFeF7_937/s640/me+and+loo+valentines.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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Kinda like how Just another music monday has yet again turned into Tuesday... okay, almost Wednesday. So I thought I would do "Close to you" for this week, but when I sat down at the piano on Sunday, my fingers didn't want to play it, my voice didn't want to sing it. Like I said, Mediocrity just isn't an option when it comes to the Carpenters.</div>
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It was Sunday, and probably one of the most perfect days that a February has ever seen. Dave suggested we head down to the beach. So we bundled up the Loo, grabbed the beach blanket and my guitar and headed on through the canyon to Malibu. We found a little spot on the sand, the tide was high but the ocean breeze was truly euphoric <i>(it took me like ten minutes to find that word in my mind file) </i>We walked London out to the water and put her toes in the sand and she let out some unbelievable giggles, ahhh, finally, a moment of pure contentment... Thank you Lord! I pulled out my guitar and thought maybe I would figure something out. Then I realized I forgot my capo at home (<i>a capo is this small contraption that you clamp onto the neck of the guitar to change the key</i>) and so I sat around and tried to figure out a tune in my key. I stumbled onto "don't panic" a vintage Coldplay classic. So just as the golden hour struck and the sun was setting over the sea I thought maybe I could capture the moment and sing "we live in a beautiful world" right in front of the pacific ocean. However, Londy's sweet pumpkin giggles turned to pterodactyl screams and she was ready to go, but I figured that there was no better scene then this for "just another music monday" so we got her set up on the blanket with a toy to chew on and put "whats the drawback" on my phone, it's her favorite song.</div>
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Dave manned the iphone camera, (as he has been doing for the last two videos, his camera skillz vastly improve week to week, he's becoming a pro, way to go Dave!) I started out my usual little intro, and started playing "bones sinking like stones, all that we fall for" when I looked over to see london rolled off the blanket with a handful of sand that she was shoveling into her mouth... so that was the end of that! I ran over and grabbed a wipee and tried to stop her, but she was hell bent on eating sand, so she did. There is a bit of footage of the whole fiasco, maybe you'll see it.</div>
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So yesterday was Presidents day, and I had yet to record a tune. I decided maybe I would try "God only knows". My favorite beach boys tune, and one of my favorite songs of all time. It was the song I sang during Hollywood week, that solidified my fate into the Top 50, and ultimately the Top 24. The publishing however was not cleared for TV, therefore no one ever saw it. I practiced it through out the day, again, not an easy song. After a day of yard work and tasks involving the Girls with glasses show, it was nearing 5pm, the sun was setting. Once you lose day light, the show is over. But after calming the Loo, recharging a dead phone battery, and forgetting the chords, a las, my third attempt was denied. </div>
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Then it came to me this morning, Poor little Fool, a song that was written by a fifteen year old girl, intended for Elvis to sing, but then was recorded and made a hit by Ricky Nelson in 1958. It was a song from my childhood. My dad had an ovation guitar with heavy strings. I remember he would play "grandmas feather bed" by John Denver, and "Poor little fool" by Ricky Nelson, as we would sit around him in our jammies right before bed, and he would sing to us. It is one of my happiest memories, and one of my first favorite songs. So this morning, before I could even make the bed, I grabbed the Loo in her jammies and my guitar, put the Capo on the fifth fret and played this happy little ditty (but actually kinda sad) for my own little one. </div>
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So, to carry on the tradition of Brad the dad, I give to you "Poor little fool"</div>
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BROOKE WHITEhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04549523864746273219noreply@blogger.com25tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9061588009611910262.post-66807882580153273722013-02-12T07:55:00.000-08:002013-02-19T23:20:34.203-08:00JUST ANOTHER MUSIC MONDAY: BEST FRIEND (NEW TUNE!)<div style="text-align: justify;">
Due to technical difficulties, let's just call this Just another Music Tuesday... </div>
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I was working on a lovey dovey cover (so many great suggestions btw, hard to choose) in honor of Valentine's day, and then got distracted with this little chord progression. I started picking the strings, I'm not the worlds best finger picker, but the magic of music took control of my fumbly 'ol fingertips and started to play them with ease, I like when this happens. The chords caused my eyes to close, my heart to ache. Then a hum in my vocalizer started humming... I followed the hum, and it led me down a path to these words:</div>
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<i>it's not too late</i></div>
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<i>I could be your best friend</i></div>
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<i>hold my breath and swim into the deep end</i></div>
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<i>of this mess of love that we've been drownin' in</i></div>
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<i>ooohh</i></div>
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I knew it was the last chorus, so I worked backwards. Quickly the words spilt on the paper, I let them fall freely as they strung themselves together into a story. I let them sing the redemption song that they wanted to be. Eighty percent of it was written in fifteen minutes, the other twenty percent took about six hours, when I realized that this song was not the light hearted little ditty I had hoped to write. It wore me out. So, I just let it be what it is, a real life love song. There's a beginning, a conflict, a resolve and a hope that is never ending. That is the nature of a relationship that endures. I don't know if I would put the "done" stamp on it, I think it needs some time to marinate, might need to rearrange a few things, the bridge might need more, maybe it doesn't, I don't know. The first performance is always an experiment, a bit timid... and it makes me nervous, so here it is...</div>
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PS-Talking about songs is always weird. I just write them, sing them, and hope they are heard the way the person needs to hear it... or feel it, really.</div>
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PSS- AND I am over on <a href="http://ohjoy.blogs.com/my_weblog/2013/02/make-someone-happy-no-06-write-a-song.html" target="_blank"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: red;"><i>Oh Joy!</i></span></a> today as part of her "make someone happy" series... I helped her write little love song for her man Bob, kinda cute and fun! <a href="http://ohjoy.blogs.com/my_weblog/2013/02/make-someone-happy-no-06-write-a-song.html" target="_blank"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: red;">Watch it here</span></a></div>
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Oh! One last thing... what did you think of the Grammy's? I thought it was pretty classy, and I was rather impressed by many of the performances. <i>Justin Timberlake...</i> what can I say, I'm glad he's back. Rhianna was the surprise of the night for me, no over the top production needed with large doses of flesh, she stood there in a beautiful gown and simply delivered a pure, heart felt vocal. And then there's Bruno Mars, pow! So much energy! He is just slaying it out there and couldn't have performed better, but wait, then Sting joined him on stage with his bass, and he did his Sting thing, which is always dripping with awesome. I loved Mumford & Sons, and am glad to see the Lumineers taking over the world. I will also say how pleased I was that Gotye and Kimbra won song of the year, that song was a special one, and the fact that radio embraced it gives me hope and happiness. Kelly Clarkson was just mind blowing. Levon tribute was spectacular and reminded me of Michael Johns on tour, he literally watched the Last waltz maybe forty something times. Props to the Idol ladies, Kelly and Carrie for representing. Isn't it interesting that the most enduring and successful artists to come out of Idol are both female, and yet a girl hasn't won in six years? (Multiple factors here... and, No offense guys, y'all are great, just an observation :-) There are others I am forgetting, but overall, it was a good night. Made me want to sing and play and write much better than I do.</div>
BROOKE WHITEhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04549523864746273219noreply@blogger.com19