Blogger's Block

I have a severe case of blogger's block and I'm blaming it on the weather. With the exception of a scintillating Sunday, the color palette of recent weather has been that of an Andrew Wyeth painting. I like Wyeth's art, a lot, but I do not want to see it every single day. I need a broader spectrum of color on a day-to-day basis, a bit more Gauguin.

Supposedly, the sun will grace us with his presence tomorrow, and God, I hope so. I need sunlight to spill on my desk as I write. I need a sunrise and sunset, not one mute hue all day long, seeping into my brain like fog. Other forms of inspiration came to my rescue in recent days and eves:

The Shins. Their brand new CD, Wincing the Night Away, is phenomenal and I ought to share a review here on my blog soon. Current favorite tracks are "Phantom Limb," "Sea Legs," and "Turn on Me."

Paste magazine, once again my hero. The sampler CD sounded luminous in the gray rain today with bands like the aforementioned Shins, Lucinda Williams, Of Montreal, Hammock, and others.

Ray LaMontagne's album, Till the Sun Turns Black. My Aunt says I dance on the inside (I am shy), but the song "Three More Days" makes me dance on the outside all over our apartment. It also makes me very happy when the gym is very boring. I think this CD will warrant a blog review, too.

GOOD magazine. It seems to lean a tad more to the left than I do, but I'm a sucker for beautiful design and it does contain some innovative ideas. The article on choosing gasoline was hilarious. But did I read a somewhat positive article on Wal-Mart?? If you subscribe, 100% of your $20 goes to help the charity of your choice.

AmericanaRoots.com where I will soon contribute CD and book reviews! I am very excited about this new project. They have a fantastic web site and Podcast, and Americana music is a large basis of my eclectic musical cravings.

A FREE conference at HBU starting tomorrow - Credo: The Arts as Expressions of Belief. I cannot attend every lecture, but I will not miss:

Marilynne Robinson, author of Gilead!
Gregory Wolfe, editor of Image journal!
Artist Mary McCleary!

I will try to catch a few other speakers and keep my promise to take prolific notes for less fortunate friends unable to attend. I hope the conference will break my blogger's block as well.