Like a man who knows his worth.

Time sure has flown by since I've last written anything here. Christmas came and went and then all of the sudden...2006! I ended last year with a few shows in December and then a couple weeks of songwriting before the holiday came. We rearranged the furniture in our guest bedroom, covered the walls in dark blue paint and set up some recording gear to create a small working studio where I've been fleshing out these new songs. I'm swimming in a sea of new material so blue seemed an appropriate color. Kierstin's got an eye for these things.

Every home studio needs a cool name...so I named our place The Map Room after the color of the walls (same as the white house map room) and a couple of old street maps of New Orleans that we've hung up. It feels great to have a space to do something other than booking concerts. We've got a good start with some solid tube gear and mics...pro tools, reason, etc. Fun times. I think we'll end up recording a good chunk of the new album here at the house. It's hard not to feel comfortable in your own living room.

In other news.... Kierstin and I spent the holiday between Nashville and Ocala where we visited family and worshipped on Christmas Eve in an old Episcopal church that my Mother's side of the family has gone to for a very long time. My grandfather went there and so did my Aunt Ann and Uncle Jay for a spell.... and now my Mom and Dad are going through new membership classes so it was cool to connect with a body of believers that has been a part of our family over the years. Also, my Mom showed me a stained glass window that my grandfather bought for the church and dedicated it in memory of my grandmother. I was moved to find that the window bearing a dedication to my grandmother was right near the piano where the choir sings every sunday and that, in some inadvertent way, music has been more a part of our family than I had previously realized.

So now it's January 14th and I'm sitting in our living room with my wife, our dog and cat, and my brother Justin. We just got done watching "About A Boy". It's a Hugh Grant movie. Pretty funny and touching. I cried at the end when Marcus sang "Killing Me Softly" to his mother. Random i know. I cry at the most random things. I have no idea what this means. Anyone know? Maybe there's alot under the surface. Probably goes for all of us.

My new years wish is to live everyday like a man who knows his worth.