I have what they used to call Melancholia–what today they call depression. More precisely I am Bipolar Type 2. Which is to say I am prone to mood swings. To put it mildly. My highs are relatively mild, as compared to the Type 1 brain. But my lows are often devastating. But I recently started a new medication which has kept those extreme lows at bay, for which I am thankful many times over.
I am saying all this because I am entering Spring vacation. Vacations are a notoriously bad time for me–ironically, since I crave the time to be creative. The trouble is I put too much hope in the time off; I put too much pressure on myself to perform; and I disappoint myself every time.
It remains to be seen if the new drug helps. What’s unique about this break is that I have a definite plan to be creative; I have a destination for my achievement: Wednesday–a mere four days from now–I go into the studio to record 5 songs with four other musicians. The songs are mine. They are for a new CD which I have been planning–and putting off–for eight long years. So the bar is high indeed this Spring break.
I am preparing for this recording session by locking myself in my office hours a day, running through the songs. Also, I’ve made a few videos of myself singing some of the songs on my facebook page. https://www.facebook.com/twernigg
Furthermore, I am keeping myself busy trying to raise money for this project. I have money stashed away for this session, but I will need lots more of it to complete the album–which I am determined to do this summer. So I started an account on Kickstarter.com, [https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/460360630/stories-new-tom-wernigg-cd?ref=live], hoping to raise the rest of the money.