You do music now?

I had this acquaintance that I touch base with every once in a while. A nice guy. But although he knows a bit of my story and we talked about me getting out of the copywriting industry I’ve been in for about 10 years, to recently get into the healthcare industry… then back into doing music… I realized how little of my backstory in music so many people (except those super close to me) really know.

So, for those of you that are interested… please read on. ;)

Most recently, like after my motorcycle accident in May of 2025, I thought I might go back to school to get a masters in Social Work.

But, because it’s a big commitment I found that I could take certain steps, before that, to see if I would like it.

With that said, I recently got my Peer Wellness Specialist (PWS) certification and all this training, but had little to no experience. Applying to, I don’t know, dozens of companies and roles over the last few months… one of which, that I’ve been in contact with for weeks, interviewed with, and offered me a position. Finally!

Then, I recently got an email telling me they hired “someone with more experience,” instead. Even, after the hiring manager offered me the job and was waiting for HR to get back to me about next steps.

I wasn’t mad. I was PISSED!

And so, I forgot I didn’t reply to this acquaintance and his last email and said something like, “so much for the healthcare industry"… with my signature having the links to this new music site I just put up…

And he was like “You do music now?”

And then, EXTREMELY pissed, I said under my breathe, “I do music now? Dude, who the fuck are you? My dad?!”

So here’s a bit of my backstory, involving me and my music career (or lack thereof). ;)

I wrote my first song, when I was a freshman in high school in 1988.

I went to West Windsor Plainsboro High School in Princeton Junction, NJ. I was one of a handful of kids who played electric guitar in a few bands.

We played some dances, the talent shows, and met up after school in our spare time, to practice.

At that time, I had no clue what to do, other than use it as a way to drown out the yelling and screaming that I tried my best to ignore.

I eventually got a Tascam Porta 3 or something to write and record some things on tape. Then, I would go over Phil Dubnik’s house (I think that was his name), the other guitarist everyone knew in school. At that time, he had the coolest, Steve Vai model Ibanez and some old-school music programs that we all messed around with and tried to see what we could do.

I didn’t really start singing until I was a freshman in college, in 92.

I got into college in 1992.

Actually, I barely got into college with a 750 combined SAT score. Thankfully, they accepted me after I wrote this essay about I don’t know what… but it was apparently good enough to get me into college on a 2.93 GPA and a 750 combined SAT (which was after I took “The Princeton Review” that improved my score by 10 points).

Unfortunately, those tests don’t test creativity. But to say, “I didn’t test well” wasn’t at all true. I worked harder than most, but not on those kinds of tests or metrics. It also, didn’t test work ethic (which I had in droves). ;)

This was after I went and visited a number of art schools on the east coast and was told by my mom that my dad wouldn’t pay for art school (and that he wanted me to go to Rutgers — because it was in-state). But between you and me, I wanted to get as far away from my family as possible. Eventually landing at West Virginia University, initially going in as general studies.

In either case, I was the first one in my immediate family to attend and graduate college with a 4-year degree. Looking back, I realize how much better things would’ve turned out if I did go to Art School. Then, I probably would’ve done copywriting, a career that I didn’t realize was a thing, until almost 15 years after college (and discovered it, by complete chance, from a blogger friend of mine)…

And probably would’ve done music, as a career, a lot earlier.

I took a voice class for one of my college electives.

I forget what year, which had to be like 94 or something, but I did work-study in college, to help take care of some living expenses. I worked in the college of music, there at West Virginia University a few hours a week doing random office work.

Looking back, it’s kind of ironic that I did work-study in that department. It felt extremely old and conservative, and different, that it really turned me off. But, I needed an elective, and decided I would try voice.

Man o man! Imagine being in a class, with voice majors, and getting up in front of a class like that and singing some random classical-type song. It was SCARY!

But I pulled it off, got an “A” and decided I would run with it — leaving this band I was playing lead guitar in, and starting my own duo called “Deep Seed” that I sang, wrote, and played all the music in.

I started booking and playing local bars and cafes in and around campus.

This was in and around 1993 or 94. There was this kid Jamie, who totally sounded like a combination of Lane Staley from Alice N Chains and Eddie Vedder from Pearl Jam.

I was sooo jealous of him and all the songs he would effortlessly write and perform (not to mention all the ladies loving him and his long hair). Lol! Man, could he sing his ass off!

As an art major, and native West Virginian, he was a super nice guy and really inspired me to perform and start writing my own music (with just an acoustic guitar and a microphone in hand). And so, even though he had his own band he would perform with, I took every opportunity to hang out and play music with him — hoping we might one day start a band together.

But Richard, his guitarist and writing partner, didn’t seem to like it… so I wound up doing my own thing.

I spent hours upon hours hanging out and writing at local cafes.

In college is when I discovered cafes, writing, and people watching.

Over the years, I acquired journals upon journals of writing about anything and everything. Eventually, using it to write all kinds of songs and poetry. Basically, anything I could do to just purge myself of all this anger and resentment I had over my dad calling me up, drunk, to tell me that I had to study business (because he was paying for 1/2 of school).

Eventually choosing psychology, as a major, I began to realize why my parents were so miserable. Well, actually, that’s not true. But that was the wish. ;)

Although most people used drugs and alcohol to escape the pains of childhood and growing up in a miserable family, I used music.

I supposed if my dad didn’t drink and smoke, I would’ve gone down the same path (like many have). But the fact that he did, made me vow to myself that I wouldn’t do that. But even though I loved psychology, I didn’t have good enough grades to get into any sort of graduate school, so I moved back home with my mom, stepdad, and sister…

In Plainsboro, NJ, after I graduated from West Virginia University in 1996.

I worked during the day, and booked shows during my lunch break.

At that time, I worked as a “Patient Communicator” at Novo Nordisk Pharmaceuticals. It was horrible! I hated it. But that’s where my mom worked as a “legal secretary” and I needed the money to save up enough, to get as far away from them as I could.

Originally, I think working during the day, and playing at night was a way to not be home and around the pain and misery that plagued me living with my family at that time.

To be honest, I loved the travel and seeing different parts of NY, NJ, PA, and DE. And we were so central, that I could be anywhere in like 30-90 minutes. And so that’s when music, as a career, really started.

So I put together a press pack, recorded my first cassette tape, in some studio, and sent it out to anyone and everyone who booked music. Including, many places that didn’t but convinced them that they should. ;)

At that time, Princeton, NJ was only about 20-30 minutes away from me. And Rutgers University (where my dad wanted me to go but was too close to home for me), was only about 30-45 minutes away. And so, I booked, played, promoted HUNDREDS of shows. So much so, that I was playing like 3-6 times per week.

I contacted local and national press, radio, and news outlets… all without the help or support of anyone in my family.

I made shit happen (when it seemed like nothing would).

So from 1997 to around 2003 or so, I worked during the day and played music at night wherever I could with just me and my acoustic guitar — eventually booking and playing some larger shows, colleges, and radio stations, before pickup up and putting everything in my car to head to LA.

Cause, why not? ;)

Finding a studio apartment, on Dudley Ave., for around $600 per month, is when I really started to write some of my best songs. In fact, "Christmas in California” is one of those songs that I wrote back then and crazy to think just how long ago I wrote it.

Getting BIG into bands like The Counting Crows and other story-driven acts, at that time, I really started to get down to writing, what I thought, were well-crafted songs.

But, not knowing much of anyone, I jumped around from job to job, to eventually try and make money from music and this acting/modeling agency that I signed with called Dragon Talent — after some well-respected commercial casting agent I met on the strip in Venice Beach, California said I should contact them cause she “liked my look.”

Barely booking much of anything, it wasn’t until I got beyond burnt and tired of trying to get credit card advances to pay my rent, that I had to call it quits.

Then 911 happened.

Talking about this, in a previous post, 911 happened and decided it might be a good idea to be closer to family.

And now, my mom relocating to Naples, FL, I had asked to see if I could go back to live with her and my stepdad. Knowing full well that she’s an impossible person to live with.

After a few weeks of asking myself, “why did I do this” I knew I couldn’t afford to go back to California, so I decided to move to Orland, FL — where I worked at Sprint during the day, delivered pizza at night, and tried doing personal training at Golds Gym on the weekends… to pay off any and all of my credit card debt. Which I eventually did, thanks to Dave Ramsey (look him up). ;)

The good things about Florida?

I started teaching myself keyboard and wrote what I thought was my first, decent piano-drive song called, “Trailwood Drive” (which will also be on the new album, Dire Consequences) as well as a few others.

So, if you’ve read this far (keeping in mind this is probably about 1/2 of “my story” with regards to music), you probably get why I got so pissed at this acquaintance for saying to me, “you do music now?”

Between you and me, I personally want to tell him to fuck off.

But maybe, I’ll just send him a link to this journal entry or he may one day take the time to read this. Suffice it to say, I’ve been “doing music” longer than some people have been alive. ;)

I just hope more people get to hear these songs, and people like this guy stop judging people for what they do or don’t do. Cause listen…

Everyone is fighting their own battles, and if you’re not happy, don’t try and get in the way of other people trying to be. No matter how many times someone decides to start and stop multiple careers that don’t pan out. Cause one day, maybe one will. ;)