Monte at St. Louis Believe

Here are a few shots of Monte doing his drum thang at the St. Louis Believe at the Family Arena. Enjoy!

It's March!

Hello everyone! This is Amy. I've taken it upon myself to post for Monte since he's been quite busy with traveling and other responsibilities. Our life is crazy right now. Monte is en route to Palm Springs, CA for a Believe and I'm in Joplin to hold down the fort until he returns on Monday evening.

The craziness continues as Monte has 6 more Believe conferences after this until the beginning of May. Then our lives will be much more settled and we can enjoy the weather and possibly some traveling. We have a niece due in June and will be heading to Arkansas for that event. We also want to head to the east to see our buds in Ohio, Kentucky, and Tennessee (baby there too) and possibly hit up Cedar Point for some roller coasters.

I'll add some shots of Monte at St. Louis Believe tomorrow. Until then, call Monte. His birthday was Monday and he turned 25! Enjoy the pic of the girls.

Wedding Bells

If you're wondering where the New Years video from my previous post was shot, it was at our good friend Sara Mitchell's wedding. Of course, her new name is Sara Seminick. She and her husband Max were wed on New Years Eve. Amy was the matron of honor, and me?... I hummed a few bars along with my brother.

Since we were in the wedding party we arrived a couple days early for rehearsal, but also to spend some time with Sara, Max, and their families. We stayed with Sara's brother John and his wife Shawna who were tremendous hosts; we had a good time
getting to know them a little better. They have a really awesomely unique house!

You know how sometimes going to a wedding can be a bit on the obligatory side? That wasn't the case with this wedding at all. From the hours of driving, to helping decorate, to practicing my part in the wedding, all of it was a joy because of who it was for. It was a joy because I know these two are truly signing on for life. I have a very good sense of peace about their union. And in an age where more marriages fail than succeed that's very comforting. Sorry I'm getting all mushy, but they mean a lot to Amy and me.

The Bridal Party

Us Before the Wedding

Our Hosts: John & Shawna

Their First Dance!
Definitely not your typical
slow, romantic embrace.

Max & Us

My Friend Ryan

My Friend Rick

The Quintessential "New Years Home Video"

Could this video be any more typical of the American New Years Celebration tradition? I think NOT!!! I laugh every time I watch it because of how incredibly archetypal it is: A large crowd of people dancing to some old school DJ song in front of crappy, yet blaring speakers; a little light show, steamers, party hats, the smell of booze and cologne in the air; everyone counts down to one, they blow their party whistles and, of course, it wouldn't be complete without the ringing out of "Auld Lang Syne," (yes, I had to look up how to spell that and no, I don't know what it means) and the kissing of the girl. Fun, fun!

A "Real" Job

Well, since my last date with Believe was in late October and my next event with them is not until the first of February, I've had to give in and find myself a real job. You know, like the ones grown-ups have.

I've been in search of something I can do full-time until February and then switch to part-time when Believe starts up again. I have applied at several establishments over the past month or so, but none have come to fruition as of yet. However, I did serve as a substitute teacher for the first time today. I'm fine with doing that as much as possible until Believe rolls around again. But if one of the other jobs I applied for winds up working out I'll stop subbing and go for the offer because that would mean employee benefits and a steady work schedule.

Epiphany #2

Maybe this is more of a soap box, but it's something I had not really thought about until recently. On the subject of recordings, lack of sonic character and quality is no excuse for poor musicianship.

I can't tell you how many times people have given me recordings they have put together and given me the excuse: "Now, I want you to know that it's not going to SOUND that great because all we had to work with was Garageband and a cheap mic I found in my dad's basement. And we were in a rush to get it done so, you know, keep that in mind also."

For those of you who have apologized in the past for such things (myself included).....

STOP!!!! Good music does not require an apology!

People are naive, but they aren't stupid. They can recognize a mediocre song even if they can't inherently point out sloppy technique, a weak melody, and a boring chord progression. But people are also forgiving. They will hear a well crafted song and give grace to the fact that the person who recorded it just doesn't have the money to invest in quality recording equipment or studio time. An indy recording's primary purpose is to showcase musicianship.

Disclaimer: All this to say, you should still strive to make your recordings SOUND as good as you possibly can. There's an old saying my friend M.D. shared with me once, and it makes total sense..."Good, fast, or cheap: pick any two." This witty little slogan applies to us poor folk in the following manner: If you want your recording to sound good, but you don't have a lot of money...it's gonna take you a really long time.

This can be hard to swallow, and please tell me if you disagree in any way, or if I've left something crucial out on this topic.

Roxy's Back Home

That little booger is home now. She had wandered around the area around Webb Walmart for a day before a lady's gradnson picked her up out of the road at Madison and 171. She must have been trying to get home and tried to cross that busy intersection. So thanks to Susan and her grandson from Neck City, Roxy is now home and safe. Monte met Susan and brought her home Thursday evening. The next day was my birthday, which was much happier now that Roxy was home safe and sound.

Roxy's Missing

This is Amy again. We have a request that all those in the Webb City area please take a look at Roxy (below right) and let us know if you see her with anyone. She squeezed herself out of the window of our car at the Webb City Wal-Mart yesterday morning around 8:30 AM. She was no where around the Wal-Mart when we searched for her so we are suspecting that someone saw her running around and probably picked her up not knowing whose she was. She does not have tags on her collar, but she is micro-chipped and linked with us. Her collar is black with white paw prints and she only weighs about 15 lbs. She does answer to her name. So far, she has not been picked up by animal control and has not been taken to the humane society or a vet's office. So please pray that whoever has her will give her to the appropriate authorities to be given back to us. It may sound silly, but these doggies are almost like children to us. We REALLY want Roxy home. So does Stella. She misses her puppy buddy. Now she only has her humans to play with her. Thank you!