(picture taken by Clyde Grant, a satisfied customer)
(picture taken by Clyde Grant, a satisfied customer)
Why would a musician have a page on his website about cookies? Well, baking cookies has been a hobby of mine since college, but I turned it into a tertiary source of income in 2009. After I failed to record the songs that were commissioned through the patronage system I established in late 2008 (a failure I shall redress before year's end), I came up with a fundraising method for my music that I could follow through on in a timelier manner.
I celebrated my 28th birthday by having an online bake sale. This bake sale was so successful that I extended it indefinitely. After Sometimes You've Gotta Fight to Get a Bit of Peace was finished, I started throwing promotional CDRs of it in with my cookie orders. This package deal enabled two of my talents to reinforce each other: people could listen to my music while eating my cookies. Fortunately, most of my customers enjoy my cookies and my music equally.
Baking cookies has also been a form of therapy for me. From an emotional standpoint, 2009 was one of the worst years of my life, and I sought any distraction from my depression that I could find. I noticed that baking cookies lifted my spirits in ways that most other non-musical activities couldn't, and other people's spirits were lifted by eating my cookies. Cookies generally make people happy, and I like doing anything that brings joy to others as well as to me.
(Me selling cookies @ the Mohawk in Austin, TX)
Because Sometimes You've Gotta Fight to Get a Bit of Peace is being released by a label, I can't sell copies of it with my cookies anymore. However, I want to continue selling packages of cookies and music.
Thus, I came up with The Gratitude Sessions, a series of five-song homemade CDRs consisting of exclusive Cocker Spaniels music: re-recordings or re-mixes of old songs; covers of my favorite artists; songs commissioned from the 2008 patronage system; and completely new songs that won't fit the next album conceptually. Every time I have five songs that fall under these categories and are fit for public consumption, I'll release a new Gratitude Session, and include it with cookie orders.
Now, let's talk about the cookies themselves!
(picture taken by Sheila Ward, another satisfied customer)
THE MENU:
Butterscotch Oatmeal (my specialty!)
Chocolate Chip (with or without oatmeal)
Oatmeal Raisin
Snickerdoodle
White Chocolate Macadamia Nut
Other flavors will be added to the menu according to demand. All cookie orders will come with the most current Gratitude Session!
THE PRICING:
$1 per cookie (postage paid in the US), with a minimum order of 10 cookies.
(E-mail me for international postage rates.)
Multiple flavors must be broken up into increments of five. For instance, if you order 10 cookies, you can get them all in one flavor, or five cookies each of two different flavors; 20 cookies can be broken up into 20 of one flavor, 10 of 2 flavors, 5 of 4 flavors, etc.
THE PAYMENT OPTIONS:
You can either purchase cookies through my PayPal store, or e-mail me for a physical address to mail your payment. I accept checks, money orders and/or concealed cash.
If you're paying through PayPal, make sure that your shipping address is current and correct. Be sure to put the flavor(s) you want in the "Notes" section.
Orders can take anywhere from a day to a couple weeks to be filled, but feel free to inquire about the status of your order whenever you want. You WILL get your cookies AND your music!