Season of rest

It seems to me that the season of rest is upon us. Its easter now and its also a time of new beginnings. The band is on a bit of a break here as two of the 4 members are out of town. I'm still trying to get over this annoying scratchy throat but so far to no avail.

I've been enjoying watching the masters this weekend as well as the struggling flames. Its never a good sign when your days away from the playoff's and your losing to edmonton. I've been getting the golfing bug back here from watching golf this weekend, its great that the weather has been improving. I love that spring is here now, and I love the promise of amazing times with friends that the summer promises to bring. Its always such an awesome time of year to plan and talk about camping trips, shows, things new and old.

Its a different summer for sure now that I'm not framing, I think i'll have more free time this summer to do some of those things that I had always wished I could do more of but never could because of working so many hours in summers past. All in all, its going to be a good one.

Shifting Tides

Its time for a shift in my life, my construction days are done, I'm starting a new post tomorrow that I will go into detail later. For those that have talked to me that's cool but I'll keep it on the DL for now for other reasons. I always feel a bit nervous about starting something new. I always want to jump out of the gates and impress everyone I meet. Have everyone like me for who I am and encounter no opposition in anything I do.

I know this is not the way that God would intend our lives to pan out, he wants us to run into difficulty and opposition so that we may become stronger people when we actually do accomplish what we set out for ourselves we are better people because of it. I already know there will be a number of challenges with this job as there is in any job a person will take on. I'm hoping this will stick...For those the know me I'm in desperate need of consistent work and consistent finances. I already see how this is taking me into the next chapter of my life, I'm one step closer to the dream of music and I know we'll get there together. If you think of me, send a prayer or two up as I make this transition in my life.

Some new things again!

Hey all! Amazing what things start to happen when you start to actually decide your going to keep a blog sort of going...you find things that you want to write about.

Still looking for work in this crazy market but hopefully things pan out for the better. I've applied and heard back from a dog walking company. Hopefully they decide I'm a great guy for walking dogs. I think it would just be a ton of fun to do something like that. I am also going to go apply today at Music Center Canada on 32nd Ave. I am going to try and become a guitar/more specifically a bass teacher. I think that would be amazing to make a living doing something that I'm extremely passionate about.

A couple other notes for today...thanks to my brother Jonathan for telling me about a band named Eisenhauer. They are beautiful and they are coming to calgary in early apr...anyone want to come with me?

Check out their myspace....www.myspace.com/eisenhauermusic

Also something funky is going on with my coloring on the text after that link post....whatever....

Tonight my friend Phil is doing is poetry slam night. its in the Auburn saloon which it below the calgary tower. It starts at 7 and its going to be pretty cool, you should all come and check that out if you aren't doing anything.

I think the beard is coming in pretty well.....

Apparently there were some minor problems with the comments section. I disabled the part where you have to type in the letter and number combo's to post a comment. Hopefully that will fix it. 

Learning to love you more

Is a website that I have been frequenting quite a bit lately. Its full of assignments that they recommend you do and then send in your results and then they post the assignments that people have written or worked on so that other can see what's been going on. I was reading one last night that I loved!  It was entitled goodbye, I'm going to post it here and I would encourage you to comment on this and leave your own version of this assignment. Lets see what we can come up with....

Assignment 70

Say Goodbye.

Sometimes it's hard to say goodbye. It just feels easier to keep holding on. But in the long run it's usually a good idea to let go, it's the daring thing to do. It allows room for new things, for transformation. And maybe the goodbye isn't even forever, but you can't know until you really say goodbye and mean it. In some cases, goodbye is really the end, and good riddance! For this assignment, say goodbye to all the things you need to let go of: bad habits, dead people, alive people, ex-boyfriends and girlfriends, self-destructive feelings and behaviors, jobs, projects, re-occuring thoughts, etc.
  
Write it as a simple list:
  
Goodbye Bill.
  
Goodbye wetting the bed.
  
Good bye interrupting people when they are talking.
  
etc.
  
It can be as long or as short as you like. And, most importantly, take a moment with each one to really say goodbye. This isn't a catalogue of your fears and faults, this is a ceremony to bid them farewell.Please don't send us HELLOS, only goodbyes.

Goodbye uncertainties about my future

Goodbye negative people in my life

Goodbye accepting that I won't make my life anything but fantastic

Goodbye "Should"

Goodbye Lack of Motivation

Goodbye broken hearts

Goodbye not being thankful for everything.

Sometimes

Sometimes its tough to see what the purpose of something is. Its hard to see where your going to end up, or tragically...where you are even to begin. I'm still sitting in between things, trying to figure out my place, there are some really fantastic things happening with the music right now, if I didn't know any better I would say we should hit the road full time right now. I know that isn't the case right now and I know that there is something for me. I feel myself being called to some things but I don't feel its exactly the right time just yet. I feel a bit of fear with the transition that is happening right now but that is just because I can't see beyond even today let alone what is going to happen tomorrow.  I'm in a much simpler place right now and its what God's wanted from me in a long long time. He got me there on his terms not my own and I'm thankful. I've had a lot of free time to work on the band stuff and talking to friends I think this is where I need to be. 

I'm still job searching but I think I'm getting close to taking a job that will free up way way more of my time, I'm starting to see that money vs. time is huge and for me right now despite all my debt and all my uncertainties I'm finding my time to be more valuable than money. The money has still somehow come in, I'm not sure how, but it has, through the grace and unselfishness of my friends and parents and the odd job here and there. Again because of friends. 

Its funny because I have a better idea of what three years from now looks like than I do what tomorrow does. Everything could change with one simple phone call or email and until then I will continue focusing on the positives of life.  Its all I have right now.

On the Verge

So things this past year haven't gone exactly as I've planned this year to go but its been for the better for sure! I haven't been back at my full time job framing this year. There has been no work to be had in the residential construction in Calgary. Thus, what is a boy to do? I've been working for a friend of mine doing some renos in his house this month. Its been a full time job for me in january and its allowed me to get my feet back up on my finances where i'm not behind on things anymore. Its a glorious feeling being back in this place, its been a long time since I haven't had to play catch up. The only catch is that in a week I will be unemployed again. I have a few leads that I need to check into for jobs but for the most part I'm not to worried about it. I feel like the good Lord above is watching over my steps these days. I maybe haven't been feeling completely myself lately but I blame January and I blame transition. I'm excited for where my new steps will lead as I go forward. Even though I may not feel completely myself these days, I'm very excited to see where the coming weeks and months will lead me. Its quite exciting not knowing where your next car payment is coming from. I know it will come from somewhere, but the only question I have yet to be answered is...Where?

Year in Review 2008

I've had the day to relax here. I haven't had to really go anywhere or do anything and for that I'm thankful even though I'm having to fight the boredom a little bit. I wanted to take time to write an 08 review as I normally do just to mark mainly for my own records. 
I brought 2008 in with my parents here at my grandma's place. I can't remember exactly why I ended up here with my parents. I guess I didn't have all that many close friends that I could call upon like I do now. I wasn't playing in the band yet, music still hadn't happened for a long time but I remember when 2008 came in I got this incredible sense that I was going to seek out peace and work on myself more in 2008. I won a skate deck on my birthday at broken city with trevor. It was a great time just listening to bands. A week or so after that was when I ended up going to a traced image show and meeting Dave there who had also brought Tim. This is what really kicked off the band stuff and is a big reason why I am as good as friends with those two guys as I am today. I wonder how much different 2008 would have been had I not gone to that show and met Tim that night. 
The next few months cruised by as we were getting ready to play our first sets of shows as Angels Breaking Silence. Lots of time was put into the band this year. 
At work I had many weeks off here and there because of lack of work and poor scheduling. I honestly don't know if I have experienced a harder financial shortfall as I did this year but i've been learning that you have to learn how to live without money before you can learn to live with money. I'm hoping 2009 to be a drastic change in that area of my life. 
Summer came and went and I met some new amazing people and had some really memorable nights at the Blackfoot Diner and a couple really great trips to Central Alberta. We played a lot of shows in the summer, seemed like we were always preparing for the next gig that was only a couple weeks away. 
There was of course Softball in the summer time and of course the basketball seasons. I think that is still by far one of my most favorite ways to get active, playing basketball with people that are quickly becoming really good friends. 
And of course, this year I moved into this basement suite. I don't regret that decision at all, it was a move for the better, even though living on your own does have its moments when you get bored and want something to do, but its given me a little more motivation to organize friends and events the odd time. This is something I did a lot in high school and maybe its just that part of me coming out again. It only takes one person to change an evening to make it something memorable. 
Thanks friends, new and old, for giving me a 2008 worth remembering. I am more at peace with myself and I'm that much closer to being a person that will change the world for the better. 2009 is off to an interesting start already and more changes will be coming. Its all part of the adventure that is life. May you all have an 09 to remember!