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A Weird Find

So for those who know me, you might have noticed that I am into fashion. Not in a material trend way, but more in a 90's grunge, art, whatever I want to do way. I see clothes as art and as a way to express yourself. Which brings me to thrifting. It has got to be one of my favorite things to do. I love finding weird clothes that somebody else didn't want.

So the other day I decided to go to Avalon, and while they are usually expensive, I had a little thing called store credit on my side. 11 dollars of store credit, which there doesn't get you very far, but all in all it's still a nice place to go to once in a blue moon. 

While looking through the clothes, I tried on a few things. One included a dress that looked like a wedding dress, but I 'm not sure it was.

And the other was a letter jacket. Letter jackets have always reminded me of zombies and scary horror movies for some reason, so I decided to try it on. While in the dressing room, I put my hands in the pockets to test out the fit and all that, and to my surprise pulled out this:

It's not everyday that you find a pair of zombie teeth in a letter jacket. So I promptly put the teeth in my bag, brought the jacket up to the counter, bought it without paying a cent and walked out with a smile.

Cold, Underemployed, and in Good Spirits

So that gas smell in the apartment that Morgan mentioned in her last post?  Turns out the gas smell was gas.  Long story short, we didn't have heat yesterday and don't have it today.  Morgan's nice and toasty at work, but I haven't been getting many jobs lately (apparently the most popular New Years resolution was to stop having your piano tuned), so I have nowhere to go.  I'll probably head to a coffee shop in a bit, but for now I'll keep the Lou dog company and bundle up.

I can handle being cold and underemployed with such exciting things happening with this band.  Last night's AcoustiCafe was a great, full night of music, but we couldn't get on until 10:20.  By that point, the crowd was rowdy and pretty drunk, so we figured, oh well, it might not be our night, but we enjoyed hanging out.  We played a newer song called "Hell," and by the time we finished we could hear a pin drop.  It's a great feeling to feel the crowd's energy right alongside ours.  We got a great response, so thanks for that if you were there!

Just checked the band email, and our single, "Wait," has been selling all over the world!  We only get info on iTunes sales every 6 weeks or so, so it was a very pleasant surprise to see we're racking up sales all over the U.S., Canada, Europe, Asia, and Australia.  Africa and Antarctica are the last holdouts, but we'll work on those.

The album is really starting to sound like we've been envisioning it.  In some ways, even better.  We truly cannot wait to share it with all of you on June 1.

I think we'll check out a new open mic tonight at the James Street Gastropub and Speakeasy.  Come hang out with us!

That's all for now.

--Guy
www.brokenfencesband.com
facebook.com/brokenfences
@broken_fences

The Day In The Life of a Broken Fence.

I've been thinking about thinking...which is weird. This is what happens when you have a day completely to yourself. Usually for me, thinking leads to the darkest of places, and causes fear and suffering to reign. Today I am determined not to let that happen.

Guy went to Indiana today to see his sister's opera. He left early this morning, and I left no time to settle in to the couch and turn into a mess. I went out, went to some thrift stores and bought even more grungy style clothing, went to Whole Foods to get my newest addiction; those delicious little rice snacks, and turned a 180 at the bank when I saw that the line went from here to Nantucket. Then came home again and wrote a brand new Broken Fences song. Took the dog for a long walk, started to feel that anxiety and am now sitting in a coffee shop writing this.

The coffee shop. What an interesting place. It's like a big living room! I came here because I didn't want to be alone anymore and just wanted to be around people, but not have to talk to anyone. Here one can observe how other people exist and get pointers on how to do so. It's just nice to be reminded that you are not the only person alive. And everyone has issues, big or small. Every single person in this coffee shop has an issue of some sort, and that's comforting in a weird way. If I can just keep that in mind, then I can relax and not be paranoid that the small smell of gas in our apartment just poisoned me.

I decided to order a cup of lemon ginger tea and a small piece of coffee cake. The coffee cake caught my eye because my grandma used to have coffee cake at her house almost every time I went over there. I miss my grandmas coffee cake, even if it was just store bought. It was the best because it was from her..

Nirvana plays in my headphones. Out of all the high school bands that I discovered, Nirvana has stuck with me to this day. I will forever listen to them I feel and could never get sick of them. They are a part of me more than any other band. Its my comfort food. And Kurt Cobain is my comfort zone. Some people may laugh or think I am lame, but we all have something that comforts us, I'm just not afraid to admit it.

Where will this night end? I'm not sure. It might end with hanging out with our good friends, Nathan Zoob and Emily. It might end with a movie. Who knows. All I know is that I don't want to go to that dark place that calls my name every second of the day. Not today, ok?

For now, I'm just going to sit here with my tea and stay on the computer and read my magazines, and everything will be ok.

Day Trippers: Broken Fences live radio debut

Me driving on US-22

Yesterday was a very scaled-down taste of what's to come for us when we go on the road.  It was only for a day, and less than 200 miles round trip, but it meant something to us.  We did an hour-long radio interview and performance with WIUP-FM in Indiana, PA.

I've never done live radio before, and I believe Morgan has only once, so if we're being completely honest, we were nervous.  More about the talking than the playing... we've done podcasts before, but those aren't LIVE.  If you say something stupid on the radio it's just out there for everyone to hear.  Fortunately, the folks interviewing us made us feel at home, and after awhile we forgot the conversation was even on the airwaves-- that is, until the twitter questions started coming in.  We had so much fun doing it we didn't want that hour to end.  The best part was getting to play so many songs-- we did 7 or 8 all together.  I know a lot of you got to stream it live, but you can hear it again HERE.  The day culminated with a gorgeous, mountainous central-Pennsylvania sunset, and we rode the light all the way home.  I am thrilled to say I am no longer intimidated by live radio.

Until next time,
-Guy
www.brokenfencesband.com
facebook.com/brokenfences
@broken_fences

I imagine this is how Louie spent most of his day

No Finish Line

The other day I was running with the dog, listening to music, in my own world.  On my route there’s a completely blind spot where a building ends and a parking lot exit begins. I always kind of slow down and lean forward to make sure it’s clear before passing, but I don’t really stop.  This particular time, an SUV was driving too fast for me to see on my glance, and as soon as I passed the building it looked like that was about it for me and the Lou dog. 

Thankfully, the driver was guilty of speeding, but not distracted driving.  He slammed on his brakes and we lived to see another day.

I wouldn’t call it a near-death experience... but if that driver had been, say texting, or fixing his GPS, it would have, at the very least, changed everything for me, the driver, and everyone close to us.  It’s one of those wake-up calls where you realize you don’t have as much control as you think.

We’re all racing towards something.  Right now for us it’s the record release and after that, touring. I always do this: I delude myself into thinking my life has finish lines while I'm alive. What’s more is that I honestly believe I have control over them.  In my head, the finish line that is the record release goes something like this: the room is at capacity, the audience is rapt, and look, Danger Mouse is here and he wants to do his next project with us!  Then of course there’s Grammy Awards and sold-out stadiums, etc. But that isn’t how it works, and I’m not sure it’s even what I want.  No, when the album is finished and we’re back from touring, we figure out how we’re going to do it all again.  And again, and again.  Hopefully we keep growing as artists, and keep connecting with more and more people everywhere we go.  When I stop and think about it, I’m grateful that there are no finish lines.  

John Lennon sang one of my favorite lyrics of all time: “Life is what happens to you while you’re busy making other plans.”  I’ll try to live more.

-Guy
www.brokenfencesband.com
facebook.com/brokenfences
@broken_fences

P.S. If anyone knows Danger Mouse please tell him our record release is June 1, 2012 at Club Cafe.  Thanks.

"Nobody Knows You When You Down and Out"

Sometimes a broken lightbulb can be fixed, but when you flicker out, even for a moment, it's like no one wants to know you. And can you blame them really? Everyone's just looking for happiness, be that material, love, money, selfless volunteer. Sometimes you get stuck in a cycle of self-doubt, self-blame, and self-hate. And then it's like the muddiest area to stand in, hard to get out of, and messy to be in. I personally own a house in that muddy land, paid off and mine. Though the other day, something snapped inside me. Not the bad kind of snap where I lose it and go crazy on Pittsburgh (I hate that word "crazy"), but a good snap, one where something just clicked in my brain. Frustrated and bored with how my everyday had turned in to an endless stream of bad days, my brain and body almost decided by itself that it had had enough. So I packed up practically nothing from my house in the mud, locked the door, and went into the sun. I used to hate the sun as a teenager. I grew so pale and felt like I didn't deserve those rays. My mother desperately wanted some sun in my life, she even got one of those sunlights and would ask me to sit under it for a few minutes (which I never did). Now I almost crave the sun. It just makes you feel better. Not to mention if you are always cold like I am, it's a sure way to warm up. Now while you still won't find me sunbathing at the beach or on anyone's rooftop, I now feel the suns purpose for happiness.
Another thing that switched in my head was something that Guy said. He said, "Don't scratch that itch" Itch meaning phobia, panic attack, jealousy, self-doubt or anything negative that you need reassurance on. That reassurance will only feed that negativity so it will be stronger next time. Just let it burn out and it will disappear and you will realize the real things that matter.
Now I don't want any of you to worry, I'm not turning into a bundle of extreme happiness and stop writing the sad songs that I write haha I still have alot of sadness that needs to come out through song and will probably last me the rest of my life. I'm just saying that it's exhausting to live everyday under such a dark cloud. I mean, it sucks when it rains everyday right? It's like getting cabin fever in your head. Let me out. I'll still have days when I'll go walking back to my house and sit there for a bit, but I don't have the desire to stay there anymore. Why do that, when life really is so short in the long run. There's so much good music, good food, places to visit, things to try, people to meet, shows to play. Alright, I'm going to sign off before I smile myself to death. Goodnight and sweet dreams.

~Morgan Erina

Bessie Smith "Nobody Knows You When You Down And Out"
http://youtu.be/6MzU8xM99Uo