Sunday 11/12/06 Austin, TX

For the past two weeks, I've been keeping a running list of things to write about here. It's gotten pretty long, so hopefully I can pick out the most interesting tid-bits and avoid that "I don't care what you had for breakfast!" reaction. I think that being boring and mundane is probably the fear of every blogger, but it doesn't seem to weigh too heavily on most. With that introduction, I offer the details on my week.

I don't usually live the Rock 'n' Roll lifestyle, with groupies and drugs in the dressing rooms, but I got a little closer this week . On November 2, I went to La Zona Rosa for ME Television's Rock N Roll Dia-- a day of the dead celebration full of latin rock -- with my friend Deidre, who also happens to be Music Director at ME. We were immediately embraced by a skeleton-costumed VJ, Paul Saucido, who sent us backstage to meet the headlining band, Jumbo, in from Monterey, Mexico. I've been backstage at LZR before, usually in the glamourous capacity of catering staff for a bar mitzva, and it's a pretty basic, dirty series of little rooms. That night it was exploding with people, stylish musicians and their entourage, and girls. Girls, girls, girls. One of the guys from the band pointed out to us their private stash of whisky in a back room. We walked in to a tiny dressing room full of coats and cases and bottles of liquor. On the couch, squished in with three girls, was a guitar player trying to tune and warm up for the show. Three more girls stood around the tiny room looking uncomfortable and unsure of exactly what to do. I was baffled by the girls in there. Were they fans who were just too nervous to talk to the band? Were they shipped in to entertain and doing a bad job? Or were they just so excited to be backstage that they refused to leave even if they had no interest in what was going on? The gracious musician offered us some whisky. We tried to talk to the guy, but quickly realized that there was enough akwardness in the room without us trying to pay for our liquor with conversation. Deidre and I wound our way out through the crowd, grabbed a tamale from the catering table, and headed out to actually listen to the tunes, which were seriously hot. I don't think I have any potential as a groupie. If the alternative is being a nobody in the crowd having a good time, I'd take that any day.

I did feel like a minor South Austin Rock star at the webcast taping I played last Saturday. Right in my neighborhood is a cool backyard TV set full of neon and old hippies and cowboys and brisket and "homegrown" and Shiner Beer. The crowd was amazingly supportive and so welcoming and under the almost full moon, I felt like I was on some alternate, yet more authentic, version of Austin City Limits. Despite cameras being mere inches from my face and the mic placed at a funny angle, I had a really good time playing. Soon, it should be up on TVKnob for you to watch, too.

For those who keep up with my self-help endeavors, I'll let you know that I'm reading and enjoying SARK's Make Your Creative Dreams Real: A Plan for Procrastinators, Perfectionists, Busy People, and People Who Would Really Rather Sleep All Day. I am All of the Above and in love with self improvement, so I'm finding it quite inspiring. Right now, my calendar is covered with tiny post-it notes that have "micromovements" written on them. We'll see how long this lasts. Now, see that defeatist thinking. Stop it. I know I can acheive my dreams! There, that's better. Just finished up a song about it, too. You'll hear it soon.

Monday 10/30/06 Austin, TX

I just voted. Yes, I know it's not election day, but we have this awesome system of early voting in Texas. You can go to any polling place in the county and cast your ballot starting two weeks before the election. Wahoo! I love voting. I think I'm going to call everyone I know and remind them to vote. I'm going to remind you right now. Don't forget to vote! And vote for people who will reform the voting system!

Last week I saw Melissa Ferrick at Stubb's in Austin. She put on a really great show. My favorite since I first opened for her waaay back in 1999. I also got a copy of her new CD and I do recommend it. It's so full of energy and honesty and sing-a-longs.

Last Wednesday, at the last minute, Southpaw Jones called me to play with him and Graham Weber at Cafe Mundi. It was rainy and wet outside, but so cozy inside. We played without amplification and sang harmonies and I was so happy to just be hanging out and playing music with my friends for a room full of nice people. Austin is great for that.

I drove up to Dallas for a show at Uncle Calvin's on Friday night. Now that the Turkey Shop has reopened at exit 360, I have to choose between a fresh carved smoked turkey sandwich and a sausage, sourkraut and swiss kolache at the Czech Stop (exit 353). It often depends on who is in the car with me, and this time it was Alison and Turkey Shop. We also got a side of the Pea Salad which looks really gross, but is strangely great, if you like mayonaise, peas, onions and smoked cheese. Top it all off with a diet Dr. Pepper and I'm sure most of you are gagging, but I was very content. Luckily had 5.5 hours to digest before the show.

I didn't get to buy it because I had a full tank, but I saw gas selling for $1.95. Feels like the good ol' days of 2005.

Wednesday 10/18/06 Austin, TX or is it Orlando?

It's been quite a week. I'm drinking my coffee and trying to get into the swing of of another day. Thinking back on the past few days, I don't quite feel like I've been in Austin. With shy-high aerial dance, boy bands, and costumed role-playing, it feels like I'm living in a Florida theme park. I'll explain. . . .

Friday, I went to see my friend Nicole and Blue Lapis Light perform Requiem on the skeleton of a building. Intel was going to build their corporate headquarters in downtown Austin, but when the dot-com bubble burst, they abandoned a half-finished construction site that has been sitting in the middle of town for five years. The whole story is a bit of a fiasco, what with tax-breaks and federal buyouts, but the one good thing to come out of it all is that a site-specific aerial dance is being performed on, in and around the building this month. I've seen aerial dance before and was really impressed, so I was excited to see what the company would do with this location. But when the lights came up on the dancers high above the ground, I suddenly remembered that I'm afraid of heights. The whole dance was beautiful and exciting, but I never could quite suspend my disbelief and imagine them as angels capable of flying and dancing in midair. I saw the ropes and wires and what's worse, imagined them snapping and people falling. My hands were sweating and several times I actually had to turn away. I was really surprised at myself. I think I need to take a trapeze class or start mountain climbing to get over this fear.

Saturday, I played at Ruta Maya for The Right Marry Benefit concert. The Austin Chronicle described the show well: "Eclectic doesn't cover it." Southpaw Jones did a great set, I had fun playing as always at Ruta Maya, and then Stanley Roy and The Pig Lovers took the stage. Stanley was dressed as a punk-rock prince charming and delivered punchy, poignant tunes on Ukulele, backed by a really tight rhythm section. My fave was "Love, why did you fuck me?" Next, I literally got a cramp from laughing so hard at Cedar Fever. They are Austin's only boy band and they sing and dance (no instruments, of course) to Backstreet Boys covers and their original songs like "You Gave me the Clap." See the video here. I was too exhausted to hang out for the rapper from Houston and Journey cover band. Oh, being an artist gets you into really wacky situations sometimes, and I like it.

Speaking of getting into wacky situations, I've got to tell you about last night. Bonnie Whitmore who sings and plays bass with me, called me to play at this private party, and it was a kind of musical Odyssey for us. We weren't just hired as the band, but as a kind of entertainment concept in which hitchhiking musicians are picked up by a busload of tourists and sing to them on the way to a party, where they then become the band. We had to wear costume-y clothes and sing classic country, so it was definitely a "for the money" kind of gig, but since I love wearing costume-y clothes and singing classic country, it was also really fun. Especially since I got to play with Bonnie and her sister Eleanor who is an amazing fiddle and mandolin player and singer. (You might have seen her with Slaid Cleaves, Kelly Willis, or Bruce Robison) With our curly hair in three different colors, we made a pretty cute trio, if I do say so myself. Very girl-group. Look out Pussycat Dolls! We took turns taking the lead on each song, so I got to sing harmony on a lot of the tunes which I love and don't get to do very often. Also, we played at the Broken Spoke and people danced, which I consider a major milestone for a Texas artist. I lost her in the crowd, but Phoebe Snow, fiddle player for the Hudsons, was in there, too and we shared a seat on the bus and sawed a few tunes on the way to the Spoke. Thanks, Phoebe! Only in Austin?

Thursday 10/12/06 Austin, TX

I've been slacking on my picture taking this week. Several times I thought "Bring your camera tonight." But I kept forgetting. I wanted to get a picture of the band playing together at Green Mesquite (or maybe one of us wolfing down green beans and onion rings on our break). I wanted to take a picture at the LIVE STRONG Challenge -all those inspiring folks riding over the finish line after raising so much money and biking for hours. I could have taken a picture of all this rain we've been hit with. Oh, well, I'll try to be better this week.

In addition to playing the benefits, I've been doing a bit of volunteer work as a non-musician civilian this week. I registered voters on Monday and Tuesday and went to a volunteer orientation at the Red Cross. I've also been working on reaching my fundraising goal for the AIDS walk this weekend. After sending out a couple of e-mails, I had only raised $10. I was mortified to show up at the registration and admit that I hadn't reached my goal. But my generous friends and family cam through and I surpassed my goal. Thanks so much. I'm excited to walk on Sunday and help people living with AIDS in Austin. All this volunteer work is really fun and energizing, but I felt a little guilty for maybe avoiding my other work. I'm sure it will all come back around in some way.

I taped a podcast yesterday with host Jeffrye Tveraas. In a month or so, it will be posted at www.austinconnection.net. We chatted about the road and songwriting and I played a few songs: "Cried Wolf", "Get It And Go", "Not Tired of Flying", and "Hand Over Your Heart." I hope you will listen when it's out. I am also scheduled to tape a video webcast in November, so that will be a good way to see a show if I haven't played in your town lately.

I've got all my T-shirts printed up now and I'm excited for you to see them. Here are some pics of Alison modeling a couple of styles. I've got to figure out a good way for you to buy online. For now, if you want a T, send me an e-mail with the size and color you want.

Wednesday 9/27/06 Austin, TX

Ahhh, Coffee. That is another thing that happened to me this summer. I started drinking coffee every morning. I have almost become one of those people who needs coffee to feel normal, something I resisted for a long time. One morning in North Carolina, I sat down at the counter at Bob Evans and the waitress came over to greet me. She offered coffee and I made some trite, predictable comment like "Yes, please and make sure it's not decaf!" Having waited tables at breakfast for years, I heard those types of comments dozens of times a day, and I was mortified to have joined the ranks, not only of coffee drinkers, but of those who talk about drinking coffee. I am trying to accept it, though. I think it's OK, it's only one or two cups a day and there are worse things I could be ingesting. Right now, this morning, it feels just right.

I think that it might bother me because drinking coffee is something your parents do, old people who don't have all the energy of youth. Now I'm 30 and to those youth, I'm old. I'm generally fine with it. I've done a lot and learned a lot and certainly wouldn't want to be 20 again - emotionally. But my health insurance premiums went up by almost 50%, my back is stiff in the morning and I'm drinking coffee. Pretty soon I'll have all sorts of wrinkles and gray hair and I'll have to accept the real effects of aging, not just some arbitrary, symbolic birthday. More challenges ahead and new topics to write about. Yay! Oh, no. Wait. Please God, don't let me write a hot flash song.

So my birthday was this weekend! (Alison's, too.) We went out to Marfa, TX for desert air, minimalist art, and the El Cosmico ground breaking. There was camping and BBQ and great music. I got to see Tift Merritt live for the first time and she was great. Such a dynamic performer, dancing around everywhere and shaking that tambourine. Amy Cook and Lil' Cap'n Travis really rocked, too. I hung out in these cool Dutch hot tubs with a bunch of architecture students from UT. We talked about sustainable building and tried to keep our legs untangled while soaking in the 104 degree water. Then I was snuggled up under my down comforter, on my air mattress in the tent while the steel guitar whined from the not-too-far off stage. I slept so well. I've got to find a way to spend more time in West Texas.

I'm excited for this weekend's shows: two with the band and a song swap and house concert! Then a birthday party with my friends. I love being home!

Monday 9/11/06 Austin, TX

Oh, where do I start? Why do I wait so long to write stories? Will I ever change? Enough questions. I'll just start somewhere.

One of my most challenging and exhilarating performances this summer was at my friends' pre-wedding party. Heidi and Miki had a wedding based on Indian tradition and the night before, we partied, got Mehndis (henna tattoos), and sang and danced. Over half of the people at the party were Indian and are part of a community in Columbus, Ohio that gets together often for a Sangeet - to sing and dance and chant in Hindi. This was completely new for lots of the wedding guests, and I was fascinated by the beautifully colored and embroidered saris, the rhythms of the one drum and the hypnotizing melodies. Everyone was friendly and welcoming, bringing us white girls up to dance with the middle aged Indian women, showing us how to get our shoulders into it. When Miki's dad found out that I was a "professional" singer, I was asked to share a couple of songs with the party. So from the encompassing sound of thirty women singing and dancing together, to me. I picked up my guitar, took off my heels and picked my way across the carpet through what seemed like masses of people sitting on every flat surface. Mr. Kapoor introduced me and held a hand-held microphone up to my mouth. I looked out at the people gathered there, and it felt to me like one of those movie moments when someone walks in to a bar, the record scratches and everyone turns to look. Only I was in a Bollywood movie. I knew my friends were out there somewhere, I knew that lots of the people, the young people especially, were just as American and aware of country and folk music as I am, even though they were dressed in saris. But I was nervous and overwhelmed and for the first time in a while, scared that no one was going to get what I was doing. I just felt like such an outsider. I don't know how I made it through two songs without breaking down into fits of laughter or tears, because I felt on the verge of both. Afterward, lots of people complimented me, and I was reassured and reminded of how universal music is. But it was also a good reminder of how homogeneous my everyday world is. Growth comes from stretching outside my comfort zone, so I'm thankful for Mr. and Mrs. Kapoor and all their friends and family for giving me that chance this year. I wonder what other exciting performances are in my future. "A Biker's Christmas" might be another growth opportunity. . .

I picked out a bunch of Audiobooks for my trip, classics I thought. But I discovered that several of them were self-help books in disguise. Or maybe I'm just so focused on improving myself that I turn every story into a lesson, a how-to. Walden by Thoureau: how to simplify your life and find happiness (if you live in 1859). To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee: how to be the perfect parent (Ask yourself "What Would Atticus Finch Do?"). Speaking of Mockingbird, how can this country still be so full of inequality when that's one of our most popular pieces of literature? Maybe more people need to think of it as self-help.

I was lent a Baritone this summer and I'm really excited to re-learn to play it. I spent about 6 months in Jr. High playing the Baritone as a transition form Trumpet to Tuba, which was my instrument for rest of my band career. There are a couple of rag-tag brass bands in Austin that are lacking a bottom, so I'm in the market for a sousaphone, but this Baritone just fell into my arms, so I figured I'd work on that first. I'm really bad. Wow. It's amazing what 12 years of not playing an instrument will do! So I've got to go back to basics and hopefully work my way up to "When The Saints Go Marching In" and "Louie, Louie" before I get bored and give up. So many dreams. . . Anyone out there have a Tuba lying around?

Yesterday I played at the Tour de Pink. It's a bike ride that raises money for Breast Cancer Awareness and Education. It was hot, but all I had to do was stand in a shady spot and sing. Everyone else was out there riding bikes and I was so impressed. I want to challenge myself in that way, reach a physical goal and a fundraising goal. I want a pink jersey. I'll have to get a bike and get out there on it, but that's fun. Next year I'll get applause for crossing the finish line, not just singing at it.

I got a little burned out on taking pics last month. That means I've got nothing from New York or North Carolina. But West Virginia woke up the photographer in me, so all this weeks pics are from our most mountainous state. (I'm guessing on that, Colorado might argue. )

Last gas I bought was $2.55/gal. $3.29 ended up being my (American) summer high. Whew.

Wednesday 8/10/06 Haliburton, ONTARIO

Here I am in lovely cottage country Canada enjoying sunny weather, a clear lake and activities like shuffleboard, Liverpool (my current favorite card game) and chasing after my young cousins. It strange and wonderful, the opportunity to escape from politics, gas prices, and other daily stresses. I kept thinking that I didn't need another vacation, that I'd taken enough time off this summer, but on the drive across Michigan and Ontario Saturday, I was working myself into a tizzy. Alternately listening to Howard Zinn and Bill Mahr and then composing letters to the editor in my mind, and thinking that 110 kilometers/hour was way too slow. I think I needed to take a break more than I realized.

The last two shows last week were quit fun, though. Aroma Cafe and the people in Champaign were as welcoming as ever and I love that curried chicken salad! Thanks to The Buzz for comparing me to a "one woman Dixie Chicks" and for saying I have "a million times more street cred" than Kelly Clarkson. I'm not sure on which street, but I'll take it.

Schuler Books and Music in Grand Rapids is one of those great independent bookstores that seem fewer and farther between these days. I just walk in there and get inspired. I want to read everything, listen to all the CDs and write letters on every bit of stationary. Then they have cool events like music every Friday night in their little theater, and it's more than a store, it's a community gathering place. OK. I sound like I'm in advertising now. Sorry, but I just learned that on any given night, 70% of Americans are at home watching TV. Places like Schuler Books give us something else to do, and we need it.

One more thing. I had really good motel luck last week. After my May tour, I had sworn off 1-star hotels, but with gas at $3.29*, I felt Econo Lodge was all I could afford. I got lucky with the basics, plus wireless internet, mini-fridge and microwave. Oh, how easily I am satisfied. My own bed and shower and late night cable feels so good sometimes.

*At first, I felt it kind of ridiculous to actually write how much I was paying for gas. Inevitably, a month goes by and it seems quaint that we thought such things extreme. But that's kind of interesting in and of itself, so I think I'll keep a record of it. Once in 2000, I took a picture of the gas sign because I was so shocked at the price. It was $1.69. I expect to pay $1.10 per liter in Canada this weekend. I'm not good with my currency or measurement conversions, but I know that's an awful lot.

Thursday 8/4/06 Milwaukee, WI

This is a really cute city. I was skeptical before I arrived because the only thing I've really heard about this town was from Norah Jones and her band who said it was the worst stop of their tour. Must have been circumstances because I've had a great time. Shopping, eating, walking by Lake Michigan (what are those nasty flies??!) and playing at Art Bar where they actually had really good art and super nice people. Too bad about that whole winter thing. I'll be back again, though.

So, I'm on the road alone again. It's a hard transition after traveling all month with the Austin Carpool Jamboree. The tour had it's ups and downs, but we really ended with a CrashBoomBang of a show at McGonigel's Mucky Duck in Houston on Sunday night. A full house of people actually listening! Imagine that. After speeding tickets, canceled gigs, 15 hour drives, screaming fights (not with each other), and $3.09 a gallon for gas, it was so nice to have things go right for the last night. I miss Southpaw, Tiff, Brit, and Bill already!

Before I left town, I hit the Austin Public Library and raided the Audio Book section. You can check out up to 20 items and it doesn't cost anything! I love it. They do have a limited selection, heavy on the classics and bestsellers, but when I'm driving for hours, anything will distract me. Plus, when I haven't paid for it, and I'm going to be sitting there doing nothing anyway, it seems like a good time to catch up on those books that everyone seems to have read or is supposed to have read.

All this qualifying is to explain why I've been listening to Clan of the Cave Bear for the past 3 days. I remember everyone's mom reading this in the 80's and it always seemed intriguing and intimidating to me. It was so thick (17 CDs) and had a cave woman on the cover. What could it be about? I'm finding the plot interesting enough to keep me awake and the writing is strange. It's this kind of historical/anthropological prose that uses Latin names to describe things and sometimes names animals by telling what they would later evolve into. Also, it's a kind of feminist take on Neanderthal Man, which I'm guessing was pretty radical in 1980, but seems kind of simplistic in 2006. The main character has an inclination to do the "male's work" of hunting and we are sympathetic in her struggle to be accepted as a woman who hunts. Sounds like the struggles of the 70's. It's interesting to think about it in relation to the discussions we are having now about division of labor in the US, where a few people are starting to suggest that women are wasting their education and skills when they leave the work force to stay home and raise kids. It seems like things have changed more in the past 25 than the 25,000 years before that. Let's keep talking about it!

Monday 6/26/06 Washington, DC

Rain, Rain , Vacation Brain, Go away! It's grey gloomy day in the nation's capital and I'm still thinking about hot sunny days at the beach. It always takes me so long to re-start after total relaxation. The work seems to be so much, yet so unimportant. Would it really be so bad if I just read books, watched movies, ate yummy food and played music for another week? Or two? I suppose I should be grateful for the rain. If it was a sunny day, I'd be out collecting stamps for my National Parks Passport. I just got it and am unnaturally obsessed with visiting all the parks and having my passport canceled. Get your own here.

I spent a couple of days at the Kerrville Folk Festival at the beginning of June. I had fun playing cards and cooking on a camp stove, but it was brutally hot, I caught the intestinal crud that was going around, the rivers were too low to float down, and didn't really get to hear much music, so it wasn't a great year for me. Sometimes life is like that. On the plus side, Tiffani Ginn and I sat around and drank Jack and Coke for hours, litereally. We had nothing to do for long enough that we actually got inspired to finish a song we'd started a couple of years ago. It's called "Rival" and might still need a little work, but I think it's a fun one. Very sassy.

Then it was off to Nashville for more writing. Didn't get much of a song with Brent Rogers, even though he's a good guy and great songwriter, but I did write one on my own. In the car, of course. It's called "Another State Line" and I like it.

The next few days were a whirlwind with shows in Nashville, Atlanta, Chattanooga and Beaufort, NC. I had two flat tires in 24 hours, so if I wasn't playing or driving, I was having a tire changed. I feel so lucky that I didn't get hurt or have to miss any of the shows. So lucky.

My week in Ocracoke was filled with sun, sand, ferries, clam-digging (we got enough for a big pot of chowder!), bacon, coffee, bikes, brouge, books and of course, avoiding "work." I played two shows at good ol' Howard's Pub there for the seafood eating crowds. I learned a bunch of cover songs and had so much fun playing them. I can't beleive how much good music has been made and sometimes it's just really fun to play the songs that everybody knows. Plus, I always learn something new to add to my bag of tricks for songwritng. Current faves: "Bring It On Home to Me" by Sam Cook and "Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow?" by Carol King.

Books on Tape I've been enjoying: The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald and Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil byJohn Berendt. They are both examinations of privileged society and the peculiarities of a certain community. It's go0d for me to be reminded that money doesn't solve all one's problems. Flat tires, yes. Contentment, no.

Sunday 5/28/06 Austin, TX

The word "update" has been removed from my vocabulary. I'm trying to reintroduce it slowly. Bear with me.

OK. So Southpaw and I went on a tour. It was one day, but it still counts as a tour because we played in two cities, neither of which was Austin. We had lots of fun, playing with cows mooing at us and exploring the Golden Triangle Mall in Denton. I dragged Southpaw all around the significant landmarks from my junior-high days (First kiss at Black-eyed Pea, two houses, Jr. High alma mater, the house of the girls I was really jealous of). After the fun show at Banter, we hit Whataburger for sausage and eggs biscuits and milkshakes. Yikes! We had to vow not to eat like that when we're on tour for two weeks in July.

Then I had a quick and really fun tour to the Southeast. All the shows were great, I got to ride a 4-wheeler for the first time, and I vowed that I will never stay in a 1-star motel again. Two Econo Lodges in Mississippi with the locks broken off were the final straw. I feel like I've gone through some kind of rite of passage.

That tour ended with a fun three days in New Orleans. My friend and fellow traveling songwriter Natalia Zukerman was in Texas while I was in Alabama, so I originally suggested we meet in New Orleans while we were both on our way across the South. Alison hopped in the car with her in Austin and we met up at my friends' amazing guest house in Faubourg Marigny. (If you want to stay in the best place in NOLA, I'll give you rental details.) We mostly wandered Downtown, and the French Quarter, marveling at every inch of this amazing city, eating good food and trying to get an idea of how things are going with the Katrina recovery. Then we spent a morning in the Upper Ninth Ward cooking for volunteers who were helping to fix houses there. I just can't even begin to describe what we saw. There were just blocks and blocks of ruined empty house. It's very post-apocalyptic there and hard to believe it could be a livable place again. Other neighborhoods are getting back to normal, but there are so many hard decisions to be made. I had so many thoughts and feelings racing though my head and heart and stomach. Sometimes I felt like a gawker, driving around to see people's personal tragedy, but in the end, I am really happy that I have a better image of what's going on. I think we should all be paying attention to what's happening with the rebuilding and redevelopment on the Gulf Coast. The casino interests sure are!

Last weekend was the Wildflower Festival in Richardson, TX. I really had fun playing, but especially listening to the other great artists on the bill. Ruthie Foster, Vance Gilbert, Albert and Gage, Sara Hickman, Slaid Cleaves, Lisa Loeb and Shawn Colvin were all spectacular. All the performers on the Songwriter Stage were in the same hotel, so each night, we'd hang out in someone's room and play music or chat (thanks for the wine and cheese!) The festival is so well run and I just felt so happy to be a part of such a warm musical community. And congrats to my old friend Jud Caswell from Maine who was one of the winners in this year's songwriting contest! I was so inspired by all the acts, I even wrote a song this week.