The Long Road Ahead... Yes, it is a long road... but in the end I hope that I was able to reach someone in a positive way. I've dreamt of becoming famous and touring the world and all that funky goodness, but as I've gotten older I have come to realize there are more important things. Family, friends, and fans. I think every musician wants to release an album and have it go gold or platinum. I don't think that path will ever be mine, though people always tell me "never say never". When I look back at bands I have been in, and then look ahead, I'd rather have 10 die hard fans over 10 million fans all succumbing to the counterproductive ways the mainstream media takes them. Selfish? Maybe. Stubborn? Who knows. But I've followed enough bands and watched enough mainstream media to see that even the biggest form of fame is fleeting. I think to be raised on a pedastal and then kicked off by the "next big thing" is more traumatizing than to have never gotten there in the first place. (Again, who knows, if I sell a million copies of an album, I may look back at this and think what a fool I was!) But whatever the future holds, I will focus on creating emotional and fun music for any ears that are willing to listen. That is my goal. In the end, if I touch someone's life and they take the time to tell me their stories, I know I've done my job. To me, having fans of what I do is a 2-way street. You must have lines of communication that go both ways or it will not work. If someone takes time out of their lives for me, you bet your ass I will return the favor. And I'm hoping that my music is the media in which all things will come into place. I'm not writing music for the fame and fortune and the groupies, though groupies are VERY welcome ;) but rather, I write music because it's something I've loved doing since day one. And as long as someone is willing to listen, I will continue to write music. Other goals I wish to complete? Hard to say. I'd like to eventually become comfortable on the guitar and drums. What is comfortable? I think my level of comfort would be knowing techniques well enough and knowing the instrument inside and out. I don't feel I'm there yet on guitar, and I'm a long ways off on the drums. I'd also like to finish learning the piano and better train my voice. And then there are the exotic instruments that I would die to get my hands on and learn: the Harp Guitar, Warr Guitar, and the Chapman Stick. I could go on and on listing instruments that I want to learn and play. I've had my eye on the violin for years... well you get the picture. Outside of instruments, I'd like to be an accomplished composer. I've got tons of ideas for symphonies in my head just waiting to be put on paper and played. I also like writing poetry and lyrics, and I'd like to eventually get back into art (drawing/inking). What the hell? Maybe I'll even put learning online/internet media further. As you can see, I only know html. I've been told numerous times that doing a site in html, by hand in notepad even, is a brave thing to do these days and I'd have to agree. Most sites are moving onto cgi, php, and flash, but I think before I want to move onto those, I want to be proficient at html. So you can see, I'm a very ambitious person and I want to accomplish alot of feats... some great, some small, but all within reach. And I think all my goals are admirable achievements to aim for. Will I be crossing off any of these in the near future? Who knows, but if there are people out there supporting what I do, the road doesn't seem all that long.