Wednesday, July 08, 2009

Good Morning, Morning

In my attempt to switch my world around, I have started arising earlier in the morning and going to bed earlier at night. This goes against the grain of my entire life up to now. Generally, at just around the time that it seems to make sense to go to sleep, I am the most creatively motivated. I'm trying to dissemble that night-time surge and to reassemble it in the morning. It's a struggle for sure, but for the last three days, I have manged to record a guitar track, several keyboard tracks, percussion, and more for a few new songs and for a Sitting Next To Brian song, all before 10:00 A.M. I've also made my way to the post office twice and to drop off some other papers regarding concerts. I'm getting things done. Weird.

How long will I be able to maintain this new backwards life-style? Is it purely a summer phenomena? It's a lot easier to get out of bed when it's warm isn't it?

I'm working on a new secret project. My hope is that these morning sessions will be able to help me accomplish the big undertaking that it is. I can't tell you about it because I've read that when you start telling people about your projects, part of your brain will check that project off as started, even when all you've done is talk about it. Or write about it.

Do you like mornings? I've always liked mornings. I just like night better. I used to have a paper route that made me the first person awake in my neighborhood. I loved the seclusion of those pre-dawn walks, but I almost always went right back to bed afterward. Sometimes, I'd sleep until the afternoon. Left to my own devices, with no schedules or obligations, I probably would return to that schedule, sleeping from 4:00 AM until Noon. But I'm doing what I can to break that mold. Its an experiment. It can't hurt can it?

So what if all my songs are now about mornings.

4 comments:

Jim said...

Paper route # 1326, you tall drink of water, you.

I hope you can keep it up. I like mornings, too.

Why do I remember such random facts as your paper route # that I heard only once?

Dennis Crommett said...

i love mornings and would love to have time for creative pursuits in the morning rather than always at night... imagine band practice at 8:30 AM? i'd be so happy.

Rick M said...

Sarah had to leave for Boston the other day at 4am, so the alarm went off extra-early. For once it wasn't me getting up to go catch a flight somewhere, but I decided to get up then anyway, see her off and then do some recording. I discovered my voice felt really good then, like it hadn't yet been worn down by the day, and I felt more able to sing fluidly and consistently, and not punch in as many phrasing corrections as I usually do. I did two guitar tracks, too, and they came out well also...maybe it was the freshness of the day, maybe I just was in the right frame of mind. But it was a neat departure from the ordinary way of doing things (like yourself, evenings and late night hours), so I might just try it again. It was nice and cool and quiet then, too.

Henning said...

Jim, 1326. How could you NOT remember that?!

Dennis, band practice at 8:30 AM?!?! How do you sing with pancakes in your mouth?

Dennis and Rick, I suggest that you both read Book of Matches by Nicholson Baker. It's a relaxing morning sit by the fire. I'd suggest it to Jim but he's already read it.