Here’s a cliché for you - going to a mall on a Saturday night in Jersey. Just one more way, in addition to my regular Dunkin Doughnuts coffee and uncharacteristically bold driving moves, I’m feeling more at home in this town 15 miles west of Manhattan. In the passenger seat beside me, helping me conquer the congested, cut-throat mall parking lot in search of a vacant spot, is my old Army friend, Ro. Together, we maneuver through swarms of pedestrians, slippery roads, and some very questionable drivers on our quest to see  a movie this evening.   People wonder sometimes why on earth I moved out here to northern New Jersey, without friends, family, or a job. The short answer is, I’m here to pursue a music career in New York City. But the truth is, I never thought about New York City until 2 years ago when Ro planted the idea into my head. I’ll never forget the shock I felt when she said she believed I had enough talent to find work out here. If not for her suggestion and encour...

Today is my 365th blog post! Naturally, I've been doing a bit of reflecting on this past year. Last February, I was alone in a strange new city, unemployed, and experiencing rejection on a daily basis as a new, struggling musician. I decided I had  to focus on something positive everyday. This does not come naturally for me, so I created a blog where the title locks me into a daily commitment, "One Magical Moment Per Day." This blog has become an important part of my life. Not only that, but much of my life comes out through this blog. Many days, I've sat staring at a blank screen wondering, what on earth will I write about today? And then suddenly I have an idea and the inspiration pours out. I'm left with a few paragraphs full of my heart, that would never have manifested in any other way if I didn't have this blog. I always thought that at number 365, I would be ready to call it quits. But now that I'm here, I can't imagine giving it up just ye...

In the early morning hours between sleep and consciousness, I heard a loud and constant “ Scrape, scrape, scrape ! Thud, thud, thud .” Too tired to care what it might be, I went back to sleep. The sound then made an appearance in a shallow dream I had, where my dog was digging a hole in the ground. I woke again, and still made no attempt to figure out where the noise was coming from, it was somewhere outside my window and that’s all that bothered to register. I took my dog out for her morning walk, still sleepy eyed and in auto-mode, to find the noise was a young man scraping the inch and a half layer of ice off the stairs and sidewalks of our apartment building. He was using a metal garden hoe, that was the only thing strong enough to break through the solid sheet. It was then that I realized, he had been at this for hours! I also noticed a man, who I was fairly certain was a neighbor from another building, finishing up a conversation with the ice scraping boy. I wondered, could he b...

Sometimes I let my imagination run off and go wherever it wants, especially when I'm bored. I wonder, could I secretly be the star of my own movie, like in the Truman Show? Maybe there are hidden cameras capturing my undone, wavy hair, sweatpants, and sorry attempts of piano practice (I just can't seem to motivate myself to learn the waltz from Coppelia). That would be about the most boring movie I can think of. More realistically, I'm probably stuck in the same day over and over again, like the movie Groundhog Day. Hey, it is Ground Day, how's that for proof?  I wake up every day, look out my window, and see white. The next day, I wake up, look outside, and see white. It just keeps happening. I can't seem to break the cycle.  I hope these are weather-proof chairs Joy does most of her "swimming" in the winter White...EVERYWHERE I'm doing everything I can to break the Groundhog Day spell, like in the movie, he has to do everything right ...

I vowed today that since work got cancelled due to the crazy ice storm, I would sort every piece of sheet music that is stashed on my cluttered bookshelf. For years, I've let it accumulate into madness, dreading the day when I would have to face the consequences of my disorganization and put it into some kind of order. There is a plastic bag filled with photocopied music that I haven't even opened in years. I fought the impulse to just toss the entire thing, but as it usually goes, I'm glad now that I didn't.  The first lost piano treasure in this mess, was a practice schedule from 1992 (I just turned 9). My teacher made me write down how many minutes I practiced per day and then a parent had to initial the bottom. This particular week, I practiced pretty diligently considering it happened to be my birthday! My dad was the parental initialer whose handwriting looks strikingly similar to that of a nine-year-old's...fishy, but I was a very honest child. He just has t...

New York City and surrounding areas, get your flash lights ready. Your battery operated radios. Your blankets, canned food, bottled water. Put your cars in the garage. Cancel your plans tomorrow. For tonight we shall have rain, sleet, ice, and snow falling from Heaven. If only it were pennies instead.... Taken at Fordham Plaza in the Bronx, "Pennies from Heaven" To see more videos from Play Me, I'm Yours , click here .

Hard, wooden pews. Old, brick building. An organ, a piano, and a hymnal. There is a subtle charm inside the walls of a small, faithful church. And something inspirational when they still use the old fashioned hymnals on the backs of the pews. I appreciate the contemporary sound in some services with drums and a rehearsed worship band, it can be very powerful and compelling. But I'll always have a special place in my heart for the hymns I grew up with, their poetic heartfelt lyrics, and familiar melodies. Today we sang one I haven't heard in a long time. " Little is much when God is in it! Labor not for wealth or fame. There's a crown and you can win it, if you go in Jesus name. " How true that is. I've seen it. If that statement is true, "little is much when God is in it," then the reverse must also be true, "much is little without God." How many times have we seen that sad story? A moment later, a man walked to the pulpit to sing ...