Quick hits

• My neck is feeling better. YAY!
• Our friend Jer from Sioux Falls was in town from Tuesday to Sunday. It was so nice having him here... come back, again, Jer!
  
• Had a session on Saturday that went great.
• Had a gig on Saturday that felt good. (Have I mentioned that I love music?)
• Everything I'm working on at work right now is due... NOW. But, hopefully that means I'll have some cool things to tell you about in a week or so. **dancing**
• Finally downloaded my pics from Utah and the Zoo last week. One of these days, I'll post a little story about the songwriter expo. It was so awesome!
• Went to a little get together of my former work peeps last week. It was so cool to see everyone. Miss them. Good vibes are going their way everyday.
  

My apologies to everyone that I haven't been able to keep up with lately... I'm only taking a five minute break to write this because I realized I haven't posted since last week. Then, it's back to the grind. Once some of my projects are complete in the next week or so, I'll be social again! For now, know that I'm havin' a blast and kickin' butt and can't wait to tell you all about it.

**mwah**

Witches fingers

hee hee hee...
I made treats for Halloween last night.

Sugar cookies shaped like witch fingers.

Creepy but yummy.

**bwwwaaahahahahahaaaaaaa.**

Here's the recipe if you want to try it yourself.

It was a blast.

I've been takin my neck for granted...

Yesterday I woke up with a little kink in my neck.

Then, I triped at work and wrenched it even farther.

Now, I'm realizing that my head is a very heavy object.

You might even say it is big.

Help.

Any tips for fixing a big ol' kink in the neck?

Fog = foglights

But, if is isn't foggy... please don't use your fog lights at night.

Last night on my way home, I was blinded by someone on I-65 driving with their fog lights on. I needed to merge over to my exit, but all I could see in my rearview mirror was bright light... It was like having two cars with their bright lights shining in my eyes.

Now, I know, that no one would purposefully drive around hoping to blind someone with their bright fog lights... so I thought I'd post a little post to remind everyone.

Please... don't drive around with your foglights on unless it is foggy.

Thanks.

We have gigage.

UPDATE 10/21: The gigs went GREAT last night and Thursday. It was inspiring to be amongst so many incredible songwriters. Loved getting to sing ITR with my girls Lala and Karleen last night. Being on stage with them really feels magical. Can't wait to do it again! Jon Nite, Brock Goodwin, Chuck Jones, Chuck Cannon, Mark Stephen Jones and Trent Jeffcoat blew my mind as usual. Awesome. I love this town. Thanks to everyone who came out. **mwah**

THURSDAY, 10/19
7 p.m.
The French Quarter
Jon Nite, Brock Goodwin & ME in-the-round

FRIDAY, 10/20
7 - 9 p.m.
Lyrix Cafe
Mark Stephen Jones, Trent Jeffcoat, Chuck Cannon, Karleen Watt, Lala Deaton & ME
It's a dinner set... so come hungry and bring a date!

AND... NEXT WEEK (in case you're wondering)
SATURDAY, 10/28
9ish or so
Jonathan's Grille (Bellvue location)
Danny Torroll Band featuring ME
It's a funk, blues and rockin' cover gig... no serious music biz stuff... just some soulful musicians havin' some good groovin' entertaining fun.

Thank you, Dove.

Here's a glimpse of a new Dove campaign.

Thank you, Dove.

Now... parents everywhere... please show this to your kids.
They need to know that THIS is reality... not the end product they see.
It's time for a reality check.

Mandatory bowling

So... a couple weeks ago, Chris (the head of cabedge) put a 9:30 a.m. - 1 p.m. meeting on everyone's calendar for a "cabedge company meeting [mandatory] strategic planning"

Of course, we all accepted and wondered what exactly that meant.

Today, as the meeting began, Chris explained Chase had mentioned to him a couple weeks ago that we were all really slammed, working hard and on the verge of burn-out. So... Chris decided to surprise all of us carrots here on the cabedgepatch team with a litte field trip to the Franklin Lanes.

Yep... that's what I said: We went bowling!

As soon as he announced it... we walked out the door, piled into our cars and drove to the bowling alley. We had a blast. Of course, I sucked... but it was fun nonetheless. Let's just say I've learned to celebrate gutter balls.

Kim (Chris' better half) came along and took tons of pics... one of my prizes was a "good luck" black and green fuzzy halloween spider headband that we affectionately named "strikey". (Because I got the only strike I had while wearing it... heh.) So, several of us took turns at trying out the luck of the spider. (see trail of photos at the bottom of this post.)

THANKS, CHRIS.
Have I told you lately... that I LOVE CABEDGE?!

I loved her first...

A couple weeks ago, my Dad made my day. He called me at work to tell me that he'd heard a song on the radio that made him think of me. While I hadn't heard the song yet, it was soooo cool to have him call.

Then, that same day, as I got in my car to go home, I turned on the radio to hear the very song he'd called me about, "I Loved Her First" which was recorded by Lofton Creek's Heartland.

Um... yeah... then I cried. If you haven't heard it yet, go check it out.

OK... this isn't the end of the story.

As those of you who read BB's blog know, I went to the Durango Songwriter Expo last weekend (BTW, it was AWESOME. yeah... I'm still planning to post about all the cool stuff... watch for the whole scoop this coming weekend. **fingers crossed**)

And, Walt Aldridge was also at the conference. He just happens to be the guy who wrote "I Loved Her First".

So, I got to meet Walt and tell him the story about my Dad's call. And, when I was done telling him the story, I thanked him for writing the song and sharing it. I'm sure there are many father's, just like mine, who don't always have the words to say what's in their heart. What a gift "I Loved Her First" is to them and their daughters.

It's things like this that help me realize why God put music and songs in me... and why I have to keep showing up and "connecting the dots." (That's what my friend Warren says... and now I understand what he's saying even more.)

Utah bound

Wow... I'm on my way to Park City, UT later this week for my third Durango Songwriter Expo.

Went in May and last October. It's an incredible event. I've learned tons, met tons of talented friends / writers and gotten some great feedback on songs I've written and co-written. Plus, there are hit songwriters, publishers, labels and PROs represented all the way around. It's a great way to make connections that carry on past the Expo.

So... I'm going again Thursday (10/4) through Sunday (10/8).

And, this time there's an added BONUS to attending: I'm going to be a featured writer in one of the Expo's showcases.

I'm so STOKED.

It's a great opportunity to share a song with other writers and industry people. Planning to perform "World Famous". And, it will be a extra special because Karleen Watt will be at the Expo, too. She and I wrote the song together... so we're going to perform it together. (Win. Win.)

Hopefully I won't be too swamped to write about the fun we have once I get back!