That's a Wrap (Not Really)

Day 30 of the "30 Day Vocal Journey" has been posted:

CHANGE THE BLOG TITLE! 

*adds "(Not Really)"*

There is no way I'm stopping now! #KeepGoing

Will see you all very soon! Have a great week!

Love,

T

Happy Thanksgiving

"Do we celebrate Thanksgiving?"

The question was inspired by an observation of purple lights that were festive for the "holiday" season instead of being specifically for Christmas, and the brief example of different traditions that followed.

I suppose a simple "yes" would have sufficed but...

I know the Disney-fied story about Thanksgiving that many grew up with is not the true story. This time of  year can provide much inspiration to learn...

Click here for: "The Thanksgiving Tale We Tell Is a Harmful Lie. As a Native American, I’ve Found a Better Way to Celebrate the Holiday" from time.com

Click here for: "What Does Thanksgiving Mean to Indigenous Peoples?" from indypl.org

We can always learn and we can always be grateful.

Blessed Be...

Love,

T

Looking Up

 

Remember that vocal journey I started back in October? I've been posting video snippets on TikTok, but maybe I should post them on IG and FB - even Twitter too. What do you think?

It started like this:

I've just put up day eighteen of the thirty-day journey, and another, deeper journey is unfolding. I'm reminded to be grateful and make time for precious moments. 

This week, I'll look up and appreciate the beauty all around.

Thank you all for being here!

Love and appreciate you.

Love,

T

Vitameatavegamin

 There's a lot going on but, with a little humor, I'm making it work. lol

Headed to Vegas, where rehearsals are fun-filled and salads are thirty bucks.

Laughter helps everything.

Have a great week everyone!

Love, 

T

Something's Gotta Give

 Something has got to give, and it's not going to be me. 

The race against time is real, so this is going to be brief. 

I'm going to recharge with some nature breaks and keep on moving! Being busy means taking extra care to stay healthy, hydrated and balanced. We may have to let go of something on the "to do" list, because what can NOT go is our health and well being.

Love you all. Have a great and productive week! Stay healthy. Stay safe. xo

Love,

T

Slug Week

 LOL! WTH is "slug week" ??? 🤣

Earlier in the week, I somehow got a slug stuck to my bare foot - in the house! It must've hitched a ride on my shoe, then I stepped on it by the door.

Photo credit: Omar Ramadan, via pixels.com

It was SO GROSS! 

Click here for snail symbolism on spirit-animals.com

Could it be a message for me to slow down? (Maybe, if I were to allow that kind of thing.)

So the boy and I spent some time hiking this weekend. It was a real effort to make the decision to take the time out from the mountain of work, but well worth it.

I'll carry that lesson moving forward and make sure I make time to just recharge.

Wishing you all the time to relax for a bit, no matter how busy life is.

Love,

T

Inspired Journey

So a thing happened and I may or may not have embarrassed myself in front of millions of people. 

See, what had happened was... I was asked to participate in a segment being filmed for an online channel with millions of subscribers, with a vocal coach who has millions of followers.

I am a professional singer. I've coached professionally and produced singers in high profile situations. I am hired to sing. I show up, sometimes last minute, tired or not, and nail it.

For this segment, I showed up. I sang. My voice cracked. It cracked a lot.

We had a lovely on-air chat before I sang one of my original songs from my album released about ten years ago. It was recorded before my son was born, before all the physical therapy, before the surgeries. I had decided the night before that I would sing "Everywhere," mainly because of its relevance to current world happenings.

I didn't preface the whole performance with how tired I was. Singers do that all the time. It sounds like an excuse to me. It doesn't matter how challenged my days are. It doesn't matter how stressed out I might be. It doesn't matter how sore my abs are from pulling off a pushup challenge duet with a body builder who came up on my TikTok feed. As a professional, you're there on time and you just do it. 

In keeping with that spirit and energy now... oh wait! Did I skip the part about the pink boxing gloves? Let me go back to the segment: The next thing I knew, I was wearing pink boxing gloves and going through a sort of vocal exercise boot camp, where I was running and jumping in place while holding my diaphragm and trying to repeat the voice warmup routine.

I sang my song again afterward, without all the cracks. :)

In keeping with the spirit and energy of a "no excuses" mindset, I decided to seriously step up my vocal exercises. It's important to understand that I work out a lot - six days a week usually. My schedule is completely packed as a performer AND full-time mom. I made a commitment to work on vocal exercises WHILE doing my workouts everyday. I began to record my vocal journey.

As I write this on day four, my voice is fatigued. I've decided to be on vocal rest until I see my doctor tomorrow. I will pick up right where I left off when I am cleared to use my voice again. Good health is an absolute must.

I'm planning to record a thirty day vocal journey. It's important to me to persevere and to hold myself accountable. Determination pays off and there is always something to learn and something to improve. These are new times and the world keeps changing. We all have got to grow and evolve. Also, my son watches every move I make. Teaching him by my example is crucial. 

It doesn't matter if I make mistakes. It will not be perfect. What's important here is the effort, the determination, the dedication. I need to make myself proud. 

Tremendous thanks to Cheryl Porter, Talent Recap, and Billy Blanks Jr. for everything, especially for inspiring this journey!

Click here for Talent Recap on YouTube

Click here for Cheryl Porter Vocal Coach on YouTube

Love,

T