I have, on many occasions, described myself as an “appreciator.” I'm terrible at making art. I can't sing or dance or paint or draw or sculpt or write poetry or any of that stuff. The way I contribute to the creative community is to enjoy the work of others. Honestly, it's the reason I started this blog. I wanted to write more, but just as importantly, I want to read what the rest of you have to say. I really enjoy getting all the submissions every week.
In any event, I just like liking things, especially music. There's nothing I enjoy more than listening to something new and exciting, then telling everyone I know how great it is until they're completely sick of me. What I'm driving at here is this: Have any of you ever listened to Piney Gir? She's really great. Probably one of my five favorite artists ever. Like most people who really love an artist, I've bought all of her albums and listen to them often. I added her as a friend on Facebook so I could get updates about concerts I couldn't attend because they all take place in the UK.
After a while, she started noticing how frequently I posted her songs on my Facebook page. She got a hold of me, telling me she'd be coming to LA in the near future. She wanted to know if I knew any music-types or concert venues or whatever. Freak out. There's something very daunting about being contacted by somebody whose work you so greatly admire. I told her I didn't know any music people or concert bookers or whatever, but I do know filmmaker-types. She sent me an advance copy of her next album, in the hopes that I could come up with a music video. Crazy, insane pressure.
Through systems beyond anybody's control, her trip to Los Angeles was canceled due to giant clouds of volcanic ash. I was pretty crushed, but we still talk every now and again, and I still love everything she does. That, however, is where we reach the conflict portion of this story. How do I go about being a fan of Piney Gir's music, despite knowing that she knows? It's a weird feeling knowing that someone knows that you admire their work. It's like have a crush on somebody's art. There's a weird embarrassment that comes with being found out. I've had to tone down my fandom lately, out of a weird sense of self-loathing. “Boy, I hope Piney never finds out that I like her music, even though that's well-established.” I dunno. It's hard to explain. I guess I just don't want to look like a pathetic superfan or whatever. I need to stop thinking about it so much, I suppose.
I guess all I can do really is tell you that I love her music. I think it's well written and skillfully performed. It makes me happy in ways that other music just doesn't. I think that's enough. There's not really that much more to say, I guess. Just listen to this.
Little Doggie (From the album Hold Yer Horses)
Greetings, Salutations, Goodbye (Also from Hold Yer Horses)
For the Love of Others (From the album The Yearling)
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Oh, hello everybody. I'm writing again! How nice. So I'm all moved in and shit. I have a whole bunch of cool stuff in this apartment that I simply lacked at my old address. A bedroom, a heater, air conditioning, carpet and a non-digusting shower, to name five. It's really quite nice.
First order of business is thanking my lovely editor Meg Wood. She took over for a week while I was getting my act together, packing, cleaning, moving, et cetera. She's the greatest. If you disagree, please light your head on fire. Thank you.
Now onto more important business: writing prompts. Do me a favor, everyone – please send me a Thanksgiving essay. We're a little light on those, and I'd like a couple more. New prompts, though, are way cooler than reminders about old ones, right? Here are the two new topics:
Vague unease! Anything that makes you go “eh, I dunno... maybe?” Write about that, get the essay in by next Friday, November 26.
Lies and lying! It's a sin to tell a lie, or so that song tells me. It's not a sin to write for this site, though. Please have your essays in by Friday, December 3. Holy shit, man. December.
Grosses bises,
Josh Grimmer, Editor-in-Chief
Josh Grimmer lives in Hollywood with his wife and cat. He kinda sorta runs this blog, and has another one at http://mousebed.blogspot.com. Twitter him up at http://twitter.com/JoshGrimmer
I know exactly what you mean about feeling guilty after letting someone know you're their fan. I felt like that after meeting some of the comedians I like.
ReplyDeleteBut I think it's important to say thank you. Most people don't, and it's amazing how easy it is to do so these days. Creative people want to know that the thing they made made a difference in someone else's life. And anyone you admire probably has a lot of other people they go gooey around. I try to remind myself of this when I start blushing over the last stupid thing I said.