Me - “No More Words” (Berlin cover)

I figured i would start putting some of my music on my blog so i can get some feedback, but i decided to start with my cover of Berlin’s “No More Words” from 1984. I did this on my Mac laptop with garage band and an m-audio keyboard. I recorded the vocals in my bathroom for privacy, but the sound in there is really “echoe-ey” which you can hear in the recording. Oh well, it’s just a demo. I have to re-do the first verse because it turned out kind of lifeless. How do you like the rest of it though?

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Well, we thought we had a gig lined up for July 25th, but it fell through. Now we are shooting for the 29th, fingers crossed!

By the way, we have been searching for a female bassist who sings so we can have 2 singers just like Shiny Toy Guns. If YOU are a bass player who sings and you are a woman and you are in or close to San Francisco, please respond!

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Those of you who have read my blog or have known me for a while probably know that i have had one dream that i have had for as long as i can remember - to become a rockstar. (Or to at least do something notable in the music world.) It is something that has literally consumed me for a long time, though i had really not done anything about it, until now.

My experience singing in the ’80s cover band that Jester got me involved with gave me the courage i needed to take the next step. At the beginning of April, i joined an original rock/pop band in San Francisco as the lead singer and co-writer. Some of you may have noticed that i suddenly stopped writing my blog at that time and didn’t write anything new for like 2 months. That’s because i was insanely busy writing songs with my new band, and we have already gotten to the point where we are ready to do our first show, and still working feverishly. We have already received attention and praise from one radio station program director, and we are ready to take San Francisco by storm. I know, it’s still just a dream and easier said than done, but i’m thinking positive and visualizing it as reality because i really want it to happen, and believe me, it will. And so, the process of becoming a rock star has begun!

I’m not ready yet to tell you the name of the band, but stick around. I’ll take you along on this journey and give you more info when the time is right. Wish us luck!

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One interesting thing about being on the nicotine patch is that if you don’t take it off when you go to bed, you have quite vivid dreams that feel so real that when you wake up, it takes a few moments to realize it was just a dream.

Last night’s dream was truly bizarre. Totally not meaningful, just bizarre. So, in my dream, i was sleeping outside somewhere in the country, and i realized that there was some kind of animal walking on me. (I think it was like an opossum, but i wasn’t sure.) Anyway, it kind of freaked me out, but the creature ran away when i started to wake up, so i went back to sleep, (in my dream.) When i woke up again, (in my dream,) i noticed that i had these raised paw tracks on my skin, like i had an allergic reaction to the animal’s feet, and i could see the footprints in a trail all up and down my body where the creature had been walking. (It looked like those people in some countries who decorate their bodies with scars.)

Next in my dream, i was working in a grocery store, (which i now realize is a recurring theme in my dreams even though i’ve never worked in a grocery store!) Anyway, there was this guy working there also who had a deep voice, and a girl working there was walking with me and said to me, “Isn’t the voice of [unknown voice-over character on some TV show that doesn't actually exist but is similar to Heroes] cute?” I said, “He’s the voice of [said character]?!” “Yes!”, she said. “You didn’t know that?” As we walked, i kept running my fingers over the raised footprints that were still on my skin. Then i remembered something that was a bizarre coincidence; that i used to work at Sears with James Earl Jones, another actor with a deep voice! When i told her this, she was also amazed at the coincidence.

Then, as we were walking, a large group of women who had just walked out of their church were walking the same direction carrying banners and flags on sticks, and we sort of ended up walking in the middle of them. Slowly, the banners and flags above our heads transformed into a spaceship. (A fact which seemed only slightly strange at the time.) Then i woke up.

After waking up, i spent the next 5 minutes convinced that i really had worked with James Earl Jones before finally realizing that i hadn’t. (I did have a co-worker at Sears who had a VERY deep voice, but it was not James.)

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So, a couple weeks ago i was sick with the flu. I would go outside and try to have a cigarette and i couldn’t even finish it. Suddenly, i got the crazy idea to quit smoking. I went to Target, bought some nicotine patches, put one on, came home and threw away the rest of my cigarettes. I haven’t had one since. You’re supposed to wear the patch for 10 weeks, but i didn’t wear it yesterday or today and i’ve been fine. I’m kind of surprised, considering i smoked a pack a day.
I also started working out again. Well, sort of. I’ve been working on my triceps, biceps, doing push-ups and crunches. Just stuff i can easily do at home with a 15 pound dumbbell. I’m amazed at how much of a difference i see already, especially in my arms. I finally have triceps! Maybe i’ll get back to the gym soon.
If that’s not all weird enough, i even decided to refinish an antique side table that was sitting in the garage. It turned out pretty good. It doesn’t even look like the same table!
I even finished writing a song that i really like!
Ya, i’m proud of myself, so?!

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I’ve spent the last week working on our new aquarium. It used to be a marine aquarium, but the fish kept dying, so we finally gave up and decided to turn it into a freshwater tank instead. I had to empty it, clean it, clean the filter to get rid of all the salt, clean all the gravel and ornaments from an older tank, and put it all together. A lot of work, but well worth it.

It is a 55 gallon tank with a wet/dry external sump filter that sits in the cabinet below. The overflow is built into the black column in the back of the tank. It is a great filtration system, but that black column is unsightly, so i used it as an opportunity to create a dramatic “riverbank,” enhanced by the shadow created by omitting one of the lights in the hood. I used only plastic wood, and mostly plastic plants for easier maintenance. I think it looks pretty cool. We used Bio-Spira to quickly cycle the tank so we could add the fish quickly.

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I think i’ve found the secret to food. I haven’t exercised in 5 months and haven’t gained a pound in the last 3. I’ll tell you how!
Ok, i’ve never been “fat,” but a couple of years ago i was about 15 lbs heavier than i am now. Since then, i changed my diet and started walking 1 hour a day & lost 20 lbs, then stopped and started gaining it back, then joined a gym and started losing again, then stopped going to the gym about 5 months ago, and started gaining again. 3 months ago i found a book that has changed my life. It’s called Five Factor Fitness, by Harley Pasternak. It’s a diet and exercise book, but i have not done the exercise part. This book totally clears up all confusion about the connection between food and weight in a way that is so clear and easy to understand that after reading it, i will never eat the way i used to again! It was like someone flipped a switch and suddenly i get it! The guy who wrote it literally knows everything there is to know about food! It does have a pretty specific food program in it, but it also is great for learning some basic rules for healthy eating. So here are my very simple rules that i eat by after reading this book:

Avoid sugar. Never, ever drink soda that is not diet soda. There are some really great tasting diet sodas now, so you have no excuse. Why no sugar? Well, i won’t get into the science of it, but just trust me, sugar and high-fructose corn syrup turns to fat! I really like berries & cream diet Dr. Pepper and strawberry Pepsi Jazz.
Avoid beef. No more burgers or steaks for me! Besides being full of bad fat, all that tough connective tissue builds up in our intestines and just sits there! The way to get rid of it, hydrotherapy. (I haven’t done it yet, but i will soon. I’ll probably lose between 5 and 10 lbs when i do. That will be awesome! I’ll let you know what happens!) I eat tons of chicken, fish, and turkey. (Fish is vital, so don’t live on poultry alone!) I absolutely do not believe in vegetarianism, but it’s not the most unhealthy thing in the world, so whatever.
Avoid white flour. Bad news for pasta and white bread lovers, i know! Why avoid bleached flour? Simple, flour becomes sugar, and sugar becomes fat. Eat whole grain stuff as often as possible. Whole grains actually reverse the effects of consuming fat. McDonald’s has good chicken sandwiches on wheat buns that i like, and Subway has wheat and honey oat breads.

Avoid french fries and gravy. (Consume less fat.)

Do Not Ever go on a low carb diet! Low carb is very bad! It will actually cause some brain damage, and when you give up on it, you will get fatter than you were before. Great, huh?

Acidic is good. Take lemon with your water or iced tea, drink diet soda. The acid is good for your weight and health.

Eat fruits and veggies. Of course, right? Boy, you’d be surprised how many people won’t eat anything green! (Strangely enough, the book says not to drink fruit juices because they are all sugar and no fiber, i think.)
Break all these rules once a week! If there is something that you really love to eat that goes against the rules, go ahead and eat it once a week if you want to. Happiness is healthy.

There are 2 other rules that i do not really follow because they are more difficult for me; drinking lot’s of water and eating 5 meals a day to speed up your metabolism. If you can follow those 2 as well, you will probably do better than just stabilize your weight. Of course, exercising should also be in these rules, but 1) that’s not food and 2) i don’t do it.
So, that’s it! I have been following these rules as much as possible for the past 3 months, and my weight has totally stabilized! I hope i will never again have to worry about gaining weight. (Of course, it has only been 3 months. We’ll see if it keeps working, but i’m pretty confident.) If you want more info, if you want to de-mistify and solve the mistery, read the book, it’s great!

None of this is directly quoted from the book, it’s just what i remember, (or think i remember,) from reading it. At any rate, it’s working for me, i hope it works for you, too!

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We all gathered together yesterday. Paul’s aunt, parents, brother and his girlfriend. After eating, paul’s mom decided she wanted me to color her hair. Then his aunt decided she did, too. Then his brother decided he wanted to go bleach blonde again. then Paul decided he wanted to go black. So, i went to the store and bought 5 boxes of different color hair dye, (i got one extra.) The cashier looked at me after seeing all this, as well as the beer, wine, and whiskey, and said, “You having a hair dyeing party?” I chuckled and said “yup.” I went back and spent the rest of the evening coloring hair. It was an only slightly surreal experience, and actually a lot of fun! Why didn’t we have a camera?!

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