Episode 000 podcast audio makes reference to musicians I've worked with and historical figures I've had the honor to brush with. The ones I referred to in episode 000 include bands Heart, the Ramones, and history makers convicted communist spy Alger Hiss and NFL great/body guard Rosey Greer. I was told by a famous person never to drop names so since it was a famous person that told me so, I'm not at liberty to say who said not to drop names. There are more super cool names to drop but for the sake of making this episode I'll drop it. When you, yes you are famous, please text me a selfie and I'll post it on my Facebook page, this website and everywhere. No one has said anything about selfie dropping. My first guitar, age 10 (me, not the guitar). What if everyone had their own podcast? Everyone. In the process, we could all learn cool stuff, become even more curious, host experts on various topics of value, curate and fine tune the messages, highlight the thoughts and ideas, and finally produce and publish them. Serve content that is not only understandable but easy for beginners to make podcasts a simple to access source. Then, through the mojo of the internet reach out and thoughtfully touch minds of all kinds everywhere. We'd all be a little more accountable for who we are. I think world leaders should look into hosting and producing their own podcasts. It's good to be held accountable. This show is a platform or a stage for the performers to connect with listeners with the future of happiness and doing meaningful things in mind. Happiness is like singing, the more you do it the better you get at it…and no one is tone deaf. Everyone at every age can sing. There's way too much negativity in today's media so it's my intention to host guests that are positive and kind. Being kind is the number one thing that brings happiness to the recipient and the giver. It’s virtually impossible to be sad or angry when you’re happy and gracious. Happiness is directly proportional to graciousness. I know this sounds like unicorns and fuzzy wuzzies but hey, it's gotta start somewhere. Let go with appreciating what we have, having new experiences, doing things that are meaningful, having great friends and family…and they’re all free. How This All Began In 2008 my 86-year-old dad called and asked if I would stay with him and my mother and take care of them. I was with them 24/7 for a fulfilling and challenging year. During that year I learned a new perspective that a son or daughter could only learn by being totally immersed as a full-time caretaker for their aging parents. My father had cancer, my mother had a failing heart and more. There were pills followed by pills to counteract the pills. And yes, they both needed care with everything from meals, meds and doctor appointments to bed, bathrooms and beyond. We all knew our time together was growing short but that was almost never a topic. What did concern them was fascinating and will stick in my mind forever. I kept a journal of our final times together. I wrote down what we talked about…of their hopes and fears and valuable relationships with others. I recently read through the scribbled notes I kept in a spiral notebook. They spoke of the past, present and the things of interest they still wanted to explore. Interesting: The things that now brought them purpose…in the final call were so basic and simple it defies most of what we’re programmed to think throughout our lives. It wasn’t about the “stuff” or the material “treasures” that we seem to be drawn to…the elusive carrot dangling from the stick…what they and we all work toward for so many years. The most valuable asset to them in the final act was time…time to experience good times and to gain more knowledge. Their knowledge, memories and phases of their lives and their relationships with others were “the gold.“ After sifting through my journal I sat and thought, “what if,