now we're a few days into 2009, and i've been feeling very thankful... for the friends around me, for today, for coffee, for just about everything.  i'm not sure if the turning of the calendar page sparked something in me, but it's almost as if i took a right turn on a different road and i like where we're heading.  

in between my new year's eve spent dodging collagen and fake body parts to the chargers' victory over the colts last night, 2009 has been an adventure so far.  "reno" goes to radio this week, and we're playing my favorite venue (the belly up) this thursday night.  i'm still working on the preorder songs, and i'm looking forward to getting back to the southeast in a few weeks.  

i'm going to try to live 2009 one day at a time.  hope to see you out there.

and waffle house.

i've never been.

but that changed.

from the stone-age buildup of gunk under the stove to the $3.85 breakfast (double-waffle with blueberries and coffee) and suspect bathrooms, i'm in love. finally. like it's for the first time. rachel even snuck a waffle house mug into her bag for me. i of course had nothing to do it. but i'm drinking coffee out of it right now, back home staring at the pacific and catching up on life. i'll be back in the southeast in about 6 weeks. can't wait.

http://www.myspace.com/awsongsforyou

we're playing a free show at the casbah october 25th, so if you're in san diego come out and say hi.

back at it...

http://www.countryweekly.com/freemusic/

yesterday, cmt weighed in here:

http://blog.cmt.com/2008-08-12/alex-woodard-will-write-a-song-for-you/

and today rhapsody is doing a 'listening party' in advance of the new record right here:

http://www.rhapsody.com/alexwoodard/alexwoodard

i gave them a bonus track too called 'the roof'... no one's ever heard that one.  it's listed as track 12 on that page.

hope you like what you're hearing on the new one... we shot videos for 'reno' with sara watkins and 'there is no more time to waste' with dawn mitschele, and those will be  up soon!

aw

there are a few early reviews up in the press section on the site, and at least initially it seems like i got across what i was going for with this album... the stories are about the everyday living side of getting older, and on a few songs i tried to put myself in the shoes of stories i haven't lived yet.

finally, i lost Kona in july... here's what i wrote about it the next morning:

I said goodbye to Kona last night.

As her breathing slowed, a single tear dropped from her left eye onto my shorts. The vet said it would be better not to think of it as crying, but that's what it was.

That tear held love, thanks, and goodbye.

And then she was gone.

I made my way out of the house and took Stella on a run, crying most of the way down the street while folks driving or walking by wondered whether or not they should ask me what was wrong.

We ran on the beach for a long time. I stopped once because the crying was stronger than the breathing and sat down on the sand. Stella came running up to me and dropped something at my feet. It was a little green plastic fish, the kind you might find floating in a kid's bathtub.

She carried that little fish all the way to the stretch of beach in front of the house, where I took all my clothes off and walked out into the water. Stella followed me out until the surf got too big for her to clear, and then waited for me as I came back to the sand. I pulled my shorts back on, walked up the stairs and into the house, and took a shower. I slept without dreaming.

When I woke up this morning, I posted "The Table" for Kona. We recorded it just days before I found out that she had cancer. When I wrote it, I didn't know she was dying. And now I know I wrote it for her.

If you come to my house, you will probably see a little green plastic fish sitting up on the mantle. Stella was sitting in front of the fireplace this morning, staring up at the little fish. I gave it to her and she now has it nestled next to her on her bed.

We both will be saying goodbye for a long time.