Not 5, but 9! Successes for 1/20/10

1.) Woke up at 6:00 a.m. and did P90X.
2.) Showered before 7:30 a.m.
3.) Did homework by 9:30 a.m.
4.) Did homework with my son by 10:30 a.m.
5.) Braved a co-writing session.
6.) Learned new miking techniques.
7.) Wrote a blog post.
8.) Went to a school meeting.
9.) Now turning off my computer and phone for the rest of the night to be with my husband.

A seriously productive day today.

Week 3, Day 17: Optimizing Your Website

Off to a bit of a late start here on Chapter 3, but no big whoop. I am married to my webmaster which will make Chapter 3, "Optimizing Your Website" smooth sailing (so long as he complies and believe me, I have ways of making him do that). It is strange how one can be an expert at something but often that "something" is never well kept in their own life. You've heard all about how "the cobbler's children have no shoes." So it goes with my website. I sleep within arm's reach of a tech genius, yet my website sits wasting away because I haven't used that resource. I keep postponing any fixes to my site because I reason that I will have a completely new site when I release my upcoming album. But the album deadline has changed 55 times, and I don't want to let the weeds enshroud mindygledhill.com any longer. It's time to take action.

There are certain things I know I need to do with my website. But to start, I think it would be wise to take suggestions from the people whose opinions matter the most regarding the site: YOU. If you would be so kind, hop on over to http://www.mindygledhill.com for a moment, check it out, and leave me a comment here with your opinion on what is or is NOT working for you. Could you, would you visit my site? Could you, would you leave me feedback tonight?

Ladies and Gents, We Have a Winner!

Hi there. I am back to normal today. I even sewed patches on my son's Cub Scout shirt and felt like the swellest mom on earth. Thank you for your understanding as well as your own personal stories about mental breakdowns, throwing pencils and punching holes in walls. But this post is not about mental breakdowns. It's about the fact that, ladies and gentlemen, we have a winner! I loved SO MANY of the entries and it was nearly impossible to pick just one. Congratulations to Carina Hoskisson, aka, Azúcar, who concocted this awesome pitch:



"Music that recalls the sweetness of Ingrid Michaelson and the quirk of Regina Spektor, Mindy Gledhill will leave you floating like a scoop of vanilla cream in a strawberry soda."




Other Favorites Include:

"Emotively carbonated." Jess Hammond

"Playfully emotive, Mindy Gledhill will leave you in a breathless flutter." Krista Maurer

"Alison Sudol-flavored Pop Rocks." Jon

"Priscilla Ahn meets Leigh Nash at a sidewalk cafe." Jon

"Mindy Gledhill: Regina Spektor and Norah Jones transported to Alice's wonderland." Jenny

Funniest Entries Category:

"So, if Imogen Heap and Ingrid Michaelson could have a holy love child, and she looked a little like a young Faith Hill? Yeah, that's what Mindy Gledhill sounds like." Brooks Briggs

"Like sitting in front of a Wurlitzer 1015. Beautiful music, awesome bubbles, and gorgeous color changing lights." Ron

"Witty & oh so pretty, and doesn't sound like an old biddy! ;)" Anonymous

"Ingrid Michaelson's love meets Sarah McLachlan's dove." Jon

"Mindy Gledhill: a carbonated Sarah McLachlan." Jess Hammond

I love all of these comments so much that I want to marry them. In fact, please leave me a comment if you grant me permission to use them in any other possible write-ups I might need for the future.

And Amber, as for "ambrosia?" It is a cool word, but my mom use to wear this stinky perfume called "Ambrosia" and I'm afraid the association is permanent.

Thanks for all the stellar ideas!

Mental Breakdown

Announcement: I am currently having a mental breakdown. Yes. I just threw a very large container of crayons and colored pencils all over the floor in a fit of rage. I don't usually do this kind of thing. You see, my husband has been in bed for three days with a bad back and it seems I am quite the baby when it comes to handling my boys without help. What's more disturbing is the fact that he even hobbled upstairs to help me pick them all up when I am the one who should be showing compassion on HIM. How do you single parents do it? Anyway, I reached my limit tonight and when my "patient-parent meter" is surpassed, I apparently fling hoards of crayons across the room. Therefore would it be ok with you if I postpone the posting of the winner for the "pitch contest" until tomorrow? I need to simmer down. I hope there are at least a few of you out there who have had mental breakdowns before and will understand my plight.

Starting to smile a bit after observing that Ryan appears to have a webbed hand in this photo.

Thank You!

THANK YOU SO MUCH to all who submitted a pitch in my contest. Each one was a literary slice of genius and I wanted to kiss you all after reading them. Every single comment made me smile to myself and several made me laugh out loud. Over the next 24 hours I will be sifting through the lot and will let you know the winner by tomorrow night.

And to close the day I give you 5 Successes for 1/17/10:

1.) Sang and spoke for inmates at a worship service at the State Prison. Their choir learned one of my songs and sang with me. Filled me to the brim.
2.) Made dinner - a somewhat rare event.
3.) Made Peanut Butter Cookies sweetened with Agave Nectar instead of sugar.
4.) Gave my husband a back rub.
5.) Let my son stay up late just for kicks.

Night night.

Quest for My Perfect Pitch: Win $50 and a Free CD!

A chance to win $50 and a free CD! Read on.

Still formulating my perfect pitch here. Today I read over 3,000 adjectives in an attempt to reveal all the feelings and vibes that I want to create with this music. Here are a few favorites out of the fifty-some that I chose:

• jovial
• quirky
• fizzy
• aflutter
• breathless
• emotive
• artful
• lovely
• goose bumpy
• lovey dovey
• dreamy

Now, let's recap on my other lists.

Singers I sound like. You said: Allison Sudol of A Fine Frenzy, Ingrid Michaelson, Regina Spektor, Norah Jones, Priscilla Ahn, Leigh Nash, Sarah McLachlan.

Influences:

• Author and book: Willa Cather's, My Ántonia.
• The French films, "Le Chateau de Ma Mère," and "La Gloire de Mon Père," based on the novels by Marcel Pagnol.
• Composers: Debussy, Rachmoninov, Ravel.
  
• Growing up: Alphaville, Pet Shop Boys, New Order, Depèche Mode, The Cure, The Cars, The Police, Sting, Tears for Fears and by the way, the soundtrack to Romeo and Juliet changed my life.
  
• As a teen: The Sundays, Sarah McLachlan, Lisa Loeb.
  
• Currently: Lenka, Ingrid Michaelson, Regina Spektor, Imogen Heap, A Fine Frenzy, Jess Penner and The Beatles.
• Poets: Lorca, Neruda, Frost.
  
• Painters: Velazquez (Las Meninas), Picasso, Van Gogh, Matisse, Bloch.

Using these lists only as a guide, I am inviting you to have a stab at writing my pitch. If I use yours, I will send you $50 and a free copy of my album, "Feather in the Wind." Remember, this is short and sweet. Your pitch must be posted by 10:00 p.m. MST, on Sunday night (Jan. 17th.) Some examples of artist pitches from the book are:

John Taglieri - "If Vertical Horizon and Third Eye Blind got hit by Train!"

Devil Doll - "Jessica Rabbit meets Joan Jett."

Leftover Salmon - "Polyethnic Cajun Slamgrass." (I had to look up "slamgrass" too. It's a progressive form of Bluegrass).

Don't hold back. All ideas are welcome! Ready, set, GO.

(Sorry. You must live in the U.S. to participate.)

Successes for 1/14/10

Don't know who these people are, but I thought this kissing couple was sweet. Found in the Creative Commons section of Flckr: http://www.flickr.com/photos/31061226@N00/567434372/

1.) Took a shower and put on some make up.

2.) Managed to exit the premises of Costco without spending my life savings.

3.) Wrote almost an entire song about paying debts with kisses. Seriously.

4.) Booked an appointment to have the world's stinkiest dog groomed.

5.) Started editing and mixing an orchestral piece for the first time in my life.

How about you?