It's official...the Summer has ended.

Do you ever get end of Summer blues? I usually get a little hint of that, and especially now that I work at a school, I can really feel it when the Summer is over because it means you have the entire school year ahead of you. I might even venture to say that the Summer makes the entire rest of the year worth living. (Fresh tomatoes off the vine, delicious berries and fresh peaches, flip flops, sunglasses, the smell of freshly cut grass, popsicles, playing in the sprinklers, long sunny days, riding bikes, and obviously this list could go on...but I'll spare you.) There is one thing I do love about the end of Summer, and that is that it starts to cool down a bit where I live. And lets be honest, there is no better time than the Fall when you live in New York City.

So this Summer I had the privilege of traveling a little bit (as well as enjoy a lot of those things I listed above), and as far as music goes, I was fortunate to play a few shows out in the western part of the United States as you may have read in previous posts. Well, while I was in Utah, I had Independent Music Studios in Salt Lake City, Utah record a promotional video for me with some live footage from the shows. If you 'd like to see the video, go ahead and check it out by clicking on the image below. Also, feel free to comment on it if you have any thoughts- I'd love to hear them!

Thanks again for reading, listening and watching. More music is coming your way shortly.

Xo,

Bianca

Dear earth, I am coming back to you now...

So I fell off the face of the earth (according to a dear friend of mine here in NYC)...and I can't deny it, it's true.

I have had the opportunity to first go camping and sing silly camp songs... 

go to my best friends wedding...

play pretend with my nephew...

laugh with my mom and sisters...

play a house concert with an amazing band called Lady and Gent...

Eat my grandmas AMAZING peach pie (it's seriously to die for)
and go jogging in the morning with my dad (he works me into shape everytime)

take a road trip with my hubby...

drive the Las Vegas strip and ride splash mountain...

pick organic strawberries at some random farm in California...

get a sun burn at the beach and ride bikes around San Diego with friends...

all in the last 3 weeks. It's been AMAZING! 

I don't get to see my family who live out west very often, and so this time, I decided I was going to set other things aside while I was there, and I was just going to enjoy every moment of it. I hardly sent any emails, I hardly even played the guitar actually (so bad, I know!) but it was so necessary. I've decided that time just moves too quickly. It's so rare that I get to spend time with these people that I love so dearly, so I tried my best to be present. I think the realization that my niece who was 6 years old at my wedding is now 12 (going on 18) has really been a wake up call for me! I'm missing out on some of the lives of people that I love! 

So I know I said I was going to post a video a week...but I failed miserably at that this month. BUT, don't worry, I'm back now. I've come back to earth. I actually got back this morning...and I'm slowly transitioning to reality. I'll be posting a video this week and have some new songs in the works as well.

...in the meantime, I just wanted you to know that I'm alive and well...very well.

Although there are still some areas in my life that I long for to be different, I cannot deny that I am so blessed. It's almost more than I can handle. Do I even deserve all of this? I don't feel like it sometimes. But I'm grateful for it, and grateful to my Father in Heaven for being so generous and patient with me. Really though. How grateful I am to have had these last three weeks to spend with people that I love. 

Thanks for letting me fall off the face of the earth for a little bit. I'm back now (I think).

Xo,

Bianca

P.S. Today is my anniversary (7 years!!), and tomorrow is my birthday (don't worry about it!), and on Wednesday of this week, I am playing a show at Rockwood Music Hall at 9pm with two other gals that I am so fond of. You can hear them here and here. It's going to be great. You should come.

Things for me are shifting...

Happy Summer Everyone!

These last few days have been so beautiful here in New York City. In fact, yesterday evening I took a jog around my neighborhood and soaked up every minute of it. I saw American flags waving in people's front yards, kids playing games in the street, old couples enjoying the night on their front porch, and the golden hue that covers everything for a brief moment while the sun sets. It only lasts for a short while, but it is arguably one of my favorite times of the day. What an amazing time of year this is...so worth the wait in my opinion.

I've been doing a lot of thinking lately. I decided that during the month of July, I was going to gather myself together, reflect on what it was exactly that I was doing, and I was going to get clearer on my vision for my future. For a while, I've been feeling like I've been living in "default mode," which to me means, "coasting." I wasn't very clear on why I was doing what I was doing, and it started to get fuzzy...my purpose that is.

So here we are now already approaching mid July somehow, and I've actually discovered a lot in this short time of reflection. As far as my music is concerned...I decided that I am going to guard my time a little more carefully. This to me means that I am shifting things around a little...my priorities I guess, and the way I choose to spend my time is going to be more carefully assessed. Time is so valuable. So I decided that with regards to my music, I am going to be focusing less on playing live shows all the time, and more time on writing, and sharing my music online. I will play shows still, of course! But I may only do one or two shows in New York City every season, and then I'll continue to do little tours here and there, and on top of that...I'll continue writing, and posting video's and free downloads, and all that great stuff. I want to reach more people, but if I play a ton of shows in New York City, and if that takes up most of my time, funds and energy, then I won't have as much time and energy to write and share my music with all of you that don't live here in New York! And since I currently can't go visit all of you at the moment, then I will just visit some of you, and then will share music online with the rest. So there you have it, that's my new plan.

Other areas of my life are shifting as well, and it's so refreshing. It feels a little empty because I'm getting rid of the overload, but I know that in time it is going to feel so good, almost like the way you feel after cleaning out your closet. I actually started writing a song about this whole process this week, and hopefully I'll post a video to share it with you in the next few weeks once it's finished. My goal is to post one video a week. Today I'm going to start with a video that I am so excited to share because I got to be a part of this amazing group of other singer-songwriters that are based out of New York City, and it has all been compiled here on the NYC Music Collective page. If you want to hear some great artists and singer-songwriters...seriously, go check it out. You'll be pleased you did, I guarantee it. I'll post my clip from the NYC Music Collective here for you to also see and hear. Feel free to share it, and be ready for more to come soon!


ARTIST 05 - Bianca Merkley from ROCK*iT FiLMS on Vimeo.



With love always,

Bianca