The need to create

I've spent the last week trying desperately to fight an urge inside of me that I know won't go away for a while. It occured to me suddenly that towards the end of every year I get these "cravings" to create something, DO something. Last year I was all caught up in my NaNoWriMo novel and though it's still only half way through and unfinished/unedited, I'm mighty proud of it. I was also getting into SongU bigtime, taking classes, writing songs/lyrics, finding co-writers, setting up my so-called home recording studio. It's weird to see it all repeat itself again this year and it makes me think whether it's worth it, seeing as I didn't finish any of the stuff I started last year.

Granted, the recording studio is packed up in a storage room in Woking but other than that... do I really want to start a new novel? Do I really want to start co-writing songs again? Do I really want to buy a new guitar?
The simple answer is YES. Whilst I know that all the things I'd like to do at once will most likely end up half done again, I will still try. So I don't have enough time to read, write, sing, write some more, watch DVDs and listen to music but what's to say I can't at least try to do all those things?

So - I'm now officially declaring that I WILL start another year on NaNoWriMo and intend to do all in my power to win (aka write 50,000 words in one month). I've got a vague idea about what I could write but things can still change in the next two weeks, who knows.

On the more "real" part of my life, well, we sang the Neptune part of Gustav Holst's "Planets" with the Nashua Symphony last night. Somebody had the incredibly stupid idea to squeeze about 60 women backstage into a tiny hallway and open the doors to the stage when their part came up. The intention was to make our voices sound detached, etherial, not in the room. Well, I'd say we succeeded. By about the second bar most of us had lost our timing and/or notes so by the fifth bar there were about three or four voices alone singing!!! LOL It was so ridiculous I had to try very hard not to laugh out loud. Even under the best circumstances we probably wouldn't have been very good. Under the given circumstances, it was impossible.

I, for one, get really excited when it comes to performing. The first 5 minutes I'm usually out of breath and my heart is beating one million miles a minute. It takes me this long to recover and draw myself up to my full potential. Well, given the fact that our part of the Neptune only lasts about 4 minutes, disaster was going to strike. From rehearsals I realized very quickly that all 2nd sopranos in the 2nd chorus had no clue what and when they were singing and were pretty much going with whatever I was singing. So when I lost it in the actual concert, so did they. Not to mention the other 5 voices who really pretty much lost it all as well. We recovered for the final 1 minute but it was an overall disaster. I can't stress enough how important it is to not feel like a sardine when you're signing, to not desperately try and see the music in a darklit hallway and to not desperately try to somehow hear the orchestra's rhythm and see your conductor all at the same time.
So, it was an experience to remember! LOL I felt bad for our conductor because she is new and it was her "introduction" in a way and we really, REALLY sucked. I'll daresay it will be better at our proper concert in November sometime.

What else... oh yeah - Nashua Library had a book sale yesterday too and I got there about an hour after it started. They had a TON of books and at prices like 50cents and $1 I just couldn't resist. I bought a box full of books for about $17. What a bargain!!! Needless to say I can't wait to start reading them but when to find time??? I'll try to post a pic of the box as soon as my camera's battery is charged again.

I went to the Guitar Center on Thursday just to see what kind of acoustic-electrics they had for about $300. I got to play and Epiphone, an Ibanez and an Ovation. I liked the Ovation best, mainly because it's got a shallow rounded back and has an in-built tuner! God knows I could use one of those! So anyway, I will keep going back a few times and play them some more... just to get a feeling and see what's out there and what I like best. I'd like to try a Takamine out as well, see if they have one in my price range in store. I will post a pic of my new baby as soon as I've got it. Oh yeah, and a colleague of mine from work is going to give me lessons too!!!!!! WOOOHOOO!!!!!

My Weight Watchers adventure is going well so far - getting back into the business of counting points is not as hard as trying to figure out how many grams 5 ounces are!!! I hate the non-metric system, it screws with my mind! UGH!

I'm gonna finish with a few pics I took on my way back home on Friday night after work. I couldn't believe the colors in the sky so I whipped my cell out and took some pics while driving. Enjoy! :-)