Noodling & Level 2 Responding

Bandcamp is about touching on real life band habits, struggles and practices while attempting to connect the dots to your own experience. The questions and suggestions stirred up are intended to help you evaluate your own situation and take steps toward creating a better rhythm of band life.

What better place to start than in your own mind.

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Noodling while your talking. Again.

Here you are rallying the troops for a productive night of practice and you're pretty sure no one is listening to a word you're saying. I mean, you've already had plenty of time to settle in, tune, adjust levels, tweak the snare and pick wedgies, but the moment you open your mouth with a game plan? Half-muffled bass solo with that not-quite-blank stare at your face.

Reality is, most musicians do this. We do this subconsciously. Instrument + Hands + Volume = Play. Period.

This isn't worth a level 10 response. Belittling, shouting, quitting... I'm guessing that's not really how you want the night to begin. Again. Below are a few Q's intended to jump start your thinking, planning and possibilities:

Q. How can you engage the issue in the moment without freaking out? What about your attitude, your tone of voice, your patience? Are they more likely to respond to a command or an invitation to create a better practice space?

Q. Is there another way to begin practice? A creative way to get the fidgets out, warm up and create space for the plan? What might you need to let go of?

Q. Timing is important when addressing an issue. When might be a good time to address the noodle in the room? In the moment or before practice begins?

Q. What can you do to get the entire band involved in creating a plan for getting the noodling out of their system before a real, professional, focused practice convo takes place each night?

Q. How can you cast a vision of the band you all aspire to be? How does that band practice with a long future in mind? How do they trust one another? What habits can you start now to foster a long and healthy adventure?

Oh, you're saying the team is noodling to get under your skin on purpose. That they don't respect you? Well, without knowing your history, the baggage, and rationale for dysfunction and distrust... just assume that responding as above might actually benefit your situation as well.

Just know that it might take a little more time to win them over. To prove that you're no longer trying to be their master but their mate, we enjoy following the lead of someone we trust, laugh with and who is willing to admit to the same dysfunctions.

Start there. A member who routinely and purposefully sabotages a practice is one thing. But most of us noodle around like a hot bowl of mac n' cheese without realizing it. Make a plan.

Q. Oh, I've got to ask, are you modelling, patiently and consistently, the way you imagine practice sessions to begin?

In the next Bandcamp we'll build on these habits.

Feed the Bin & Create

It's thirty-seven degrees outside. Snow covered the ground yesterday and this morning it's wet slush, perfect for composting. I love composting.

We started several years ago with banana peels and coffee grounds. I'm not sure exactly why, but I love to see our compost container slowly fill up throughout the week. It feels productive, which just means that we eat food.

The clear rectangular Rubbermaid cube rests on the counter next to the sink, like a dog it sits there waiting to feed on our scraps. And like an owner there are times I just want to give it a treat. If you compost then you'll know what I mean. Yeah, I want to feet my garden, and maybe that's why I do what I do, but when I see the container half full, sitting, alone, untouched for two days, I want to eat something just so I can feed it.

No joke, most of the time I'm not even hungry, not even a little bit, but if that bin looks sad and hungry, I want to feed it.

I usually start with an orange. He loves orange peels. They smell great, it's refreshing and it feels really healthy and productive in my unnecessary eating event. But that's not enough. It never is. "Thanks for the appetizer, Rich, what's next?" Next? Eggs sound good. It's true, I've caught myself making eggs at 10am in the middle of a project simply because the coffee grounds and the orange peels weren't enough. Did I mention he loves eggshells?

My point is. When we invest in something bigger than ourselves, like our gardens or tutoring or discipleship or picking up trash in the neighborhood on a long walk, something simple and repeatable and healthy, well, this habit fosters movement in other areas. Our creative pursuits benefit from healthy habits in other areas of life.

What are you feeding? Is it healthy? Is it habitual? Is it stirring action and movement and ideas in your primary creative space?

Interesting: Lexicon

Happy Lexicon Thursday! I don't know about you, but celebrating Easter this year has been particularly interesting. Easter is both a time of mourning alone and celebrating together. I'm interested in how others celebrated. What you hid in your Easter eggs. If you woke with renewed hope. How you plead to God in this crazy season of broken change. How about you? Are you interested? Here's a peek into the next chapter of my forthcoming book on words: A Lexicon of Awesome.

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I first heard this idea that interested makes interesting from a pastor in southern Ohio. I brushed it off at first, defensive I think, the overflow of a low self-confidence. But in practice? Yeah, it seems right on the money. There’s something about spending time with someone who is genuinely interested in our opinions, ideas, vocation, family or faith that tends to foster a deeper and more meaningful connect. We feel safe and liked and worthwhile, reminded that we have something to offer the world.

When Brooke asked me a million questions about my family and my dreams and my journey with Christ, well, I went home convinced that she was the most interesting woman on the planet. Interesting because she fostered a volley of curious questions and intimate answers. Interesting because she cared, if only to build a bridge for the moment. Interesting because she invested in me.

Catch that?

Brooke’s lifelong investment in her own faith built a bridge of genuine curiosity to mine. Her parents' investment in her personal growth years before we met fostered a confidence in her own journey and a divine interest in me. Her investments not only drew me in, but they set us up for an ongoing relationship overflowing with curious kids, a patchwork faith, and a unique bandera.

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Keep an eye out for A Lexicon of Awesome: healthy words for a healthier life in early summer of 2020.