Taking The What???

So, you may be wondering what the heck 'Taking The Blog' means. And, you would not be alone. I think it's out there, myself.

But, bear with me for a moment.

As some of you may know, I am in the midst of producing my debut CD, entitled "Taking The Wheel". It's the title of one of the tracks on the CD, too, written by American theatre songwriter John Bucchino. I chose it as the title of the CD, in part because it's a great, fun song to sing (and also to listen to, I hope...) but mostly because of the metaphor of the lyric. The chorus goes like this:

"I've been in the back seat long enough, tagging along for the ride. I've been in the back seat long enough to know
That you never get what you deserve if you never can decide. There's only one way to get to where you want to go.
Throwing down the pencil and grabbing a pen. Taking the wheel, driving again.
Throwing down the pencil and writing in ink: This is how I feel. This is what I think.
Dreaming again, and making those dreams real. Taking the Wheel."

I don't know about you, but to some degree, I felt as if I was not fully in control of the direction of my career. (That's a topic for another whole blog I'm sure.) As an actor, you have very little control over where you work, which projects you work on, or whether you work at all. And, although I'm extremely grateful and fortunate to be one of the lucky ones, I still feel somewhat like I plopped my little dingy down (you did WHAT?!?!?) in the middle of the Niagara River, and although I can steer it a bit from side to side, I ain't never gonna change the path of the river. It's taking me.

That being the case, I felt that it was time to do something that I could control! To do something I had always dreamt of doing! To be in charge of not only my dingy (and who isn't, really), but the river, too! At least for one project, anyway. And that project became the biggest pain in the ass I've ever .... No, no, no, I'm kidding. It's been great. And continues to bring me joy every day. But, the point is, I knew exactly what John Bucchino was writing about in his song. I was there, myself. That's why I knew I had to name my CD "Taking The Wheel".

Now, if that ain't the most boring speech you'll ever hear...

So, I told you that story to tell you this one. The CD led to the website jeffmadden.ca, and the website led to this blog. So, 'Taking The Blog' makes total sense in my world. How about you?

Let me know what you think about all this shhhtuff. Have you ever felt like you weren't in control of your career, or your life in general? I'd love to hear what you think. Hit the comment link below, and share.

Until next time...