A Rear in Review and a Charming Anecdote about a Pawn Shop Romance

                                                                              
                                              "This is it? Gandhi ate more than this!" 




     So here we are at the start of another year, and my resolution to not make a resolution is going strong, I have high hopes that THIS resolution will be seen through to the very end. Mostly because come about mid-January, I will be neck-deep in homework and various projects and work, which will cause me to forget that I made any type of resolution to begin with. You see people? Keeping your resolutions is much easier than you think, Just resolve to not make any, and you will never feel like a failure.
 
      Well then, lets get to it shall we? 2013 ended on a higher note than 2012 for sure. So much has happened this past year that was positive in my life that looking back with anything but "Warm-Fuzzies" is kind of difficult but I will give it the ol' college try.  I started off 2013 being blind in one eye. this trend lasted for about 6 months or so until some time in early June when I had a vitrectomy and the offending blood that filled my left peeper was replaced with a proper, clear liquid,  You never really get to appreciate something so delicate as your sight until it is taken from you. I had a great support team in place and would have been unable to do much of anything if it hadn't been for my family's help and a great team of doctor's sticking delicate needles, horror movie style into my eye. Thank the Gods for steady hands.
 
      Despite this lapse of total vision, I still managed to go back to school and find my calling. I designed the sound for "No Exit", the spring play at Lonestar College-Kingwood and swept the sound design awards, and earned a scholarship to Stephen F. Austin State University in Nacogdoches. I owe a world of thanks to Kali Vlahos and Eric Skiles two of the coolest professors as well as coolest people I have ever had the great fortune to meet. If it hadn't been for their guidance and blind trust in a guy they hardly knew doing design work for their show, I wouldn't be where I am right now.They will be in every acceptance speech I ever give.
 
      Speaking of cool people and things, I am about to begin my second semester at SFA and really couldn't be more excited about it. I met so many cool people when I came into the program. Professors and students alike. It's hard going away to school when you're 18 but I can tell you that it doesn't get much easier when you're in your 30's. Luckily, I am old enough to go and buy beer or something stronger to relax at the end of the day. However, not being of age doesn't seem to be an issue with some people getting booze (just an observation). It has been a hell of a ride thus far, and I know it will be even better as it goes. I'm ready for it. It took me 31 years to find something I wanted to do for the rest of my life, but I finally found it. I think that these things come to us when we need them most. I did college off and on for years, never really getting anywhere but now that I know what it is I want, I will not stop until I have it.


I also met Morena Baccarin AND Tricia Helfer so suck on that internet,

   I repaired my electric guitar with mine own hands as well. She's playing as beautifully as she ever did, and I feel a little more complete with her back in one piece. The story of this guitar is almost like a fairy tale. I bought her at a pawn shop in Angleton, Texas about 8 or 9 years ago. She traveled with me to Austin and San Antonio. About a month before I moved to Vancouver, I was broke and needed money so I decided to pawn her. I did, and then moved and thought she was gone forever. Fast forward to a few years later. I am in different pawn shop in San Antonio, shopping for an electric guitar to replace the one I loved and lost by my own stupidity. I was going down the aisle of guitars hanging on the wall and one catches my eye. It was a nice shiny blue Fender Stratocaster with a price tag that was within my price range. I sat an played it for a minute or two, plugged it in to the test amp to make sure it actually worked and decided to buy it. As I stood up, something on the wall caught my eye. Something that had a familiar curve to it. I laid the strat on the counter and walked a few steps down from where I was standing. It was facing away from me as it hung there on the wall. I noticed a familiar ding in the body close to the strap knob. There was this tiny flutter in my stomach as I got closer. " I know that ding.", I said to myself. I reached up and grabbed the guitar off its hanger and turned it around, and there in my hands once more, was MY guitar. My Washburn Maverick was back in my hands. I looked her over to be sure, and yes. It was her. She has three very distinct little dings and scratches on her that are like birthmarks or dental records. Without hesitation I went and paid for her and took her home. I am a firm believer in things happening for a reason and I will never again let her go. she's my number one lady, and she came back to me.

 Anyway, Im excited about the new year and all that shit so let's get to it,



Until next time, Stay warm, stay happy, and dont let the NSA catch you picking your nose while you are looking at facebook on your phone,




Cheers!!