Thursday Thoughts

My creative process - especially when it comes to arranging music - sometimes frustrates me:  while I feel very strongly about discipline and consistency in my creative schedule, I have trouble taking an idea or a tune and immediately creating from that jumping point.  I need time to let it stew and develop ... well, flavor.

Two weeks into culinary school, and already I'm putting my blog posts into cooking metaphors.  Be afraid.  Be very afraid.

But there is something to be said for the metaphor.  Just like a simmering stockpot or crockpot, just because you aren't actively minding an idea doesn't mean that it isn't developing.  Maybe one has to give it a stir every now and again, but the development for me is on the backburner of the mind.  Without the time, it lacks depth.  With too much time, the product evaporates.

I'm turning into the villain in Blazing Saddles, so I'd better stop with the comparisons.  But for me, the process is almost magical:  all of a sudden, what I need to do is crystal clear under my fingers, materializing almost as if by outside influence.  It's just a matter of striking that balance between patience and procrastination.