http://composer.nxivm.com Life, living and other interesting things. <p> &quot;Man was born to work hard,&quot; he said.</p><p> His patients ranged from penniless peasants from the Third World to such famous figures as the Duke of Windsor, the Shah of Iran, King Hussein of Jordan, Turkish President Turgut Ozal, Nicaraguan Leader Violetta Chamorro and Presidents Kennedy, Johnson and Nixon.</p><p> But he said celebrities don&#39;t get special treatment on the operating table: &quot;Once you incise the skin, you find that they are all very similar.&quot;</p><p><a href="http://www.cnn.com/2008/HEALTH/07/12/debakey.obit.ap/index.html?iref=mpstoryview">Read the full article on CNN... </a><br /></p> http://composer.nxivm.com/post/49/1816 Sat, 12 Jul 2008 18:28:25 -0400 <p>I made a little recording for a friend who just turned 40.&nbsp; I sent her the Mexican &#39;Happy Birthday&#39; song, sung by me and recorded <em>a cappella</em> in my home studio.&nbsp; It was an interesting piece of information for me because I could see where I have made progress with my voice and where there is still a lot of work to do.</p><p>Also, it was a good reminder of just how much work it takes to record a song successfully.&nbsp; I spent over an hour trying to get a good take of a very short song, which I have sung many many times in my life.&nbsp; It was, to say the least, humbling.</p><p>It was also humbling to see just how much work my diaphragm still needs, but it was exciting to experience the fruits of the 45ish hours I put into my voice last month.&nbsp; No, not nearly enough, but way more than I have ever put into it. </p><p>I think I hadn&#39;t actually recorded anything and sent it to someone since 1999, at least not in a studio. <br /></p> http://composer.nxivm.com/post/49/1759 Wed, 21 May 2008 00:59:35 -0400 <p>It has been quite a tragic week for my voice work, as I have had all sorts of allergy symptoms, which have made it very difficult if not impossible to practice.&nbsp; I am working on the emotional and dietary aspects that have made this the worst allergy season in many years (actually, I didn&#39;t notice allergy season the last 2 years).&nbsp;&nbsp;</p><p>I think a big part of the problem is emotional, as after looking at a couple of issues, today I seem much better, although my voice is fried from so much sneezing, coughing and asthma inhaler treatments.&nbsp; I am feeling hopeful that I will be able to return to practice on Sunday, Monday at the latest. &nbsp;</p> http://composer.nxivm.com/post/49/1751 Sat, 17 May 2008 00:12:15 -0400 <p>Through <a href="http://digg.com/comedy/The_7_Habits_of_Highly_Effective_Internet_Users">digg.com</a>, I stumbled upon this chart:</p><p><a href="http://blog.createdebate.com/2008/04/24/7-habits-of-highly-effective-internet-users/"><img src="http://qc.createdebate.com/img/blog_article_images/7-Habits-Internet.gif" border="0" /></a></p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>From the <a href="http://blog.createdebate.com/2008/04/24/7-habits-of-highly-effective-internet-users/">Create Debate blog.</a>&nbsp; See if this describes you or not...&nbsp;</p> http://composer.nxivm.com/post/49/1745 Tue, 13 May 2008 04:27:24 -0400 After correcting a problem with the template I was using, comment posting is now available for this blog.&nbsp; If you have something to say about anything I have posted, please feel free to say something! http://composer.nxivm.com/post/49/1744 Tue, 13 May 2008 04:25:50 -0400 The last week has been allergy hell.&nbsp; I&#39;ve had a hard time breathing and thus a hard time exercising and practicing voice, but I think the end of my allergies is at hand, and I look forward to accumulating hours, which I very much need, and reporting them here. &nbsp; http://composer.nxivm.com/post/49/1743 Tue, 13 May 2008 04:24:14 -0400 Been having cold symptoms for a few days, which shows me that I need to practice more when I&#39;m healthy!&nbsp; 24 minutes of voice practice for May 7th. http://composer.nxivm.com/post/49/1733 Thu, 08 May 2008 03:27:31 -0400 Voice practice for May 4th was 3 hours and 24 minutes http://composer.nxivm.com/post/49/1732 Mon, 05 May 2008 03:25:53 -0400 Voice practice for May 3, 2008 was 3 hours and 26 minutes. http://composer.nxivm.com/post/49/1720 Sat, 03 May 2008 15:51:44 -0400 Voice practice for today was 2 hours and 49 minutes.&nbsp; Weight was 258 lbs.&nbsp; Workout time 1 hour 5 mins.<br /> http://composer.nxivm.com/post/49/1718 Fri, 02 May 2008 02:31:34 -0400