anji bee

I’ve been enjoying my new couch for several months now. I have to admit, when it was first delivered in April, I was a little disappointed. Firstly, it arrived several months late, and secondly, the fabric on the pillows wasn’t what I ordered. Turns out that American fabric companies have been going out of business due to Chinese competition, so the fabric I chose was no longer available. They were able to get some backstock of the main fabric, but just barely. In any case, this is the first new couch I’ve ever owned and it felt kinda weird. I was really in love with my old 20’s set, so a modern faux-old couch took some getting used to. The upside is that there are no painful springs, no dustmites, and the cushions aren’t flat. The couch is so comfortable and durable, in fact, that I just had my first couch surfing guest this weekend sleep on it. :P

FINALLY got out to Catalina Island for some beachside camping and it was dee-lightfull!!! Lots of hiking with sea breezes, beautiful nights and solitude. Can’t wait to get back over there.

Been a bit better on this since quitting coffee at the New Year. I used to nurse a cup of joe all morning long and not touch any other liquid til night. I also got a Brita filter and – lo and behold – water actually tastes good now. On top of that, I got a water bottle that I can fill and bring with me when I leave the house. I felt bad at the idea of throwing plastic water bottles away constantly, so now I don’t have that guilt factor. The only thing that has swayed me from drinking water all day is the fact that now I am hooked on tea! Mainly green tea, but still, a water replacer… Maybe once the weather turns to Spring I’ll quit craving warm drinks?

At the new year, I started expanding on this goal, trying some new things. After chatting with Share of Rock n Roll TV several times while taping our collabocast, ShowGirls, I decided to try making some raw deserts.

An easy pudding like treat is blending an avocado and banana with carob powder and a touch of either fruit juice or rice milk until smooth. You can eat it fresh out of the blender—or try freezing it for an iced treat. :)

It seems I’ve not only hit my goal of “1 million served” but surpassed it by reaching over 1.5 million served with The Chillcast. The numbers aren’t stable,; they fluctuate from episode to episode, but overall my monthly requests are more than I ever imagined they would be when I first signed on with PodShow. It might be time for me to come up with some new goals.

Well I found a couch and had it ordered to my specifications, at long last. It is supposed to arrive sometime this month. I’m pretty excited. Already moved the living room around to get ready for it. Hope it turns out as cool as I think it will…

Happy to report that my new album came out last October. Long Way From Home by Lovespirals is the actual CD. It available at all the usual places online, including iTunes+ and Amazon Mp3, which is really cool. Not only did we release a full length album, but also a digital-only remix EP of the first single, “Motherless Child.” Yay!

I’m making some headway on this goal, though I still wouldn’t say I’m comfortable or confident about it. I recently asked my audience and peers to nominate The Chillcast with Anji Bee for the People’s Choice Podcast Awards, and lo-and-behold, I’m now in the running! It feels good.

I also befriended a fan, Chel Pixie, who’s been a great support. She set up a Ning Anji Bee Fansite and has put me in touch with many other helpful people in my field. I’m trying to return the favor by setting up a Chipin page asking for funds to bring her out to the Portable Media Expo this September (hopefully to see me win above mentioned award, with a whole lot of luck…)

I added 3 heirloom tomatoes to my collection earlier this year, and they are all ripening up deliciously! I got my first Green Zebra this week, and its so beautiful I hate to eat it. I also added a healthy little herb box to my herb collection, and the parsley has really taken off. This winter I should try some carrots.

Just mastered our new Lovespirals album with Robert Rich this month, and it sounds really good. We’re set to co-release the CD with Projekt Records later this year. Everything is coming along great so far, wish me luck getting the artwork together in time for a holiday release!

Hooked up with two local photographers for new band photos over the past month. The first was with Elena LaCuesta, professional photographer we met through a designer friend, and the second was was Gregory Aune, a photography student who happens to share a house with my best friend. We have so many photos now I can’t choose which to use for our album!

Ha ha ha ha ha!

Like that will ever happen…

Who am I trying to kid?

I’m not entirely sure where it was I thought I should be getting out to when I added this goal. Over time, I think I’ve come to the conclusion that I’m happiest when I “get out” to nature. I’ve always gone to the movies regularly – in fact I just went last night – but I seem to go through phases of taking time out for the beach or hiking. Now that it’s warmer, I’ll probably go to the beach at least once a week, which is really, really a recharging experience for me. I went last week, come to think of it… I also went to the wetlands for a few hours and that was fantastic. I’d like to move somewhere where I’m surrounded by open land so I can just step outside and be in nature, rather than having to drive to it. My garden is great, but the street and alley traffic take away from it’s recuperative effects.

I started juicing again last month. Not regularly, but occasionally. bought some more carrots last night. i go through those fast. carrots and apples make a great basic juice, then you can add just about anything to it. even celery. mmm… that sounds good right now!

I think I have outgrown my little dining room desk spot. This year I got a new computer, a mixing board, a new mic and desk mic stand, and add to that a sizable stack of cds sent to me by bands, paperwork, and whatever else, its all become a bit unsightly for the first place you see when you walk in the house. besides which, its loud in this room because its encircled by windows on 3 sides, with an alley on one side, and a fairly busy street on an other. not to mention loud neighbors on the 3rd. oh wait, i just mentioned it. :) i have been racking my brains to come up with the perfect solution of how/where i can start doing all of my podcast work elsewhere…

Just wrote a long entry for today, which is my first entry for March. I made one long entry for February, too. So all I have managed is one entry per month for 2007, but I suppose that it is better than nothing, eh?

while i was shopping for a new sofa, i saw fabric samples from a place i’d checked out a few years ago called archive editions. turns out they’ve designed at least 3 times as many more new fabrics, some of which are quite stunnings. i think i’ll order something from them for the chairs when life quiets back down a bit. i’m also seriously considering getting some drapes made, because i still have cheapo target remains curtains up right now and they don’t keep the cold out one bit. so, i guess this was a double bonus, as it were!

i’ve actually gone out shopping for couches a few times over the past month. i found one online i thought was pretty cool, but when i drove all the way out to see it in person, it wasn’t quite as comfy as i had hoped. i’m trying to balance out aesthetics, comfort, and cost to make the best choice.

i have to admit that i’ve been embarrassed to broadcast this issue to the internet, but i guess that just shows how hard it is for me to be vulnerable to people… i think i’m making baby steps towards growing comfortable asking for help.

i called a friend at work today asking him to look into a few things for me and it felt good. i also asked him to check out my new lovely ladies show and told him i’m looking for sponsors.

lately i’ve been asking my audience for support here and there, too, whether it’s recommending my shows to their friends, coming to comment on an episode, or subscribing, so… i know every podcaster should do that automatically without hesitation, but i never ask anyone to vote for me any of that hard core promo stuff because i would just feel too awkward. i don’t know why.

OK, my one cheer inspired me to make a start. I fired up Pages and created my Year 2007 Journal this evening. Started it off with a few photos from the new year and made a good sized entry for today. Started to paste in a few blogs from earlier in the month, too, so all of January doesn’t consist of one entry. It felt good to journal again. It’s different than blogging for me. I think I need a private life, as well.