The “Michigan Music Matters” idea came to me one night when my band, Good Weather for Airstrikes, was on tour this past December. We were in Tennessee or Georgia or something, really far away from home, and I was thinking about how much I love the place I am from. Specifically, the music, and all…
Last week something happened that has never happened before in the history of the world that didn’t involve cats and/or kittens. A video went viral to the tune of 40 million views in a day. It quickly became the fastest spreading online phenomenon of all time and everyone seemed to form an…
Love this.
This Saturday is a big day for the future of arts and entertainment here in Livingston County. I’m from here. I moved here when I was 4 1/2 years old, and because of my wife’s love for the area and for the Hartland school district where she works, I’m going to die here. I say that with mixed…
I often feel helpless, in a way.
I was talking to my brother recently, and we talked about the veil that is over the eyes of so many people. You don’t realize just how much is wrong with this world until this veil is removed. When it is removed, what you see can be too much to handle.
I don’t mean to be melodramatic. It’s just something I think about. There are so many things I’d like to change, but I can never seem to find the right ways to change them. This is why I feel helpless.
I wrote this song on an extremely beautiful fall day. I was driving, pulled over to the side of the road, and wrote down these lyrics I had in my head. Those lyrics became the first verse of the song. They talk about what I think everyone thinks about at least once or twice: what my friends will say when I die.
Life is obviously finite. We will all die one day. Our legacy, the memory of who we are and what we did, has the potential to be infinite, though. I feel like we all want to be remembered for doing something important. For making a difference in this world in some way. This song is about that. This song does not answer any questions for me. In fact, it creates more questions.
When I got home on that beautiful fall day, I finished the rest of the lyrics, carrying on the same type of theme. That night, I went to a friend’s house and then recorded a demo version on his Macbook. I was really excited about this song, and couldn’t wait to start working on it. Ultimately, it became something ENTIRELY different.
I’ve always considered this one of the “sadder” songs on the album. It’s about looking for something important but not being able to find it because of all the doubts and fears that you carry. But, I originally called this song “What Gives us Hope.” And I think we can let our desire to leave a legacy and be remembered fondly give us hope and motivation.
Creating a list of New Year’s resolutions is something I’ve never done before. It’s always seemed kind of cliche and stupid to me, but this has been a big year for me when it comes to goals and personal growth, so I figured I would give it a shot.
2012 Goals(In no particular order)
01. Get to my goal weight range of 200-220lbs.
This a big task I have started this year, I’ve made a big lifestyle change as far as health is concerned. I’ve lost a total of 60lbs in the last several months by eating healthier and some basic exercise. I’ve also quit smoking. :)
02. Keep my bonsai tree healthy and alive.
I have recently taken up the hobby of bonsai gardening, and it’s been wonderful. This may seem like an easy task to someone who doesn’t know much about bonsai trees, but for an amateur bonsai enthusiast, this will be a big task for me.
03. Pay off my credit card debt.
I don’t have a lot of it, but I’ve been struggling to completely pay it off for a long time now. It seems like every time I’m in the clear financially, something comes up that completely ruins my financial planning.
04. Start using a savings account.
This is something that I haven’t started doing for the same reasons as above. I’ve been striving to pay off my credit card debt and set up an “emergency fund” savings account so when those big unexpected things come up, it doesn’t ruin my planning. (and I wonder why everyone thinks I act like an old man)
05. Move out of my parents house.
Living at home with your parents is cheap, but also extremely inconvenient. This is especially true when you’re in a committed relationship for years and the two of you can’t afford to live together. Camille is finishing cosmetology school in a couple of months, and we should finally be able to move out together once she gets her new job.
06. Start paying my student loan.
This is another task I’ve been putting off for several years. I don’t have a ton of debt from college, but it’s existence really bothers me.
07. Purchase a new bass.
I technically do not even own a bass. The bass I play in GWFA is Joe’s uncle’s bass. I’ve been needing a G&L L2000 for what seems like an eternity. The bass tone we would have if I owned that bass would make babies cry.
08. Name/Start my graphic design business.
Now that I have finally gotten back into my graphic design work, I need to figure out a name for a company and start acquiring some jobs/clients. Coming up with a name for your business is way harder than any graphic design task I’ve ever had.
09. Learn how to actually play my banjo.
My sister bought me a banjo for Christmas last year because she knew I really wanted to learn. I know a few basic chords, but I really don’t know how to play banjo. I really want to fix this, banjo rules.
10. Have GWFA become “self-sufficient”.
This was more of a “group goal” of ours, but this band is definitely one of the most important things in my life, so it made my own list. We realize there isn’t much money involved when it comes to independent music, but we all agreed that it would be wonderful if the band could bring in enough revenue to support itself, and not drain our personal finances. We would so grateful to be able to create our music and not get paid, but also not have to pay anything out of pocket.
Basically, I want to rock for free.
I plan on revisiting this list at the end of 2012 and updating everyone with what I was actually able to accomplish. Have a wonderful year!
(Source: joehillier)
