a bump in the road... or how to avoid bending back your fingernail(s).

last sunday at church i was moving stuff around on stage to prepare for a little drama.

in my attempt to free up the much needed stage space i made a near fatal error.

ok, maybe calling it fatal would be a bit extreme but when it comes to having fulling functioning appendages i like to play it on the safe side.

i reached down to move my monitor and somehow managed to catch my left hand middle finger's nail on an edge of some rather unforgiving rubber. 

it was quick.

it was painful.

it bled a lot.

this is what it looked like on tuesday...

yeah.

half of it is fine.

the other half is now trimmed back a quarter of an inch from where it used to naturally.

bummer.

so friends my advice to you on this wonderful saturday evening is beware of stage monitors.

they're heavy.

they don't like being pushed around.

if you're ever in a confrontation with one it's best to not make eye contact and flee the scene. 

if escape is not an option grab an axe.

if an axe is not present try soiling yourself and hope that the monitor will move on.

i will have my revenge on the monitor though.

i just took the first step in procuring myself a wireless in-ear monitor setup.

i ebayed myself a brand spanking new set of Shure SCL5's.

the next and final step will be to get the wireless package.

that's right yamaha stage monitor.

you're out.

in-ears are in.

now i'm gonna check and see if i can still play guitar.

be well and well rested my friends.

k

wind and rain... tall and proud...

i love the rain.

next time it's raining i suggest you stop what you're doing, go sit, watch and listen to it.

or run outside and play in it.

it's beautiful and powerful.

just a thought.

i love hearing the wind push trees around.

pushing leaves out of the way.

hearing old trees moan and crack, straining under the extra weight being added to it makes me feel small and young.

not so much because the trees are old or weak or because they tower above my 6'2" frame but because there's something bigger, stronger than they are. 

the sky.

the immense groupings of seemingly infinite air molecules being forced around in such a way that causes us to run for cover.

we hide in houses, under our beds, reach for something or someone for comfort.

the trees just stand there, tall and proud, taking punishing blow, one after another.

and here i am worried about keeping my budget, keeping my house clean, getting my music recorded, meeting and making friends, keeping clean, keeping safe, keeping my stuff, getting new stuff, selling old stuff, making sure my needs are met, satisfying my desires, keeping others at bay, steering clear of disaster, standing tall, appearing proud, staying humble, walking closer to God, meeting a girl, making her mine, finding and following the right career path, which guitar to use for which part on which song, sounding clever when i'm not, choosing my battles, fighting the war, speaking truth, telling another lie, dying, living, crashing hard drives, breaking strings, dropping picks, singing out of tune, getting back in good shape, staying in shape, eating right, knee pain, back pain, attention deficit disorder, manic depression, love, family, friends, getting enough sleep, salvation, evangelism, sarcasm, reading, writing, speaking without a stutter, over communicating, under communicating, breaking up, coming together, growing old, staying young, being cool,breaking even, coming out ahead, sound investments, getting to work, getting home, dead batteries, no service, serving like Christ, doubting like thomas, believing like him, studying enough, studying on time, taking the tests, passing the tests, meeting your needs, exhorting like paul, teaching, leading, failing, success.  

and there's a tree taking a beating outside, getting pounded by all the wind and rain nature can throw at it...

but there it still stands, either brave or fearing the end is near, tall and proud.

does it know that eventually the storm will end?

does it know that another will follow?

just a thought.

now to bed,

kaf

"It's A Beautiful Day"

So I got up really early this morning to get ready for church. Earlier than normal. Like pre-dawn early. Like 4:45 am early. I woke up before my alarm went off. Wide awake I just laid there until the music came on. "I'm trying to make you sing..." sings David Crowder and his band. What a beautiful day it's gonna be, I thought. Oh I had no idea. I got ready, packed up, and headed out. Right away on my drive in I noticed some new colors in the sky. As I drove I got blown away. God painted absolutely the most beautiful picture of a sunrise in the sky. Oranges and golds setting clouds on fire reds, burning out into blues and purples ashes if clouds. I wish I had my real camera. Better yet a brush and canvas. Although there's no way i could come close to painting anything so beautiful. All I had was this [lousy] iPhone camera. So here ya go...

 

Kids don't take pictures and drive. You're probably not good enough with a camera to nor are you a skilled enough driver. Doing both at the same time would be stupid. And illegal in most places. Also while I'm handing out free advice I should say don't drink and drive either either. It's also stupid and illegal. Don't be stupid or illegal. That is all.

"It's a beautiful day, don't let it get away."

Blogged from my super white iPhone.

Posted with LifeCast

it's already been too long...

so i haven't been good about keeping this blog up to date but that doesn't mean that i haven't been a busy little boy working on the recording project.

i've been plugging away at things.

in fact, after i laid down a scratch track for another yet to be named track i just kept on recording and wrote a whole new song.

felt good.

i can't wait to work on it more.

it was raw.

it was honest.

it was fresh.

i can't tell you how much i'm enjoying myself right now.

so much fun.

i hope you are all alive and well.

vacations...

vacations are great.

i highly recommend them.

back to recording soon...

in the mean time i shall continue relaxing and escape the normalcy that haunts me at home.

be well friends,

k

four down... three or four or five more to go...

so far i've laid down scratch tracks on four songs:

because of You
oh we sing
hallelujah to my King
we lift You high

so what's left?
everything.

here's the planned track listing so far, which will most likely evolve into something completely different by the time i'm done.

1. intro (of the father's love begotten)
2. oh we sing
3. amazing grace
4. come thou fount
5. because of You
6. i come alive
7. hallelujah to my King
8. we lift You high
9. outro

seems like a lot for a first go at an e.p. but i think it will be worth the extra effort.
effort... i haven't had this much fun nor felt so productive on my own in a long time.
there's so much more that i want to do too.
i need to keep reminding myself to take it easy.
slow and steady wins the race.
quality over quantity.
less is more.
yada, yada, yada.

tomorrow i do more tracking before i return to real life.
earning a paycheck has never felt so ridiculous and at the same time so necessary.
just waiting for the back up to finish.
then it's off to bed...

almost six gigs in eight minutes - not bad.

there we go.

done.


good night all,

k

it has begun...

from tuesday august 5th...

so i just finished laying down some scratch tracks for a song called "hallelujah to my King."

i wrote it back in 2006.

coming out of some rough times, i had a lot of thoughts cooped up in my heart that i couldn't put words to.
i got, what eventually turned into the verse, down.

after wrestling, stewing, burning over my infantile vocabulary i felt unsatisfied.

nothing i put together felt right.
i had been reading the book of Daniel.
a book i've read many times.
all of a sudden words started jumping out at me.
what's funny was that they weren't Daniels words but the words of king Darius.
here's the NLT version of Daniel 6:16-28:

16So at last the king gave orders for Daniel to be arrested and thrown into the den of lions. The king said to him, “May your God, whom you worship continually, rescue you.” 17A stone was brought and placed over the mouth of the den. The king sealed the stone with his own royal seal and the seals of his nobles, so that no one could rescue Daniel from the lions. 18Then the king returned to his palace and spent the night fasting. He refused his usual entertainment and couldn’t sleep at all that night.
19Very early the next morning, the king hurried out to the lions’ den. 20When he got there, he called out in anguish, “Daniel, servant of the living God! Was your God, whom you worship continually, able to rescue you from the lions?”
21Daniel answered, “Long live the king! 22My God sent his angel to shut the lions’ mouths so that they would not hurt me, for I have been found innocent in his sight. And I have not wronged you, Your Majesty.”
23The king was overjoyed and ordered that Daniel be lifted from the den. Not a scratch was found on him because he had trusted in his God. 24Then the king gave orders to arrest the men who had maliciously accused Daniel. He had them thrown into the lions’ den, along with their wives and children. The lions leaped on them and tore them apart before they even hit the floor of the den.
25Then King Darius sent this message to the people of every race and nation and language throughout the world:
“Peace and prosperity to you!
26“I decree that everyone throughout my kingdom should tremble with fear before the God of Daniel.
For he is the living God,
and he will endure forever.
His kingdom will never be destroyed,
and his rule will never end.
27 He rescues and saves his people;
he performs miraculous signs and wonders
in the heavens and on earth.
He has rescued Daniel
from the power of the lions.”
28So Daniel prospered during the reign of Darius and the reign of Cyrus the Persian.

so then i came up with this:

Verse
The heart of what I long to see
Is the love of Christ in me
Always, always
The heart of what You long to see
Is the love of Christ in me
Always, always

Chorus
You are the living God, alive in me
You saved me from the lion’s teeth
Hallelujah to my King
Only in You am I redeemed

Bridge
You are and ever shall be praised!
Your kingdom never fails!
Your love is overtaking the enemy as we sing!
You are and ever shall be praised!
Your kingdom never fails!
Your love is overtaking the enemy as we sing!

yeah.

be well friends,

k

the beautiful thing about music is that it never ends. let the recording commence...

today i start recording.

and not just a song or two.

today i start recording the scratch tracks for what will become my first worship e.p.

i can't wait for you all to hear it.

i don't have a definite timeline planned quite yet but i hope to have all of the tracks laid down by the year's end.

many things have been inspiring, pushing, prodding, encouraging me to finally get my act together and lay this monster down.

being one easily overwhelmed with complex tasks and time consuming projects i have neglected my desires to record and produce my own album. 

i'll be honest and say that i have hardly a clue what the hell i'm supposed to do or how to do it.

but i don't care.

the beautiful thing about music is that it never ends.

problems can be fixed: re-tuned, re-recorded, re-eq'ed, re-mastered, re-released.

ah.

so much more to say.

but i'll save it.

maybe you'll hear in the music what my heart is screaming to say.

let the recording commence...