Wednesday, March 31, 2010
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8 Ways to Discover New Music …
I love music. Love love love it! I’m always on the prowl for new melodies to dance to and new songs to sing horribly in the shower. I can easily spend hours searching for great stuff to upload to my iPod. Anyone that knows me would probably tell you that my love of music is up there with how much I love my Mom. Okay, maybe not that much, but definitely close. As a music fiend, let me share my secrets! Here are 8 ways to discover new music…
1. Music blogs
Photo Credit: Ed Yourdon
The internet is overflowing with music blogs from all over the world. You can find many that offer free, legal daily downloads. No matter what your favorite genre is you can find someone, somewhere that has made it their mission to bring you the latest hit makers.
2. CD swaps
Photo Credit: FatoOoma Qatar ~
Websites like swap-bot.com or online music groups like Yahoo’s The Mix Fix can be great resources for new music. Depending on the swap partner you’ve been assigned you’re able to get your hands on music that hasn’t made it big in your area yet, isn’t something you’d normally listen to, or is a great underground track you haven’t heard. If joining a group sounds like too much work, rifle through your friend’s CD collection. She’s bound to have something that is new to you!
3. Online music engines
Photo Credit: Eddie James
Lala, Pandora or my personal favorite, Lastfm are great resources for new music. Pandora.com lets you vote on music you hear until it builds a special station tailored exactly to your likings. Lala.com provides a wide array of music that is reasonably priced at 10 cents for streaming or 89 cents to buy as an MP3. You can also upload your entire music library and then stream it from any computer. Lastfm.com pays close attention to what songs you listen to and how often then makes suggestions for you. Exclusive downloads are also available.
"Fit Philanthropy: 22-Year-Old Rows Across Atlantic for Water
Filed under: Fitness, Motivation
With two oars and one strong sense of determination, 22-year-old Katie Spotz recently became the youngest person ever to complete a solo row across the Atlantic Ocean and the first American to row continent to continent.But those accomplishments are only secondary to her bigger goal of raising money and awareness for the one billion people on this planet who don't have access to safe drinking water.
'My college professor once told me that 'the war of the future will be on water' and that really stuck with me,' Spotz said. So, even though the Ohio native had only begun rowing a year and a half ago, she felt the need to spend time on the water for those who don't have any.
Seventy days and 3,000 miles later, Spotz has done just that. Her initial goal was to raise $30,000 for the Blue Planet Run Foundation -- a nonprofit organization that provides clean drinking water to impoverished communities. But keeping within her 'go big or go home' style, Katie has more than doubled this goal by raising $75,000. 'This money will go a long way,' she said. 'It will give 2,500 people clean drinking water who didn't have it before, including people in Haiti.'
Spotz admits that spending two and a half months rowing from Africa to South America by herself was not easy. 'Some days I wished I was back on land,' she said. 'But other days, there was no place else I'd rather be.'
Existing on a diet of dried fruit, dehydrated meals and energy bars, Spotz never stopped or had any support crew along the way. She spent an average of 10 hours a day rowing and at night she slept in an eight-foot coffin-like cabin to catch some sleep when she could. 'I was sleep deprived out there and that played on my emotions,' she admitted, 'but I never lost sight of my goal. I would tell myself, 'just keep rowing.''
Some would assume that this cross-Atlantic row is a big enough event for one lifetime, but to Spotz, it just gets added to an already lengthy list of accomplishments. At age 18, she ran her first marathon. Since then, she has cycled 3,300 miles across the United States from Seattle to D.C., run 150 miles across the Mojave Desert, placed first in her age group for a half-Ironman (1.2 mi. swim, 56 mi. bike, 13.1 mi. run) and completed a 62-mile ultra marathon in Australia. Spotz was also the first person to swim the entire length of the 325-mile Allegheny River, averaging 12 to 15 miles a day.
'One of the biggest things that holds us back is ourselves,' Spotz said. 'We have to question that and challenge that. I get curious to see how far I can go.'
Hard to believe she's only 22. Makes you wonder what her resume will look like in another 22 years.
For more information about Katie's journey or to help the Blue Planet Run Foundation, visit rowforwater.com.
Want more inspiration? Take a look at this person's incredible journey.
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