#pitws

[paulrileyfawm]

PITW #30 Everything takes longer than you think — plan for it. (Status Update 1.31.13)

Folks, we have less than an hour until FAWM begins for those in the Eastern Standard Timezone, and I am not ready! This week, I was supposed to get in touch with everyone who said, "Yes," to helping with this. I am sorry that I did not. I hope that people don't feel insulted or that I blew them off. This week, I have been working very hard to finish a video essay in a series that I've been doing for nine months. I am uploading it to YouTube now, forty-five minutes before FAWM begins. Just like the PITW says, everything takes longer than you think it will. I told you they come in handy. At midnight, I will be participating in a FAWM Skirmish, in which somebody will present a song title and many FAWM participants will write and record a song with that title. The challenge? Do it all in an hour. I didn't do any skirmishes last year, and I think there's no better way to jump into this year than by participating in one. Again, everything will take longer to complete than I think it will or want it to. But a deadline's a deadline, and sometimes you have to accept it. Stay tuned to this Tumblr for updates tomorrow on how you can hear demos and read lyrics during the process. I am super pumped! -Paul New to this Tumblr? Learn about what I'm doing here.

[paulrileyfawm]

PITW #5 "Multiply" the power of everything! (Status Update 1.24.13)

PITW stands for Putting Idealism to Work, and PITWs are phrases that people at City Year use to guide their service. There are 181 last time I checked, and for a while I was trying to memorize all of them. Why? Because they come in handy for so many situations. Take the one serving as the subject for this entry. When I started thinking about doing FAWM again last month, I wanted to make it even bigger than when I participated last year. Realizing that I could release an album to benefit City Year New Hampshire, I knew that getting other people involved would simultaneously make the album stronger and spread the word about the fundraising component. Having an album of one guy's songs is cool, but owning an album that unites young people from service and others who are passionate about creativity to collaborate on every song - that's worth having. We're roughly a week away from the beginning of FAWM. This time next week, I'll be preparing to mourn the loss of Liz Lemon and tempering that sadness with last minute pre-FAWM preparations. I've gotten in touch with most of the people that I have thought about contacting, but there are few more people to ask. And, of course, I'd love to have you - yes, YOU! - on board as well. Send me an e-mail at [email protected] or call me at [phone] and we'll figure out how to work this out. Last night I talked to my buddy Jawad, who was my roommate during our senior corps year. Jawad would often sit in the living room and noodle around with his guitar. I'm hoping to steal a few precious minutes from his busy February to have him inject some creativity into my FAWM attempt. I just heard back from my buddy Joey. He's currently out in Utah leading some sort of intensive education program for youth in the wilderness. He's an old friend - we were actually in a band together in high school. Pennyfarthing may no longer be with us, but Joey still plays music. He is a fan of the ukulele and I'm looking forward to playing music with him again. There are some other new people on board but I want to get this entry up before it's the 25th. Please keep checking back for updates and let me know if you're interested in helping in whatever way you wish! -Paul