VOTE, VOTE, VOTE, PLEASE!!! :)

(Today's KUPL Listener Blog word is in the post just below this one.)

For anyone reading this post, just got an update on the MusiCares® Blogger contest; I'm currently in third place.

To date; this is the tally:

We’re All Dancing in the Dark 146
MusiCares: Changing Lives One Song at a Time 98
The Magic of Music 84
So Much to Give 72
The Song Remembers When 47
Why I Care for All This Music Around Us 35

There are eight days left to vote, so if you haven't yet, please do! And please share this with everyone you know. I still have a chance of winning this, and I owe it to everyone who's helped me get this far. A huge thanks to all of you!

Here's the link again of where to vote:

http://www.facebook.com/MusiCares?sk=app_122139254463179

Just "like" the page, and you'll be able to vote. I'm finalist #3.

Again, a huge thanks to all of you who've helped with this, I greatly appreciate it!

The Littlest Things Can Bring Happiness

(Today's word will be in ALL CAPS, BOLD, ITALIC, and STRIKETHROUGH.)


I've come to the conclusion that it really doesn't take a lot to make me happy.

Like hearing my favorite artist on the radio. No matter what kind of day it's been, I hear David Lee Murphy, and I can't help but smile.

One of life's little moments presented itself Monday at work. As a rule, employees where I work can wear any color of jeans, except blue.

Usually, to be able to wear blue jeans, an employee must have purchased a "jeans sticker". This allows the person to wear blue jeans every Friday.

Then there's "Civil War" day, where employees can wear blue jeans and also sport their favorite team colors.

There's also Halloween when employees can dress up. I always manage to have a "costume" that incorporates blue jeans.

It's not that I don't like other jeans colors; as a rule I wear black ones to work, so I'm comfortable. Black jeans just aren't the same though. They don't have the same "feel" to them that blue DENIM does. Doesn't matter if it's dark blue,

or light blue,

blue jeans just have the best feel to them of any color jeans.

Back to Monday's happy moment though. Monday, our company announced that not only can we wear blue jeans on Wednesday, for the "Civil War" game; we can also wear them today, because of the blustery weather, and Thanksgiving.

Doesn't sound like much, I know, for me though, it was heaven! I could live in blue jeans day in and day out; so to be able to wear them to work two days in a row is a big deal to me.

And thus the reason I've decided it doesn't take a lot to make me happy. Two days of wearing blue jeans to work, and suddenly this short week looks even better than before!

The Excessive Use Of The "S" Word

(Today's word will be in ALL CAPS, BOLD, ITALIC, and STRIKETHROUGH.)

There are just some words that should not be said, especially at this time of year. The one I dislike the most is the "S" word.

For some reason around this time of year, like clockwork, you start hearing people everywhere spouting this bad four letter word. Doesn't matter if they're young or old, wild and crazy, or prim and proper, everyone just starts saying the "S" word, even little kids! In fact, the littlest kids seem to get the most pleasure repeating the "S" word, over and over; and their parents let them!

I'm not a fan of the "S" word for the most part. I realize it has it's time and place to be mentioned, but I still don't like it.

Let me clarify that last statement. Over all I don't like the "S" word, or the excessive use of it. However, if it's a weekend, and I have no plans, then I'm okay with it. If that's the case, then the "S" word is more than welcome to be said; as long as it's not said when the weekday comes around, and I have to go to work.

By now you've probably figured out what "S" word I'm speaking of, and if so know why I don't like it.

If you haven't figured it out yet, I guess I'll have to spell it out in this post. Be forewarned however, if you don't like the "S" word, you may not want to read further.

With that said, here goes nothing: SNOW!

There, it's been put in a blog post for the world to see! What's that? That's not the "S" word you were expecting? What word were you thinking of then?! :)

Not Too Proud To Beg

(Today's word will be in ALL CAPS, BOLD, ITALIC, and STRIKETHROUGH.)

My apologies to those who are tired of hearing about the MusiCares® Blogger contest. As stated in earlier posts though, voting is the only way finalists have a chance of winning. The finalist with the most VOTES by November 30, 2011 will be declared the winner. I'd like to be that person, which is why I'm not to proud too beg.

The winner will be at the MusiCares® Honors Person of the Year, Paul McCartney in February, 2012.

It's an honor to even be a finalist in this contest; winning would be the icing in the cake. So again, please, take a moment and vote for me in the
MusiCares® Blogger contest and share the link with your friends and family.
I really do appreciate it!

Link to the blog entries: http://blog.musicares.com/2011/11/03/vote-musicares-blogger/

Link to vote: http://www.facebook.com/MusiCares?sk=app_121121694568521

Life's Lessons Learned

(Today's word will be in ALL CAPS, BOLD, ITALIC, and STRIKETHROUGH.)

You're never too old to learn new things. Whether it's something important, or just useless trivia, you're still learning.

My learning leans more towards useless trivia; I'm like a sponge when it comes to things like that. Yet, I tend not to remember some important things, unless I really commit them to memory.

Then there are the times where the lightbulb comes on, and not only do I remember something important, I learn and grow from it. That's what's been happening since I entered the MusiCares® Blogger contest last month.

I've never liked when someone has a big EGO, the kind that's so big it just overflows out to everyone who comes near the person. The type where the person thinks they're the greatest thing in the world, and no one's better than them. I can't stand that, and have always made sure *I* didn't act like that.

I've always had what I call the "quiet ego". It may come out a little, but for the most part, I'm excited inside, and keep it to myself.

What I've learned in the past month however is, there's a fine line between "ego" and "self-promotion". You have to let at least a bit of your ego out to be able to be self-promoting.

I became aware of this when I was chosen as one of the six finalists in the MusiCares® Blogger contest. Between now and then, finalists must get as many votes for their entry as they can. The finalist with the most votes by November 30, 2011 will be the winner of the contest.

With the prize being attending, and blogging about, the Grammy Person of the Year, Paul McCartney, event you can bet I want to win as much as anyone!

That's when I realized, *I* needed to get the word out to people, and ask them to get the word out as well. It had to start with me though; if I didn't tell people, most people I know wouldn't be aware of the contest, or that I'm a finalist.

Since realizing that, I've also discovered how to keep my ego in check, and still promote myself for others to vote for me.

Even if I don't win the grand prize in MusiCares® blogger contest, I feel I've already won, by learning this important lesson. It allows me to know it's okay to speak up and be proud of what I do, and still be able to keep my ego in control.

7 Months & 100 Posts Ago

(Today's word will be in ALL CAPS, BOLD, ITALIC, and STRIKETHROUGH.)

April 13, 2011 was the first time I'd ever written a blog post. Now, almost seven months later, I'm writing my one hundredth post.

What should this post be about though? A hundred is a bit of a milestone, so it should be something special.

Previous posts have run the gamut of subjects, from the review of The Dirt Drifters,

to silly posts, like washing spiders down drains.

I thought, and thought, but couldn't think of anything special enough to be post one hundred. Then it happened! Something really special I could blog about!

For those who read this blog more than occasionally, you probably know that I entered a post in the MusiCares® Music Blogger contest. My entry was titled "The Magic of Music".

The contest ran from September 9, 2011, to October 31, 2011, and was open to any blogger in the U.S., 21 years or older. Six finalists were chosen from all entries, and I'm one of the six!

From now, until November 30, 2011, finalists have to get as many votes as they can, with the one having the most declared the winner.

The prize is being the only credentialed person for MusiCares® on the red carpet, attending the "Grammy Honors Paul McCartney" event in February 2012, and blogging about the whole thing. To say the least, I'm a teensy bit excited about all of this!

Okay, I'm more than just a little excited; I'm so excited that all I can say, without lifting off the ground is, EEK!

With that said, I would like to kindly ask anyone reading this post to please go to the following link and vote for my post. I'm listed #3 of the six finalists. You will have to "like" the page before you can vote. Also, please pass this link along to your friends and ask them to vote!

http://www.facebook.com/home.php?ref=home#!/MusiCares?sk=app_121121694568521

Thank you in advance for your vote, and also for reading my blog; I definitely appreciate it!

Review--Scotty McCreery--"Clear As Day"

Eighteen year-old Scotty McCreery is best known as the latest winner on "American Idol". Fans also know he has a voice that belies his age.

Throughout his time on "American Idol", McCreery did songs by country artists, most notably Josh Turner. McCreery did Turner's "Your Man", sounding almost exactly like Turner.

"Clear As Day", McCreery's first CD since winning Idol, has several good songs on it, including the Keith Urban song, "Walk In The Country".

Another standout is "Old King James", the story of a bible that had been carried everywhere by a man; then passed on to his family when he died.

"Dirty Dishes" has a mother saying a prayer about noisy kids, dirty dishes, etc., and being thankful for them.

On songs like these, McCreery truly shines; other tracks though are a bit lackluster in comparison. For instance, the two songs released to radio, "Love You This Big" and "The Trouble With Girls" are both a little too "kiddish". Granted, McCreery *is* a kid at eighteen, however, these songs just seem to be aimed directly at 'tweens and teenage girls.

Having been the winner of "American Idol", it would seem that McCreery would already have a large fan base, of all ages; so why not release some of the better songs from "Clear As Day"?

Scotty McCreery has proven he has what it takes to be a star, and except for a glitch or two song wise, "Clear As Day" showcases his talents very well.