It’s cold. Perhaps the disparity between the seemingly-tropical day we had in NYC yesterday (66 degrees!) and the sub-zero, howling wind snowstorm I’m looking at out the window right now makes it feel all the colder, but man, it’s cold.

We made it up here on time last night, and although we had a few technical problems with Hank’s amp completely refusing to work, it was a fun gig at T-Bar. It was pretty quiet (not too surprising, given the crappy weather) but as always we entertain ourselves first, and the few hardy patrons of the bar seemed to dig us too. We were all so tired from long days at work, travelling and playing late that we didn’t hang out much before crashing at around 2am, and having a lesiurely morning getting the recording equipment set up before a quick bite at Cassie’s (awesome little cafe/diner in Roxbury). We’re back now and Sean & Hank are upstairs in the ‘recording room’ we set up upstairs at T-Bar (we have two floors of rooms to use for sleeping and recording above the bar), hard at work laying down a freaking catchy guitar riff for the first track on our new blues album. The rest of us are chilling out downstairs, reading, surfing the net and generally relaxing in the peace and quiet, warm inside while the wind howls around us in the mountains.

Even though I moan about being a packhorse and having no money sometimes, I gotta say. Man I have an awesome life.

On the subway home from band practice last night, I joked with Hank that we needed to get successful quicker because I was so done with being my own packhorse. I was carrying my tenor sax in one hand and lugging a backpack on my back that contained two boxes of granola, 10 oranges, a bunch of bananas, bread and coffee, all to drop at Hank’s place so he can pack the van today for our trip upstate this weekend.

This morning I was excited because I had dropped all the heavy stuff off with Hank yesterday, so I was just bringing my flute and my clothes to work. Then I remembered I needed my laptop. And my saxophone stand. I ended up with my backpack being as heavy as yesterday and carrying a tote bag with my clothes in, wearing my heavy winter coat (it’s going to be cold in the Catskills) and sweating like crazy because it’s so warm here today, while battling the morning rush hour on the subway.

SUCH a glamorous life I lead. I tell you.  Roll on the roadies.

It’s been a busy day. I count last night in that too, because I went home to do my laundry and pack for the weekend, but didn’t manage to get as far as the packing because we finally booked all the flights for the band’s tour. There was a lot of calling and texting to get the right information, the right people on the right flight on the right date, etc, and when there are 7 of you going it can turn into quite a performance. Luckily, I did manage to get my laundry done so at least I’ve got clean socks for this weekend. A busy day at work will lead into a band practice tonight, so I’ll be up early tomorrow to stuff some clothes into a bag and hope I remember suitable gig outfits.

Ah, the glamorous life.

I’m heading upstate this weekend to play a couple of gigs and start the recording of our new blues album. I’m really excited to get out of the city, slow down and be able to focus on just our music for a whole three days – a rare luxury for us. Usually we have a mad rush to get two hours’ of decent recording in on a night we’re all coming from work and have to finish by 9.30pm to keep the neighbours happy. Not the most conducive environment to record in, but you work with what you’ve got.

I should have decent internet access while I’m up there to keep my blog going, but on our more extended tour at the end of March I’m not so sure. We’ll be in the Caribbean (woohoo!) but hopefully I can snatch some free time and a bit of free wifi to keep you all up to date with our goings on. I will write a blog post for each day we are there, even if I can’t post it on time.

There’s something about being on a tour, even if just for a weekend, that slows time down. You’re freed from the usual hassles of your overly-full schedule, and can concentrate on one thing at a time. Oh the joy. Of course, Hank and I are still always brainstorming, planning the next gigs, working out our plan of action, but we both feel the freedom to dream and get inspired with our plans, rather than feeling like we are dashing from one potential crisis to another.

I’m also seeing the end of a longer-term work gig ending in a couple of weeks, and I will miss the lovely people I’ve worked with here (and the life-saving injection of cash), but will be glad to feel the freedom of a freelancer again. I take any job I do seriously, and strive to do my best, so it usually means I’m thinking about work even when I leave at the end of the day if I know I’ll be back the next. That takes away from my brain’s ability to think about the band or my acting career, so it’s a trade-off for sure. Sometimes you just have to be ok with that compromise.

I just read a great article about making time for exercise in your routine, and the impact it can have on all aspects of your life. It definitely hit home to me, as I have been pledging for months to start swimming in the mornings again and improve my fitness. Of course, it fell by the wayside – partially through procrastination and laziness, but also through financial obstacles. Renewing my membership with the Parks Department (Vince and I both use the awesome pool at the Chelsea Rec centre) is only $75/year, but when my budget is as tight as it is right now, trying to save to get to the wedding of one of my best friends in August and keep on top of bills, that’s $75 I don’t have. That and the cold weather preventing me going running served as perfect excuses to do nothing.

I started to walk from my temp job to Columbus Circle after work each day, instead of taking the subway, just to get some fresh air and move my sluggish self after a long day mainly sat in an office chair looking at a computer. I felt better with just that small action, and I’m realising that (yet again) I can’t blame outside circumstances like ‘oh, it’s cold’ or ‘oh, I don’t have the money for the swimming pool’ on my lack of vitality. I need to find a way that costs me nothing and gets me moving. I have a bunch of those exercise channels on cable; my challenge is to find one that isn’t stupid and start doing 20 minutes, 3 times a week. Once the weather improves, I’ll switch out to going running a bit too, and when my finances improve, back to the pool with me. I’m going to the Caribbean in a month, so if I don’t want to look like a jellyfish (wobbly and transparently white) on my first day, I should probably start this week.