TAKE A HIKE...

Good day... started up guitar lessons cause I want to be "more better", gotta keep learning, I want to be Clapton, I want to "shred" your face off, well not really... really my goal is to be able to play the guitar solo in "I can't tell you why" and perhaps write some new songs with out the C chord... although I really do adore C... such a solid key.

Trying to help the neighbors save a lil' black dog that was found just roaming the hood for the last few days... I feel terrible for the little guy, he was shaking in his coat, I can't blame him, I would be afraid too if I had to walk the streets of Los Angeles alone.... no tags, no food, no home:( I have a good friend that works for BEST FRIENDS ANIMAL SOCIETY, so she is gonna help us with getting him to a safe place and hopefully find him a happy home!

As well, today was the California Primary so that means it's time to get out an exercise our right to vote! Now I can't claim to be the most politically savvy gal around, but I do think it is important to vote, and to be aware and educated on what we are voting for. We read through ballot and had a discussion last night in preparation. Dave was especially excited as this was the first time he has EVER voted since becoming an official US citizen in December. He even got it right on his first try. I on the other hand, made a tiny mistake and had to try again... are you surprised? Apparently Arnold the "Governator" also needed a do-over so I don't feel so bad.

Went on an evening hike with the youth group from church tonight... honestly I'm not big on hiking, but this was an easy breezy one, and the view from the top always makes it worth it. I snapped a few photos along the trail with my iphone. I love the iphone camera, there is something so authentic about the way it captures a moment. Then I use "shake it photo" app, (and my favorite app) and turn it into a polaroid picture... it even makes the sound, it'slike magic...

We live in a beautiful world... yeah we do, yeah we do...

JACK BAUER

24.... what can i say, they got me, and yes I know, where have i been... Honestly we have no time for television, but when you're addicted, you must have it, you find a way, you make time and thanks to Netflix we are able to watch at 1am... oh and you can't watch one, one is just not enough, kinda like Pringles. After the first season I swore to myself that I was done, finished and going to get help... Well my self-control is lame and Dave talked me into season two... we're half way through (so please don't give anything away!!) But after this, I'm walking away, and I mean it...

The good thing is, it is inspiring me to write some new material... could be a hit. This ones for you Jack Bauer:

P.S. Don't start watching... it's a trap.

P.S.S. No I do not and will not watch LOST

P.S.S.S. I met Keifer Sutherland one time... funny story

DRAWING...

In addition to being a nanny, one of my pre-idol jobs was that of an illustrator for this adorable clothing company called Kate's Closet, unfortunately they are no longer operating. But there was a time that I was up till 3 am at the kitchen table covered in pencil smudges bringing this lovely little character to life. I had no formal experience or training as an illustrator, it was a crash course at combining hand drawings with graphic design. It was a challenging job, but a fun one. Drawing was my first love... before music, before hair, it was all about drawing!

Anywho, I was looking through old files on my computer and came across this first rough sketch of "Kate"...

THE CABIN...

Just walked in the door with just a sliver of Saturday left... all day I found myself antsy and anxious, wondering when I would find a minute to post a blog, I can't drop the ball on day 2... that would be, in the words of Quinn White, "lame sauce". I am cutting it close, right down to the wire as usual, but here it is, as promised:)

It's been a long day, a very non-weekend-y day, nonetheless it was spent doing good things. We actually spent half the day taking a little road trip up to Big Bear where I was doing some singing and such. As we were driving through the pine tree covered mountains, I had somewhat of a deja-vu moment...

When I was a kid growing up in Arizona, my Grandma and Grandpa Woods had built this cabin in a little town called Pine. There was a time that nearly every weekend we'd hop in the van, listen to the "When Harry met Sally" soundtrack by Harry Connick Jr. and drive two hours North up to the cabin, especially in the summer months to escape the heat. The cabin might have been my favorite place, everyone was there, grandma and grandpa, cousins, aunts, uncles... oh and the dogs, lots of smelly dogs. It wasn't very big, there was a large one bedroom loft upstairs with four beds and a balcony where us kids liked to attempt to sleep, of course only making it halfway through the night until we got to cold, or scared. Then there were a couple sleeper sofas downstairs, and ONE singular bathroom that was ALWAYS occupied. There was hardly an inch of open space to be found, with sleeping bags laid out all over the floor... and the dogs. Yep there was a whole lot of family squished into the cabin, there was chaos, it was mayhem and I loved it.

Boredom didn't exist at the cabin. There was the tire swing that swung over the green belt, long walks along the side of the dirt road to collect rocks that we would then tumble and shine, adventures down fossil creek to catch crawdads, night drives through the forest to search for Elk, trips into town to the closest Wal-mart to buy fabric, beadazzler and puff paint, hours at the dining table making useless junk with the glue gun, shooting cans with bee-bee guns, sitting on the porch watching the hummingbirds line up on the bird feeder and the traditional hot chocolate and bisquick pancake breakfasts. It was like a never-never land, a happy escape from reality.

It's been quite a few years ago now that the cabin had to be sold. My grandma was devastated, we all were. And though it will never be the same, I told her that someday I would buy her another one. I just need to sell a few more records first...

EVERYDAY...

I make my bed everyday... I brush my teeth everyday... I say my prayers everyday... I say I love you everyday... there are a few things that I am good at doing everyday... As far as everything else, I am pretty darn good at being inconsistent. Like maintaining this blog for instance...

I'm going to challenge myself with posting a blog EVERYDAY for the rest of June. And I am vocalizing that so that I am held accountable...

Now I can't promise that every post will be interesting or relevant to much, as a matter of fact I am fine with the possibility that no one will in fact read them. Nonetheless, there will be a post, perhaps novel length as I am known for... maybe one sentence, or maybe it will be photo or a drawing. Oh yes, there will be something. This is about consistency, about developing habits, about dedication... stick-to-itivness and follow through.

Here we go!

IF I CAN DREAM...

Tomorrow... or I should say today, I will be back on the Idol Stage once again:) So many thoughts about this, but it's late. Need a little rest before it all hits me...

To be continued.

THE GIRLS WITH GLASSES SHOW

New project, I love projects, I live for projects, especially this project... The Girls with Glasses Show. I'm sure y'all have heard a little about this by now... but long story kinda short, about five months ago, I finally gave into the nagging impression to call my friend Summer Bellessa, an impression that I'd had for several months but shrugged off. This time, I picked up the phone and dialed her number, she answered, we decided to meet for breakfast the next day. You're wondering, who is this Summer Bellessa? She is a fabulous person that I became friends with on myspace way back when... back then, she had a small dress line and this perfect little black dress that I just had to have, looking back, I never got one, sold out. However we began to correspond about music and fashion and other related topics. Since then she has started the most beautiful and classy quarterly high fashion magazine "Eliza" in which she was so kind to put me on the cover after my run on American Idol.

So there we were, catching up over delicious belgium waffles at IHOP, discussing, relating and venting about all of our creative challenges of being an indie singer-songwriter working to sustain in the post idol world and a fashion magazine editor trying to keep her magazine alive, what would be the fate of our struggling yet surviving careers? We talked about our supportive spouses, about hopes of family and potential motherhood... the desire to have it all, to experience the fullness of potential. How do you make it happen, can it happen? That's when a stroke of genius came upon us. An answer? not really, but an idea, yes! We both happened to be wearing our glasses that day... often times you would find us both in contacts (though we have both been four eyed since grade school)... thats when the idea was born, The Girls with Glasses Show.

The Girls with Glasses is all about a fresh perspective, the smart girls talk show... and yet not sooo serious. Quirky even. We got to talking about the kind of show we wanted to watch, the kind of show our friends would want to watch... the show that just didn't seem to quite exist... yet. It just seemed like the kind of idea we could sink our teeth into. Ever since we have quietly but earnestly been working to bring this show to life. Summer's husband had a camera, we wrote a theme song, we started reaching out to the most creative people we know and love, adding their brilliance and energy, and before we knew it, we'd started something that seems unstoppable, taking on a life of it's own. And what's it all about? That's easy, all the stuff that we know about, the stuff that interests gals like you and me (oh and guys, we welcome you too!) ... music, fashion, art, books, food and all the little quirks that keep life interesting and funny... oh and incorporating a the new world of blog and internet culture. We're ready to get sifting through the manajary of this and that and bring the best to the surface for you to enjoy... that's what we're doing anyway! Cause isn't that what it's about... finding joy amongst the challenge? Get on your glasses, even if you don't wear 'em. We wanna help you see all the good stuff, that's right in front of you:)

We've only just begun.

Watch this adorable stop motion video that would not have come to life with out the genius camera work of Angela Kohler, the wardrobe styling of Sunshine & Sarah, hair creations of Nikki Providence and faces made lovely by Rachel DeSimone, prop assistance and other random help by Kerry Bellessa... oh and the cuteness of Famous the dog:)

I Am A Girl - The Girls With Glasses Theme Song from The Girls With Glasses on Vimeo.