Smells like young adult spirit

Smells Like Young Adult Spirit by Montagsonfire on Mixcloud

It's always nice to have a day off and to spend it at home, doing those things you've been meaning to take care of for ages. Sleeping in. Doctors appointments. Napping. Gym. Resting. And podcasting.

Or maybe that's just me.

"Smells like Young Adult Spirit" is my latest upload to MixCloud, my preferred venue for mixtapes and podcasts. While it's copyright-conscious, it's not copyright-with-a-vengeance, meaning I can upload mixtapes and podcasts under my interpretation of fair use and feel reasonably relaxed in doing so. At least until further notice.

Obviously this isn't a new podcast; I recorded it a few years ago, in fact. After all, it was the 20th anniversary of the release of Nirvana's "Smells like Teen Spirit" in 2011, not 2014.

Nevertheless, over the last couple of years, I have discovered some new covers of "Smells like Teen Spirit" and have wanted to update the podcast for some time. And today was that day. I added two songs, wrote some new chapters for my script, recorded it on the fly (admittedly, I sound a little creaky in places, but the goal today was just to get it done), converted it into an mp3, uploaded it to MixCloud, and then "timestamped" the sucker, listing the tracks, artists, and timings.

My total effort clocked up to about 3 hours--and that's just today's work. If I included my original research, writing, and recording, I'm sure the total hours involved would be 10. Maybe even 15 or more. And that's 15 hours to produce a 1-hour podcast.

Needless to say, I don't do this every day. In fact, I don't think I've done a new podcast since 2012 or so, when things just got too . . . whatever they got. Not that you would necessarily know it from these digital pages, but it's been a rockin' and rollin' couple of years, some good, some not so good.

However, I still find the time to make mixes and mixtapes. I spent even more hours this past winter, spring, and summer on what became "Cruel Summer Mix - 77 Gaza Strip Edition." I made two mixtapes for my Mom and sis, for their annual journey from Kansas City to Santa Fe. (I'll post the track listings soon.) I even found time to make two mixtapes for my friend Psyche--impromptu homages to our mutual television obsession, Mad Men. (See what I mean when I tell you about how last night I dreamt that Don Draper loved me.)

So not dead yet, creatively speaking. Not dead at all, mentally, physically, emotionally, or spiritually either. Although there are days . . . .

I keep the emotional and spiritual too often just to myself. I keep saying that will change, and change it should. Baby steps. Putting my voice out there, my musical predilections, that's challenging enough some days. Nevertheless, now it may be time to challenge myself a little more, to share more of what makes me tick, not just what makes me talk.

So stay tuned . . . .