The view from here...

Driving back to Indianapolis from a weekend of shows and friends in Chicago...mentally preparing for my first supposed BIG winter storm. 20 inches of snow expected and I keep hearing people talk about buying groceries incase they get trapped.

Gulp.

And damn, I wish I had a hot tub....

Or some sun.

My mum was talking to me the other day about how she couldn't sleep because it was so hot in Adelaide. Hmm. Heat or snow...such a hard toss up.

Not!!!

Give me heat any day...

From out here on I65 driving towards a storm....god, so the story of my life. Ha!!

Xxm

Aussie Day in Indianapolis

Celebrating Australia day in the snow. We recreating our favorite Aussie foods, starting with cheesy vegemite scrolls......

Can barely wait to eat them....

Happy Aussie day mates

Xxm

Happy day of birth...

To Me...

I kinda wish I were sitting in this beach today, celebrating my birth like I have many times before.

Ahh, but I have snow, surrounded by good mates and plenty of laughter. What more could a girl want?!

Blessed I be on this day of birth...

Xxm

Resolutions....

I have spent a good chunk of time, during my few weeks of feeling poorly, writing out my intentions, resolutions and things I want to manifest this year. Pages upon pages of things and then a few pages of things I wanted to leave behind, which I promptly burned.

One thing I want to spend more time with this year is redefining my spirituality. Since leaving organized religion I feel like I have wandered around a little in spiritual no woman's land....taking a little here and there without really spending a lot of time working out what works for me.

I know meditation works for me, so taking time to develop my practice more.

I know thinking deeply about intentions and that which I choose to put out into the world both physically and energetically, works for me. So being mindful and working more on developing that.

Being creative is a chance for me to tap into my spirit more too.

Getting back to myself and my spirit is my quest. To stand proudly and unashamedly on my truth. To love and be loved and to know what I want and to be able to verbalize that proudly. Someone reminded me today that this is my life, that I get to make all the decisions and dictate where I go. That I give what I want when I want.

This is all what I want..

What to you want?

Xxm

Things to know today....

January 1st, 2011....

1.1.11

Weird huh?

So, this year you will be happy to know is going to be good for the arts....and the 7 billionth person will be born. It only took 11 years for the last billion to be born. That's some freaky shit and hopefully the two aren't related.

But we all know they probably are.

Good year for the arts means there will be a lot of giddy artists running around....which means, of course, there will be lots of giddy artists doing the dirty (or the wonderously yummy, as I like to think of it).

So, my prediction for 2011, is that the 7 billionth person born will no doubt be sired by artists and will grow up to be a very happy, well adjusted, creative human being.

Oh...and happy new year, in the midst of this, possibly the most bizarre posting ever.....

Xxm

Solstice....

Well, it's been a long time between blog posts. The longest time every probably. Sorry about that for those of you who regularly read. It's winter here in Indiana and I am surrounded by more snow than I have ever seen in my life. Learning how to live in it is interesting in a 'do I need to buy snow pants, how do I get my car door unfrozen' kind of way. I have moments of being amazed but it and then moments of being just utterly pissed off and wanting to get back to my Australian summer.

I am sitting here listening to the final mix of the new live cd...it's bloody fantastic, if I must say so myself. It feels so nice to have captured such a beautiful show. The audience members sing like angels and clap and whoots like devils....it's wonderful. Someone just asked me if the pre-sale is still going.....it is, and you can find it here: http://www.martinelocke.com/pages/presale.php . Hopefully will be ready for posting by mid February and then I will start to plan cd release shows around the country.

So, it was solstice Tuesday night and for the first time in 700 years that coincided with an eclipse. It felt like a very powerful time to me. I watched the eclipse via a webcam in Chile (coz of aforementioned snow blocking the sky here) and felt in myself like it was an amazing thing to witness. I wrote my intentions out and mailed them to myself via futureme.org - it's set to send me an email in one years time. Such a freaky concept. Tuesday night I went to a solstice party and they had a fire out back for people to burn the things that they wanted to leave. For me, I had to burn things to do with my time in the church. Guilt and feeling responsible. It's very strange to have found all of that inside myself still after so many years being away from it. But there it was.....and there it went.

Happy holiday to you however you celebrate them and I hope that you get the chance to take a moment and think about what it is you are willing to let go of during this solstice time. Things that don't serve you anymore. Let them go.

xxM

the days of our lives....

Elizabeth Edwards passed away on Tuesday from breast cancer. A lot of you would most likely know who she is but google will be able to tell you if you don't. One of her last quotes moved me deeply today as I try to work out where my brain is at and why it feels all so muddled with this life of mine. I share it with you, as it was shared with me, to offer a remembrance of the shortness of life....


“The days of our lives, for all of us, are numbered. We know that. And, yes, there are certainly times when we aren’t able to muster as much strength and patience as we would like. It’s called being human. But I have found that in the simple act of living with hope, and in the daily effort to have a positive impact in the world, the days I do have are made all the more meaningful and precious. And for that I am grateful.“ –Elizabeth Edwards

Cracked....

I get it.
I know how it feels.
Reminding myself of the old Chinese tradition of filling cracks with gold. That cracks were seen as a valuable part of the history of the piece that held it. Filling it with gold brought attention to the crack...honored it...made it all shiny and bright.

I am choosing to learn to honor and respect my cracks. Remembering they are a part of who I am. Not to hide them away in shame or embarrassment. To own them.

Gulp.

Maybe tomorrow I will honor them. Today I am a little weary of them.

Xxm

“I am Me. 

 

In all the world, there is no one else exactly like me. 

 

Everything that comes out of me is authentically mine, because I alone chose it -- I own everything about me: my body, my feelings, my mouth, my voice, all my actions, whether they be to others or myself. I own my fantasies, my dreams, my hopes, my fears. I own my triumphs and successes, all my failures and mistakes. 

 

Because I own all of me, I can become intimately acquainted with me. 

 

By so doing, I can love me and be friendly with all my parts. 

 

I know there are aspects about myself that puzzle me, and other aspects that I do not know -- but as long as I am friendly and loving to myself, I can courageously and hopefully look for solutions to the puzzles and ways to find out more about me. However I look and sound, whatever I say and do, and whatever I think and feel at a given moment in time is authentically me. If later some parts of how I looked, sounded, thought, and felt turn out to be unfitting, I can discard that which is unfitting, keep the rest, and invent something new for that which I discarded. I can see, hear, feel, think, say, and do. I have the tools to survive, to be close to others, to be productive, and to make sense and order out of the world of people and things outside of me. 

 

I own me, and therefore, I can engineer me. 

 

I am me, and I am Okay.”

 

`Virginia Satir

look...

Even
After
All this time
The sun never says to the earth,

“You owe Me.”

Look
What happens
With a love like that,
It lights the
Whole
Sky.

~Hafiz

to thank...or not to thank.

It's thanksgiving here in the States tomorrow and for such a 'thankful' holiday it's interesting to witness how much grief it brings people. Obligations and anxieties about family get togethers and how long to spend where. What to take, what not to take, what to wear, how much to drink beforehand....

It seems like far too much pressure for a day of thanks.

Now, lets not even go into the meaning behind the actual day. That's a whole other fucked up story.

On this day, I am choosing to be even more conscious for the things I am thankful for. To have gratefulness in my heart for my life and for the people who love me. My plan is to take some time when I wake up to meditate...to reach towards something bigger than myself and just say thank you.

And then go out and eat, drink and be merry and laugh with people who love and are loved by me.

Happy day of thanks mates.....

xxM

The Art of Non-Conformity....

(reposted from The Art of Non-Conformity )

If you are confident, they will say you are arrogant.

If you are deliberate, they will say you are too sure of yourself.

If you have a sense of purpose, they will say you are self-absorbed.

If you know who you are, they will ask, “Who are you, anyway?”

If you believe in kindness and compassion, they will say you are naïve.

If you are a dreamer, they will say “join the real world.”

If you are a rebel, they will try to shut you down.

The instructions include:

rein it in
slow it down
wait it out
pull it back
take your time
play it safe

But you will know:

They are envious because they want what you have.

They are afraid of change even as they crave it.

They are projecting their own regret into resentment of you.


As for the others, well, you will remember what Gandhi said:

“First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win.”

The Rally Cry...

I sang Hallelujah to a group of people last night who were gathered to show their support for kids who get bullied in school. To say 'it's not okay'. We lit candles in rememberance of the kids who have taken their own lives because of what bullying has done to them.

It starts with us. Us older folks, us adults, us ones who teach them ones to be different. It starts with our churches, our community leaders, our politicians.

It starts with us saying 'you are you. i am me. that's okay'.

It was a freezing cold night and a few hundred folks stood in the chill to raise their candles high and I felt proud to offer my talent, to have it stand high too. To be part of something and some cause bigger than myself.

Thanks for having me IYG.....thanks for having the balls to put the rally together, to speak out and on behalf of all of those who feel like they have no voice....or no choice.

xM

the great big wow.....

“There is a vitality, a life force, a quickening that is translated through you into action, and there is only one of you in all time, this expression is unique, and if you block it, it will never exist through any other medium; and be lost. The world will not have it. It is not your business to determine how good it is, not how it compares with other expression. It is your business to keep it yours clearly and directly, to keep the channel open. You do not even have to believe in yourself or your work. You have to keep open and aware directly to the urges that motivate you. Keep the channel open. No artist is pleased. There is no satisfaction whatever at any time. There is on a queer, divine dissatisfaction, a blessed unrest that keeps us marching and makes us more alive than the others.”                                         

Martha Graham  (American Dancer, Teacher and Choreographer of modern dance, 1894-1991)

Nothing is too scarey.
Nothing is too much.
There is a path.
There is no crisis.

There is but a moment to stop and say, 'wow.......'
(usually quickly followed by a 'holy fuck, look at that sky'....at least for me). 


xxM

Saturday Nights Magic....

And grateful I will be for all the love in the room...

Here we go....

Here we go people....today is the day.

Everything is ready.

Well...almost....I have to wash my hair.

THEN I will be ready.

I am doing my first ever live solo recording tonight. The show is sold out, people are excited, I am excited..and a little nervous. I have been working on releasing attachment to anything being perfect. The idea is to catch a live show..in all it's glory...and I want to remember that as I play, as I speak, as I be. I was  dreaming last night of things I want to say and hopes I have for the night and for what is captured.

I also had a dream that I forgot to thank everyone for all their work and promptly woke up and reminded myself that the show hadn't actually happened yet and it was okay...

Honestly, I mostly want to forget that it's being recorded and just do what I do. Be who I am. In all my glory.

I am sure more will be posted on here throughout the day, and if you are friends with me on facebook there are already a tonne of photos and video up there. I am blessed to have wonderful people around me as we all walk into this experience together and know that I couldn't be doing it without the talent,  belief and the love of all of them too. My heart is so turned towards community that I feel myself well up when I think and see all of their faces in my mind. How is it that I am blessed by such amazing hearts.

So...here we go peoples.

See you on the other side!

xxM

The Martine & Trina Show

Yes, it's true. December 11th, the wonderful Trina Hamlin and I will do a double bill show here in Indianapolis. We haven't done a proper show together for a while and felt like it was time. It will be my first show at Earth House, a wonderful community based venue here in downtown Indianapolis, that is an amazing old church. 

During the day in the same space is the 3rd Annual Alternative Gift Fair where MuseKraft and 30+  local artisans will have their wares on sale for your Xmas present buying pleasure.

Tickets are on sale at Brown Paper Tickets now, so grab your mates and put a xmas group together and come and be with us for the night for a lot of fun music.

xxM

Art....and music.

This is my guitar, getting a beautiful new dress. She looks amazing, no?!

Xxm

Check 1, 2, 3

This is a shot from the last time I played a show here in Indianapolis at the Indy Indie clubhouse. It's where I am going to record my live cd in three weeks time and no doubt, the audience will look somewhat similar to this.

I have been rehearsing with Dionne and my friend Jamie Price who will be sitting in on djembe with us for a few songs and slowly have been getting the set list ready for it. I am sure I should be more nervous than I am, but its just a live show. I know I only get one chance to make the cd sound pretty and part of me knows that I have to get myself to a place where I just let go of my perfectionist and let it just 'be'.

It's going to be a live performance with all the cracks, pops, garuffs, laughs, moments of blankness and spontaneity that a live show usually carries. And that is going to be a beautiful thing to capture on tape (or disc, as it is now known...).

The show is pretty much sold out and will be filled with warm, loving, excited humans who are there to be a part of the magic of recording. Peoples who will bring their voices and their hearts ready to lay it all down with me. Then the recording will be mixed, mastered, pressed and sent out into the world with all it's character and beauty.....and it will be, as it is.

And for that, I am tremendously grateful.

xxM

The path...

I find that my path, my journey is never boring.

Never has been, never will be.

It's sometimes beautiful, straight and clear. Other times dark, cloudy and unclear. Sometimes, its even beautiful, unclear and filled with leaves....lol.

I thought about that when I saw this staircase in Turkey Run State Park today. Hiking in the midst of.such beauty reminding myself to stay present, to breathe. The words of Pema Choudron ringing in my ears;

"As each breath goes out, let it be the end of that moment and the birth of something new."

I know that my brain can get so caught up in the 'what ifs' that I forget to pay attention and breathe in the now...and then look at what I can miss out on.

Back to breathing.....in and out.

That's all I can control...

Xxm