Yes, I said I never would, but...

... I'm updating from my iPhone again.

So, sue me. I'm in New York, and I'm one of the seventy-three people age 30 or younger in America without a laptop. So, I'm updating from my iPhone.

Wow, I'm in New York. For my first anniversary. With the love of my life. And it's been a really amazing trip so far. Our first in over 4 years, which is all at once amazing and unbelievable and depressing and completely exhilarating!

Red eye flight was quick but uncomfy. Always woke up with a sore neck; could never get in a good sleeping position; slept for over 3/4 of the flight, but didn't really get any rest.

Landed at 5:40am. Took a cab to 60 Thompson, our swanky hotel in SoHo. This place is rad and hipster-y and totally way too cool for Rachel and I. But that doesn't mean I'm not going to enjoy the hell out of this amazingly comfortable king bed with its feathery pillows and sleep inducing sheets...

Slept in a bit, then woke up and hustled down to the Seaport TKTS. Navigating the subway system is like trying to learn a new language. I wish SoCal had a subway system, but it's way too spread out. It is very liberating to walk and take trains everywhere though. I'd probably be way more healthy, too. We decided to get Jesus Christ Superstar tickets even though it's still in previews.

Train back to SoHo. Picked up pizza and garlic knots for lunch and took it back to our room. Greasy, but serviceable. Watched TV and rested till we walked to Dylan Prime for dinner. It's a steakhouse in TriBeCa, and Rachel and I ate there 5 years ago, but it feels like it could have happened months ago...

Oh yeah. Collateral is a bomb movie, and Jamie Foxx is really good. What happened to that guy?

Train to JCS. Amazing show. Really liked Jesus and Judas killed it even though he was an understudy. I loved seeing how proud of Judas the rest of the cast was during bows. They were all congratulating him, and you got the feeling that he was a great young actor that paid his dues and was finally getting his big chance. And he did so well, you couldn't help but be happy for him.

Long day planned tomorrow. Newsies lottery, brunch with Emily and Nate, a matinee?, a night show?, dinner at the View rotating restaurant in Times Square, drinks with a good friend of Rachel's that she hasn't seen in years. Long day, can't wait!!

Leaving on a jet plane...

... and I know exactly when I'll be back again.

Leave for NYC with Rachel tomorrow night. I like that phrase "leave for...". It makes us sound like we're going to Oregon Trail it across the country and face the perils of the open wilderness and dodge herds of bison and escape the clutches of dysentery... Can you believe I've never actually played Oregon Trail?

I love New York. I love Rachel and I in New York. Times Square. The Subway (and subsequently, getting lost on the subway...). Broadway shows. Amazing restaurants. Such a different pace from California. People move with purpose, which is interpreted as "people are rude." No, bro. They just know what they need to do and would rather not have your tourist ass in the way...

It's our one year anniversary on March 27th, next Tuesday. It doesn't feel like a year. It feels longer. It feels shorter. It hasn't been perfect, but it has been amazing, and I am the luckiest man in the world (cue cheesy music and doves being released and running towards each other on the beach...)

Time to sleep. Then... NYC tomorrow night!!!

Is Mediocre Enough?

This post is going to be mediocre. Yes, I have set the bar low enough to be vaulted with little to no effort. Already, I have exceeded expectations...

Maybe we expect too much? Maybe our goals are too lofty, our standards are too high, our scorecards are too strict...

Or maybe we just want spectacular. We want to feel the backs of our necks tingle, the hairs on our arms stand up... we want to feel goosebumps and have trouble catching our breath because what we've witnessed is so amazing, beautiful, life-changing...

It starts with aiming high on paper, hitting low in reality, and eventually matching paper to reality.

Mediocre now becomes amazing later... but only if you push yourself through the times you feel mediocre. Only if you learn from your mistakes. Attempt, evaluate, adjust, rinse, repeat.

But even mediocre is better than nothing. Nothing might as well be... well, it really isn't anything so nothing can go fuck itself...

Tribes

Village. Community. In crowd. Movement. Tribe.

If you get it, you get it. The unspoken rules, niche references, common language, dos and don’ts…

You need to earn your place amongst the tribe. It takes effort and time and shared experiences to truly belong. And even though each person’s experiences are singularly their own, as a part of a tribe, each personal experience is framed within a common experience…

I enjoy (most of the time) membership in the following tribes:

-          Parent
-          Husband
-          Musician
-          Golfer
-          Theater Kid   
-          Runner
-          iPhone User
-          Youngest Kid in the Family
-          Laid Off at the End of 2008

Each and every one of these tribes has their own customs and language and rules. Some you can join later in life, some you join due to circumstance, some you can actually choose to leave.

Seth Godin has written a book about tribes. I haven't read it. Womp womp womp...


But inherently we all know about the importance of tribes and their subconscious effects on our behavior.


Doesn't mean I shouldn't read the book, though...

Why am I so awake at 12:24am...

And not just tonight.

Every night.

Every single night.

Dead tired when I wake up. Tired at work. Tired on the drive home. Tired hanging out with Rachel and Chase after work. Tired during Chase's bath time. (Sidenote: If you're reading this, Rachel, I am sorry for so often being a downer when I get home from work. I'm also sorry for writing this in a blog instead of just telling you in person... [note to self: Tell Rachel you're sorry in person.])

Then, 10pm hits, and I'm awake. Super awake. Energetic want to accomplish things, write songs, play guitar, sing lyrics, delve into the pantheon of the world's music, do things to change the world awake...

Maybe after 10pm downstairs in my living room is my equivalent of this...

Fuck Rules

Self-imposed or otherwise.

I apologize for the vulgarity.

I'm not sorry at all for the vulgarity.

Just have fun. Yes, there are lines, but a lot of times you don't know where they are until you've crossed them. It should be any artist's hope to set out to cross lines, push boundaries, elicit emotional responses, extract polar opposite opinions.

"I hate it" is better than "meh..."...

So yeah. Fuck rules and thinking you have to be a certain way or play a certain song or write a certain lyric to be accepted or popular or successful. Define your own acceptance, popularity, success. Just do you...

If it sounds like I'm trying to inspire myself... well, gosh... isn't that one of the points of writing a blog...?

Patience and/ or Attention Span

Lacking in both nowadays.

Rachel loves herself some Downton Abbey.

I had playtime with Chase for about an hour before his bedtime tonight. He's getting so big and is progressing so quickly everyday. He noticed that his Thomas the Train bridge was made up of shapes. "Ah an gul." Yeah, bud, it's a triangle. Good job!

Patience, Glynn. Focus. Played guitar for a bit tonight. Tried to work on a song that I had recorded bits and pieces of a long time ago. Couldn't figure out what the song should be about. It's difficult trying to write a song about writer's block. Sometimes songs just don't happen. Inspiration isn't there. I'm focused on something else. Or I just plain don't have it. Funny how my best songs normally happen when I'm not even trying to write a song. Except for the hitRECord creative explosion of 2011. Hahahaha...

Attention spans shrinking. Twitter. Status updates. Tumblr. Everything is now, now, now, yesterday, two weeks ago... It's getting harder and harder to keep up, and I have a feeling that pretty soon, I just won't...

Man, I don't even have the patience or attention span to properly finish this blog post. I blame it on 2Pacalypse Now. Thanks, Spotify...