Too much exercise

Lately, I've been thinking about exercise - specifically running vs. walking.  I thought about a workmate who used to be a marathon runner, who, later in life, had severe debilitation and gained a lot of weight.  I thought of another person who has been active for all of his life, and now has injuries that require surgery.

I think I need to make sure I keep my muscles healthy so that I can continue to exercise.  One of my doctors told me not to run.

In the Blue Zones books, Dan Buettner says that the longest living people aren't marathon runners.  Rather, they are regular people who walk a lot every day.

Federal guidelines suggest 150 weekly minutes of moderate activity or 75 minutes of vigorous intensity activity for health benefits, in at least 10 minute intervals.  The guidelines suggest additional benefits by getting double those numbers.

Currently, I try to walk a half hour on weekdays and 4 hours on weekends.  This amounts to 390 minutes of moderate activity.

I came across an article that states that 450 or more minutes weekly can have negative health impacts.

I think after I hit my weight loss goal, I may eventually taper down my weekend walking.

Heath-wise, I'm starting to believe that moderation is the best way to approach certain things - definitely exercise, while slightly more tilted approaches are best for others - particularly eating.  I like to eat mostly vegetables, with occasional fish, and rare meat.

Slayer final world tour

I'm going to California to see Slayer!!  Woo hoo!!!  I also get to see Behemoth, who is one of my favorite bands ever!!!

I love the finish on this Luxxtone

So perfectly reliced.....

Vola Blaze X

The yellow-orange-red gradient is a little 80s, but I still like this guitar.  Made in Japan too, and I am a huge fan of Japanese guitars!!

Transcendence - Devin Townsend Project

Because I listen to obscure music, it's hard to find new artists to listen to.

There are a few ways that I seek out new music to listen to:

1. Browsing "what's new" in iTunes
2. Online music lists
3. Stuff that's endorsed by musicians I like
4. Artist gear endorsements

It's weird, because "artist gear endorsements" implies that the artists are popular enough that they are influential, and thus, popular.

Devin Townsend must be pretty popular, because he has a lot of gear endorsements.  He has a signature guitar coming out from Framus, he has signature Fishman pickups, and he is listed as one of the top endorsers of Fractal Audio's AxeFX.

I saw a rig rundown of Townsend's rig on Premier Guitar, so I decided to check out his stuff.  I had only heard Townsend on Steve Vai's "Sex & Religion", but I wasn't a big fan of that album so I never gave his stuff a second listen.

Now that I listen to his stuff, specifically "Transcendence", it's pretty cool, in a nerdy prog-rock kinda way.  It reminds me of a cross between Tool, Dream Theater and Pink Floyd, all very influential prog bands in their own right.  I like Townsend's voice, which is funny because I didn't care for his voice on Sex & Religion.  I guess it works in the context of his own music.

The music is pretty epic.  I'm not sure if I am in love with it, but like any prog, maybe it'll take time to grow on me.

Japan 1941: Countdown to Infamy - Eri Hotta

This was a great book that described Japan's entry into World War 2.  The narrative revolved mainly around Prime Minister Konoye and the cabinet's conflicted opinions about entering into war with the United States and Russia.  I really enjoyed this book, despite being long.  I now better understand Japan's expansionist position and how they led the population to believe in a lot of different and many untrue things.

Elise Trouw

I had never heard of this musician until this morning.  Man, she's a great musician and she has the looping thing down.  She has a great voice too, and in some of her videos, she shows off her drumming, which is arguably her best attribute as a musician.  Still, none of that would matter if her music was mediocre, but her covers are amazing.  I'm going to check out her original music next.

Boh Runga

Boh Runga, lead singer of Stellar, is another of my favorite female vocalists.  Like Alexia Rodriguez, not only is she a talented singer, but she's a guitarist and a really great songwriter.

Whether with Stellar or her solo material, I have never heard a song that she's done that I didn't like.  It's like she hits songwriting gold every time she writes something.  It's really too bad that her career didn't take off outside of New Zealand.  I really think she deserves the highest accolades.

It's weird - her sound is very pop, yet she's not very popular.  Maybe my taste in music runs along the fringes of what people like.

Alexia Rodriguez

Alexia Rodriguez, from Eyes Set To Kill, is one of my favorite female vocalists.

I'm not sure why she's not at the top of more "best vocalist" charts.  She's an amazing singer with a lot of depth and an insane range.  She's also a great songwriter.

My favorite song that she does in "Infected" off of the Masks album.

She also has a great pop album called Underground Sounds, under the name Lexia.

Why We Sleep - Matthew Walker

This was a really good book.

Matthew Walker talks about the importance of sleep.  He says that lack of sleep is attributed to a number of problems, from cancer, heart disease, dementia, depression, and other ailments.  He backs up these claims with studies.  He also doesn't claim causality where the research does not indicate it.

Walker says that whereas he previously thought that sleep was one of the three pillars of health, along with diet and exercise, he now puts sleep on a tier above diet and exercise.  I believe what he says.

This was an important read for me, and it emphasizes to me how much I need to work hard on sleep.

I plan to read this book over to reinforce what I've learned.

Peavey

 Recent promo photos of Soulfly and Behemoth are skewing my amp hunt short list.....

A new amplifier

I really love my ENGL Savage 120 amplifier, but it doesn't run perfectly.  I have an AxeFX Ultra processor that is pretty reliable, but I don't like scrolling through the pages to program it.  I can get through gigs reliably with my gear, but it's nice to have something that is newer and won't give me problems.

I sold some guitars and have some money to buy a new amp, so I'm on the hunt.

My criteria for an amp are:

• Reliability - I've had so much problems with amps in the past - my Mesa Mark IIIc had a popping sound when switching channels, my Bogner had problems with the effects loop, and my ENGL Savage doesn't play through the 2nd channel, and the second master volume doesn't work.  So I need an amp that will be reliable.
• Tone - I love the gut punching sound of the ENGL Savage - it is by far my favorite tone I've ever heard.  I also like a lot of low end.  I like a good, super saturated tone for death and thrash metal, but also a good plexi tone for blues and classic rock.  I also love a good, warm clean sound.
• Multiple channels - I want three channels and preferably four.
• Quiet - It's nice to have a good, quiet design, and built-in noise gates are awesome.

I think with those criteria in mind, I don't care what brand the amp is, or where it's made, or if it's PC board construction or hand-wired.

The first amp I tried out was the EVH 5150III Stealth.  I liked it, but didn't absolutely love it.  The clean sound was just okay, and the drive tones didn't have the midrange punch I'm looking for, no matter how I EQ'd it.  I could probably get it with an equalizer in the loop, but wouldn't want to for the price, even though my dealer would have given me a good deal at around $2000.  I'll have to pass on this amp.

An amp that's high on my list is the Peavey 6505+.  I've played through one once, a long time ago, but I don't think there are any for sale around here so I'd have to order it.  On the plus side, it has a killer distortion tone and it's cheap, but the drawbacks are only two channels, and a reportedly so-so clean channel.  This amp is endorsed by some of my favorite guitarists - Max Cavalera and Nergal, so that's a great endorsement.  I think I'll pass on this, and maybe pick one up later as a third (fourth?) amp.

The Peavey Invective 120 is really intriguing.  It's designed by Misha Mansoor from Periphery and is supposed to take the best of the 5150 / 5150 II tone, add a great clean channel, and some added features.  I'm really excited about this amp, but as it's just released, I want them to make sure it's solid before I buy one.  It's definitely on my short list, and it's on the lower price range of what I want to spend too.

A dealer that I spoke to is highly recommending the ENGL Steve Morse amplifier.  This is another one that I am very excited about as the tones are supposed to be amazing.  It's a departure from the Savage design, but I think I can make it work.  This is on my short list as well.

The ENGL Invader gets a lot of really high recommendations too, and I've seen that Bumblefoot plays one.  It seems very versatile with four channels, but it's a little expensive.  This may be a contender.

I've played through the original Friedman BE-100 and it was killer, but lacked something.  The new BE-50 is supposed to sound better, and has three channels.  I've met Dave Friedman and he's a nice guy, that knows his amps.  This is a contender, but is expensive.  On the plus side, I can try this at my dealer and he will hook me up with a good price.

Last on my list to check out is the Mesa TC-50.  I've heard clips of this online and it sounds great.  My local dealer may have one for me to check out, which is always a big plus for me.

Simple Joy

My daughter recently asked if we could eat more vegan.  I was really happy about this because I've converted to a mostly vegan (and partially pescatarian) way of eating.

We had a really nice day out yesterday, and stopped at a vegan restaurant for lunch called Simple Joy.

We ordered several dishes and shared, and they were really good!!

We had "shrimp" nests for an appetizer, which are vegan shrimp that had the texture of real shrimp, wrapped with noodles and deep fried.

We also had a "burger" that had a vegan patty in a toasted bun.  This was really good!!

And finally, we had "chicken" puttanesca pasta, but we dug into that so quickly that I didn't get a good picture.

I'm so happy she wants to eat vegan.  It's nice to be able to treat ourselves to something decadent, and still be meat free.

Vegan pho

I was inspired by Loving Hut to make a vegan pho.  Because pho is as much about texture as taste, and because the taste of pho revolves around the spices in the broth (cinnamon, cloves, star anise, peppercorns, ginger, onion), having vegan pho is just as satisfying as having pho go or pho ba.

In lieu of meat, I added fried tofu, mushrooms and Chinese peas.  I also used mushroom seasoning for the broth.  I love this mushroom seasoning - it's all natural, and I use it in everything that needs salt and umami.

From Cradle To Stage - Virginia Hanlon Grohl

I really admire Dave Grohl - he's a brilliant songwriter, a rocking singer, a very artistic movie producer, and an incredible entertainer.  I've heard stories about how he was raised, so I was excited to read this book, written by his mother.

In this book, Virginia Grohl interviewed and told the stories of several rock stars from their mothers' perspectives.  Many of the stories were boring, or about artists that I'm not into.  However, I enjoyed reading about Rush's bass player, Geddy Lee, and how his mother was able to survive the holocaust and relocate to Canada.  I also enjoyed reading about Amy Winehouse and how she was difficult from the start, which spoke volumes about her eventual death from alcohol poisoning.  However, most of the stories weren't as interesting as those two, so I'd give this book a 6 of 10.

Delores O'Riordan

Delores O'Riordan was the lead singer of the Cranberries.  She was found dead this weekend at the age of 46.

There are two different decades where I thought music exploded with creativity and innovation.  The 60s was a decade that established the roots of all music today.  But the 90s took all music and threw it into a blender, and some great things came out of it.

The seeds of "alternative" music started in the mid 80s.  I started my freshman year of college at U.H. and soon after joined a band.  Whereas in high school I was playing a lot of the metal that was mainstream and popular (Ratt, Motley Crue, etc.), my second college band found me playing R.E.M., The Cult, The Clash, INXS, The Church, etc. (oddly, the metal / shred image that people associated with me was still there, as the band insisted on doing a Joe Satriani song, presumably to keep my interest).

In those early alternative / college songs, I saw that there was less an emphasis on being mainstream as a lot of so-called metal bands had begun to have a uniform look / style, in the generic bullshit bands like Warrant and Firehouse.  There was no "rock" in those bands, whereas there was just something more raw in a song like "Radio Free Europe" or "Waitress In The Sky" (The Replacements "Tim" was a life-changing album for me).

The early 90s saw that explode into the mainstream when Nirvana broke and relegated the corporate glam metal bands' CDs to the budget bins, where they should have gone from the start (side note:  apologies to Extreme, who was led by one of my favorite guitarists of all time, Nuno Bettencourt).

I thought the 90s were so incredible, and I would listen to Radio Free Hawaii daily, hearing everything from grunge, to ska and punk, to rap metal and thrash, and female led bands like the Indians and the Cranberries that paved the way for artists like Jewel, Sarah McLachlin and Alanis Morissette.

The Cranberries were an essential band of that era.  They wrote some amazing songs like Linger, Dreams and Zombie.

In 2017, they released "Something Else", which had acoustic versions of their songs.  I love the instrumentation, which supports the songs in a different yet fitting way.

Delores's voice was sweet, and you could hear a hint of her Irish accent in her singing.  That gave the songs an exotic feel to me.  She was such a talented singer with a unique voice and gift for writing beautiful melodies.  I'll be listening to the Cranberries today.

Music as a marker for a time in your life

I'm sure most people experience this....  that music is a marker for a time in your life, and certain songs will remind you of good times, or people.

Right now, I'm associating a lot of music with good times with my kids....  so much music, particularly Panic at the Disco! and My Chemical Romance, reminds me of long car rides with my beautiful daughter, who is also one of my best friends.

My son plays lots of works on piano, and there is just about nothing better than being at home, doing something like cooking dinner, and being unintentionally serenaded by my son rehearsing either his original music, or songs like Yiruma's "River Flows In You".

In the future, I know I will listen to these songs, and be reminded of a beautiful time in my life.

As I mentioned below, I recently discovered that Stellar* is playing a few shows, and I went back and listened to them.  The singer, Boh Runga, has a sister named Bic Runga, and I went back and listened to her music.

When my son was maybe three or four, I used to take him driving so he would fall asleep.  I would play him Bic Runga's "Drive" and the lull of the car ride and the soft music would put him to sleep.  Hearing those songs remind me of those peaceful moments.

One song on that album, "Sway" reminds me of the American Pie movies and soundtracks, and when I listen to those, I'm reminded of my friend Shirley.

Shirley and I were very close.  She was one of my best friends, and I treasured our platonic relationship.  She passed away from cancer a few years ago.  Today was the first time I revisited a lot of the songs on the American Pie soundtrack, and they remind me of good times with Shirley.

Memories are difficult to process, especially when you lose someone the way I lost Shirley to cancer, but the music that remains reinforces and maybe even emphasizes the positive and good times that we shared.

Stellar*

Back in 2000 while visiting New Zealand, I scouted the record stores (remember when those things existed?) looking for the popular local bands.  I discovered Stellar* (the asterisk is part of their name), and fell in love with them.

The put out three brilliant albums, all of which have incredible songs from start to finish.

I think they broke up after their third album, or took a hiatus, at which time the singer, Boh Runga, moved to L.A.  She put out an equally brilliant solo album that captured the Stellar* sound, but lacked some of the signature Stellar* instrumentation.

I was really excited to see that Stellar* reformed and will be playing some shows in Auckland and Wellington.

I wish I had the money to fly to New Zealand to see these shows!!

Ronz World

I'm blown away by this guitar painter.  He is amazingly creative and talented.  I would love to have this guy paint one of my guitars.

Sleep as a powerful learning tool

I've been listening to the audiobook "Why We Sleep" and it reinforces a YouTube video that I posted about last September, that says that your brain reinforces important things that you've learned while suppressing "extraneous noise".

I think I'll try studying my katakana at night from now on.  Maybe I'll even do my Japanese language lessons at night.

Power Trip's recommendations

This is cool - I saw a list of bands that Power Trip recommends, and since I love the latest Power Trip album, I gotta check these bands out:

Iron Reagan (I already love this band)
Mammoth Grinder
Impalers
Genocide Pact
Red Death
Gatecreeper
Midnight
Iron Age
Protester
Turnstile

Too many things that I haven't yet discovered

Man, there's too much music that I haven't yet discovered.  I found these bands, all fronted by female lead singers, that I intend to check out.

Grilled cauliflower

Cauliflower is a really versatile vegetable.  I've seen cauliflower rice, and it's on my to-try list.

I've made Buffalo cauliflower before, which is a variation on Buffalo chicken wings, only using cauliflower, cut into bite sized pieces.  It's really good!!

My favorite way to have cauliflower is cut into steaks, drizzled with olive oil, and marinated in minced garlic, seasoned with salt and pepper, and grilled/smoked.  Cauliflower holds up well to the heat, yet absorbs the smokey flavor.

On Writing - Stephen King

On Writing is Stephen King's book about the craft of writing - inspiration, technique and style.

I imagine it is essential reading for aspiring fiction writers.

However, since I'm not a fiction writer, I found some of the book to be a little boring.  But I found some commonalities between writing fiction and writing music, the most profound being that you need to spend as much time reading books as you do writing them.  Same goes for music - one needs to spend as much time listening to music as one does writing.

Oddly, though I don't write fiction (or non-fiction for that matter) and occasionally write music, I spend way more time reading than I do listening to music.

I really enjoyed the way he ended this book.  Upon healing from a really bad accident, he says "Writing did not save my life.  Dr. David Brown's skill and my wife's loving care did that.  But, it has continued to do what it always has done.  It makes my life a brighter and more pleasant place.  Writing isn't about making money, getting famous, getting dates, getting laid, or making friends.  In the end, it's about enriching the lives of those who will read your work, and enriching your own life as well.  It's about getting up, getting well, and getting over.  Getting happy, okay?  Getting happy.  Some of this book, perhaps too much, has been about how I learned to do it.  Much of it has been about how you can do it better.  The rest of it, and perhaps the best of it, is a permission slip - you can, you should, and if you're brave enough to start, you will.  Writing is magic, as much the water of life as any other creative art.  The water is free.  So drink.  Drink and be filled up."

I'd give this book a 6 out of 10 for my personal enjoyment, though I have to say that the conclusion quoted above was inspirational to me as a musician.  If I was a writer, I'd probably give this a 9 out of 10.

The DJ Ashba Les Paul mod

I recently rewired my black Imata Les Paul.  I put a kill switch in the toggle position, and moved the toggle to the bottom.  This is how DJ Ashba from Sixx A.M. and Guns and Roses configures his Les Pauls.  I also took the tone controls out of the circuit so the lower two knobs are only there to plug the holes.  I never use the tone controls on dual humbucker guitars, especially playing heavy rock or metal.

I have to admit, I wanted to move the toggle because I more often than not hit the toggle inadvertently while playing rhythm guitar, as many guys who grew up playing Strats do.  Apparently Eddie Van Halen has this problem and reverses his switch.  So I wanted to see how it would feel to put the toggle down on the bottom.

Since I've played Les Pauls for years now, it's a little confusing.  I had to do quite a bit of irreversible routing, so I'll have to leave it this way.  The kill switch is very cool though, and it's the perfect position for it.

I also swapped out the Sperzel tuners for Gotohs, and they are REALLY good.

I need to tweak the nut a little more, but this will be my go-to hard rock guitar.

A perfect breakfast

This might be the perfect breakfast.  Everything tastes really good.....  the tart sweetness of the tomatoes, the creamy richness of the avocado, the densely sweet Okinawan sweet potatoes, the crunch of the fuji apples, and the textural variation of the sticky silky white beans on the crunchy sourdough toast, spiced with Tabasco brand sriracha and habanero sauce.  Not only does everything taste good, but it keeps me pretty full for the 6 1/2 hours until lunch, since it has so much fiber.

Sam's Club finally got flavor bombs back in, which I really love.  Sam's Club has the best tomatoes, and they are reasonably priced too!

From broken-in to broken

I'm pretty sure I'm not alone when I say that I like things that are broken in.  I don't care much about objects as status symbols or the perception of wealth or hipness.

But I do like high quality, functional things.  Two things that I love and use for hours every day are my shoes and my headphones.

My Converse tornado zip shoes are my absolute favorite shoes ever.  They are super comfortable, fit me like a glove, and I've worn them every day for probably a year and a half.  These shoes see about 2 miles a day on most days since I change to my Nikes for long walks, but they get the bulk of my casual walking.  So I'm guessing that they've already walked over 1000 miles.  They're broken in perfectly.

The treads on the soles are worn down and the outer is separating from the soles.  But I just can't bring myself to throw these shoes out.  I think I'll keep an emergency spare around, and just keep wearing these shoes until they fall apart completely, which I'm fairly confident won't happen for a few more months.  I've already Shoe Goo'd them once and then it separated again.

I'm not sure I can say the same for my headphones.  I've used the same Bose headphones for probably two years and like my shoes, I love these headphones.  I use them on my two hour walks on weekends, and have them on most of the day at work, so they easily put on 24 hours of audio in a week.  That makes 2,500 hours of audio going through these headphones.

They still function perfectly.  But the left ear screen has separated, and the outer layer of the ear pads has pretty much all flaked off.  I normally wouldn't care about this, but the headphones now absorb sweat, which grosses me out, and occasionally I'll walk around little black flecks on my ear from the dilapidated pad.  I think I'll still keep using this for awhile though, but maybe not for exercise.

I don't like buying new things if I have something that works perfectly.  My car has almost 180,000 miles on it and I will probably drive it as long as I can, because I just don't see repair costs exceeding the price of a new car.  I won't replace my cell phone until it breaks.

I wish I could say that I do this primarily because I don't want to live life in a disposable way, though that's definitely part of the equation.  I would also not be ashamed to say that I use things until they're broken because I'm cheap, but that's not really the reason either.

The real reason is that when I find something that's so perfect, it's hard to let it go until it's broken.

A reminder of things to do daily

Rather than having a New Year resolution, I have a running list on my phone of things to try to accomplish daily.  I'll add it here as an added reminder of things I'd like to accomplish daily.

Spend time with the kids
Stay positive
Be in touch and in control of emotions
Learn Japanese:  Duolingo, Tiny Cards, Learn In Your Car Japanese
Listen to an audiobook
Read for 15 minutes
Try to have a different perspective about something - keep an open mind
Meditate
Walk every hour
Throw something away
Get a half an hour of exercise
Get up from the desk and walk every hour
Eat nuts
Eat beans
Eat fruits
Drink lots of water and tea
Relax
Say something nice to someone
Exercise patience
Don't say things in vain
Get 7 1/2 hours of sleep

Dear 2017

Dear 2017,

I will always remember you as a year of awakening.  A year that sparked transformation of body, mind, and spirit.


During the beginning of you, I discovered the Dalai Lama.  I feel like his spiritual teachings have altered my life's course on a slightly different trajectory, much like blasting an asteroid hurtling towards Earth might offset it's trajectory a percentage of a degree, enough to prevent its previously imminent Earthly collision (can you tell I've also been reading about science via Bill Nye and Neil DeGrasse Tyson?)

The Dalai Lama has such profound lessons to be learned.  Lessons of compassion, kindness, humility, perspective, and inner peace.  I plan to re-read his teachings.  My life's circumstances preclude me from being a lama, but I know I have the capacity to incorporate his teachings into my life in meaningful ways.

And in his teachings I've also discovered the writings of Piero Ferrucci and Daniel Goleman.  Ferruci's books have taught me the value of emphasizing kindness and finding strength through adversity.  Goleman's books have taught me emotional intelligence and the benefits that we receive by exercising kindness.

Thank you, 2017, for introducing me to the self-awareness that comes with finding inner peace.  I found this through meditation and calmness.  I found this in kindness, both the warmth of giving it, and the appreciation of receiving it.  I found this in being centered, accepting who I am, finding forgiveness for myself, and finding and nurturing the things I love and what keeps me whole.

Though I've always been intellectually curious, I had only previously satiated that curiosity through NPR programs and the occasional book.

In the middle of you, a very fortunate convergence occurred.  Extensive walking and my daily commute afforded me time to stimulate my intellectual curiosity, which was mutually beneficial.  Walking gave me the time to listen to audiobooks, and listening to audiobooks gave me incentive to walk.  It was a win-win!

I found my love of reading in you, 2017.  I discovered the Dalai Lama, Piero Ferrucci and Daniel Goleman as I mentioned above.  I mostly read non-fiction - biographies, self-help and history, but George Orwell's 1984 hit me HARD.  It got me to think about the meaning of life and happiness.  It changed my mind about how much a fictional work can be significantly thought provoking.

I developed an admiration for Barack Obama through three of his books.  I learned different perspectives on the Pacific Theater of World War 2 through "Midnight In Broad Daylight" and "To Hell and Back", about the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, and the Japanese POW camp in "Unbroken".  I discovered beautiful poetry (and a newfound love of poetry) through Rupi Kaur.  I revisited "The Little Prince" and "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory", both of which were significant books at different points in my life.

Another significant change in my thinking came with Dan Buettner's The Blue Zones books.  I recognize the synergy between diet, exercise, stress reduction, spirituality, and social support, and have been trying to implement these things in my life.

The other intellectual satiation came via learning Japanese.  I've always wanted to learn Japanese, and sometimes I feel like I'm the only person that didn't pursue it much as a kid.  It's such a great time to learn Japanese, with apps and audio lessons available.  Not to mention the convergence of my time available and allocated to learning Japanese.  Through 2017, I've learned all of my hiragana, about a third of my katakana, a few kanji, and about 500 words or so (some of which are forgotten).

And learning Japanese wasn't just beneficial for its own sake.  It helped me to exercise my memory muscles, and helped my focus, as I learned not to let my mind drift during Japanese lessons.

I have a long way to go - I can only form a few rudimentary sentences, but I am determined to be fluent in Japanese.

Thank you, 2017, for providing me the time and opportunity to develop intellectually through reading and learning Japanese.  Not only have I expanded my mind by learning new things, new perspectives, new philosophies, but I've also been able to find calmness, motivation, and focus.

At the beginning of you, I had lost my way physically.  My body was still way over my ideal body weight, and I had stopped walking and working out.  I was not eating healthily to boot.

At the midpoint of you, I re-discovered walking.  Walking helped me with endurance, with stress, and with my health.  My blood pressure went down and I've lost 13 pounds, give or take a few.  Through walking, I've also been able to nurture love of audiobooks, Japanese lessons, and music.  I now walk every hour at work and climb around 20 flights of stairs daily.

After reading the Blue Zones, I've started eating a primarily pescatarian diet.  I've learned to love the simple taste of really quality food.  Things like Okinawan sweet potatoes, kidney beans, tomatoes, edamame, toasted sourdough bread, apples, and my current obsession, bittermelon. I also really love salmon and sardines, and am currently also exploring different ways of cooking dried soy curd, fungus and dried turnips.

Thank you, 2017, for awakening a renaissance in eating and exercise for me.  I've never felt better in my life.  This is a journey towards physical wellness that I've only just begun, but in which I've started to see light at the end of the tunnel.  At the same time, once I break the light, I want to make sure my train continues to travel forward.  Recognizing how good exercise and proper eating feels in incentive to continue this journey.

Another thing I needed to nourish was my creative side.  This blog was a part of that, but I found a lot of fulfillment through cooking and playing music.

Cooking has always been a combination of a creative endeavor, and a way to relax.  On the creative side, I think I've finally developed tools to create things that are truly my own and to have my own style of cooking, even though I'm always learning.

Through cooking, I've practiced the hand-eye coordination and motor skills necessary to do things like having consistent cuts, practiced multitasking and timing, and learned about culture through ingredients.  I've learned of the meticulous techniques of Japanese chefs like Masaharu Morimoto, and French techniques like sous vide and confit.

Cooking is also relaxing and takes the stress out of having to have something healthy and economical to eat.

I didn't get to spend as much time on music as I would have liked to, but have appreciation for the time that I did have to play.  Still, I found occasional moments to play guitar, and spent more time in the rehearsal studio playing with other musicians than I have in years.

Unfortunately the lack of confluence of inspiration, time, and studio availability hampered my songwriting output in you, 2017.  I hope to change this in 2018.  Fortunately I've had a lot of inspiration through bands like Decapitated, Cavalera Conspiracy, Iron Reagan, Nails, and Power Trip.  It's an exciting time to be playing metal.

I've also been selling off most of my non-metal gear to focus my tools on playing metal.  Next on my acquisition wish list are a custom built Explorer styled guitar, and a new amp.

I have great appreciation, 2017, for the time you've allowed me to exercise my creative side.  Sometimes I feel like a border collie that is confined to a life of being a house dog instead of being in the field herding sheep, but this has only enhanced my appreciation of the time that I am able to play music.

Finally, and perhaps most importantly, I've had some incredibly wonderful and fulfilling time with my amazing son, and my beautiful daughter.  I've seen them grow and thrive, sometimes suffer but always ultimately pull through, and make their mark on the world with grace and humility.  They are incredible talented, extremely smart, and always full of joy.  Perhaps they are my "ikigai", my reason for living.

My son and I have bonded through music.  We played together in the studio with other musicians.  He's taken the musical knowledge I've given him and has done his own thing, with rousing success.  He's been written about in magazines and recognized for his abilities, and continues to make amazing music.  As a musician with hopes for my son to follow in my footsteps, I could not be happier.

We've bonded over our nerdity about Star Wars and Marvel Comics.

He continues to confide in me, and I support him whole heartedly.  He has had starring roles in plays, has been the president of his choir, has gotten into the top hip hop dance company, all while maintaining a GPA over 4.0.

Most importantly, he is a beautiful, compassionate, generous, kind hearted person, who I am extremely proud to call my son, and whom I love unequivocally.  I could not have any more gratitude for his presence in my life.

My daughter is quite possibly my best friend.  Without fail, she accompanies me on a weekly grocery shopping trip, where we bond over music, and often talk about what's going on in her life.  In a society where I hear most early teen daughters don't communicate with their parents, I feel so fortunate to talk to her every single day.

That communication has led to our own language and inside jokes, that emphasize how special our relationship is.

She is so talented.  I love to hear her sing, even though she rarely sings for me when I ask.  Oddly, she will sing in front of hundreds of people.  But on those shopping trips when she's playing music in the car and singing, I smile, at least on the inside.

I also love to watch her dance.  She has a joy to her dancing, that invokes an uncontrollable smile in me.  Unfortunately her dancing for me is even rarer than her singing.

She is a talented artist, whose art never ceases to amaze me.  I want to nurture that talent in her.

And she is smart.  Maybe a little too smart.  So smart that she is a perfectionist and can't complete her homework in time.  But it doesn't matter - her report card and accolades from her teachers show me that she's doing the best she can and is successful.

She is kind, loving and affectionate.  Not only am I proud of her, but I adore her immensely.  She is a constant source of happiness in my life, and like my son, I have gratitude for her every day.

Thank you, 2017, for giving me the time and opportunity to spend with my beautiful children, which nurtured our relationships and allowed for reciprocated love and admiration.

2017, you've given me a wonderful year of self-discovery, of hard work, of creativity, of inspiration, of learning, and of love.  I will remember you as an incredible year that took me from the depths of depression to the beginning of a journey of happiness and wellness.  Thanks to you, I start 2018 with a full heart, clear mind, peace, inspiration, a positive outlook, and a capacity for love.

Completed reading list, 2017

Here are all of the books I've read through 2017.  There were several books that I really enjoyed, that I could benefit from reading again.  These books are underlined.

1. The Ultimate Illustrated History of the Beast - Iron Maiden (7/10)
2. The Art of Happiness - The Dalai Lama (10/10)
3. A Man Called Ove -Fredrik Backman (8/10)
4. The Book of Joy - The Dalai Lama and The Archbishop Desmond Tutu (10/10)
5. The Rainbow Comes and Goes - Gloria Vanderbilt and Anderson Cooper (10/10)
6. The Diary of a Young Girl - Anne Frank (8/10)
7. Fast Food Nation - Eric Schlosser (8/10)
8. When Breath Becomes Air - Dr. Paul Kalanithi (6/10)
9. You Are A Badass - Jenn Sincero (5/10)
10. The Seven Spiritual Laws of Success - Deepak Chopra (6/10)
11. The Law of Attraction, Plain and Simple - Sonia Ricotti (4/10)
12. A Profound Mind - The Dalai Lama (8/10)
13. The Universe in a Single Atom - The Dalai Lama (7/10)
14. Shakespeare Saved My Life - Laura Bates (8/10)
15. The Power of Kindness - Piero Ferrucci (10/10)
16. Homo Deus - Yuval Noah Harari (8/10)
17. Dreams From My Father - Barack Obama (8/10)
18. The Audacity of Hope - Barack Obama (9/10)
19. To Hell and Back - Charles Pelligrino (8/10)
20. I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings - Maya Angelou (8/10)
21. The Healthiest Diet On The Planet -  Dr. John A. McDougall and Mary McDougall (7/10)
22. Without You, There Is No Us - Suki Kim (10/10)
23. I Am America (And So Can You) - Stephen Colbert (7/10)
24. America Again - Re-Becoming the Greatness We Never Weren't - Stephen Colbert (5/10)
25. Wild - Cheryl Strayed (10/10)
26. First Invite Love In - Tana Pesso (6/10)
27. Unbroken - Laura Hillebrand (10/10)
28. A Force For Good:  The Dalai Lama's Vision For Our World - Daniel Goldman (9/10)
29. The Beginner's Guide To Meditation - Shinzen Young (8/10)
30. The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up - Marie Kondo (6/10)
31. Midnight In Broad Daylight - Pamela Rotner Sakamoto (9/10)
32. Why Smart People Can Be So Stupid - Edited by Robert J. Sternberg (6/10)
33. Tao Te Ching - Lao Tzu (10/10)
34. But What If We're Wrong - Chuck Klosterman (6/10)
35. Emotional Intelligence - Daniel Goleman (9/10)
36. Troublemaker - Leah Remini (10/10) 
37. Unstoppable - Bill Nye the Science Guy (9/10)
38. Milk and Honey - Rupi Kaur (10/10)
39. The Little Prince - Antoine de Saint-Exupery (10/10)
40. One Day We'll All Be Dead and None of This Will Matter - Scaachi Koul (8/10)
41. A Wild Sheep Chase - Haruki Murakami (8/10)
42. Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (10/10)
43. Undeniable:  Evolution and the Science of Creation - Bill Nye (9/10)
44.  Seven Deadly Sins - Corey Taylor (7/10)
45. 1984 - George Orwell (10/10)
46. Astrophysics for People in a Hurry - Neil DeGrasse Tyson (7/10)
47. The Blue Zones Solution - Dan Buettner (10/10)
48. Your Inner Will - Piero Ferrucci (10/10)
49. Killers of the Flower Moon - David Grann (8/10)
50. Of Thee I Sing: A Letter To My Daughters - Barack Obama (8/10)
51. Tiny Beautiful Things - Cheryl Strayed (7/10)
52. Sous Chef - Michael Gibney (9/10)
53. The Blue Zones - Dan Buettner (10/10)
54. The Sun and Her Flowers - Rupi Kaur (10/10)
55. Rice Noodle Fish - Matt Goulding (10/10) 
56. Slugfest - Reed Tucker (6/10)

Unfinished books:

1. The Starch Solution - Dr. John A. McDougall and Mary McDougall
2. Frames of Mind - the Theory of Multiple Intelligences - Howard Gardner 
3. Multiple Intelligences New Horizons - Howard Gardner
4. Between The World And Me - Ta-Nehisi Coates 
5. Honor Before Glory
6. The World Beyond Your Head - Matthew B. Crawford