My first letter to my Senator

I'm in the process of cleaning out things and came across the first letter I wrote to my US Senator, Barbara Boxer, here in California. And I'm sure my Mom will be proud of me once she knows what it was for :-)

Was it for Health Care? No...
Was it for Educational Funding? No...
Was it to get Ah-Nold out of the role of Governator? No...
Was it for Gay rights? No...
Was it for the Legalization of Pot? No...

So what was it for?

It was for funding of the Arecibo Observatory to support the efforts of S.E.T.I. Search For Extra Terrestrial Intelligence. Here is a link to the PDF of the response I received back in October 2008.

Spidersuit Gig

Looks like Spidersuit returns with a gig at The Joint in Los Angeles on Thursday April 15th at 9:00pm. 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.

Ok. It took me three updates to this entry but we finalized the date and time for the show.

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."

Last day in London

This week we spent a couple of days in Paris, rode a highspeed train from London to Paris and under the English Channel, and then we are spending the last couple of days back in London.

Unfortunately we have no US power plugs here at the hotel in London so our computer and cell phones are dead, and I'm typing this from an internet kiosk in the Hotel. So we feel just a bit disconnected.

In Paris we saw the Arc D'Triomphe, the Eiffel Tower, the Louvre Museum, the Musee D'Orsay and walked up and down Champs-Elysees. All things I started to think I may never get to do. The Louvre was amazing and I could have spent 2-3 days in there if I had the time.

And yesterday was our Beatles exploration day, with trips to Abbey Road, and yes we have lots of pictures and even video. We left some graffitti on the front of Abbey Road studios and learned how to use "The Tube", which is London's underground subway/train transportation.

Tonight our last event will be the musical Wicked and we will be seeing it at the Victoria Apollo Theatre in London's West End. And tomorrow we get to go back home, which both Jacki and I are looking forward to.

I should be back online Saturday night and will post photo and video highlights.

London

Jacki and I have been in London for the last few days before we head off to Paris. It's been a busy few days and it will only get more packed as we head to France on Monday.

I have lots of pictures to share and will have those online soon.

The reason I'm over here in the first place is Virgin Mobile USA selected me as part of their annual Virgin Stars. My reward dinner was with other stars from Virgin companies worldwide and with our special dinner guest Sir Richard Branson. Dinner was amazing and it was great getting to socialize with people from all over including England, South Africa, Canada, Australia, and even the US.

I'll get pictures and more stories posted soon.

Happy Birthday to Darian

It's Darian's 18th Birthday today. Happy Birthday D, I love you!

Alice In Chains Listening Party

I haven't even recapped the Rocklahoma event and I'm already going to new events in LA. Monday night I got a text from a friend inviting me out to a listening party for Alice In Chains' new album, Black Gives Way To Blue, scheduled for a September release.

I landed back in LA Tuesday morning and then that night 4 of us went out to the listening party. The set up was nice, free open bar, free In 'N Out Burgers, and was set up in what looked like a modern multimedia theater. Two small screens flanking both sides of the stage and a very large screen in the middle.

I had never been to a listening party so I didn't know what to expect. As we walked in they had the video for "A Looking In View" playing on the big screen over and over again. One of either the marketing or label people got up and stage, welcomed everybody and then they played the CD with accompanying still visuals on the large screen.

The artwork accompanying the songs was distorted views of reality. My favorite was of an eclipse of the Moon covering the Sun, however the Moon was much larger than the Sun which is not a perspective you can see from Earth. Other distortions included two people sitting around a table with a child standing on the table that looked to be only 10" tall. Very fitting artwork for this band.

The CD is fairly steady consisting of heavy, dark material and material that started in the acoustic world. You would never notice that Layne Staley isn't on this material. Will DuVall, their new singer blends perfectly with Jerry Cantrell, and this material is fidelity wise an evolution of the band although the songs may not be.

After the CD the screen lifted and revealed Alice In Chains on stage in an acoustic setting. They were a five piece featuring Derek Sherinian, from Dream Theater fame, on keyboards. They ran through three songs and then left the stage. One classic, and the performance premiere of two of their new tracks.

Alice In Chains
July 14, 2009
The Ricardo Montalban Theater
CD Listening Party

Down In A Whole
Your Decision
Black Gives Way To Blue

They took our phones at the door so unfortunately I don't have any pictures from the event itself, although I was able to get a poster promoting the album, and a guitar pick.

Rocklahoma 2009 - Day 1

Terry and I made it to Rocklahoma 2009 yesterday. Nothing quite like coming back to the show and seeing familiar faces, and meeting up with friends we've made through the years at the event.

We arrived to the event around 3pm and once we got our wristbands
1. Age verification for drinking (check)
2. 4 day pass for event (check)
3. VIP Seat assignment (check)

As we walked into the venue Metal Church was wrapping up their set. We only saw one full song which ended up being a cover of Deep Purple's Highway Star. This also marked Metal Church's final performance as a band. It seemed a non event.

Next up was Anvil. I had seen their movie and although their music isn't the best I was looking forward to their set. Shortly before their show I bought their newest CD "This Is 13". The recording of this CD was featured prominently in their movie.

Sadly the Spinal Tap moments haven't ended for this group. Let's count.

1. They had no roadies and were loading their own gear onto the stage prior to their set. Spinal Tap moment #1.

2. Lips is their frontman and ran right out onto stage at the start of their set and then immediately tripped on a stair and fell on his face. Spinal Tap moment #2.

3. Lips is fairly chatty between songs, and he'd tell these stories that were a bit awkward. It's like the guy that tells a joke or story and the delivery is poor. Fortunately Lips is charming so although the stories were awkward you found yourself laughing anyway. Spinal Tap moment #3.

4. Near the end of their set Lips trips on the stage again, making for a total of 2 falls. Spinal Tap moment #4.


Anvil

Soundcheck - This Is Thirteen

Set
This Is Thirteen
666
School Love
Winged Assassins
Jack Hammer
Race Against Time
White Rhino -> Drum Solo
Metal On Metal

They were fun to watch and although their music isn't all that memorable I had a good time. However, I don't think Anvil did much for Terry.

Next up was Overkill, but we didn't see them. We were off to meet Saxon and Nigel their drummer. Out in LA one of the bands I'm in is called Spidersuit and features Pete on guitar. His sister married the drummer of Saxon a couple of years back so as we were driving up to the event and listening to music I noticed Terry had some Saxon on his iPod. A couple of emails and phone calls later we found ourselves backstage getting autographs and pictures with Saxon. A lot of fun and completely unexpected.

After the meet and greet we headed to the VIP tent and ate dinner and refreshed our beverages. Next up was Saxon!

I had maybe heard only 2 Saxon songs prior to the show, and I must say they put on a hell of a show. They gave the best performance out of all the bands on Day 1. Lots of double bass which was nice for me to see as a drummer and considering we had just met Nigel backstage, and since I'm connected via a couple of degrees of separation it was great to see them bring such a great show to the event.

Saxon

Battalions Of Steel
Heavy Metal Thunder
Demon Sweeney Todd
Strong Arm Of The Law
Valley of The Kings
This Town Knows How To Rock
Dallas 1pm (Last minute addition to set list requested by Anvil)
Wheels Of Steel
Crusader

Encore
Denim And Leather
Princess Of The Night

After the set Nigel texted me, and asked me how I liked the show. It was the surprise of the day for me and I had a great time. He said it was nice to meet me and Friday morning he heads back to England.

The final show of the day was Anthrax. Terry is a big fan but had never seen these guys live. I'd seen them a few times through the years so I knew they can bring a great show and this was the event I was looking forward to all day.

Anthrax's new singer is Dan Nelson and as the guys walked onto the stage Dan looked considerably different from the last time I saw him. He had a beard and looked a little more sinister, which is appropriate for metal. And Scott Ian had a full beard as well.

Their set had a slow start, the crowd interaction was poor and the guys in the band weren't hitting their stride. About 3-4 songs into the set they were getting into the rhythm of the show and Dan was working his best to get the crowd that had been out in the sun for as many as 12 hours to give some energy back to the band.

Anthrax

Indians
Got The Time
Madhouse
Antisocial
Fight 'Em (new song)
Caught In A Mosh
Safe Home
Room For One More
Only
What Doesn't Die
(Birthday celebration for Frankie Bello. The brought out a cake and had the crowd sing happy birthday to him.)
I Am The Law

Encore
Whole Lotta Rosie (AC/DC cover)

I was standing by some guys we had met last year and starting with Caught In A Mosh we started some very light moshing and banging into one another. Only 3 of us doing it but fun nonetheless.

After the set I was able to get a Frankie Bello guitar pic, a Scott Ian guitar pic, and Rob's setlist. Considering the drought of after show freebies through the day it was nice to get some Anthrax after concert swag. Terry walked up after the set and was as hoarse as could be. Nothing like singing at the top of your lungs for 90 minutes.

Once Anthrax's set was over they showed the Anvil movie on the big screens. Terry hadn't seen it before so we stayed for the movie and were on the road back to our hotel shortly shortly before 3am. After a quick shower, and the after concert wind down we were asleep by 3:30am. Approximately 13 solid hours of rocking. Not bad for day 1.

Moving day for Darian

Moving D into her first apartment of her own in Santa Barbara. A big
day for all of us. Here is a quick pic of the front door.

She is what they call one of the Gillespie Cottages. A very fancy
name for a mult-unit four-plex.

Change

So they say you should not fear change. In the upcoming weeks we will be going through a series of life changes. Darian moves off to school on Tuesday, and by the end of July we will be moving out of our house in Santa Monica. A little downsizing, and time for us to start on our new journey, collectively and individually.

I can't say I'm looking forward to all of this change, but in life I've never been afraid of change. A couple of decisions through the years have significantly changed our lives and now 10 years later we find ourselves living in Los Angeles, having successfully raised Darian through school, and now we will send her off to experience life on her own. And in many ways we will be going through this new beginning and embracing new experiences, on our own, as she will do by herself.

Over the next 4-6 weeks I'll be moving from Santa Monica and will relocate into the Hollywood area. Only a short 9 miles, yet a world away.

Although this posting doesn't say everything, it represents one of those key turning points in my life.

Michael Jackson RIP

There really isn't anything to say about this icon that hasn't already been said.

I work in Westwood and my office window looks over the UCLA Medical Center which is where Michael was taken. Upon the news of him being rushed to the hospital and then later his death I was able to see helicopter after helicopter circle the medical center. At one point there were 6 different helicopters in my view from my office window, and traffic had backed up considerably. No matter what you think about this icon you can't deny his impact on society.

With that said I do remember watching the Motown 25th anniversary special and seeing the Moonwalk. The was a time before Tivo and DVRs, and we didn't even have a VCR. However to this day that was a performance that I'll never forget. I became one of the kids in elementary school that perfected the Moonwalk. That was a piece of joy and an unforgettable memory from childhood that Michael Jackson left with me.

D's Graduating

Today is the big graduation day. It's hard to believe we've come this far and now she is getting ready for her big celebration and in less than 3 weeks she will be moving to Santa Barbara to go to college.

I'm very proud of her and hope nothing but the best for her as she starts the next part of her journey.

Spidersuit books multiple shows!

Spidersuit has booked a couple of shows. Here is a quote from Pete when I asked when was the last time Spidersuit booked multiple shows?

"The first time since '79. Remember opening for UFO in Odessa? We rocked!"

We are in the final stages of wrapping up our CD so with a little work, and a little luck one of these shows may be used as a CD release party.

These shows have been booked with other bands that are friends of the 'suit so these will be good full nights of music. And Tom, our bassist, will be doing double duty for our October show playing both with Spidersuit and Brainspoon.

Monday June 29th
Venue: El Cid - Los Angeles, CA
Featuring Spidersuit and Broken Ocean

Saturday October 3rd
Venue: The Puka Bar - Long Beach, CA
Featuring Spidersuit and Brainspoon

Scream for me Long Beach!

Back On Nutrisystem

After nearly 3 years I've decided to get back on to Nutrisystem for a bit. When we first moved to LA I lost nearly 35 pounds on Nutrisystem and I was able to maintain my weight for nearly 2 1/2 years.

The build up of stress, a job with a new company, and lots of traveling have quickly taken its toll. Although I haven't gained all of the weight back, I have gained more back than I was comfortable gaining. Today was my first full day on the program, and all I can say is I'm hungry!

On the plus side the food is much better than it was when I weaned myself off of the program back in mid 2006. I'm looking forward to seeing how much I can lose this time around. When I'm in town I've been working out with Jacki's trainer and I know that a combination of diet and exercise will yield even better results than when I did this back in 2005/2006.

At my first Yankees game

I'm stuck in NJ but at least I'm getting to enjoy a game at the brand
new Yankee Stadium.