The Year That Was.

Oh everybody's doing it, so I guess I will, too. All the blogs I read are doing their "best of" posts of 2007, and I have officially, as of January 1st (TOMORROW!) been blogging for a year, so I have a whole 12 months to pick from. What a year it's been. I guess it'll also serve as a little "2007 Year in Review" because life looks considerably different now except the whole point hasn't really changed at all. Let's make that make sense: January: My first post was...well, a first post. Then I saw Patty Griffin at Gruene Hall and it was a good sign of the fun year ahead. February: I launched the re-design of jpo.com which is what you're looking at now. Yes, before there was NO BLOG ON THE FRONT PAGE! Gasp! Now it would seem weird to have anything different. Still a little slow at blogging. March: Jana Susana Banana Rama happened, and it was my first time playing with Susan Gibson and it was SO COOL. Plus, I got to meet Jana Losey and Melanie Peters (who of course, added the Jana and the Rama to the Susana and the...I guess that makes me the Banana. Hrm.) Jana L. is releasing a new album called "Blocks" and you should probably own it. Rama. Susana. Jana. Banana? My first SXSW left me in a dizzying realization that Austin pretty much rocks. I saw a bunch of killer music, and interestingly enough a little band I like to call porterdavis (well, actually...that's what they like to call themselves) with some dude named Dan in it who I had never met before. And I didn't meet him then, either, haha. Shy Jana. April: I played at the Austin Women's Film, Music, and Literary Festival -- met a LOT of cool people and gigged a bunch in one weekend. Great times. May: My blog exploded thanks to a week of touring around New Mexico with Susan and hanging out with business partner Josh, who logged and filmed and took notes the whole time. The video blog (vlog) became a fixture. I like having business partners who know things. Well, just one, because he knows it all. Getting to NM Susan is a trooper Late Nite Radio Santa Fe Gig Filmed for TribVid at the ABQ Tribune Got Paid in Potatoes? The curse of the Czech name Hanging out at the Very Large Array My One Year Anniversary Phew. June: I was very coy about starting to study at Red Leaf School of Music because I didn't know how things would work out with this aforementioned Dan guy from porterdavis, so I just said "things are happening." I'm a little silly sometimes. July: My Independence Day was spent waxing poetic about the influence Mary Chapin Carpenter has had on me. FINALLY I speak about Folk Music Grad School. And FINALLY I introduced you to Business Partner Josh, even though he was still The Mysterious J at the time. August: My little opus about Terri Hendrix is one of my favorite posts. Dan and I started our Hemingway Book Club. We're on our 5th book now, I think. Oh, and Dan and I decided to make a record. September: The Artist Market, which I have been playing with for over a year now, got a little rained on at the Pecan Street Festival. So did my pants. I got a flat tire. October: Three Words: Life's A Song. Day One Day Two November: The 2nd Annual JP Project went off without a hitch. More shows in New Mexico with Susan Gibson. Lovely. Now it's December and you're reading this post. Are you exhausted yet? I'm not. My point is...I did not have a clue most of this stuff was going to happen. In January I knew I was taking steps to build a business with Josh and start working toward the path of being a self-supporting singer/songwriter/entrepreneur/freelancer. That happened...but 2 tours to New Mexico with one of my very favorite songwriters ever, folk music grad school, a producer for my EP, and lots of new people and mentors in my life were pretty much all...surprises. All I can say is, chart your path with purpose and then let your chart get re-written as you go, but keep the purpose. That makes things go smoothly, I think. 2008 is going to be fun. Thanks for hanging in there! Have a SAFE and HAPPY New Year, kids!