j.Po Thots: Songs are like Grapefruit and Ketchup.

I have discovered the joys of grapefruit. Only this week, really. I have always thought them to be too tart or squishy or...off-color to be edible. They're not quite orange on the outside and inside they are what can best be described as a fleshy-pink. I always thought that anything that is pink and triggers my sour face was not worth my time. However, browsing the produce aisle after having read an article about grapefruits being the Best Thing Ever and Full of Fiber and Nutrients and Other Things with Capital Letters...I caved. And I liked it. Where have you been all these years, grapefruit? Why have I not been sectioning off your tangy spheres of loveliness for the past two decades? Then I decided that I wasn't ready before. The same thing has happened to me with coconut and rhubarb...both things used to make me scrunch up my face in that annoying kid-way (the "I just KNOW I don't like it, ok?" way) and refuse to eat whatever was baked by mom. Coconut had that weird texture to it (the way I was raised, coconut grows in little shreds as far as I'm concerned) and rhubarb? What IS it anyway? Again with the tartness, and the green color...that's not pie material, I thought. Now I can't get enough of either. (Coconut rhubarb pie? Interesting. Try it when I'm home, Mom!) You know this is going somewhere, right? I'm no food blogger, even though I read a bunch (my favorites: poco-cocoa (a fellow Austin blogger), Vive Le Vegan!, Everybody Likes Sandwiches, and Don't Get Mad, Get Vegan). But I digress. I think as a songwriter, you definitely grow into new realms and perhaps outgrow others. I got over hot dogs and Kraft singles cheese sandwiches because I found other things in the world that offer more taste and complexity. Song-wise right now, I can't even really stand to play some of my older songs. Some songs were written about a time and place so foreign (and maybe unpleasant to an extent) that I would not cry if I never played them again. But I will always take requests. :) I also feel that right now, thanks to Red Leaf, thanks to living in Austin, thanks to having more time because I'm not in school...I am challenging myself in my writing and playing. Stretching those fingers as well as my lexicon (or sad lack thereof). It's a good thing, but it's a long process. Just like adapting your tongue to curry after ketchup...there's a learning curve but it's definitely worth it. After that...can you go back to ketchup? Can you re-visit old songs that aren't YOU anymore? Sure. I think there's a time and a place for every song as a writer's library grows. Some grow with you, some are outgrown...but every now and then it's nice to have that documentation of a certain time in my life. And it's nice to go back...kind of like having a hot dog at a picnic on the lake in July. You wouldn't order it at a restaurant, but the hot dog is part of the overall experience. For the time being, as I work on writing more and prepping for a new record...you're going to get a tasty, tasty mixture of curry and ketchup my friends. Oh, and grapefruit. Ruby red. (Photo courtesy of uncommonmuse!) Technorati Tags: songwriting, muse, writing, grapefruit, austin, jana Powered by ScribeFire.