Spidersuit Gig

Looks like Spidersuit returns with a gig at The Joint in Los Angeles on Wednesday March 24th at 10:30pm. This will be my first show in 2010 and I'm looking forward to having some of my new friends see me perform. More details will be posted as I get them.

Things are getting busy

Here we are in February and the year is starting to get busy. First off between January and the first part of February I've been to numerous birthday parties. I'm discovering that is the thing single people do out in LA. Lots of dive bars, karaoke, dinners, and overall good times.

After the slowness of the holidays I'm excited that concerts of bands I like are starting to get back into swing. I was able to see Bruce Kulick, former guitarist from KISS, a couple of weeks back do a CD release party. He played one song off each KISS album he was on as well as a few of the tracks from his new CD. Gene Simmons' Family Jewels was also taping the event so maybe I'll be on an episode of Family Jewels in the near future.

On Wednesday I'll be seeing one of my favorite artists Bob Schneider out of Austin, Texas and I have a few more shows lining up over the next few weeks. Since my bands aren't playing I guess it's time for me to go see other bands play.

Having some down time on the home front I've decided its time to explore LA. There is so much to do out here and I'm looking forward to exploring. This past weekend I did brunch in the Hollywood Farmer's Market and this next weekend I think I might be going hiking in Runyon Canyon with some friends. The best part of all of this is so much of it is within walking distance of my apartment. I'm really enjoying the Hollywood location.

On the work front they are also keeping me busy. I've been on the road the majority of the year bouncing back and forth between LA, Warren New Jersey, and Overland Park Kansas. I was snowed in by a small scale blizzard in Warren last week and although snow is pretty, I'm finding there is no need to live anywhere other than the perfect weather of Southern California. My work travel schedule will be in full swing for another month or two and then I think by April things should return to a slower pace.

That's it for now.

What's new?

Travel! It's been a crazy few weeks and I think the travel is going to be fairly intense for me for the next few months. Virgin Mobile was acquired by Sprint right before the holidays and I find myself in the middle of the planning for the transition. This is the fourth work week of the year and my third on the road. I'm actually writing this from the lovely Overland Park, KS Marriott hotel.

With that said I'm learning how to adapt to both my new single life and new work life. One of my best friends lives in Kansas (Sprint's HQ) so I get to see her and her family most of my trips out to Sprint. And late last year I made a few new friends when I stayed the weekend in NYC (near Virgin's HQ) and I've been able to meet up with them the last time I made it there.

Some fun things I've done recently included seeing Pee Wee Herman at the new Club Nokia in downtown Los Angeles. I was invited last minute by my friend Brian on his birthday. We went with a couple of other friends and had a great time. For those in Los Angeles I highly recommend the show. I was not a fan growing up and was surprised by how well done and entertaining the show was. We even got to stick around for a Q&A that lasted nearly an hour. We saw the last of his warm up shows before he had all the press come out for his big return to the spotlight.

Something I've found myself doing that has surprised me is I'm reading books again. The last time I remember regularly reading was back in elementary and middle school. I've gone through a couple of books in the past month and a few weeks ago when I was out with a friend at the mall I actually found myself buying more books to read.

In February I hope to be home just a little bit more so I can catch some live music and hang out with friends. One of my favorite artists from Austin, Bob Schneider, is playing the intimate Troubadour, and I think I'll be going to the 5th Annual WesFest at the end of February.

Oh and I shaved :-) For those on Facebook I think a couple of pictures have been posted. Now I just need a haircut... Haha.

Till next time...

Happy New Year

Happy New Year Everybody!

Just a warning up front. This isn't one of my typical posts and is probably more for me than you, but I wanted to put this out there. You've been warned.

For those that don't know this has been one of the most challenging years of my life. I lost one of my best friends to suicide, I lost my mother in law, and over the course of the year Jacki and I filed for divorce. At the same time I had one of my most accomplished years. I had a great year at work, was recognized by my company and sent to London to have dinner with Sir Richard Branson, I was able to record drums for a new CD (coming in 2010, hopefully), I played a sold out show on the legendary Sunset Strip at one of my favorite venues, and I was able to see my daughter graduate from high school and begin her journey towards becoming an adult.

As you've noticed I haven't written much this past 6 months. It's been a time of reflection, a time of solitude, and now a time to look forward. In a strange way I feel like I'm in the process of discovering or redicsovering who I am. And I must say I've been a bit surprised to find that I actually like myself quite a bit.

I've made lots of new friends in LA recently. I had one of my best birthdays ever earlier this month, I was able to follow my favorite band KISS on the road for nearly 2 weeks, and I find myself enjoying and getting more out of life than I have in years. I've also had more lasting memories in the past few weeks than I've had in years. And one of the most important things to me is I've been able to see so many of my best friends in the last month. Who knew I'd get to go to Colorado, Kansas, and Texas, and even reconnect with my friends out here in LA that I don't see enough. And all in a period of a few weeks. You all know who you are :-)

Today is bittersweet. It was supposed to be a day of celebration, a day when Jacki and I would look back on a milestone of 10 years together. Instead this first decade of the 2000's symbolically bookends our marriage starting with Dec 31, 1999 and virtually ending on Dec 31, 2009, and now the next phase of my journey begins.

I will look back on 2009 as a year of finality, too many endings, and too much death. Instead of an ending I see it as a close to a chapter. I definitely feel as I'm in transition and I hope 2010 will be the year that brings an end to the transition and a start of many new beginnings.

I'm now headed off with friends to ring in the new year. Good bye 2009, and I hope that 2010 brings everything you are looking for. I know it will be one of my best years ever!

You Wanted The Best... You Got The Best...

The Hottest Band In The World... KISS.

So for friends and family that are close many of you know I've had a hell of a year. As a bit of relief I'm going to be going to see my favorite band perform not once, not twice, but five times over the next eleven days.

Tuesday night I'll get to see KISS in Anaheim with my daughter Darian. We have 2nd row tickets on Gene Simmons' side.

When it's all said and done I will see KISS in 3 different states, in 5 different cities and I'll be going with different friends and family to every show. It's going to be the best 11 days I can imagine leading up to my birthday!

Seven Seraphim

This past Wednesday I was able to perform once again at the Key Club with Seven Seraphim. This time around we opened up for a band called Stratovarius. The show was a great success. I showed up about an hour before we were scheduled to go on stage and there was a line going around the block. On Ticketmaster the show was sold out.

So now I can say I've played a sold out show on the Sunset Strip. Those are some bragging rights I never thought I'd be able to have. We played better than our first show, made some new fans and I was able to be a rockstar for the night.

Here are some videos from the show I found on YouTube.

We've been bootlegged!

Intranet write up of my trip to London

IT Guy Scores Virgin Star of the Year Award and a Trip to London!

Congrats to David Howard for winning a Virgin Star of the Year Award 2009 on September 11th. This annual award is given to those that best embody the true Virgin spirit.

"I had the honor of representing Virgin Mobile USA at the annual Virgin Stars Awards Dinner in London last month," says David. "Just to name a few others there, we had Planes, Trains, Cosmetics, Mobile, Online Gaming, Soft Drinks, and even Space Ships. I met people from South Africa, Australia, United Kingdom, Canada and of course the US. And to top off the event Sir Richard Branson even gave away a few trips to Necker Island. A great time was had by all."