I just had a police officer knocking on my door. In answer, to
yet another drive-by shooting in my neighborhood.  I don't live
in Los Angeles or Washington, I live in the central valley of
California. A place where farming and dairy are or should I
say were prevelent. Now, we have 30+ percent unemployment
and gang bangers shooting people for no reason or little reason
at best.  

Welcome to America. I'd rather live somewhere else right now.

On this day, 29 years ago and  five years ago, John Winston Lennon
and "Dimebag" Darrell Abbott were murdered by supposed fans.
Welcome to America indeed. This country sucks. Forget terrorists!
We have our own to do the terrorizing!

On December 6th, 1988, Roy Orbison passed away leaving
a legacy of music that even today, are favorites to millions.
Most people remember the hits: Pretty Woman, Blue Bayou
Only The Loney but, how many remember his other works?
Mean Woman Blues, Candyman, Ooby Dooby and so on.

Rest in peace, Roy!

Just after 7pm pacific time, my step-daughter delivered
a baby girl by the name of Avalon. The baby is healthy
and has some killer pipes for her tiny size. Just over 5 lbs.

This is my second grand child. Though I suppose technically
neither are related to me directly. Even so, I am so jazzed
I cannot express it sufficiently.

Please join me in welcoming Avalon "Morgan" to the world!
I'm sure she will do great things, just as her cousin born much
earlier this year will!

Life is hard but sometimes, life is very very good:)!

This evening President Obama gave yet another pretty speach.
This one, concerned the much discussed "need" for troops in
Afghanistan and while I understand his desire for political
expediency, I don't understand how this action will get us
any closer to peace globally nor improve conditions within
our own nation.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying the two are completely
opposing ideals, only that in the current state of the world,
continuing to wage a war we lost 8 years ago is foolish at
best.

What's that? You don't think we lost the war back then?
Really? Where were you raised? In the U.S.A. our entire
way of life is based on promoting the bettermeant of
our fellows not in destroying those with opposing ideals.

Whatever the faction, this war which is the wrong word
to begin with, was and is wrong. A small group of lunatics
killed those people on 9-11, not a country or in the current
case 3 countries. Afghanistan, Iraq and Pakistan.

America is a better nation than that, or at least she used
to be.

8 years ago, George Harrison succumbed to cancer and left
behind not only family and loved ones but a musical legacy.
I cannot even imagine what the world would have been like
had George never existed. The Beatles would have been a
very different band I'm sure since George' contribution to
their sound was much more important that any but a few
ever acknowleged.

Rest In Peace George. You will not be forgotten!

It's wednesday night, short work week for me thanks to
the holiday. My best friend since childhood dropped by
an interresting dessert sort of salad comprised of orange
cream cheese and marshmellows. Tasty stuff and very
nice of him to do.

My day tomorrow will likely be doing some yard work.
Rose bushes need serious pruning and the grass needs
mowing. Kind of depends on the temperature outside
but, I'm pretty sure that'll be my day.

Is Taco Bell open on Thanksgiving Day? I don't know
but sounds like a good place to head for a special
meal tomorrow:)

Anyway, I hope all of you and your families have
an awesome day tomorrow. Don't eat too much:)

I don't know what it is about this house of mine
but, for some reason, it's always cold in-doors when
the weather is actually nice outside.  Today is no
exception. It's 63 degrees and sunny here in Visalia
but in the house it feels closer to 40 degrees.

I wonder if it has to do with the house or with the
way I spend my weekends?  I'm kind of an odd
person in that weekends I usually only eat once
a day and spend most of my day surfing the web
or doing household chores or yard work.

Sometimes like yesterday, my day job takes over
much of my day off and I end up helping or trying to
help someone who has no clue what they're doing, fix
some computer problem that truth be told generally was
caused by something they did but either don't know
enough or are too embarressed to admit to.

Today, I'm cold, bored to death and surfing the web.
Oh, and smoking way too many cigarrettes...

I've been giving a lot of thought to starting up a new
podcast but honestly have no idea what it would be
about or why it should exist if I did.

Boring day, back to the day job tomorrow...

It's another year, another winding down of a world gone mad.
But it's also, coming far too close to the time when a musician
I have always felt a kinship to was senslessly murdered.

For many, the passing of John Winston Lennon was no big
deal but for many more, it was indeed the day the music died.
When a voice and mind so unlike the garden variety of the time
was silenced forever, only to be experienced postumously.

The fall/winter holidays are a happy time in most lives. Not mine.
On December 8th, John was killed and something in me personally
changed. Many years later another musician I respected but
could hardly be considered a fan of, was also murdered on the
same day. In both cases, a nut-case did the deed.

The world lost both John Lennon and Darrel Abbott "Dimebag" as
he was known to friends and fans. And for me, this makes the holidays
a sad time, a time of loss. Not the celebration of the birth of a child
many consider the savior. I'm not sure of what he may or may not
be the savior of, considering the state of the world has progressively
darkened since his birth and subsequent murder. Even so, it gives
me no joy.

So, throughout November and December as I do every year,
I remember both John and Darrel. I remember the joy they gave
the world that so needs a bit of joy especially today.

Lately, I've found myself thinking alot about the one that
got away. The girl who way back in the 1980's was to
have been my wife and share the good and bad for the
rest of our journey in this world.  Strangely, why's or
how's seem unimportant today. Only that empty place
she still holds in my heart means anything now.

I'm struck by this because I am a person who has
grown accustomed to being alone and actually rather
enjoy the solitude of my home after a long day of
work.

Even so, I find myself wondering. Is she still as beautiful
and full of life as I remember her? Does she still favor the
scent she wore so many years ago or has she moved on
to something more common place? Would she even
recognize me today or for that matter, I her, were we
to run into each other some time?

Of course we're both a lot older now. Time has been
rather unkind to me but that has more to do with my
heritage than simply aging. What about her? Has she
blossomed as many women do with age? Is she
married or perhaps envolved with another woman?
It happens, women are generally bisexual
creatures anyway so, I wouldn't be shocked at all.

I wonder, and it's the wondering that makes it bad.
It's the classic what-if situation...

That's right, goodbye myspace.com. Last night, I made the decision to
dump my presence on the social networking site for good. Honestly,
myspace led me to this decision when they decided to change my
home page to the new format without asking or even giving the
option to return to the old format which was much more user friendly
in my opinion.

Anyway, it's not like anyone will miss me on myspace.

Some four months ago, as many of you know, my home
was burglarized. As a result, I have been quite slow to
chance cranking up the amp and playing for any length
of time.

Today, I said to hell with that sentiment and hauled my
amp out to the garage and played for just over two hours.

Funny how much one's skill can decline in so short a period
of time.

The guitar is unlike many instruments. Calouses are key to
being able to play for any length of time and moreso with
any degree of authority.

After two hours, my fingertips are sore but uncut. This is
good, it means the calous still remains. In time, this bit of
pain will no longer occur so long as I continue to play.

Still, it's funny how hard it is to remember a song when
you haven't played in a while. But it does come back, it
takes time and effort but it does come back. Today, breifly,
I played Iron Maiden's "Run For The Hills" a song I have
never been able to play before. At this rate, I will be a far
better player in a month than I ever had been. Odd:)

Seems like an odd thing to say I know but, the truth is
true joy in this life is lost on the many who know only
reality. Isn't it a sad thing that so much is hidden behind
our daily existance? Our struggles to achieve some goal
or other.

Think of the child's mind. To the very young, everything
is new and amazing. Wonderous beyond belief and all
expectation.

The insane on the other hand, never lose that mindset.
Because to them, the world of their mind is the only
true reality.

What an amazing and wonderous thing that must be.
Imagine, never fearing anything. Never worrying over
bills or jobs or well, anything. Are the insane at peace?

First thing's first. What is DIY.  DIY means Do
It Yourself as in create, publish and sell whatever it is
you're creating all on your own.

In music, this has become far more common a practice
than many would think and for many reasons.

For one, the DIY artist answers to no-one but him/herself
and their fans. For another, he/she gets to keep the lions
share of whatever profits (if any) their efforts bring. And
lastly, though not always the case, the DIY route is very
attractive to those who perhaps think they are good
enough to participate in the music world when in fact
they simply don't have what it takes to begin with.
This last group is much like those who take the vanity
publishing route.  

As I've already eluded to, the DIY path, can be highly
profitable for a talented artist if they catch on. But the
downside is, when they don't catch on, all the time,
money and energy spent is basically wasted.

Statistically, 1 in 10,000 indie or DIY releases, break
even on the project. Less than 1% of those, make a
profit and fewer that 1/2 of 1% of those, built a sustainable
career from those efforts.

Why would anyone "choose" the DIY path in the first
place? Well, the sad truth is, no-one chooses the DIY
path. Failing to be commercial enough or in vogue leaves
many artists no other choice. On top of this, many formerly
signed artists, having been dropped by their labels now
"choose" the DIY path. They aren't choosing anything,
it's their only option.

All of this is not to say that many of those following the
DIY path are untalented. Far from it. Only that, this
path isn't a choice at all no matter how badly these
artists wish to believe it is. It's simply the one path
remaining for those who cannot garner the interrest
of the remaining labels and the decaying music business
at large.

Recently, I woke to the sensation of something pulling too
far almost a tearing kind of thing. It happens to everyone
at some point, you move too fast or sleep in an odd position
and bang, you end up with a sore neck, back or whatever.

In my case, it was my neck. But the pain isn't the worst of
it here. Since that morning, I've found I haven't had a single
night's sleep that didn't end with bad dreams.

Off the wall stuff like being handed a summon's because
someone has decided to sue you over something you had
no control over or, winning the lottery only to find that for
whatever reason, you don't qualify to get the winnnings.
Weirdest of all, was the one where I saw myself being
arrested, accused of being a terrorist.... Very strange.

For me, these kind of dreams have always been sort of
forewarning of negative things to come in my life. I don't
know why but it seems whenever some major change is
headed my way, bad dreams fill my nights.

The muscle pain has subsided today, maybe because
I worked outside mowing the front and back yards or
maybe because the strained muscles are healing. Whatever
the case, physically, I'm feeling pretty good.

The odd thing is, I have the time and desire to haul my
amp and stuff out to the garage to practice for a while
but, every time I walk down the hall intending to do
just that, something stops me. It's been a weird year:)

I learned about this weeks ago but hadn't bothered to comment
on it because well, I thought it was B.S.  

Not that Microsoft doing such a thing was beyond belief, after all
Microsoft has been stealing code and then buying the companies
that wrote it for decades. But the idea that they feel so threatened
by Apple Inc. and their retail chain that they'd actually hire away
Apple store employees simply boggles the mind.

Why? What good would it do Microsoft? Most of the 18
to 20 somethings that work at the Apple stores know very
little in the grand scheme of things.

Apple Inc. products sell well despite their higher price point
because they deliver on their promices.  The MacIntosh line
of computers are easy to use. Simple to setup and though
they too have issues from time to time, are vastly more
stable than Windows PCs, oh wait, the MacIntosh today
is ALSO a Windows PC  :)

Back in the day, when I did a lot of live work, every band
had their own PA system, mics, stands and so on. Today,
at least in California, it seems most bands don't own a PA
and either don't have mics and stands or have crappy mics
and still no stands...

What the hell happened?

Look, I realize PA systems are expensive. Even the cheapo
Chinese made P.O.S. systems available at G.C and such
places are pretty pricey but come on. If you're a gigging band
there is no excuse for not having at least a backup plan.

For many, myself included these days, the point of reference
for volume levels tends to be how loudly they practice their
instrument at home.  Generally, this isn't too much of a
problem until you get into a situation where you are playing
along side other musicians.

This is where most tend to run into the volume wars.
The drummer is loud, so the bass player turns up.
The guitar player can't hear themselves so they turn
up and on it goes. Before long, it's not music anymore
but noise that is often painful to hear and can damage
your ability to hear over time.

One solution many make is, buy fitted earplugs.
While this might be a reasonable solution for those
forced to play at unreasonable volume levels for
prolonged periods, this doesn't solve the basic
problem. Which is, poor musicianship on the part
of some or all of the band.

A good musician plays to the song and knows
when to pull back or forge ahead. Loud for the
sake of being loud is meaningless musically
but many don't seem to understand this
basic point.

All music, including extreme metal, is about dynamics.
Soft versus harsh. Quiet versus loud or louder as the
case may be.  

Do you need to make your song more driving?
Great, play it with a more aggressive attack,
not more volume. Dig into those strings a bit more if
you play a stringed instrument. Drummers, play with
more authority, not harder.  Control is the key.