Katie Mariah's Blog

My Cup

I think I'm a glass half full kind of person. There's always something to be thankful for when you've got a family like mine. This Thanksgiving weekend, probably the worst to date in my world, was also the best one too. (Glass half full... I'm really trying here people.) My dad was in a serious motorcycle accident, but he is alive...thank God. Those Sooners beat the Cowboys, but it was close up until the last couple of minutes (and they mostly got lucky until the very end. : ) I won't lie though. There were moments when my dad's accident happened that I was really angry. Mad at my dad, mad at the guy who hit him, and mad at the nurses who seemed to be inoculated to motorcycle accidents... like it serves them right or something. The blood would boil or I would feel apathetic about my world and dreams when my dad is sitting in a hospital bed like he is. But, then I started writing a song. No, dad, it's not "your song" yet but you are going to like it.

Sometimes my dreams seem trivial (no, I'm not saving a man's life as a doctor or shaping kids as a teacher) but it's something. I write. I sing. I do it because I listened to all those records growing up that always made me and my dad feel so good especially after a heartbreak or bad day. What has my dad been doing in the hospital the last few days that brings him comfort... listening to his favorite artists. He's got his headphones in his ears to drown out the noise of the hospital and I know it helps.    

When I got my first leading role as Cinderella in Into the Woods in eighth grade it lit a fire inside me that has lasted this long because of one moment. There was a scene where I had to fall several times, the last time I fell, I broke that third wall and engaged the audience with my last line. I saw the faces in the front row erupt with laughter and I thought: "wow, I just did that. I made them really happy for a little while."

Call me a people pleaser, but I don't think anyone can deny how good it feels to make someone smile or give them comfort.  Though doubt can creep into anyone's life, I have found that if you focus on the good, even the smallest things can turn into great blessings. When your cup is half full it more easily runs over.

KM

So Thankful!

Happy Thanksgiving!

This will be one to remember in my family. My dad was in a motorcycle accident yesterday. We were afraid he would lose his leg there for a little while. But, the doctors are saying they are 90% sure he will walk on it again. He'll probably have a knee replacement in a year or so if possible. I'll spare you the details, but please be careful out there wherever you are headed. I think we all take for granted our health and safety. It takes something like an accident to make people cognizant of their safety and good fortune. I guess that's what Thanksgiving is all about, and I am so thankful my dad is going to be okay. Thank you to everyone who prayed for him. I know it helped. Watch out for motorcycles on the road please! They are hard to see sometimes, especially if you are looking at your phone, radio... anything else but the road which I am very guilty of with all my driving.  The nurses have said they get a motorcycle wreck in a week... Dad said he's going to get back into jeeps rather than Harley's from now on as a hobby. : ) He's kept his sense of humor in tact in this, that's for sure. 

On to lighter things...

Being around family the last couple of days has made me realize all that's going on with this whole music business career thing I've started. Six months ago, the last time I have seen some of these cousins and aunts and uncles I had just started a job as an editor. Catching people up is kind of redundant, but really made me realize the progress that's been made in such a small amount of time. It was strange to talk about it so much in the hospital with my dad laid up, but I think it helps people take their minds off the reality of the situation for a bit. 

So, here's a Happy Thankgsiving wish from me and the band. My dad made it onto this little video and the first words out of his mouth when I first saw him after the wreck, (they waited for me to get there before he went into his first surgery) is: "Hey I made the cut on youtube, that was cool" yes, that's my dad. Then we prayed and they wheeled him away. 

 

Happy Thanksgiving to you! Thanks for tuning back in.

Love you dad!

KM

You rock!

Man, long day! Working hard. Drove to Dallas and back for a rehearsal with the band tonight. Forgot my purse 2/3 of the way there and couldn't turn around. Lovely. Thank goodness I had enough gas to get me to the rehearsal and a good manager that spotted me gas for the way home.

I shall get a worried reprimand from my mother as soon as she reads this I assure you. Don't worry Mom, the good Lord took care of me as usual.

The newsletter went out today and we've already gotten great feedback. Thank you all so much for taking the time to read, click, and listen to whats been going on.

If you are mad at me when reading this because you did not receive a newsletter... just go to www.katimariah.com and click "sign up" and you will get it once a month.

The band is getting better and better with every practice-- just how it should be... these guys are great and I can't wait for you to hear us live.

You are the coolest people ever for reading this blog and checking out all the stuff I'm doing. I do it every day for you guys so keep reading and checking things out.  You rock!

Night,

KM

Mmm... good

Dude, I'm sitting here mezmorised by Hanson. Yes, I said Hanson... the Mmm Bop kids from the 90's.They just did "Never Been to Spain" on some Direct tv concert series. Love that tune, it helps that they are actually Oklahomans too. These boys are amazing. I'm serious. Some friends of mine in college knew these guys and always talked about them, but I really didn't pay any attention. They were right. I guess they aren't just the Mmm Bop kids.

Here's the youngest one Zach singing "Go."

Anyway, just wanted to let you guys know I've got this cool new digital newsletter coming out each month. It opens up like in an email. It lets you know whats up and what the band and I will be doing  through out the month. I would love it if you would sign up. It's just a once a month deal... no spam. There is a place to go on www.katiemariah.com under sign up.

Later my friends,

KM

Thank you weekends

Two Thanksgivings down. Two more to go. I promised my self I would treat each meal as any other... But, I must confess ham is my weakness (actually all things pig) and I did my fair share on this bad boy. : )

There were exactly twenty of us at my Papa's today for an early Thanksgiving diner, plenty to have a game of touch football for a few hours. My older brother, John forgot the whole "touch" part of the touch football game and creamed me. I avoided hitting the dirt with my face and instead I now have a big fat strawberry on my shoulder... thanks brother.

Will and I are finally home together sitting down for the first time in a few days watching the American Music Awards. Lots of good stuff.

I head back to Dallas for more rehearsals this week before Thursday. Working hard to get ready for the album release. I'm so thankful for the people helping me do it. It's crazy to think of what I was doing this time a year ago.

Dallas Days

Anyone remember the theme song for the TV show Dallas? I sing it in my head when I'm here... my parents used to watch it when I was little. My fast and furious D-days begin with the drive down from Oklahoma with that song in my head. The last few d-days we've gotten a ton done while I've been here.  I had stacked up meetings today, to get all the paperwork and accounting fun stuff lined out... extremely important important (though a bit dry). We had a great rehearsal with the band yesterday, and a rehearsal today with a friend, Cody. He and I are working on a few  going to duets to perform at some upcoming shows with the band to mix things up a bit. My bassist, Drew D'ana and I sat down together tonight to create a plan of attack to form a freaking great live show! Looks promising so far. Here's the only picture I got from the day... really good stuff-- me and Drew sitting around brainstorming.

Hey it's reality though right? I mean, this is how it works. I never thought about Bruce Springsteen or Aerosmith sitting around with a pen and paper before going on tour racking everyone in the band's brains about what they would say to the audience between songs and how they should all be tied together, but apparently it's exactly what you do. These things don't work just work out on their own. It's still kind of funny to me.

Hey, we posted part of the rough track for one of the songs on the upcoming album, "Summer Nights." Take a quick listen... www.myspace.com/katiemariahmusic For a "rough track that has yet to be fully mixed and mastered, I'd say we're on the right track! 

Goodnight,

KM

Cowboy Mouth

I've been practicing all day on a PA system set up in my sun room. It just makes it a heck of a lot more fun to practice by yourself all day when you've got speakers and a microphone. Occasionally I'll get an audience around 3pm when the kids in my neighborhood get out of school. Guess I'm a little loud.

Got practice with the band this week! We're getting ready for our live shows. I want to make each time we play so much fun, the folks seeing us for the first time will be hooked. It's a hard thing to do. There are so many little things that can go wrong and a lot of practicing is required and rehearsing things you would never think needed to be rehearsed. I had no idea until I started learning about all the sound stuff. I can't wait to have a sound man that really knows about this stuff.

I'm reminded of a band that my friend Dusty introduced me to. An amazing live show... do you all remember Cowboy Mouth? Jenny Says... anyone? Love it!

How does he sing and play the drums at the same time like that? Crazy.

 KM

Birthday parties

Went to a two-year-old's birthday party today. It was a dress up theme. They were adorable. Tons of Tinkerbells, Snow Whites, too toos and all of that fun stuff. She got so many presents. Her mom, one of my best friends had her say thank you to every single person after opening the gift. (Not as easy as it seams for someone with only two candles on her birthday cake.)

I called my sister and asked her if we ever had birthday parties like that...we both remembered parties, but they were of a simpler sort. That's what I loved about how I grew up. Some of my favorite memories are digging in the backyard with giant cooking spoons as shovels. Don't get me wrong... my parents, though they didn't have a lot of money, made sure all four of us had at least some "cool stuff" when we were growing up. But, I don't think any kid, no matter how many Barbie's or real "toy" cameras would actually pass up playing in the mud or making a fort out of sheets and the dining room table and chairs or the very rare and extremely sought after--refrigerator box.

I think it cultivated imagination... how we all played and dealt with our boredom. It's one of the reasons I sang and found acting. It was fun and you could do it with out spending a dime.

It's something I'll try and do just like my parents-- let my kids get dirty, make their own Halloween costumes, tell them to go play outside when they're bored and always, always make forts out of anything possible lying around.

Lars and the Real Girl

So, I was blown away this weekend by Ryan Gosling's performance in Lars and the Real Girl. Have you guys ever seen it? It was seriously wonderful. Funny, a little dark, but really hopeful too. It makes you feel good about people. The acting was amazing too. Not just by Ryan, who is fantastic, but the whole cast. Here is the trailer. You must rent it. Did I mention Ryan is fantastic...

We had some friends over tonight and watched the OSU game. We used our fire pit for the first time tonight during half time. I made smores. : ) It is so cold out, felt like the first real day of winter.

I just came in from outside... the fire (but I think especially the smoke) made me sleepy, and as you can see--there wasn't much fire left.

We've started booking shows with my band! Check out my myspace page. www.myspace.com/katiemariahmusic We're getting primed and ready for the CD release. Yeah!

Oh, and OSU won. Go POKES!

Release parties

Some good times tonight!

Played with my friend Charlie again... Othello's in Norman, Oklahoma--it had been a while! I also introduced a few songs from the album that hadn't been played live yet. It's always a nervous, yet great feeling playing an original for a crowd for the first time. It makes you feel very vulnerable, but very proud and gutsy too. I always remind myself-- I have nothing to lose.

There were great folks at the show. I remember a few of them from the very first time I played my own songs. Stephanie did a great job and the release party got me fired up to have my own. You are all invited! : )

My mom and sister drove over to Norman for the show. They drove all the way over, watched, ate, gave me a hug and headed back home so they wouldn't be too late. Love my family!