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“As an artist, you don’t want a rear view mirror.” I’ve been writing music for twenty years. Every time I work on a new song, there’s only one goal: Do something you’ve never done before. Whether it’s a chord change, a turn of a phrase, a strumming variation or vocal variety, the song has to contain at least one moment that’s completely new, totally fresh and artistically surprising. The exciting…

“Sky and water create their own drama around her.” I’m amazed at certain people’s ability to attract useless drama into their lives. To them, life isn’t a glorious project to be lived, it’s a grand conspiracy to be battled. The minute they walk into the room, the tides of anxiety come crashing in. And everyone in their presence has no choice but to get their shoes soaked. It’s so pathological, it’s borderline artistic. And I’m…

“I came here to work, I didn’t come here to crawl.” Great passage from Working by Studs Terkel. Reading that book reignited one of my longtime bugbears: Not everyone is a hard worker. I came to that realization a long time ago, and it still bothers me to this day.  I wish there was something we could do about it, but I think it’s just one of those realities we have to deal…

“Slow is smooth, smooth is fast.” Sam Sheridan’s survival advice from Jay Mohr’s podcast. Love it. This mantra originates from the military. But since I’m not a trained killer, I like to apply it to other areas of my life. When I swipe my MetroCard, I recite this mantra to myself. The turnstile always complies. When I’m doing yoga postures, I recite this mantra to myself. The body always performs. When I’m in a…

“Investing in the reality of other human beings.” What nobody tells you about working for yourself is, it’s easy to fall down the narcissism rabbit hole and not even realize it. Spending ten hours a day in your pajamas, pounding away on your laptop, doing the work you love is a glorious thing. But when we start acting like artists first and humans second, we start trading independence for empathy. We…

“I’m creating my own nationality.” Intriguing statement from comedian Jim Gaffigan. Reminds me of a project I did about six years ago. After studying every sacred text from every major religion, I still wasn’t existentially satisfied. So I decided to write my own bible. Seemed like an funky adventure. A few weeks later, I booked a flight to Sedona, spent four days alone in the desert and cobbled together my…

“Reality is on a need to know basis.” After watching this gorgeous interview with photojournalist David Guttenfelder, I immediately walked outside and starting taking pictures. God that made me happy. There’s something deeply satisfying about capturing visual moments. And I don’t pretend to be a fauxtographer. I don’t know much about cameras or framing or lighting or aperture. But I am an amazing noticer. I see things most people miss. And…

“I tried on a lumpy wool cardigan that looked like a lamb had died on me.” Now that I live in the hometown of the hipsters, it’s fascinating to read articles describing them. Most are literary cheap shots, but this piece was so goddamn funny, I could barely contain myself. Much respect to journalist Henry Alford. I aspire to write sentences that good. I mean, that well. “I wasn’t a…

“Honey, I think that wants to be a song.” As a little girl, this is what Lucinda Williams‘ father would tell her when she wrote a bad poem. So cool. That’s exactly the kind of environment a young artist needs during her formative years. One that encourages, nurtures and channels creativity into the right places. With a foundation like that, the probability of doing brilliant work increases exponentially. “The show made people appreciate…

“Being stuck in one place and bored out of your mind is the key to creativity.” Last summer, I went on sabbatical. Three whole months. And I did something I’d never done before: Nothing. At first, the boredom chipped away at my psyche like a tiny jackhammer. But slowly, I began channeling my idleness. Worked on some very cool projects that I’m really proud of. And by the time…