My Place

It’s such a strange feeling, to suddenly be humbled so quickly it makes your stomach drop and your head spin. A strange feeling, to suddenly realize that something you’ve put heart and soul into is really not good enough compared to the time spent by others on something similar. Something you’re proud of is suddenly insignificant, and someone else’s hard work is much better than your hard work, probably because they worked harder.

Why is my passion not as good as someone else’s passion?

Why is my effort not as significant as everyone else’s effort?

Isn’t effort the same for each person?

Isn’t “my best” the same as another’s “best”?

Well, I guess it’s really not. Times like these make me realize that I actually suck, and that my effort isn’t really my best at all, because else’s time and best effort kicked my ass. Sure, I’m proud of the things I’ve accomplished, but I’m an ant in this world. My “work” is shit, compared to the work of the people who shape our existence.

There are people who save lives in this world. There are people who are builders and artists and entertainers, and there are people in this world who make a difference to the majority of the seven billion people on this planet, pretty much every day of their lives. Who am I?

I’ve saved a life before. How many regular old people like myself can say they’ve saved a life in a matter of 20 years? I’ve built things before, things that come in great use in other people’s every day lives. I’m an artist, as well. I can draw. I can paint. I can sing and play instruments. I can entertain people around me, I’m funny. I’m interesting to be around. I make a difference in some way, every day.

For those of you who don’t know, now, you will.

Music is the most prominent aspect of my life; it is my one true love and passion. It is my breakfast, lunch, and dinner. When I hear music it fills my soul and it paints a picture in my mind. With every byte of sound that enters my ears, I want more. I hunger for it. I want to see more, hear more, and feel more. Most of all, I want to learn more. I want to learn about what I'm hearing and know why music makes me feel so much. I want to reach to every corner of music and grasp every aspect of it. I believe it is one of the most powerful things in the world because music is everywhere. In today’s society, technology allows us to bring music anywhere we go. We listen to music in the shower, in the car, at work, while riding the bus, while exercising, and even while trying to fall asleep. We meditate to music and we use music therapeutically. We use music to help us concentrate and relax. It is used to connect people, share memories, and sometimes to promote ideas. Music is believed to have a positive effect on us; emotionally, mentally, and physically.

With my blog, I hope to share my love and passion in ways that will inspire others to feel as strongly as I do about music. The title of my blog, “Spread Thy Wings”, embodies this idea in a way that if people will open up to new possibilities and allow themselves to grow, they will gain new perspectives on the world around them. I feel that the power of blogging is similar to the way I view the powers of music. I recognize the potential I have to bring together very diverse groups of individuals from across the globe and use music as my driving force. As the author of an art-based blog, I can connect art and technology and use this power to unify many cultures throughout the world that may not have any other way or reason to make a connection in the first place. My goal is to aid the connections people make in this world by providing good music to discover and fall in love with. Blogging is the best way I know to achieve my goal because my posts are easy to read and easy to share. If I inspire at least one reader to enjoy a song as much as I do and give them a song to play when they’re happy, or to help them feel better when they’re sad, I will have done my part in this world.
My newest Pandora station- give it a listen

April Fools...?

Something magical happened last night. At first, I couldn't quite explain it. I was thinking it was one of three things:

1. Someone is playing a massive April Fools joke on me... seven days too late.
2. Blogger is having some major issues and needs to call a tech doctor.
3. I really did get 4,043 views last night.

I really wish I could've seen my own face this morning. It was about 9am, I barely had my eyes open all the way yet. This is when I started my morning routine. Check my phone- five missed text messages. Wow, that's kind of a lot. Next, check my Facebook. Eight new notifications? Geez, that's a lot too. Check my blog stats. Yesterday's stats were still there. Fifteen hours ago, I had been all excited because I had gotten 21 hits pretty quickly, after the Discovered and Reviewed post.

I clicked refresh.

HOLY TOTS. WHAT?!

At this point, I'm sure the look on my face said something like, "How dare you lie to me! People in Moldova don't use the internet!" Because honestly, I didn't even know where Moldova is, let alone that it exists. My apologies to Moldova, I Googled you guys, and apparently there are over 3 million people living there.

This is insane, guys, really. Over 4,000 views in one hour, in the middle of the night? I must've done something right...

Okay, that kinda makes sense. I mentioned 3 people in my Tweet that have a lot of followers. Sure. 

But that really doesn't explain 4,000 views. I wasn't convinced. 

I posted a status on Facebook: 

Well, that was no help. So, how did this happen? I then consulted my wonderful Blogger friend, Elika (visit her blog!). I sent, "Hey, I have a question for u... Rather, a concern u might be able to help me with... How long have you had your blog? Have u ever had a weird number in your stats? Cuz.... There's either a glitch in my stats, or I got 4,000 hits in one hour last night. I don't think it's right and I'm wondering if there's something wrong with my stats. Lol..."

She replied, "I've had my blog since dec. 2009. And I had that happen once, when I was using a 3rd party app, but then I switched to a blogger stats counter and it's been normal. Maybe you just got super popular last night :)"

That makes perfect sense. Except I'm not using a 3rd party app... I've always only looked at my Blogger Stats, right from my dashboard. So I was still very confused.

I checked Twitter again. Something was still off, I just knew it. I left my computer and started getting ready for the day. I was in the middle of straightening my hair, when it hit me...

#newmusic (cue Twilight Zone theme song)

This had to be it. I clicked the link from my Tweet, and Oh My Goodness, there was the answer. 

It took me to a magical place I'd never even dreamed of. A hashtag trend so powerful, it gave me 4,000 views in one hour. I call this "The Twitter Phenomena". When a person uses this trend in their Tweet, it gets put with any other Tweets using that same trend. I kid you not, approximately every 30 seconds, someone is tagging their Tweet with this trend. Granted, most of these people are underground artists linking their own new music in their Tweets so people will listen to their music... but that's just it!!! It's completely genius!!! If I want something noticed, I have to tag it the right way, even on Twitter! Now, come on, I already knew the tagging trick. It's just like uploading a YouTube video and tagging it with the words "naked" and "Sarah Palin"... trends that are extremely popular on YouTube and the internet in general. But this... Twitter Phenomena... this will get me far. I've officially mastered the Twitter world. So, look out! Here I come.