A Landmark Album

I became a fan of Journey’s music in the late 70′s and listened to albums like Infinity, Evolution, Departure and Captured over and over. In fact, I listened to those albums so much, I knew every crack, pop and skip on the records (yes, vinyl records). But nothing prepared me for the release of Journey’s “Escape” album. I was 12 years old, and when I got the album, the melodies and lyrics on the album just seem to resonate in my pre-teen ears.

I know it probably sounds silly, but this album is one that most influenced my musical tastes for years to come. I’m 42 years old now and I can still listen to the whole album. “Escape” sounds as fresh to me now as it did when I was 12 and reminds me of what it was like to discover new music as a youngster.

I can appreciate Journey in all it’s forms, through changing times and a changing lineup (although, I’ll freely admit I’m a Steve Perry purist) and “Escape” is the perfect gateway album into the entire Journey catalog.

Excerpt from the Wikipedia entry:

Escape (Journey album)

• Escape
• Studio album by Journey
• Released July 31, 1981
• Recorded Fantasy Studios, Berkeley, California, Mid Spring/Early Summer, 1981
• Genre Hard rock, rock
• Length 42:46 (original), 59:43 (reissue)
• Label Columbia
• Producer Kevin Elson, Mike Stone

Escape (sometimes stylized as E5C4P3) is Journey‘s seventh studio album (and eighth overall), released on July 31, 1981. The album features four hit Billboard Hot 100 singles – “Don’t Stop Believin’” (#9), “Who’s Crying Now” (#4), “Still They Ride” (#19) and “Open Arms” (#2) – plus rock radio staples like “Stone in Love” and “Mother, Father”.

Background and writing

Escape was the band’s first album with keyboardist Jonathan Cain who replaced founding keyboardist Gregg Rolie after he left the band at the end of 1980. The album was co-produced by former Lynyrd Skynyrd soundman Kevin Elson and one-time Queen engineer Mike Stone, who also engineered the album.

An Atari 2600 game, Journey Escape, was made based on the album.

Journey Escape Video Game from Data Age Advertisement

via Escape (Journey album) – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Journey’s “Don’t Stop Believin’” turns 30 – CBS News

Journey’s “Don’t Stop Believin’” turns 30

Read the complete story here:

via Journey’s “Don’t Stop Believin’” turns 30 – CBS News.

Well, our baby is waking up…see you again soon!

A quick summary.

It’s been quite some time since my last post and update about my experiences with and recovery from Bell’s Palsy. I was diagnosed on Wednesday, April 9th, 2008 with Bell’s Palsy. During my own search for information on the internet I discovered good information was difficult to find. Bell’s Palsy is not a condition most people are familiar with and the word “palsy” in the name incorrectly makes some think of cerebral palsy, a much different disorder. Eventually I did find some great resources of information and support and after reading the experiences of others with Bell’s Palsy, I felt I might be able to make my recovery easier to tolerate by sharing it with others. Shortly after my diagnosis, I begin writing about my experiences here on Galindo.me (formerly flyinggalindo.com). In addition to writing about my experiences, I began taking a series of photographs of my face to track my recovery over time. I’m really glad I did. The photographs showed me the small progress I was making that otherwise was hard to see as well as gave me hope in those tough, early days.

The response.

Since that time I have been amazed and humbled by the number of people from around the world who have visited my site and were either suffering from Bell’s Palsy themselves or knew someone who was suffering from the condition. I received countless supportive comments and emails thanking me for sharing my experiences. These people were looking for information, advice and, mostly, just reassurance they would be OK and would get better. This response had a profound impact on me. (Thank you and my best wishes to each of you – DG)

What took so long?

I had intended to write an update several times in the last few years and have several batches of updated photographs showing my progress that have never seen the light of day. Rather than make excuses or go through all the reasons “why” it took me so long to post an update, let me just say it’s “better late than never”.

The remains of my Bell’s Palsy.

Three years later, most external signs of me having Bell’s Palsy are gone. In fact by September 2008, six months after the first onset, I got to the point where I am today. I say most external signs are gone but there are a few lingering after effects. Externally, my right eye still gets a little lazy at times. I sometimes feel a twitching in my right eyelid, primarily after stressful days or when I’m lacking sleep. When I smile big (and I’ll admit I’m a big smiler – is “smiler” a word?) the right side of my mouth doesn’t curve up as much as the left. You can see these things in my latest photos below but I think I may be the only one that notices them.

One strange side-effect of the healing and re-wiring of the facial nerve is how my tear ducts in my right eye and right side of my nose react when I eat. Because these nerves are so close the ones that control the salivary glands, it appears they now react by watering and running when I eat. It’s now easy for people to see when I think food is good because it looks like my right eye is tearing up and I have to blow my nose!  I admit, it’s kind of strange, but it really isn’t a big deal, and a small inconvenience considering where I was.

Updated photographs.

Aside from being three years older and having more gray hair, my face has returned mostly to normal, whatever that means. The left column in the following series of photographs are from April 19th, 2008. The pictures in the right column were taken April 12th, 2011.

I’d love to hear more comments or questions from anyone interested in my experience with Bell’s Palsy. Thanks for following my progress!

I’m not sleeping well. This isn’t anything new, as I tend to experience bouts of insomnia on a fairly regular basis. Sometimes it’s caused by stress, sometimes by my mind working through ideas or problems. Either way, it’s frustrating. And according to studies I’ve read, isn’t particularly good for long term health.

I’m writing this post just past 2:00am having tossed and turned in bed for a good three or four hours.

Maybe, now I’ve gotten this off my chest, the sleep that has been so elusive will reveal itself to me.

If only there wasn’t a 6:00am alarm waiting for me. I suppose that’s what coffee is for.

Posted to WordPress from the Sprint HTC EVO 4G.

Be You

Being you is effortless – be you. No one can tap into your unique gifts because no one is like you – be you. No one can compete with you because you are the only one on the entire planet who is you – be you. Others cannot be you and you cannot be anyone else; and neither do you need to – just be you! The easiest thing to do – be you.

by Paul Foreman on July 5, 2010, via Be You | Mind Map Inspiration

The power of the gift of music.

CBS News Online – The Harmonica Man.

Courtesy of: CBS News Online

Granted, the apology is probably bullshit.

This is something that’s been bouncing around inside my head lately:

Know the standards.
Know when to follow the rules.
Know when to think outside of the box.
Know when to break the rules.

Sometimes it’s tough to know when. Sometimes you just need to go for it.

Image courtesy of: http://www.flickr.com/photos/g_originals/ / CC BY-NC-ND 2.0

Picturing the Past 10 Years

In this Op-Chart for The New York Times created by Phillip Niemeyer called “Picturing the Past 10 Years”, each row is a theme, and each column represents a year.  Shown in each cell are the trends and events that dominated the past decade in icons and buzzwords.

via Picturing the Past 10 Years, December 27, 2009.

What’s Changed This Decade (1999-2009)

In “What’s Changed This Decade (1999-2009)” another perspective is given on how far we’ve come and gone, both good and bad…

Are stone cold numbers your thing?

If so, check out “A plethora of numbers traces a decade of change” – From McClatchy Newspapers and Yahoo! News. This article lists other statistics that trace the changes that took place in the last 10 years. Here’s a sample taken from that article:

Unemployment rate: 4.2 percent (1999); 10 percent ( November 2009 )

Jobless workers: 5.7 million (1999); 15.4 million ( November 2009 )

Unemployed workers not included in jobless number because they haven’t looked for work in the past month: 1.1 million (1999); 2.3 million ( November 2009 )

Median household income: $44,900 (1999); $50,303 (2008)

In 1999 constant dollars: $44,900 (1999); $38,924 (2008)

Median sales price for existing homes: $138,000 (1999); $172,700 (2009)

In constant 1999 dollars:$138,000 (1999); $133,000 (2009)

Median sales price for new homes: $161,000 (1999); $212,000 (2009)

In constant 1999 dollars: $161,000 (1999); $163,265 (2009)

Number of foreclosure proceedings: 450,000 (1999); 2 million (2009, estimate)

Banks seized by Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.: 8 (1999); 133 (through Dec. 11, 2009 )

People living below the poverty line: 32.8 million in 1999; 39.8 million in 2008

Poverty line for a family of four: $17,029 (1999); $22,025 (2008)

In constant 1999 dollars: $17,029 (1999); $17,043 (2008)

via A plethora of numbers traces a decade of change – Yahoo! News.

Food for thought.

Pancake frustrations.

Two weekends ago, I was up early on a Saturday morning, getting started with my regular weekend routine. After having some coffee and messing around for an hour or two, I decided it was time for breakfast. Pancakes sounded like a good option. With a box of Bisquick from the pantry at hand, I threw together the standard pancakes recipe from Betty Crocker (found on the side of the Bisquick box).

While I was cooking the pancakes, I found I was having a tough time getting them to flip without the batter getting all smeared on the cooked side. I was getting frustrated with myself and wondering what I was doing wrong. I thought I was following the recipe on the box. It calls for three things: Bisquick, water and eggs. Turns out I forgot to add one of the ingredients. What’s funny is, I didn’t realize this until today, two weeks later, after glancing at the recipe on the box again.

Looking at my pictures that documented the final steps of cooking the batch of pancakes in question, can you guess which ingredient I forget?

Eggs. I forgot the eggs. I guess getting two out of three ingredients isn’t bad, right? And guess what? Although the pancakes were dense and not as airy as I’m used to, they still tasted surprisingly good.

It’s just pancakes.

The moral of this story is there is no using getting all worked up over the little mistakes and mess ups in life. An easy thing to say, I know. For me, it’s really hard to live up to this. I always seem to be my worst critic and I can get pretty grumpy when a recipe, project or plan doesn’t come together like I expect.

Since this pancake cooking experience, if I need to remind myself of this lesson and get some perspective when things don’t go according to plan, I’ve begun using my new mantra:

It’s just pancakes.