In Praise of Lists

My wife Patty is an avid list-maker. She has the usual grocery list and "to-do" list, but she also makes lists for just about everything you can think of. Weekend plans, vacation plans, house project plans, car servicing, Christmas lists, birthday lists, Franz list (sorry, couldn't help that one!). I joke with her saying she has a list of lists. Remember those popular books "The Book of Lists"?

Well, I have to say that there is a definite advantage to making and using lists. The other day I was doing some errands and was thinking of everything I had to do and was feeling overwhelmed. So, sitting in one of our local pizza eateries I broke out my iphone and made a list, adding entries as they came to mind no matter how mundane. There were close to 50 items...all tasks from looking something up online to painting a room.

When I returned home, I set out on my list. By the end of the day, I was able to write "Done" next to five entries. (No, the room paint job wasn't one of them!). What a feeling of accomplishment! I reorganized my list to group the "Done" things together. I proudly displayed my list to Patty as if to say "honey, I've become a believer". I'm not sure, but I think there was a hint of a tear in her eye.

In this ever complicated world we live in, we're all loaded with many many tasks, things to do, errands, gifts to give, calls to make, emails to write, etc., and list-making is essential if we are going to have a chance of getting to half of the things we need to. Checking things off as "Done" gives you a sense of accomplishment, success. Adding things to the list actually frees your mind up from having to remember those things.

Pretty soon I'll start the mother of all lists....my Bucket List. hmmm. What would I put on that??

Hey, now that I've written this blog post, I can check off another item.

A little about my sound system for live gigs...

I posted a little video where I discuss my sound system(s). Essentially, to me, it's ALL about portability and being able to make one trip into the venue from the car. I do have two systems, however, and which one I use depends on the venue. One system is a higher powered setup, but it IS bulky and heavy and alot to setup and... The other is what I talk about and demo in the video


My mic is the same for either system--the Audix Fireball V harmonica mic. It's not a green bullet blues mic, nor is it intended to be.  It is a lightweight, warm sounding mic that has a convenient little volume control on it.


So, please check out the video and let me know what you think!!