It’s amazing what happens when inspiration and motivation collide. It can be as simple as Duckman posting “Hey guys, who has a track for the German Shaft Sampler?”
And then we made this:
2016 began the opposite way as 2015, for me. This year I was in a place of introspection, asking myself what I want to change. I knew I wanted to help my self esteem, give myself positive reinforcement, and use my time more efficiently.
The first thing I thought of trying was exercising in the morning instead of looking on FB for 10 minutes. I started doing all my most awkward and difficult yoga poses. I picked the ones that I could not hold in class, and that I fell over most of the time. I figured those were the ones I need most. And Then I got myself stickers. Every day that I work on my yoga poses, instead of going onto FB, for 10 minutes, I get to put an Avengers sticker on my wall calendar.
So far, I’ve put a sticker on EVERY DAY. And, when I go to yoga, I can tell I’m getting stronger and more balanced. The positive reinforcement of the small changes is present.
Then, I thought about music. I decided 2016 is my year to really dive in to Ableton Live. I want to write music!!! I’ve studied music for my whole life, and it’s time to get creative. Also, my biggest heroes in music ALL PRODUCE. I really love to dj, and these last couple years of improvising violin along with the music has been really fun. It’s the next step.
The wall I had been hitting for the last few years (in Live) was my inconsistency. I picked it up, watched a bunch of videos, dabbled, and did everything else for a couple weeks. I’d get inspired hanging out with Dr. 42, and watching him produce, try it out at home, and then feggedaboutit.
So I got myself STICKERS!!!! Every time I play with Ableton, I put a shiny heart sticker on my wall calendar at home. Then the first week of the new year, I sat myself down and did SOMETHING with the software. I keep an R2D2 journal, which I write in every time I use the software, noting anything I tried. (Melinda gave me the journal!)
And what else is there… oh yes, my violin. I love to play my violin!!! For the last few years, I have been putting STAR stickers on my wall calendar, every time I practice. It really helps, and so that was the inspiration for branching out.
So I’m 3 weeks in to the new year. I’ve been checking out various self help blogs and Youtube channels, to get inspiration and motivation. I’m changing and adapting to the world. I come across 2 different people that talk about the same thing: Shit Sandwiches.
With every art and every creative path, comes SHIT SANDWICHES!!! What flavor of shit sandwich do you want to eat? If you’re a writer, it means working your day job, then coming home and writing every day, and dealing with rejection letters. If you’re a promoter, it could mean dealing with multiple people and timelines, pouring hours of time to get all the plates to spin, and eventually the event is pulled off. If you’re a new producer, it means slogging through the grunt work of understanding the software, until the workflow becomes clean.
When I saw my hero, Simon Shackleton, play in San Diego in December, I talked to him about learning Ableton. He said to keep working on it until the workflow is at my fingertips. Then it gets easy. (I really needed to hear that.)
The blog I read is worth checking out; from the amazing Mark Manson:
http://markmanson.net/life-purpose
And then, for a more feminine perspective (from 2 New Jersey ladies), check out this video from Marie Forleo:
And along the way, I did a Meyer’s Briggs Test, from a really fun website. It gives lots of great feedback on your personality type, backed up from years of research. I had taken this test in College, and it was really fun to revisit.
So how was it going with my Live Heart Sticker experiment? Well… It was going better for me than in 2015! Putting the little sticker on my calendar really drives me to sit down and focus on it. I dabbled and played, and remembered my lessons. I started building songs from the ground up, starting with the rhythms. My Push started to make sense. I complained, er, talked to other producers about Live whenever I saw them. Then I tried to make Techno.
It was so much Fun!!! I remembered being in Guadelupe Canyon last year, the night before we turned the sound on. There were frogs everywhere, but especially near the bathrooms. I was waiting for my friend, and I started listening to them chirp. Then I started saying “beep beep boop beep.” And they were quiet!!! Then I stopped, and they started to chirp again, and I swear they were chirping in the same tone I was talking. So then I started saying “beep beep boop.” And they were quiet!!! I was talking to the Techno Frogs!!! When we left to go back to camp, they were louder than EVER.
I made a song for the Techno Frogs. I think they will be a source of inspiration for many songs. It was a great lesson about communication; because we don’t have to understand each others words, if we understand the desire to connect. Here’s my song!
https://soundcloud.com/shaft-records/03-sarah-cranberry-techno-frogs
Then, last week, I started my online course work again. Whoa. Suddenly my time is REALLY FULL. I decided it’s ok if I do either the star or the heart, on days I’m working and doing schoolwork. Then when I slide in a yoga class I get extra bonus points, because there’s no more space on my wall calendar for more stickers. This is the flavor of my Shit Sandwich! Learning and working and focusing on many things, with a challenge to mark small progress as I go. I have goals I’d rather not share right now, because it will be more fun to reach them and THEN share.
I’m very happy that I have my dog, though, to keep me company while I work on all the things. Then no matter how focused I get, I still get brought back to the present moment. How could I not love my present moment, when I get to look at this face? 
In conclusion, I really hope everyone is finding their way and following their dreams. We come together and create brilliant things, and if we work on our individual foundations, the foundation of our world becomes stronger. Good luck!!!
Ps I will be entering dancefloors very soon.
Love,
Sarah Cranberry